Wrestling Gold #4: No More Mr. Nice Guy
Commentators: Dave Meltzer, Jim Cornette

We’re over halfway done with these things and I had a good time with the third disc so we might as well look at another. I’m not sure what to expect from these things, but again the matches are kind of secondary to the audio, with the two historians on the call. It worked before and it should again so let’s get to it.

As usual, I’m giving my best guess to some of the locations and dates.

From Memphis, Tennessee, September 3, 1984.

Rick Rude vs. Randy Savage

This isn’t something you saw very often and Jimmy Hart and Angelo Poffo are here too. Savage wastes no time in sprinting after Hart to chase him into the crowd and Rude is already hitting the stall button. Rude finally gets back inside and they fight over a top wristlock before Savage grabs an airplane spin. They’re already on the floor again with Savage grabbing the mic and throwing what looks like confetti at Rude. Back in and a Hart distraction lets Rude throw him over the top for a crash to the floor.

They get inside again with Rude hammering away in the corner and dropping Savage with a suplex. A clothesline lets Rude strut and pat the referee on the head, which is quite the odd personality from him. Back up and Savage sends him outside for the top rope ax handle, followed by a high crossbody but there’s no referee. Instead here is a massive King Kong Bundy (with HAIR) to deck Savage and give Rude the pin at 10:25.

Rating: B-. I don’t think there’s much of a surprise that these two had a good match, even though Rude was just getting his first major time in the ring. He certainly had charisma to go with the look and the match worked, with Savage clearly looking like he was ready to move on to the biggest stage in the world. It wouldn’t be much longer before he did, debuting in the WWF less than a year later.

From Toronto, Ontario, Canada, I believe February 17, 1974.

The Sheik vs. Andre The Giant

I believe this is a Texas Deathmatch (basically Last Man Standing in this case). Sheik, with Abdullah Farouk (the Grand Wizard Of Wrestling), goes right at him to start, which goes as well as you’re going to get by going after Andre. Some big right hands give Andre about eight each but Sheik comes back with the fire ball…and Andre is down for ten at 2:32. The whole match is listed elsewhere at 3:32 so I’m wondering if some stalling was edited out. Anyway, this was a REALLY bad idea, as Sheik hadn’t lost in Toronto in seven years and this showed the fans that he just wasn’t going to lose, so why buy tickets?

Post match Andre is tended to and gets quite the reaction.

From I have no idea.

Pampero Firpo vs. Jeff Doney

The much shorter (and much more famous) Firpo takes him down with a headscissors to start. The claw finishes Doney at 1:35. Well that’s a shame, as I wanted to see more Firpo, who has quite the wild reputation.

Post match Firpo helps Doney up.

From San Antonio, Texas, likely in the early 1980s.

Bruiser Brody/Scott Casey vs. Kelly Kiniski/The Spoiler

Brody and the Spoiler lock up to start and takes him down by the leg, allowing Casey to take over. Kiniski comes in and gets taken down by the leg as well, with Casey dropping some knees. The escape doesn’t work either but Spoiler comes in to work on Casey’s leg for a change.

That doesn’t last long either as Casey reverses into something of an STF, with Spoiler crawling over for the tag back to Kiniski. Casey grabs an ankle lock and it’s back to Brody to wrap the leg around the post. Back in and Spoiler takes over with the claw, which Brody breaks up rather quickly. Everything breaks down and Brody hits a dropkick, followed by the big knee for the pin at 6:48.

Rating: C+. The leglocks were a fine enough story for the match and it was fun to see Brody snap at the end and take over. As usual it feels like a shame that his career was cut short because dang he was great at his style. Casey is someone who wasn’t around very long and felt like he was rather good when he was out there, even if you didn’t see him outside of Texas very often.

From Memphis, Tennessee, September 17, 1984, likely fallout from the first match on the disc.

King Kong Bundy/Rick Rude vs. Jerry Lawler/Randy Savage

No DQ. Lawler and Rude start things off with Lawler sending him into Savage’s elbow to the head. Bundy (sans hair this time) comes in and powers Lawler into the corner without much trouble so Savage sneaks in for an elbow to the head. Bundy’s missed charge knocks Rude off the apron, earning some applause from Lawler, with the crowd eating it up of course. A missed charge in the corner has Bundy in more trouble as commentary compares loud reactions from the fans.

We settle back down to Savage beating on Rude and dropping the top rope ax handle to the floor. Back in and Rude goes to the eye but Savage breaks up a piledriver attempt. Lawler gets taken into the wrong corner but quickly gets out of trouble with the double noggin knocker, because it’s the 80s and that was still cool. Savage comes in for an airplane spin to send Rude staggering into the corner, followed by an atomic drop but unfortunately before the classic Rude sell.

It’s back to Bundy, who sends Lawler into a raised boot in the corner and the big elbow gets two. Things slow down and Rude draws Savage (who is shockingly on a thin edge) in so Bundy can get in some cheap shots. Bundy comes in behind the referee’s back to drop a knee but the splash misses…and it’s time to stagger up. Lawler slugs away and everything breaks down, with the referee getting bumped. Lawler has a foreign object of some kind to clean house and the referee calls the DQ for….well it could be a few reasons at 15:36.

Rating: B. This again felt like a big time match and that’s what you would want out of such a showdown. If nothing else, the idea of Lawler and Savage teaming together is rather unique, as they had been such heated rivals for so long. Once again Lawler is in his element against a monster and you could see the Ravishing side of things starting to come together.

Post match they brawl all the way to the back.

From some place in history at some point in time.

Chief Jay Strongbow vs. Don Kent

So this is a Shark Cage match, meaning two people inside one of those cages used to raise a manager above the ring. As you might expect, there is only so much you can do when the cage is about three feet wide. They ram each other into the cage and punch a lot as they try to get out of the cage to win.

Both are pulled back inside and Strongbow lifts him up for a ram into the roof. Kent rams him into the cage and chokes him down as this continues to die. Strongbow fights to his feet and manages to Hulk Up to hammer away. We’re actually clipped to Mark Lewin running in to choke Kent, allowing Strongbow to escape at 6:43 shown.

Rating: F. Imagine a match where the wrestlers’ feet were stapled to the floor. That’s about what you had here and it got as far as it was going to get. Commentary rightfully buried the thing because, again, they were fighting in a shark cage. This was firmly in the “this is dumb” category and thankfully it wasn’t something you saw very often. Just dumb.

Post match Lewin turns the cage over because he just wasted time on that thing.

From Memphis, Tennessee, May 14, 1984.

AWA International Title: Randy Savage vs. Austin Idol

Savage is defending and jumps him from behind to start and sends Idol outside for the top rope ax handle. Back in and Savage hammers away even more so Idol tries to grab a crutch from…well from the guy at ringside with a crutch. That earns Idol a neck snap across the top and Savage slugs away with the left jabs.

Idol Hulks Up and slugs away, including the right hands in the corner. More right hands set up the Las Vegas (Figure Four) Leglock and the crutch man (apparently Angelo Poffo) yells a lot….as Savage gives up at 7:01??? Either way it’s a new champion and I’m trying to remember Savage quitting more than a handful of times in his career.

Rating: C+. I could still go for more of Idol, as he certainly had a charisma to him and his promos were more than good enough. This was a match between two guys who felt like stars and while they didn’t have much of a high quality match, it did what it was supposed to, with the crowd going nuts and being into the whole thing. Good match here and both guys looked solid.

From Buffalo, New York, possibly on February 24, 1967.

Terrible Ted vs. Gene DuBois

Ted takes him down to start and gets on DuBois’ back, followed by a snapmare to put DuBois down again. They go to the mat, with the referee getting chased off by Ted, which doesn’t seem right. Back up and DuBois’ rollup attempt is shrugged off and the rather irritated Ted goes after the referee in the corner. For some reason Ted covers the referee in the corner and DuBois counts the pin…which of course doesn’t count. DuBois wrestles him down again but gets snapmared for a quick pin at 5:05.

Rating: D+. This was almost more of a comedy match than anything else, with Ted going after the referee over and over, which lost its charm rather quickly. You would think he could do something better than that and it only got him so far here. DuBois was doing most of the work and it went about as well as it could have all things considered.

Oh and one more thing: Ted is a bear.

From Memphis, Tennessee, July 16, 1984.

