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 All-Star Wrestling (2/11/78)

WWWF All-Star Wrestling

Hamburg Fieldhouse

Hamburg, PA

February 11, 1978

Commentator: Vince McMahon Jr

Ring Announcer: Joe McHugh

We are days away from the big Madison Square Garden showdown between WWWF Heavyweight Champion "Superstar" Billy Graham and number one contender Bob Backlund. This was taped on February 1st but broadcasted today. Vince runs down today's card then sends us to Larry Zbyszko with a special message to donate to the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. Larry says they can't take on diabetes alone and needs help to fight against it. Larry looked uncomfortable cutting this promo, the WCW Larry would have nailed it. On to our first match after Joe McHugh's introduction. Captain Lou Albano pantomimes jumping rope during Joe's introduction and Butcher Vachon is laughing hysterically.

Match 1

Pete Austin and SD Jones vs Butcher Vachon and Baron Mikel Scicluna (with Captain Lou Albano)

Last week Jones and Scicluna settled nothing in a time limit draw so now they're on opposite ends of a tag team. The bell rings and Albano immediately runs into an SD Jones right hand much to the crowd's delight. Albano bails and Scicluna starts with SD.....nevermind, its Butcher. Butcher tags in and locks up with Jones then shoulderblocks him down. Jones hits a backdrop and Butcher bails to the outside. Vachon gets back in and tags in Mikel Scicluna. Jones locks in an armringer and Austin tags in to take over with it. Scicluna backs him in the corner and hammers away on him.  Scicluna hammers away again and Austin fights out of it with forearms. Scicluna hits forearms to the chest against the rope then sends him into Vachon's knee. Vachon tags in for an open handed chop against the chest. Vachon rakes the back and Jones tags in. Buther begs off and Jones rallies with left hands and a whip to the corner. Vachon whips Jones in the corner and tags Baron in. Scicluna snap mares Jones and Baron stomps away on him. Jones goes for the blatant choke and the ref tells him to break it. Vince says Baron is usually a loner but doesn't mind teaming with Vachon. Jones rallies with a headbutt that dazes Scicluna to tag out to Vachon. Jones headbutts Vachon down and Austin tags in....and just walks around Vachon. He then covers him for a 1 count as even Vince says Austin has no idea what he's doing. Austin locks in a chinlock with Vachon's foot clearly out of the ring but the ref doesn't see it. Austin hits some of the worst forearms I've ever seen and whips Butcher into the opposite corner. A charge eats boot and Butcher tags out to Scicluna. Baron hits a series of forearms and sends him into the corner where Vachon tags back in. Butcher hits a double stomp to the chest and tags out to Scicluna. Baron hits a kneedrop and covers for 1...2...3...to win the match. Vince says SD Jones did well individually to further drive home the point Austin sucks. Butcher and Scicluna did their jobs as heels with their rugged styles but Austin hampered that match. Maybe SD will choose a better partner next time.

Time of match: 5:35

Winners: Scicluna and Vachon by pinfall

After the match, Vince hypes up our main event up next as we go to break. Back from break we go right to the next match.

Match 2

"High Chief" Peter Maivia vs Stan "The Man" Stasiak (with The Grand Wizard)

Former WWWF Champion Stasiak takes on the Samoan chief Maivia here. Vince says Peter doesn't take kindly to Grand Wizard. Bell's gone and they lock up to start. Stasiak starts with a waistlock and Peter reverses into a front headlock. Maivia lets go just to yell at Wizard some more. Maivia armdrags Stasiak and goes for the waistlock. Stan tries a wristlock but Maivia lifts him off the mat onto the top rope. Stasiak regroups with Wizard and avoids a headlock by grabbing the rope. Maivia headbutts Stasiak in the mid-section but Stan rallies with right hands. Stasiak works over Peter in the corner and applies a nervehold. Maivia has the crowd cheer for him to get up and he steps through the ropes. Stasiak continues to hammer away and goes for the heart punch, but Maivia blocks it with some chops.  A European uppercut drops Stasiak and Maivia kicks him out of the ring, literally. Stan regroups with Wizard and gets back in. Maivia taunts him as Vince says Peter will mix it up. Maivia goes to the full nelson but Stan can't break it. Stan gets a foot on the rope and gets in a punch to the ribs. Stan pounds away in the corner and goes for the heart punch. Maivia blocks it again with a headbutt. An uppercut sends Stasiak over the top rope to the floor much to the crowd's delight. Wizard distracts Maivia allowing Stasiak to get the upperhand. Stasiak chokes Maivia against the second rope before stomping away at him. Maivia falls to the floor and Stan repeatedly keeps him from getting back in. Maivia pulls him out and starts beating the crap out of him. They both get counted out as Peter didn't make it back in to beat it. Joe McHugh delivers the bad news to the crowd as Stan shouts "Bull" to a nearby camera. That was pretty good for a 1978 TV match. The uppercut to the floor popped the crowd.

Time of match: 7:04

Winner: No one (Draw)

Back from break we get another interview with "Classy" Freddie Blassie and Spiros Arion. Blassie looks at some fat dude in the front row and Blassie says Arion would beat him easy. The sanitation department forgot to remove him the last time they cleaned the place. Vince calls him absurd and Arion says Gorilla Monsoon, Haystacks and fat guys like them are offensive. Blassie says the guy stinks and the flies keep circling over him as Vince is noticeably cracking up, so the camera zooms on Arion. Arion claims he's nothing but class as Vince complains about Blassie making fun of the fans and Blassie doubles down on it. Blassie says his walking stick is custom made while everyone else has 5 dollar canes. Blassie says he makes nothing but money and Vince asks if Arion is okay with Blassie profitting off him taking the beatings. Arion counters that he doesn't take beatings and the fans pay Blassie, not him. Arion says in 1978, he'll be WWWF champion. On to the next match.

Match 3

"Iron Greek" Spiros Arion vs Dennis Johnson and Pete Reeves in a Handicap Match

Arion gets two jobbers here. That is NOT Seattle Supersonics star point guard Dennis Johnson by the way. Usually handicap matches are for big guys like Haystacks or Andre The Giant, but then again....Arion was 6 foot 5 which was a giant in those days compared to other guys. Arion bumrushes the jobbers at the bell and rams their heads together. Arios stomps on Johnson and gets a knee to the chest. Arion kicks away at Reeves and rakes the eyes of Johnson. Arion whips the jobbers into each other and gets a full nelson on Johnson. Reeves punches away that Arion totally ignores. Arion throws Reeves through the ropes and Johnson gets dropped with a headlocked punch. Arion stomps on Johnson and hiptosses him. He covers for 1...2..no, Arion pulls him up. Arion drops both men with forearms and Spiros chokes Johnson on the top rope. Blassie goes over to Vince's table and cuts a promo saying Arion is the best since he's bored. The two jobbers start punching away on Arion as the crowd starts to make some noise. They whip Arion to the buckle and punch away again. Arion grabs both men and ram their heads together. Arion drops a knee to the groin of Johnson and scoop slams Reeves. Arion covers for 1...2...no, he pulls him up. Arion throws Reeves outside and he punches away at Johnson. Blassie chokes Reeves outside with the cane as Arion gets in the overhead backbreaker. The bell rings before he even gets Johnson all the way up and this one's over.

