Al Snow
Al Snow | |
---|---|
Birth name | Allen Ray Sarven |
Born | Lima, Ohio, U.S. | July 18, 1963
Spouse(s) | Pamela Sarven
(m. 1986; div. 2004)Jessica Gousha (m. 2017) |
Children | 2 |
Angel Grove, California (as Avatar)[3] | |
Trained by | Jim Lancaster[1] |
Debut | March 13, 1982[5] |
Allen Ray Sarven (born July 18, 1963) is an American
Professional wrestling career
Early career (1982–1995)
Sarven attended a professional wrestling tryout camp held by Ole and Gene Anderson. There he met Jim Lancaster, promoter of Ohio's Midwest Championship Wrestling, who agreed to train him.[6] Lancaster later described Sarven as "a leader in the ring" who "had drive and natural ability".[7] He made his debut on May 22, 1982. Sarven defeated Lancaster on May 5, 1985, for the Midwest Championship Wrestling title.[7]
Sarven wrestled in various independent promotions throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, capturing both tag team and singles titles, but failed to make any big breaks. In 1993 he competed in the WWF as a jobber losing to Marty Jannetty and The Undertaker under the name Steve Moore.
He gained a reputation as "the best-kept secret in wrestling".
From 1995 to 1997, Snow operated a
Extreme Championship Wrestling (1995)
After a tour of
Smoky Mountain Wrestling (1995)
Sarven was also being courted by Jim Cornette for his Smoky Mountain Wrestling federation. ECW booker Paul Heyman agreed to let him work for both companies. Sarven soon found that he was not being utilized by ECW and went to Smoky Mountain full-time.[6] In Smoky Mountain Wrestling, Snow teamed with Unibomb (Glenn Jacobs, later to be known as Kane) as The Dynamic Duo and defeated the Rock 'n' Roll Express for the SMW Tag Team Championship.[7] Both wrestlers caught the attention of the World Wrestling Federation and were signed by the end of 1995.
World Wrestling Federation (1995–1997)
Various gimmicks (1995–1996)
Sarven began working for the
New Rockers (1996–1997)
Sarven received his first mainstream exposure with the WWF as Leif Cassidy, the tag team partner of Marty Jannetty in February 1996. The duo were promoted as The New Rockers, a throwback to the original Rockers team of Jannetty and Shawn Michaels. Eventually, Jannetty left, and Sarven was reduced to jobbing for mid-carders in January 1997. In the late 1990s, WWF and ECW began to cross-promote their organizations to counteract the success of World Championship Wrestling (WCW); Sarven was one of the wrestlers sent to Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). His last appearance in WWF in September 1997 was a loss to Tiger Ali Singh at WWF One Night Only.
Return to ECW (1997–1998)
Sarven found success back in ECW, billed once again as Al Snow. Sarven developed a new character gimmick after reading about
In the storyline, Snow, upset at his lot in life, asked
Return to the WWF/E (1998–2008)
Hardcore Championship pursuits (1998–1999)
Sarven was then recalled to the company, where he continued his gimmick of talking to "Head", creating some of the more memorable humorous skits of "
Snow received some mainstream publicity in 1999 when Wal-Mart pulled his action figure from their shelves after Sabrena Parton, a professor at Kennesaw State University, complained that "Head" was a "decapitated woman's head" that sent an inappropriate message about violence towards women. Parton was quoted as saying "What kind of message would this toy send children about brutalization of women?"[11] Sarven used the story as part of an angle in which the controversy caused Al Snow to develop depression.
At
Various alliances and feuds (1999–2004)
Snow would later team with real life friend
In early 2000, he began to team with Steve Blackman as an "odd couple" tag team called Head Cheese (the "cheese" part being given various explanations, including Snow's claim that Blackman was a voracious eater of cheese and later his attempt to force him to wear a Green Bay Packers "Cheesehead" hat). At WrestleMania 2000 the two suffered a loss against Test and Albert. Also in the same year, Snow won the European Championship from Perry Saturn. He then began a tongue-in-cheek gimmick of entering the ring to various European countries' native music, with his theme song sung in the language of the country, and wearing attire which would suit the stereotype of that country. This continued until he lost the title to William Regal.
