Wrestlemania

March 31, 1985

Madison Square Garden

New York, New York

Attendance: 22, 000

PPV Buy Rate: 1.1

Closed-Circuit Attendance: 380, 000

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura

1) Tito Santana (Mercedes Solis) defeats The Executioner (Paul Perschman) with a

Figure Four at 4:49

Fun Fact: The first ever Wrestlemania match features a man who would go on to become a PPV Iron Man, Tito Santana. Tito will be featured in tons of PPV matches between now and his departure in 1993. He also will go on to wrestle in the first 9 Wrestlemanias, something only he and Hulk Hogan would do. Buddy Rose, on the other hand, makes his one and only WWF PPV appearance. He would stick around in one form or another through 1990, but would be nothing more than an entertaining jobber to the stars.

Scott: The one that started it all begins with an elementary opener. Tito was on fire the previous year as Intercontinental Champion. He lost the title to Greg Valentine in September, and had just wrestled him in a big Lumberjack match just 2 weeks before in this same Garden ring. Here he defeats The Executioner, who is really “Playboy” Buddy Rose with a mask on. Not much more to say, except this is the last time you will see a wrestler called The Executioner on PPV until the 1996 Survivor Series, ironically in Madison Square Garden as well. Tito stays on fire, and will re-capture the IC Title from Valentine in July inside a steel cage in Baltimore. Grade: 2

Justin: A basic match to help get the crowd worked up and to put a very popular face over in the first match. Buddy Rose is looking quite svelte here, compared to the tub of lard he would transform into by 1990, and actually helps keep up a quick pace with Chico. This was some nice continuity here as well, as the Executioner promised to take apart Tito’s leg in his pre-match promo, and he does just that: work the leg. Tito is able to reverse the attack, however, and makes quick work of the future “Playboy.” As Scott said, Tito was in between I-C Title reigns here, but is still very over with the Garden crowd. A solid, well worked opener that served its purpose. Grade: 1.5

2) King Kong Bundy (Chris Pailles) defeats S.D. Jones (Roosevelt Jones) with an

Avalanche Splash at :24

Fun Fact: The original Wrestlemania served one purpose: feature a bunch of wrestlers who will never see the light of day on another WWF PPV ever again. “Special Delivery” Jones is well known in the wrestling world, but never rose above jobber-to-the-stars status. SD had a decent run in Mid-Atlantic, teaming with Rufus R. Jones in a feud with the Andersons and also with Porkchop Cash for a brief NWA Americas Tag title run. He migrated to the WWF in the early 80s, and ended up playing a big role as a recognizable enhancement talent as Vince Jr. started to make his push towards national stardom. Jones would hang around as a jobber until December of 1988. Despite his lackluster career, “Special Delivery” gets to be a part of history here, on the first Wrestlemania.

Scott: Now, that is the realistic length of this match. Remember when everyone said it was :09? Yeah, whatever. This was a chance to begin the slow one-year burn of Bundy as a big main eventer. I don’t think he was groomed for Wrestlemania II just yet, but definitely for a main event run. SD Jones was just fodder for the “Condominium with Legs”. Bundy was managed by Jimmy Hart at that point, but in a year it would be Bobby Heenan. Grade: 1

Justin: Just a match to get Bundy over as a monster. SD Jones knew his role, and he plays it well, selling Bundy’s splashes like death and doing the job in less than 30 seconds. Jesse and Gorilla play up how dangerous Bundy is, and the mission is accomplished. A year later, and Bundy’s career would peak with a huge cage match. This was a quick and harmless match and nothing more. Grade: .5

3) Ricky Steamboat (Richard Blood) defeats Matt Borne (Matthew Osborne) with a

High Cross Body at 4:36

Fun Fact: Matt Borne is a second generation star who is best known for some of the outrageous characters he has played throughout his career. After having some success in Mid-South Wrestling, where he formed the “Rat Pack” with Jim Duggan and Ted DiBiase, Borne arrived in the WWF just in time for the first Wrestlemania, as he made his first appearance at a house show in Boston on March 2, 1985, going to a draw with Rick McGraw. Borne would hang in the WWF until mid-1986. He would pop up in WCW in 1991, portraying bad-ass lumberjack, Big Josh. After mild success in the lower-mid-card, Borne would jump back to the WWF and take on the most well-known persona of his career: Doink the Clown.

Fun Fact II: Ricky Steamboat had built up quite the resume during his 6 years in NWA Mid-Atlantic, and be well known for his brutal feud with Ric Flair and his famed partnership with Jay Youngblood. The 1977 PWI Rookie of the Year won 9 championships during his years in Mid-Atlantic, but in late 1984, he decided a change of scenery was needed, and made the jump to Vince McMahon’s burgeoning WWF. Ricky Steamboat made his WWF debut on March 5, 1985 (3 days after Borne) on a Championship Wrestling TV Taping in Poughkeepsie, NY, defeating Steve Lombardi. Steamboat will hang around for the next 3 years, and will go on to provide tons of memorable matches and moments.

Scott: The man who would be part of some of the greatest matches over the next 10 years defeats a grizzled veteran in Matt Borne, who had been around for the block, but was new to the WWF, which was similar to Steamboat, who had just left NWA Mid-Atlantic. He actually still had his NWA white tights on. This would be Matt Borne’s last PPV appearance until Survivor Series 1992, when he would re-debut as Doink. Steamboat? He was just getting started. Grade: 2

Justin: A well worked match that serves the same purpose as the opener: put over the popular face in a quick, but solid bout. Borne was always a great worker, so it is no surprise that he and Steamboat put on a good match, despite the tight time restraints. Steamboat showcases his wide arsenal, and even busts out his world famous chops on Borne’s chest before finishing him with a graceful High Cross Body. The “Dragon” was on his way, and things would only get better for him as we move along. Grade: 2

4) Brutus Beefcake (Ed Leslie) and David Sammartino wrestle to a double countout at 11:42

Fun Fact: WWF mega-legend Bruno Sammartino used his pull with Vince McMahon to land his son David a gig. David never really caught a fair shake, and always had his last name held against him. Add in the fact that he sucked, and this thing had disaster written all over it. He would last a little over a year in the big leagues, before vanishing in July of 1986, with his last bout being against Hercules on July 10^th. After a brief stay in the AWA, Sammartino would bounce around the Indy world for the next 10 years, and eventually found himself on WCW Nitro on December 16^th, 1996, where he faced Dean Malenko for the Cruiserweight Championship and lost.

Scott: This match was between Hulk Hogan’s buddy, and the Living Legend’s kid. It was way too long, and really pointless. This match should have been at the “War to Settle the Score” show in February, and this should have been a tag team match with the Sammartino’s against Beefcake and Luscious Johnny Valiant, Beefcake’s manager. Beefcake would move on from this, and by the end of the year, would attain tag team gold. Sammartino would get into a rift with his father, and vanish off the face of the wrestling earth. Grade: 2

Justin: A boring encounter here between two guys who just flat out sucked at this point. Beefcake is pre-barber here and is basically supposed to be a Chippendales-type stripper. By 1990, Beefcake would turn into a pretty good wrestler, but at this point in 1985 he is pretty damn bad, and sticking him in there with someone as green as Sammartino was a stupid, stupid idea. As Scott said, they should have done the tag deal, as Bruno and Johnny V at least know how to work a match. The match somewhat kills the crowd, despite Bruno being ringside, as these two battle to a boring double-countout. God, why give them nearly 12 MINUTES to do a lame double countout ending? Dumb decision here that just turned into a mess. Grade: 1

5) Junkyard Dog (Sylvester Ritter) defeats Greg Valentine by countout at 7:03; Valentine retains WWF Intercontinental Title

Fun Fact: Greg Valentine was a big time heel in NWA-Mid-Atlantic. His resume includes the US Heavyweight Championship, a tag team title with Ric Flair, and a legendary dog collar match with Roddy Piper at the first Starrcade. He jumped ship to the WWF and defeated Tito Santana for the Intercontinental Title on September 24, 1984 in London, Ontario. Tito had won the Intercontinental Title from Don Muraco on February 11^th, ending Muraco’s 13 month reign.