Time of match: 4:48

Winner: Arion by submission

We go straight to the next match

Match 4

Dominic DeNucci vs "Nobleman" Joe Turco

Another battle of the Italians after Turco met Dino Bravo last week on Championship Wrestling. They circle to start and Dominic pushes Turco back who complains of a hair pull. They lock up again and Turco gets in a forearm to the chest. DeNucci gets in a wristlock but Turco makes it to the ropes. Turco locks in a headlock and pulls the hair but DeNucci lifts him up by the leg. DeNucc reverses into a wrist lock and punches the left arm. Turco goes for a bear hug but Dominic bell rings out of it. DeNucci does a go-behind but Turco grabs the hair and forearms Dominic in the chest. Dominic gets mad and chases Turco around the ring before dropping him with a toe hold. Turco and makes his way to the ropes and they tie up again. Turco applies a wristlock and pulls Dominic down by the tights. Turco takes him down a second time and DeNucci bridges to avoid a count. Turco shouts "I got him now!" but DeNucci makes it to his knees. Turco bites the hand and takes him down by the hand. Turco forearms Dominic against the ropes and sends him off. DeNucci sunset flips Turco for 1...2...3 to win the match. DeNucci outsmarted Turco in an incredibly slow match.

Time of match: 5:48

Winner: DeNucci by pinfall

We cut to Vince shilling the same WWWF Wrestling Action magazine from last week with spreads on Bruno Sammartino and Andre The Giant. GPO Boc 1256 New York, New York 10001 if you're interested. On to the final match.

Match 5

Frankie Williams and Joe Marcus vs Mr. Fuji and Professor Toru Tanaka

The tag champs are in action in a non-title match against hall of fame jobber Williams and Joe Marcus. Marcus is a local Indiana guy and relative to Bob Marcus. Tanaka throws the ceremonial salt and bows in the corner and there's no Mrs. Krieger to wipe it away. Tanaka backs Williams in the corner to start and takes him down by the leg, choking him on the first rope. Tanaka chokes Frankie against the ropes and tags in Fuji. Fooj rams Frankie's head in the buckle and forearms him down. Williams rallies with right hands to stun Fuji and wake up McMahon. Williams applies a chin lock and tags in Marcus. Joe applies a headlock but Fuji powers out of it with a chop to the chest. Fuji scoop slams him and drops a leg. Tanaka tags in and applies a wristlock. Tanaka chokes Joe with his left hand while the ref isn't looking and rams his head in the buckle. Fuji tags in as Vince says he's the more vicious of the two. He was the bigger ribber for sure. Fuji applies a front headlock and walks into the wrong corner so he backs into his own for Tanaka to tag in. Tanaka elbows Marcus in the throat and covers for 1..2...3 to win the match. The problem with too many squash matches is they're relatively boring. Luckily this was the last one on this card.

Time of match: 4:48

Winners: Fuji and Tanaka

We sign off and that was strange not to promote the Madison Square Garden show this Monday night. Backlund vs Graham is the main event but this show just showed us that Spiros Arion is a mean looking fella. Also telegraphing the winner of the MSG match because why would you build up a heel like Arion if Graham were to retain? Unless Billy Graham was about to turn face which would have been a smart thing to do considering how entertaining he is on the microphone. Still, this show served its purpose to set up the next potential contender and showcase how mean & nasty Fuji and Tanaka are. Our next show after this is the house show tonight at the Baltimore Civic Center. I'll see you there.

WWWF Championship Wrestling (2/4/78)

 

WWWF Championship Wrestling

Philadelphia Arena

Philadelphia, PA

February 4, 1978

Commentator: Vince McMahon Jr

Ring Announcer: Gary Michael Capetta

Vince McMahon opens the show shilling how tough and powerful everyone is. Vince says we have to go to commercial first before we get to today's card. Back from break Vince says viewer discretion is advised as we go to the ring. Gary Michael Capetta runs downs the VIPs before we go the first bout.

Match 1

Nikolai Volkoff vs Tony Garea

Nikolai is billed from Mongolia which was a carryover from Beppo Mongol. Bell rings and Nikolai backs him into the ropes twice. They trade forearms before Nikolai gets a headlocked punch. Nikolai gets a waistlock but Tony counters with a headlock takeover. Volkoff reveres into a hammerlock to put Garea on his back. They trade bridges but tumble into the ropes. Volkoff stomps Garea and taunts the irate crowd before delivering a running knee to the ribs. Nikolai does his overhead press backbreaker and covers for 1..2....no. Nikolai gets sunset flipped but too close to the ropes. Tony rallies with forearms and Nikolai backs off. Tony rallies with armdrags but Nikolai headbutts him in the ribs. Tony is thrown into the corner but reverses a whip of his own. Tony jump kicks Nikolai but a charge eats double knees. Nikolai goes for a scoop slam but Tony grabs the knee pad to land on top (why don't you see that anymore?) for 1..2...no. Garea goes for a monkey flip but Nikolai cartwheels out of it. Nikolai arm drags Garea but Tony goes for a double underhook. Nikolai tries a monkey flip but this time Garea cartwheels out of the way and lands a dropkick. Garea punches away at Volkoff and they circle around again. The referee warns Nikolai about using his fists as Garea goes for a small package but the referee takes forever to count because he's checking the shoulders like in actual wrestling. Tony forearms Volkoff and takes him over for a 1 count. Tony grabs an arm ringer and Nikolai begs off to the crowd's delight. Tony drops knees on Volkoff's arm but he kicks Garea off. Nikolai rallies with forearms and a takeover for 1..2....no. Nikolai goes to the front headlock but Tony does a fireman's carry takeover for 1...2..nope, foot on the rope. The bell inexplicably rings as they trade blows in the middle of the ring. The time limit has expired as the crowd boos. Good way to protect both guys on television forcing them to go see the house shows. Now modern day fans won't like this match because they're used to flippity flop at the barber shop, but this was classic wrestling with holds and counters. Nobody could get an advantage and it'll have to be settled another time.

Time of match: 10:00

Winner: No one (Draw)

Vince runs down our card before we go to break. Back from commercial its on to the next match.

