Wrestling Experiences: Share Them!

[packerbacker180]

Ok, Brandon shared some of his programs from wrestling events he's attended, and it got me thinking back on some of the shows I've been to so I've dug out some of the stuff I've picked up along the way. I don't go to too many shows, WWE PPVs are too expensive so I've been to 1, and Raw and Smackdown is too much wasted time to spend money on so I've never actually been to a WWE TV event. But I've been to a couple house shows over the years, and while the WWE are good, they're sol big they're always a bit impersonal. I've also been to several ROH, TNA, NXT events over the years and those were much more fun and interactive. So I plan on sharing some memories I have BUT I don't have a ton, and if anyone else wants to add to this they are more than welcome to.

My very first live wrestling memory was from the 80s when my aunt and uncle took us to a WWF event at the Buffalo War Memorial Auditorium. I don't remember the exact year, but it had to been around 1987. I don't remember a ton from that because I would've been 8 or 9, but I do remember the Ultimate Warrior being there, as well as Jack the Snake because I remember the sounds from the crowd when he let Damian loose. I also know Lanny Poffo was there because he read a poem and threw frisbees into the crowd and by some chance my sister caught one. I wish I still had that, but like I said, we were both really young and probably used it for a real frisbee until it was lost or broken.

But I've always been a big Poffo fan ever since.



So feel free to add to this thread and I will do so too.

[packerbacker180]

This was my first Ring of Honor event and it was on June 18th, 2010, an important date for a reason I'll explain in a bit (that's called a hook--Bob). For whatever reason, I think a friend was running late, we didn't get there to the very last minute and I had really wanted an American Wolves shirt but by then they were sold out, so I just bought this program, and I'' glad I did because it's pretty cool even though there's not much to it. It included the card for that night, which is helpful for my old brain.

Here's the cover and inset:



And here's an ad that was inserted. Remember HDNet? It's Axs TV now the home of Impact and NJPW on Thursdays, but back then you could catch some ROH on there before Sinclair bought them. Look, the Briscoes actually look like normal human beings, lol.



Here's the card from that night.



Eddie Edwards TBD was Tyson Dux, who Edwards beat in under 10 minutes (but it was close!)

I can't say I still remember everything, but I'll cover the two highlights of the night. I've told this story before, but remember when I said the date 6/18/10 was important? Well, now I'll tell you why. On the June 7th episode of Raw, the main event was John Cena vs CM Punk until Nexus invaded Raw. It was that infamous episode where Daniel Bryan choked ring announcer Justin Roberts with his own tie earning the ire of VMK for doing something not considered acceptable for the PG era. Just four days later, on 6/11/10, Bryan was fired from the WWE for the incident. Back then there weren't any 90 day clauses and rumors immediately began speculating where DB might go. So there was a buzz at the ROH show that maybe DB would show up as it was a week later after his release and he hadn't resurfaced yet. Why anyone thought he'd make his ROH return at a random show in Buffalo NY is beyond me, but there we were.

So anyway, like any show there was an intermission. As it was winding down everyone settled in for the start of the second half, and then it happened! "The Final Countdown" by Europe started to play!



The place erupted! I use the term loosely because there probably wasn't 1,000 people in attendance, but there was an eruption. Bryan Danielson had returned to his roots in Ring of Honor! The song played for probably a good minute or so without BD coming out, and then the curtain opened and out stepped...Austin Aries, lol. I was a fan of Aries because I love the heels, but this was such a fun moment, and the place showered him with boos, I've been a huge fan ever since. Boos rained down upon him as he strutted to the ring and you could tell he was soaking it up. Aries had a great run in Impact but it's a shame he never had a bigger run in NXT/WWE, but I guess he's a bit of a problem to deal with and isn't Vince's ideal stature, so I can see why that didn't go well.

Aries wound up fighting some guy I'd never heard of. He had blue trunks, was fairly muscular. I didn't think much of him at the time he just looked like a Mr. Perfect rip-off with his curly blonde hair. But I remember it being really good match, and Aries, who was one of ROH's top heels at the time, surprisingly lost to this guy I never heard named Kenny Omega.

Yep, there he is on the top row of the listed roster that was on the backside of the program. Look at that roster!



This isn't my picture, just one I found online that would've been from that time.



