Wrestling Observer Rewinder

November 18, 1996

Curt Hennig is the latest wrestler who's expected to jump ship from WWF to WCW. Hennig met with Eric Bischoff last week and reportedly agreed to a deal that will have Hennig return as an active wrestler. When WWF learned of this, they sent WCW a threatening legal letter because they were under the impression that Hennig was planning to make a surprise appearance on this week's Nitro episode and WWF says Hennig is still under contract to them. There's no word on how much longer Hennig's contract has but as far as Dave knows, the plan isn't for Hennig to show up in WCW until February. Hennig didn't appear as advertised on Livewire this week and also was absent from his usual commentary role on Superstars so it looks as though WWF may have pulled him off TV now that they know he's leaving. Hennig is 38 and has been collecting on a disability insurance policy for years and hasn't done much wrestling since suffering a back injury in 1991. It's surprising that he would get back in the ring because he's spoken in interviews about how he doesn't want to aggravate old injuries and risk being broken down and crippled later in life. Hennig is reportedly in great financial shape so he doesn't need the money. If he goes to WCW, he won't be able to use the name Mr. Perfect, since WWF owns the name (this story gets nasty pretty soon).
Reaction to last week's Steve Austin/Brian Pillman gun angle has been mixed. Some reaction has been extremely positive, with some calling it the most compelling hour of wrestling television ever (although in the segment-by-segment numbers, the Raw rating actually dropped so it couldn't have been that compelling since people were switching over to WCW during the end of it). Others were offended, with some even calling on the USA Network to cancel Raw. USA responded by distancing themselves from the angle and issuing an apology and promising nothing like it would ever happen again. WWF initially only apologized for the language used (which was a shoot, Pillman and Austin just got carried away and dropped some words that they shouldn't have on live TV) but they didn't apologize for the angle itself. Later, on Livewire, Vince McMahon appeared and apologized for the angle after a week of taking heat from USA over it. Austin and Pillman also called in, with Pillman apologizing for his language. After spending a week airing it repeatedly on all their syndicated shows (which shows they weren't really that sorry), WWF finally promised that the footage would never appear on WWF TV again and on Raw, they barely acknowledged it. In replay showings during the week, they blurred the gun out.
[WATCH: WWF Livewire Apology Full Episode] (http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2vwdd6)
The angle and apology has drawn comparisons to the recent ECW crucifixion angle, which Raven later was forced to apologize for after it offended Kurt Angle. The difference is ECW apologized and then buried the footage and never mentioned it again, whereas WWF milked their insincere apologies for a week while repeatedly showing the footage. Dave also takes a look at weapons in wrestling and talks about an FMW show he attended in 1995. The main event of that show saw both guys using hatchets, fireballs, baseball bats, barbed wire, hedge clippers, and even a jagged edged machete to cut each other up. No, they didn't use a gun, but it was more violent than anything ECW or WWF will ever do. Several years ago, Harley Race used a taser on Cactus Jack and last year when the Outsiders came to the ring with baseball bats, the police flooded the ring with their hands on their guns. Dave just isn't really sure where the line should be drawn about what's acceptable and what isn't. Dave thinks the angle was an act of desperation on WWF's part, but he doesn't think it was any worse than burying someone alive or someone falling off the roof of an arena (Halloween Havoc 95). Or the decades of racist and xenophobic angles. Hell, the gun angle was milder than the commercials for Silk Stalkings that air during Raw.
A few final notes on the Pillman gun angle: Vince McMahon and Bruce Prichard flew to Pillman's home earlier in the week to plan it all out and USA was informed of everything the whole time. USA nixed 2 parts of the plan. They initially wanted Pillman's wife to take some sort of bump, but USA shot that down and they also wanted Pillman to fire 2 shots before the satellite cut out, but USA nixed that also. The plan was for the angle to be taped in advance and then edited into the live Raw show, but for some reason plans were changed and they ended up filming it live (which is why Pillman dropping F-bombs managed to air). So the idea that USA was shocked and appalled about the angle is bunk. They were involved the whole time.
WWF recently sent a memo to all its wrestlers regarding changes in the drug testing policy. The memo says:
This memo is to advise of certain changes in our drug collection and testing efforts, and to reiterate our position on the use of illegal and performance enhancing drugs. As each of you know, the Company instituted systematic drug testing years ago on a group basis. Additionally, the standard talent contracts contain provisions strictly prohibiting the use of illegal and performance enhancing drugs which subject any offender to termination of their contract.
