Having seen 'The Wrestler' (good movie) last month, it reminded me of my youth and being a wrestling fan. Yes it was fake, and perhaps even stupid, but you can't fault the WWF & WCW for being quality, albeit mindless, entertainment in the 80s and early 90s.
I always thought the heels were more entertaining than the faces
Favourite WWF wrestlers: Bret Hart (more so when he was a heel in 'The Hart Foundation') Hulk Hogan, Jake 'The Snake' Roberts, Sean Waltman.
Commentators: Jesse Ventura, Bobby Heenan
Managers: Sensational Sherri, Miss Elizabeth
Memorable matches: The Greatest Muhammed Ali referring the tag team bout with Hulk Hogan & Mr T. vs. Rowdy Roddy Piper & Mr Wonderful Paul Orndorff at Wrestlemania I
Sensational Sherri vs. Rockin' Robin feud; these girls fought in MSG to Paris and back again.
Favourite WCW wrestlers: Ravishing Rick Rude, Sting, Jushin 'Thunder' Liger.
Commentators: Jesse Ventura, Jim Ross
Managers, Valets: Woman, Madusa
Memorable matches: Rick Rude vs. Ricky 'The Dragon' Steamboat feud for the U.S. belt, Rick Rude winning the Nintendo Top Ten Challenge, Hulk Hogan vs. Ric Flair retirement cage match.
[ 21. February 2009, 08:26: Message edited by: Kash ]
Posted by buffalo-girl (Member # 7498) on :
we use to watch the wwf wrestling i never did like the wcw i thought it was alot more fake and dumber compared to the wwf my fave's were hulk hogan, rowdy rodney piper, and randy savage once they were gone we stopped watching it lol
Posted by kevdugp73 (Member # 5978) on :
I used to love the WWF as a kid...stopped watching somewhere around Wrestlemania 4. Love seeing Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, George the Animal Steel, Jake the Snake Roberts, Andre the Giant, King Kong Bundy, Hillbilly Jim, Junk Yard Dog...and so many more. Loved loved loved Wrestlemania 1, 2, 3, 4.....
Posted by Sammy Reign In Blood Hain (Member # 3150) on :
WWF was almost always better as a whole compared to WCW with the exception of the NWO period. Although WWF did have some of the more stupider gimmicks. I always used to love to watch Georgia Championship Wrestling back in the late 70s early 80s. They used to wrestle in a TV studio with maybe 200 spectators max but the wrestling was good and the feuds seemed to last a lot longer than today's feuds which seem to end before they start.
I still watch WWE every week even today.
I've always been a bigger fan of the heels compared to the faces. The storylines would be much more boring without the heels.
I've always considered wrestling to be a soap opera in an athletic setting. Yes wrestling is fake as far as the outcomes are determined but these men abuse their bodies beyond belief on a continual basis. Unlike football, hockey, basketball and baseball there's no offseason in wrestling.
Posted by Pyromantic (Member # 7658) on :
I used to watch as a kid...but I stopped watching somehwere in the middle of the whole WWF vs. WCW era..(when Hulk Hogan decided to play a Heel on WCW as Hollywood Hogan.)
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
How about the NWA back in the day? I watched them both equally but the slight edge from the early 90s on would have to go to WWF for me. We got to meet Ric Flair at an Appalachian State football game in October 2007. He was there with his family as his daughter is a student there. Ric was really nice and approachable and we all got his autograph.......
Memorable Matches:
Ric Flair vs. Harley Race Magnum TA vs. Tully Blanchard (I Quit Match) Any Road Warrior Matches Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant Hulk Hogan vs. The Ultimate Warrior
[ 21. February 2009, 13:02: Message edited by: MotleyRulz ]
Posted by 80'sRocked (Member # 6979) on :
Old school WWF was the best ever. I never missed it in the 80's. Stopped watching when I grew up, well, I mean got older. I still haven't grown up.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
I've lost interest in WWF since the Rock/Stone Cold era. I think current wrestling has been eclipsed by UFC.
Back in the day I loved WWF and NWO era Nitro/WCW. When they were going head to head it was real exciting. Due to my geographic location growing up(eastern canada), I didn't have exposure to the other regional stuff going on like World Class, Mid-South, Florida, Georgia etc. So been playing catch up trying to find that stuff. I loved the Road Warriors in the AWA, the Freebirds in World Class, etc. Most often wrestlers were really good and quite different in other promotions. before the WWF/Vince story lines hurt them like Dusty Rhodes, Kerry Von Erich, etc.
