The Name on the Marquee: Wrestling’s Greatest Matches – The Golden Era

More black & white goodness brought to you by the good people at Bromo-Quinine and the Studebaker Automobile Company. This is another batch of stuff released in 1986 by Movietime, Inc. Hope you like it, here it comes…

-Also, quick note, a LOT of this stuff appears to come from newsreels (Weird to think of wrestling being covered that way, ain’t it?) and highlight collections. Most of the matches are incredibly short and jump from one spot to another, so I’ll be forgoing the point-or-no-point for each match and just giving a score at the end.

BARON MICHELE LEONE (Pacific Coast Champion) vs. LORD JAMES BLEARS (with Captain Leslie Holmes)
-Wow…Based on the crowd reactions, Leone is the face here, but the level of the pop makes me think he was the John Cena of his day. Leone locks in a standing front facelock and every time Blears fights it, Leone just lets go, causing Blears to fall over. Clever, clever. Snap mare and some stomping by the Baron, but Lord Blears sweeps the leg and throws a series of dropkicks…for a three-count. Seriously, that’s it? The crowd pops for him, too, after booing him during the intros. I am underwhelmed and confused.

2 OUT OF 3 FALLS: ED CARPENTIER & ANTONINO ROCCA vs. SKULL MURPHY & PAMPINO FIRPO
-Carpentier & Rocca were basically the inventors of high-flying, so I’m actually a little cranked about seeing this.

FALL ONE: Rocca sends Firpo into the ropes and meets him for a dropkick. Firpo goes for the eyes and tags in Murphy. Rocca gets double-teamed in the corner but fights back with a dropkick in Firpo, who is apparently legal again. Monkeyflip by Rocca and he rides Firpo piggy-back and punches him while he’s up there. Murphy tags in and walks right into a backbreaker from Rocca, but that hold is illegal, so Murphy & Firpo get the first fall.

FALL TWO: Rocca Irish whips Murphy and hiptosses him. Backdrop has the commentator concerned for Murphy’s saccarilliac, so whatever you might say about Gorilla Monsoon, it turns out he wasn’t an innovator of insane medical observations. Rocca picks up Murphy for a backbreaker again, but this time the referee allows it and Carpentier & Rocca pick up the fall. Whatever.

FALL THREE: Carpentier goes to the top rope to punch Firpo and backflips off. Series of sommersaults finishes Firpo off, and Carpentier & Rocca have it made in the shade. Post-match, the referee is frosted about something, but the faces tell him to cut the gas.

-Buddy Rogers fights accusations of dodging title matches, but tells his critics to put a lid on the balloon juice and insists that he’s only holding out for money. This leads to…

TEXAS DEATH MATCH FOR THE UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP: “Nature Boy” BUDDY ROGERS (Champion) vs. BOBO BRAZIL
-Brazil headbutts and punches Rogers against the ropes, and Rogers keeps bouncing back and walking into more punches. Killer Austin walks in the ring and helps Brazil double-team Rogers until two referees break it up and force Austin to split. Brazil gets in the shittiest punches you’ve ever seen and then drops Rogers with a pair of Coco Butts. Series of dropkicks by Brazil, but Rogers moves out of the way and Brazil crotches himself on the top rope, which is so painful that Brazil can’t get back up, and Rogers retains the title. The commentator clarifies that Rogers is the Recognized United States Champion of the Wrestlers’ Guild. The championship itself holds the championship for Most Pretentious-Sounding Championship Ever.

FRED BLASSIE (Pacific Coast Champion) vs. BRUNO SAMMARTINO
-Sammartino punches a few times and goes right for the backbreaker, but the referee catches Bruno using the ropes for leverage and forces him to break the hold. Blassie goes to a nerve hold. Sammartino punches his way to freedom, then gets a dropkick that’s just slightly better than the deuces that he dropped on the last black & white tape. Irish whip looks to finish, but Blassie gets a foot on the rope. The commentator refers to Blassie & Sammartino as “thespians,” again highlighting the incredibly weird way they hemmed & hawed with kayfabe in this era. Blown spot sees Sammartino go for a leapfrog, only to be Windhamized by Blassie…and they just stop the match right there and give the win to Bruno. Man, and I thought The Wrestling Classic had some crack-induced finishes.

TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP: GALLAGER BROTHERS (Champions) vs. HANDSOME JOHNNY BARENT & MAGNIFICENT MAURICE (with Mr. Clean)
-Mister Clean wears sunglasses and walks with a cane, which eventually became such a stereotypical look for wrestling managers that when Bobby Heenan came along a decade later, he made it a point not to have either one. Johnny Barend gets backed into the heel corner and Mike Gallager attacks him with the tag rope. So…wait, the stereotypical gay guys are the FACES in this match? Barent attempts to make the tag, but Maurice refuses to come in, hinting at a heel turn. Barent makes his own comeback and Maurice still refuses to tag in, which the commentator thinks should be an automatic disqualification. Gallager keeps getting double-teamed as our commentator says that Mr. Clean should be called “Mr. Dirty.” Woah, big daddy, you’re cruising for a bruising NOW! Maurice still won’t make the tag and Doc Gallager continues battering Barent, and Maurice elbows his own partner to complete the heel turn. After doing so, Maurice stays at ringside, which is actually a LOT more dickish than the usual route of just leaving your partner to die, because now it’s turning into triple-teaming. Barent loses it and goes out of the ring to cream Maurice, and that keeps them out of the ring long enough for a count-out victory, and the Gallager Brothers retain. That’s a nice change of pace as heel turns go and some booker today should probably steal that.

DR. JERRY GRAHAM & THE KANGAROOS vs. ANTONINO ROCCA, MIGUEL PEREZ, & RICKY STARR
-Commentator goes a step further and just calls the wrestlers “actors” now! Damn. The faces (Rocca, Perez, and Starr) dance and flip all over the ring to clear the ring. One of the Kangaroos misses a dropkick and Starr & Rocca run back & forth on his body while he’s grounded. Starr gets the pin shortly after, giving “the goodies” the first fall, according to the commentary.

-Perez hammers a Kangaroo and goes after the heels on the apron. Integrity preservation goes to Graham bodyslamming Rocca. Rocca comes back with dropkicks and attacks Dr. Graham’s “male nurse” at ringside for good measure. Graham picks him up to carry him out of the ring, but Rocca dropkicks the nurse on top of Graham to pin both of them, and the faces take the win in two straight falls. The faces triple-team the nurse post-match, as “the baddies” recover from losing a rip-snorter. The match wasn’t THAT great, and I’ve seen much better movies of a nurse being triple-teamed than this one.

-Buddy Rogers complains that world champion Pat O’Connor is ducking him. Rogers threatens to sue the NWA if he doesn’t get a title shot at Comisky Park in Chicago.

MISTER MOTO vs. HENRY HANK
-Mr. Moto wears coke-bottle glasses, sandals, and a kimono, and holds a paper fan. He throws salt in the corner of the ring, then does a bunch of math problems really quickly and builds a robot to really drive the gimmick home. He bows over and over again during the intros, then bows during the referee’s instructions, then bows a bunch of times to his opponent. Okay, dude, we get it, you are most hon-uh-rubbur.

-Moto throws judo chops, then switches to “karate,” which means attacking the throat and pulling the hair. He keeps attacking the throat until Hank can’t go anymore and it’s an easy win for Mister Moto. The commentator goes to ringside to get a word with Moto (Oh no…) and Moto demands a title shot from Nick Bockwinkel. Moto promises not to use karate if he gets the title shot, and Mistah Strongbow-san, the interviewer, calls him a liar. Moto tries to take a shot at him. Problem is that Strongbow is a foot taller and has at least a hundred pounds on him. Ever notice how nobody ever tried to get heat by kicking Gorilla Monsoon’s ass? There’s a reason.

