WWE All Star Search #5: 22nd September 1984 - Adam Ross

Welcome Turnbucklers! Its edition #5 and we are back in Madison Square Garden for the September supercard. So who's new to the blog this time round? Well we got...Brutus Beefcake (this show is his MSG debut), Nikolai Volkoff, Big John Studd and...AND...one of my personal favourites, Bobby Heenan, who makes his suprise debut on this show. Its worth mentioning Hogan is on this show and Santana isn't so let's do this shall we!

The Card:

Brutus Beefcake vs Salvatore Bellomo

Nikolai Volkoff vs Chief Jay Strongbow

David Schultz vs SD Jones

Greg Valentine vs Jose Luis Rivera

Big John Studd vs Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) [WWE Title Match]

Ken Patera vs Rick McGraw

Sgt Slaughter/Wild Samoans vs Cpt Lou Albano/Adrian Adonis/Dick Murdoch (WWE Tag Team Champs)

B. Brian Blair vs Iron Mike Sharpe

Kamala vs Pat Patterson

The Show:

Your commentary team tonight are Gorilla Monsoon and Mean Gene Okerlund.

Brutus Beefcake vs Salvatore Bellomo

Beefcake's debut and he comes out looking like a gay magician. Before we start Howard Finkel announces Jesse Ventura is in hospital so won't be there tonight. Big heat for Fink giving the address for well wishes to be sent! Big John Studd is announced as his replacement to a MASSIVE pop. Wow. As far as jobbers go, Bellomo has been doing alright in this blog. He gets some nice offense in early in this one, so far so good. Beefcake admittedly is coming across as nothing special and has had barely any offense so far. Nice mule kick by Bellomo that I've not seen before....by a human at least. When Beefcake is in control, the problem is he shows no personality and neither does he move set and to me that's lowcard/jobber to me. The only personality he shows is a small hip shuffle to prove his flambouyancy. He is methodical but its all so basic and boring. He does however catch Bellomo is a lovely powerslam for the win! Not a great debut for Brutus but decent finish.Match Rating: 3/4*

Nikolai Volkoff vs Chief Jay Strongbow

I'm not expecting a high flying spectacle for this one. We start with Volkoff singing the USSR national anthem and gets big, Cold War heat. Turns out there were a lot of rest holds in this and a lot of scrappy looking punches. There was a long nerve hold spot by Volkoff. Volkoff gets the win with a shot to Strongbow's chest. Boring match that made Volkoff look poor.Match Rating: DUD

S.D Jones vs Dr D David Schultz

I've not seen much of either of these two so this might be interesting. Crowd seem restless and are still quite loud. The early goings of the match are just scraps between the two with Jones coming out on top. Jones looks like an idiot though as he keeps accepting Schult'z test of strength...except Schultz keeps slapping him at the last second. Jones didn't catch on until the THIRD time. The finish is awkward as Schultz nails a jumping leg lariat for the count 3...but the 3rd count was delayed and it looked like SD kicked out. Boring match where neither looked too great. Schultz was OK. Match Rating: 1/2*

Greg 'The Hammer' Valentine vs Jose Luis Rivera

I don't like Rivera's chances in this one as he was the quintessential jobber. Valentine had a decent match last month against Tito so I'm interested to see how he comes off with a less formidable opponent. Hammer gains control pretty early and shows off his methodical side while going for the figure four. He hits a lovely knee to the stomach which Gorilla calls a 'reverse backbreaker'. He throws Rivera to the outside, suplexes Rivera back in...or so it looked until he turned it into a shoulderbreaker instead, nice! Rivera eventually gets 2 scoop slams worth of offence but that's it as Hammer drops him over the top rope. Rivera fights back and the crowd is alive now. Lovely double underhook suplex by Hammer followed by an elbow. Figure four gets the win for Hammer not long after. Hammer looked good in this and Rivera got the crowds sympathy. Still a squash match but it was fun. Match Rating: *1/4

Into the back with BOBBY 'THE BRAIN' HEENAN and Big John Studd. I'm a massive Heenan fan so I'm buzzing he's now appeared. He claims he's outsmarted every one in wrestling for bagging Studd as his client and he's soon to be world champ. Studd claims to be the winner tonight and new champ too. Heenan finishes by saying Studdomania will run wild!

Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Big John Studd [WWE Title Match]

Big heat for Heenan and Studd but I don't know whether it's because they know them and their characters already or because they're facing Hogan. Hogan, by the way, comes out to the biggest pop I've heard yet on this blog. Holy ship, it's deafening and he's still using Eye of the Tiger so he looks like a complete superstar. That right there, gets the guy points already. Hogan is bleeding from the chest...before any physical interaction. The commentators say he might have scratched himself...I just think it's where the needle went in. Anyway...Studd controls from the start but Hulk instantly Hulk's up...but gets cut off with a knee to the chest. Hulk counters in the corner and sends Studd reeling outside while the crowd go mental. Hulk back in control, tries for a body slam but can't quite do it so Studd takes control. There's a bearhug spot by Studd but Hogan expectantly escapes...but runs into a shoulderblock. Crowd are still buzzing at this as another bearhug is applied. Hogan hulks up, counters and both men go down for a breather. Hogan sent outside where he blades and won't be let back in the ring by Studd. Hogan hulks up, back in the ring and plows through Studd. He tries to slam him again and fails again. Back outside the ring for a big brawl to take place. In the melee, Heenan pushes Studd back in the ring and he gets the countout win! The heels knick the belt and run off to the back while Hogan moans and bollocks the referee. Crap match, slow and sluggish but the crowd were molten hot. That is why Hogan will forever has his place in wrestling, because no wrestler with such unrelatability gained that reaction week in, week out. Big John Studd for me was Big John DUD. Match Rating: 3/4*

Ken Patera vs Rick McGraw

So it's the recently reappeared Ken Patera versus Quick Draw. Ken Patera still looks like a poor man's Ric Flair and is a complete throwback to the previous decade. This is a complete squash match and not a fun one. Patera uses his power and his Olympic prowess to quick control, working on McGraw's leg. Patera gets the win with a Full Nelson. Crowd didn't care and neither did I. Match Rating: 1/2*

Into the back with Captain Lou Albano who says he's going to un-mar his name and although he may be effectively useless in ring tonight, he can still help...and still may cripple someone.

