Mid 20th Century
75-561: Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former developmental territory based in Louisville, Kentucky . The company is currently run by Al Snow , Matt Jones , and Louisville mayor Craig Greenberg . OVW was initially a member promotion of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) from its inception in 1993 until 2000, when it became the primary developmental territory for
150-627: A University of Louisville employee fitness center before being closed in 2019. If zoning approval is obtained, both OVW and the Al Snow Wrestling Academy will operate out of that facility. It was announced on August 21, 2023, that OVW would be featured in a new docu-series to air on Netflix titled, Wrestlers . The show follows the company throughout their journey and climb back to prominence. The series comes from director Greg Whiteley ( Last Chance U , Cheer ) and BBC Studios Los Angeles and covers Al Snow's attempt to keep
225-431: A hardcore match (which he won by putting himself through a table) and his short lived comedy tag team with Steve Blackman . 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
300-613: A ninja -style masked gimmick . He wrestled in the November 19, 1994, tournament for the vacant NWA World Heavyweight Championship, but he lost to Chris Candido , the eventual winner of the tournament. From 1995 to 1997, Snow operated a professional wrestling school called "Body Slammers" in Lima, Ohio , hiring D'Lo Brown as an assistant trainer. It has since branched out with one of his trainers running "Bodyslammers" in Ottawa . After
375-647: A "Kennel from Hell" match at Unforgiven , which consisted of a regular cage which was surrounded by a Hell in a Cell structure, with "a trained pack of wild dogs" in between the two, and the objective was to escape both cages without being attacked by the dogs. Snow won the match. Snow would later team with real life friend Mick Foley and became tag team champions with him for a short amount of time, but turned heel by betraying him due to Foley's jokes about him in his autobiography , Have A Nice Day , and his growing jealousy of Foley's tag team partner, The Rock . He would later turn face again due to fan reaction. Snow
450-490: A celebration of hardcore wrestling and a final farewell to the company. At the event Snow was defeated by Rhino in a three-way match, which also included Brother Runt . After that, he appeared onscreen in his real-life role as company agent on multiple occasions, often alongside fellow agents Ace "D'Lo Brown" Conner and Pat Kenney. Sarven currently holds the title of producer for the company. In Spring 2011, Snow returned to OVW, dividing his time between his TNA duties and work as
525-698: A contract for a match, the two met on October 14 at Bound for Glory , where Snow wrestled only his second match for TNA, losing to Ryan, following interference from Matt Morgan . On January 12, 2013, Snow took part in Joker's Wild (which aired May 3, 2013), teaming with recent rival Joey Ryan , in a loss against Matt Morgan and Robbie T . On the August 7, 2014, edition of Impact Wrestling , Snow returned to team with Team 3D ( Bully Ray and Devon ) and Tommy Dreamer against Ethan Carter III , Rhino , Big Rycklon and Gene Snitsky in an eight-man Hardcore War in
600-660: A little head" (meaning he had to be willing to sleep with/have sex with the booker ). Snow, however took this literally, and thus he started coming to the ring with the mannequin head (with the words "Help Me" written backwards on its forehead, an action Snow himself began to do) whom he talked to as if it were a real person, which prompted ECW crowds to chant "We want Head" , an intentional double entendre . ECW promoters handed out styrofoam mannequin heads at wrestling shows, and audience members started waving them and shouting, "Head! Head! Head!" in time to " Breathe " by The Prodigy, his entrance music. The entire audience would then throw
675-465: 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
750-574: A losing effort, after which he would then go on to shake Grado's hand turning face in the process. Afterwards, the Beat Down Clan (BDC) would go on to attack both Snow and Grado, but were saved by the debuting Drew Galloway , would fend off the BDC and who would then stand tall in the ring alongside Al Snow and his friend, Grado. At Bound for Glory 2015 Snow competed in the Bound for Gold Gauntlet. On
825-649: A major boxing promotion in Louisville, to form the Gladiator Sports Network. OVW's first event under the Gladiator Sports banner was the 1000th episode special of its television series on October 10, 2018, from Louisville's Fourth Street Live! . This was OVW's first ever live televised event and it was streamed on FITE TV . The event featured a tournament to crown the vacant OVW championship featuring both current and past stars as well as
