WWF MSG August 22, 1987

Tama v. Scott Casey

This was pretty boring and the crowd thought so too. Casey was on top for a while as Tama kept complaining about hair pulling. Casey dropkicked him outside and he immediately complained about a hair pull. Tama won out with a blatant low blow in the corner but his advantage only lasted a little bit. Casey worked on the left shoulder and even started some hair pulling and eye poking. 

Casey tried for a back dropped but Tama saw it and delivered a headbutt. He maintained control with a nerve hold for the longest time. Gorilla could not fathom why Tama was only working on Casey's traps instead of his legs or some other useful body part. Casey got his comeback and nailed a piledriver but he waited to cover him and only got a two. 

 He then tried charging into Tama in the corner but missed and Tama splashed him from the middle rope for the win.

“Outlaw” Ron Bass v. Tito Santana

These guys had fought before and Tito got hurt bad by Bass, so this was the return match and Tito was pissed. On July 25^th, in MSG, Bass attacked Tito and they fought to a DQ on June 20^th in Philadelphia. Tito destroyed Bass initially as they brawled outside with chairs and Bass was sent into the railing. Bass got back in and Tito ripped his vest up over his head and continued to destroy him. Bass tried to leave but Tito went and got him. Then, Tito went for Betsy which prompted Bass to grab a chair and throw it in the ring and Tito caught it. The place was going nuts for this. Bass was begging for mercy and Tito was giving none. Tito went for a pin but pulled him up at two for more of a beating. Bass ended up outside and he slipped a foreign object into the ring and clocked Tito with it. Bass tossed Tito out and crotched him on one of the railings and then he hit a headbutt onto the floor. Bass means business. 

Bass hit a piledriver and later sunk in a headscissors and used the ropes for leverage. The ref wondered why the ropes were shaking and Bass explained that one of the camera men did it. On a side note, how in the hell does grabbing the rope in any way equal more pain for the guy in the submission? I never quite got that. Tito got a ropebreak and nailed his forearm with little height. Tito locked in his figure four but Bass escaped and Tito hit a full-force forearm out of nowhere and Bass flew outside until the bell rang. The time limit expired and it was a draw. However, Tito wanted five more minutes and Bass teased that he was getting back in for it but he left instead. This was a pretty long match and it wasn't too bad, nothing classic though. Of course, New York loved Tito.

Velvet McIntyre v. Sensational Sherri-WWF Women's Championship

Velvet

This was a pretty decent match here that was back-and-forth the whole way through. Sherri won the belt in her first WWF match against Moolah in Houston on July 24, 1987. Sherri was wrestling in the AWA prior to this and even had her last match there on June 22, 1987, so she was fresh by this point. McIntyre had been wrestling for the WWF since 1984. Velvet rushed her right away with a high knee but Sherri tried to escape only to be caught by her cape for a few seconds. Sherri did a ton of cheating in this match with chokes and hair pulling. Velvet exploded with a good exchange of a leap frog into a crossbody and then a slam and a sunset flip off the ropes. Sherri went back to her choking and hair pulls as Velvet took a breather outside. Sherri then missed in the corner and Velvet delivered three big one-foot dropkicks as Sherri bailed out this time. Velvet followed and decked Sherri with a right hand. Velvet put her in a bodyscissors and rolled her around the ring into a pin but referee Billy Caputo was too slow in counting. In fact, he was terrible at doing his job with all the cheating going on. 

Sherri managed to flip herself around in the move, facing Velvet, so she could try some pin attempts. Then, she hoisted up Velvet by her hair and dropped her down, almost in a powerbomb. This was a great move but it got no heat, which was the story of the match. Velvet exploded and hit a giant swing but she missed a crossbody in the corner. Sherri then went up top but was caught and slammed down as Velvet got only a two-count. She started arguing with the ref and Sherri came up from behind and gave her a back suplex for the win.

Rick Martel v. Haku

Martel was really hot at points in this match but he seemed to fizzle a little by the end. Tama was out with Haku and they wouldn't let Martel into the ring. As a result, Tito Santana came out and evened the odds. The Islanders had recently attacked Martel and Tito came to his aid and they decided to form Strike Force from that, on August 4^th taped for August 15^th Superstars. Martel had been teaming with Tom Zenk until July 9, which was their last match together. This match was pretty hot to begin with as Haku flung Martel into the ropes, missed an elbow and a clothesline, and Martel exploded with a huge crossbody but only got a two. That felt like it could have been the finish as I've seen matches end that way with a good amount of heat. Haku got control and tried for a back drop but Martel cartwheeled out of it, hit a dropkick, and then a rana.

