I remember the reply noting that GLOW's ratings were through the roof, and that the editorial staff seemed to think the letter-writer was rather overwrought. (Try sayin that when you're drunk) There was a picture of Americana, a screengrab from one of the rap segments, in full regalia, surrounded by other glamorously dressed women. Well, I had been mourning the loss of Wonder Woman on TV for several years now & I needed a costumed heroine or two in my imaginative life. I was not let down.
Four years later, The Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling had been on tour, there was a magazine about the show, the GLOW girls were on talk shows, game shows, you name it and then one Sunday night, the girls were gone. I frantically scanned the TV Focus. No one was writing in to ask what happened to the GLOW girls. No one was talking about it on the news. I was scandalized & saddened. But I had lost Doctor Who in a similarly inexplicable manner & had already learned that liking these two shows made me an outcast at school so I just kinda tucked GLOW away in a corner of my heart & got on with things.
Cut to February 28, 2013. I've been following the genesis of this documentary about the GLOW girls for what feels like ages, thanks in large part to Angelina Altishin, who played Little Egypt during season 2.. I contributed the few pennies I could to the project & the reward was a digital screener of the film. My hands trembled a bit when I got the email & clicked the link. My sister saw the film at a festival in ATX & had warned me that I would be touched by these women & their stories but nothing could have prepared me for what this hour & 14 minutes had in store
This award-winning documentary is a great overview of the TV show in general and takes the time to give us glimpses into the lives of a few of the stars of the show, such as Matilda the Hun, Big Bad Mama, Susie Spirit, and the Heavy Metal Sisters, but Brett Whitcomb's superb direction makes the unforgettable Mount Fiji the star of the story. You are one hard-hearted ho if you don't shed a tear when you watch the footage of Mt Fiji body slamming Bob Eubanks, host of the game show Card Sharks followed by Fiji today, unable to walk due to bad knees & diabetes, in a nursing home for the past several years, but still the same gentle giantess who can find it in her heart to worry if her former co-stars are OK, if they're eating, how their families are, in the face of her own raw-edged anguish.
Fans beware: You may experience shock when you hear Godiva, Matilda the Hun & Ninotchka all speaking in their real accents, I know I did. & on the topic of Matilda the Hun, she is a well-spoken, hard-working woman who knew how to really kick ass in her day. I mean, this bitch wrestled a bear when state wrestling laws wouldn't let her wrestle men (AKA the men were too damn afraid of her to mess with her & hid behind the law) & even though she has some health struggles these days, she still finds time to give a birthday slam-o-gram to a resident of her retirement community! It's a really big shame the film-makers didn't show the full version of the song "Nasty & Mean" so you could actually see this mad woman eating raw meat! Her dedication to the sport (at the very real cost of her own health) is far from sad. You can bet I'll be picking up her autobiography ASAP!!
As I watched I remembered being that gay adolescent with a big imagination & how I lived with violence & yet here were these women, these bewigged goddesses (to steal my sister's phrase) who made a living in violence & still found time to crack a joke or sign autographs for fans even younger than me! I remember thinking if they can do it so can I. Susie Spirit actually broke her arm in a match against a Headhunter & the 1st episode I saw featured a segment on the accident & her recovery & she could get through it & look good & so could I. As an adult, with all the g-strings & buns everywhere (OH LAWD BEASTIE), I can totally see where it would be hot for some guys my age but for me these chicks were like comic book superheroes come to life. It was a pure escape, part action adventure, part Hee-Haw, part Fabergé infomercial & I loved every single second of it. It was like nothing else on TV and made me think of the endless possibilities of the medium.
Fans beware: You may experience shock when you hear Godiva, Matilda the Hun & Ninotchka all speaking in their real accents, I know I did. & on the topic of Matilda the Hun, she is a well-spoken, hard-working woman who knew how to really kick ass in her day. I mean, this bitch wrestled a bear when state wrestling laws wouldn't let her wrestle men (AKA the men were too damn afraid of her to mess with her & hid behind the law) & even though she has some health struggles these days, she still finds time to give a birthday slam-o-gram to a resident of her retirement community! It's a really big shame the film-makers didn't show the full version of the song "Nasty & Mean" so you could actually see this mad woman eating raw meat! Her dedication to the sport (at the very real cost of her own health) is far from sad. You can bet I'll be picking up her autobiography ASAP!!
