wrestling / Video Reviews
Memphis Wrestling (10.10.1981) Review
-Originally aired October 10, 1981.
-We flash black to last week, when Rick Gibson defended the Tag Team Titles by himself while Robert was tending to their sick mom, followed by Jimmy Hart’s post-match assault on Jerry Calhoun.
-Lance Storm does a house show interview with the entire First Family. Stan Lane is coming for Rick Morton, and Sweet Brown Sugar is now totally unrecognizable, as he’s shaved his head and actually changing the way he uses his voice, declaring that the last remnants of his old identity, Koko Ware, have been flushed down the toilet.
ROY ROGERS & SUPERSTAR BILL DUNDEE vs. MASA FUCHI & MR. ONITA (with Tojo Yamomoto)
-Dundee gets an early edge, working Onita’s arm. Rogers tags in and takes on both opponents. Evil double-teaming and evil karate turn the tide, but hot tag to Dundee, and an elbow to the jaw gets a surprisingly easy three-count for the babyfaces.
-Tojo throws a shitfit about the loss, slapping around both guys and making them bow and ask for forgiveness. They oblige and the team leaves without incident. For now.
-Nightmare and Speed are here with Jimmy Hart, wearing a comically large bowtie. He laughs at the Gibsons for prioritizing Mommy over the title belts, and he promises his men will just take the belts at one house show or another. Jimmy Hart also brags that Jerry Lawler is doomed now that his pet referee, Jerry Calhoun, is out of commission.
-Tojo Yamomoto comes out with Onita and Fuchi and $300 in cash. He offers Lance the money if Lance will summon Rogers and Dundee back out here for a second match so his boys can atone for their screw-up in the previous match. Jimmy Hart gives him shit for having to spend money and beg to get his boys booked, because he’s not the number-one manager in the world. Tojo shoves Jimmy on his ass, and Nightmare and Speed look like they’re going to do something about it, but Fuchi and Onita are ready for a fight, so the masked men just walk off with Jimmy.
JERRY “The King” LAWLER vs. ASSASSIN #1
-This Assassin is for-sure not any of the ones who became stars under that name, just a short, scrawny jobber that Lawler knocks around. Fist drop from the second rope gets the pin.
-So the next segment is really weird and confusing and I think I know why. To recap the way the Memphis territory operated, they did a live 90-minute TV show in the city of Memphis each week. They would then edit that 90-minute show down to 60 minutes and send it out to the other TV stations in the territory which would air it a week later. I’m watching the 60-minute delayed version, and I’m really sure that what’s happening here is that they edited out the first part of a show-long angle, but they left the second part in…
-So Jimmy Hart is out here ranting and raving about how embarrassing it is to have some idiot come out here and try to steal his job, and it turns out he’s talking about referee Jerry Calhoun, who just did SOMETHING to him in the last few minutes, but it’s not clear what.
-Jimmy hits the ring and strips down, ready for a fight, and Jerry Lawler walks out with Calhoun, pep-talking him before sending him in there. Calhoun gets into the ring and takes Jimmy down right away, which brings out the entire First Family, but Lawler makes the save along with Rick Morton & Eddie Gilbert. Jerry Lawler chases off Jimmy Hart, which is a problem, because Lane and Sugar are in the next match and now they don’t have their manager.
SOUTHERN TAG TEAM TITLE: STAN LANE & SWEET BROWN SUGAR (Champions) vs. RICK MORTON & EDDIE GILBERT
-Oh, by the way, Lane & Sugar are the Tag Team Champions, a fact not mentioned at all until the start of this match. They won the belts from Ricky Gibson in a handicap match in Mid-South Coliseum.
-The Tennessee Blondes work Sugar’s arm. Lane tags in and Gilbert works him over while Jimmy Hart gripes about the obvious conflict of interest here–Morton’s dad is the referee. And Jimmy could not possibly be more right. Even within the confines of kayfabe, that’s a legit gripe.
-Lane gets the upper hand over Daddy’s boy. Morton rallies, but a brawl breaks out in the ring and Jimmy Hart passes a weapon in there. Morton gets knocked out, and Lane scores the pin to retain.
EXPIRATION OF TIME: GIBSON BROTHERS vs. DREAM MAXHINE & CHIC DONOVAN
-Everyone jockeys for position. Nobody can really get anything going for the moment, but Dream Machine finally pulls into the lead with a backdrop and a legdrop. Donovan tries to capitalize, but Rick rolls him up for the three-count.