"Old School" Shows - looking for recommendations

[percymania]

I want to dip my toes into some of these Old School shows from MSG and such. I may just pick one at random and start watching, but I'm wondering if anyone has a particular show or two to recommend.

[Deleted]

If you want a fun episode, the one from October 1991 is the one to start with. You have Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby Heenan and Lord Alfred Hayes calling the action. Plus, the first WWF meeting between Roddy Piper and "The Real World's Champion" Ric Flair.

I enjoy "old school", but I wish they'd have more Gorilla Monsoon. They sure have a lot of Jack Reynolds.

[percymania]

OK, I watched that episode last night. I thought it was pretty dull outside of the Flair/Piper match. I hate to say it, but the show featured too much wrestling and not enough hullabaloo.

Did they air these episodes on TV? i'm confused as to why there are announcers - because I don't recall that they ever aired these shows. Were they created for home video release?

[cool245]

The house shows usually aired on a local sports network in that particular city. Some of those matches would also air on nationally on one of WWF's USA network programs.

[Deleted]

^Pretty much that. They aired on the MSG Network. I tape-traded a friend ECW shows and he'd send the MSG events back.

Bad as they seem at face value, that's why the commentators were important. They actually put over the matches; what was at stake, why they faced each other, etc. Gorilla could take a Ron Shaw vs. Tony Garea match and make it seem like it was for a shot at the World title.

[Mac]

Mar 8, 2014 10:15:49 GMT -5 percymania said:

OK, I watched that episode last night. I thought it was pretty dull outside of the Flair/Piper match. I hate to say it, but the show featured too much wrestling and not enough hullabaloo.

Did they air these episodes on TV? i'm confused as to why there are announcers - because I don't recall that they ever aired these shows. Were they created for home video release?

We have a network in Boston called NESN that once every couple of months would show the house shows from the Garden, I have several old VHS tapes with about a half dozen of them

[A Platypus Rave]

Mar 8, 2014 10:15:49 GMT -5 percymania said:

OK, I watched that episode last night. I thought it was pretty dull outside of the Flair/Piper match. I hate to say it, but the show featured too much wrestling and not enough hullabaloo.

Did they air these episodes on TV? i'm confused as to why there are announcers - because I don't recall that they ever aired these shows. Were they created for home video release?

It's basically a house show.

As others have stated they were aired on local sports channels. For instance the ones from Madison Square Garden aired on the MSG network (the bumpers between matches even still have the old MSG logo in the corner)

[Deleted]

The two from 1986 they just tacked on are pretty fun; then again I get to see a young and quick Davey Boy Smith holding the tag titles. One from April has a match between Jimmy Hart and Jimmy Jack & Hoss Funk (Dory Jr.) against Junkyard Dog, Ricky Steamboat and the Haiti Kid in a six-man match. Those fans were just begging for the Mouth to get in the ring and be a man.

I've turned around on Lord Alfred Hayes as Monsoon's broadcast partner, he's a decent sidekick. My word!

[percymania]

I watched one of the Boston Garden shows (12/7/85) sometime last week and it was MUCH better than the MSG show I had watched. In fact, that Boston Garden show was awesome! Pedro Morales and Ace Cowboy Bob Orton had quite the donnybrook in the opening bout. There's also Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat in another one of their many classics. Roddy Piper vs. Bruno Sammartino and Jesse Ventura vs. Tito Santana were also on there. Just a Hall of Fame card.