Posted by jdocster (Member # 5752) on :
quote:Originally posted by 80'sRocked: Old school WWF was the best ever. I never missed it in the 80's. Stopped watching when I grew up, well, I mean got older. I still haven't grown up.
Ditto.... Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
Does anyone remember watching Texas wrestling back in the day? I used to rush off the school bus to make it to watch it in time. They had like 20 wrestlers and 3/4 of them were Von Erichs.......
Posted by Sammy Reign In Blood Hain (Member # 3150) on :
I never got to see the Texas wrestling. Sad thing about the Von Erichs is that most of them have died already. I believe the father is still alive and one of the sons but it's either 3 or 4 of the other sons all have died; sorry can't remember how many kids there were in the family.
Posted by Sammy Reign In Blood Hain (Member # 3150) on :
OK I just checked on the Von Erich's in Wikipedia
quote:Patriarch Fritz lived until his natural death, but 4 of his sons died before him within a 9-year span (as well as his eldest son who was electrocuted as a child). David died in 1984 under circumstances that were disputed for years, while Michael, Kerry, and Chris all committed suicide in subsequent years. Kevin Von Erich is the sole survivor of the Von Erich sons.
Posted by hewzy (Member # 6043) on :
Gotta be Old School WWF for me too. The Ultimate Warrior vs Macho Man match, when Macho Man and Elisabeth got back together at the end. That one of my Fav matches. Posted by I sink I have a frush (Member # 7767) on :
WWF was a staple at my house growing up. It was on in the morning I think on Sunday. But we would eat breakfast infront of the tv and watch. Then afterwards try the moves out on each other. Being the youngest, and easiest to throw...I sustained a few injuries! But it was always so much fun.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
I loved Kamala, don't know why. He certainly wasn't much of a wrestler.
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
There used to be an old guy who lived about a mile away from me who built a real wrestling ring in his backyard. You can imagine he was quite the popular one with the neighborhood. That's where I received my first official piledriver and damn it really does hurt lol.........
Posted by Sammy Reign In Blood Hain (Member # 3150) on :
It was pretty cool seeing Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat on Monday Night Raw last night. Even though he hasn't wresteld for quite sometime and was wearing a suit it appeared that he's kept himself in pretty good shape. Too bad I knew that once he came out and started talking that Chris Jericho would come out and kick his a$$.
Just want to say that I've met Jericho and he seems to be a pretty cool guy. I've also met Baron Von Raschke who was also a nice guy and who probably has the largest hands of anybody I've ever met.
Posted by hewzy (Member # 6043) on :
quote:Originally posted by Riptide: I loved Kamala, don't know why. He certainly wasn't much of a wrestler.
Yeah Kamala was a rubbish wrestler but had a wicked mask Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
One of my television and film professors had told us he'd been acquainted with Sergeant Slaughter at some point, and said he's actually a rather nice guy outside the ring. My best actual memories of the sergeant come from the period during the first Gulf War when he and the Iron Sheik went Iraqi until the conflict wound down, when he switched back to a full blooded American till his retirement and ascension to the commissionership (or is that entirely a publicity position?). One guy I always did like that never got that much respect was Hacksaw Jim Duggan, who always seemed to be held back from the summit for whatever reason. Anyone happen to know what he's up to these days?
Posted by Sammy Reign In Blood Hain (Member # 3150) on :
Hacksaw is still wrestling in the WWE
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
No offense, but couldn't stomach Hacksaw. Gimme Sting, Brody, Snuka, Bockwinkel, Steamboat, Flair any day.
Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
How about Koko? He was another guy who never quite seemed to get enough respect.
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
Does Hacksaw still carry his trusty 2 by 4? I remember back in the 80s he and the Iron Sheik were supposedly having that big feud and a cop stopped them in the same car together smoking marijuana......
Posted by Pyromantic (Member # 7658) on :
I still have an old T-Shirt stashed away somewhere signed by The Bushwhackers.
Posted by Sammy Reign In Blood Hain (Member # 3150) on :
I was never a fan of the Bushwackers or Hacksaw Jim Duggan
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
I prefer the earlier incarnation of the Bushwackers as the Sheepherders, when they had the bloody feuds with the Fantastics. Vince turned them into albsolute clowns when they went to WWF. He did the same to Dusty Rhodes with those god awful polkadots.