Sgt Slaughter/Wild Samoans vs Cpt Lou Albano/Adrain Adonis/Dick Murdoch (WWE Tag Team Champs)

The Wild Samoans are after revenge here after being screwed out of the titles by Albano and the champs. Slaughter is added into this one because...extra face value? So was it better than last months *1/4 encounter...Well the crowd are hot early on when the faces clean house and Albano waddles to the back. The Samoans no sell a double noggin-knocker...because they're not American I assume. Albano briefly comes in and nails a few punches but they get no sold and he's quickly back out. More no selling by the Samoans and Murdoch finds himself in the wrong corner and panics like a hipster without hummus. If the Samoans don't feel pain with elbows shots and headbutts...does that make all head maneuvers irrelavant. Would they no sell an Undertaker Tombstone at Wrestlemania? The heels take control of Sgt Slaughter as he feels pain apparently. The heels are methodical and aggressive when controlling as you'd expect from the champs. The crowd love it all! Especially when Albano comes in and gets beaten by the Samoans. Adonis hits a great missile dropkick from the top rope! Slaughter eventually comes back in and cleans house of the heels then everyone brawls as the crowd eats it up.Finish comes when Slaughter manages to slam Murdoch off the top rope for 3! The crowd were hot and the heels successfully kept them intrigued and would up. It was the same Murdoch/Adonis match I've seen a couple of times so far. The Samoans used way too many headbutts and way too many no-sells. Slaughter was...Slaughter and Albano was fun to watch. The addition of Slaughter and Albano made this slightly better than last months match. Match Rating: *1/2

B. Brian Blair vs Iron Mike Sharpe

So here we have a rematch from last month where both men looked decent. Sharpe does his normal mouthing off routine and even hijacks the microphone to talk about his arms. Blair at this point was one of the smoother and quicker workers on the roster and was still enjoying his newbie push. The beginning of this match is a lot of stalling on the part of Sharpe until his aggressive nature gives him control. He uses the railings and chairs to punish Blair on the outside. Blair eventually gets some offense in of his own, working over Sharpe's legs. The match was very back and forth with lots of counters and reversals between the 2. Sharpe definitely had more control than I was expecting from him. Unfortunately it's Blairs lack of personality that's letting him down. If you took Blair's in-ring work and Sharpe's characteristics and charisma...you got yourself a superstar. The balance in this match has been perfect. Great balance between offense amount that both men get, the different styles of moves and their selling. The one thing that bugs me is the crowd seem I bit uninterested. Finish comes after some really good back and forth when Sharpe shoves the referee down after using a foreign object. Blair wins by DQ. Better than their original match, best match of this card so far and it's a shame neither man made it too far up the card. Match Rating: **1/4

Before our main event, Bobby Heenan comes back out. He complains about Studd not winning the title despite winning the match. Surely you know the rules Bobby? He has a contract for Hogan to sign for a rematch whereby Hogan can lose the title on a countout. Hogan comes out to a big pop as per and signs the contract. Hogan gets some fighting talk in and heads to the back.

Kamala vs Pat Patterson

So THIS is our main event?! WWF had some strange ideas when it came to card chronology. Kamala comes out to no reaction so we can appreciate he's stereotypical tribal theme in all it's outdated glory. Kamala pearl habours Auntie Pat and goes through his basic array of strikes and chokes. Patterson fights out but can't get the scoop slam. Pat Patterson uses his brains to keep control but it's a shame Kamala can't sell. Not long later, Kamala hits a splash for the 3 count. What a way to end the night. Match Rating: DUD

Awful show, highlight being Blair vs Sharpe, which should tell you all you need to know. Nice intro for Heenan though and it means I can look forward to his appearances from now on.

Wrestler Scores:

• Brutus Beefcake +2 (2)
• Salvatore Bellomo +2 (11)
• Nikolai Volkoff +2 (2)
• Cheif Jay Strongbow +1 (6)
• David Schultz +3 (3)
• SD Jones +2 (2)
• Greg Valentine +4 (13)
• Jose Luis Rivera +3 (3)
• Big John Studd +3 (3)
• Hulk Hogan +6 (18)
• Ken Patera +3 (6)
• Rick McGraw +2 (5)
• Sgt Slaughter +3 (11)
• Afa +3 (10)
• Sika +3 (10)
• Cpt Lou Albano +3 (3)
• Adrian Adonis +4 (11)
• Dick Murdoch +4 (10)
• B Brian Blair +5 (9)
• Iron Mike Sharpe +5 (8)
• Kamala +2 (4)
• Pat Patterson +2 (4)

WWE All Star Search #3: Brawl to End It All - Adam Ross

Welcome Turnbucklers! Its edition #3 and it's The Brawl to End it All! This one is a biggie history wise as this was WWE's big break so to speak. The Rock 'n' Wrestling connection was under way with Cyndi Lauper and her fella/manager creating bridges between WWE and mainstream pop culture. This show had a portion featured on MTV at the time and that was a big deal regarding viewing figures. Strangely it was the women's match that was showcased as the main story going into this was Lauper vs Albano represented by a women's wrestler each. For added intrigue the women's title was on the line. Not only that but every men's title is being defended and we have a Battle Royal to boot so let's rumble on!

