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WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 1, November 1984 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: -$2 under default Actual Attendance: 5,000 (SOLD OUT)[/u][/b] -Pre-Show Dark Segment Lord Alfred Hayes interviews Jose Lothario & Al Perez about their upcoming tag team match with The Villanos (D+) -Pre-Show Dark Match Jose Lothario & Al Perez drew with The Villanos in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (C). Perez was visibly tiring towards the end of the the match. -As the show starts, highlights are shown of the Kevin/Backlund match at the Texas Rumble, where Kevin retained the TV title. (B). Highlights are also shown of the Texas Rumble, which was won by Kerry Von Erich. (C+). After the video footage of Kerry's domination of Bobby Eaton at the Texas Rumble, Lance Russell announces that Eaton has asked for a match with Kerry, in tonight's main event. The match will be non-title, but Eaton has promised that he will give Kerry a title shot if Kerry can beat him tonight. (C) -A lengthy video package hypes "Exotic" Adrian Street - including his appearance on Piper's Pit this week in Atlanta (and Adonis' transformation to a transvestite), and his defeat of Mike Von Erich for the WCCW Cruiserweight Championship. (C-) -WCCW Cruiserweight Championship Match Adrian Street defeats Mike Von Erich in 6:31 by pinfall to make his 1st defense of the Cruiserweight Championship. (C+). Mike was visibly tiring towards the end of the match. -Piper's Pit w/guests The Road Warriors. Adrian Adonis is on the set in his "redneck" gear, making no reference to Monday's events in Atlanta when Adrian Street seemingly inspired him to try dressing in drag. Piper introduces his guests, the Road Warriors, who say that thanks to a Ted Dibiase loan, they've now booked a match with The Sheepherders to take place at Thanksgiving Star Wars. (B-). After the Pit segment, a lengthy video hypes the long "cold war" between The Sheepherders and The Road Warriors. (C) -Greg Valentine defeats King Tonga in 7:55 by submission. (C) Valentine looked good. -A video hypes the ongoing managerial saga surrounding Bob Backlund - the video hypes the various attempts of Gary Hart, Skandor Akbar, and Lord Alfred Hayes to gain his services as a client (C+) -Bob Backlund defeats Steve Olsonoski in 7:36 by pinfall (C+). Backlund looked good. -Iceman Parsons defeats Adrian Adonis in 9:10 by pinfall (B). Adonis came out dressed in drag, as the announcers made reference to the events in Atlanta earlier in the week where Adonis seemed to be inspired by Adrian Street. Adonis seemed off his game and distracted throughout the match, leading to a Parsons victory. -Fritz Von Erich came to ring to make his much hyped "major announcement". He states that after much negotiations, 3 candidates for new WCCW Commissioner have emerged. Fritz says that for the first time in wrestling history, the fans will have a direct say in the future leadership of a wrestling promotion. The wrestlers, fans, and sponsors will all have a vote, and the winner will be declared at the WCCW New Year's Celebration Event to be held at the end of December. Between now and then, the candidates will do their best to make their case to all of the voting parties. Fritz then announces the three candidates for WCCW Commissioner, who each come to the ring. First, WCCW legend Jose Lothario. Second, former WWF Champion Ray "The Crippler" Stevens. Finally, Mr. Wrestling II. Fritz says that in the weeks to come, the fans will learn about the candidate's visions for the future of WCCW. (C+) -Non-Title Match (Kerry earns a title shot with a win) Bobby Eaton drew with Kerry Von Erich in 20:32 following a double countout. (C). Overall Show Rating: C+ THOUGHTS -The main event was a huge disappointment. Kerry just isn't a main event level talent at this point. He's the clear #3 Von Erich brother right now. -The campaign for WCCW commissioner kicked off tonight - it will be a 3-way election between Jose Lothario, Mr. Wrestling II, and Ray Stevens, with the fans, wrestlers, and sponsors having one collective vote each. The original plan was for Mr. Wrestling II to win, but now that he seems to have his heart set on being a full-time wrestler, it's somewhat up in the air. Lothario was a last-minute addition based on Mr. Wrestling II's cold feet, and he might just emerge as the winner. -The match of the night was Parsons/Adonis. Still no full-time gimmick change yet for Adonis, but that could easily be on the way. -Steve Olsonoski failed in his first real attempt to "bring the goods" with a talent like Bob Backlund. C+ simply isn't acceptable, since Backlund has wrestled better matches with the likes of David Sammartino, Frank Dusek, and Jose Lothario. He's on very thin ice after his constant complaints about his push. -Valentine/King Tonga was a disappointment, as was Street/Mike Von Erich. After the Atlanta show, I was pretty fired up to bring Street in, but he just doesn't have the same overness in Texas, so he's probably not worth the money just yet. -Adrian Street only has one more match on his loan contract with us, so I'll have to get the belt off him the next time he wrestles - I haven't decided if it will go back to Mike, or if we usher in an upgrade in the Cruiserweight division by putting the belt on Tiger Mask. |
NEWS
-Mike Von Erich is exhausted after the last show. -I had requested negotiations with Hulk Hogan, trying to see if his loyalty to the WWF was perhaps tempered by the financial problems of that promotion - but no, he's still really into the WWF. -The TV show does a 3.14. That's the lowest in about 5 weeks, but still our 5th straight show over 3.0 (something we've never done before that streak). -Roddy Piper has signed with Mid-Atlantic, where he'll work in addition to us, Maple Leaf Wrestling, and his current loan agreement with Portland Wrestling. I've jobbed him out of the main event in recent weeks, but I still like him as a personality. -I had requested negotiations with a number of networks - but was rejected by all because "I already had a TV show". I'm quite happy with TBS and it's reach, but I do request negotiations with them to possibly get a better time slot. |
THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 2, November 1984 Salem, OR (Northwest - Tiny Venue) Expected Attendance: 930 Ticket prices: $1 under Default Actual Attendance: 970 -Tonight marks our debut in the northwest region as we continue our expansion. With our low popularity here, we bring a cheaper "B-Crew". Roddy Piper makes the trip though, as our most popular worker in the northwest. Our low popularity here means ratings will be lower, but I don't need much to improve our standing here. -Pre-Show Dark Segment Lord Alfred Hayes interviews Mark Youngblood about his pre-show match with Villano IV. (E) -Pre-Show Dark Match Mark Youngblood drew with Villano IV in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (D+) -Pre-Show Dark Segment Jose Lothario, Al Perez, and Steve Olsonoski come out to hype their sudden death six-man tag team championship tournament match tonight with The Missouri Mauler's team of Doug Sommers, Perry Jackson, and Barry Orton. (E) -Pre-Show Dark Segment Fritz Von Erich comes out to welcome the Salem fans, and recap some of the recent events in WCCW. D+ -WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Tournament Match -Opening Round ("Play in Match") - Sudden Death. Barry Orton, Perry Jackson, & Doug Somers (w/The Missouri Mauler) defeat Jose Lothario, Al Perez, and Steve Olsonoski in 7:39 when Somers pinned Perez. (D-). Perez was exhausted towards the end of the match. Lothario looked good. After the match, the Mauler cut a promo hyping his team's chances in the rest of the tournament. (D) -King Tonga defeats Dusty Wolfe in 3:51 by pinfall. (D-) -Piper's Pit w/guest Ray Stevens Roddy Piper (w/Adrian Adonis) spend a few minutes insulting the Salem crowd - Piper references his past in the area. He also claims that Adonis has been under the weather lately, implying an explanation for Adonis' recent cross-dressing activities. Then, Piper introduces his guest, former WWF champion, and candidate for the position of WCCW Commissioner - Ray "The Crippler" Stevens. Piper puts over Stevens heavily (establishing him as a heel). Piper says Stevens is the right guy for the Commissioner job. Stevens promises to bring law and order to WCCW. He says unlike the other candidates (Mr. Wrestling II and Jose Lothario), he's been a world champion, which he claims gives him the right insight for the job. (C+) -King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) defeats Owen Hart in 7:52 by pinfall. (C-) The two showed poor chemistry. After the match, Gary Hart hyped his massive client. (D) -Skandor Akbar came out to hype his team, The Sheepherders, who challenge for the WCCW World Tag Team Championship tonight against the Von Erichs. He also notes that the Sheepherders have signed to face the Road Warriors at Thanksgiving Star Wars (since the Road Warriors were able to come up with the required payment - via loan from Ted Dibiase). (C-). Kerry and Kevin Von Erich also come out and hype their title defense - they note that both of them have been working on grueling schedules as of late, but that they never back down from a challenge. (C) -WCCW World Tag Team Championship Match The Von Erichs defeat The Sheepherders (w/Skandor Akbar) in 13:27 when Kerry pinned Miller. (C-). The Von Erichs make their 5th defense of the tag team titles. -David & Bruno Sammartino come out to hype their upcoming main event tag team match with Roddy Piper & Adrian Adonis. The Samartinos recap highlights of the feud between the 4. (C+). -Adrian Adonis & Roddy Piper defeat The Sammartinos in 16:38 when Piper pinned David Sammartino while holding the ropes. (C+). The match was a wild, overbooked brawl featuring constant cheating by the heels. David was tiring towards the end of the match. Adonis and Piper looked good. After the match, the brawl continues between the four, around ringside, for several minutes. (C-) Overall Show Rating: C THOUGHTS: -Good enough to increase our popularity in the northwest Otherwise, not much to say about this show. -Somers/Jackson/Orton continue their mini-push under the guidance of the Missouri Mauler. They'll join "Group B" in the tournament, with Murdoch/Backlund/Bundy and Tiger Mask/Kabuki/Hennig. -Quick squash for King Tonga in his 2nd match with us under his loan contract. He lost to Greg Valentine on TV last week, so per house rule, he must either win or draw his 3rd match with us, whenever it is. Hopefully this win gives him a little momentum to give us some kind of rating. -Bundy got a squash on this show as well, because he's our most popular guy in the midwest after the main-eventers. -Ray Stevens makes his WCCW debut on a lengthy Piper's Pit segment. Eventually, I'll try to give all three commissioner candidates some kind of competing "visions" for WCCW. -Kind of a double-main event, with two tag team matches. I did pick the right one to close the show (I made that decision based on Piper's overness in this region). |
NEWS
-Adrian Adonis is exhausted after the last show. The rumor is that he's on his way out of New Japan, so maybe he'll be able to catch his breath a little. -I re-sign with TBS for another 2 seasons (apprx 6 months). I would have loved a better time slot, but the only way to do that is actually cancel my deal with TBS and start new negotiations with them or anyone else. I may change my mind and do that after this week's TV show. I have 20 total days left in the negotiation period. -Rick Steamboat has signed with Calgary Stampede, where he'll work in addition to Mid-Atlantic and Maple Leaf Wrestling. He'll find a bunch of talent to work with up there. -Davey Boy Smith is being hyped as a future star in the dirt sheets. -Jerry Lawler signed with Maple Leaf Wrestling, who as I noted a couple times, has had a pretty stacked roster in this dynasty. Not sure how many of these guys they can get in the arena on any given night, but they have Lawler, Adrian Adonis, Roddy Piper, Ricky Steamboat, Sgt. Slaughter, Larry Zbyszko, Bad News Brown, Bob Backlund, Jim Garvin, Dick Slater, Davey Boy Smith, Koko B. Ware, David Schultz, and Jessie Ventura. |
Molson
have any sites for a 2001 ish setup for TEW 2008 (the one before this last one)? I could give it a run at work til the new FM comes out. |
Just a note on Adrian Street... he was a revelation over here in the UK before he went to Canada and the US. Important thing to note about him was that although he had the "flamboyant" gimmick and was consequently widely hated by the homophobic 60s/70s wrestling audiences here, he was possibly the toughest bastard in the wrestling scene.
He has recently been battling cancer and chemotherapy robbed him of his hair. :( Still, he was nice enough to actually conduct a short interview for my mate's magazine a few years back... Adrian Street is a legend. :D |
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I think you mean a mod from 2001 for the newest TEW? I'm not that fired up about any of the mods for the new game yet, but they're all here: Total Extreme Wrestling 2008 Dynasties - Grey Dog Software I didn't see a '01 mod in there. |
I tweak a few gimmicks before the show, to combat staleness (as perceived by my road agents). None of these changes will keep anyone off TV for any time.
Gary Hart: Hustler to Cult Leader King Kong Bundy: Evil Giant to Man Beast WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW) Wednesday, Week 2, November 1984 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: -$2 under default Actual Attendance: 5,000 (SOLD OUT)[/u][/b] -Pre-Show Dark Match Mike Von Erich defeats Al Perez in 6:57 by submission. (D). Mike was visibly tiring towards the end of the match, Perez was exhausted. After the match Lance Russell interviews Mike, and notes that Mike will once again challenge Adrian Street for the Cruiserweight Championship at November Star Wars. (D) -Pre-Show Wrestling Segment. Ted, The Wrestling Bear, performs a wrestling exhibition. (F-) -As the show starts, a music video is played hyping the WCCW Television Champion, Kevin Von Erich, and the amazing run he's been on since winning that title, culminating with his victory over Bob Backlund at the Texas Rumble. (B+). After the video, Lance Russell interviews Kevin, who announces that he's defending the TV title against WCCW World Champion Bobby Eaton in tonight's main event. Russell seems shocked - Eaton has refused to defend his own title since winning it, and now Kevin's giving him a shot to unify the titles? Kevin says that Eaton is apparently up in arms about everyone referring to Kevin's TV title as WCCW's premiere championship, so he made this challenge. Kevin says he accepted it to prove he's the best - he won't back down from Eaton just to make a point. Kevin also states that he's looking for a win tonight, not just to survive the 10 minute time limit. (B). -A brief video highlights the recent winning streak of Nikita Koloff, and his 3-minute challenge. (C+) -3-Minute Challenge. Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) defeats Steve Olsonoski in 2:53 by pinfall. (C+). After the match, Akbar starts to cut a promo in the ring, but then goes off mic and whispers something to Koloff, who leaves the ring and confronts Lord Alfred Hayes at the announce table. Koloff tries to intimidate Hayes, who stands up. Akbar comes down to the table as well, and says that Hayes has zero business trying to be a manager in WCCW, and he demands that Hayes withdraw his offer of managerial services to Bob Backlund. Hayes refuses, says he's going to stay a gentleman, and returns to his seat. (B-) -Bruno & David Sammartino, and Iceman Parsons, hype their upcoming WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Tournament Match against The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza. Bruno notes that each side is connected by blood - father/son v. brothers. He also emphasizes the importance of getting off to a fast start, as each team only has 4 matches to prove themselves. He also repeats his desire to win one more championship before he retires. (C). Before the match, the announcers quickly recap the tournament structure with on-screen graphics: Two groups, three teams in each group. Each team will wrestle each other team in their group twice. Teams receive 3 points for a pinfall/submission win, 2 points for a DQ/countout win, and 1 point for a draw. The winners of the two groups will compete in the finals for the championship. -WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament Match -Group A, Match 1. The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza (w/Gary Hart) defeat The Sammartinos & Iceman Parsons in 9:54 when Mendoza pinned Bruno Sammartino after all 6 men ended up in the ring at the same time. (C+). David was limited by injury. Villano IV and Gary Hart have zero chemistry together. Mendoza looked good. -Magic Dragon comes to the ring, making his first appearance in WCCW since last year. He appears more bizarre than ever, in full Japanese-goth mode, performing a brief ceremony with smoke and salt before the match. He carries with him a large bag (C-) -Magic Dragon defeats Mark Youngblood in 8:45 by pinfall. (D+). After the match, Dragon retries the bag that he brought to the ring - he then pulls out a mannequin head that resembles his former tag team partner, The Great Kabuki. The announcers put over the weirdness of Magic Dragon, and note that Kabuki is not in the arena tonight. (C-) -Kerry Von Erich defeats Dusty Wolfe in 5:42 by pinfall. (C). Kerry looked good. After the match, Lance Russell interviewed Kerry about his win, and about his brother Kevin. Kerry says that he supports Kevin's decision to defend his TV title tonight against Bobby Eaton, even though Eaton has refused to grant Kerry a world title shot. Kerry says that Kevin on a remarkable run, and he wants to see him keep it going. (C+) -A hype video highlights Gary Hart's "dream team" that he put together and will manage during the WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Tournament - Bob Backlund, Dick Murdoch, and King Kong Bundy. The video highlights the accomplishments of all 3, and paints them as the favorites in the tournament. (B) -WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament Match -Group B, Match 1 Barry Orton, Perry Jackson, & Doug Somers (w/The Missouri Mauler) defeat King Kong Bundy, Bob Backlund, & Dick Murdoch (w/Gary Hart) in 8:39 when Bob Backlund was DQ'd. (C) Hart's team was a disaster, constantly arguing and insisting on tags into the match, while The Mauler's team was a well-oiled machine. Eventually, Backlund appeared to loose his temper and threw Perry Jackson onto the announce table before applying the chicken wing there, drawing the DQ. The Missouri Mauler interfered throughout the match on behalf of his team. Backlund and Murdoch looked good. After the match, the "dream team", along with Gary Hart, continued to argue in the ring, with things seeming very close to breaking out into a full brawl. (C+) -Bobby Eaton hypes his upcoming TV Title match with Kevin Von Erich. Eaton shoots down the idea that the TV Title is now more prestigious than his world title, and says that after tonight, they'll be one and the same. (B) -WCCW Television Championship Match Kevin Von Erich defeats Bobby Eaton in 9:48 by submission in make his 7th defense of the TV Title. (B). Overall Show Rating: C+ THOUGHTS: -It would have been pretty easy to run a 10:00 time limit draw in the main event so I think Kevin's clean win over the world champion was a shocking result. Without really intending to, Kevin has become the top star in the promotion the last few months while David has been on the sidelines. This was Eaton's first lost of any kind since he and Koko B. Ware lost the Tag Tam Championship to The Freebirds at July Star Wars, about 3 1/2 months ago. It's his first loss in a 1-on-1 match since May -That wasn't the only upset of the night, as Gary Hart's much hyped "dream team" lost a chaotic DQ decision to The Missouri Mauler's glorified jobber team. Just mixing stuff up a little there. The question is whether Hart can bring his team together to the point where they can even continue in the tournament. -Magic Dragon is only in for 2 more appearances on a loan contract, so his odd "challenge" to former partner Kabuki isn't the start of a long-term feud, just a brief distraction for Kabuki from Bundy & Mendoza (but maybe not from Gary Hart, who might get involved in this too). Magic Dragon's segments and match didn't go over really well, so I probably won't bring him in when his loan contract is up. |
NEWS
-I'm advertising the following card for November Star Wars (at lot of this is not being developed on TV because there's a lot of loan contract guys with whom I have limited appearances to work with): -WCCW Television Championship Match -Enhanced Time Limit (30 minutes) Kevin Von Erich v. Greg Valentine -WCCW Cruiserweight Championship Match Adrian Street v. Mike Von Erich -The Road Warriors v. The Sheepherders -There will also probably be a six-man tag team championship tournament match or two, maybe a Kabuki/Magic Dragon gimmick match, and perhaps a 10-man battle royal for an immediate world title shot against Eaton (Eaton would stack the battle royal with midcarders and lower, and then defend the belt immediately at the end of the battle royal against the exhausted winner). -The TV Show gets a 2.93 rating. That's our lowest number in the last 6 weeks. I decide to stick with TBS and this timeslot for the 6 month deal I signed last week...After that I'll tear it up and look for something better (hopefully my ratings don't keep going down). -Gino Hernandez, who hadn't wrestled since his loss to Roddy Piper for us in early August, has signed with Mid-Atlantic. It's a tough wrestling economy out there right now, so I'm glad he'll have the chance to improve some before I inevitably bring him back. -I haven't used Curt Hennig the last couple of shows, but he's been busy with Portland Wrestling where he started this month - he's working as a heel, and has wrestled 2 matches. One, teaming with Greg Valentine and Buddy Roberts to defeat Paul Orndorff, Roddy Piper, and Billy Jack Haynes. Then, losing a main event match to Jerry Lawler. That's a great environment for him to improve even more. He's a huge, huge, star in the making. -The dirt sheets are hyping Dan Severn and Robert Gibson as future stars. -Mr. Wrestling II, Bruno Sammartino, Steve Olsonoski, King Tonga, Adrian Street, and Magic Dragon, all complain about their pushes. The last 3 will be gone off of their loan contracts by the end of the month -I re-sign three guys whose contracts were up next week: -Butch Miller re-signs for 9 months at $1,475/show, a raise from $1,350/show -$1,475 (9 months). -Luke Williams re-signs for 9 months at $1,725/show, a raise from $1,325/show -Adrian Adonis re-signs for 18 months at $1,975/show, a raise from $1,875/show. -It's interesting that Williams demanded the largest raise of the 3. He's 3 years younger than Butch Miller. |
Molson, I am wondering about your ticket pricing. I think that you are losing too much to try and sell out a show. Here are my thoughts: Let's say that default ticket prices are $10 per show. Using your last show as the example. 8 * 5000 = 40000 but 10 * 4675 = 46750 Basically it doesn't pay to drop ticket prices that much to sell out a show and you will actually make more if you can live with out a sell out and find the balance hat nets you the most money.
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You're absolutely right, assuming there's no "bonus" for sell-outs (and I have no reason to believe there is). I'll incorporate this going forward, though I won't go nuts with the calculations. |
THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 3, November 1984 St. Paul, MN (Midwest - Very Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 1,852 Ticket prices: $1 under Default Actual Attendance: 1,885 -Pre-Show Dark Match Doug Somers (w/The Missouri Mauler) defeats Mark Youngblood in 6:48 by submission. (D). Somers and The Mauler have good chemistry as manager/client. After the match, The Missouri Mauler hyped Somers as a future star in this business. (C-). -Pre-Show Dark Match Al Perez defeats Dusty Wolfe by pinfall in 6:55 (E-). Perez was exhausted towards the end of the match. -The Missouri Mauler comes out with his team of Perry Jackson & Barry Orton, and hypes their victory in the six-man tag team tournament last week (along with Doug Somers) against Backlund, Murdoch, and Bundy. He says the team is rolling right now, and ready for their challenge tonight - The Road Warriors. (D+) -The Road Warriors defeat Perry Jackson & Barry Orton (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 8:07 when Animal pinned Jackson. The Road Warriors looked good. After the match, The Road Warriors hyped their match with The Sheepherders at Thanksgiving Star Wars last week - they say they've waited for years for this match, and they're going take out all of their frustrations on the mad men from New Zealand. (C-) -Gary Hart comes to the ring with one of his two entries in the six-man tag team championship tournament - The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza. Hart refuses to comment on the upset loss of his "dream team" of Murdoch/Backlund/Bundy at the last TV show, but instead focuses on the Villanos win in their first match, and their chances tonight. (C-). Shortly after, Skandor Akbar comes out with his team of The Sheepherders & Nikita Koloff. Akbar, however, gets distracted by Lord Alfred Hayes at ringside - the two have verbally sparred in recent weeks over their pursuits of Bob Backlund as a client. Here, things escalate into some mutual shoving, before Hayes and Akbar are seperated. (C-) -WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament -Group A, Match 2 The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza (w/Gary Hart) drew with The Sheepherders & Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) by double DQ in 11:42 after the referee lost control of the match (C). The match featured interference by both Hart and Akbar (who came to blows during the match). After the match, the 8 men brawled around ringside for several minutes, with neither gaining an advantage. (D). -The standings for Group A now look like this: 1. The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza (1 pinfall win, 1 draw: 4 points, 2 matches remaining) 2. The Sheepherders & Nikita Koloff (1 draw: 1 point, 3 matches remaining) 3. The Sammartinos & Iceman Parsons (1 loss: 0 points, 3 matches remaining) (Teams wrestle each other team in their group twice, and earn 3 points for a pinfall/submission victory, 2 points for a DQ/countout vicotry, and 1 point for a draw). -After order is restored, Gary Hart returns to the ring with his client, King Kong Bundy. Hart hypes Bundy's upcoming match with Curt Hennig. (B). -Curt Hennig defeats King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) in 8:48 by DQ after interference from Hart. (B-). After the match, Hennig cut a lengthy promo addressing his home-state crowd, putting them over as great fans. Hennig also said he's blown through the competition in WCCW, and he wants a World Title shot against Bobby Eaton. Hennig says that he knows that both the wrestlers and the fans have a voice regarding who the next commissioner of WCCW will be - he asks the fans to support whoever will require title holders to defend their championships regularly. (B+) -10-man Tag Team Match. -Elimination Rules -Kerry Von Erich, Kevin Von Erich, Bruno Sammartino, David Sammartino, & Iceman Parsons defeat Roddy Piper, Adrian Adonis, Bobby Eaton, Bob Backlund, & Dick Murdock in 26:42. The Von Erichs and Iceman Parsons were the "survivors", and the order of elimination was as follows: 1. Bobby Eaton pinned David Sammartino (5-4) 2. Bob Backlund made Bruno Sammartino submit (5-3) 3. Adrian Adonis was DQ'd (4-3) 4. Roddy Piper was DQ'd (3-3) 5. Kerry Von Erich pinned Dick Murdoch (3-2) 6. Kevin Von Erich pinned Bob Backlund (3-1) 7. Bobby Eaton, facing 3-1 odds, elected to go back to the dressing room, drawing a countout. (C+) -David Sammartino was limited by injury -Adonis, Piper, and Backlund looked good Overall Show Rating: C+ -Kind of a wild show that drew a decent enough rating for the midwest. -The main event used "survivor series" rules - that's one PPV gimmick I haven't stolen yet, and I probably won't, at least in terms of an entire show built around it. I'll probably continue to use that format in random main events when I want to give the entire main event/upper midcard some work. It gives some different guys a chance to be in the main event. -Curt Hennig though, was the star of the show - his interview to his home-state crowd was the highest-rated segment of the show, match or otherwise. (and his match with Bundy wasn't too shabby either.) -The Six-Man Tag Team tournament rages on - The Villanos have come a long way in the last year to be involved in a credible draw with the likes of The Sheepherders & Nikita Koloff. Group A is anybody's to win. -Another squash for the Road Warriors - they've been doing that for months. They'll have to deliver in their upcoming series of matches with The Sheepherders - they'll either becoming our dominant tag team, or they'll be out on the street. |
NEWS
-Randy Savage has signed with Mid-South, where he'll work in addition to WWC (Puerto Rico), and his father's ICW promotion. After being tied exclusively to ICW at the start of the dynasty, Savage really has a chance to make a name for himself now that he's broadened his horizons. Mid-South is still only a "regional" sized promotion, but they have talent there: The Junkyard Dog, Mr. Wrestling II, Jim Duggan, Dick Murdoch, Magnum TA, The Wild Samoans, Austin Idol, Barry Windham, Bill Irwin, among many others. -Tiger Mask arrived late at the last show. I believe this is a first offense - I give him a warning. -Adrian Adonis and Roddy Piper are exhausted after the last show. |
Ive only just discoverd this and read the whole thing on a boring business trip.
Absolute top work, and heres hoping it continues |
This and the AWA at midnight on ESPN classic are my guilty pleasures.