 Haku regained control with a crescent kick in the corner and he started working over Martel, who had some hope spots. Later, Haku went for a middle rope splash and missed, setting up Martel's slow comeback. This was the point where he seemed to fizzle out and the crowd did too. He hit a monkey flip and tried for another rana but Haku launched him backwards into the corner, which looked sick. 

Then, he hit a big running headbutt and a false finish. Haku began distracting the ref and Tama came down with a chair and nailed a weak shot on Martel and Haku then pinned him. Tito came back down too and cleared the ring of the Islanders as Martel was stretchered out. Oh yea and “Duke” Pete Doherty was introduced as a new member of the announcing team.

Ricky Steamboat v. Honky Tonk Man w/Jimmy Hart-IC Title Lumberjack Match

 I already reviewed this for the 2-1-88 Primetime show, so I'm just copying my review from that. Steamboat's theme is totally awesome and I don't recall it being on the episode of Primetime but for this it was.  Here's my original post with some more pics

This was an ok match and Ricky was pretty over. George Steele started by trying to pump up the crowd by pounding on the mat. Honky attacked Steamboat and threw him out but Ricky skinned the cat. Then, he dropkicked Honky and threw him over the top three times, and each time Honky was tossed back in. Jimmy Hart went on commentary and said there was a conspiracy against Honky tonight because he kept getting thrown back in by the faces. Steamboat was on top for a little bit and he smashed Honky's head into two turnbuckles, ten times each as the crowd counted along. Lord Alfred Hayes still referred to the Hart Foundation as the tag champs. Honky gained control and the Islanders tripped up Steamboat and then Steele tripped Honky followed by a quick roll-up for Ricky. Steamboat hit a back suplex then tried a monkey flip but it was blocked and Ricky sold it in an upright position for nearly ten seconds which was weird. According to Gorilla, the lumberjacks could catch the wrestlers if they so desired, as they flew out. Ricky hit a cross body hope spot and later went into his less than fiery comeback. He gave Honky a slingshot, then a slam, and went up top and hit his karate chop move and pinned him. The only problem was that the ref was being distracted by Jimmy Hart. George Steele came in and made the count and Hart came into the ring. Then, Ricky went after Hart as the ref was distracted by Steele and this led to Honky nailing Steamboat with the megaphone for the win. After the match, all ten or so of the lumberjacks came in and fought and the fans chanted bullshit.

Gorilla Monsoon interviewed the Duke of Dorchester Pete Doherty on his new announcing job in the WWF. Doherty said the WWF has shown smarts and brains for getting someone like him to give color on all the blacks, yellows, and whites inside that ring. I kid you not, he actually said that. Gorilla remembered him as a mad man inside the ring and he wondered if that would carry over into his announcing.

We got a “Superstar” Billy Graham promo about how no one figured he'd walk again much less wrestle but he has survived and he has beat the odds. He said watch out for the bear hug as there is no escape for it.

Gorilla interviewed Butch Reed and Slick. Slick said that if Billy thinks his beating was tough from before, he should go into early retirement now and Reed can take him on. Butch said that there's two things that don't last long in his business: dogs that chase cars and broken down wrestlers. Must be a shot at Matilda with that one.

Gorilla interviewed JYD and George Steele on their match with Demoltion. JYD said the Demos are dangerous but his team has plans of their own. Steele spouted out some jibberish and then grabbed a table as JYD smiled.

“Superstar” Billy Graham v. “The Natural” Butch Reed w/Slick

This was the main reason I bought this show, so I could see Superstar in the Garden in 1987, against Butch Reed, of all people. I thought this was the sell-out show he did but it turns out that was on October 16^th against Reed. I'll have to find that one now. Reed had been criticizing Graham for a while and they even had a posedown in Glens Falls, NY on July 25^th. The match was pretty basic but it was fun if you're a Superstar fan. Graham exploded right at the beginning and went after Slick and knocked him out of the ring. As Graham was fighting Reed near the ropes, Slick handed Reed a foreign object and later, nailed Superstar with it to gain the advantage.

