NAWF TV 11-17-84 Debut show!
Nov 27, 2018 1:09:29 GMT
Post by Chitohausen on Nov 27, 2018 1:09:29 GMT
The North American Wrestling Federation Presents . . .
“ALL-STAR CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING”
Broadcast on Saturday, November 17, 1984 on the following stations:
WPXI Channel 11 (Pittsburgh market), WIVB Channel 4 (Buffalo / Southern Ontario market), WXYZ Channel 7 (Detroit / Western Ontario market), WKYC Channel 3 (Cleveland market)
Taped earlier in the day at the Fitzgerald Fieldhouse, on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh
Announcers: Jack Reynolds and Dick the Bruiser, with Billy Red Lyons conducting interviews
Ring Announcer: Larry Nelson
Referees: Tommy Young, Jack Lotz and “Dangerous” Danny Davis
JACK REYNOLDS is standing behind a podium, with the NAWF logo behind him. Reynolds welcomes his co-host, “the World’s most dangerous wrestler” DICK THE BRUISER!
Reynolds welcomes us to All-Star Championship Wrestling, presented by the North American Wrestling Federation! He says they’re in the heart of the Steel Belt, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and the show can also be seen in great cities like Buffalo, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Detroit and even in southern Ontario towns like Windsor and Hamilton!
Dick the Bruiser says that this area, these are his people, blue collar working-class people, they bust their humps every day in factories and mills, they’re the ones that keep this country running! Just like him, they work hard and they play hard, and what better way to unwind after a tough week, then kicking back and watching the roughest and the toughest that the wrestling world has to offer!
Reynolds then introduces the Commissioner of the North American Wrestling Federation, a man that the fans in this area know well, a former multiple-time World heavyweight champion . . . JOHNNY POWERS!
Powers comes out and shakes hands with both Reynolds and the Bruiser. Powers says that this area has always been a hotbed for professional wrestling, but with the changing wrestling landscape, the few remaining promoters seemed to have forgotten about this part of the country. He says that they opened up shop in the big media markets, like New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and Dallas, but now the fans all around the Great Lakes region have a wrestling promotion to call their own, and he’s brought in the biggest names in wrestling to compete for these great fans!
Top stars like former World’s champion Harley Race, Paul Orndorff, Rocky Johnson, former Canadian champion Dino Bravo, and Abdullah the Butcher!
They’ve also brought in one of the top new tag teams in wrestling to compete in the tournament on Christmas night for the North American tag team titles, they call themselves the Midnight Express, Bobby Eaton and Dennis Condrey!
Powers says we’ll also be seeing some young, up and coming stars in the making, like Arn Anderson, the nephew of Ole and Gene Anderson, and a man that the Bruiser scouted and personally brought to the NAWF, former Oklahoma Sooner football and wrestling standout, “Dr. Death” Steve Williams!
Bruiser says that he expects big things from Williams. He says that he was down in New Orleans last year, to see his old buddy Cowboy Bill Watts, and Watts was gushing about this kid Williams. Bruiser says that he watched Williams wrestle a couple of matches and was impressed, but what REALLY impressed him was, while he was there, he happened to run into Williams in a bar on Bourbon Street, and when a couple of bums started picking a fight with Williams, Doc took out all three of them, by himself, without even breaking a sweat! Bruiser says that when Watts closed up shop earlier this year, he called Williams and asked him to come up here and meet with Powers and the NAWF promoters.
Reynolds says that we’ll also see the son of one of the biggest names the wrestling world has ever known, a man who calls Pittsburgh home, just like his dad does, Bruno Sammartino Jr!
Powers says that’s right, Bruno Sammartino Jr will be competing here, and he’ll be teaming up with one of his dad’s former tag team partners, veteran Tony Parisi, for the Christmas night tag team title tournament!
