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Old Memphis Wrestling

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rabidcatfan

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Jan 25, 2003
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Anyone else miss this stuff? I was tooling around on Youtube and found a $h!t pile of old Memphis Wrestling full broadcasts from the early 70's/80's through into the 90's. I forgot how many big stars in the WWF/WWE and WCW got their starts in Memphis/USWA. The video quality is obviously crap, but they are very watchable.

BTW, For some reason, didn't realize that Swaggers manager Zeb Colter was actually Dutch Mantel from the old days. That threw me for a loop, lol.
 
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barbourfor3

All-American
May 21, 2002
41,877
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The Dream Machine, Joe Leduc, Austin Idol....they certainly had some characters. Never missed a Saturday when I was growing up.
 
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UKGrad93

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Jun 20, 2007
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Loved watching that stuff as a kid. All the crazy costumes & antics. Lance Russle would give those guys a piece of his mind too. Very low budget compared to the little bit of WWF/WWE stuff that I've watched.
 
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Lexie's Dad

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Jan 12, 2003
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We would love to have you all bring this to the wrestling thread. We try very much to keep it all in one as a favor to the rest of the board.
 
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DSmith21

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Mar 27, 2012
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Jerry talking smack on Saturday mornings.
 
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st-louie-blue

Junior
Jan 1, 2003
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I grew up in the mid-to-late 40s watching Memphis wrestling. Back then there was only one store that sold t.v.s. On Monday nights he had a t.v. in his front window with wrestling on from Memphis. You had to get there early to get a viewable place. I was pre-teen then and thought that it was all real.
 
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ktbug

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May 29, 2001
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Go to your public library and check out the autobiographies by Ric Flair and Jerry Lawler. Lots of funny stories and insight. Lawler's rise was very improbable, his timing was impeccable.
 
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Boogie Fan

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Jun 6, 2010
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I used to tune in every Saturday for that when I was a kid. Dave Brown and Lance Russell were the announcers. Wrestlers like Lawler, Bill Dundee, KoKo B Ware, Tommy Rich.
 
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Barleycorn

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Jan 12, 2004
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the other nature boy, Buddy Landell. Early rock and roll express. Road Warriors made appearances here and there. I remember Fire and Flame? Tag team with fire/flame masks.
 
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HossCat73_rivals

Junior
Jan 15, 2002
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Great thread.

Grew up watching Lance and Dave on Saturday mornings, and Gordon Solie and WCW Saturday evenings on TBS. Even found an old PWI mag at the folks house a few weeks ago. Dusty Rhodes "Was robbed!!" after he pinned Flair for the NWA belt, but they took the belt away half hour after the match.

The Youtube is great for old matches. Recently watched Kerry Von Eric whip Flair in Starcade at Texas Stadium for the NWA title.

/Kamala
 
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weused2luvhim2

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Mar 2, 2008
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Loved watching it when i was a kid. I shoot pool about once a week with a guy that wrestled on there and most all of the other various organizations. He wasn't a one one of the stars. He was one of the guys that generally took a beating from a star and was also later on a referee. He wrestled as J.D. Wolfe.
 
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rabidcatfan

Senior
Jan 25, 2003
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weused2luvhim2 said:
Loved watching it when i was a kid. I shoot pool about once a week with a guy that wrestled on there and most all of the other various organizations. He wasn't a one one of the stars. He was one of the guys that generally took a beating from a star and was also later on a referee. He wrestled as J.D. Wolfe.
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In the profession they call those guys "jobbers", a guy whose sole job in the organization is to get bigger stars over - guys like Brooklyn Brawler, Iron Mike Sharpe, Barry Horowitz, and S.D. Jones . Sometimes, a former mid-card guy or main eventer will get relegated to "jobber to the stars" status when their push is over, which means they have an entrance and appear to be a contender, but whose jobs are to fill space on the card and get wrestlers the organization is trying to push, over. They have a good showing, give some good bumps and take control of the match at some point, but end up losing - Doink, Texas Tornado, and Koko B. Ware spring to mind here. This is typically just before you see someone like that leave the promotion.
 
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rabidcatfan

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Jan 25, 2003
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HeismanWildcat85 said:
Bring it to the wrestling thread.

I just interviewed Jerry Lawler on Monday.
Click to expand...

Sorry for starting this thread outside the confines of the bigger thread, just seems to be all WWE talk over on that one right now. This subject would have gotten lost in the shuffle I think.
 
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KingOfBBN

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Sep 14, 2013
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rabidcatfan said:
Sorry for starting this thread outside the confines of the bigger thread, just seems to be all WWE talk over on that one right now. This subject would have gotten lost in the shuffle I think.
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Nah. It's way better than the political thread. No sweat though. We just had a big long talk about this stuff a couple of weeks ago. Good stuff. Pick up the Jerry Lawler DVD that just came out.
 