Match 2

"Nobleman" Joe Turco vs Dino Bravo

The battle of the Italians only Bravo is residing in Montreal. Bravo had made his WWWF debut on January 31st and this is his TV debut. Bell's gone and they circle to start. Dino starts with an arm-ringer and Turco kicks his feet around to sell it. Turco forearms him against the ropes as Bravo locks in a sideheadlock then shoulderblocks Turco. Bravo hits a dropkick and covers for a 1 count. Bravo takes Turco down and drops a leg on his arm, Turco sells it like his arm fell off. Bravo gets a hammerlock but Turco retreats to the ropes. Dino then goes for the top wristlock but Turco backs him to the ropes with forearms. This is looking like the exact same match as the last one as Turco begs off in the corner. Turco's headlock is reversed into a wristlock and Bravo clocks Turco with a right hand. Bravo drops Turco with a Backlund Knees but Turco rams Bravo's head into the buckle. Bravo reverses it to ram his head in the buckle and drops Turco with a shot to the ribs. Bravo hits a russian leg sweep and an airplane spin. Bravo covers for 1...2...3 to win the match. Really? Bravo goes to leave but forgets he needs his hand raised. Bravo waves to the crowd as Joe Turco sells the spin by crawling up Gary Michael Capetta's leg and have to be helped up by the referee. Okay, THAT was funny. Bravo getting a clean win in his TV debut was par for the course but Turco's antics made it somewhat entertaining.

Time of match: 4:57

Winner: Bravo by pinfall

Vince shills the WWWF Wrestling Action magazine (imagine finding one of those today) with Bruno Sammartino on the cover. Dusty Rhodes is featured in the magazine along with Ivan Putski. We go to break and when we come back, its time for the next match.

Match 3

"Pretty Boy" Larry Sharpe vs Mike Madera

If you don't know who Larry Sharpe is you need some serious education. Not only was he a successful territory wrestler, he founded the Monster Factory wrestling school in 1983 in New Jersey. Guess who he trained? King Kong Bundy, Bam Bam Bigelow, Chris Candido, The Headbangers and pretty much everyone that ever came out of Jersey not named DDP. At this time he was one of the Hollywood Blondes in Puerto Rico with Jack Evans. Madera escapes Sharpe's clutches twice but Larry drops him with a series of forearms. Sharpe gets a headlock and a shoulderblock before following with a headlock takeover. Vince on commentary says individually Sharpe and Evans are not the same as when they're together which is a creative way to say they're jobbers in WWWF but stars in Puerto Rico as a team. Madera rallies with forearms but the charge eats knee in the corner. Sharpe scoop slams Madera and gets a knee to the head. Vince says the tag team champs Mr. Fuji and Professor Tanaka will be here later and an interview with Spiros Arion. SD Jones takes on Baron Mikel Scicluna in the main event. Madera charges the corner but misses. Sharpe hits a suplex and covers for 1..2....3 to win the match. Remember when THAT was a finisher? Vince says despite his recent jobbing, he gets a victory here. Total squash here, not much to say.

Time of match: 2:49

Winner: Sharpe by pinfall

We go to Vince who runs down the rest of the show before going to commercial. Back from break, its on to the next match.

Match 4

Danny Johnson and Terry York vs Professor Toru Tanaka and Mr. Fuji (with "Classy" Freddie Blassie)

Non-title match but who are the jobbers? Danny Johnson is the son of Canadian wrestler Bull Johnson and would later compete in WCW as Bullwhip Johnson. Terry York is actually future Toronto referee Terry Yorkston. He'd ref a lot of matches at the Maple Leaf Gardens after his wrestling career was over. Bell rings and Tanaka starts with York, Tanaka bowing his head before throwing out the ceremonial salt. No Mrs. Krieger to wipe it away this time. Tanaka puts Terry in the ropes and gives him a chop. Tanaka sends York head first in the buckle and uses a five count to choke him on the rope. The ref backs Tanaka off but Fuji snaps Terry off the top rope. Tanaka once again hides a choke from the ref and tags in Fuji. Tanaka uses a five count to choke York before he leaves. Fuji kicks away at York and applies a nerve hold. Tanaka tags in and chokes Terry on the second rope before York makes the tag to Johnson. Tanaka cuts him off and starts choking him as well. Tanaka brings him to the corner where Fuji tags in. Fuji beats up Johnson and York gets in the ring forcing the ref to drive him back. With his back turned, Fuji and Tanaka double team Johnson. Tanaka applies a nerve hold and drives him into the corner where Fuji gets a cheap shot with the ref not looking. York tags in and kicks Tanaka but he no sells it. Tanaka no sells more offense and elbows him in the throat. He hits a chop to the throat and runs into a chokeslam without an actual slam, hard to explain but but the cover still gets 1...2....3 to win the match. Tanaka and Fuji sold NOTHING in that match and Vince says they'll be champs for years to come. Give it a month, Vince.

Time of match: 6:03

Winners: Fuji and Tanaka by pinfall

Back to Vince who's going to interview Freddie Blassie and the returning Spiros Arion. Blassie says he turned him from a nothing babyface into the most vicious heel. He goes on to say Arion's family is filthy rich because they own 500 oil tankers. He says if Arion were to take the tankers out of the ocean, the ocean would go down the drain. That doesn't make sense but whatever. Arion himself says its all true and its hard to be humble because when you're as great as he is, he doesn't have to be. Blassie says Arion is heartless and he's after the WWWF Championship. Blassie calls out Billy Graham but calls Bob Backlund a pencil neck geek refugee from college. He calls Mil Mascaras a geek and Dusty Rhodes the "nightmare". Tony Garea, Larry Zbyzsko, Dominic Denucci and Chief Jay Strongbow are all geeks and Blassie laughs at his own jokes. Blassie says the only way to make money is to win and that's what Arion is going to do. Blassie apologizes to Strongbow and DeNucci then says they're not only ugly, but stupid. Arion says Blassie is the judge & jury, who's to leave and who's to die. Arion is the executioner and he's perfection, not scared of nobody and will prove it. Vince says they're out of time and they'll be back. Gotta love Blassie folks. Back from break its time for the main event.

Match 5

SD Jones vs Baron Mikel Scicluna

These two wrestle each other all the time in time limit draws and this should be no different. Bell's gone and Scicluna takes Jones down by the tights with the ref not seeing it. Scicluna continues to wrench the arm and Jones threatens to punch him but refrains. Scicluna stomps on Jones then goes back to the arm ringer. Jones backs to the ropes and Baron forearms him down. Scicluna hammers away on Jones but SD turns about to take Scicluna down by the tights for his own arm ringer. Jones continues to wrench away but Scicluna powers out of it. Scicluna punches away in the corner but Jones starts to hulk up. Jones hits a huge headbutt followed by an inbetween the legs kick. Scicluna hobbles around and Jones goes back to the leg-lock. Scicluna powers out of it and starts punching Jones down. Scicluna kicks away but there's the bell, curfew draw right? Wrong! For some reason Dick Woehrle awards the match to Jones and  Scicluna attacks after the bell. Jones rallies back to chase the Maltan away. Bad match because there wasn't much to establish before the bell. Back then you really needed 5-10 minutes to get a flow going compared to these days where you could do it right away.

