Fave wrestlers/matches off the top of yr head(for old heads)

[RichardPriors]

Fuck this is some deep wrastlin' picks right here. Eclectic picks man. I experienced alot of these on VHS from my older cousins libraries. Rock and Roll Expresa and Lawler in Memphis are close to my heart. Also Lawler vs. Rude was some of the best matches ever imo. And Japan wrestling always amazed me. Stan Hansen was my intro there. My picks were mostly stuff I saw live but I agree with most of these. Feel like I need to make another list now.

Back in the day you had to put in work to experience a lot of different wrestling. WWF was available for a while but other than that, you had to go look for it. Some things that spring to mind:

• Buying every wrestling magazine that a local cigar shop had in stock (I think I still have most of them stashed away in the garage somewhere).
• Ordering an insane amount of VHS tapes, mostly Silvervision but also USWA compilations and such.
• Having people with satellite dishes tape WCW broadcasts.
• Later on, getting a lot of Highspots Puroresu DVD-R's.
• NJPW getting a Eurosport deal was a blessing.

 

[Spam On Rye]

Man, I remember having an old mattress on the floor set up as a ring as a kid. The STF was also my finisher back in the day, inspired by Chono. Pre-Yakuza gimmick Chono was a big favorite of mine and by far my favorite muskateer.

Lol yeah backyard wrestling was the only hobby we had. We'd even spend a day making a ring outta beds and 2x4s only for it to be destroyed 30 seconds in a match by a throw into the ropes made outta garden hose. And Chono was amazing man. He never got the credit he deserved imo.

 

[Spam On Rye]

Back in the day you had to put in work to experience a lot of different wrestling. WWF was available for a while but other than that, you had to go look for it. Some things that spring to mind:

• Buying every wrestling magazine that a local cigar shop had in stock (I think I still have most of them stashed away in the garage somewhere).
• Ordering an insane amount of VHS tapes, mostly Silvervision but also USWA compilations and such.
• Having people with satellite dishes tape WCW broadcasts.
• Later on, getting a lot of Highspots Puroresu DVD-R's.
• NJPW getting a Eurosport deal was a blessing.

Man I can relate to this. Magazines and the VHS market were like gold to me. I was lucky enough to live in the rust belt so I got grew up with a lot of the regionals but still had to search out a lot of the Texas and Japan stuff. I had a buddy from the midwest in my late teens who loved wrestling but had never seen AWA/NWA. I didn't realize all my favorite wrestling was regional until I was older. Great memories man.

 

[BoogerDawson]

All of these are worth a rewatch. I ruined my tape watching Michaels vs. Razor. So fucking good!. Backlund is a legend and I always loved his shtick. His comeback and match with Hart were some of my favorites.

I liked Backlund's WWF run w/ the Iron Sheik and Sgt. Slaughter feud. The persian club segment was hilarious, and he was definitely a great athlete, doing the Harvard step test for an entire hour. Then, the second run as a heel was great.

 

[Spam On Rye]

I liked Backlund's WWF run w/ the Iron Sheik and Sgt. Slaughter feud. The persian club segment was hilarious, and he was definitely a great athlete, doing the Harvard step test for an entire hour. Then, the second run as a heel was great.

Yeah they don't have characters like they used to. The internet killed a lot of the aura behind it. I'll tell ya one thing, you'll never have another one like Sheik ever again. Dude was one of a kind.

 

[BoogerDawson]

Yeah Tyson in there was like a dream come true for me. Also, Stone Cold was my last favorite wrestler. Loved him ever since the Hollywood Blonde days.

I remember Steve Austin when he was Steve Williams in WCCW. Chris Adams had a wrestling school commercial that was advertised during the WCCW segment. You can see Steve in the ad. He had long, stringy blonde hair and his voice didn't sound as deep. He had the teacher vs student feud with Chris Adams, and even ran off with Chris Adam's wife in real life.

 

[RichardPriors]

Man I can relate to this. Magazines and the VHS market were like gold to me. I was lucky enough to live in the rust belt so I got grew up with a lot of the regionals but still had to search out a lot of the Texas and Japan stuff. I had a buddy from the midwest in my late teens who loved wrestling but had never seen AWA/NWA. I didn't realize all my favorite wrestling was regional until I was older. Great memories man.

Don't know if you're into tabletop, dice chucking wrestling simulation games but if you are....this is the golden ticket: https://www.lulu.com/shop/mwn-publi...ebook/product-24468832.html?page=1&pageSize=4

There's the JCP '86 core game but also AWA, WCCW, WWF and CWA expansion books. Currently they're working on a Mid-South/UWF one.

It really captures the feeling of the territories.

 

[BoogerDawson]

Yeah they don't have characters like they used to. The internet killed a lot of the aura behind it. I'll tell ya one thing, you'll never have another one like Sheik ever again. Dude was one of a kind.

If you ever listened to Howard Stern, Sheik was great. His feud with Beetlejuice still makes me laugh to this day.

 

[Pliny Pete]

Back in the day you had to put in work to experience a lot of different wrestling. WWF was available for a while but other than that, you had to go look for it. Some things that spring to mind:

• Buying every wrestling magazine that a local cigar shop had in stock (I think I still have most of them stashed away in the garage somewhere).
• Ordering an insane amount of VHS tapes, mostly Silvervision but also USWA compilations and such.
• Having people with satellite dishes tape WCW broadcasts.
• Later on, getting a lot of Highspots Puroresu DVD-R's.
• NJPW getting a Eurosport deal was a blessing.

