WWWF at Madison Square Garden (10/23/78) INCOMPLETE

Madison Square Garden

New York City, New York

October 23, 1978

Commentator: Vince McMahon Jr

Ring Announcer: Howard Finkel

After 4 weeks of hype its time for the big monthly show at Madison Square Garden. We have a loaded card and its finally time to settle some issues. We got a big overdue rematch between Bruno Sammartino and "Superstar" Billy Graham. WWWF Champion Bob Backlund defends against the 6'9 Ernie Ladd and the tag team titles are on the line with "High Chief" Peter Maivia and "Chief" Jay Strongbow taking on the champs, The Yukon Lumberjacks. Unfortunately some of the matches are missing. Let's get to the action anyway. Howard Finkel is our ring announcer and he welcomes everyone to the show. He gives the run down of the state athletic commission, the doctor at ringside, the timekeeper, Isaac Padilla the referee and himself.

Match 1

"Unpredictable" Johnny Rodz vs "The New Zealand Flash" Del Adams

Rodz we all know but who the hell is Del Adams? Apparenly he was also known as Jim Ray. Adams is in the beige trunks with Rodz in the blue. Rodz refuses the handshake and aggressively attacks Del. Johnny hiptosses the guy but Adams returns the favor. They lock up and Adams locks in a full nelson before Rodz eventually breaks it. A second attempt is thwarted by Rodz and he locks in an armbar as Vince runs down the card. Rodz continues to work over the left shoulder with forearm smashes and a hammerlock. Eventually Adams backdrops Rodz but Rodz takes Del down and drops a second rope knee on him. A right hand drops his opponent as Padilla admonishes him for the clenched fist. Rodz continues to punch and kick before dropping an overhead forearm. Rodz whips Adams in the corner and continues to punch/kick him. Adams reverses a whip into the corner and punches away at Johnny. A terrible looking right hand to the mid-section drops Johnny and he begs off in the corner. Adams chokes Johnny in the corner with his boot before the ref breaks it up. Adams tells Rodz to get back to the center and they exchange strikes. A headbutt by Adams drops himself harder than Rodz sells it. Another right hand by Rodz drops Adams and he lands a leg drop. Adams recovers and dropkicks Rodz down where he begs off again. Adams drops Rodz with a knee to the midsection and goes for a single leg crap but Rodz makes it to the ropes. Rodz continues to attack with strikes and kicks before completing a second rope stomp. Rodz lands two elbow drops but misses a third. Adams goes on the offense with strikes and a hiptoss but a cheapshot by Rodz gives him the upperhand back. He floors Adams with an elbow but misses another elbow drop. Adams hits a sunset flip and Adams pops up like popeye. Rodz begs off but Adams whips him into the buckle. He whips Johnny into the opposite corner but misses the charge, eating ringpost. Rodz pounces on him and hits a double underarm suplex. Rodz rolls over and covers for 1...2....3? Yes...Johnny Rodz wins! ITS A MIRACLE!


Time of match: 9:39

Winner: Johnny Rodz by pinfall


Vince Jr and Gorilla Monsoon present an award and honors the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. We have kids and board members in the ring. Gorilla presents a check of 17 grand to the chairman. She thanks the crowd and gets a nice ovation from the crowd. Once this is over we go to the next bout.

Match 2

Victor Rivera vs Dominic Denucci

This match wasn't recorded for some reason but Rivera wins it.

Time of match: 4:11

Winner: Rivera by pinfall

On to the next match

Match 3

Baron Mikel Scicluna vs SD Jones

SD is in the white trunks and Scicluna is in standard attire. Vince says Scicluna is known to bend the rules as heavyweight boxer Chuck Wepner has a ringside seat for tonight's show. Scicluna was Gorilla Monsoon's opponent when Muhammad Ali hit the ring and Ali fought Chuck Wepner before.....useless information I know. Scicluna stalls to start before they roll around the ropes. Baron gets a right hand to the ribs and an arm ringer to start. Scicluna takes over with a chinlock and milks it for several minutes. Finally SD takes over with his own arm ringer and Vince on commentary gets so bored he starts talking about Bob Backlund against Ernie Ladd coming up. Scicluna reaches for the ropes but he's yanked back down by Jones. Scicluna takes a swing but Jones ducks and continues to wrench the wrist. Scicluna goes for the ropes again only this time he rakes the eyes. Scicluna gets in another punch to the ribs and takes over with another neck twist. Vince is trying to say anything he can to keep from falling asleep as Scicluna's nerve hold has SD flat on the mat. Suddenly Jones springs to life and powers out of it....only for Scicluna once again grabs the neck and drops Jones down. This time Jones attempts and eye rake and the fans love it. Scicluna recovers to stomp on Jones and re-apply the nerve hold. God this is getting ridiculous, at least switch up the holds. The referee catches Scicluna pulling the tights and sticks a finger in his face, but doesn't make him break the hold. Jones gets to his feet and elbows Scicluna off but the Baron recovers to re-apply the hold. Even Vince goes "Ahhh, not again." Jones knocks Scicluna off only for Baron to re-apply the same damn nerve hold. Jones elbows out of it again, kicks Baron in the ribs and hits a headbutt to a HUGE pop. Jones threatens to kicks Baron in the junk but lets him go. Baron takes Baron down and covers for a delayed two count. Baron begs off in the ropes then begs off in the corner. SD grabs Mikel and goes for the arm-bar followed by another headbutt. Jones rams Mikel into the buckle and covers for 1...2...nope. Jones locks in a chin-lock but Baron powers out of it. Scicluna gets a few right hands in and uses the five count to blatantly choke Jones. Scicluna lands forearms to the neck and goes back to the nerve hold from earlier. Scicluna then pounds away with forearms to the neck again but Jones starts to power up with left hands to the ribs. Jones hits an aftershock and covers for 1...2....no. Jones hits Scicluna with a left but Baron mule kicks him. Jones gets a side headlock but Jones lets go with a big left hand. Jones hits a big headbutt that stuns Scicluna so hard that Jones gives him a big hug to keep him from falling. Jones hits another headbutt and hugs him again much to the crowd's delight. A third headbutt has Scicluna falling face first Greg Valentine style and Jones covers for a deuce. Scicluna sends Jones off the ropes and they collide. Jones takes a bump while Scicluna windmills to the ground. Jones rallies with left hands and covers for two with the referee out of position. Jones rallies with left hands and headbutts and covers for another two count. Chuck Wepner looks on as Scicluna misses a knee drop and Jones covers for a deuce. Jones is whipped off and sunset flips for a one count. The bell rings out of nowhere and this one's over. The time limit has expired but they're not done yet. They trade punches and Scicluna raises his hand thinking he's won. Howard Finkel announces a draw and we cut here. Bad, bad match but the crowd loved it, especially when Jones rallied and Scicluna kept dropping like a dead deer.


Time of match: 20:00

Winner: No one (time limit draw)

Match 4

Chief Jay Strongbow and "High Chief" Peter Maivia vs The Yukon Lumberjacks (Eric and Pierre) for the WWWF Tag Team Championship

Days earlier Maivia turned heel on Arnold Skaaland and Bob Backlund but was still scheduled to team with Strongbow against the Jacks. Vince says before the match starts that Strongbow must have patched things up. Right off the bat Strongbow argues with Peter on who starts the match. Bell's gone and Strongbow still yells at him at the apron. Strongbow and Maivia go nose to nose then Jay says to hell with him and heads to the middle of the ring to face Pierre. Pierre backs him into the corner and backs off. Strongbow goes to meet him but Maivia decks Jay from behind. He leaves to a chorus of boos and apparently we got a handicap match. Pierre stomps away on Strongbow but he rallies in the corner until Eric tags in. Eric punches away on Strongbow and rams his head in the buckle. Eric sends him off and Strongbow runs into a big boot. Eric covers for 1...2....3 to win the match. Kind of academic after Maivia left as Vince says it was more or less 3 on 1. Fink announces the Jacks are still the champs as the fans are mad. The match itself was nothing special but it was more or less to show Maivia's heel turn was for real.

Time of match: 3:04

Winner: Yukon Lumberjacks by pinfall (still WWWF Tag Team Champions)

Match 5

Jerry "Crusher" Blackwell vs Tony Russo

Blackwell is billed from Stone Mountain, Georgia the eventual hometown of Jake "The Snake" Roberts. Vince calls Blackwell a rotund individual. Blackwell was the Mike Shaw of his time, a very mobile big man. Bell's gone and Russo eats a shoulderblock. Russo dropkicks him and hits a shouldertackle to move Blackwell into the corner. Blackwell hits a forearm and sends him into the buckle. Jerry whips him into the other corner but misses the avalanche.  Russo tries to whip Jerry but Jerry knocks him down with a right hand. Another right hand drops Russo and a snap mare leads to more boots. Russo tries a headbutt but Blackwell lands two forearms. Blackwell with a snapmare and drops a leg to the back. Blackwell stomps Russo in the ass and applies a bearhug. Russo tries a bell ringer but Blackwell doesn't budge. Blackwell backs Russo in the corner and hits the big avalanche. Back to the bearhug but Russo won't give it up. Russo powers out of it, kicks Blackwell in the gut and sends him into the buckle twice. Russo rallies with forearms and Blackwell teases falling but moves out of the way of Russo's dropkick. Blackwell hits a diving headbutt and a scoop slam. Blackwell hits a first rope big splash and covers for 1...2....3 to win the match. That was a complete squash for no other purpose than to put over Blackwell as a mean looking fella. Vince says our main event is next.

