JHawk

George South and Mike Jackson were the two I thought of when I saw the topic. South had a terrific TV match with Ric Flair in November 1988 that still ranks as one of my favorite TV matches in the pre-Raw era. Even though he got the occasional mini-push, I'd throw Salvatore Bellomo into this category too. Sure, he won a fair share of matches, but I don't recall him using anything other than some sort of rollup variation to pick up wins. No distinct finisher = JTTS in my book.

Too late! Probably and that's a shame. Not that I dislike them, quite the opposite, but when is WWE going to learn that you don't put straps on rookies and new faces in their first week? Have them destroy jobbers and low to mid carders first! You have to have more than two regular tag teams in order to go over low to midcarders.

I had the pleasure of meeting Bob Orton Sr. at last year's CAC reunion. A very brief conversation as he was there to talk to old friends, but very friendly and cordial over the two minutes or so we spoke. To think I've never seen a match of his.

I beg to differ. Stacy has the A (and the longest legs I've ever seen). But no, she really had no business ever stepping into a wrestling ring, which, as Will correctly pointed out, would have been fine if not for the insistence that anyone under contract has to wrestle.

Saw a similiar thread at another forum and figured it would make for good discussion. Who has bodyslammed Andre the Giant? Obviously Hulk Hogan has the most famous slam at WrestleMania III. Others I can recall: The Ultimate Warrior (did it at house shows throughout 1989 with little to no fanfare). Stan Hansen did it at least once (I just saw their 9.21.1981 match online, which is what inspired this thread). I seem to recall Harley Race slamming Andre in Houston in the late-70s. Any I'm missing?

At least Jake didn't ask for sexual favors during the course of the weekend. Not that he'd remember doing so the next day anyway.

Sort of. Kennedy (or Ken Anderson) was one of Heyman's pet projects in OVW, as he was pushed pretty strong down there. I believe Paul even suggested the name change to Kennedy as a way of get him over with Vince, but I could be wrong on that. At any rate, most of the reports have the backstage opinon of Kennedy completely turning to the point that the feeling is "the ship has sailed" regarding any future pushes. It's been suggested that Johnny Ace in particular was eager to squash any plans for him just because of his personal feelings toward Heyman. And that seventh grade mentality is what's killing the business. Somewhere down the line, WWE stopped being about making as much money as possible and became solely about making Vince's ego three times its normal size.

Yeah, but Duggan and Sheik actually broke kayfabe when they got caught. RVD was just living his gimmick. Somehow I don't think Vito would be in danger of getting fired if he got arrested at a drag show...

Edit the thread title to "Vince McMahon signs ECW's death warrant" so it can be accurate

I miss the days where a wrestler having garbage thrown at him meant he was a good heel and not that people were bored with him. I'm looking at you, Jeff Jarrett. Hell, I like Jeff Jarrett and I'm bored with him as NWA World Champion.

According to PWI, the wrestlers were supposedly told no blood without permission and no brawling in the crowd without permission. Who ever heard on ECW without blood? I can understand the compromises for the Sci-Fi show, but let the house shows be actual ECW-style shows.

How has Cena not been protected? OK, Triple H acknowledged that he wasn't a great wrestler. Fine. But Cena had had a stranglehold on that title for 14 of the last 15 months, and his title losses have come: 1. In an impromptu defense after being in the Elimination Chamber for nearly 30 minutes. 2. On an ECW show under ECW rules where not only was there interference, but the pin wasn't counted by a sanctioned referee. And how often does Cena lose in televised matches, title on the line or not? At least Triple H would lose a non-title match on occasion.

I'd say the voting was full of shit since everybody I know voted for Race-Backlund simply because the full version has never been available.

What separates the Austin-Bret matches more than anything else is the style of matches they really were. SS96 was more a technical wrestling match while WM13 was more a brawl. It would be like asking what do you prefer watching, ROH or CZW.

Not the least bit shocked, but considering he had been getting heavier in the middle I wonder how along ago he was tested.

He didn't even do the ringpost figure-four until well after the phrase "Five Moves of Doom" was coined. OK, maybe an exaggeration, but the phrase refers to Bret's offense, so...

Stan Hansen vs. Big Van Vader Don't have the date handy other than it being late-1990 early-1991. Barely five minutes in, and Vader's eye has swollen completely shut. In the States, that probably leads to them going home, but this goes another ten minutes or so before ending in a double count out. Fun brawl that even sees Vader throw a dropkick, which I haven't seen him do before or since.

Teke pretty much hit the nail on the head there. I still have yet to figure out why Vince refuses to see that his idea of focusing on something happening later on in the show is counterproductive. How can he make new stars when the only thing the announcers are allowed to talk about are the main event and the divas' breasts?

Getting ready to watch Backlash 99 in a bit. A horrible PPV, I know, but I'm trying to dub my VHS tapes onto DVD and can't do it when the fiancee is home unless Taker, Rey, or Matt Hardy are on the card without getting bitched at.

If the Ric(k) Flair story is true: Does that mean Verne Gagne will soon sue over "Flair" since he's the one who changed it from "Fleihr" in the first place?

Also remember what Tunney said when he vacated the title. "The referee's decision is final." Even though the referee was an imposter, his decision was that Andre won the match by pinfall and therefore was the new champion.

I watched the tape of the show with my fiancee after I got home from work, and she said the same thing I did when the beer drinking contest started: "Are we getting an actual match anytime soon?" My fiancee doesn't watch wrestling for the in-ring product, and even she wanted to see a match. There's a difference between making sure the show's entertaining and keeping it about what it says on the marquee: wrestling. That said, I liked the show from an entertainment aspect, but we only got the same amount of wrestling in two hours that we used to get in 90 minutes. We couldn't have added a couple of five minutes matches just for variety?

1988 NWA The first year I had cable and thus had a chance to actually follow something that wasn't the WWF. My God, what an era. The fantastic Clash of the Champions shows. The great promos from Jim Cornette. Possibly my favorite angle of all-time: Dusty Rhodes getting the spike to the eye. Rick Steiner's babyface turn. This is where I really became familiar with how great a long match could be, and we were getting them for free. 1992 WWF SummerSlam 92 still goes down as one of my favorite PPVs of all-time. The matches that deserved time got it, the stuff that needed to be kept short didn't get much time, and the crowd was hot for the entire show. I'm not real fond of much of the year after that with the exception of Bret Hart's emergence into the main event, but the first nine months has to go as among the best nine-month stretches in-ring wise in company history.

Brown was against "The Duke of Dorchester" Pete Doherty. Never more than enhancement talent although something of a cult figure in New England, so he'd get an occasional house show win in Boston and Providence and would often substitute for no-shows. IIRC, Doherty was actually subbing for Rick Martel here.