Guest C-Bacon Report post Posted July 29, 2003 Can someone give me some info regarding the man who is credited with the longest title reign in WWE history? Why did his reign last so long? How was the WWWF run back then (was it all house shows?)? What were some of his major fueds? And why was there a falling out between him and Vince? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest WrestlingDeacon Report post Posted July 29, 2003 Just go to any search engine and put his name in. You'll find plenty. Here's a start. http://hometown.aol.com/solie11/bruno.html Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest nWoScorpion Report post Posted July 29, 2003 Bruno Sammartino was probably the most popular wrestler of his time, and the Italian/Ameircan audience was the key-audience, which lead to his first title reign being extra long. There were no "Super Cards" except the Showdown at Sheas in the mid-late 70s, otherwise, they were all house events or MSG shows. Him and Vince did have a bad flaling out which is why from 1987 on you never heard the name Bruno Sammartino uttered on WWF TV, and I don't beleive he was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame because of it. The rest I don't know. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest HartFan86 Report post Posted July 29, 2003 He was probably the biggest draw Vince McMahon, Sr. ever had. He was basically the Hulk Hogan before the 1980's. Not to mention he was WWWF champion for like 8 years (because he was so popular) and sold out MSG 20478233 times. He had a falling out because Bruno didn't like the direction Vince was taking the company. He liked the wrestling...not the entertainment. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest ToddRoyal Report post Posted July 29, 2003 Bruno may not have been Ric Flair or Kurt Angle in the ring, but you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who made a bigger impact with WWWF fans in the pre-Hogan era (Especially in the NorthEast) The reason he lasted so long as champ is partly due to the fact that the business was MUCH different in that era and titles, especially world titles, didn't change every couple of months. If someone was REALLY the best in the world, they should be able to have long reigns, or so the thinking in the Kayfabe era goes. Plus, Bruno was WAY over as the top face in the WWWF. The most telling thing to me about Bruno is a conversation I had with my mom. She HATES wrestling, and as far as I knew only recgonized 3 wrestlers ever (Andre, Hogan and Rock). However, we were talking about wrestling the other night and how she, living in Boston in the 70's, inevitably saw SOME wrestling, and the only name she knew was Bruno Sammartino. The guy was an icon in his time. As Deacon said, search engine Bruno, or head over to the MB's on Kayfabememories.com to learn more about him. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest bort Report post Posted July 29, 2003 would burnos falling out have anything to do with the fact that his son david wasnt pushed or problems with the way they treated his son, i think i remeber seeing him in 1987 in the wwf, the last time i saw bruno he was in the UWF group commentaing, and david was still wrestling crappy for them Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest WrestlingDeacon Report post Posted July 29, 2003 You're a couple years off. David was around in '85, his most high profile match against Brutus Beefcake at Wrestlemania I. He only lasted about a year and Bruno was still affiliated after his son was jobbed out and released. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Mad the Swine Report post Posted July 30, 2003 Why did his reign last so long? How was the WWWF run back then (was it all house shows?)? What were some of his major fueds? And why was there a falling out between him and Vince? Sammartino's a ways away from being my subject matter. My interests primarily lie in the Southeast. But, here we go: Bruno drew money and lots of it. That's basically why he stayed on top for so long. As stated, he had an immense following in the Northeast. When he dropped the title in 1970 or 1971 (too lazy to check the year) at MSG to Ivan Koloff, the place went silent. Not because Koloff had no heat, but because it was so shocking that Bruno lost. He was that over. Major feuds included but certainly were not limited to: Ivan Koloff, Gorilla Monsoon, Superstar Billy Graham, Stan Hansen. Hansen botched a bodyslam in 1976 at MSG and legitimately broke Bruno's neck. The match didn't end there as nobody in the back realized how serious it was. The injury was later blamed on TV on Hansen's lariat, which got that move over in a big way. In an odd bit of trivia, Ric Flair was on the undercard of that show, the second of his two appearances before coming over in 1991. Cawthon can give you much better detail, but the vast majority of shows were house shows. Closed circuit was initially used in wrestling in 1976 (Inoki-Ali). There were bunches of television tapings as well for your regional shows as well as occasional (if not every) broadcasts of MSG cards on some networks. Sammartino is not a fan of today's business. He has made a few guest appearances, though, ever since his blow up with McMahon. These, though, were with WCW and in guest referee shots. He refereed at Halloween Havoc 1989 (Flair/Sting v. Muta/Funk) and a chunk of main events (Flair-Savage) from 1996 house shows. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest nWoScorpion Report post Posted July 30, 2003 Actually I think it was they were shocked he lost, because after 8 years, it seemed as if he was unbeatable. The same thing didn't happen when he lost to Billy Graham. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest JHawk Report post Posted July 30, 2003 Bruno's falling out had more to do with the direction of the company than any lack of a push for David Sammartino. Remember, David only got any kind of reaction at all in MSG, and even that was mostly because of his relationship to Bruno (and Bruno's appearances in his corner) and not his own ability. I have a few tapes of David from Philly, and unless Bruno was in his corner the crowds HATED him. As for Bruno's reign being so long, most of it has been said. Bruno was a huge draw, particularly among the Italians and the working class. Plus Vince Sr. didn't think a heel champion could draw long term, which is why Ivan Koloff's reign lasted just three weeks and Pedro Morales got nearly three years as champion despite not having the same magic Bruno had. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cawthon777 0 Report post Posted July 30, 2003 Another reason for the differences in crowd reaction regarding Bruno's losses is that the first - to Koloff - was clean. The second title loss - to Superstar Billy Graham - came as a result of the challenger putting his feet on the ropes. In the pre-Hogan era, it was not uncommon for the challenger to pick up the victory by those means but to be denied the title (it often happened to Bruno during his first reign). Thus, I would assume, the vast majority of fans in attendance for that show weren't sure if they had just seen a title change or not. Bruno did a number of guest spots in WCW in 1992, appearing at Halloween Havoc in Philadelphia as well as the September Clash of the Champions (which also featured Andre's last TV appearance prior to his death). At every opportunity, he applauded the athleticism of WCW while alluding to the fact that the "competition" was nothing more than a circus. David was let go under shady circumstances, which was another reason for Bruno's falling out with Vince. Although he didn't do much after 1985, he was kept on for the occassional major market house show well into late 87/88 (not sure how many of these were actually televised). At the Spectrum in late 85, David lost via submission to a bear hug and was rarely seen on TV after that night. Much like the Montreal Incident, it is believed that David never gave up but was rather robbed of his push while at its peak. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Dynamite Kido Report post Posted July 30, 2003 <-----from pittsburgh BRUNO IS GOD!!!!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Doyo Report post Posted August 2, 2003 Back during the steroid scandal, Vince McMahon and Bruno were both guests on the Larry King show. They argued throughout the show and at one point out of nowhere Vince said something like, "Bruno, why don't you tell these people about your son David's drug use or about the time he punched a fan in the stands?" Both of them came off pretty immature during the show from what I can remember. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheFranchise 0 Report post Posted August 2, 2003 <-----from pittsburgh BRUNO IS GOD!!!!!! Flair > Bruno Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest razazteca Report post Posted August 2, 2003 What was the deal with the feud of Bruno vs Larry Zybrisko. I seem to remember Larry always bringing this up when he was an announcer for WCW. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChrisMWaters 0 Report post Posted August 2, 2003 What was the deal with the feud of Bruno vs Larry Zybrisko. I seem to remember Larry always bringing this up when he was an announcer for WCW. I think that Sammartino either trained or helped Zybysko get into the business. They then fought over the nickname "The Living Legend". Something off topic...why would Larry Whistler want his ring name to be the more complex to spell Zybysko? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest razazteca Report post Posted August 2, 2003 I'm guessing being ethnic was the thing to do back then. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cawthon777 0 Report post Posted August 4, 2003 What was the deal with the feud of Bruno vs Larry Zybrisko. I seem to remember Larry always bringing this up when he was an announcer for WCW. This is probably mostly kayfabe but the story went that Bruno trained Zbyzsko. Zbyzsko's heel turn in 1980 was a lot like Owen's in 94 - he felt held down by his mentor and all that frustration came to a head when he had a match with Bruno on TV. The bout was full of reversals and mat wrestling until Larry felt like Bruno was embarrasing him and thus took a chair to Bruno's head. The two fought non-stop from April to August, culminating with the Shea Stadium steel cage match that served as at least one of Bruno's 'retirement' matches. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Dynamite Kido Report post Posted August 4, 2003 <-----from pittsburgh BRUNO IS GOD!!!!!! Flair > Bruno wrestling - yes as a draw - no Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Eagan469 Report post Posted August 4, 2003 September Clash of the Champions (which also featured Andre's last TV appearance prior to his death). Was Andre planning on wrestling for WCW, or was he in retirement? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Dynamite Kido Report post Posted August 4, 2003 retirement Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChrisMWaters 0 Report post Posted August 4, 2003 September Clash of the Champions (which also featured Andre's last TV appearance prior to his death). Was Andre planning on wrestling for WCW, or was he in retirement? Andre was in retirement. His last televised (in USA, at least) match was WrestleMania 6, I believe...him and Haku vs. Demolition for the tag titles. Andre was never officially tagged into that match, for the record. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Dynamite Kido Report post Posted August 4, 2003 Andre was never officially tagged into that match, for the record. I have seen that match about 1000 times in my life and I honestly never noticed that...... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