Time of match: 5:01

Winner: Blackwell by pinfall

On to the next match.

Match 6

"The Big Cat" Ernie Ladd (with The Grand Wizard) vs Bob Backlund (with Arnold Skaaland) for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship

Maivia was going to be the next big challenger for Backlund after turning on him so the writing was on the wall with this one. Ladd was one month away from his 40th birthday as well. Bell rings and they shake hands to start. Ladd gets a go-behind but Backlund counters it, sending Ladd to the ropes. Ladd and Backlund exchange reversals but Ladd makes it to the ropes. Ladd goes for the bearhug and yanks the tights for leverage but Backlund makes it to the ropes. Ladd hammers away with chops and forearms then throws Backlund down. Ladd and Backlund exchange chops and Backlund kicks the left leg to knock the big man down. Backlund slingshots Ladd to the middle of the ring and drops the leg on the left knee. Bob twists the left leg and tries for a leglock but the much taller Ladd snatches him and rolls over out of it. Backlund kicks away at the leg again and Ladd wants another hand shake. Backlund refuses and goes behind Ladd again before grabbing the left leg. He kicks the right leg to drop Ernie and goes back to work with a leg lock. Again Ladd uses his height to yank the tights to get free. Ernie shoulderblocks Backlund in the corner and hammers away. Ladd whips Backlund in the corner but misses the charge. Bob kicks away at the left leg and brings him to the center of the ring. Backlund jumps on the hamstrings of Ladd and applies another leg lock. Backlund then jumps on the leg before once again twisting it. Ladd makes it to the ropes and bails to the apron to get the circulation back. Ladd stalls for more heat and Ernie goes for the waistlock, but Backlund counters out of it and once again controls the left leg. Backlund rows it like an oar and Ladd takes the two count near fall. Backlund keeps pushing Ladd down with his own left leg to get Ernie's shoulders to the mat. Ladd kicks Backlund with his free leg and takes over with forearms and a chop. Ernie scoop slams Backlund and rams Bob's head into the buckle. Ernie does a hiptoss but Bob rallies with right hands and tries a headbutt to the leg that Ernie doesn't sell. Ernie then does the taped thumb routine by repeatedly punching Backlund with it, the second time sends Bob to the apron. The referee goes to check Ladd who makes sure he doesnt check the tights. Ernie sends Bob off the ropes and hits a big boot. Ernie does a double leg drop and covers but Bob powers out of it at 1. Ernie chops Bob in the throat, does a snap mare and a blatant choke. Ernie poses for the irate crowd and goes back to the thumb to the throat. He covers for 1.....2...the referee notices Ernie's feet are on the ropes and makes him break it. Ernie kneels on Backlund's neck and yells at the fans some more. Bob rallies with right hands and wghips him on the corner. He backdrops Ernie and drops a leg before covering for 1...2....nope. Backlund does his in between the legs atomic drop and Ernie falls into the ropes Andre The Giant style. Backlund charges but eats boot. Ladd backdrops Backlund and hits another taped thumb shot to the throat. Backlund bails to the apron but is brought in the hard way. Bob gets his own thumbs to the throat but is sent off the ropes. Backlund shoulderblocks Ladd down and Ernie leapfrogs (!!!) and hits a dropkick (double !!!). Ernie covers for 1....2....nooooo. Ernie whips Bob off the ropes and hits another big boot. Ernie hits a big leg drop but misses the big splash. Bob hits the big atomic drop and covers for 1......2.....3 to win the match. For 1978 standards that was damn good. They tried to be as realistic as possible with wrestling holds and the taped thumb. The crowd goes nuts as Backlund is declared the winner and still champ. This kind of match would be frowned upon today with its slow pace but this was highly regarded in its time.

Time of match: 17:24

Winner: Backlund by pinfall

Moving right along to the next match.

Match 7

Larry Zbyszko vs Spiros Arion (with Freddie Blassie)

This another one of those matches that isn't on Youtube or on the official MSG broadcast. Apparently Larry won after Arion was disqualified.

Time of match: 6:12

Winner: Zbyszko by DQ

Now we move to the other half of our double main event.

Match 8

Bruno Sammartino vs "Superstar" Billy Graham

This was the big rematch from Baltimore when Graham won the heavyweight title a year earlier. Now that Graham is no longer the champion, Graham got his ass kicked by Dusty Rhodes in August, didn't emphatically beat Strongbow in September and he desperately needs this win to get another crack at Backlund. They circle to start and Bruno throws Billy backwards to start. Billy gets a right hand in but Bruno applies a sideheadlock punch to drop the ex-champ. Bruno poses for the crowd and Billy Goes for a neck vice. He tells the ringside photographers here's your next cover and they snap pictures accordingly. Bruno powers out of it and punches Graham down. A big kick to the chest has Billy reeling and Bruno then goes for the waistlock. Bruno turns it into a full nelson but Billy gets his foot on the rope. The ref doesnt make Bruno break it for whatever reason and Billy goes down to the mat. Billy manages to crawl to the ropes and bails to the apron to stretch. Back inside Bruno whips Graham into the corner but the flying knee misses. Billy goes to work on the right knee with stomps and a leg-lock. Vince on commentary says Bruno has been all over the world which is why he hasn't been seen in a while. Bruno reverses the hold and rams Billy's knee into the mat. Billy crawls to the apron and out of the ring to stall for time. Billy crawls back in and they do the test of strength spot. Billy wins it at first then Bruno makes the big comeback. Graham sells his ass off and then hooks the bottom rope with his leg to break it. Bruno backs Billy into the corner but Graham whips Bruno into the other corner. Billy stomps away at Bruno and whips him again in the corner. Billy covers for 1...2..nope. Billy stomps away on him again and locks in a bearhug. Bruno breaks the hold and locks in a bearhug of his own. Billy makes it to the ropes but Bruno rams Graham into the ringpost. Billy blades on camera and Bruno attacks the cut forehead with fists. Bruno scoop slams Bruno and covers him for two but gets up before three. Bruno wants to make an example of him and continues to pound away as Graham is a bloody mess. Bruno stomps away in the corner and the ref checks Billy. Ref says let's go and Billy swings wildly. THIS causes the ref to hold Bruno back and call it off. Bruno wins it by referee stoppage. Typical Bruno match of his era where he beats his opponent to a bloody pulp much to the crowd's delight. Storyline wise, Graham has lost it. He got beaten senseless by Dusty Rhodes and now Bruno in return matches. Usually that's a clue the guy is leaving the territory. If you like bloody fistfights, this match was for you.

Time of match: 12:24

Winner: Bruno Sammartino by stoppage

This was actually NOT the last match on the card. We got two more although they're not on the official broadcast.

Match 9

Tony Garea vs "Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff

Speaking of ex champions, here's Ivan Koloff. Bell's gone and Koloff goes to work with forearms but misses a charge in the corner. Garea armdrags Koloff but eats a knee to the back. Koloff works on the back with punches and forearms then rams him into the corner. Koloff continues to pound away on the lower back and covers for just 1. The relentless Koloff continues to work the back and kicks Garea in the head. Garea catches the leg and kicks Koloff in the hamstring. A right hand stuns Koloff and Tony whips him into the corner. Tony hits a running knee then rolls him over for a two count. Garea pounds away in the corner and hiptosses him. Tony hits a dropkick then locks in an abdominal stretch. Vince points out Tony didn't have the toes around the ankle and Koloff hiptosses him. Tony shoulderblocks Koloff down but runs into a scoop slam attempt. Garea rolls out of it and goes for the O'Connor Roll for 1....2..noo, Koloff pulls the tights to reverse it for 1...2...3 to win the match. Short and sweet and Koloff gets the duke while Garea is irate. Koloff points to his head after the match to taunt the crowd as Garea wants more. Koloff leaves as Garea protests. That was a crash style match two decades before that became commonplace.

Time of match: 3:16

Winner: Koloff by pinfall

Let's go to our final match.

Match 10

Dino Bravo vs "Crazy" Luke Graham

Our final match has the demented Graham taking on Italian babyface Bravo. Bell's gone and Bravo pushes Graham against the ropes. Dino gets a side headlock as Graham waves a finger saying "No." Graham switches to a front headlock but Bravo turns it into a hammerlock. Graham drops to one knee and snap mares Dino over. Graham gets a punch to the face and rams his head into the buckle. Graham unloads in the corner and goes back to the front headlock. Graham goes for the foreign object and waffles Bravo in the throat with it. Problem with doing the same gimmick is it loses its luster, especially after Ernie Ladd did it earlier. Graham does a blatant choke and bites the forehead of Dino. Luke scoop slams Dino and covers for 1...2..nope. Luke for some reason thinks he's won and raises his arms in victory. Dino dropkicks him into the corner and rolls him up for 1...2....3 to win the match. What the hell was that? Luke still thinks he's won after Dino leaves as the crowd begins to fill out. Guess they were pressed for time after all the important matches were over and they had to keep this short and sweet. Fink says the match was over 5 minutes which is BS but oh well.