 Reed ripped off Superstar's tie-dyed shirt and choked him with it and targeted Graham's bad hip. Slick even got some cheap shots in. Superstar had several hope spots and he finally got his second wind. He nailed in the bearhug, right in the middle of the ring, only for Slick to jump in and hit Superstar with a cane to the back. Well, Superstar no-sold that one like a beast and went after Slick until Reed nailed him from behind. Graham kept fighting and put the bearhug on again but wouldn't release it this time. Refs and officials tried to stop him but to no avail. Even Gorilla Monsoon came in t try and stop him but he only ended up delivering an elbow to Slick. Finally, the hold was broke and the official decision was a double DQ as Superstar posed a little.

Bearhug

 

 

“Leaping” Lanny Poffo v. Jose Estrada

This was a dreadful match with absolutely no heat except for some boring calls. Poffo read a poem and threw out some signed frisbees, as he came across as the gayest wrestler of the night, especially with his manly mustache and sequined jacket. Maybe he should have had Pat Patterson as a mentor too. Estrada was on top most of the time. When Poffo got him on the ground, Estrada would beg off and nail Poffo with a cheap shot. The third time this happened, Poffo didn't fall for it though. Poffo hit a headscissors and missed his crappy moonsault that is always off the mark. Gorilla was complaining how referee Billy Caputo was talking too much to the wrestlers. Estrada missed a splash in the corner and Poffo then hit a somersault off the top for the win.

Lord Alfred Hayes interview with the Demolition. Smash said they're a major disaster for JYD and Steele tonight. Ax said they were zookeepers tonight and they're going to have to clean house.

Demolition v. JYD/George Steele

Gorilla said this was a gynamic main event. This was short and basic and safe. Steele wanted the Demos to take their masks off.

JYD started off on Ax and Steele got a hold of him and bit him and had makeup all over his face. Steele came in but got distracted and double teamed. Smash hit a clothesline on Steele only for Steele to bite his forearm instead and make the tag to JYD. However, JYD got isolated until a double clothesline spot with Smash. Steele made the tag but the ref didn't see it. Well, Steele didn't care and stayed in anyways, only to get tossed out by Ax and Smash, who proceeded to double team JYD some more. Steele grabbed a chair and brought it in and nailed Ax in the kidney with it and the ref called for the DQ. Afterwards, Steele chased the ref out of the ring. 

Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @stevesgraps for tons more pics that I didn't have room for here.  I'm always looking for followers.  I'm going to start the next episode of Primetime 88 right away and soon I should have some stuff coming in like the October 87 MSG with Reed/Superstar in a cage and some older stuff.  Also, I've got an 89 Philly show with Demolition v. The Powers of Pain to fall back on.  Thanks for reading.

Things That Never Were: Road Warrior Animal and Crush team up in 1992

 My original plans for going over a best of Demolition set have fallen through because the picture quality was actually worse than these pics.  I had a 1977 MSG show planned but that thing isn't working on my PC at all.  So, I really wanted to write about something unique and I decided to finally watch an old 1992 WWF house show where Animal and Crush teamed up against the Beverly Brothers.  This show took place in Germany on September 25, 1992 and Crush had re-debuted as a face in April 1992.  By this point, Hawk was gone from the WWF but Animal and even Paul Ellering remained.  In what appeared to be an experiment, the WWF began pairing Animal and Crush up for several shows in Europe and the States, only house shows though.  Paul Ellering even joined them in a couple six man matches.  Animal would not last long in the WWF after these team-ups though.  Their chemistry wasn't there and often times, Animal looked way better than Crush.  Animal was isolated and he made the hot tag to Crush who was very underwhelming.  This was only supposed to be a temporary thing for the European tour, as Animal wanted his brother Marc to be his new partner.  There was talk of possibly keeping this team going but the plans were nixed.  It's very interesting to see what could have been in pro wrestling.  Sorry that the pics aren't very good but it's the best I could do.  Credit to Dave Meltzer and the WON for the info in the last couple sentences. 

WWF Primetime 2-11-88

We're only a few days removed from the big Andre title win/angle and Bobby Heenan wants to talk about immediately. The only problem is that Jack Tunney has placed a gag order on everyone to not discuss it until further notice. Bobby asked what about America and freedom of speech.

