WWF Observer notes

[Bruiser Chong 0]

Thanks again for posting these.

 

Hearing all this stuff about Kamala makes me question what happened to him? If you only had access to commercial videos and PPVs, you'd never realize he had any kind of push, since he was frequently absent from the former and completely vacant from the later. When did he finally leave the company and what were the reasons surrounding it?

 

And I'm assuming nothing ever came out of this Hogan movie thing, since I thought No Holds Barred was his first feature film and taping for that didn't take place until after Wrestlemania IV.

[DrVenkman PhD 0]

Growing up I thought Kamala debuted in 1992 as I never saw him on old event tapes. This is really good stuff, and as previously mentioned is (currently, but will probably jump ahead) being written here as I am seeing it unfold on episodes of Primetime on 24/7.

 

Can someone brief me on what happened to Tom Zenk? I know I've heard that he disliked Vince, but I never realized that the Can-Am Connection were groomed for a big tag title reign until reading these transcripts. The only match I've ever seen them in is from WrestleMania III.

[cabbageboy 0]

I definitely knew who Kamala was, because I had a toy of him from the old 1980s line of figures. One of my favorites too. He's always been a guilty pleasure of mine.

 

Man, you can tell from reading this that Meltzer just HATES the WWF. So much so that he quite frankly comes off like a total dick, what with his "RestholdMania" comments and all. WM III is only one of the best PPVs ever.

[DrVenkman PhD 0]

It is?

[Frankie Williams 0]

Growing up I thought Kamala debuted in 1992 as I never saw him on old event tapes. This is really good stuff, and as previously mentioned is (currently, but will probably jump ahead) being written here as I am seeing it unfold on episodes of Primetime on

24/7.

 

This is one of the GREATEST wrestling magazine covers ever:

 

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

I definitely knew who Kamala was, because I had a toy of him from the old 1980s line of figures. One of my favorites too. He's always been a guilty pleasure of mine.

 

I remember reading a few years back that the Kamala figurine was the rarest wrestling figure out there, and worth hundreds of dollars.

[BUTT 0]

It is?

 

Of course it is. 93,173 people jam-packed the Pontiac Silverdome to see the IIIIIIIMMORTAL Hulk Hogan lift the 700-pound Andre the Giant over his head!

[skullman80 0]

I definitely knew who Kamala was, because I had a toy of him from the old 1980s line of figures. One of my favorites too. He's always been a guilty pleasure of mine.

 

Man, you can tell from reading this that Meltzer just HATES the WWF. So much so that he quite frankly comes off like a total dick, what with his "RestholdMania" comments and all. WM III is only one of the best PPVs ever.

 

Say what?

[JHawk 0]

I definitely knew who Kamala was, because I had a toy of him from the old 1980s line of figures. One of my favorites too. He's always been a guilty pleasure of mine.

 

Man, you can tell from reading this that Meltzer just HATES the WWF. So much so that he quite frankly comes off like a total dick, what with his "RestholdMania" comments and all. WM III is only one of the best PPVs ever.

 

Say what?

It was true in 1987. Granted, there were only two others at the time, but still.

[Timmy8271 0]

Kamala went to World class in the late 80's.

 

Good stuff again man. The observer is so much better than the Torch.

[Bruiser Chong 0]

I definitely knew who Kamala was, because I had a toy of him from the old 1980s line of figures. One of my favorites too. He's always been a guilty pleasure of mine.

 

I remember reading a few years back that the Kamala figurine was the rarest wrestling figure out there, and worth hundreds of dollars.

He has the LJN Kamala figure. You're thinking of the Hasbro Kamala figure, which there are two variations of. The one you'll virtually always find has a moon on its belly. The rare one, which I've heard is limited to under 100 or so, has a star on its belly.

 

And WM III is nowhere near the best PPV ever; it's just a tremendous atmosphere show.

 

Landy, how many Observers do you have? This guy on eBay is selling off a lot of Observers from this era up until 1991. A lot of the auctions just ended, but he's got some more I'm gonna try and grab if you don't have them already.

[The Amazing Rando 0]

Here's the next set of notes:

 

2/9/87:

 

Probably the most significant news from the Titan side, however, is that after WrestleMania, Hulk Hogan will be working very few dates the remainder of the year.