Time of match: 3:24

Winner: Bravo by pinfall

Vince runs down the card we just saw and tells us we'll return to MSG on November 20th. Tomorrow night the New York Knicks will meet the Atlanta Hawks as well. The Knicks ended up winning that game 113-109 with Ray Williams leading the charge with 23 points. Useless information, so what? As for the show, standard MSG card with your ups and downs. Those were big ups though with Backlund/Ladd being great and Bruno beating the hell out of Graham. That time limit draw between Jones/Scicluna was the shits and the final matches were rushed due to the time constraints. Now that Billy Graham has been beaten into oblivion and Ernie Ladd failed to beat Backlund, its on to Peter Maivia. Its all but given that Maivia will get the next crack at Backlund on November 20th. Our next house show is tomorrow night in Spotswood, New Jersey. I'll see you there.

WWWF at Madison Square Garden (6/30/73)

June 30, 1973

Madison Square Garden

New York City, NY

Commentator: Vince McMahon Jr

We're in for a treat today. WWE Old School on Peacock somehow is putting out old Madison Square Garden shows and the MSG show from June 30, 1973 has been uncovered. Pedro Morales was WWWF world champion and he'd be defending against the dangerous half man, half animal George "The Animal" Steele. We also get a 2 out of 3 falls women's tag match with Jan Sheridan and Joyce Grable against Dotti Downs and Peggy Patterson. In a special treat, Gorilla Monsoon gets his hands on Captain Lou Albano. Now normally I would never do Peacock versions of anything because they're horrifically edited but in this case, there was no music or crowd noise to edit so its all good. The ring announcer welcomes us to "All-Star Heavyweight Rassling" and introduces our "judges" Nat Cooper, Dick Woehrle and Joe Ryder.....as in referees. The matches are sanctioned by the New York State Athletic Commission, the doctor at ringside is Dr. Edwin Campbell and his name is......well he never gives it.

Match 1

Lee Wong vs Blackjack Lanza

The ring announcer calls him Blackjack La-Lanza, where's Joe McHugh when we need him? Lanza needs no introduction as he was a big rough heel that was paired with Blackjack Mulligan to form the devastating tag team still talked about today. He had just spent the last six years in Dick The Bruiser's territory where he formed The Blackjacks with Mulligan managed by a 23 year old Bobby Heenan in 1967. Vince on commentary notices the size difference between Lanza with the other two men in the ring. Lanza backs Wong into the corner but Lanza breaks clean causing the crowd to scoff. Some fan shouts "Kill em Lee! Kill em!" Lanza breaks clean two more times then hip tosses Wong out of nowhere. Lanza locks in an armbar but lets it go cleanly. Vince says "we never expected this." Wong backs Lanza against the ropes and also breaks clean. Vince "Wonders never cease." Finally Lanza snaps and rakes the eyes before choking him against the ropes, using the 5 count to his advantage. Lanza rams Wong's head into the buckle then goes back to the blatant choke. Lanza rakes the face across the ropes then unloads with a big right hand. Some old lady throws her shoe at Lanza who picks it up without missing a beat and rakes the face with it. Wong rallies with a series a chops but Lanza rakes the eyes with his hands then his boot. Lanza headlock punches Wong in the throat and continues to choke before sending him into the buckle again. Lanza then grabs the microphone out of Vince's hands and chokes Wong with it, that's one way to shut Vince up. Wong gets thrown out of the ring but is snap mared in the ring the hard way. Lanza drops a knee, sends him off the ropes and applies his famous claw hold. Wong fades and the referee says that's it, Wong can't continue. Lanza refuses to let go for some more heat then let's go to do jumping jacks. He goes back to the claw for more heat then finally leaves. Definitely establishes Lanza as a mean ol bastard.

Time of match: 5:05

Winner: Blackjack Lanza by submission

Match 2

El Olympico vs Professor Toru Tanaka (with The Grand Wizard)

Its that damn Olympico again! His opponent Tanaka was 43 years old now but still drew heat in the Garden, especially with Wizard as the manager. Before the match starts, old Mrs. Krieger takes a swing at Tanaka and gives the kiss my ass sign before shaking hands with Olympico. It would never happen today but Mrs. Krieger was a fiesty elderly wrestling fan that would routinely hop the guardrails and terrorize the heels. Since she was in support of the babyfaces, she got away with it more often than not. I doubt if an old lady jumped the guard rail and started swinging at Pedro Morales she wouldn't last very long. The match starts with Tanaka refusing a handshake and pulls out the ceremonial salt. Mrs. Kreiger makes a mad dash around the ring to wipe all the salt thrown. Finally her husband grabs her and pulls her away as Tanaka ties up with Olympico. Both of them are pudgy guys in their 40's so I doubt this is going to go very long. Tanaka gets the upperhand with cheating tactics as Olympico gets in a side headlock. Tanaka complains that his non-existent hair was pulled. Olympico stops himself coming off the ropes because Tanaka was waiting with a big chop. Tanaka takes Olympico down and works the leg and gets a series of two counts. The ref catches Tanaka using the rope for leverage and makes him break the hold. Olympico locks in a full nelson but Tanaka breaks it and takes Olympico down. He gets in a chokehold and the ref makes him break it. Olympico takes Tanaka down and locks in a spinning toe hold. Tanaka breaks out of it and goes for a titty twister (seriously?) only Olympico stomps on the bare foot of Tanaka much to the crowd's delight. Tanaka wrenches the fingers of Olympico and Olympico counters by giving him a wet willie....yes I'm serious. Mrs. Krieger makes a very blatant racist gesture before Olympico hits a dropkick. Olympico goes for a second one but misses entirely. Tanaka begs off in the corner before locking in an arm bar. He shouts "Sit down you old bag" at Mrs. Krieger and the distraction allows Olympico to reverse the hold. Tanaka turns a bridge into a chokehold and attacks Olympico who had stepped through the ropes. The ref gets more involved to stop Tanaka and Tanaka says "Are you crazy?" Olympico fights back and lands a dropkick. He covers for 1....and that's it. Olympico nails another dropkick and covers for 1...2..nope. Olympico goes for a third dropkick but instead eats a judo chop to the throat. Tanaka covers for 1...2....3. that's it, Tanaka wins it. Vince says all it took was one devastating chop to win the match. Vince goes to the replay of Tanaka getting the chop in at the last second. That was a fun match all things considering.

Time of match: 9:34

Winner: Professor Toru Tanaka by pinfall

Match 3

Gorilla Monsoon vs Captain Lou Albano

If you don't know who either of these guys are, you're an idiot. Two absolute legends in the wrestling business. Monsoon had just turned 36 a few weeks earlier and he takes on the 39 year old Albano in a one off. Unlike Wizard and Fred Blassie, Albano would get back in the ring every now and then. Albano shouts at the crowd as Vince says this came about because Albano sneak attacked Monsoon with a chair. Monsoon gets a huge cheer from the crowd as he bum rushes Lou before the match even starts. The ref has to calm Monsoon down so the ring announcer can give the instructions. The bell rings and Albano immediately runs for cover. Monsoon catches him and forearms him in the corner. Albano goes for the eye gouges and uses a taped thumb to attack Monsoon. Monsoon pulls the ref out of the way and Albano continues to ram the thumb to the throat but Monsoon finally comes back with chops. The crowd goes nuts as Monsoon continues to chop and punch away at Albano and a big right hand sends Albano over the top to the floor. Albano runs away to take the count out and Monsoon is your winner. Short and sweet due to Gorilla's advancing age and Albano was never the best worker. Monsoon acts like Albano is coming back but the ref says its over. That's the kind of matches Albano would have, fans paid to see him get his. Vince goes to the highlights and showing Albano running away.

Time of match: 2:58

Winner: Gorilla Monsoon by count-out

Match 4

Victor Rivera vs Black Gordman

The battle of the latin stars as the Puerto Rican Victor Rivera takes on Black Gordman from Mexico City. Rivera was a predecessor to guys like Carlito in terms of being able to incorporate aerial tactics. Gordman was a big bad "rudo" in Mexico feuding with Mil Mascaras in 1969 and becoming a mainstay of the Los Angeles territory. Remember Mr. Perfect's manager "The Coach"? That was "Golden Greek" John Tolos who also feuded with Gordman. Vince shills bowling tournaments on HBO as Rivera jumps in the ring. Vince actually brings up their feud from WWA out in California so they took this across the coast. The bell rings and they circle to start with Gordman stalling to yell at the crowd. Rivera catches Gordman with a series of arm-drags but Gordman punches him. Rivera punches back and the fans explode when he does. Rivera whips Gordman in the corner who bumps around like a pinball machine. Gordman bails to the apron before getting back in. Gordman locks in a modified chinlock but Rivera counters with an overhead arm-bar. Gordman claims the hair's being pulled (which he lost against Mascaras years earlier) so the ref breaks it up. Gordman locks in a leg lock takedown but Rivera starts to power out of it. Rivera puts Gordman on his back but the ref doesn't count anything. Gordman and Rivera engage in a test of strength which Gordman wins, going into a standing surfboard. Rivera starts to reverse it but Gordman gets the knee in the back. Rivera starts to power out of it again but Gordman gets the knee in the back again. Rivera powers out of it for a third time and locks his own surfboard in as the crowd cheers. Rivera rams his head in the buckle but eats a thumb to the eye. Gordman then gets a facelock in before switching to a sleeperhold. Rivera starts to fade but the arm only drops twice. Rivera then squirms like he's got a spider in his tights but Gordman maintains control. Rivera rocks back and forth trying to break the hold but once again Victor starts to fade. Then he starts squirming and gets to his feet, breaking the hold to a massive pop. Rivera rallies with two dropkicks and two headscissors to stun Gordman who begs off in the corner. Gordman then gets a kick to the mid-section and goes back to the sleeper again. The crowd begins to go quiet but Rivers gets back to his feet, only to get shoulderblocked down. Rivera then hits a scoop slam but Gordman counters with one of his own. Gordman goes for another suplex but Rivera turns it into a small package for 1...2.....3 that's it. The crowd explodes as Rivera is your winner. A match like that would put a crowd to sleep 20 years later but that was pretty good for 1973 standards, telling a nice story.

