More about Arik Cannon
It's rare that I have any information to offer here, but it was kind of surreal hearing Jim and Brian rant about Arik Cannon, who is definitely kind of an icon of the indie scene out here in the Midwest. I've met him only as a fan who has gone to the occasional indie show, including the annual Wrestlepalooza his promotion puts on at First Avenue (which the letter writer referred to as "a small music venue in Minneapolis," which must've made Prince roll in his grave, but that's another topic). Anyway, I can't speak to him as a human being, nor will I defend him as such, but as indie promotions go, F1rst Wrestling is... ok.
But here's what will make Jim REALLY hate him: His gimmick (for the most part) is that of a shlubby midwesterner who mostly gets his ass kicked... until he's able to "Hulk up" after somebody gives him a can of PBR to drink (that's Pabst Blue Ribbon for anybody more sophisticated than me). Sort of like how Popeye derives his strength from a can of spinach, Cannon gets his strength from a can of PBR... and I am not making this up. Him downing his PBR always makes the indie crops pop.
Here's a less than great picture of him I took from a Wrestlepalooza show a few years ago, where he was in some free for all match that also featured a pre-AEW Orange Cassidy and a pre-WWE Gigi Dolan (I mostly took pictures of her, including when she won the F1srt Wrestling title that same evening):