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1991 Recommendations


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Use this thread to post recommendations for the yearbook.

 

I don't want to put requirements on making recommendations necessarily, but I will kindly ask a favor -- if you recommend something, if you could, maybe just include a brief reason that you're recommending it. It doesn't have to be elaborate, but just something for us to see why it should go on.

 

If you make recommendations that pique my curiosity, I will do my part to ask more follow-up questions to make sure I have a good understanding of why it was recommended.

 

In addition, I will use this thread to list matches I come across when looking through various lists that look interesting on paper to ask if anyone has seen them.

 

Thanks!

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I'll come back later and nominate some Memphis for you since 91 was a great year for them but I'd like to nominate a UWF Hamada match:

 

Robin Hood & Los Ninja Turtles vs. Shu El Guerrero/Jose Luis Feliciano/El Texano/Black Terry/Ricky Boy (9/12/91)

 

Phil reviewed it over at Segunda Caida but this is really a great introduction to the style. You got Robin Hood, who is the brother of the Brazos flying all over the place and the rudos selling great for the Wrestling Ninja Turtles. Just a great match.

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I need to find the date but there's a Lawler-Kamala Unified Title match in the studio from USWA TV that's excellent and easily the best match I've ever seen them have with each other. There's a lot of interesting stuff from Memphis throughout the year, like the Texas vs Tennessee feud. In Dallas, the return taping (which was supposed to be a GWF pilot) has a few interesting things, like Lawler-Funk and out of towners like Doc and Gordy in for a squash. I haven't seen much of the other Dallas stuff from '91 before the GWF changover in a while but it has a rep as being pretty lame duck. I think some good stuff fell into '91, though, like Embry's heel turn and feud with Dundee, and the Jarrett-Prichard feud. Not sure if the really awesome Gilbert-Jarrett match is '90 or '91. There's some fun handheld stuff from '91 including a really good Lawler-Embry.

 

There's a lot of interesting indy stuff from WWA and TWA, including Funk-Backlund. Gilbert begging Lawler for a job at a Joel Goodhart luncheon is '91.

 

I THINK the ICW->IWCCW switch is '91 and the stuff covering that (announcments, Kevin Von Erich's one match) should be included. The Rude-Honky Tonk Man angle is from Summer '91 and is a must-have. Not sure if there's anything else from '91 of note as I have very little from then and a lot of it runs together in my head.

 

The video of John Arezzi's 1991 Weekend of Champions convention has Cornette as auctioneer, which is awesome. Flair (between WCW and WWF) does a speech during the auction, too.

 

1991 EMLL I need to watch more of but that's the year w/ the Guerreros-Brazos match. All of the match footage from the UWA wrestler profile comm. tapes is from '91. I haven't seen them all but both matches from the Santo comm. are a must and the Canek comm. has him vs Blue Blazer. There's a tiny bit of UWA TV from late '91. As far as Universal shows in Japan, there's a great Santo vs Black Terry from...March I think.

 

WWF-wise remember that there are still televised MSG shows at this point. There's a really good Jannetty-Tanaka match from one show and there are two Hogan-Flair matches from MSG. IIRC the really good Hogan-Slaughter "Desert Strorm Match" is from MSG. They were also taping stuff at the Ontario house shows and there's a really good Barbarian-Bossman from around the time of the Rumble match.

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I need to find the date but there's a Lawler-Kamala Unified Title match in the studio from USWA TV that's excellent and easily the best match I've ever seen them have with each other. There's a lot of interesting stuff from Memphis throughout the year, like the Texas vs Tennessee feud. In Dallas, the return taping (which was supposed to be a GWF pilot) has a few interesting things, like Lawler-Funk and out of towners like Doc and Gordy in for a squash. I haven't seen much of the other Dallas stuff from '91 before the GWF changover in a while but it has a rep as being pretty lame duck. I think some good stuff fell into '91, though, like Embry's heel turn and feud with Dundee, and the Jarrett-Prichard feud. Not sure if the really awesome Gilbert-Jarrett match is '90 or '91. There's some fun handheld stuff from '91 including a really good Lawler-Embry.