Time of match: 11:44

Winner: Victor Rivera by pinfall

Match 5

Joyce Grable and Jan Sheridan vs Dotti Downs and Peggy Patterson in 2 out of 3 Falls

All four of them were trained by Fabulous Moolah and all four of them look almost alike. If you thought the Divas era was bad with blonde bombshells galore, go back 30 years and you get this match. Sheridan was 32 and actually was one of Moolah's top opponents. We all remember Grable from back in March, no sense repeating myself. Dotti Downs was a 36 year old veteran who has a big pompadour going on. Peggy Patterson was 21 at the time and would later appear in LPWA. This is going to be a LONG match because its 2 out of 3 falls and more than likely its going the full three. Patterson towers over everyone and the ref gives unusually long instructions before we get started. Patterson goes to town on Sheridan to start but Sheridan fights back with a forearm. Patterson works a top wristlock and takes Jan down with it by pulling the hair. They repeat the exact same spots like six times until Sheridan winds up for a big punch to back her off. Sheridan locks in a leg-lock but Patterson counters it with one of her own, pulling the tights for leverage. Sheridan counters with an STF, unheard of in 1973. Sherdian tags in Grable who goes for a leglock but Patterson grabs the hair. Sheridan gets in to help and Grable once again takes her down. Patterson pulls the hair, punches the stomach and chokes Grable. Patterson tags in Downs who gets in a front headlock. Because all four women look alike, Patterson and Downs pull a switch. The referee notices the switch so Patterson nonchalantly tags out to Dotti who continues to the front headlock. Grable backs her into the corner and hits a forearm but is unable to make a tag. Patterson chokes Grable in the corner and the ref is busy occupied with Sheridan. The ref finally pries Patterson off Grable and Downs unloads with punches and kicks. Grable gets the hot tag to Sheridan and Dotti begs off. Sheridan takes her down and then chokes her on the ropes, but Patterson kicks her off. Grable gets in to clock Downs and Sheridan winds up forearms, then delivers them Sheridan holds Dotti for Grable to punch her but turns around to put Downs in the way of a Patterson forearm. Downs recovers and goes back to the front headlock, tagging Patterson back in. Patterson does the same hair pull headlock she was doing earlier but Sheridan locks in an arm-ringer. Sheridan works over the left arm into a hammerlock. Patterson makes it to Dotti but Grable tags in as well. Downs begs off but catches Grable with a single-leg takedown. Both Patterson and Sheridan help each other get the advantage of the leadlock right out of a midget match. Downs makes it to the ropes and Grable kicks the leg. Once again they do the hair pull until Downs kick Grable in the ribs. Joyce counters with a dropkick and covers for 1...2.....3. 

Patterson was too late to stop the count and the faces take the first fall. The announcer gets in to announce the end of the first fall and Patterson complains. Patterson shouts at the ref, shouts at the crowd and the bell rings to start the second fall. The faces pull both heels in and slingshot them across both sides of the ring. Sheridan and Downs start the second fall with Sheridan getting an armringer in. Patterson takes Sheridan down by the hair and locks in an armringer. The camera zooms in right on Peggy's ass and Vince tries to talk about anything else. Finally Grable gets the tag and does the Moolah hair snapmares. Grable covers for 1...2....nope. Sheridan tags in and Patterson wants a handshake but Jan kicks her in the chest. A forearm to the back chases Patterson into the corner where Dotti tags in.  Dotti pulls Sheridan's hair and locks in another leglock. Grable gets in the ring, throws Dotti down and covers her.....what? The ref tells her to beat it since she never legally tagged in. Sheridan tags in Grable for real this time but she misses a drop kick. Downs dives on top and hooks the tights for 1...2...3 and we're even at one fall apiece, just as I thought.

Patterson gets in a cheapshot as the announcer gets in the ring and says the second fall goes to Downs and Peggy. The bell rings for the third and final fall with Sheridan and Patterson in there. Sherdian sells like her back is broken and the ref teases that he's going to stop the match. The heels doubleteam Sheridan in the corner but she punches Peggy down. Another Moolah hairsnap mare drops Patterson who bails to the apron. Jan brings her in the hard way and slingshots her across the ring before hitting another Moolah snapmare. Jan then gets on Peggy's shoulder and victory rolls her with Grable cutting Dotti off for 1...2...3 and that's it, the faces win the match. The crowd which had been silent for most of the match erupts in cheers, mostly because the match is over. Grable and Sheridan win it as Patterson and Downs shout at the fans as they leave. If you're not a fan of Moolah style wrestling this would be a tough 20 minutes to sit through. It wasn't a BAD match per se but its one of those matches that would have looked the exact same 12 years later with only 2 real women's trainers at the time. Still, the longest match on an MSG card was a women's tag match, that's good for something right?

Time of match: 20:47

Winners: Jan Sheridan and Joyce Grable 2 falls to 1

Match 6

George "The Animal" Steele vs Pedro Morales for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship

Before the match starts George shouts at a guy in the crowd "Sit down you jerk, what the hell's wrong with you?" in perfect English. Wait, what? Well it turns out the original Animal character was as smart as anyone but just acted like an animal in the ring. It wasn't until the early 80's when promos became important that Steele had enough of Vince Jr one day. He cut an eloquent promo but Vince said he made too much sense. Steele then started spouting gibberish as a rib hoping Vince would say "alright knock it off" but instead Vince lit up and said "Yes! That's what I'm talking about."  We all know Morales already and tonight he defends the title against The Animal. The match starts and Pedro explodes with left hands and whips Steele into the corner who Flair flips out of the ring. The crowd roars as Steele regroups outside. Back inside Morales throws a left hand but Steele pulls out the "foreign object" and clobbers Morales with it. Morales staggers to his feet and Steele nails him with it again. George stands on top of Pedro and chokes him with his boot. Steele scoop slams Pedro and whacks Pedro with the object. The ref checks on Steele who goes to bite the buckle but Pedro rallies with left hands that has the crowd exploding and Steele on the run. Pedro stalks George around the ring and catches him with an armdrag. George tries to hide in the corner but Pedro clocks him with a forearm. Steele stands on the apron and stalls for some heat but back inside George lands a headlocked punch. Vince claims he had the object but it didn't look like it. George rams Pedro into the buckle and yells at the crowd. George rams him again only this time he rams him into the steel part behind it. Pedro then rams Steele into the ring post then sends him into the opposite post. Pedro rams him into the other post then unloads with left hands as the crowd roars. Steele is a bloody mess as Pedro continues to punch away at the cut and actually bites him much to the crowd's delight. Steele goes for the object but Pedro cuts him off with left hands. The ref checks George's head and calls for the bell. Apparently the ref thinks George can't continue and says its over. George gets up like nothing's wrong and attacks Pedro with the foreign object. Pedro them gets the object away and the crowd roars as Steele runs for the hills. The announcer says Morales is winner and still champion. Stoppages were common in those days and having Steele lose but not eat a pinfall was a way to protect him. Pedro holds up the Puerto Rican flag and a sign a fan handed him. Fans had jumped the guardrail and surrounded the ring to sing his praises.....and that's the kind of crap that lost him the title. What started happening when he became champion was the latino fans would hit the ring and cause a riot when Pedro would get color or get his brains beat in by the heel. As for now, the fans are happy and Pedro is still the champ. The thing about this match is it wasn't a technical match, it was a straight brawl. That's what the crowd wanted back then so by crackey enjoy the fight.

