March 2, 2006
It’s been quite a while since I last updated my diary. There have been a lot of positive things that have happened in my wrestling career over the past two months that I wanted to share with my fans and friends. My personal life has also had its share of ups and downs as well. So I thought being off from school today due to the heavy snow forecast, I would take some time to update everyone about what I have been up to.
2005 certainly closed with some significant events that have impacted my life greatly. On a happy note, my girlfriend Kathy and I were engaged which has given me more joy and happiness then anything else I have ever done in my life. We plan to be married on July 14th, 2006 at Sacred Heart Church in Suffern, New York. As you might expect we have been very busy with the wedding plans.
On a tragic note, my beloved three year old toy poodle “Sophia” died suddenly without any warning. Apparently she suffered from a very rare blood disease that nobody including the Doctor even knew about. Sophia’s death broke my heart as she was always by side and rode with me in my truck everywhere I went, along with my other dog, “Maggie”. What made her death so difficult to accept was that she was extremely energetic and probably the friendliest dog you would ever meet. Not to mention the fact that my fiancé and I were on vacation when we got the dreadful call. A day never passes without thinking about her.
On December 16th, 2006, I was invited to wrestle for the WWE at their SMACKDOWN tapings at the Mass Mutual Center in Springfield, Massachusetts. I was put in tag team match with one of my ECWA nemesis Arch Kincaid, and we wrestled against Paul London and “Spanky” Brian Kendrick. Although I had previously worked for the WWE on many occasions in the past, this was my first actual match. Our opponents were very quick and extremely athletic. We were able to hang with them for a wile but they eventually finished us off after about 5 minutes. The match aired worldwide on the WWE television show VELOCITY.
On January 2, 2006, one of the great accomplishments of my lifetime occurred. I worked for the WWE at the sold out Continental Airlines Arena prior to the start of Monday Night RAW. I have such fond memories of going to this arena as a young boy with my father to see wrestling, and now here I was working in the same building. It was one heck of a rush that’s for sure, especially when I noticed many familiar faces sitting in the audience yelling my name. My tag team partner for this match was another ECWA nemesis Fred Sampson and our opponents were “The Heartthrobs”, Antonio and Giovanni Roselli. The match went very well even though we came up on the short end. But the thrill of wrestling in front of 16,500 people in that building was a memory that I will never forget. The match also aired internationally on the WWE television show HEAT.
The next night, I wrestled again for the WWE at the SMACKDOW tapings at the Wachovia Arena in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The crowd was about half of what we wrestled in front of the night before but was still unbelievable for my standards nonetheless. I again teamed with Fred Sampson to take on a tag team known as “The Dicks”. Unfortunately, we were defeated again but it was another enjoyable experience. This match also aired around the world on the WWE television show VELOCITY.
All three of these WWE matches are easily accessed for your viewing pleasure (or displeasure) in the archives of “Heat” and Velocity” at www.wwe.com
Two weeks later I was again summoned to work for the WWE at the SMACKDOWN taping, at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I was placed in a dark match prior to any of the tapings starting. I teamed with former ECW tag team champion Danny Doring against the “FBI”, Nunzio and Big Vito. For me this was a very special match. Not just because it was for the WWE in front of 14,000 people at the same arena where the Sixers and Flyers play, but because it was against the man who brought me into the business and trained me, Nunzio. Danny Doring and I were defeated, however we put up a very strong fight and the notoriously tough Phili crowd got behind us which was nice. This match was not taped for any program, but I would love to get my hands on a copy of this match if anyone has it.
On February 19th, 2006, I worked for the WWE again at the First Mariner Arena in Baltimore for their pay per view No Way Out, and again the next night at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton for Monday Night RAW. Unfortunately, I didn’t wrestle a match either night but it was a positive experience nonetheless.
As March begins, I am currently 8 days away from competing in my 14th amateur bodybuilding show. This is the annual Tri State Natural Bodybuilding Show at Clarkstown South High School that my Fiancé and I having been training hard for.
I am hoping to come in at my highest weight and lowest body fat percentage ever. As of right now things look good, but a lot can happen during the last week of contest preparation.
On March, 16th, 2006, East Coast professional Wrestling and the Suffern Touchdown Club will be holding the 4th Annual “Night of Professional Wrestling” at my old school, Suffern High. This year’s show is stacked with Sgt. Slaughter, Kamala, Tommy Dreamer and many more coming to town. What makes this show so special, is that this year we are trying to raise money for a 4 year old boy who is suffering from a rare form of cancer. The boy, Aiden Berges, happens to be the grandson of the Sheriff of Rockland County, James E. Kralik who is my father’s closest friend. So in addition to dieting and training, I am running around like a chicken with his head cut off trying to make sure this show succeeds.