The Card:


Sika vs Ron Shaw

The Iron Sheik vs Tony Garea

Tito Santana (IC Champ) vs 'Cowboy' Bob Orton [IC Title Match]

Bob Backlund vs Butcher Vachon

Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Greg Valentine [WWE Title Match]

Antonio Inoki vs Charlie Fulton

Adrian Adonis/Dick Murdoch (Tag Team Champs) vs Sgt Slaughter/Terry Daniels [Tag Team Title Match]

The Fabulous Moolah (Womens Champ) vs Wendi Richter [Womens Title Match]

Paul Orndorff vs Cheif Jay Strongbow

Afa vs Rene Goulet

20 Man Battle Royal


The Show:

We kick things off with Mean Gene but he ain't alone, he's with the WWE Champ, Hulk Hogan. We are 6 months into his title reign so far and the belt itself is a different design than the last time we saw it. I definitely prefer this smaller style. The word Hulkamania is used for the first time in the blog and Hogan puts himself over and Hulkamania over while claiming that the potential list of challengers to his title 'turns him on'. Frisky. We leave Hulk posing for the camera and I gotta say, that was one of his more easily understandable promo's. It was OK and Hogan looked to be having fun.

Our commentators tonight are Gorilla Monsoon and Mean Gene Okerland.

Sika vs Ron Shaw

It seems since last time, Sika (and I assume Afa too) has had a bit of a popularity boost as he gets most the positive reaction in the intro's while Shaw is booed. Sika can't be too much of a Wild Samoan judging by how maticulous he is with folding his t-shirt. We start with a gentle shove by Shaw but he bails out the ring before anything happens. They try a couple of lock ups but nothing comes of it until Shaw gets caught in the ropes and sent outside with a forearm to take a breather. Back in and both lads trade punches until Shaw is levelled by a running elbow. We have eye racks and hair pulling from Shaw now but Sika nails a headbutt and then locks on a chinlock. Shaw's punches are no-sold by Sika and then he eats a headbutt for his troubles. A snapmare by Sika and back to a chinlock. Shaw escapes but quickly eats a headbutt for a 3 count. Another stinker of an opening match. Match Rating: DUD

The Iron Sheik vs Tony Garea

Straight into the next match now and we have Tony Garea, who I'm sure is still looking for a new tag partner 6 months later, as well as The Iron Sheik with Freddie Blassie. Must mention the lovely all gold number Blassie is wearing. Tony Garea looks more like Alvin Stardust every edition which isn't a good trend. Still big heat for Sheik which is good as he hasn't really been doing much since his title loss 6 months previous. Sheik mouths off to the fans to stall and gets a USA chant in return. (Wrong chant number 1 - Tony Garea is from New Zealand). Headlock to start by Garea followed by a scoop slam and a headlock takedown. Lovely sunset flip by Garea gets 2 and back into the headlock. Sheik escapes, goes for a boot to the chest but its countered into an atomic drop which Sheik sells like a botched circumcision...and back into a headlock. Shoulderblock by Garea but he then eats a right hand by Sheik. That allows some crucial posing time for Sheik to some decent heat. He goes for a big back body drop but eats a boot to the face by Garea. Hip toss, dropkick and cross body gets a 1 count for Garea. Sheik whipped into the corner but he reverses it, Garea goes chest first into the turnbuckle and backs into a lovely back suplex for the 3 count! Enough entertainment in this one to keep it away from DUD territory and decent heat for Sheik. Garea is just a means to an end now. Sheiky mouths off after the match and camera cuts to a fan who is clearly a little too angry...so much so, he has a police escort. Match Rating: 1/2*

 Tito Santana (IC Champ) vs 'Cowboy' Bob Orton [IC Title Match]

This one should help the pace pick up now. Tito had won the IC Title from Muraco earlier in the year and was now well into his run. Orton is a new recruit to the WWE and was one of a few people to appear on this card who also featured on the first Starrcade at the end of 1983. Big cheers for Santana which he didn't have 6 months ago. They lock up, shoulderblock by Orton but Santana comes back with repeated armdargs. He locks in an armbar, its countered into a head scissors by Orton...but countered again back into an arm bar by Santana. More chain wrestling until Orton escapes to the ropes for a breather. They tease a lock up but it doesn't happen. Wristlock by Orton is countered into Hammerlock by Santana and countered again by Orton into a Hammerlock of his own into a pinning predicament. Santana whipped into the corner and Orton misses a charge, hurting his elbow. Santana responds...by working over the elbow! Nice! Santana upto the second rope and levels Orton with a right hand. Santana back to working over the arm, elbow and shoulder of Orton and locks on an armbar although not for long. They lock up again and Orton takes control with some aggressive quick punches. Orton hits what I can only describe as a galloping stomp...seriously, it was very horselike and Tito sells it like death. Orton taunts the crowd and it seems VERY familiar to see. A lovely running powerslam only gets 2 for Orton so he responds by working on the lower back! Nice! Psychology 101 in this one - Tito aiming for the arm, Orton aiming for the lower back. Orton lifts up Santana and nails him with a backbreaker for a close 2 count. Santana tries fighting back with right hands to the mush and the crowd love it. Orton, the heely bastard that he is, takes back control with an eye rake and we go into a headlock. Santana fights out with an arm drag but Orton levels him again with a boot to the tummy for 2. Scoop slam on Santana and Orton goes up top, tries for the VaderBomb but eats nothing but knees! Santana is pumped now and goes to work with right hands, Orton flops down and eats a knee drop. Ortons head now repeatedly driven into the mat but Orton takes back control AGAIN with a thrust to the throat. Not for long as Santana gets him in an abdominal stretch. Orton reverses and locks on one of his own! Nice! A hip lock by Santana breaks it up and onwards with the right hands until both men collapse to the mat in exhaustion. Suplex by Orton and he tries for a second but its reversed into a small package for 2. Santana goes for a cross body but eats nothing but air and regret. Orton whipped into the turnbuckle, eats a low punch by Santana and clotheslines himself off the top rope. Orton goes for a piledriver but eats a back body drop. Into the corner for 10 punches but Orton counters into an atomic drop half way through. Wait a minute...the bells goes and we've reached a time limit! No! Both men continue slugging it out afterwards until Santana is left in the ring. Crowd shit all over the draw. Either way, was still a really good match with top psychology and plenty of opportunities to get behind Santana. Orton was methodical and aggressive and the similarities between himself and his son are glaringly obvious here. It annoys me to think Orton will never get WWE gold when putting on matches like this. Tito was the typical babyface but the crowd seem to love him although I find him dull. Everytime it seemed the fightback was on, Orton cut it short and I loved it! That's not to take away from his performance here as I think it's the best Tito Santana match I've seen so far. I can't blame those who give this match a higher rating than myself as it would've been a classic in 1984...but it's 2014 so... Match Rating: ***1/2