Tommy Rich vs. Rick Rude

We’re joined in progress with Rude grinding away on a headlock to start as Cornette explains the Memphis backstory, as only he can. Rich fights up and hits a quick atomic drop over the top. Back in and Rude goes low to escape a full nelson before knocking him into the corner.

Rude goes up and slips off the rope for a nasty crash, with Rich slapping on the sleeper. That’s broken up and the referee gets bumped, allowing Rude’s girlfriend Angel to come in. Cue Jerry Lawler to ram them together and steal a chain from Angel, allowing him to knock Rude cold. Rich gets the easy pin at 5:57.

Rating: C+. You could see Rude getting bigger and better around this point and it was cool to see what would become a great star. He wasn’t quite all the way there yet but the skill was coming together. Rich was someone who could get over anywhere in the south and it helps to have Lawler helping you in Memphis. Short but fun here.

From Memphis, Tennessee, early 1983.

AWA World Title: Nick Bockwinkel vs. Jerry Lawler

Lawler is challenging and Bockwinkel wrestles him down to start without much trouble. Bockwinkel works on the arm, including a top wristlock. Lawler gets sick of the arm cranking and fights up but we’re clipped to Bockwinkel sending him into the corner. Back up and Lawler hits a quick crossbody but Bockwinkel sends him crashing to the floor. Lawler fires up out of the corner and the comeback is on, with the right hands letting Lawler knock him into the corner.

Bockwinkel sends Lawler into the referee though and that’s….not a DQ actually as Bockwinkel hits a top rope ax handle for two and they head outside, with Lawler sending him into the announcers’ table. Back in and Lawler and just unloads with rights and lefts but shoves the referee. Bockwinkel hits the referee (intention unclear) and it’s finally thrown out at 12:13 shown, with Lawler winning by DQ. The roof comes off and then the referee hands the belt back to Bockwinkel to kill the energy immediately.

Rating: B. There are very few things that will always work in Texas and the Lawler comeback in Memphis was one of them. It worked again here, as the fans were buying the idea of Lawler being able to win the title. Unfortunately that was something that they did for so long that it stopped working so well. Granted Lawler did finally win the title, albeit in 1988, but he did get there. Bockwinkel deserves so much more credit than he gets, as you do not see many people as skilled in the ring as he is. My goodness that man could make anything look smooth and it was fun to see him take someone apart.

From Memphis, Tennessee, 1984.

Randy Savage vs. Austin Idol

Angelo Poffo is here with Savage, who bails out to the floor to start and the chase is on. Back in and Savage hammers away in the corner with the big elbow connecting for two, which isn’t treated as a big deal here and man that’s bizarre. Savage sends him outside and Idol chops away to take over, meaning it’s time to slug away back inside.

Idol tosses him right back outside but Savage takes over again, with Idol being busted open. Savage slams him down a few times for two each and some elbows set up another slam for two more as Savage isn’t exactly mixing it up here. Another slam is countered into a small package to give Idol two so Savage jumps to the top for an elbow to the head. Savage bites the head and pulls at the cut, which means it’s time to Hulk Up.

The comeback is on and Idol drops a middle rope elbow and starts hammering away as well. A running elbow misses but so does Savage’s jumping knee, meaning it’s time to go after the leg. The Las Vegas Leglock is loaded up so Poffo gets on the apron to throw in the knuckles. The loaded right hand finishes Idol at 11:41 shown.

Rating: B-. Other than that weird string of slams, this worked well again with Idol having so many of the characteristics that Hogan stole from him over the years. Shockingly enough, Savage and someone like Hogan worked together for a good match. I liked this again, but dang it could have been fun to hear them talk to each other even more, as that was Idol’s best work.

From Indianapolis, Indiana, early 70s.

Bob Ellis vs. Bobby Heenan

So this is the classic story of Heenan being the evil manager who sends his wrestlers after Ellis, who beats them all and now it’s time for Ellis to get his hands on Heenan. Well in theory at least as Heenan comes to the ring on crutches and claims a knee injury. Cornette is of course aghast at the suggestion that a wrestling manager would fake an injury to avoid a beating.

Heenan wants to postpone the match for five to six months so he can heal properly but the referee isn’t having it and we’re ready to go. Heenan swings with the crutch but only hits the buckle, meaning it’s time for Heenan to send in the Blackjacks. That just means a pair of bulldogs from Ellis so Heenan dives over the top in that trademark spot of his and it’s a countout at 1:06. Just a funny angle rather than anything important but Heenan could sell this as well as anyone ever.

Overall Rating: B-. It’s another case of having a good time watching old wrestling and just getting a sample of what is available out there. The interesting part about a lot of these things is how much they do with so little. These are bare bones sets but the fans are into these people and it still works to this day. You can get into the stories they’re telling and it makes these matches entertaining. Throw in Cornette and Meltzer on commentary and it’s quite the interesting look at things.

 

 

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Wrestling Gold #3: We Like To Hurt People
Commentators: Dave Meltzer, Jim Cornette

So for those of you who have forgotten, this is a DVD set released back in 2001, featuring a bunch of territory matches from around the country. The big draw though is special commentary by Jim Cornette and Dave Meltzer, which is often a lot more interesting than the matches themselves. Let’s get to it.

As usual, I’m hoping for the best on the dates/promotions for these matches.

From Memphis, Tennessee, June 25, 1984.

Phil Hickerson/The Spoiler vs. Tommy Rich/Eddie Gilbert

Street fight so naturally it’s a big brawl to start as commentary buries the idea of Rich and Gilbert as the new Fabulous Ones. Spoiler chokes Gilbert on the floor and then goes back inside as Rich is kicked down. Gilbert comes back in to clean house with a boot and they split off again as commentary talks about Gilbert skipping high school graduation because he was in a match. Cornette: “Who’s going to go to your high school graduation when you’re booked?”

Gilbert unloads on Spoiler inside as Hickerson is sent into the post and atomic dropped on the floor. A backdrop gets Gilbert out of a piledriver attempt and Gilbert gets to hammer away as the rather bloody Rich comes back inside. Spoiler gets in a boot shot to Rich but Gilbert backdrops him to the floor. Commentary realizes they’re sounding “like a WCW announce crew” as Rich has stolen Spoiler’s (loaded) mask. A middle rope headbutt knocks Hickerson cold for the pin at 6:35.

Rating: B-. This was indeed a bloody, violent match and that’s exactly what you would have expected in the Mid-South Coliseum when a street fight was advertised. Memphis could get violent with the best of them and it helps that Hickerson, one of the more underrated stars of the territory era, was there to help make it work. The ending was a unique one as well and I could have gone for a lot more of this.

From Memphis, Tennessee, sometime in the summer of 1984.

Lanny Poffo/Randy Savage vs. Rock N Roll Express

Yeah this should work and Angelo Poffo is with the non Rock N Roll. Savage and Morton lock up to start with Morton knocking him down without much trouble. Savage slams him down and goes up but gets punched out of the air, allowing Gibson to come in for a change. It’s off to Lanny, who is knocked outside and we’re clipped to Savage sending Morton outside for a top rope ax handle.

Morton is sent into the apron and Lanny knees him in the back as commentary basically ignores the match to talk about the greatness of Randy Savage (fair enough). Gibson gets drawn in, allowing Morton to get kneed right back down. An elbow to the face isn’t enough for Morton to get over to Gibson and we’re firmly in Ricky Morton Selling period, with the fans getting all the more into it.

Gibson is distracted to the floor so Morton has no one to tag, leaving Angelo to send Morton onto the announcers’ table. Morton backdrops Savage onto the table and it’s back to Gibson to clean house (with Cornette giving a great explanation behind the psychology of the hot tag and how Morton set up that turn of the story). Angelo comes in with a boot though and that’s a DQ at 8:30 (13:06 according to commentary, which could make this July 16, 1984) shown.

Rating: B. Believe it or not, this was rather good stuff with both teams knowing how to work together so well. Morton getting the hot tag to Gibson is one of the classic spots in wrestling and it works so well because Morton could sell like no one else. Savage and Poffo didn’t team much (if at all) on the big stage and it’s a shame as they’re rather good together.

Post match the brawl stays on and the fans go absolutely nuts.

From San Antonio, Texas, possibly in September 1981.