 

You change around the company name and the show name and you have most of the Hogan news between about 93 and the present.

[strummer 0]

Man, you can tell from reading this that Meltzer just HATES the WWF. So much so that he quite frankly comes off like a total dick, what with his "RestholdMania" comments and all. WM III is only one of the best PPVs ever.

 

I hate his tone also but you have to remember that the 80s WWF product was so different than the wrestling Dave grew up on. He couldn't adjust. The business was changing and becoming less and less about in ring work (well at least in the WWF). If you watch wrestling for in ring work than 80s WWF was probably a nightmare for you. But as several mentioned above the atmosphere, the booking, and the charisma of the workers drew in an enormous new fansbase. I still believe that Dave takes some cheap shots but he did report the hard numbers. It had to be killing him that Hogan was drawing all this money, especially with people like Kamala. He just hated where the business was going where talent wasn't really necessary to be successful.

[JMFabiano524 0]

It is?

 

Of course it is. 93,173 people jam-packed the Pontiac Silverdome to see the IIIIIIIMMORTAL Hulk Hogan lift the 700-pound Andre the Giant over his head!

 

Not only that, what made it more amazing was that Hulk didn't know if Andre would let him win and pass the torch to him by losing the WWF title that night! And we all know that sadly, Andre died months later this historic contest.

 

Seriously, cool stuff...wonder if we can get some Meltzer on JCP someday?

[cabbageboy 0]

WM III is an all time classic PPV. Good grief, you have Savage/Steamboat (MOTY 1987) on that show, and also there's loads of other *** type matches such as the Can Ams vs. Orton/Muraco, the 6 man with the Bulldogs/Tito vs. Harts/Davis, Piper/Adonis. I even like some of the matches like Rougeaus vs. Dream Team, though the booking made no sense (why would the Dream Team WIN the match and break up?). Nearly everything else had some kind of angle behind it.

 

And yes, Hogan slams Andre at the end. Not a classic match per se, but certainly an iconic moment.

 

Just wondering, but what are the dozens of PPVs you guys think are better than WM III? What other PPVs have its kind of historic relevance, decent at worst and great at best ringwork, and usually excellent booking (aside from the goofy Dream Team win)?

[GODSON 0]

It is?

 

Of course it is. 93,173 people jam-packed the Pontiac Silverdome to see the IIIIIIIMMORTAL Hulk Hogan lift the 700-pound Andre the Giant over his head!

 

Not only that, what made it more amazing was that Hulk didn't know if Andre would let him win and pass the torch to him by losing the WWF title that night! And we all know that sadly, Andre died months later this historic contest.

 

Seriously, cool stuff...wonder if we can get some Meltzer on JCP someday?

 

I'm pretty sure Andre died like in 1993, 6 years later.

 

Just wondering, but what are the dozens of PPVs you guys think are better than WM III? What other PPVs have its kind of historic relevance, decent at worst and great at best ringwork, and usually excellent booking (aside from the goofy Dream Team win)?

 

Wrestlemania 14 was just as bigger and was the beginning of WWE monopoly. THis mania did over 700,000 buys when WWE was losing the ratings war and the buyrates was not on WCW level. Austin first title win, Kane vs. Taker first match.

 

King of the Ring that same year of 1998 had the historic Hell in a Cell, Kane only world title win,and every match was at least ***.

 

Summerslam that same year, did over 700,000 buys. Had The Rock and HHH ladder match that made both guys into main eventers and nothing but *** matches.

 

WM 17, is probably the best workrate ppv of all time. It is the most order ppv of all time. Took place right after the purchase of WCW. Feature the best TLC match and Austin's heel turn. I think 60,000 people was in attendence,not sure? The last ppv of the Attitude Era.

 

I also put Starrcade 97 and the first Starrcade on the same level.

 

Bash of the Beach 96 is also on that level.

[Bruiser Chong 0]

I'm pretty sure Andre died like in 1993, 6 years later.

 

Woosh!

[snuffbox 0]

GODSON - You actually consider Starrcade '97 one of the best ppvs ever?

[Guest Tuxedo Mask]

If Al Snow and Head vs Too Much from KOTR 98 isn't a *** match, I don't know what is!