One Man Gang w/Slick v. Hillbilly Jim w/Little Beaver-Taped August 15, 1987 in Boston

This match, technically, was dreadful but the commentary was glorious. Beaver started by biting Slick's ass, stealing his hat, putting it on, and dancing around the ring. Johnny V on commentary said “if you were the Yankees and Beaver was your player to be named later, you'd end up with the short end of the stick.” Alfred Hayes tried to move on but he cracked up a little at that. They both tried to out power one another but they were even until Gang locked in a long headlock, and I mean LONG. Beaver came in and smacked Gang with his shoe in order to get Jim back in the match. Gang wanted a test of strength but Jim kept putting up the opposite arm.  Finally, they locked up and Gang won out and kept on this LONG test of strength. Before the lock, Johnny V asked if they were changing lightbulbs and he also asked “how'd you like Gang to knock on your door at 3AM asking for directions?” Beaver was lurking around the apron and Johnny called him a peeping beaver. The whole match, Beaver was interfering and the ref didn't care one bit. After Jim broke the test of strength with a boot, Gang started gyrating and gesturing like Akeem. 

At one point, Beaver bit Gang's ass in the corner and Alfred was hysterical at this. 

Gang was back on top and him and Slick took turns choking Jim, even with Beaver distracting the ref at one point. Gang hit an elbow drop but Beaver came in and broke the count. Slick then chased him with Jim following and then Gang. Jim punched Slick and Gang clubbed Jim from behind and tossed him into the ring. The ref called for the bell and counted out Gang after Beaver had hit him with a broom. Afterwards, Gang attacked Jim and Beaver and gave the latter a 747 splash and it was well worth it. I could see this match being re-worked on an episode of RAW or something. The heel kept getting the screws put to him but he ended up losing on a fluke. These guys worked a seemingly similar match on August 14, 1987.

Bobby thinks Beaver has found his niche in life, which is getting squashed like a grape. Bobby still wants to talk about the Indianapolis title match and he doesn't like being told what to do as the WWF told him to keep his mouth shut.

George Steele v. Wellington Wilkins-January 26, 1988, Hershey, PA

This was my first time seeing Wilkins and he has a weird haircut with patterns etched in the side of his head. He also has rainbow stripes going up and down his tights. Steele carried a chair to the ring and tossed it in and chased everyone out. Steele went for a turnbuckle but Wilkins attacked him although that was futile. Steele tossed him outside and tried to do it again but Wilkins didn't make it over and Steele just kicked him and tossed him out again. Then, he ripped a turnbuckle pad apart and rammed Wilkins into it, face-first. Steele hit his hammerlock lift for the win and attacked Wilkins afterwards for good measure. Just a squash match here but Steele is fun and Wilkins was strange.

Bobby noticed Dave Hebner was the ref for the last match and he figured he might as well talk about the Indy match and he called someone. He tried talking about it with the person on the phone but Gorilla yanked the phone away.

Craig DeGeorge had an update on WrestleMania IV and gave the date and location. Back in the studio, Bobby said Gorilla might as well just stuff a sock down his throat so he doesn't talk and Gorilla said he was thinking of that. Bobby said doing so would deprive the humanoids of their only pleasure in life which is seeing him and listening to him talk.

Omar Atlas v. Dusty Wolfe-January 25, 1988, MSG

Omar Atlas

This was joined in progress in a Wolfe armbar and everything was dreadfully boring with no heat. Wolfe was on top and Atlas had a couple hope spots. Alfred said Wolfe has great ability but he's lacking that certain something that makes him a star. Bobby said that he needs to go to the Terry Garvin school of self-defense and Vince asked “who is Terry Garvin.” Bobby said he is an old wrestler who breaks talent in and they talked about this for a minute or two. They did some mat wrestling akin to MMA stuff. Atlas was sent into the corner but he leapt to the middle rope and jumped over the incoming Wolfe and hit a back drop. Then, he hit a dropkick but missed a second even though he ended up rolling up Wolfe for the win. These guys had no rhythm and bad timing at times and the match was boring.

Gorilla was upset that Bobby was knocking Alfred, Vince, Atlas, Wolfe, and Terry Garvin during that last month. I'm thinking Garvin would probably have liked Bobby knocking him though. Bobby still wanted to talk about Indy and Gorilla said the gag order would be lifted next week.