Good stuff. I haven't seen the Lawler/Embry handheld listed anywhere. Could you point me in the right direction?

 

There's a lot of interesting indy stuff from WWA and TWA, including Funk-Backlund. Gilbert begging Lawler for a job at a Joel Goodhart luncheon is '91.

Funk/Backlund is really good and I definitely want to include it.

 

I THINK the ICW->IWCCW switch is '91 and the stuff covering that (announcments, Kevin Von Erich's one match) should be included. The Rude-Honky Tonk Man angle is from Summer '91 and is a must-have. Not sure if there's anything else from '91 of note as I have very little from then and a lot of it runs together in my head.

Was the teased Rude/Orndorff feud covered in the Apter mags at the time in IWCCW or am I thinking of something else? Really, there's lots of interesting Rude for '91 since he was traveling so much. There's the AJ six-man that Dave gave **** that he's part of, there's his WCW stuff later in the year, and there's IWCCW. I think he had a match against Demolition Axe somewhere that I've seen praised in some places also. Any other indy rude stand out?

 

The video of John Arezzi's 1991 Weekend of Champions convention has Cornette as auctioneer, which is awesome. Flair (between WCW and WWF) does a speech during the auction, too.

I never knew about this, but that's very cool. What else did Cornette do in '91? I know he was in the USWA early in the year managing the Fabs as part of the Memphis Mafia angle, but I have no clue after that. I can't imagine him sitting on the sidelines during the entire post-WCW pre-SMW time, and I'm sure some of whatever he did made tape.

 

1991 EMLL I need to watch more of but that's the year w/ the Guerreros-Brazos match. All of the match footage from the UWA wrestler profile comm. tapes is from '91.

This I didn't know. I was able to match up quite a bit of the Fredo dates just by going through the WON results for the UWA.

 

There's a really good Barbarian-Bossman from around the time of the Rumble match.

Copps Coliseum, right?

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All of these matches from Bihari's list need to be on the set:

 

1/13/91 UWA: El Hijo Del Santo vs Brazo De Oro (Mask vs Hair) - El Toreo De Naucalpan

2/8/91 CMLL: Kato Kung Lee/Super Astro/Volador vs Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo - Arena Coliseo

5/3/91 CMLL: El Dandy/Popitekus/Super Astro vs Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo - Arena Coliseo

5/17/91 CMLL: Atlantis/Mascara Sagrada/Octagon vs Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo (Mexican National Trios Titles) - Arena Coliseo

5/17/91 WWA: El Hijo Del Santo vs Negro Casas (UWA Welterweight Title) - Auditorio De Tijuana

7/26/91 CMLL: Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo vs Chavo Guerrero/Eddy Guerrero/Mando Guerrero - Arena Coliseo

8/9/91 CMLL: Atlantis vs Blue Panther (NWA Middleweight Title) - Arena Mexico

11/1/91 CMLL: Octagon vs Fuerza Guerrera - Arena Coliseo

11/22/91 CMLL: Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo vs MS-1/Pirata Morgan/Satanico (CMLL Trios Titles) - Arena Mexico

 

There's also this match which tomk used to pimp -- El Dandy/Apolo Dantes/Black Magic (Norman Smiley) vs. Javier Cruz/Pierroth Jr./Blue Panther, 8/18/91

 

And please, please, please do not forget the mother of all lucha matches -- Trio Fantasia vs. Thundercats, (Masks vs. Masks), 12/8/91

 

Everything else fits into the interesting for lucha fans category, but you might be tempted to include some of the stuff that was going on at the top of the card which mostly involved Konnan, Pero and Caras.

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OJ, thanks for the reminder on Trio Fantasia vs Thundercats. I had forgotten what year it was. That is as big a must-have as possible.

 

How much of the other available early '90s Monterrey is from '91 and should it go on the Yearbook? I don't remember much about it.