Bob Backlund vs Butcher Vachon

Straight into the next match and after the last one, I somehow expect this not to match up in quality. Bob Backlund is still around 7 months after his title loss and Butcher Vachon is scary looking, but if he wins this, I'll eat my own face. Backlund dodges Vachon to start and the crowd go...uninterested. We almost get a wristlock but don't and Backlund does some more avoiding. Vachon takes control with punches and a shoulder thrust in the corner. Backlund reverses a whip attempt into a scoop slam, holding Vachon up for a while which is really impressive to see. Cross-face Chickenwing applied and Backlund gets the quick win. I really want to give this a DUD for wasting my time and yours but that slam was impressive. Match Rating: 1/4*

Into the back with Mean Gene and Greg 'The Hammer' Valentine. Greg promises Hogan he will feel the figure four leglock and...that's it!

Still in the back, this time with Mean Gene and Hulk Hogan. When Hogan puts the Hammer down, he's calling New York City electric company to shut off all the power because 'everyone will be glowing' and we're not going to see anything. That doesn't make sense Hulk, but at least you seemed pumped up.

Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Greg 'The Hammer' Valentine [WWE Title Match]

Out comes Valentine to big boo's, although many of them will be shared with Captain Lou who is out with Hammer. Hogan comes out to an explosion of noise and his entrance really makes him look like a superstar. He's still in his white ring gear here. Seriously, the reception for Hogan is amazing. Hammer tries to pearl harbour Hulk but to no avail as Hogan levels him with right hands sending Hammer staggering across the ring. Whip into the corner and Hammer face flops to the mat. If a Hammer falls in the woods and no ones around to hear him, does he make a noise? Hammer begs for mercy, tries for a cheap shot, gets countered and eats an atomic drop to send him flopping to the mat again. Hammer tries to escape but gets slammed back inside for his trouble. Chinlock applied by Hogan to bring the pace and crowd to a simmer. Headlock reversed into a nice back suplex by Hammer and then into a camel clutch. Hogan powers out but Valentine regains control and hits a flying forearm for 2...and another 2. Hammer works over Hogan with punches, elbows and knees. Hogan reverses a suplex attempt into one of his own. Lovely shoulderbreaker by Hogan followed by a big boot out of the ring. Hogan follows outside for a brawl and nails an atomic drop. Back into the ring we go and Valentine nails a knee as Mean Gene calls him a 'capitalist'. Elbow gets 2 for Hammer and into another headlock we go. Valentine heads outside and nails Hogan with two (very weak) looking chairshots to the knees. The chairs were bright red and very much padded I may add. The ref was watching but no DQ, just a slow 10 count that makes it to 6. Hammer works on the knees and the...balls...of Hogan. Hammer up top, attempts a flying forearm smash but eats a weak clothesline floor him. One leg drop later and Hogan gets the win! Classic Hogan formula as we'll come to expect. Crowd was electric for Hogan at the beginning but the pace of the match assisted in its diminishment. Hammer was fun to watch and Hogan was at least mobile and competant.Match Rating: *1/2

Charlie Fulton vs Antonio Inoki

We've seen Charlie Fulton before and there's nothing to mention. Inoki is the Martial Arts Champion, which means nothing to me. Nice chain wrestling to start and Inoki eventually locks on an armbar. Fulton escapes and we get some stalling. Fulton with a series of shoulder thrusts and forearms which send Inoki down. Snapmare gets a 1 count for Fulton. Inoki has been getting tips off Sgt Slaughter on how to grow an oversized chin. Fulton locks on a headlock but Inoki escapes, nails some martial arts kicks to the legs and a jumping kick to Fulton's temple for the 3 count! That was crap. Match Rating: DUD

Sgt Slaughter/Terry Daniels vs Adrian Adonis/Dick Murdoch (Tag Team Champs) [Tag Team Title Match]