Scott: The current Intercontinental champ detours from his vicious feud with Tito Santana, to take on Santana’s pal, the JYD. Dog was a big time babyface in Louisiana, and in Memphis. He arrived in the WWF in 1984, and immediately became a fan favorite. This stems from a Lumberjack match Santana and Valentine had 2 weeks prior at MSG. JYD was one of the lumberjacks and a skirmish broke out between the two. Here, Valentine apparently won with a roll-up that included his feet on the ropes. Tito Santana came out to dispute with the ref that Valentine’s feet were on the ropes. The ref agreed, and counted Valentine out as he was leaving the arena. This would be JYD’s only Wrestlemania win. Valentine and Santana would continue their feud for a few more months, and Santana would regain the IC Title in a classic cage match on July 7, 1985. Grade: 2

Justin: A boring match here, as not even Valentine could carry the deteriorating JYD to a decent showing. Despite being quite over still, Junkyard Dog’s in ring ability was swiftly moving downhill as he got older. During the early 80s, Junkyard Dog drew millions of dollars throughout the Mid-South territory, where he had a well known feud with the Fabulous Freebirds that drew a huge gate to the big blowoff match. After making his name as a mega-star, he was quickly gobbled up by Vince to help in his worldwide expansion, but never quite reached the levels expected, mainly because Hulk Hogan OWNED the mid-80s and the best you could do was second place. Add the Hogan factor to his poor conditioning and bad workrate (not that it mattered too much at that time) and things just never panned out. He was still insanely over with the crowds, but he never became that huge name draw that he had been in Mid-South. Valentine tries his best here, but it just wasn’t happening, and the weird ending doesn’t help matters much, as it was just an attempt to continue the build to the Tito-Valentine rematch. JYD probably deserved better here than to play second fiddle in this feud, but that’s the way the cookie crumbles. Grade: 1.5

6) Iron Sheik (Khosrow Vaziri) and Nikolai Volkoff (Josip Peruzovic) defeat US Express to win WWF Tag Team Titles when Volkoff pinned Barry Windham after

Iron Sheik hit him with Freddie Blassie’s cane at 5:00

Fun Fact: The song “Real American” was originally for the US Express, not Hulk Hogan.

Fun Fact II: In early 1985, Barry Windham and Mike Rotundo were the fair haired golden boys of the WWF. On January 21st, they defeated Adrian Adonis and Dick Murdoch for the straps, but their reign would be short-lived, as Vince wanted to pull a shocker on PPV. They would regain the belts from Sheik and Volkoff on June 17^th, but would quickly lose them again to the upstart Dream Team (Brutus Beefcake and Greg Valentine) on August 24^th. Following the loss, Barry Windham got into an argument with Vince and decided to bail to the NWA. Rotundo, never one to burn bridges, decided to go with his partner, but he made sure to leave on amicable terms with Vince to ensure he would have a future with him. Rotundo’s foresight definitely paid off six years later, when he was looking for a job and Vince gave him one, along with a solid long-term push and a solid character: Irwin R. Schyster. Windham’s careless bailing stuck in Vince’s mind, and even though he rehired him a couple of times, he never gave him a good push again.

Scott: The first title change in WWF PPV history came as quite a shock. Barry Windham and Mike Rotundo had been on a roll since winning the titles a few months before. They were also quite popular with the fans. Their opponents had been put together only recently before this, but since both Iran and the Soviet Union were on the country’s collective shit list, Vince figured why not. So, in what would be one of many heel screwjobs in PPV history, the Eastern Bloc heels gain a win thanks to Freddie Blassie’s cane. It’s a great example of the old school manager we don’t see in current day wrestling anymore. Sheik and Volkoff would hold the titles for a couple of months, and then the Express gets it back. Not a bad match. Grade: 2.5

Justin: A fun little tag match here that features a MAJOR upset. It was expected that the US Express would have a fairly easy time with the newly constructed foreign contingent, but Vince wanted a shocker, so Volkoff and the Sheik pick up the titles thanks to help from the Ayatollah Blassie. These four bust out the classic tag formula and it works quite well, as the crowd is pretty pumped and hot to see the Express take down the evil foreigners, and is quite shocked when they lose. Looking back, the change was a good decision, as it gave us a memorable title change on the first PPV in WWF history and it didn’t really hurt the Express in the long run since they got the belts back anyway. Grade: 2.5

7) Andre the Giant (Andre Rousimoff) defeats Big John Studd (John Minton) in a $15,000 Bodyslam match when he slams Studd at 5:49

Fun Fact: There were two huge stipulations in this match: if Andre the Giant wins he gets $15,000 of Studd’s money, but if Studd wins, Andre would be forced to retire.

Scott: Two of the biggest (literally) legends of the ring clash in a match that had been brewing for some time. This stems from a feud that started in late-1984 that saw Ken Patera and Studd shave off Andre’s famous afro. Many considered this match at main event level when the card was released. The match itself is not great, as Andre was already showing his age and the effects of his condition that made him as big as he was. The big pop comes as he slams Studd, takes the duffel bag with the cash, and tossed it into the crowd before Bobby Heenan swiped the bag and ran away. If Andre lost, he would have to retire, and you knew that wasn’t going to happen. A big win for the legend. Grade: 1.5

Justin: A horrible match that is only remembered for the big slam at the end and the fun visual of Andre handing out the money to the crowd. Andre was really falling apart here, and it is too bad that the national audience never got to see Andre in his prime. Due to the huge hullabaloo surrounding the Main Event, the fact that Andre’s career is on the line here is often overlooked. On any other card, a match like this would have been able to be a Main Event and draw thousands to see it, but on a Supercard like Wrestlemania, it’s just another match, which I guess was the point of having a Supercard. Despite the match sucking, it’s always nice to see Andre honored and allowed to have a moment in the sun, as he truly is one of the greatest legends of all time. Grade: 1

Wendi Richter (Wendy Savinovich) defeats Leilani Kai (Patricia Karisma) to win WWF Women’s Title when Richter reversed a High Cross Body at 6:12

Fun Fact: Richter shocked the wrestling world when she defeated The Fabulous Moolah for the title on July 23, 1984 at MSG, after Moolah dominated the title since 1956, only losing for a few days here and there. Moolah then took on Lelani Kai as her charge, and Kai (with the help of Moolah) took the title from Richter on February 18, 1985 at “The War to Settle the Score”.

Scott: One of the highlights of the show has the very popular Texan defeating Moolah’s girl from Hawaii. The match is a little sloppy, and even the ending with Richter reversing the High Cross Body was not quite smooth. This match was all about Richter’s “manager” for the night, Cyndi Lauper. She was part of the big “War to Settle the Score” card in February. This also included heel manager Captain Lou Albano, but he was a face by now. The place went crazy when Richter won the belt, but she was on borrowed time. When a contract was offered to her, she balked about signing the guaranteed deal. Due to that, in a Montreal type incident, an uninformed Richter lost the title to The Spider Lady, who ended up being Moolah with a mask. A pissed and humiliated Richter was not seen on WWF TV again. However, she still gets WWF paychecks. Well, not really. Her husband is Spanish announcer Hugo Savinovich. Grade: 2.5

Justin: A far cry from Trish Stratus vs. Molly Holly this is, but the excitement of the Garden is off the charts. The main reason, you ask? Cyndi Lauper. The pop star was hot as ever at this point, and her albums were flying off the charts. Luckily, Vince McMahon ignored all the old school purists who told him his Rock ‘n’ Wrestling idea would never work. Vince had the vision and long term planning to hook up with MTV early on and jump on the music bandwagon. Thus, once Lauper hit it big, it was all worked out to have her and her manager, David Wolfe, get involved in storylines, including a classic moment where Roddy Piper kicked her in the head. The heat was out of control for the whole thing, and it spills over to the culmination at this show. The match itself is a clusterfuck of blown spots and sloppy wrestling, but it really didn’t matter. When Richter gets the three, the roof nearly blows off, and causes this to be the absolute peak of women’s wrestling during this era, as it was placed on an important part of the card and overshadowed everything before it. Just a fun moment that sees a lot of chaos and a hot ending. Grade (factoring in the heat and excitement): 3

9) Hulk Hogan (Terry Bollea) and Mr. T (Lawrence Trudeau) defeat Roddy Piper (Roderick Toombs) and Paul Orndorff when Hogan pins Orndorff after Bob Orton accidentally hit Orndorff with his cast at 13:22

Fun Fact: This also stemmed from the “War to Settle the Score” show at MSG on February 18, 1985. The show was televised on MTV, and it included a World Title match between Hogan and Piper. The match ends in a messy schmozz, including security and police officers, and we come to this. Over the coming weeks, lots of workout vignettes from both sides aired to pump up the match. Then, in the days leading up to this match, Mr. T began to get a little weird about the whole thing, and even ended up disappearing for a while the DAY of the show. Hogan and Vince were freaking out, but T finally surfaced and the match went off without a hitch.