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All of these matches from Bihari's list need to be on the set:

 

1/13/91 UWA: El Hijo Del Santo vs Brazo De Oro (Mask vs Hair) - El Toreo De Naucalpan

2/8/91 CMLL: Kato Kung Lee/Super Astro/Volador vs Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo - Arena Coliseo

5/3/91 CMLL: El Dandy/Popitekus/Super Astro vs Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo - Arena Coliseo

5/17/91 CMLL: Atlantis/Mascara Sagrada/Octagon vs Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo (Mexican National Trios Titles) - Arena Coliseo

5/17/91 WWA: El Hijo Del Santo vs Negro Casas (UWA Welterweight Title) - Auditorio De Tijuana

7/26/91 CMLL: Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo vs Chavo Guerrero/Eddy Guerrero/Mando Guerrero - Arena Coliseo

8/9/91 CMLL: Atlantis vs Blue Panther (NWA Middleweight Title) - Arena Mexico

11/1/91 CMLL: Octagon vs Fuerza Guerrera - Arena Coliseo

11/22/91 CMLL: Brazo De Oro/Brazo De Plata/El Brazo vs MS-1/Pirata Morgan/Satanico (CMLL Trios Titles) - Arena Mexico

 

There's also this match which tomk used to pimp -- El Dandy/Apolo Dantes/Black Magic (Norman Smiley) vs. Javier Cruz/Pierroth Jr./Blue Panther, 8/18/91

 

And please, please, please do not forget the mother of all lucha matches -- Trio Fantasia vs. Thundercats, (Masks vs. Masks), 12/8/91

 

Everything else fits into the interesting for lucha fans category, but you might be tempted to include some of the stuff that was going on at the top of the card which mostly involved Konnan, Pero and Caras.

Thanks for the recommendations.

 

For Trio Fantasia vs Thundercats, is this CMLL and would Jeff Lynch have the groups listed in a different way? Who is in Trio Fantasia and who is in Thundercats?

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Embry/Lawler is from July 91 and is on Bix's "Jerry Lawler in the Independents" comp. It's ok but I don't think it should be on the set. The Kamala match is from December 1991.

 

Some other Memphis stuff:

- Cornette's run with the Fabs in early January 91 like mentioned is really good. I think the week where the Fabs turn on Cornette because he bashed Jackie Fargo should be on the set.

 

- Terry Funk's promo after losing the USWA title to Lawler talking about how the Mid south is a sewer and he's teaming with the Texas bunch( Tojo, Embry and Prichard). Pretty funny when Terry forgets Tojo's name and calls him a Japanese goof.

 

- Speaking of the Lawler/Funk match, there is a real good retrospective USWA did on Lawler on TV which features a couple music videos (Elvis My Way, Thank god for Kids, The one which shows him beating all the big names like Savage, Hogan, Bock etc.). I think it's from Early March 91.

 

- USWA had it's own version of the John Gilliam Mr. Dothan angle. After a squash match vs Mickey Jay, Embry sees John off camera and asks him over. He proceeds to attack John and give him a top rope piledriver. Gilbert goes nuts and does a great promo. That's from April 13th 91

 

- One of my favorite angles in 91 took place in Eddie Marlin's office. Eric Embry and Bill Dundee had a disagreement after Embry beat Dundee in a loser leaves town match but the ref raised Dundee's hand. They had a meeting with Marlin, Embry, Dundee, Miss Texas and the ref to figure out what to do . Words can't do it justice but it would be a nice thing to have on the set. I think it's from May 18th or 25th.

 

- I don't know how you guys feel about Wrestlecrap on the Yearbook but I would include Ta-Gar: Lord of the volcano, Leatherface( He destroys the USWA desk in a great moment), Cousin Harold, "Lord Humongus", MC Slammer, The Ronnie P Gossett vs Bert Prentice feud, P.Y Chu Hi's 91 run, Prentice attacking Michael St. John, The Grave Digger, The Spirit of America( If anything from USWA should be on the set, it's this), Surfer Sandman, Black Cat JT Smith, "The Ultimate Warrior"

 

- Another great Embry angle is when he attacks Michael St. John and does a Road Runner type chase with Lawler while wearing what looks like Scrubs from June 91. Plus, from July 6th 91, A mini Riot breaks out between Embry, Lawler, The Bar Room Brawlers, Jarrett, Robert Fuller and Tom Prichard.