Time of match: 8:16

Winner: Morales by stoppage

Match 7

Mr. Fuji vs Chief Jay Strongbow

After dropping the belts to Tony Garea and Haystacks Calhoun the month before, Fuji faces Strongbow one on one. Jay was 45 years old in this match but was still over as a fan favorite in the Garden. The bell rings and Fuji throws the ceremonial salt but old Mrs. Krieger is back to wipe it away, only this time the crowd is tired of it. Strongbow and Fuji crisscross the ropes and Strongbow catches a chop. Fuji bails but Jay catches him with headscissors. Jay catches Fuji with a few armdrags but Fuji does the same "foreign object" trick George Steele did the previous match. Fuji drops Strongbow with chops to the throat and kicks away at him. Fuji goes upstairs but loses his balance, allowing Jay to come up and punch him off. Jay hits a scoop slam and a backdrop. Fuji goes for the foreign object but Jay steals it and rakes Fuji's eyes, causing him to throw flying chops at the referee, missing completely. Fuji bails but Strongbow jumps on the apron and stomps Fuji away. Fuji gets in and begs off as we go to the replay of Fuji flailing around. Back to live action Fuji locks in a double titty twister. Strongbow chops out of it, slides under Fuji but walks into a another double titty twister. This time Fuji takes him down with it and Fuji does the "3 arm drop" routine, chopping Fuji down with overhead chops. Fuji rakes the eyes and once again goes back to the double titty twister. Jay tries everything he can to get Fuji to let go but Fuji maintains the grip. Fuji takes Strongbow down and covers for 1...2...nope. Fuji rams Jay into the buckle then goes to down with chops, including a running one. Fuji covers for 1...2..nope, Strongbow got the foot on the rope. Fuji rams Jay into the buckle, whips him into the other corner, hits a shoulder block, whips him into the corner again and goes for a moonsault....blocked by Jay by throwing him down. Jay goes "on the warpath" which has him dancing around and hitting knee lifts. Jay runs off the rope and hits the big tomahawk chop to drop Fuji. Jay covers for 1...2....3 its over. That would have been boring by todays standards but the crowd came alive for the end. Basically back then the heels would control the match but the babyfaces would make the big comeback. Bruno, Pedro, Strongbow.....they all "Hulked Up" years before Hogan did it and it worked.

Time of match: 13:58

Winner: Jay Strongbow by pinfall

Match 8

Haystacks Calhoun vs Moondog Mayne

The final match of the night features the legitimate 600 pound Haystacks Calhoun. By this point he was almost to his 39th birthday and his mobility was decreasing. We all know Mayne and he shouts into the house mic for Calhoun to get out there. Finally Haystacks lumbers out. Mayne goes to attack him with a rope but Calhoun chases him with his lucky horseshoe. Mayne attacks him at the bell with forearms to drop the big guy down to a knee. Mayne chokes Calhoun in the corner with his boot. Mayne goes to the blatant choke but the ref refuses to disqualify him. Mayne continues to pound away in the corner then tells the ref to get lost. Mayne sends Haystacks off and goes for a backdrop......maybe he really is insane. Haystacks kicks Mayne and he sells like he got shot out of a cannon. Mayne begs off and Calhoun wallops him with a windup punch. Mayne does the Andre spot in the ropes and Calhoun beats on him before sending him off the ropes. Haystacks hits a backdrop and the Arkansas Teabag which is just putting Mayne's head between Calhoun's thighs and swishing it around. Calhoun punches then kicks Mayne in the gut to knock him down. Calhoun does the aftershock...but holds onto the ropes so its not a pinfall. Calhoun continues to sit on Mayne who rakes the eyes and does a headlocked punch to drop the big guy. Mayne goes upstairs but Calhoun slams him off the top rope. Calhoun backs him down but Mayne gets in an eye rake then continually bites the forehead of Calhoun. Mayne goes for a whip but Haystacks counters with a whip into the corner followed by an avalanche. Haystacks whips him into the other corner and avalanches him again. A whip by Haystacks ends with a shoulderblock to drop Mayne followed by the big splash. The cover gets 1...2....3 and that's it, Calhoun wins. The announcer declares Calhoun the winner as he waives to the crowd. We go to the replay of Calhoun squashing Mayne like a grape and that's the end of the show. Vince says the next big MSG show would be Monday night July 30th. Wish that was available too. 

Time of match: 6:03

Winner: Haystacks Calhoun by pinfall

Good show by 1973 standards if you can put aside recency bias. If you expect modern day moves and tactics you'll be disappointed but if you can appreciate it for what it was, you won't be too bored. The formula of the heel in control of the match only for the babyface to make the comeback was the theme at the time long before trading finishers and near-falls. It was standard for the time so just go with it. Pedro is still the champ so fans had to see the July 30th show to see what happens next. The ladies tag match was interesting and it was great to see Mayne who's career was cut too short.

WWWF at Madison Square Garden (3/26/73) Incomplete

Madison Square Garden

New York City, NY

March 26, 1973

Two days after Andre The Giant made his WWWF debut, he makes his MSG debut on this card. This is actually a damn good card as we got The Vachon Brothers taking on King Curtis Iaukea and Louie Tillet, Gorilla Monsoon vs Moondog Mayne and Freddie Blassie takes on Pedro Morales for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship. There does exist a clip of Andre's bout against Buddy Wolfe so let's get to it.

Match 1

"Nobleman" Joe Turco vs El Olympico

The masked man takes on the Nobleman, Joe Turco. This might have been fun to watch if any footage of it existed. As it is, Olympico wins it.

Time of match: 8:14

Winner: Joe Turco

Match 2

Frank Valois vs Tony Garea

The Frenchman Valois takes on the New Zealand fan favorite Garea. Don't be surprised, but Garea gets the win.

Time of match: 10:15

Winner: Tony Garea

Match 3

The Vachon Brothers (Mad Dog and Butcher) vs Louie Tillet and King Curtis Iaukea

Now THIS is a match I wish had footage of. You had some of the all time crazies in Iaukea and the Vachon brothers. Now Tillet we already know but what about the other three? Maurice "Mad Dog Vachon" was born Joseph Maurice Vachon and started amateur wrestling as a teenager. He competed in the 1948 Olympics and took seventh place. That's where he met Verne Gagne who had just won the national championship in wrestling at the University of Minnesota. He made his professional debut in 1950 working in Canada but got his name in 1962 working for Don Owen in Portland. From then on he was a big rough heel, eventually beating Gagne for the AWA Championship in 1964. Paul "Butcher" Vachon is the younger brother of Mad Dog and is also a lunatic. They're also the older brothers of the late Vivian Vachon and Butcher is the adopted father of the late Luna Vachon. Curtis Iaukea was born in Hawaii and was the great-grandson of legitimate Hawaii Royal member Curtis Iaukea. He dropped out of UC Berkley to play in the Canadian Football League before becoming a wrestler in Don Owen's promotion in 1960. He was a great heel but had turned face by the 70's. The Vachon Brothers won the match.

Time of match: 12:09

Winners: The Vachon Brothers

Match 4

The Great Goliath vs Victor Rivera

Two latin stars here as Rivera takes on Goliath. Goliath was born Pablo Crispin in Mexico and was a territory star in the 50's and 60's. These two fought to a 20 minute draw.

Time of match: 20:00

Winner: No one (draw)

Match 5

Sonny King vs Mr. Fuji

Battle of the former tag team champion taking on the current tag team champion. King and Chief Jay Strongbow knocked off Baron Scicluna and Curtis Iaukea only to lose the belts to Toru Tanaka and Mr. Fuji. Now King gets Fuji one on one at MSG. Fuji got the win and we'll see his partner later

Time of match: 7:26

Winner: Fuji

Match 6

Gorilla Monsoon vs Professor Toru Tanaka

The other half of the tag team champs, Mr. Tanaka takes on Gorilla Monsoon who wants to knock him off for personal reasons. The bout ended in a draw

Winner: No one (draw)

Match 7

Moondog Mayne vs Chief Jay Strongbow

Mayne had failed to win the WWWF title two days earlier and Strongbow was still irate after losing the tag belts to Tanaka & Fuji. Unfortunately no one got any momentum as this bout also ended in a draw.

Winner: No one (draw)

Match 8

Buddy Wolfe vs Andre The Giant

Andre The Giant made his WWWF debut two days earlier but tonight makes his Madison Square Garden debut. Who is his opponent? "Beautiful" Buddy Wolfe played minor league football before being trained by Verne Gagne in 1968. He was a good territory heel in Atlanta and Dallas before coming to New York. The first highlight we see is Buddy getting a front headlock on Andre and Andre effortlessly standing up and carrying him around the ring before putting him on the top rope. Andre backs down the much smaller Wolfe as Wolfe gets a side headlock in. Once again Andre just stands up and throws him around. Buddy runs right into a scoop slam and a big right hand. Andre decks him with an uppercut then headbutts him down. Andre delivers a backbreaker and a big splash for 1...2.....3 that's it. Andre gets the victory as the fans cheer the big guy. At 26 years old, Andre had a bright future ahead.

Time of match: Unknown

Winner: Andre The Giant by pinfall

Match 9

"Classy" Freddie Blassie vs Pedro Morales for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship

Interesting that the aging Blassie gets another title shot after he's failed time and time again since 1971. Not surprising but Morales gets the victory. Modern logic would have Andre come after Pedro as a heel but behind the scenes Andre was making bank as a babyface attraction around the world so staying in one territory would have actually cost him money at the time. So Morales doesn't have to worry about him moving forward after defeating Blassie.

Winner: Morales

Sad to say but apart from Andre The Giant's MSG debut the show wouldn't be noteworthy at all 50 years later. Fans in 1973 had a blast but with the way wrestling is structured today, not really much of anything would make sense. Vince Sr was still pushing the territorial house show system where everything happened on live events instead of syndicated television. Still, everyone bought tickets to see Andre so any time he was in town, it was worth seeing. Morales is still the champ and the tag champs have hell to pay moving forward. WWWF now has some TV tapings that have been unfortunately lost to time but the next house show will be Thursday night in Lowell. The tag champs will be in singles action, see you there.