Posted by Sammy Reign In Blood Hain (Member # 3150) on :
Pretty sad story involoving Pro Wrestling legend Verne Gagne
Wow, that is tragic. I had no idea what was going on with Verne. I saw the AWA DVD recently so got to know more about Gagne and the promotion.
Posted by Sammy Reign In Blood Hain (Member # 3150) on :
When I was growing up all I was able to watch was the AWA. My introduction to some of the superstars or people who would later become stars were through the AWA.
I used to see Verne Gagne, his son Greg Gagne along with his tag team partner Jim Brunzell, Nick Bockwinkle and his partner Ray "The Crippler" Stevens managed by Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, Larry "The Axe" Henning who was the father of Curt "Mr Perfect" Henning, a very young Ric Flair, Ken Patera, Dusty Rhodes before he was "The American Dream" and his partner **** Murdoch, Ivan Putski, Baron Von Raschke, Billy Robinson, The Crusher, **** "The Bruiser" among others.
A lot different back then compared to today. The overall athleticism of today's wrestlers is 100% greater than it was back then. A lot of stuff that seems pretty tame by today's standards were unthinkable to do back then. But since I didn't know anything differen back then it made no difference to me I loved it and still miss watching the old time Rasslin eventhough I love watching it today as well.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
You watched a golden era Sam, I think the athletes are in way better shape now, but doesn't seem as larger than life or colorful as it did back then. There's nothing out there now that compares to the Steiners, Bulldogs or the Road Warrriors IMO.
Posted by J2ME (Member # 5728) on :
WWF was huge over here during the late 80s/early 90s. They even held Summerslam '92 at Wembley Stadium. Anybody remember that?
I always enjoyed matches involving the Road Warriors &/or The Steiner Brothers. The power & athleticism of those guy's was amazing.
Posted by Sammy Hain Invasion (Member # 3150) on :
Scott Steiner got too freaky large with his muscles that he looked absolutely awful. He had to be juiced up so bad.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
Yeah, Scott took his Papa Pump trip a little too far. Like he was trying to emulate another steroid casualty Superstar Billy Graham with the bleached hair, physique, although he never had the mic skills Graham had. I loved the Steiners the most before that when they would come to the ring in their Michigan attire and handle business. They deserve a DVD, let's hope soon.
Posted by 80'sRocked (Member # 6979) on :
My fave tag teams:
The Road Warriors/The Legion of Doom The Killer Bees The British Bulldogs The Hart Foundation Demolition
Posted by Devolution (Member # 1731) on :
Devolution here,
Yes, I was a WWF fan growin gup. It seemed that I would never miss watching it on Saturday's at 11am, 5pm and then again at 11pm too.
I have more wrestling DVD's and tapes than I care to mention, and it's funny because 2 of you mentioned Koko B. Ware and Hacksaw Jim Duggan. Hey had absolutely no Wrestling moves, punch, shouldertackle and Ho! for Hacksaw, and punch, headbutt dropkick and ghostbuster for Koko. \
Man they were terrible. I have plenty of favorite matches. Too many to list.
Right now anyway.
We are DEVO
Posted by Sammy Hain Invasion (Member # 3150) on :
In all truthfullness Hulk Hogan wasn't that great of a wrestler either
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
Hogan was the best salesman/icon in the sport, he had so few finishing moves though, his looks,his phsyique and mic skills got him to where few have gone. Then take a pure wrestler like Bob Backlund who could really wrestle, but didn't have the gloss to translate to the fans like Hogan.
Posted by Pyromantic (Member # 7658) on :
I liked The Brooklyn Brawler. It always saddened me though that he was always used as more of a sparing dummy for the big time wrestlers which meant he never won matches.
Posted by hewzy (Member # 6043) on :
I could never stand I.R.S, The Mountie and The Model Rick Martell. They really used to annoy me. can you lot remember Repoman he used too make me laff on his interveiws where he's bout to rob a car.I always felt sorry for Virgil cuz he was pointless. Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
Those were some real gimmicky wrestlers there, don't forget Tugboat, Corporal Kirschner, Outback Jack and Papa Shango. You know, the WWF tried real hard with some colorful story lines, but it always seemed they took a step back with some of their ideas. Gimmicks like Terry "the Rooster" Taylor, and what they did to DDP making him look like a fool.
