Another day, another USA-Pro show, another women's match. Here's Kara Slice clamping down on April Hunter at a September 2004 show in a Jamaica, NY nightclub. (The club itself wasn't a bad venue for a wrestling show, but the lighting was atrocious; the promoter didn't want to pay for the full nightclub lighting to be turned on, so everyone wrestled under the fluorescent work lights. Ugh.)
April and Kara had a whole bunch of battles on the NY/NJ/Philly circuit in the early part of the 21st century, in part because they were two of the taller wrestling ladies on the scene and their size parity made for more believable matches.
Kara eventually got a WWE developmental deal, trained at their Ohio Valley Wrestling facility in Louisville, KY, and debuted on Smackdown! in January '07 alongside GREASE-themed tag team Deuce 'n' Domino as the gum-chewing, roller-skating Cherry. In August of '08, she fell victim to one of WWE's periodic roster trimmings and was released from her contract; after returning to NJ for a handful of indy dates, she announced she was stepping away from the squared circle to further her education.
April will go down in the history books as one of the great coulda-shoulda-woulda stories of the Northeast scene. Despite getting camera time in both WCW (as Scott Steiner's valet) and the early days of TNA, Hunter never caught the lucky breaks that her tag-team partners (Nikki Roxx, Talia Madison) did. After years of not wanting to leave the Northeast, she finally relocated to Louisville and signed up with OVW on her own -- just as WWE was severing ties with them as a farm league/feeder system. And by that time, years of accumulated in-ring injuries had pretty much spelled the end of her career as an active wrestler, although she continues in a managerial role at ringside, and she's still in demand as a model and aspiring photographer.
But cry no tears for either lady -- they've both accomplished more (in and out of the ring) than most of us. And you will see a good deal more of them as this bloggeroo continues...
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Update! April Hunter herself posted the following on the G.L.O.R.Y. Wrestling message board:
Like the pic, Robert!
And this part isn't exactly true: "After years of not wanting to leave the Northeast, she finally relocated to Louisville and signed up with OVW on her own -- just as WWE was severing ties with them as a farm league/feeder system. And by that time, years of accumulated in-ring injuries had pretty much spelled the end of her career as an active wrestler, although she continues in a managerial role at ringside, and she's still in demand as a model and aspiring photographer."
I quit in-ring work (except custom matches, since the bumping is minimal) back when I was still in the northeast. I moved to Louisville for JD [Michaels, her better half] to go to OVW...not me.
I'm simply a photographer & model down here and do some occasional match managing & journalism, too.
I'm shooting everything from maternity photos to MMA/UFC now. I hope to get some good Wallylighting for this weekends show.
(Wow, looks like someone's actually been, y'know, READING this damn thing...)
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