French catch

[Phil Lions]

New Catch/EWF on Eurosport. I had always had a rough idea, but I had never really looked into the exact timeline of when New Catch/EWF was airing on Eurosport. So today I dug through the TV listings and pieced together the history of pro wrestling on Eurosport until the mid 1990s*. It goes like this:

- WWF: November 1989 through May 1991
- New Catch/EWF: September or October 1991 through May 1992**
- WWF: September 1994 through early November 1994
- NJPW: November 1994 through December 1996***

* This is based on TV listings from Continental Europe.
** The September listings just say "Wrestling", but don't specify what wrestling (I'm guessing it was New Catch/EWF but can't confirm). The ones from October specifically say "Wrestling from Europe" and then from December onward it's "New Catch".
*** The New Japan shows were originally branded as "World Superstars of Wrestling" and then rebranded to "Ring Warriors" in May 1995.

So yeah, that was the New Catch/EWF run on Eurosport TV in Europe. Not even a year. The show aired at various times: 1 pm, 6 pm, 10 pm, 11:00 pm, etc.

[David Mantell]

So why do a lot of what we know to be the 1988 TF1 Episodes circulate with Eurosport idents on them?

We know more episodes were made after the TF1 run because for example the Superflies did not yet exist as a tag team in 1988.

Also Bull Power's vacant CWA World title win over Rambo took place December 22nd 1990, this was screened as part of a New Catch episode which I have on VHS with a Eurosport idents and English commentary by Orig Williams.

(For what it's worth I saw a few of the New Japan episodes while on my ERASMUS year in Metz, France in Spring 1996.)

[Phil Lions]

TF1 wasn't co-owner of Eurosport until mid 1991. It doesn't make sense for their New Catch show to be airing on Eurosport before that. The TV listings back that too - the last mention of WWF on Eurosport is exactly May 1991 when the co-ownership was about to switch to TF1, and then later in the year TF1 brings on New Catch.

I'd guess some of the 1988 New Catch stuff was re-aired in 1991/1992. Yes, some CWA matches were for sure aired on Eurosport as part of New Catch.

[David Mantell]

Yes, this could possibly explain why tape traders like Adam Mumford's EWV claimed a 1991 date -just before Rocco's retirement - for the Rollerball Rocco/Danny Collins Paris World HMid title bout (We now know this was on TF1 in 1988)

Some 1988 episodes rescreened on Eurosport have John Harris (the MC from the Kendo Nagasaki Vs Skull Murphy bout recently on the British thread) instead of Orig Williams as A English commentary. Mainly the ones with the MAXI CUISINE ring canvas.

Most of the non 1988 episodes have a Eurosport logo on the shiny blue ring canvas.

[Phil Lions]

Speaking of the midget wrestlers, I just randomly stumbled upon this information while looking for something else. Hassan, apparently, used to be the mascot for the AS Saint-Etienne football club. Saw this mentioned in a 1988 article for a FEC show. Then I googled it and the second photo below popped up. It's said to be from 1976 and lists him as Hassam Handami (it's probably Hassan and they misspelled it).

[El-P]

16 hours ago, Phil Lions said:

- WWF: November 1989 through May 1991
- New Catch/EWF: September or October 1991 through May 1992**
- WWF: September 1994 through early November 1994
- NJPW: November 1994 through December 1996***

No idea how in the hell some WWF episodes ended up on Eurosport. I don't remember, did Canal + owned a part too ? They must have, since they had the WWF rights until the end of 1997 (then switched to WCW). 

Fascinating to finally have dates for the NJPW run, which was my very first taste of Japanese wrestling (and really, major non WWF wrestling). I thought it lasted longer than this, but then again. I'm pretty sure parts of the Super J Cup were showed. I absolutely remember watching Benoit and Malenko there before they got to ECW/WCW.

As far as New Catch goes, yeah, after two or three ill-fated weeks on TF1, they just dumped that stuff on Eurosport until they didn't. Needless to say, nobody watched that stuff.

[David Mantell]

49 minutes ago, El-P said:

No idea how in the hell some WWF episodes ended up on Eurosport.

Simple, it was co-owned by Sky until TF1 bought it and was on the same Astra satellite as part of the same package of satellite channels as Sky. It stayed on there after the buyout.

As I think I mentioned, any household in the UK capable of getting WWF (other than the bits ITV screened on the specials 1987-1988 and the small hours 1988-1989) could get New Catch too. Whereas in France you already had Canal + for the WWF.