WWF at Philadelphia Arena (12/18/71) Incomplete

         

Philadelphia Arena

Philadelphia, PA

December 18, 1971

Once again we got another incomplete writeup with one match that was thought to have been lost to time. It was December of 1971, Karl Gotch and Rene Goulet were the tag champs and Pedro Morales was the World champ. What makes this show tough to think about was this show was held mere hours after another house show in Queens earlier that day. Sad part was all but three guys worked on the matinee card. The match that has been restored is the tag team title match were Goulet and Gotch put the straps on the line against The Rugged Russians managed by Nikita Mulkovitch who was more well know designing championship belts in his later years. Let's get to it.

Match 1

Juan Caruso vs Mike Conrad

Both guys were pretty much jobbers here so something has to give. Not much is known about either of them, probably local Philly guys. Apparently Conrad got the duke here by count-out.

Winner: Conrad by count-out.

Match 2

Vincente "Bull" Pometti vs Mike Monroe

We already know Pometti was a big rough Argentinian while Monroe was a standard jobber at the time. Apparently they fought to a draw, no one wins.

Winner: No one: Draw

Match 3

The Black Demon vs Manuel Soto

Once again both these guys worked the other card with Demon tagging with Monroe from the previous match. Manuel Soto won this encounter.

Winner: Manuel Soto

Match 4

The Rugged Russians (Igor and Ivan) with Nikita Mulkovich vs Karl Gotch and Rene Goulet for the WWWF Tag Team Championship in a 2 out of 3 falls match

And now we get to the match that's been restored. On December 6, Goulet and Gotch knocked off "Crazy" Luke Graham and Tarzan Tyler and 12 days later they're pulling double duty. They beat Monroe & Black Demon in Queens earlier that day so they face the fake Russians here. Goulet and Gotch do some sort of battlerope taunt before Goulet bum rushes the "Russians". I don't have a clue which is Igor and which is Ivar so I'm just going to guess. Ivar starts with Goulet and they circle to start before exchanging mat based tactics. Goulet takes Ivar over with an armdrag before Ivan gets back to his feet. Goulet shoulderblocks him down before hitting another arm-drag takeover. Ivan makes it to his feet and he sends Goulet off only for Rene to clock Igor off the apron. Rene takes Ivan down with another arm-drag and Ivar takes nearly a full minute to get to his feet. Ivan pulls the hair but Rene won't let go. Ivan goes down to the mat again for another full minute, holy moly they'd never get away with this now. Igor interferes and eats an armdrag an Gotch tags in to put Igor in a full nelson....even though Igor isn't the legal man. Igor goes behind but Gotch stays with it to keep the full nelson then arm-drags Igor down...here we go again. A minute later Igor gets to his feet only to go down again. Ivan goes to interfere but the ref stops him. Another minute later Igor gets to his feet and looks to have reversed it but Gotch holds on to maintain it. Ivan goes to interfere again but the alert referee chases him off. Igor makes it to the ropes to force a break but Gotch refuses to let go. Finally Gotch tags in Goulet who teases punching Igor in the face only for Gotch to turn around just in time so Ivar clocks Igor instead. Goulet hops up and down but this time Igor gets the full nelson. He brings Goulet to his corner but naturally Rene ducks and Ivan hits Igor again. Rene clocks Ivar who gets in without making a tag. He kicks and scoop slams Goulet but Rene nips up and arm drags again. This time Ivar quickly rakes the eyes and rams Goulet into the buckle. Ivan kicks at Goulet and throws him through the ropes to the outside where Igor beats him up until Gotch chases him away. Goulet is attacked as he tries to get back in the ring so he falls off the apron. Finally the ref tells Ivar to back up so he can count. Goulet actually crawls under the ring and emerges from the other side where he taps Ivan on the shoulder. Ivan turns around into a forearm to the chest much to the crowd's delight.  Goulet hits a snap mare, a scoop slam....and another arm drag. Another scoop slam follows before Gotch tags in. Gotch lands a snap mare and a scoop slam and covers for 1....2...no. Gotch corners Ivan and unloads with forearms before heaving him across the ring. Gotch does it again and Ivan begs off. Gotch kicks at Ivan when Igor interferes and gets dropped. Gotch uses martial arts to drop both men and the camera closes in on Gotch so now I have no clue which "Russian" is which. I assume Ivan tags in Igor since Ivan was the legal man and Gotch goes to town with a wristlock and more foreams in the corner. A charge eats knee and Ivan tags back in, nailing Gotch with a running knee in the midsection. In the center of the ring Ivan hits a knee drop and covers for 1...2....3, that's it. The Russians take the first fall.

Gotch and Ivan start the second fall with Gotch taking control and Ivar complains the tights were pulled, nearly grabbing the ref's ass in the process. Gotch decks Ivan with a right hand and Igor tags in, only for all four men to get in the ring. The ref tells Goulet to beat it as Igor locks in a nerve hold only for Gotch to drop him with forearms. Ivar tags back in and Gotch hits a European uppercut that knocks Ivan over the top rope to the outside. Gotch sends Igor out too and caters to the crowd. Ivan misses a knee drop and Gotch hits a double chop and a karate kick before locking in what AJ Lee would later call the Black Widow. Goulet cuts off Igor and Ivan gives it up, the champs take the second fall.

The final fall starts with Gotch and Ivan again and they stall for time before Goulet tags in. Gotch beats up Ivan from the outside but Goulet gets clocked by Igor who switches with Ivan. Goulet goes for a victory roll for 1...2.., no, Ivan kicks him off. The "Russians" get Goulet in the corner and double team where Gotch is moved back by the ref. The "Russians" repeatedly throw the ref to the ground like idiots and he calls for the bell. The crowd pops as Goulet and Gotch beat up the "Russians" even though the bell already rang. Gotch heaves one of them and they bail. Really stupid move by the heels to throw the ref to the ground and it cost them the match. That was somewhat boring even by 1971 standards, guess you had to be there to appreciate it. Gotch moved pretty damn good for a 47 year old.

Time of match: 24:12

Winners: Gotch and Goulet 2 falls to 1

Match 5

"Handsome" Jimmy Valiant vs Chief Jay Strongbow

The last two matches of this card are just the reverse of the Queens card where Valiant faced Victor Rivera and Strongbow faced Freddie Blassie. Apparently Strongbow got the duke here.

Winner: Chief Jay Strongbow

Match 6

"Classy" Freddie Blassie vs Victor Rivera

By the end of 1971 Blassie was 53 years old with his knees starting to deteriorate. He still had some wars with John Tolos out in California and here he's taking on Rivera. Apparently Freddie won on a count-out.

Winner: Freddie Blassie by count-out.

This sounds like a fun show and imagine if you drove all the way from Queens to catch it? Its only 100 miles from Sunnyside Garden Arena to the Philadelphia Arena. The tag match was a bit of a let down with Goulet not letting up with the armdrags but again, it was standard for its time. Also that's one of the few matches I've seen utterly dominated by the babyfaces, usually its the heels getting the heat. Would have been nice to see Blassie who was nearing the end of the line or a young Handsome Jimmy long before he was the Boogie Woogie Man. Ah well, a small bit of footage is better than none

WWWF at Madison Square Garden (11/15/71) Incomplete

Madison Square Garden

New York City, NY

November 15, 1971

We've finally made it back to Madison Square Garden for the big inter-promotional showdown between WWA Champion Freddie Blassie representing Mike LeBell's territory against WWWF Heavyweight Champion Pedro Morales representing Vince McMahon Sr's territory. We have a pretty stacked card as Tarzan Tyler and Luke Graham put the tag belts on the line against Victor Rivera and Chief Jay Strongbow. Stan "The Man" Stasiak takes on Gorilla Monsoon and Rene Goulet goes one on one with Manuel Soto. Who's gonna walk out of MSG as the heavyweight champ? Let's find out.

Match 1

"Popeye" Chuck Richards vs The Black Demon

Chris Candido's grandfather jerks the curtain at MSG against the human punching bag Black Demon.....and somehow loses. Demon wins it.

Time of match: 8:27

Winner: Black Demon

Match 2

Manuel Soto vs Rene Goulet

Two younger stars going at each other in friendly competition as Soto meets Goulet. Rene Goulet had a rough life before wrestling in Quebec City. Born Robert Bedard, Rene aspired to be a pro hockey defenseman but a skate slashed his throat, and he wanted to be a boxer but a pro-boxer told him he'd be punch drunk. He made his wrestling debut in 1957 and later changed his name to Rene Goulet because of popular Canadian singer Robert Goulet.  It was a hard fought contest but both faces were protected as the match ended in a 20 minute draw. Both men shook hands afterwards.

Time of match: 20:00

Winner: No one (draw)

Match 3

Mike Monroe vs Karl Gotch

Karl Gotch was born Charles Istaz in Belgium and wrestled in the 1948 Olympics at the age of 24. Now he was 47 years old and making a name in the WWWF. His opponent Monroe was a standard jobber of the time period. Gotch may have been 47 but he won the match.


Time of match: 11:05

Winner: Gotch

Match 4

The Rugged Russians (Igor & Ivan) vs Jimmy Valiant and "Beautiful" Bobby Harmon

There's a lot to unpack here. The Russians were actually Spanish and Cuban respectively. Igor was born Juan Onaindia in Bizkaia, Spain. Ivan was Pedro Godoy, a Cuban immigrant. Handsome Jimmy was born Jim Fanning and he started wrestling in 1964 as Jim Vallen. He came to New York as Jimmy Valiant and  eventually would form a team with John L Sullivan, but that's a story for another day. Beautiful Bobby was NOT Bobby Eaton who would have been 13 years old at the time but Bobby Harmon. The Russians got the victory here.