SECTION 10
#1732773385534900-563: 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
975-402: A minority owner since 2021). 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. Lancaster later described Sarven as "a leader in the ring" who "had drive and natural ability". He made his debut on May 22, 1982. Sarven defeated Lancaster on May 5, 1985, for
1050-410: A new developmental territory. OVW and FCW simultaneously trained WWE prospects for a brief period, but on February 7, 2008, WWE announced that it had ended its relationship with OVW, moving all contracted talent to FCW. WWE-contracted talent also made occasional appearances on OVW shows, including a match between John Cena and Lance Cade as the main event for the final Kentucky Kingdom show. However, FCW
1125-469: A new partnership with OVW as its developmental territory. In April 2019, local media in Louisville reported that OVW was developing a formal vocational educational program in professional wrestling through the Al Snow Wrestling Academy, and had applied for accreditation with the Kentucky Department of Education . The school would be approved by the state of Kentucky on September 15, making it
1200-455: A show producer for OVW. In November of that year, OVW became TNA's official developmental territory. In May 2012, Snow began appearing as a judge in the monthly Gut Check segment on Impact Wrestling . The following July, Snow started a storyline rivalry with Joey Ryan , who had been denied a spot on the TNA roster, following his appearance on TNA Gut Check. After Snow tricked Ryan into signing
1275-481: A total of 17 wrestling schools worldwide. An on-demand service, which will air past and current editions of the original American brand plus the possibility of a future OVW UK Brand, was also announced. The service would officially launch on the third week of March 2019 at a cost of $ 4.99 a month. In February 2019, OVW would announce a partnership with Impact Wrestling to produce an exclusive event for Impact's Global Wrestling Network (GWN). The event, titled Clash in
1350-654: A tour of Japan , Sarven wrestled a match in Michigan against Sabu , an Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) regular, who suggested he try ECW. After making his debut against The Tazmaniac and losing via pinfall on February 4, 1995, Sarven faced Chris Benoit as Al Snow, in a 15-minute match that was hailed as one of the best of the year. 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
1425-619: A tribute to the companies founders. On October 29, 2018, the brand announced an international expansion of its wrestling school and television product to the European Market labeled OVW-EU. Most of the schools now affiliated with the OVW Brand outside the United States were formally with the "Al Snow Wrestling Academy" brand which was merged with OVW upon the purchase by Gladiator Sports. This expands Ohio Valley Wrestling to
1500-559: A tryout as an agent for TNA Wrestling. He made his return to television on the July 15, 2010, edition of Impact! , aligning himself with fellow ECW alumni Tommy Dreamer , Raven , Stevie Richards , Rhino , Brother Devon , Pat Kenney and Mick Foley in their invitation by Dixie Carter to TNA. The following week, TNA president Dixie Carter agreed to give the ECW alumni their own reunion pay–per–view event, Hardcore Justice: The Last Stand , as
1575-598: A winning effort. 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 SSE Hydro , calling out Scottish wrestler and British Boot Camp 2 contestant, Grado . Grado would come out to the ring where Snow would give him the opportunity to retire from wrestling, Grado would not take the offer. On the February 20 edition of Impact Wrestling (also taped January 29) Snow would face Grado in
SECTION 20
#17327733855341650-462: A year, announced that Jim Cornette was returning to his role as match maker of the company. Cornette, who was also executive producer of Ring of Honor 's HDNet show, Ring of Honor Wrestling , announced that ROH talent were going to work in OVW, along with other new and returning OVW members of the roster. On November 7, 2011, it was announced that OVW and TNA Wrestling had reached an agreement for
1725-442: Is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling . "Promotion" also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event. Within the convention of the show , the company is a sports governing body which sanctions wrestling matches and gives authority to the championships and is responsible for maintaining the divisions and their rankings. In truth,
1800-528: Is an American professional wrestler , better known by his ring name Al Snow . He is best known for his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling and WWF/E . Snow has also held various backstage positions for professional wrestling promotions. Snow worked as a road agent for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA, later Impact Wrestling) from 2010 to 2017 and has owned Ohio Valley Wrestling since 2018 (first as majority owner, and