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WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 3, November 1984 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: default Actual Attendance: 4,658 [/u][/b] -Pre-Show Dark Match Villano IV defeats Dusty Wolfe in 6:50 by pinfall (D+). Wolfe seemed off his game. Villano IV looked good. -Pre-Show Dark Match Villano V defeats Mark Youngblood in 4:31 by pinfall (D+). Youngblood seemed off his game. -The show starts as Lance Russell previews the nights events, including the main event of Kevin Von Erich v. Roddy Piper for the TV Title. Russell also notes that if you're a fan of Piper's, you've turned in on the right night, because there will also be a special triple feature edition of Piper's Pit with THREE guests: Kevin Von Erich, WCCW World Champion Bobby Eaton, and WCCW commissioner candidate Ray "The Crippler Stevens" (C-) -WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament Match -Group A, Match 3 The Sammartinos & Iceman Parsons draw with The Sheepherders and Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) after the referee lost control of the match and all six men got involved at the same time. (C). David's injury took a big toll. Parsons and Miller looked good. -The announcers recap the events of the tournament, as the following graphic appears on screen: -(Group A Standings) 1. The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza (1 pinfall win, 1 draw: 4 points, 2 matches remaining) 2. The Sheepherders & Nikita Koloff (2 draws: 2 points, 2 matches remaining) 3. The Sammartinos & Iceman Parsons (1 loss, 1 draw, 1 point, 2 matches remaining) -Steve Olonoski hypes his upcoming match with the mysterious Magic Dragon. Olsonoski puts over the weirdness of his opponent, claims he's ready for anything, but will try to make sure this just stays an ordinary wrestling mach. (D) -Magic Dragon (w/Gary Hart) defeats Steve Olosnoski in 7:36 by pinfall. (C-) Hart's appearance in Dragon's corner was a surprise - the announcers note the connections - Hart was a longtime manager of Dragon's former teammate, The Great Kabuki, whom Dragon has harassed in recent weeks. Magic Dragon is just as bizarre as previous weeks - at one point he throws a fireball at Olsonoski has Hart distracts the referee. -Bob Backlund defeats Al Perez in 6:43 by submission. (C). Backlund looked good. Perez was exhausted by the end of the match. During the match, Gary Hart, one of the three managerial candidates for Backlund, saunters down to ringside. After the match, Hart presents Backlund what appears to be an expensive watch. Backlund looks appreciative, and accepts the watch. Lord Alfred Hayes, on commentary, sounds incredulous, and says that he knows that Backlund can't be bought, and that Backlund will accept Hayes' managerial contract offer soon. C+ -Piper's Pit: Triple Feature! First guest: WCCW World Champion Bobby Eaton. Piper fawns over Eaton and his world title, but then reluctantly asks the difficult question - when will Eaton make his first title defense? Eaton says he's waited until this moment to make the announcement, when he could be on the greatest wrestling talk show in history - he will defend the WCCW World Title at Thanksgiving Star Wars next week. Eaton says he has hand-picked contenders to take part in a 10-man battle royal that night, and that he'll defend the world title against the winner immediately following the match. Piper puts over the idea as brilliant. (B-) -Piper's Pit, second segment, with guest Ray "The Crippler" Stevens. Stevens hypes his candidacy for WCCW Commissioner. Stevens says that Piper's popularity in WCCW is evidenced by this "Triple Feature" Edition of Piper's Pit tonight, and says that's why he's here. Stevens hypes his candidacy, saying that he's the only candidate who as been a world champion, and he's the only candidate determined to bring law, order, and rules back to WCCW. Stevens says he'd ban moves from the top rope, and ban excessive brawling. Before he can get to far into his platform, he's interrupted by the other two candidates for WCCW Commissioner, Jose Lothario and Mr. Wrestling II. They both note that Stevens has already had an appearance on Piper's Pit, last week in Oregon, and they ask Piper for equal time. Piper says: his show, his rules. Before long, an argument breaks out between the three candidates, who have to be broken up by Piper and Adonis. (B-). Mr. Wrestling II came across well. -Piper's Pit, third segment, w/guest Kevin Von Erich After order is restored, Piper introduces his third guest, and opponent tonight, the WCCW TV Champion Kevin Von Erich. Piper insults Kevin throughout the interview, saying that Kevin has only emerged as a WCCW main eventer because his brother David is on the shelf, and his other brother Kerry is unreliable. Piper says Kevin has been ducking him, and that he'll take his title tonight. Kevin mostly takes the high road, and just says that he's looking forward to the match (but does make reference to Adonis' recently-discovered interest in cross-dressing) (B). -Mike Von Erich defeats Adrian Adonis in 6:51 by count-out. (C+). Adonis looked good. Mike was visibly tiring towards the end of the match. During the match, the lights dimmed, and "Exotic" Adrian Street's theme music blared through the arena. Lights flashed near the entrance-way. It appeared to be an effort to distract Mike, Street's opponent at Thanksgiving Star Wars, but Adonis was far more distracted. Adonis (who several weeks ago was indirectly inspired by Street to dress in drag), wandered away from ringside towards the lights near the entrance-way, looking intrigued and "distant". Soon, he was counted out, which gave Mike the win. -Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament Match -Group B, Match 2 Curt Hennig, Tiger Mask, & The Great Kabuki defeat Barry Orton, Perry Jackson, & Doug Somers (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 9:42 when Hennig pinned Orton. (C+). During the match, Magic Dragon attacked The Great Kabuki at ringside, incapacitating him with a fireball. Tiger Mask & Hennig had to continue on on their own, but were able to win the match, with some difficulty. Tiger Mask and Kabuki looked good. -After the match, Gary Hart cut a promo with Magic Dragon by his side. Hart says that Magic Dragon has returned to the WCCW to avenge Kabuki's desertion of former manager Gary Hart. Hart challenges Kabuki, on Dragon's behalf, to a no-DQ match at Thanksgiving Star Wars. The announcers note that Hart has another team involved in this tournament group, and he may have simply been trying to cost them a win here. (C+) -After the match and events, a graphic is displayed: -(Group B Standings) 1. Curt Hennig, The Great Kabuki, & Tiger Mask (1 pinfall win, 3 points, 3 matches remaining) 2. Doug Somers, Perry Jackson & Perry Orton (1 DQ win, 1 loss, 1 point, 2 matches remaining) 3. King Kong Bundy, Bob Backlund, & Dick Murdock (1 loss, 0 points, 3 matches remaining) -WCCW Television Championship Match Kevin Von Erich drew with Roddy Piper (w/Adrian Adonis) in 10:00 when the time limit expires. (B+). Kevin makes his 8th defense of the TV title. Overall Show Rating: B- THOUGHTS: -I'm pretty surprised by the rating considering we had a lot of crap matches. The "triple feature" Piper's Pit definitely paid dividends. -Kevin just keeps rolling along. He's defending the TV Title against Greg Valentine in the main event of Thanksgiving Star Wars. -The Mike/Adonis/Adrian Street stuff is kind of fun. Street tries to faze Mike, but instead inspires Adonis again to get all creepy. |
NEWS
-Roddy Piper was late to the last show. That's kind of what he does. I need him at Thanksgiving Star Wars, so I just fine him. -Adrian Adonis and Roddy Piper are exhausted after the last show. -The TV show gets a 3.16, which is a bit of a rebound for us. Highest rating in 3 weeks. -Mid-South Wrestling released a number of wrestlers: Big John Studd, The One Man Gang, King Kong Bundy, and Randy Savage. I'd love to take another shot at Savage and bring the Gang in, but I need a little consistency on my roster so I'm hanging steady for a while. All four of those guys still have work elsewhere. -David Sammartino is finally fully healed from his injury. I'll give him a chance to see what he can do, but it's not likely he sticks with us after his father's upcoming retirement. -Mid-Atlantic just ran Starcade 1984, here's a partial card: -Dusty Rhodes defeated Joe Leduc to retain the NWA World Title -Ivan Koloff defeated Terry Funk -Austin Idol defeated The Assassin -Dr. Tom Pritchard and Don Davis are being hyped as future stars on the dirt sheets -Dick Slater won the United States Heavyweight Championship, in Mid-Atlantic, from Jake Roberts. Slater has held 15 various titles at this point in his career, but this is by far the most prestigious, and biggest win of his career. -Mr. Wrestling II, Adrian Street, Magic Dragon, David Sammartino, King Tonga, and Bruno Sammartino once again complain about their pushes. Street, Dragon, and Tonga will be gone after their next loan appearances. -Manny Fernandez and Steve Keirn regained the Geogia Championship Wrestling National Tag Team Championship from Stan Hansen and Buzz Sawyer. It's the second reign for Keirn/Fernandez. -I request negotiations with the 2-time SWCW Tag Team Champions, the Grapplers (Tony Anthony and Les Denton), who are unemployed after being released by that company. I won't pay a lot for them, and they'd barely be in the midcard with us, but I'm looking to expand our tag team division with established teams, as the opportunity arises. |
THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 4, November 1984 Dallas, TX (Midwest - Very Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 2,337 Ticket prices: $2 over Default Actual Attendance: 1,998 -Pre-Show Dark Match David Sammartino (w/Bruno Sammartino) defeats Barry Orton (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 7:45 by pinfall. (C-). After the match, Lord Alfred Hayes interviewed David about his win. (D) -Pre-Show Dark Match -King Tonga drew with Doug Sommers (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 5:47 by double countout. (C) -As the show starts, Skandor Akbar comes to the ring with the The Sheepherders. Akbar is in a rage, he aggressively hypes The Sheepherders' first ever match with the Road Warriors at Thanksgiving Star Wars, saying that his team is as ready as ever, are looking to destroy the "overhyped freaks." (C) -The Sheepherders (w/Skandor Akbar) defeat Al Perez & Owen Hart in 7:18 when Williams pinned Hart. (C-). Akbar interfered throughout the match. Perez was exhausted by the end of the match. The Sheepherders looked good. After the match, The Sheepherders, along with Akbar, continued the brutal attack on Perez and Hart. The heels then drenched the losers' faces with paint, sending a message to the face-painted Road Warriors. (D+). Akbar, standing amongst the carnage, again grabbed a mic and told the Road Warriors that Perez and Hart got off lucky, compared to what will happen to the Warriors on Thanksgiving. (C) -As the ring is cleaned up, Lance Russell hypes the next match to the fans - the next chapter in the ongoing saga between Gary Hart's team of King Kong Bundy & Arturo Mendoza v. Tiger Mask & The Great Kabuki. Tonight will feature a 2 X 2 match under Texas Tornado rules - all 4 men can legally be in the ring at the same time. Russell announces that Kabuki has been cleared to wrestle after the fireball attack from Magic Dragon last week, but that his vision may be still limited. (C+). Gary Hart came out with his team and hyped the match, and also Magic Dragon's no-DQ match against The Great Kabuki at November Star Wars. (C) -Texas Tornado Match (all 4 men are legal at the same time) The Great Kabuki & Tiger Mask defeat King Kong Bundy & Arturo Mendoza (w/Gary Hart) in 20:58 when Kabuki pinned Bundy after a wild match (B-). Bundy was tiring towards the end of the match. -Bob Backlund comes to the ring, where he's interviewed by Lance Russell. Backlund & Russell hype tonight's main event - a rematch of last month's Texas Rumble main event when Kevin successfully defended his TV title over Backlund. Russell hypes Kevin's recent winning streak, to the irritation of Backlund. Russell also hypes Backlund's managerial search, but Backlund refuses to reveal if there's a frontrunner. (B-) -Non-Title Match Kevin Von Erich defeats Bob Backlund in 32:02 by submission. (A). During the match, all three of Backlund's managerial candidates - Skandor Abkar, Lord Alfred Hayes, and Gary Hart wandered down to ringside and interfered at various points. Eventually though, their botched interference helped Kevin win the match. After the match, all three prospective managers entered the ring and tried to talk with Backlund. Backlund, however, snapped, and attacked all three managers. (C-). The fans loved it, and Backlund manically celebrated in the ring. (B). Overall Show Rating: B- THOUGHTS: -Good show, another huge win for Kevin who delivered against Backlund. Kevin just can't go an hour like I pushed him to at the Texas Rumble, so it was good to see him do so well here in a shorter match. -Still not quite a face turn for Backlund, who's flirted with "changing sides" all year. The fans did love to see him take out all the heel managers though. I'm not sure yet if this is the end of his managerial search, or if the managers will continue to seek him out, risking life and limb. -Yet another solid tag team match involving Kabuki/Tiger Mask/Bundy/Mendoza. This feud will die down soon and start to involve the Von Erichs, and then, whoever emerges from the Road Warriors/Sheepherders feud. -Speaking of the Sheepherders - they just don't seem as effective as they were last year. Maybe they're just getting old. Still, they bring more to the table right now than the green Road Qarriors. This "dream feud" with the Road Warriors doesn't really have as much sizzle as I thought it might. Still, they'll beat on each other for a while, so it's a chance for them to prove themselves. -That's King Tonga's last match with us, he leaves with a record of 1-1-1 during his loan contract. It's a tiny boost for Somers to get a draw against him here. -This was also David Sammartino's first match with us at 100% health. C- against Barry Orton ain't that bad. Curt Hennig only got a C out of Orton in September, and Steve Olonoski only got a D. Maybe there's hope for Sammartino yet, I'll give him a chance - a tag team with Mike Von Erich might be interesting. |
NEWS
-Bob Backlund and King Tonga are exhausted after the last show. Tonga's gone now. Backlund isn't booked for Thanksgiving Star Wars due to potential WWF conflict. -Johnny Savage (aka Johnny Smith, occasional replacement for Davey Boy Smith in the British Bulldogs) is hyped as a future star in the UK. I'll keep him in mind if Lord Alfred Hayes' British stable ever becomes a reality. -Kerry Von Erich said on a radio show that he likes to wrestle the opening match of the show (perhaps so he can leave early). I'll give him the chance to do that. |
WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 4, November 1984 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: default Actual Attendance: 4,658 -Pre-Show Dark Segment Gary Hart came out to the ring with Villano V. Hart says at a few weeks ago, he announced that he'd take on the Villanos as clients if they and Arturo Mendoza won the WCCW Six Man Tag Team Championship Tournament. Hart hypes that the Villanos are living up to their end of the bargain, as they lead Group A halfway through the first round. Hart says he's managing Villano V tonight, to help to encourage him to finish the job. (C). The Missouri Mauler comes to the ring with his client, Doug Somers, and hypes the match tonight between Villano V and Somers. Mauler points out that while The Villanos & Mendoza are doing well in the tournament, Hart's "dream team" of Bundy/Murdoch/Backlund has been a bust. Mauler claims that he can't wait until his team of Somers/Orton/Jackson defeats the dream team once again. (C-) -Pre-Show Dark Match Villano V (w/Gary Hart) drew with Doug Somers (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 10:00 when the time limit expired. -As the show starts, a lengthy video package recaps the long feud between The Road Warriors and The Sheepherders, who will face each other tomorrow for the first time at Thanksgiving Star Wars (C). -The Sheepherders (w/Skandor Akbar) defeat Steve Olsonoski & Mark Youngblood in 5:38 when Miller pinned Youngblood. (C+). After the match, Akbar ordered his team to continue the beating of Olsonoski & Youngblood, and to drench them with paint, once again sending a message to The Road Warriors. (D+). Akbar then cut a promo, with The Sheepherders by his side, warning the The Road Warriors not to back out of their match tomorrow night, as much as they probably want to. (C). -Gary Hart cuts a promo backstage, and says that he knows that there's some rumors about "disagreements" between himself and Bob Backlund that apparently revealed themselves a few nights ago in Dallas. Hart says that the rumors are exaggerated, that everything's fine between him and Backlund, that he'll manage his "dream team" of Backlund/Murdoch/Bundy as scheduled tonight. Hart also announces that he's enhancing his official full-time managerial services contract offer to Backlund, and hopes to have a deal finalized shortly. (B-) Hart is interrupted by video footage from this Monday's event in Dallas, which shows Backlund completely snap and attack all of his managerial candidates - Hart, Lord Alfred Hayes, and Skandor Akbar. (C+). The shot cuts back to Hart, and Lance Russell asks him to explain how things can be "fine", after what we just saw. Hart is irritated and wants to know who ran that footage, and maintains at the end of the day, he'll be standing tall in WCCW as the manager of the best wrestler in the world, Bob Backlund. (C+) -Iceman Parsons defeats Dusty Wolfe in 5:10 by pinfall. (D). -Lance Russell interviews Kerry Von Erich about his match tomorrow night against the man he eliminated last to win the Texas Rumble, Dick Murdoch. (C-) Kerry says he's ready for Murdoch, and also more than willing to be a part of Bobby Eaton's invitational "battle royal" to determine his first challenger - but he hasn't received an invitation yet. Kerry also hypes his match tonight with Adrian Adonis. (C). Kerry mentions Adonis' odd behavior as of late. -Kerry Von Erich defeats Adrian Adonis in 17:20 by countout after Adonis became distracted and confused and wandered away from ringside. (B-). Adonis seemed distracted throughout the match, often displaying feminine characteristics. Kerry seemed off his game. -Lance Russell interviews Bruno Sammartino about his son's match tonight with Roddy Piper, and also about his own match against Piper, just announced for tomorrow night's Thanksgiving Star Wars event. Sammartino said he's fought Piper all over the country, he's beat him up again and again, including in a steel cage environment. Sammartino says that tomorrow night it's just 1-on-1, in the ring, hopefully for the final time in his feud. (C+) -Roddy Piper (w/Adrian Adonis) defeats David Sammartino (w/Bruno Sammartino) in 7:11 by submission. (D+). The two showed poor chemistry. Adonis was at ringside, but still seemed confused and distracted, must to the frustration of Piper. After the match, Piper gloated to Bruno about his easy win over David, but didn't want to get involved with Bruno right now. -WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament Match -Group B, Match 3 King Kong Bundy, Dick Murdoch, & Bob Backlund (w/Gary Hart) defeat The Great Kabuki, Tiger Mask, & Curt Hennig in 20:51 in a wild, overbooked brawl after Backlund pinned Kabuki. (B-). Bundy was visibly tiring towards the end of the match. Backlund was hostile toward Hart, and his teammates, throughout the match, putting them at a disadvantage. Still, he was also very effective against his opponents, and eventually won the match all by himself after putting submission holds on both of his teammates. The announcers also hyped Kabuki's no-DQ match against Magic Dragon tomorrow, and wondered out loud if Dragon would make an appearance here (he didn't). -(Group B Standings) 1T. Curt Hennig, The Great Kabuki, & Tiger Mask (1 pinfall win, 1 loss, 3 points, 2 matches remaining) 1T. King Kong Bundy, Bob Backlund, & Dick Murdock (1 pinfall win, 1 loss, 3 points, 2 matches remaining) 2. Doug Somers, Perry Jackson & Perry Orton (1 DQ win, 1 loss, 1 point, 2 matches remaining) OVERALL SHOW RATING: C+ THOUGHTS: -OK show. Kind of a weird show. -The story with the main event was that Backlund was attacking all of the other 5 men in the match, and Gary Hart, and kind of just by luck, he was able to score the win for his team in the process. This team somehow has to manage to wrestle together at least twice more in this tournament. -That match, and Adonis/Kerry, kept our rating respectable. Adonis is going through some kind of cross-dressing identity crisis, I imagine it being played for comedy. -I've put a lot of hype into Sheepherders/Road Warriors, but the fans just don't seem that into it. I waited to long, and the storyline rating has been hurt as a result. |
NEWS
-Adrian Adonis was exhausted after the last show. -The TV Show gets a 2.89 rating. That's our lowest rating in 2 months. -The final announced card for Thanksgiving Star Wars: -WCCW Television Championship Match Kevin Von Erich v. Greg Valentine -WCCW Cruiserweight Championship Match Adrian Street v. Mike Von Erich -The Road Warriors v. The Sheepherders -10-Man Battle Royal -Winner faces Bobby Eaton for the WCCW World Title. -No-DQ The Great Kabuki v. Magic Dragon -Bruno Sammartino v. Roddy Piper -Curt Hennig & Tiger Mask v. Arturo Mendoza & King Kong Bundy -Kerry Von Erich v. Dick Murdoch. -The first debate between the three candidates for WCCW Commissioner (Mr. Wrestling II, Jose Lothario, Ray Stevens), moderated by Lance Russell |
WCCW: Thanksgiving Star Wars
Thursday, Week 4, November 1984 Dallas, TX (Midwest - Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,955 Ticket prices: Default Actual Attendance: 3,914 -Pre-Show Dark Match Al Perez defeats Dusty Wolfe in 5:36 by submission. (C-) -Pre-Show Dark Segment The Missouri Mauler cuts a promo hyping his client Barry Orton's match against David Sammartino, and notes that David was dominated last night by Roddy Piper. (D). David cuts a promo hyping the match as well. (D) -Pre-Show Dark Match David Sammartino (w/Bruno Sammartino) defeats Barry Orton (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 7:17 by pinfall. (D+) -Kerry Von Erich defeats Dick Murdoch in 10:47 by pinfall. (B-). The two showed good chemistry. After the match, Kerry hyped his hard-fought victory over the tough Murdoch. (C+). He also notes that he never did receive an invite to Bobby Eaton's 10-man "contender" tournament. -Roddy Piper came out and delivered a delirious promo hyping his upcoming match with Bruno Sammartino. Piper hyped his dominating win over Bruno's son David last night, and briefly recapped his lengthy feud with the Sammartinos. (B) -Roddy Piper (w/Adrian Adonis) defeated Bruno Sammartino (w/David Sammartino) in 8:29 by submission. (C+). After the match, Piper quickly leaves the ringside area as David checks on his father. Piper grabs a mic and says that he sees a lot of potential in David, and that his match last night against David was much more difficult than his match tonight against Bruno. Piper calls Bruno a failure for not accomplishing his goal of winning championship gold in WCCW. Piper then tells David that he can accomplish that thing that his father never could - Piper offers to join David's six-man tag team in the WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Tournament if only David kicks his father off of the team. Piper says such a move would obviously be a huge upgrade, and it would lead to a definite championship reign for David - Piper tells David to mull that over as he looks over his washed-up father. David looks surprised. (B). -Arturo Mendoza & King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) drew with Curt Hennig & Tiger Mask in 13:31 following a Double DQ. (B+). Gary Hart interfered for the heels. -WCCW Cruiserweight Championship Match Mike Von Erich defeats Adrian Street in 4:43 by submission to win the Cruiserweight Championship for a 3rd time. (B) Adrian Adonis continued his recently-discovered fascination of Street, wandering down to ringside and trying on some of Street's attire that was left around ringside. Street became distracted and went to confront Adonis, who reacted as if he was meeting a movie star. The constant distractions of Adonis helped lead to Mike's win. After the match, Adonis wandered away, still wearing Street's ring robe, wig, and boa. -The Road Warriors came to the ring and cut an angry promo, hyping their upcoming match with The Sheepherders. The Road Warriors say that they've waited all year for this match, and have put up a lot of money for the opportunity to bash The Sheepherders' brains in. (C+) -The Sheepherders (w/Skandor Akbar) defeat The Road Warriors in 8:52 when Miller pinned Hawk after interference by Akbar (who grabbed Hawk's leg, rendering him unable to kick out). (B+) After the 3-count, The Sheepherders and Akbar quickly fled the ringside area to safety. The match suffered from a lack of selling. -WCCW Commissioner Debate #1 Lance Russell moderates a debate between the three candidates for the job: Jose Lothario, Ray Stevens, and Mr. Wrestling II. (C+). A rough platform of each is as follows: -Lothario: the only home-grown candidate, fiercely loyal to WCCW and vested in it's continued growth. Lothario feels that while the promotion should continue to expand all over the world, they should never forget their roots in Texas. Would create a championship committee that determined title contenders and would schedule mandatory title defenses, and a discipline committee that handles suspensions and fines. Feels that the in-ring product should continue to evolve and become more exciting, which he'd accomplish by bringing in top wrestlers from around the world, who would all introduce their unique styles to WCCW. -Stevens: the only candidate who's been a world champion. He favors a promotion with less sizzle, more substance. He wants to get back to basics -and ban wrestlers from coming off of the top rope, a more literal reading of DQ rules, etc. He thinks wrestlers should be allowed to contract with each other for matches and title defenses as they see fit, without an overpowering "government" telling them what they have to do. -Mr. Wrestling II: Would be a "law and order" commissioner, and would be the one and only boss. Champions would be forced to defend their titles whenever he saw fit. Suspensions and Fines could likewise be ordered at his discretion. The best structure is a great leader who cares about his organization. -No-DQ Match The Great Kabuki defeats Magic Dragon (w/Gary Hart) in 3:57 by pinfall in a dominating victory that involved green mist for both Dragon and Hart. Dragon was prepared for the "first batch", and was wearing a protective mask over his regular mask, but Kabuki simply sprayed Dragon again, with several chair shots and a table spot thrown in for good measure. (C) -Lord Alfred Hayes interviewed WCCW World Champion Bobby Eaton about the upcoming 10-man battle royal, the winner of which will immediately face Eaton for the World Title. Eaton says he stocked the battle royal with the top competition that wasn't already booked to wrestle tonight, and that it's a true lineup of all-stars. (B-). -10 Man Battle Royal -Winner gets WCCW World Title Shot Iceman Parsons wins the battle royal, last eliminating Nikita Koloff. The match also featured The Villanos, Mark Youngblood, Adrian Adonis, Doug Somers, Owen Hart, Perry Jackson, and Steve Olsonoski. (C+) -WCCW World Heavyweight Championship Match Bobby Eaton drew with Iceman Parsons in 7:31 by Double DQ to make his 1st title defense. (B+). Eaton started out the match dominating the tired Parsons, but Parsons surprised Eaton by gaining steam and taking the match over - until interference by a returning Koko B. Ware. Ware's interference (which included a vicious chairshot) appeared to give Eaton control of the match until David Von Erich appeared out of nowhere to brutally attack Ware, the man responsible for putting him out of action several months ago. In the ensuing melee, the referee was accidentally knocked unconscious, and David attacked Eaton and put Parsons on top of him for the potential 3-count. When the referee awoke however, he sensed the confusion, and called for a double-dq. (B+). Eaton & Ware fled, and David cut a promo saying he'll catch up to them and make them pay dearly (C+) -Lance Russell interviews Greg Valentine about his upcoming TV Title shot against Kevin Von Erich. Valentine puts over his current reign as Georgia Championship Wrestling National TV Champion, and promises to unify those belts tonight. (B-). Kevin cuts a promo hyping the match as well, and puts over Valentine's toughness. (B) -WCCW Television Championship Match Kevin Von Erich defeats Greg Valentine in 23:15 by submission to make his 9th defense of the title. (B+). The two showed poor chemistry. After the match, the four Von Erich brothers (who had a very successful night) celebrated together in the ring. (B-) Overall Show Rating: B THOUGHTS: -Solid show, with a bunch of good matches. -I couldn't have expected more from Kevin/Valentine considering their bad chemistry. This was better than their "B" rated draw in Georgia a few weeks ago. Kevin has gone 2 months and 13 matches without a loss. -The World Title Match was a little crazy. The idea was that Parsons came THIS close to winning the title thanks to David's interference, which only happened after Koko seemingly cost Parsons the match. I've kept up the Parsons/Von Erich friendship where I could, even though they're not really involved in storylines together. I like the idea of different wrestlers having different kinds of relationships with each other, that aren't always on the forefront of everything, but come up when appropriate. Aside from the crazy booking of that match, it was also very well rated. -Eaton's getting pissed that the TV title continues to overshadow his world title, so while his "invitational battle royal" didn't exactly include any top contenders, it wasn't filled with jobbers either. He's trying to very conservatively gain some respect. -It was great to see The Sheepherders/Road Warriors match do so well - another in a list of B+ matches on this show. That's very promising, and I'm not going to pull the plug on this feud or either team. I'll be curious to see if they can crack the A- mark once the storyline heats up. -Hennig stepped into Kabuki's shoe's and wrestled with one of his partners in the six-man tag tournament, Tiger Mask. They had another terrific match with Bundy/Mendoza. Hennig will maintain a friendship Tiger Mask/Kabuki as long as they're all together in WCCW. -Mike has actually had 6 title reigns since this dynasty started (3-time Cruiserweight Champion, Six-Man Tag Champion, WWA Tag Team Champ, WCCW American Tag Champ). He'll probably get a decently long reign until I permanently hand this division over to the REAL Cruiserweight talent (should the financial situation allow it). -Piper has finally gotten the upper hand in his feud with The Sammartinos, and he's using that advantage to try to tear the family apart by encouraging David to dump his father. What a jerk. -Huge (clean) win for Kerry over Murdoch. He mostly just got that win because I knew Kevin and Mike were winning and David was making an appearance, so this would be a "Von Erich night". -Greg Valentine, Adrian Street, and Magic Dragon all complete their loan contracts with WCCW tonight. Since all won or drew their first 2 matches, they were all allowed to lose here (house rule). Valentine gave Kevin some solid matches, Street did the same with Mike (and was the catalyst for whatever is going to happen to Adonis), and Magic Dragon was just a disaster for Gary Hart, who brought him in to destroy Kabuki, only to have the opposite happen in short order. |
NEWS
-While inevitable, the news is still shocking. The WWF has closed their doors after increasing financial issues. The WWF was the world's most prestigious promotion, and their demise will change the entire future of wrestling. Their final show was in Wisconsin, and their final match featured Hulk Hogan defeating Larry Zbyszko. I'll post much more about the death of the WWF, but for now, the first thing I do is request negotiations with Hogan and Vince McMahon. So many options here. I could just upgrade my roster with available talent, have an heel WWF "invading" faction, or try to start a WWF brand in the northeast. It's kind of sad to see all these new names on the unemployed list: Howard Finkle, Linda McMahon, Lou Albano, The Grand Wizard, Gorilla Monsoon, Pat Patterson, etc. I notice that Ric Flair and Harley Race are also still unemployed, only because they don't feel that ANY surviving promotion is big enough for them to deal with right now. -It appears there will be other big players falling soon. All-Japan, New Japan, and Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre are all said to be "on the brink". The entire wrestling economy is falling apart. -Adrian Adonis and Roddy Piper are exhausted after the last show. -Jim Duggan and Dick Murdoch won the Mid-South Tag Team Championship from The Junkyard Dog and Mr. Wrestling II. -I sign Len Denton (aka "The Grappler #1") for 9 months at $1,250 and Tony Anthony (aka "The Grappler #2) for 9 months at $850. These guys are no threats to the WCCW Tag Titles, but are maybe a step above The Villanos. -Mr. Wrestling II, Steve Olsonoski, Mark Youngblood Bruno Sammartino, and Mike Von Erich complain about their pushes. The only new one there is Mike. -With all the promotions closing recently, a new one has somehow managed to form - The St. Louis Wrestling Club. They're a small-sized "pure" style promotion (a style based on traditional wrestling and little/no angles). It will be interesting to see who they bring in. |
THE DEATH OF THE WWF
Some other info on the death of the world's biggest wrestling promotion. Their death, by the way, leaves WCCW as the the most prestigious wrestling promotion in the world. When the dynasty started, we were in a 3-way tie for 9th most prestigious. It's been a brutal couple of years for wrestling. The WWF is the 9th promotion to fold since the dynasty started, joining: -CWA (Memphis) -Championship Wrestling From Florida -Central States (St. Louis) -All-Star Wrestling (British Columbia) -Joint Promotions (UK) -Houston Championship Wrestling -WWA (Great Lakes) -Powerful Women of Wrestling The Final WWF Champions: -WWF Heavyweight Champion: Sgt. Slaughter -WWF Intercontinental Champion: Jerry Lawler -WWF Tag Team Champions: Paul Orndorff & Bob Backlund Top Unemployed Former WWF Workers (Wrestlers who weren't working with anyone else at the time of WWF's closing, and who are thus now unemployed) -Hulk Hogan -The Invaders -Rocky Johnson -Pedro Morales -The Grand Wizard -Buddy Rodgers -Fred Blassie -Gorilla Monsoon -Pat Patterson -Lou Albano -Big John Studd -Chief Jay Strongbow -Mr. Fugi -Vince K. McMahon -Vince J. McMahon -Linda McMahon |
Congratulations on climbing atop the heap, although it does not really feel like you are thriving when you have 1,000 empty seats for Star Wars. Still, it seems like you are way outperforming the now-closed competition.