 

Some matches that would be good:

Doug Masters and Bart Sawyer vs the New kids(Brian Christopher and Tony Williams) 11/2/91

Steve Keirn vs Steve Austin 4/27/91

Sabu vs RVD 7/6/91

 

And Finally, The "shoot" promo Lawler cut on the "company" Champions Hulk Hogan and Lex Luger from September 1991. This was supposed to set up Lawler vs Lex Luger title vs title but that never happened.

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I have a few more USWA handheld matches where the Lawler-Embry match came from. Off the top of my head there's a good Bar Room Brawlers-Jarrett/Fuller (I think) street fight too and more I'm forgetting.

 

All of the Cornette/Fabs stuff should go on, as should anything with Sabu, RVD, or Nishimura as Dong Cha Mang. There's a fun Rob Zakowski (RVD)/Danny Davis vs Nishimura/Chris Candino (Candido) tag.

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8/9/91 CMLL: Atlantis vs Blue Panther (NWA Middleweight Title) - Arena Mexico

Along with this, a promo aired earlier before this match that featured Blue Panther training to prepare for this match. It was about 2 minutes long, and it featured him out-grappling his training partners in a ring in a gym. It really set the mood for what ended up being one of the great lucha title mat classics of all time.

 

You could also include El Dandy/Apolo Dantes/Ringo Mendoza vs. Bestia Salvaje/Los Canibales (8/25/91), not a special match or anything, but I remember liking it and it has a novelty effect of it being Moondog Spike and Moondog Spot making their Arena Mexico debut by teaming up with the awesome Salvaje, and working with El Dandy.

 

Pantera/Ciclon Ramirez/Aguila Solitaria vs Bestia Salvaje/Arce/Vulcano (10/20/91) could also be thrown on there. It's a fast paced match that I could see people who get the yearbooks liking. The ending sequence to the second fall is pretty cool, but the short third fall and Ciclon's tope not being as explosive as it could have been kinda hurt it. But as expected, the three great rudos are spectacular bumpers in the match and Ciclon's always fun to watch.

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WWF-wise remember that there are still televised MSG shows at this point. There's a really good Jannetty-Tanaka match from one show and there are two Hogan-Flair matches from MSG.

May I suggest as a goof that you edit the first Hogan-Flair to end with Flair's pin and "winning" of the title. All the stuff of the belt going back to Hogan with the Dusty finish left on the cutting room floor.

 

Okay... it wouldn't be accurate, but an old Flair Fan can dream. :)

 

John

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WWF-wise remember that there are still televised MSG shows at this point. There's a really good Jannetty-Tanaka match from one show and there are two Hogan-Flair matches from MSG. IIRC the really good Hogan-Slaughter "Desert Strorm Match" is from MSG. They were also taping stuff at the Ontario house shows and there's a really good Barbarian-Bossman from around the time of the Rumble match.

If this is the one from 3/15 then yeah, I agree. I recall Jannetty hitting a tombstone that looked completely nuts. There's also a Shawn/Kato match on that show that I thought was even better.

 

There's a Rockers & Virgil v Orient Express & Fuji 6 man tag on the 4/22 show that I remember being pretty fun. Virgil was on his way to a feud with DiBiase and was getting schooled by Fuji of all people in strike exchanges, but it was basically a Rockers/Express tag for the most part. Doubt it's anything anybody would go to bat for in terms of inclusion on something like this, though.

 

Saw all of that on a Rockers comp (think it was Billy Newton that made it), and there's probably some other fun stuff on it from '91 that might be worth a look (the Rockers/Express match from the Rumble is probably a no-brainer...).

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WWF-wise remember that there are still televised MSG shows at this point. There's a really good Jannetty-Tanaka match from one show and there are two Hogan-Flair matches from MSG. IIRC the really good Hogan-Slaughter "Desert Strorm Match" is from MSG. They were also taping stuff at the Ontario house shows and there's a really good Barbarian-Bossman from around the time of the Rumble match.

