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Mid-Atlantic TV: Promos Only Edition


Superstar Sleeze

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After just one episode of Mid-South TV, I am switching gears to Mid-Atlantic. I am bit of overwhelmed trying to squeeze years of watching the Network into a couple weeks. I was such a fool! I cant believe I took this treasure trove for granted. 

Instead of watching all these squash/competitive squashes, I am just going to watch the promos so I can get a feel for the characters & the angles of the timeframe. By understanding the roster, I can understand the possible permutations of the wrestlers in matches and then use different search tools to see what I can find. 

Starting randomly in December 1982:

Depth Chart December 1982

Babyfaces

*Heels

“Rowdy” Roddy Piper

Ricky Steamboat & Jay Youngblood

Jack Brisco

Sweet Brown Sugar

Mike Rotundo

“Cowboy” Bob Orton

Jimmy Valiant

Greg “The Hammer” Valentine (House of Hump)

Sgt. Slaughter & Don Kernodle

Paul Jones (House of Hump)

Dory Funk Jr.

Leroy Brown (House of Hump)

Jos Le Duc (leaving)/One Man Gang (debuting) (House of Hump)

Sir Oliver Humperdnk (House of Hump)

Thanksgiving 1982 Card Greensboro (15.5k) Credit: Cagematch:

NWA Television Title 10.000 Dollar 22 Man Battle Royal (vakant)
Leroy Brown defeats Bob Orton Jr. and Frank Monte and Gary Black and Bill White and Gene Anderson and Ricky Harris and Sgt. Slaughter and Jerry Brisco and Jim Dalton and Johnny Weaver and Keith Larson and Ken Timbs and King Parsons and Masa Fuchi and Mike Davis and Mike Rotunda and Pork Chop Cash and Pvt. Jim Nelson and Rick Rood and Ricky Harris and Ron Ritchie - TITLE CHANGE !!!
Three On Two Handicap Steel Cage Match
Non Title Match
Jack Brisco defeats Greg Valentine (23:00)
Ric Flair (c) defeats Roddy Piper by DQ (24:00)

Key Takeaways:

1. Roddy Piper was a really big fucking deal in Mid-Atlantic. Definitely there top babyface star from 1982-1983. Although I need to look back deeper in 1982. As a person born in 1989, became a fan in 1997, this is not something you think of at all. I thought of Piper as a Portland dude that catches fire in the WWF in 1984. I had seen the Dog Collar Match at Starrcade ;83 in my teen years in the mid-00s as a part of the Greatest WWE Stars of the 80s DVD comp. I loved the match but never thought much of it. Perhaps because Flair is such a big deal as the draw to Starrcade 83. Piper/Valentine had been going a 1+ year at this point and that clearly the week-in/week-out feud of the territory that was drawing the Carolinas while Flair was off gallivanting. It is very interesting to see that Piper is the one that gets the World Championship title on Thanksgiving night and even more interesting that Crockett was able to finagle getting the World Champion for their Thanksgiving show over all the other territories at this point. Learning about this stuff, definitely heightens my appreciation for Piper and makes him feel like a massive star. The Thanksgiving Night World Championship match up until WrestleMania was probably the highest honor in pro wrestling. This really speak volumes to Piper's status. Although, if someone wanted to undermine, they could say that Crockett was just awarded the match because Flair was a Crockett boy, which is plausible. Piper was still the #1 babyface of a major US territory for at least a year and that carries a lot of weight for me. The angle in December 1982 is that Flair & Valentine did the concrete face rub angle that they did with Steamboat in the the 70s and Ricky Morton in 86 to great effect. Piper's promos can be hit or miss with me, but I thought these from this month were effective. He was banned from the studio because of what he did to Humperdink and Valentine. Valentine sold his return really well and Piper clobbered him. Valentine did a great job shrinking from the moment when Piper was present like a cowardly chump and then when Piper leaves he becomes a real Big Man challenging Piper to a fight. Excellent heel psychology. Greg Valentine is the US Champion so the top week in/week-out champion and is aligned with Humperdink. Piper/Valentine would be linked for another entire year without losing any heat which is an amazing feat in any era. 

2. Sir Oliver Humperdink - I have seen so little Hump. I know the Bam Bam Bigelow stuff and the Big Daddy Dink. I always associated Hump with Florida, which I have not really seen. I thought he was great. He is the top heel manager like The Brain in AWA or the Mouth of the South in Mempho. He manages all the heels save for Sarge & Kernodle. Hump is a great talker and has a great look especially the flaming red mullet. He also looks hipper than everyone else. It is 1982, but everyone is still stuck in the Disco 70s with the wide collars and no belts through the pants. Hump has the cool shades, leather jackets and 80s jewelry. He looks more in touch with the upcoming heavy metal revolution which would get going the next year. Very cutting edge for pro wrestling which is usually 2-3 pop culture cycles behind. The House of Hump is kinda rag tag motley crew. Valentine is a great centerpiece. Leroy Brown is a big, big man never seen him before, good promo too. What happened to him? Jos LeDuc shows up and then is replaced by a debuting long-haired One Man Gang. Paul Jones is still wrestling and is just as mediocre as ever on the stick. They are feuding with Piper & Friends. Piper does not use this term, but Bob Orton calls their group, Piper's Palace and he is building a Palace that will outshine the House of Humperdink. Orton is good on the stick. 

3. Ex-World Champions in the Midcard - they are able to effectively use Jack Brisco (babyface) as the Mid-Atlantic Champion feud with #1 Paul Jones. I love Jack's voice, just so smooth. They use Dory Funk Jr as a heel against Sweet Brown Sugar, raving about conspiracies because some boxer is gonna be the Special Ref for their match. Junior is a pretty good heel better than I expected. I think it is harder to transition someone like a Hulk Hogan into this midcard role, but I like their use of Brisco and Funk in the promotion. 

4. Sarge & Kernodle vs Steamboat & Youngblood - interesting they didnt have a match on the Thanksgiving. It could be that Sarge/Kernodle took Youngblood out before Thanksgiving. They show clips numerous times of Sarge "nearly killing" Youngblood with the Cobra Clutch in an arena in the post-match after a tag title match. This sets up the big Steamboat/Youngblood return on TV as they ambush the heels. Sarge & Kernodle are great. At one point Sarge starts quoting Don Henley's Dirty Laundry for no reason. Lol. That feud is red hot going into Final Conflict in March/April of 83. 

5. Why does Mike Rotundo invariably always look like he has not slept for a month when ever I see him?

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Advancing One Year to December 1983, fresh off the heels of Starrcade 1983. Here is the card of Starrcade 1983, courtesy of prowrestlinghistory.com:

  1. The Assassins beat Rufus R Jones & Bugsy McGraw (8:06) when Assassin #1 pinned McGraw.
     
  2. Kevin Sullivan & Mark Lewin beat Scott McGhee & Johnny Weaver (6:38) when Lewin pinned Weaver.
     
  3. Abdullah the Butcher pinned Carlos Colon (4:27).
     
  4. Dick Slater & Bob Orton, Jr. beat Mark Youngblood & Wahoo McDaniel (13:50) when Orton pinned Youngblood.
     
  5. Charlie Brown (Jimmy Valiant) pinned The Great Kabuki (13:33) in a "no DQ, no time limit" match to win the NWA TV Title.
     