Winners: The Rugged Russians

Match 5

Gorilla Monsoon vs Stan "The Man" Stasiak

Stan "The Man" Stasiak was born George Stipich in Arvida, Quebec and was a lifelong wrestling fan, even getting knocked out trying to take a swing at legendary Canadian wrestler Don Leo Jonathan. Growing up in Quebec, naturally he played hockey and as a sign of things to come, he was a goon in Juniors. His last coach convinced him to give up hockey and take up his real love of wrestling after throwing too many sucker punches. When he first started he wrestled as Emile (his middle name) Koverly as a 21 year old in 1958 and in 1960 wrestled a fellow 23 year old youngster named Gino Marella...yes, the one and only Gorilla Monsoon. Later that year he made his United States debut by taking the name of long dead wrestler Stanley Stasiak who died 30 years before. Imagine someone calling themselves "Eddie Gilbert" now. So 11 years later Stasiak battles Monsoon again. This time Monsoon got the win.

Time of match: 9:51

Winner: Monsoon

Match 6

Chief Jay Strongbow and Victor Rivera vs Tarzan Tyler and "Crazy" Luke Graham for the WWWF Tag Team Championship

Ah the legendary Tarzan Tyler. He was born Camille Tourville in Montreal and was nicknamed "Tarzan" by his friends growing up in Montreal. He started wrestling in the 1950's and had been a top heel in the US and Canada ever since. Three days before this show, Graham and Tyler defeated The Mongols to unify the World and International tag team titles and now they defend against Strongbow and Rivera. Strongbow and Rivera won.....by disqualification. The champs retain.

Time of match: 24:45

Winners: Strongbow and Rivera by disqualification (Tyler & Graham retain)

Match 7

WWA Champion "Classy" Freddie Blassie vs Pedro Morales for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship

Inter-promotional matches were common back in these days and on this night, Mike LeBell's WWA out in California sent Blassie to take on Vince Sr's champion Pedro Morales. Thankfully a short clip of this match is on Youtube so I'll do the best I can to describe what goes on. Blassie complains to the ref that Morales hit him in the face before locking up. Blassie rakes the eyes and bites him in the corner then brings him to the other corner. Blassie heaves Morales over the top rope to the floor into the timekeeper's table. Blassie sends him into the ring post and Morales sells the left shoulder. Blassie goes onto the apron and puts the boots to Pedro. Blassie bites the head of Morales and sends him into the ring post a second time. The ref backs up Blassie to give Morales some room but Blassie continues to attack. Blassie covers but the ref refuses to the count.....what? I've never seen that before. Apparently Blassie needs to apply a hold according to Captain Lou on the overdub. We cut to Blassie hitting a scoop slam on Pedro before dropping some knees on the throat of Morales. Blassie covers for 1...2....nope, Morales kicks out. Blassie chokes Morales and bites the head but Morales gets a big left hand to the ribs. Morales lands another left to the ribs and rallies with more left hands to drop Blassie. Fred gets up and Morales continues to fire away with Blassie countering with bites. Captain Lou on the overdub calls Blassie "The Vampire" as Morales turns the tables by biting Blassie. The ref then calls for the bell and declares Pedro the winner.....what??? Lou on commentary says Blassie was disqualified but the official reason was the match was stopped due to Blassie's blood loss. Albano missed the fact Blassie was busted open and in those days, apparently matches were stopped because of it. Well that's one way for Blassie to keep his California heat by not actually getting pinned or submitted. Pedro wins the match and keeps his title.

Time of match: 8:24

Winners: Morales by stoppage (still WWWF champion)

Its a shame only a clip from the main event remains because this sounded like a fun show on paper to watch. Jimmy Valiant against the Russians would have been funny to see and anytime Monsoon or Stasiak is in the ring is a jolly good time. Still, Morales kept the belt and a few of the heels were hot on his trail. It'll be interesting to see who steps up to Tyler & Graham next as well. This was definitely the home run show but we pick up the action three days later in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. I'll see you then.

WWWF at Philadelphia Arena (1/16/71)

Philadelphia Arena

Philadelphia, PA

January 16, 1971

We are two days away from the Madison Square Garden showdown between Ivan Koloff and Bruno Sammartino but there's still business left to do in Pennsylvania. The day before Vince Sr pulled a double shot with half of the roster in North Attleboro and the other half in Pittsburgh. Today Philadelphia gets their turn to showcase the WWWF. We got the main roster on this one as Bruno defends the title against the red hot Bulldog Brower, The Mongols put the tag straps on the line against Chief Jay Strongbow and Tony Marino and Pedro Morales defends the US belt against The Black Demon. Morales and Sammartino took a beating yesterday so let's see if it affects them moving forward.

Match 1

Victor Rivera vs Jim Grabmire

We open the show with the rising star Rivera against the grizzled veteran Grabmire. For once the opening match wasn't a draw as Rivera got the victory

Winner: Rivera

Match 2

Baron Mikel Scicluna and George "The Animal" Steele vs Dominic DeNucci and WWWF Junior Heavyweight Champion "Jumpin" Johnny DeFazio

The duo that beat up Bruno yesterday take on the local Pennsylvania boys DeNucci and DeFazio. Unfortunately for the good guys, Steele and Scicluna got the victory.

Winners: Scicluna and Steele

Match 3

Vincente Pometti vs "Nobleman" Joe Turco

Gotta love when two curtain jerkers face each other for bragging rights. The Argentinian and the Italian face off and surprise, surprise....it ends in a draw.

Winner: No one (draw)

Match 4

Manuel Soto vs The Wolfman

Big match here as Soto wants to be a successor to Pedro Morales as US Champion while Wolfman is locked in to a US title shot against Morales in two days. Wolfman keeps his heat by getting the win, Morales awaits.

Winner: Wolfman

Match 5

Gorilla Monsoon vs "The Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff

Talk about a monster match before the big show at MSG. If Koloff wants to beat Bruno, he has to get by the big Monsoon first. Ivan gets the duke to have all the momentum going into MSG.

Winner: Koloff

Match 6

The Black Demon vs Pedro Morales for the WWWF United States Championship

The human punching bag Demon somehow gets a crack at the US title two days before Madison Square Garden. Bruno has to face Bulldog Brower on a hot streak while Morales faces the winless all month Demon. No surprise but Morales gets the win.

Winner: Morales

Match 7

Chief Jay Strongbow and Tony Marino vs The Mongols (Beppo & Geeto) in a 2 out of 3 falls match for the WWWF International Tag Team Championship

Strongbow has been chasing the Mongols all month with various tag team partners ranging from Gorilla Monsoon to the local peanut vendor in the arena so this time he chooses Tony Marino. As per norm, Strongbow gets the first fall, the Mongols got the second fall and Marino got counted out to end it. The Mongols retain the titles.

Winners: The Mongols (still Tag Team Champions)

Match 8

Bulldog Brower vs Bruno Sammartino for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship

Brower has been on a hot streak since the month began and he gets Bruno two days before the big MSG show. Bruno got the crap kicked out of him by George Steele and Baron Scicluna the previous day and now he's got the vicious Bulldog on his tail. The match ended in a double disqualification when everyone in the back interfered and had a big brawl. That must have been fun to watch.

Winner: No one (Bruno retains)

That was a stacked card and it definitely served its purpose as a preview for Madison Square Garden coming up. Bruno & The Mongols have their work cut out for them moving forward while Pedro goes into the US title match with momentum. They kept Bulldog strong for a future match with Bruno so he was definitely getting another title shot down the road. All in all it was a good card that unfortunately has been lost to time. Next up is MSG, you don't want to miss it.

WWWF at Pittsburgh Civic Arena (1/15/71)

Pittsburgh Civic Arena

Pittsburgh, PA

January 15, 1971

While half the WWWF roster was performing at Witchi's Sports Arena in North Attleboro, MA.....the other half was at the Pittsburgh Civic Arena for a great card of wrestling three days before Madison Square Garden. WWWF and adopted hometown hero Bruno Sammartino teams with Dominic DeNucci against the dastardly Baron Mikel Scicluna and George "The Animal" Steele in the main event. Other matches include a young John L Sullivan taking on Jim Dillon, Gorilla Monsoon teaming with Victor Rivera against number one contender Ivan Koloff and the insane Jos Le Duc, and "Nobleman" Joe Turco taking on Bobby Hunt. Let's get to the matches.

Match 1

Frank Holtz vs Mike Conrad

Check it out, its Frank Holtz! I said this before but he was a local Pennsylvania police officer who was booked when the WWWF came to Pittsburgh from the 60's all the way to 1976. As per norm, this was a 15 minute time limit draw.

