Old School Spotlight

[tdmoon]

It has been several years now that I've had little interest in the current professional wrestling scene. I've found myself becoming the grouchy old man who sits around shitting on the product, muttering "back in my day....". A moment of self-reflection reminded me how those old-timers always drove me nuts when I was younger and I don't want to be like that. So instead of complaining about what is going on now, I've decided to focus on the positive things that have made me a life-long wrestling fan. In this thread, I will go back and watch and comment on some of my favorite wrestling memories, whether they are matches, interviews, angles, cards, or the grapplers themselves. Maybe doing this will renew my interest in pro wrestling and I'll even be able to come around and appreciate what is currently going on in the squared circle.

It's been several years since I've watched most of this stuff, so I think I'll have some fun with it. Hopefully, some people will contribute their memories of the events or even share some of their own favorite moments.

 

[tdmoon]

It's been tough trying to decide what to go back and watch first. So I figure why not go with one of the most iconic moments from my all-time favorite promotion? The Tupelo Concession Stand Brawl stands the test of time as one of the wildest, most believable fights pro wrestling has ever seen. All four participants-Jerry Lawler, Bill Dundee, Wayne Ferris(the future Honky Tonk Man) and Larry Latham(the future Moondog Spot) were bloodied and used everything available as weapons; a mop, glass jars, pans, a stool, a jar of mustard, and a table. Robert Fuller had recently been let go as the booker, taking a lot of the wrestlers to Knoxville with him, leaving the Memphis promotion thin on talent and this was an attempt to pop the fan-base while the territory found its ground.

This video joins the end of a Southern tag team title match in-progress with a bloody Superstar Bill Dundee being destroyed by The Blonde Bombers. The bout was a wild brawl that was about to get even wilder. As the Blondes win the belts, we're told we're out of time and the camera goes black. This is part of what I believe made this so great-while the screen is black, you hear Lance Russell's voice saying to get a camera, "we've got a a helluva' brawl going on back here". The show comes back on, with a hand-held camera showing the four combatants in the middle of the concession stand, beating the piss out of each other. What followed was a terrific and memorable fight that was a huge influence on wrestling for decades.

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This brawl became one of the hottest angles in the promotion in years and was successful in popping houses around the circuit. The territory tried recapturing the moment by re-creating it with other wrestlers over the years but though some had their moments, they all paled to the original. As I mentioned before, this was highly influential on pro wrestling for decades; many credit it with being pivotal regarding the shift to hardcore wrestling here in the states and abroad as Atsushi Onita was a participant in one of them and brought the style back to Japan with him. All in all, a terrific fight featuring four legends and wrestling's greatest announcer.

 

[tdmoon]

I went on and on about my last entry being an important moment in wrestling, memorable brawl, legendary wrestlers, etc. but this remembrance is purely for fun. It's one of those vignettes that always makes me laugh. At Home With "Dr. D" was the good doctor's attempt to show us that he is a regular guy, not the screaming, violent man we saw on television. I love how he seemingly tries so hard to come off as normal and a gracious host but his true nature takes over, showing him to be exactly like the screaming, violent man we saw on television. From his threats to backhand his wife and children to his outbursts: "Eat it! Eat it now!", "What is this, the city dump?", " I shouldn't have let you out of the bedroom anyway", "Don't smile at me, boy!", Schultz came across as a totally shitty, unlikable jerk-which means he totally nailed it. He was so convincing in his role that it has been rumored several people in Tennessee called in to child protective services after seeing this. And I think "Mrs. Schultz" was pretty hot in her rope belt. Implied domestic violence has never been so comedic....

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Of course, Dr. D is probably best known for slapping the snot out of reporter John Stossel, but he really should be remembered as one of the toughest, most credible bad guys of his time. He had success everywhere he went and is one of professional wrestling's all-time great heels.

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[LibSuperstar]

That Tupelo Concession Stand brawl is famous. And I laugh uncontrollably at Dr. D slapping John Stossel and asking him about it.

 

[tdmoon]

I've been using this thread to highlight some of the professional wrestling memories that have amused me but today's posts have a sad origin. The past couple days have been tragic ones for the wrestling world with the passing of three mat legends, and today I want to highlight a favorite memory of each.

I didn't care too much for his WWF work but heel Brian Christopher in the USWA was absolute gold, one of the most entertaining characters in the business. Though slightly undersized, he had a good physique, was athletic and the man could talk. Few could do the irritating, cocky brat character as well as Christopher. And nobody had a more annoying laugh. I've been meaning to induct his "Little Red Wagon" interview in this thread since I started it; it's a shame it took his passing to get me to finally do it. Here's Brian Christopher with his 76 pounds of gold:

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[tdmoon]

Was this in poor taste? Probably. But Brickhouse Brown absolutely shined in this controversial racially-charged angle. Brickhouse had it all, other than height: he was a solid wrestler, in outstanding shape and gifted in front of the microphone. He had great intensity and could really connect with the crowd. I've always considered Brown one of the more underrated wrestlers I've seen. He also had one of the prettiest drop kicks this side of the High Flyers.

The Watermelon Incident, Part One:

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Part Two:

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[tdmoon]

Nikolai Volkoff seemed to be one of the most visible wrestlers around during a long and very solid career. He won the World Tag title with Iron Sheik at the first Wrestlemania, was a mainstay on the syndicated WWF shows, had big matches on Saturday Night's Main Events, memorable feuds with World Champions Bruno, Backlund and Hogan, was a character in the WWF cartoon, worked alongside Kowalski and Studd as an executioner and had success as a Mongol. He's also one of the few professional wrestlers you never seem to hear a bad word about. With all of his accomplishments, his singing of the Russian National Anthem is what I think of whenever I think of Nikolai Volkoff. I'd always get a smile seeing it, he generated tremendous heat. People hated this!

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