Scott: The first main event in Wrestlemania history is an entertaining affair between the 3 hottest wrestlers in the promotion at that time, and one of TV’s hottest stars. This match, just like the show in general, was reaching national mainstream attention. That was highlighted by Hogan and T hosting Saturday Night Live the night before. With all the celebrities, from Muhammad Ali, to Liberace, to Jimmy Snuka and Cowboy Bob Orton on the outside, MSG was at a fever pitch. In the climax, Orndorff has Hogan held, and Orton goes to the top rope, set to drop the cast. Hogan moves out of the way and Orton whacks Orndorff. Hogan gets the pin, and MSG explodes. This leads to a few things: 1) Orndorff turning face, 2) The Piper/Mr. T boxing match at Wrestlemania II, and 3) The beginning of many great Hulkamania moments in Wrestlemania history. Grade: 3

Justin: There isn’t much to bitch about here. Sure, the wrestling wasn’t great, but sometimes a match is about much more than workrate and star ratings, and this is a perfect example. The crowd was at a fever pitch and the mainstream media swarmed around the show for this one encounter. Celebrities surrounded the ring and the aura is unbeatable. Add to the mix that Mr. T could lose it at any time, and the fact that Piper was out of control, and you had quite the explosive environment. For a guy who had never really wrestled, Mr. T does a pretty admirable job and definitely holds up his end of the bargain. Hogan picks up the pin, ending the first chapter of Paul Orndorff’s WWF career and sending the Garden crowd home happy. Grade: 3

FINAL ANALYSIS:

Scott: This is the first one, the one that started the greatest extravaganza in wrestling history. OK, as a card it was average. It was pretty much a glorified MSG house show. Who cares, this is Wrestlemania. The reason we’re all wrestling fans today. There’s urban legend that AWA promoter Verne Gagne offered Bruiser Brody $100,000 to jump from the crowd and break Mr. T’s leg. This wasn’t the first time Gagne, who despised Vince McMahon, threatened something like this. The Iron Sheik says in the Greatest Wrestling Stars of the 80’s DVD that Gagne offered him money to injure Hogan in the January 23, 1984 title match. Gagne’s fault was not realizing soon enough that wrestling was evolving, and he wasn’t. That’s why in 1990, the AWA went out of business. Alas, none of it happened, and history was made. There were some shocks (Sheik/Volkoff), some disappointments (Beefcake/Sammartino), and a great main event. As a show, there were better Wrestlemanias, heck better house shows. It was the first wrestling tape I ever rented, and even though I had been a fan for about a year and a half at that point, I was hooked forever. Final Grade: A+

Justin: Well, the grandfather of all future PPVs was in the books and Vince was a successful man. It has been stated many times that Vince invested so much in this show, that if it bombed or failed, he may have gone out of business. Everyone was nervous, right down to Jesse Ventura, who had to be held up from behind by Gorilla Monsoon at the beginning of the show. Thankfully, the show was a mega-hit and Wrestlemania is still the main force in wrestling today. In 1984, Vince McMahon had a vision, and many of his confidants followed his lead, and those are the men that helped revolutionize the sport. The men who thought Vince was stupid and didn’t jump on the bandwagon would quickly fall to the wayside. His long-term vision of what he wanted the WWF to be came to life with Wrestlemania. The show was a perfect blend of wrestling and pageantry and was a prime example of the newest fad in the sport: Rock ‘n’ Wrestling. Wrestlemania was a mega-hit, and because of it, Scott and I have plenty more PPVs to review. If this were just a regular PPV, it would warrant a C-, maybe a D+, but because of the historical significance, it escapes unscathed. Final Grade: A+

MVP: Vince McMahon (For realizing his dream)

Runner Up: The Main Event

Non MVP: David Sammartino (for tanking his chance)

Runner Up: Mr. T (For almost not showing up)

All Time PPV Active-Wrestler Roster

Tito Santana

Buddy Rose

“Special Delivery” Jones

King Kong Bundy

Ricky Steamboat

Matt Borne

Brutus Beefcake

David Sammartino

Greg Valentine

Junkyard Dog

Barry Windham

Mike Rotundo

Iron Sheik

Nikolai Volkoff

Andre the Giant

Big John Studd

Leilani Kai

Wendi Richter

Paul Orndorff

Roddy Piper

Mr. T

Hulk Hogan

Next Review: Wrestlemania II

Footnotes:
^[1]: This is a tournament final.
^[2]: Moolah wrestled as Spider Lady and unmasked after the victory.
^[3]: The title became completely inactive in 1990.
^[4]: This was a tournament final.
^[5]: Blayze (Madusa Miceli) threw the title belt in the trash upon arrival in WCW, leaving the title once again vacant.
^[6]: This was to fill the vacant title.
^[7]: Though Debra had her clothes stripped off first in this evening gown match, she was still declared the winner by WWF commissioner Shawn Michaels.
^[8]: This was a four-way evening gown match held in a pool that also included Jacquelyn and B.B and had the Fabulous Moolah and Mae Young as special guest referees.
^[9]: Harvey Wippleman dressed up as a woman and called himself Hervina in order to obtain the title.
^[10]: This was a four-corners match which also included Jacqueline and Trish Stratus.
^[11]: The title became vacant when Chyna left the WWF because of a contract dispute.
^[12]: This was a six-pack challenge match which also included Lita, Jacqueline, Mighty Molly, Ivory and Jazz.
^[13]: This was a tag team match with Trish Stratus and Bubba Ray Dudley taking on Jazz and Steven Richards.
^[14]: This was a triple-threat match which also included Jazz.
^[15]: This was a seven-woman battle royal which also included Trish Stratus, Ivory, Jacqueline, Victoria and Molly Holly.
^[16]: This was a fatal-four way match also including Lita and Jazz.
^[17]: This was a fatal-four way match also involving Lita and Gail Kim.
^[18]: Trish Stratus retired as WWE Womens Champion on the same night she won the belt. Because of her retirement, the title became vacant.
^[19]: This was a tournament final.
^[20]: This was a triple-threat match which also included Victoria.
^[21]: Phoenix teamed up with Santino Marella to take on Womens champion Mickie James and Intercontinental champion Kofi Kingston in a “Winner Takes All” match.

Credit goes to: PWI Almanac, wrestling-titles.com, and ProWrestlingHistory.com

Nå som Cyndi Lauper-haussen er på topp, føles det riktig å mimre litt. For de av oss som var/er wrestlingfans, og vokste opp på 80-tallet er Cyndi nemlig en sentral figur på mange måter. Ikke bare som progressiv popprinsesse, men også som forkjemper for kvinnesport. Eller “sport”, om du vil. Cyndi og manager/kjæreste David Wolff skjønte tidlig at WWF var et prima promoområde. Wrestling var jo tross alt stort på 80-tallet. Dermed ble Cyndi lansert inn i WWF-sfæren med brask og bram. Det foregikk omtrent slik: Etter en opphetet krangel på WWF-badboy Roddy Pipers innslag Piper’s Pit med WWF-personlighet Captain Lou Albano om hvorvidt han var Cyndis manager eller ei(ei), utfordret Cyndi ham, og “The Brawl To Settle It All” avgjorde for all ettertid at Cyndi var en bedre manager enn Lou. Men, som alt annet innen WWF kunne det jo ikke stoppe der, sagaen gikk omtrent slik:
 

Lurer du på mer om Cyndi og WWF kan du lese her.Her er forresten krangelen som startet alt:

THE GOONIES!!

Anyone remember this movie?….

OF COURSE YOU DO!  

Anyone who was around in the 80’s saw this movie…sometimes twice.   And even if you weren’t around, I’m sure you caught it on TV the second time around or at least you have seen the shirts at- “Like, oh my gawd…the Mall…and like, totally bought one of those shirts- from like, HOT TOPIC…ya know?…for sure!”  ….That’s right….and you know who you are.

SO, anyway… It’s a cool movie.  What’s even cooler (and I almost forgot about this, until I was writing the entry below about Cyndi Lauper and the Rock-N-Wrestling Connection) is the video that went along with her song for the Soundtrack of the movie.

It was even used on the cover of the WWF Magazine for the August/September 1985 issue!

 Roddy, Cyndi, Nikolai and Sheik

This video was actually made in two parts.  The first one was released before the movie was in theaters and the second part was released after the movie’s premiere.  Both video’s starrred several of the wrestlers from the WWF and was in heavy rotation on MTV.  Cyndi’s mother Catrina was again in this video as was her boyfriend and manager- David Wolff.  The wrestlers in this video included: Captain Lou Albano, Andre the Giant, Freddie Blassie, The Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff, Rowdy Roddy Piper, The Fabulous Moolah and Wendi Richter.  The kids who starred in “The Goonies” are in it too!

Watch BOTH parts here….

…did ya notice anything about those female pirates on the ship??

…soon they would be making their own hit video’s as-THE BANGLES!!

 Check out the link at the bottom of the page for more Rock-N-Wrestling info….

If ya haven’t seen the movie, go BUY it!  I didn’t want to write too much about it and spoil it for anyone that had never seen it.  Those of you who have, need no further reminder of what a classic this film has become.  Of course, no Goonies story would be complete with out a brief mention of everyone’s favorite part of the film….