THE MIDNIGHT EXPRESS: BOBBY EATON & DENNIS CONDREY (w/ Jim Cornette) beat AL SNOW & CHARLIE FULTON. Eaton and Condrey show everyone why they are considered the future of tag team wrestling, as they put on a clinic here, putting Snow away after the Rocket Launcher.
After the match, Billy Red Lyons interviews Eaton, Condrey and Cornette at ringside. Lyons says that Eaton and Condrey will be one of the teams entered into the North American tag team title tournament that will take place on Christmas night at the Pittsburgh Civic Arena.
Cornette takes a minute to run down the fans, before turning his attention to the tournament on Christmas night. He says that Eaton and Condrey are the epitome of tag team wrestling, they’ve beaten the very best in every promotion they’ve ever been a part of, and he doubts there’s a team in the NAWF, or the entire wrestling world for that matter, that could beat them. He says that he hopes they face Tony Parisi and Bruno Sammartino Jr in the tournament, because he wants all these idiot Pittsburgh fans to watch his team humiliate their precious Bruno Sammartino’s punk kid!
HANDICAP MATCH:
ABDULLAH THE BUTCHER (w/ Bobby Heenan) beats GEORGE WEINGEROFF & FRED CURRY. Both Weingeroff and Curry attack Abdullah as soon as the match starts, but he swats them away like flies! Abby then goes on the offensive, tossing both opponents around the ring like ragdolls! With Heenan barking orders at ringside, Abby tears the two men apart, then gets the win after slamming Curry on top of Weingeroff, and hitting the Butcher’s Axe elbowdrop for the 1, 2, 3!
After getting his hand raised, Abby shoves the referee aside, and pulls out his trusty fork! Abby proceeds to bloody Weingeroff and Curry with the fork, but there’s some commotion . . . and here comes ROCKY JOHNSON!
The Soulman hits the ring and tears into Abby, connecting with lightning-quick rights and lefts! Abby is dazed, and Heenan quickly pulls his man out of the ring and leads him away, as Abby stares at Johnson with a wild look in his eyes!
TONY PARISI & BRUNO SAMMARTINO JR beat GEORGE SOUTH & JERRY MONTI. Parisi and Sammartino work well together, and in the end, they get the win when Parisi pins Monti after the Cannonball splash.
We see a highlight video of ROCKY JOHNSON, set to Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger”. We see clips of Rocky working out, boxing, and wrestling against a variety of opponents.
Reynolds and the Bruiser talk about Rocky Johnson, and put him over as one of the most exciting wrestlers in the world today. Reynolds talks about Rocky’s boxing background, which, as we saw in the video, is a big part of his wrestling style, and says Rocky’s even sparred with legends like Muhammad Ali and George Foreman!
Reynolds says that it’s only the first show, and already Rocky seems to have got the attention of the Madman from the Sudan, Abdullah the Butcher!
DINO BRAVO beats ART CREWS. The former Canadian champion makes short work of Crews, pinning him after an Airplane Spin.
“SOULMAN” ROCKY JOHNSON beats BUZZ TYLER. Tyler gives the Soulman all he can handle early in this one, but Johnson eventually takes over, and wears Tyler down. Rocky gets the win after connecting with a big right hand that leaves Tyler flat on his back on the mat.
THE MASKED SUPERSTAR (w/ Bobby Heenan) beats ARN ANDERSON. Anderson is still early in his career, but he shows a lot of promise here, going up against one of the most vicious men in the sport. Superstar dominates the early going, but Anderson won’t quit, and he eventually makes a comeback. Anderson takes the fight to the masked man, and gets some very close nearfalls, but in the end, the Superstar turns the tables again, and hits Arn with the swinging neckbreaker for the 1, 2, 3.
Reynolds and the Bruiser put Arn over as a future superstar in this sport. Reynolds says he’s still young, but he showed a lot of guts here today, going toe to toe with one of the most vicious, dangerous men in the sport.
Reynolds and Bruiser then wrap things up, and Reynolds hypes next week’s show.
Credits Roll
© 1984, North American Wrestling Federation
Working on it now.