klunderbunker
Welcome to My (And Not Sly's) House
To put it mildly, I dont know much about this company. I know the highlights and some of the history and thats about it. This is from back in the territory days at what is considered the peak of the promotion. You could consider WCCW to be the ECW of its day (minus the hardcore aspect that is): it was considered WAY ahead of its time, everyone wanted to go there, and it was the hottest company in the world.
I have two shows from early 1985 which were likely taped on the same day. Thats about all Ive got for you as these shows arent worth enough to go into a full history of the company. Lets get to it.
WCCW Television
Date: January 6, 1985
Location: Reunion Arena, Dallas, Texas
Attendance: 17,000
Commentators: Bill Mercer
I have no idea what to expect on these shows, so dont expect much of anything as far as backstory goes. Lets get to it.
The opening video is a satellite shooting a beam down to Dallas and two quick clips pop up, one of which looked to be Kamala getting slammed.
This is apparently part of the Star Wars Christmas Special (PLEASE let it be the wrestling version and not the actual Star Wars Christmas Special) which was a traditional show on Christmas Day, which doesnt make a lot of sense if thats the case. The owner of the company, Fritz Von Erich (that dude was CRAZY. Like he makes Vince look normal), had a theory about Christmas: Once you open the presents, what else is there to do all day? He was onto something and the shows were a smash hit.
Ric Flair is here tonight and is defending against Kerry Von Erich who beat him for the title 7 months ago. Ok if Im understanding this right this is part of the Star Wars show. Maybe the other show I have is part 2?
Terry Gordy/Chick Donovan/Buddy Roberts vs. Mr. X/Skandor Akbar/The Missing Link
This is an odd occasion where the Freebirds are faces in this company which is like Ricky Steamboat as a heel. You just dont see it that often. The second team is Devastation Inc., which was a top heel stable for a long time. This is elimination rules, tornado rules, and you can lose by pin, submission or being thrown over the top rope. Its also loser leaves town.
The announcer is a very different style. His voice is fine as he apparently used to be a legit sports commentator in the Dallas area, but the way he speaks is odd. He goes over the ways you can win (being counted down for the 1-2-3, being ejected from the ring or giving in via a submission. Its just kind of odd sounding but in a refreshing way). Were part of the NWA here also.
Missing Link is RIPPED but he has a green face. Literally, along with black hair that looks like Bozo the Clowns. The referee is in a WCCW t-shirt and red pants. Odd looking indeed. Its a big brawl to start as itll likely be the whole time. Link almost goes out but manages to come back in. If I were his manager Id suggest that he Try Force. That should work.
Link goes out but comes back in anyway. This is all over the place and rather hard to keep up with. Only one announce here too which is kind of weird. I told you it was like ECW. Ok apparently you can go through the ropes but not over them. Got it. X tries to get rid of Gordy forever but cant manage to get him out. Why not autoban him? Donovan is fighting Akbar who is the leader, on the floor.
Never mind as theyre back in now. And never mind that again at Donovan is thrown out. Hes out of the company apparently. Oh wow ok this just got more interesting. X gets pinned by Roberts off a sunset flip but there goes Roberts, leaving us with Akbar/Link vs. Gordy.
Gordy gets Link tied up in the ropes and gets a spike of some kind into the neck of Akbar (A guy named Akbar at a show called Star Wars? Sounds like a trap to me) but Link saves. A few seconds of double teaming later, Link misses a charge to put out Akbar and is dumped out seconds later to end it. Well that was quick.
Rating: D+. It was very exciting but from a quality standpoint it was pretty bad. To be fair I have no idea on the backstory of this though so its kind of hard to know why all of this is going on. The match was certainly fun and the gimmicks didnt overwhelm it. Having it go more than 8 minutes would have helped a lot though. Still not terrible but it could have been better.
Another odd thing so far: no bell, at least not that Ive heard.
Kerry Von Erich says hes had a taste of the world title and he wants another taste. Simple but effective. He looks like hes carved out of stone. He sounds nervous but hes probably stoned.
