Before YouTube There Was Pro Wrestling This Week

Welp, it's been awhile since I've posted here but I've been telling friends about this incredibly GREAT show from the late 80's, "This Week In Pro Wrestling" with Gordon Solie (Georgia/Florida/Jim Crockett-era legend) and Joe "The Round Mound of Sound" Pedicino (also from a variety of Southern territories). This aired from 1987-88 and I believe I saw it on KICU one of the independent TV station in San Jose. This was like watching YouTube clips 2 decades before it existed. The show highlighted loads of wrestling action from across the U.S., Canada and the Japan.

The previous incarnation was called "Superstars of Wrestling" which featured highlights from all the territories as well as Japan and Mexico. It aired in Dallas and Birmingham. "Superstars" was hosted by Pedicino, his future wife and co-commentator/radio producer, Boni Blackstone and the excellent named ring announcer, Rhubarb Jones.

Some highlights:

* A young Paul E. Dangerously/Paul Heyman getting dissed by Gordon Solie.
* A young Jeff Jarrett working with some mid-level worker (for 1987 Memphis, anyway) named Billy Travis vs. late-era AWA stars Paul Diamond & Pat Tanaka who were later managed by Paul E.
* Very liberal and pre-copyright use of Eddie Murphy's synth-soul hit "Party All The Time".
* Female wrestler, Misty Blue Simmes with a silly run-in on the legendary editor/writer of Pro Wrestling Illustrated, Bill Apter.

Misty Blue Simmes looks like the wrestling version of every rocker girl from my high school.

More highlights: 

* The Continental match with the very punk and Alice Cooper influenced Chris Colt up against 'bama fan fave, Wendell Cooley whilst Buddy "Who's the REAL 'Nature Boy" Landell babbles on. 

* Curt Henning vs. Wahoo McDaniel having a GREAT "chop-fest" in the AWA. This is well before Henning moved to the WWF and became Mr. Perfect. Though, Henning was deep into his heel run which also included a great match at the Cow Palace

* Wrestling Ninjas! Or Portland-area wrestling ninjas. By 1987 it seemed like every territory had at least one ninja wrestler. It was part of the unwritten rules of 80's kayfabe.

* Portland heel Rip Oliver delivers the softest-ever chair shot to Mike Miller's back but Miller sells it well.

I've also found another episode of the show with the full intro and of course more of "Party All The Time".  Aaaaaand:
* Footage from Puerto Rico with the Terry Funk & Dory Jr. Funk vs. the Invader & Mil Mascaras.
* Great, heelish commentary from manager and G. Gordon Liddy understudy, Gary Hart.
* Your answer to the question "when are we gonna see a good, clean scientific match?"
*  The "Australian Tag-Team" match from Central States (Kansas City)  has a lady in the crowd yelling "bull-shit!" over & over. Gawd how I love how hardcore some of the fans were back then. (And yeah some fans still kinda like that but it's not really the same post-kayfabe).
* Bill Apter & Pro Wrestling Illustrated's editor Craig Peters give ya updates on "Rowdy" Roddy Piper going to Hollywood (where he was off to work on "They Live").
* Hacksaw Duggan vs. Iron Sheik from a little place called the WWF.
* Lest I forget a young, Zubaz-ed, Rick Rude in World Class Championship Wrestling vs. discount heel, Eric Embry. 

Anyway, this show was the wrestling equivalent of what I experienced in the metal and punk scenes. People circulating tapes and info on bands or in this case, wrestlers from all over. Hence, once again the magic of rock and wrestling lived on.

Bruiser Brody - The Man, The Legend, The Music

Bloody but unbowed Brody

Brody dropkicks Giant Baba into next week

I was recently inspired by The Old School Wrestling Podcast's excellent Bruiser Brody vs. Lex Luger episode. Now I gotta lot to say about Bruiser Brody/sometimes known as King Kong Brody...

I first knew of Brody from the Apter mags. These images showed his giant stature, mountain man locks and beard made me think: "this guy looks dangerous!" For at least a year I read of his exploits in really brutal matches from Texas to Puerto Rico to Japan. Though he was known as a brawler - he was also known to put on 45 min matches with Ric Flair. I recently discovered this MSG match against a young face named Kevin Sullivan (!) in the WWWF. Lest I forget he was then managed by The Grand Wizard. What kinda crazy world is this?!?  As one of the comments on this vid said "Bruiser Brody and Kevin Sullivan - there's two names I'd never thought I'd hear Vince McMahon ever say".