If this is the one from 3/15 then yeah, I agree. I recall Jannetty hitting a tombstone that looked completely nuts.

Is that the one on Vol 8 of Bix's Why I Love Pro Wrestling comp?

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All Japan

Kawada vs Taue, 1/15: I have a soft spot for this and I'm not alone. Taue's constant cut-offs of Kawada are logical and brilliant, they manage to find a balance between match structure and intensity, the finish is memorable, there's bloodshed, there's not a heck of a lot of flaws, and it's a huge step up for Taue as he effectively controls most of the match. And it even sets up a bunch of things for Kawada going forward.

 

Hansen vs Misawa, CC, second half or just-the-finish. The finishing spot is unique, brutal, and even returns in their August '92 title bout. Second half is good throughout. First half drags though.

 

Misawa vs Gordy, 6/1: The second half is a great demonstration of Misawa's elbow-based strategy, and that also ties in strongly with Misawa's TC win the next year.

 

Jumbo, Fuchi & Ogawa vs Misawa, Kawada & Kikuchi, 7/26: I like the way this flows, and it also has enough in-match continuity, call-backs and a BIG finish to make it stand out.

 

Hansen vs Kobashi, 9/4: A dramatic start leads to a dramatic match.

 

Misawa & Kawada vs Jumbo & Taue, 9/4: One of the most famous matches in the feud because of the finish, but not in the top tier because of downtime and a couple other flaws. The last half is high-end enough to merit the nomination, and the finish really is something special.

 

Jumbo, Taue & Fuchi vs Misawa, Kawada & Kikuchi, 10/15: A match I've been touting for a long time now because it always gets second-tier treatment in discussions of All Japan and it deserves better. I would rate this top 5 for 1991 and maybe as high as #2. Hardly any flaws, loads of intensity, loads of crowd heat, a memorable story, everyone plays their role effectively (especially Fuchi), and I think it would be easy even for new fans of puro to get into. This holds up so much better than the WON MOTY it isn't even funny.

 

Hansen & Spivey vs Misawa & Kawada, RWTL: A big start and lots of Hansen surliness to enjoy.

 

Misawa & Kawada vs Kobashi & Kikuchi, RWTL: The wonders of Japan's "ranking"-based booking are apparent here. Kikuchi's fearlessness and long odds against success make his effort compelling.

 

Jumbo & Taue vs Misawa & Kawada, RWTL: The fourth and final iteration of this matchup. Similar to the 9/4 one in that it takes a bit to get going and rewards your patience with a hot second half, but I think both halves of this are better than 9/4.

 

Jumbo & Taue vs Hansen & Spivey, RWTL: This recently aired in full on AJ Classics. Incredibly heated closing stretch.

 

Gordy & Williams vs Misawa & Kawada, RWTL: My pick for the best Miracle Violence Connection match, and I'm far from alone in that opinion. Their tags tend to have a certain 'sameness' to them, with good impact moves and passable structure but not a lot to distinguish them. This stands out thanks to the intensity and drama they're able to build down the stretch.

 

New Japan

Vader vs Hashimoto, 7/19: Hashimoto hits Vader's arm, hard. Vader hits Hashimoto's face, hard. Need I say more?

 

Vader vs Mutoh, 8/10: Because it's handheld, this went under the radar. It's one of the best Mutoh matches, worked in the same vein as Vader vs Sting. It's very watchable vid quality, Vader dishes out a huge beating, and the finish is plenty big. Choshu vs Hashimoto from the same handheld also might merit inclusion but I wouldn't go to the mat for it.

 

Other Japan

Sano vs Suzuki, PWFG 7/26: I don't think this would particularly appeal to those who are unfamiliar with shoot-style, but I could be wrong. Good matwork, good strikes, and a certain 'bigness' about it.

 

Fujiwara vs Lato Kirawarik, PWFG 8/23: This isn't "good", but it's short and very memorable. Fujiwara has fun with the much bigger Lato, who seems lost. Someone described it as "Fujiwara beating up Cleveland from Family Guy", and that's not entirely inaccurate.

