The Importance of…7.03.09: Saturday Night's Main Event

Posted by Mike Chin on 07.03.2009

Over three decades the meaning of the show has changed, but the fact remains that Saturday Night's Main Event is very important in wrestling history.



It's no secret that pro wrestling reached the height of its mainstream acceptability in the 1980s, upon the shoulders of the mastermind Vince McMahon, and his top performer, Hulk Hogan. The WWF was riding enough of a wave of momentum to get its own primetime special on national, major network television—an unprecedented accomplishment for any wrestling promotion. Saturday Night's Main Event turned out to be one of the most memorable, significant, and all around important programs in wrestling.

The Beginnings...

SNME's initial run span from 1985-1992, starting on NBC, before a cup of coffee on FOX. In appearing on network TV, this represented a rarely accessible moment for the wrestling product—not subject to syndication or cable broadcast, as fans across the country were watching the very same show at the very same time. What's more, SNME was not laden with squash matches, promos and lower card confrontations that dominated normal free TV programming. On the contrary, this show was the site of superstar showdowns generally saved to draw crowds at house shows, or to produce PPV buys. The question, of course, was if this formula would deliver—drawing ratings, revenue, and new fans to the product. All signs point to yes as the SNME proved a major success, including a rating of 11.6 for one show in 1987—the highest rating any program has ever earned in that Saturday night timeslot.


Hogan and Savage


In addition to competitive matches, SNME also represented a rare opportunity for fans to see Hulk Hogan. While Hogan was the man who drew so many fans to the WWF product of the time, it's also worth noting that he rarely actually appeared in a wrestling role on free televisions—again, serving as a draw for the more lucrative house show and PPV markets. On SNME, though, Hogan had a number of high profile matches, including the blow-offs to a number of his secondary feuds with one-on-one encounters against Harley Race, Bob Orton, Paul Orndorff, The Big Bossman and others.

Besides serving as a stage for Hogan to build his legend, SNME was also an important stage for the man who was, quite arguably, the second biggest WWF star of the eighties, Randy Savage, to establish himself as a legitimate main event star. After winning the world title at Wrestlemania IV, Savage enjoyed a number of high profile matches on SNME, including matches with The One Man Gang and Andre the Giant.

The Beginning of the End

As SNME reached the end of its first run, in November 1992, the show arrived at a historically significant moment. There were three matches on the card. First was a tag match between the veteran champions, Money Inc. and the two biggest carryovers from the eighties, Savage and The Ultimate Warrior. The placement of Savage and Warrior in a tag match was, on one hand, a set up for their scheduled tag match against Ric Flair and Razor Ramon at the upcoming Survivor Series. On the other hand, though, it was a demonstration that these once top-of-the-card stars were taking a step down. The WWF was at a transitional time where the biggest names were not necessarily representing the top of the card, as neither of these major figures was then, or would again be significant in the world title scene.

Shawn Michaels


Rising up to that main event status in 1992 was young Shawn Michaels. Mere months removed from his break from Rockers teammate Marty Jannetty, Michaels was scheduled to challenge for the world championship at Survivor Series. While Michaels had established himself well as an in-ring performer, from a kayfabe perspective, it was difficult to take the guy seriously as a world title threat. This edition of SNME went a long toward establishing HBK's credibility, as he triumphed over Davey Boy Smith to win the Intercontinental Title. No, the IC title was in no way equivalent to the big belt. It was, however, far more meaningful than it has been in recent years, and established that Michaels was going to be a player on the singles scene.

It was Michael's Survivor Series opponent, new world champion Bret Hart who would main event that last SNME. Like Michaels, Hart was sorely in need of some kayfabe credibility. Over a year of success at the IC level, Hart had established himself as an upper-mid-carder. Nonetheless, it was a major surprise when he took Ric Flair's world title at a house show that fall. Hart's SNME event victory over another mid-carder, Papa Shango, did little to solidify him as the biggest star in the company. The fact that he main evented the company's biggest free TV show did offer Hart greater exposure to the national audience, though, and laid the groundwork for what would evolve into a lengthy stay at the top of the card.

Some of the luster wore off of the SNME concept as Raw, and then the Monday Night Wars set in. Fans didn't miss the periodic TV specials because seeing the biggest names in the business, and competitive matches on free TV became common place. Coupling this fact with WWF's move to Spike TV, SNME went off the air for well over a decade.

By the time SNME returned, the year was 2006. When the show had last aired, Shawn Michaels was a bright, up and coming young star. Michaels main evented the return show, arguably the most respected veteran on the roster, going one on one in a street fight with Shane McMahon. This event was, in many respects, a building block toward Wrestlemania XXII, just as the next SNME would build toward the upcoming SummerSlam event. Weekly TV and more than monthly PPV kept much of the special feeling of SNME away, a fact made clear in increasingly lackluster cards, and decreasing ratings. At this point, it remains questionable whether we'll see another SNME again.

SNME was a major part of pro wrestling in the eighties and early nineties, representing a rare opportunity for the common fan and casual spectator to take in top-shelf wrestling on free TV. The concept has grown outdated with competitive matches occurring every week on regular TV shows, and with the burgeoning PPV market. Nonetheless, SNME holds an important place in wrestling history, and it will be interesting to see where the program goes in the future.

That's all for this column. Next week, we take a look at the importance of Dustin Rhodes. See you in seven.