  6. Roddy Piper pinned Greg Valentine (16:06) in a "dog collar" match.
     
  7. Ricky Steamboat & Jay Youngblood beat Jack & Jerry Brisco (12:48) in a "no DQ" match to win the NWA Tag Title when Youngblood pinned Jerry. Angelo Mosca was the special referee.
     
  8. Ric Flair pinned Harley Race (23:46) in a "steel cage" match to win the NWA World Title. Gene Kiniski was the special referee.

Here is the December 1983 Depth Chart:

*Babyfaces

Heels

“Rowdy” Roddy Piper (outgoing)

Wahoo McDaniel (kayfabe injured)

Ricky Steamboat & Jay Youngblood

Jimmy Valiant

Angelo Mosca

Rufus R. Jones & Mark Youngblood

 

Greg “The Hammer” Valentine (outgoing)

Dick Slater & Bob Orton

Road Warriors w/Paul Ellering (incoming)

Assassins w/Paul Jones

Kevin Sullivan & Mark Lewin (Outgoing)

w/Gary Hart

Ivan Koloff & Don Kernodle (Incoming)
w/Gary Hart

*Ric Flair is travelling World Champion

Key Takeaways:

1. Crockett does a good job memorializing Starrcade! I was kinda surprised that they were savvy enough to push how big of a deal Starrcade was after the fact. They had Piper hock Starrcade shirts and magazines. Instead of just moving on to the next card, by making Starrcade a big deal now, this investment will pay dividends the next year. A wise move from a normally unwise promotion. 

2. Greg Valentine is still United States Champion. He cuts a pretty good promo at one. It feels like him and Piper are spinning their wheels. Piper cuts a good promo about sometimes it is about how you lose. It is important to get back up. Piper beat Valentine at the Dog Collar Match, but the title was not on the line. Valentine would lose the US title curiously to a heel Dick Slater who was gloating about beating Rufus R. Jones for the Mid-Atlantic Championship. After Slater won the US Championship, he relinquished the Mid-Atlantic Championship directly to an incoming Ivan Koloff. Neither his US Title Victory or the Mid-Atlantic Title transfer was mentioned on TV in December. Slater is a good promo and I like Bob Orton's voice a lot, good delivery. Oh, Slater & Orton injured Wahoo's arm, at Starrcade, I think and that's why Wahoo has not been on TV. It looks like once Piper and Valentine leave that Slater and Wahoo will be the top program. No offense, to Slater and Wahoo, but it does feel like they would need more oomph, so going out getting Tully Blanchard was a huge pick-up and shot in the arm. 

3. Steamboat & Youngblood, thank God they were great wrestlers and good looking dudes, because they could not cut a promo to save their lives. Steamboat was fumbling. Youngblood made a weird joke that Road Warriors were only 20lbs heavier than them. Briscos did not appear at all this month. The sale of Georgia to Vince is soon so they will be headed North in 1984. The Road Warriors had a squash and one promo. Hawk and Animal looked "more normal" for lack of a better term at this point in their careers. I dont think they stick around long. 

4. Jimmy Valiant vs Paul Jones: the Hatfields and the McCoys have nothing on The Boogie Woogie Man and Number One Paul Jones. Jimmy Valiant is mostly unintelligible but I gotta admit his energy is infectious. He defaces a portrait of Paul Jones. Boy, oh boy, Paul Jones would give Lana a run for her money in how fucking wooden he is. This should be so easy. Just get mad. Just get big mad. Nothing. Bob Caudle was awesome in these segments. I love Bob Caudle. 

5. Angelo Mosca vs Gary Hart. Mosca saved McGhee & Weaver at Starrcade from Sullivan & Lewin, but in the process took a giant Golden Spike to his arm. I know Mosca has a rep as an atrocious promo, but as pissed of angry Italian dad he was a pretty good promo. I usually like Gary Hart, but his promos were just kinda annoying this time. Sullivan and Lewin were playing bodybuilders not Satan-worshippers which bummed me out. They were out of the territory in just two weeks and replaced by Ivan Koloff and "Pride of the Carolinas" Don Kernodle. He doesnt say it here but I fucking love when Uncle Ivan says "Pride of Carolinas". Don Kernodle got shunted down the card quickly 1985. I am surprised he didnt try to find greener pastures. 

6. Kelly Kiniski. Oh boy. Talk about somebody who was not suited for pro wrestling. With no inflection, he tries to turn heel. The first week he says any parent would be proud to have as a kid. Then he calls Jay Youngblood a cheap imitation. If it was not for Bob Caudle pointing stuff out, you would just think he was going about his business. 

7. No Ric Flair this month. 

8. The majority of the promos were focuses on Valiant vs Paul Jones and Mosca vs Gary Hart. It feels like they were letting the midcard shine while they were getting all their ducks in a row for next year. 

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September 1981 - Just getting a lay of the land by jumping around. 

September 5, 1981 Greensboro show (Courtesy: Cagematch):

Texas Bullrope Match
Ric Flair defeats Ole Anderson (17:00)
 

Babyfaces

Heels

*Ric Flair
Wahoo McDaniel

Ron Bass

Ricky Steamboat

Jay Youngblood

Jake The Snake Roberts

Leroy Brown

Ole Anderson

Roddy Piper & Abdullah The Butcher

Sgt. Slaughter

The Grappler

Super Destroyer

Ivan Koloff

*Wins NWA World’s Heavyweight Championship This Month

1. Ric Flair does not appear but is mentioned that he had been feuding with Ole Anderson. David Crockett & Bob Caudle are stoked to announce he has won the World Championship. He is clearly a babyface in the Carolinas at this time. 

2. Ron Bass has just won the TV title. I would say he is the main spokesman of the babyfaces. He is paling around with Steamboat, Youngblood and Jake The Snake and Leroy Brown. Jake looks like a young Marlboro Man. Steamboat bless his heart tries to cut a promo and Bass bails him out. Bass is very adequate. The babyface side feels midcard. Steamboat is an awesome worker dont get me wrong, but with Flair off gallivanting winning the World Title and Wahoo kayfabe not around. They are missing some firepower. 

3. Roddy Piper & Abby vs Wahoo. That sounds like a killer feud. David & Bob say they have banned both from the TV set because of all the hatred. Piper and Ole are aligned. What an oil & water odd couple. Ole cuts a great meat & potatoes promo. Piper is a killer on the mic here. This is damn good Piper. I dont want anyone to know just how bad I is until its too late. Damn straight. They tag together against Paul Jones & a chump. I am surprised Paul Jones was used a job guy as I thought he was a big deal in the Carolinas until the end. Also we get a really short, but fun Ole vs Jay Youngblood match that I watched. Ole is great against they young, workrate guys. The Grappler interferes. The Grappler is a legendary promo that people often forget about because he did not work in the big territories often. I could see his potential. I thought his conviction and cadence was great. 