Dory Funk Jr. vs. Dick Slater

Slater slams him down to start as commentary talks about how similar Slater was to Terry Funk, which would be an understatement. Funk takes him down and grabs a headlock as you can see just how smooth Funk can be out there. An atomic drop gets Slater out of trouble, only for Funk to grab the headlock again.

Back up and Funk’s atomic drop sends Slater to the apron, with commentary pointing out how much Slater looks like Terry again. Back in and Slater takes him down for a knee drop as commentary explains how the Funk Brothers had to get out of their father’s shadow, which worked everywhere but Amarillo. Funk snapmares him down into an elbow drop and it’s time for the forearms. A collision sends Slater outside though and Tully Blanchard runs in to jump Funk for the DQ at 6:17.

Rating: B-. This felt more like a preview of something even bigger but I’ll take that for an old TV show. The more I see of Funk, the more impressive he is and it was fascinating to see Dory against someone so close to Terry. The Funks only wrestled once so you don’t get to see it very often, making this all the more interesting. It could have been more, but this worked well enough.

Post match the beatdown stays on with Scott Casey running in for the save.

From….I have no idea actually. Toronto seems to be the most likely place but there’s no official listing.  Likely the late 70s.

US Title: The Sheik vs. Tiger Jeet Singh

Sheik is defending in a cage and Singh jumps him to start for a ram into the cage. Commentary immediately buries Singh as being terrible in the ring but he wound up being rich anyway because he’s a good businessman. Sheik sends him into the cage and gets in some pencil shots, only for Singh to take it away and stab him in the head.

Singh is rammed into the cage again but keeps Sheik from escaping with a pull of the trunks. More choking and brawling in the corner doesn’t go anywhere as Cornette places this match in the early 80s. Singh can’t get out of the cage either so he knocks Sheik down…and right through the door to retain the title at 7:46.

Rating: C-. This was all about the brawling and violence and, well, what else were you expecting? The match was just kind of dull and neither of them were going to be able to do much here but the fans were into it. That’s about as good as it gets for these two and thankfully they kept it short, which is often a positive move.

From San Antonio, Texas, April 9, 1984.

Southwest Championship Wrestling Tag Team Titles: Fabulous Blonds vs. Manny Fernandez/Al Perez

The Blonds (Eric Embry/Ken Timbs) are defending with Fernandez taking Timbs down with a headscissors to start as Cornette talks about how Embry could have been a star if he was taller, stronger or more tanned. Timbs takes over with an armbar and a backdrop into another armbar as commentary talks about how Perez could have been a star if he developed the muscles between his ears a bit more.

Fernandez is back up with a dropkick into an armdrag and of course commentary praises him a bit more, mainly because Fernandez was that much better. Perez comes in for a middle rope shot to the arm and the armbar goes on again. Some big knees to the arm keep Timbs in trouble as commentary goes into quite the discussion of cosmetic appeal in wrestling. Back up and Timbs misses an elbow and it’s right back to an armdrag into an armbar.

It works so well that he does it again but Timbs gets up and brings in Embry for the running forearm. There’s the double backdrop to put Perez down again and Timbs’ elbow gets two. An atomic and knee drop combine for two on Perez but he gets in a shot of his own. The tag is cut off though and Fernandez is drawn in, meaning the referee has to send him back.

Perez backdrops out of Embry’s piledriver attempt and Fernandez comes back in to clean house. Everything breaks down and the champions are sent into each other. Back up and Embry tries another piledriver but Fernandez drops him with a clothesline to give Perez the pin and the titles at 10:58.

Rating: C+. Things got better at the end and you could see the match building along the way, with Fernandez waiting to come in and run through everyone. Perez was indeed someone who could have been a star if he could put it all together but that never really happened. Fernandez was a star who could have been a lot bigger but almost always did well when he was given the chance, especially in a smaller place like this one. Good enough stuff here, with the ending boosting it up.

Post match the Blondes jump them again and the Sheepherders run in to beat on Perez and Fernandez. Bobby Jaggers and more run in for the save.

From Toronto, Ontario, Canada, February 6, 1977.

NWA World Title: Terry Funk vs. Harley Race

Funk is defending and we’re joined in progress with Funk getting two off a backbreaker. A piledriver gets the same and Funk drops a knee as it is so strange to see Funk wrestling such a basic style. Race is back up with a snapmare for two and a good backbreaker gets the same.

Funk gets in a flying headscissors of all thing to take Race down, only to be sent outside. Back in and Race goes up top but gets slammed down, setting up the spinning toehold. That’s broken up so Race tries a suplex, with Funk falling down on top of him for another near fall. Funk goes back to the spinning toehold but Race escapes again and hits a shinbreaker (on Funk’s bad knee). An Indian Deathlock, eventually, makes Funk give up at 7:14.

Rating: B-. You didn’t get to see much from the two of them, but of course it was technically sound and logical, because you shouldn’t expect anything else from these two. Race was about 33 here and a staggering 17 year veteran already as he wins his second title. That man was an incredibly rare case and it was always a treat to watch him in the ring. Funk on the other hand is a legend is in his own right and it’s still bizarre to see him doing something like this, as he was so good at this style in addition to the stuff that made him famous to more modern audiences.

Post match Race jumps up and down in celebration, which makes sense but dang it feels weird to see from him.

From Indianapolis, Indiana, probably around 1977.

Pepper Gomez vs. The Bounty Hunter

Gomez knocks him into the corner to start and grabs an armdrag for another knockdown. A right hand drops Hunter again as commentary talks about Gomez having a very strong stomach. Gomez works on an armbar and the referee kicks Hunter’s feet off the ropes, which doesn’t seem overly fair. Hunter fights back but gets taken down for a seated senton, setting up a jackknife rollup to give Gomez the pin at 4:21.

Rating: C. Not much to this one but Gomez was a massive name from his time so having him in here was a cool moment. That’s all you can ask for in a situation like this as a lot of his stuff has been lost to time. Hunter was nothing to see but he was basically just there to be a warm body anyway.

From Memphis, Tennessee, May/June 1984.

Austin Idol vs. Jim Neidhart

Neidhart runs him over with a shoulder to start but Idol’s manager Jimmy Hart trips Neidhart down. That means a lot of yelling ensues and Neidhart gets back inside, where we’re clipped to Idol grabbing a backdrop. Neidhart chokes him down into a chinlock and the comeback is cut off.

None of that matters though as Cornette is talking about Memphis history, reaching a level where even Meltzer is just left sitting there listening to him. Neidhart’s bearhug goes on and he even gets a near fall until we’re clipped again to Idol hammering away. Idol grabs a sleeper and here is the Spoiler to jump Idol with a cane. Neidhart covers so Hart comes in for the DQ at 4:53.

Rating: C. This seemed to be a much better match if you could see the whole thing, which is often the case with matches like these. Idol is someone who always felt like he could have been a bigger deal if he was ever on a bigger stage but that wasn’t going to be the case for him, as he just wasn’t going to do something he didn’t want. The draw here was Cornette getting to talk Memphis though, as he excels at it like nothing else.

Post match Neidhart and Spoiler beat Hart down but Idol makes the save. Hart even gets in a few shots of his own and rips off his jacket in a visual you don’t see very often.

From Memphis, Tennessee, May 21, 1984.

Butch Reed vs. Junkyard Dog

Dog knocks him down to start and drops a right hand, with Reed bailing out to the floor. Reed is pulled back in and the all fours headbutts send Dog outside, with commentary pointing out that Dog stole the move from Terry Funk. Back in again and Reed is choked down in the corner but gets in a cheap shot as Cornette gets to sing Bill Watts’ praises. A double clothesline leaves both of them down, allowing Cornette to tell more stories about Dog’s incredible popularity.

Reed grabs a chinlock into a front facelock, which goes on for a good while so it’s more Cornette Storytime (which granted is the big appeal of this whole set). Dog fights up with an atomic drop and a clothesline as you can feel the energy picking up. Said energy is capped off when Dog hits the Thump for the pin at 7:42.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t so much a good match as much as it was a match where you could see how great they could have been if Dog was at his best. The problem with Dog is he got out of shape fast and there wasn’t much that could be done to stop it. When he was at this peak though, it was something special and this wasn’t quite that, but it was still good enough stuff.

From Memphis, Tennessee, sometime in 1984ish.

