Between the Sheets #13 (October 13-19, 1986) (Featuring Bruce Mitchell)

[KrisZ]

 

Kris & David are joined Bruce Mitchell (Pro Wrestling Torch) to discuss the week that was October 13-19, 1986. We discuss the tragic car wreck that ended Magnum T.A.’s career in the ring and how the territory was affected from it. We also discuss the impending departure of Hacksaw Jim Duggan from the UWF, the return of Roddy Piper to the WWF, Riki Choshu to WWF?, and Mad Dog Vachon in his new role in life as……INSPECTOR GOURMET!!!!!!

 

Time stamps:
0:00:00 Jim Crockett Promotions
0:52:37 UWF & WCCW
1:29:50 International: AJPW, NJPW, EMLL, & Lutte International
1:56:56 Other U.S.: AWA, CWA/Memphis, Championship Wrestling from Florida, Hawaii, ICW, L.A. Lucha, & Portland
2:27:13 WWF

 

http://placetobenation.com/between-the-sheets-ep-13-october-13-19-1986/

[Mad Dog]

You guys really know how to make a Monday something to look forward to.

[cheapshot]

Between The Sheets and Spotify Discovery make Mondays great!

[Matt D]

I'm still playing catch up but people you guys need to have on:

 

jdw

Herb Kunze

Al Issacs

Sean Waltman

[funkdoc]

herb kunze is a math professor these days, not sure he'd want to do something that public w/ wrestling anymore

[SlingshotSuplex]

Really love Bruce Mitchell in for the Magnum TA talk. Truly fantastic.

 

While UWF had equal talent, better announcing, and hotter TV, it was wishful thinking on Dave's part to even consider they could overtake Crockett in this timeframe. Crockett had TBS and Watts didn't even have cable. The UWF expansion, which you're right to note had to happen, was nevertheless a total bust. Despite the quality of their product, there's just no evidence the UWF was going to take off commercially on the big stage. While the cracks in JCP's facade were visible, they were still reasonbly hot and had numerous over acts. It was for good reason that Dave had confidence in Watts and was hypersensitive to Dusty's flaws, but it's a long way from that to UWF as #2. To Watts' credit, he was quick to recognize it wasn't working out business-wise and wasn't the type of guy to go down with the ship.

[Matt D]

herb kunze is a math professor these days, not sure he'd want to do something that public w/ wrestling anymore

 

They can call him Dr. π.

 

No one will know,

[KrisZ]

Once Duggan eventually left in January.....the writing was on the wall.....he was the heart & soul of the promotion.

[SlingshotSuplex]

I was shocked to learn that Vince had big sincere babyface plans for HTM because even as a 12 year old mark I was convinced he was clearly a fake good guy always intended to turn. That plan certainly makes more sense than any notion he'd be huge as a face.

[pantherwagner]

I'm still playing catch up but people you guys need to have on:

 

jdw

Herb Kunze

Al Issacs

Sean Waltman

 

The most obvious one would be Dave Meltzer - but you'd have to pick a great week to have him on and it would most likely have to be a deal like Bruce's where he's only doing half of the show.

[pantherwagner]

I was at the airport having dinner and I laughed like an idiot at the Choshu as Smash joke.

 

Kris kept talking about how Valiant was this good looking chap when he was a youngster and how he boinked Jayne Mansfield but all I could think about was this:

[pantherwagner]

And also, before I forget: Halcon 78 is not the same guy as Danny Ortiz "El Halcon" (aka Super Halcon) who worked Texas.

 

Halcon 78 is the guy that took the gimmick in 1978, wrestled Tiger Mask in the early 80s, and would be more recognisable to most people here as El Mexicano in AAA.

[KrisZ]

It was Paul Jones not Valiant.......but that is a great photo

 

And I knew that Halcon '78 wasn't the same as the original hence the '78 in his name.

 

Regarding Dave.....I asked him to be on a show a while back and he never answered

[pantherwagner]

It was Paul Jones not Valiant.......but that is a great photo

 

I saw it a long time ago on Ricky Morton's twitter.

[Bix]

 

 

It was Paul Jones not Valiant.......but that is a great photo

I saw it a long time ago on Ricky Morton's twitter.

Really? Well, I guess that answers that.

[pantherwagner]

 

 

It was Paul Jones not Valiant.......but that is a great photo

I saw it a long time ago on Ricky Morton's twitter.

Really? Well, I guess that answers that.

 

 

Yeah, I'm not going to go through Ricky's twitter history (my brain couldn't take it) but I was surprised. It saw it as a retweet of Ricky's message (which was a retweet itself) but I took it as the absolute confirmation that this really did happen. Yay...

[WrestlingPower]

That "Day in the Life of Nord" video was much-talked about in the tape trading world in the early 90s. It was hard to find in decent quality but I think Wade published a column around that time of like the 10-20 essential things you need in your wrestling video collection & that was on there for some reason.

[Cobra Commander]

if your week went all the way to October 20th, 1986, you could cover Roddy Piper rallying the Mets to victory in the 1986 World Series.

[SomethingSavage]

Just passed the part where you guys are discussing Scott Hall no-showing the AWA event and being rumored to sign with the Fed. Bix asks when Hall finally puts things together, and Kris guesses it was around the time he worked Puerto Rico.

 

Funnily enough, I *just* listened to Hall on Austin's podcast from this past month - and he addresses that. Hall credits Carlos Colon for having a lot of influence on how he learned how to work stipulations, put together angles, and build toward gimmick matches.

 

He even mentions aping Hansen during his run there and eventually having a Bullrope Match against Colon. I've seen footage of "Cowboy" Hall in WWC, but I've never come across THAT. Curious to know whether anyone here has actually seen it.

 

I realize, of course, that Hall was clunky and greener than goose shit at the time. But I still think it could be worth scoping out, if just to see how Colon himself carries the load and works the gimmick match again. With all the recent talk & discussion about how tremendous Carlos was in getting over gimmick matches - and the awesome job he did in making the bullrope stipulation mean so much in the encounter with Hansen - it'd be worth the watch, at the very least.