Ultimate Warrior v. Hercules-January 27, 1988, Salisbury, MD

Warrior came out, jumped up top, and proceeded to hump the air like a rabbit. This match was about who was stronger and being that this is the WWF, the face will always win out. Hercules wanted a tug of war with his chain that seemed less thick today. Herc kicked him but Warrior grabbed the chain again and yanked it so hard it snapped in half. 

This enraged Hercules as no one messes with his chain and gets away with it. Warrior could have snapped Herc's mama in half and it wouldn't have been the same as his chain. He should've named his chain, especially seeing as how Ron Bass named his whip. Anyways, Herc exploded with a clothesline and choked Warrior with the chain until the ref called for the bell. Then, he pushed a couple refs out of the way and didn't stop his choking until a couple geeks came out to finally stop him, including Steve Lombardi. The Warrior still had enough power to chase him down as his music played. Doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose of Hercules attacking him?

Gorilla reiterated that the gag order would be lifted next week but Heenan said he might want to talk about something else next week.

Scott Casey v. Jose Estrada-January 25, 1988, MSG

Scott Casey

Estrada is the heel in this one. The match was not as boring as the previous jobber match on the show but it wasn't solid either. They started off grappling for a couple minutes until Estrada resorted to an eye poke and a choke to get the advantage. Estrada came off the top with a big right hand and tried to pin him but Casey pressed out hard. Estrada went up to the middle rope but he thought twice as Casey got to his feet and he came down. Casey started work on the arm and he kept trying to pin Jose out of an arm bar with the other arm hooked. Casey hit a big piledriver but wasted a lot of time covering him and Bobby didn't like that. They had some back-and-forth striking until Casey was thrown outside. He tried to get back in but Estrada hit his gut with a headbutt and Casey took his bump ass first to the floor. 

This both frustrated and fired up Casey and he then hit a sunset flip but Estrada kicked out. Casey missed a running crossbody but Estrada missed a neckbreaker which led to Casey winning with a shoulderbreaker. Again, this was loads better than the Atlas/Wolfe match but it wasn't great or anything.

Bobby said Casey hooked the trunks to win the match and then he informed the lady viewers to get ready for Rick Rude.

“Mean” Gene interviewed Mr. Fuji and Demolition. Fuji said 1988 will be his year and that he gets what he wants. Of course, Dibiase said the same thing a couple episodes ago. His team is training harder than ever, ripping through tires, climbing walls, and pushing trucks. Gene thinks they are looking past the team of Ken Patera and Billy Jack Haynes. Smash said the only people they trust are themselves because they are the best. Fuji wants them to break bones, so they do it. They will win the tag belts because Fuji wants it done. Ax said they're having trouble getting opponents because they all know it's a free trip to the hospital. Strike Force has been avoiding them and they don't have to prove anything to anyone except Fuji. Good stuff except Ax kept calling Gene Howard.

Rick Rude v. Jerry Allen-July 25, 1987, MSG

Allen actually gave Rude his first loss in the WWF in New Jersey on July 9, 1987. This was billed as Rude's debut at MSG and it was your typical enhancement match even though Allen got some offense in. Rude started by saying he wanted all the lizard licking men in the arena to keep quiet while he took his robe off so the women could see his beautiful body. They both exchanged shoves and Rude got upset after Allen's shove and went for a clothesline but missed and spilled outside to the floor. Allen was holding his own in the beginning until he went for a crossbody but Rude caught him and hit a nasty backbreaker. Twice Rude had the match won but he got up from the pin attempt. Then, he hit two snap suplexes and went for a third but Allen reversed it. Later, Allen had his comeback with no heat and he hit a monkey flip. When he went for a second flip Rude countered with an inverted atomic drop and then hoisted him up for a backbreaker submission and the win. Rude wore rainbow striped tights similar to Wellington Wilkins in his match.

Gorilla said Rude impressed people just by taking off his robe. Heenan said that many female reporters wanted interviews with Rude. Then, they looked at the Royal Rumble, specifically Dino Bravo's bench press challenge and the Jumping Bomb Angels winning the women's tag titles. Bravo needed a ton of help to get one rep up at 715 lbs from his spotter, Jesse Ventura. Frenchy Martin told Bobby that you don't have to go all the way up for the rep to count.

