The world is way extra peculiar than most of us dare to confess. Somewhere between a demolition derby and a wrestling ring, between the crackle of VHS tapes and the shriek of late-night public entry, lies a person who has turned mayhem into that means. On at present’s episode, we welcome the unparalleled and unfiltered Mad Man Pondo, knowledgeable wrestler and writer whose life has been a whirlwind of physique slams, topless TV hosts, and late-night inexperienced room oddities. With a voice nonetheless tough from final evening’s match, he guides us right into a story of chaos, tenacity, and triumph.
Mad Man Pondo—actual identify Kevin Canady—will not be merely a personality within the ring. He is a dwelling mosaic of outrageous tales and unshakable spirit. Raised in a reserved family, he discovered himself drawn to the fever-pitched ardour of professional wrestling his grandparents as soon as yelled at on their front room TV. That early spark lit a fireplace, and he by no means let it exit. As he says on this episode, “My mom still has the paper I filled out in grade school that said I wanted to be a professional wrestler.” That dream, written in crayon, would develop into a 30-year odyssey by way of blood, barbed wire, and blinding spotlights.
The journey to the ring was not paved with ease. Pondo describes the brutal, usually humiliating, early days of wrestling faculty—the beatings, the busted lips, the sheer will required to show he belonged. He tells of what number of walked away, unwilling to endure it, whereas he pressed on. That form of devotion would develop into his defining trait. When the legendary Abdullah the Butcher advised him he had the expertise to wrestle in Japan, Pondo drove by way of the evening, edited his finest matches on two outdated VCRs, and mailed the tape by dawn. The outcome? Forty-three journeys to the Land of the Rising Sun.
But Pondo’s life wasn’t confined to the ring. Ever curious, ever mischievous, he created “Skull Talk,” a public entry present that includes wrestling commentary and, sure, topless ladies sitting on his lap. Equal elements efficiency artwork and riot, the present sandwiched between two church broadcasts brought about outrage and fandom in equal measure. “One preacher would send me scripture every week,” he laughs. “But I knew he watched every episode.” This was Pondo in his purest type—pushing boundaries, dancing on the fringe of decency, and all the time holding his viewers on their toes.
What’s maybe most spectacular is his capability to weave these escapades into one thing surprisingly noble. Whether speaking about driving shotgun in a demolition derby automotive painted with horror icons or reserving outrageous visitors for the Jerry Springer Show, there’s a coronary heart beneath the insanity. His creation of “Girl Fight,” an all-women’s wrestling promotion, is a testomony to his want to provide others a platform, to share the stage, to cross the torch. He’s not simply preventing for himself anymore—he’s constructed a hoop the place others can rise too.
And then there’s the e-book, Memoirs of a Mad Man, a wild journey by way of his reminiscences, full of tales that make you chuckle, cringe, and infrequently tear up. One story he held secret for many years—a deeply private second with wrestling legend Junkyard Dog—was lastly shared in its pages. “I thought, you know what, let’s put this in there,” he says. “It was time.” In telling that story, and lots of others, he remodeled scars into tales and chaos into legacy.
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