I briefly met long-time wrestling fan Anthony Mossow at IWA Deep South’s Carnage Cup 9 in 2013. However, it wasn’t until the next year at CZW’s Tournament of Death 13 that I found out he creates awesome-looking custom wrestling figures. While in the parking lot, he came up to the car and showed me his Jun Kasai and Jaki Numazawa figs.
Particle Don: I’d like to thank you for taking the time for this interview. Please, tell the ParticleDon.net readers a little bit about yourself. What are some of your hobbies?
Anthony: Hello, my name is Anthony Mossow. I make custom deathmatch figures as well as old school territory figures. I’m also into boxing, MMA, and lacrosse.
Particle Don: What got you into wrestling?
Anthony: My father had received free tickets to a show at the Syracuse War Memorial. The main even was B. Brian Blair vs. Swede Hanson.
Particle Don: What got you into deathmatch wrestling? Around what time did this happen?
Anthony: To be honest, I always look at the WWC as the first deathmatch promotion. The barbed wire and fire matches, were to me, the originals. Don’t get me wrong, there were no light tubes or toothpick jumbo bats, but what they were doing paved the way for today’s athletes. I’d say the late 80’s is the time when deathmatch wrestling originated.
Particle Don: Who are some of your favorite deathmatch wrestlers, and why?
Anthony: I have so many favorites of the deathmatch style. I’m afraid that if I start naming them, I would leave out too many. I’ll say anyone that’s willing to put their body on the line for us is my favorite. I’d like to thank them for doing so.
Particle Don: You create highly-detailed custom action figures for independent wrestlers. First off, I’d like to personally thank you for doing this. I understand it takes many hours and lots of work to make just one custom figure.
Anthony: Yes, as we all know, I enjoy making deathmatch figures. I’d like to thank all of you that like them, and even the ones that don’t! Hahahahaha.
Particle Don: Can you take us through your process of creation? Obviously, you start off with some sort of store-bought figure, and customize from there. How do you choose the right figure for a given wrestler?
Anthony: It’s funny, sometimes I can look at a head of a given figure and think “Yeah, if I carve the hair, sand it down and work with it, that’s the one…”
See, it’s funny. When I make these figures, you’re kind of getting a part of me. Whether it’s a good day or a bad day, you’re getting a part of my emotions with each creation.
I can’t say I have too many favorites, because they’re all like my kids. I mean, all the time I put into them…waking up in the middle of the night to fix them, or whatever the case may be…if you get a custom figure from me, you’re not just getting a custom, you’re getting a part of my emotions as well.
Particle Don: Do you use a certain type of paint? Are there different types of paint for different situations?
Anthony: I use all types of paint, what ever I can find. The figures are not meant to look “perfect”. They are like deathmatch wrestling…gritty, cutting edge, and off the wall. Just like the wrestlers themselves.
Particle Don: Do you find it’s easier to customize certain brands of figures? For example, are Jakks figures easier to customize than Mattel?
Anthony: I like Jakks. I don’t like Mattel. I haven’t worked with Hasbro figures too much, either. I made a Hasbro Bill Alfonzo…it was a bit cartoonish.
Particle Don: I bet you have an impressive figure collection. How many pieces are in it? What are a few of your precious gems?
Anthony: I have well over a thousand figures. I think I have over 300 just in customs. As far as gems? My Onita, Brody, Abdullah the Butcher, and Terry Funk. I have so many at my house. Some of my customs I consider gems, as well.
Particle Don: Other than figures, what are a few pieces of wrestling merchandise or memorabilia you’d like to share?
Anthony: If I was home, it would be much easier to send pics. Because of my job, I’m only home like 20 days out of the year. I have stuff like Jun Kasai’s goggles, Sabu’s pants from the ECW Terry Funk no rope barbed-wire match, Abdullah the Butcher’s boots, and some stuff from the Headhunters. On my Facebook page you can see quite a few pics with me and the wrestlers, and my figures as well.
Particle Don: What was the first deathmatch tournament you saw on film? How did you come across the footage?
Anthony: RF Video made it possible for my deathmatch video collection to come to fruition. IWA Japan and the Ian Rotten stuff was my first. Those years are a bit fuzzy for me from partying pretty hard, hahahahaha.
Particle Don: What deathmatch shows have you seen live?
Anthony: I’ve been to IWA Mid-South’s King and Queen of the Deathmatches and CZW’s Tournament of Death. I always enjoy when Hyde brings over the Japanese fellas. I’ve also been to an IWA Deep South Carnage Cup.
Particle Don: Where did you find out about Particle Don?
Anthony: I remember meeting you at CZW’s Tournament of Death in 2014. We talked about figures, and I showed you a few of my customs. You hit me up with a CD.
Particle Don: What are a few of your favorite Particle Don songs?
Anthony: We love the Havoc jam! My son digs it as well. He always plays it on YouTube, hahahaha. I like the Kabuki Quantum Fighter song too (Binary Code mix, Scott O’ Conner mix). I love old school video games. Sometimes I still live in a time warp.
Particle Don: What wrestler would you like to hear Particle Don write words for?
Anthony: I think you should do a Josh Crane or a Bryant Woods jam. Hell, how about a Mitch Page song?
Particle Don: What would be your dream match?
Anthony: Jun Kasai vs. Jd Horror, Bryant Woods vs. Danny Havoc and Masada vs. Atsushi Onita.
Particle Don: What are some of your favorite bands?
Anthony: Das EFX, The Doors, Van Halen, Pantera, Type O Negative, and a lot of 80’s stuff.
Particle Don: What are you looking forward to with deathmatch wrestling in 2015? Do you plan on attending any shows?
Anthony: I will definitely be at King of the Deathmatches. I’ll also be at Queen of the Deathmatches. Ian is a genius for this concept. I mean, bitches and blood? Hahahaha. Also, Nick Gage is a free man!
Particle Don: Anything else you’d like to say to the ParticleDon.net readers?
Anthony: Support deathmatch wrestling, and go to all of the shows you can. Just my opinion! Go to Tournament of Death and support those guys, they always put on one hell of a show.
I appreciate you giving me the chance to tell all and speak about my hobbies! To everybody, please support deathmatch wrestling, period. It was great to be interviewed. Thank you and God bless.
Particle Don: One of the things I like most about Anthony’s customs is the references to certain matches, gimmicks and time periods. For example, the JC Bailey figure has the syringe in his foot from the Thumbtack Jack match. He’s also holding a thumbtack bat, JC’s favorite weapon. Piper’s figure has the beer bottle that he broke over his head in Portland. Kiki Rose has a dollar bill stapled to her face, and her outfit is impressively detailed. John Moxley is wearing his Tournament of Death attire, complete with Masada’s skewers in his head.
The Dynamite Kid figure is wearing attire from his territory days. The IWA-Japan King of the Deathmatch 1995 set is incredibly detailed, down to the trophy in Cactus Jack’s hand. Rory Mondo is wearing the gear and facepaint from his final match. Trent Acid has the robe from his JCW “Altar Boy” gimmick. The John Rare figure has a box cutter in his hand. Mitsuhiro Matsunaga has a barbed-wire halo, and the alligator from his Alligator Deathmatch with Shadow WX in 1998.