Rick Rude/Jim Neidhart/Ox Baker/Japanese Assassin vs. Robert Reed/Tiger Mask/Keith Eric/Mad Dog

The Assassin kicks away at Eric and Rude, in a dress because of a Memphis stipulation, and it’s off to Neidhart to throw him around. Dog comes in and gets taken into the wrong corner for a beating from Baker. Mask (no not that one, as this is Ken Wayne) comes in and gets pummeled just as quickly and Reed gets beaten up as well. I guess Baker didn’t care for The Brady Bunch In The White House. Anyway Neidhart powerslams Eric and Rude adds a swinging neckbreaker for the pin at 3:17.

Rating: C. This wasn’t so much of a squash as much as it was a total and complete destruction, which was normal for a match on Memphis TV. Rude was ticked off because of the dress and Baker was ticked off because of who he was in general. It was fun to see this kind of a beating as it always looked good to see someone get decimated like that.

From Memphis, Tennessee, 1984.

Jerry Lawler vs. King Kong Bundy

Bundy, with Jimmy Hart, splashes Lawler in the corner to start and stomps the crown, with Cornette saying that’s going to come out of Bundy’s paycheck. Lawler gets elbowed down again and the ecstatic Hart is already cheering on the apron. Bundy sends him into the corner for a right hand and Lawler, tired of being squashed, rolls out to the floor. That just earns him a posting and an elbow drop for two back inside. The chinlock goes on and Bundy switches it to a bearhug, with Lawler finally breaking out. Lawler goes outside again and the chase is on, with Bundy getting tired rather quickly.

More stalling ensues, with the story of the match being that Hart is paying Bundy by the minute and Lawler wants to cost Hart money. As commentary points out, that means they can they can just run around and keep the story going without getting physical. Lawler finally gets caught by Hart though and Bundy takes over with some big right hands. Bundy drops an elbow but misses a splash and the strap comes down so it’s time for the comeback. Cue Rick Rude to distract Lawler though and Bundy gets in a chain shot, followed by the splash for the pin at 7:05.

Rating: C+. This was a great illustration of doing something with nothing, because people wanted to see Lawler cost Hart money and it worked like a charm. In other words, the company got creative with an idea and ran with it, which was what you had to do when you were running so often. It worked here and Bundy’s limitations were hidden at the same time. Not too bad.

From Detroit, Michigan, October 8, 1978.

Terry Funk vs. Mark Lewin

Lewin actually takes him to the mat by the arm to start and shrugs off some headbutts, with Funk hurting himself by mistake. An armdrag into another armbar has Funk in trouble and the fans rather pleased. The wristlock goes on as they head outside and then back inside as commentary talks about Paradise Alley.

Lewin switches off to a hammerlock but gets sent crashing out to the floor. Funk stomps away and grabs a chair, with Lewin bashing Funk in the head. Somehow that’s not a DQ so Lewin grabs a sleeper….and a rather large football player named Walter Johnson (of the Cleveland Browns) comes in to jump Lewin for the DQ at 5:55.

Rating: C+. The armbar was a bit repetitive but you could tell that the two of them had the energy and the crowd were way behind Lewin. The end was a big moment with the interference from an NFL player and the match certainly felt important. I was expecting more violence, but they did at least use a piece of a chair so we got something.

Post match Funk (bleeding) and Johnson beat on Lewin with a piece of the chair. That’s more like it.

From Memphis, Tennessee, July 9, 1984.

AWA International Title: Tommy Rich vs. Masao Ito

Ito is defending. The match listing gets Ito’s name wrong (“Massao”) but I doubt it was printed very often. We’re joined in progress with Rich grabbing a headlock takeover and a snapmare takes Ito down again. Ito shrugs that off and chops away before blocking an O’Connor roll. Rich knocks him down but gets chopped into the required nerve hold but Rich is up again to strike away.

That earns him another nerve hold but Rich gets up to lose a slugout. Ito’s middle rope splash misses so Rich hits an ax handle and the Thesz press (his finisher) but Ito’s goons make the save. Some powder to the eyes gives Ito two but Tojo Yamamoto gives Rich some salt to blind Ito right back. A crossbody gives Rich the pin and the title at 8:04.

Rating: B. This really got going and it was one of the best matches on the set thus far. Rich could do a fired up comeback like few others and the title change felt like a big deal. The fans were into Rich and it was cool to see this kind of thing happen, as it was quite the ordeal, showing you what can happen with a well told story.

From Memphis, Tennessee, June 4, 1984.

AWA Southern Title: Jerry Lawler vs. Kamala

Lawler is defending and Kamala rushes him into the corner for a fast start. Kamala chokes him down and sends him outside before Lawler’s right hand has no effect. More right hands just make Kamala jump into the air and grab the always lame pectoral claw. That’s only good for two so Kamala chops him on the mat and gets two off the splash. Lawler isn’t having this and fights up, with the strap coming down and the big right hand rocking Kamala for a change.

Kamala goes for the throat though and Lawler is right back down, which isn’t something you saw too often around here. The beating continues, with Lawler being knocked onto the announcers’ table as Jimmy Hart is thrilled at ringside. Lawler almost gets back inside so Kamala beats him down again, then does the same thing again. Hart gets the referee’s attention though and Lawler blasts Kamala with a chair. That leaves Kamala convulsing on the floor as Lawler wins by countout at 10:28.

Rating: B-. Kamala was a heck of a monster and it was easy to get behind anything Lawler was doing, especially in Memphis. The fans loved him no matter what and that was even more true when he was fighting a monster. That was a perfect spot for someone like Kamala and it worked rather well here. Good stuff, with Lawler looking like a hero by taking him out in the end.

From Indianapolis, Indiana, early 1970s.

Blackjack Mulligan/Ray Stevens/Baron Von Raschke vs. The Crusher/Dick The Bruiser/Sailor Art Thomas

Crusher and Stevens start things off with Stevens hammering away, earning himself a lifting choke. Raschke comes in and gets chased away as we’re clipped to Crusher taking over on Mulligan. Stevens goes up top and everything breaks down but we’re clipped again to Crusher working on Mulligan’s arm.

Mulligan powers him into the corner for some triple teaming and everything breaks down again. Stevens rakes Bruiser’s eyes so Bruiser goes nuts on him, even sending him outside. A young Bobby Heenan helps Stevens back in and everything breaks down again, with Raschke being rammed into Mulligan. Raschke gets double backdropped for the pin at 7:00.

Rating: B-. This was a big star studded match to wrap up the set and it was cool to see something from such a bygone era. The Bruiser and the Crusher were incredibly popular stars of their day and Stevens is one of the best in-ring performers of all time. It worked well and it felt like a big deal when everyone was in the ring. Fun match.

Overall Rating: B-. As has been the case with the previous two discs, and as will be the case with the other two discs, there wasn’t much to be said for a lot of the wrestling. Most of it was ok (and some of it was rather good) but the real draw here was all of the history lessons. You might not be into it if you’re not a fan of wrestling history, but there is some incredibly interesting stuff in there, with some of Cornette’s stories being a mixture of fascinating and hilarious. More good stuff here, and I’m sure I’ll have a good time with the other two.

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Wrestling Gold #2: The Maim Event
Commentators: Jim Cornette, Dave Meltzer

It’s another set of old school wrestling with the commentary being the big drawing card. Rather than listening to the regular commentary on a bunch of random territory stuff, we have Jim Cornette and Dave Meltzer offering a variety of insights and humor at the sport’s expense. Let’s get to it.

From Memphis, June 25, 1984.

Rock N Roll Express vs. Lanny Poffo/Randy Savage

Angelo Poffo is here with the non-Express. Poffo and Morton start things off as Cornette says he had already managed against the Express when he had the Galaxians (even Meltzer is impressed). Believe it or not, Cornette takes the lead on commentary here as this is the definition of his bread and butter. The Express takes Poffo down to start, followed by the double leg roll into the right hands to Savage in the corner (the Rockers would later steal that).

Morton works on the leg before trying the double roll again, with Savage dropping down. Savage gets back up…and is quickly knocked right back down in a funny bit. Savage comes in and misses a charge into the corner so Poffo can take over on Gibson. Morton is right back in to clean house but gets sent outside so Savage gets in a right hand (with that leg kick of his).

The middle rope elbow misses but Poffo is right back in to keep Morton in trouble. Morton is sent outside for the top rope ax handle from Savage (a big spot back in the day) but Poffo misses a Swanton (a VERY big spot in the day). The big tag brings Gibson back in and NOW the fans are up…and then they’re right back down as Angelo pulls the top rope down to send Gibson outside for the DQ at 6:02.