49 minutes ago, El-P said:

As far as New Catch goes, yeah, after two or three ill-fated weeks on TF1, they just dumped that stuff on Eurosport until they didn't.

Preview run for the new revamped channel.

I equate that run with the Oct 1990 Joint Promotions ITV tapings in Aberdeen.

[Phil Lions]

1 hour ago, El-P said:

No idea how in the hell some WWF episodes ended up on Eurosport. I don't remember, did Canal + owned a part too ? They must have, since they had the WWF rights until the end of 1997 (then switched to WCW).

Yep, like David said, Sky (who already had a deal with WWF in the UK) co-owned Eurosport until May 1991 when TF1 replaced them as co-owners of the network. Back in that 1989-1991 period Eurosport was airing the syndicated WWF TV shows like Superstars of Wrestling and Prime Time Wrestling, but also showing some of the PPVs too. For example, I came across WrestleMania VI and VII airings (90-minute broadcasts, about a month and half to two months after the PPVs had taken place).
 

1 hour ago, El-P said:

As far as New Catch goes, yeah, after two or three ill-fated weeks on TF1, they just dumped that stuff on Eurosport until they didn't. Needless to say, nobody watched that stuff.

1 hour ago, David Mantell said:

Preview run for the new revamped channel.

Doesn't look like it was a preview - it looks like in 1991 it was already airing on Eurosport, before it aired on TF1.* The history of New Catch on TV goes like this:

- October through December 1988 (part of "Minuit sport” on TF1, New Catch actually replaced AWA and was then replaced by WCCW)
- September or October 1991 through May 1992 (New Catch on Eurosport)
- November 1991 (part of “3ème mi-temps” on TF1, only four episodes)

* I say it looks like, because I can't 100% confirm what was airing on Eurosport in September and October 1991. The September listings say "Wrestling". In October it's "Wrestling from Europe". First mention of "New Catch" on Eurosport is December 3, which coincidentally is the last TF1 date too. I guess it's possible some CWA stuff may have aired in September and October, but I think most likely it was New Catch and they just hadn't started listing it like that in the listings.

-----------

Another thing that struck me while researching this is how many upstart European TV networks used wrestling as featured programming to establish themselves on the market. Sky Channel launches in the UK in 1984 - they immediately start airing WWF. Canal Plus launches in France in 1984 - within 9 months they start airing WWF. Eurosport launches in 1989 - within a few months they start airing WWF. DSF launches in Germany in 1993 - they start airing WCW and GLOW right away. Etc.

[El-P]

10 minutes ago, Phil Lions said:

Yep, like David said, Sky (who already had a deal with WWF in the UK) co-owned Eurosport until May 1991 when TF1 replaced them as co-owners of the network. Back in that 1989-1991 period Eurosport was airing the syndicated WWF TV shows like Superstars of Wrestling and Prime Time Wrestling, but also showing some of the PPVs too. For example, I came across WrestleMania VI and VII airings (90-minute broadcasts, about a month and half to two months after the PPVs had taken place).

For whatever reasons I was thinking about the Canal + version of the WWF shows, which obviously would not have been on the English speaking channel anyway, so yeah.

12 minutes ago, Phil Lions said:

Doesn't look like it was a preview - it looks like in 1991 it was already airing on Eurosport, before it aired on TF1.* The history of New Catch on TV goes like this:

- October through December 1988 (part of "Minuit sport” on TF1, New Catch actually replaced AWA and was then replaced by WCCW)
- September or October 1991 through May 1992 (New Catch on Eurosport)
- November 1991 (part of “3ème mi-temps” on TF1, only four episodes)

Yeah, it wasn't a preview at all. The first show on TF1 in November 1991 was sold as "the big comeback of catch on TF1". Which was of course a laughable idea.

14 minutes ago, Phil Lions said:

Canal Plus launches in France in 1984 - within 9 months they start airing WWF. 

It was part of the Canal + strategy to import some american entertainment that had not been seen in France before. I dunno when they started airing the NBA, but it was a "big" deal (under quotation because Canal's paid audience was not that big, which is also one reason pro-wrestling never became big in France until the 2000's when it moved onto the TNT). They also imported the american talk-shows formats which really did not exist on French TV before, at all. So as far as Canal went, it was clearly part of a global strategy, where the modern TV entertainment was seen through an anglo-saxon, and very much americanized, lens. I think this is something that all private medias all over Europe went through to some degrees during the ending of the 80's and the 90's.