I hope that catches everyone up on what the life of Scotty Charisma has been like the past six months. I will do my best to give more frequent updates in the future.
June 14, 2005
It has been a long while since I last updated my diary. So much has happened that I am not sure where to begin. To give you an idea of how busy I have been over the past four months, I spent six days in Orlando, Florida, four days in Quebec City, Canada, four days in Ashburn, Virginia, three days in Washington D.C, two days in North Andover, Massachusetts, one day in Wichita, Kansas, and one day in Ponca City, Oklahoma. I wrestled in eight different states, worked for the WWE on five occasions, competed in one bodybuilding show, attended two Yankee games, defended the ECWA Heavyweight Title twice, and maintained my full time jobs as an 8th Grade History Teacher and Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Suffern High School Football Program. Yes, I have been very extremely busy. But in all honesty the life of Scott Wright has never been any better.
On February 28th, 2005, I had the opportunity to work for the WWE on their live broadcast of Monday Night Raw from the Dunkin Donuts Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island. I was one of the security guards that were called to the ring during the Shawn Michaels vs. Edge main event. The next night I also worked for the WWE at their Smackdown taping from the Pepsi Arena in Albany, New York, participating in a major storyline with Olympic Gold Medalist Kurt Angle and the “Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels.
One week later, on March 11th, East Coast Professional Wrestling made its return to my hometown of Suffern, New York for the third straight year to raise money for the football team that I help coach. Once again, the people of this fine community that I reside in provided tremendous support for an event that will likely become an annual tradition for years to come. Despite the snowy conditions and poor weather forecast over 1200 people jammed into the high school gym to raise over $8,000 for the Suffern Mounties Football Program. In three years of running this event, the shows have generated over $27,000. I do not believe there is another type of fundraiser that can boast such success.
The next night I successfully defended my ECWA Heavyweight Championship belt for the first time with a victory over an old nemesis, the 400 lb. Kodiak Bear.
After 12 weeks of strenuous dieting, I stepped on stage at the NBI Natural Tri State Bodybuilding Championships at Clarkstown South High in West Nyack, New York on March 19th. This was the thirteenth time I competed in an amateur competition in my lifetime and it proved to be anything but unlucky. Not only did I win my class, but I won the whole Novice Division. This was a tremendous accomplishment in my career as I have never taken first place before. I could not have achieved this success without the support of Warren Fahrenfeld, who designed my nutrition program through Apex Fitness Systems, and my wonderful girlfriend Kathy who placed third in the Women’s Figure Competition. Having someone who was dieting for a competition along with me simultaneously certainly made things a lot easier.
After spending three fun filled days chaperoning my 8th Grade students around Washington D.C., I then returned home to board a plane for Wichita, Kansas on April 16th. That night I wrestled Irish John O’Malley for the NWA-Universal Heavyweight Title in Ponca City, Oklahoma. After connecting with my top rope high cross body block, my victory was interrupted by a masked man who broke up the three count. The match was thrown out and ruled a no-contest. My suspicions tell me that the intruder was none other then former Heavyweight Champion “Mr. Saturday Night” Michael Barry. Hopefully, the NWA-Universal commissioner will have this situation resolved by my return to Oklahoma on June 24th, and give me another title opportunity or a chance to confront my assailant.
In late April, I took a long needed vacation to Orlando, Florida with my girlfriend. We stayed at the beautiful Royal Pacific Hotel right in Universal City adjacent to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. We had a fabulous time visiting all the theme parks and fine restaurants that both Universal and Disney have to offer. One of the highlights of the trip was eating in Emeril Lagassa’s Polynesian Restaurant which was located right in our hotel next to the pool. In my opinion, this meal was the tastiest dinner I have ever had and it is no surprise that this man has such a cult-like following from is Food Channel television show. Even with all the exciting attractions of Orlando it was very relaxing to just lay in the hot 85 degree sun down by the pool.
On May 14th, I returned to Delaware to defend my ECWA Heavyweight Title against “The Intellectual” Arch Kincaid, who was fresh off his WWE dark match against Tyson Tomko at the Fleet Center in Boston the previous Monday. My opponent had a very big surprise for me on this night when he introduced his new bodyguard, Vic D. Vine. After defeating Kincaid, Mr. D. Vine entered the ring and subsequently pummeled me to the mat. Several referees and security guards were called to pull him off of me but not before he was able to hit some viscous looking maneuver on me. I can tell you right now that at the next ECWA show on July 16th I will be looking for revenge.