The Marine music hits and out comes Sgt Slaughter and the unknown Terry Daniels to big cheers and lots of flag waving. Terry Daniels is the first recruit to Slaughter's COBRA CORE which in the long and short term means...fuck all. Out next are the tag champs, Adonis and Murdoch. They had won the belts earlier in the year and were proving to be aggressive and well adjusted champs. Adonis at this point is wearing leather and looks like a Roman biker. Murdoch looks like a slightly slimmer Dusty Rhodes...emphasis on the slightly. Slaughter throws his shirt into the crowd and it's caught by the one bloke who doesn't have a shirt, talk about convenience! We start off with Daniels and Murdoch and of course, some stalling. They lock up, Daniels gets the upper hand but suprisingly just lets go. He gets some words of wisdom from Slaughter before another lock up, a wristlock and into an armbar. Murdoch tries to escape but Daniels holds on, hits an elbow then locks the armbar on again. Daniels gets kitchen sinked in the gut and both men tag out to their respective partners, big pop for Slaughter. Short chain wrestling sequence, a lock up and Slaughter nails Adonis with a right hand that sends him rolling backwards. Slaughter and Adonis start countering wristlocks between each other and in comes Daniels to lock on his favourite move...the armbar! Massive chop by Daniels followed by a run the ropes sequence. Daniels gets monkey flipped, lands on his feet...kind of...as he loses his balance, bounces off the ropes and lock on...the armbar! Crowd liked it all though! Adonis tags out to Murdoch who finds himself quickly in...an armbar! Bodyslam by Murdoch which is no sold and the armbar goes straight back on. Adonis in...and into an armbar...followed by a dropkick...and an armbar. Finally Slaughter comes in, takes control with a nice armbreaker and the crowd loves it. Daniels is and...no armbar! Its a kneedrop...followed by an armbar! Adonis comes in and finally beats on Daniels something fierce and nails a lovely running powerslam. A big USA chant goes up (Wrong chant #2 - EVERYONE IS AMERICAN!). Heely antics ensue which Slaughter doesn't help the situation until he finally gets the hot tag and locks on the Cobra Clutch to Murdoch. The crowd is buzzing but Adonis breaks it up, Daniels in with a series of dropkicks and a double team backbreaker move gets the win for Slaughter and Daniels. This match was essentially one long arm bar. Some decent action at the end saved it somewhat but Daniels was frustrating to watch. Match Rating: *

Out comes Captain Lou Albano who tells the crowd to stand in a few minutes time for the Fabulous Moolah. Bit rich, as Moolah can barely stand herself at her age...then again...she's champ again in 1999, sad.

The copy of the show I have gives me a cheeky Avengers advert. Dame Diana Rigg, you, were, stunning!

Into the back with Mean Gene who's with Fabulous Moolah and Captain Lou. Lou says Moolah and him discussed strategy and Moolah is beyond being beaten. Moolah sounds cocky...but as cocky as a sweet old lady can sound. Mean Gene bigs up Cyndi Lauper's training skills. That annoys Lou so much he gets Moolah's title reign length wrong and then corrected by the lady herself. Awkward.

The Fabulous Moolah (Womens Champ) vs Wendi Richter [Womens Title Match]

So before we start its worth knowing that out of all the matches on this card, this one is the most important. It was aired live on MTV and drew HUGE numbers, mainly thanks to the appearance of Cyndi Lauper with Richter. The huge ratings this drew was a big encouragement for Vince to gamble with Wrestlemania. So was Richter more influential than Hogan on the grand scheme of things...dwell on that...or don't, not arsed. Anyway, out comes Lauper, fella and Richter to big cheers and the only Lauper song I know, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. Lauper's fella joins us for commentary and he sounds way out of his depth and very confused. I apologize for the lack of details but the match itself is very basic. The crowd is hot as hell as Moolah stalls and then hits some snapmares. Richter ends up on the commentary table before getting back in the ring for some basic back and forth with Moolah that gets a 2 count for Richter. Lauper is a little cutie a must point out. Moolah acts heely until Richter headbutts her in the cervix. Moolah gets trapped and Richter takes advantage. Moolah gets free but ends up in a full nelson. Lauper punches Moolah right in the mush in front of the ref...who does fuck all. Suplex gets a 2 count for Richter but Moolah comes back with a monkey flip. Back body drop into a pin but Moolah pulls her up because she can. Lou misses a cheapshot and Moolah goes for a roll up for 3. It looks awkward though and we see that Moolah's shoulders were down while Richter kicked out at 2. That means a new womens champion to HUGE cheers from the crowd. Lou and Moolah take it out on the ref and have a whinge but nevertheless. The match itself was crap, no two ways about it. Just awful. Match Rating: DUD

Into the back with Lauper and Richter. Lauper calls Lou fat and expects an apology. Richter is also happy and gives the soon to be standard 'I believed in myself' speech. Some randomer comes in and calls it an incredible match...christ. Did I mention Lauper is a cutie? Slaughter comes in and has banter! Hogan follows and everyone is celebrating.

Paul Orndorff vs Chief Jay Strongbow

Back to the ring and Orndorff is definitely over now, big boo's for Mr Wonderful. Crowd are indifferent to Strongbow but that isn't suprising. Stalling to start until Strongbow gets some shots on Orndorff in the corner. Orndorff misses a clothesline and both men collide. Strongbow is knocked to the outside and rings the bell on the way down. More back and forth until Strongbow takes no more and psychs up. Finally its an awkward clothesline that gets the win for Orndorff. Another poor match that did little for Orndorff taking so much from old man Strongbow. Match Rating: DUD

Afa vs Rene Goulet

Straight into the next match and it baffles me that THIS is the semi-main event. Think about that. I'm a new found Rene Goulet fan and I'm expecting his normal cheeky foreign heel escapades. Back-drop by Afa almost straight away followed by a bearhug. Way to kill ANY heat straight away. Goulet gets it back using his normal heely antics...including biting of the noodle. Afa with a headbutt but Goulet comes back with a snapmare. Goulet with the face claw but Afa escapes quickly with another headbutt. Afa nails a big samoan drop for the 3 count. Poor match but quick. Goulet was fun as always. Match Rating: 1/4*

20 Man Battle Royal

I'll just tell you who's in it and the finish: Sika, Jose Luis Rivera, Butcher Vachon, Antonio Inoki, Tony Garea, Chief Jay Strongbow, Afa, Steve Lombardi, Dick Murdoch, Bob Orton, Adrian Adonis, Rene Goulet, Ron Shaw, Charlie Fulton, Terry Daniels, Iron Sheik, Tito Santana, Paul Orndorff, Sgt Slaughter and Samu.