NWA World Title: Kerry Von Erich vs. Ric Flair
Flair being billed from Minnesota never sounds right. Mercer plays up the whole athlete vs. veteran which is very true. The Modern Day Warrior (Kerrys awesome nickname) wins a top wristlock as we havent gotten into this very hard yet. They hit the mat and Kerry hammers away on the arm as hes got enough energy that Id believe hes high as hell.
Kerry is mostly controlling here and we get a staredown. Allegedly Kerry was voted most popular wrestler in the world according to PWI. That would be rather impressive given that Wrestlemania was right around the corner. Five minutes in and no one has a distinct advantage at all. Headscissors takes Flair down as he cant figure out a way around the power here.
Flair grabs a leglock and cranks back on it but Von Erich grabs his chin and tries to hold him down for a pin at the same time in a spot I havent seen before I dont think. Back to the headscissors now. A rope gets the champion out of trouble and here he comes. Ten minutes in now as Flair drops the knee. Kerry is sent to the floor and is bleeding slightly from the stomach. I think the cocaine is supposed to go into your nose dude.
Kerry comes back and hits a discus punch to send Flair reeling. Theres a sleeper which is called a sleep hold by Mercer. Flair is like screw that and goes after the knee. Backslide gets two for Kerry which is what he won the title with in the first place. Suplex gets a pin and its a Dusty Finish as Flair gets his foot under the rope. Why you sneaky Texans you!
Flair throws his feet on the ropes for two and the referee pulls him off which is probably not that smart. Here comes Kerry again and its Flair Flip time. He comes off the top but jumps into the Claw which is Kerrys finisher. Flair gets a clean counter though and collapses seconds later with a Flair Flop. It says a lot when basic falls have their own names. Kerry hooks a Figure Four on Flair!
Flair is busted open despite not getting hit in the head. Why does that not surprise me in the slightest? Flair shoves the referee out of the ring but cant get disqualified because of it. He gets to the rope and this referee gets all physical and breaks up the hold by himself. Another slam off the top sets up the Claw again as Flair is in big trouble. Somehow he manages to get a hiptoss to send Kerry over the top, and since this is the NWA, its a WEAK DQ!
Rating: C+. Von Erich didnt have much in the way of offense but he knew how to time his stuff to make the most drama out of everything he did. The ending was WEAK as you would expect but it made Von Erich look strong still which is fine but its not like we couldnt have a better ending. The match wasnt anything great but it was entertaining and didnt feel like nearly 20 minutes at all.
An NWA representative says there must be a rematch as soon as they have a building available in Texas. If Flair gets disqualified then Kerry wins the title. Thats as timeless of a stipulation as you could ask for.
Jake Roberts/Gino Hernandez vs. Bill Haynes /Mike Von Erich
Haynes is more well known as Billy Jack Haynes. Hernandez is a pretty horrible case as he was going to be a huge deal but died as did most other people in this company. Mike would injure his shoulder later this year and have to have surgery on it. This would result in him suffering something called toxic shock syndrome that caused permanent brain damage. He would visibly shake for the rest of his life, including after his father more or less ordered him to get back in the ring, which he never wanted to do in the first place. Scary stuff.
Jake is in bell bottoms. This is odd indeed. Mike is a skinny little kid to put it simply. You can tell he doesnt belong in a ring which isnt his fault. Kerry is a guy that was big and tall and muscular. He looked like someone that belongs in a ring. Mike looks like he belongs in high school. Its not a knock on him or anything. He simply doesnt have an athletic build. He looks like an average sized person, not a professional wrestler.
Thankfully Billy comes in to do most of the work which makes sense as hes built like a truck. Back off to Mike vs. Jake and Ill give Mike this: hes trying. DDT is blocked and everyone comes in at once. Mike debuts the Claw (yeah its a family thing) on Jake and gets the pin out of it. Total nothing match that might have run three minutes but was the main event so that Mike could get the win. Thats how it works when your dad owns the place.
Overall Rating: C+. This is a hard one to grade as this was part of a supershow and not a typical WCCW broadcast. The wrestling is ok at best as Flair was the highspot and he wasnt even a member of the company. That being said, theres a great energy here that makes me want to see more from these guys.