More of Cyndi and Wendi in the WWF:

http://phillipphiles.wordpress.com/2008/04/01/wendi-richtergreatest-female-wrestler-of-all-time-click-here/

“THE BRAWL TO SETTLE IT ALL”

“145 LBS. OF TWISTED STEEL AND SEX APPEAL!”

Alright- of all the things I’ve ever been obsessed with, Wendi Richter was the first…and I was only 12! 

1984 was a great year for two of my favorite things at that time- Music and Professional Wrestling.  It got even better when they joined forces and the “Rock-N-Wrestling Connection” was born.  It all started on “Piper’s Pit”….I’m sure hardcore WWF fans will remember that!

In case you weren’t around in the mid-1980s’- (or for some reason you can’t remember the mid- 80’s) it went something like this…. (and make sure you watch all the video’s, it’ll make more sense)

and the story line to change Wrestling History forever was set…..

August/Septmeber issue of the “WWF Magazine”

After the dust settled, Cyndi decided to challenge Captain Lou at his own game.  They’d settle it in the wrestling ring.  Each finding a female wrestler to battle it out.  Lou of course, went and found the Champion- The Fabulous Moolah.  Cyndi went and found the number one contender for Moolah’s belt…a young lady from Texas named Wendi Richter. 

Now…not only is this a Main Event for the night of wrestling at Madison Square Garden, but it was also broadcast LIVE on MTV.  It was promoted constantly and had fans tuned in as if it were a Heavy Weight boxing match featuring ALI!  The Fabulous Moolah (according to the WWF) had held the Women’s Title for 27 years and 8 months.   That gets kinda tricky…. I’ll explain that later.

Then- on July 23, 1984 in New York’s MADISON SQUARE GARDEN- Wendi Richter and Cyndi Lauper changed all that…..

(PART ONE….Moolah vs. Richter)

(PART TWO….Moolah vs. Richter)

I became instantly hooked!  I had occasionally watched wrestling up until then and even people that had NEVER watched professional wrestling, started to tune in.  These were the glory days of the WWF.  Hulk Hogan, The Iron Shiek, Classy Freddie Blassie, The Junk Yard Dog and the entire list of stars of the WWF became house hold names.  And I loved how Wendi’ always entered the ring to the song “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun“.

I watched faithfully a couple of times a week and got to know all the wrestlers by name.  Up until The Fabulous Moolah and Wendi Richter battled it out against each other that Summer, Women’s Wrestling was pretty much the time when the fans went and got a hot dog or smoked a cigarette.  It really had no fan base in the arena or on TV.  Moolah dominated all her opponents for almost 30 years and there wasn’t the same admiration for her as some of the Heavyweight male wrestlers like Bruno Sammartino, Buddy Rogers, Lou Thesz, Pat Patteson and Bob Backlund.

  Wendi Richter changed all that and became a Wrestling Superstar. 

MAKE SURE YOU WATCH THE VIDEO’S UP THERE!!!

Wendi enters the ring to defend her WWF Women’s Championship.

The cross promotion for Cyndi’s career and the world of Professional Wrestling was huge.  Intially, Captain Lou had been used in Cyndi’s first video and there was more to come.  Wendi’s continued success only added more popularity to the sport and also gave Cyndi’s music a new audience.  Cyndi’s next video for her hit single of “SheBop” was played heavily on MTV (for all you youngsters out there…at one time- probably before you were born- MTV played ALL MUSIC ALL THE TIME!…ask your parents!) 

In the newest video, Captain Lou Albano and Cyndi’s mother were again featured in the video as well as Cyndi’s then boyfriend/manager.  Even Wendi had a part as the waitress at the beginning of the video.  The WWF even used the photo as part of their trading cards/sticker promotion.  Wendi had several in the collection.  I’ve got a complete set- somewhere.

WWF Trading Card and Sticker featuring Wendi Richter.

Of course, The Fabulous Moolah was granted a rematch….several infact.  I was fortunate enough to see Wendi and Moolah battle it out in my hometown once.  I finally pestered my dad long enough that he took me to see them wrestle.  It was probably the single greatest moment of my youth.  How often do you get to see one of your childhood hero’s right there in front of you?  I remember fans cheering really loud when Wendi made her way to the ring as her theme song played.  It was even louder when she kicked Moolah’s ass and won!  I’ll remember it forever.

Moolah eventually gave up trying to win back her title and focused on finding someone who could beat Wendi.  It seemed to get to the point where it didn’t matter if Moolah herself was no longer champion, just as long as Wendi was defeated.  The Fabulous Moolah kicked, scratched and cheated as often as she could get away with it while “Managing” several wrestlers such as Judy Martin, Donna Christiantello and The SpiderLady (pay attention to that name).  Moolah (or Shmoolah- as Cyndi liked to call her) eventually found a wrestler who fought just as dirty as she always had….

Leilani Kai

The Fabulous Moolah and Leilani Kai pulled out all the stops that night.  Moolah even choked Cyndi Lauper at ringside- Wendi came over to rescue her and Moolah sucker punched her in the jaw.  Leilani then went for a pin and snagged the title away from Wendi.

Wrestling fans across America (including myself) were shocked at the way the Women’s Title changed hands.  Not only did Wendi lose that night but Moolah had (in a sense) taken the title back from Wendi.  But as with anything in the WWF…its all about promotion.  The re-match was set for what would become the greatest event in the history of Professional Wrestling…

The Original…Not like the bullshit McMahon produces now.

This was hype at it’s all time finest.  Not only did the stars of the WWF compete but there were also lots of famous faces in the audience and as well as guests for the Co-Main Event featuring Mr. T and Hulk Hogan.  Stars like Billy Martin, Liberace  and Muhammad Ali were all part of the entertainment for the final match of WRESTLEMANIA.  Just prior to that match though, was what many fans considered to be the real Main Event.  The battle for the Women’s World Wrestling Championship Belt...

Photo from the Original “WrestleMania” program.

Cyndi and Wendi entered the ring and every fan in attendance was on their feet.  Women’s Professional Wrestling had finally created a loyal fan base that was able to- as they say in Wrestling- “put asses in the seats!”  Wrestlemania was also shown via closed circuit television across the country.  The only reason I went was to see Wendi Richter become champion again and hopefully see Cyndi get some revenge on Moolah.

“Shmoolah and Lani Cow” (as Cyndi often called Moolah and Kai) did what they could to keep Wendi from getting the upper hand during the match.  Moolah of course got involved and pulled Wendi’s hair from outside the ring as Leilani distracted the referee.  Cyndi had to go over and smack Moolah on the head.  The action was great!

When it was all over- Wendi was once again WWF Women’s Champ. 

Wendi and Cyndi celebrate their victory at WrestleMania-

“THE WAR TO SETTLE THE SCORE”.

Moolah kept trying to get the WWF Women’s Title back from Wendi any way she could.  She found some tall goon named “The Spider Lady” who was big but didn’t have a whole lot of wrestling skills.  Wendi and The Spider wrestled on several occasions.  The only time she ever got close to getting the upper hand on Wendi is when Moolah got involved in the match.

Around this time- there was even a Saturday Morning Cartoon called “Hulk Hogan’s Rock-N-Wrestling” that had several of the WWF Stars included in this short lived animated series.  Wendi and Moolah were both featured as cartoons.  Wendi’s likness as a cartoon was just as cute as the lady herself……

Now…as “Gorilla Monsoon” used to say- this may have been the begining of the end.  Wendi Ricther was a household name.  Her likeness was used in a cartoon series, a line of wrestling toys and she was able to fill arena’s as a “Main Event”.  Yet she never got the pay or even some of the recognition the men in her field receieved.  She was a Co-Main Event at WrestleMania and appeared on weekly televised matches defending her WWF Women’s Championship.  Wendi was indeed popular with the fans- so much so that an issue of ProWrestling Illustrted featured her on the cover and dared to ask the one question out loud that all the promoters and booking agents were already silently asking themselves….

“IS WENDI RICHTER MORE POPULAR THAN HULK HOGAN?”

So, Wendi knows she’s filling houses around the wrestling circut and the cartoon series was picked up by a major network.  She also (and rightly so) feels she is intitled to more of the profits.  I’m sure nothing gets under Vince McMahon’s skin more than having to write a check from his bank account to anyone that is questioning his pay rates.   So, rather than deal with the situation at hand- he just gets rid of the problem….

THE ORIGINAL SCREWJOB-  November 25, 1985  New York 

Check out Wendi’s face at 1:47- Is it just me or does her facial expression show that she knows something’s up?

 What’s really odd during that match, is that fans at ringside are pointing and chanting “MOOLAH!! MOOLAH!!” as “The Spider Lady” is tossed outside the ring…

I swear I can hear Wendi tell the referee- ”That’s Moolah alright!” 