Time of match: 5:48

Winner: Jones by referee's decision

Vince says a rematch between Jones and Scicluna is in order. He runs down next week's card which features a six man tag match with Nikolai Volkoff, Scicluna and Spiros Arion against Chief Jay Strongbow, Dominic Denucci and Peter Maivia. Vince Sr is trying to establish Spiros Arion as a big deal but Vince Jr failed to mention the big Madison Square Garden show coming up on February 20th. Usually they hype the shows weeks in advance but this show had nothing. As for this show, standard 1978 action with two competitive matches along with the three squashes. The next show is tonight's house show at the Providence Civic Center, I'll see you there.

WWWF at Madison Square Garden (5/16/77) Incomplete

May 16, 1977

Madison Square Garden

New York City, New York

Commentator: Vince McMahon Jr

This is going to be an incomplete write-up as nearly the entire show has been lost to time but last two matches including the main event remains. This was "Superstar" Billy Graham's first WWWF title defense after beating Bruno Sammartino for the strap the month before. Traditionally heels were transition champions as Ivan Koloff put over Pedro Morales a month after dethroning Bruno and Stan Stasiak dropped it to Bruno nine days after beating Pedro. Well this theory would be put to the test because Billy's opponent tonight would be none other than Gorilla Monsoon, one month shy of his 40th birthday. Not that Gorilla wasn't popular in New York, he'd be beloved until the day he passed, but Gorilla's time had come and gone. Could this be that Graham would NOT be a transition champion? Let's find out. The only other match that has any footage is the semi-main event as the former champ Bruno takes on old rival George "The Animal" Steele. Let's get to it.

Match 1

Carlos Rocha vs Jan Nelson

As I mentioned in a previous writeup, Jan Nelson was an up and coming wrestler that would tragically pass away a year later. Remember at the 1993 Royal Rumble when legendary Puerto Rican promoter/wrestler Carlos Colon competed in the Rumble for absolutely no reason explained? Well back in 1977 legendary Portuguese wrestler Carlos Rocha joined WWWF in his 50's for a year long run for absolutely no reason. According to the program, Rocha defeated Nelson.

Winner: Carlos Rocha

Match 2

Ron Mikolajczyk vs Doug Gilbert

No, that's not infamous Memphis wrestler Doug Gilbert, he would have been 8 years old at the time. This is Doug Lindsay, a big rough territory heel. Ron is actually THE Ron Mikolajcyzk the former New York Giants offensive lineman. Apparently he became friends with Jerry Lawler when he was playing for Memphis in the ill-fated World Football League (think XFL in 1974) so he wrestled during the off-season. Imagine him vs Ernie Ladd? Anyway Ron got the duke here.

Winner: Ron Mikolajczyk

Match 3

Baron Mikel Scicluna vs "Polish Power" Ivan Putski

Finally people we know as two WWWF mainstays square off in a mid-card showdown. Apparently the bout ended in a draw. Its a shame the match has been lost to time.

Winner: No one (Draw)

Match 4

Chief Jay Strongbow vs Ken Patera

Patera couldn't stand Strongbow or his partner Billy White Wolf so tonight he gets Strongbow one on one. Unfortunately this match has also been lost to time and apparently it also ended in a draw. The feud was just beginning.

Winner: No one (Draw)

Match 5

Billy White Wolf vs Rocky Tomayo

Speaking of White Wolf, here he is in singles action against Peruvian wrestler Rocky Tomayo. Tomayo was a big rough heel mostly working the territories. Apparently White Wolf got the win in this one.

Winner: Billy White Wolf

Match 6

Larry Zbyszko and Tony Garea vs Nikolai Volkoff and Stan Stasiak

Another match that's unfortunately lost to time is this one. Zbyszko and Garea were the top babyface tag team behind White Wolf and Strongbow and here they take on veteran heels Volkoff and Stasiak. Apparently Garea and Zbyszko won the match

Winners: Garea & Zbyszko

Match 7

Bruno Sammartino vs George "The Animal" Steele

If you thought John Cena wrestled Randy Orton a zillion times between 2001 and 2021 Bruno vs Steele may have that beat. Bruno vs Steele was a WWWF mainstay that lasted for nearly two decades. Thankfully there IS footage of this match so let's get to it. We're joined in progress as Bruno chases Steele around the ring and rakes the eyes. Bruno puts the boots to Steele and whips George into the corner who Flair flips out of the ring. Steele takes a few moments to collect himself as some old lady hits Steele with her pocketbook a whole bunch of times while George just does his thing to shrug it off. Props to George for playing around with it rather than break character and tell a security guard to escort her out like you see today's softies do. The ref leans out of the ring to tell George to get back in and George stalls for more heat. Arnie Skaaland at ringside laughs at the old lady taking swings at George as he gets back in. George does the "foreign object" routine and punches Bruno with it as the crowd jumps up to complain. George clubs away at Bruno then kicks away at him. George gets the object out and nails Bruno in the throat with it. This continues two more times and George stomps away at Bruno in the corner.  The ref tries to pull Steele off Bruno as he continues to kick Sammartino. Bruno gets to his feet and George clubs away with forearms. Bruno then does a pseudo Hulk-Up and the crowd starts to buzz. My grandfather loved this part....Sammartino finally explodes and beats the ever-loving piss out of Steele with forearms, turnbuckle smashes and right hands to the head. Bruno whips Steele into the corner and stomps away at him with the ref trying to get him off. Bruno continues to go apeshit on Steele who blades on camera with the camera focusing directly on him....whoops. Bruno continues to kick away at the bloody Steele until the ref shoves him off.  Bruno stands on Steele and the ref once again pushes him off. The ref checks on Steele and calls for the bell saying George can't continue. It was almost the exact same match Pedro Morales had against Steele in 1973. The crowd roars as Bruno is declared the winner. For those that didn't get to watch a lot of Bruno, he was a lot like Hogan where he'd take a beating the entire match then explode at the end. It doesn't seem like much today but fans in the 60's and 70's loved it.

