Extreme Championship Wrestling Founder Tod Gordon has a new book out and appeared on John Arezzi’s Pro Wrestling Spotlight podcast to promote it.
Tod is God, co-written with Sean Oliver, was released this week.
Arezzi surprised Gordon by playing the very first interview he with with him, dating back to 1992, when ECW was then Eastern Championship Wrestling and was just starting up.
Tod Gordon interviews Shane Douglas at an ECW event in1993. Photo by John Arezzi
As well, Arezzi did a deep dive into the infamous NWA Screw Job, when Shane Douglas won a title tournament in August 1994, becoming the new NWA World champion, only to have Douglas throw the belt down, proclaiming himself the ECW Heavyweight champion.
At the time, Arezzi interviewed Douglas directly after he returned to the locker room after the match, which was played on the podcast.
Shane Douglas and Paul Heyman (with Tod Gordon to the right) at an ECW event in1993. Photo by John Arezzi
Interviews with Paul Heyman and the late promoter Dennis Coralluzzo — who was an NWA Board Member at the time — were also played for Gordon, and he opened up about why he and Heyman decided to swerve Coralluzzo and change the name of the company from Eastern Championship Wrestling, to Extreme Championship Wrestling. The betrayal changed the face of pro wrestling forever.
John Arezzi, Tod Gordon and Pro Wrestling Spotlight producer Marsh.
“I enjoyed bringing Tod on the podcast, which allowed him to promote his new book, and hear pieces of history from 1992-94 that he was directly involved in for the first time.” said Arezzi. “It’s always fascinating to me to bring a guest on to hear these events unfold in real time decades ago, and Tod’s appearance was a prime example of getting someone who had no idea these clips existed.”
The audio version of Arezzi’s podcast releases Thursday, as does the video version on YouTube, however, SlamWrestling.net readers can check it out at the link below:
TOP PHOTO: Tod Gordon with his book at the Icons of Wrestling Convention & Fanfest on Saturday, July 1, 2023, at the 2300 Arena, in Philadelphia, PA. Photo by George Tahinos, https://georgetahinos.smugmug.com/
RELATED LINKS
- Aug. 5, 2024: ‘Tod is God’ a revealing look at ECW
- Nov. 17, 1998: ECW founder Gordon misses the mayhem
- Buy Tod is God at Amazon.com or Amazon.ca
- SlamWrestling Master Book List
- John Arezzi’s Pro Wrestling Spotlight