Ricky Jackson

Awesome. Thanks man

Wow, thanks so much! Yet another great history lesson! I think Steve and I need to revisit this feud on a future ep and look at some of the earlier matches

He stunk Is the same person also responsible for Rude getting atomic dropped and Regal getting his fingers stomped on gimmick accounts? If so, quite the empire they're building

Episode 92 https://soundcloud.com/prowrestlingonly/world-cast-92 February 18, 1984 (This episode of WCCW was taped before David Von Erich died, and for the most part the boys review it through that lens. The next two weeks will deal with the ramifications of David's death and pay tribute to the man and the wrestler) An all time classic WCCW match highlights an otherwise fairly mundane show... -Nobody wants to wrestle the Missing Link -Lucha stars make a rare appearance in Dallas -Mike Von Erich continues to be a polarizing figure -And Ric Flair vs Chris Adams for the NWA title in a super awesome main event! Also, look out for a special episode on June 5th - Johnny Sorrow turns 50 and the boys celebrate by paying tribute to the great Junkyard Dog!

No, ECW press. Same publisher of tons of great history books over the years. Andre bio is easily one of the best

Thanks so much, El Boricua! I was hoping I didnt completely embarrass myself with my lack of real prep on WWC. I feel like I was all over the place and not nearly as knowledgeable when discussing history on the latest ep

https://soundcloud.com/prowrestlingonly/international-house-of-combat-7 Kelly and Steve devote an entire episode to one of the most legendary, and (most importantly) bloody feuds in wrestling history: Carlos Calon vs Abdullah the Butcher, from Puerto Rico! Viewed and commented upon... Carlos Colon & the Invaders vs Abdullah the Butcher, Ron Starr & Chicky Starr, Carlos Colon vs Abdullah the Butcher (Vengeance match), Carlos Colon vs Chicky Starr (Cage match) (All Puerto Rico in, we think, 1986) After going bloodless last time, the crimson runs freely this week. Watch along here https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLV6RCTo_Cd0Bo314nxGlwPp-IfC14LctC

Wrestlingdata only lists two singles matches between Flair and Andre, one in Richmond, VA on 10/14/77 and the other in Florida in 1983. Results aren't 100% complete of course. No idea why that match got so much hype

Made the executive decision to go with 4/19/74 Jack vs Dory as 1974 match of the year on Wikipedia until better info surfaces

Haha...you know, just the usual complaints - he's on the road all the time, he'll be killed in the ring, etc

Ok, so the story is about the 4/19/74 Kiel match between Funk Jr and Brisco. That's good enough for me to say that this is the one that won match of the year. Although, they also went 60 in June at the Kiel, so there is a chance, like the rivalry they are often compared to - Flair vs Steamboat in 89 - there were multiple match of the year contenders between the two and the last big match was the one that won the award (going to assume the November Kiel match would've been too late in the year to be considered)

Holy shit. I literally have ONE old wrestling mag (I had a large collection when I was a kid but got rid of it many years ago) and it is that issue of The Wrestler!!! I picked it up for like $5 from a flea market a few years back. I'm going to check and report back!

Thanks dude! Yeah, I was doubting my claim about The Wrestler being the mag with awards results in the 70s and was just about to check if I had it right. Awesome you have the exact mags the awards were in! 1974 is definitely sounding more and more like a retcon. You make a solid case for 1975 being correct. That match is super heated and had incredible crowd atmosphere, with fans waving both Italian and Greek flags. If it was the most publicized of the three then it is likely the one that won match of the year. And like I said, 1976 could go either way, but they may have it correct based on Bruno breaking his neck being such an epic story. Based on a google search, I did find ONE site that listed the Shea match as the winner...a Turkish wiki page on Bruno Sammartino lol

Episode 91 https://soundcloud.com/prowrestlingonly/world-cast-91-announcement-of-david-von-erichs-passing February 11, 1984 The boys review the episode of WCCW where Bill Mercer announces the passing of David Von Erich at the very end of the show, preceded by a full wrestling card. The card is reviewed first and then the announcement is discussed. It is a controversial topic, with three different opinions offered on how it was handled. Kelly's mic unfortunately died at the start of the show, so his take was recorded solo at a later date. (and apologies for the quality of his audio) The boys will provide a thorough examination of the impact of David's death and his wrestling legacy in three weeks when they review the March 3 tribute episode