Rating: C+. This was getting going but it’s Memphis so the idea is to set it up for a rematch down the line. That’s a fine way to go, as these guys were working hard and the ending had the fans going nuts. The Express had a great underdog style and Savage was an all time star, while Lanny could more than hold his own. Give these guys some more time and this would be even better, but what we got was nice enough.

Post match Savage gives Morton a piledriver through the ringside table, which was the mother of all crazy spots.

From San Antonio, Texas, 1983.

Nick Bockwinkel vs. Manny Fernandez

Bockwinkel’s AWA World Title isn’t on the line. Feeling out process to start with Fernandez grabbing a headlock. Bockwinkel slams his way out of that but Fernandez is right back with a headlock takeover. A small package gives Fernandez two and it’s right back to the headlock. This lets commentary give us a history of Fernandez’s career as Bockwinkel fights up and hits a forearm to the ribs.

A knee to the gut drops Fernandez and a knee to the face puts him down again. Fernandez is already busted open and Bockwinkel grabs a bearhug of all things. That’s broken up and Fernandez knocks him down for two, followed by a suplex for the same. The sleeper goes on and Bockwinkel is in trouble but the time limit expires at 7:50 shown.

Rating: C+. I was interested when I saw this announced and I was curious to see where it went. Odds are the whole match went ten minutes and that was a fine way to build up to a rematch down the line. As usual, Bockwinkel can make anyone look good while Fernandez is a brawler who bled a lot. Good stuff here, and I could absolutely go for a longer version.

From (I believe) Detroit, Michigan, February 14, 1976.

United States Title: Mark Lewin vs. The Sheik

Lewin is defending and this is Loser Leaves Town. Lewin backs him up against the ropes to start and they actually break clean. That lasts all of five seconds before Sheik takes him into the corner for biting and choking. Some stabbing with a pencil has Lewin in more trouble as commentary talks about how many people tried to go after Sheik.

Lewin fights up but gets knocked outside, with the blood making it hard to see. Sheik rakes the cut on the head again but this time Lewin goes after Sheik’s manager to start the tug of war. Back in and Lewin hammers away and you can hear the fans over the commentary track. Lewin stabs away with the pencil and, after we get a random closeup of the manager’s face, Lewin stabs him again for two.

The manager comes in for the cheap shot but Lewin stabs away at the Sheik again. Some Mongolian chops have Sheik in trouble and Lewin grabs a sleeper. The manager comes in and gets sleepered as well, allowing Sheik to come up with the fireball. That’s enough for Lewin to fall outside for the countout at 10:26. Apparently Sheik wins the title as well, with his manager’s eyes getting burned being an acceptable situation.

Rating: C-. Ok you don’t have this kind of a match for the sake of their wrestling ability. This was about having two people go out there and do violent stuff to each other and they did it…well ok not very well but by this point the Sheik was mostly ancient. It’s not a good match but it’s quite the spectacle, which is the entire point.

From Fort Worth, Texas (commentary isn’t sure) in the late 1970s.

David Von Erich/Kerry Von Erich vs. Killer Karl Krupp/Gene Yates

David takes Yates (commentary doesn’t know him either) down and then Kerry does it to Krupp. Kerry and Krupp go to the some grappling on the mat until Krupp rams him face first into the mat. David comes in for a dropkick as Cornette gives us a history of the Von Erich Family and explaining why it went so terribly. Yates comes in and gets taken down by his arm, including an armbar. David adds some dropkicks and Yates is sent into Kerry’s boot, followed by a headlock takeover.

Krupp comes back in to kick away, setting up his own claw. Kerry is back in with an armbar but gets reversed into the stomach claw (and yes it still looks dumb). Kerry’s comeback is clipped off to Yates coming back in but getting caught with a terrible dropkick. David comes back in with a sleeper and everything breaks down, with David rolling Yates up for the pin at 9:49 shown.

Rating: C. You could see some skill from the Von Erichs but at the same time, both of them looked like they needed to be inflated a bit as they were looking rather tiny. At the same time, the fans were reacting to them and having them beat Krupp (an established heel) and…whomever Yates was made sense. The fans were going to go nuts for anything Von Erich related and those cheers would only get louder.

Post match the brawl continues with the Von Erichs clearing the ring without much trouble.

From Memphis, Tennessee, 1984. Also note that there is an error on the graphics, as the match is listed as the PYT Express, which is a different team than the Pretty Young Things.

Fabulous Ones vs. Pretty Young Things

That would be Stan Lane/Steve Keirn vs. Norvell Austin/Koko Ware. Keirn runs Austin over to start and stomps on his head but we’re clipped to Ware coming back in to clean house. Some backdrops have Lane in trouble and Austin comes in for two. Lane is sent outside so Ware can hammer away as Cornette is having a blast going over the Fabs’ history. Ware chokes with a rope on the floor before Austin hits an ax handle to Lane back inside.

Austin gets in a cheap shot on the floor, followed by a top rope forearm from Ware. Austin’s right hand drops Lane again as Cornette explains that he was supposed to manage the Fabs but they were so popular that it couldn’t happen. Ware tries a knee drop but goes a bit too high and falls over, earning a laugh from Meltzer.

Lane fights up and brings in Keirn but the referee doesn’t see it. Instead it’s Lane knocking Austin down and the Fabs switch, which is enough to break up Cornette and Meltzer’s ranting about how moves matter if you train the audience that they matter (preach it brothers). Keirn comes up to clean house as everything breaks down. A double DDT finishes Ware at 8:03 shown.

Rating: C+. The Fabs are a team who could do just about anything and be seen as huge stars, which is not something you see very often. The Pretty Young Things were a heck of a team in their own right but there is a reason the Fabs were such a big deal. No one, especially at this point, were going to top them. The match itself was good enough, but the crowd reactions were rather interesting.

From Memphis, Tennessee, 1984.

Jerry Lawler/Austin Idol vs. Road Warriors

The Warriors are REALLY young here. Animal hits a big press slam on Lawler to start and it’s already time for a breather on the floor. Hawk comes in for a gorilla press of his own and Lawler is outside again. We’re clipped to Hawk getting annoyed at Lawler’s right hand as commentary talks about how the Warriors are really not very good yet. Hawk charges into a raised boot in the corner but stalks Lawler anyway.

We’re clipped and Lawler pulls the strap down and starts hammering away before handing it off to Idol, who gets to make the comeback. Everything breaks down and Animal powerslams Lawler into the corner. Idol drops Animal and a double cover only gets two, with Animal shoving them away. Paul Ellering has the referee so Lawler and Idol’s rollups only get delayed twos. Animal clotheslines Hawk by mistake and Idol beats up Ellering until Hawk throws the referee out for the DQ at 5:35 shown.

Rating: C. Much like the previous tag match, it was more about the fans getting involved, though it didn’t have much time. Lawler and Idol were a dream team to try to fight off the new monsters. It only worked so well, but that was the case for just about anyone who was facing the Warriors at this time. Or just about any time.

From Memphis, Tennessee, December 12, 1983.

Southern Title: Jerry Lawler vs. Randy Savage

Lawler is defending in a cage and hammers away in the corner to start. This allows Cornette to go into a rather detailed history of Memphis vs. ICW, and of course he can rattle this stuff off with ease. Savage bails away but then spits at Lawler, which is enough to start a brawl. Lawler gets pulled down into a chinlock and Savage cranks away but we’re clipped to Lawler sending him into the cage.

Savage drops to the floor (as there is room between the cage and the ring) to pull out a foreign object. The referee doesn’t approve though so Savage goes after the arm instead. Lawler actually uses the rope to escape but the armbar goes on again and we’re clipped to Lawler fighting out. Savage knocks him into the corner again and kicks him down for two as commentary compares the two of them as being great workers. Savage kicks him down and out to the floor for an ax handle as Cornette explains the idea of getting more out of doing less.

Some choking and stomping lets Savage send him into the cage a few times as commentary talks about the cage being really ugly. Savage keeps up the beating on the floor but Lawler manages to whip him into the cage as well. For some reason Savage looks blinded and the comeback is on. Cornette explains the importance of connecting with human emotions but stops as Savage misses the elbow off the top of the cage (OUCH).

