Eddie Gries

If you watch any Puerto Rican wrestling in its heyday, from the late 70’s and 80’s chances are pretty good that you will see photographer Eddie Gries at ringside.
Eddie talks about his days as a record dealer at The Relic Rack and his oldies label Relic Records to his time as a photographer and inside man with Carlos Colon’s WWC.
Eddie is another friend I met while working on my Bruiser Brody book and we have stayed friends since. He can come off as a crusty grouch, but he’s a great guy who started as a wrestling fan, made his way inside the business, but still remained a wide-eyed mark.

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Fast Eddie Gries and Bruiser Brody. (Photo by George Napolitano)

Lord James Blears

When conducting interviews for my book on Bruiser Brody I had the chance to talk with Lord James Blears. Blears had been a mainstay at the AWA, but I also knew that he had worked as a talent agent for Giant Baba’s All-Japan Pro Wrestling and was instrumental in booking American talent in Japan.

Unfortunately, Lord Blears could not remember who Bruiser Brody was. However, he told me the incredible story of the SS Tjisalak, a Dutch freighter sunk in World War II. Blears was one of five survivors after being apprehended by a Japanese submarine, watching several of his shipmates beheaded, and diving back into the water under a hailstorm of bullets. Simply an amazing story.

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Gary Hart

Gary Hart passed away in March, 2008. I conducted this interview with Gary in 2006 for my book on the life of Bruiser Brody. The conversation drifts away from Brody quite a bit but Gary’s knowledge of the wrestling business is very informative. Gary was a matchmaker and agent for World Class Championship Wrestling and has some incredible stories about working for Fritz Von Erich. Gary reveals a secret he had never told anyone before about the NWA. He jokes about a funny rib he pulled on Abdullah the Butcher. There is naturally plenty about Bruiser Brody and Texas wrestling. The stories are hilarious and sometimes heartbreaking.

The recording jumps at one point when I had to flip the tape, and it also has a somewhat abrupt end, but I think it is a very interesting conversation.

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Gary Hart and Bruiser Brody (photo by Bob Murphy)

Herb Robins

I talked with Herb Robins, director of The Worm Eaters today. Herb acted in many films directed by Ray Dennis Steckler and Ted V. Mikels, such as The Thrill Killers, The Doll Squad, and Sinthia the Devil’s Doll. Herb also wrote Sinthia as well as the play version of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. I worked with Herb and Ted V. Mikel’s on a movie called Little Red Riding Hood Saves the Big Bad Wolf when I was younger. I had just started film school, but two weeks on that set taught taught me more about filmmaking than two years in a classroom. It’s a funny conversation with one of my friends and heroes.
If there is anything you thought needed to be talked about and wasn’t, leave a comment and I’ll do a call back with Herb.
Thanks for listening

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Ted V. Mikels, Emerson, and Herb Robins.

The above picture was taken on the set of Little Red Riding Hood Saves the Big Bad Wolf. The pose was not my idea, but I remain ever flattered.

STALKER

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Media Sound Off Interview With Jesse Thorn

We interviewed Jesse Thorn of The Sound of Young America

Intention

My intention is that this site will be a library of interviews with artists that I am interested in and feel have been underrepresented in the mainstream media. It’s fine that Inside the Actor’s Studio conducts long form interviews with the cream of the Hollywood crop, but what about the other guys?

Filmmakers, professional wrestlers, comic book creators, musicians, that’s who I’ll talk to.

Emerson