Based on others who are playing this format, is this typical for the time period or does the tough economy represent a particularly tough 'random event' in the game? Will the failures of other promotions lead to better opportunities with TV, marketing, etc due to a lack of viable options? Or are you performing in a relative vacuum, with only your own financial numbers dictating TV? |
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Ya, the attendance for the last show was a disappointment, but I'm still experimenting with ticket cost v. attendance values. I should try a show at a bigger arena with cheaper tickets just to see where I max out, and who knows, maybe there's some hidden bonus for well-attended shows. While my national popularity has shot up, by popularity in my best region (Texas) is about where it was when I started. It will take breaking through to A-Quality shows to improve there and get the huge attendance numbers, and there's just no hurry to do that as long as I'm increasing in popularity everywhere else. I think every promotion is in a vacuum when it comes to fan interest - another company going under doesn't mean there's more fans for me. The only impact is the availability and affordability of talent. More unemployed workers means workers who will work for cheaper, eventually (once their popularity goes down from being out of the spotlight). That happened with Dick Murdoch. He considered me "too small" for the longest time, but once he was out of action 6 months, suddenly I was good enough. That will happen eventually with the rest of the big stars still out on the sidelines (Race, Flair, Hogan). I really don't have any competition for those guys now, it's just a matter of what I can afford. |
MAIN EVENT SNAPSHOT
Just to give an idea of the state of wrestling post-WWF, here's the current main eventers and upper midcarders for all of the promotions in the world (promotions are ranked by prestige). Note that even though a smaller promotion may claim a big star on their roster, their access to him might be limited if he also works for a higher promotion. 1. WCCW: Bobby Eaton, Curt Hennig, David Von Erich, Bob Backlund, Roddy Piper, Road Warriors, Dick Murdoch, Kevin Von Erich, Kerry Von Erich, Koko B. Ware, Adrian Adonis. 2. Mid-Atlantic: Ricky Steamboat, Roddy Piper, Terry Funk, Ivan Koloff, Greg Valentine, Dusty Rhodes, Gino Hernandez, Dory Funk Jr. Jake Roberts, Dick Slater, Jesse Ventura, Joe LeDuc 3. AWA: Wahoo McDaniel, Manny Fernandez, Jerry Stubbs, Nick Bockwinkle, Steve Keirn, Buzz Sawyer, Rick Martel, Ted Dibiase, Les Thorton, Bill Dundee, Bob Armstrong, Bobby Eaton 4. All Japan: Jumbo Tsuruta, Mr. Saito, Giant Baba, Bruiser Brody, Mark Rocco, Mighty Inoue, Akira Maeda, Umanosuke Ueda 5. Georgia Championship Wrestling: Steve Keirn, Jerry Stubbs, Stan Hanson, Buzz Sawyer, Manny Fernandez, Greg Valentine, Jake Roberts, Bob Armstrong, Mr. Wrestling II, Ronnie Garvin 6. New Japan: Abdullah The Butcher, Antonio Inoki, Seiji Sakaguchi, Genichiro Tenryu, Osamu Kido, Bob Orton Jr, Animal Hamaguchi, Hector Guerrero. 7. Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre: El Satanico, Lizmark, El Faraon, Fishman, El Supremo, Ultraman, Perro Aguayo, Kung Fu 8. Mid-South: Junkyard Dog, Mr. Wrestling II, Jim Duggan, Dick Murdoch, Stan Lane, Magnum TA 9. UWA: Fishman, Canek, Kung Fu, Enrique Vera, Brazo De Plata, Kato Kung Lee, El Brazo, MS-1 10. All-Star Wrestling (UK): Mark Rocco, Steve Wright, Fit Finlay, Tony St. Claire, The Amazing Kung Fu, Mary Jones, Skull Murphy, Steve Grey 11. WWC: David Schultz, Scott Irwin, Carlos Colon, Koko B. Ware, Hercules Ayala, Invader III, Buddy Roberts, Ricky Morton 12. Pacific Northwest: Jerry Lawler, Greg Valentine, Paul Orndorff, Jerry Stubbs, Rick Martel, Roddy Piper, Jake Roberts, Ted Dibiase, Don Muraco, Adrian Street 13. CWA (Europe): Axel Dieter, Klaus Kauroff, Mile Zrno, Otto Wanz, Tony St. Claire, Moose Morowski, Caswell Martin, Fit Finlay 14. All Japan Women's Wrestling: Dump Matsumoto, Devil Masami, Jaguar Yokota, Itsuki Yamazaki, Mami Kumano, Yumi Ikeshita 15. Maple Leaf Wrestling: Adrian Adonis, Roddy Piper, Ricky Steamboat, John Quinn, Larry Zbyszko, Dick Slater, Sgt. Slaughter, Gama Singh 16. SECW: Stan Lane, Super Olympia, Butch Reed, Pez Whatley, Dennis Condrey, Tito Santana 17. International Wrestling (Montreal): Gerry Morrow, Sailor White, Dynamite Kid, Haku, Michael Hayes, Pierre Lefebvre 18. Atlantic Grand-Prix: Gerry Morrow, Leo Burke, The Spoiler, Gilles Poisson, Pierre Lefebvre, Moondog Moretti, Gama Singh, Bob Orton Jr. 19. Calgary Stampede: Leo Burke, Jacques Rougeau, The Spoiler, Ricky Steamboat, Dynamite Kid, Bad News Allen, Tiger Mask, Bret Hart 20. SWCW: Buddy Rose, Paul Orndorff, Bob Armstrong, Butch Reed, Adrian Street, Dick Slater 21. UWF (Japan): Jay Youngblood, Gran Harnada, Riki Choshu, Bob Roop, Mitsuharu Misawa, The Amazing Kung Fu, The Cobra, Magic Dragon 22. St. Louis Wrestling Club: No wrestlers yet. 23. GLOW: Vine, Mountain Fiji, Matilda The Hun, Tammy Jones, California Doll, Ashley Cartier, Spanish Red, Meena The Headhunter, Hollywood, Manna The Headhunter, Tina Ferrari, Susie Spirit, Debbie Debutante, Colonel Ninotchka 24. ICW: Rip Rodgers, Ronnie Garvin, Randy Savage, Ratamyas, Lanny Poffo, Sonny Rodgers. Biggest Stars Not Listed Above: -Ric Flair (hasn't wrestled since losing NWA World Title to Ivan Koloff in July) -Andre the Giant (out of action with multiple concussion syndrome since March, not expected back until spring 1985. Still under contract with New Japan) -Harley Race (out of action with torn rotator cuff since March, not expected back until spring 1985. No longer under contract with any promotion) -Superstar Billy Graham (filming a movie) -Mil Mascaras (making only occasional appearances for CMLL) -Tatsumi Fujinami (unemployed since leaving CWA last month) |
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Who? |
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Here's his DOTT biography: "Bill Howard was a solid worker with a reasonably formidable look who had traveled the circuit performing throughout the US and Japan during the 70s. His biggest impact came with ICW promoter Angelo Poffo in 1982 as the madman Ratamyas, a bizarre combination of The Great Kabuki - painting his face and spraying a green mist, and the Sheik - using foreign objects to maim and a Camel Cluch move (The Devil's Triangle) to finish them off. And top top it all off, he ate fire".  |
NEWS
-I've re-signed Jose Lothario for another 8 months at $1,350/show, a slight raise from $1,250/show. Lothario, who's now 46 years old, will see his in-ring career will end if he wins the WCCW Commissioner job. -The Road Warriors strong performance at Thanksgiving Star Wars earned them another contract. If that match had been a dud, I would have sent them on their way. Road Warrior Animal has been inked first, at $1,675/show for 9 months, a raise from his last deal of $1,300/show. Negotiations with Hawk will kick off in a few days. -With the King of Texas Death Match Tournament set for this month, I extend invitations with some the best brawlers/hardcore guys in the world: Abudullah the Butcher, The Original Sheik, Terry Funk, Terry Gordy, Manny Fernandez, Mr. Pogo, Stan Hansen, Kevin Sullivan, Sgt. Slaughter, and the winner of last year's tournament, Bruiser Brody. I'm sure they'll be various roadblocks in the way of signing most of those guys, but hopefully I can bring a couple in. -Sometime before I sent all those negotiations out, I made a couple of talent trades for the purposes of the King of The Texas Death Match Tournament. I bring in Sika of the Wild Samoans from mid-south, and Buzz Sawyer from New Japan (he also works for Georgia and the AWA - where he was World Champion for much of 1984). Sawyer has developed into a gigantic star in this universe, he's a candidate for A+ matches against our main eventers. Sika is assigned as a upper-midcard heel. I'd love to mix it up and bring him in as an ass-kicking face, but he just doesn't have the ratings to pull that off. Interestingly, Sika doesn't have the required intensity rating for the "Savage Samoan" gimmick, so he's assigned as a "Weirdo". I do mix things up though, with Buzz Sawyer, who is assigned as a main event face, due to the potential number of heels in the tournament. He'll retain his "Mad Dog" gimmick (a crazy uncontrollable maniac who yet often times gets the approval of the fans). -I assign the recently-signed Grapplers as lower midcard heels. That puts them slightly above the Villanos, who may possibly be looking at a face turn to feud with The Grapplers in a mask v. mask feud. Les Denton (aka Grappler #1) has a "masked brute" gimmick, and the less-talented Tony Anthony (aka Grappler #2) will go with a "silent bodyguard" gimmick. He'll be masked also, but doesn't have the attributes to be a "brute". Denton will do all the talking. |
WCCW - END OF NOVEMBER 1984 - MONTHLY REVIEW
POPULARITY -Texas/Midsouth: 65.5% (Up From 65.4% last month) -Midwest: 62.6% (Same as last month) -Southeast: 52.8% (up from 51.4% last month) -New England: 48.7% (up from 47.5% last month) -North West: 48.0% (up from 46.4% last month) -Great Lakes: 47.8% (up from 46.4% last month) -Mid Atlantic: 47.8% (up from 46.4% last month) -Tri-State: 47.8% (up from 46.4% last month) -Southwest: 47.7% (up from 46.3% last month) -Puerto Rico: 37.6% (Same as last month) -We've probably hit bottom in the Texas, as popularity there actually increases this month. -With our debut in the Northwest last month, that becomes our #5 region. FINANCES Income (Last month in parenthesis): Ticket Sales: 447,766 (443,386) Sponsors: 76,983 (76,364) Merchandise: 14,286 (212,000) Expenses: Worker Costs: 360,142 (323,135) Show Costs: 106,500 (106,500) Marketing: 25,000 (25,000) Merchandise: 25,197 (27,096) Production: 75,000 (40,000) Misc: 139,553 (138,679) Total Profit: $-192,375 ($71,350) Cash in Bank: $459,189 ($651,564) -Well, the bizarre and unexplained 2-month surge in merchandising revenue has ended, and I take a HUGE loss this month. I still have no idea why I sold more $ worth of merchandise in September/October than the rest of game combined. Hopefully I stumble upon it again. -Obviously keeping up the spending of October, I can't stay in business very long, so I have to be a little stingy the rest of 1984. -I keep the Home Video business going, but downgrade from "above average" quality stuff to "standard" quality. I consider scrapping the home video department only because I didn't have one when I was selling all that merchandise, but I don't think there's a cause and effect relationship there, and the home video business doesn't cost much. It also helps increase our popularity. -I go back to in-house music production after experimenting with licensing for a month. That will probably bring our show ratings down a notch, but I just can't afford it right now. -I've decreased our merchandise quality back from "above average" to "standard", where it was when I was selling a ton. -I'm planning to run at least 8 of the 9 November shows in Texas to maximize revenue. That will slow down our national popularity growth, but I need to stop the financial bleeding. -A round of talent cuts is most definitely on the way. And any of the big stars I sign for the King of the Texas Deathmatch tournament will probably be let go immediately following that tournament. That'll prevent them from working for me again for at least 6 months, I'll have to take that into account. Custom Merchandise Settings: (All set to sell every type of merchandise) Low Level: -David Von Erich -Kerry Von Erich -Kevin Von Erich -Buzz Sawyer Very Low Level -Fritz Von Erich -Iceman Parsons -Bob Backlund -Bobby Eaton -Koko B. Ware -Roddy Piper -Tiger Mask -The Great Kabuki -Curt Hennig -Bruno Sammartino -Only tweak from last month is adding Buzz Sawyer to "low level". Otherwise, this is essentially the same as it was when I was selling a ton in September/October. |
WCCW CHAMPIONS - End Of November 1984
-World Heavyweight Champion - 95.7% Prestige (Up From 94.7% Last Month) Main Event Title Bobby Eaton (1 title defense, 2 month reign). -Television Champion - 70.0% Prestige (same as last month) Midcard Title Kevin Von Erich - (9 title defenses, 3 month reign) -World Tag Team Champions - 70.0% Prestige (Same as last month) Midcard Title Kerry & Kevin Von Erich - (5 title defenses, 3 month reign) -Six-Man Tag Team Champions - 66.5% Prestige (Down from 68.5% last month) Midcard Title Vacant -Cruiserweight Championship - 36.5% Prestige (up from 33.9% last month) Low Level Title Mike Von Erich - newly crowned |
WCCW STORYLINES - END OF NOVEMBER 1984
Storylines with participants and date of origin, in order of current heat: 1. Tag Team Title Storyline: Mendoza/Bundy v. Kerry/Kevin v. Kabuki/Tiger Mask (April, recently evolved to include Kerry/Kevin) 2. Bob Backlund's manager: Backlund/Akbar/Hayes/Hart (September) 3T. Eaton/Koko hides the belt from David (Eaton/Koko/David Von Erich) (October) 3T. Piper v. Bruno: Piper/Bruno/David Sammartino/Adonis) (July) 5. Nikita Koloff's 3-minute challenge: Koloff/Parsons (September) 6. Road Warriors v. Sheepherders (January) Lower midcarders and higher without a current or pending storyline: -Dick Murdoch -Curt Hennig -Mike Von Erich -Villano V -The Grapplers -A lot of the dynasty has been extremely fast-paced in terms of storyline development, but all of these stories have been going on for quite a while. It certainly would make sense to group Hennig/Murdoch together again, even though they had a mini-feud already early this year. Murdoch came out on top that time, but since then, Hennig has been promoted to main event status. Both are currently busy with the six-man-tag team championship tournament, and we have so many other storylines to develop though, so I think they'll continue to just rack up wins for the time being. -Road Warriors/Sheepherders didn't get much of a boost from their first match, I'll be watching them closely. I'm starting to lean towards cutting loose the Warriors in a cost-cutting move, but I'll let this feud go on a little longer first. WRESTLER CONFLICTS -The following wrestlers are unavailable on these days in October, as they consider these companies priorities over WCCW: NONE -As the world's most prestigious promotion, I am now EVERYONE'S top priority. Mid-Atlantic is just slightly behind me though, so I have to keep an eye on them. EXCLUSIVE WORKERS -These are the on-screen workers who happen to work for no one else but me. I'll try to give them a heavier workload, as they're the least likely to have fatigue issues. These guys are also relatively safer when it comes to talent cuts (this list includes does not include wrestlers who who are exclusively contracted to us, but as of the beginning of the month, have outstanding loan commitments with other promotions). -Al Perez -Arturo Mendoza -Barry Orton -Bronco Lubich -Curt Hennig -David Manning -The Sheepherders -David Sammartino -Doug Somers -Dusty Wolfe -Fritz Von Erich -The Grapplers -Iceman Parsons -Jose Lothario -Kerry Von Erich -Kevin Von Erich -Mark Youngblood -Mike Von Erich -Nikita Koloff -Owen Hart -Perry Jackson -Ricky Romero -Road Warrior Animal -Steve Olsonoski -Ted -The Great Kabuki -The Missouri Mauler -Villano IV -Villano V -With the closure of other promotions, this list continues to grow. WRESTLER COMPLAINTS -Bruno Samartino is furious about how he's being pushed -Curt Hennig is extremely annoyed about how he's been pushed -David Sammartino is unhappy about how he's been pushed -David Von Erich is furious about how often he's been unused -Fritz Von Erich is furious about how often he's been unused -Koko B. Ware is unhappy about how often he's been unused -Mark Youngblood is extremely annoyed about how he's being pushed -Mr. Wrestling II is very unhappy about how he's being pushed -Roddy Piper is unhappy about how many losses he's taken -Steve Olsonoski is very unhappy about how he's being pushed -Ted is not enjoying the backstage atmosphere -Probably the most unhappy locker room I've had yet. I'm surprised to see Hennig still on her after I promoted him to main eventer last month - I'm sure he'll cheer up soon. -Koko and David Von Erich are understandably unhappy about their exclusion from shows over the last few months (though Koko also went through a gimmick change, so he should be a little more understanding). They'll be a major part of the shows again ASAP, so that should clear up. -This is the first time I've seen Fritz on the list - I'll have to give him some kind of role that puts him on TV occasionally. Maybe he'll manage Mike or something. -Olosonoski has reached C+ in a couple of his matches last month, so he's an earned another chance. I've even bumped him up to lower midcarder, so maybe he'll shut up. -The last thing we need in the locker room is an angry bear. I cut loose Ted, who will be a mere footnote in WCCW history. Maybe he'll do some kind of job on his way out. WRESTLER DISAGREEMENTS ABOUT PUSHES -These are guys that have let me know they think they should be pushed better (including those listed above, whose complaints have risen to the level of affecting morale). It seems as though when I promote guy to where he wants to be (for example, Curt Hennig), his complaint about his push goes away immediately, but his morale stays low for a while. (loan agreement workers designated by *). This includes changes I've made just now, to be reflected in the roster run-down. -David Sammartino thinks he should be a midcarder -Grappler #1 thinks he should be a midcarder -Mark Youngblood thinks he should be an opener -Mike Von Erich thinks he should be a midcarder -Mr. Wrestling II thinks he should be a main eventer -Perry Jackson thinks he should be a lower midcarder -Road Warrior Animal thinks he should be a main eventer -Roddy Piper thinks he should be a main eventer -Tiger Mask thinks he should be an upper midcarder -The Missouri Mauler wants to be an occasional wrestler -The complains here are a little lower than previous months. I moved Olonoski and Barry Orton up. Bruno Sammartino just disappeared for some reason - maybe he wants to wrestle after all? |
Current Momentum Ratings (End of November, 1984), with last month is parenthesis.
A Koko B. Ware (A) A- None B+ None B Kerry Von Erich (B-) Curt Hennig (B) Kevin Von Erich (B-) David Von Erich (B) B- Bobby Eaton (B+) Roddy Piper (C+) Iceman Parsons (C+) C+ Luke Williams (C-) Butch Miller (C) Nikita Koloff (C) King Kong Bundy (C) Mike Von Erich (D) Bob Backlund (C+) Arturo Mendoza (C+) Dick Murdock (B-) Tiger Mask (C+) C: Bruno Sammartino (C) Road Warrior Hawk (C+) The Great Kabuki (C) C- Road Warrior Animal (C) Adrian Adonis (B) D+ Al Perez (D) Villano V (D+) Doug Somers (C-) D None D- Dusty Wolfe (D) David Sammartino (C-) E+ Perry Jackson (E) Villano IV (E+) E Steve Olsonoski (D-) E- None F+ Mark Youngblood (D-) Owen Hart (E-) F None F- Barry Orton (E) Not Yet Debuted: -The Grapplers -Sika -Buzz Sawyer Rising in Novmeber: Kerry Von Erich, Kevin Von Erich, Roddy Piper, Iceman Parsons, The Sheepherders, Nikita Koloff, King Kong Bundy, Mike Von Erich, Al Perez, Perry Jackson Falling in November: Bobby Eaton, Dick Murdoch, The Road Warriors, Adrian Adonis, Doug Somers, Dusty Wolfe, David Sammartino, Steve Olsonoski, Mark Youngblood, Owen Hart -I think the momentum ratings work really well in this game - they're a great measure of someone's kayfabe momentum in terms of w/l. |
ROSTER, END OF NOVEMBER, 1984
MAIN EVENTERS Bob Backlund David Von Erich Buzz Sawyer (loan contract) Curt Hennig Bobby Eaton Koko B. Ware -Some changes in this group. Sawyer will be a huge deal while he's with us, he's one of the biggest stars in the world. Koko B. Ware moves up based on his momentum rating, and the fact that he's about to enter a series of grudge matches with David Von Erich. Dick Murdoch moves out. Roddy Piper had been here during the month, he moves back down too. UPPER MIDCARDERS Sika (loan contract) Adrian Adonis Kerry Von Erich Roddy Piper Kevin Von Erich Dick Murdoch -Murdoch moves down here, Sika gets a favorable push as a Samoan monster. Road Warriors move down from this group to the midcard. Piper's been losing a lot lately and that will probably continue - he's the most expensive guy on the roster and I'll push him out soon (I know I've been saying that forever). He's a great guy on the roster, he's entertaining in everything he's in, but that salary of his just really stands out from everyone else's. Dick Murdoch's also been in a bit of a slump, but he's more likely to turn it around. MIDCARDERS Arturo Mendoza Iceman Parsons The Road Warriors Tiger Mask Nikita Koloff The Sheepherders King Kong Bundy The Great Kabuki -The Road Warriors move down to this group - they're just not in the class of the others in the upper midcard. I thought about bumping up Tiger Mask - he and Mendoza could easily be a notch higher, but I'll holdoff until early in the new year, when our roster gets scaled down/retooled. I'll survey the damage and give them a shot at promotion then. Parsons is also getting some main event time in his mini-feud with Bobby Eaton, but his stamina probably will hold him back to be a career midcarder. LOWER MIDCARDERS Mike Von Erich Doug Somers David Sammartino Villano V The Grapplers Steve Olsonoski -The masked Grapplers move into this group, as does Olsonoski. I'm actually kind of mad at myself that I've succumbed to Olsonoski's complaining. I don't see how he survives any real talent cutting. OPENERS Al Perez Villano IV Perry Jackson Barry Orton -Olsonoski moved out and up, and Barry Orton joins his tag team partner Perry Jackson. The Missouri Mauler's jobber stable of Orton/Jackson/Somers has done OK, and the promotions are deserved. ENHANCEMENT TALENT Owen Hart Mark Youngblood Dusty Wolfe -Orton was promoted up from this group. I don't see any of the other ones doing the same any time soon. Mark Youngblood isn't happy about that, but he hasn't shown me anything yet. OCCASIONAL WRESTLERS Jose Lothario Bruno Sammartino Ted -Lothario is probably retired, I'll make that adjustment next month once those plans are in place. Sammartino is winding down too. OTHERS Skandor Akbar Gary Hart Lance Russell Lord Alfred Hayes David Manning Bronco Lubich Fritz Von Erich JR Foley The Missouri Mauler Mr. Wrestling II Ray Stevens Ricky Romero CONTRACTS UP IN NEXT 60 DAYS -JR Foley (4 Days) -Road Warrior Hawk (11 Days) -Kevin Von Erich (27 Days) -I'm not going to re-sign road agent Foley, which will save $1,350/month, at some risk of increased locker room shenanigans. I have to sign Kevin for whatever he wants, and he'll probably want a lot after the push he's gotten lately. |
THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 1, December 1984 Orlando, FL (Midwest - Very Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 1,323 Ticket prices: $2 over Default Actual Attendance: 1,000 (Sell out) This will be the only December show outside of Texas - I'm bringing a mostly B-Crew of guys popular in this region with the hopes of getting a cheap popularity boost here. Storylines will be mostly on hold until the TV show this week. -Pre-Show Dark Segment Lord Alfred Hayes interviews Dusty Wolfe about his upcoming match with Steve Olsonoski. (E-) -Pre-Show Dark Match Steve Olsonoski defeats Dusty Wolfe in 9:03 by pinfall. (D). After the match, Lord Alfred Hayes interviewed Olsonoski about his win. (D+) -Fritz Von Erich cuts a promo welcoming the Orlando fans. He hypes big things for the company in 1985, and calls WCCW "the premiere wrestling organization in the world". He also hints at upcoming PPV capability which will allow fans all over the country to watch WCCW's biggest events. (D) -Piper's Pit w/ guests Roddy Piper and Adrian Adonis. Roddy Piper says he couldn't find any guests worthy of his show this week, so instead he's bringing Orlando the most entertaining wrestler of all - himself. Piper hypes his main event match with the debuting Buzz Sawyer. Piper says even though the southeast fans seem to think Sawyer is some kind of big deal, he plans on putting the mad dog to sleep. (B+) Piper introduces his bodyguard, Adrian Adonis, who is dressed in his normal redneck gear despite his recent flirtings with a more ambiguous lifestyle. Piper says there's nothing to worry about, Adonis is as manly and as tough as he's ever been. Adonis nods. Piper then hypes Adonis' upcoming match with David Sammartino, and references the offer he made David at Thanksgiving Star Wars - he's asked David to dump his father, and let Piper join his six-man-tag team in the title tournament in his place. Piper tells Adonis to take it easy on David tonight, as he wants to win the gold once David inevitably dumps his father from the team, and he needs David at full strength. Piper then puts over David as a future star, and says the only thing holding him back is Bruno. (C). -David Sammartino (w/Bruno Sammartino) defeats Adrian Adonis in 7:16 by countout. (C+) Adonis seemed to have control of the match until Piper pulled Adonis out of the ring, drawing a countout for the oblivious David, who celebrated in the ring. Piper and Adonis (who didn't seem that upset), hustled back to the locker room. Bruno looked annoyed, and appeared to try to explain to his son what happened. David, apparently upset that his father was minimizing his "accomplishment", seemed a little upset. Lance Russell entered the ring and attempted to interview the pair about Piper's offer. Both refused comment. (C-) -Lance Russell interviewed Mike Von Erich. Mike hyped his Cruiserweight title win at Thanksgiving Star Wars against Adrian Street, as well as his match tonight against Dick Murdoch. (C-) -Dick Murdoch defeats Mike Von Erich 7:43 by pinfall. (C+). Mike was visibly tiring towards the end of the match. After the match, Murdoch cut an angry promo in the ring, calling his loss to Kerry at Thanksgiving Star Wars a fluke. (C) -Iceman Parsons hyped his upcoming match against King Kong Bundy, as well as Parsons' win at the Thanksgiving Star Wars battle royal. (D+) -Iceman Parsons defeats King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) in 9:31 by pinfall after botched interference from Hart. (B) -Buzz Sawyer defeats Roddy Piper (w/Adrian Adonis) in 27:57 by pinfall. (A+). The two showed great chemistry. After the match, Sawyer celebrated wildly around ringside, throwing around chairs, etc. (B-) Overall Show Rating: B THOUGHTS -A home run main event leads to a great show rating. With Sawyer as an out-of-control face who's only in here temporarily, it just somehow made sense to have him wrestle Piper. He'll probably get another match with Piper before he closes out his loan agreement at The King of Texas Death Match tournament. I have a house rule that loan guys can't have losing records while they're in WCCW. So Piper, soon to be a victim of talent cuts, is an obvious choice to take the loss. -Parsons/Bundy was also really, really good. I want to build up Parsons a little as his mini-feud with Bobby Eaton will continue. -The Piper/Adonis v. Sammartinos stuff rolls on. Piper's trying to create issues between father/son, and tonight it worked. |
NEWS
-Mr. Wrestling II arrived late to the last show (where he wasn't booked). I give him a warning. -Adrian Adonis, Roddy Piper, Dick Murdock, and Buzz Sawyer are exhausted after the last show. -Ted is officially released. -I reluctantly sign Road Warrior Hawk for 9 more months at $1,675/show, a healthy raise from his old deal of $1,025/show. I don't expect him to be around to finish that contract though. -Harley Race will be the owner of the new St. Louis Wrestling club promotion. That's kind of cool, as Race is 41, and currently out with a serious injury. Perhaps his wrestling days are over. -I still have outstanding requests for negotiations with the following: Hulk Hogan, Vince McMahon, Bruiser Brody, Abdullah the Butcher, The Shiek, Terry Funk, Terry Gordy, Manny Fernandez, Mr. Pogo, Stan Hansen, Kevin Sullivan, Sgt. Slaughter, Gorilla Monsoon, and Bill Mercer. I don't forsee actually signing more than a couple of them, if that. |
WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 1, December 1984 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: $1 less than default Actual Attendance: 5,000 (SOLD OUT) -Pre-Show Dark Segment Lord Alfred Hayes interviews Owen Hart about his upcoming Dark Match with Villano V. (D+) -Pre-Show Dark Match Villano V defeats Owen Hart in 6:50 by pinfall. (C-) -Lance Russell open the show quickly recapping the results and events from Thanksgiving Day Star Wars, most notably, the following: 1. Piper's win over Bruno Sammartino, and subsequent offer to Bruno's son David - kick your father out of your six-man-tag team and replace him with me. 2. Mike Von Erich regaining the Cruiserweight Championship, and the further erratic behavior of Adrian Adonis. 3. Iceman Parsons winning the "Bobby Eaton Invitational Battle Royal" and then coming just short in his challenge to Eaton's World Title, in a match featuring interference from the returning David Von Erich, and Koko B. Ware 4. The shocking victory of The Sheepherders over The Road Warriors 5. The debate between the 3 candidates for WCCW Commissioner - Mr. Wrestling II, Ray Stevens, and Jose Lothario. 6. Kevin retaining the TV title against Greg Valentine in the main event. (D+) -Kerry Von Erich defeats Dusty Wolfe in 3:39 by pinfall. (C) The performance of Kerry stood out. After the match, Kevin joined Kerry in the ring and the two cut a lengthy promo. First, they addressed the David/Eaton/Ware situation. They say that David will return to full-time action at the New Year's Revolution event at the end of the month, and has signed to face Koko B. Ware 1-on-1 that night. They also challenge Eaton to put the World Title on the line that night against either Kevin or Kerry. Second, Kevin and Kerry announce that they're looking to put their World Tag Team Titles on the line shortly. They say that at Thanksgiving Star Wars, The Sheepherders won, and Tiger Mask/Curt Hennig & King Kong Bundy/Arturo Mendoza were involved in a draw. Therefore, they've arranged a match for next week between those 3 teams, with the winner to be deemed #1 contender for the tag team titles. Finally, Kevin hypes his TV title defense tonight against Tiger Mask, putting Tiger Mask over as a huge challenge. (B) -The Sheepherders come to the ring for their tag team match. They come to the ring dressed at the Road Warriors, as the theme song of the Warriors plays. Skandor Akbar cuts a promo hyping The Sheepherders win over the Road Warriors, calling them frauds. Akbar says there is now no doubt - The Sheepherders are the most devastating team in wrestling, and they now have the Von Erichs in their sights. (C+) -The Sheepherders (w/Skandor Akbar) defeat Mike Von Erich & Steve Olsonoski in 7:55 when Miller pinned Olsonoski. (C). Butch Miller looked good. Mike & Olsonoski had bad chemistry as a team. -Bruno Sammartino defeats Villano IV in 5:53 by submission (C). After the match, Lord Alfred Hayes interviewed Bruno, noting that his son David was not in his corner tonight, as he had been in every one of Bruno's matches since he came to WCCW. Hayes also touched on the events of this Monday's event in Florida, when Bruno and David didn't seem to be seeing things eye to eye. Hayes asks Bruno if he feels his son will take Piper up on his offer to replace him in the six-man-tag team tournament. Bruno says that that decision is entirely up to David, and that he's asked the third member of the team, Iceman Parsons, to respect his son's wishes. (C+) -Doug Somers (w/The Missouri Mauler) defeats Mark Youngblood in 5:22 by pinfall. (C-) -Skandor Akbar comes back to the ring with Nikita Koloff, and hypes Koloff's "3 minute challenge". Since the challenge began, nobody has been able to last 3 minutes with the Russian monster. He then announces the next participant - Perry Jackson. (C+). Lance Russell, on commentary, notes that all of Koloff's opponents seem to be carefully hand-picked. -"Nikita Koloff 3-Minute Challenge Match" Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) defeats Perry Jackson (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 0:32 by pinfall. (C-). The Missouri Mauler got into a minor scuffle with Skanor Akbar at ringside. While the managers were distracted with each other, Koloff grabbed a mic and spoke for the first time in WCCW - he says, in broken English, that the last match was too easy, and that he's opening up the 3-minute challenge to anyone in the WCCW locker room, right now. (B-). Akbar looks alarmed as Iceman Parsons comes down to ringside to accept the challenge. (B-). The announcers note that Parsons last eliminated Koloff to win the Thanksgiving Day Star Wars battle royal last week. -"Nikita Koloff 3 Minute Challenge Match" Iceman Parsons defeats Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) in 2:35 by pinfall. (B-). Parsons was off his game. After the match, Parsons cut a promo hyping his win, and his near miss against Bobby Eaton for the World Title last week. Parsons says that since that match ended in a draw, he should get another shot at Eaton. (C+) -Lance Russell hypes the WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament, which will resume in the next few weeks. He recaps the format and current standings. 2 Groups of 3 teams. Each team wrestles the other two twice. 3 points for a pinfall/submission win, 2 points for a dq/countout win, 1 point for a draw. The two group winners will face off in the finals for the championship. (D) -(Group A Standings) 1. The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza (1 pinfall win, 1 draw: 4 points, 2 matches remaining) 2. The Sheepherders & Nikita Koloff (2 draws: 2 points, 2 matches remaining) 3. The Sammartinos & Iceman Parsons (1 loss, 1 draw, 1 point, 2 matches remaining) -Russell notes that the Sammartinos team is in turmoil, and they need two decisive wins to take the group. If The Villanos & Mendoza can score a pinfall/submission win over The Sheepherders, they clinch the group - Russell notes that Gary Hart has promised his managerial services to the Villanos if they can win this tournament. -(Group B Standings) 1T. Curt Hennig, The Great Kabuki, & Tiger Mask (1 pinfall win, 1 loss, 3 points, 2 matches remaining) 1T. King Kong Bundy, Bob Backlund, & Dick Murdock (1 pinfall win, 1 loss, 3 points, 2 matches remaining) 2. Doug Somers, Perry Jackson & Barry Orton (1 DQ win, 1 loss, 1 point, 2 matches remaining) -Russell notes that the "dream team" of Bundy/Backlund/Murdoch is in absolute disarray, after coming to blows in their last tournament match. The underdog team of Somers/Jackson/Orton is very much alive - but they need to pull at least one big upset via pinfall/submission to have a chance. -As Bob Backlund comes to the ring, a video plays showing Backlund's freak-out several weeks ago when he physically attacked all 3 men that are vying for his managerial services - Gary Hart, Skandor Akbar, and Lord Alfred Hayes. (C+) Backlund then cut an angry promo in the ring, saying that all 3 managers are worthless. He also rages against his partners in the six-man-tag team tournament, King Kong Bundy (who he calls a fat slob), and Dick Murdoch (who he calls a greasy redneck). Backlund then challenges the two to a 2-1 handicap match, right now. (B-). After some more insults, Bundy and Murdoch head to the ring - Gary Hart tags alongside, desperately pleading with both men not to get involved, as he watches his "dream team" implode. (C+). Bundy and Murdoch however, reach the ring, and the match starts. -2-1 Handicap Match Bob Backlund defeats King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) & Dick Murdoch in 9:58 by DQ after Gary Hart's constant interference. (A) Hart was simply trying to prevent the three from fighting, and continously risked his well-being to get between the three. -WCCW Television Championship Match Kevin Von Erich drew with Tiger Mask in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (B-). Kevin makes his 10th defense of the TV Title. The two showed poor chemistry. Overall Show Rating: C+ THOUGHTS: -Our final rating was dinged because I advertised Backlund in a 1-on-1 match, and apparently the 2-1 match didn't qualify. Minor game bug, as didn't get the customary warning (I vaguely remember making that mistake before). Still, good enough to increase our popularity across most of the country. -The main event was a disappointment, but at least that was explained by bad chemistry. I took a chance on a unique matchup. -The match of the night was the match before it, the handicap match. Backlund is SO close to being a face - he's beating up heels and heel managers alike. I like this storyline. Hart put together this "dream team" but their egos are too big to succeed, at least at the moment. -Parsons is getting his biggest push of the dynasty right now. That probably won't last too far into 1985, but he's a guy I want to keep around, so it's good exposure. |