Craig DeGeorge had Jesse Ventura, Dino Bravo, and Frenchy Martin out for an interview. He thinks the lift at the Rumble was a tag team lift and Jesse replied that Craig doesn't know a thing about weightlifting and that he did a legal spot and didn't grab the bar. Dino said the same and Frenchy said something in French and that's about it.

Bobby said that all you have to do is lift the bar off your chest, even just an inch, for it to count as a legal rep. Of course, he's never lifted heavy stuff at the gym as he'd rather beat people with his mind. After a commercial, he was on the phone with Donald Trump's secretary requesting 2000 tickets for WrestleMania IV. Gorilla mentioned that he did the same thing last year and he stiffed everyone in the process.

Junkyard Dog v. “The Natural” Butch Reed w/Slick-January 27, 1988 Salisbury, MD

Butch Reed and Ryan Stiles

This match wasn't too good and I haven't become a JYD fan from watching this match, that's for sure. His strikes were horrible and some of his bumps were shoddy. Slick started by poking at JYD with his cane in order for Reed to attack him from behind. They exchanged strikes and Reed got punched outside where JYD rammed his shoulder into a post. From there, JYD tried to work on his shoulder but didn't last long. Heenan ran down “Superstar” Billy Graham because he was feuding with Reed at the time. They both sold out MSG at one point actually. They did a double clothesline spot and later a double punch spot but Reed got back up on the offensive both times. Reed had some offense like a swinging neckbreaker and even a piledriver but he couldn't put JYD away.

 Reed missed a double ax handle off the top and JYD had his comeback with his headbutts and strikes. Slick got up on the apron and JYD went right for him as the ref tried to get between them. Reed had the cane and nailed JYD with it several times while the ref was busy with Slick. This prompted Don Muraco to make the save but the ref saw him attacking Reed and called for the bell. He awarded the match to Reed by DQ. Gorilla said that this pairing could be a main event anywhere in the world. Did he realize Butch Reed was in the match at all?

Bobby wasn't sure how the cane got in the ring and Gorilla said that it must have walked in on it's own. To end the show, Bobby walked off the set as Gorilla was hyping next week's show about the Indy show. Turns out that Bobby took over the director's booth and said “I outsmarted you dummy” and laughed like a villain in a Bond movie. He started to talk about Indy and Gorilla called for the director to cut his mic and they did.

Not the best episode, especially with the matches and the lack of star power. It was great when Bobby took over the booth and he really felt he was in control until Gorilla killed him, as always.

I'll probably update with the next episode the week after next week.  I want to start work on a Demolition set I got a few months back and an old 1977 MSG WWWF show.  I figure I'll do the Demos set a few matches at a time.  As always, be sure to leave me comments and follow me on Twitter @stevesgraps for more pics.

Thanks

WWF Primetime 2-1-1988

We've got Bobby and Vince McMahon this week. There was no show last week, from what I can tell. They both begin by hyping the Andre/Hulk match later on in the week. Bobby said signing for the match was Hulk's biggest mistake in his career and that Hulkamania will be dead.

Magnificent Muraco v. Sika w/Mr. Fuji-Taped October 16, 1987 in MSG

Very jacked

This looks to be a repeat from an All-American show in November 1987. Boy was this match awful and boring. Muraco began by working on the legs with stuff like a step-over toe hold. Gorilla and Bockwinkel started talking about why Fuji now wears paint. Gorilla asked Nick if he'd buy a used car from Fuji. Nick responded by saying the real question was whether he'd buy a car from Gorilla and he doesn't even wear face paint and Gorilla replied that he didn't sell used cars. Sika was then in control and Muraco ended up outside with the samoan not letting him get back in the ring but Muraco kept fighting to get in there. Finally, he got back in with no heat and Sika went for a move in the corner but missed. Then, Muraco climbed up top, put his knee in Sika's face, and jumped off, driving his knee into Sika's face for the win. Very boring match and even the crowd thought that way.

Bobby said he didn't like Muraco's recent new attitude and he now caters to all the humanoids. Vince said he thought he wasn't doing too bad and then went on about Muraco's vascularity and his muscles. He also wondered what Bobby would look like in the gym.