From May 19th thru May 22nd, I traveled to Quebec City, Canada with my 8th grade students of Suffern Middle School. Quebec is an absolutely gorgeous city located on the scenic St. Lawrence River and is so rich in French culture. I had a fantastic time interacting with my students outside the classroom and visiting the sites of this beautiful place. I definitely recommend Quebec to anyone who has never been there before, especially during the summer.
On June 4th, I returned to wrestle for one of the premier wrestling organizations in the northeast, Chaotic Wrestling. Although I was defeated in the first round of the Chaotic Heavyweight Title Tournament by my opponent Luis Ortiz, it was a pleasure to once again wrestle for such a first class promotion. The next day, I attended a very educational all day training session, put together by Chaotic Wrestling School Head Trainer Mike Hollow and Legendary Independent Promoter Jim Kettner, at the Chaotic Training Center in North Andover, Massachusetts.
This past Saturday night, I returned to Connecticut to wrestle for Connecticut Championship Wrestling in Northford, Connecticut. This show was dedicated to the memory of 22 year old Dan “Spider” Quirk who died the previous weekend during a match. His death was the result of his head being cracked open on the cement floor after his opponent landed on him, while performing a flying plancha over the top rope to the outside of the ring. Close to 300 fans turned out for this event to honor one of the friendliest wrestlers in the business. Spider was a staple on Connecticut wrestling shows and always appeared on ECPW shows when we traveled to the state. After a very touching 30 minute tribute to him that included a 10 bell salute, a video, and many “Spider” stories from CCW booker Bulldog Blanski the show began. On this night I was able to defeat Rob Echos but as far as I was concerned this night was not about wrestling, it was about honoring Spider. It was very difficult to focus on wrestling a match after such an emotionally moving tribute.
As mid June approaches I have once again started dieting for another bodybuilding show that I will compete in at the end of the summer. It will be in the OCB Northern Atlantic States Natural Bodybuilding Championships in Bristol, Connecticut on Saturday, August 27th, 2005.
I am looking forward to a very eventful summer and I hope to have a lot more wonderful experiences to report on in the near future.
February 17th, 2005
Jim Kettner’s East Coast Wrestling Association is the longest running, most successful independent wrestling organization in the country. The ECWA Heavyweight Championship belt is the most prestigious title an independent wrestler can hold. Well this past Saturday night was the biggest night of my career to this point, as not only did I compete in a championship match for this belt, but I won it and brought it back home to Suffern, New York.
The match was a 5-man scramble elimination for the ECWA Heavyweight Championship against the defending champion John Walters, former champions Mike Kruel and Xavier, and the young sensation Andrew Ryker. Once a pinfall or submission occurred, a wrestler was eliminated. These types of matches are extremely difficult as you have to watch your back at all times and you never know when two or even three people are going to gang up on you. Although many of the fans were rooting for me to win this match, I was still an overwhelming underdog as my opponents were much more experienced then me.
About ten minutes into the match Mike Kruel was eliminated by Andrew Ryker. Kruel responded by hitting Ryker over the head with a steel chair while the referee had his back turned. Xavier quickly covered Ryker for the pinfall leaving three wrestlers remaining: Xavier, John Walters and myself. Walters and I started to gang up on Xavier as neither one of us cared for antics inside the ring very much. However, at one point while Xavier was indisposed outside the ring and I had my back turned, Walters quickly clotheslined me from behind. I was quite shocked by this at first and so were the fans, but then I realized that this was a championship match and there were no friends. Ironically, Walters and Xavier began to viciously double team me. At one point, I was thrown through the ropes and landed directly on the concrete floor, squarely on my left shoulder. I was in a state of agonizing pain but vowed to continue fighting, as I wasn’t sure if or when I would have an opportunity like this again. At one point a miscommunication between my two foes led Walters to deliver an inadvertent flying forearm to Xavier. At this point, with Xavier distracted I seized the moment and climbed to the top rope to deliver a high cross body block for the three count on Xavier. Now it was down to the nine month defending champion John Walters and myself. The two of us battled back and forth with blistering knife edge chops and stiff forearms to the head, while I nursed my aching left shoulder. At about the twenty minute mark both of us were completely drained from battle, however I was able to counter John’s Powerbomb finisher with an Ocana Roll, and gained the three count for the title victory.