Time of match: Joined in progress

Winner: Bruno Sammartino by stoppage

Match 8

Gorilla Monsoon vs "Superstar" Billy Graham with The Grand Wizard for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship

As mentioned earlier, heel champions didn't last very long as both Ivan Koloff and Stan Stasiak had short reigns to transition to babyface champions. Using that logic, smart fans (if there were any) were excited to see if the near 40 year old Gorilla Monsoon would be the man in New York. Meanwhile, casual fans wanted to see Graham get his ass kicked so the Garden is rocking for the main event. Monsoon stalks Graham at the bell and they tie up. Graham tries to throw Monsoon around like he does all the jobbers but Gorilla doesn't budge. Graham tries another throw but Monsoon shrugs it off. Its funny because I can hear the commentator version of Gorilla from 10 years later going "Highly unlikely you're gonna move him like that." Monsoon then heaves Graham down and catches him with a giant swing. Monsoon bounces off the ropes and HITS THE BIG SPLASH FOR 1...2.....the referee's arm goes 2/3's the way down but he correctly sees Graham's whole legs are on the ropes. The crowd thought that was it as Monsoon kicks at the air in frustration. Graham rolls to the outside to get a breather then begs off inside the ring. Monsoon catches him with chops to the head before locking in an arm-bar. Graham sells like his arm is being torn off and Monsoon revs up the crowd. Graham rakes the eyes but his shoulderblock attempt backfires as he hits the deck. Monsoon goes for an elbow drop but misses. Graham kicks away at Monsoon in the corner but Monsoon starts getting up. Monsson starts shaking off Graham's forearms but Billy catches him in the bearhug. The crowd cheers as Monsoon looks to chop his way out but he starts to fade. Finally Monsoon catches Billy with a series of chops to the head to break free. Both men are down but Graham gets up first and clobbers Monsoon. Monsoon takes a big bump off the turnbuckle as Graham stomps away. Graham then locks in another bearhug but Monsoon makes it to the ropes. Graham holds on as they fall out of the ring and he rams Gorilla into the barricade multiple times. The ref looked to have counted to 20 but it doesn't matter as Monsoon is rolled in with Graham going upstairs. Graham hits a knee drop off the top rope, rolls Monsoon over and covers. Monsoon's foot is clearly out of the ring but the ref doesn't see it....1...2....3, that's it. Graham retains in his first title defense at Madison Square Garden. That was an interesting match because Graham was in control almost from start to finish apart from the initial big splash. Guess Graham survives another month as champion for now with a victory over Monsoon.

Time of match: 9:45

Winner: "Superstar" Billy Graham by pinfall

Its a shame the first six matches have been lost to time because it would have been interesting to see the tag champs in singles action along with Volkoff and Stasiask as a team. Hell it would have been funny to see Scicluna and Putski as well. Still the Bruno/Steele match was that generation's Cena vs Orton or Rock vs HHH and it had a hell of an ending. The main event was short and sweet as Gorilla was nearing the end physically and Graham was never the best technician. Still, two matches from the card remain and as long as there's wrestling fans, they'll always remain. 

WWWF Championship Wrestling (5/14/77)

WWWF Championship Wrestling
May 14, 1977
Philadelphia, PA
Philadelphia Arena

Commentator: Vince McMahon Jr

When we left off last week, Vince shilled SD Jones vs Ken Patera, Billy Graham vs Bruno Sammartino highlights and a women's match featuring Kitty Adams and Sheila Sheppard. This week Vince in the canary yellow suit tells us what we know but we also got Ivan Putski, Peter Maivia and George Steele on the card as well. Gary Michael Capetta doesn't even bother with the introductions, we go right to the first match. Joe McHugh would be appalled.

Match 1

George "The Animal" Steele (with Captain Lou Albano) vs Frankie Williams

Two weeks in a row we got Steele and he's got Frankie Williams as an opponent. For you youngsters, Frankie was yet another Puerto Rican jobber but was based out of Columbus, Ohio. Steele gets in the ring and just stares at Frankie before circling....and circling....then consultation from Albano. Steele continues to look quizzically as Vince calls him an "ugly individual". I'm sure his wife Pat would take an exception to that and so does George who immediately grabs Frank by the face. He belts him with a left forearm before biting the top of his head. Steele continues to choke and bite Frank before breaking. Vince continues to comment on Steele's appearance as George bodyslams Williams. George pulls at the face and sticks his green tongue out. Vince says someone may bite it off someday. Albano applauds George's tactics as George bites the bicep of Frankie. George takes Williams down with an armbar and uses the ropes to kick at it. George continues to bite the left arm and Frankie sells it hilariously. Apparently Steele is biting him for real because the camera pans on Frankie's arm bleeding and Vince acknowledges it. Finally George gets Frankie in the big hammerlock and Williams gives it up. Steele continues to bite Frankie for more heat with Albano distracting the ref to avoid a decision reversal. Finally George lets him go and Albano laughs at the poor Williams. Capetta announces George the winner who continually bites the arm. Vince "Steele absolutely out to lunch!" The point was to get Steele over as a crazy bastard and it works every time.

Time of match: 4:13

Winner: George Steele by submission

We go right to the next match

Match 2

"Polish Power" Ivan Putski vs Jose Estrada and Sylvano Sousa

The last match was designed to get the heel over while a handicap match is designed to get the face over as Putski takes on two men here. Sousa we all know but this is a "first appearance" on this timeline for Estrada who'd become a jobber mainstay in the early 80's. Funny thing is Estrada doesn't have the jacked up physique in 1977 he'd later have in 1982. Thankfully Capetta gets the hell out of dodge before Putski can shout into the mic. Putski has one of those 6-pack AND beer gut combos going on as he starts with Sousa. He heaves Sousa across the ring and Estrada gets in to be tossed around as well. Estrada and Sousa each grabs an arm and Putski rams them both together effortlessly. Putski gets double teamed but Putski fights them off with right hands and hiptosses. The opponents huddle and try a sideswipe attack but Putski whallops Estrada then scoop slams Sousa. Putski headbutts both men before no-selling Estrada's forearms. Putski throws Estrada over the top rope then continues to hammer away on Sousa. Putski sends him across both corners multiple times before scoop slamming him again. He rams both heads together and tosses Sousa off the ropes before rocking him with THE POLISH HAMMERRRRRR. Putski picks up Estrada and powerslams him on top of Sousa, covering both men for the 1...2...3 and that's it. Short and sweet for Putski who makes quick work of them, possibly a feud with Steele was coming up. Too bad there's not enough footage from this time period to get an idea of consistent feuds apart from Graham vs Bruno.

Time of match: 3:46

Winner: Ivan Putski by pinfall

We go right to the next match.