1875-743: The Louisville Gardens in Louisville, Kentucky. In 1997, OVW ended its relationship with the NWA and renamed itself Ohio Valley Wrestling. Later that year, Trailer Park Trash became the first OVW Heavyweight Champion by defeating Vic the Bruiser. On January 16, 1998, OVW taped the first episode of its weekly television series, emanating from the original Davis Arena in Jeffersonville, Indiana. Louisville Gardens ring announcer Dean Hill served as play by play commentator alongside Faye Davis as
1950-761: The National Wrestling Alliance , act as an umbrella organization which governs titles that are shared among multiple promotions. During the 1950s, the National Wrestling Alliance oversaw many wrestling territories such as Mid-Atlantic Wrestling and NWA San Francisco , in a business model known as the "territory system". This is a list of the most notable past and present professional wrestling promotions. Active Defunct Active Defunct Active Defunct Active Defunct Active Defunct Active Defunct (Modern-era) Defunct (Territory-era) Active Defunct Al Snow Allen Ray Sarven (born July 18, 1963)
2025-630: The Raw announce table after a victory at Unforgiven in 2003. When Tough Enough IV came to SmackDown! , Snow was on the scene and turned face once again. On April 12, 2004, episode of Raw, Snow dressed up as the Five Star Ninja a portray of Shinobi which he lost to Tajiri . In September 2004 Snow left Sunday Night Heat as a commentator and went to Velocity . He continued to coach for WWE Tough Enough season 4. He did not wrestle any matches for WWE in 2005. Instead, he continued working in
2100-663: The World Wrestling Federation (WWF) when he signed a contract in August 1995. During his tenure in the company, Sarven wrestled under numerous gimmicks , such as Avatar , which saw him come to the ring unmasked, putting on a mask to wrestle, then removing it afterwards. The gimmick was based on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and Mortal Kombat whose popularity the company wanted to capitalize on at that time. During his particularly short run under this gimmick, Sarven's WWF debut as Avatar took place on
2175-476: The special guest enforcer for the match between Kurt Angle and Rhino . Angle said he had hired "another former World Champion" and someone who had co-held a world tag team title with Foley. This person would debut during Angle's match to "take care of Foley". And on the night in question, Al Snow revealed himself to be the mystery ally of Angle, who interrupted the match by slapping Foley. The distraction allowed Angle to beat Rhino. In March 2010, Sarven received
2250-551: 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 in December 1996, 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
2325-456: The 15th-Anniversary special on December 10, 2007, Snow participated in the 15th Anniversary Battle Royal where he eliminted Doink the Clown and Gangrel . He was eliminated by Flash Funk . After WWE ceased affiliations with Ohio Valley Wrestling in February 2008, Sarven was released from his position as a trainer. Snow was allowed to compete on the independent circuit while under contract with
Ohio Valley Wrestling - Misplaced Pages Continue
2400-530: The Bluegrass , would be an Impact One Night Only special held on March 2, 2019, in Davis Arena. The full-length event would stream on GWN on March 9, 2019. Clash in the Bluegrass would mark the first collaboration between OVW and Impact since 2013, and would be the first time the new Davis Arena has ever sold out an event via pre-sale tickets. On March 19, 2019, Impact announced that the company had entered
2475-480: The Davis Arena in the Buechel neighborhood of Louisville. Their weekly series (branded on-air as OVW Rise since January 2024, and known informally as OVW TV ) currently airs live on local station WBNA-21 , streaming service Triller TV , and the promotion's YouTube channel. As of 2020, through various syndication and distribution deals, OVW's weekly series is available to view in over 100 million households in
2550-630: The March 29, 2016 Impact Wrestling Snow returned as a heel attacking Grado backstage. 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
2625-607: The Mat . He also participated in the wrestling documentary, Bloodstained Memoirs . 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 . 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
2700-725: The Midwest Championship Wrestling title. 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". Sarven helped train future Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Hall of Fame member and NWA World Heavyweight Champion Dan Severn . During this time he would sometimes wrestle as Shinobi,