NEWS
-Tough luck for the AWA, whose World Champion, Jerry Stubbs shattered his elbow during a title defense against Manny Fernandez and will be out for a year. The AWA has already vacated the World Title - it will be interesting to see who they give it to. -Dan Davis is being hyped on the dirt sheets as a future star. -Afa of the Wild Samoans won his first ever singles title, the Mid-South TV Title, defeating Iron Mike Sharpe. Of course, I signed Sika recently to take part in this month's King of the Texas Death Match Tournament. However, the very next day, Afa lost the TV title to Stan Lane. That's Lane's first singles title -Rick Rude and The Undertaker, who has entered the universe since the dynasty began, gets their first big breaks as they signs Mid-South. I believe that's the first time I've seen an AI promotion sign a game-generated wrestler. Both have great stats, but zero overness anywhere yet, so this will be a great opportunity for them. I'm tempted to change 'Taker's name to Mark Calaway. But a day after I type that, Rude and 'Taker are promptly released. MSW is apparently sorting things out. -Bob Backlund is exhausted after the last show. -The TV show gets a rating of 3.12. That's a good bounce-back show after last week. -I'll try to remember to keep track of the St. Louis Wrestling Club promotion in it's attempts to get off the ground. It's promoting a "pure" style, with key features "realism" and "pure". So basically, they're going to pretend to be a legitimate sports league, as much as possible. Harley Race is the owner. Here's their first batch of signings: Jim Garvin, Jim Brunzell, Bob Roop, and Lance Russell. Bob Geigel (who has a strong friendship with Race) is in as the head booker. -The contract of JR Foley has officially expired, he's gone. -Roddy Piper has left Portland Wrestling. He's certainly not hurting for work though. -Ted Dibiase wins the AWA TV Title from Bobby Eaton. That's the biggest win of Dibiase's career thus far. -Terry Gordy has rejected our contract negotiations as I expected he might - he'll have to be gone longer before he considers coming back. -However, I enter in negotiations with 6 others. It's tricky dealing with them, because I have 7 others I'm awaiting responses from. But here's how things went down: -Hulk Hogan wants $3,700/month as a starting point. Fritz caps me at $2,906, so I'm not even close. Hulkamania, once again, will not run wild in Texas. I'm not sure of the formula used to determine what $ I'm capped out at, or whether Fritz is just stingy (or whether the current horrible universe economy plays a role) I was able to sign Piper at $3,375/show way back. Perhaps the cap number changes based on how much cash I have in the bank (a number that has been dropping as of late). -I sign back Bill Mercer as an announcer at $1,575/show. For now, I'll keep both Mercer and the more expensive Lance Russell. Russell will handle the weekly TV show and end-of-month events, and Mercer will be at the weekly house shows. That will save us $3,500 a month. If the financial situation gets more dire, Mercer will get the job full time, which would save us $7,875/month. -I'm unable to sign Bruiser Brody, whose demands exceed Fritz's cap. Brody wants $3,325/show. Therefore, Brody will be unable to defend his King of the Texas Deathmatch tournament title this year. -More luck with Japanese brawler Mr. Pogo, who will definitely be a part of the death match tournament. As a freelancer, he signs for just 3 months, at a reasonable $1,100/show. At that rate, I'll probably keep him on past the tournament. He also works for SWCW, so he does have some minimal notoriety in the US, which helps. He has a B- rating in Brawling, and a B in Hardcore. Otherwise, he's mostly a C+/C guy. He can only realistically play a heel - hopefully I can find some guys who can work babyface for this tournament. -The dreaded Frtiz cap strikes again with Manny Fernandez, who was a participant in last year's tournament, and had a decent run with us. I would have loved to bring him back, as there's a decent chance he wins the vacant AWA World title. But, he wants $3,540/show. Fritz won't let me consider that. -I talk to The Sheik of Araby (aka The Original Shiek), and notice that he actually retired last year. Now, I could still use him even though he's shot physically, and there's mixed opinion as to whether his match ratings even suffer because of the retirement. That feels like a cheat though, since the AI doesn't do it, and he's probably cheaper as a "retired" wrestler. New house rule (it's only my second). I can't sign retired wrestlers and have them wrestle. If they're on my roster when they retire, I can keep using them until their current contract is up, if I want. Bruno Sammartino gets grandfathered into this house rule, I can use him as long as I want. This is subject to revision, as it would be kind of fun to bring back a 55-year old Sheik for a one-shot-deal in a Deathmatch tournament. -Next day of negotiations - Sgt. Slaughter rejects my request to talk to him, saying we're not big enough. He's another superstar that's going to sit this wrestling recession out until he drops enough in popularity. -Finally, we strike gold - Terry Funk's demands are JUST below Fritz's cap for him, and he comes in for 3 months at $2,675/show. He's obviously be a part of the deathmatch tournament, and I'll probably keep him around for the full 3 months. Funk had a great run with us between December of last year and this February (I would have kept him longer but Fritz capped me when his 3-month contract expired). Funk started as a heel, turned into a beer-drinking, ass-kicking face that feuded with Bruiser Brody and Gary Hart. He eventually lost a "loser leaves WCCW match". Not sure exactly what he'll do after the tournament, but it will probably be as a babyface again. -I also bring in Kevin Sullivan, at $1,800/show for 18 months. Sullivan's solid in pretty much everything, including brawling and hardcore. He'll be in the deathmatch tournament. He's primarily a heel, but can work as a babyface without too big a penalty. He has B+ popularity in the southeast, and between D and C everywhere else in the US. He's an interesting guy that could do really well in WCCW. At that salary, I'd certainly rather have him than either of the Road Warriors. -Gorilla Monsoon wants $2,425/show. I'd love to bring him in and do something interesting, but now's not the time. So our announcing teams will be Russell/Hayes and Mercer/Hayes. -Vince K. McMahon wants $1,425. It would sure be interesting to have Vince around. He has A+ mic skills; B Announcing skills, Psychology, and Star Quality. He also has positive relationships with a ton of the old WWF guys, including Hulk Hogan, Roddy Piper, JYD, Alfred Hayes, Andre the Giant, Iron Sheik, Bobby Heenan and Billy Graham. He also has negative relationships with the likes of David Sammartino, Bruiser Brody, Harley Race, Abdullah The Butcher, Jim Garvin, and The Road Warriors. I have no idea if what those relationships impact - it'd be great if having him helped bring in Hogan. He's fairly well known in New England and the Tri-State area. I decide to take a pass on him for now. Maybe down the road I do some kind of "WWF Syndicate" angle with Vince, Gorilla, Linda, and Vince Sr. -Stan Hanson wants $3,768/show. More than Hogan! No way Fritz allows that. -I thought Abdullah The Butcher, with his demand of $2,650/show might fit under Fritz' cap, but no dice, Fritz caps me here at $2,556. So the cap is flexible - based on either popularity, skills, or merely Fritz' opinions and whims. -So, the potential King of The Texas Death Match Tournament Field Now looks like this (these are all of the guys on the roster who have Hardcore and Brawling ratings at B- or higher): -Terry Funk -Kevin Sullivan -The Great Kabuki -Mr. Pogo -Buzz Sawyer -Sika -Roddy Piper -Dick Murdoch -Luke Williams -Butch Miller I was planning on going with a 6-man tournament. 3 1-on-1 matches, and the a triple threat final with the winners. Funk, Kabuki, and Sawyer would be the faces; Sullivan, Sika, and Pogo would probably be the heels. Piper has enough going on without this tournament, and I haven't really booked him as "hardcore". Murdoch and The Sheepherders are possibilities. |
This thread is such a bad influence on me.
I'm actually tinkering with another DOTT game in TEW '07 now, to go along with a long running WWE freestyle game (Christoper Daniels, Austin Aries, Shawn Michaels, and Chris Jericho keep swapping World Titles around, while three developmental territories worth of talent languish in the minors) and an NWA-Anarchy game that I never seem to give any attention to anymore. |
This is the greatest dynasty ever!
I want Abdullah The Butcher vs Bruiser Brody every match! |
Agree, it is almost like beig there, if only you had been booking WCCW back then Molson! :)
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THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 2, December 1984 Fort Worth, TX (Very Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 2,337 Ticket prices: $2 over Default Actual Attendance: 2,000 (SOLD OUT) -Pre-Show Dark Match Al Perez defeats Dusty Wolfe in 7:17 by pinfall. (D-) Perez was exhausted by the end of the match. -Pre-Show Dark Match Doug Somers (w/The Missouri Mauler) defeats Mark Youngblood in 5:56 by pinfall. (C-). After the match Lord Alfred Hayes interviews The Missouri Mauler, who hypes his client, and his six-man-tag team's chances in the ongoing six-man tag team championship tournament. (C-) -Non-Title Match -Kevin & Kerry Von Erich defeats Barry Orton & Perry Jackson (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 6:58 when Kerry pinned Orton. (C). Kerry shone in this match. After the match, The Von Erichs cut a lengthy promo, addressing a variety of topics. They hyped the upcoming triple threat tag match at this week's TV show that will determine the #1 Contenders to their World Tag Team Titles (Hennig/Tiger Mask v. The Sheepherders v. Bundy/Mendoza). Individual members of those teams will compete in a triple threat match tonight. Kevin also hypes his TV title, saying he'll continue to defend it against all comers. They call out Bobby Eaton, and again challenge him to defend his World Title against either of them. Finally, they mention the match between David Von Erich and Koko B. Ware at New Year's Revolution - and they that they wouldn't want to be in Koko's shoes. (B-) -Bob Backlund defeats Owen Hart in 5:14 by pinfall. (C-). The two showed poor chemistry. At the end of the match, Backlund cuts a promo. Once again, he personally and individually insults the three men that are vying for his managerial services: Skandor Akbar, Gary Hart, and Lord Alfred Hayes. He asks them all to come out to the ring, and they do. Backlund continues to insult them more. He says that even though none of them are worthy to manage him, there is one way one of them may gain his respect. He says that the three should wrestle each other in a triple threat match at the New Year's Revolution event. He says that if one them clearly emerged as as the toughest, meanest, most competitive of the group - he just might be persuaded to sign a contract with them that night. The managers look pleased as they accept the proposal. (C). -Skandor Akbar remains in the ringside area where he is joined by his client, Luke Williams. Akbar says he's going to destroy Hayes & Hart at New Year's Revolution, but before then, Luke Williams will make quick work against King Kong Bundy and Curt Henning in the upcoming triple threat match. Akbar also says that its a travesty that The Sheepherders have to prove anything else to earn a tag team title shot, but it makes no difference - they'll win the triple threat tag team match on TV this week and then defeat the Von Erichs for the belts. (C). -Triple-Threat Match -One Fall to a Finish Curt Hennig defeats King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) and Luke Williams (w/Skandor Akbar) in 10:08 when Hennig pinned Williams. (C+). Immediately after the match, Akbar and Hart were involved in a heated argument at ringside, where they were separated by Bundy and Williams. (C+). Then, Bill Mercer interviewed Curt Hennig about his win. Hennig said that while The Great Kabuki is focusing on the King of the Texas Death Match tournament at New Year's Revolution, he and Tiger Mask are going after the tag team gold, with Kabuki's blessing. He also hypes the ongoing six-man tag team tournament, where he, Tiger Mask, and Kabuki are now the favorites in Group B. (B-) -The Masked Grapplers come to the ring, making their WCCW debut. They cut a promo, hyping their match tonight against The Road Warriors. The Grapplers say they're surprised that the Road Warriors haven't left WCCW yet, after their embarrassing defeat at Thanksgiving Star Wars. The Grapplers say they intend to put the final nail in the Road Warriors' coffin. (C-) -The Road Warriors defeat The Grapplers in 8:34 when Animal pinned Grappler #2 (C+). After the match, The Road Warriors cut an angry promo, where they challenged The Sheepherders to a rematch. (C) -Dick Murdoch defeats Bruno Sammartino in 10:52 by pinfall. (C). Once again, David Sammartino was not in his father's corner. -Bill Mercer interviews Bobby Eaton in his upcoming main event match, a non-title rematch with Iceman Parsons. Eaton says he's tired of people saying that he almost lost the title at Thanksgiving Star Wars. Eaton says he had things in control, and Parsons isn't in his league. Eaton says that if he can't defeat Parsons tonight in 10 minutes or less, he'll give him another title shot. (B-) -Non-Title Match Iceman Parsons defeats Bobby Eaton in 9:53 by pinfall after David Von Erich interfered and attacked Eaton. (B). Parsons earns another World Title shot against Eaton. After the match, David celebrated in the ring with Parsons, and they were soon joined by Kerry and Kevin. The four celebrated around ringside and signed autographs for the fans. (C+) Overall Show Rating: B- THOUGHTS: -I was really lucky to get that rating - our individual match and segment ratings just seemed low in this show, there were no matches rated above C+ until the main event, which saved us. -Parsons continues his biggest push yet in the dynasty with a huge win here against the World Champion. They'll meet again at New Year's Revolution, (likely in a steel cage, to prevent the constant interference that has occurred in their last two matches) -This show marked the return of Bill Mercer - I wonder if that suppressed the match ratings any v. the more talented Lance Russell. I'll keep an eye on that. -The Masked Grapplers make their debut here, and they got squashed by The Road Warriors in an OK match. The Road Warriors went into debt with Ted Dibiase to put up the money for their first match with The Sheepherders - they'll have to figure something out to get another shot at them. -Curt Hennig's been a little stagnant since his monster push. It was important to get him a big win tonight. He'll bide his time for a while longer in this team with Tiger Mask. |
Thanks JIMGA, Senator and BYU 14 for checking this thing out!
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Quote:
Nah, thanks to you for this thread, it was definitely the inspiration that put me over the top to take another shot at a DOTT career. One of the things that's been interesting to me in the first few weeks is how different a situation I'm starting with in GCW vs your opening weeks in WCCW because of the "my priority is with ..." situation. At least at the outset I'm primary for every guy on my roster, since only the WWF trumps me in prestige and I can't share any talent with them because we're at war from the get go. Granted I've avoided sharing anyone with MACW because of the potential for scheduling conflict but it really does have a different feel just from that one difference alone. |
NEWS
This is how the New Year's Revolution card shapes up thus far. It will be a three hour event, and a very, very violent night: -WCCW World Heavyweight Championship Match -Steel Cage Match: Classic Rules (Pinfall or Submission Only) Bobby Eaton v. Iceman Parsons -David Von Erich v. Koko B. Ware -King of the Texas Death Match Tournament -First Round Matches -Terry Funk v. Mr. Pogo -Sika v. Buzz Sawyer -Kevin Sullivan v. The Great Kabuki (Winners advance to a Triple Threat Match Final) -Triple Threat Match Skandor Akbar v. Gary Hart v. Lord Alfred Hayes -WCCW World Tag Team Championship Match Kerry & Kevin Von Erich v. #1 Contenders TBD -New WCCW Commissioner Crowned Final Election Results Revealed (Jose Lothario v. Mr. Wrestling II v. Ray Stevens) -More matches TBD -Dick Murdoch is exhausted after the last show -Bruno Sammartino has signed with Harley Race's new St. Louis promotion. He hasn't been assigned a role there yet - I'm sure it will be a non-wrestling position. They've also brought in Gene Okerland, Buddy Landell, and Ken Timbs. If they can get a big enough roster together, they'll have their first show next week. |
WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 2, December 1984 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: $1 less than default Actual Attendance: 4,994 -Pre-Show Dark Match Bruno Sammartino defeats Perry Jackson (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 2:35 by pinfall. (C). Sammartino was off his game. After the match, Sammartino cut an emotional promo in the ring, saying that whatever his son decides to do regarding his status in their six-man tag team, and whether or not his son decides to replace him with Roddy Piper - he's not going to let Piper tear his family apart, no matter what it takes. (C). -Pre-Show Dark Match Villano V drew with Steve Olsonoski in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (C+) The two showed good chemistry, but the lack of psychology hurt the match. -As Lance Russell and Lord Alfred Hayes are introducing the show, they're interrupted by Koko B. Ware. Ware says that no matter what Russell and Hayes are babbling about - it can't be as big as the news that Ware is making his return to the ring tonight. He's going to destroy Mike Von Erich as a tune up for his match against David Von Erich at New Year's Revolution. (B). Ware debuted his new "urban rapper thug" gimmick. -The Road Warriors defeat The Grapplers in 6:53 when Animal pinned Grappler #2. (C). After the match, the Road Warriors cut a promo targeting The Sheepherders, and repeated their challenge for a rematch. The Road Warriors however, say they're not in a mood to negotiate, or screw around, so they'll get to the point. If the Sheepherders agree to face them in a no-DQ match at New Year's Revolution, the Warriors will agree to leave WCCW for a year if they lose. (C+) -Lance Russell hypes the recent goings-on in WCCW, including the updated New Year's Revolution card, and the events of this week's live event in Forth Worth (Bob Backlund organizing a Hayes/Hart/Akbar triple threat match for New Year's Revolution, and Bobby Eaton losing to Iceman Parsons after interference from David Von Erich - which leads to Eaton v. Parsons in a steel cage for the title at New Year's Revolution. The cage was mutually agreed upon - both men want to prevent the interference that has plagued their matches) (D) -A campaign commercial for WCCW Commissioner candidate Jose Lothario airs. Lothario hypes his years in WCCW, his loyalty to the promotion, and his vision for the future - exciting wrestling, importing stars from all over the world, and the formation of a championship committee that will require champions to defend their titles against the top contenders. (C-) -David Sammartino (w/Bruno Sammartino) defeats Dusty Wolfe in 3:14 by pinfall. (D). The two showed good chemistry. David show a vicious streak during the match, and continued the attack on Wolfe after the match was over. (D-). Bruno ran into the ring to break the assault up - soon, he found himself in an argument with his son. Bruno seemed to be yelling, "what's going on with you?", while David seemed indifferent, eventually leaving his father alone in the ring and retreating to the locker room. (C-) -Backstage, Gary Hart cuts a promo introducing his newest acquisition - Sika, The Wild Samoan. Hart says he's brought Sika to WCCW for one reason - to win the upcoming King of the Texas Death Match Tournament. Hart says that while Sika is around, he might as well put him to other good uses. Tonight, says Hart, Sika will face another participant in the Death Match tournament, his former client, The Great Kabuki. Hart is clearly not over the Kabuki situation, and promises that Sika will make Kabuki sorry for ever crossing him. (C). Then, Hart brings in his other clients, King Kong Bundy & Arturo Mendoza, who are involved in the main event tonight - a triple threat tag team match to determine the #1 Contenders for the WCCW World Tag Team Championship. Hart says that his men are focusing on Tiger Mask. Neutralize him, says Hart, and Hennig will no longer be a factor, and then his team can outclass and outwrestle Skandor Akbar's Sheepherders. (C+). -Mr. Wrestling II's commercial for his WCCW Commissioner candidacy airs. He stresses strong, decisive leadership. It'll be his way or the highway, and he plans to clean up WCCW. (B). -A video package hypes the upcoming debut of brawler Kevin Sullivan, who talks about his Irish Boston Roots, and his fighting background. He puts down Texas, saying that no Texas coward could stand toe-to-toe with a Boston Irishman in a fair fight. (C). -Kevin Sullivan defeats Al Perez in 4:41 by pinfall. (C+). After the match, Lance Russell interviews Sullivan, who continues his rant against Texas, and hypes his participation in the upcoming King of the Texas Deathmatch tournament. (C) -Ray Stevens' commercial for his WCCW Commissioner candidacy airs. He hypes the prestige he would bring to WCCW as a former WWF World Champion. He promises a return to wrestling tradition - a sporting competition between athletes, with strictly enforced rules. (C). -Mike Von Erich hypes his upcoming match against Koko B. Ware. Mike says he knows Ware is taking him lightly, but he's ready to take a little revenge against Ware for costing his brother the World Title. (B-) -Koko B. Ware defeats Mike Von Erich in 6:45 by pinfall. (C+) Mike was visibly tiring towards the end of the match. Ware looked good. -Sika (w/Gary Hart) drew with The Great Kabuki in 11:32 by Double DQ. (B). The match suffered from a lack of selling. This was a wild, overbooked brawl that involved interference by Hart and a complete disregard of the referee's instructions. The announcers noted that at New Year's Revolution, neither Sika nor Kabuki will be restrained by the rules, and that their paths may cross again. -A lengthy video hypes the WCCW return of Terry Funk - the video features highlights from Funk's career, especially his prior run with World Class. (B) -The Sheepherders and Skandor Akbar come to the ring for the main event, and Akbar announces that they've accepted the challenge from the Road Warriors for a no-DQ match at New Year's Revolution, with the stipulation proposed by the Warriors - if the The Sheepherders win, The Road Warriors are banned from WCCW for 1 year. Akbar makes clear however, that after they win the #1 Contenders match tonight, and then defeat the Von Erichs for the titles, they're not agreeing to put those belts on the line at New Year's Revolution against the Warriors. (B) -Triple Threat Tag Team Match -#1 Contenders Match (For WCCW World Tag Team Championship) Tiger Mask & Curt Hennig defeat The Sheepherders (w/Skandor Akbar) and Arturo Mendoza & King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) in 13:35 when Hennig pinned Bundy. (C). The Sheepherders were essentially eliminated from the match early on by the attacking Road Warriors, who beat up the Sheepherders around ringside. Mendoza and Tiger Mask looked good. Overall Show Rating: C+ -I thought that the outstanding Kabuki/Sika match would lead us to a B- or better overall show rating, but then the main event disappointed. I'm not sure what went wrong there - Tiger Mask/Hennig are still very inexperienced as a team, that could have played a part. -Tiger Mask/Curt Hennig are now the #1 Contenders for the WCCW World Tag Team Championship, they'll face Kerry/Kevin at New Year's Revolution in what will be a nice break from the violence of that night. Tiger Mask's usual tag team partner, The Great Kabuki, will of course be busy dismembering himself in the King of the Texas Death Match tournament. -New Year's Revolution will also feature The Road Warriors/Sheepherders in a no-DQ match. At the moment, I haven't decided who wins that one. Either the feud will continue, or The Road Warriors will be sent on their way. -The fans are excited about Terry Funk's return, as evidenced by the rating for his hype video....If he had been willing to sign for 9 months, I would have put the world title on him. As it stands, it's merely a more difficult decision... -Mike Von Erich really impressed me with his B- promo. And his match with Koko B. Ware wasn't too shabby either. He's come a long way. -I would never have guess that Eaton & Ware would be my top 2 heels at this point. But things just came together for them, there were outstanding in everything they did, they lucked into a storyline, and he were are. -Of the three WCCW Commissioner Candidate commercials, Mr. Wrestling II's was clearly the most well-received. He's probably too popular for a "suit job". I hope I can afford to keep him on as a wrestler if he doesn't win this election. -Kevin Sullivan makes his debut - carrying Al Perez to a C+ is quite impressive. Only Dick Murdoch has had a better match with Perez. I don't know if Sullivan has ever used the "drunken Boston Irishman brawler" gimmick, but if he hasn't, I have no idea why not. I never knew about Sullivan until his WCW run at the end of this career, but even then I was distracted by his Boston accent. In the clips I've seen from the 80s, its even more obvious - how can this guy have anything but a Boston asshole gimmick? How did this guy never have a real run in the WWF? I think he'll be a huge star here. -I saved a little money on this show by not using Bob Backlund, the 3 oldest Von Erichs, Roddy Piper, and Bobby Eaton. But Piper, at least, made his presence felt as the Sammartinos continue to implode. I'm intending for David Sammartino to come off like a jackass at this point. -This was one of my favorite shows, despite the rating - I like the storyline development here. |
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Brief real world interlude. Sullivan actually started out with the WWWF, as a face with the gimmick of The Boston Battler. He refers to it briefly in this old book excerpt (scroll to page 55 when you get there) |
NEWS
-As I expected, Manny Fernandez has won the vacant AWA World Heavyweight Championship. He defeated Buzz Sawyer to win the belt. He also holds the 1/2 of the AWA Tag Team Championshp (with Wahoo McDaniel) and 1/2 of the National Tag Team Championship in Georgia (with Steve Keirn). -On the same show, Ricky Morton won the AWA Light Heavyweight Championship from Mike Graham. That's Morton's first singles title, after 7 separate tag team titles. -Mr. Wrestling II arrived late for the last show. I fine him. -The TV show delivers a 3.17 rating. That's our highest rating in 7 weeks. -Steve Keirn won the vacant Georgia National Heavyweight Championship from Manny Fernandez, who is of course, his tag team partner and co-holder of the National Tag Team Title. Sounds like an interesting storyline. The National Heavyweight Championship had been ruled vacant after Jerry Stubbs was lost to injury (the same injury that vacated the AWA World Title, which was won by Manny Fernandez). Weird............ -Kevin Sullivan, who was the head booker at SWCW, has left that position because of his deal with us (as we're "at war" with SWCW). I always like screwing with SWCW, and always look there first for talent. -Mr. Wrestling II, Bruno Sammartino, David Sammartino, and Mike Von Erich complain about their pushes. -The St. Louis Wrestling Club has signed both Arturo Mendoza and King Kong Bundy. I'm happy those guys will get the chance to work in a "pure" promotion with Harley Race, that can't hurt. They also sign Mexican legend Canek. The current economic recession and failure of wrestling promotions worldwide as actually created an opportunity for this new promotion. -The dirt sheets hype Rick Valentine (aka Kerry Brown) as a future star. Valentine is well known in the maritime promotions of Canada (AGPW). |
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That was his gimmick when I first saw him in Georgia in 1980 as well. Him and Austin Idol had a great feud with the Freebirds. |
I love this dynasty! Keep up the great work molson!
