by James Caldwell, Assistant editor

RESULTS

1/9 WWE Raw house show in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada: (1) ECW champion Matt Hardy beat Jack Swagger. ... (2) Women's champion Beth Phoenix beat Melina. ... (3) World tag team champions The Miz and John Morrison beat Cryme Tyme (Shad Gaspar & JTG). ... (4) Finlay (w/Hornswoggle) beat Mark Henry (w/Tony Atlas). ... (5) Intercontinental champion William Regal beat Kofi Kingston. ... (6) Randy Orton & Cody Rhodes beat Rey Mysterio & CM Punk. ... (7) WWE World Hvt. champion John Cena beat hometown boy Chris Jericho.

1/9 TNA house show in Wilson, N.C.: (1) Chris Sabin beat Sonjay Dutt ... (2) Taylor Wilde beat Miss Jackie with Traci Brooks as special referee. ... (3) Abyss beat Cute Kip. ... (4) Eric Young beat Sheik Abdul Bashir. ... (5) TNA tag team champions Consequences Creed & Jay Lethal beat Beer Money, Inc. (Robert Roode & James Storm) ...(6) Rhino defeated Legends champion Booker T in a non-title match.

NEWS

Other News: Mickey Rourke says he hated his "Randy Robinson" character; contempt for what the character represented

As we've covered different aspects of the critically-acclaimed "The Wrestler" movie, bits and pieces have emerged about the background of the movie - it's development, nearly losing financing, and Mickey Rourke going through a therapeutic release of sorts playing the lead role of Randy "the Ram" Robinson.

Rourke revealed in an interview promoting the movie's U.K. debut on January 16 that he despised the character when he first read "The Wrestler" script.

The script hit too close to home with his personal choices, and he didn't feel the lines were authentic for a pro wrestler to say. Director Darren Aronofsky allowed him to re-write all of his personal dialogue as a result.

"When I read the script I really hated the (expletive) character. I hated his (expletive) guts," Rourke told Scotsman newspaper. "I hated the side of him that was such a loser, that couldn't be accountable for not taking care of his responsibilities - the thing that I didn't do for many years before I went into therapy and worked on changing."

Rourke says the resulting script and his role in the movie turned into his personal best work after wasting away for 15 years. "This is the best movie I've ever done, and the hardest," Rourke said. "But if I'd known it was going to take this many years, I'd probably have found a better profession."

Link: Mickey Rourke interview with The Scotsman.

***

WWE News: John Cena's finishing move to be re-named; made more corporate and kid-friendly

Rapper gimmick. Chain Gang. Now, the FU? The evolution of John Cena's corporate-and-kid-friendly character away from the rapper gimmick that pushed him into a main event slot on Smackdown in the mid-2000s will soon lead to another aspect of Cena's original character being done away with.

Cena's "FU" finisher will undergo a name-change to "The Throwback," reports Jim Ross. No word on whether the STFU submission hold will be re-named to The Holdback. Nevermind.

Ross says it "works for me and is certainly easier for me to communicate to my 5-year-old granddaughter who's a Cena fan of sorts."

Caldwell's Analysis: I'm just picturing (or audibly previewing) Michael Cole shouting "The Throwback" in the same sentence as "WWE Universe" repeatedly on Raw broadcasts and I'm starting to feel a little queasy. The name-change is fine to appeal to that kids audience that Vince McMahon claimed to Congress is such a teenie-weenie small portion of their viewing audience.

Link: Jim Ross blog link on jrsbarbq.com.

***

WWE News: Jim Ross provides insider commentary on "Black Friday" corporate lay-offs

Yesterday's rough day at WWE headquarters in Stamford, Conn. led to anywhere from 60-80 jobs being cut in an effort to trim the budget and make the company run more efficiently to reduce costs by $20 million.

Jim Ross, WWE Smackdown announcer and former head of talent relations, says the cuts hurt, but it should help the company run more efficiently, especially with department heads being let go.

"I can say that often times getting leaner lends itself to becoming more productive and increases communication within a corporate environment," Ross said on jrsbarbq.com. "I'm a proponent that in some areas of any company that the 'too many cooks can spoil the soup' theory is still applicable."

Ross said he's not sure who was let go on the corporate-side or when a re-structuring will be finalized to adjust internal department make-ups, but he hopes there aren't any more pink slips handed out.

"Hopefully, no one else is going to be let go but I expect that there will be several, positive internal changes made over the next few weeks," Ross said. "I am sure that there are some that I worked with in the corporate side since the mid 90's."

Link: Jim Ross blog link on jrsbarbq.com.

***

WWE News: Chris Jericho honored with award prior to Friday's house show in his hometown

Chris Jericho returned to his hometown of Winnipeg, Canada on Friday for a Raw brand house show where Jericho lost to John Cena in the main event match.

Prior to the house show, Jericho was given the 2008 Distinguished Alumni award at Red River College's Princess Street campus where he graduated in 1990 with a journalism degree.

Jericho gave a mock heel promo when he accepted the award, telling the audience: "This is just really cool, because it means that I'm now smarter than all of you."

Jericho also commented on his forthcoming second book, which he's working on. "This book is going to be better than the last one and will reach new levels of ridiculosity," he said.

Link: Winnipeg Sun article.

***

WWE News: WWE cries wolf again on Jeff Hardy being involved in storyline hit-and-run accident

In the same section of WWE's website where the company announces wrestler releases and new TV deals, WWE reported on Friday that Jeff Hardy was recently involved in a hit-and-run accident in North Carolina.

WWE told readers to tune into the Smackdown broadcast to find out more information. The broadcast made it obvious Hardy's "hit-and-run" was part of the larger storyline arc going back to him being attacked and knocked unconscious in a hotel hallway prior to the Survivor Series PPV in November.

WWE reported on the incident as if it were a legitimate news story: "WWE Champion Jeff Hardy and his girlfriend Beth were involved in a hit and run automobile accident earlier this morning in North Carolina. Both Jeff and Beth were injured during the accident, but no ambulance was called to the scene."

The storyline is expected to conclude with a "whodunit?" answer of either former TNA champion Christian Cage or ECW champion Matt Hardy as the culprit of the recent attacks on Hardy.

Link: WWE.com story.

***

WWE News: Mystery surrounding job status of Kevin Thorn - cryptic message and WWE's response

At 7:25 p.m. EST on Friday night, WWE star Kevin Thorn published a cryptic blog on WWE Universe titled "It's (sic) Not Goodbye!" Thorn hinted in vague terms that he was set to be released from WWE.

"This is not goodbye, it's only a new beginning!" Thorn wrote. "Promise you will carry on and know that I will see you soon!"

Thorn appeared to be addressing his fans, saying they are his blood and he is their vessel. "Together we make a beating heart and together we will stand tall and walk with our heads held high."

Thorn then closed his blog: "Happy trails, till we meet again." Although Thorn has been added to the official list of released wrestlers, WWE subsequently pulled his blog and WWE Universe profile page.

The actual blog, which I happened to keep open on Friday night just in case, has been completely removed and replaced with an error message: "This site has been disabled due to violations of our Terms of Service. If you are the owner of the site you may contact technical support in order to resolve the situation."

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