'The Puppetmaster Speaks!'

Imagine a show that’s Jackass meets Girls Gone Wild meets Little People, Big World!

Yup, that's Half Pint Brawlers: Season 1!

Now out on DVD, it is a truly uproarious, outrageous and unpredictable reality show. A hit since it premiered on TV, the series follows the exploits of a group of little wrestlers, with big ambitions, who travel the country to put on unforgettable shows for some very rowdy fight fans – including those locked up in a maximum security prison!

From the executive producer of 'Jackass: The Movie,' Half Pint Brawlers: Season 1 chronicles the often-absurd yet astonishing and weird adventures of one of the most extraordinary performance groups in the country. These self-proclaimed hardcore little person wrestlers, led by their gregarious owner, Puppet "The Psycho Dwarf," entertain crowds in venues all across the U.S. with their unique brand of wrestling prowess and in-your-face personalities.

Along the way, Puppet must deal with issues surrounding little person wrestling events while at the same time keeping his rambunctious wrestlers in line. As "The Brawlers" travel the underground wrestling circuit, you’ll have a front row seat to see all of the action inside the ring… and their wild, chaotic lifestyles outside the ring.

Chatting recently with Puppet 'The Psycho Dwarf' himself, I first wondered, as he was the founder, the leader, and the show-booker for the Half Pint Brawlers, what had it been that had made a Chicago native like himself first ponder the theory that the world needed HPB's? "Before the days of the Half Pint Brawlers, I use to wrestle for the independent markets around the country and was BORED out of my mind; it was the same thing everyday."

"I noticed that the midget match would always get a great response from the crowd and my BIG brain started to ponder the idea of an all midget wrestling company. I had a friend that owned a bar called "Sluggers" in Wrigglyville and I approached him to do a show at his venue. The very first show was in the middle of January, SOLD OUT, and the fans were standing in line looking through the windows in the freezing cold of the Windy City. I KNEW I HAD A HIT AND THE BIRTH OF THE HALF PINT BRAWLERS!"

Word has it that you are also the loudest and strongest personality of the group! Is that because you are their leader, or growing up, have you always been like that?! "My personality - loud, strong, fun, dont take crap from no one! I am a leader by heart and I love to see my creations grow and expand throughout the years."

Assuming that you are always hiring potential new Brawlers, what is the very first thing you teach them they HAVE to do ... "First of all, the talent has to have a personality that people want to watch. Second, they need to train at a school to learn how to wrestle the correct way before they even approach me for a tryout."

... and what is one thing you inform them NEVER to do?! "Never do a wrestling move that you have never tried during a show. Always rehearse it first. Not only could you hurt yourself, but you could hurt another Brawler."

You, and the HPB's have always refused to be an opening act for other "tall" wrestling shows. Is that because you think that you'd be looked upon as nothing more than a novelty act, and you want more respect than that? "Half Pint Brawlers are not an opening act for any other wrestling league. I believe we are past that point in our careers. Our fans come to see some hardcore midget wrestling BABY!"

And just where did the name The Half Pint Brawlers come from ... and what other titles were suggested at the time? "We use to be called the "Bloody Midgets", but when we started to do INDemand PPV they thought that name was to controversial. So the boys and I had to come up with another name and after a few beers and some drunken brainstorming, we came up with the Half Pint Brawlers, and it stuck!"

And, talking of names, your HPB's have some fun nicknames. Yours is 'Puppet,' so why did you name yourself that?! "Puppet came out from a dream. I felt like everyone was telling me what to do with my life; they were pulling my strings. So I came up with a slogan when I was working in radio ... Puppet cut your strings and be free!"

Word has it some days your nickname stretches out to become 'Puppet the Psycho Dwarf'! Hmmm, is that only on bad days, perhaps?! "The fans helped me add Pyscho Dwarf to the name. They use to chant "Pyscho ... Pyscho" when I started to pull out the hardcore matches throughout the years. AND I liked it!"

You've just released 'Half Pint Brawlers - Season 1' on DVD ... please tell the readers what they can expect from this DVD if they make it a Christmas Day gift for their family? "Half Pint Brawlers Season 1 DVD in short is a mix of Hardcore Midget Wrestling, Jackass, and Girls Gone Wild all in one. It's going to shock you, but at the same time make you laugh. What's better than that?"

The show has been called "unpredictable," so please tell us something that happened during the first season's filming that was totally, 100% unpredicted ... and how did it all turn out?! "It is unpredictable! One of the matches in the DVD featured Beautiful Bobby Dean vs Little Kato. At the end of the match Bobby put Kato on a table and jumped off a 6 foot railing and put him through it. The boys didn't notice a hinge on the table and ended up slicing Katos head open and right then and there he just started loosing blood. We had to race him to the local hospital! You want to know how it ends? Watch the DVD," he laughs.

You've used staple guns, thumb tacks, broken bottles, and barbed wire in your act! My goodness, what do you do with all these things?! And what one thing WOULDN'T you use on each other?!?!?! "Usually we hit up the local hardware stores when we get in town to find our weapons for the night. Weapon wise, if it doesn't cause death we will use it!"

The DVD front cover is very, well, ... staged looking, so to speak! What was the shoot actually like for you all re: the DVD cover .... and how many costume changes did you go through?! "We all have our own wrestling gear when we are in the ring. So one night we had a photo shoot for the DVD in the gear that we wrestle in."

You are here in Detroit right now filming OZ: The Great and Powerful. Have you had fun? "Yeah, I have been filming 'OZ: The Great and Powerful' for the last 2 months, since I was lucky enough to be cast in a role. Being a Half Pint Brawler has given several of us some more opportunities in the entertainment business."

For the record, are you and the Brawlers 'Little People,' 'Dwarves,' 'Midgets,' ... or something waaaaay more sinister?!?!? "Some of us are midgets, some of us are dwarves, but none of us are little people. Half Pint Brawlers are huge personalities!"

Lastly, and throwing you a real journalistic curve ball, Exclusive Magazine love Penguins, .... do you, perhaps? "Very Funny! Just give me a tuxedo and a ski slope and I'm there!"

Interviewed by Russell A. Trunk

www.HalfPintBrawlers.com

www.myspace.com/HalfPintBrawlers