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THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 3, December 1984 San Antonio, TX (Midsouth - Very Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 2,337 Ticket prices: $2 over Default Actual Attendance: 2,000 (SOLD OUT) -Pre-Show Dark Match Barry Orton & Perry Jackson (w/The Missouri Mauler) defeat Al Perez & Owen Hart in 5:48 when Orton pinned Perez. (D+) -Pre-Show Dark Match Bruno Sammartino drew with Doug Sommers (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (C). The two showed poor chemistry. -As the show starts, Bill Mercer interviews Kerry Von Erich, who says it's great to be in San Antonio. He also hypes his main event match tonight, against Bob Backlund. Kerry puts over Backlund, and says that he doesn't feel Backlund needs either Hart, Akbar, or Lord Alfred Hayes as a manager. (C+) -Gary Hart comes to the ring with his team of Arturo Mendoza & King Kong Bundy. First, Hart calls Kerry an idiot, and says that his managerial guidance is exactly what Bob Backlund needs to reach his full potential. With himself in Backlund's corner, Hart says, Backlund will be the most dominant force in professional wrestling. Hart says that he'll prove his mettle to Backlund at New Year's Revolutions, where he'll slap around Skandor Abkar and Lord Alfred Hayes. (C+). Then, Hart hypes the upcoming match between Bundy & Mendoza, and Tiger Mask & The Great Kabuki. Hart tries to stir up a little dissension between Tiger Mask & Kabuki, noting that he heard that Tiger Mask feels that Curt Hennig is a much better tag team partner than Kabuki. (C+). -Tiger Mask & The Great Kabuki defeat Arturo Mendoza & King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) in 21:21 after Tiger Mask pinned Bundy. (B-). Bundy seemed off his game, and was tiring towards the end of the match. Hart interfered during the match for the heels. The last several minutes of the match featured several blunders by the heels, including Mendoza falling of the top rope, and Hart accidentally striking Bundy when Tiger Mask ducked. After the match, Tiger Mask and Kabuki could be seen laughing at the heels on their way back to the ringside (Kabuki's reaction can liberally be described as a "laugh"). (B-). -The Grapplers come to the ring, and cut a promo. They note that even though they've lost twice to the Road Warriors, they claim to have found several "holes" in the Warriors' offensive attack, and plan on exploiting them tonight. (C-). The Road Warriors head to the ring and cut a quick promo, mocking the Grapplers' confidence, and saying that they haven't even prepared for this match at all - they're focused on the Sheepherders match at New Years Revolution. (C) -The Road Warriors defeat The Grapplers in 9:32 when Animal pinned Grappler #2. (C+). The match was longer and somewhat more evenly contested the previous two between the teams. -Piper's Pit, w/guest Bruno Sammartino. In a very tense interview, Piper demands to know when he'll get an answer from David about Piper's offer to replace Bruno in their six-man-tag team. Piper accuses Bruno of threatening to withhold his inheritance to David unless he denies the offer. Bruno says that he's leaving the decision completely up to his son, and in fact, has had no contact with David since the TV show last week. Bruno says that whatever David's decision, Piper won't be able to break their family apart. They'll move on from this. Bruno says he wants Piper out of his life, and out of his career. This has all gone on way too long. Bruno says their matches have been evenly contested, and nothing's been settled. He makes a challenge for one more match, at New Year's Revolution. Sammartino makes the offer: 1 more match, Bruno will choose the stipulation. If Piper wins, Bruno will fulfill his remaining contract obligations, and then retire. If Bruno wins, Piper must leave WCCW. Piper confers with Adrian Adonis briefly, and then balks - he won't put his WCCW career on the line, knowing what a "huge cheat" Bruno is, and how unpredictable their matches have been. In addition, at Bruno's age, he could drop dead at any moment, so Piper would be putting much, much, more on the line. Piper counters - if he loses, he'll wear a funny hat for 2 weeks. Bruno stares blankly. Piper counters again - if he loses, he'll never bother the Sammartinos again, and he'll put it in writing. Bruno agrees, if Piper throws in more more thing - if Piper loses, he and Adonis both have to wear dresses in all of their WCCW appearances for the next month. Adonis smiles, but quickly regains his composure when Piper turns to look at him. Piper agrees. (B+) -Bob Backlund defeats Kerry Von Erich in 27:55 by pinfall. (B+). After the match, Backlund cut a promo, hyping his win, and the triple threat "manager's challenge" at New Year's Revolution. (B) Overall Show Rating: B- THOUGHTS: -Solid show, and we did it with a pretty small group, which will help keep costs down (but will add to the unhappiness in the locker room). -The main event was only the third ever 1-on-1 match between Backlund and Kerry. Backlund has won all three, and the matches have increased in quality each time. Last October, they had a C+ match, this February, they wrestled to a B-, and here, a B+. -The Piper's Pit segment was a little weird....and their New Year's Revolution match is a tad convoluted with the stipulations, but I like how the negotiated and came to a compromise that kind of makes sense. If Piper Wins: -Bruno retires after fulfilling his current commitments If Adonis Wins: -Piper will never bother the Sammartinos again, and must wear a dress, with Adonis, for a month. -It will also be the final 1-on-1 match between the two, capping their long feud, and Sammartino will pick the match stipulation (to be announced just before the match). -The Road Warriors have been somewhat heelish during their WCCW run, violently attacking other teams and here, openly admitting that they're "looking past" the Grapplers. They've also avoided associating with any other established babyfaces for the most part. -The Mendoza/Bundy v. Hart/Kabuki storyline is still technically going on, even though all 4 guys have involved in other things. The feud will continue into the new year, and will continue to focus mainly on in-ring matches, but I'll have to throw in a twist or two at some point. |
NEWS
-SWCW, who lost their head booker when we signed Kevin Sullivan, has found this replacement.....Vince McMahon. SWCW (along with SECW and UWA) is one of the promotions we're "at war" with. Anybody I sign from those rosters immediately leaves those promotions. If I ever start expanding again, I will screw with SWCW and Vince. His top stars in SWCW are Buddy Rose, Bob Armstrong, Paul Orndorff, Butch Reed, Adrian Street, and Dick Slater. -St. Louis Wrestling Club has brought in Tiger Mask & Matt Bourne. They probably won't get to use Tiger Mask much, since they plan to run shows opposite us on Wednesday night, and of course we're Tiger Mask's (and everyone's) priority company. |
WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 3, December 1984 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: $1 less than default Actual Attendance: 4,726 -Pre-Show Dark Match Steve Olsonoski defeats Villano IV in 8:05 by pinfall. (D-) -Pre-Show Dark Match Mike Von Erich defeats Dusty Wolfe in 5:38 by submission (E+). After the match, Lance Russell interviewed Mike about his win. (C). -As the show starts, Lance Russell hypes the show and then interviews Bill Mercer, who makes his return to WCCW TV. Mercer says he's going to spend the show roaming backstage, just to get a sense of what's going on in the WCCW locker room, and looking for stories that may be of interest to the WCCW fans. (C) -Roddy Piper comes to the announce area to break up the interview - he says he wants to make sure that everybody is properly hyping this week's main event: Piper v. Buzz Sawyer. (B). Russell replies that yes, they were just about to talk about that match, and they were also about to show highlights from a WCCW live event show several weeks ago in Orlando, where Sawyer defeated Piper. Piper loudly objects, saying that those highlights aren't necessary - he continues yelling and ranting, while several minutes of the Orlando match play on TV. (B-). After those highlights, Russell introduces and plays another highlight video, this one of Sawyer's wrestling exploits around the country. Russell also notes that Sawyer will be a part of the King of the Texas Deathmatch tournament at New Year's Revolution. (B-) -The Sheepherders (w/Skandor Akbar) defeat Al Perez & Owen Hart in 4:05 when Williams pinned Perez. (C-). After the match, Akbar hyped his team, and their no-dq match against The Road Warriors at New Year's Revolution. In order to get that rematch, the Warriors promised to leave WCCW if they lost. (C) -Lance Russell cuts to Bill Mercer backstage, who says he has a story. Mercer approaches Gary Hart, who is sweating, and pressing a towel onto his bald head. He appears to be extremely stressed out. Mercer approaches, surprising an irritated Hart. Mercer asks Hart what he's stressed about: Is it the implosion of his six-man "dream" tag team? Is it the fact that Mercer has heard backstage rumors that team members Dick Murdoch and Bob Backlund have agreed to a match at New Year's Revolution? Is it the fact that Hart is just over a week away from stepping into the ring with two men who are less-removed from their wrestling careers - Skandor Akbar and Lord Alfred Hayes? Is it the fact that he hasn't managed to lead any of his clients to a championship in over two years? An angry Hart claims he's not stressed - he's simply under the weather. He says he'll get his six-man team back together, that he'll wipe the floor with Hayes & Akbar, and that he'll have championships galore early in 1985, if not sooner. (B-) -Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament -Group B, Match 4 Tiger Mask, The Great Kabuki & Tiger Mask defeat Barry Orton, Perry Jackson, and Doug Somers (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 7:48 when Hennig pinned Jackson. (C) -(Group B Standings) 1. Curt Hennig, The Great Kabuki, & Tiger Mask (2 pinfall wins, 1 loss, 6 points, 1 match remaining) 3. King Kong Bundy, Bob Backlund, & Dick Murdock (1 pinfall win, 1 loss, 3 points, 2 matches remaining) 3. Doug Somers, Perry Jackson & Barry Orton (1 DQ win, 2 losses, 2 points, 1 match remaining) (The Somers/Jackson/Orton team has been mathmatically eliminated) -Backstage, David Von Erich hypes his return to the ring tonight...He says it's been killing him to sit out, and tonight's match later on is a tune-up for his battle with Koko B. Ware at New Year's Revolution. (B-) -Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) defeats Mark Youngblood in 0:38 by pinfall. (C-). Koloff looked good. Koloff and Akbar also linger around ringside for the next segment... -Lance Russell interviews Fritz Von Erich in the ring. Fritz hypes the upcoming election for new WCCW Commissioner, and tells the fans how they can vote. He says starting January 1st, his interim leadership will end, and the new commissioner will take power. He also once again hints at PPV capability in 1985. (C-). Nikita Koloff and Skandor Akbar interrupt the interview. Akbar says that a few weeks ago, Iceman Parsons unfairly surprised Koloff and cheated his way to a win against Koloff and his "3-minute challenge". Akbar demands that Fritz, while he still has power, arrange a match between Koloff and Parsons sometime after January 1st, and that if Parsons is fortunate enough to be World Champion by then (after his New Year's Revolution cage match against Bobby Eaton), that would be a title match. Fritz refuses, saying he's not making any major decisions, and that he'll continue to lay low and leave such issues to the new commissioner. (C+) -Russell cuts again to Bill Mercer, who has another story backstage. He says he's heard rumors about Adrian Adonis' ongoing experiments with cross-dressing, and is looking to interview him. Mercer asks several passing wrestlers if they've seen Adonis, and one points Mercer in the direction of a utility closet. Mercer approaches, knocks, and enters - he sees Adonis, in full drag, dancing and singing in front of a mirror...He attempts to get an interview, but a terrified Adonis quickly closes the door and claims, "it's not what it looks like!". (C) -The Road Warriors defeat The Grapplers in 6:57 when Animal pinned Grappler #2. (B-). Immediately after the match, The Sheepherders, with Skandor Akbar, hit the ring and attack the Warriors. The Sheepherders maintain control, and the assault lasts several minutes, and leaves both of the Warriors laying. (C) -David Von Erich defeats Villano V in 7:43 by pinfall. (A). The two showed great chemistry, but the match suffered from a lack of selling. The match was evenly contested, and David looked somewhat rusty in his first match back from injury. -Another lengthy video hypes the return of Terry Funk. This one features highlights and commentary from Funk. (B) -Buzz Sawyer defeats Roddy Piper (w/Adrian Adonis - no longer dressed in drag but back in his "redneck" gear) in 20:12 by pinfall. (B). The two showed good chemistry. Overall Show Rating: B- THOUGHTS: -Disappointing final rating considering those last two matches. -Sawyer/Piper managed an A+ in Orlando, so the B here was a little disappointing, but of course, Sawyer is a much bigger star in the southeast then Texas, so it makes sense. It probably would have made more sense to have him main event another house show in the southeast to pop a rating there. Now he just has 1 loan appearance left, which will be at the King of the Texas Death Match tournament. -WOW - David Von Erich/Villano V wrestle an "A" match. Obviously that's the match of Villano V's life - he had only gotten B- or higher twice before in 1-on-1 matches (both with Curt Hennig, a B- and a B). -The Grapplers haven't done anything yet in WCCW except lose to the Road Warriors. It's kind of a running joke at this point. This was their best match yet, a B-. -The Adonis cross-dressing angle is going somewhere, after weeks/months of teasing it. -Bill Mercer's backstage role will give us the opportunity for more angle development. Aside from the Gary Hart/Adonis stories, he "heard rumors" of Backlund/Murdoch agreeing to face each other at New Year's Revolution. That match will indeed happen. |
NEWS
-Kerry Von Erich arrived late to the last show. I fine him. -The TV show delivers a 3.23 rating. That's our highest rating in 10 weeks. -Paul Orndorff & Don Muroco won the vacant Portland Wrestling Tag Team Championship, defeating Greg Valentine and Les Thorton. -British wrestler Danny Boy Collins is being hyped as a future star in the dirt sheets. -Mr. Wrestling II, Mike Von Erich, and The Sammartinos complain about their pushes. -Steve DiSalvo of Stampede wrestling ruptured his Achilles' tendon and will be out 6 months. -The Final WCCW New Year's Revolution event card is in place. This is one of our biggest shows ever. -WCCW World Heavyweight Championship Match -Steel Cage Match: Classic Rules (Pinfall or Submission Only) Bobby Eaton v. Iceman Parsons -David Von Erich v. Koko B. Ware -King of the Texas Death Match Tournament -First Round Matches -Terry Funk v. Mr. Pogo -Sika v. Buzz Sawyer -Kevin Sullivan v. The Great Kabuki (Winners advance to a Triple Threat Match Final) -Triple Threat Match Skandor Akbar v. Gary Hart v. Lord Alfred Hayes -WCCW World Tag Team Championship Match Kerry & Kevin Von Erich v. Curt Hennig & Tiger Mask -Road Warriors v. Sheepherders (Road Warriors will leave WCCW if they lose) -Final match of the feud -Bruno Sammartino v. Roddy Piper (Sammartino will retire if he loses, Piper will wear a dress for a month if he loses) -Bob Backlund v. Dick Murdock -King Kong Bundy & Arturo Mendoza v. Steve Olsonoski & Mike Von Erich -New WCCW Commissioner Crowned Final Election Results Revealed (Jose Lothario v. Mr. Wrestling II v. Ray Stevens) |
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That was funny stuff there. I gotta tell you molson. I don't know where you come up with half the stuff that you have here. It is so well written that I get a great visual picture every time.
The manager triple threat reminds me of a time that I had a wrester (Ken Patera I think) no show for a main event match. I made Heenan, who was managing him at the time, wrestle in his place. It was short for a main event, but it had to be funny. I can only imagine how that would have gone down. |
THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 4, December 1984 Dallas, TX (Midsouth - Very Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 2,337 Ticket prices: $2 over Default Actual Attendance: 2,000 (SOLD OUT) -Pre-Show Dark Match Steve Olsonoski defeats Dusty Wolfe in 6:34 by pinfall. (D) -Pre-Show Dark Match David Sammartino defeats Perry Jackson (w/The Missouri Mauler) in 6:55 by pinfall. (C). After the match, Bill Mercer interviewed Sammartino, asking him when he's going to make a decision regarding Roddy Piper's offer to replace his father in their six-man tag team. David seemed annoyed by the question, but says he hopes to have an answer this week. (C-) -As the show starts, Kevin & Kerry Von Erich cut a lengthy promo welcoming the fans, and hyping their main event, non-title, match tonight against Bobby Eaton & Koko B. Ware. They also talk about the New Year's Revolution Event - and Koko B. Ware's match against David Von Erich, and Bobby Eaton's World Title defense against Iceman Parsons. (B-) -Iceman Parsons defeats Adrian Adonis in 8:54 by pinfall. (C). After the match, Bill Mercer interviewed Parsons, who hypes his World Title shot against Bobby Eaton at New Year's Revolution. He says he knows that his previous matches with Eaton have been marred by outside interference, so he's looking forward to doing battle, man-to-man, in a steel cage environment, where the best man will emerge world champion. (B-) -Arturo Mendoza & King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) defeats Al Perez & Owen Hart in 5:50 when Mendoza pinned Hart. (C-). After the match, Gary Hart made reference to his team's embarrassing defeat last week to Tiger Mask & The Great Kabuki, and said that they're not done with them yet - they'll be looking for them in early 1985. (B). -David Von Erich cut a promo hyping his upcoming match with Villano V, who he acknowledges he had some problems with on the TV show this week. He also hypes his match at New Year's Revolution against Koko B. Ware. David exhibits his trademark temper, saying that Ware made a huge mistake, and he's going to pay this Saturday night. After he gets through Ware, David promises, he'll be going after Bobby Eaton to regain his World Title. (B-) -David Von Erich defeats Villano V in 11:03 by submission. (B). The two showed great chemistry. -WCCW Commissioner Debate #2 -Moderator: Lord Alfred Hayes -Participants: Jose Lothario, Mr. Wrestling II, and Ray Stevens. -Again, the 3 put forth their platforms. Lothario hypes his loyalty to WCCW and his commitment to bringing exciting talent from around the globe to WCCW. Mr. Wrestling II says that WCCW needs a singular, decisive authority figure that calls all the shots. Ray Stevens says he wants to bring wrestling back to the greatness of the sport's past - he'll enforce the rules and bring glory back to wrestling. (C+) -Bobby Eaton & Koko B. Ware came out for the main event, and hyped their match against the Von Erichs. They say that even though they've gone their separate ways, and have succeeded in the singles ranks, they're still the greatest tag tam in the world whenever they decide to compete in tag team competition. (B). Koko B. Ware also cuts a promo hyping his match at New Year's Revolution at David Von Erich. Ware claims he's tougher, meaner, and better than David, and he'll prove it again this Saturday night (B). -Non-Title Match Bobby Eaton & Koko B. Ware defeat Kerry & Kevin Von Erich in 26:38 when Eaton pinned Kerry with a handful of tights. (B+). Eaton and Ware looked good. Overall Show Rating: B- THOUGHTS: -Good, low-key show on the eve of New Year's Revolution. -Ware/Eaton will still team occasionally, mostly in the main event of house shows like this one. They wrestled a solid main event here against the Von Erichs. This was the first ever tag team match between these 4. -David Von Erich had another solid match against Villano V, though it didn't reach the greatness of their TV match last week. The Villanos have come a long way in their year with WCCW. |
NEWS
-Kevin Sullivan arrives late to the last show. I give him a warning. -Mr. Wrestling II is exhausted after the lasts show (obviously from his other commitments, as he hasn't wrestled yet for us) -International Championship Wrestling, from Memphis, who was on the verge of bankruptcy last year, as really turned this around. They've risen from "small" to "regional" status. The promotion is currently owned by Randy Savage (who bought it from his father). The current heavyweight champion there is Ronnie Garvin. -Kevin Von Erich, who's contract is up, has agreed to re-sign at a $1,675/show for 18 months, a reasonable raise from his old $1,525/show deal. |
WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 4, December 1984 El Paso, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: $1 less than default Actual Attendance: 4,455 -Pre-Show Dark Match Doug Somers (w/The Missouri Mauler) defeats Al Perez in 6:40 by pinfall. (C). Perez was exhausted by the end of the match. After the match, Lance Russell interviewed the Mauler about his client's win. Russell also noted that the the Mauler's six-man tag team of Somers/Orton/Jackson has been mathematically eliminated from the six-man tag team championship tournament. (D+) -Pre-Show Dark Match Grappler #1 defeated Owen Hart in 3:52 by pinfall. (C). After the match, Lance Russell interviewed the Grappler about his win. (C-). -As the show starts, Kerry, Kevin, and David Von Erich cut a backstage promo hyping the main event tonight - their six-man tag team match against Bobby Eaton, Koko B. Ware, and a mystery partner. David also hypes his match at this Saturday night's New Year's Revolution event against Koko B. Ware, and says he can't wait to get his hands on Ware (and Eaton), tonight). (B-). Bobby Eaton and Koko B. Ware also cut a backstage promo hyping the match. They also claim that they've found a "mercenary" to help them bring the Von Erichs down tonight. (B-) -Bob Backlund defeats Mike Von Erich in 7:58 by pinfall. (C). Mike was tiring towards the end of the match. After the match, Bob Backlund cut a promo, confirming the rumors that he's signed to face Dick Murdoch at New Year's Revolution Saturday night. Backlund said it only took one match teaming with Murdoch in the six-man-tag team championship tournament to realize that he just didn't like the guy. He also says he's tired of carrying the dead weight of Murdoch and King Kong Bundy in the team, and he's quite content to carry on in the tournament by himself. (B-). Gary Hart comes to the ring and grabs a mic. He makes an plea to Backlund to cancel his match with Murdoch, for him to try to see eye to eye with his teammates, and go out and win the tournament! Hart also pleads with Backlund to hire him as his manager right now, so nobody has to go through with this display of the "triple threat manager's challenge" tomorrow night. (C+). Before Backlund can respond, Dick Murdoch approaches the ring. Murdoch says that his match is next, and he's tired of waiting for Backlund to finish talking. Murdoch says that just like in their six-man tag team, Backlund is hogging all the glory for himself. (B-). After a few more mutual insults, Backlund and Murdoch come to blows, to the dismay of Gary Hart. They brawl around ringside, before being separated by staff members. (B-) -Dick Murdoch defeats Steve Olsonoski in 7:33 by pinfall. (B-). Murdoch looked good. Murdoch was somewhat worn out from his prior brawl with Backlund - that made this a competitive match, but Olsonoski was unable to win. -Fritz Von Erich came to the ring and cut a promo, hyping the New Year's Revolution event, reminding the fans how they can vote in the WCCW Commissioner election, and thanking them for all of their support during this transition period of the company. He also notes, reflectively, that tonight is his final show as an authority figure in WCCW. (C-) -Bill Mercer, in his role as "roving backstage reporter", knocks on the locker room of Roddy Piper, who answers. Mercer says he has two questions for Piper. First, has David Sammartino given him a answer yet to Piper's offer to replace his father in their six-man tag team? Piper says no, and that he's getting impatient. Piper says he's making New Year's Revolution the deadline for a decision. Piper says that by that night, young David must decide if he'll have a future in this business, or if he'll follow his father right to the unemployment line. Second, Bill Mercer asks Piper if he saw the footage from last week regarding his bodyguard, Adrian Adonis' cross-dressing. Piper ignores the question, claims a phone is ringing in his locker room, and slams the door on Mercer. (C) -Six Man Tag Team Championship Tournament Match -Group A, Match 4 The Sheepherders and Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) defeat The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza (w/Gary Hart) when Williams pinned Villano IV. (B-). The match featured interference by both managers, who also battled with each other, in a preview of this Saturday night's "Triple Threat Manager's Challenge". Butch Miller looked good. -After the match, the group A tournament standings look like this: -(Group A Standings) 1. The Sheepherders & Nikita Koloff (1 pinfall win, 2 draws: 5 points, 1 match remaining) 2. The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza (1 pinfall win, 1 draw, 1 loss: 4 points, 1 match remaining) 3. The Sammartinos & Iceman Parsons (1 loss, 1 draw, 1 point, 2 matches remaining) (all teams remain mathematically alive. The Sheepherders/Koloff win the group if they gain a pinfall/submission win over The Sammartinos/Parsons. The Sammatinos/Parsons win the group if they win both of their final matches (with at least one of the wins by pinfall/submission). The Villanos/Mendoza are the only team that doesn't control their own destiny.) -After the match a lengthy video recaps the Sheepherders/Road Warriors feud, and hypes their match at New Year's Revolution this Saturday (C). -Sika (w/Gary Hart) defeats Mark Youngblood in 5:23 by pinfall. (C) Sika looked good. After the match, a clearly stressed out Gary Hart hypes Sika's chances in the King of The Texas Death Match tournament on Saturday. Hart rants and raves that he'll prove the skeptics wrong, and will once again take his rightful place as the greatest manager in wrestling history. (C+) -Kevin, Kerry, and David Von Erich drew with Bobby Eaton, Koko B. Ware, and their mystery partner, the Japanese brawler Mr. Pogo in 22:55 following a double DQ. (B). During the match, David fought with Koko, but was kept away from World Champion Bobby Eaton. Also during the match, Iceman Parsons neutralized the heels' constant cheating by interfering on the behalf of the Von Erichs. Overall Show Rating: C+ THOUGHTS: -OK show...I would have liked a higher rating to close out the year, but sometimes the show prior to a big event can be tough because there's things you HAVE to do. -The main event was fine, a wild, overbooked brawl between main eventers. Bobby Eaton is clearly avoiding David Von Erich, and Koko B. Ware has no problem taking David on to let that happen. This was Mr. Pggo's WCCW debut. He's in on loan contract, so obviously he's not involved in this storyline, I just wanted to give him a little ring time/momentum going into the King of The Texas Deathmatch tournament. -The other six-man-tag team match, the tournament match, was also strong. Group A's is still anyone's to win. -The surprise of the night was Dick Murdoch carrying Steve Olsonoski to a B-. That was the best match of Olsonoski's WCCW career. -Gary Hart is having something of a mental breakdown due to his various setbacks...He'll have another chance for things to go right at New Year's Revolution. -Mike Von Erich's constant pleas for a higher place on the card aren't too convincing when he only wrestles a "C" match with Bob Backlund. Backlund could approach that rating with a wooden log. |
NEWS
-The TV show gets a 3.39 rating. That's our highest rating ever. -Kelly Kininski won his first singles title, the Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship (which is a midcard title) over the One Man Gang. -The New Year's Revolution show is SO loaded I decide to make it 3 1/2 hours, which will be our longest show ever. I'm still not sure that'll be enough time. |
WCCW: New Year's Revolution
