!BANG!
Encyclopedia
!Bang! is a professional wrestling promotion
owned by Dory Funk, Jr.
It is run by the Funking Conservatory, a full-service professional wrestling school, and the stars of !BANG! play as members of the Funking Conservatory team. The school and promotion offer a three-step, three-week program for aspiring wrestlers of all skill levels, offering students the chance to work in front of a live crowd and even to become a star on the !Bang! TV show. As well as training wrestlers, the Funking Conservatory team also offer courses in the promotion of professional wrestling, refereeing, announcing and creative writing for professional wrestling.
bout between the champion Jeff Jarrett
and Dory Funk, Jr., was held at !BANG! on January 22, 2004 and was later broadcast on !BANG! TV. Dory Funk, Jr., was also a guest at the TNA Against All Odds press conference in 2006 (shown on TNA Impact!
) regarding the upcoming NWA World Heavyweight Championship match between Jarrett and Christian Cage
.
, Christian, Jun Akiyama
, Gail Kim
, Kurt Angle
, Lita
, Matt Hardy
, Jeff Hardy
, Mickie James
, Paul London
, Rhino, Steve Corino
, William Regal, and many others. Funk previously worked as head coach of the Funking Dojo wrestling training camp for WWF
in Stamford, Connecticut
during the 1990s. Current pro-wrestlers and past graduates often attend the Funking Conservatory, giving advice to new students - with guests including Rob Van Dam
and Bobby Heenan
.
. Billed as "the most exciting pro-wrestling show on the air" and hosted by Dory Funk, Jr., !Bang! TV transmitted weekly on WOGX TV-51, and also My65
. A special one-off edition of !BANG! TV was shown on The Wrestling Channel to viewers in the United Kingdom
and Ireland
. The show currently transmits online via their website.
Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion 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...
owned by Dory Funk, Jr.
Dory Funk, Jr.
Dory Ernest Funk Jr. known professionally as Dory Funk, Jr. is a professional wrestler and wrestling trainer. He is the son of Dory Funk Sr. and brother of Terry Funk. He is credited with the invention of the Texas cloverleaf submission hold and runs the Funking Conservatory, a professional...
It is run by the Funking Conservatory, a full-service professional wrestling school, and the stars of !BANG! play as members of the Funking Conservatory team. The school and promotion offer a three-step, three-week program for aspiring wrestlers of all skill levels, offering students the chance to work in front of a live crowd and even to become a star on the !Bang! TV show. As well as training wrestlers, the Funking Conservatory team also offer courses in the promotion of professional wrestling, refereeing, announcing and creative writing for professional wrestling.
History
A NWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA World Heavyweight Championship
The National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first World Heavyweight Championship, which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title and...
bout between the champion Jeff Jarrett
Jeff Jarrett
Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett is an American professional wrestler and wrestling promoter. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , an organization he co-founded along with his father and in which he holds some stock but not total control...
and Dory Funk, Jr., was held at !BANG! on January 22, 2004 and was later broadcast on !BANG! TV. Dory Funk, Jr., was also a guest at the TNA Against All Odds press conference in 2006 (shown on TNA Impact!
TNA iMPACT!
Impact Wrestling is a professional wrestling television program for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling that currently airs in the United States and Canada on Spike...
) regarding the upcoming NWA World Heavyweight Championship match between Jarrett and Christian Cage
Jason Reso
William Jason Reso is a Canadian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring names Christian and Christian Cage...
.
Funking Conservatory
Wrestlers that have been trained by Dory Funk, Jr. include Chris SabinChris Sabin
Joshua Harter is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Chris Sabin. He is currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he currently teams with Alex Shelley as The Motor City Machine Guns.After being trained by Scott D'Amore, Sabin debuted in 2000 for...
, Christian, Jun Akiyama
Jun Akiyama
is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently works for Pro Wrestling Noah and All Japan Pro Wrestling, where he is the current AJPW Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion. Akiyama is known for his serious style and outstanding, time-tested work as a tag team wrestler...
, Gail Kim
Gail Kim
Gail Kim is a Canadian professional wrestler of Korean descent, who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is the current TNA Women's Knockout Champion and one half of the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champions with Madison Rayne...
, Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
, Lita
Amy Dumas
Amy Christine Dumas , known by her primary stage name Lita, is the lead singer for the band The Luchagors as well as a retired professional wrestler and WWE Diva active from 1999 to 2006....
, Matt Hardy
Matt Hardy
Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
, Jeff Hardy
Jeff Hardy
Jeffrey Nero "Jeff" Hardy is an American professional wrestler, who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is a former two–time TNA World Heavyweight Champion...
, Mickie James
Mickie James
Mickie Laree James , better known simply as Mickie James, is an American professional wrestler and singer of mixed Native American-Caucasian descent, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is a former two-time TNA Women's Knockout Champion.James began her professional...
, Paul London
Paul London
Paul Michael London is an American professional wrestler best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment ....
, Rhino, Steve Corino
Steve Corino
Steven Eugene "Steve" Corino is a Canadian professional wrestler, who currently works for Pro Wrestling Zero1, Ring of Honor and numerous other independent promotions. Corino is a former NWA World Heavyweight Champion and ECW World Heavyweight Champion.-Early years :Corino began wrestling in 1994...
, William Regal, and many others. Funk previously worked as head coach of the Funking Dojo wrestling training camp for WWF
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
in Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 122,643, making it the fourth largest city in the state and the eighth largest city in New England...
during the 1990s. Current pro-wrestlers and past graduates often attend the Funking Conservatory, giving advice to new students - with guests including Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander "Rob" Szatkowski , better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam , is an American professional wrestler and actor who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
and Bobby Heenan
Bobby Heenan
Raymond Louis "Ray" Heenan , better known as Bobby "The Brain" Heenan , is a former American professional wrestling manager and color commentator, best known for his time with the American Wrestling Association , World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...
.
Television tapings
The promotion's !BANG! TV television tapings are held in the Dory Funk Arena, in Ocala, FloridaOcala, Florida
Ocala is a city in Marion County, Florida. As of 2007, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 53,491. It is the county seat of Marion County, and the principal city of the Ocala, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated 2007 population of 324,857.-History:Ocala...
. Billed as "the most exciting pro-wrestling show on the air" and hosted by Dory Funk, Jr., !Bang! TV transmitted weekly on WOGX TV-51, and also My65
WRBW
WRBW is the MyNetworkTV owned and operated station serving the Orlando/Daytona Beach/Melbourne, Florida television market. It is owned by the Fox Television Stations Group, along with Fox station WOFL Channel 35. Known on-air as "My65", the station offers sitcoms, cartoons, court shows, and...
. A special one-off edition of !BANG! TV was shown on The Wrestling Channel to viewers in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. The show currently transmits online via their website.