Posted by 80'sRocked (Member # 6979) on :
One gimmicky wrestler that I liked was Leaping Lanny Poffo(Macho Man's brother). He was a good/entertaining "B" wrestler. Remember how he read poems to the crowd before his matches? Then he threw them to the audience on frisbees for souvenirs.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
Leaping Lanny was funny, but he wasn't much of a star, more like a preliminary wrestler. Paul Roma was another prelim who looked like a star but wasn't used like that for some reason.
Posted by TRSMMaiden (Member # 7789) on :
I was brought up on WCW. It was the only wrestling we got on UK terrestrial TV when I was little. My Mum used to tape it for me because it was on late and we used to watch at weekends.
My favorite was Sting (still going in WWF Im pretty sure). Also used to love Cactus Jack because he was completely nuts and also loved Johnny B. Badd with his Tutti Frutti!
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
Hail to Sting( he never wrestled in WWE by the way). One of my favorites, Jimmy Snuka and the late, great Mr. Perfect too.
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
Sting was on TNA he never wrestled in WWE.......
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
Funny he never went for the big WWE dough, guess he had some integrity too him. Always loved his mic skills and high flying wrestling ability.
Posted by Kash (Member # 297) on :
Sting was so great the he had to be introduced differently: "THIS IS STING!"
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
He referred to himself as the Stinger in interviews. Such a bro. Can't believe he and Ultimate Warrior started out together as a tag team.
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
Anyone remember that weird azz "Crow" phase Sting went through where he'd appear in the rafters during various matches with a baseball bat lmao?
Posted by Sammy Hain Invasion (Member # 3150) on :
I liked that image for Sting
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
I liked that Crow thing too, he needed that especially versus NWO.
Posted by Sammy Hain Invasion (Member # 3150) on :
The wrestling world loses yet another one at a way too young age as former WWE star "Test" found dead at 33
God, I can't believe that bit of bad news. Only 33, RIP. I think he was a a former bodyguard for Motley Crues as well if I'm not mistaken.
Posted by Sammy Hain Invasion (Member # 3150) on :
Now that you mention it I thought I heard that too. If not the Crue it was some metal band.
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
He debuted as Motley Crue's bodyguard during a live performance by the Crue on Raw in 1998. RIP Test.......
Posted by Sammy Hain Invasion (Member # 3150) on :
The guy in the closeup at 1:22 is none other than Jimmy 'Mouth of the South' Hart
Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
Interesting to note that as a former songwriter and singer back in the 60s, Jimmy wrote many of the classic intro songs to some of the biggest stars of the day; the Million Dollar Man's intro, for instance, is one, as is I think Koko's.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
I remember watching that Gentry's youtube clip specifically for Jimmy Hart. I think Hulk Hogan played music and was in bands too. Chris Jericho's father was former NHLer Ted Irvine.
Posted by Devolution (Member # 1731) on :
Devolution here,
Jimmy Hart also wrote "Sexy Boy" for Shawn Michaels.
We are DEVO
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
Shawn Michael's theme music is one of my faves. It's cool that Hart wrote it......
Posted by 80'sRocked (Member # 6979) on :
Speaking of the Hart's....who else besides me was watching live when Owen Hart died in 1999? Can you believe that was 10 years ago already? Unbelievable....what a sad story that was.
Posted by It's Sam, Mr. Hain If You're Nasty (Member # 3150) on :
I just read that former pro wrestler 'Playboy' Buddy Rose has died. He was a participant in the very first match at the very first Wrestemania where he lost to Tito Santana.
They said he was fighting many health issues including diabetes which is no surpise given his physique the last time I remembered seeing him.
They used to announce him at 271 lbs and then he'd grab the mic and say "I do not weigh 271 lbs, I weigh 217 lbs" when it was obvious that 271 lbs was closer to the truth. Eventually I'd say he was probably getting close to 371 lbs.
Never a main eventer but was a quality wrestler.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
I remember Rose and that whole 271 lbs. schtick. A shame about his passing. Who did he team up with as a tag team? Was iit Jessie Ventura? Couldn't remember. Was Scary Sherry his valet at one point?
Posted by JCWBobC (Member # 2525) on :
In the AWA "Playboy" Buddy Rose teamed with "Pretty Boy" Doug Sommers, with Sherri Martel as their manager, and they fueded with the Midnight Rockers(Shawn Michaels & Marty Jannetty). Jesse Ventura teamed with Adrian Adonis.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
I really miss NWO-era WCW. Current wrestling just doesn't have as much appeal to me as it did around the turn of the century.