Match 3

Kitty Adams vs Jan Sheridan

We get an ultra rare women's match this time as Adams takes on Jan Sheridan instead of Sheila Sheppard. Adams was a 36 year old veteran who made her debut in 1958 and is famous for being the wife of Mark Tendler, the man who trained Sonny Blaze and ECW alumnus The Sandman. Sheridan was also a vet that worked with Fabulous Moolah in 1973 in Madison Square Garden. Adams bum rushes Sheridan at the bell and beats her up in the corner. Adams stands on Sheridan's back, chokes and pummels with forearms. Adams does the Moolah snapmare and yells at the referee. Vince calls them both tough athletes as Adams continues to snap mare and hair pull. Vince says wrestling was one of the first sports to let women participate, guess he forgets the All American Girls Baseball League in the mid 1940's. Vince says one of these girls may knock off Moolah herself, yeah no. Adams gets in a front headlock and reaches behind her back to pull the hair. Adams with a big forearm to the chest and Sheridan pounds the mat and says that's it. Sheridan goes apeshit on Adams, heaving her across the ring then monkey flipping her to the other side. Adams gets in a punch to the ribs to quell the momentum. Adams goes for a scoop slam but Sheridan counters with a small package for 1...2....3 and that's it. Adams didn't even try to kick out as Sheridan wins with a flurry. Adams bitches her hair got pulled but the referee is having none of it, Sheridan wins. That was a hell of a story of how for 3 minutes Adams beat Sheridan from pillar to post but Jan pseudo hulked up to win it. That was a fun 3 minutes.

Time of Match: 3:06

Winner: Jan Sheridan by pinfall

Vince says up next is the WWWF Champion himself Superstar Billy Graham in a non-title match, don't go away! 

Match 4

Ted Adams vs WWWF World Heavyweight Champion "Superstar" Billy Graham

Non-title match for the new champ. Ted Adams was a standard jobber at the time and he jobbed to Ken Patera the night Graham won the title. Rather than face equally powerful Patera, naturally Graham faces the 221 pound Adams here. Graham poses before getting in the ring as Wizard is wearing a hilariously bad green suit. Wizard takes the belt off and shows it to the irate crowd before slathering Graham with oil. That's gotta suck for the opponent. Referee Dick Woehrle tells Wiz to hurry up and get to steppin. Wizard then combs Billy's hair as Woehrle gives them a glare. Finally Wiz leaves and Graham circles with Adams. They tie-up and Adams gets thrown across the ring before Graham rams his head in the buckle. Billy tosses Adams through the ropes to the outside. Graham snaps Adams backs in and puts the boots to him. Graham gets in a chin-lock as Vince says Adams hasn't put up a fight at all. Billy rams Adams head into the buckle again before snap maring him into another chinlock. Vince promises more footage of Graham vs Bruno next week as Graham scoop slams Ted. Vince speculates how long Billy will have the belt since traditionally heels had very short reigns. Ivan Koloff ended the 8 year run of Bruno Sammartino in January of 1971 but one month later dropped it to Pedro Morales. In December of 73 Stan Stasiak ended Pedro's nearly 3 year run only to drop the belt 9 days later to Bruno. To give an idea the belt was going nowhere, 2 days after this show Graham was scheduled to face Gorilla Monsoon at the Garden. Graham sends Adams off the ropes and catches him in a bearhug. Adams quickly gives up and Billy wins it. Graham refuses to let him go and Wizard gets in to distract the ref so he doesn't reverse the decision. Finally Graham lets him go and poses for the irate crowd. Like I said a minute ago, Graham's first title defense at MSG would be against Monsoon two days later. The match itself is on Youtube but not the whole show.

Time of match: 6:15

Winner: "Superstar" Billy Graham by submission

Vince promises "High Chief" Peter Maivia when we come back. Oh joy!

Match 5

"High Chief" Peter Maivia vs Baron Mikel Scicluna

Only took 5 matches to get to one that should be competitive after the first four were straight beat-downs (despite Kitty Adams losing, she was in control the whole time). Scicluna looks great for 47 years old while Maivia had just turned 40. Maivia teases throwing his tribal spear at Scicluna, hahahahaha! Vince brings up the tribal tattoos Peter has to showcase what a badass he was. Apparently they were done with just ink, stone and chisels, none of this tattoo gun stuff you see these days. Maivia locks up with Mikel and Scicluna misses a wild right forearm. Peter locks in a top wristlock as Vince calls Scicluna an underrated wrestler. Again, looking great for 47. Vince says Maivia is undefeated since he returned to Championship wrestling as Peter no-sells a forearm to the top of the head, a Samoan tradition. Mikel goes to the "foreign object" to finally get Maivia to sell. More forearms are followed by Peter rallying to get Baron to retreat. Maivia headbutts Scicluna down then chills on the top rope, something Shawn Michaels would do almost 20 years later. Maivia rolls out of an armbar and locks in a headlock before dropping him with shoulderblocks. A headlock takeover has Scicluna bent out of the shape and kicking the ropes. Another "foreign object" thrust to the throat drops Peter and Baron kicks away at him. Peter starts a "Hulk Up" and rallies with right hands followed by a headbutt. Scicluna goes back to the object to drop Maivia but misses a forearm. Maivia then hits what looks to be running headbutts to the mid-section before hitting a flying bodypress for 1...2....3! Scicluna kicks out at 3 1/4 but its too late, Peter has won it. Scicluna can't believe it as Peter girins from ear to ear. Vince calls him a very happy young man (a spry 40 at the time) as we go to the highlights. Finally a good match, what took them so long?

Time of match: 7:21

Winner: Peter Maivia by pinfall

Vince sends us to our main event after commercial break

Match 6

"Special Delivery" Jones vs Ken Patera (with Captain Lou Albano)

Our final match to curfew should be another competitive match with Jones taking on the strongman. Patera removes his bright red warmup gear that looks more like what Honky Tonk Man wears 10 years later while Vince says he's going to be tested by Jones. Albano threatens some fans while Patera is hilariously mismatched with a red singlet and bright neon green boots. Patera begs off in the corner after a tie-up then Jones locks in a side head-lock. Patera sends Jones off and hits a knee to the midsection. Patera heaves Jones outside of the ring and screams "Woooooo!" Patera repeatedly knocks Jones off the apron as Vince says watch for Albano lurking around. Woehrle turns around to see Albano kick Jones in the butt but doesn't throw him out or call for the bell. Instead Jones pulls Patera outside and headbutts him. Patera gets thrown in the ring but he quickly bails to catch his breath. Jones turns the tables on Patera by knocking him off the apron when he tries to get back in. Finally Patera gets in and nails Jones with forearms to the back followed by stomps. Patera goes for a headlock before hitting a punch. SD then hits a sunset flip for 1....2....NOOOO, Patera barely got the shoulder up as Albano was halfway in the ring. Jones sends him off and goes for a scoop slam but loses his balance. Patera ends up on top for 1...2...,nope. Patera hits two running elbow drops then covers for 1...2...3, that's it. Kind of a lousy finish but they were up against the clock. Patera wins it as Vince goes to the highlights only for the credits start rolling causing Vince to talk real fast. Too bad they didn't have more time because that got good at the end.

