WRESTLING ON THE INTERNET NOT FROM THE NOW

[Lamp, broken circa 1988]

I posted this in the Wrestling Machine thread because I had that open but meant to put it here! Oops!

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So first, let's explain how I found this.

A friend of mine asks a quasi-joke question, where they ask who's the best wrestler from Italy. I then realize I dont know anything about Italian wrestling. So I go on wikipedia to look up italian wrestlers, and the name Ted Boy Marino catches my eye. Turns out he is Italian, but he was a big star in Brazil in the 60s and 70s. And from that Wikipedia, I learn the name for wrestling shows in Brazil, which is Telecatch. I was waiting until I found a match I thought had majority good things about it before I shared this discovery of Brazilian Wrestling, and here it is.

This youtube account has a lot of videos from the personal archive of one of the participants, Renato Dias (the beanpole in yellow). Belo is the man in the incredible screenshot. Please also take note of the canvas and apron of this show, which is called Gigantes do Ringue, which I will be digging through for the rest of the year.

[Curt McGirt]

If you REALLY wanna get weird then go check out Titanes del Ring from Argentina. 

[Matt D]

Someone watch this Billy Jack vs Crush I Quit match from Portland so I don’t have to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Plr3jjAEuq8

Edited November 11, 2021 by Matt D

[Zimbra]

53 minutes ago, Matt D said:

Someone watch this Billy Jack vs Crush I Quit match from Portland so I don’t have to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Plr3jjAEuq8

I thought "Why not?" before I saw the video was almost 25 minutes.  Life's too short.

[(BP)]

35 minutes ago, Matt D said:

Someone watch this Billy Jack vs Crush I Quit match from Portland so I don’t have to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Plr3jjAEuq8

It mercifully only goes twelve minutes and not the full length of the video. The Bruise Brothers and Billy Jack cut a promo. Billy Jack frames his issue with Crush as a mentor/student feud. 

They’re lumbering around with no urgency working mostly a normal match during what is supposed to be a blood feud I Quit Lumberjack Loser Leaves Town Match. Billy is clearly leading Crush around. Crush does some legwork and throws Billy in a Scorpion Deathlock at one point. Billy sells the leg okay; eventually he beats down Crush and catches him in the full Nelson. Crush powers out and ultimately traps Billy in a full nelson of his own. When Billy realizes he’s in trouble he low kicks Crush out of the referees sight, which doesn’t really matter because then Billy hits the ref. The lumberjacks run in and a schmozz breaks out. Billy uses this as cover to bail out and disappear. It’s officially ruled a no contest. 

The match isn’t an atrocity or anything, but it’s by no means good at all. The crowd is completely with them, so I can’t knock it too much. As a complete video with the promos and local affiliate station ads for Cheers and the Sunday Afternoon Movie Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, it’s fun in a kitschy way. 

 

[Matt D]

14 hours ago, (BP) said:

It mercifully only goes twelve minutes and not the full length of the video. The Bruise Brothers and Billy Jack cut a promo. Billy Jack frames his issue with Crush as a mentor/student feud. 

They’re lumbering around with no urgency working mostly a normal match during what is supposed to be a blood feud I Quit Lumberjack Loser Leaves Town Match. Billy is clearly leading Crush around. Crush does some legwork and throws Billy in a Scorpion Deathlock at one point. Billy sells the leg okay; eventually he beats down Crush and catches him in the full Nelson. Crush powers out and ultimately traps Billy in a full nelson of his own. When Billy realizes he’s in trouble he low kicks Crush out of the referees sight, which doesn’t really matter because then Billy hits the ref. The lumberjacks run in and a schmozz breaks out. Billy uses this as cover to bail out and disappear. It’s officially ruled a no contest. 

The match isn’t an atrocity or anything, but it’s by no means good at all. The crowd is completely with them, so I can’t knock it too much. As a complete video with the promos and local affiliate station ads for Cheers and the Sunday Afternoon Movie Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, it’s fun in a kitschy way. 

 

I had some hopes that given the stips and the fact that Haynes could, at various points of his career, hold up his end, and that Adams was probably going to be game, there might have been something of worth there. Hopes, however, are not expectations, which is why I balked at it. Late-era Portland has some fun stuff like Scotty the Body but the ceiling is unfortunately low.