 

WrestleMania III is a fine show that I enjoy watching yearly, but it's far too bloated to be a "best ever". The IC title match is great, the 6 man tag with Hart Foundation/Bulldogs is good, and everything else... well, at least it's mostly good fun. It bothers me when people say something like "WrestleMania X is overrated, it only has two good matches" then follow up with "III and VIII are way better!" (a legitimate written piece I read on the old rantsylvania back in 1999) when those shows are also only two match shows.

 

However, to call Mania III one of the most historcially significant PPVs of all time would be a hard to argue with statement, and to some people that makes PPVs "all time greats". Nothing wrong with that.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Wrestlemania III was a solid wrestling show with a legitimately great match. It had one of the biggest wrestling crowds in U.S. history, and featured a match featuring two of the five biggest attractions in wrestling history. Other shows may have produced better wrestling, but there are precious few shows that have matched the atmosphere. And that is what's really important.

[Guest Tuxedo Mask]

I can agree with that statement. It actually seems like this issue - barely connected to the actual topic of the thread - has generated a fair bit of conversation with people from both sides seeking justice for the good of their argument. Perhaps a splinter thread discussing the merits and historical quality of various WrestleManias or PPV events versus their actual work rate is the order of the day?

[slabinskia 0]

Are there any links to the old rantsylvania website ?

[landy1987 0]

Seen as though we've got a lot of WM3 discussion going on here, I'm currently typing up Meltzer's WM3 review to post here before I do anymore notes from earlier Observers

[snuffbox 0]

Im looking forward to reading this more than watching Monday Night Raw.

[landy1987 0]

Ok here it is, Meltzer's WM3 review from the 4/6/87 Observer:

 

To say anything but Sunday's WrestleMania show was the most impressive all-around wrestling production in history would be to deny the obvious. Everything about the show, from the hype, to the trappings, to the production of the live event itself exceeded anything we've ever seen from the business. The sellout of the Silverdome was proof of all that. I'm not going to go into attendance and money figures here because I should have a pretty complete estimate in next week's issue, but it certainly was--by a wide margin--the biggest grossing wrestling event in history, and it's a standard that will be very hard for Titan to top next year.

 

Just a few random thoughts before running down the card itself; from the standpoint of the wrestling itself, the show was pretty good. Some were left on a bad note by the main event, which, in truth, was even worse than I expected. Even though the Andre-Hogan match was the draw, it was well known ahead of time it would be a stinker, and it succeeded in that regard. It was also easy to predict that Randy Savage and Ricky Steamboat would put on one heck of a show. Putting the Andre match on maybe in the 10th slot, and saving Piper and Savage for the final two positions would have sent the fans home on a happy note. Watching the show myself, I though it was entertaining (except for Savage, the best performer on the show may have been Jesse Ventura) but the main even left me on a sour note.

 

1. Rick Martel & Tom Zenk downed Bob Orton & Don Muraco in 5:38 when Martel pinned Muraco with a crossbody block as Muraco fell over Zenk. The heels always seemed a step or two too slow, and seemed to be holding the babyfaces back. But this match was all action and a good opener. My impression is Martel-Zenk have already started falling into the middle-of-the-card tag team category and if they don't give them the belts soon, they'll lose valuable momentum (it doesn't look like the title change is coming up that quickly, either). **1/2

 

2. Billy Jack Haynes went to a double count out with Hercules Hernandez in 7:49. The match started off at a good pace for four minutes. Hernandez really looks unhealthy and got a little tired at that point. They started working the full-nelson, which was heated as the key part of their feud. Both got it on before they fell outside the ring and Haynes kept it on while both were counted out. After the match, as Haynes was occupied by Bobby Heenan, Hercules jumped him with the chain and Haynes got some pretty good juice. Good match, but Hernandez is looking kind of stiff. **3/4

 

3. Hillbilly Jim & midgets Haiti Kid & Little Beaver downed King Kong Bundy & midgets Lord Littlebrook & Little Tokyo via disqualification in 4:21. Bundy bodyslammed and elbow dropped Beaver for the DQ, then the heel midgets also turned on Bundy. For what it was, it wasn't that bad. Neither of the big guys can wrestle, and two of the midgets or already eligible for social security (that's no exaggeration folks, they are in the Moolah age group). * (Only for the comedy)