I know, obscure ass topic, but this has been bugging me lately. Anyway, I've been reading the great Andre the Giant bio by Hèrbert and Laprade and stumbled upon a bit of info that answered something I've wondered about for years: exactly which Andre the Giant vs Killer Khan match won PWI match of the year in 1981? Official online PWI records of past winners frustratingly only list the participants involved in match of the year winners, with no info on the date or place. Wikipedia for years gave the date May 2 and the location Rochester, NY for the Andre vs Khan match. However, and I've known this for years, that was a fictitious match, I believe originally invented on WWF TV as the match where Khan broke Andre's ankle, starting a legendary feud. In reality, May 2 was the morning Andre woke up and broke his ankle getting out of bed, perhaps the result of an injury suffered the night before during a battle royal in Florida. Andre and Khan had wrestled each other in Rochester, but it was on April 13 not May 2, so I think over the years the date of the match was confused with the date Andre actually broke his ankle. Nevertheless, according to Hèbert and Laprade, the Andre vs Khan encounter that was voted match of the year in 1981 was actually from August 24, a Texas Death match from MSG, NOT a match from Rochester. This makes much more sense, because big MSG matches often won match of the year in those days when footage wasn't available and the most publicized, not the most seen, matches would get the most votes. I think a lot of Wikipedia editors, when having to rely only on the participants involved and not having access to a true source, just use their best guess as to which exact match won in a given year. I was so excited about having this mystery solved that I actually made the correction on Wikipedia myself! But this has just led me down a rabbit hole of doubting the dates given to other match of the year winners on Wikipedia, specifically those from the 1970s. PWI wasn't published until the summer of 1979. Wikipedia lists award winners back to 1972. What gives? Well, for those who dont know, and Wikipedia doesn't explain this, another Apter mag (or more accurately, another Stanley Weston publication),The Wrestler, gave out awards prior to 1980. Like with Andre vs Khan, specific winners throw up a red flag. What I want to know, and hope somebody out there may be able to shed a light on, is which matches actually won match of the year. There are three in particular I question the accuracy of Wikipedia regarding date and place: -1974: Funk Jr vs Brisco (1/27, Osaka, Japan) Would a match from Japan that presumably nobody in North America would've seen at the time (this match is out there today, thanks to All Japan Classics) really have been voted match of the year? I actually dont know the pre-1980s voting process, so not sure if there was anything other than a fiat decision by one of the editors, but still, this seems suspicious and perhaps a retcon based on this match actually being available for viewing in North America in the present day -1975: Samnartino vs Arion (3/17, NYC) I question this simply because there were three Sammartino vs Arion matches from MSG in 1975, this one being the second one, a Texas Death match with an inconclusive finish. The next month they ran the blow off, the first ever Greek Death match (submission match). That match Bruno won decisively, and seems to me to be a more likely winner because it was the climax of a bitter feud. Did the person who provided the info on Wikipedia have a source for the date, or were they just guessing? 1976: Sammatino vs Hansen (4/26, NYC) Similar to the previous winner, I question the accuracy here. While this match is legendary as the night Hansen broke Bruno's neck, they had a match at Shea Stadium a few months later before 32,000 with Bruno out for revenge that may actually be the correct winner. This one could go either way, since both matches were huge in 1976, but I have a hunch the Shea match may actually be correct. The other 70s winners seem to be accurate, at least as far as what would've been highly publicized in the mags at the time. I guess I need someone with access to the actual issues of the The Wrestler to help settle this? @KrisZ are you still around?

Also just watched the Stampede. First AEW I've seen since Revolution. It was super fun. Loved the setting. This is probably the best way to present wrestling with no crowds allowed. I just can't watch every week, but that's mostly because I'm pretty burnt out on wrestling these days

I just remember Taker vs Reigns having multiple obvious botches and basically falling flat. It felt like watching broken down Andre, but unlike with Andre, the match wasn't able to rise above Taker's limitations. Didn't help coming at the end of a 7 hour death march Mania

@Bix Thanks for listening, man! Glad you've been enjoying the shows through the years

Man, if the point of podcasting is to make money I guess I've wasted 7 years of my life

I'm nearly done with the Conrad shows. Dropped Prichard long ago and never listened to either Schiavone or Bischoff. Dropped Arn the other day, which is a shame because I really liked it at first, but going with AAA every second week and a string of 2010s WWE shows I couldn't care less about killed my interest. The last one left is JR, which usually covers a subject I'm interested in, so I'll keep it in the rotation for now. But yeah, hearing Conrad's voice is becoming less and less appealing by the week

That's a great story. Thanks for sharing TTK

Episode 90 https://soundcloud.com/prowrestlingonly/world-cast-90-ft-worth-star-wars-1301984 January 30, 1984 With WCCW perhaps as red hot as it would ever be, the boys have yet another megacard to break down, this time from the Tarrant County Convention Center in Ft. Worth! Stacked card, featuring… -Junkyard Dog vs Kamala -Iceman Parsons/Adias vs THE DESTROYERS (don’t call ‘em Super D’s) -Iceman vs Skandor Akbar, 5 minute time limit -Kerry/David/Mike Von Erich vs The Freebirds, Six Man tag titles -Mike vs Ric Flair, 10 minute time limit -Chris Adams vs Jimmy Garvin, for the held-up American title in a steel cage This was one of the most entertaining and interesting WCCW cards the boys have ever discussed (and it’s not on the Network – check it out here https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLV6RCTo_Cd0B1U0WSnjb7Wqy4C9lQGpdl&feature=share ) , with airtight booking up and down the card. They also provide in-depth analysis of Mike Von Erich’s controversial, career-making evening. And, in many ways, this show was the peak of the territory before things began to slowly unravel.

Thanks man

Sorry Jetlag... https://soundcloud.com/prowrestlingonly/international-house-of-combat-6 Kelly and Steve stock up on beer and bratwurst and take a trip to the wonderful country of (West) Germany! Here they witness a match so powerful and epic they needed a whole show to break it down... Viewed and commented upon... Otto Wanz vs Bob Sgt. Slaughter (Bremen, West Germany, 1982) The match is wrestled in the rounds system, the rules are not very intuitive, Wanz stinks, but Slaughter is awesome as always, so sit back and enjoy this 54 minute + experience! (a few beers will definitely help) Watch along at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLV6RCTo_Cd0Bo314nxGlwPp-IfC14LctC or on World Cast Twitter!

That's totally fair. God knows I hate it when others shit on guys i like based on one match or whatever. Clearly he was a huge star. It wasn't his offense that bothered me. It was that he wrestled in such an unsympathetic manner. He kicked Slaughter's ass for most of the match and never really felt vulnerable. Plus he had his overzealous corner man constantly getting involved (yes, at the end of rounds, but still), while Slaughter had no help. Anyway, I'm clearly biased, as early-80s Slaughter is one of my all-time faves