4. Sgt. Slaughter debuts. He does not have a dance partner yet but he promises to win a major title and he does. He wins the US Title in October in a tournament final since Wahoo had to vacate it due to Piper & Abby injuring him. 

5. Heel side seems absolutely stacked. Ole, Piper, Abby, Sarge are all #1 heel candidates with Grappler, Super Destroyer and Ivan Koloff give great depth to the midcard. With Flair and Wahoo out, the babyfaces need to pick it up to keep up. I know Steamboat is over as a wrestler, but I want some good promos to match the heels. 

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October 1981 (Only two Episodes on the Network):

Greensboro 10/10/81 (Cagematch)

Singles Match
Ricky Steamboat defeats Ivan Koloff (c) - TITLE CHANGE !!!
Singles Match
 

*Babyfaces

Heels

Wahoo McDanie & Jake  Roberts

Jay Youngblood

Leroy Brown

Ricky Steamboat

Ron Bass

Jimmy Valiant

Ole & Gene Anderson

Roddy Piper

Sgt. Slaughter

Ivan Koloff

The Grappler & Super Destroyer

The Great Kabuki/Ninja

*Ric Flair – Travelling World Champion

1. Ric Flair does not appear and I do not think was mentioned. 

2. I really need to go back and watch Piper vs Jay Youngblood

3. Jake The Snake cuts one of the best damn promos I have not seen. He was on the verge of tears talking about how the Andersons were ruthlessly going to continue their beatdown of #1 Paul Jones and it really moved me. Great stuff! Big angle of the month was Jake The Snake was hounding the Andersons for a Tag Title shot saying Ole & Gene had not defended the titles in 2 months. Ole needed a sub and got Super Destroyer to wrestle. They show most of the match I think it was on Worldwide on the show. Gene came out in a Super Destroyer getup after Super D went behind the curtains. Gene loaded the mask and won. Ole & Gene of course lied & denied. Gene was suffering from uncontrollable, involuntary body movements. The dude wrestled until 1985. He was only 42 at the time! The dude looked 62! Wow that was a rough n tumble life. He died at 52, which is sad. Jake The Snake and Wahoo are a badass tag team and what the babyface side needed. 

4. Rejoice & Be Glad! The Boogie Woogie Man is here! It really does not feel like Crockett without Jimmy Valiant. Was the Boogie Woogie Elbow the inspiration for the People's Elbow?

5. Great Kabuki debuts and looks badass. Jimmy Holliday, learn something new, never heard of this guy says he will henceforth known as The Ninja

6. Ron Bass takes a backseat in the episodes I watched. 

7. Sgt. Slaughter adopting Jim Nelson as Pvt. Nelson is a genius addition to the gimmick. Love that they strapped him up so soon. The United States Champion of the World was a funny gaffe. I need to go back and watch him vs Kernodle, also. 

 

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I watched this all unfortunately a couple nights ago so my memory is not as fresh but here is...

November (2 episodes) & December 1981:

*Babyfaces

Heels

Jay Youngblood

Ricky Steamboat

Blackjack Mulligan & Blackjack Mulligan Jr.

Ray Stevens

Wahoo McDaniels & Jake The Snake Roberts

Jimmy Valiant

Sgt. Slaughter

Roddy Piper

Big John Studd

Ole & Gene Anderson

Ivan Koloff

The Great Kabuki/Ninja

*Ric Flair – Travelling World Champion

Thanksgiving Night 1981 Greensboro

Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament First Round Match

Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament First Round Match
Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament First Round Match
Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament First Round Match
Ricky Steamboat vs. Roddy Piper - Double DQ
Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament First Round Match
Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament First Round Match
Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament First Round Match
Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament Semi Final Match
Angelo Mosca vs. Greg Valentine - Double DQ
Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament Semi Final Match
Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament Semi Final Match
Thanksgiving Night Cadillac Tournament Final Match
Lights Out Match
Blackjack Mulligan vs. John Studd - Double DQ (17:00)
NWA World Heavyweight Title Steel Cage Match
Ric Flair (c) defeats Ole Anderson (26:00)
 
1. Sandy Scott was promoting this on the episode of TV we have directly before Thanksgiving. That he wanted to bring in new talent and he asked two different announcers in two separate  segments to guess what would incite top talent to come to the area. You could tell both Bob Caudle and the other guy know it is a car but know they shouldnt guess so they just stumble and fumble until Sandy Scott says it is a Cadillac. From Cagematch it looks like a 14-man tournament? Steamboat/Piper was a big feud so it makes sense they go to Double DQ. So that wittles it down to six. Greg Valentine is back, but not yet on TV. Him and Mosca (ties through Toronto/MLW). I like the Blackjack Mulligan Jr (black hair Barry Windham) win for the tournament. 
2. His dad has a big match with Big John Studd which bleeds into next month's TV.
3. Ric Flair and Ole Anderson had been feuding it sounded like before Flair left so it makes sense that Ole gets the title match on the biggest night. Again, it is interesting that on the biggest wrestling night of the year...Crockett is the one who gets the World Champion. Flair does not appear on TV at this time. I still need to see the Flair vs Ole strap match from Buffalo we have on tape from around this time. 
 
There are two December Greensboro Shows (December 13th):
Singles Match
Singles Match
Singles Match
The Ninja defeats Ron Bass
Non Title Match
Tag Team Match
Key On A Pole Cage Match
 
1. Ron Bass has been de-pushed. Off TV, lost his champion to Uncle Ivan and is jobbing to Kabuki. Maybe because the Blackjacks have rolled into town and only room for one cowboy gimmick on top. Just speculation. 
2. I dont recall much Jake vs Ivan interaction in the build to this show. Ray Stevens had started feuding with Ole so that kinda fucked Jake. I thought the Crippler and the Snake would join forces, but that has not happened yet. 
3. Sarge has been by far the best act on Mid-Atlantic TV in December. He is US Champion, he has Pvt. Jim Nelson and the $1000 Cobra Clutch Challenge. He has mostly been feuding with Jay Yongblood. Like any good bully heels when he is tasked with facing a true challenge he chickens out. He draws out the Challenge so long that TV time runs out. Then he goes too far when demonstrating the hold on Tony Anthony (yes that Tony Anthony) and hurts him in kayfabe. Sandy Scott, who is a good authority figure, tells him there will be a lottery to face Sarge in the Cobra Clutch Challenge. He rattles off the names and starts with the jobbers...Sarge oh yeah of course Keith Larsen deserves a shot but then as he builds to Youngblood and Mulligan Jr. (Windham), Sarge blows a gasket. The Sarge/BW Cobra Clutch Challenge is just great pro wrestling TV that everyone should watch. That being said this December Greensboro show would have taken place before the Sarge/BW Cobra Clutch Challenge. There was no mention of the US Title vs Cadillac stipulation on TV but that sounds like a great angle!
4. Ray Stevens and Ole Anderson have been feuding sounds like one of those old timers just wanting to feud with each other because they have been buds for so long. Ray Stevens just does not look like an athlete at all. It is shocking that he purportedly innovated the Flair-esque workrate style. He is not much better of a promo. I guess Stevens came in as an Ole tag partner but Ole tried to just use and abuse him. So Stevens will have no of it. Ole says the other babyfaces cant trust Stevens. Steamboat and Piper have been feuding. Pretty solid feud nothing too memorable. 
5. Blackjack and Studd have been feuding general Giant vs Giant feud. I think Studd may have tried to hurt Mulligan Jr. thats why Blackjack is so pissed. I have no idea what the key on the pole unlocks. It was not mentioned on TV. 
 
