The Enlightenment: Mid-South/UWF Wrestling Vol. 16 Posted by J.D. Dunn on 12.31.1969
Out with the brawling and angles, in with the technical wrestling.
Note: While this is a review of a series from Goldeboytapes, they apparently don't offer it any longer. You can find most of these matches (although not necessarily in this order) at Wrestletapes.net.
This is the beginning of the end for the UWF. Jim Crockett Promotions has swooped in and bought out Bill Watts. The territory was moved to the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, which was problematic because they had to compete directly with WCCW. Now, you will see JCP star after JCP star invade the territory and set up shop. Finally, Crockett would get sick of all the flying around and just close the territory once and for all.
"Pro Wrestling This Week.
Your hosts are Gordon Solie and Joe Pedecino.
Gordon and Jo open the show with the announcement that the body of Mike Von Erich has been found in a wooded area. He had apparently taken his own life. Normally, I'd launch into a tirade about Fritz Von Erich, but I'll just let it lie and hope that Mike is, indeed, in a happier place.
Southeastern Heavyweight Title: Adrian Street (w/Linda) vs. Dutch Mantell. This is from Continental Wrestling out of Birmingham, Ala.. We're JIP to Mantell tossing street to the floor and beating the tar out of him. Back in, Mantell gets two off a double ax-handle. They head outside again where Miss Linda gets involved. Back in again, Street tosses the ref aside to get at Mantell. Mantell scoops Street's legs and puts his own legs on the ropes for a the pin. 1/2*
Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs. Tiger Chung Lee. Typical WWF Superstars squash. Duggan slams Lee and finishes with a charging clothesline. 1/4*
More from the WWF. Brutus Beefcake cuts ties with Dream Team.
Can-Am Connection vs. Dusty Wolfe & Barry O. O is most famous for being The Zodiac in Stampede. You might know him as Randy Orton's uncle, Barry Orton. The Can-Ams win easily. 1/4*
Six-Man Tag: Pat Tanaka, Shima, Hilo vs. Paul Diamond, Jeff Jarrett & the BT Express. This is from Memphis. Downtown Bruno (Harvey Whippleman) is claiming that the BT Express is really just Billy Travis in a mask. If he can prove it, Travis has to leave the territory so Bruno offers up a bounty on the mask. We're JIP to BT playing face-in-peril. Jeff Jarrett has been knocked to the floor, and Paul Diamond is tending to him instead of reaching for the tag. BT makes the corner again, but Diamond is pretty clearly avoiding the tag now. Finally, Jarrett comes in without tagging just to save BT from a beating. Diamond comes in tooand doublecrosses Jarrett! Diamond tosses Jarrett over the top and goes after BT's mask. Diamond and Tanaka then start fighting over the mask as they remove it from BT's head! Of course, it is Billy Travis, but that's not the point. Diamond leaves the ring right in the middle of the big brawl and asks Downtown Bruno for the bounty. Bruno tries to substitute a hug and a handshake, but Diamond is having none of it. He wants to get paid. Tanaka, of course, thinks he should get the bounty since he pulled the mask off too. Diamond blasts him and takes off with the money.
After a commercial break, Tanaka demands either his money or a match with Diamond to take it out of his hide. Jarrett comes back out and says he wants the match to avenge his partner. Tanaka and Jarrett nearly come to blows until Jerry Jarrett comes down and straightens things out. See, this is already a better build to a Triple Threat than the WWE has done since 2000. But, since Triple Threats didn't exist back then, they decide that Jarrett and Tanaka will wrestle with the winner getting a shot at Paul Diamond the following week. Congratulations, you've just booked your next two main events in one interview segment. How hard is it for the WWE to do the same thing?
Steve Williams (w/Steve Cox) vs. Bob Bradley. This is from the UWF. Bradley would go on to become Battle Cat in the WWF. Kind of an interesting note: After the UWF folded, Bradley went to WCCW where he defeated the Dingo Warrior (Jim Helwig) in the finals of the Texas Heavyweight Title tournament. When that territory dried up, he jumped to the WWF and returned the job to Helwig who was then the Intercontinental Champion as the Ultimate Warrior. Circle of life. Circle of life. Williams manhandles Bradley and finishes with the Stampede. 1/2*
Michael Hayes joins us to hype his album and the new UWF training center.
Gordon introduces us to a young Boni Blackstone, who would also have a brief tenure with the WWF as well as the Global Wrestling Federation. "Will Magnum T.A. return?" "The WWF rules!" "Why is there more men's wrestling than women's wrestling?" Et al.
Ha ha, there's a "Grand Auto" commercial featuring future Scrubs medico John C. McGinley as a grease monkey.
The Sheik (w/Gary Hart) vs. Charlie Cook. Cook's main claim to fame (other than football) is defeating Dory Funk for the Florida title. Kind of hard to see, but it appears Sheik uses a chain to choke Cook out and get the submission victory. Scott Casey, another man, and the referee (!) start pounding on Sheik to get him off of Cook. Casey finally has to resort to using a chair. 1/4*
Deep South Heavyweight Title Tournament Finals: Randy Rose vs. John Michaels. Current WWE referee Nick Patrick is on commentary. JIP to Michaels suplexing Rose. Just to show you a difference in the times, Patrick calls for a ban on the dangerous atomic drop. Rose, btw, is an Original Member of the Midnight Express. Rose finishes with a flying clothesline to take the title. 1/2*
Eli the Eliminator & the Barbarian (w/Gary Hart) vs. Red River Jack & Lance Von Erich. WCCW this time. This is either very old or very new because Eli was wrestling in the UWF when this show was broadcast. The Barbarian is not Sionne of the WWF, who still wrestles on the independent circuit, but John Nord, who would go on to become the Viking in the AWA and the Berserker in the WWF. Red River Jack is Bruiser Brody under a mask. By the time we join the match, it has devolved to a fracas. Holliday and Gary Hart get involved. Kevin Von Erich runs down and pulls Lance out of the way of a Barbarian legdrop. The match gets thrown out at 7:45 (1:15 shown). 1/2*
Gary Hart stands by with Percival Pringle (Paul Bearer) and Black Bart. They think that Red River Jack is Bruiser Brody under that mask. Seeing a blond Paul Bearer is pretty jarring.
Rick McCord vs. Porkchop Cash. This is from Central States Wrestling. Gordon Solie advises kids not to use the sleeper hold on their friends. McCord dropkicks Cash out of the ring. Cash staggers back in and runs right into a sleeper hold. Warlord, who has chunks of guys like McCord in his stool, jumps Rick from behind. That draws the disqualification. Bart Batten makes the save. 1/4*
Otto Wanz vs. Dennis Stamp. Wanz is a pretty big guy from Austria. Picture Vader with better mat skills. Stamp, I believe, is the guy from "Beyond the Mat" who wanted to be booked on Terry Funk's retirement show. Wanz delivers a pair of rolling sentons and finishes with a splash. 1/2*
Bill Apter joins us for an editorial on broadcasters. Misty Blue Simmes interrupts and threatens Apter unless she gets her own interview.