 

4. Harley Race pinned Junkyard Dog (or Junkfood as Meltzer always calls him) in 3:22 with a belly-to-belly suplex when JYD was distracted by Bobby Heenan. Bye-bye Doggie. Fabulous Moolah replaced British pop star Samantha Fox in presenting the crown to the winner. Race took a few great bumps. Give him credit for doing the best possible with absolutely the second worst wrestler in the business. JYD has always been a bad wrestler but he is just a physical waste nowadays--totally unsalvageable. Whatever stars Race might deserve, the performance of JYD was enough to erase them. JYD hit Race with a chair afterward and stole Harley's robe. *

 

5. Greg Valentine & Brutus Beefcake downed Jacques & Raymond Rougeau. Dino Bravo looks terrible with bleached blond hair. Match only went 4:04. Beefcake accidentally hit Valentine, and then the Rougeaus did a fine maneuver where Ray held Greg while Jacques came off the top ropes with a Thesz press. As Ray covered Greg, Bravo interfered and kneedropped Ray and put Greg on top. Afterwards the heels walked out leaving Beefcake alone in the ring. Pretty much everything that happened was expected, but it looked weaker than I expected it to look. *1/2

 

6. Roddy Piper downed Adrian Adonis in the hair vs. hair match in 6:55. While short, this was very entertaining. Piper deserves a lot of credit for putting on a good show as less than two weeks before match-time, he electrocuted himself while touring the West Coast (I believe he touched a live wire in a hotel room while coming out of a shower). If Adonis isn't the greatest looking wrestler in history, he's surely in the top four or five, but he can still perform. They opened by trading whipping each other with Piper's belt. Jimmy Hart took a few tremendous falls. So did Adonis. The finish saw Hart trip Piper, then spray him with that blinding chemical composite known as the hideous H2O. Adonis put on the sleeper and was almost out when Amorphous Adrian let him go and turned his back on him. Brutus Beefcake (what a surprise) then revived Piper who put Adonis out with the sleeper and then Beefcake cut some of Adonis' hair. Word has it Adonis will return with a Brian Bosworth style hairdo in April. They brought some nice props (hedge trimmers) into the ring, but the hair shaver they used didn't work too well. ***1/2

 

7. Danny Davis & Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart downed Dynamite Kid & Davey Boy Smith & Tito Santana. It's very sad watching a guy who in his prime was as good a worker as this decade has seen reduced to being a virtual cripple, and even sadder a chemically-stuffed cripple. The heels really took it easy on Dynamite, which hurt the match since he was in for four minutes. After that it turned into a good match with Hart and Smith in particular looking sharp, though neither had any lengthy periods in. Davis wound up pinning Smith after hitting him with a megaphone, but not until after Smith had done some nice moves. Davis wasn't in much, but he seemed out of his league working with a super-talent like Smith. **3/4. Match lasted 8:51

 

8. Butch Reed pinned Koko B Ware in 3:29 by reversing a crossbody block into a pin. Koko showed nothing and Reed looked terrible. Match itself was a dud although the post-match stuff where Santana ripped up Slick's clothes was okay. I'm just saddened to see what injuries have done to these former super-talents. Bluntly, Reed stinks. 1/2* (Only for the post-match antics)

 

9. Ricky Steamboat pinned Randy Savage in 14:35 to win the Intercontinental title. It's been almost one year (a Savage vs. Santana MSG match last April) since I've seen a WWF match of the caliber of this one. In fact, this match was better than any match on Crockett's Starrcade show last Thanksgiving. Only criticism, which isn't of the match at all, but of Steamboat's interview which started things off silly. Tons of near falls on both sides, some exceptional spots and the match built up in excitement from the beginning. When he's on, Savage is one incredible talent--the equal of anyone in this business besides Flair. After a referee bump, Savage got a false finish pin using his elbow drop. When he went for a second one, George Steele pushed him off the top rope. Steamboat quickly cradled Savage to capture the title. Savage had the advantage the majority of the match. Both guys did an excellent job in making it so that even though Savage lost, he lost none of his steam because he appeared stronger throughout the match. ****1/2