ROH has always been a stomping ground for many of today's top stars in the bigger companies, and 2010 was no different. Hell, I didn't even know who Eddie Kingston was until many years later and he isn't even in the top-10 guys on that sheet. Aries, Roderick Strong, The Briscoes, The Wolves, Chis Hero, Claudio Castagnoli (Cesaro), The All Night Express (the word Express in a tag team name multiplies the coolness by at least a factor 5--it's science!), Chris Hero, Colt Boom Boom Cabana, Kevin Steen, and El Generico who would unmask for WWE to become Sami Zayn. And look, there's Jim Cornette. That old carny gets around. It'll probably be a cold day in hell before he shows up in AEW, but people probably said the same about Bischoff and WWE at one point, so I guess never say never.

And of course, at the time of this house show the ROH Champ was none other than Tyler Black. Now, I had only recently heard of Black when he won the belt. ROH wasn't easy to follow back then (not that it got any better with Sinclair) so I didn't really know much about him. He didn't look that impressive. he wasn't overly well built and had that long, slicked black hair and black trunks that made him look a little generic. But he had a good match against Steve Corino, and I came out impressed by him. It would be only two months later in August that he would sign a WWE Developmental deal and drop the title and leave like many ROHers before him. And WWE of course changed his name to Seth freakin' Rollins.

Again, not my picture....


It was a fun night. I was a little disappointed the Wolves were in separate matches, but it was still cool to see them both. They're just another act that TNA had, did some good with, but could've been better. I've always thought they could've been the American version of the British Bulldogs (minus the drugs and fighting with the Rougeau Brothers), but then Davey Richards retired for a bit and Eddie Edwards sort of reinvented himself in Impact wrestling. But Richards came back recently, and the two even faced off in the 5 on 5 Honor No More vs TNA Originals match at Slammiversary just last weekend, so maybe they'll get back together someday.

"The Destroyer" Dick Beyer, who is from Buffalo and would've been 80 at the time was in attendance and recognized by the ring announcer for a big applause. Sadly, he passed away in 2019 at the age of 88.



So that's it for this ROH house show Hopefully you enjoyed reading about it. Until next time...

[packerbacker180]

Bonus, I was looking on youtube and they actually have the Aries vs Omega match there! Of course, this starts with Aries already in the ring so you miss the Final Countdown...but that's why Aries starts out by saying, "You people are so easy." Lol. Heel 101.

[BrandonDaCollector]

Well here is your topic, I found it PB Thanks for mentioning Me, I appreciate that very much Well, it appears you did a lot more than Me. I'll take little snippets here and there. Yes, the Genius was great, very underrated on multiple levels. That gif is from the WWF Survivor Series 89, one of My favorites. I would have loved to go to them classic house shows you and your sister did. As you know Pb but I don't about anybody else, I only been to one WWF house show and it was a great one in 91. It was very memorable. Check it out when you can anybody else/spectators if you haven't already.

OK, I read all of this that you wrote, I'm NOT one to skip special write ups and showcases and whatnot that people worked hard on. You wrote a pretty good one there and sounds like a great ROH show. Yes, I remember HDNet. I used to watch ROH on My local channel/ABC years ago. I loved the Steen/SCUM/Corino/Generico stuff. Oh yes, I loved Cornette and it would be something if AEW does get him, I mean their for the classic NWA tag team syle stuff, he'd fit IMO,! Amazing about the date & DB, I'm sure it was unbelievable Yeah, I wanted to see Aries a lot because there was a huge dream match thing about him & Punk at the time since they were they biggest heels in wrestling. I didn't know whom Omega was either till sometime after this! It was something how Black/Rollins was & became. Oh I know, for years I couldn't believe how many ROH guys went to WWE and were repackaged or just went there and stayed similar I never knew "The Destroyer" Dick Beyer but he looked impressive. The Wolves were a great team!

NICE PROGRAMS YOU GOT THERE Looks very attractive, just as good as the ones I got, I love the colors! Actually I'm not sure if I saw the Briscoes like that or not before Thanks for taking the time & effort to get them out & take pics of'em

So that Omega vs. Aries match was from the event you went too? Any chance to see you there on screen Oh and your program mentions Delirious, what did he do that night? I really liked him.

Great stuff here PB, I tried to mention all I could here. Anything else I didn't touch that you thought I should have or expected Me to Thanks for this topic and your scans PB, just terrific stuff here

[packerbacker180]

Yes, that video is from the actual event. We were to the left on the hard camera but a few rows back and since it was the fairgrounds it was all floor seating, so you can't really see that many rows back much so I didn't see myself at all. I really don't recall what Delirious did, so I had to look up the results. I guess he was in a "dark match" early on but i honestly don't remember it at all. It's funny, because I could've sworn Davey Richards had a match, but it looks like he was replaced by someone named Pee Wee. It's funny the things we don't remember, lol.