I got a couple hundred issues of mostly Apter mags from the 80's(PWI, Inside Wrestling, The Wrestler) and a few random lesser known mags like Wrestling Eye, Wrestlings Main Event, Wrestling Superstars, etc., even got one issue of G.L.O.W. magazine and an NWA house show program from the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco on November 30, 1988

 

[Spam On Rye]

I remember Steve Austin when he was Steve Williams in WCCW. Chris Adams had a wrestling school commercial that was advertised during the WCCW segment. You can see Steve in the ad. He had long, stringy blonde hair and his voice didn't sound as deep. He had the teacher vs student feud with Chris Adams, and even ran off with Chris Adam's wife in real life.

Haha that's awesome. I remember Austin first in WCW with the long hair but he really hadn't got his gimmick down yet. I loved his style and being trained by the late great Rick Rude made him my kind of wrestler.

 

[Spam On Rye]

Don't know if you're into tabletop, dice chucking wrestling simulation games but if you are....this is the golden ticket: https://www.lulu.com/shop/mwn-publi...ebook/product-24468832.html?page=1&pageSize=4

There's the JCP '86 core game but also AWA, WCCW, WWF and CWA expansion books. Currently they're working on a Mid-South/UWF one.

It really captures the feeling of the territories.

What!!! I'm a nerd and love me some D&D so this is right up my alley and would be perfect for a night hanging with the boys. Thanks dude. I'm really gonna get this.

 

[Spam On Rye]

If you ever listened to Howard Stern, Sheik was great. His feud with Beetlejuice still makes me laugh to this day.

Are you me bro? I fucking loved Stern before he went nuts and followed him all the way up to XM radio. I actually got to meet Artie at a book signing in Baltimore before the drugs got to him. I got to chill with Ronnie The Limo Driver for like an hour while waiting in line too.

 

[BoogerDawson]

I got a couple hundred issues of mostly Apter mags from the 80's(PWI, Inside Wrestling, The Wrestler) and a few random lesser known mags like Wrestling Eye, Wrestlings Main Event, Wrestling Superstars, etc., even got one issue of G.L.O.W. magazine and an NWA house show program from the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco on November 30, 1988

This is great

 

[BoogerDawson]

Are you me bro? I fucking loved Stern before he went nuts and followed him all the way up to XM radio. I actually got to meet Artie at a book signing in Baltimore before the drugs got to him. I got to chill with Ronnie The Limo Driver for like an hour while waiting in line too.

That's awesome. I love Artie and Ronnie (69!)

 

[RichardPriors]

I got a couple hundred issues of mostly Apter mags from the 80's(PWI, Inside Wrestling, The Wrestler) and a few random lesser known mags like Wrestling Eye, Wrestlings Main Event, Wrestling Superstars, etc., even got one issue of G.L.O.W. magazine and an NWA house show program from the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco on November 30, 1988

Had to check, my wife threw them out thinking I wouldn't be revisiting these in my forties. This marriage is now on shaky ground. Still have all my Source magazines though.

PWI, Main Event and Superstars made up the bulk of the magazines I had. One page was always a round up of the goings on in Japan. I remember being excited when Takada got the #1 spot in the Japanese wrestler standings. There was also a guy who had a heel column who really had it in for Eddie Gilbert, also a heel at the time. Man, this is hazy...can't remember his name.

I need to get that Apter autobiography, is wrestling fixed.

 

[StonedLemur]

Magnum TA vs Tully Blanchard I Quit Cage Match Starrcade '85
Magnum TA vs Nikita Koloff Best Of 7 Series and the entire feud over the US title
Hulk Hogan vs Andre The Giant Wrestlemania III, the entire storyline starting with Andre's suspension and return as Giant Machine all the way to the title win twin referee angle on The Main Event is the greatest long term slow burn storyline in WWF history

Starcades were always a blast.

 

[WarHawk]

I think warrior/hogan is overrated. warrior was easily the worst popular wrestler.

Hogan/macho>>>

 

[Big Nasty Edison]

Bret vs Owen WMX

 

[Pliny Pete]

View attachment 1007025



This is great

I had never heard this before so that magazine cover had me super confused at first lol

 

[Pliny Pete]

Had to check, my wife threw them out thinking I wouldn't be revisiting these in my forties. This marriage is now on shaky ground. Still have all my Source magazines though.

PWI, Main Event and Superstars made up the bulk of the magazines I had. One page was always a round up of the goings on in Japan. I remember being excited when Takada got the #1 spot in the Japanese wrestler standings. There was also a guy who had a heel column who really had it in for Eddie Gilbert, also a heel at the time. Man, this is hazy...can't remember his name.

I need to get that Apter autobiography, is wrestling fixed.

Eddie Ellner was the heel writer at the Apter mags in the 80's, not sure if thats who you were referring to

He's actually a yoga instructor now and back during the '96 World Series he ran out onto the field at Yankee Stadium to spread his grandmothers ashes because that was her final wish

https://www.nydailynews.com/1996/11...in-sprinkles-ashes-on-field-sez-she-urned-it/