So they double dipped in Greensboro in December and here is December 27th, 1981:
 
Singles Match
Keith Larson vs. Tony Anthony - Draw
Singles Match
Singles Match
Loser Leaves Town Match
The Ninja defeats Paul Jones
Singles Match
Elimination Six Man Tag Team Match

 

1. Ninja vs Paul Jones has not been built up at all. Ninja has moved from being under Jimmy Holliday (had never heard of him) to being under Gene Anderson

2. Steamboat vs Piper was a big match. The Contract Signing was a good angle. I would love to see what those two did together. 

3. Stevens & Jake as partners against the Andersons make sense given their beefs with Ole. Mulligan Jr and Uncle Ivan feel shoehorned in there. Mulligan Jr was either with his dad against Studd or against Sarge so that's weird. Uncle Ivan was not featured too prominently. 

4. I covered Sarge's TV run above. I guess this match makes sense since Sarge was beefing with Blackjack's kid and Blackjack is more of a proven draw at this point. 

5. The only other thing I want to cover is that Mid-Atlantic is moving into a new market: Ann Arbor, Michigan! Go Blue! As many of you know, I am a Wolverine! I found these promos to be comical. It is clear none of these guys had been to Michigan before. They all readily admit that and have no clue what to say. It is hilariously awkward. Jake The Snake at one point says he flew over Michigan once to get to Canada and he is sure is a great place. It was so funny.    

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Jumping around s'more. June 1982

Depth Chart

Babyfaces

*Heels

Wahoo McDaniel

Jack Brisco

Jay Youngblood

Ricky Steamboat

Jake The Snake Roberts

Paul  Jones

Jimmy Valiant

Porkchop Cash & Iceman King Parsons

Kelly Kiniski & Mike Rotundo

Sgt. Slaughter

Roddy Piper

Don Muraco

Ivan Koloff

The Great Kabuki/Ninja

King Kong Mosca

The Privates

*Ric Flair – Travelling World Champion

Two Shows in Greensboro in June 1982, 

Tag Team Match
Singles Match
Paul Jones defeats The Ninja
NWA United States Heavyweight Title Canadian Lumberjack Match
 
June 19th 
Singles Match
Jay Youngblood defeats The Monk
Singles Match
Tag Team Match
Tag Team Match
Jimmy Valiant (c) defeats Ivan Koloff by DQ
 
1.  As we kick off June, it looks like Wahoo McDaniel has freshly defeated Sgt. Slaughter for the US Championship. This ruffles the Magnificent Muraco's feathers as Wahoo made a pact with Muraco to win the World Tag Team Titles, which have kinda shelved by an injury to Gene Anderson and there really were not an champions. It is kinda confusing. Wahoo says he is a man of his word, but he didnt expect to win the US Champion it just sort of happened. He sounds like a man who has cheated ended up with a lovechild. What ends up happening is Piper, who is still the straw that stirs the Mid-Atlantic drink, pays Muraco to injure Wahoo. This forces Wahoo to vacate the title and Crockett awards the belt back to Slaughter which is kinda lame. I wish Slaughter pinned an injured Wahoo. You can see the two Greensboro show those are two of the key main event matches. First Wahoo successfully defending the US Title against Slaughter and the other night teaming with Jack Brisco against Piper & Muraco, which leads me to Piper & Brisco.
 
2. One thing Chad really built up during the PTBN's Greatest WCW Match Ever Project was the Jack Brisco vs Roddy Piper feud. It seems it all started because Brisco beat Piper for the Mid-Atlantic Championship. Piper retaliated by injuring Gerry Brisco when Brisco had a jobber in the figure-4 and Piper splashed onto the entanglement of legs from the top rope. Furthermore in a Jack Brisco vs Don Muraco match (that I should watch), Piper again jumped off the top rope crashing into Jack while in a figure-4. This time tried to crack him open with a chair. I would say this is the hottest feud in the territory right now. I love Jack Brisco's voice, just so smooth and deep. 
 
3. Paul Jones has been calling King Kong Mosca, Ding Dong Mosca, which is not that funny when Paul Jones says it but how Mosca reacts to it is amusing. I like Mosca. He seems like your loud Italian uncle. He has been aligned with the Ninja/Kabuki which I guess why Paul Jones wrestled the Ninja. Jake Roberts has not been doing much. 
 
4. The Privates (Don Kernodle & Jim Nelson) vs Iceman King Parsons & Porkchop Cash midcard Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Title feud got a shit ton of airtime. I like Porkchop Cash a lot. The Privates had recently lost the belts at the beginning of the month but regained them before the month is up. So Sarge & his Privates are at full strength!
 
5. Kelly Kiniski & Mike Rotundo got a massive amount of promo time and are god-awful. Kelly Kiniski blows chunks. Rotundo looks like he has not slept in a month as usual and looks like he would rather be anywhere else. 
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March 1982!

*Babyfaces

Heels

Ricky Steamboat

Jake The Snake Roberts

Jack & Gerry Brisco

Jimmy Valiant

Blackjack Mulligan Jr.

Jay Youngblood

Ray Stevens

Sgt. Slaughter

Roddy Piper

Ole Anderson & Stan Hansen

Ivan Koloff

Austin Idol

The Great Kabuki/Ninja

The Privates

*Ric Flair – Travelling World Champion

March 13th Greensboro:

Tag Team Match
Singles Match
Jack Brisco defeats Roddy Piper by DQ
Non Title Match
NWA World Heavyweight Title Indian Strap Match
Ric Flair (c) defeats Wahoo McDaniel

March 27th Greensboro:

Singles Match

Singles Match
Singles Match
Tag Team Match
 
1. I would say the major angle without a doubt this month is that the Nature Boy is coming home, daddy! Flair was defending his title against Steamboat and after the match Sgt. Slaughter  & His Privates jumped Steamboat. Flair came to the rescue, cementing his babyface status. The following two weeks Flair sent in tapes that he wanted a piece of Slaughter, Pipe and Ole. I guess they were running a nationwide angle that Ole was following Flair around the country, Miami & New Orleans and jumping Flair. That first Flair promo was amazing fired up babyface Flair with bandages all over his face and a splint on his pinky. There are some great promos in this territory but Flair is on another level. 
 
