Post by Hobo on Apr 23, 2009 18:31:26 GMT -5
The Backstory
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it ws the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness; it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair; we had everything before us, we had nothing before us; we were all going directly to Heaven, we were all going the other way."
- Charles Dickens; A Tale of Two Cities
1989. The WWF was certainly at a high point. Hulkamania was taking off. Arenas were selling out across the country. Primetime specials such as “Saturday Night’s Main Event” were still drawing incredible ratings, and from an in-ring aspect, things had never been better. In the lowest undercard, young stars like Shawn Michaels, Marty Jannetty, Bret “Hitman” Hart, and “British Bulldog” Davey Boy Smith were just coming into their own, the faces that would carry the next generation of starlight. In the mid card, there was the often over performing “Ravishing” Rick Rude, Curt Hennig “Mr. Perfect”, “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, and so many more. At the top teir, the newest WWF star and break out sensation, the fiery Ultimate Warrior, the man who would indelibly lead the WWF through the next money making phase. Still at the top of the pecking order was the golden goose, “The Immortal” Hulk Hogan.. But how immortal was he? Macho Man Randy Savage certainly questioned this, and having held the WWF World Heavyweight title for most of 1988, Savage certainly had a reasonable claim. Rounding out the pack, at the twilight of his career, one of wrestling biggest draws of all time, Andre the Giant. This certainly was the time to be in the WWF.
One could argue that Wrestlemania V was definitely the peak of this era. In the main event, Hogan reclaimed the WWF championship, besting Savage in a great match, possibly one of the best of Hogan’s career. Down the undercard, Rick Rude retained his Intercontinental championship against the Ultimate Warrior with assistance from manager Bobby Heenan, Jake Roberts defeated Andre the Giant by disqualification when legendary rival of Andre and special referee for the match, Big John Studd, disqualified Andre, Demolition of Ax & Smash retained their World Tag Team titles defeating former manager Mr. Fuji and his newest protégées of The Warlord & The Barbarian, collectively known as the Powers of Pain, and Brutus Beefcake brawled to a double count out with “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase. Yes, this card had something for everyone (a total of fourteen matches!)
To add to the WWF’s fortunes, one of the biggest stars (and former booker) of the rival Jim Crockett Promotion’s portion of the National Wrestling Alliance, Dusty Rhodes, had come into the World Wrestling Federation, following an untimely release from JCP. Plenty of first time dream matches were to be had here, right?
Surely, the WWF would follow up on this with another huge card at their Summerslam Pay Per View that August, Savage-Hogan 2 perhaps? Instead, the WWF opted to bring in non-wrestler and co-star of the new WWF produced wrestling film, “No Holds Barred”, Tiny “Zeus” Lister to team with Randy Savage, to do battle with Brutus Beefcake and Hogan. Savage, an extremely over heel in his own right, got most of the heat in this feud, and did most of the work, while Zeus grunted incoherently and “broke people’s necks” with a weak and silly looking twisting move.
And this was just the start of the downward spiral..
Here, I will attempt to undo the wrong doings of the WWF, from Summerslam on. Below is the actual card from Summerslam 1989, from the Meadowlands, in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Dark Match: Dino Bravo defeats Koko B. Ware
1. The Brain Busters {Tully Blanchard & Arn Anderson} (w/ Bobby Heenan) defeat The Hart Foundation {Jim Neidhart & Bret Hart}
2. Dusty Rhodes defeats The Honky Tonk Man
3. Mr. Perfect defeats The Red Rooster
4. Rick Martel & The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers {Jacques & Raymond} (w/ Slick & Jimmy Hart) defeat Tito Santana & The Rockers {Shawn Michaels & Marty Jannetty}
5. Ultimate Warrior defeats WWF Intercontinental champion Rick Rude (w/ Bobby Heenan) to win the title
6. Jim Duggan & Demolition {Ax & Smash} defeat Andre the Giant & The Twin Towers {Akeem & The Big Boss Man} (w/ Slick & Bobby Heenan)
7. Hercules defeats Greg Valentine (w/ Jimmy Hart)
8. Ted DiBiase (w/ Virgil) defeats Jimmy Snuka
9. Brutus Beefcake & Hulk Hogan (w/ Elizabeth) defeat Macho Man Randy Savage & Zeus (w/ Sensational Sherri)
In our next part, we will rebuild the Summerslam card from the ground up, building into a main event that will reshape the WWF for years to come..