 

Tenryu & Fuyuki vs Yatsu & Nakano, SWS 7/26: Oh man. So much hate and stiffness and HATE. If you're looking for a bunch of BIG MOVES, keep moving. If you're looking for DUDES WHAILING ON EACH OTHER, this is what you want.

 

Tenryu vs Yatsu, SWS 10/29: See above.

 

Tamura vs Kakihara, UWFi 5/10: The first UWFi match, and maybe the UWFi MOTY oddly enough. You can tell the future is bright when it comes to these two.

 

Nakano & Burton vs Tamura & Miyato, UWFi 10/6: The first visual you get of the teams is all you need to know what the story is (size vs speed). Burton died not too long ago and I'm reasonably sure this is his career match, maybe Miyato's too.

 

 

Matches I assume will be on:

Steiners vs Sting & Luger

Warrior vs Savage

Jumbo vs Misawa 6-man, 4/20

Mutoh vs Chono, G-1 final

Perfect vs Bret

Jumbo vs Kawada

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I'm very new to this stuff but I thought I'd throw out two matches from the DVDR Best of NJPW 90's comp I just got.

 

Jushin Liger vs. Owen Hart - 4/27/91 - TOSJ '91

 

I thought this match was really great. I liked Owen's top rope leapfrog to counter Ligers pre-emptive dropkick counter spot (wow that probably makes no sense). There was also the top rope electric chair drop and the brutal top rope DDT finish.

 

Hiroshi Hase/Kensuke Sasaki vs. the Steiner Brothers - 3/21/91 - IWGP Tag Titles

 

I don't recall any spots from this match as I haven't re-watched it like I did the Owen vs. Liger match. I had never really seen any Steiner bros. matches before, maybe one on a WWE DVD possibly but if I have I don't recall. Anyway it was a really impressive match, I new that the Steiner's were well regarded but this surpassed my expectations. One move that stands out for some reason is Scott doing a fall away slam type deal but instead of releasing he holds on and bridges to a pin, I don't know the name but it looked cool. I'll re-watch the match and edit my post if I feel I should add any stand out stuff.

 

Edit: I just watched the match again, I must of mixed up matches as the bridging fall away slam isn't in this match. It's a good match none the less. Rick gets power slammed by Sasaki when he gets cute and tries a second leapfrog, then he eats a nasty looking lariat. Scott hits a top rope Angle slam which was cool and Rick laughing and shrugging he's shoulders like the dog in Whacky Races is good fun. Hase did a really lame looking big swing on Rick which blemished the match a bit but it was pretty minor. There was a painful looking double team move where Sasaki superplexed Hase onto one of the Steiner's (I think Rick). And that's my review, lol.

 

I actually plan to re-watch most of what I'm watching now, for the last week (I've only just got back into wrestling after a couple of years of only following it through Meltzer and Alvarez instead of watching) or so I've watched at least two hours of wrestling a day and the matches tend to blend into one another. I want to re-watch stuff and take notes so I can write down descriptions/mini reviews so that they actually sink in. I can't really do it while watching stuff for the first time though as I'm not great at taking notes and it ruins seeing a match for the first time.

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And please, please, please do not forget the mother of all lucha matches -- Trio Fantasia vs. Thundercats, (Masks vs. Masks), 12/8/91

I asked Bob if he had this match and he said he didn't. Where can I find this match???

 

Some wrestling forum - the bottom post

 

Looks like Loss might have it

 

Ohtani's Jacket might have it

 

Bix has it

 

Bob's Site

 

Hope that helps.

 

EDIT: Damn, Bix beat me to it as I was researching. No gold star for me today...

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8-3-91 Cactus Jack vs. Eddie Gilbert TWA (2 out of 3 falls)

The first time I saw this, I was like 16 or 17, and it rocked my mind back then, even though it was a 3rd gen VHS dub. I watched it about a week ago, on a much better dub, and it's almost better then when I was a teenager.

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