Koko B. Ware v. “King” Harley Race-From September 20, 1987 in Toronto Canada

This was a really good match that was back and forth. Race tried to make Koko look like a fighter and he succeeded. Bobby Heenan began by asking everyone to stand up and bow for Race. After Race's entrance, Koko came out and acted like Frankie was going to attack Bobby. Heenan replied on commentary that Frankie was going to end up in a bag of shake and bake. Gorilla then asked Bobby how do weasels get along with parrots. Koko exploded early with a crossbody and a nice dropkick. Heenan said that the hardest five years in Koko's life was the third grade. Both guys tried headbutts on one another and neither one worked as they dueled. Then, Koko just punched Race in the nose and that worked. Koko got in another dropkick before being stopped by a Race headbutt. The King started working on the lower back with a belly-to-belly suplex and a double underhook suplex. Throughout this whole match, Bobby kept emphasizing for Harley to “get the bird.” Race hit a piledriver but only got a two. Heenan said Frankie looked like Sir Oliver Humperdink. Koko was thrown out on the ramp but Race missed a headbutt and landed on the wood. Koko got in a slam before Race nailed him with a suplex that looked like he landed on his head.

 Koko began crawling back into the ring and Bobby said finally Koko was showing proper respect to The King by bowing. Koko had a hope spot but both guys ended up colliding and Race went down ass first. 

Ass first

Race then hit a neckbreaker and tried for a middle rope headbutt but failed. Bobby warned him about using that move but he didn't listen. Koko couldn't stay in control and he ended getting smashed into the ring bell outside. Bobby kept asking Gorilla to hand him the bell hammer. Race tried to ram Koko into the post but he reversed it and Bobby complained that Koko should have been disqualified. Koko was on fire and Race got tied up in the ropes. After two other diving strikes, Koko missed on a third attempt. Race was in control until they both hit clotheslines at the same time. Koko exploded for a little but couldn't stay in control. They then both hit small packages but both were nearfalls. Koko was thrown out for like the third time and Race nailed him in the throat with the mic. They both got back in but the bell was rung as the time limit expired and the match was ruled a draw. Afterwards, Race threatened to go after Frankie. This was a fantastic match and I would recommend to watch it if you can. It doesn't appear that these guys ever had a rematch or any other match together. 

Bobby talked about how he and Donny Trump were tight as Vince hyped WrestleMania IV and the title match this Friday. Ted Dibiase was announced as being in Andre's corner.

Craig DeGeorge had an update on the upcoming card on Friday with the WWF Title Match. Strike Force will face the former WWF Tag Champs The Hart Foundation and Honky Tonk Man defends the IC belt against Randy Savage. They showed clips of the angle where Honky was about to hit Savage with the guitar and he threw down Elizabeth. They also showed another replay of Andre attacking Hulk from SNME. We got a Dibiase interview about how he always gets what he wants and Andre said he would make Ted happy and deliver him the WWF Title.

Vince and Bobby talked the upcoming Honky/Savage bout and Bobby said Honky has been dominant but Vince predicted Savage would win the belt. For the tag title match, Bobby said in the match where the Strike Force won the belts, when Jim Neidhart was in the Boston Crab, he told Bobby he didn't give up. He said the ref asked him if the hold hurt and he said yes but he didn't submit. Vince was shocked at that statement. Then, Bobby said Neidhart would never submit to the Boston Crab of Lucky Pierre (Rick Martel) with his partner La Bamba (Tito Santana). They also showed a video asking several fans who would win on Friday.

Billy Jack Haynes v. “Outlaw” Ron Bass-Taped June 28, 1987 in Toronto

This might be a repeat from a July 1987 TV. This match was dull anyways. It was joined in progress as Haynes had Bass in a headlock. The fans were chanting “basshole” at Ron. Bass went after Miss Betsy, his whip, and threatened to attack Haynes with it. Bass ended up exploding out of the corner shortly thereafter with a clothesline and he got control. He threw Haynes into the rope twice, which was unique. They weren't Irish Whips but he was using the ropes as weapons. I've never seen that before. Bass kept asking Bobby at ringside “how's that Bobby.” Haynes fought back and tried his full nelson but Bass got to the rope and then jammed his fist into the throat of Billy Jack. Then, Bass got Miss Betsy, brought her into the ring, and began choking Haynes with it. The ref tried to stop him but he got shoved down twice and the bell was rung and Bass was DQ'ed. Billy did fight back and Gorilla said he was glad Bass wasn't at the Alamo and Bobby asked why. This wasn't nearly as bad as the Muraco match but it still wasn't pretty.