The last 5 is Orton, Inoki, Shaw, Garea and Goulet. I really want Orton or Goulet to win but its not to be as Inoki eliminates Shaw and Goulet last to win it. It was your standard battle royal so take that for what you will. Strange choice in the final men and strange that Inoki looked so strong tonight. Match Rating: *



Wrestler Scores:

• Sika +2 (5)
• Ron Shaw +2 (2)
• Iron Sheik +3 (9)
• Tony Garea +2 (4)
• Tito Santana +6 (12)
• Bob Orton +7 (7)
• Bob Backlund +2 (3)
• Butcher Vachon +1 (2)
• Hulk Hogan +6 (12)
• Greg Valentine +3 (3)
• Charlie Fulton +1 (3)
• Antonio Inoki +4 (4)
• Sgt Slaughter +4 (8)
• Terry Daniels +2 (2)
• Adrian Adonis +3 (3)
• Dick Murdoch +3 (3)
• Fabulous Moolah +1 (1)
• Wendi Richter +2 (2)
• Paul Orndorff +3 (8)
• Chief Jay Strongbow +2 (3)
• Afa +2 (5)
• Rene Goulet +2 (5)

WWE All Star Search #1: January 21st 1984 - Adam Ross

Welcome Turnbucklers! Let's get things kicked off with this Philadelphia House Show. I want to start here for one big reason and that is the fact its pre-Hogan title win. We all know how much Hogan's win changes WWE landscape forever but what was it like before? This supercard features the Iron Sheik as WWE Heavyweight Champion and also features previous title holder, Bob Backlund. We have a multi-man main event two featuring some of the biggest pre-Hulkamania era superstars so let's run down the card shall we...

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The Card:

Eddie Gilbert vs Rene Goulet 

Swede Hanson vs Paul Vachon

The Invaders vs Mr Fuji/Charlie Fulton

The Iron Sheik (WWE Champion) vs Tito Santana 

Don Muraco (IC Champion) vs Salvatore Bellomo

The Masked Superstar vs Bob Backlund

Haiti Kid/Tiger Jackson vs Pancho Boy/Dan Carpenter

Andre the Giant/Jimmy Snuka/Tony Atlas/Rocky Johnson vs Afa/Sika/Samula/Sgt. Slaughter [2 out of 3 Falls]

The Show:

We may be ready to start, but our commentary team Dick Graham and Gorilla Monsoon aren't, Monsoon is still talking to someone by the time the camera's start rolling.

Eddie Gilbert vs Rene Goulet 

Subdued reactions from the crowd during the introductions so I'm pretty sure they are neither here nor there for these two. Eddie Gilbert is your ultra-generic default white meat babyface and Rene Goulet is your aging heel foreigner. Goulet has a cape to emphasize his evil foreign nature. To be fair to Eddie, he's just come back after a horrible car accident that left him with a broken neck! Lots of stalling by Goulet to start that is actually quite funny. You can tell he's traditional. There's an ENDLESS headlock by Gilbert that even a graphic nose picking couldn't wain. Quick sequence for all of ten seconds before back to the headlock! Pace is slow when Goulet is in control but still somewhat vicious I guess. Awkward spot when Gilbert falls out the ring onto a chair with the ringbell on it. Crowd wakes up for Goulet going up top but he decides against it. Gilbert takes another hard fall to the unprotected ringside...and then another a minute later. Decent heat for Goulet and his push ups. Gilbert finally is allowed in the ring and produces an atomic drop which equals a bit too exagerated selling by Goulet...with extra arm flail and face bump. Crowd starting to rumble slightly while Gilbert is on offense. It doesn't last long as Goulet takes back control with more slow motion offense. There's a 4 minute head claw! Jesus! Gilbert takes back control with basic offense but the barely noticable ring bell sounds for the time limit draw mid-momentum. That was incredibly long and boring, especially for the time limit ending. Goulet was great at being his heely self but he's old now and you can tell. Movement was limited by Goulet and Gilbert was far too basic and dull to help matters. Crowd noise was all towards Goulet although it wasn't loud. Match Rating: DUD

Swede Hanson vs Paul Vachon

Straight into the next match as we have a battle of two old heavyweights. Paul Vachon you may know as the Butcher Vachon and Swede Hanson, well, he's Swede Hanson. Hanson comes out waving his Confederates flag and looks like he actually fought in that war. I love Butcher's beard but that's not enough to get me excited for this one. I thought the last match was slow, but this one is something else. Vachon controls for most of the match with some really bad punches and kicks...and thats as far as variety goes. Hanson counters with a Big Back Body Drop and Elbow Drop for the mercifully quick win. This was offensively slow but fair play to Vachon taking that BBBD, he got some decent height for a big (old) man. Crowd seem impressed though. Match Rating: DUD