Finally I got to see Brody on TV around 1986 when both Gordon Solie's "This Week In Pro Wrestling" show aired. Solie's show was like reading Maximum Rock N' Roll's scene reports of bands I had never heard of or knew of but didn't know what they sounded like. Through Solie's show I saw a LOT of grapplers from the territories we couldn't get on cable - i.e. - Memphis, Calgary (Stampede) and Japan.

I caught more of Brody when ESPN started airing World Class Championship Wrestling in the summer of '86. I was taking summer school classes that ended at noon - just in time enough to get home at 1pm to have lunch and catch on what was up with the Von Erichs and see who was gonna show up in the territory next. Brody had some great matches here as well. One match I didn't get to see but I saw pictures of  was a knock-out bloody barb-wire bout with Terry "Bam Bam" Gordy of the Freebirds. I had the picture on my wall next to my "Dr. Death" Steve Williams photo (circa: '87 for that 'un when he won the UWF Heavyweight belt) and pics of The Scorpions and Iron Maiden.

A short-haired, 70's Brody going for the WWWF belt vs. champ Bruno Sammartino

              

 Sabu knows it's Bruiser Brody time

Brody had some great matches that I did get to see on ESPN with Killer Tim Brooks and Abdullah The Butcher. There was something larger than life hearing him bark: "HUSS! HUSS! HUSS!" while marching around like a mad barbarian in his fuzzy boots. These boots were sorta like a caveman version of leg warmers - but nevermind this is old school wrestling! Like Ric Flair (who granted I didn't like much at the time since I was more of a mark for Dusty Rhodes), Brody traveled all over working for nearly every promoter in the business. Brody was also known for being fair and ideally wanted to have the wrestlers earn more money instead of the promoters taking took much. I believe this struggle is pointed out in the biography of Brody. Additionally, Brody would show up in the AWA where he was billed as "King Kong Brody" to avoid confusion with Dick The Bruiser he was in the AWA mostly around 1984 but I did manage to see him teaming with the John "Nord the Barbiarian" Nord and his great viking gimmick. The pair took on Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka and Greg Gagne. The match had interesting implications since Snuka was Brody's one time tag partner in the All-Japan territory.

                                   Brody vs. Gordy barbwire brutality: May 4. 1986 Texas Stadium

Sadly, Brody was killed in July 1988 in Puerto Rico in the locker room after a match. This event was not, I repeat NOT a work. Brody was stabbed by a fellow wrestler Jose Gonzales aka: Invader #1. Many of the details can be found in Tony Atlas' account and this great write up on Brody's career & including his legendary matches with Abdullah the Butcher via Deadspin's Masked Man.

Brody's hardcore reputation in the ring and the respect he earned outside the squared circle inspired a few songs in the heavy metal & punk scenes.

Naturally, I'll start with my all-time favorites - the kings of the Heavy Metal-Pro Wrestlin' connection - Nasty Savage and their song "Powerslam":

The lyrics mention a variety of elements from the squared circle (in between those massive Ben Meyer/David Austin riffs):

"Ring the bell/born with a bent for brutality/Prince of Darkness says/'pleasure is pain'!" 

and later on they huss out these lines:

"Hit with a chair/As it opens up your forehead

Raging barks of Bruiser Brody/In cold blood/

he was taken away/The invader - must pay!"

Brody's life and tragic death insipred this great tune by Kansas destructo-punks, Cocknoose called "Invader #1 Must Die". (Also covered by their fellow members of the Confederacy of Scum, AntiSeen and Rancid Vat). 

The last line in this Cocknoose tune makes me wonder if it also inspired the explosive hardcore punks from Ohio named Brody's Milita who often use his visage on their t-shirts and records - like one that Sabu is wearing near in the 4th pic of this post.

Rancid Vat/AntiSeen - split 7" (1996, Ruff-Nite Records)

Brody visits Creepslyvania from the Brody's Militia/Ghoul split 7" 

(Rescued from Life Records, 2008)

The previous ref'd Texas outlaws of rock n' roll - Rancid Vat also did an additional tribute with their own penned tune, "The Ballad of Bruiser Brody."

Even more proof of the great punk n' wrestling connection with some great pics of Brody & his equally dangerous tag partner, Stan "The Lariat"Hansen here.

Finally, what's Ukrainian for "Invader #1 must pay!??"