Speaking of Portland guys, I will say that the Matt Borne in South Africa match did turn out to be pretty good. We'll cover that this week on SC.

Thanks for doing the legwork.

[Doragon]

Bob Backlund vs Antonio Inoki (1979 11 30)

 

[J.H.]

Kerry and Ric in Hawaii, maybe a few months shy of WCCW withdrawing from the NWA and 2 months before the 2nd Parade of Champions when Kevin challenged

 

James

[Doragon]

Toshiaki Kawada vs. Davey Boy Smith 04/16/93

Big Van Vader, Miguelito Perez Jr. & TNT vs. Keiji Muto, Kengo Kimura & Tatsumi Fujinami 05/28/91

WWF stock market 

 

[Doragon]

AJPW  2007/8/26

The Great Muta and Tajiri vs Scott Steiner and Suwama 

Chikako Shiratori (AJW) vs. Candy Okutsu (JWP) (September 5, 1993)

 

[Doragon]

NJPW

Sting VS Kick Boxer Tony Palmo

 

[(BP)]

I’m watching Gambler matches on YouTube, as one does, and Dusty is really on one during this Sting squash. He compares Sting to Hootie and the Blowfish and Boyz 2 Men in an analogy I couldn’t totally follow, and then he instructs the viewers on how to steal cable before being informed that it’s illegal to do so and backpedaling mightily. 

 

[Curt McGirt]

"DON'T TALK WHILE I'M TALKIN" as Gambler yells at the camera is the other big crack-up line in that one. He was referring to Garth Brooks giving back an award or something with the musician references, dunno what that was about.

[Wyld Samurai]

On 11/21/2021 at 3:16 PM, D.Z said:

Toshiaki Kawada vs. Davey Boy Smith 04/16/93

Big Van Vader, Miguelito Perez Jr. & TNT vs. Keiji Muto, Kengo Kimura & Tatsumi Fujinami 05/28/91

WWF stock market 

 

Woah woah woah... where's D-Lo's chest protector?

[Doragon]

25 minutes ago, Wyld Samurai said:

Woah woah woah... where's D-Lo's chest protector?

Lo Down Gimmick, from 2000 to 2001. 

[AxB]

Young Bucks & Kevin Steen vs BIFF BUSICK & Team Tremendous

[Doragon]

AJPW - Hiroshi Hase vs Toshiaki Kawada

 

[John E. Dynamite]

On 11/28/2021 at 1:39 PM, (BP) said:

I’m watching Gambler matches on YouTube, as one does, and Dusty is really on one during this Sting squash. He compares Sting to Hootie and the Blowfish and Boyz 2 Men in an analogy I couldn’t totally follow, and then he instructs the viewers on how to steal cable before being informed that it’s illegal to do so and backpedaling mightily. 

 

Watched this with my domestic kissing person earlier this year and we were keeled over laughing. So many great things happening at once, I can't believe it's taken me this long to be a huge mark for The Gambler.

[Doragon]

Sambo Asako vs. Mitsuteru Tokuda 12/01/89

 

 

[AxB]

Eddie Kingston vs Stokely Hathaway (Malcom Bivens).

(I think he's named himself after both Stokely Carmichael and Malcolm X. Pretty awesome)

[Doragon]

Booker T vs Tajiri IGF 

Kawada vs Mikhail Ilyukhin. U Style 2005

 

[Cobra Commander]

guess that Alex Wright isn't as much of an idiot on-screen if Brad Armstrong lost to the same "duck and get hit with a DDT" finish

 

[Death From Above]

FULL MATCH - 15-Man Royal Rumble Match: SmackDown, Jan. 29, 2004

 

Random youtube suggestion. This was fun as hell.

[Curt McGirt]

For some reason I've never seen this (and I'm sure the good Reverend and others will yell WHY NOT?!). But it is a treat. Young Andre, 28 (!!!) year old Dusty, a Cobo Arena version of the '78 RWTL final, so much goodness. Give it a watch. 

[Curt McGirt]

Okay now this is odd. Showed up in my Youtube feed and there is no full version on there. Hase basically no-sells VADER, of all people... not the best hill to die on.