Dark match: The Bravado Brothers (Harlem Bravado & Lance Bravado) defeated Mike Sydal & Rip Impact
Dark match: Bobby Dempsey & Grizzly Redwood defeated Dewey & Rob Sweet
Delirious defeated Mr. Ernesto Osiris (w/ Prince Nana) (8:29)
Eddie Edwards defeated Tyson Dux (9:32)
Colt Cabana defeated Shawn Daivari (w/ Mr. Ernesto Osiris & Prince Nana) (11:35)
Roderick Strong defeated Pee Wee (11:55)
The Kings Of Wrestling (Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli) defeated Up In Smoke (Cheech & Cloudy) (19:36)
Kenny Omega defeated Austin Aries (14:11)
The All-Night Express (Kenny King & Rhett Titus) defeated The Briscoes (Jay Briscoe & Mark Briscoe) (14:53)
Tyler Black defeated Steve Corino (17:06)

I've got a couple other things to share, but I'm going to hold off on the event with AJ Styles until I can maybe find the program or the picture with him. I don't usually go out of my way for photo ops or autographs, but I've met a few wrestlers in my day, and I'll share those stories eventually here. But I don't have too many events to share, so please, cut and paste that '91 Chris Chavis house show here and add to the thread if you want. Even though there aren't too many others posting regularly, I know Acid isa wrestling fan, and I've talked with secondwhiteline in the past about wrestling, so maybe they'll feel like sharing something here as well. If not, well, hopefully I'll get to a few more events, including a local one that may've been just too sweet.

[BrandonDaCollector]

Hah, how about that. it is amazing isn't That looked like a stacked card. Yeah, you were lucky. OK, well find the stuff when you can and just post'em when you can and all that. Thanks for all of the info and everything here PB

OK, I'll see what I can do, I was thinking about post'in My 91 experience here yesterday but wasn't sure and thanks for remembering it and saying about it

By the way, yes express is a big name for a team

[BrandonDaCollector]

OK PB, I'm just reposting the whole thing so it can be seen in it's entirely. Look it over, ya never know what you may have missed

INTRODUCTION!

1991 was a fine year for wrestling, for Me and the sport itself. Some cool things were happening as WWF Prime Time Wrestling changed to in studio with an actual audience and My Grandparents took Me to the theater during the summer and saw Hulk Hogan's action sci-fi comedy Suburban Commando and he would also have his own hotline which later would become the WWF hotline (I actually called it once when it first became available but it was very expensive). Now into winter, indeed It was a cool time, literally and figuratively as this event happen on December 9, 1991! WWF was really good then but still kinda in the very late 80s tech, feel, atmosphere and style which was great. I was still in grade school and with all of My friends I had at the time, only one of them liked wrestling and his name was Chris...he loved the Undertaker. Wow, I remember how fun 1991 was for wrestling with all the newcomers in the WWF and how rad it was in WCW. So, we were hot off the heels from "This Tuesday in Texas", Macho Man's feud with Jake Roberts was coming to a close (If I'm remembering correctly, they were supposed to double main event this show but got pulled) but "the Snake" would be in a new program with the now Shockingly turned babyface Undertaker! I saw an ad on TV, I believe I was watching either WWF Superstars or Wrestling Challenge on Saturday morning (gosh I miss those mornings back then) and I was telling My Mom that the WWF is coming here to St. Louis (My Mom is an average type of fan, she just has her faves and she doesn't watch the rest)! So she and her boyfriend (at the time) Kevin decided to go and take Me there. This very classic & old school house show was at the now destroyed St. Louis Arena. This was My first, last and only time I ever went to a wrestling event unfortunately but at least it was a very memorable one. I will present this how I remember it, the card in detail and My thoughts with commentary.

NOTE #1: I took pics when I was at the event with My little TMNT camera that My Mom got Me but they all turned out to be extremely blurry and unusable and I have always been disappointed by this aspect of the entire time for decades So with that being said I put together some pics to make up for that debacle  All pictures are edited by Me to present a more accurate retelling of this dark event and the pics of the wrestlers are chosen to resemble how they looked during the match-ups with the exception of one which I will get to that in time.

NOTE #2: If you know what the WWE Live 91 looked like in the WWE 2K games looked like, that will give you a pretty good idea as to how this great event looked in general.

