Something happened regarding Jerry Lawler during the Prime Time Players vs. Kane & Daniel Bryan match.
He had what was described as appearing like a seizure a few minutes ago. The medical team at this moment is at the announcers table. That's why the crowd was looking off to the announcers table and paying no attention to the match.
We'll update this as we get more information
Hopefully everything's ok.
EDIT: Cole went into a very somber voice, ignoring everything around him, and noted that Lawler is receiving CPR. The telltale sign that this is serious is that Cole noted "This is not a part of tonight's entertainment."
EDIT 2: If you look back at the tag match, you can clearly see Lawler being tended to during the O'Neil chinlock.
EDIT 3: Lawler's being taken to a local hospital and the rest of the show will air without commentary. Because God forbid these people STOP THE FUCKING SHOW! It's only a man's life hanging in the balance.
I wasn't playing close attention until things got real quiet. I thought the mics went out. You can find different screen shots on Twitter. You'd think they'd mention that something just happened, unless they did and I missed that.
Cole says Lawler is receiving oxygen but is breathing on his own. If that is true, thank God. Still, a frightening scene out there.
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Seems like he's in stable condition now, which is fantastic. It seems like the taping I'm going to tomorrow will not be a tribute show, which I am thankful for.
I know a few people will say "STOP THE SHOW", but it's not that easy of a decision, especially during live TV. There's contractual obligations to the network and the sponsors. Plus they need to find something else to air, it's not like they or the USA network as a backup plan. Master Control for USA doesn't have a stack of tapes that say "in the event that a live show goes terribly wrong, lets throw on something!".
EDIT: Some reports saying they *were* considering canceling the show. I actually have experience in stuff like this, so I can say that if they were considering that as a viable option then they must have thought things were serious.
Ladies and gentlemen, the following public service message is brought to you by your friends from D-Generation X, who would like to remind each and every one of you that if you're not down with that, we've got two words for you... Everything from the descriptions of what happened to the tests the King's about to go under makes it seem like he suffered a stroke. It's good to see he's probably going to make it through, but I don't think we're going to have any idea if he's going to be OK (ie without long-term damage) for a while yet. We need to keep those prayers and good thoughts coming.
smark/net attack Advisory System Status is: Elevated (Holds; June 18, 2006) While the switch from Cena to RVD should alleviate some complaints, the inevitability of the belt's return to Cena (note where Summerslam is this year) and the poor initial showing by the new ECW are enough to keep the indicator where it is for now. The pieces are in place, though, especially on RAW, for improvements to be made to the IWC's psyche in the near future.
Jerry Lawler was my first Wrestling Hero. Sad to hear about this occurring. I haven't had RAW on my tv in months, but turned over to see what was going on, and it was odd to just hear nothing from an announcer.
Hope he's okay and whatever this was, was a scare and not a real problem.
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Seeing Cole at the end in much better spirits was at least promising. His facial expressions during the first few updates seemed like the worst had already happened.
For some reason I kept thinking about how Lawler was the glue holding the ship together during the whole Owen Tragedy.
Lawler: "Don't ever leave home without telling the people you love what you think of them."
I was really hoping he did that. Now it sounds like he might get to tell them some more.
Out of all the people in the WWE, I think it's possible that Cole might be closest with the King. They've worked years together, and I'm sure King has helped Cole with much in the way of both wrestling and commentary. To see that happen to his friend on live TV and be able to hold it together like he did, the man deserves props and respect.
Originally posted by El NastioI know a few people will say "STOP THE SHOW", but it's not that easy of a decision, especially during live TV. There's contractual obligations to the network and the sponsors. Plus they need to find something else to air, it's not like they or the USA network as a backup plan. Master Control for USA doesn't have a stack of tapes that say "in the event that a live show goes terribly wrong, lets throw on something!".
(watch me argue against myself here)
They could've cut to something else. They have before. It seems like a long ago time now, but in the early 2000s, there was a live Heat broadcast beset by weather caused satellite disruptions. They stuck with it for a half hour, then pulled the plug and reran the previous week's episode for the right of the hour. It's probably easier now. It may have taken an extra long commercial break to get the tape from Stamford (and maybe even an episode with clips of Lawler beat up by Punk would leave a bad taste), but it was technically possible.
