Greetings from under the 200X, Resistol hat from WWE's resident Okie, who finds it hard to believe that the 21st annual Survivor Series is less than two weeks away.

This week's Raw Superstar of the Week wasn't as tough to select as chewing a $3 steak at a breakfast buffet in downtown Vegas, as two men were definitely the focal point of Monday Night Raw from Los Angeles. So, the winners are … DX. Sorry to cut abruptly to the chase, but this one was a no-brainer.  The "one night only affair" (which sounds like a sequel to Jerry "The King" Lawler's first book, It's Good to Be The King … Sometimes) starring DX has earned Triple H and HBK lovely gift buckets -- yes, buckets -- from www.jrsbarbq.com. 

Before we get rolling here, I want to express my heartfelt condolences to all the family and friends of the late Lillian Ellison, aka The Fabulous Moolah, who passed away last Friday in South Carolina at the age 84. The first woman to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame was indeed a pioneer who led the way for those of her gender to earn a great living in the wrestling business if they demonstrated Moolah's passion, talent, and intellect for the product.
 
Moolah was a true Southern Belle who was a bona fide lady outside the ring and a hellcat inside the squared circle. The first women's match I refereed was in 1974, and Women's Champion Moolah was featured in the contest. She prevailed, even though she was in her fifties at the time. Moolah was part wrestler, trainer, promoter, tour manager, mentor, agent and a full-time icon that will never be forgotten in the world of sports entertainment. Lil survived and thrived extremely well in a "man's world," especially in the 1950's, 60's, and 70's. Moolah's passing makes me want to pick up her autobiography again and to check out Lipstick & Dynamite: The First Ladies of Wrestling, the 2005 documentary on women's wrestling from back in the day.

A sold-out crowd of 17,133 fans were in the STAPLES Center Monday night, including actor Earl Brown who played the role of Dan, Al Swearengen's trusted strong arm in Deadwood. Man, I loved Deadwood, and the fight scene between Dan and "The Captain" was a helluva piece of business, to say the least. The HBO series lives now on DVD, of which yours truly has collected the entire series. Earl was with my pal from ZZ Top, Dusty Hill, while my other buddy from the little rock ‘n roll band from Texas, the Rev. Billy F. Gibbons, couldn't be with us (which I am sure disappointed him). Both Dusty and Billy are big-time wrestling fans who can discuss the business with the best of ‘em.  Earl grew up watching wrestling in Kentucky. 

A few days ago in Hollywood, actor George Clooney and male model Fabio allegedly got into some physicality at a local eatery. Nothing significant reportedly occurred, but both "He-men" would have issues in any physical matter that involves The Glamazon, Beth Phoenix, who dispatched and "out-womaned" ECW's Kelly Kelly quicker than a hiccup on Raw.

Snitsky … I'm not exactly sure where he's heading, but I can say he's not just some pretty face. He of the lovely brown teeth is a big, aggressive athlete, to say the least.

I enjoyed the tag team of Rey Mysterio & Jeff Hardy, "the WWE Air Force," taking on the duo of Mr. Kennedy & Finlay Monday night. Of course, Rey and Finley are Friday Night SmackDown competitors who seemed to enjoy getting physical on the 754th episode of Monday Night Raw. This match was not unlike the appetizers at J.R.'s Family Bar-B-Q Restaurant as it relates to the 21st Annual Survivor Series. At our restaurant, our guests often have some fried pickles or some chicken wings before they order up their entrées. So, we got a sampler platter of the Traditional 10-Man Elimination Match that will be one of the highlights of Survivor Series on Sunday, Nov. 18 down in Miami.  Let the speculation begin as to what announce team or teams will call this Survivor Series original. Perhaps all three broadcast teams will, and if so, prepare for a train wreck. 

I'm having a hard time figuring out Santino Marella. First, how he ever or still has a personal relationship with sweet and lovely Maria is well beyond me, not to mention his ever thinking that "Stone Cold" Steve Austin wasn't going to take him to the woodshed, which happened in a wet and wild way Monday night on Raw. Poor Maria was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time Monday night, but the Raw fans in attendance seemed to enjoy the entire interaction between the Texas Rattlesnake, a stunned Santino, and a still beautiful, but all wet, Maria. It's funny what a little "Steve-Weisers" will do for a TV show. 

I woke up Tuesday morning in L.A. thinking I had dreamed that Mr. McMahon had placed his little, illegitimate son, Hornswoggle, in a match at Survivor Series against the 7-foot-3, 420 pound Great Khali. But upon awakening, I realized this wasn't a nightmare but a reality. I only have one question on this match: Why??

It was nice to see Big Dick Johnson on Raw again … well, not really. But The King did get his photo taken with the Girls Next Door prior to the show, which seemed to make "Jerome" smile.

Also on Monday Night, Cody Rhodes caught a break to defeat Trevor Murdoch, whose mind might have been elsewhere, much to the chagrin, (there's that word again) of World Tag Team Championship partner Lance Cade. But the jury is still out on what Hardcore Holly thinks of the young son of the "Dream". 

So Hacksaw "Ho" Jim Duggan teams with Super "Si" Crazy, and they start a "ho-si" chant which ends up in a "USA-USA" chant, which must have made Mexico's own Super Crazy ecstatic.  Nonetheless, the odd couple scored an upset victory over the Self-Proclaimed World's Greatest Tag Team, which may want to reconsider their moniker.  

WWE Champion Randy Orton must REALLY be getting tired of HBK's Sweet Chin Music since the handsome one has gotten his teeth loosened several outings in a row against The Showstopper. So now Michaels can't use his signature superkick against the champion at Survivor Series, but if Orton gets himself disqualified, he loses the WWE Title. Without fail, interesting days lie ahead regarding the WWE Title. 

The DX vs. Orton & Umaga bout was a dandy and a super way to close Raw from L.A. Triple H and Umaga headline their respective Survivor Series teams, which could see up to nine decisions rendered in the Traditional Survivor Series Elimination Match. 

Yours truly enjoyed doing the starting Sooner football lineups last Saturday for ABC and appreciated the opportunity to appear on the game in support of my favorite college football team. We got many e-mails at www.jrsbarbq.com from fans that saw the game and wanted to comment on it.

Be well, everyone and be sure to count your blessings. I will look forward to seeing everyone in Topeka, Kan. Monday night for the final Raw prior to the Survivor Series on pay-per-view.

BOOMER SOONER!
J.R.          

Be sure to check out J.R.'s Family Bar-B-Q Restaurant at www.jrsbarbq.com.