In 2001, Snow tried to rally support from the fans to vote for him as the new Commissioner of the company following Foley's on-screen firing by Vince McMahon in December 2000. By March 2001, a match was set up between Snow and Regal to determine the new Commissioner, which resulted in Regal winning. Snow then took some time off from the ring in order to commit more time for the reality show
Snow's last championship reign came on March 11, 2002, when he defeated
On April 12, 2004, episode of Raw, Snow dressed up as the Five Star Ninja a portray of Shinobi which he lost to
Commentator and ECW (2004–2006)
In September 2004 Snow left Sunday Night Heat as a commentator and went to Velocity. In June 2006, Snow returned to wrestling full-time as a member of the new
Developmental and departure (2007–2008)
Snow then returned with the company as a trainer at
Independent circuit (2005–2006, 2007, 2008–present)
Prior to returning to WWE's active roster in 2006, Snow was allowed to compete on the independent circuit. In 2006, Snow was pinned by the Millennium Wrestling Federation (MWF) Heavyweight Champion "Sudden Impact" Dylan Kage of Paul Bearer's Trifecta stable at MWF Fireworks On The 4th.[27]
Since early 2008, Snow has regularly competed in several independent promotions in the U.S. and Europe, especially in the U.K. and Germany. In March 2009, he made an appearance in Chikara's King of Trios tournament, teaming up with Glacier and D'Lo Brown.
On October 21, 2022, Snow and Kal Herro won the OFE Tag Team as the New Rockers. Snow wore the attire he wore as Leif Cassidy.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling / Impact Wrestling (2008–2017)
In the lead-up to the December 7, 2008, TNA show
In March 2010, Sarven received a tryout as an agent for TNA Wrestling.
In May 2012, Snow began appearing as a judge in the monthly
On January 12, 2013, Snow took part in
On the August 7, 2014, edition of Impact Wrestling, Snow returned to team with
On the February 13, 2015, edition of Impact Wrestling (which was taped on January 29), Snow returned to TV as a heel, where he was seen in the
On the April 5, 2016 Impact Wrestling TNA Management Director Billy Corgan suspended Al Snow for the week without pay and said next week he must apologise. When Al Snow returned from his suspension week, he entered the ring and said the ease new talents get today with earning respect and a name in the professional wrestling business, drove him crazy as he and others of his and generations before him needed to get some for quite a long time and fight hard to prove themselves worthy back then. He invited Mahabali Shera to the ring and apologized to him for attacking him and Grado, breaking Grado's arm in the process. Shera shook hands with him, only for Al Snow to betray and attack him once they went out of the ring. At a backstage segment, Al Snow said angrily he doesn't need to apologize and explain himself to rookies and if they want his apology and respect they need to defeat him in a match.
A week after, Al Snow had a match with Shera in which before and a bit during the match he has blamed the wrestling changes on the fans and said they are cowards for sitting behind the barricades and not coming to the ring to face him. Shera gave a good fight, but Al Snow eventually won the match. In the May 10 episode of Impact!, Shera and Snow had a rematch where Al Snow played games and almost won with his cheating tactics, however, he eventually failed to win due to Grado involving himself in the match, making sure Shera wins. At backstage, a bit later, Al Snow was interviewed and talked angrily, cursing Grado and Shera in the process. On May 24 episode of Impact!, Al Snow went on to win a back and forth street fight against Grado with the help of the debuting
Ohio Valley Wrestling (2018–present)
On April 7, 2018, it was reported Snow purchased Ohio Valley Wrestling.[40]
In January 2021, Snow sold a majority interest in OVW to a group led by radio host Matt Jones, and former 21c Museum Hotels CEO and current mayor of Louisville, Kentucky, Craig Greenberg. Snow continues to run the promotion's day-to-day operations.[41]
On August 27, 2022, Snow and Doug Basham defeated Adam Revolver and Joe Mack at OVW The Big One.
Snow was heavily featured in the docuseries Wrestlers, a Netflix released series focused on OVW that was released September 13, 2023.[42] Following the series release, OVW had their first Thursday night sold-out show in eight years.[43]
Acting career
He had a cameo as the Nome King in the feature film Dorothy and the Witches of Oz (2012) with Christopher Lloyd, as well as starring in the action film Overtime, and the comedy film Agua Caliente. He had an uncredited role in the drama film Rudy (1993). Snow also appeared in They're Just My Friends (2006) and co-stars alongside Tiger Chung Lee in Mountain Mafia (2009). In 2006, he played himself in the independent feature film The Still Life.
Snow can also be seen as the brutal serial killer Grim, also known as "The Reaper's", in Feathered Italian Films[44] latest slasher films The Legacy[45] and Hell House.[46] Head also cameos in "The Legacy". He was one of the leads in the sci-fi/action/comedy film Overtime (2011) by director Matt Niehoff.
Snow had a quick line in the wrestling documentary Beyond the Mat. He also participated in the wrestling documentary, Bloodstained Memoirs.[47]
Al Snow also appeared as a coach on WWE Tough Enough (then called WWF Tough Enough) during the show's first three seasons.