As I watched I remembered being that gay adolescent with a big imagination & how I lived with violence & yet here were these women, these bewigged goddesses (to steal my sister's phrase) who made a living in violence & still found time to crack a joke or sign autographs for fans even younger than me! I remember thinking if they can do it so can I. Susie Spirit actually broke her arm in a match against a Headhunter & the 1st episode I saw featured a segment on the accident & her recovery & she could get through it & look good & so could I. As an adult, with all the g-strings & buns everywhere (OH LAWD BEASTIE), I can totally see where it would be hot for some guys my age but for me these chicks were like comic book superheroes come to life. It was a pure escape, part action adventure, part Hee-Haw, part Fabergé infomercial & I loved every single second of it. It was like nothing else on TV and made me think of the endless possibilities of the medium.
I have to admit, though, I know a bit more than the casual viewer about this film & there is a lot of information that gets left out in Bradford Thomason's effort to present a coherent, concise narrative. I imagine a large part of this is due to the fact that the show's co-creators, David McClane & Matt Cimber declined to participate in the documentary, but I'd have liked a more chronological approach to the show's 4 years, to say nothing of an explanation for Miles Headlock! The only other complaint that I have is that the GLOW girls are only ever identified as their character names & even the closing credits do not list their real names respective to the characters. OK so I guess that's really 2 complaints, but they are related.
I absolutely recommend this movie, even if you are not familiar with the era. It is an inspiring story for all of us. I give it 4/5 stars.
I absolutely recommend this movie, even if you are not familiar with the era. It is an inspiring story for all of us. I give it 4/5 stars.
You can check it out here:
http://www.glowthemovie.com/
http://www.glowthemovie.com/
You can also wait for it to be shown on Logo as part of its What?! Documentary Season:
http://www.logotv.com/video/misc/882015/what-logo-documentaries-glow-the-story-of-the-gorgeous-ladies-of-wrestling-preview.jhtml
http://www.logotv.com/video/misc/882015/what-logo-documentaries-glow-the-story-of-the-gorgeous-ladies-of-wrestling-preview.jhtml
The DVD is scheduled for release on March 26 & is currently available for pre-order on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/GLOW-Story-Gorgeous-Ladies-Wrestling/dp/B00A6TMA0S/ref=reg_hu-rd_add_1_dp
(Clearly this is also on my Wish List, hint hint)
http://www.amazon.com/GLOW-Story-Gorgeous-Ladies-Wrestling/dp/B00A6TMA0S/ref=reg_hu-rd_add_1_dp
(Clearly this is also on my Wish List, hint hint)
If you are interested in catching up with the GLOW girls, lots of them are on Facebook & Little Egypt has been an amazing advocate for the showing, arranging reunions & so much more & her page is a great clearing house to:
https://www.facebook.com/littleegypt
Of course you can always scour Youtube for old matches (sometimes in other languages), & Little Egypt has a great web series on there called Tagging with Little Egypt, where you can get some real behind the scenes scoop from legends of GLOW like Americana, Hollywood & Ashley Cartier:
https://www.facebook.com/littleegypt
Of course you can always scour Youtube for old matches (sometimes in other languages), & Little Egypt has a great web series on there called Tagging with Little Egypt, where you can get some real behind the scenes scoop from legends of GLOW like Americana, Hollywood & Ashley Cartier:
& if all of this still hasn't satisfied your appetite for spangly spandex & crimped hair nostalgia, you can also buy GLOW DVDs here:
http://www.gorgeousladiesofwrestling.com/
http://www.gorgeousladiesofwrestling.com/
Thanks to the film-makers & participants for presenting us with such a compelling story, here's hoping there will be even more in-depth features (season by season, for example) in the future!