2775-626: 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
2850-561: The October 23, 1995, episode of Monday Night RAW , defeating Bryan Walsh. About a month after his debut, he was scheduled to be the third man for The Underdogs at Survivor Series but for reasons unknown, was replaced by Bob Holly . After this, he started teaming with Aldo Montoya . His two final matches as Avatar were against Sycho Sid & 1-2-3 Kid . He was also to partake in the 1996 Royal Rumble match but once again, due to unknown reasons, never appeared. His final match in February
2925-491: The Ring Announcer. The show featured an introduction to the company by owner Danny Davis, with a main event of Nick Dinsmore and Rob Conway vs Juan Hurtado and The Assassin #2. In 1999, WWF creative team member Jim Cornette bought a stake in OVW. Cornette, taking on the role of booker and show writer while appearing in an on-camera commentator role, made his first televised appearance on July 10, 1999, and spoke of
3000-596: 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 Newest Rockers. Snow wore attire that he wore as Leif Cassidy. In the lead-up to the December 7, 2008, TNA show Final Resolution , Mick Foley assigned himself as
3075-609: The U.S., and to over 700 million worldwide. OVW was founded by Nightmare Danny Davis in 1993 as a National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) member promotion under the name NWA Ohio Valley Championship Wrestling. The company primarily ran shows in the Kentucky and Indiana territories that were formerly run by the United States Wrestling Association , with weekly shows run out of the original Davis Arena in Jeffersonville, Indiana, with larger shows run out of
Ohio Valley Wrestling - Misplaced Pages Continue
3150-446: The United States. On January 5, 2021, OVW announced that Matt Jones of Kentucky Sports Radio and Craig Greenberg of 21c Museum Hotels were lead investors in a group that purchased a majority interest in the company. Snow continues to run the promotion's day-to-day operations. Later that year, Louisville TV station WDRB reported that OVW was preparing to move into a building in the city's St. Joseph neighborhood that had served as
3225-929: The WWE. Snow would feud with Chris Candido for Northeast Wrestling in Connecticut in the fall of 2004. On May 7, 2005, Snow teamed with D'Lo Brown losing to Mick Foley and Shane Douglas at Mark Curtis Memorial Reunion in Johnson City, Tennessee. 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 . Snow would return to WWE's active roster full time in June 2006. After being released in February 2008 by WWE, Snow has regularly competed in several independent promotions in
3300-517: The World Wrestling Federation, now known as WWE . It remained in this role from 2000 until February 7, 2008, when the promotion became unaffiliated . In November 2011, OVW became the developmental territory for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . This relationship initially ended on November 2, 2013, but on March 19, 2019, the two promotions re-established their developmental agreement. OVW's television programming originates from
3375-403: 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
3450-500: The changes that were to take place. The first group of developmental talent included future stars such as John Cena , Randy Orton , Brock Lesnar , Batista , and Shelton Benjamin . OVW held its final show at the original Davis Arena on August 21, 2002, headlined by a match between Damaja and Rene Dupree . On September 4, 2002, the company would debut its show at the current Davis Arena at 4400 Shepherdsville Rd in Louisville, KY. On July 10, 2005 Jim Cornette parted ways with WWE and
3525-577: The company serves as a touring theatre troupe , as well as event promotion body for its own events. Most promotions are self-contained, organized around one or more championships and do not acknowledge or recognize the legitimacy of other promotions' titles unless they share a working agreement. Governing bodies, such as the CyberFight , United Wrestling Network , WWNLive , Allied Independent Wrestling Federations , Union of European Wrestling Alliances, Pro Wrestling International and, previously,
3600-542: The dog if Snow defeated him in a match for the Hardcore title; however, after losing the match he reneged and kept the dog. Later, in a segment on WWF SmackDown! , Big Boss Man invited Snow to his hotel room to discuss the situation, before serving Snow dinner which was then revealed to be Pepper. (In a 2008 interview, Snow said that this angle had been based on a story of Mr. Fuji having done something similar with his partner Professor Tanaka's dog. ) The feud culminated at
