Photographer’s Eye: When Bubba calls, I answer

I hadn’t planned on shooting the Dave and Bully Take Manhattan show on Tuesday, November 26, but then I got a message from Bubba Ray Dudley during Monday Night Football asking me if I was coming. Well, the intense Bubba Ray we have seen on screen for decades in the Dudley Boys and Team 3D comes through electronically too.

It wasn’t a question as much as it was I want you to be there.

And so I packed my camera bags and braced for yet more New York City traffic to get to the Gramercy Theatre for an old friend.

After all, I can’t tell you how many shots I have taken of Bubba Ray / Bully Ray through the years, mainly at the ECW Arena. Wait, I can — roughly 300 on my website from ECW and TNA/Impact and indies, plus more from WWE that I’m not allowed to post for sale.

I arrived, got no hassle with my camera — which isn’t always the case shooting at big arenas — and settled in near the legendary photographer George Napolitano.

All in all, the event with Busted Open radio show hosts Dave LaGreca and Bully Ray was really good and the crowd was really into it.

Comedian Jim Florentine started things out and talked about being a wrestling fan back in the day.

Bubba talked about first watching wrestling Saturday mornings on TV and first saw the Samoans and said he wanted to be a wrestler. Then he was at Madison Square Garden for the Jimmy Snuka versus Bob Backlund cage match when Snuka jumped off the top of the cage. He also said Tommy Dreamer, Mick Foley and Little Guido  (who he called Nunzio) were all there at the same show. He also said that WWF came out with a video tape and it showed the match on it and it showed him in the crowd and patting Snuka as he walked past him.

Dave talked about Ric Flair calling him on his phone at one of the WrestleManias. Bubba asked Dave who the most famous person he had on his phone was, and the answer was Flair. Bubba challenged his Busted Open partner to call the Nature Boy… but it went to voicemail.

The drummer, Josh Villalta, was really good, playing some wrestler themes. Seemed strange that he didn’t do “Enter Sandman” but we found out later on why, as Sandman came out as a surprise guest and the crowd popped.

Dave and Bubba thanked the crowd for coming to end the show.

Now, I have to admit it is hard to remember everything as I was shooting the whole time. If you want a more complete report, my good friend Mike Johnson was there and did a recap at PWInsider.com.

TOP PHOTO: Dave LaGreca and Bully Ray at ‘Dave and Bully Take Manhattan’ on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, at the Gramercy Theatre in New York, NY. Photo by George Tahinos, https://georgetahinos.smugmug.com

RELATED LINKS

• Dudley Boys story archive