Saturday, Week 4, December 1984 Dallas, TX (Midsouth - Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,955 Ticket prices: $1 less than default Actual Attendance: 3,999 -Pre-Show Dark Match Al Perez defeats Dusty Wolfe in 4:57 by pinfall. (C-) -Pre-Show Dark Segment A visibly distressed and exhausted Gary Hart cuts a promo hyping his team, King Kong Bundy and Arturo Mendoza, and their upcoming match. (C+) -Pre-Show Dark Match Arturo Mendoza & King Kong Bundy (w/Gary Hart) defeat Mike Von Erich & Steve Olsonoski in 8:48 when Bundy pinned Mike. (C+). Mike was tiring towards the end of the match. Mike & Olsonoski showed poor chemistry as a team. Mendoza looked good. -Bob Backlund cut a promo as the show starts, hyping his upcoming match with Dick Murdoch. Backlund again runs down both of his teammates in the six-man tag team championship tournament - Murdoch and King Kong Bundy, saying neither of them deserve to team with him. He also hypes the upcoming triple threat "manager's challenge" match between Gary Hart, Skandor Akbar, and Lord Alfred Hayes, saying he has a contract ready to go for the winner of the match to be his manager going forward. (B) -Bob Backlund defeats Dick Murdoch in 15:58 by pinfall in a hard-fought, competitive match (B-). During the match, Gary Hart, in a desperate attempt to suck up to Backlund, interferes on his behalf. After the match, Backlund, impressed with the competitiveness of Murdoch, offers a handshake, which Murdoch accepts (B-) -King of the Texas Death Match Tournament (Rules: Match continues until one man can't answer a ten count after a pinfall). No-DQ -First Round Match Kevin Sullivan defeats The Great Kabuki in 10:28 following a pinfall, and ten-count. (B). After the match, Sullivan cut a promo hyping his win. (C+). -Lance Russell interviews Buzz Sawyer about his upcoming King of the Texas Deathmatch with Sika. (C) -King of the Texas Death Match Tournament -First Round Match Buzz Sawyer defeats Sika (w/Gary Hart) in 10:39 by pinfall, and 10-count. (B). Hart interfered on behalf of Sika, and got a little roughed up by Sawyer. The two showed poor chemistry. -King of the Texas Death Match Tournament -First Round Match Terry Funk defeats Mr. Pogo in 4:49 by pinfall and 10-count, in a dominating victory. (C+). -WCCW Commissioner Election Results. Fritz Von Erich comes to the ring and announces the three candidates: Jose Lothario, Mr. Wrestling II, and Ray Stevens, who have each campaigned for this position over the last several months, and shared their individual visions for WCCW. Fritz says that three votes were taken: the sponsors, the wrestlers, and the fans, all had a say. Fritz said whoever won the most of those groups would win the election, and in the event of a tie, the fans vote controls. First, Fritz announces the vote of the sponsors: Mr. Wrestling II: 52% Jose Lothario: 45% Ray Stevens: 3% -Then, Fritz announces the vote of the wrestlers: Jose Lothario: 60% Mr. Wrestling II: 30% Ray Stevens: 10% -With Lothario and Mr. Wrestling II splitting the votes thus far, the results come down to the fans' vote, which is announced as follows: Jose Lothario: 78% Mr. Wrestling II: 20% Ray Stevens: 2% -Jose Lothario is elected the new WCCW Commissioner. Mr. Wrestling II shakes Lothario's hand in congratulations. A disgusted Ray Stevens simply waves his hands and angrily storms out of the ring. (C). Fritz interviewed Lothario, who promised to live up to this mandate given to him by the fans and the wrestlers. He says he'll put his staff in place immediately, and new order will come to the company starting next week. (C) -WCCW World Tag Team Championship Match Kevin & Kerry Von Erich defeat Tiger Mask & Curt Hennig in 13:59 when Kevin made Tiger Mask submit. (B). The Von Erichs make their 6th defense of the tag team titles. Hennig & Tiger Mask looked good. After the match, the four men shook hands. (B-). Lance Russel interviewed the champions about the win - they said that Hennig/Tiger Mask earned this title shot, and were worthy challengers. (C+) -Bob Backlund comes back out to the ring for the upcoming triple threat manager's challenge. He cuts a promo, and reference a manager's contract in his hand - he says he'll give it to the winner of this match. (C+) -Triple Threat Manager's Challenge Match -One Fall to a Finish Gary Hart defeats Lord Alfred Hayes and Skandor Akbar in 3:41 after Hart pinned Akbar. (C). A delirious Hart, who had already been beaten up by Buzz Sawyer earlier in the night, celebrated as if he won a championship. Bob Backlund approached an exhausted Hart with the contract, but says that he wouldn't hire Hart if he was the last manager on earth. (B-). Suddenly, Ray Stevens appears from behind and suplexes Hart. (C). Stevens does the same to Lord Alfred Hayes (C-) and Skandor Akbar (C). Stevens then grabs a mic and insults the fans and wrestlers for voting against him in the WCCW Commissioner election. He says that after that debacle, he offered Bob Backlund his managerial services, and Backlund accepted. He says that Backlund has been held down in WCCW too long, and that the fans will see a new, more vicious Backlund, and that Stevens will unleash him on all the wrestlers who voted against him. Stevens also says he's taking over as manager of Gary Hart's "dream team" of Backlund/Bundy/Murdoch in the six-man tag team championship tournament, and under him, that unit will operate as a well-oiled machine (B-) -Challenge Match: Road Warriors Leave WCCW if they Lose The Road Warriors defeat The Sheepherders in 9:37 when Animal pinned Williams. (C) The Sheepherders were without their manager, Skandor Akbar, for most of the match, as he was recovering from his own match, and post-match attack from Ray Stevens. Akbar did make a muted effort to interfere towards the end of the match, but that effort was quickly repelled by the Warriors. The match suffered from a lack of selling. Road Warrior Animal looked good. After the match, The Road Warriors celebrated in the ring. (C+) -Lance Russell interviews Bruno Sammartino about his upcoming match with Roddy Piper. (C+). David Sammartino is by his father's side, but refuses to answer any questions about Roddy Piper's deadline regarding his offer to replace Bruno in their six-man tag team. Bruno Sammartino says this match isn't about the Six-Man Tag Team Championship, or Piper wearing a dress, it's about family pride. -Challenge Match. Sammartino will retire if he loses. Piper will leave the Sammartinos alone forever, and wear a dress for a month if he loses. -Roddy Piper (w/Adrian Adonis) defeats Bruno Sammartino (w/David Sammartino) in 11:31 by submission, via sleeperhold. Piper seemed off his game. (B+). As Sammartino lay in the center of the ring, Piper addresses David - Piper says that he just retired David's father, that after he fulfills his remaining contractual obligations, he'll never wrestler again. Piper asks David - does he still want to associate with a washed up loser, or will he join forces with Piper, win the WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championships, and then go on to even greater heights? David enters the ring, and after several seconds, answers the question by attacking Piper and Adonis. (C+). Piper and Adonis start to regain control after David's initial onslaught, until Bruno Sammartino comes to, and David/Bruno fight off Piper/Adonis from the ring. (C). The two Sammartinos embrace in the ring, as Bruno realizes his career is coming to an end. -Lance Russell interviews Terry Funk about the upcoming finals of the King of the Texas Death Match Tournament. Russell points out that Funk had, by far, the easiest first-round match of the three finalists, and that that should be an advantage for him. Funk says that when he stares across the ring and sees Buzz Sawyer, Kevin Sullivan, and a ring-full of weapons, it doesn't feel like he has much of an advantage. (B) -King of the Texas Death Match Tournament -Finals: Triple Threat Match (Match Continues until two men simultaneously can't meet a 10-count) Buzz Sawyer defeats Terry Funk and Kevin Sullivan in 22:49 in a weapons-filled brawl to win the 2nd annual King of the Texas Death Match Tournament. (B-). After the match, Buzz Sawyer celebrates his win during the trophy presentation. (C) -Lance Russell interviews Iceman Parsons, who hypes his "big chance" at the World Title. Parsons notes that this time, there can be no interference, as they'll both enter a steel cage, and one man will leave as the World Champion, fair and square. (B-) -WCCW World Heavyweight Championship Match -Steel Cage: Classic Rules (Pinfall or Submission Only) Bobby Eaton defeats Iceman Parsons in 9:49 by pinfall to make his 2nd defense of the World Title. (B). Bobby Eaton celebrates his win in the ring. (B) -David Von Erich cuts a promo hyping his upcoming main event grudge match with Koko B. Ware, briefly recapping the lengthy issues between the men that go back to last summer, most recently, Koko costing David the World Title and putting him out of action (B+). Koko cuts a promo as well, claiming that he's the new big thing in WCCW, and David will learn that painfull lesson shortly. (B) -David Von Erich defeats Koko B. Ware in 18:56 by pinfall, after Ware's attempts at cheating backfire, allowing David to strike Ware with a chair and gain the victory. (A+). After the match, the four Von Erich brothers celebrate in the ring. (B-) Overall Show Rating: B+ THOUGHTS: -Great show to cap off the year, even though a few things didn't go as planned. -I need to figure out what's gone wrong with these end-of-month show attendance numbers, they never meet expectations. I'm not sure why that is - maybe Saturday night isn't the best night to run these shows. -My decision to run Ware/David as the main event was a good one, as the two wrestled a spectacular match. I had originally planned for Koko to cheat to a win here, but in the end, I felt like there was just too much heel success on this card. Hopefully Koko's momentum isn't hurt too much, as he's obviously a legitimate main eventer for us. -The World Title Cage match, though relegated down the card one spot, was still very solid. Parsons can cut a good interview, and he can wrestle a very strong 10-minute match. He delivered both tonight. That's about his peak though. He'll go back down the card to settle unfinished business with Nikita Koloff. -I was planning on going the predictable route and having Terry Funk wim the Texas Deathmatch tournament. However, Buzz Sawyer, who has creative control in his loan contract, veto'd that. I thought about pulling him out and replacing him last minute, but decided to give him the win. He follows last year's tournament winner, Bruiser Brody. So Funk's return to WCCW is somewhat tainted, though he did get a squash win in the first round. I'll look to rehabilitate him starting the next show. Sawyer is now gone. In the end, I guess I like the unpredictability of a guy on a 3-shot deal winning such a huge event. -The Piper/Sammartino feud finally ends with Piper winning, and Sammartino keeping his family together. Sammartino is allowed to "fulfill his remaining contractual obligations", including participation in the six-man-tag team championship tournament, before he retires. Piper and Bruno wrestled six 1-on-1 matches since August. Piper won 4 (including the last 2), and Sammartino won twice. This last match tied their highest rating in the series, B+. -I had planned on the Road Warriors losing this match and ridding myself of their contracts. But on closer inspection of the resume, I let them stick around, based largely on their strong B+ with the Sheepherders their last time out. And then of course here, the four have a terrible match, and I regret my decision. In the future with these guys, I need to set a road agent note for "script" instead of "call in the ring", because clearly, when I set it as the latter, none of them want to sell for anyone else. The feud will continue to a third "rubber match", but the Road Warriors still aren't in my long term plans. -The faces v. faces tag team title match was great - it's nice to see that I can pull off matches like this from time to time. Without the face v. face penalty, this probably would have been one of our highest rated tag team matches ever. -I like how the manager's triple threat match went down. Gary Hart, everything going against him, dealing with a mental breakdown, miraculously pulls out a victory. Then Bob Backlund turns on him and hires Ray Stevens as his manager instead, who proceeds to destroy all three managers. Backlund, of course, has been a "tweener" for months, fighting both faces and heels, so this was an opportunity for a full face turn, (say, if he hired Mr. Wrestling II, instead), but now he's back to being a full-fledged heel, under the guidance of his former WWF co-worker. -Lothario is the new commissioner - he'll mostly be behind the scenes, but with this election comes come new structure to WCCW. There will be a championship committee that determines mandatory title defenses for champions. I've always wanted to "pull the curtain back" a little bit in terms of who gets title shots, how matches are made, how wrestlers are ranked, and now I'll have the opportunity to do that. -Overall, the King of the Texas Death Match tournament was a success, as 2 of the 3 first-round matches were very strong. -Bob Backlund had a solid match with Dick Murdoch, and afterwards, the two finally saw eye to eye. This apparently means trouble for everyone else in the six-man-tag team tournament. And it's another blow to the mental stability of Gary Hart, who may take a leave of absence for the purposes of some kind of gimmick/role change. |
NEWS
-I was glad to see a beta DOTT come out for TEW08. I own TEW08, but I'm sticking with this dynasty for now, as I'm far too attached. Maybe down the road, after DOTT08 goes through some revisions, I'll try something else. -Mr. Wrestling II, Sika, Buzz Sawyer, and Terry Funk are exhausted after the last show. Sawyer and Sika aren't my problem anymore - both are gone from WCCW after their loan contracts expired. I'm not sure what Mr. Wrestling II's role will be going forward, if any. -Mr. Wrestling II, Mark Youngblood, The Sammartinos, and Mike Von Erich complain about their pushes. Youngblood has shown me nothing, he's on thin ice. The Sammartinos will be gone soon. Mike just doesn't deserve to be the midcarder he wants to be yet. I do switch Mr. Wrestling II's role from "Personality" to "occasional wrestler". Maybe he'll get involved in a short feud with someone (Backlund?), and I'll see how he does. -Jose Lothario joins a host of wrestlers that announce upcoming in-ring retirements as 1985 kicks off. He joins Giant Baba, Abdullah The Butcher, Mad Dog Vachon, Blackjack Lanza, Killer Karl Krupp, Jay Strongbow, Adrian Street, Dean Ho, Tojo Yamamoto, and Toru Tanaka. -A number of wrestlers also enter the universe, including Ludwig Borga, Fatu, Del Wilkes, Pat Tanaka, Damian 666, and Big Van Vader. I do request negotiations with Vader, who's obviously green and completely unknown at this point, and probably not ready for WCCW. -Now that it's 1985, PPV capability is available. I request negotiations will all the PPV carriers. If I can get on PPV, I'll restructure my event schedule - maybe go with 5 annual PPVs, and then major end-of-month house shows on the months without PPVs. -In major wrestling news, two more promotions fold: New Japan, and Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libra. That leaves the UWA as the only remaining promotion in Mexico, and rumor is they'll fold by the end of the year. There's a lot of wrestlers out on the street - hopefully this somehow leads to a deflation of worker salaries. 11 promotions have now closed since the dynasty began. |
1984 AWARDS
-Wrestler of the Year: David Von Erich -Young Wrestler of the Year (22 or Under): Villano V -Veteran Wrestler of the Year (45 or Older): Nick Bockwinkel -Female Wrestler of the Year: Dump Matsumoto -Promotion of the Year: New Japan -Most Improved Promotion of the Year: WCCW -Match of the Year: Bob Backlund v. Buddy Rose (WCCW House Show) -Show of the Year: WCCW May House Show That's the second year in a row we've won Wrestler of the Year, Match of the Year, and Show of the Year. New Japan wins promotion of the year the same day they close down. I have to think about bringing Buddy Rose back sometime, he really clicked here. |
congrats on the A+ main event, it was a good show.
I am messing around with dott08. |
When I saw Backlund and Murdoch on so early on I thought to myself that this must be one stacked show.
I have a feeling that you are getting a penalty for running your TV show, house and EOM show the same week in the same state. You are getting killed with overexposure. I would try and see if moving your events away from your scheduled EOM show helps. In fact in this case, I almost 100% that is what happened. Good show that I had been looking forward to for some time. Now gimmie more! Oh, and I need your writing and creative juices in my MMA dynasty. |
Quote:
That's a good tip...I've gotten in the habit of running that week 4 Monday house show in Dallas to develop storylines in front of a friendly crowd for the end-of-month card, but I'll have to mix that up a little. |
-I advanced one day too far to do my "end of year recap" before booking the next show...So here's our debut in the southwest region first
THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR Monday, Week 1, January 1985 Las Vegas, NV (Southwest - Tiny Venue) Expected Attendance: 1,115 Ticket prices: $1 over Default Actual Attendance: 1,000 (SOLD OUT) -Pre-Show Dark Match Al Perez defeats Dusty Wolfe in 6:28 by submission. (D-). After the match, Bill Mercer interviewed Perez about his win (E+) -Pre-Show Dark Match Perry Jackson drew with Owen Hart in 5:40 following a double countout. (D+). After the match, Bill Mercer interviewed Hart. (E) -Mr. Wrestling II came to the ring to start the show and hyped his upcoming WCCW debut match against another masked man, The Grappler #1. Mr. Wrestling II also made reference to Saturday night's WCCW Commissioner election, which was won by Jose Lothario. Mr. Wrestling II put over Lothario, and said that he knew he'd do a great job for WCCW. (C). Grappler #1 comes to the ringside area as well, where he's interviewed by Bill Mercer. (C-) -Mr. Wrestling II defeats Grappler #1 in 11:55 by pinfall. (C+). The two showed great chemistry. -King Kong Bundy came to the ring for his match, without his manager Gary Hart. Bundy says that he hasn't seen Hart since they landed in Vegas. Bundy also hypes his match with Terry Funk. (C+). -Terry Funk defeats King Kong Bundy in 9:39 by pinfall. (C+). The two showed poor chemistry. After the match, Bill Mercer interviewed Funk about his win. Mercer asked Funk if he knew anything about the disappearance of Gary Hart, and Funk denies any knowledge, but said that it's not the first time a guy got lost in Vegas. (B) -Ray Stevens came to the ring with his new client, Bob Backlund. The two hyped their main event match against Curt Hennig. Stevens put over his client as a wrestling machine, and put down Las Vegas. (B-). -Bob Backlund (w/Ray Stevens) defeats Curt Hennig in 34:47 by submission after interference from Stevens. (B+). After the match, Backlund and Stevens continued attacking a weakened Hennig for several minutes. (B-). This continued until Mr. Wrestling II and Terry Funk, now wearing street clothes, hit the ring to make the save. The brawl continued for several minutes until Stevens and Backlund were driven from the ring (B-) Overall Show Rating: B- THOUGHTS: -This was a simple, relatively inexpensive show that must have increased our overness significantly in the southwest, where we only have D+ popularity. -Guys like Perez, Owen Hart, Perry Jackson, and Dusty Wolfe are going to get a lot of ringtime in the next few weeks as I try to cut costs. -I'd love to move Mr. Wrestling II into full-time active face wrestler mode, but I don't know if I can afford him. -Gary Hart is missing in Vegas! This is a subtle start to a new storyline. Hart was on the verge of an nervous breakdown even before losing out on the Bob Backlund managerial chase to Ray Stevens. -Great stuff around the main event, which time-wise, took up a good chunk of the show. Hennig's relatively cheap considering what he brings to the table, so he's likely to see a lot more action in the upcoming weeks as well. |
NEWS
-Roddy Piper arrived late to the last show. Even though he wasn't booked, I take this opportunity to suspend him for a month. That will save me his from his $3,375/show fee (he's the most expensive guy I have). I'll only be stuck with his $2,375/month downside. -Terry Funk is exhausted after the last show. -Bob Backlund suffered a sprained angle...He'll be able to work through it, but it will be some indeterminate time before he's back to 100%. |
1984 WCCW W/L Records (W-L-D)
(Includes those on roster at end of year, in order of $/show cost. Tag matches and Battle Royals are included) -Roddy Piper: 21-14-5 -Terry Funk: 6-3-0 -Tiger Mask: 29-16-7 -Bob Backlund: 34-14-6 -Adrian Adonis: 14-16-4 -Lord Alfred Hayes: 0-1-1 -David Von Erich: 44-12-10 -Bruno Sammartino: 13-24-4 -Kerry Von Erich: 24-11-2 -Kevin Sullivan: 2-1-0 -Bobby Eaton: 34-12-7 -Luke Williams: 23-21-6 -Dick Murdoch: 14-11-0 -Road Warrior Hawk: 25-6-1 -Koko B. Ware: 22-7-5 -Road Warrior Animal: 24-7-1 -Kevin Von Erich: 37-16-16 -Curt Hennig: 16-6-5 -The Great Kabuki: 19-17-8 -Iceman Parsons: 28-23-10 -Arturo Mendoza: 19-17-8 -Butch Miller: 27-19-6 -King Kong Bundy: 22-29-3 -Jose Lothario: 9-30-6 -Skandor Akbar: 0-1-0 -Nikita Koloff: 27-14-4 -Grappler #1: 1-4-0 -Mr. Pogo: 0-1-1 -Gary Hart: 1-0-1 -Villano V: 11-38-4 -David Sammartino: 7-10-1 -Grappler #2: 0-4-0 -Mike Von Erich: 32-32-3 -Steve Olsonoski: 5-17-1 -The Missouri Mauler: 0-1-0 -Villano IV: 12-46-4 -Doug Somers: 13-28-9 -Mark Youngblood: 0-17-2 -Owen Hart: 10-55-2 -Perry Jackson: 5-19-1 -Al Perez: 9-47-3 -Barry Orton: 4-19-1 -Dusty Wolfe: 0-21-1 |
WCCW - END OF DECEMBER 1984 - MONTHLY REVIEW
POPULARITY -Texas/Midsouth: 65.7% (up from 65.5% last month) -Midwest: 62.5% (down from 62.6% last month) -Southeast: 54.0% (up from 52.8% last month) -New England: 50.1% (up from 48.7% last month) -Southwest: 49.5% (up from 47.7% last month) -North West: 49.4% (up from 48.0% last month) -Great Lakes: 49.2% (up from 47.8% last month) -Mid Atlantic: 49.2% (up from 47.8% last month) -Tri-State: 49.2% (up from 47.8% last month) -Puerto Rico: 37.6% (Same as last month) -That's the second straight monthly increase in Texas. And the first time I can ever remember losing popularity in the midwest. The rest of the country continues to catch up in popularity with the help of my national TV. PPV, if we can get it sometime soon, may help speed it up even more. The magic number is still 71.1%....I need to get 8 of these regions there to reach "national status". Still an eternity away... FINANCES Income (Last month in parenthesis): Ticket Sales: 502,425 (447,766) Sponsors: 76,601 (76,983) Merchandise: 12,640 (14,286) Expenses: Worker Costs: 360,416 (360,142) Show Costs: 113,500 (106,500) Marketing: 25,000 (25,000) Merchandise: 25,179 (25,197) Production: 40,000 (75,000) Misc: 150,485 (139,553) Total Profit: $-122,914 ($-191,375) Cash in Bank: $336,275 ($459,189) -Another big money-losing month (though we were $70k closer to breaking even than we were in December). I'm simply not doing enough to save money. At last month's pace, I'll be out of money in three months. I need to make some major changes. -I temporarily cancel the home video business....I need every penny I can get back to financial stability. That will cost us some type of benefit in terms of spreading overness of the product. -Otherwise, we're already rock bottom in merchandise and music quality/expense. -A round of talent cuts is most definitely on the way. And any of the big stars I sign for the King of the Texas Deathmatch tournament will probably be let go immediately following that tournament. That'll prevent them from working for me again for at least 6 months, I'll have to take that into account. -I'm putting together a comprehensive "corporate restructuring" before I run any new shows... Custom Merchandise Settings: (All set to sell every type of merchandise) Very Low Level (T-Shirts, Misc., and Posters Only): -David Von Erich -Kerry Von Erich -Kevin Von Erich Very Low Level (T-Shirts Only) -Iceman Parsons -Bob Backlund -Bobby Eaton -Koko B. Ware -Roddy Piper -Tiger Mask -Curt Hennig -Bruno Sammartino -I cut back on merchandise production, hoping to find a magic formula that allows me to make money here. I've stopped making merchandise for Buzz Sawyer, Fritz Von Erich, and The Great Kabuki. I've dropped The Von Erichs from "Low" to "Very Low", to be with everyone else. Where previously, I had sold every type of merchandise for every worker, I'm only selling half of the available types for the Von Erichs, and only shirts for everyone else. |
WCCW CHAMPIONS - End Of December 1984
-World Heavyweight Champion - 96.5% Prestige (Up From 95.7% Last Month) Main Event Title Bobby Eaton (2 title defense, 3 month reign). -Television Champion - 70.0% Prestige (same as last month) Midcard Title Kevin Von Erich - (10 title defenses, 4 month reign) -World Tag Team Champions - 70.0% Prestige (Same as last month) Midcard Title Kerry & Kevin Von Erich - (6 title defenses, 4 month reign) -Six-Man Tag Team Champions - 64.5% Prestige (Down from 66.5% last month) Midcard Title Vacant -Cruiserweight Championship - 36.5% Prestige (Same as last month) Low Level Title Mike Von Erich - 1 month reign |
WCCW STORYLINES - END OF DECEMBER 1984
Storylines with participants and date of origin, in order of current heat: 1. Eaton/Koko hides the belt from David: Eaton/Koko/David Von Erich (October) 2. Tag Team Title Storyline: Mendoza/Bundy v. Kerry/Kevin v. Kabuki/Tiger Mask (April, recently evolved to include Kerry/Kevin) 3T. Bob Backlund's manager: Backlund/Akbar/Hayes/Hart/Stevens (September) 3T. Piper v. Bruno: Piper/Bruno/David Sammartino/Adonis) (July) 5. Road Warriors v. Sheepherders (January) 6. Nikita Koloff's 3-minute challenge: Koloff/Parsons (September) To Debut: Mike Von Erich v. Villano V To Debut: Hennig/Backlund/Murdoch/Sullivan To Debut: Steve Olsonoski v. Doug Somers Lower midcarders and higher without a current or pending storyline: -None -The Eaton/Ware/David Von Erich storyline is the first one I've had reach "A+" overness....It will continue as the focus of the company. The Sammartinos/Piper and Backlund managerial saga are basically done, I'll just touch upon them a bit in the next few weeks to take advantage of the overness those feuds have developed. Road Warriors/Sheepherders and come around in overness slightly, but probably not enough to save the Warriors' jobs. -I'll start a few of new storylines in the next few weeks: Villano V v. Mike Von Erich over the Cruiserweight Championship (basically a reward for Villano V and his superb matches with David Von Erich), a Funk/Hennig/Murdoch/Sullivan storyline that gives those 4 top guys something to do, and a Somers/Olosonoski that will take place largely at house shows, which will allow me to use the required storyline elements at those smaller shows without using as many big stars. WRESTLER CONFLICTS -The following wrestlers are unavailable on these days in October, as they consider these companies priorities over WCCW: NONE -I'm still the most prestigious company in the world, stretching my lead over Mid-Atlantic to 2.3%. The AWA has closed the gap on me (I think), as they're only 0.7% behind me, and have taken their spot as the world's #2 promotion. EXCLUSIVE WORKERS -These are the on-screen workers who happen to work for no one else but me. I'll try to give them a heavier workload, as they're the least likely to have fatigue issues. These guys are also relatively safer when it comes to talent cuts (this list does not include wrestlers who who are exclusively contracted to us, but as of the beginning of the month, have outstanding loan commitments with other promotions). -Al Perez -Barry Orton -Bill Mercer -Bronco Lubich -Curt Hennig -David Manning -The Sheepherders -David Von Erich -David Sammartino -Doug Somers -Dusty Wolfe -Fritz Von Erich -The Grapplers -Iceman Parsons -Jose Lothario -Kerry Von Erich -Kevin Sullivan -Kevin Von Erich -Mark Youngblood -Mike Von Erich -Nikita Koloff -Owen Hart -Perry Jackson -Ricky Romero -Road Warrior Animal -Steve Olsonoski -The Great Kabuki -The Missouri Mauler -Villano IV -Villano V WRESTLER COMPLAINTS -Bruno Samartino is furious about how he's being pushed -David Sammartino is extremely annoyed about how he's been pushed -Mark Youngblood is extremely annoyed about how he's being pushed -Mike Von Erich is extremely annoyed about how he's being pushed -Mr. Wrestling II is extremely annoyed about how he's being pushed -Roddy Piper is unhappy about how many losses he's taken -Steve Olsonoski is unhappy about how he's being pushed -This is a much happier locker room than previous months. Olsonoski was recently promoted, so he should be content by next month. Mr. Wrestler II will either be a major part of the roster or fired soon. The Sammartinos are probably off to the sunset soon as well. WRESTLER DISAGREEMENTS ABOUT PUSHES -These are guys that have let me know they think they should be pushed better (including those listed above, whose complaints have risen to the level of affecting morale). (loan agreement workers designated by *). -David Sammartino thinks he should be a midcarder -Dick Murdoch thinks he should be a main eventer -Grappler #1 thinks he should be a midcarder -Grappler #2 thinks he should be a midcarder -Luke Williams thinks he should be an upper midcarder -Mark Youngblood thinks he should be a Lower midcarder -Mike Von Erich thinks he should be a midcarder -Mr. Wrestling II thinks he should be a main eventer -Owen Hart thinks he should be an opener -Perry Jackson thinks he should be a lower midcarder -Road Warrior Animal thinks he should be a main eventer -Road Warrior Hawk thinks he should be an upper midcarder -Roddy Piper thinks he should be a main eventer -Steve Olsonoski thinks he should be a midcarder -Tiger Mask thinks he should be an upper midcarder -The Missouri Mauler wants to be an occasional wrestler -A lot of people with disagreements this month. I haven't changed anybody yet, but will likely change a bunch during my "corporate restructuring". -All of the lower-level guys who want to be a notch higher may soon have their shot, as I try to make my roster more affordable. |
Current Momentum Ratings (End of December, 1984), with last month is parenthesis.