PROLOG: This house show was several years before wrestling dies in 96 thus spawning the "real beginning" of the Attitude era when the nWo arrived wasn't even a thought. Wrestling fans were fans, their was hardly any signs and chants of this is boring and all that stuff. People was excited for this wrestling and little did they know they'd want it all back during the current ongoing PG era well over a decade later

Where?

Beautiful Downtown St. Louis, Mo!



THE PLACE!

The St. Louis Arena: This was one of the biggest and most iconic auditoriums of all in the US at the time. Formerly known as the Checkerdome. It was such a great one and quite huge. It survived against the unthinkable including  tornadoes Sadly due to age among other reasons, it was demolished in 1999





INFO: This was on December 8, 1991 during matinee and housed nearly 8,000 WWF fans!

NOTE #3: Since this was a house show and basically one big dark event with dark matches, I didn't notice any camera crew or any commentator team or even the old school table they used to have near ringside. I was looking forward to seeing Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby "The Brain" Heenan or even Vinnie Mac himself but they were nowhere to be seen.

THE CARD: This was classic booking and it all made sense in it's order, unlike this brainless chaos in WWE we have been watching over the course of a decade now

The Warlord vs. Greg "The Hammer" Valentine: This was the first match on the whole card. I was so excited about it because I had watched these guys on TV for years! Neither wrestler was My fave but I enjoyed their performances. I loved how the big the Warlord was. I think he was accompanied by "The Doctor of Style" Slick but I cannot be sure. It was cool hearing Greg's theme over the loud speakers. It was a physical match but the Warlord beat him with the powerslam!

Winner: The Warlord via pinfall.



Chris Chavis vs. "The Mighty" Hercules Hernandez: So this was the surprise and the whole highlight on the entire card for Me. Power and Glory was disbanded due to Paul Roma leaving the federation. This was never explained on WWF TV. Hercules was still sporting the same P&G attire however and he had longer hair (see the WWF Royal Rumble 92 for an example of that...that event was one of his last matches in the WWF) and seemed to just lose his spunk and became an enhancement talent unfortunately like he was before his P&G days. I don't think he was accompanied by "The Doctor of Style" Slick, I don't remember that. So, days before the event it was a mystery as to whom this Chris Chavis was. I never saw him in Pro Wrestling Illustrated or anything wrestling magazine previously or at the time. Hercules' entrance was first (I loved his theme). So it was time for his mystery opponent to enter the ring and there he was. He looked like a regular guy but really muscular and seemed to be Native American. He was wearing brown trunks and attire. He was giving Hercules a hard time as he showed very little offence. After a few minutes it was over when Chis Chavis used a brain chop then a Samoan drop and the newcomer got the victory.

Winner: Chris Chavis via pinfall.

NOTE #4: Later on in the very early months in 1992, Chis Chavis would be repacked and known as "The Native American" Tatanka that we all know today! When he debuted on TV with the gimmick I was saying to My Grandparents something like this: hey, that's Chris Chavis, he's the new guy I saw at the event Me & Mom went to! I was surprised about the whole thing and I have followed Tatanka ever since

Now look at the pic, Chavis looked similar like this as he didn't have the red streak in his hair nor did he wear the white pants either.



The Beverly Brothers vs. The Bushwackers: This was a fairly good match but kinda quick I believe. I never really saw them as the Minnesota Wrecking Crew II in the NWA so seeing them appear in the WWF was really cool. The Brothers was a new and fresh team that had a good push early on and was accompanied by the returning Genius as the Coach quickly left weeks prior. It was something watching the silly Bushwackers in person as they were doing their funny acts and shenanigans. When it was all said and done the Brother Beverly performed their devastating double team finisher, the Shaker Heights and got the win!

Winners: The Beverly Brothers via double team maneuver pinfall!



Virgil vs. Skinner: This was arguably the most funnest match of the entire event. It was really cool hearing Virgil's theme and Skinner's "sounds of the swamp" cue. So both guys were on the verge of breaking midcard status as the former bodyguard was still looking to make it to the top since Wrestlemania 7 while Skinner, a newcomer to the WWF just made his debut only few months ago. Gosh I remember the hype & vignettes for him. I loved how he was and his cool looking clothing and I knew it was kayfabe right away that he really wasn't "a alligator hunter/ a skinner". My Mom really liked Skinner back then, in fact he was one of her favorites, she also liked how he was and how he looked. So the match started and right off the bat in a tie up and rule breaking from Skinner. Virgil started getting the up hand doing his boxing stance and fanfare. So Skinner one upped him and got on the top turnbuckle and laid on and stretched out like yeah, I can do it better! So the match continued and Skinner performed the gator-roll among other moves. Virgil got the upper-hand and performed a Russian-leg sweep and then his Million Dollar Dream and Skinner was out. I think I was rather surprised that the new guy lost.