2. Other than that, I thought this was a pretty aimless month. They have a fucking stacked territory. Slaughter, Piper and Ole & Hansen are a murder's row for the heels. Steamboat, BW, Jake The Snake are no slouches either. It just felt all the babyfaces are feuding with all the heels. The promos were just generally targeted in catch-all terms. I love the idea of seeing some Stan Hansen on US soil. 
 
3. I would say the one clear cut feud is Ivan Koloff vs the "Boogey Man" Jimmy Valiant. I love when Ivan calls him the Boogey Man or the disdain in his voice when he says Boogie Woogie. They actually put Valiant over huge one week letting him clear the ring of both Ole & Stan. 
 
4. Jake The Snake as this goody two shoes, moral compass is insane given what he would become. He does it really well. It just feels strange. He really is this idealist. When does he become corrupted? It is very interesting. 
 
5. They are continuing their expansion into Michigan. The announcer doing it has real trouble with Rowdy Roddy Piper's name. Piper vs The Dream in 1982 has me salivating. Also this dude is supposed to be hocking a Mid-Atlantic bumper sticker. He clearly has no clue what the fuck a Bumper Sticker is, calling it attractive and a keepsake. 
 
6. Ole & Stan vs Stevens & Dusty makes sense as Stevens had started his feud with Ole back in late '81. Dusty is a touring national attraction. This explains why Ole keeps name-dropping Dusty even though he is not on the TV show. 
 
7. Wahoo has not been on TV, but a good showing for him getting the title shot and also teaming with "Moral Crusader" Jake Roberts who seems to be beefing hard with Slaughter. 
 
8. Almost forgot on the first week of March TV, The Brisco Brothers come back to town and they plant the seeds for the feud with Piper that I saw unfold in June. Jerry says Piper is better suited for commentary. Piper takes exception to that and says they ought to be afraid of him. See how nice this slow burn is. They didnt fucking just run Piper beating up the Briscos just because. There was a snide comment. They are going to let it fester and snowball and build. I love this stuff.   
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September 1982 - MAJOR Game Changer Month - Revamped Heel Roster - Sir Oliver Humperdink and the House of Hump are her

Babyfaces

*Heels

Wahoo McDaniel

Jack & Gerry Brisco

Jimmy Valiant

Ricky Steamboat

Jay Youngblood

Roddy Piper

Greg Valentine (House of Hump)

Paul Jones (House of Hump)

Jos LeDuc (House of Hump)

Leroy Brown (House of Hump)

Abdullah The Butcher (House of Hump)

Sgt. Slaughter (On Suspension)

*Ric Flair – Travelling World Champion

September 18th 1982

Singles Match
Two On One Handicap Match
 
1. The House of Hump is here, daddy! The Slaughter, Piper & Ole show is no more! Between July and September, Piper has turned babyface as he teamed with Wahoo, but he was not on the last three weeks of TV. Ole is long gone. Slaughter is serving a one month suspension for beating up Wahoo and disgracing his Headdress. Wahoo is the current US Champion. Valentine is the number one heel in the territory and the Ace of the House of Hump. They have brought in Abdullah The Butcher to soften up Wahoo. 
 
2. The first big angle of the month is Paul Jones defeated Jack Brisco on TV for the Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight belt. The feud between the House of Hump and Wahoo & the Briscos is borderline problematic. Wahoo/Briscos definitely do not hide the fact they are all Indian. So it is natural for heels to go after that. I dont mind a couple heel jabs here and there, they are HEELS. Valentine saying Paul Jones beating an Indian with their own Indian Deathlock would be great. Paul Jones corrects him that the Indian Deathlock was invented by the white man to torture Indians was a little too dark. 
 
3. The other big feud is against the Boogey Woogie Man. Jos LeDuc is carrying the torch for House of Hump on this one, first breaking his cassette player. Then all the babyfaces get together and buy Boogey Woogie a real nice Panasonic Boombox. What happens? LeDuc cracks Valiant with it to win the Television Title and then smashes it over the ring post. Really strong midcard feud!
 
4. The roster is a little thin even if the House of Hump vs Wahoo/Briscos/Valiant is red hot. So a lot of no-names get promo time. Each was worse than the next. No one was as bad as Kelly "And Stuff" Kiniski. 
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March 1983 (only three episodes missing first week) I watched March & June close together hopefully I dont blend the two months. 

Looking through the results on Cagematch, Mid-Atlantic ran Newton, Mass, very close to Boston (where Boston College is). That seems really weird. Jerry Brisco and Dory Funk Jr was the main event.

March 1983 is the month of the Final Conflict March 12th. 

Babyfaces

*Heels

Roddy Piper

Jack & Jerry Brisco

Jimmy Valiant & Bugsy McGraw

Ricky Steamboat & Jay Youngblood

Mike Rotundo & Sweet Brown Sugar

 

Greg Valentine (-Maybe-House of Hump)

Dick Slater (House Of Hump)

Dory Funk Jr. & Jake The Snake w/Paul Jones

One Man Gang (Def House Of Hump)

Great Kabuki w/Gary Hart

Sgt. Slaughter & Don Kernodle

*Ric Flair – Travelling World Champion

1. Greg Valentine vs Roddy Piper – Hot little angle on the same TV airing date as the Final Conflict. Piper does commentary for a Valentine squash (boy did Valentine look good squashing this jabroni). Piper says its easy to be the Greatest US Champion when you never defend it. Valentine takes exception and challenges him to a match on the TV show in the main event, which is obviously a huge TV match. I watched the match and did a review in the matches section. It is quick but explosive. Rubbing Piper's face in concrete from late 1982 is not mentioned. The ear injury angle has not yet happened. 

2. Ric Flair vs Masa Fuchi - the one time you want Flair to have a competitive match and he obliterates his opponent. Oh well!

3. Andre The Giant is coming to town and they are programming him with Humperdink's One Man Gang, which makes sense. It seems like Humperdink has the Paul Jones role of feuding with the Boogie Woogie Man who has Bugsy McGraw, who reminds me of Zach Galifianakas in both looks and sensibilities. They do a Tug of War angle that kinda sucks; OMG just lets go of the rope instead of doing the job. I much preferred the Boombox angle. That had emotional weight to it. 

4. The Jos LeDuc shit is great! He is apparently been gone for five weeks. I think the Boogie Woogie Man did him in. LeDuc just stiff arms Hump, his ex-manager. "Don't buddy me" and he just keeps shoving him out of the shot. Hump says he lost money due to all of LeDuc's no-shows. Jos basically tells him to fuck off. He is here to kick Valiant's ass and win back HIS TV Title from Dicky Slater (a resident of the House of Hump_ which he never lost. He had a match with Dicky Slater the next week that I want to watch. 