Time of match: 5:13

Winner: Ken Patera by pinfall

I don't know if it was just the recording I saw but there were absolutely no promos at all, or even hints dropped by Vince that a big house show was coming. Madison Square Garden's big show was 2 days away and it wasn't even mentioned. Again, that could just be because this particular upload was devoid of commercials or interviews. Either way there's only one match available which I'll get to next time. As for this show, finally got to see some competitive matches rather than your standard squashes. Behind the scenes Vince Sr already had his successor to Billy Graham picked out but it would be a long time before he could properly build that guy. On camera, Graham looked unstoppable since his bodybuilder physique was unmatched by anyone at the time. Jesse "The Body" Ventura had come out of the Navy in 1975 but wasn't nationally known yet while Terry Bollea wouldn't make his wrestling debut until August of 77. Still, can't judge a show like this by today's standards but would have been nice to have gotten some info on what was going on at the time besides Graham knocking off Bruno. 5 years later it was impossible to miss what was coming up since every show had promos for upcoming MSG, Spectrum and Boston Garden shows. Just have to trudge our way there slowly but surely. Still fun to see Patera, Maivia, Scicluna, Putski, the managers, George Steele and the ladies do their thing.

WWWF Championship Wrestling (5/7/77)

WWWF Championship Wrestling
May 7, 1977
Philadelphia, PA
Philadelphia Arena

Commentator: Vince McMahon Jr

The show opens with Vince Jr in the canary yellow suit running down the card. We also get an announcement from Vince that we have a new WWWF Champion as "Superstar" Billy Graham had beaten Bruno Sammartino the previous Saturday night in Baltimore. We go to Vince narrating highlights of Graham vs Bruno in Baltimore....just not the finish. We go to Gary Michael Capetta in the ring for the introductions. This hour of wrestling is sanctioned by the state athletic commission, the timekeeper is JP Venom (at least it sounds like that's his name), the referees are Dick Woehrle, Dusty Feldbaumer and John Stanley and his name is Gary Michael Capetta. Wow, no shout out to the doctor at ringside or Phil Zacko? Joe McHugh would NEVER!

Match 1

Bob Backlund vs Jan Nelson

Oh look its Bob Backlund! For you youngsters, Bob was the 190 pound Division 2 NCAA wrestling champion for North Dakota State in 1971 and finished 5th as a senior in the heavyweight division in 1972. Legendary Minnesota trainer Eddie Sharkey (the guy who trained The Road Warriors, Barry Darsow, Rick Rude, The Berzerker, Tom Zenk and Nikita Koloff) trained Backlund for the professional ranks and he started making his rounds in the territories from 73-76, especially the AWA in Minnesota, For those that don't know the story, "Mean" Gene Okerlund claims that when Backlund arrived in New York in 1976, Gagne jokingly said "Try and make HIM a star." to Vince Sr. Vince took it as a challenge and basically decided to make Backlund the successor to "Superstar" Billy Graham come hell or high water. Backlund had beaten Tor Kamata in a Texas Death Match the week before (referenced by Kamata here) so now he gets....Jan Nelson. Nelson also was an AWA trainee as he came out of Verne Gagne's camp in 1976. Tragically the story goes he OD'd and died during a Grateful Dead concert in 1978. Backlund takes Nelson down before countering out of a tie up. Backlund hip rolls Nelson as Vince says he's playing around with him. Backlund gets in a hammerlock before they reverse each other. Nelson looks in a full nelson (no pun intended) but Backlund reverses it into a full nelson of his own. Nelson reverses it and Backlund sticks his foot out and somehow tosses Nelson over his shoulders down. That's one way to counter a full nelson! Backlund and Nelson wins a test of strength then arm drags Nelson down. Nelson backs Bob into the corner and Bob backs him off by cocking a fist. Backlund reverses a headlock into a hammerlock as Vince continue to sing his praises. Nelson tries to kick Backlund who grabs the leg and takes him down before applying a wristlock. Nelson elbows Backlund in the ribs and goes to down with smashes before backdropping Backlund. He covers for 1...and Bob powers out of it. Backlund hits a backdrop of his own followed by a double underhook suplex. Backlund hits the atomic drop and covers for 1...2.....3 that's it. Backlund celebrates like he just won a title as Capetta announces the victory before Vince goes to the highlights. If you're not a fan of technical wrestling, this would bore you. If you can appreciate storytelling, you can see why Bob was a favorite for Vince Sr.

Time of match: 5:32

Winner: Bob Backlund by pinfall

We go straight to the next match after the commercial break

Match 2

Johnny Rivera vs Professor Toru Tanaka (with "Classy" Freddie Blassie)

Good to see Tanaka again and this time he's got Blassie with him. In real life, Blassie loved Tanaka and claimed he was the more professional of the duo of Tanaka and Mr. Fuji. By now Tanaka was 47 years old and on the downside of his career (but he had plenty of movies to be in) but the fans still throw stuff at him on the way to the ring. Tanaka throws the ceremonial salt in the corners and ties up with Rivera. Tanaka chops away at Rivera and rakes him across the top rope. Tanaka gets in a front headlock as Blassie goes over to yell at McMahon. He calls Tanaka the greatest Japanese wrestler of all time and they're going to the top. Rivera rallies with right hands but a chop by Tanaka stops him. Tanaka gets in a nerve hold and twists the neck much to Blassie's delight. Tanaka rams Rivera into the buckle as McMahon says Tanaka hasn't been around in a while. Rivera rallies with right hands and rams his head in the buckle. Tanaka cuts him off with a chop to the throat but Rivera continues to rally with forearms. Rivera shoulderblocks Tanaka but it barely fazes him but a second attempt eats a karate kick. Tanaka applies a cobra clutch before throwing Rivera to the mat. He covers for 1...2...3 and that's it, Tanaka wins. Later on that would be a submission hold but Tanaka settled for a pinfall. Blassie distracts the ref as Tanaka kicks at Rivera for some more heat. They were building Tanaka as a solo here, maybe he would be fed to Backlund this time. Either way he disposes of Rivera.

Time of match: 5:27

Winner: Tanaka by pinfall

We go straight from commercial to our next match.

