Al Snow
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| Allen Sarven | |
|---|---|
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| Statistics | |
| Ring name(s) | Leif Cassidy Steve Moore Shinobi Avatar The Five Star Ninja Al Snow |
| Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) |
| Billed weight | 238 lb (106 kg) |
| Born | July 18, 1963 Lima, Ohio |
| Trained by | Jim Lancaster |
| Debut | May 22, 1982 |
Allen Blake Sarven (born July 18, 1963 in Lima, Ohio) is a professional wrestler better known by his stage name of Al Snow. He currently works in World Wrestling Entertainment for their ECW brand.
Contents |
[edit] World Wrestling Federation
In the mid-1990s, following a notable term in Smokey Mountain Wrestling, Sarven began his career in the WWF under numerous gimmicks such as Avatar (Which was supposed to be an unusual superhero gimmick with Sarven putting on a mask before the match) and Shinobi (Which was a generic Ninja-style gimmick). He also competed in and lost a match against Marty Jannetty under the name Steve Moore. Sarven received his first mainstream exposure with the WWF as Leif Cassidy, the heel tag team partner of Marty Jannetty. The duo was promoted as "The New Rockers", a throwback to the 1980s team of Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty. Eventually, the storyline was dropped and Sarven was reduced to jobbing for mid-carders. In the late 1990s, WWF and ECW began to cross-promote their organizations to counteract the success of WCW. Sarven was one of the wrestlers sent to ECW.
[edit] Extreme Championship Wrestling
Within this new environment, Sarven found success as the character Al Snow. In this role, Sarven received a lot of fan and management support for his J.O.B. Squad storyline, which promoted him as being angry with and driven mad by his years as a jobber for WWF. He would come to the ring with a mannequin head that he talked to as if it were a real person, which in turn prompted ECW crowds to chant "We want head", an intentional double entendre. His popularity was enhanced with his choice of entrance music, "Breathe," performed by The Prodigy. ECW promoters handed out styrofoam mannequin heads out at wrestling shows, and audience members started waving them and shouting, "Head! Head! Head! Head!" in time to his entrance music. Then the entire audience threw the heads into the ring before the match started.
[edit] Return to WWF
Just two days before he was booked to win the ECW Championship, Sarven was recalled to WWF, where he continued his gimmick of talking to "Head" creating some of the most memorable (and hilarious) skits of the "Attitude" era, injecting comedy relief into the shows. During that period he turned face. At one point he teamed with the all-too-serious Steve Blackman as an odd couple tag team called "Head Cheese" (because of Snow's attempt to get Steve to wear a Green Bay Packers "Cheese" hat).
Snow received some mainstream publicity when Wal-Mart pulled his action figure from their shelves after Sabrena Parton, a professor at Kennesaw State University, complained that "Head" was a "decapitated woman's head" that sent the wrong message about violence towards women. Parton was quoted as saying "My sons are 6 and 11. What kind of message would this toy send them about brutalization of women?" [1] Snow used the story as part of an angle where the controversy caused him to suffer from depression; in one memorable skit Snow kayfabe called his mother, observing that the stores wouldn't sell his action figures, but would sell shotguns and ammunition. This would also end up leading Snow to dump his ECW persona and Head, eventually overhauling his gimmick.
Later Snow would side with real life friend Mick Foley, but turned heel again by betraying him. He would later turn face due to fan reaction. During 2000, he won the European Championship. He would then go to Raw during the first draft. When Jonathan Coachman was in a match against Lawler, Al Snow turned heel once more by turning on Lawler thus giving Coachman to pick up the win. During that time Snow and Coachman sided with each other and loved to mock J.R. and Lawler. When the 4th Tough Enough came to SmackDown, Al Snow went there and turned face once again.
Since then, Sarven, who still uses the Snow character, has enjoyed some mid-card success in WWE, and has performed an on-air role as a commentator for Sunday Night HEAT and most recently Ohio Valley Wrestling. He has made the most impact in the WWE as lead trainer on the promotion's reality show Tough Enough.
Snow was often the butt of Mick Foley's jokes during Foley's tenure as WWF Commissioner in 2000. Foley also pokes fun at Snow in his autobiography Have a Nice Day! A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks, although they are close friends in real life.
[edit] ECW (WWE)
Snow returned to wrestling full time when he returned as a member of the new ECW brand. His first appearance was at the "WWE vs ECW" battle royal at WWE vs. ECW Head to Head with Head, where he ended up losing the match. So far, he has been used as a jobber losing to Test & Kevin Thorn.
[edit] In wrestling
- Finishing and signature moves
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- Snow Plow (Scoop brainbuster)
- Moonsault
- Snow-Plex (Wheelbarrow suplex)
- Snow Bomb (Sit-out ura-nage spinebuster)
- Asai moonsault
- Diving leg drop
- Trapping headbutts
- DDT
- Clothesline
- Dragon sleeper
- Superkick
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- Jim Cornette
- Skandor Akbar
- Jerry Lawler
- Jonathan Coachman
- Pepper the dog
- Head
- Pierre
- Nicknames
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- The Crown Prince of Hardcore
- The Snowman
[edit] Championships and accomplishments
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- 1-time BCW Can-Am Tag Team Champion – with Denny Kass
- GWA
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- GWA Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- GWA Tag Team Championship (5 times) - with Mike Kelly (5)
- 1994 GWA BodySlammers Tourney Winner
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- JAPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Midwest Championship Wrestling
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- MCW-ICW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- MCW Midwest Tag Team Championship (2 times)
- MCW Midwest Territorial Championship (1 time)
- MCW-ICW United States Tag Team Championship (6 times)
- Midwest Territorial Wrestling
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- MTW Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
- MTW Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Ray Roberts (2)
- Motor City Wrestling
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- MCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- MCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Denny Kass (1)
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- PWI ranked him # 329 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.
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- SMW Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Unabomb (1)
- USA Pro Wrestling
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- USA Pro Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- USA Xtreme Wrestling
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- UXW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- World Wrestling Alliance
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- WWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Mickey Doyle (1)
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- WWF Tag Team Champion (1 time) - with Mankind (1)
- WWF Hardcore Champion (6 times)
- WWF European Champion (1 time)
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- 1996 Most Underrated Wrestler
[edit] Personal life
Al is divorced from wife Pam and has two children, Jake and Brittany.
Sarven is well trained in martial arts, mat grappling, free style, hardcore, and shoot-fight wrestling. He was a trainer and cornerman of professional wrestler/mixed martial artist Dan "The Beast" Severn when Severn participated in four Ultimate Fighting Championship tournaments. He was even booked once as "The Ultimate Fighter" Al Snow during a match between him and Chris Benoit.