After Wendi figures it all out, she goes for blood.  The Spider Lady gets Wendi in a small package and Wendi kicks out and is on her side…but the referee STILL KEEPS COUNTING TO THREE AS IF SHE’S ACTUALLY STILL BEING PINNED!! 

Vince McMahon and Moolah both got what they wanted.

Wendi pulled a disappearing act for a while and eventually started wrestling in Puerto Rico and made her way back to the States and won a few of the Women’s Wrestling Championship for several other organizations in various parts of the country.

She was still popular with the fans but I don’t think she got the exposure she once had during her reign in the WWF.  After it looked like she would never return to the WWF- I pretty much lost interest in wrestling.  Her name would occasionally appear in wrestling magazine publications and her stats would be listed and the opponents she beat but I never got to see any of those matches, since most were never televised on the West Coast.

Wrestling fans can FINALLY hear her version of the story by watching the video interview she agreed to a few years ago-

I’ve seen it and it answers ALOT of questions.  It especially explains Moolah’s jealousy towards Richter.  Although I haven’t yet seen their side of the story- The Fabulous Moolah and Mae Young have done a video similar to this.  I’m sure Moolah’s version of why she wore the mask that night is what she and McMahon agreed was the truth.

Regardless, Wendi Richter is by far the single greatest female of all time.  True, it may be in the record books that Moolah was champion for nearly 30 years- but don’t believe everything you hear on TV.  If you do a little research, you’ll find that Moolah was actually DEFEATED for the Women’s Championship FOUR TIMES before she lost a fifth time to Wendi Richter.

The Fabulous Moolah- losing her title for the fifth time.

In 1983, Moolah still owned the rights to the only recognized Women’s Title and was wrestling in the NWA.  After joining the WWF and selling the rights to McMahon- Moolah was recognized as the current champion.  However- none of the previous defeats or title changes since her original win in 1956 or any losses prior to the rights being sold were ever recognized by the WWF and thus the “Longest Reign in Professional Sports History” legend was born and Moolah took the credit, even though it was nothing more than a lie- since she had been beaten several times.

That being said- I could care less about how many years Shmoolah held the title.  Wendi was a class act.  She had more than just beauty and a Rock Star manager- she had mad skills and Women’s Wrestling would have never been what it evolved into had it not been for Wendi Richter.  Moolah may have been one of the first- but Wendi was by far, the most skilled and the most popular female wrestler of all time.

THANKS WENDI, YOU’RE STILL THE GREATEST!!

special thanks to “WrestleDazzle” on youtube.com for all the great clips used here!  Check out more of Wendi Richter and other great ladies at his homepage-http://www.youtube.com/user/WrestleDazzle

WWF Saturday Night’s Main Event #1
May 11, 1985
Long Island, NY
Nassau Coliseum
(Taped on 5/10/1985)

The current WWF Champs were as follows:
World Champion: Hulk Hogan (1/23/1984)
Intercontinental Champion: Greg Valentine (9/24/1984)
World Tag Team Champions: Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff (3/31/1985)
Women’s Champion: Wendi Richter (3/31/1985)

Besides grabbing Hogan from Verne Gagne and taking a chance on Wrestlemania, putting Saturday Night’s Main Event on NBC was the best idea Vince had in the 1980s. When you consider that the majority of America back then did not have cable or satellite television, not everyone could enjoy WWF programming so this show played a big part in making the WWF the most popular wrestling promotion in the country. The show also played a major role in kick-starting many of the huge Wrestlemania main-event feuds. The first episode is the fallout to the first Wrestlemania. A couple things that you need to remember before I go ahead with the recap; in the main-event at Wrestlemania, Orndorff took the fall and was therefore blamed by Piper and Orton for losing the biggest match in their careers. Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff captured the tag titles from the US Express, Barry Windham and Mike Rotunda. Also with Cyndi Lauper at her side, Wendi Richter regained the Women’s title against Lelani Kai who was managed by Fabulous Moolah. As you might be able to tell, I’m being a lot tamer on this show compared to the newer, over-exposed SNME’s. It’s just not the same!

We hear from Wendi Richter, Cyndi Lauper, Hulk Hogan and Mr. T!

Your hosts are Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura!

• Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff & George “The Animal” Steele (w/Freddie Blassie) vs. Barry Windham, Mike Rotunda & Ricky Steamboat (w/Capt. Lou Albano)

Ha, I forgot the US Express had “Born in the USA” as their theme song. In case you’re wondering, the faces all have black trunks. Windham starts off with Sheik and he completely dominates Sheik to start. Rotunda tags in and comes off the top with a single-ax to the arm, followed by a tag to Steamboat who does the same. Steamboat wrenches the arm for a bit and then tags Rotunda in for a double back elbow. Rotunda gets a slam and covers for two. Steamboat tags in and karate chops Sheik and returns to the arm. Sheik comes back with a whip and hooks on an abdominal stretch, but Steamboat quickly escapes with a hiptoss. That brings all six men in for the faces to clean house as we go to a commercial. We come back to Steamboat delivering a powerslam to Sheik. Steamboat goes to the top and hits a missile dropkick! He goes up once more and connects with the FLYING BODYPRESS for 1, 2, NO! Volkoff tags in and gets BEAT by both Steamboat and Windham after a double-team dropkick for two. Rotunda tags in for another double back elbow. After a pair of standing leg drops, Rotunda covers for two. Rotunda gets a couple of near-fall attempts on Volkoff, but can’t get the three. Windham tags in and gets a sunset flip, but Volkoff is in the ropes. Now Steele tags in and tries to trade blows with Windham. Once he wants out, Sheik and Volkoff both drop off the apron. As Steele is jawing with the tag champs, Windham comes up from behind and rolls up Steele for the three-count. (6:40 shown) Post-match, Steele gets attacked from behind by the tag champs. The amazing thing is that he actually fights both of them off and sends them running! Albano, who is Steele’s former manager, gets in the ring to calm him down. **

Mean Gene stops the Sheik and Volkoff on their way to the dressing room and asks them what in the world is going on? Blassie says he didn’t tag when he was supposed to because he’s a fruitcake! Steele and Albano walk past them for another beatdown of the tag champs. You may be saying to yourselves that the tag champs looked incredibly weak here and Rotunda/Windham looked like the champs, but it’s all just a sign that the US Express would regain the belts about a month or so later.

Next up is Piper’s Pit alongside his bodyguard Bob Orton, Jr.! His guest tonight is their former partner, Paul Orndorff. If this were 2006, this would be the opening segment of the Raw after the PPV. Orndorff doesn’t trust (or like!) anybody in that ring besides himself as he demands Orton steps back. Piper calls Orndorff a loser and a piece of garbage for losing their Wrestlemania match because he embarrassed everybody for losing! It eventually breaks down to a two-on-one situation as Orndorff nails both Piper and Orton to the mat. Orndorff tries for a PILEDRIVER on Piper, but Orton nails Orndorff from behind with the cast! Mr. T runs down for the save!

We go to Mean Gene who is standing by with the WWF Champ, Hulk Hogan. With all that just happened, Hogan would rather talk about Mother’s day.

• WWF Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan (w/Mr. T) vs. “Cowboy” Bob Orton Jr. (w/Roddy Piper)

It’s the EYE OF THE TIGER! Nothing is cooler than listening to your ’80s LPs! It starts off as your typical ’80s Hogan match with the heel being chased and beat down by Hogan. Orton regroups out on the floor with Piper and then comes in with a knee to the gut. Orton cross-corner whips Hogan, but then runs shoulder-first into the steel-post. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Hogan works the cast for a bit. Orton reverses a whip and delivers a running knee to the chest. Atomic drop by Orton gets two. Orton controls with knee drops and elbow drops. Once the crowd gets to cheering Hogan on, it means that only one thing is getting ready to happen. Yep, he HULKS up! Hogan hits a clothesline and an elbow drop out of the corner for 1, 2, NO! Hogan attempts the ten-count corner punch and once he gets about four on him, Orton counters out with an inverted atomic drop. Orton sets Hogan up for the SUPERPLEX, but Hogan fights him off and hits him with an elbow. Hogan hits the LEG DROP, but Piper nails him from the floor as he goes for the pin. The ref saw it and calls for the bell as Hogan wins by DQ. (6:45) Orton and Piper beat down Mr. T and then slowly go after Hogan as Orndorff runs in to make the save for Hulk. The heels bail out of the ring while the beefcakes pose in the middle of the ring THROUGH the commercial break and for another minute after that. Two complete face turns in one night! ½*

Let’s go to Mean Gene who is in the back with Cyndi Lauper and Capt. Lou Albano. They act as though they care about the Women’s title match, but they REALLY just want to introduce her new video which is the first Rock n Wrestling Connection music video. I believe the song is called, “The Goonies ‘R’ Good Enough”. The story in the video is that Cyndi Lauper and her father, Lou Albano, run a gas station that is NOT making enough money to pay bills so they need some filthy rich customers to come by and help them out. Here comes the WWF limousine with Piper, Blassie and the Iron Sheik which turns into a big argument between everybody! Meanwhile, Moolah drives by in an old (I’m talking from the ’50s, not the ’80s) truck with Volkoff in the bed milking a cow. Yes, a “cow” is in the bed of this truck. Finally, the music starts and I can fast-forward! After they show the video, Piper comes by Lauper and Albano and tells them it was the greatest music video he ever seen until she started to sing. Good point.