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catsfanbgky

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Oct 18, 2006
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You watch Memphis wrestling and no mention of the Superstaaa Bill Dundee ? Very first guys I remember, other than the obvious was The Germans, Paul Chrisite, Joe Leduc (pulling a train). Moondogs, Sheepherders, Stan Lane, Steve Keirn, Rock N Roll Express, Plowboy Frazier (loved him), Phil Hickerson, Dennis Condry, David Schultz, Paul Ellering, Robert Fuller, Gypsie Joe (a Superfly Snuka knockoff), Bam Bam Bigelow, Mongolian Stomper, Rocky "Soul Man" Johnson, "Pistol" Pez Whatley, King Kong Bundy,, hell I could go on and on, lots of these guys are unknowns to the normal wrestling fan. I watched these guys live at the Evansville Coliseum. Anybody remember Don Bass ?? Paul Diamond / Pat Tanaka ? Bobby Eaton, Eddie Gilbert, The "Superstar" (masked guy). Sorry for the 2 mile paragraph, but had to name as they popped in my head.
 
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CrimeDawg18

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Oct 17, 2006
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WWE just released a DVD on Jerry Lawler. You should go out and get it, especially the Blu-Ray if you have that. Well worth it.
Also agree Lawler's book is one of the best bios that has been done.
 
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HossCat73_rivals

Junior
Jan 15, 2002
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catsfanbgky said:
Stan Lane, Steve Keirn
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You could've just said The Fabulous Ones. Saw Superstar Billy Dundee, as well as Jimmy Valiant wrestle at the Mount Sterling Armory years ago.

7 time NWA World Champ Harley Race made a few Saturday morning appearances, as did 'Universal Heartthrob" Austin Idol. Joe LeDuc and his Canadian Lumberjack matches were the ****.Terry Allen, aka Magnum TA, was mine and my dad's favorite wrestler. That belly-to-belly suplex was something else. The NWA TV Title holder was sadly taken from us too soon.
 
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barbourfor3

All-American
May 21, 2002
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I loved the cheesy video of Kamala - The Ugandan Giant. They made it out to be somewhere in the wilds of Africa, but you could tell they were probably out on someone's farm in Hardin County.
 
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Free_Salato_Blue

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Know everyone liked the Fabulous Ones


Seemed like there was big deal back then about spitting crap and hidden chains in the briefs.
 
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UKphotoman

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Feb 4, 2004
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Who was the ample busomed lady that Jimmy Valient brought to the show to cheer him up when he was down with the blues! Good lord she was breasty!
 
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elwood_blue

Junior
Jan 21, 2004
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barbourfor3 said:
I loved the cheesy video of Kamala - The Ugandan Giant. They made it out to be somewhere in the wilds of Africa, but you could tell they were probably out on someone's farm in Hardin County.
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I actually read about that somewhere, maybe in the comments section on Youtube, that the video was shot in Jimmy Hart or Jim Cornette's yard, haha.
 
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elwood_blue

Junior
Jan 21, 2004
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Does anyone remember Austin Idol, and how Jerry Lawler finished off his girl Angel with a piledriver? That was one of the funniest moments ever on tv, right up there with Eddie Gilbert "running over" Lawler in the parking lot. I'm going to look up this goofy **** on Youtube this weekend.
 
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catsfanbgky

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Oct 18, 2006
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elwood_blue said:
I actually read about that somewhere, maybe in the comments section on Youtube, that the video was shot in Jimmy Hart or Jim Cornette's yard, haha.
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Actually it was Lawler's idea to create the character, who was actually a former truck driver from Miss. They filmed the promo on Jerry Jarrett's farm back in a small patch of woods. Kamala is now a double amputee from diabetes. Sad story and he feels he was pushed out and way underpaid at WWE by Vince. Said he would make less than half what the opponent he was feuding with would get.
 
BlueBleedingMarine

BlueBleedingMarine

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Sep 13, 2006
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I recall Jerry the king telling Lance Russell what he was gonna do to Kamula, "beat the black off of him and then wet his lips and stick him to the wall".
 
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Tebow81

Redshirt
Aug 16, 2014
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I think sometime in the 90s you could get the perfect storm of Saturday wrestling in KY...
9am WCW Pro
10am USWA
11am WWF Superstars
605 WCW Sat Night
7pm ECW
1130pm WCW Worldwide

It's crazy how many shows you used to be able to get to watch in a weeks time.
 
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HossCat73_rivals

Junior
Jan 15, 2002
11,528
384
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JasonSpear said:
will be all next week with feet kicked up on the beach. I just think those are two studly gentlemen. Look at em.
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No.

But, in your defense, I understand my aunt and uncle almost fought one night over a wrestling match, so anything is possible.

Keep in mind my uncle was ready to fight anybody after the opening scene of Branded, lol
 
funKYcat75

funKYcat75

Heisman
Apr 10, 2008
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I remember being 7 or 8 watching these matches and thinking they took place somewhere in Lexington. It was still real to me, dammit.
 
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