Bobby wants to talk about Bad News Brown as he said he's a talent and he needs a manager.

Bad News Brown v. Brady Boone-Taped in Huntsville, AL on January 5, 1988

This was just a squash match towards Bad News as Boone got no offense in. Vince said his father was born in Harlem. Brown gave some comments during the match saying that he takes no prisoners and gives no mercy. He won with an impaling clothesline and he chucked Boone outside afterwards.

Craig DeGeorge interviewed Hulk Hogan. Hulk said that everyone knows he would never sell out to Dibiase. He also said that everyone knows that Andre had his price when he sold out to Bobby Heenan before WrestleMania III. 

Craig: Look at those ladies over there Hulk
Hulk: They've got nothing on Brutus

Hogan said he wanted the rematch bad because of the controversial count at Mania III where Andre almost won the WWF Title. Ted Dibiase is putting all his money on Andre but Hulk is taking all his assets and spreading them out all over the world as a long range investment. The bottom might just fall out for Andre and Dibiase.

We're back with an update on Matilda to which Bobby doesn't care about. The Bulldogs gave an update on her saying she was doing better but that she still isn't responding to the vet's treatment as they would like. They've read all of the get-well cards to Matilda that have been sent out and she wags her tail hearing each one. Yea, Dynamite was really reading a dog some get-well cards and I'm going to be the next CEO of the WWE.

Bobby went on a huge rant about how he hates dogs. He said the people writing to Matilda are morons. Dog owners have a lower IQ because they talk to them and buy them dog food but they never share their prime rib when they are eating. They also have kitties who are independent don't like people and neither do dogs.

A video was shown of the Andre/Hulk contract signing and Andre attacked Hulk and smashed his head into the table.  Also, apparently it'll be Rip going against Andre on Friday.

Honky Tonk Man v. Ricky Steamboat-IC Title Match, Lumberjack Rules-Taped in MSG on August 27, 1987

This was an ok match and Ricky was pretty over. George Steele started by trying to pump up the crowd by pounding on the mat. Honky attacked Steamboat and threw him out but Ricky skinned the cat. Then, he dropkicked Honky and threw him over the top three times, and each time Honky was tossed back in. Jimmy Hart went on commentary and said there was a conspiracy against Honky tonight because he kept getting thrown back in by the faces. Steamboat was on top for a little bit and he smashed Honky's head into two turnbuckles, ten times each as the crowd counted along. Lord Alfred Hayes still referred to the Hart Foundation as the tag champs. Honky gained control and the Islanders tripped up Steamboat and then Steele tripped Honky followed by a quick roll-up for Ricky. Steamboat hit a back suplex then tried a monkey flip but it was blocked and Ricky sold it in an upright position for nearly ten seconds which was weird. 

According to Gorilla, the lumberjacks could catch the wrestlers if they so desired, as they flew out. Ricky hit a cross body hope spot and later went into his less than fiery comeback. He gave Honky a slingshot, then a slam, and went up top and hit his karate chop move and pinned him. The only problem was that the ref was being distracted by Jimmy Hart. George Steele came in and made the count and Hart came into the ring. Then, Ricky went after Hart as the ref was distracted by Steele and this led to Honky nailing Steamboat with the megaphone for the win. After the match, all ten or so of the lumberjacks came in and fought and the fans chanted bullshit.

Vince questioned Honky being called the greatest IC Champ ever and Bobby said it didn't matter how you win as long as you go home with the gold. On Friday, Honky will go home with the gold and Liz, at least that's what Honky told Heenan. Then, Bobby wanted to bet Vince dinner that Andre would win the match with Hulk. McMahon was appalled at the idea of going to dinner with Heenan. They also showed another Dibiase/Andre promo, similar to the one shown earlier.

Bobby asked Vince which dressing room he was going to be in after the match on Friday. Would it be Andre's, with champagne popping and media journalists everywhere? Or would it be Hogan's, where he could watch a grown man cry. Then, Vince asked Bobby if his tie was paper mache.

 As always, check my Twitter @stevesgraps for more photos that I didn't have room for here.  I'll be back soon for the next episode and maybe a 1977 MSG show I found recently.  Take care and keep Matilda in your hearts forever.