They know they dont have the highest quality stuff but they move so fast out there that they can cover it up. Its not crash TV kind of stuff but rather they make things feel epic every minute, which is a big help. Not bad at all and Id watch more of it if I had the chance for sure. I think the other I have is from the same show but Im not sure. Well get to that soon enough. Fun show.
I have two shows from early 1985 which were likely taped on the same day. Thats about all Ive got for you as these shows arent worth enough to go into a full history of the company. Lets get to it.
WCCW Television
Date: January 6, 1985
Location: Reunion Arena, Dallas, Texas
Attendance: 17,000
Commentators: Bill Mercer
I have no idea what to expect on these shows, so dont expect much of anything as far as backstory goes. Lets get to it.
The opening video is a satellite shooting a beam down to Dallas and two quick clips pop up, one of which looked to be Kamala getting slammed.
This is apparently part of the Star Wars Christmas Special (PLEASE let it be the wrestling version and not the actual Star Wars Christmas Special) which was a traditional show on Christmas Day, which doesnt make a lot of sense if thats the case. The owner of the company, Fritz Von Erich (that dude was CRAZY. Like he makes Vince look normal), had a theory about Christmas: Once you open the presents, what else is there to do all day? He was onto something and the shows were a smash hit.
Ric Flair is here tonight and is defending against Kerry Von Erich who beat him for the title 7 months ago. Ok if Im understanding this right this is part of the Star Wars show. Maybe the other show I have is part 2?
Terry Gordy/Chick Donovan/Buddy Roberts vs. Mr. X/Skandor Akbar/The Missing Link
This is an odd occasion where the Freebirds are faces in this company which is like Ricky Steamboat as a heel. You just dont see it that often. The second team is Devastation Inc., which was a top heel stable for a long time. This is elimination rules, tornado rules, and you can lose by pin, submission or being thrown over the top rope. Its also loser leaves town.
The announcer is a very different style. His voice is fine as he apparently used to be a legit sports commentator in the Dallas area, but the way he speaks is odd. He goes over the ways you can win (being counted down for the 1-2-3, being ejected from the ring or giving in via a submission. Its just kind of odd sounding but in a refreshing way). Were part of the NWA here also.
Missing Link is RIPPED but he has a green face. Literally, along with black hair that looks like Bozo the Clowns. The referee is in a WCCW t-shirt and red pants. Odd looking indeed. Its a big brawl to start as itll likely be the whole time. Link almost goes out but manages to come back in. If I were his manager Id suggest that he Try Force. That should work.
Link goes out but comes back in anyway. This is all over the place and rather hard to keep up with. Only one announce here too which is kind of weird. I told you it was like ECW. Ok apparently you can go through the ropes but not over them. Got it. X tries to get rid of Gordy forever but cant manage to get him out. Why not autoban him? Donovan is fighting Akbar who is the leader, on the floor.
Never mind as theyre back in now. And never mind that again at Donovan is thrown out. Hes out of the company apparently. Oh wow ok this just got more interesting. X gets pinned by Roberts off a sunset flip but there goes Roberts, leaving us with Akbar/Link vs. Gordy.
Gordy gets Link tied up in the ropes and gets a spike of some kind into the neck of Akbar (A guy named Akbar at a show called Star Wars? Sounds like a trap to me) but Link saves. A few seconds of double teaming later, Link misses a charge to put out Akbar and is dumped out seconds later to end it. Well that was quick.
Rating: D+. It was very exciting but from a quality standpoint it was pretty bad. To be fair I have no idea on the backstory of this though so its kind of hard to know why all of this is going on. The match was certainly fun and the gimmicks didnt overwhelm it. Having it go more than 8 minutes would have helped a lot though. Still not terrible but it could have been better.
Another odd thing so far: no bell, at least not that Ive heard.
Kerry Von Erich says hes had a taste of the world title and he wants another taste. Simple but effective. He looks like hes carved out of stone. He sounds nervous but hes probably stoned.
NWA World Title: Kerry Von Erich vs. Ric Flair
Flair being billed from Minnesota never sounds right. Mercer plays up the whole athlete vs. veteran which is very true. The Modern Day Warrior (Kerrys awesome nickname) wins a top wristlock as we havent gotten into this very hard yet. They hit the mat and Kerry hammers away on the arm as hes got enough energy that Id believe hes high as hell.
