Hi Everyone,
The pictures are new products from Houkodo, Wajima lacquerware.
-----------------------------
Today, I want to write about pro wrestling. I have a lot of respect for wrestlers, and I’d like to explain why.
This isn’t related to brushes, so feel free to skip it if you’re not interested!
My grandmother liked pro wrestling, so I used to sit with her and watch it when I was a kid.
I wasn’t very interested in pro wrestling at the time, but I became familiar with the wrestlers.
When I was in junior high school, some classmates were arguing about who was the strongest wrestler.
I didn’t find the topic interesting and looked at it a bit cynically.
To me, wrestling was entertainment, not a real competition.
Of course, I liked some wrestlers, but I viewed it as a show rather than a sport.
My interest in pro wrestling came from a different perspective, which I’d like to share. Please bear with me—this is totally a pointless discussion!
There were many Japanese wrestlers, but in each series, American wrestlers would join the tour for about a month.
Some of them were very famous.
One wrestler I remember well was Abdullah the Butcher.
His rival was Giant Baba, a Japanese wrestling legend.
Baba and Butcher had intense matches.
But what caught my attention wasn’t just their matches—it was something else.
They toured all over Japan, performing in different cities every day: Tokyo today, Osaka tomorrow.
It was a grueling schedule.
I used to wonder: did they fight on the Shinkansen (bullet train)?
Surely not!
I let my imagination run wild:
Maybe Butcher and Baba were sitting together on the train, playing Nintendo.
Or perhaps they were chatting about the next day’s match.
I even heard a rumor that someone saw Baba playing baseball with Butcher once.
That made me smile—it proved my imagination wasn’t far off.
By the way, Butcher was said to be from Sudan, but I found out he was actually from Canada. His real name is Lawrence.
Despite playing the "bad guy" in the ring, he was incredibly popular in Japan—arguably even more than Baba.
As for Baba, he wasn’t just a wrestler; he was also a promoter.
He negotiated with American wrestlers, including Butcher, to bring them to Japan.
They may not have been close friends, but they were excellent business partners.
I imagine their conversations went something like this:
“Let’s give the audience an unforgettable fight, and afterward, let’s grab a drink!”
For me, wrestlers like Baba and Butcher were "real professionals."
They knew how to put on a great show, respected their craft, and built a business together.
That’s why I have so much respect for them.
Thank you for reading!
Toshiya
Comments
Post a Comment