The Invaders vs Mr Fuji/Charlie Fulton

Mr Fuji is spelled Mr Fugi...don't know why. The ring announcer is someone to be seen. He is what can only be described as flamboyantly styled. Mr Fuji gives us a 'Banzai!' before we start. They announce Fuji as a martial arts expert but his immense gut says different. The Invaders are two masked blokes, one of which has long hair so that's how I'll tell them apart for now. Long haired Invader has some weak ass chops. Lots of quick tags between the Invaders and some fun tag team hijinks and the crowd approve. They pull the ol' switcheroo behind the ref's back but surely he'd notice the flowing locks coming from under this Invaders mask? Apparently not. It makes less sense when they pull the same switcheroo 30 seconds later...and again after that! Who are the heels again? Fuji and Fulton take control and Fuji hits a nice suplex. Fulton has some decent offense but so far is the most unimpressive. The Invaders almost take back control...but don't. Crowd don't like Fuji's dominance. Its only when Fulton comes back in that the Invaders gain some momentum with dropkicks and an awkward cross body for a 2 count. Ref allows the illegal Invader to carry on in the ring and I don't know why, neither do the commentators. Invader 1 hiptosses Invader 2 onto the prone Fulton to get the win and the crowd like that. The Invaders looked good in this one but I can't remember seeing them too much after this. Mr Fuji had good heat and Fulton made up the spaces. Match Rating: *

The Iron Sheik (WWE Champion) vs Tito Santana [WWE Title Match]

Out comes the Iron Sheik with his massive WWE Title belt to major heat! Things are thrown and a disjointed USA chant greet him. Big cheers for Tito who is already in the ring. Tito starts off very hot using Shieks own headdress to take control early. Shieky stalls outside the ring to major heat while he regroups. He still has time to yell at people though. Back in the ring and an Atomic Drop sends Sheiky over the top rope and back to the floor. More stalling with more heat. Sheik back in but its not long before he finds himself in a sleeper. He escapes but eats a right hand by Santana then finds himself back in a headlock. Santana lets go and some quick offense follows. I see Iron Sheik do a leapfrog which I wasn't expecting! Santana covers for two but Sheik rakes the eye. Sheik works Santana over to major heat. Nice image of a crowdmember furiously flipping off Sheiky. Sheik attempts a Senton Splash but misses. Knee lift by Santana followed by a suplex attempt by both men...Santana wins it though but only gets a 2 count. Sheik counters a splash and puts Santana in an Abdominal Stretch. Tito reverses it into one of his own but Sheik escapes. He tries to take control but Tito suprises him with a Sunset Flip for 2 and a Small Package for another 2. A series of dropkicks sends Sheik out to the floor and he grabs a chair and throws it into the ring. Ref stands on the chair but gets shoved. Ref gets bumped during the kerfuffle and Tito hits the Flying Jalepeno but the ref calls for the bell. Its a double DQ for the the kerfuffle with the chair and Sheiky escapes with the belt. Fun match and Sheiky was awesome, so hateable. He just has a hateable face! Tito was his normal babyface self but the crowd were behind him. Match Rating: **

Don Muraco (IC Champion) vs Salvatore Bellomo [IC Title Match]

Another title match on this card! Both men get mixed reactions which is weird. Muraco is sporting a new beard apparently. Gotta say that the IC Title itself isn't very nice to look at, looks cheap to me. Slow start with lots of stalling by Muraco. They lock up and Muraco takes control in the corner and nails a hiptoss across the ring. A double hand slap makes a superb noise that echoes around the Spectrum. Muraco misses a charge to the corner and Bellomo nails him with a dropkick that sends Muraco outside to stall some more. Bellomo is holding his ear which I assume was from that double slap. Muraco controls again once back inside and locks on a head scissors on the mat. Bellomo escapes for...like a second and somehow ends up back in a head scissors. Bellomo escapes again with a nice twisting leg move thing (that's the best I can do) but a knee strike to the noodle sends Bellomo flying out the ring. The crowd seems uninterested in this one on the whole. Muraco attempts a Tombstone Piledriver but Bellomo escapes and goes on the offense. He locks Muraco in the ropes and hits a cross body, nice! Bellomo releases him and works on Muraco's legs. Muraco is now bleeding from the head and is put in a sleeper. Muraco esacpes and Bellomo works him over with uppercuts until Muraco counters to take control. Bellomo sends Muraco to the corner but misses a charge, eats a somewhat awkward Sunset Flip and Muraco gets the 3 count! Decent match and Bellomo got more offense in than I expected. He showed some unique technical ability which was also surprising. Don't think the crowd ever bought into him winning though and they remained subdued throughout. Muraco was OK but nothing special to note in this one. Decent match though. Match Rating: *1/2

The Masked Superstar vs Bob Backlund

Suprisingly, noticable mixed reaction to Backlund in the announcements so I'm assuming the crowd are somewhat bored of his clean cut image. He's freshly unchampioned as of a few weeks ago and I think this is his first appearance since. Crowd does seem a lot louder than the previous match so Backlund must still have something going for him. Both men try to take control but neither really succeeds. This goes on for a while...until Backlund eventually takes control with a headlock aaaaaand Superstar escapes for more stalling to take place. Another headlock by Backlund into some fun counter wrestling on the mat all while the headlock is maintained. Headlock goes on for years until Backlund hits a forearm smash....and INTO ANOTHER HEADLOCK! After more dead time, Superstar gets a Bearhug on Backlund but it doesn't last long as Backlund counters with A HEADLOCK. Superstar escapes again and takes control with punches and forearms. Armbar on Backlund and these restholds are becoming painful to watch, so boring! Superstar works over the arm for a good few minutes until Backlund uses the ropes to escape and he bails to the floor. Despite Backlund being outside long past a potential countout time, Superstar meets him outside and now a countout starts. Both men back in and Superstar works over Backlunds arm somemore. Backlund fights out with big right hands and a headbutt to the goolies, but no DQ. He tries to pull off the mask of his opponent but fails and the Masked Superstar takes control again with a Hammerlock. Backlund escapes and smashes Superstar's face into the mat repeatedly but he sells the arm thats been worked over throughout the match. Good psychology by Backlund. Superstar misses a flying headbutt attempt and Backlund goes back go the mask but the Superstar bails to the floor. Backlund nails him into the ring barrier but Backlund is counted out very quickly. Crap ending, crap match. So many restholds it was like an anaesthetic. One redeeming feature was Backlund selling his arm. Suprised with the finish as I'd assume Backlund would be protected after his title loss but no, he loses this one.Match Rating: 1/4*