[David Mantell]

4 hours ago, Phil Lions said:

Doesn't look like it was a preview - it looks like in 1991 it was already airing on Eurosport, before it aired on TF1.* The history of New Catch on TV goes like this:

- October through December 1988 (part of "Minuit sport” on TF1, New Catch actually replaced AWA and was then replaced by WCCW)
- September or October 1991 through May 1992 (New Catch on Eurosport)
- November 1991 (part of “3ème mi-temps” on TF1, only four episodes)

Okay, how about "Sampler" then?

I seem to recall someone saying (possibly on here) that a few other Eurosport shows got the same treatment.

It occurs to me that New Catch was always meant to in some way become an international deal, given all the CWA and British talent on board, either unknown to French audiences eg Eddie Kung Fu Hamill or dim memories eg Fit Finlay, last seen on French national TV eight years earlier claiming to be a Scotsman in a kilt.

[David Mantell]

Anyway. speaking of 1991:

Quote

Tuesday is French Catch Day: Finale 2! Parmentiers! Rockies!

Michel Parmentier/Daniel Parmentier (Tony Lamotta) vs. Les Rockies du Ring (Eric LaCroix/Domingo Valdez) 2/17/91

MD: This last gasp of French Catch is from a show called the "3rd Half" or something along those lines, just a sports variety show. This one covered a Karate competition and then this fairly long (30+ mins) match. Michel is Marcel Parmentier's son. Daniel is Tony Lamotta, who we saw in a match from 1980. The Rockies were "Spaniards," but I'm not convinced in LaCroix' case. But despite it being 1991, the stylist side absolutely knew what they were doing and for the most part, this felt like it could have happened in 1976.

Just if it did, the commentary would be sharper, the camera wouldn't miss so many of the bits, and the heels would have been able to base just a bit better for some things. There were a few definite moments where they lost the plot, not going down for a leapfrog or up for a 'rana (I couldn't tell which), Lamotta doing the climb up takedown out of top wristlock only to sort of stumble over (it still worked). And maybe most jarring at all was the Rockies using both a clothesline and a front vertical suplex, neither of which ever showed up in the old footage, not even once until now. 

But the things that shocked being poor probably weren't as shocking to me than the things that went well, which was most of everything, even over 30 minutes. Lots of fast exchanges, lots of mares and takeovers and all the stuff you'd expect out of the back half of the footage (70s and on). They had holds to start, then rope running, then some hard shots and comeuppance. The Rockies controlled by cheating whenever they got close enough in the corner. I think at one point, the crowd gave a bonus, and they interviewed Daniel on the apron mid match. If this is the last match we have from the footage (and it is), it was nice to double back to a lot of those elements and the sheer technique that at least the Parmentier "brothers" brought into play. The commentary talked about the heyday of the 60s and 70s with the names you'd expect (Duranton, Delaporte, L'Ange Blanc, etc) but I'm more open to the idea that these guys were running small scale opposition to a small scale Flesh Gordon operation in a way that gave fans a more genuine traditional experience. The fans for this match seemed to be enjoying themselves at least. This was not without some missteps but in general, it's a nice way end our French Catch journey for now, on the notion that somewhere, even as late as 1991 at least some wrestlers were keeping at least some of the old magic alive.

SR: This was pretty fine. With it being 1991 you kind of fear French Catch might have turned into some kind of travesty (it was certainly going there with Flesh Gordon committing his horrors on New Catch) but wherever this was held they were still holding it high. The technicos looked old as heck but were still pretty spry and it was a long 2/3 falls tag with a quick pace just like in the glory days. The wrestling wasn't quite as mindblowingly fast and inventive but you still got your share of smooth ranas and guys getting bowled around. The rudos - Los Rockies - were a bit generic but solid hands. There was even some cool armworks which lead to some decent reversals. Tony Lamotta looked old as hell here with his balding head but could still deliver, and he looked fired up when he started handing out the manchettes. It does go a bit long but that's kind of the tradition with these.

I'll have a good overview this later over dinner.  I'm not doing the review now as this tablet needs putting on charge.

I wouldn't swear to it but Les Rocky's Du Ring look more than a bit like Kato Bruce Lee/Kato Gypsy and Elliot Frederico Rocky Du Ring/Grims Rocker (with hair grown out - Grim was Spanish so if the one I think is him turns out to be Domingo Valdez then I'm convinced ).

Tony LaMotta also appeared on New Catch -IIRC against Jacky Richard ( still a Marquis, not yet a Travesti Man.). So three of these four guys did New Catch anyway.