5. Paul Jones is bringing in Jake The Snake Roberts and they show a TREMENDOUS angle from Florida. Jake the Snake is poised to win a match against BW with his big Million Dollar Kneelift but cant get the job done inside of the time limit. Jake snaps that he deserved a longer time limit. He has tried for years to be a moral, good solider and work inside the rules but he basically says fuck it. Knee lifts Windham to hell and Barry takes a characteristically awesome bump through a wooden barricade. The angle is enhanced by watching 1981-82 Jake who was this goody two shoes, moralizing idealist who belonged on 7th Heaven not in wrestling. AWESOME ANGLE! Paul Jones is also managing Mid-Atlantic Champion Dory Funk Jr who I like as a squash match worker because I really like takedowns and he has some novel takedowns. Paul Jones mentions that he did a throwing a title belt off a bridge angle reminiscent of Stone Cold/The Rock, which you can read about here...http://wrestlingclassics.com/cgi-bin/.ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=9;t=065253

6. Steamboat & Youngblood defeat Sarge & Kernodle at Final Conflict in a Cage and perhaps not so surprisingly to wrestling fans this is NOT the Final Conflict rather they are taking the their steel cage feud on the road and doing the loop which makes sense might as well get every red cent out of Slaughter before he leaves. The Brisco cut a promo that they are looking for the tag belts. Foreshadowing that impending feud.  

 

The Final Conflict
Roddy Piper defeats Dick Slater (w/Gary Hart) (c) (14:15)
:::: Not recommended yet. ::::
Ric Flair (c) vs. Greg Valentine - Time Limit Draw (60:00)
NWA World Tag Team Title Steel Cage Match (Special Referee: Sandy Scott)

 

 

 

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June 1983 (Three Episode, missing last week of June)

*Babyfaces

Heels

Roddy Piper

Ricky Steamboat & Jay Youngblood

Jos LeDuc

Rufus R. Jones

Jimmy Valiant & Bugsy McGraw

Mike Rotundo

Bob Orton

Greg Valentine (-Maybe-House of Hump)

Jack & Jerry Brisco

Dick Slater (House Of Hump)

Dory Funk Jr. & Jake The Snake w/Paul Jones

Kelly Kiniski & One Man Gang (House Of Hump)

Great Kabuki w/Gary Hart

*Ric Flair – Travelling World Champion

Mid-Atlantic didnt run Greensboro in June. Ill use the July 2nd date. 

Singles Match
Tag Team Match
Tag Team Match
Harley Race (c) defeats Ric Flair by DQ

 

1. Greg Valentine vs Roddy Piper – Awesome Valentine promo gloating about maiming Piper's ear. They show the arena footage clip and it is as gruesome as it is awesome! When you dont think it can get any better, Roddy Piper cuts one of the best babyface promos I have ever heard in my life. There is no guffawing, no bluster. It is 100% sincere. He is worried about never being able to wrestle again. That Valentine, the doctors, the promoters are trying to take away the only thing he loves, the only thing he knows. Total home run. 

2. Ric Flair is hyping a World Championship match against Valentine, which I think happens before he does lose the Championship to Harley Race. It looks like Flair is back as a babyface as he we begin the build to Starrcade. On June 18th, they announce the title switch to Harley.

3. Steamboat & Youngblood went to Oklahoma where Youngblood was awarded an Indian headdress. The Briscos, proud Oklahoman Indians themselves, didnt think they earned it so Jerry punks out Youngblood and steals the headdress. It was a good angle, but it kinda cut off the babyfaces balls. The Briscos had been babyfaces for so long I think they had to do this. 

4. Good God they have put Kelly Kiniski with One Man Gang. Kelly Kiniski has stopped saying "And Stuff" at the end of each sentence, but he is still the drizzling shits. Why is Humperdink not talking? After trying the Tug of War, they are going to old bodyslam challenge. I loved it with Big John Studd in the WWF. C'mon Zack Galifianakas is definitely McGraw's son, right? This is the midcard shit with Bugsy McGraw and Mike Rotundo. Jos LeDuc is paired with Dicky Slater, but he has been suspended. Bob Orton is not doing much but he is babyface.

3. Paul Jones has a massive portrait of himself. He is asking for all the ladies to write in letters. He is reading the letters out loud. While Rufus R. Jones is reading the letters that Jones has thrown away. There is a lot of time devoted to this. I will say it is all very campy and pretty much anyone can guess what the contents of the respective letters are. I think Rufus stuff isnt that great, but some of the over the top adulation of Paul Jones is pretty funny. I would say more hit than miss. 

4. Great Kabuki is TV Champion - not much else of note.

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July 1982 (5 episodes)  Excited for this month to see the red hot Piper & Brisco angle:

Babyfaces

*Heels

Wahoo McDaniel

Jack & Jerry Brisco

Jimmy Valiant

Ricky Steamboat

Jay Youngblood

Jake The Snake Roberts & Paul  Jones

Sgt. Slaughter

Roddy Piper & Don Muraco

Ivan Koloff (House of Hump)

Leroy Brown (House of Hump

The Great Kabuki/Ninja (House of Hump

The Privates

*Ric Flair Travelling World Champion

July 3rd Greensboro:

Tag Team Match
Non Title Steel Cage Match
Ric Flair (c) defeats Wahoo McDaniel by DQ
 
July 17th Greensboro:

 

1. I detailed the Piper/Brisco angle in the Piper vs Brisco match thread, July 10, 1982. They started building to Piper/Muraco vs Brisco Brothers, with a returning Jerry after he was put out of action by Piper. Almost no Piper promos after July 17th. They said he was in Hawaii spending Brisco/Wahoo/Steamboat's money. I dont know how Piper is a babyface by September. No signs of a babyface turn yet. On July 31st, they announce the return of the Nature Boy to the territory to be Piper's tag partner against Jack Brisco & Wahoo McDaniel. That's a star-studded lineup!

2. Sarge vs Wahoo is the other big feud in the territory. You see Wahoo got a crack at Ric Flair in Greensboro. It is clear that he, Jack and Steamboat are carrying the babyface side. Sarge had a good match with Iceman Parsons. I loved him tackling Parsons out of the sky on a dropkick attempt and then a Beautiful Slaughter Cannon. They are building to stipulation matches like Indian strap matches. 

3. My Boy, Greg Valentine has re-debuted. I watched him beat the piss out of Keith Larsen. Valentine is so damn good. He brings up beating Backlund for the WWF Championship, breaking Wahoo's leg and busting up Flair's nose. He vanishes in the second half of the month, but excited to have him on the show. 

4. Humperdink debuts on TV as he was on none of the June episodes. He is managing Ninja and Ivan Koloff. Koloff's promos are quite humorous especially against the Boogey Man. They are going to have a Siberian Salt Miner's Glove on a pole match, there are spikes on the glove. They demonstrate how it can cut through newspaper. The big angle at the end of the month is that "Bad, Bad" Leroy Brown has joined the House of Hump. I like Leroy as a promo. He is going to be paired with Steamboat.   