Match 3

Billy White Wolf vs Moose Monroe

You're not gonna believe this, the "Native American" White Wolf is none other than the Iraqi born Adnan Al-Kassie. Yes GENERAL ADNAN. 13 years before he was Sgt Slaughter's manager, he was Billy White Wolf. His opponent Moose Monroe was your standard brawling, tough looking fella. Billy was one half of the tag champs at the time with Chief Jay Strongbow.....another fake native American. They stall to start with Monroe yelling at the crowd for some heat before Monroe goes to work with forearms to the back. Monroe rams Billy's head into two different buckles before continuing to pound away with forearms and kicks. Monroe rams him into a third buckle which fires up Billy. Monroe begs off and take a breather but Billy fires away with forearms and chops to the chest. White Wolf picks up the legs and jumps between them to deliver an Aftershock to Monroe. Wolf splashes Monroe and covers for 1...2....3 that's it. Pretty pathetic to lose to that kind of combo after taking no damage the entire match, but that's jobber matches for you. Capetta shakes referee Dick Woehrle's hand after the bell for no reason but that's okay.

Time of match: 2:45

Winner: White Wolf by pinfall

We come back from commercial straight to the next match

Match 4

Don Serrano vs George "The Animal" Steele (with Captain Lou Albano)

Half man, half animal....even as a heel The Animal was always very entertaining. Here he gets to feast on another Puerto Rican jobber (is Vince Sr ever going to get over the Pedro Morales riots?) and he bumrushes him in the corner to start without taking his signature black & red shirt off. Steele bites the poor guy and lands a forearm before throwing his shirt off. Steele attacks the left arm with a ringer and some kicks before being taken down. Steele continues to work over the left arm by standing on it with one foot and stomping with the other. Captain Lou nods in approval and applies the hammerlock. Serrano gives up and that's it, Steele wins easily. Steele starts playing dumb and bites into the turnbuckle. Vince Jr says he has a "fetish" for the buckles as Steele bails to scare some fans outside. Vince goes to the replay before going to commercial. Steele had turned 40 years old the previous month but he was still an attraction for sure.

Time of match: 2:08

Winner: George Steele by submission

We go from commercial straight to the next match.

Match 5

Mike Madera vs WWWF Heavyweight Champion "Superstar" Billy Graham (with The Grand Wizard)

Graham is making his TV debut as the new champion against yet another Puerto Rican jobber. Graham poses for the crowd with the belt and gets a huge pop from the crowd. Graham poses some more as Capetta says this is a NON-TITLE match. Grand Wizard shows the belt to the crowd and they cheer. If you think Vince Jr is behind the times these days, the fans were cheering FOR Graham and Vince Sr refused to turn him face. Legend has it that Vince didn't think fans would get behind him as a face because of his build. Hulk Hogan seven years later proved otherwise. Wizard slathers oil all over the Superstar which no doubt will make Madera happy to have to roll around with Graham in it. Wizard leaves and the bell finally rings with Graham towering over his opponent. He delivers forearms to the chest then stomps away on the guy. Graham rams Madera's head in the buckle and stomps away some more. Graham scoop slams Mike and stomps away at him. Graham heaves Madera over the top rope to the floor as the crowd cheers. Madera crawls back in only to get thrown over the top rope on the otherside. Madera gets snapped back inside and Graham totally botches a German suplex. Graham rolls over and covers Madera for 1....2...3 that's it. Graham wins it and poses for the crowd some more.

Time of match: 2:17

Winner: Billy Graham by pinfall

We go to commercial then straight to the main event

Match 6

Tony Garea and Larry Zbyszko vs Baron Von Raschke and Stan "The Man" Stasiak

No managers for the heels so this is going to be straight up as Larry starts with Stasiak. Stan gets in an arm lock and uses his taped right hand to punch him when he's not looking. Larry reverses it and Stan tags in Baron. Rascke backs Larry into the rope and hammers away with forearms. Baron works on the pectoral muscle before locking in an armbar. Vince Jr says his signature brainclaw has helped him and Stan have been undefeated as a team since forming. Baron and Stasiak make frequent tags to keep Larry in their corner but Larry finally backdrops Raschke. Zbyszko arm drags Raschke and makes the hot tag to Garea.  Garea pummels Raschke in the corner and backdrops him. Tony scoop slams Baron and covers for a 1 count. Garea puts his head down and eats a boot to the head. Stasiak tags in and goes for the heart punch early, but Garea blocks it with a punch to the gut. Stan recovers and rams Tony's head into the buckle. Stan clubs away and goes for another heart punch but instead punches the buckle. Stan sells it like he broke his hand and tags in Baron. Raschke hip tosses Garea but misses an elbow drop. Stan tags in but Larry gets the hot tag to clean house. Stan does the Andre spot on the top rope and Baron gets caught as well. Tony and Larry pummel the tied up heels much to the crowd's delight before Raschke is freed. Garea and Zbyszko send Baron crashing into Stan before Stasiak is free. Stasiak turns it around with right hands to the head of Zbyszko. He covers for 1....2...nope, Garea breaks it up. Stan heaves Zbyszko threw the ropes to the outside but Tony helps him back in. Rachke then takes control of Larry with punches and kicks before tagging in Stasiak. They both kick him in the chest and Stan misses the heart punch again, this time punching the mat. Stasiak continues to manhandle Larry around the ring but Larry finally comes back with roundhouse rights. Raschke tags in but Garea gets in as the bell rings. Gotta love old era curfews, folks. The crowd doesn't explode out of their seats and sprint to the exit like MSG but the match is over with the faces beating up the heels. Garea and Zbyszko clean house as Gary Capetta announces the match is a draw. Garea raises Zbyszko's hand as the crowd cheers before we go to the replay of the chaos at the end. Would have been nice if they could have been given more time since the story being told was the faces trying their best to avoid the heart punch. Oh well.

Time of match: 8:33

Winners: No one (Curfew draw)

As the credits roll Vince quickly advertises next weeks card. Kitty Adams takes on Sheila Sheppard in a women's match, SD Jones takes on Ken Patera and more highlights of Graham vs Bruno from Baltimore. Normally this one would be a standard show but Graham having just won the title and becoming just the sixth man (7th champion) to hold the championship since 1963 was big news. Compare that to the title changing hands 9 times from 2020 to 2022 until Roman Reigns unified it. Fans were wondering who the new champion was going to be since traditionally heels were just transition champions but boy were they in for a surprise. Sadly Vince Sr already had his new champion in mind and when he'd be crowned but it wouldn't be for another year. There was no secondary title just yet so for the next two years it was just whoever Graham was facing and whatever tag teams Vince brought into the territory. Buckle up everyone for a lot of tire spinning. Then again, that's not fair to judge 1977 WWWF by today's standards where every match is supposed to be important or at least lead to something. Back then with guys coming and going it was a rarity for a non-title match to have importance. Bruno vs Zbyszko being a huge exception. Anyway it was May of 1977 and Graham is the new champ.