NICK BOCKWINKEL vs. K.O. MAT MURPHY
-Murphy tries a cheap shot, but Bockwinkel surprises him by being ready for it and Murphy offers a panic-stricken handshake. Bockwinkel, who looks about 12 here, goes for a side headlock, but Murphy counters with a wristlock. Bockwinkel counters that with an armbar and Murphy fights out with punches. Bockwinkel dazes Murphy with a kneelift, but Murphy fights back with punches. Bockwinkel punches back and tries to turn it into a wrestling match again, but Murphy says, “Hey, none of that now!” and punches him. Bockwinkel Irish whips him a few times and locks in an abdominal stretch, and in the 1950s, that’s good enough for a submission victory. Post-match, Bockwinkel completely buries Murphy, complaining about how he really wants to be a boxer and “he’s really limited in here!”

-We get an interview with Nick in the dressing room, and Nick is so young at this point that even the interviewer can’t help calling him “Nicky.” Lord James Blears comes into the dressing room in beachwear. Mister Moto approaches Mistah Strongbow and complains about how mean he was being during the interview earlier.

THE SHEIK OF ARABIQUE vs. BILL MELBY
-This IS the Sheik, still going by his original longer name and only a spry 81 years old at the time of this match. Sheik gets backed into the corner and Melby goes right to the eyes, which is a crappy way to get yourself over as the face in a match, although the commentator reasons, “Might as well give a little when you know you’ll have to take a little. Sheik whips Melby across the ring and bites him. He uses the middle rope to choke Melby and goes to a side headlock, which he stealthily turns into a choke and works in a few cheap shots to the throat for good measure. Melby gets a side headlock and turns it into “a snap mare…or a hiptoss…call it whatever you like.” This commentator is just hilarious in his bare-faced boredom throughout the match. Dude, we can’t all be Vin Scully, somebody at the local station had to call the wrestling. Be a professional. Melby keeps throwing punches and gets a backdrop. Irish whip and another one on the Sheik. He tries an abdominal stretch (“a grapevine…or a cobra hold…”) but Sheik makes the ropes and begs for a breather. He tries again, but Sheik makes it to the ropes again. Sheik comes back with an Irish whip and a few stomps. Another Irish whip and some clubbing blows to the back, but Melby fights back and stomps Sheik down to the mat. They trade punches on their knees. Melby Irish whips the Sheik again, but Sheik throws elbows at Melby until he’s grounded Melby drives shoulders into the Sheik’s abs and the Sheik begs for his life. Melby uses the knee to choke him. Ring announces gives the one minute warning, so Sheik begins running around the ring away from Melby to run out the clock, and it works. That’s the most imaginative booking for a draw I’ve seen in a while.

-Joe Louis cuts a promo…the name’s not a coincidence, it is THAT Joe Louis, and a little research reveals that holy crap, Joe Louis wrestled for TEN YEARS after he retired from boxing. I had no idea. Yeah, apparently, Joe loved the roar of the crowd, the accolades of the press, and the thrill of a title belt around his waist…but he didn’t exactly like paying his taxes, and when the IRS suddenly came a-knocking after he retired from boxing, Joe needed some fast cash and professional wrestling came to the rescue.

JOE LOUIS vs. ROCKY SKY HIGH LEE
-The commentator calls Lee “a mountain of suet in long underwear.” And then he starts talking about how Lee is the villain in this match because the script calls for it. I am not kidding. I’m sorry, I should be paying attention to the surrealness of watching Joe Louis starting his professional wrestling career, but the commentary is the most fun part about this match. The commentator suggests that Louis not try throwing punches during the match because his fist will get lost in Lee’s stomach fat. Louis ignores the advice and gets the win with a series of punches.

2 OUT OF 3 FALLS: PRIMO CARNERA vs. JIM LONDOS
-Your referee is Max Baer, and your commentator is Dennis James. Yay, Dennis! Ed “Strangler” Louis takes a bow before the bout. In an early alternative use of theme music for a wrestler, a “TAA-DAAAA!” fanfare plays over the P.A. system after each man’s name is announced.