Somehow Savage is able to backdrop his way out of a piledriver attempt and the airplane spin takes us to old school. They’re both dizzy and Lawler’s right hand puts both of them down. Savage ax handles him on the floor again and some rams into the cage almost have the wall falling down. The strap comes down and Lawler UNLOADS on him with lefts and rights. Cue Jos LeDuc to break into the cage though and jump Lawler for the DQ (yeah it was a different time) at 13:36 shown.

Rating: B. I had a great time with this and you could tell how big the match really was for everyone. Lawler and Savage are of course two masters and they knew how to make this work very well, even with the cage being a bit less than what we’re used to seeing. Throw in a weird ending and things are a bit downgraded but this was far ahead of everything else on the set thus far.

Post match the big beatdown is on, including Savage dropping the top rope elbow. Some other wrestlers run in for the save.

From Mid-South Wrestling, 1981.

Mid-South Tag Team Titles: Ted DiBiase/Bob Roop vs. The Samoans

DiBiase/Roop are challenging and the Samoans have Ernie Ladd with them. Roop and Sika (spelled Sica in the graphic) start things off with Roop working on the arm. A right hand staggers Afa on the apron and it’s off to DiBiase for a headlock. It works so well that they do it again but Sika is back up to take over, with Afa coming in for the first time.

Commentary praises Ladd and DiBiase’s father Mike as Sika misses a headbutt. Roop comes back in to take over but Sika makes the save. A double headbutt drops Roop again and everything breaks down, with Ladd being dragged in. Roop covers Sika but the referee calls for the DQ at 6:19.

Rating: C-. What is with these finishes? Roop is someone I haven’t seen much of over the years and while he was a former Olympian, he was only the most interesting professional. On the other hand you have DiBiase, who is already showing the skill that would move him into a rather awesome future. The Samoans are…well you know who the Samoans are and they were doing their thing here.

From Indianapolis, Indiana, August 25, 1973.

WWA Tag Team Titles. Bruno Sammartino/Dick The Bruiser vs. Ernie Ladd/Baron Von Raschke

Oh my. Raschke and Ladd are challenging and have a VERY young Bobby Heenan with them. Local announcer Sam Menacker is guest referee. The Bruiser grabs Raschke with a headlock and Ladd comes in for an early save. We seem to be clipped to Sammartino coming in to knock Ladd down to a HUGE reaction. A backdrop gives Sammartino two with Raschke making the save. Sammartino punches Ladd out to the floor, followed by the jumping stomps back inside.

Raschke comes in and takes over on Sammartino, only to miss an elbow. It’s back to Bruiser who sends Raschke over the top before all four go outside. Sammartino almost gets to destroy Heenan but it’s back to Bruiser for a backdrop on Raschke. Bruiser covers so Raschke puts the foot on the ropes, only for Menacker to break it up and count three anyway at 4:54 shown. From what I can tell this was a 2/3 falls match so this was either heavily clipped or we don’t see the other two falls (Sammartino/Bruiser won 2-1).

Rating: C. Yeah you can only get so much with this much stuff cut out, but WOW that is a heck of a lineup. It’s the kind of a match that makes your eyebrows go up as there is almost no way this is boring. I absolutely could have gone for more of this and that’s a very nice feeling as the cutting wrecked what could have been an awesome showcase. Also of note: the fans were going NUTS for Sammartino here, which is at least a bit of proof that he could have been something better outside of just the northeast.

Post match Heenan yells at Menacker but can’t get anywhere.

From San Antonio, Texas, 1982.

Tully Blanchard vs. Manny Fernandez

They fight over a lockup to start and go to the ropes, leaving Blanchard to put a finger in Fernandez’s face. Fernandez wrestles him to the ground and grabs an armbar for some cranking. We’re clipped to Fernandez working on the leg before the crash out to the floor as commentary talks about the rather horrible training methods. Cue Gino Hernandez to jump Fernandez for the DQ at about 4:40 shown.

Rating: C+. This is another case where I could have gone for more of it as Fernandez is someone who could have worked well with just about anyone. On the other side you had Blanchard, who was still putting things together but you could see the skills. Blanchard and Hernandez were a heck of a team together and Fernandez getting a partner to fight against them could have gone rather well.

From Memphis, Tennessee, I believe June 11, 1984.

AWA Southern Title: Rick Rude vs. Jerry Lawler

Lawler is defending. We’re joined in progress to start with Rude hammering him down. This allows commentary to talk about the famous Memphis/Mid-South talent trade where Bill Watts completely outsmarted Jerry Jarrett and got the FAR better end of things. Lawler is knocked down so Rude’s manager Angel can get in some choking, followed by a suplex and neckbreaker to give Rude two.

The slow stomping continues but Lawler starts Hulking Up, with the strap coming down. The referee accidentally gets dumped though and Lawler drops Rude, only for….it looked like Jim Neidhart runs in for the save. Lawler hits the fist drop but Angel comes in, allowing Rude to hit an ax handle for the pin at 5:04 shown.

Rating: C+. This is where things get interesting as you have someone like Rude, who was hardly a big deal yet but the skill was absolutely there. Once he got some more of the details of the Ravishing character down, it was off to the races and a lot of that was due to getting to work with someone like Lawler. This was like a preview for the future, and it was a heck of a tease.

Post match Lawler is livid and goes after the villains, including a right hand to Angel, which sends the fans into absolute delirium (this was on some music videos that aired in Memphis and the reaction almost has to be seen to be believed). Tommy Rich and Doug Gilbert run in to help Lawler but the Pretty Young Things come in as well. Rich and Gilbert make the real save with some chairs.

From Indianapolis, Indiana, September 16, 1972.

Dick The Bruiser/The Crusher/Little Bruiser vs. Blackjacks/Bobby Heenan

Little Bruiser is about 3’7 and dropkicks a kneeling Heenan to start before the villains are all cleared out. Bruiser hammers away at Lanza and it’s off to Little Bruiser to hammer on the ribs. The neck crank goes on, with Little Bruiser coming in for some cheap shots of his own. Mulligan and Crusher come in, allowing Little Bruiser to get in another shot.

The hold is broken up and Crusher is taken into the corner as commentary talks about the Bruiser being a weird guy and a big riot in Madison Square Garden. Heenan comes in and get bitten by Little Bruiser, which doesn’t exactly go well. We settle down to Crusher poking Mulligan in the eye and Bruiser sends him into another eye poke. Lanza comes back in with some big forearms to the chest but for some reason it’s back to Heenan, who is promptly pummeled.

A backdrop gives Heenan a nasty landing and everything breaks down for the brawl on the floor. Back in and Heenan gets beaten up again and we’re clipped to Mulligan getting backdropped. Everything breaks down again and the Blackjacks are sent into each other. Then they’re whipped into Heenan as Cornette tries to remember the referee’s name. Little Bruiser is tossed onto the Blackjacks for two each, followed by a top rope splash to finish Heenan at 11:23.

Rating: B-. I’ve seen this match before and having Little Brutus out there to torment Heenan was great to see again. Heenan really was someone who could do just about anything and make it look good, which is even before you add in everything he could do on the microphone. The other four had a good brawl, but there was only one way this was going to end and that’s exactly what we got.

Post match the brawl stays on with the villains being cleaned out.

Some previews for the last three volumes wrap us up.

Overall Rating: C+. Again, you’re not watching this for the content for the most part (though some of it is good) but rather the commentary, which gives you some amazing stories and a nice background on so many of these people. We’ve heard of so many of them but it’s fascinating to get stories and insights from people who have either studied them for a long time or even worked with them. I’m not sure what the point is in trying to sell you on something like this though, as it’s the kind of thing you know if you’ll like or not right off the bat. I’m having a great time with it though and hopefully that continues.

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Today’s is a wrestler that is much more about the legacy than any individual accomplishments: Abdullah the Butcher.

Abdullah is a guy who took on an entirely different persona than he actually lived. Born in Canada, he took on the persona of a crazy man from the Sudan who never spoke in America and had handlers to do his talking for him. He never stuck around in one place for too long, meaning he was never going to win much more than a regional title. More often than not his story was that he was brought in by a big heel to take care of a big face, meaning this is going to be a different kind of look today. Basically I’ll just be looking at a handful of random matches from around the world, as Abdullah has been everywhere other than the WWF.