Time of match: 15:00

Winner: No one (Draw)

Match 2

Jim Dillon vs John L Sullivan

Talk about two guys who would go on to greatness. For those that don't know, Jim Dillon is none other than James J Dillon the future architect of the Four Horseman in the NWA. Back then he was a 28 year old "rookie" just getting into the business. He was doubling as referee and enhancement talent. John L Sullivan would later become Luscious Johnny Valiant. He was born Thomas Sullivan and was good friends with Bruno Sammartino in the Pittsburgh area in the late 60's. It was Bruno that helped Johnny get into the business in Detroit, being trained by Al Costello and working for The Sheik. In 1969, he came to New York as the babyface John L Sullivan basing his name off 19th century boxing champion John L Sullivan. Seeing these two great managers in their prime would have been fun to see. Sullivan got the duke when Dillon was counted out.

Time of match: 11:40

Winner: Sullivan by count-out

Match 3

Victor Rivera and Gorilla Monsoon vs Jos Le Duc and Ivan Koloff

This is an interesting matchup as Koloff was three days away from challenging Bruno Sammartino for the heavyweight crown and here he is teaming with the lunatic Jos Le Duc against Rivera and Monsoon. The heels got themselves disqualified.

Time of match: 13:08

Winners: Rivera and Monsoon by pinfall

Match 4

"Nobleman" Joe Turco vs Bobby "Hurricane" Hunt

Hurricane Hunt was a local Pittsburgh wrestler and he had the hometown advantage against the dastardly Turco. Hunt pinned Turco to win the match.

Time of match: 10:33

Winner: Hunt by pinfall

Match 5

Jim Grabmire vs WWWF Junior Heavyweight Champion "Jumpin" Johnny DeFazio

What's that you ask? Believe it or not the WWWF did have a rarely used Junior Heavyweight title for the smaller guys of the time.  This would be a non-title match as Jim Grabmire was 6 foot 6 and 242 pounds. DeFazio pinned Grabmire to win the match.

Time of match: 13:19

Winner: DeFazio by pinfall

Match 6

Baron Mikel Scicluna and George "The Animal" Steele vs Dominic DeNucci and WWWF Heavyweight Champion Bruno Sammartino in a 2 out of 3 falls match

The champ is here and he's teaming with DeNucci to take on Scicluna and the insane George Steele. The first fall went to the faces as Sammartino pinned Steele but George got mad and belted Bruno with a chair rendering him unable to continue in the second fall. The third fall went to the faces when Scicluna and Steele were disqualified for doubleteaming Bruno. Back then house shows weren't really talked about on TV but these days they could play up Bruno taking a beating at the hands of Steele & Scicluna just days away from his battle with Koloff. Still, the Pittsburgh Italians win it.

Winners: Bruno & Dominic 2 falls to 1

We're just days away from the big MSG showdown and both the Heavyweight and US champion took beatings at the hands of the heels tonight. Once again, WWWF had only local syndication on the weekends so Friday night Smackdown didn't exist in 1971, otherwise you could play up Morales and Sammartino getting beat up days before their title defenses. Still there was a lot going on that's been lost to time. A younger JJ Dillon duking it out with the future Johnny Valiant and the Junior Heavyweight Champion Jumpin Johnny. There's only one house show left before MSG so we'll see you in Philadelphia.

WWWF at National Arena (1/15/70)

National Arena

Washington, DC

January 15, 1970

Before we get started, today is a great day for the promoter Vince McMahon Sr. His grandson Shane was born today, congrats to Vince and Vince Jr. Also, we're going to decide who faces Bruno Sammartino at Madison Square Garden on Monday night. Let's get to the action. Before the show starts Eric The Red gets in the ring and starts ranting and raving of how he's going to cut the heads off everyone in the crowd until he gets a title shot. Gorilla Monsoon storms out, grabs a microphone and calls him a fountain of mis-information. Eric says if you want to go, let's go. Guess we're on to our first match.

Match 1

Eric The Red vs Gorilla Monsoon

Monsoon isn't going to put up with Eric's nonsense and Eric desperately needs a win to stay in contention for Bruno's title. Monsoon wins it with the big splash.

Winner: Monsoon by pinfall

Mario Milano is in the back playing cards with Victor Rivera when all of a sudden a dude in a red mask jumps them both. Krippler Karl Kovacs shows up and starts laughing at Victor and Mario laid out, telling Mario that he has to answer to the "Red Demon" later. National Arena security arrives too late to escort the heels out but Milano shouts in Italian. Back from break, we get our next match.

Match 2

Red Demon vs Mario Milano

For those that don't know, the Red Demon is actually "Killer" Joe Abby, a Pennsylvania local and Korean War veteran. Kovacs needed a henchmen to take down Milano so they had Abby don a mask and be the stooge. Milano gets the win here but Kovacs has sent a message, he wants Bruno and Milano won't stop him.

Winner: Milano

In the back Kovacs is still laughing when Arnold Skaaland shows up. He asks if Kovacs is happy with what he did to Rivera and Milano. Kovacs says he's more than happy, especially since Rivera may not make it to face Killer Kowalski later. Arnold says Vince Sr isn't here so he's in charge today. Arnold says Karl won't be happy because he's up next against Pete Sanchez....in a 2 out of 3 falls match. Kovacs kicks a trash can as we cut. Back from break, its on to the match.

Match 3

Pete Sanchez vs "Krippler" Karl Kovacs in a 2 out of 3 falls match

Monsoon made it official and here we are. Sanchez dominated most of the match but then Kovacs waffled Sanchez with a wooden chair when the ref wasn't looking and got the pinfall to take the first fall. Then with Sanchez still dazed, Kovacs locked in a chinlock and the ref said Sanchez could no longer continue. After the match, Kovacs demanded Bruno Sammartino come out to face him. Instead, Victor Rivera and Mario Milano hit the ring to clear him out. 

Winner: Kovacs

In the back Arnold Skaaland is talking to Gorilla Monsoon about an upcoming match at Madison Square Garden when Professor Toru Tanaka walks up. He says Arnold is an abuse of power and has no business making matches in Vince's absence. Skaaland replies that he just made one more, him against Tanaka next. Tanaka says its his funeral and leaves. Monsoon says to watch for the pearl harbor job as Arnold goes to get ready.

Match 4

Professor Toru Tanaka vs "Golden Boy" Arnold Skaaland

Tanaka charges at the bell as Monsoon said he would but Skaaland was ready. Skaaland actually had the match won but Karl Kovacs ran to the ring and put Tanaka's foot on the bottom rope. When Skaaland spotted Kovacs at ringside, he turned his back on Tanaka to yell at him. Tanaka hit Skaaland with a chop and rolled him up, hooking the trunks for the win. Kovacs and Tanaka leave laughing with Skaaland vowing revenge.

Winner: Tanaka by pinfall

Kovacs and Tanaka laugh about what happened when Gorilla Monsoon is standing there waiting for them. He says he just got off the phone with Vince McMahon Sr and Kovacs will NOT be wrestling Bruno. He says the winner of tonight's Ivan Koloff and Willie Farkas match will determine who faces Bruno at MSG. Kovacs shouts he has no authority and this is an outrage. All of a sudden Skaaland runs in and jumps on Tanaka's back for a beatdown, causing Kovacs to hightail it out of there. So there you have it, all those dastardly deeds cost Kovacs a title shot. On to the next match.

Match 5

"Unpredictable" Johnny Rodz vs Miguel Feliciano

Kind of a pointless match with everything else going on but they had to fill out the card somehow. Johnny Rodz wins this one.

Winner: Rodz

Ivan Koloff is with Killer Kowalski in the back. Kowalski brings him the news that the winner of the next match faces Bruno. Ivan says his time is now and leaves. Karl Kovacs then comes into the room kicking and screaming with Toru Tanaka and Red Demon trying to calm him down. Meanwhile in the babyface room, Monsoon, Skaaland, Sanchez, Milano and Victor Rivera are hyping up Willie Farkas for his match with Koloff. We're going to find out who faces Bruno next.

Match 6

Willie Farkas vs Ivan Koloff

This is it, the winner of this one faces Bruno Sammartino at Madison Square Garden this Monday night. The mad Hungarian swings wildly at the end which Ivan uses the advantage to get the backbreaker on Willie. Farkas gives it up and Koloff is your winner. Ivan faces Bruno this Monday night.

Winner: Koloff by submission

In the back Kovacs is in the heel locker-room getting consoled by Red Demon, Toru Tanaka and Killer Kowalski when Ivan Koloff walks up to them. Kovacs goes nose to nose with him and says the title shot should have been his. Then he extends his hand and says to beat the daylights out of Bruno on Monday night. Koloff shakes his hand and says consider it done. Kowalski says he'll go take care of Victor Rivera right now. 

Match 7

Killer Kowalski vs Victor Rivera

The final match on the card is one half of the tag champs in Rivera taking on the evil Kowalski. Kowalski gets himself disqualified but beats Rivera to a bloody mess. Monsoon, Skaaland and the other faces run in to save Rivera as Kowalski runs off. Rivera was due to defend the tag straps with Tony Marino against Kowalski and Waldo Von Erich at the Garden, now the question is if Rivera can make it there.

Winner: Rivera by disqualification

That show was complete mayhem but we did get some things accomplished. It'll be Bruno Sammartino against Ivan Koloff this Monday night and Killer Kowalski gets another shot at Victor Rivera and the tag straps when he and Waldo Von Erich face Victor and Tony Marino. Gorilla Monsoon will also be at MSG so this is shaping up to be a good card. We have one last show in North Attleboro tomorrow before the big trip to New York City.