In one of the strangest REAL moments in Pro Wrestling history, a drunken André showed what happens when you don't want to cooperate with your opponent. Andre the Giant vs. Akira Maeda - The match that turned in to a shoot. [thread] 🧵
André's opponent, Akira Maeda, was a true tough guy. Akira would often compete in worked MMA styled bouts. (This was in 1986; long before MMA became popular.)
In Japan, pro wrestling can be taken seriously. At the time, "American style" pro wrestling was considered a lesser form of entertainment.
#OnThisDay in 1987: Big Van Vader made his NJPW debut by virtually killing Antonio Inoki dead, defeating him in three mins.
Fans at Sumo Hall were NOT HAPPY. They rioted. As a result, New Japan was banned from running events in Sumo Hall for over a year. [mini thread] 🧵
And yet when he was in AWA they wouldn't let him beat Greg Gagne. This shows how NJPW were forward thinking about creating a new monster heel, where, AWA weren't, and thus eventually died.
Leon White wasn't the first choice for the Vader gimmick. That was Sid Vicious. He wasn't their second choice either; that was the Ultimate Warrior. Leon was actually set to debut for New Japan rival All Japan, but NJPW worked out a deal and snatched him away for themselves
Today would’ve been the 71st birthday of Randy Mario Poffo, best known to wrestling fans as Randy "Macho Man" Savage. [Thread] 🧵
Born in Columbus, Ohio to an Italian-American father in Angelo and Jewish mother in Judy, Poffo had athletics in his family: his father was a well-known wrestler in the 1950s and 1960s and was featured on Ripley's Believe it or Not! for his ability to do lots and lots of situps.
Randy was in the St. Louis Cardinals' minor league system for four seasons. In between his third and fourth seasons in baseball, Poffo wrestled, breaking into the business in 1973 as "The Spider", based off the popular comic book character Spider-Man.
THE QUESTION: WHAT IS THE BASIC APPEAL BEHIND PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING?
Answers are from 1955: 🧵
SHELDON TANNEN, New York
Restaurateur
"Pro wrestling is a hippodrome, with the grunts and groans of the wrestlers and the shrieks of the spectators to give it stark reality. It's a great show that fascinates its fans, rough enough to seem authentic and funny enough to amuse....."
".... It's comedy and drama, with the laughs following hysteria."
Ways that Vince McMahon killed the US territories [thread]
Went to St. Louis and literally bought the long-time timeslot for St. Louis Wrestling, Wrestling at the Chase, away from the local office. Then ran shows directly against the flagship NWA promotion and almost literally put the first nail in the coffin of the St. Louis office.
Went to Georgia, and did a hostile takeover of Georgia Championship Wrestling, firing Ole Anderson and most of the regulars and bringing in his own guys from up north.