5. Jake The Snake is languishing in a midcard tag team with Paul Jones, time to head for greener pastures for better grazing, Snakeman!

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August 1982 (3 episode) - Massive Month of Transition - Highly recommend checking this out as there a lot of major shift. Piper turns babyface! Wahoo/Sarge is Blown Off! Humperdink leadsthe heel side! Paul Jones turns heel! Flair vs Brisco on TV! All this and much, much more!

Babyfaces

*Heels

Wahoo McDaniel

Jack Brisco

Jimmy Valiant

Ricky Steamboat

Roddy Piper

Jay Youngblood

Sgt. Slaughter

Paul Jones

Ivan Koloff/Jos LeDuc (House of Hump)

Leroy Brown (House of Hump)

Greg Valentine

The Privates

*Ric Flair Travelling World Champion

August 7th Greensboro, NC:

Tag Team Match
Singles Match
Ricky Steamboat defeats Leroy Brown by DQ
NWA Television Title New York Street Fight
Jimmy Valiant (c) defeats Ivan Koloff by DQ
NWA World Heavyweight Title Best Two Out Of Three Falls Match
Wahoo McDaniel defeats Ric Flair (c) by DQ [2:1]
- McDaniel besiegt Flair (14:00)
- Flair besiegt McDaniel (26:00)
- Flair wird disqualifizert
 
 

August 21st Greensboro:

Six Man Tag Team Match
Siberian Glove Match
Jimmy Valiant defeats Ivan Koloff
Non Title Lumberjack Match

1. Lots of blowoffs in the first week of August. Jack Brisco defeats Piper for the Mid-Atlantic Championship and Valiant wins the TV Title from Ivan Koloff

2. Piper rips up a contract from Humperdink after Hump says he wouldnt lost if Hump was in his corner. Piper starts teaming with Valiant and Steamboat. I didnt know I needed "Boogie Woogie" Jimmy Valiant and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper as a tag team in my life, but I am sure better having born witness to it! Their promo after was sheer madness. Piper did have a good line "Leroy Brown, gets himself a earring, very becoming, becoming an idiot." I popped for that. We missed the August 14th episode but it wasnt the hottest angle ever, but Piper was ready to be babyface. Babyface side is stacked. Slaughter/Valentine are more than enough to keep the scales even. 

3. There was another turn this month as Paul Jones jumped Jack Brisco at the behest of Hump and will win the Mid-Atlantic Championship the first week of September. Mike Rotundo chocks it up to all the self-improvement books Paul Jones had been reading. Popped me huge! Never did trust those books. 

4. Sarge vs Wahoo was blown off in August. Sarge tore up the headdress and wants to "scalp" Wahoo in a Title vs Hair match. That's a big money stipulation they run it in Charlotte on August 22nd and Sarge drops the title and get suspended for 30 days for cutting chunks off of Wahoo's hair anyways. Sarge would be cycled into the tag division for the remainder of his run. While, Greg "The Hammer" Valentine (member of the House of Hump) would take up is mantle and feud & win the US Title from Wahoo. 

5. Jos LeDuc has debuted and he is fast becoming a favorite of mine. He is taking the Ivan Koloff role and will be feuding with the "Boogie Boogie Man" (LeDuc's words not mine).

6. Last but not least, the angle of the month was Ric Flair vs Jack Brisco! What a month Flair had in August of '82, the awesome Memphis angle with Jerry Lawler (he busts out Country Jive in both angles), the insanely awesome match with Kerry Von Erich and then this one. This made a Flair WWE DVD set so I have seen it before, but had never seen the angle. Flair is hootin' hollerin' about beating up Wahoo and he will never face him again and that Jimmy Crockett cant do anything about it. Flair is supposed to wrestle a jobber but says it aint happenin'. Wahoo/Steamboat come out and he says he will wrestle the guy in the ring, but the jobber has been replaced by Jack Brisco! Awesome! I have seen the match before and it is good stuff! 

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September 1983 - Watched this a couple days ago, but didnt have time to write it up. Only two real angles but they are doozies!

Babyfaces

*Heels

Ric Flair

Roddy Piper

Wahoo McDaniel

Ricky Steamboat & Jay Youngblood

Rufus R. Jones

Charlie Brown From Outta Town

Bugsy McGraw

Mark Youngblood

Dick Slater

Greg Valentine (-Maybe-House of Hump)

Bob Orton

Jack & Jerry Brisco

Dory Funk Jr. & Jake The Snake w/Paul Jones

Great Kabuki w/Gary Hart

Assassins 

*Harley Race Travelling World Champion

September 18th Greensboro:

Tag Team Match
Lumberjack Match
 
1. Ric Flair bounty angle. Harley put a $25,000 bounty on the head of the Nature Boy. They have the best Flair vs Harley match I have seen to this day on 8/31/83 only for Dicky Slater and that traitor Bob Orton to collect the bounty with a spike piledriver and neck crank. They devote an entire episode of TV to the match and the angle. I love how they get everyone's reactions after. Jimmy Crockett is fuming. He only fines them $5000. So they still have $20000. I love that Bob Orton's response to all this is that Flair now knows he is only worth $5000 to the Crocketts. Orton is great in these heel promos. Honestly, I feel like Slater & Orton have way more heat on them and they should be the Tag Champions going into Starrcade. They were crushing it as promos especially Bob Orton. 
 
2. Charlie Brown From Outta Town maybe my favorite wrestling name of all time! The gist is as I understand him and Kabuki were feuding over the TV title in a Loser Leaves Town match. Gary Hart & The Briscos pulled some shenanigans with the tape that would have exposed a Kabuki loss but instead Valiant lost. Here comes Charlie Brown From Outta Town! This is the one angle I disagree with all wrestling fans about. These angles are so much fun! It is painfully obvious that is Valiant but that is the fucking point! You want to see the heels get frustrated and lose their cool. You point and laugh at the heels and you cheer their your hero who was wronged is still able to compete. It is pro fucking wrestling. Sometimes I think wrestling fans are just literal cranks. 
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October-November 1983 (7 Episodes)...Watched these last night. The last thing I ever watched on the Network was Paul Jones & Assassins cutting a promo on Dory Funk Jr. What a run we had! I will miss The Network. 