Winner: Virgil via submission!

NOTE #5: I hate when people think this is new and cool or or when a "second" person does and it gets the attention better or trends when it was originally done YEARS PRIOR and I'm jot talking in wrestling, I talking from movies to everything else!. Why am I saying this? Because "Skinner" Steve Keirn was a brilliant wrestler that was well before him time. He performed many moves that would later be notice later one.

1. The Inverted DDT: People wouldn't go wild over this move till "the Crow" Sting started doing it in WCW during 96/97.

2. The Double Underhook Facebuster: This move really didn't catch the eyes of fans till HHH would perform it and Michael P.S. Hayes is the guy that named it "The Pedigree" for "The Cerebral Assassin"!    

3. The Gator Roll. Though people never really reacted like ever when Luke Harper would perform it but I believe Skinner kinda more of a reaction from the fans. This was originally and actually a modified amateur wrestling hold.

4. As I had stated earlier, Skinner stretched out on the ropes. Sound familiar? Tyler Breeze does it all the time, only thing Skinner performed decades before him and even predates HBK Shawn Michaels

5. As I mentioned, Steve was a great talent and had some other highlights & gimmicks. Had some great times in the NWA & AWA. He was the second Doink at Wreslemania 9, in WCW with "Beautiful" Bobby Eaton as a team called "Bad Attitude" which IMO was basically The Midnight Express 3.0 and he also had a school called "Professional Wrestling School of Hard Knocks" that helped train some of the most greatest of talents and would later be called FCW and then be picked up by HHH & the WWE and be called the PC & today's NXT!



Irwin R. Schyster otherwise known as I.R.S. vs. The Big Boss Man: The former tax collecting man vs. the law enforcement corrections officer...this was such a convenient feud! I.R.S., another great newcomer to the federation in 1991, actually returned after about a five year hiatus from being himself Mike Rotunda along with his "brother" Barry Windham as the U.S. Express but during his hiatus he wasn't away from wrestling, he was in the NWA/WCW as himself and as Michael Wallstreet which really his WWF gimmick was nothing more than an altered/alternate and upgraded version from his WCW persona IMO. So the match begins and if I recall correctly it began in a tie-up and then an eye rake from the tax man and kicks to the mid-section. The law enforcer got the upper hand however when he over powered him with clotheslines and punches. I.R.S. tried to attack him more and threw him to the turnbuckles but with his great speed and agility, he quickly went under the ropes and rebounded with an arsenal of his own. However, this offence wouldn't last long as the former Wallstreet would prove his experience over power and perform his "Write-Off" finisher (the flying clothesline, not Samoan backdrop as he would later adapt, adopt and change the maneuver) for the 1,2,3!

NOTE #6: As I said before, the Boss Man was quick for his size. During today's WWF/WWE, Baron Corbin has a similar trait for a big man where he runs around the post rebounding for an attack and while the commentators make it out like its the best & coolest thing that only Corbin can do, the legendary Big Boss Man did something like it first!

Winner: Irwin R. Schyster aka I.R.S. via pinfall!



WWF Tag Team Champions The Legion of Doom vs. The Natural Disasters: This was kinda of a anticipated match because the Road Warriors were still an unbeatable team after defeating another fellow WCW alumni The Nasty Boys at WWF SummerSlam 91 and Earthquake & the former Tugboat now known as Typhoon join Jimmy Hart's stable of iconic teams and seem to be also a team nearly impossible to beat. So the match begins, the rumble of the The Natural Disasters theme hits and here they are with "The Colonel" Jimmy" The Mouth of the South" Hart! I remember I never could fully appreciate their massive sizes because we were far away and not to mention people standing up in front of us. OH WHAT RUSH! The music hit and here comes the new champions the L.O.D.! I was so excited about them and finally seeing them in person for the first time ever like everybody else of this card! I noticed that something was odd with Road Warrior Animal. What was so different was he was in street clothing, basically looking like he was ready for a street fight. I would much later find out that Lambert–St. Louis International Airport lost his luggage but after this obviously he got it back somehow, someway or just had his items replaced. It was a rough start for the Road Warriors and the big men were too much for them at first but soon they overpowered them with their double team tactics but with the help of Jimmy Hart and his megaphone, the Disasters got disqualified thus the Legion won and are remain the champions and the climax of the match kept them both safe!