I was definitely one of the ones who thought they should stop what they were doing and instead do something else. But I have no idea what else they could have done. It was just eerie to watch them not at all acknowledge the situation, but once they did, they were powerless to do anything more. When Cole updated that Lawler was breathing, I remembered I had a remote, remembered I could get updates on Twitter, and just pulled myself away from the show. The choice is always in our hands, we're not required to watch if it becomes unwatchable. I went back when Twitter told me about Cole's updates and the ending bit, but didn't need to be there for the rest.
Maybe this is a stretch, I dunno, but John Cena and CM Punk doing their darndest to sell a match next week that we all know we've seen many times and we all know won't actually be the end was the best possible tribute to Jerry Lawler. The ending back and forth was straight out of a Memphis TV studio.
Originally posted by thecubsfan(watch me argue against myself here)
They could've cut to something else. They have before. It seems like a long ago time now, but in the early 2000s, there was a live Heat broadcast beset by weather caused satellite disruptions. They stuck with it for a half hour, then pulled the plug and reran the previous week's episode for the right of the hour. It's probably easier now. It may have taken an extra long commercial break to get the tape from Stamford (and maybe even an episode with clips of Lawler beat up by Punk would leave a bad taste), but it was technically possible.
Sunday Night Heat is not Monday Night Raw. Raw is a cornerstone of the USA Network, and makes the station a tidy chunk of change. It's also the flagship show of the company.
It's technically possible, but a logistical nightmare.
Originally posted by thecubsfanMaybe this is a stretch, I dunno, but John Cena and CM Punk doing their darndest to sell a match next week that we all know we've seen many times and we all know won't actually be the end was the best possible tribute to Jerry Lawler. The ending back and forth was straight out of a Memphis TV studio.
Not a stretch at all, I was thinking the same thing.
Originally posted by JustinShapiroI would be surprised if a production team as meticulous as WWE's doesn't have a "break glass in case of emergency" contingency.
Possible, but how often would they consider:
1) One of the broadcasters, who are hardly ever in harms way.
2) A healthy 60 year old man.
The broadcasters are actually a big part of the communication and the facilitation process. As excellent as the WWE production team is (and it isn't hyperbole when I say they truly have the best technical production staff in the world), I'm not sure they would have a plan for if something happened to a broadcaster. The thought probably never crossed their minds.
Five bucks says it will now, though. They'll be ready for something like this if it ever happens again (hopefully it won't).
EDIT:
No wonder Cole was so shaken up. According to Smith Hart's (Bret's brother) Twitter;
"According to my friend Jeremy Prophet who was backstage at RAW, Jerry was clinically dead for 20 min before being brought back by defibrilat."
Wow.
I seriously think being at the show could have saved his life if it was this bad. The WWE probably has some of the best medical staff around, that surely helped the situation.
Well, now really is the time to have that conversation. I would question not only the show continuing but that Lawler was put in a match earlier. Not sure why he's still wrestling at his age, and I certainly don't have the information necessary to claim the match caused the heart attack, but it couldn't have helped. I remember watching five minutes of Flair in TNA, bleeding and wrestling, and I felt like just this thing would happen. There's something grotesque about it all.
Luckily, the signs are encouraging and hopefully we'll have good news to wake up to tomorrow. Prayin' for Jerry.
Originally posted by Hogan's My DadNot sure why he's still wrestling at his age, and I certainly don't have the information necessary to claim the match caused the heart attack, but it couldn't have helped.
I don't think it's any kind of stretch to say that a 62-year-old man with a heart weakened from years of steroid use probably shouldn't be in wrestling matches, but King's been doing these occasional matches for the last 10 years since he "retired." I'm sure both he and management didn't think any harm would come from it. The good news is, he had his heart attack in what is probably the best possible place for that sort of thing, in an area with many trained medical professionals familiar with what was going on and ready to move him to a hospital at a moment's notice. I'm glad he made it through the night, and I hope he makes a full recovery.
Between that, and all the weeks and weeks of hype bringing the nWo in, I mean, that would mean pissing it all away in the blink of an eye. Not saying they shouldn't, I am just thinking that it wouldn't happen that quickly.