Anyone read a Chris Benoit book by the name of Ring of Hell? Very hard hitting and sad that just about anyone associated with Stampede wrestling has had some tragedy befallen on them.
Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
Speaking of Sensational/Scary/Whatever S-adjective they could affix to her Sherri Martel (relation to Rick?), I guess everyone here knows she's now deceased as well as of last year. While she wasn't a personal favorite--she always came across as a trashier counterpart to the more attractive and virtuous Elizabeth (also deeply missed)--she always did well in whatever role they asked her to play; in a lot of ways, she made for just as good a sidekick to Ted DiBiase as Virgil did in a longer tenure in the role.
Posted by Pyromantic (Member # 7658) on :
Actually, I always found Sherri far more attractive than Elizabeth
Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
Of course, then, let's not forget the other attractive woman of the sport back in the day: Cheryl Roberts. Sure, Rick Rude was way out of line to go passing at her, but we can at least understand why, kayfabed or not. Perhaps several years later when Jake was gunning for Savage with his cobra, they could have solved that feud by putting her and Elizabeth in a steel cage and let them slug it out (guaranteed boost in the ratings in the coveted young male demographic as I see it).
Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
Picking this back up since it just popped into my head, did anyone watch Hulk's cartoon regularly back in the day (it was one of the few 80s cartoons I didn't actually see in original run, being phased out by the time I became a full-on Saturday morning nut, and besides ABC was my Saturday morning network of choice anyway)? Seeing them on YouTube, I can say that while no masterpiece, it is perversely entertaining. The only shame is that it couldn't have had its run a little later, when more all-timers could have been used (then again, who's to say they can't do a reboot that does? They could do it exclusively for their 24/7 on demand service, keeping the original lineups (although I'd switch the female roles to Elizabeth and Sherri for more recognition purposes) and adding in the later arrivals: say, Bret Hart, the Ultimate Warrior, the British Bulldog, Hacksaw, the Legion of Doom, and Brutus Beefcake for the good guys, and Flair, DiBiase, Jake the Snake (while he worked well both ways, there's general consensus he worked best as the sociopath during the early 90s when he had the cobra bite Savage's arm), the Undertaker (same; indeed, I'd say make he and Jake a de facto team since they worked well together during the previously mentioned period), Mr. Perfect, the Natural Disasters, and Yokozuna for the bad guys, with Slaughter, the Boss Man and Savage, who worked equally well both ways (although I personally liked the Boss Man much better as a good guy) as neutrals whose alliances would shift with each episode. Would this sound reasonable enough?
Posted by Sir Sammy Hain Esq. (Member # 3150) on :
I used to love watching the wrestling when i was a kid and got back into it at the end of the 90's with the Rock and Steve Austin.But after Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerro died i really cant watch it any more,and i think most of this comes down to the huge death rate within the business. Now i know the WWE has a drug testing program now but i wonder what they test for and how serious it is,as the business has a long history of pain killer and presription drug abuse. Also if it was a real sport and not sports entertainment as they like to call it there would of been some sort of investigation into why so many young men in their early to late 30's die of heart attacks.The figure must be miles ahead of any other sport or national statistic.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
Crazy that the wrestlers have to be on the road for just about 365 days a year, just the pounding the body takes, I have always loved wrestling but it's turned into a death industry and the bigwigs and shareholders are too busy laughing all the way to the bank.
Posted by Devolution (Member # 1731) on :
Devolution here,
Needless to say, Umaga is a terrible thing. I can't believe that, I think if people died all the time in 1985-1986 when I started watching it, I would have been cautious about even joking about Wrestling.
We are DEVO
Posted by Sir Sammy Hain Esq. (Member # 3150) on :
Another wrestler dies too young. This time it's Steve 'Dr Death' Williams dying at 49 from throat cancer.
No! Not another one. By coincidence I was just thinking about him last week when I was watching some old wrestling matches. These guys need pensions, it's atrocious so many lives have been snuffed out. I'm pretty much done with current wrestling.
Posted by Sir Sammy Hain Esq. (Member # 3150) on :
Anybody collect Hasbro figures back in the early 90's? I just picked up about 30 MOC and over 200 loose figures from a local comic book store. I used to collect wrestling tapes and magazines but I never got into collecting figures heavily until around 1997 when Toy Biz released the WCW figures. I wish I had been collecting Hasbro figures because these are the wrestlers I grew up watching.
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
Sad abot Brisco, he was before my time, but loved his old school wrestling.
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