As a result of our drug testing program, the incidence of use of illegal and performance enhancing drugs is so slight that group testing is no longer cost effective or necessary. Thus, we are, effective immediately, suspending drug collection and testing on a group basis. In doing so, we wish to reiterate that the strict prohibition against use of such drugs remains our policy and that any person caught violating our policy will be dealt with strictly. Additionally, we reserve the right to test any individual, at any time, for the use of illegal substances. If any individual tests positive for any prohibited substance, appropriate sanctions up to and including termination may be imposed.
So...WWF is effectively ending their drug testing. Dave is willing to give them the benefit of the doubt to be fair, but says it would be stupid not to at least be skeptical. Dave recaps WWF's long history of drug issues, from cocaine in the 80s, the Dr. Zahorian trial and the steroid scandal of the early 90s, up to Vince McMahon's trial and acquittal in 1994. The cocaine and steroid eras are mostly over. Nowadays, the big problem in wrestling is prescription painkillers. This official change in policy is just a formality, since WWF pretty much stopped drug testing nearly a year ago. The only person who failed a WWF drug test in 1996 was Scott Hall (for marijuana), who coincidentally (or perhaps not) got busted the same day he gave notice that he was leaving for WCW. It's questionable that WWF recently hired former bodybuilder Achim Albrecht (who's physique is obviously not natural) around the same time they stopped drug testing. But if WWF stops drug testing, they won't be the only ones not doing it. USWA can't afford it. ECW may be able to afford it, but Paul Heyman doesn't do it and has openly said that whatever his guys do during their own time is their business, as long as they're okay to perform when it's time to be in the ring. The only testing NJPW does is for HIV, no drugs. And of course, WCW has notoriously been lax on testing. Even UFC doesn't test specifically for steroids. WWF was really the only ones doing it in the first place. That being said, WWF is the industry leader in things like this and steroid use as a whole is down throughout the entire industry. But if WWF starts rewarding guys for being juiced up again, then it's likely that the steroid era of the 80s will come roaring back. Only time will tell.
Dave opens the voting for the 1995 year-end awards. Same as always, except Dave does note that the business is changing and the line between "heels" and "babyfaces" is blurring more and more lately. The portrayals of "good vs. evil" don't always apply anymore when some heels are more accepted by fans than the babyfaces are. But for now, the categories for heel and babyface stay.
La Parka has jumped ship from AAA to Promo Azteca. La Parka was AAA's 2nd biggest star (behind Perro Aguayo) and probably the most important wrestler in the company long-term, since he's still young and has a long future ahead of him, while Aguayo is in his 50s. AAA had previously made a deal with WWF and on AAA TV this week, they gave La Parka a big push and announced he would be in the WWF Royal Rumble in January but that's obviously not happening now. La Parka worked a dark match on WCW Nitro and with the Promo Azteca/WCW deal, he's most certainly headed there instead. There may be some trouble there though, as AAA president Antonio Pena reportedly owns the La Parka gimmick (yeah this eventually turns into a mess. Also, while I'm at it, I would mark out so hard if we got a random La Parka appearance in the Rumble some year).
AAA's working agreement with WWF seems to be their attempt to strike back at the WCW/Promo Azteca agreement. Pena is scheduled to meet with Vince McMahon soon to work out the details (Rumble 97 pretty much ends up being a joint WWF/AAA show).
Atsushi Onita held a press conference to announce that he is coming out of retirement for the Dec. 11th FMW show to face Mr. Pogo in what will be Mr. Pogo's retirement match. Pogo had planned to retire later in 1997, but the injuries he suffered a few months back in a match with Terry Funk pretty much spelled the end of his career before he was ready (none of this ended up happening. Pogo and Onita ended up teaming up on that show. Then Pogo took about 7 months off before jumping to BJW and wrestling a full schedule for a year or so, before finally going part-time and continuing to wrestle periodically all the way until 2012. As for Onita, he still wrestles death matches to this day, pretty much full-time).
Goldust, fake Diesel, and fake Razor Ramon are all scheduled to work the next USWA show. Speaking of, the local Memphis channel WMC-TV that airs USWA has banned blood on the show.