Kerry is mostly controlling here and we get a staredown. Allegedly Kerry was voted most popular wrestler in the world according to PWI. That would be rather impressive given that Wrestlemania was right around the corner. Five minutes in and no one has a distinct advantage at all. Headscissors takes Flair down as he cant figure out a way around the power here.
Flair grabs a leglock and cranks back on it but Von Erich grabs his chin and tries to hold him down for a pin at the same time in a spot I havent seen before I dont think. Back to the headscissors now. A rope gets the champion out of trouble and here he comes. Ten minutes in now as Flair drops the knee. Kerry is sent to the floor and is bleeding slightly from the stomach. I think the cocaine is supposed to go into your nose dude.
Kerry comes back and hits a discus punch to send Flair reeling. Theres a sleeper which is called a sleep hold by Mercer. Flair is like screw that and goes after the knee. Backslide gets two for Kerry which is what he won the title with in the first place. Suplex gets a pin and its a Dusty Finish as Flair gets his foot under the rope. Why you sneaky Texans you!
Flair throws his feet on the ropes for two and the referee pulls him off which is probably not that smart. Here comes Kerry again and its Flair Flip time. He comes off the top but jumps into the Claw which is Kerrys finisher. Flair gets a clean counter though and collapses seconds later with a Flair Flop. It says a lot when basic falls have their own names. Kerry hooks a Figure Four on Flair!
Flair is busted open despite not getting hit in the head. Why does that not surprise me in the slightest? Flair shoves the referee out of the ring but cant get disqualified because of it. He gets to the rope and this referee gets all physical and breaks up the hold by himself. Another slam off the top sets up the Claw again as Flair is in big trouble. Somehow he manages to get a hiptoss to send Kerry over the top, and since this is the NWA, its a WEAK DQ!
Rating: C+. Von Erich didnt have much in the way of offense but he knew how to time his stuff to make the most drama out of everything he did. The ending was WEAK as you would expect but it made Von Erich look strong still which is fine but its not like we couldnt have a better ending. The match wasnt anything great but it was entertaining and didnt feel like nearly 20 minutes at all.
An NWA representative says there must be a rematch as soon as they have a building available in Texas. If Flair gets disqualified then Kerry wins the title. Thats as timeless of a stipulation as you could ask for.
Jake Roberts/Gino Hernandez vs. Bill Haynes /Mike Von Erich
Haynes is more well known as Billy Jack Haynes. Hernandez is a pretty horrible case as he was going to be a huge deal but died as did most other people in this company. Mike would injure his shoulder later this year and have to have surgery on it. This would result in him suffering something called toxic shock syndrome that caused permanent brain damage. He would visibly shake for the rest of his life, including after his father more or less ordered him to get back in the ring, which he never wanted to do in the first place. Scary stuff.
Jake is in bell bottoms. This is odd indeed. Mike is a skinny little kid to put it simply. You can tell he doesnt belong in a ring which isnt his fault. Kerry is a guy that was big and tall and muscular. He looked like someone that belongs in a ring. Mike looks like he belongs in high school. Its not a knock on him or anything. He simply doesnt have an athletic build. He looks like an average sized person, not a professional wrestler.
Thankfully Billy comes in to do most of the work which makes sense as hes built like a truck. Back off to Mike vs. Jake and Ill give Mike this: hes trying. DDT is blocked and everyone comes in at once. Mike debuts the Claw (yeah its a family thing) on Jake and gets the pin out of it. Total nothing match that might have run three minutes but was the main event so that Mike could get the win. Thats how it works when your dad owns the place.
Overall Rating: C+. This is a hard one to grade as this was part of a supershow and not a typical WCCW broadcast. The wrestling is ok at best as Flair was the highspot and he wasnt even a member of the company. That being said, theres a great energy here that makes me want to see more from these guys.
They know they dont have the highest quality stuff but they move so fast out there that they can cover it up. Its not crash TV kind of stuff but rather they make things feel epic every minute, which is a big help. Not bad at all and Id watch more of it if I had the chance for sure. I think the other I have is from the same show but Im not sure. Well get to that soon enough. Fun show.