First up we’ll look at a match from World Championship Wrestling in the 1970s. Now a lot of you must be saying WCW didn’t exist in the 70s and if you only know of one WCW, you would be correct. This is World Championship Wrestling from Australia. I’m not sure on a date but the promotion closed in December 1978 so it’s before then at the latest.

Mark Lewin vs. Abdullah the Butcher

This is a called a war match so I’m assuming this is an old feud. Lewin is a guy most famous for his brawling so it should be a good fight. Butcher headbutts him into the corner and chokes away but Lewin comes back with some hard right hands to the head. More right hands knock the Butcher around before Lewin whips him into the corner over and over. Now it’s Butcher with right hands as this has been almost nothing but punches. Lewin grabs his sleeper finisher but has to dropkick Butcher’s handler Big Bad John. Butcher ducks a charging Lewin to send him into the ropes, tying his head in the cables for the eventual DQ.

Rating: D. This was exactly what it was supposed to be, though I’ve never heard of a war ending on a disqualifications. Lewin was a guy who was only going to work in the old system of wrestling. He wasn’t bad but it was all character instead of much to see in the ring, which was perfect for the 70s.

Post match King Curtis Iaukea (top star of the territory) comes out for the save but is sent into the buckle to put him down. Butcher goes after the referee but Iaukea gets up and fights Butcher off. Lewin declares the war is still on.

Now it’s off to Japan in 1982 for a match with a guy you may have heard of: Hulk Hogan.

Abdullah the Butcher vs. Hulk Hogan

Hogan looks far less cut up here. He’s still big and muscular but there’s nowhere near the definition. A LOUD Hogan chant starts up but Butcher shoves him away. Hulk shoves him right back but no one goes anywhere off running shoulder blocks. A jumping knee is enough to send Butcher to the floor though as the crowd is way into this. We hit the bearhug from Hogan for a change and he lifts the 400lb Butcher up in a nice power display.

Butcher finally goes to the eyes to escape and sends Hogan outside with one shot. They brawl on the floor with Hogan taking over and putting on a sleeper back inside. A running clothesline puts Butcher down but Hulk’s splash hits legs. Not knees, but legs as Butcher doesn’t raise anything. Butcher goes to the forehead and you can see Hogan blade.

A fork shot to the cut has Hogan’s blood all over Abdullah’s ample stomach and he rolls to the floor. Back in and Butcher hits a brainbuster and the elbow for two but it’s time to Hulk Up (not yet perfected). Hogan punches him to the floor and they head into the crowd for a double countout.

Rating: D+. Eh it’s Hogan against a monster with a hot crowd so what else are you expecting? Butcher would have been great as a heel of the month against Hogan on the WWF house show circuit but he never came to the company. Hogan was his usual self here instead of being the different guy he normally was in Japan.

To avoid the scorn of certain commenters, here’s a match against Andre the Giant from Puerto Rico at the WWC’s first anniversary show on September 13, 1983.

Andre the Giant vs. Abdullah the Butcher

Andre easily knocks him out to the floor with ease before bringing him back inside for some HARD right hands and chops in the corner. The Butcher stops a “charging” Andre with an uppercut in the corner before headbutting him down to the mat. Choking ensues but Andre comes back with chops to the chest. Abduallah pulls something out of his pants and jabs Andre in the throat before they lay on each other in the corner. Andre gets tired of this fighting stuff and just goes off on the Butcher, knocking him out through the ropes and into the crowd for a double countout.

Rating: D-. The wrestling sucked but watching Andre beat on people is always worth seeing, especially when he could still move. It’s not a good match at all but the fans were into seeing the EVIL Butcher get what was coming to him from someone he couldn’t push around. More fun than good and there’s nothing wrong with that.

We’ll stay in Puerto Rico with an ultra rare Zeus match from the 1990 anniversary show on July 7, 1990. And yes, it’s that Zeus.

Zeus vs. Abdullah the Butcher

In case you’ve never heard of him, Zeus was an actor that was brought in as a monster heel against Hogan, only for everyone to realize that he’s an actor, meaning he can’t wrestle. It’s a brawl on the floor to start as the fans are INSANE for this match. Zeus mauls the Butcher on the floor before the bell and poses in the ring but that just warms Abdullah up. We go inside with Butcher, apparently a crowd favorite here, staring at Zeus as trash is thrown into the ring.

Zeus chokes away in the corner before putting on an awkward looking bearhug. Butcher gets pounded down in the corner as Zeus clearly can’t do more than one or two moves. Again, not his fault as he’s not a wrestler. The Butcher comes back with a shot to the throat but Zeus pounds away with left hands and chokes Abdullah into the corner. Abdullah won’t go down though and pulls out his trusty fork, only to have Zeus take it away and put on another bearhug.

Butcher finally remembers those Hulk Hogan tapes he watched and goes to the eyes to escape and Zeus is in big trouble. The elbow (signature move) only gets one on Zeus and it’s back to the choking. No one goes anywhere off some shoulder blocks so Zeus chokes some more. Butcher comes back with a single right hand to put Zeus on the mat and it’s off to a nerve hold.

Zeus glares his way out of the hold and monkey flips Abdullah (seriously) down for some more choking. A few kicks to the ribs put Zeus in more trouble and they slug it out some more. Butcher knocks Zeus outside but he puts on a bearhug from the apron. They head outside and Zeus blasts him with a wooden podium as we get a double countout.

Rating: C. That rating only works if you look at it as ANYTHING other than a wrestling match. This was a spectacle instead of a match and that’s the best way it could have worked. Zeus wasn’t a wrestler and couldn’t do much more than bearhugs and chokes but you can’t hold that against him. Incredibly fun stuff here.

We’ll close things out with one of only three matches from Butcher’s most famous run in America. It’s the Chamber of Horrors match at Halloween Havoc 1991, which is a huge team match but when else am I going to get to talk about this?

Cactus Jack/Abdullah The Butcher/Diamond Studd/Big Van Vader vs. Steiner Brothers/El Gignate/Sting

Oh boy it’s the Chamber of Horrors. Now if you’ve never heard of this, clear some room off your list of absurd gimmicks. This is inside a cage similar to the Cell, although there’s no top on it and the holes in the cage are bigger. Inside are coffins, skeletons and a few weapons. The idea of the match is that everyone is fighting at once and at some point during the match, an electric chair will lower from the ceiling. Someone must be placed in the chair, strapped down and someone from the other team has to throw a switch, “electrocuting” them. And somehow, it’ll be even dumber than it sounds.

Oh and Gigante is replacing the injured Windham and Cactus is replacing Oz, although Oz will be in a match later and apparently Oz replaced Jack in that match. No idea why they made the switch. Jack comes out with a chainsaw minus the chain. Sting is US Champion here and yes, this is really what they’re using him for. Cactus jumps Sting on the ramp and Abdullah helps, but Rick comes out for the save. This is before we’re even in the cage. Well Rick was but he left because it’s just a cage so why should it be hard to stay inside?

In the ring Scott kills the Studd with a Tiger Driver while Gigante fights Vader. Sting gets a kendo stick to pound away on everyone he sees. Well everyone that isn’t on his team that is. Or the referee either. Speaking of the referee, he has a camera on his head here which is really more annoying than anything else. That could be an interesting idea for an angle but it never went anywhere.

People in masks pop out of those caskets. They don’t do anything but they pop out anyway. Sting clotheslines Vader to the floor and Gigante pulls Studd off of the cage wall. The Steiners hit their top rope DDT on Cactus as the chair is lowered. Vader knocks Rick into the chair but Rick clotheslines his way out of it. Sting throws a casket lid up in the air so it lands on Cactus’ head.

Now we have ghouls coming out with a stretcher. Again they don’t do anything but they’re there. Scott shatters a kendo stick over Cactus’ head, breaking him open. Cactus and Sting climb the cage and ram each other into it, which is one of the few actual clear brawls in the match. The rest of it is too hard to call because of the awful camera work. Sting has the stick now and stabs Hall with it.

It’s pretty much impossible to call this match as everything is all over the place and it’s just random brawling. Sting is busted open, as is Abdullah. Cactus goes for the switch as Rick is put in the chair, but the future Freakzilla makes the save. The heels get Rick into the chair for a second but he fights out of it pretty quickly. He gets put in there again and Cactus goes for the switch. Steiner suplexes Abdullah into the chair instead and after Cactus takes FOREVER to stand next to the switch, he throws the lever and Abdullah gets “electrocuted.”