On November 10, 2012, Snow, along with several other TNA workers, was featured in an episode of MTV's Made.[48]
Snow completed his work as the "Man in Black" for the independent horror film Lake Eerie on October 23, 2013. The film stars Lance Henriksen, Betsy Baker and was released in Summer 2015. Snow also played "Henchman" in Jessica Sonneborn's horror film Alice D.
Business endeavors
Al Snow is the co-founder of "Collar X Elbow", a clothing brand for
Al Snow Wrestling Academy
Near the end of 2015, Al Snow and Simon Van Der Wolf started a training academy, originally based in the UK but since expanded to include branches in many other countries. They along with other professional wrestlers (including Joe E. Legend, Doug Williams, Phil Powers, Jonny Storm, John Klinger, and many more) held tryouts in February 2016. In April 2019, local media in Louisville reported that the academy had applied to the Kentucky Department of Education for formal accreditation as a vocational school. The academy has developed a two-year, 60-credit hour program (on the semester system) in all aspects of the wrestling business, ranging from in-ring performance to writing and TV production. Assuming state approval is received, the Louisville academy will start accepting applications for the vocational program in May 2019 and start accredited instruction that August.[50]
Personal life
Snow has been married three times. He married Pam Sarven in 1986 and the couple had two children. They divorced in 2004. His second wife was fellow wrestler Cynthia Lynch who wrestled under the name of Bobcat.[51] They married in 2009 and divorced in 2015. In 2017, he married his third wife, Jessica Gousha. In 2021, Snow saved the life of a child from an ocean riptide at Santa Rosa Beach.[52]
Self-Help: Life Lessons from the Bizarre Wrestling Career of Al Snow
On August 29, 2017, Prowrestling.net[53] broke the news that Snow had signed a deal with ECW Press to release an autobiography. Co-written by Ross Owen Williams, who also co-authored Bob Holly's autobiography The Hardcore Truth, the book was released in April 2019. In the press release, Snow said "we want the book to cover more than what I did in front of the cameras. There are so many stories from the road—things that only seem to happen to me—that have made me who I am today. I've always considered every new situation as a potential learning experience and this book will give me the opportunity to share that, for better or for worse."
Championships and accomplishments
- Appalachian Mountain Wrestling
- AMW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Border City Wrestling
- BCW Can-Am Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Denny Kass
- Cal-International Pro Wrestling
- CIPW Americas Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[54]
- Global Wrestling Alliance
- GWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- GWA Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- GWA Tag Team Championship (5 times) – with Mike Kelly
- Bodyslammers Gym Tournament (1994)
- Great Lakes Championship Wrestling
- GLCW Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
- GLCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Mike Curkov[55]
- High Risk Pro Wrestling
- Jersey All Pro Wrestling
- Legends Pro Wrestling
- Inducted into the LPW Hall of Fame (2011)
- Masterz of Mayhem
- MoM Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Mickey Doyle[54]
- Midwest Championship Wrestling
- MCW-ICW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- MCW Midwest Tag Team Championship (2 times)
- MCW Midwest Territorial Championship (1 time)
- MCW-ICW United States Tag Team Championship (6 times)
- Midwest Territorial Wrestling
- MTW Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
- MTW Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Ray Roberts
- MTW Heavyweight Championship Tournament (1994)
- Motor City Wrestling
- MCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- MCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Denny Kass
- One Fall Wrestling
- OFW Tag Team Championship (1 time, current) - with Kal Herro
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- Pro Wrestling Ulster
- PWU Championship (1 time)
- Qatar Pro Wrestling
- Smoky Mountain Wrestling
- Top of the World Wrestling
- TOW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Pierre Carl Ouellet[62]
- Ultimate Wrestling Experience
- UWE United States Championship (1 time)
- Universal Championship Wrestling
- UCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- USA Pro Wrestling
- USA Pro Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[63]
- USA Xtreme Wrestling
- UXW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Zona de Combate – Federacion Nacional de Lucha Libre (Chile)
- ZDC Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Most Underrated (1996)[64]
- World Wrestling Alliance
- World Wrestling Association
- WWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Mickey Doyle
- World Wrestling Federation
- WWF European Championship (1 time)
- WWF Hardcore Championship (6 times)
- WWF Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Mankind
References
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Further reading
- Mick Foley (2000). Have A Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks. HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-103101-1.
External links
- Al Snow on Twitter
- Al Snow on Facebook
- Al Snow at IMDb
- Al Snow's profile at Cagematch.net , Wrestlingdata.com , Internet Wrestling Database