Winner: The L.O.D. aka The Road Warriors via DQ!



"The Immortal" Hulk Hogan vs. "The Real World's Champion" "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair: Oh here we go, the main event! This match was arguably one of the most fantasy booked matches of all-time by wrestling fans for years and now it has become a reality after a decade Ric Flair was quite new to the federation as he was one of the many newcomers to arrive in the year of 1991. After Bobby "The Brain" Heenan presented him as the real champion still holding the actual WCW World title (yes, it happen) he was declared the champion and after interfering in Hogan & The Undertaker's matches at the WWF Survivor Series 91 & This Tuesday in Texas a week later, it was obvious that Hogan's next feud would be against the dirtiest player in the game! So the match is ready to start, Flair's awesome WWF theme plays (I've always preferred this one over the one in WCW and especially his current WWE version) and here he comes in that iconic silver robe. I do not recall Bobby Heenan in his corner. Hogan's U.S. Express theme...oh I mean Real American theme plays and it was so rad hearing it in person and it was something I would love to hear more of at an event if I ever get a chance that is. Hogan is doing his usual theatrics in the ring. Flair's unofficial title is not on the line. So the match begins quite slow with tie-ups and Flair leaning out of the ropes and going to the outside stalling time. So he get's back in the ring after several attempts, a finger poke in the eye changes the complexion of this match in a hurry and slick Ric doing his famous shenanigans. After a while Hogan "hulks up" after a close pinfall count and isn't being phased at all by Flair's offence as expected. So after the finger point and a big boot, Flair is knocked out of the ring, get's up to the backstage area and is counted out! Hogan poses for the crowd as he always did and that was that!

Winner: Hulk Hogan via count-out!

NOTE #7: Hogan & Flair would continue to face each other at other house shows with the same climax outcome and would encounter each other several more times throughout the remainder in of 91 and through the very early months of 92. In fact, Flair won the vacated WWF title with the help of former Four Horsemen member Sid Justice and eliminating Hogan in the WWF Royal Rumble 92 and being "The Real World's Champion" was ultimately dropped completely! Having this turn around angle, the feud was switched from Flair to Macho Man and Hogan vs. Sid. The latter rivalry was very bitter sweet. Hogan and Flair never had "true & proper" programs in the WWF but when Flair returned to WCW in 93 he regained his status until Hogan would arrive in 94 and they would headline the WCW Bash at the Beach 94 in Hogan's first match ever in that promotion and the Hulkster would be victorious against Flair winning THE SAME BELT he brought to the WWF! Though many fans think their age was a factor (Hogan was barley recognizable in some ways throughout his tenure in WCW but Flair was pretty much the same) and their feuds wasn't as good as they could have been but the way I look at this situation is yeah, maybe that's the case but the fact of the matter is, WCW did what the WWF couldn't and throughout the rest of the company's existence, Hogan & Flair were always at each other throats or in a program with each other one way or another not to mention elsewhere in the future!



So there you have it, this was My WWF Live 91: My Special House Show Wrestling Event! I never thought I'd ever talk about this on the web but recent things just triggered it and all of it "popped" in there and I thought I'd better do it while it's fresh within My mind. This was something going down memory lane after 3 decades which this year makes it the 30th Anniversary of this event...unbelievably remarkable

I tried to put every thing as close as possible as to how it was back then in many ways. I hope you have enjoyed this

[BrandonDaCollector]

Again here is a repost!

Holy BATZO I just found My special match list paper sheet that I got from the event It was by My bed of all places under stuff after all of this time I have been looking for it for years and especially since I posted My WWF Live 91 House Show Event many, many months ago It's still actually in good shape believe it or not If you had ANY DOUBT about My card & experience that I posted, well here's THE PROOF Let's take a gander at it and see what a WWF flyer looked like over 30 years ago

Oh man, it's just as cool and classic as it was back in the day, here is the front & the back of it Look at the date and it's at the St. Louis Arena just like I said



Here it is in DETAIL! Look at that wonderful booking unlike today's mindless script ripping And would ya look at that...PLUS ONE OTHER BOUT FEATURING HERCULES...by reading My experience above months prior, you already know it was Chris Chavis. See, back then when I was a youngster, I had no clue who his opponent was as did nobody else but gosh, it was a very different surprise cause I had never seen him before, not even in wrestling mags at the time...it was all green but man-o-man when he was repackaged into Tatanka just a short time later in early 92, I was thrilled and loved him ever since Also, look at the info of the wrestlers as it tells where their from and what their weights are. Today's stuff is just pathetic, this mattered then and was always one of the fun stats I loved about wrestling, boxing, baseball etc. when I was a youngster



Yes, this was during the good'ole days of when wrestling was still grand, super fun and on every weekend. It was like the best & coolest thing to get up for then. Challenge & Superstars was great and it would remain like that for a few more years



Here is the Hulk Hogan hotline. Yes, I actually called it once with parents permission as they always said then. You could play games and stuff on it but geez it was expensive. They later changed this to the WWF hotline that would last for several years till the last days of the New Generation before the net was in full force.