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it ws the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness; it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair; we had everything before us, we had nothing before us; we were all going directly to Heaven, we were all going the other way."
- Charles Dickens; A Tale of Two Cities
1989. The WWF was certainly at a high point. Hulkamania was taking off. Arenas were selling out across the country. Primetime specials such as “Saturday Night’s Main Event” were still drawing incredible ratings, and from an in-ring aspect, things had never been better. In the lowest undercard, young stars like Shawn Michaels, Marty Jannetty, Bret “Hitman” Hart, and “British Bulldog” Davey Boy Smith were just coming into their own, the faces that would carry the next generation of starlight. In the mid card, there was the often over performing “Ravishing” Rick Rude, Curt Hennig “Mr. Perfect”, “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, and so many more. At the top teir, the newest WWF star and break out sensation, the fiery Ultimate Warrior, the man who would indelibly lead the WWF through the next money making phase. Still at the top of the pecking order was the golden goose, “The Immortal” Hulk Hogan.. But how immortal was he? Macho Man Randy Savage certainly questioned this, and having held the WWF World Heavyweight title for most of 1988, Savage certainly had a reasonable claim. Rounding out the pack, at the twilight of his career, one of wrestling biggest draws of all time, Andre the Giant. This certainly was the time to be in the WWF.
One could argue that Wrestlemania V was definitely the peak of this era. In the main event, Hogan reclaimed the WWF championship, besting Savage in a great match, possibly one of the best of Hogan’s career. Down the undercard, Rick Rude retained his Intercontinental championship against the Ultimate Warrior with assistance from manager Bobby Heenan, Jake Roberts defeated Andre the Giant by disqualification when legendary rival of Andre and special referee for the match, Big John Studd, disqualified Andre, Demolition of Ax & Smash retained their World Tag Team titles defeating former manager Mr. Fuji and his newest protégées of The Warlord & The Barbarian, collectively known as the Powers of Pain, and Brutus Beefcake brawled to a double count out with “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase. Yes, this card had something for everyone (a total of fourteen matches!)
To add to the WWF’s fortunes, one of the biggest stars (and former booker) of the rival Jim Crockett Promotion’s portion of the National Wrestling Alliance, Dusty Rhodes, had come into the World Wrestling Federation, following an untimely release from JCP. Plenty of first time dream matches were to be had here, right?
Surely, the WWF would follow up on this with another huge card at their Summerslam Pay Per View that August, Savage-Hogan 2 perhaps? Instead, the WWF opted to bring in non-wrestler and co-star of the new WWF produced wrestling film, “No Holds Barred”, Tiny “Zeus” Lister to team with Randy Savage, to do battle with Brutus Beefcake and Hogan. Savage, an extremely over heel in his own right, got most of the heat in this feud, and did most of the work, while Zeus grunted incoherently and “broke people’s necks” with a weak and silly looking twisting move.
And this was just the start of the downward spiral..
Here, I will attempt to undo the wrong doings of the WWF, from Summerslam on. Below is the actual card from Summerslam 1989, from the Meadowlands, in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Dark Match: Dino Bravo defeats Koko B. Ware
1. The Brain Busters {Tully Blanchard & Arn Anderson} (w/ Bobby Heenan) defeat The Hart Foundation {Jim Neidhart & Bret Hart}
2. Dusty Rhodes defeats The Honky Tonk Man
3. Mr. Perfect defeats The Red Rooster
4. Rick Martel & The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers {Jacques & Raymond} (w/ Slick & Jimmy Hart) defeat Tito Santana & The Rockers {Shawn Michaels & Marty Jannetty}
5. Ultimate Warrior defeats WWF Intercontinental champion Rick Rude (w/ Bobby Heenan) to win the title
6. Jim Duggan & Demolition {Ax & Smash} defeat Andre the Giant & The Twin Towers {Akeem & The Big Boss Man} (w/ Slick & Bobby Heenan)
7. Hercules defeats Greg Valentine (w/ Jimmy Hart)
8. Ted DiBiase (w/ Virgil) defeats Jimmy Snuka
9. Brutus Beefcake & Hulk Hogan (w/ Elizabeth) defeat Macho Man Randy Savage & Zeus (w/ Sensational Sherri)
In our next part, we will rebuild the Summerslam card from the ground up, building into a main event that will reshape the WWF for years to come..