ECW is planning to build to a major show in February, which may end up being their first PPV. They want to do it on a weekend without a WWF or WCW PPV, which means Feb. 28th would be the best possible date, although it's possible that still may be too soon and Heyman may decide to push it back (ended up being in April but we'll get there). In the meantime, they're starting an angle that will eventually bring Terry Funk back to the company.
WCW injury report: Ric Flair should be back in about 4 months after his recent surgery. Jeff Jarrett's ankle injury wasn't as bad as expected as he's already back in the ring.
On Nitro, they keep hyping that the NWO will be doing some sort of angle at the upcoming Cable Ace Awards show. Dave doesn't have any details or info (what a disappointment this turns out to be).
The Sting storyline is apparently going to continue for awhile because they taped upcoming several episodes of the weekend TV shows and Sting was still doing his silent, brooding "Marcel Marceau gimmick" and those shows will be airing in late December so he'll at least still be doing the gimmick until then (and, for like, another year).
Dave's take on the Sullivan/Benoit feud: "Judging from the interviews, I guess the idea of the Sullivan-Benoit feud is that Sullivan and Woman had a past, but not a present and that Benoit and Woman have a present." Boy, I'll say.
Hulk Hogan appeared on Regis & Kathy Lee, wearing an NWO shirt, to promote Santa With Muscles. Hogan said he plays a bad guy on TV but he's still the same good guy he's always been. As for Santa With Muscles, it's getting terrible reviews and it died in its opening weekend (only $120,000 opening weekend).
WWF's new planned ECW-like late night show is tentatively being called Shotgun Saturday Night and is scheduled to start on Jan. 4th. The idea is for it to be a live one hour show starting at midnight on Saturday night and to syndicate it in the NYC area rather than have it be a national show although they may try to syndicate it in other markets later. The plan is to tape the show in night clubs in New York instead of small arenas.
No word on who the mystery partner will be for the Yokozuna/Flash Funk/Savio Vega team at Survivor Series. Some have speculated Ahmed Johnson but he's not medically ready yet. Other rumors were Ultimate Warrior but he's got a lawsuit pending against WWF so it won't be him either. All Dave knows is that it's going to be someone who isn't currently in the WWF (ended up being Jimmy Snuka).
The latest on the WWF/ECW angle is that WWF may be planning to name its December tour the "Holiday Hell" tour which is the same name ECW has used for years. This would lead to a fake lawsuit angle between the 2 companies (didn't happen).
The decision to move Raw up 1 hour was made by USA Network, not WWF. In fact, USA only gave WWF about 9-10 days notice about the time change, and it was a last minute decision because Raw has been doing so bad in the ratings and they wanted to make a quick change in time for November sweeps.
Speaking of, on the WCW Hotline, they claimed that USA threatened WWF to improve their Raw ratings or they would bump the show to midnight. WWF says that never happened and they have added this claim to their ongoing lawsuit against WCW. Dave says that until all the lawsuit stuff is settled, the WCW Hotline guys should probably STFU.
Mark Henry's broken leg is expected to keep him out for 4-6 weeks (he ended up being out for a year).
When Steve Austin was flying back home to Atlanta from Cincinnati, where the Brian Pillman gun angle was filmed, Austin ended up on a plane with almost the entire WCW crew who were flying back from Detroit and ended up on the same connecting flight in Cincy.
During commentary on Superstars, Jim Cornette told a rather unfortunate joke, saying a burglar broke into Sable's house and she screamed "Rape!" and the burglar replied, "No." A few minutes later (presumably after Vince had finished screaming into their headsets), Jim Ross apologized for the joke on behalf of WWF and Cornette gave a very sarcastic apology also, saying he'd never want to offend anyone.
Mankind and Executioner (Terry Gordy) are being put together as a tag team.
Shawn Michaels was on Regis & Kathy Lee last week hyping Survivor Series (can't find video).
Someone writes in and says WWF's clearly the better product than WCW, but being taped hurts them. He says WWF's only hope will be to go live every Monday night. He thinks the internet and newsletters that reveal the results ahead of time and are killing Raw. Dave responds and doesn't buy it, saying probably only 2-3% of Raw's viewers are internet/newsletter readers so he doesn't think Raw is being spoiled that much for people. Plus, they run 1 live show every few weeks and the ratings don't do any better on those either. "By being part of the so-called hardcore community, we get the feeling that we're the average viewer, and we're not."