A strong case can be made that, next to Terry Funk, Tommy Dreamer was the engine of ECW. He was its heart, its soul - and its blood and guts, too. If there had been a need for somebody to die in a brutal shower of blood in the ECW arena, Tommy Dreamer, the Innovator of Violence would probably have volunteered for the job. In truth, Dreamers career pretty much mirrors that of ECWs existence, from a low-key, somewhat underwhelming, start, to a general feeling of acceptance and love by the mainstream wrestling community (that continues to this day) and onwards still to the bestowment of legendary status onto the native New Yorkers shoulders. In Have a Nice Day; Mick Foley neatly recounts a potted history of Dreamers early career, Tommy was a personal project of Paul Es, who was willing to do anything for the acceptance of the fans. He had once been a laughingstock of the company, as no matter what body part he sacrificed, the fans continued to shower him with ridicule. The hardcore ECW fans despised him partly because he was a good-looking young man, and partly because of his ridiculous ring attire that included green suspenders. Eventually his determination, as well as Paul Es ingenuity, and other talented wrestlers got him over to the point where he was at least respected if not completely loved Tommy Dreamer was (and still is) a good, solid wrestler. However, aside from his blind courage/naked lunacy, there is little that is particularly flashy about him when you first see him. His in-ring work is dependable, crisp and believable - and he doesnt get the credit he deserves for actually being in incredible cardiovascular condition. A strong, direct promo man, who is at his best when speaking from the heart, Tommy Dreamer would be worth a spot on any roster, but that spot would be unlikely to be found at the top of the card. In ECW, however, Dreamer ended up being as over as if hed cured cancer, walked on water and ushered in an era of world peace, all in the space of one night. ...And guess what? He still is. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmY7--0pi20 His promo on last weeks TNA Impact show shook me up and forced me to mark out like a goodun. He was raw, emotional and true to himself, as well as his past. I think thats part of Dreamers appeal, in fact, because, with Tommy, you can never quite tell when the work ends and the shoot begins... Dreamer was brought in to the WWF as part of the Invasion storyline in 2001 and after that, they did nothing but crap all over him (and yet still the fans loved him). WWF did everything short of slapping green suspenders on him in order to bury him, but we didnt f*cking care, because hes Tommy Dreamer and we all love him to bits. Eventually, WWE resuscitated the ECW brand within its own company and pushed him to main event status within it. He once again held the ECW World Heavyweight Championship, making him a two-time World Champion, as well as the only man in history to hold both WWEs ECW belt and the true ECW belt. Upon leaving the company in 2010, Dreamer cut this incredible, heartbreaking promo that could only have come from a man who loves his business, as well as his family, with the whole of his heart. The sight of the Innovator of Violence tenderly holding his two daughters and carrying them through the curtain made for easily the most magical and transcendent moment of his WWE career. Dreamer was also a success in TNA, proving that his appeal was not limited simply to one company, style, or era, as some people will no doubt suggest. Then, finally, in 2012, Tommy Dreamer, ECWs fierce, molten core, finally decided to start his own wrestling promotion and school House of Hardcore in the spirit of the company that helped make his name. His shows have featured an array of top wrestling talent, including Terry Funk, Al Snow, Rowdy Roddy Piper, Hardcore Holly, Chavo Guerrero, The Sandman, Christoher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian, Rikishi, Kevin Steen, A.J Styles, The Dudley Boyz and many, many more... Tommy Dreamer has been a tremendous force for good in professional wrestling, both on a major league and an indy level. However, without ECW (and his lengthy battle to appease their rabid, bloodthirsty fanbase), he likely would not have had nearly as great an impact. Ill close this one by re-printing a quote from the HoH website, for no other reason than I think that it needs to be read. Hardcore isnt about blood, barbed wire and tables. It was always and will always be about a competitor giving everything they have physically, mentally, emotionally in their match. Tommy Dreamer.
I am a professional author and lifelong comic books/pro wrestling fan. I also work as a journalist as well as writing comic books (I also draw), screenplays, stage plays, songs and prose fiction.
I don't generally read or reply to comments here on What Culture (too many trolls!), but if you follow my Twitter (@heyquicksilver), I'll talk to you all day long!
If you are interested in reading more of my stuff, you can find it on http://quicksilverstories.weebly.com/ (my personal site, which has other wrestling/comics/pop culture stuff on it).
I also write for FLiCK http://www.flickonline.co.uk/flicktion, which is the best place to read my fiction work.
Oh yeah - I'm about to become a Dad for the first time, so if my stuff seems more sentimental than usual - blame it on that!
Finally, I sincerely appreciate every single read I get. So if you're reading this, thank you, you've made me feel like Shakespeare for a day! (see what I mean?)
Latcho Drom,
- CQ