Babyfaces

*Heels

Ric Flair & Wahoo McDaniel

Roddy Piper

Ricky Steamboat & Jay Youngblood

Charlie Brown From Outta Town

Rufus R. Jones & Bugsy McGraw

Angelo Mosca

Mark Youngblood

Dick Slater &Bob Orton

Greg Valentine

Jack & Jerry Brisco

Great Kabuki w/Gary Hart

Assassins w/Paul Jones

Sullivan & Lewin w/Gary Hart

*Harley Race Travelling World Champion

October 8, 1983 Greensboro:

Singles Match
Tag Team Match
Tag Team Match
Bob Orton Jr. & Dick Slater vs. Ric Flair & Wahoo McDaniel - Double DQ
 
October 16th 
Six Man Tag Team Match
Singles Match
Wahoo McDaniel defeats Dick Slater by DQ
Singles Match
 
Starrcade 1983:
Tag Team Match
Tag Team Match
Singles Match
Tag Team Match
NWA Television Title Vs. Mask Match
Charlie Brown defeats The Great Kabuki (w/Gary Hart) (c) (10:35) - TITLE CHANGE !!!
Dog Collar Match
Roddy Piper defeats Greg Valentine (16:08)
NWA World Tag Team Title Match (Special Referee: Angelo Mosca)
Jay Youngblood & Ricky Steamboat defeat The Brisco Brothers (Jack Brisco & Jerry Brisco) (c) (12:59) - TITLE CHANGE !!!
NWA World Heavyweight Title Steel Cage Match (Special Referee: Gene Kiniski)
Ric Flair defeats Harley Race (c) (23:49) - TITLE CHANGE !!!

1. Starrcade 1983 - When you watch week to week TV before Starrcade and then watch the build to Starrcade 1983. It is night and day. I had never seen such a singular purpose in their TV. Everything from the first week of October to the event was completely geared towards Starrcade. Correct me if I am wrong, but I dont think there was a show like this before. Every single match on the card (except Abby/Colon) had build from the TV. This was the birth of modern day pro wrestling TV with its singular focus on Starrcade. You could tell from the outset they planned on making this an annual tradition and were getting fans to think of it that way so that Starrcade could start to sell itself in the future. It is pretty amazing that Dusty & Crockett beat Vince to the punch in doing this style of booking. At one point, Dusty explains where the name comes from. We dont live in deCADES we live in a starrCADE. LOL! Only to the Dream would that make sense! They put as much effort into building Starrcade up as a brand as they do the show. That is genius! They have all the promoters bid on the Flair vs Race dream rematch and then Crockett names it Starrcade. Just like today cities actually bid on WrestleMania. They hype the specific date and location. Then each week they add a match to the card. Up until this point, you generally knew who was feuding, but you didnt know if it would be a tag team match in Greensboro and the blowoff in Charlotte, or vice versa, what permutation you would get in Norfolk or Greenville. This was the first time they really spelled who was going to face who and that this would be the blowoff to a lot of angles. I guess people say Final Conflict was the inspiration for Starrcade. Unfortunately, I didnt get to watch January/February 1983. I did watch March 1983. At least the night of the Final Conflict, there was not even a peep about Steamboat/Youngblood vs Sarge/Kernodle or any other matches. I am not saying Final Conflict was not absurdly successful. It was. The promotional level for Starrcade for on a whole another planet. 

2. Dory Funk Jr turns on Paul Jones. Dory was the only big name not to appear on Starrcade 1983 and what makes it weirder is that he sticks around throughout 1984 so I am surprised him & Rufus did not take on the Assassins. Jake The Snake has left the territory poor timing, bud. Paul Jones has taken on the Assassins Rufus had beaten Dory for the Mid-Atlantic Championship which was part of the reason for the split. Rufus & Assassin I had a tremendous headbutting contest. Basically they took turns headbutting each other and the loser was the person that took a bump. Great weeble wobble selling and of course Assassin loads the mask up for the win. 

3. Gary Hart continues to have his troubles with Charlie Brown from Outta Town. I love how he says Charlie Brown. Charlie Brown From Outta Town I love that name so much. He ends up wrestling the Great Kabuki at Starrcade in a title vs mask match even though Kabuki never appears on TV. Gary Hart hypes up Baron Von Raschke who appears on some house shows but never on TV. Kevin Sullivan and Mark Lewin do appear in TV. Mark Lewin is fucking stacked, brutha. Holy shit. Gary Hart and Kevin Sullivan are like oil & water. I sensed some legit heat there in the promos. Sullivan & Lewin spiked Angelo Mosca Jr in Florida and for some reason they took this feud on the road to the Carolinas. They showed the spiking footage and they were cutting promos against each other. 

4. Briscos vs Steamboat & Youngblood was pretty boilerplate.  They swapped the titles in October with Briscos going into Starrcade as the Champions. Jerry Brisco is a very entertaining promo. I cant put my finger on it. I loved him as a stooge Mr. MacMahon. I think it is the accent and that he talks on the slower side and he seems so mischievous. The Briscos say they are scheduled to defend the World Tag Team Belts against the High Flyers in KC on the night of Starrcade so sorry everyone, but no can do. Crockett bought out their contract and signs the match!

5. Piper vs Valentine - there was a pretty good Piper & Wahoo vs Valentine & Slater TV match that ended with the heels powdering for a countout loss. Wahoo wants Indian Strap matches and Piper wants the Dog Collar. Piper hands Bob Caudle a gift to give Valentine. Caudle is in his element with his "Aww shucks, Roddy is on the up & up" and the way he withstands the Hammer's grilling. I fucking love Bob Caudle. The present is of course a dog collar. Valentine has a glorious conniption fit. The drama is all about whether they can make it a dog collar match and Crockett makes it so for Starrcade but only because it is FUCKING STARRCADE! I love it. 

6. We end on the Man. The false retirement speech was fine. Lets get to best thing I watched in all these episodes I saw, FUCKING UNHINGED, BAT-WIELDING, MANIAC, LUNATIC RIC FLAIR TRYING TO CAVE IN SLATER'S AND ORTON'S SKULLS! Flair's promo the first and second weeks of October is some of the best shit he has ever done. He was a VENGEFUL PSYCHOPATH and it was glorious. When they show the clip of Bob Orton holding David Flair promising to protect his Daddy from any harm from the bounty was awesome! Then Bob Orton saying he would have dumped the kid on his head too if it meant $25,000. HOLY SHIT! Honestly, I was way more excited at the prospect of Bob Orton vs Ric Flair than I was Harley Race. Race was a mediocre at best promo. Orton was a damn good promo and with the heat from the turn. If Flair was not a travelling world champion, December/January should have been nothing but title defenses against Orton. I got to see if we have any film of Flair vs Orton that shit would be good even if there was no angle attached. Flair delivered two of his best promos of all time. Orton damn good promo. I want to learn more about Slater. He definitely didnt wow me on the stick. Since it was Slater & Orton, Wahoo stepped up and tagged with Flair which was a good pairing. Wahoo is a pretty shitty promo. He never seems to know what to say and really just looks confused. The one other thing to catch is the Flair exhibition/workout against Scott McGhee, Dory Funk Jr and Angelo Mosca! There is some really, really good shit here. Flair/McGhee go on the mat and it looks fantastic. Dory works some rope-running/workrate spots that are awesome and there was one really unique spot someone should crib...Flair shouldertackled through a reverse elbow, great bump & sell by Dory. Looked like a million bucks. Then even the Angelo Mosca segment had a cool spot. Mosca hooks up for a suplex, but Flair not only blocks but sweeps the leg for a back heel trip right into the Figure-4! Lots of really good shit packed in there. Highly recommended! Ric Flair is The Man!

 

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