After the break, Gene is standing by with the Fabulous Moolah who has a contract that bars Lauper from ringside due to all her interference in previous matches for this upcoming championship match.

Lauper’s says she can’t be barred from ringside just because she’s a manager, but it’s going to happen. Oh yeah, her boyfriend looks like comedian Mitch Hedberg. That guy hasn’t aged a bit!

• WWF Women’s Champion Wendi Richter vs. Fabulous Moolah

Howard Finkel reads Moolah’s official contract that looks like the Magna Carta which bars Lauper from ringside. After a commercial break, we apparently are JIP as Moolah controls Richter. Moolah makes the mistake of turning her back on her opponent and then gets tossed out to the floor. Back in, Moolah gets a backdrop for one. This match is billed as Moolah’s last title shot. Moolah hits a chop and tries a slam, but Richter counters into a small package for the three-count to retain the title. (about 3:00) Lauper and Hedberg come in the ring to celebrate with Richter. Spider Lady is coming, Wendi. CRAP

After the break, Mean Gene is standing by JYD and his momma. She looks more like his wife than his momma.

• Junkyard Dog (w/his momma) vs. Pete Doherty

Pete Dougherty is a legendary WWF jobber from the ’80s and that’s about it. At the time, JYD was to Carlito Cool in 2006 as far as being over with the crowd at Intercontinental title status. A clothesline, some headbutts and the THUMP get the three-count for JYD. (about 3:00) CRAP

Next up, some of the WWF guys have a little Mother’s day party with their moms who are just hanging out. This seems to be breaking kayfabe somehow with JYD and Hogan standing so close to Blassie and Co. without wanting to beat them up. Lauper and her mom are also at the party and Richter’s mom doesn’t even care to show up! Moolah comes by and is FURIOUS she wasn’t invited. Lauper and Moolah get in a fight! Somehow Gene and Moolah gets shoved into the cake. SUCH HILARITY!

Final Thoughts: The only thing that was overkill here was Cyndi Lauper. She’s the so-called “Avril Lavigne” of her day and I just don’t care for her. But at the time, she was popular and it had to have drawn in many non-wrestling fans to watch the show that enjoyed her. As far as the wrestling goes, it’s the ’80s WWF. It’s not going to be that great unless a certain few are involved. The opener was good but Windham, Rotunda and Steamboat all wrestle at a much faster pace than the Sheik, Volkoff and Steele that it would be impossible for them to keep up. Also with the reactions the US Express got here, putting the tag belts back on them was a must. Orndorff’s face turn is a very interesting one as he just later on ended up turning on Hogan again. Also George “the Animal” Steele’s face turn was a somewhat big deal as he would never turn heel again. No Tito, which I guess is why we had no Valentine either. It’s a great show to check out if for nothing more than just for historical reasons.

WWF WrestleMania
March 31, 1985
New York City, NY
Madison Square Garden

The current WWF Champs were as follows:
World Champion: Hulk Hogan (1/23/1984)
Intercontinental Champion: Greg Valentine (9/24/1984)
World Tag Team Champions: Mike Rotunda and Barry Windham (1/21/1985)
Women’s Champion: Lelani Kai (2/18/1985)

Your hosts are Gorilla Monsoon and a relatively unbiased Jesse Ventura throughout the event! Mean Gene starts us off with the National Anthem. It’s good they hired actual talented singers in years to come.

• Tito Santana vs. The Executioner

Executioner is just “Playboy” Buddy Rose under a black mask. We’re told that the WWF has no information about him, yet he’s billed as an undefeated wrestler from wherever he came from. Tito is still involved with a long-term feud with the IC champ, Greg Valentine and is looking to get a win over the Executioner. In the pre-match promo, Executioner realizes Valentine has injured Santana’s knee, so he’s going to be all on that knee for this match. They do a criss-cross sequence off a headlock, ending with Tito delivering a back drop that sends Executioner rolling out to the floor. Wow, Jesse doesn’t call Tito, “Chico” one time during the whole match! Back in, Tito controls with a headlock. Executioner escapes by going after Tito’s knee, but then gets his face slammed onto the mat. Executioner comes back with a kick to the gut and begins stomping on Tito’s mid-section. Since he’s got Tito down, he tries for a figure-four and Tito easily kicks him off. Tito comes back and pounds Executioner in the corner. Tito tries for a piledriver, but Executioner back drops out of it. Executioner goes up top, but gets caught and slammed down to the canvas. Tito comes off the ropes for a splash, but Executioner gets his knees up. Executioner sets up to squash Tito’s bad knee in the ropes, but Santana boots him out to the floor. Once Executioner is back on the apron, Tito is there to slam him back in the ring. Executioner is up, so Tito comes off the ropes for the FLYING JALAPENO! Santana hooks on the FIGURE-FOUR for the submission to send a message to Valentine. (4:49) Nice way to kick off the show. *½

• King Kong Bundy (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. SD Jones

Bundy had only been on WWF television for about a month at the time, which is why this is SUCH a squash. Jones makes a big mistake by charging at Bundy and gets slammed in the corner. Bundy steps back and delivers the ATLANTIC CITY AVALANCHE for the three-count. (0:24) Monsoon and Ventura call this match over in nine seconds to emphasize how destructive Bundy was, which would be record-breaking time. CRAP

• Ricky Steamboat vs. Matt Borne

Big Josh IN THE HOUSE! Interestingly enough, Steamboat had also only been on WWF television for about a month at the time. Steamboat is SO new in the WWF, that he’s still wearing his NWA white tights. Steamboat chops Borne down early on and then hooks on a headlock. Steamboat flips over Borne to a nice reaction and applies the headlock again. Steamboat flips over Borne again and delivers an atomic drop before returning to a headlock. Borne counters with an inverted atomic drop and then hits a knee lift. Borne whips Steamboat into the corner, which Steamboat kicks his way out and comes off the middle rope with a karate chop. Steamboat goes back to the side headlock and then turns the hold around into a front headlock. Borne backs Steamboat into the corner to break the hold. He then follows up with a belly-to-belly suplex, and then a snap suplex for a one-count. Steamboat comes back with chops and then drops Borne with a back suplex. Steamboat hits a swinging neckbreaker and follows up with a pair of knee drops for 1, 2, NO! Borne goes to the eyes, but then misses a clothesline and gets nailed with a double-thrust to the face. Steamboat heads up top and connects with the FLYING CROSSBODY BLOCK for the win. (4:39) Decent glorified squash for Steamboat. See you at Caesar’s Palace, Doink! *

• David Sammartino (w/Bruno Sammartino) vs. Brutus Beefcake (w/Johnny Valiant)

David is of course Bruno’s descendant, who just for his name should’ve been a big star. When Bruno and David started to disagree with Vince however, David was never really able to excel in wrestling anymore than what you see in this match. Bruno of course is beloved by everyone at MSG and is given to say the least, a HUGE pop. After a long period of stalling by Beefcake and Valiant, they lock up with Beefcake shoving Sammartino off into the corner. Beefcake avoids a tie-up and struts around like he’s Michael Hayes. Sammartino and Beefcake lock up once again and this time, Sammartino is the one shoving his opponent in the corner. Beefcake charges and goes down to a drop toe hold. They go to the mat, which Beefcake loses that battle and flops out of the ring to be with Johnny V. Back in, Sammartino takes Beefcake down with a front headlock. Beefcake eventually rolls away in the ropes to break the hold. David now goes after Beefcake’s arm. Beefcake tries to slam out of it, but Sammartino keeps the hold locked on Beefcake. Beefcake breaks free and works a headlock. Sammartino shoves him off, but gets nailed with a shoulderblock and then a hiptoss. Sammartino quickly catches Beefcake with another drop toe hold and works the leg. Beefcake goes to the eyes to break loose and then follows up with a back drop. Beefcake pounds away for a couple minutes, boring me to DEATH. Sammartino finally reverses a whip out of the corner and elevates Beefcake over with a back drop, but he’s not able to capitalize. Sammartino knees Beefcake in the face and hits a suplex. Monsoon sounds utterly surprised that David executed the move as well as he did. That doesn’t mean it was a bad suplex. Sammartino covers for 1, 2, NO! Beefcake headbutts David in the gut and then tosses him out to ringside. Johnny V comes over to lend David a helping hand, but Bruno does NOT want him messing with his son and throws Valiant into the ring. Bruno hops in and goes after Valiant, but Beefcake nails him from behind. David is there to help his dad to cause a big melee and the double-disqualification. (11:44) The match was way too long for it to have never gone anywhere. ½*