FALL ONE: Carnera TOWERS over Londos, and he’s built proportionately, which makes me suspect he has the same ailment that Andre the Giant had. Carnera locks in a side headlock and throws punches while he’s at it, which draws HUGE heat because he’s obviously a big strong man and the crowd knows he doesn’t really have to resort to that. Londos breaks free and prances about, which is the gayest form of hulking up imaginable. Carnera tries bodyscissors, but Londos reverses it to a Boston crab, which I’ve never seen done before and actually looks like the most obvious counter, seeing it done here. The crab gets the submission, and Londos takes the first fall.

FALL TWO: Front facelock by Carnera. Londos tries to roll him up but Carnera reverses and locks in a bodyscissors, and that draws a submission to tie the match.

FALL THREE: Side headlock by Carnera and he slaps Londos. I love Carnera’s style of wrestling, and I hope the next “big man” that comes along uses it. Instead of the stereotypical offense that you’d expect, he wrestles like a bully. Not Big Bully Busick, but an actual bully. He slaps, he punches, lays on top of his opponent for submission holds. He’s working the match like a thug, and it’s GREAT. Carnera tries to finish with a bodyscissors, but Londos goes for the Boston Crab again, but Carnera remembers what happened in the first fall and he’s ready for it this time, so Londos can’t go through with it. Nice touch. Carnera slaps away at Londos and even Dennis James correctly classifies Carnera’s style as “picking on” Londos. Side headlock by Carnera is fought off by Londos and the time limit expires for a draw. Meh.

-Johnny Valentine cuts a promo. I already knew he looked exactly like his son, and the promo establishes that, yes, the voice is genetic too. The interviewer wants to know if Valentine considers himself scientific or rough, and Valentine helpfully answers “Scientifically rough.”

UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP: “Nature Boy” BUDDY ROGERS (Champion) vs. JOHNNY VALENTINE
-Highlights from MSG. Dropkicks and bodyslams are exchanged, and a huge cloud of dust comes up every time somebody hits the mat. The commentary suggests that this is a rare heel vs. heel match. The commentary also suggests that Johnny’s last name is Valentino. Flying headscissors by Rogers, and he follows shortly thereafter with a piledriver, which I didn’t even realize they were using in 1960. Valentine is legally dead and the referee stops the match to check on him. Rogers piledrives him again and pins him immediately, and Valentine isn’t moving. The commentator puts over the severity of the situation by saying that Valentine reminds him of a donut that’s been dunked too long.

-Rogers complains about Pat O’Connor’s dodging again.

NWA WORLD TITLE: PAT O’CONNER (Champion) vs. “Nature Boy” BUDDY ROGERS (with Bobby Davis)
-Wow, some history here. We’re in Comisky Park in Chicago, and we’re settling an attendance record for professional wrestling that would stand until 1986. 38,622 fans are here, and Bobby Davis is positive that his champion will finally officially get his due recognition as world champion tonight. Rogers gets a forearm right off the bat and struts to celebrate. O’Conner throws a forearm of his own. They lock up and punches are exchanged. Double shoulderblocks wipe out both men. Rogers goes off the ropes, attempting a bodypress, but O’Conner catches him and slams him down twice. O’Conner tries to finish, but Rogers gets a foot on the ropes. O’Conner beels and slams Rogers again, but Rogers gets a foot on the ropes. O’Conner stays on top of things and rams Rogers into the turnbuckles. He tries to finish Rogers again, but another foot on the ropes saves things. O’Conner beels and dropkicks him, but misses a dropkick and crotches himself on the top rope. Rogers smartly brings him to the middle of the ring and rolls him up to win the match and the title, and indirectly get the ball rolling toward the creation of the WWWF.

Go to Game Show Utopia, the only website clinically proven to love you unconditionally.

The 411: All of the essential names are here, and on top of that, they've done one better than most collections of this kind by telling a complete story, showing Buddy Rogers' rise to the number-one contender spot and paying it off with a piece of history. As long as you're prepared to accept that you'll be seeing a lot of chopped-up highlights and not much complete bell-to-bell action, it's worth a look.

Final Score:  6.1   [ Average ]