Here is the WWF Fan Club for 92/93. My Grandma MiMi signed Me up for years until they discontinued it for whatever reason I believe in late 94/early 95. I loved it. You would get a lot of stuff like the themes on cassette tape (it was the only way to do it at the time), special pics and more. I showed that WWF Duffle Bag Key Ring in My Odds & Ends plus a a cool dog tag all on My Insane Keychain, go check it out when you have a chance if you haven't seen it already, its really awesome and one of My most favorite little pieces of wrestling memorabilia history



WOW, that's it, can you believe that I found the WWF Live 91 House Show Event card document I was so euphoric when I did If by any chance your just now seeing this and have no idea what I'm talking about (PB knows already) then I suggest that you stop and scroll to the top/beginning of My wonderful topic because boy do I go down memory lane in visual detail during a cool time of one good wrestling event that I personally experienced Well, that's all for now about this, I hope you were a bit surprised here

======================================

So I decided just to repost the whole event here, yes it was amazing seeing Chris Chavis for the first time like that, see it again and possibly anything you may have missed

[packerbacker180]

It must've been something to see Hogan vs Flair in a WWE ring back then. Shame it never happened at WrestleMania. This must've been just around when I stopped watching because I know some of these guys from when I was a kid, but names like Tatanka and Skinner weren't anyone I was familiar with until many years after. I can't even say I ever saw a Skinner match. My pictures rarely turned out well at events. Cameras just didn't capture movement well. How close were your seats?

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Before 2013, I didn't even know Buffalo had it's own independent wrestling company. But my mother-in-law likes to go to charity auctions, and she'll often pickup stuff she thinks I'd like as presents. In the past I've gotten a Bills football signed, sadly, by just the kicker, lol, and a Buffalo Bandits picture signed by a lacrosse HOFer, Shawn Williams. Well, back in 2013 there was an auction for a wrestling event, and while she knows next to nothing about wrestling, she knows I watch a lot of wrestling, and my wife tolerates most of it as well.

Buffalo actually has a pretty rich professional wrestling history. Legendary wrestlers like Dick "The Destroyer" Beyer and Illio De Paulo are from the area as well as more recent wrestlers like Marc Mero, Mikey Whipwreck, and Lex Luger.


http://eswwrestling.com/

Empire State Wrestling, apparently, has been around since 2002 when it was founded by Jonny Puma. The company has three titles the ESW Heavyweight, the ESW Interstate, and the ESW Tag Team titles. I'd never heard of them before 2013, as I didn't really keep up with wrestling outside of the big 3 WWE, TNA, and ROH. In recent years I've even found that they have their own hour long show on a local free over the air channel I can pick up with an antenna.

So, the event was WrestleBash 2013, and it took place on November 30th, which was the Saturday right after Thanksgiving that year. Most of their events have a lot of local talent, some who are just starting out, some that might be a little past their prime, and some that just never made it. It's kind of like minor league baseball in that way as you might see future stars, or just guys trying to hang on to the dream for as long as possible. The event also had some nationally familiar names, and some names I didn't know much about back then, but they've become household names to wrestling fans since.

But the biggest name at the event was also participating in a meet and greet before the bell, and it was tickets to this that my mother-in-law bid on. So, who was it?



That's right, Big Sexy himself, Kevin Nash was appearing at this show. Now, if you've been reading my wrestling posts, you'll already know I wasn't watching wrestling during most of the nWo's big years, so I wasn't really a big fan of Kevin Nash. I mean, I've always respected his work and his honesty about money, but by the time I saw him wrestle in the WWE post-WCW and TNA, it wasn't really his best work. But still, it was cool to meet the man in person and shake his hand. He wasn't doing any autographs at the show, just posing for pictures. There was a line of 20 or so people who paid for the meet and greet and we waited in line. Unfortunately, the room didn't have the best lighting, and even with the flash the picture came out a little dark.