 

10. Honkytonk Man pinned Jake Roberts in 7:02 with a poorly executed cradle from behind when Jake went after Jimmy Hart. Finish was messed up, and it appeared Alice Cooper kind of screwed up in the post-match antics. Jake was real good here and carried the way. Honkytonk is fun, but once the bell rings he ceases to be much. **1/2

 

11. Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff downed B Brian Blair & Jim Brunzell via DQ in 5:45. Jim Duggan chased Volkoff early when he started singing with his 2X4. Finish saw Sheik have Brunzell in the camel clutch when Duggan ran in and hit Sheik with the 2X4 and do one of those xenophobic speeches. Duggan has been put in a tough position as he'll be in the key headline position this spring. Post-WM never draws well, and Duggan's foe is Sheik, whose drawing power burned out more than a year ago. It's going to be awfully easy for Duggan to not look good. Volkoff has nothing left, but Sheik did a few moves. Action was fine, although by this point in the show, nobody cared about it. *1/2

 

12. Hulk Hogan pinned Andre the Giant with a legdrop after a bodyslam in 12:00. This wasn't the worst match I ever saw, but it threatened to be at times. Hulk proved all his critics right--in that he simply can't carry a match. Andre was even worse than I expected. Now, I always heard that Gorilla Monsoon was a math teacher. Didn't he ever teach his son Joey (ref Joe Marella) how to count past nine because they were outside the ring for 90 seconds at one point and Marella never counted to 10. Everything done except the first non-slam and the final slam was poor. And little was done. -**** (that's negative four stars -- I'll have nightmares about this one--Andre just standing there not moving for minutes on end, nearly falling asleep while holding Hulk in a four minute bearhug). But who can complain--in one day this match did more business than every Buddy Rogers vs. Johnny Valentine, Pat Patterson vs. Ray Stevens, Lou Thesz vs. Karl Gotch, Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair and Jack Brisco vs. Terry Funk match combined. And that's something to think about.

 

Strictly from the wrestling standpoint, as big shows go, this doesn't rank near the top. Last year's WrestleMania, while not nearly as successful financially and in many ways a worse promotion (overuse of pseudo-celebrities, terrible commentary, usage of non-wrestlers in the ring) actually provided more good matches. The Bulldogs match with Valentine-Beefcake was almost as good as this shows Savage vs. Steamboat highlight. However the Funks match with Junkyard Dog & Santana was better than Piper-Adonis and Steamboat-Hernandez was also better than most anything else on the show. It really can't touch the Starrcade shows for action, except for possibly the '84 show. As for Texas Stadium's original show in 1984 with the Flair-Kerry Von Erich title change, while this show did not have the emotion, as a production it was infinitely better and the wrestling was much better as well.

[DrVenkman PhD 0]

Excellent stuff, though myself (and most people I talk) to to think much more highly of that 6 man tag match (I usually call it the 2nd best match on the show).

 

I just want to clarify - I DO like WrestleMania III, I just felt like making a snap "it is?" comment to cabbageboy's "one of the best ever" comment.

[Guest wildpegasus]

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Hogan vs Andre is so, so underrated. I even like it a lot more than Savage vs Steamboat.

[Bruiser Chong 0]

How long did Adonis hang around after WM III? My WWF TV viewing from the era is limited, so WM III has always been the latest I ever saw him in the WWF.

 

And I'm assuming when Meltz is calling JYD the second worst wrestler in the business, he means Hulk's the worst? If that's the case, it's incredibly biased of him, since there were far worse wrestlers on this show than Hogan.

[DrVenkman PhD 0]

Well, according to my #1 source for all wrestling news (Wikipedia):

 

Adonis wrestled briefly with the WWF after WrestleMania III and was released. Adonis then wrestled with the AWA again during 1987. During this stint, Adonis feuded with Tommy Rich and lost the final match of the AWA International Television Championship tournament to Greg Gagne in December 1987.

 

Adrian Adonis was decapitated in a gruesome car crash, along with Dave "Wildman" McKigney and Pat Kelly on July 4, 1988 in Newfoundland in a van crash with a wild moose.

[Bruiser Chong 0]

I keep forgetting that gruesome detail about the crash.