3675-529: The first officially accredited professional wrestling trade school. During the August 8, 2019 TV tapings, it was announced that OVW TV would move to Tuesday nights on WBNA starting October 1, and that the show would air live. In October 2020, OVW announced a partnership with Qatar Pro Wrestling. That same month, Game+ , a Canadian channel owned by Impact's parent company, Anthem Sports & Entertainment , began syndicating OVW's television program in Canada and
3750-441: The former to become an official training and developmental territory. This agreement would end on November 2, 2013, due to a financial dispute. On April 6, 2018, it was announced that professional wrestler Al Snow was purchasing the promotion from Danny Davis, who was planning to retire but didn't want to shut the company down. On September 12, 2018, it was announced that Ohio Valley Wrestling would be merging with Top Notch Boxing,
3825-429: The heads into the ring before the match started. The biggest match of his ECW career came when he wrestled for the promotion's World Heavyweight Championship , losing to Shane Douglas at Wrestlepalooza in 1998. Sarven was then recalled to the company in May 1998, where he continued his gimmick of talking to "Head", creating some of the more memorable humorous skits of " The Attitude Era " including fighting himself in
SECTION 50
#17327733855343900-494: 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 latest slasher films The Legacy and Hell House . 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
3975-420: The independents. In June 2006, Snow returned to wrestling full-time as a member of the new ECW brand. His first appearance in the new brand was in the WWE vs ECW Battle Royal at the "WWE vs. ECW Head to Head" special, where he was accompanied by Head. He was eliminated from the match. On the June 13, 2006, debut of ECW on Sci-Fi , Snow participated in an Extreme Battle Royal, which was won by Sabu . Over
4050-403: 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
4125-426: The life of a child from an ocean riptide at Santa Rosa Beach . On August 29, 2017, Prowrestling.net 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
4200-447: 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 Basille Baraka and Baron Dax , thus forming the tag team faction known as The Tribunal . On November 10, episode of Impact , The Tribunal attacked him until Shera made
4275-653: 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 Tough Enough . He made his return to the ring in October 2001 during the InVasion era and challenged Christian for the WWF European Championship at Survivor Series , which he lost. Snow's last championship reign came on March 11, 2002, when he defeated Goldust to win his last Hardcore Championship. He lost
4350-467: The next four months, he was used sporadically, mostly as a jobber , losing to people such as Test and Kevin Thorn . Snow was taken off the ECW roster in October 2006. Snow then returned with the company as a trainer at Ohio Valley Wrestling in 2007. On the February 3, 2007 OVW TV tapings, Snow was named the new OVW Troubleshooter by Danny Davis in response to Danny Basham 's WWE release. On Raw XV,
4425-580: The promotion economically viable. The success of the show led to OVW to enter a strategic partnership with Genvec Ventures that would ensure them a financial stability. In addition, Ed Payer was named the new CEO of the company. On January 11, 2024, OVW announced that Mickie James has joined OVW as Creative Director, Head of Female Talent and Executive Producer of their wrestling shows. As of November 27, 2024. Professional wrestling promotion 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s A professional wrestling promotion
4500-400: The promotion's day-to-day operations. 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. Following the series release, OVW had their first Thursday night sold-out show in eight years. He had a cameo as
4575-531: The save, turning face once again in the process. On December 8 episode of Impact Wrestling , Snow and Shera defeated The Tribunal in a Double Strap Match to end the feud. On June 19, 2017, Al Snow was released from Impact Wrestling. On April 7, 2018, it was reported Snow purchased Ohio Valley Wrestling . 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
SECTION 60
#17327733855344650-592: The street near the ECW Arena during a Mummers Day parade. He got the idea to portray an individual with a schizophrenic disorder using the head as a prop for projection . In this role, Sarven received a lot of fan and management support for his J.O.B. Squad storyline, which promoted him as being driven insane by his years as a jobber for the WWF. In the storyline, Snow, upset at his lot in life, asked Cactus Jack what he had to do to get anywhere in wrestling. Jack said to Snow that to become famous he had to "get