B+ Koko B. Ware (A) Mr. Pogo (N/A) David Von Erich (B) Bobby Eaton (B-) Terry Funk (N/A) B: Kevin Von Erich (B) B-: Bob Backlund (C+) Road Warrior Hawk (C) Roddy Piper (B-) Iceman Parsons (B-) Kerry Von Erich (B) C+ Kevin Sullivan (N/A) Curt Hennig (B) Tiger Mask (C+) C: The Great Kabuki (C) Arturo Mendoza (C+) Butch Miller (C+) Bruno Sammartino (C) Luke Williams (C+) King Kong Bundy (C+) Road Warrior Animal (C-) Dick Murdoch (C+) Mr. Wrestling II (N/A) Nikita Koloff (C+) C-: Doug Somers (D+) Grappler #1 (N/A) Grappler #2 (N/A) Mike Von Erich (C+) Adrian Adonis (C-) D+: David Sammartino (D-) Al Perez (D+) Villano V (D+) D: None D-: Steve Olsonoski (E) Dusty Wolfe (D-) E+: Villano IV (E+) E: Perry Jackson (E+) E-: None F+: Mark Youngblood (F+) Owen Hart (F+) F: None F-: None Rising in December: David Von Erich, Bobby Eaton, Bob Backlund, Road Warrior Hawk, Road Warrior Animal, Doug Somers, David Sammartino, Steve Olsonoski, Falling in December: Koko B. Ware, Kerry Von Erich, Curt Hennig, Arturo Mendoza, Luke Williams, Butch Miller, King Kong Bundy, Dick Murdoch, Nikita Koloff, Mike Von Erich, Perry Jackson |
WCCW CORPORATE RESTRUCTURING
-Looking back, there's been many, many times where I've written, "I need to cut back on costs, and make more money". Outside of that two months where I somehow managed to make completely ridiculous money on merchandise, I haven't done a great job of doing that. Now that we're in a new year, and my cash on hand is at my lowest point ever, it's time to get serious. -Of course, I still want to be moving forward, and taking steps towards the goal of national status. Staying flat in popularity, and not making money, just isn't an option. I have to be doing one or the other, preferably both. I know that whenever I make my last push to national, I'll have to bring in high-priced talent and run loaded shows. I'll need cash on hand and be prepared to lose money once I get there. -So here's the plan. 1. TALENT -Talent Cuts. Not really the most important thing at cult level, since outside of their downside guarantee, I only pay them when they're actually working. Still, I'm well above my ideal roster size, and I need to cut back here. -Letting Contracts Expire. Letting a contract expire is preferable to firing a guy. The latter can cause relationship problems. So when a contract is up, the guy's going to be let go unless there's compelling reason to do anything else. As a guy approaches his contract end, he'll be phased out, bringing me further savings -Suspensions. This isn't a good time to piss me off. Anyone who misses a show will be suspended immediately for one month. Anyone who is late for a show will also receive harsher punishment. If he's not a first-time offender, he'll be suspended a month unless I really need the guy in the meantime. First-time offenders will be suspended a week. Fines will be given only if I absolutely need the guy during the next week. This will put some guys on the shelf for a while without having to deal with "unhappiness" issues (though, it may earn my user character a "dislike" relationship with the disciplined worker) -Wrestler Gimmick Change Sabbaticals: The game allows you to keep a wrestler off screen for a certain period of time while the change gimmick. During this time, they won't complain about not being used. -Cheaper Shows: It's hard to put a specific rule on this. In particular, any shows outside Texas will really have the scrape the barrel. -Misc Tweaks: Involving Managers and Announcers, detailed below -Super-Cheap Talent: I want to find guys that can work the occasional B- match for under $1,000, and guys that can wrestle occasional C- matches for under $500. Some of my lower card guys might be close to that point. II PPV REVENUE -This could be HUGE for me. Hopefully it pans out in the next few days III SHOW COSTS -In the past, when I've needed more money, I've stayed in Texas. But a cheap show in Texas will hurt my popularity. A super-cheap show in Las Vegas or Seattle, on the other hand, can actually help my popularity in those areas. So I'm going to mix it up. ACTIONS -Roddy Piper suspended for one month. He's likely to only make periodic appearances after that. It's tough to let him go entirely, but his salary may warrant that. -Arturo Mendoza's contract will not be renewed when it expires in 59 days. I've demoted him to "occasional wrestler" so he can be phased out. -Terry Funk's contract will not be renewed when it expires in 60 days. He'll remain a main eventer until then. -The Great Kabuki's contract will not be renewed when it expires in 97 days. I've demoted him to "occasional wrestler" so he can be phased out. -Tiger Mask's contract will not be renewed when it expires in 111 days. I've demoted him to "occasional wrestler" so he can phased out. -Lance Russell is gone from the broadcast booth, with the exception of any PPVs that I might run. When he was working every show, he was costing me $22,000/month. -Lord Alfred Hayes has been fired. He had been making $1,925/show. For now, Bill Mercer will handle the broadcasts alone - he may have occasional guest commentary from random people on the roster. This will definitely have a negative effect on our overall show ratings (all the more reason to run shows outside of Texas) -The Missouri Mauler has been fired. -Mr. Wrestling II has been fired. -Adrian Adonis has been fired. -Bronco Lubich has been fired. That leaves Ricky Romero as our only road agent. -The Road Warriors will be fired by the end of the month -Gary Hart will be on sabbatical for 28 days with a gimmick change -King Kong Bundy will be on sabbatical for 28 days with a gimmick change I've also requested negotiations with John Tolos, Roy Shire, Edouard Carpentire, John Heath, George Cannon, and JR Foley, in the hopes that one of them might be willing to replace Lord Alfred Hayes for cheap. |
Wow, you are serious. Question, what happens to your story lines that involve a guy that you let go, and how does that affect you overall?
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Ouch, thats a lot of talent. Though I guess this route beats a slow hemmorraghe of all your cash.
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Quote:
That's a great question. I'm not sure. I know there's some kind of penalty when you end a storyline early. When you fire a worker who's involved in one, the storyline just disappears - I don't know if there's a penalty involved with that or not. The only storyline immediately impacted by the recent moves is the Sammartino/Piper storyline, since Adrian Adonis was a part of that, and he's now gone. That storyline just disappeared, and there was no prestige drop, so I think I'm in the clear. Of course, that storyline was "unchained", and I was just about to end it anyway. (I should have ended it before I formally fired Adonis, just to be on the safe size). The Von Erichs v. Kabuki/Tiger Mask v. Mendoza/Bundy storyline will obviously not be able to play out either, but I'll be able to "evolve" that one into something else (carrying over the Von Erichs), without penalty. The other thing I'm not sure of the effect of is the "occasional wrestler" status. How do wrestlers react when I demote them there? Obviously, they won't expect to be on as many shows as they would be as an uppermidcarder. But will they be upset about that designation? Are there any other effects? I don't know if it's a "cheat" to store a guy like Tiger Mask there for 4 months, dusting him off for only occasional use. I know the roster requires a certain amount of guys who have each push (main eventer, uppermidcarder, etc), otherwise you're subject to a severe penalty. So maybe it's just a "legitimate" roster management exercise to designate certain guys in those spots, based on their use of them. Of course, at the end of the day, I just book this thing as real-life as possible, don't worry too much about AI vulnerabilities and it's kept me entertained for almost two years now. It's had definite staying power. |
If anyone out there has a spare pwtorrents invite, I'd be your bff if you send me one.
I've had an account for years, had a great ratio, but my account has apparently been deleted due to inactivity - it's only been two months, but they're a little intense over there. Thanks |
ROSTER, END OF DECEMBER, 1984
MAIN EVENTERS Bob Backlund David Von Erich Terry Funk Curt Hennig Bobby Eaton Koko B. Ware -Same group as last month, except that Buzz Sawyer is gone, and Terry Funk is in. Hennig & Ware are the best values here, both making only $1,675/show...That will guarantee them a lot of of ringtime as we recovery financially. UPPER MIDCARDERS Kerry Von Erich Roddy Piper Kevin Von Erich Dick Murdoch Iceman Parsons Kevin Sullivan -Since last month, Sika and Adrian Adonis are out, Kevin Sullivan debuts here, and Iceman Parsons moves up. Parsons has bounced back and forth between the Upper Midcard and the midcard, but he deserves this promotion after his performances with Bobby Eaton. He's also the cheapest guy in this group, at $1,500/show. Piper may become a mere "occasional wrestler" when he returns from suspension. MIDCARDERS The Road Warriors The Grapplers Steve Olsonoski Nikita Koloff Mike Von Erich The Sheepherders King Kong Bundy -Many changes in this group since last month. The Great Kabuki, Arturo Mendoza, and Tiger Mask are out, demoted to "occasional wrestler" status. It will be hard to see them all go. Particularly, Mendoza, who I built up from the very bottom of the card to a guy who could easily be a main eventer. Tiger Mask is consistently great, but expensive. Kabuki is aging, and a historical WCCW mainstay. Hopefully they'll all be back someday down the road. -The Grapplers, Mike Von Erich, and Steve Olsonoski benefit from the talent cuts and all move up to this group. Mike Von Erich is the best value here at $850/show, so he'll continue to see lots of ringtime. Iceman Parsons has moved out of this group up to the upper midcard. Olsonoski and Mike had been whining about their pushes, so hopefully this leads to a happier locker room. LOWER MIDCARDERS Mr. Pogo (loan contract) Doug Somers David Sammartino Villano V Mark Youngblood -Mike Von Erich, The Grapplers, and Steve Olsonoski have moved out and up out of this group. Mr. Pogo joined the group of the month via loan contract, he has one more match with us then he's gone. Mark Youngblood makes a huge jump from Enhancement Talent up to the Lower Midcard, even though he hasn't won a match. Again, I've made locker room morale a priority for the time being, and he was bitching down where he was. He's also very cheap ($550/show), and the recent talent cuts/demotions have created some room for upward momentum on the roster. Doug Somers gets a tough break as his manager, the Missouri Mauler, has been fired. Somers had particularly great chemistry with the Mauler, and the Mauler's firing may have been the only thing to keep him from moving up to the midcard with Mike and Olsonoski. OPENERS Al Perez Villano IV Perry Jackson Barry Orton -Same group as last month. Villano IV is probably the class of the group right now, but all of these guys have shown the ability to wrestle C- matches and above. ENHANCEMENT TALENT Owen Hart Dusty Wolfe -Younblood has moved up and out of this group. Owen Hart could be close to a promotion. He's only 19 years old. OCCASIONAL WRESTLERS Bruno Sammartino Tiger Mask Arturo Mendoza The Great Kabuki -Bruno is two tournament matches away from retirement (unless his team can manage to win, then new commissioner Jose Lothario will have to make a decision). Tiger Mask/Kabuki/Mendoza will complete their roles in that tournament, and then they'll make only sporadic appearances until their contracts expire. OTHERS Skandor Akbar Gary Hart Lance Russell David Manning Jose Lothario Fritz Von Erich The Missouri Mauler Ray Stevens Ricky Romero -Going with only one road agent (Romero) is a bit of a risk. We have some "character issue" guys in the locker room. CONTRACTS UP IN NEXT 60 DAYS -Bob Backlund (51 Days) -Arturo Mendoza (58 Days) -Terry Funk (59 Days) -I've already made my decisions on Mendoza and Funk. -Backlund is a huge concern. He currently makes $2,000/month, and will surely be looking for a raise. Fritz may cap my offer out and make it impossible to re-sign him |
this is my favourite dynasty ever on here. Well done for making some difficult decisions even if Mendoza was my favourite guy on your roster...
More updates please! |
ROSTER PERSONALITIES & RELATIONSHIPS, END OF DECEMBER, 1985
I don't think I've ever tracked this, but with my new attention to locker room morale (to compensate for the talent cuts), it's worth looking at here. PERSONALITIES -Al Perez: Professional -Arturo Mendoza: Locker Room Leader, Very Nice, Professional -Barry Orton: Very Nice, Professional -Bill Mercer: Normal -Bob Backlund: Locker Room Leader, Professional -Bobby Eaton: Locker Room Leader, Very Nice, Professional -Bruno Sammartino: Locker Room Leader, Professional -Butch Miller: Very Nice, Professional -Curt Hennig: Locker Room Leader, Joker, Professional -David Manning: Normal -David Sammartino: Normal -David Von Erich: Locker Room Leader, Professional -Dick Murdoch: Locker Room Leader, Joker, Professional -Doug Somers: Professional -Dusty Wolfe: Professional -Fritz Von Erich: Locker Room Leader, Driven, Professional -Gary Hart: Manipulative, Politician -Grappler #1: Very Nice, Professional -Grappler #2: Very Nice, Professional -Iceman Parsons: Professional -Jose Lothario: Politician -Kerry Von Erich: Free Spirit -Kevin Sullivan: Free Spirit, Professional -Kevin Von Erich: Locker Room Leader, Free Spirit -King Kong Bundy: Locker Room Leader, Professional -Koko B. Ware: Locker Room Leader -Lance Russell: Locker Room Leader, Very Nice, Professional -Luke Williams: Very Nice -Mark Youngblood: Normal -Mike Von Erich: Normal -Mr. Pogo: Very Nice -Nikita Koloff: Very Nice, Professional -Owen Hart: Normal -Perry Jackson: Very Nice, Professional -Ray Stevens: Locker Room Leader, Free Spirit, Professional -Ricky Romero: Locker Room Leader, Very Nice, Professional -Road Warrior Animal: Driven, Professional -Road Warrior Hawk: Free Spirit -Roddy Piper: Free Spirit, Selfish -Skandor Akbar: Very Nice, Professional -Steve Olsonoski: Very Nice, Professional -Terry Funk: Locker Room Leader, Joker, Professional -The Great Kabuki: Locker Room Leader, Very Nice, Professional -Tiger Mask: Locker Room Leader, Free Spirit, Master Politician -Villano IV: Very Nice, Professional -Villano V: Very Nice, Professional WORKER RELATIONSHIPS (Workers who have defined relationships with other members of the WCCW Roster) -Arturo Mendoza, Villano IV, and Villano V are blood relatives -Bill Mercer and Fritz Von Erich have a strong friendship -Bruno Sammartino and David Sammartino are blood relatives -Fritz, David, Kevin, Kerry, and Mike Von Erich are blood relatives -Dick Murdoch and Terry Funk are best friends -Gary Hart and The Great Kabuki have a strong friendship -The Grappler #1 and Grappler #2 are best friends -Iceman Parsons and Kevin Von Erich have a strong friendship -Jose Lothario is the mentor of Kevin Von Erich -Butch Miller and Luke Williams are best friends -molson (my user character) has mutual strong dislike of Kevin Von Erich and Tiger Mask -Ricky Romero and Mark Younblood are blood relatives -Road Warrior Animal and Road Warrior Hawk are loyal to each other. -So generally, we have a pretty happy locker room. There were a lot more at the start of the game, but the exists of The Freebirds and Chris Adams, in particular, separated a lot of good friends. |
Quote:
Thanks- Mendoza's definitely the toughest cut I've made thus far. |
WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 1, January 1985 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: $1 less than default Actual Attendance: 5,000 (SOLD OUT) -As planned, Bill Mercer will serve as the lead announcer of this show. He'll be joined on color commentary by....Fritz Von Erich. I can't believe I didn't think of this earlier. I have to pay Fritz a flat monthly rate anyway, might as well throw him out there with Mercer. Definitely a cheaper combo than Russel/Hayes. Russell remains on the roster for any PPV duty. -Pre-Show Dark Match Mike Von Erich defeats Dusty Wolfe in 7:55 by submission. (D+). Mike was visibly tiring towards the end of the match. After the match, Mercer interviewed Mike about his win, and also the upcoming triple threat match later on to determine the #1 Contender to Mike's Cruiserweight Championship. Mike says he looks forward to competing against the winner next week, and is glad to see that Jose Lothario's administration is off to a fast start. (C) -Pre-Show Dark Match Al Perez defeats Villano IV in 4:52 by submission. (C+). -As the show starts, Bill Mercer introduces his broadcast partner, Fritz Von Erich. The two recap all of the results from the New Year's Revolution event, and tonight's show. (C) -Jose Lothario comes to the ring. Staff members set up a rolling drum with ping pong balls next to him. Lothario thanks the fans for all their votes, and says that he's proud to serve the company he's given his soul to, as WCCW Commissioner. Lothario announces the formation of two of the bodies he discussed during his campaign: The Champion Committee, and the Discipline Committee. The former will govern all championships, and championship defenses. Lothario says that from now on, every champion must defend their title every 30-days or they will be stripped of their title, no exceptions. Lothario says that each month, a the championship committee will determine a #1 Contender for each title. That contender receives a mandatory title shot. Each champion is free to defend their titles more often, if they wish. While the committees are getting settled, Lothario will call the shots. (C-) -Lothario says that all the fans will learn about about these committees and Lothario's vision for WCCW as the weeks progress, but tonight, he's going to give them a sneak peak. Lothario introduces the reigning WCCW TV Champion, Kevin Von Erich, who comes to the ring. Lothario congratulates Kevin on his impressive reign as TV Champion. Lothario says that as a former TV Champion himself, he understands how prestigious that title is. Lothario says that starting tonight, things will be taken to another level, and that the WCCW Title will be the most unique, and hotly contested title in the history of professional wrestling. Lothario lays down the rules for the title, as determined by the WCCW Championship Committee: WCCW Television Championship Rules 1. There will be a WCCW TV Title Match on TV every single week, no exception. 2. If at any time, for any reason, the champion is unable to defend the title in a given week, the belt is immediately vacated. 3. Each TV show, any WCCW wrestler on the active roster, who is in the arena that night, may place his name into a pool of contenders. 4. Each week, a name from that last of contenders will be chose at random - that man will get a shot, that week, at the TV title 5. All WCCW TV Championship matches will continue to have a 10 minute time limit. 6. If the TV Champion is unable to compete any given week, two names will be drawn from random, and those two men will compete that week for the vacant title. -Lothario hypes the rules. While the rules put the champion in a tough situation - he must defend the title every single week against a "surprise opponent", the rules also continue to give the champion the advantage of the short 10 minute time limit. To win the belt, a challenger must quickly and decisively defeat the champion. With that, Lothario reference the rolling drum of ping pong balls, and asks Kevin to pull one out at random, to determine his challenger tonight. Kevin draws...Nikita Koloff. (C+) -Kerry Von Erich defeats Perry Jackson in 6:53 by pinfall. (C-) -Mark Youngblood defeats Doug Somers in 5:31 by pinfall. (C). Somers seemed off his game. The announcers note that his match was Youngblood's first victory in WCCW. Youngblood celebrated after the match in the ring. (D) -The Grapplers defeats The Road Warriors in 10:27 by DQ after the Warriors lost their temper and refused to follow the referee's instructions. (C+). The referee had to step between the Warriors and The Grapplers to prevent the attack from continuing. After the match, the Road Warriors cut a heelish promo. They say it's a joke that they had to wrestle the Grapplers yet again after their dominating victory over The Sheepherders at New Year's Revolution. The Road Warriors say that their next match must be the match they deserve - a shot at the Von Erichs and the World Tag Team Championship. They demand that Jose Lothario come out and make that match. Jose Lothario indeed comes out to the ringside area, but says that he's not rewarding the Warriors with a title shot - after all, they just lost a match to the Grapplers. Instead, Lothario says, he's booking a rematch for next week, on TV, between The Road Warriors and The Sheepherders. Lothario says that for the Warriors to earn a title shot, they'll have to show that they can beat the Sheepherders in a regular wrestling match (not just in the no-DQ environment that took place at New Year's Revolution). (C+). The angry Warriors storm off. (C) -#1 Contender's Match: Cruiserweight Championship -Triple Threat Rules: One Fall to a Finish Villano V defeats Owen Hart and Steve Olsonoski in 7:54 when Villano IV sneaked into the match and pinned Olsonoski. (C-). Villano V had been incapacitated outside the ring after missing a high-risk move. Villano IV, who was wearing identical ring attire and mask, entered the ring fresh and made the pinfall. Bill Mercer hypes next week's Cruiserweight Championship match between Mike Von Erich and Villano V. (C) -Skanor Akbar cuts a promo backstage with his Destruction Inc. stable of The Sheepherders and Nikita Koloff. (C+). He hypes their upcoming tournament match with The Sammartinos and Iceman Parsons. He notes that if his team scores a pinfall or submission victory, they win Group A, and will advance to the final championship match in the WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament. He also hypes Nikita Koloff's TV Title Match later on tonight, claiming that this will be a huge night for Destruction Inc. He talks about the match setup next week by Jose Lothario: His Sheepherders against the Road Warriors. Akbar suggests that that match be the a #1 Contender's match for the World Tag Team Titles. He also makes passing reference to the mysterious disappearance of Gary Hart in Las Vegas, saying Hart has clearly finally gone insane. (C) -WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament Match -Group A, Match 5 -The announcers note that if Destruction Inc. wins by pinfall or submission, they clinch the group and will advance to the final match. The announcers also mention that despite Sammartino losing the retirement match to Roddy Piper at New Year's Revolution, he will be allowed to compete for the rest of the tournament, and if his team wins, he will be allowed to compete as long as his team holds the gold. -Bruno Sammartino, David Sammartino, and Iceman Parsons defeat The Sheepherders & Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) in 9:58 when Parsons pinned Miller after botched interference from Akbar. (B-) -(Group A Standings) 1. The Sheepherders & Nikita Koloff (1 pinfall win, 1 loss, 2 draws: 5 points, 0 matches remaining) 2. The Sammartinos & Iceman Parsons (1 pinfall win, 1 loss, 1 draw, 4 points, 1 match remaining) 3. The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza (1 pinfall win, 1 draw, 1 loss: 4 points, 1 match remaining) (Any winner of the final Sammartinos/Parsons v. Villanos/Mendoza match will win the group. If that match ends in a draw, it will be a 3-team tie, to be decided by a triple threat six-man tag team tiebreaker match) -The announcers introduce and play a video showing highlights the Sheepherders/Road Warriors feud, including their match at New Year's Revolution. The video hypes the match next week on TV between the two teams. (C-) -Backstage, Kevin Von Erich hypes his TV Title defense against Nikita Koloff. He notes that it will be Koloff's second match of the night, and he'll try to wear him down. (C+) -WCCW Television Championship Match Kevin Von Erich drew with Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (C). Kevin makes his 11th defense of the TV title. Kevin's plan worked to perfection, he wrestled defensively, and wore down an already tired Koloff. After the match, a frustrated Koloff and Akbar try to attack Kevin, who easily repels the attack. Overall Show Rating: C THOUGHTS: -That was a pretty bad show, but still good enough to increase our popularity outside of Texas and the midwest. It was also a cheap show - I didn't use a single main eventer -I know some of this show was a little wordy, but there were a few things to catch up on and explain. Most important is the new TV title rules. I've had that idea in my head for a while. The champion has to defend the title against a random opponent every single week. Lots of opportunity for drama and storylines there. The names of the wrestlers who "enter" each weekly drawing will remain secret. The structure will inevitably wear any TV Champion down eventually, but they only need to hold on for 10 minutes to retain. The TV Title match won't be the main event every week, sometimes the challenger will be a jobber. Here, I clearly should have used the six-man match at the main. -The Road Warriors were definitely heelish tonight, getting DQ'd and calling out the Von Erichs. No full-fledged heel turn yet, but if they can beat the Sheepherders next week, then that's the way they'll probably go against the Von Erichs. -The six-man tag team championship tournament has been long, and kind of complicated, but it's winding down now and Group A is basically a dead heat. Bruno has been given a reprise - he'll be allowed to wrestle not only for the rest of the tournament, but for as long as he's champion if he's fortunate enough to win. Some real dram also exists over in Group B - what will happen to Gary Hart's "dream team" of Backlund/Murdoch/Bundy, now that Hart is missing, and Ray Stevens is managing Backlund? -The low-level Cruiserweights were given a a shot tonight in the triple threat match, and they didn't really deliver. I even allowed to them to "go all out", a rare opportunity for lower-level wrestlers. |
NEWS
-The mediocre TV show delivered only a 3.05 rating. That's down from last week's all-time high of 3.39, and our lowest number in 6 weeks. -Steve Olsonoski was late for the last show. I've advertised him for a match at next week's house show, so he gets by with just a fine here. -Ray Stevens was late for the last show. That's a first offense for him, and he's particularly important right now, so he gets by with just a fine. -Charlie Cook is being hyped in the dirt sheets as a future star. He hasn't worked regularly since July of 1983. Thinking he might work cheap, I request negotiations. -AWA, All Japan, Mid-Atlantic, Portland, UWA, and Georgia strike deals to carry shows on PPV/closed circuit. AWA and Georgia sign with a "Big" sized carrier. That's relevant for me, as the first PPV provider who wants to talk with me is "Very Small". That's too much smaller than what the AWA and Georgia are doing, so I hold off for something better (though they do manage to sign with Mid-Atlantic). -A day later though, I manage to sign with a rival "big" carrier that has coverage throughout the USA (I'm rejected by the bigger carries that have more worldwide reach). -I immediately set our January Star Wars event to be on PPV. I don't know if I'll necessary run PPV every month, but I'm anxious to try it out and see what kind of revenue it will generate. It will also be interesting to see how the AI handles PPV. -JR Foley has rejected negotiations, since I just recently let his last contract with us expire. -Tiger Mask, The Great Kabuki, Arturo Mendoza, and The Sammartinos complain about their pushes (I guess that answers the question about weather guys will complain about an "occasional wrestler" push). -Roy Shire, John Tolos, George Cannon, and John Heath do accept negotiations. Shire is far too expensive at $1,725/show. The others are much more reasonable, but now that I have Fritz in place as color commentary though, I take a pass. -I sign newcomer Big Van Vader for 9 months at $475/show. While he has no overness anywhere, he has decent skills. "A" rating in Intensity, Stiffness, and Menace, and "B+" in Toughness, Looks, and Star Quality. He'll start as an "Opener" and as a babyface. He has a "mountain man" gimmick. (I envision it as a former-NFL player/Colorado outdoorsman who doesn't yet know much about wrestling). I can't bring myself to job him too much, so he'll wrestle almost exclusively in dark matches for a while. -Bob Backlund is back at 100%, so we avoid any kind of nagging injury with him. -A dirt shirt poll named The Grand Wizard as "the best manager in wrestling" |
THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 2, January 1985 Dallas, TX (Midsouth - Small Venue) Dallas Arena Expected Attendance: 2,337 Ticket prices: $2 over Default Actual Attendance: 2,395 -Pre-Show Dark Segment Bill Mercer interviewed former NFL player Leon White, who is about to make his professional wrestling debut. (D). Bill Mercer also interviews his opponent, Dusty Wolfe, who says that he's insulted that White thinks he can just come in off the street and wrestle. (D) -Pre-Show Dark Match Leon White drew with Dusty Wolfe in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (C) -As the show starts, Jose Lothario comes to the ring and welcomes the fans, cutting a brief promo. He makes the much-rumored announcement - WCCW will make its PPV/closed circuit debut in three weeks at January Star Wars. He asks the fan to turn into the TV show to get more details. (C-) -Steve Olsonoski drew with Doug Somers in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (C). The two showed poor chemistry. -The Sheepherders (w/Skandor Akbar) defeat Owen Hart & Al Perez in 5:32 when Williams pinned Perez. (C). Miller looked good. After the match, Akbar & The Sheepherders hyped their upcoming match on the TV show this week against the Road Warriors. Akbar says that he got the official word from Lothario before the show - this will be a #1 Contender's Match for the World Tag Team Championship, with the winners to challenge the Von Erichs at January Star Wars. (C) -Iceman Parsons defeats Perry Jackson in 6:42 by pinfall. (C-). After the match, Parson talks about his match with Nikita Koloff several weeks ago, when he successfully met Koloff's "3 minute challenge". Parsons said that starting on the TV show this week, he'll start his own challenge, but he'll defeat any opponent in 2:45. (C+) -The Villanos defeat The Road Warriors in 7:54 by DQ. (C-). During the match, The Sheepherders and Skandor Akbar surrounded the ring, and attempted interference several times. Soon, the Warriors lost their temper, and attached The Sheepherders. In the melee, Road Warrior Hawk, out of frustration, struck one of the Villanos with a steel chair, after he couldn't connect a chair shot with either of the Sheepherders. After the match, a lengthy teased brawl between the Sheepherders and Road Warriors takes place around ringside, but the Sheepherders are able to escape while road agents break things up. (D+). The frustrated Road Warriors return to the ring, and attack the Villanos instead. (D+) -Terry Funk cuts a lengthy promo, saying he has unfinished business with Gary Hart from his last WCCW run, which is why he arranged this main event match tonight with Hart's client, Arturo Mendoza. Funk, however, says Hart is still nowhere to be found after disappearing in Las Vegas last week. (B) -Terry Funk defeats Arturo Mendoza in 22:31 by pinfall despite interference by The Villanos. (B+). Funk overcame 3-1 odds (though the Villanos were significantly weakened from the previous match). After the match, Terry Funk celebrated in the ring for several minutes. (B) Overall Show Rating: C+ THOUGHTS: -That was something of an intentionally bad (and cheap) show. -I accidentally booked this show in a "small" instead of a "very small" venue. That will screw up any profitability of this show, but at least the fans were roomy. -Obviously the main event saved us from disaster here. I wanted to build Funk some momentum against the soon-to-depart Mendoza -The Sheepherders/Road Warriors stuff was shockingly bad. Not sure why. -This was the Warriors' 2nd straight DQ job to a masked team, after their loss against the Grapplers last week. I'm trying to give some other teams a little momentum on the Warriors way out (which actually might explain whey the Warriors' segments have been so bad - it also definitely compromises our Sheepherders/Warriors #1 Contenders match this week) -It's too bad Olsonoski and Somers have bad chemistry, as they're set for a series of matches against each other. Oh well - I can live with Cs from them. -Leon White makes his debut on the pre-show and pulls a very decent C with Dusty Wolfe. The AI still, as far as I can see, annoyingly doesn't sign any worker who debuts in the universe, because of their low overness. I guess as guys retire, they'll have to give them a shot eventually. Wrestling a "C" match with Dusty Wolfe is not bad at all. Wolfe recently wrestled a D+ match with Mike Von Erich, and a C match with Kerry Von Erich. |
NEWS
-Tiger Mask arrived very late to the last show. I'll need him soon for the six-man tag team championship, but not for the next week, so I suspend him for that long. -I sign another former NFL-player, Charlie Cook, for 9 months at $500. Cooks seems to be a decent enough jobber-level guy. He gives me another option at the bottom of the roster, and maybe he and White can have a lower-level feud. I assign him as an "Opener" heel. |
WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 2, January 1985 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: $1 less than default Actual Attendance: 4,585 -Pre-Show Dark Segment Mr. Pogo defeats Al Perez in 6:57 by pinfall. (C). Perez was exhausted by the end of the match. The two showed poor chemistry. -Non-Title Match WCCW World Champion Bobby Eaton defeats Dusty Wolfe in 5:28 by pinfall. (C+). Eaton looked good. -Iceman Parsons comes to the ring - the announcers show a quick clip from Parsons' announcement of his "2:45 challenge", in response to Nikita Koloff's "3 minute challenge", which Parsons' successfully overcome several weeks ago. -Iceman Parsons 2:45 Challenge. Iceman Parsons defeats Charlie Cook by pinfall in 1:43. (C-) -Doug Somers, Barry Orton, and Perry Jackson came to the ring for their scheduled WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament Match against Bob Backlund, Dick Murdoch, and King Kong Bundy. The announcers hyped the uncertainty of the "dream team", with the disappearance of Gary Hart, and the recent dissension amongst the team members. Bob Backlund then comes to the ring with his new manager, Ray Stevens. Stevens claims that he has taken over as manager of the "dream team" - and that he has two official orders of business. 1st, King Kong Bundy is fired from the team. Stevens runs down Bundy as a fat, unmotivated, slob. 2nd, Dick Murdoch is fired from the team. Stevens spends even more time running down Murdoch as a "backwards redneck" who doesn't deserve to team with Backlund. Therefore, says Stevens, Bob Backlund will continue in the tournament by himself. (C) -WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament -Group B, Match 5 Bob Backlund (w/Ray Stevens) defeats Barry Orton, Perry Jackson, & Doug Somers by DQ in 9:48 following interference from Dick Murdoch. (B-). Somers seemed off his game. Backlund looked good. During the match, Dick Murdoch came down to ringside and attacked Perry Jackson. He then climbed the apron and stood in the corner of the Orton/Somers team, apparently joining that team. After much persuasion, Somers tagged an angry Murdoch into the match. Backlund immediately bailed to the outside, while Stevens yelled at the referee. After Murdoch refused to leave the ring, the referee called for the bell. After discussion at the ringside area, the announcement was made - Backlund won by DQ, because Somers tagged in an "unauthorized match participant". Backlund and Stevens quickly fled back to the dressing room. -(Group B Standings) 1. Curt Hennig, The Great Kabuki, & Tiger Mask (2 pinfall wins, 1 loss, 6 points, 1 match remaining) 3. Bob Backlund (apparently now wrestling alone) (1 pinfall win, 1 DQ win, 1 loss, 5 points, 1 match remaining) 3. Doug Somers, Perry Jackson & Barry Orton (1 DQ win, 3 losses, 2 points, 0 matches remaining) -Group B will come down to the final match between Bob Backlund and Kabuki/Tiger Mask/Curt Hennig. Any winner, by any means (pinfall, submission, pinfall, countout), wins the group. If the match ends in a draw, Kabuki/Tiger Mask/Hennig win the group. -WCCW Commissioner Jose Lothario enters the ring with Kevin Von Erich, and the rolling drum filled with potential challengers to Kevin's TV Title, per the new TV Title championship rules setup last week. Lothario says that before we get to the TV Title lottery, he has a major announcement - he has signed the main event match for January Star Wars. It will be the 1st ever main event carried live across the country on PPV and closed circuit TV. Lothario said that he has watched Bobby Eaton's World Title reign with annoyance. Lothario says Eaton hasn't defended the title like a true champion. So, starting at January Star Wars, he'll get his chance. He'll defend the World Title against the man Lothario deems the #1 Contender - David Von Erich. (In the ring, Kevin reacts positively). But, Lothario, says, David won't be the only challenger. The match will be a triple threat match. The third man in the match, says Lothario, will be determined next week, when the other co-#1 Contender is determined. That man will be the winner of a 4-way match, featuring: Bob Backlund, Dick Murdoch, and the two finalists of the King of the Texas Death Match tournament: Kevin Sullivan & Terry Funk. Those four men, says Lothario, deserve this shot. (C-) -Next, Jose Lothario instructs Kevin to draw a name out of the rolling drum - every name in the drum is a WCCW wrestler who is in the arena tonight, and has chosen to put his name into the running. Lothario also says that the TV title match will occur immediately, so everyone in the back should pay attention. Kevin draws a name - Owen Hart. (C-) -WCCW Television Championship Match Kevin Von Erich defeats Owen Hart by submission in 4:49 to make his 12th defense of the TV title. (C). Kevin looked good. -Backstage, Villano V cuts a promo hyping his upcoming Cruiserweight title shot against Mike Von Erich, a shot he earned last week in a triple threat match. (C). Bill Mercer then introduces a special video package look at short history of the WCCW Cruiserweight Championship - featuring Mike Von Erich's domination of this division. (C+). Another short video feature hypes past matches between Mike Von Erich and Villano V. (C+) -Mike Von Erich comes to the ring for his title defense, and he grants a brief interview to Bill Mercer. (C). Villano V comes to the ring soon after, and also gives a brief interview. (C). -WCCW Cruiserweight Championship Match Villano V defeats Mike Von Erich in 7:07 by countout. (C-). Mike retains the title. Mike was tiring towards the end of the match. The two showed poor chemistry. -Dick Murdoch defeats Villano IV in 5:47 by pinfall. (C). Murdoch looked good. Murdoch played the face in the match. After the match, Dick Murdoch cut a promo, hyping the Co-#1 Contender Match next week - he says he can't wait to get his hands on Bob Backlund. (B) -Backstage, The Road Warriors cut a promo hyping their upcoming #1 Contenders Match with The Sheepherders. (C-). Bill Mercer introduces a hype video recapping the long feud between the Road Warriors and The Sheepherders. (C-) -#1 Contender's Match: WCCW World Tag Team Championship The Road Warriors defeat The Sheepherders (w/Skandor Akbar) after Road Warrior Hawk struck Butch Miller with the ring bell, allowing Animal to gain the pin. (B). The Road Warriors are the #1 Contenders for the World Tag Team Championship, and will face the Von Erichs at January Star Wars. Overall Show Rating: C+ THOUGHTS: -OK show, saved by a surprisingly good main event. This was the official final chapter in the Road Warriors/Sheepherders storyline, which may have given us a boost. It's probably a surprising finish, considering the Warriors and Von Erichs are both babyfaces, and I've said that the Road Warriors will be out of WCCW soon. Still, this is the best way to go about this, storyline-wise. The Road Warriors continued their recent trend of heelish behavior, cheating to the win here. They're still officially babyfaces, but that could change before January Star Wars. The slumping Sheepherders have now suffered two straight high-profile losses. -Dick Murdoch was a babyface tonight, being verbally attacked by Ray Stevens, showing up in the six-man tag match to physically confront Backlund, defeating Villano IV, and cutting a promo on Backlund. -Owen Hart gets the TV title shot tonight - the "random" contender drawing will feel somewhat random - a mix of stars/jobbers and faces/heels. Any man who holds the TV title will eventually be worn down. -I'm hoping that Eaton v. David Von Erich v. Backlund/Murdoch/Funk/Sullivan will give us an A+ main event in our first PPV. It's also the collision of a lot of different storylines. Lothario's decision to include Funk & Sullivan is controversial. -The Cruiserweight Championship match was given a lot more hype then your typical WCCW Cruiserweight Championship match. That's just because I had some storyline elements I had to work in before I got to the advertised match. After all that, the match wasn't all that good. -Bobby Eaton impressively carried Dusty Wolfe to a C+ match. I actually allowed the two of them to go "all out", only because there was no other obvious candidates to give that designation to, other than the main event. It was Wolf's best-ever match. -Mr. Pogo won on the dark match segment just to complete his loan contract with us. He needed a win per house rule (no loaned wrestler can have a losing record while with WCCW). Mr. Pogo went 1-1-1. |
NEWS
-Bruno Sammartino arrived late to the last show. I'll need him soon for the six-man tag team title tournament, so he's fined. -The TV show gets a 3.29 TV rating. That's a good rebound from last week, and it's our 2nd highest rating ever. -Perry Jackson suffered a leg injury at the last show, but he'll be able to work through it (perhaps Dick Murdoch was too rough on him when he took Jackson out of the match). -Dory Funk Jr. won the NWA United States Championship for the first time, defeating Dick Slater. -In Calgary Stampede, Bret Hart & Ricky Steamboat defeated Bad News Allen & The Dynamite Kid for the tag team championship. (Sounds like a fun match) -Giant Baba, of all Japan, has suffered multiple concussion syndrome, and will be out for over a year. At the age of 46, this could be it for his wrestling career. In his apparently final match, he teamed with Jumbo Tsurtua to retain NWA International tag team championship against Bruiser Brody and Mr. Saito. -Mr. Wrestling II suffered a more minor injury while wrestling with Mid-South. We just recently released him. -There's a new NWA World Heavyweight Champion - Greg Valentine ended Dusty Rhodes' 4th reign with the belt. That's his first world title, after 4 US Title reigns. -Tiger Mask/The Great Kabuki, Arutro Mendoza, and The Sammartinos renew their complaints. All will be gone in due time. -The results of two big dirt sheet fan polls were released. Ricky Steamboat won the award for "best overall worker" and Jess Ventura won for "most entertaining worker". |
THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 3, January 1985 Fort Worth, TX (Midsouth- Very Small Venue) Dallas Arena Expected Attendance: 2,337 Ticket prices: $2 over Default Actual Attendance: 2,000 (SOLD OUT) -Pre-Show Dark Segment Bill Mercer interviews Doug Somers about his upcoming match with Steve Olosonoski. Mercer references last week's time-limit draw between the two, and how tensions seemed to increase throughout the match. (C-). Mercer also interviews Olosonoski. (D+) -Pre-Show Dark Match Steve Olsonoski drew with Doug Somers in 8:50 by Double DQ after the referee lost control of the match. (C). The two showed poor chemistry. -Pre-Show Dark Segment Before the show officially starts, Bill Mercer conducts a lengthy interview with David Von Erich. David Von Erich talks about finally getting a shot at the World Title at January Star Wars. He also hypes tonight's main event - a rematch of the main event at New Year's Revolution between himself and Koko B. Ware. David says none of his brothers are here tonight, and he knows Koko will try to "soften" him up for his friend Bobby Eaton. -Fritz Von Erich welcomes the Forth Worth fans to the show with a brief promo. (C-) -Arturo Mendoza came to the ring to cut a dejected promo. He said that a few months ago, he thought he had it all. An elite manager in Gary Hart. A great tag team partner with King Kong Bundy. And a spot, with his brothers, the Villanos, in the WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship tournament. Now, Hart and Bundy have vanished, and he finds himself in a losing streak. He says all he has left is his family, and that they'll do whatever it takes to defeat The Sammartinos and Iceman Parsons in the final Group A match in the tournament. (B) -Terry Funk defeats Arturo Mendoza in 22:08 by pinfall. (B+). The announcing quality wan't up to the standard of the match. After the match, Funk cut a long, rambling promo. He said that Mendoza wrestled a great match, and that he doesn't need scum like Gary Hart and King Kong Bundy around to succeed. He also hypes this week's co-#1 Contender match between himself, Kevin Sullivan, Dick Murdoch, and Bob Backlund. (B+) -Dick Murdoch came to the ring for his match against Kevin Sullivan. Murdoch cut a promo hyping this match, and the co-#1 Contender match set for later this week. Murdoch again, was especially focused on Bob Backlund. (C+) -Kevin Sullivan drew with Dick Murdoch in 11:31 following a double-DQ after the referee lost control of the match. (B+) -Koko B. Ware came to the ring and hyped the upcoming main event match between himself and David Von Erich. Ware said tonight, it's all about him and David, since there's no other Von Erichs in the building, and no Bobby Eaton. Ware points out that before he was injured by David, he was in line for a World Title shot, a world title shot that David had guaranteed him back in June. Ware says he still hasn't gotten that shot, and that Jose Lothario should take David out of the triple threat match at January Star Wars and put Ware into it. Koko says that to make the decision easy, he'll put David out of commission tonight, again. (B+). -David Von Erich drew with Koko B. Ware in 27:50 following a double DQ. (A+) After about 20 minutes of high-impact wrestling, Ware decided to commence his "Soften David up for Bobby Eaton" Strategy. Ware introduced weapons into the match, but all attacks were repelled by David, who eventually used some of the weapons against Ware. After the match, the two brawled for several more minutes, with Ware aggressively trying to injure David, but David successfully repelling every attack, and eventually winning the fight. (B) Overall Show Rating: B+ THOUGHTS: -Nothing fancy about this show, just great matches top to bottom. The only drawback was that it was pretty expensive, and it didn't use a whole lot of workers (which leads to unhappiness backstage). -3 out of the 4 matches ended in a double DQ. Some fans may not of liked that, but it was just one of those nights. -David and Koko matched their A+ rating from New Year's Revolution. Ware has a point that he never did get the World Title Shot that David has contractually promised him last summer. Lothario will have to address that. -Murdoch/Sullivan was just a wild, spirited brawl between 2 of the participants in the 4-way co-#1 Contender Match this week. That match will be elimination-rules, losers are eliminated until there's only one man left standing. -Mendoza cut a very sympathetic promo, and Terry Funk gave him some kind words at the end of the match. It was a great, "B" rated promo, which is pretty rare. I noted the road agent note I got after that match - that the announcing quality wasn't up to the caliber of the match. That might have kept that match from reaching A- or higher. That's one of the sacrifices I had to make with a Fritz/Mercer booth instead of Russell/Hayes (why I even have announcers at house shows is another story, but that's just how the game works) |
NEWS
-Bruno Sammartino was late to his second straight show. I'm tempted to just fire him. It would be kind of funny, after all that Sammartinos/Piper drama to have Bruno just walk out on his son. Instead, I suspend him for a week. We'll do that Group final match at January Star Wars, he'll be back by then. -Tiger Mask has returned from his suspension, he'll be available at the TV show this week. I also bump him back up to the midcard from "occasional wrestler" status. He still has 97 days on his contract, a little too long for him to be pissed off. -The St. Louis Wrestling Club held their first show. Billy Jack Haynes defeated Jim Brunzell to win the first St. Louis Championship. King Kong Bundy defeated Buddy Landell for something called the "St. Louis Arena Championship". Tiger Conway Jr. and Bob Roop won the tag team championship. -Butch Reed won the Southeastern Heavyweight Championship, the main event title of SECW, from Super Olympia -Englishman Frank Manley is hyped in the dirt sheets as a future star. It seems there's a lot of "future stars" in the UK. Without Lord Alfred Hayes, my British stable is on indefinite hold -Perry Jackson's injury has proved to be minor, as he's back at 100%. |
Quote:
Heh. Glad to see I'm not the only person that twitches just a little when dealing with that. I do my best to justify it to myself with a couple of things, using them as announcers for the old school ringside interviews that used to be so common on weekly TV (we just happen to be doing them at house shows) and for taping all our house shows with live commentary in case we want to use highlights on an upcoming TV show (which we then never do). It's kind of like my own personal kayfabing or something, trying to come up with some mental explanation for something that really doesn't need to be there. |
WORLD CLASS WRESTLING (LIVE TV SHOW)
Wednesday, Week 3, January 1985 Dallas, TX (Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 4,675; Ticket Prices: $1 less than default Actual Attendance: 4,694 (SOLD OUT) -Pre-Show Dark Segment Bill Mercer interviews Doug Somers about his upcoming match with Steve Olsonoski. Mercer notes that the last two times these two men have faced each other, the match has ended in a draw. (D+). Mercer then interviews Olsonoski, who says he won't leave anything to chance this time, and he'll finally get past Somers. (C-) -Pre-Show Darm Match Steve Olsonoski drew with Doug Somers in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (C). The two showed poor chemistry. -Nikita Koloff (w/Skandor Akbar) defeats Mark Youngblood in 6:46 by pinfall. (B-). After the match, Akbar cut a promo on Iceman Parsons, claiming that Parsons has made a "huge" mistake my trying to humiliate Koloff in recent weeks. (B-) -Bill Mercer interviewed WCCW Commissioner Jose Lothario, who announced the current card for next Saturday Night's "January Star Wars" event, the first ever WCCW card to be broadcast on PPV and Closed Circuit TV (C): -WCCW World Heavyweight Championship Match -Triple Threat Match Bobby Eaton v. David Von Erich v. TBD (Winner of tonight's 4-way main event) -WCCW World Tag Team Championship Match Kerry & Kevin Von Erich v. The Road Warriors -WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament -Group B, Final Match The Villanos & Arturo Mendoza v. The Sammartinos & Iceman Parsons -#1 Contender's Match, WCCW World Tag Team Championship The Sheepherders v. Tiger Mask & The Great Kabuki -Bill Mercer then introduces WCCW Television Champion Kevin Von Erich, who comes out to draw his random challenger for the TV Title this week. First though, Mercer asks Kevin about his grueling schedule of recent weeks, defending two championships. He also asks him about the new #1 Contenders for the Tag Team Championship, the Road Warriors. Kevin says he saw what the Warriors did to the Sheepherders last week to earn this title shot, and that they'll be a huge challenge for he and Kerry. The, Kevin draws the name of his challenger for this week - Sheepherder Butch Miller. (C+). -Iceman Parsons defeats Mr. Pogo in 9:29 by pinfall. (B-) The two showed great chemistry. -Just as the match ends, Nikita Koloff and Skandor Akbar hit the ring in attempt to attack Parsons. Parsons however, is ready for them, and sends both from the ring. He then grabs a chair, and chases them back to the locker room. (C+). -Kevin Von Erich came to the ring for this TV title defense, and cut a promo. He admits that his recent schedule is wearing him down, but that he has plenty left for Butch Miller. (C+) -WCCW Television Championship Match Kevin Von Erich defeats Butch Miller (w/Skandor Akbar) in 7:35 by DQ when Luke Williams interfered after Kevin seemingly had the match won. (B-). Kevin makes his 13th defense of the TV title. The two showed poor chemistry. After the match, The Sheepherders continue the 2-on-1 attack on Kevin. -While the 2-1 attack continues, the Road Warriors storm to the ring and attack The Sheepherders, driving them from the ring, to a huge ovation (C-). The Road Warriors appear to help a weary Kevin to his feet, only to clothesline him back to the mat, and then set him up for their finisher, the Doomsday Device. (C+) This completes the Warriors' heel turn. The Warriors continue to beat on Kevin for several minutes, until Iceman Parsons tries to make the save. The Warriors though, easily repel him from the ring, and complete the beating on Kevin, before leaving on their own. (C) -A hype video hypes tonight's main event, a 4-way elimination match to determine who will complete the Triple Threat Match for the World Title at January Star Wars. The hype video features: -Ray Stevens' verbal attacks on Dick Murdoch, and the firing of Murdoch from the six-man-tournament tag team. -Murdoch's interference in Backlund's tournament match, and their subsequent brawl -highlights from the King of the Texas Death Match tournament finals, involving Terry Funk & Kevin Sullivan, where Sullivan costs Funk the match. (B) -Backstage, Kevin Sullivan (B), Dick Murdoch (B-), and Terry Funk (B+), hype the match, all verbally target Bob Backlund. -4-Corners Match, Elimination Rules. -WCCW World Heavyweight Championship Co-#1 Contender Match Bob Backlund (w/Ray Stevens) defeats Kevin Sullivan, Dick Murdoch, and Terry Funk to become the #1 Contender, and earn his place into the January Star Wars main event. (B) When the match started, Backlund, Sullivan, and Murdoch immediately attacked Terry Funk 3-on-1. Funk held off the attack and managed to survive in the match for nearly 20 minutes, but he eventually was overwhelmed and was pinned by Backlund. Sullivan, Murdoch, and Backlund then, to the shock of the fans, all shook hands in the ring. Murdoch and and Sullivan then exited the match, and were counted out, giving the win to Backlund. After the match, the three men joined Ray Stevens in the ring - Stevens cut a manic promo hyping his new stable. He says they had a plan and outsmarted Funk, and now Bob Backlund will become the World Champion at January Star Wars. Murdoch and Sullivan will be rewarded for their efforts, with money, the managerial services of Stevens, and championship opportunities. (C) Overall Show Rating: B- THOUGHTS: -There were a couple of major storyline developments on this show. First, Kevin Sullivan, Dick Murdoch, and Bob Backlund have formed some kind of alliance under Ray Stevens, which leads to Backlund getting into the championship match at January Star Wars. It's unclear at this point why Sullivan, and especially Dick Murdoch, have agreed to this, after the apparent rivalry that has developed between those two in recent weeks. Where this storyline ultimately goes depends on whether we kind re-sign backlund, who's contract is up in a little over a month. -After the show, two more matches for January Star Wars are announced. Terry Funk will have a chance for revenge against Kevin Sullivan (from both the results of the last tv show, as well as the King of the Texas Deathmatch tournament finals), as they have signed to face off in a "falls count anywhere" match. Also, the WCCW Championship Committee has ruled that the next #1 Contender for the World Title will be determined by a #1 Contender's Match between Dick Murdoch and Curt Hennig. -The Road Warriors completed their heel turn in classic 80s fashion. They make the "save" for Kevin, then beat him down. The Warriors had been slowly going in this direction for months, and have much better "heel" performance ratings, so hopefully they can give us a good match at January Star Wars. -The Sheepherders have been in a real slump as of late...They'll get another chance in a #1 Contender's Match at January Star Wars against Tiger Mask & The Great Kabuki. -I was kind of surprised to see that Mr. Pogo was still on the roster, I had thought that he was on loan contract and finished up his three appearances. But I had actually signed him to a short-term 3 month contract, so he'll be around a while longer. He had a solid match with Parsons here tonight, who had a good night. He gets the win, repels the attack from Koloff, and then got face time trying to save Kevin from the Road Warriors attack. I like to throw out occasional reminders of wrestler relationships - for example here, Parsons is a close friend of the Von Erichs. -Koloff wrestled a very solid match with Youngblood. He's come a long way. |
NEWS
-Kevin Von Erich was injured at the last show, either during his match with Butch Miller or during the attack by the Road Warriors. He's having some shoulder pain, and while he'll be able to work through it, he won't be at 100%. Which causes some problems, since he's in the middle of a storyline where he's having a "grueling schedule", and he's just about a week away from the Road Warriors match -The TV Show gets a 3.66 rating. That shatters our previous all-time high. We haven't maxed out our rating potential on this network and time slot yet, but I'm sure I'll be looking to upgrade here later in the year. -Don Muraco won the annual "Salem City Cup" tournament with Pacific Northwest Wrstling, defeating Jerry Lawler in the finals. -In Calgary Stampede, Bret Hart won the North American Heavyweight Championship for the 6th time, defeating The Spoiler. -Dusty Rhodes in making noise in the dirt sheets again, claiming that he "caries" Mid-Atlantic single-handedly. -Giant Baba, who suffered a major concussion in a match where he won the NWA International Tag Team Championships with Jumbo Tsuruta last week, has announced his retirement. -The Great Kabuki, Arturo Mendoza, and The Sammartinos renew their standard complaints about pushes. |
Hard to believe, but this dynasty is almost two (real) years old. :)
|
Quote:
I'm hoping that by the time I reach the two-year mark, I will have advanced two years in the game.... |
THE STARS OF WORLD CLASS ON TOUR
Monday, Week 4, January 1985 Rochester, MN (Midwest- Very Small Venue) Expected Attendance: 1,852 Ticket prices: $1 under Default Actual Attendance: 1,923 -Pre-Show Dark Match Leon White defeats Dusty Wolfe in 6:35 by pinfall. (C). White looked good -Pre-Show Dark Segment Bill Mercer interviewed Owen Hart & Al Perez about their upcoming tag team match against Barry Orton & Perry Jackson. (E) -Pre-Show Dark Match Barry Orton & Perry Jackson defeat Owen Hart & Al Perez in 7:01 by pinfall when Orton pinned Perez, while grabbing the ropes for leverage. (D). Perez was tiring towards the end of the match -WCCW Commissioner Jose Lothario comes out to start the show, as he welcomes the Rochester fans. Lothario runs down the announced card for this Saturday night's "January Star Wars" card, available nationwide on PPV and closed circuit TV. He says that the next #1 Contender for the World Title was scheduled to be determined this Saturday night, when Dick Murdoch faces Curt Hennig. However, in recognition of Terry Funk's gutsy performance on the TV show last week, when he withstood 3-on-1 odds for nearly 20 minutes, the WCCW Championship Committee has decided that in tonight's main event, Dick Murdoch will put his spot in the #1 Contender's match on the line against Terry Funk. The winner will advance to face Hennig this Satuday night. (C-) -Bill Mercer interviews Doug Somers about his upcoming match with Steve Olsonoski, again noting that the two have faced each other several times over the last few weeks, with every match ending in a draw thus far. (D+). Mercer also interviews Olsonoski. (D+) -Steve Olsonoski drew with Doug Somers in 10:00 when the time limit expired. (C-) The two showed poor chemistry. -The Road Warriors come to the ring to massive boos from the crowd. They mock Kevin Von Erich, saying he barely put up a fight against them on TV last week. They say they've steamrolled thorough everyone in their path in WCCW, and finally, they'll be able to be recognized as champions after this Saturday night. (C+). -Mike Von Erich comes to the ringside area, where he is interviewed by Bill Mercer. Mercer points out that Mike was so angry over the events of the TV show last week, that he signed for this match before he even had a tag team partner lined up. Mercer asks, where's Mike's partner? Mike says that he did line a partner up, but unfortunately, due to the poor weather outside, his partner hasn't yet arrived. Mike says that he's ready to compete against the Road Warriors anyway, and while he might not be able to win, he's going to show the Warriors that the Von Erichs are fighters. (C) -Road Warriors v. Mike Von Erich & ? The match stars, and the Road Warriors dominate Mike Von Erich...until Mike's partner, his brother David Von Erich, suddenly arrives at ringside, wearing street clothes. (B-) -The Road Warriors drew with Mike & David Von Erich in 9:54 by double countout. (B-) The match suffered from a lack of selling. David looked good. After the match, the brawl continued, until the Road Warriors gained the upper hand. They hit their doomsday device finisher on both Mike & David, and left them laying in the ring. (C) -Curt Hennig defeats Villano V in 7:33 by pinfall. (B+). The two showed good chemistry. After the match, Hennig cut a promo to his home-state fans in Minnesota. (B) -Hennig very slowly leaves the ringside area, as he shakes hands with nearly every fan. Dick Murdoch and Ray Stevens lose patience, and come out for the main event while Hennig is still lingering around. The three appear to argue briefly, before quickly being separated by security. (B-) -Dick Murdoch and Ray Stevens get to the ringside area, where Bill Mercer desperately tries to secure an interview. He quickly asks Murdoch - why has he decided to align himself with Stevens, Bob Backlund, and Kevin Sullivan? Why did he give up his shot to be in the main event at January Star Wars? Stevens jumps between Mercer and Murdoch, and doesn't allow the interview to proceed - Stevens says Mercer can arrange such interviews in advance, but he won't allow his client to be ambushed. (C+) -#1 Contender Elimination Match Dick Murdoch (w/Ray Stevens) defeats Terry Funk in 29:49, with the help of interference from Stevens. (A+). The announcer quality wasn't up to the standards of the match Overall Show Rating: B+ THOUGHTS: -A home run show, especially considering we were in the midwest. I still haven't cracked the elusive A- barrier for show ratings...I wonder if there's some block to that that I haven't discovered yet. -A+ main event - That's the 2nd A+ match Murdoch has been involved with for WCCW, the last was a triple threat match involving Bob Backlund and Curt Hennig in October. It's the first A+ for Funk. -I knew Hennig/Villano V would be good, but B+ exceeded expectations. Villano V, for some reason, is actually somewhat over in the midwest, compared to other lower midcarders. I think its because he's had a bunch of good matches here. -The Hennig/Murdoch confrontation is the genesis of a new storyline between the feud. This resumes their feud from last year, which was won my Murdoch. -The Road Warriors v. David/Mike was pretty good as well, though it might have lost a point or two on a technicality - Animal is still a face. Minor bug in the game - you can only turn one wrestler per segment, not both members of a tag team. So Hawk has been turned, but not Animal. I tried to turn Animal tonight, but in turns out I have to reset his "prepare for turn" status. So I'll "officially" turn him on the TV show this week, and then we'll have pure heel v. face in time for the big match with the Von Erichs on Saturday. -Olsonoski/Somers must be the least exciting storyline in the history of professional wrestling. But it's fast, easy, and it helps to give us our "minimum" number of storyline developments on a show like this. -Leon White looked good in his match against Dusty Wolfe. I'd love to ship him off to Japan in a talent trade, to expand his horizons, but I don't think he has any value to them at this point. |
Quote:
Yup, that's one of the "justifications" you have to develop when you play this, or probably any other text sim. Another is that how these weekly house shows HAVE to have storyline development and angles, even though I'd rather just run matches top to bottom. So I tell myself that even though these things aren't happening on TV, the announcers mention the events over the course of that week's TV show. So that saves the work of trying to remember what happened on TV and what didn't. It's kind of funny how any of this matters in a fictional universe. |
NEWS
-Dick Murdoch is exhausted after the last show. -Bruno Sammartino has officially returned from his suspension, in time for January Star Wars. -Speaking of suspended wrestlers, Roddy Piper won a dirt sheet award for "Best Overall Worker in Wrestling Today". If only he wasn't so damn expensive and unreliable. -Now that we're within 30 days of the end of Bob Backlund's contract, I request negotiations. Obviously, our short and long term booking will be profoundly impacted by how those negotiations turn out. I'm not optimistic we'll resign him. Fritz has been capping me out on offers to the major stars recently, and Backlund will surely be asking for the moon. Hopefully there will be some kind of resolution before January Star Wars. |
It's interesting to see how the universe has developed in terms of major superstars. Only nine wrestlers currently are rated "B" or higher in US popularity:
-Superstar Billy Graham -Andre the Giant -Buzz Sawyer -Sgt. Slaughter -Steve Keirn -Stan Hansen -Manny Fernandez -Jerry Stubbs -Curt Hennig -This list definitely reflects the demise of the WWF and the prominence of the AWA. Stubbs, Fernandez, and Sawyer have all held the AWA World Title during this dynasty. It also appears that injured wrestlers/wrestlers on sabbatical don't drop their popularity like merely unemployed wrestlers do. Andre The Giant has been injured for almost a year, and he's still on this list, while guys like Hogan have dropped off. Billy Graham has been filming a movie, and also hasn't wrestled in nearly a year. Steve Keirn is probably the weirdest name on the list - he's worked non-stop over the last 2 years for both AWA and Georgia, and he wrestled 176 matches last year. -While Hennig is the only guy to crack the list from WCCW, 3 others are at B- overall US popularity: David Von Erich, Bobby Eaton, and Roddy Piper. -It will be interesting to see what happens over the next year or so, with far more wrestlers than jobs. The US wrestling economy is still in the tank, with no signs of improvement. Canada has started to recover. Mexico also appears to have hit rock bottom, but there's only one promotion left there (and that one is in serious financial danger). Japan is in even worse shape than the US. |
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