But even though he wasn't signing at the show, the auction did include this autographed photo. Sadly, whoever set it up jammed it into a frame that wasn't quite big enough so they butchered cutting the bottom and messed up the top shoving it into the frame.



Ah, but there was wrestling that night, too, I can't say a lot of it was great or memorable, but it did involve a few guys that are well-known now. I'll admit I had to look up these results because a lot of it was pretty forgettable.

Tag Team Turmoil Battle Royal: The Rochester Wrecking Crew (Hellcat & Rob Sweet) defeat The Caribbean Connection (Coconut Jones & Maximo Suave) and Double Down (James Santel & Sal Muracco) and The McGlomouses (Plunkett & Staxx) and Brett Mednik & Ron Falco
Rochester is about an hour away from here, so The Rochester Wrecking Crew were the de facto faces that everyone cheered for even though I had no idea who anybody was. I wouldn't say it was a great match.

Rhett Titus defeats Matt Milan
Titus was a name I was familiar with from ROH, so he was someone I was looking forward to seeing, the match was fine but he didn't steal the night.

ESW Interstate Title: Kevin Bennett (c) defeats Colin Delaney
Yes, that Colin Delaney of WWE fame

ESW Tag Team Title: The Flatliners (Asylum & Matt Burns) (c) defeat The Colony (Fire Ant & Green Ant)
I don't remember much of this match other than the Colony had some bright colors on.

Ilio DiPaolo Memorial Cup: Trent Barreta defeats Brandon Thurston and Gabreal Saint and Johnny Adams and Johnny Gargano and RJ City
At the time, Trent Beretta was the only name I knew in this match. But by the end of it a little guy I'd never heard named Johnny Gargano had stolen the show. This was two years before he went to NXT, but you could see he had something special. By the end of the match the crowd seemed disappointed Beretta won because I think everyone was cheering for Gargano.

ESW Heavyweight Title: Chris Cooper (c) defeats Pepper Parks
This was the first time I head of Pepper Parks, and he went by "Buffalo's Own" Pepper Parks, so he got a nice pop. He was another guy who seemed to have a future. I'd see him a year or so later at an ROH house show where'd he'd lose to Caprice Coleman. A year after that he began appearing in Impact Wrestling as Braxton Sutter alongside his real-life wife who used to wrestle under the name of Cherry Bomb but she would appear in Impact as Allie. The two now wrestle in AEW as the Blade and the Bunny, alongside another Buffalo alum, the Butcher who is also the guitarist for the metal band Every Time I Die.



Jamin Olivencia defeats Bill Collier
Both of these guys are pretty large men. Collier looks a lot like W. Morrissey (Big Cass). He's wrestled a few times on AEW Dark and when they were in Pittsburgh earlier this year I actually saw a "Sign Bill Collier" sign in the crowd (he's from Johnstown, Pa.)

Gene Snitsky, Will Calrissian & Yuri Koloff defeat Blackjack Phoenix, Dalton Castle & Frankie Feathers

The main event was ok. I always kind of liked Snitsky's WWE gimmick, but he wasn't in the best of shape. Franke Feathers is a local guy who looks a lot like Coco B. Ware, and of course, Dalton Castle is quite colorful himself. Being another guy from Rochester NY, he got a nice pop. It'd be a few years later where he'd really develop his gimmick in ROH to where he's now one of their big names, even appearing in a match against Jonathan Gresham on AEW Battle of the Belts II earlier this year.

Here's another commercial for the show, you can see they don't even mention Johnny Gargano as a draw, but he's obviously the biggest name to come out of this even, although there's a few names that appeared.



After the match everyone brawled around the ring until all that remained was a manager who went by the name of Caesar presumably because he looks like the Joker a bit and Caesar Romero, I guess. It was announced at intermission that Kevin Nash was leaving ( to boos), but then Nash slowly came out climbed in to the ring and gave Casar a chokeslam, which was kind of odd, but whatever. He then cut a quick promo and ened with a "too sweet" to send the crown home happy. Overall, it was a fun event.

Here's highlights ESW posted set to music...



I've looked to go to other ESW events since then when I think about it. They have almost monthly shows, and usually some big names appaear. Past events have had Jay Lethal, Matt Hardy, Silas Young, etc. but whenever there's an event with someone I'd like to go see, it's seems like it's always on a date where I'm busy. But I look from time to tim. Their August event is scheduled for when I'm going to be on vacation out of town (see!). But I'd like to go to another show eventually.



And that was that. I've only got a couple other events I've been to, so hopefully others will feel free to add on.