4725-606: The title to his former Tough Enough student, Maven , a few days later. He was drafted to SmackDown! as part of the 2002 Brand Extension , where he teamed up with Maven. After taking time off again for another season of Tough Enough , Snow returned as a member of the Raw roster in October and eventually became a commentator for Sunday Night Heat alongside Jonathan Coachman . When Coachman sided with Eric Bischoff , Snow followed suit, turning heel. The two feuded with Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler , and briefly replaced them at
4800-411: The vocational program in May 2019 and start accredited instruction that August. 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. They married in 2009 and divorced in 2015. In 2017, he married his third wife, Jessica Gousha. In 2021, Snow saved
4875-490: 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 WWF 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
4950-459: Was against Isaac Yankem . On February 20, 1996, Sarven wrestled as Shinobi , a "ninja assassin" hired by Jim Cornette to dispose of Shawn Michaels , who defeated Shinobi in quick fashion. Avatar returned for one last appearance against Justin Bradshaw at a house show on March 17, 1996, at MSG in a losing effort. Sarven received his first mainstream exposure with the WWF as Leif Cassidy ,
5025-452: Was dissolved in 2012 and was relaunched as NXT , formerly a reality/scripted television program that existed in its format from 2010 to 2012, replacing the ECW brand . In 2009, OVW alumnus John "Bradshaw" Layfield would leave WWE to sponsor OVW. On September 8, 2010, in what was dubbed the company's "season premiere", Danny Davis, who himself was making his return for the first time in over
5100-405: Was impaled with a spike by Prince Albert , Snow replaced Head with a chihuahua named Pepper, who he claimed talked to him. A variety of segments were broadcast showing Snow's interactions with the dog, including bringing Pepper to the ring to either "participate" in matches or be held by the broadcast team. This led to a storyline where Big Boss Man kidnapped Pepper. Big Boss Man agreed to return
5175-527: Was not being utilized by ECW and went to Smoky Mountain full-time. In Smoky Mountain Wrestling, Snow teamed with Unabomb (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 . Both wrestlers caught the attention of the World Wrestling Federation and were signed by the end of 1995. Sarven began working for
5250-593: Was often the butt of Foley's jokes during Foley's tenure as the Commissioner in 2000. However, they are close friends in real life. Foley continued to use Snow as the butt of many jokes in his second book, Foley Is Good: And the Real World Is Faker than Wrestling . 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
5325-475: Was one of the wrestlers sent to Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). He left in July of that year and went to ECW. His last appearance in WWF in September 1997 was a loss to Tiger Ali Singh at WWF One Night Only . Sarven found success back in ECW in August 1997, billed once again as Al Snow. Sarven developed a new character gimmick after reading about abnormal psychology and finding a mannequin head on
5400-410: Was quoted as saying "What kind of message would this toy send children about brutalization of women?" Sarven used the story as part of an angle in which the controversy caused Al Snow to develop depression. At WrestleMania XV , Snow lost a WWF Hardcore Championship triple threat match involving Hardcore Holly and Billy Gunn . During the summer of 1999, at the conclusion of a storyline where Head
5475-778: Was released in Summer 2015. Snow also played "Henchman" in Jessica Sonneborn 's horror film Alice D . Al Snow is the co-founder of "Collar X Elbow", a clothing brand for independent wrestling fans. 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
5550-489: Was relieved of his duties overseeing OVW. This resulted from an incident where Cornette reportedly slapped an OVW beginners class student Anthony Carelli (better known as Santino Marella) for having an inappropriate reaction to being confronted by a horror-themed wrestler called The Boogeyman during a match at an OVW live show. The two have not been on positive terms since, even having a confrontation during an event both were performing at as recently as October 2017. Cornette
5625-573: Was replaced by WWE Trainer Al Snow on the announce team, and Snow was replaced as creative director/producer by Paul Heyman . This arrangement would be short-lived, however, as WWE would eventually put Heyman in charge of the revival of ECW as a WWE brand. Eventually the booking duties would go to Al Snow , who would have the longest tenure outside of Cornette. Jim Cornette sold his stake in OVW to Davis in 2007. In 2007, WWE launched Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) in Tampa, Florida to serve as
#533466