Haiti Kid/Tiger Jackson vs Pancho Boy/Dan Carpenter

Its a special attraction match, which is a politically correct version of saying midgets...despite them referring to this also as a Midgets Match. Pancho Boy looks strikingly like Tyrion Lannister. Tiger Jackson is the smallest of the four, and looks like a smaller Christopher Daniels. Pancho and Tiger start and both do some weird gyrating before locking up. The commentators are laughing from the off and this feels a little dirty. Dropkick by Jackson followed by a nice Jumping Head Scissors Takedown. Jackson is spun on his head vertically which looked awesome and he tags in Haiti Kid. A Whoopsie on Carpenter gets a 1 count. Carpenter bounces Kid's head of the turnbuckle but Kid no sells it to big laughs. He takes control with some awkward looking offense and something happens with Tiger Jackson that the camera misses but the crowd found hilarious. Tyrion comes in and uses his bigger gut to ground Haiti Kid, twice, and also Tiger Jackson. The crowd love it! Finish comes with a fun four midget criss-cross ending with all four looking confused in the ring. Haiti hits an airplane spin on Carpenter while Jackson floors Tyrion with a dropkick. Awkward counter pinning sequence ends with the 3 count for Haiti Kid. Interesting to watch albeit slightly uncomfortable. This diminished audio made crowd laughter clear as day. Crowd definitely loved it, I just feel for the wrong reasons. Match Rating: DUD

Andre the Giant/Jimmy Snuka/Tony Atlas/Rocky Johnson vs Afa/Sika/Samula/Sgt. Slaughter [2 out of 3 Falls]

The crowd finally comes alive for the main event. Andre gets the biggest reaction by far and he also still has his long hair at this point. Andre starts us off with a TRIPLE noggin-knocker on all three Samoans. Andre wants Slaughter in who teases getting in and eventually does and locks up with Andre. It doesn't go well as Andre clubs him and tags in Rocky Johnson who puts on a headlock. Atlas in now who works over Slaughter. It looks like he tagged Andre but Andre stays on the apron, still managing to make Slaughter flinch though. In comes Snuka to a decent reaction and the faces work over Sarge in their corner. In comes one of the Samoans but Andre gets a cheap shot from the apron. Snuka with an OK dropkick but gets a big pop for it. In comes Samula but he doesn't get anywhere and the Samoans re-group in their corner. Rocky Johnson back in and he tries another double noggin-knocker but Slaughter puts his hands between the noggins to somewhat prevent it...which he only half manages. If the Samoans have really hard heads...why put your hands between two of them?? Tag to Slaughter and he hits a nice elbow on Johnson. He gets him in the Cobra Clutch until Andre breaks it up with a blow to the back of Slaughter. Tag to a Samoan who gets a headbutt for a 3 count and the first fall with it! Second fall starts with the Samoans working over the now sluggish Rocky Johnson. Nerve hold applied on Johnson while the crowd chants 'Rocky! Rocky!' (sound familiar?). Andre breaks it up and the Slaughter gets a tag but its the other Samoan that comes in and the ref allows it. Scoop slam and a choke on Johnson. Johnson fights back and makes the tag to Andre who cleans house of the Samoans. Everyone comes in for a brawl but in the melee, Andre slams a Samoan and Snuka nails a cross body after jumping off Andre's shoulders for the 3 count and the second fall, 1-1! Crowd are going crazy now! Onto the final fall and Samula and Snuka start us off. Snuka with a lovely chop and Samula flies over the top rope. Snuka cleans house with more chops on the Samoans while Slaughter hides on the apron. Andre tagged back in, but Samula gets a headbutt to take him down. Andre no sells more offense and now everyone comes back in for the big clusterfuck brawl. Andre gets the winning 3 count in the melee but I can't tell you what from as the camera missed it. Decent match and the crowd were buzzing. The heels were basic as basic come but the heat was enormous none the less. Andre looked like he was having fun which is always great. Slaughter did nothing after the first fall had been and gone. Match Rating: *3/4


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Wrestler Scores:

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Eddie Gilbert +1 (1)

Rene Goulet +2 (2)

Swede Hanson +1 (1)

Butcher Vachon +1 (1)

Invader 1 +3 (3)

Invader 2 +3 (3)

Mr Fuji +2 (2)

Charlie Fulton +2 (2)

Iron Sheik +3 (3)

Tito Santana +3 (3)

Don Muraco +3 (3)

Salvatore Bellomo +3 (3)

The Masked Superstar +1 (1)

Bob Backlund +1 (1)

Haiti Kid +1 (1)

Tiger Jackson +1 (1)

Dan Carpenter +1 (1)

Pancho Boy +1 (1)

Andre The Giant +4 (4)

Jimmy Snuka +3 (3)

Tony Atlas +2 (2)

Rocky Johnson +2 (2)

Afa +2 (2)

Sika +2 (2)

Samula +2 (2)

Sgt Slaughter +2 (2)