• WWF Intercontinental Champion Greg Valentine (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. Junkyard Dog

Since WWE doesn’t have the permission to play, “Another Bites The Dust” by Queen, they dub in JYD’s own song “Grab Them Cakes” which wasn’t recorded until 1986. JYD goes after Valentine’s arm immediately. Valentine whips JYD off the ropes, but gets nailed with a right hand. Valentine backs up to restrategize and then elbows JYD to the mat to set up the Hammer Forearm, but JYD avoids it and hits some headbutts on all fours and Valentine bails. Back in, they fight over a test of strength. Valentine fights dirty and forearms JYD to the mat. Valentine works the leg to set up the FIGURE-FOUR, but JYD kicks him off. JYD limps back into the corner to stay vertical. He fires back on Valentine and then connects with a pair of headbutts. Valentine Flair flops as Jimmy Hart gets up on the apron. JYD grabs Jimmy as Valentine comes off the ropes to nail JYD with the Hammer Forearm, but JYD moves and Jimmy gets nailed. Ouch! Nasty bump there, Jimmy. JYD unloads like crazy on Valentine as the crowd goes insane. Valentine rakes JYD’s eyes and tries for the cheap rollup using the ropes to steal the match. Tito comes down in street clothes to argue that Valentine cheated, so the ref calls for the match to continue. Valentine is NOT going to do that, so he keeps walking back to the dressing room to give JYD the win by countout. (5:56) The finish made no sense. I mean, why should the ref listen to Tito? He has every reason to want to see Valentine lose. This was just your fun little popcorn match and the ending kept the Valentine/Santana feud going. *

• WWF Tag Team Champions Barry Windham & Mike Rotundo (w/Captain Lou Albano) vs. The Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff (w/Freddie Blassie)

Sheik – “Russia, number one! Iran, number one! USA, *HACK-POOEY!*” You can’t have two #1’s, that makes eleven! Rotundo shoves Sheik off a headlock into the ropes and catches him with a hiptoss, a dropkick and a slam before getting nailed in the face by Windham. Rotundo works a headlock before bringing in Windham who comes in off the top with a single sledge. He drops a leg onto Sheik’s lower abdomen. Windham hooks on a headlock, but Sheik backs him into the heel corner. Volkoff grabs hold of Windham as Sheik comes off the ropes. He goes for a running dropkick, but Windham moves and Volkoff gets nailed. Sheik apologizes and tags Volkoff in. Volkoff immediately gets caught in a headlock as Windham tags in Rotundo. He delivers a pair of elbows for a one-count. See, two counts are the norm these days where people don’t understand what a one-count means. The champs tag in and out twisting and hammering on Volkoff’s arm. Volkoff fights back and runs Rotundo’s face into Sheik’s boot. He tags in and puts Rotundo down with a back drop. Sheik follows up with a running elbow drop for 1, 2, NO! The near-fall tells you that Rotundo is nearing defeat because he didn’t kick out at one or two, but at two and a half. It’s simple psychology that is lost these days. Just saying. Gutwrench suplex gets two for the Iron Sheik. Sheik tries a suplex, but Rotundo blocks it and delivers one of his own. Sheik rolls over and makes the tag to Volkoff before Rotundo can tag in Windham. Volkoff delivers a hotshot and goes for a pin, but Rotundo slides out and applies a hammerlock. Volkoff stands up and backs Rotundo into the ropes, but then he ducks low off a whip, allowing Rotundo to sunset flip over for a one-count. Volkoff is right back on top of Rotundo, as Volkoff whips him into the ropes and buries a knee into his gut. Tag to Sheik, who comes in and applies the Abdominal Stretch as the managers argue out on the floor. Rotundo escapes the hold with a hip toss and makes the HOT TAG to Windham! Sheik made the mistake of not grabbing hold of Rotundo and just going over and tagging in Volkoff. Windham unloads and gives Volkoff a running dropkick, followed by a running bulldog. He covers, but Sheik breaks it up at two. Rotundo comes in and dropkicks Sheik out to the floor. As Windham and Volkoff brawl up against the ropes, Sheik climbs up on the apron and blasts Windham in the back of the head with Blassie’s cane. Volkoff covers for the three-count to win the tag titles. (6:56) Basic tag formula with tons of heat. **

• Andre the Giant vs. Big John Studd (w/Bobby Heenan) – $15,000 Body Slam Challenge

From Heenan’s pre-match promo: “For 15,000 dollars and a hair cut, we are eliminating Andre the Giant from professional wrestling.” If Andre wins, he gets the $15,000. If Studd wins, Andre has to retire FOREVER. All you have to do is slam your opponent to win. Studd punches Andre back into the corner, but Andre quickly fights back with chops and a headbutt to send Studd out to the floor. Back in, Andre VIOLENTLY chokes Studd in the corner and then delivers the Big Thump in the corner. Studd knees Andre in the gut and tries to slam him, but it’s not happening. Andre fires back and hooks on a bearhug. Studd bites his way out, but Andre nails him in the back. Studd pulls on Andre’s hair to try and get out of a side headlock, but Andre punches him off. Andre ducks low off a whip, and grabs hold of Studd’s boot as he tries to kick him in the face. Andre nails him and starts kicking Studd in the leg to soften him up so he can’t block the slam as easily. Andre tries for the slam and gets it. (5:54) Andre takes the bag of money and starts throwing it out to the crowd, but Heenan sneaks in and grabs the bag and runs out with Studd. Hey, it was just bait anyway. It’s like when the cops pay ransom money; once they’ve got the perpetrator, they don’t KEEP the money. Oh yeah, terrible match by the way. CRAP

• WWF Women’s Champion Lelani Kai (w/Fabulous Moolah) vs. Wendi Richter (w/Cyndi Lauper & David Wolfe)

They actually play “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” on the DVD. Moolah cost Richter the belt at “The War to Settle the Score” to set this one up. They roll around in the ropes off a tie-up until reaching the corner where Richter knocks Kai down on her backside. Richter hooks an armbar, but Kai kicks her off to a stalemate. Kai tries the same strategy, but Richter rolls away and applies a hammerlock. Kai fights out with a pair of hairmares for 1, 2, NO! Kai returns to the arm, but Richter fires back. Kai doesn’t let Richter take control and slams her face into the turnbuckle. Kai pulls some hair and chokes Richter down onto the mat. Kai tries for a gutwrench suplex, but that gets blown and Richter has to improv a pin attempt for two. Small package from Richter gets two. Kai pulls on Richter’s hair some more before running into a boot in the corner for 1, 2, NO! Moolah gets involved, which brings Cyndi Lauper over to nail her with her purse. Richter delivers a fireman’s carry for 1, 2, NO! Richter whips Kai into the corner, but then charges into a pair of knees for 1, 2, NO! Kai hits a backbreaker for another near-fall. Kai goes up top and delivers a crossbody block, but Richter rolls through (terrible looking roll through at that) for the three-count to regain the title. (6:13) Lauper and Richter dancing in the ring at the end was VERY uncomfortable. This was a pretty sloppy match, especially in the finish which is very vital to get right. ½*

• WWF Champion Hulk Hogan & Mr. T (w/Jimmy Snuka) vs. Roddy Piper & Paul Orndorff (w/Bob Orton)

