Well, the "WWF buyout of WCW" fantasy is over. I got this from a recent edition of Colin Vassalo's Wrestling-Online newsletter:

 WWF BREAK TALKS WITH WCW

- In an interview with Broadcasting & Cable, WWF CEO Linda McMahon said

that the talks between WWF and WCW over. "We're definitely not buying

them," announced McMahon. "The specific elements did not come together,"

she continued. The proposed deal caused some alert between many people,

including WCW wrestlers and Viacom, who were strongly against the idea.

The latest news of releases from WCW-land: Bobby Heenan is being released from his contract.

This really doesn't come as a surprise. He hasn't been used on-air in many months. Any of you who read my older columns will know I felt he wasn't really adding anything to the product anymore.

Does this mean he deserves a pink slip? Hell no! Based on his lengthy contributions to wrestling over the years, he should at least get a stipend, or a pension after retirement...

Mind you, this is the company that has fired quite a few people for being inactive in the ring because of injuries caused in their rings.

I just learned via a non-wrestling ezine that Steve Allen passed away last week, at the age of 78.

Forget his recent ill-suited article against WWF's product. As well as being one of the first hosts of the Tonight Show, besides holding a Guiness World Record for the most songs written... this was a man who began his career as a wrestling announcer, and who still loved it near the end. Two years ago, he was a host for an A&E special called The Untold Story of Professional Wrestling. He was also a host for one of the early Wrestlemanias.

He had a long history with wrestling. He'll be sorely missed.