Rating: W. As in wow, what were they smoking, or why. You can pick whichever you like and I think it’ll be fine. This was a huge mess but to me, this is pure nostalgia. I haven’t seen this match in years but I still remember about 80% of the commentary word for word. The match is terrible and incredibly stupid but it’s a fond memory for me so I can’t hate it.

Cactus checks on Abdullah post match but the Butcher gets up and beats up the ghouls that brought out the stretcher earlier.

Abdullah the Butcher is one of those guys that doesn’t have a definitive history because he was the traveling attraction of the old days. As I said, he never was around in one place all that much and if it was he was little more than a bigger villain’s hired goon. He’s a guy who lived off his reputation and there’s nothing wrong with that at all.

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Big Time Wrestling
Date: 1978
Location: Detroit, Michigan
Commentators: Chuck Allen, Mark Lewin

This is a rare occasion where I’m totally lost. Big Time Wrestling was a territory that ran for decades in Detroit and was the home promotion of The Sheik (Original, not Iron) and Bobo Brazil. The video I found of this lists it as being from the 60s but it looks a lot newer than that, perhaps into the mid to late 1970s. I honestly have no idea what to expect here which could mean anything. Let’s get to it.

Austin Idol is listed as being on the show and the latest debut date I can find for him is 1972.

Big Red/Jim Widell vs. Fabulous Kangaroos

Oh now this is really interesting. The Fabulous Kangaroos are the most famous tag team that you’ve probably never heard of. They’re a team which over time has consisted of about five guys who teamed on and off with the gimmick for about twenty five years. The most famous pairing is Al Costello and Roy Heffernan but today we’ve got Costello and Bobby (also called Johnny in other promotions) who was billed as Roy’s cousin.

Their gimmick is that they’re VERY Australian with boomerangs and bush hats and any other stereotype you can think of. They held so many titles that I can’t list them all and were often billed as champions on arrival, which became almost a running bit with them. The originals were pioneers of tag team wrestling but by this point they’re a fairly established name. Did I mention I’ve wanted to cover these guys for awhile? I have no idea who their opponents are but Red is a fat guy with an afro and a big beard.

The Kangaroos have a midair arm wrestling match to determine who gets things going with Heffernan starting against Widell. They head to the mat with some nice technical stuff including Heffernan spinning out of a headscissors. Off to Costello for some right hands before Heffernan comes in again for some stomps. The Kangaroos appear to be heels here which doesn’t feel right for some reason. We get a phone number to call to bring Big Time Wrestling to our town with the contact being listed as Pat O’Connor. I’d be surprised if it was the famous O’Connor but it’s hard to tell with stuff like this.

Heffernan cranks on the arms before hooking a hammerlock. Back to Costello for an ax handle to the face and some right hands. Big Red tries to come in off a blind tag but the actual tag is a few seconds later. How could I have thought Red and Widell were heels? Red is a big fat jolly dancing man. How could that not be a good guy?

Heffernan tries a slam on the 350lb Red which works as well as you would expect. Red goes after the arm and hooks a hammerlock before asking Costello to come in. The big man gets double teamed in the corner but he waddles over to Widell for a tag but the Kangaroos hit the Boomerang (catapult into a backdrop followed by an elbow) for the pin.

Rating: D+. Other than the dancing fat guy, there wasn’t much to this. The Kangaroos didn’t do much for me, though to be fair they were past their primes at this point. This was really just a basic tag match and the finisher came out of nowhere while not looking very good either. Not a terrible match but nothing memorable at all.

Red cleans house post match because he’s a sore loser.

Abdullah the Butcher vs. John Irish

This is joined in progress and the jobber isn’t even given a name until after the match. Not that it matters as Butcher runs him over and drops an elbow for the pin in maybe 30 seconds shown.

Post match Abdullah chokes away until the referee tries to break it up. That goes nowhere so commentator and wrestler Mark Lewin gets up from commentary and makes the real save with no violence.

Billy Bird vs. The Sheik

Sheik has apparently turned face after being a legendary heel in this territory. For those of you unfamiliar, Sheik is basically the father of hardcore wrestling in America and is the real life uncle of Sabu. Sheik bites away on the ropes to start but is cheered anyway. Bird is thrown to the floor and rammed face first into the buckle a few times before the camel clutch gives Sheik a very fast win.

Austin Idol vs. Steve Cooper

Idol is a newcomer and your usual self-obsessed heel. He would feud with Lawler in Memphis for the better part of ever. A slam gets two on Cooper and Idol shouts down that he could do this to Lewin as well. Cooper is thrown down onto the announcers’ table before coming back in for the Rack (not the Torture variety but rather Idol driving his knuckle into Cooper’s temple) and the submission.

Dory Funk Jr./Pierre LaFiv vs. Kurt Von Hess/Bulldog Don Kent

I’m sure you know of Funk. Kent was another of the Fabulous Kangaroos at times but here’s he’s just a heel. We do however get a clue as to the date here as Lewin says Dory Funk Sr. has two sons who won the NWA World Title, meaning this is sometime after December 10, 1975. Dory throws the plump Kent down before countering a clothesline into an armbar in a cool looking move. Off to LaFiv for an armbar before the German Von Hess comes in and is easily armdragged down.

Back to Dory for a headlock of his own before getting caught in a top wristlock. Hess gets forearmed into the corner and it’s off to Bulldog for more armbars. The good guys user both use headlocks on Kent with LaFiv taking him to the mat for a bit. Off to Von Hess for some arm work on Pierre as we get into what would be called the heat segment today. Dory is drawn into the ring, allowing for some heel double teaming and a chinlock from Kent.

We get the same sequence of the heels drawing Dory in so Pierre can be sent to the floor. The heels stay on LaFiv but he finally rolls away and makes the hot tag off to Funk who cleans house. A butterfly suplex puts Von Hess down and there are some forearms for the Bulldog. Dory misses an elbow and gets punched down, only to grab a small package on Kurt for the pin out of nowhere.

Rating: C+. Nice match here with Dory being the most interesting thing out there. I know it’s a cliché, but guys like him could just go back in the day. LaFiv was nothing special and Kent was overweight, but Von Hess looked good and was a strong foreign heel character. Good little match here.

Post match Funk gets beaten down and busted open until Terry Funk makes the save. A fan has to give up his t-shirt to wrap around Dory’s head. Some first aid. Kent and Austin Idol come back out to try another fight but the Funks stare them down.

Garth Vader vs. Stan Stasiak

Yes serious, Garth Vader and he wears a mask with stars on it. Stasiak is a former WWF Champion. He pounds away on Vader with his taped up hand (for his Heart Punch) before putting on a nerve hold. One good thing here: Terry Funk is called a former NWA World Champion so this is sometime after February 6, 1977.

Stasiak pounds away on the chest before throwing him out to the floor. Back in and Stasiak fires off more right hands before letting Vader get back up. They box for a bit before Stasiak takes it to the floor and throws Vader at the announce table. Cue Sheik to throw a garbage can at Stasiak, only to have Stan hit a quick Heart Punch for the pin on Garth.

Rating: D. This was rather dull but seriously….HIS NAME WAS GARTH VADER??? I haven’t seen much of Stasiak but given that his biggest claim to fame is a nine day world title reign, there isn’t much to see of him on top of the world. Still though, I can’t get over the name Garth Vader. I think it’s safe to say this is after Star Wars came out.

Sheik chases off Stasiak post match. Stasiak says after he gets done with Sheik, he’s coming for Lewin. Why isn’t Lewin the top guy in the company as apparently everyone wants to kill him. Sheik pounds on him with a card table but Stasiak won’t get in the ring with him. They’re still chasing each other as the fans want Sheik to take Stasiak apart. Sheik finally gets in a table shot and pounds away on Stasiak, even hitting him with his own Heart Punch. Sheik leaves and Stasiak goes over to the announce table saying he was still up but everyone else goes down when Stasiak hits him. Stasiak talks trash to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. As much trouble as I had figuring out where this was, there wasn’t a lot of bad stuff on here. This is actually a stacked show with a ton of big names and a (for the time) insane three former world champions on the same card. It’s not something I’d watch week to week but still this worked out well enough. Good show here.

 

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