OFFICIAL SITE OF AUTHOR MICHAEL RICKARD

The YouTube channel Wrestlelamia has a fantastic look at the death of Nancy Argentino and Jimmy Snuka's possible involvement in it.

Check out the spring 2017 issue of Jack Lord's Hair. This issue, we celebrate the 45th anniversary of Marvel Comics' Tomb of Dracula comic, go natural as we look at Frank Norris' McTeague, journey to the 30th anniversary of WrestleMania III, review DC Comics' massive reprint book, The Brave and the Bold Omnibus , and examine the so-called "chick flick" as represented in Silver Linings Playbook.

Originally presented at Canadian Bulldog's World. The year was 1985. Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP) and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) were now national promotions, each running shows around the United States. The WWF had run its first pay-per-view (PPV) WrestleMania successfully and it’d also scored a coup with a NBC network special, Saturday Night’s Main Event. Some in the industry believed that the WWF had taken the lead. Some even believed JCP was a distant second. W

To the casual filmgoer, the musical may seem like any film that has songs but the musical is a genre with many subgenres derived from various categories. These categories include the backstage musical, the revue (collection of acts), the Showcase or Star Vehicle, the screen adaptation, the dance musical, and the animated musical. A close examination will reveal there is more to the musical than just people singing. The first type of musical is the backstage musical, which s

Originally published at Canadian Bulldog's World. The wrestling business was experiencing a tremendous boom period with promoters making money hand over fist. Wrestling commanded a mainstream audience and was prominently featured in the media. Then, the bottom dropped out and promoters couldn’t draw a dime. Pundits proclaimed that wrestling was dead. Like other fads, it had its heyday and then fizzled. It was nice while it lasted but nothing was going to bring it back. Sound

In naturalist novels, secondary characters also suffer bad fates. Continuing naturalism’s theme of life’s unpredictability and tendency to end badly, Marcus laments how he let Trina, and more importantly, her money, slip away: You fool, you fool, Marcus Schouler! If you’d kept Trina you’d have had that money. You might have had it yourself. You’ve thrown away your chance in life—to give up the girl, yes—but this,” he stamped his foot with rage—“to throw five thousand dollars

Copyright 2017 Michael Rickard Having bought a new car, I'm amazed at all of the gizmos in it. While I like having a small monitor on my dashboard to show important information like what song I'm playing or what Sirius/XM channel I'm tuned to, I'm beginning to think Skynet is already at work, seeking to thin the herd with its technological devilry. I noticed my new car randomly sends me warning messages disguised as safety tips. For example, I pulled out into traffic and not

Mac is burdened by his laziness. While environment contributes to Mac’s downfall, hereditary plays a significant part. Mac is simple-minded and lazy. The text suggests Mac gives up easily when frustrated such as when Trina gets him a job with Uncle Oelbermann. “However, it was a position that involved a certain amount of ciphering, and McTeague had been obliged to throw it up in two days” (239). Ciphering does not come easy to the dim-witted Mac so he abandons the job, troubl

While mad scientists may seem to create monsters and potions with ease, filmmakers may find there is no easy formula for a good horror film. Or is there? Like any genre, a horror film has defining characteristics but are they as easy to assemble as Frankenstein’s monster, guaranteeing the audience will pay to see it and be scared? Graves and Engle define the horror genre’s characteristics as exotic settings, deformity and makeup, pity, “beauty and the beast,” outraged populac

Frank Norris' novel McTeague exemplifies naturalism with its examination of character through a slice of life storytelling technique, and its exploration of naturalist themes such as life’s unpredictability, the negative impact of capitalism, and the absence of God in personal events. Norris investigates the shifting winds of fate as his title character works to better his life, rising from life as a miner to the professional class of dentistry. However, in a series of misfor

WrestleMania III holds a very special place in my heart as I consider it one of the best-booked and hyped pay-per-views of all time. Check out part three of my three-part column at Canadian Bulldog's World.

In 1992, World Championship Wrestling (WCW) fans saw the debut of a masked wrestler in a familiar-looking costume. That wrestler was Arachnaman. He wore a costume eerily similar to the Amazing Spider-Man except where Spidey’s costume was blue and red, Arachnaman’s was blue and yellow. Arachnaman even shot out webs during his entrance, completing the resemblance. As you might expect, Marvel Comics was not happy with this and threatened legal action. Arachnaman disappeared. Co