Mr. T had jumped the rail at “The War to Settle the Score” to save Hulk from a Piper gang beatdown to bring him into the picture. Snuka got his head cracked from a coconut by Piper, so that’s a given that he would want revenge. Hogan had broken Orton’s arm recently, which explains the cast. The power of Hulkamania must’ve been SO strong, that it took his arm over a YEAR to heal. I mean, sure, he’ll put the cast back on from time to time if it starts to bother him. I believe he wore it once when he and his son fought the Undertaker in 2005. Twenty years later and it’s STILL not fully healed. The guest ring announcer for the main event is the former manager of the New York Yankees, Billy Martin. The guest referee is Pat Patterson. The guest time keeper is the eccentric Liberace. His Rockettes make an appearance, and I can’t imagine anyone in attendance is cheering for this to continue. Muhammad Ali is a guest referee as well, but he will serve as the special outside enforcer. The crowd completely forgets about Liberace and chants “Ali”. Orndorff and Piper’s introduction is pretty sweet with the bag pipes and all. I knew a guy who could play the bag pipes. He smelled REALLY bad. No “Eye of the Tiger”, just “Real American” dubbed in with crowd noise. Orndorff looks to start off with Hogan, but Piper wants in instead. Hogan’s ready to go, but he hears T calling from the apron that he wants in, so now it’s Piper vs. T. They go nose-to-nose and slap for slap. Piper kicks T in the gut and takes him to the mat. T escapes and Piper falls flat on his face. T hoists Piper up in a fireman’s carry and slams him to the mat and it breaks loose as we’ve got All SIX men in the ring. That brings Ali in the ring. He nails Piper which sends him out to the floor. The heels give the proverbial “Up yours!” sign to the crowd and attempt to leave. Patterson is at seven, but Hulk doesn’t want to win that way and breaks the count. Piper and Orndorff storm the ring and charge at Hulk and T, but they take a double noggin knocker. Hogan whips Piper into the farside corner and follows in with a clothesline. Hogan delivers another double noggin knocker to the heels. Hogan gives Piper an atomic drop and starts slamming Piper’s head into the mat. T tags in for the double-clothesline spot. T slams Piper and catches Orndorff running in with a hip toss. T rams Piper’s head into Hulk’s knee and makes the tag. Hulk nails Piper with a Big Boot that sends him falling out to ringside. Hogan trash-talks Piper and then turns around into an Orndorff clothesline that sends him out with Piper. That allows Piper to give Hulk a chairshot across the back. Back in, the heels cheat like crazy while T tries to run in and save his partner. Orndorff tags in for the double atomic drop. Orndorff stomps on the champion and then delivers a suplex before tagging in Piper. Piper levels Hulk and gives him a knee lift for 1, 2, NO! Orndorff tags back in and comes off the top with an elbow for 1, 2, NO! Orndorff delivers a backbreaker to set up a flying elbow drop, but Hulk moves out of the way. Hot tag to T! He unloads on Orndorff in the corner, but Piper is there to nail him from behind. Orndorff drives T down and brings him over to his corner to tag in Piper. He comes in and hooks a front facelock, but T manages to break away and tag in the Hulkster! Orndorff comes in for a THIRD double noggin knocker. Orndorff is not legal, but he stays in anyways as Piper goes over onto the apron. Hulk hooks a headlock, but Orndorff counters with a back suplex. Orton comes in to interfere as Piper keeps the ref busy. Snuka isn’t going to have that, and knocks Orton back out to the floor. Patterson rids the ring of Snuka while Orton sneaks back up on the apron. He climbs up top while Orndorff has Hogan in a full-nelson. Piper goes to nail Hulk, but T blocks it. Orndorff turns Hogan around to face Orton. As he comes off the top, Hulk turns Orndorff to the side, which gets Orndorff nailed with the dreaded cast. Snuka runs back in and nails Orton while Hulk covers for the three-count. (13:34) Piper yells an exclamatory at Orndorff and decks Patterson before he and Orton leave without Orndorff. Once he comes to his senses, he realizes he’s all alone with the faces. He kind of likes it, but doesn’t want to admit it until Saturday Night’s Main Event in May. Hands down, the best match of the night because it was given enough time to make you feel like something was resolved. Plus, this match had heat like you just don’t see very often anymore. ***

Final Thoughts: Except for the Sammartino/Beefcake match, everything bad was kept short and watchable. The main event was definitely what put the butts in the seat and it delivered as it’s a match that will never be forgotten by wrestling fans. It’s interesting to see the legacy began from a historical standpoint, but that’s about it. Otherwise, WrestleMania I receives a thumbs in the middle.

Ms. Lillian Ellison…

…better known by her ring name as “The Fabulous Moolah”.

I was watching “The View” on Thanksgiving day and it was a repeat episode from earlier this month.  Whoopi took a few minutes out of the opening moments of the show to hold up a picture and say a few nice words about Moolah.  I was kinda sad to hear of her passing and surprised I missed it when it was initially announced.  I was a huge professional wrestling fan in the mid-80’s and I was really into the crazyness of Women’s Professional Wrestling.  I’m glad Whoopi took time out to mention her- she said she was also a fan and had watched Moolah back in the day.  She’ll be missed.

I remember as a kid watching professional wrestling all the time.  Hulk Hogan and The Iron Sheik were all the rage at that time.  A couple of nights a week, I’d be park myself on the floor and take control of the TV set…much to my mothers chagrin.

I’d cheer and yell as if I was actually there and then in between commercials I’d turn around and explain to my mom who exactly was wrestling who and how great they were and what they said about each other the previous week…and now that I think about it- she probably didn’t give a damn but listened anyway.  Once in a while she’d surprise me and say “Isn’t that the guy that won last week and then….”

“Vintage Moolah”

Things really got heated when MTV got into it.  Long story short- a WWF manager named Captain Lou Albano had been on “Piper’s Pit” (and I’m not explaining all these people and places, either ya know or ya don’t) anyway… Lou was taking all kinds of crazy, saying that he made Cyndi Lauper the star she was and was her manager.  So, Rowdy Roddy Piper did an interview with Cyndi… and “The Rock N’ Wrestling Connection” was born.  Cyndi challenged Lou to settle their feud in the ring, they’d each get a wrestler to battle it out.  Captain Lou went out and found “The Fabulous Moolah”…the WWF Womens Champion, who was not only the Champ- but she had held the title for 28 years!  Cyndi found a wrestler from Dallas, TX named Wendi Richter who had been trained by Moolah and had actually come close to defeating her on several occasions.  Wendi became my favorite and I’ve even got an autographed picture of her somewhere in the vault.

Wendi Richter (in pink) puts the moves on Moolah.

July 23, 1984 -New York

The event was televised live from Madison Square Garden on MTV.  At the end of the bout, Wendi’s hand was raised in victory.  She was in her early twenties at the time and she had finally beaten the one, the only- Fabulous Moolah.  It was great.  My dad even took me once (after begging and pleading and begging) to the arena downtown once to see them wrestle.  It was one of the various re-matches where Moolah tried to re-gain her championship belt.  I can’t tell you the excitement of a kid seeing their favorite wrestling and the cheers and yelling that goes on at those things, you have to experience it.

There was even a Saturday morning cartoon show about several of the wrestlers. Cyndi even used Wendi and a few others in her videos from time to time….which I think is how the whole feud started.  Captain Lou was in the “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” video. 

“Whatcha’ gonna do with your life?!”

Another thing I remember was going to the closed-circuit live television broadcast of the first (and best) WRESTLEMANIA.  It was amazing…nothing like that had been done before and I had to BEG for those tickets too!!  Actually, I think another time I made my mom go with me….she was the only one available (I told her we could leave after Moolah wrestled).  We went and saw Moolah after she regained the belt, so I had to go and yell at her. I loved to hate Moolah.

As I got older some of the wrestlers left the WWF or retired and I became less interested in wrestling….occasionally I’d turn it on, just to see who was still choking who but around this time- I got really heavy into Music (80’s music…you know the story, read the Expose’ story on this blog!)  Wendi had left the WWF after “the original screw job” she got from Vince McMahon after asking for a meeting with him and questioning the royalties she should be earning from the Saturday morning cartoon and merchandise….(so I hear). 

Moolah, “winning” back her title- November 25, 1985.

Moolah was still active in wrestling and doing her thing.  As the years went by she continued to be a minor story line within the WWF.  She was even inducted into the WWF (now WWE) Hall Of Fame….the first woman (and rightly so) to have the honor.   She was promised a wrestling match on her 80th birthday and McMahon scheduled one for her.  Sadly….her brother passed away and she was not able to keep the commitment but still made appearances now and again with Mae Young.  Moolah would trade the belt back and forth over the next few years and was even immortalized with an action figure!

 Will the real Fabulous Moolah, please stand up?

The Fabulous Moolah became a wrestling legend.  She was around in the early day and saw it all.  She started as a “valet” and eventually made her way into the wrestling ring.  I believe that the gentleman that would eventually become her manager told her that she was “Fabulous!” and asked her why she wanted to wrestle…her reply is what helped her get her name. She answered “for the money…for the Moolah!” and her new name became part of wrestling history.

She even wrote a book about her life.  Aside from all the coolness of being the greatest female wrestler of all time…she even met Elvis!  Don’t be jealous!  Here’s her book-

The Fabulous Moolah: First Goddess of the Squared Circle.

Wow…I’m typing alot more than I thought I would for this.  Believe it or not, Moolah was a big part of my childhood.  Other kids may have been into “Transformers” and “Pac Man”…I was into The Fabulous Moolah.  I wish I could have met her but I guess seeing her was enough.  As I got older, I realized I didn’t actually hate her… she was actually pretty cool.  Who else could go into a bar and beat most men in an arm wrestling contest on any given night? 

Moolah left us on Novermber 2, 2007….  she’ll be missed. 

she was still FABULOUS at 84!

One tough broad…and I mean that as a compliment.