I was now the ECWA Heavyweight Champion and it was certainly the proudest moment of my four year career. I don’t think there was a person in the crowd that was not surprised to see me win the title. There was no question I was the heavy underdog on this night, but with fighting spirit and the crowd solidly in my corner, I was able to overcome the odds.
After the match, John Walters in a sign of excellent sportsmanship extended his hand in congratulations after a hard fought match up. It certainly shows the quality of his character to show such courtesy in the wake of defeat. I commend John for his actions and it would be an honor to defend the title against him in the future.
As for my shoulder, I was in a tremendous amount of pain on the ride home to New York Saturday night, and I went to the Doctor on Sunday. It turns out to be nothing too serious, just a sprained shoulder joint and deep muscle bruise which at this point is as purple as grape juice. However, due to my injury I unfortunately had to postpone my Valentine’s Day trip to Orlando, Florida to wrestle for NWA-TNA.
January 16th, 2005
Well 2005 has certainly gotten off to a fast and
successful start in the life of Scotty Charisma. On January 3rd and 4th I was
booked by World Wrestling Entertainment to be at their Monday night Raw show
at the Nassau Coliseum and their Smackdown taping at the Mohecan Sun Arena the
next night. I did not get the opportunity to wrestle a match either night,
however I played the part of one of the Undertaker's "Druids" during the main
event segment of the Smackdown show which aired Thursday night January 6th.
Our role was to carry two coffins out to ringside for the Casket Match between
the Undertaker and John Hiedenriech. Ironically, Paul Heyman was the one who
was placed in the coffin and we subsequently carried the coffin away for the
burial. Being out at ringside while 15,000 screaming fans were going crazy was
an experience that I will never forget.
This past weekend turned out to be my first actual
match of 2005, and there is no better way to start the year off then to be
working for Jim Kettner's ECWA promotion in Newark, Delaware. I was scheduled
to wrestle in a Tag Team Title match for the ECWA Tag Team Championship
against the reigning champions "The Valedictorians" Rob Echos and Billy Baxx,
who are accompanied by their manager Carlton B. Hightower. My partner for this
big match was New England star Jason Blade and it was the first time we have
teamed up. That said, we jelled as a team perfectly and complimented each
other's skills wonderfully. As a team we seemed to of had the champs beaten
towards the end of the match, when Blade hit a perfectly executed northern
lights suplex on Rob Echos. He then tagged me in to go to the top turnbuckle
and hit a top rope cross body block for what appeared to be a sure 3 count and
the victory. Unfortunately, the referee was distracted by the Valedictorians'
manager Carlton B. Hightower who had gotten up on the ring apron. While
focusing on Hightower the referee did not see my partner's tag to me, and as a
result refused to count three when I assuredly had Echos pinned. During the
ensuing confusion that followed and while the referee was arguing with me to
get out of the ring, the Valadictorians hit a quick double team move on my
partner to earn the three count and the victory. This was an excellent match
but it is very hard to swallow when you realize that we had the champions beat
and that their manager caused us to lose. Baxx and Echos are a terrific team,
but what makes them so dangerous is having a sly, skillful and calculating
manager that knows exactly how to engineer victories for his team both legally
and illegally.
2005 looks to be a very exciting year for my career. In
February, I am booked for NWA-TNA down at Universal Studios in Orlando,
Florida and in March and May for NWA-Oklahoma in the Tulsa. I am also booked
to work for Jim Kettner's ECWA promotion through May and hopefully longer
since it is the longest running and most prestigious independent organization
in the country. On March 11th East Coast Professional Wrestling (ECPW) will be
returning for the third year in a row to my alma matta Suffern High School,
for our annual fundraiser to support the football team for which I am an
assistant coach. Last year we had over 1600 people in the audience and we
raised close to $14,000. This year's show promises to be bigger and better
then ever and we hope to sell out the 1900 seat gymnasium. The card is loaded
from top to bottom. It includes people like Mick Foley, King Kong Bundy, Simon
Diamond, "Crowbar" Devon Storm and Danny Doring, as well as talented up and
comers such as Matt Striker, Red Hot Russ, Fred Sampson, Josh Daniels, Johnny
Thunder, Damain Adams, Paul E. Normus, Vic D. Vine and many others. One week
later, on March 19th, I will be competing for the second year in a row in the
NBI Natural Tri-State Bodybuilding Show at nearby Clarkstown South High School
in Rockland County, New York. I have already begun dieting and training for
what will be my thirteenth amateur bodybuilding competition of my career.