WWF - 1985-1993 has to be my favorite years of professional wrestling. In that time period, pay-per-view and closed circuit broadcasts brought us the first Wrestlemania, SummerSlam, Survivor Series and the Royal Rumble, we had the Saturday Night's Main Event, and those wonderful LJN wrestling superstar action figures and the Sling'em Fling'em ring. And the video games for NES, SNES and Sega that I still play.
Not to mention all of the characters that made wrestling what it is today.... Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, Big John Studd, the Ultimate Warrior, Brutus "the Barber" Beefcake, Randy Savage, Ric Flair, The Undertaker (in Grey's) Ted DiBiase w/ Virgil, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby "the Brain" Heenan, Jake "the Snake" Roberts, Ric Rude, Mr. Perfect, Ric "the Model" Martel Demolition, Legion of Doom, Big Boss Man and who could forget the managers.
For me, after Wrestlemania 9 at Ceasar's Palace, was when pro wrestling lost it's juice. Yea, it was still fun to watch after that, but the characters weren't even close to what they were less than a year before. I'd have to say Royal Rumble 1992 has to be one of my favorite pro wrestling event's ever.... and Wrestlemania 9 has to be one of the worst event's the WWF/E has ever produced.
I grew up in the Attitude era. Started watching wrestling around 1998 (first started watching WCW) around age 11 and then shortly after started watching Stone Cold in the WWF. At the time I started studying the history of pro wrestling. I didn't keep up with wrestling as much as I would have liked to as a kid and really wish I would have. I actually wish I was born a few years earlier, I would have LOVED to grow up during the era of Hogan, Andre, Piper, etc.
My personal favorite to watch was when WCW had the "cruiser-weight" division (Eddie, Jericho, Benoit, Malenko, etc...), ECW had Shane Douglas, Taz, Sabu, etc...
I have to agree with LWC. I also liked the old WWF. WWE Now just seems too boring. I don't even watch smackdown anymore
I'm surprised no body else has mentioned the late 80's-early 90's....... Am I the only one who said my prayers, took my vitamins, did my homework, was true to myself and true to my country....... Cause I'm a real American.
lol
Pulp Fiction Wrote:WWF - 1985-1993 has to be my favorite years of professional wrestling. In that time period, pay-per-view and closed circuit broadcasts brought us the first Wrestlemania, SummerSlam, Survivor Series and the Royal Rumble, we had the Saturday Night's Main Event, and those wonderful LJN wrestling superstar action figures and the Sling'em Fling'em ring. And the video games for NES, SNES and Sega that I still play.
Not to mention all of the characters that made wrestling what it is today.... Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, Big John Studd, the Ultimate Warrior, Brutus "the Barber" Beefcake, Randy Savage, Ric Flair, The Undertaker (in Grey's) Ted DiBiase w/ Virgil, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby "the Brain" Heenan, Jake "the Snake" Roberts, Ric Rude, Mr. Perfect, Ric "the Model" Martel Demolition, Legion of Doom, Big Boss Man and who could forget the managers.
For me, after Wrestlemania 9 at Ceasar's Palace, was when pro wrestling lost it's juice. Yea, it was still fun to watch after that, but the characters weren't even close to what they were less than a year before. I'd have to say Royal Rumble 1992 has to be one of my favorite pro wrestling event's ever.... and Wrestlemania 9 has to be one of the worst event's the WWF/E has ever produced.
I agree with you Pulp Fiction. This was by far my favorite era of wrestling, but I always liked NWA a little more than WWF. My favorite wrestler was Mach Man, but I loved the Horseman too. I loved the fueds Dusty, the Rock n Roll Express, Mid Night Express, the Road Warriors, Magnium TA, Warlord, etc had.
I would have to say my first would be G.C.W. Georgia Championship Wrestling:
Big stars who came in and out of Georgia Championship Wrestling included
Bob and
Brad Armstrong,
Dusty Rhodes ("The American Dream"), the
Road Warriors,
Jerry Oates,
Jake "The Snake" Roberts,
Killer Karl Kox,
Larry Zbyszko,
The Masked Superstar,
Mr. Wrestling II,
Ole Anderson,
Stan Hansen,
Ricky Steamboat,
Steve Keirn,
Ronnie Garvin,
Ted DiBiase (later known as "The Million Dollar Man" in the WWF),
Tommy Rich,
Rick Martel,
Wahoo McDaniel and
Ric "The Nature Boy" Flair.
I grew up watching this at my grandpa's every Saturday! Those were some great memories!
Im with you Pulp, that was my favorite era. The one event that always sticks out in my mind is Survivor Series 93 with Luger, The Steiners, and Undertaker.
NWA 1984-1989.The WWF had the better "Show". But the NWA had the better wrestling. Jim Cornette put it best "At that time The NWA was an entertaining sport, while the WWF was sports entertainment" And there is a difference. Vince Mcmahon has KILLED wrestiling! A distant second would be WCW during the NWO era '96-'98.
1965-1980 would be the best years! It started out with wrestling from Cobo arena in the 60's with wrestlers like the Sheik,Bobo Brazil,Wild bull Curry. You also had Mid-Atlantic Championship wrestling form the North Carolina the Brisco brothers Mr. Wrestling George and Sandy Scott,Paul Jones the Andersons. Then in the 70's wrestling from Memphis was the hot spot to watch Jerry Lawler, Bill Dundee, Austin Idol, Jim Cornett, Jimmy Hart , just to name a few. Georgia Championship at 6:05 saturday evening was a great show. ICW wrestling was very wild and fun to watch. Macho Man Bob Orton Jr. Ronnie Garvin, Lanny Poffo One Man Gang,Bob Roup when you watched this show you never knew what was going to happen. If you watched these shows you know what I'm talking about.
If I could have been born just ten years earlier lol...
The 80's was such an awesome era...you had WWF with Hogan, Andre, and all those guys, and then somebody mentioned WCW (or NWA, whatever it was called back then). I forgot about that. There were so many classic matches from that era. Guys like Ric Flair would go out and put on a 60 minute match probably 2 - 3 times per week at least. That was good, classic wrestling. Although it wasn't as popular as WWF at the time, it still was awesome.
I can't pick a favorite, no different than I could pick my favorite era of marriage. Each era was great to me for different reasons.
I'll post the era's and how they meant to me as time permits
Late 78-82
In the late 70's, early 80's I got to go to the Cincinnati Gardens and sit in the front row when the NWA's Mid Atlantic Wrestling and the WWF came to town. My best friends dad ran the lighting at CG and we got to mark out every couple of months. Being up close and personal to Ric Flair, Magnum TA, Wahoo McDaniel, Rock & Roll Express seemed more enjoyable to me at the time than seeing guys like Bob Backland, Wild Samoans, Big John Studd. Living in the Cincinnati area, the only consistent show that I got to watch was TBS broadcasts of Mid Atlantic wrestling. Since I got to watch that the best, I knew the crew better than any other. Since television was the means of advertising events, I learned to love the voice of a man who was the son of a Plumber. He took beatings on a weekly basis, and I was crushed when I couldn't watch him work anymore because the hated Four Horsemen broke his leg in a parking lot. I could not wait for the American Dream Dusty Rhodes to come back and get his revenge.
I knew of AWA through wrestling magazines like Pro Wrestling illustrated and Wrestling Insider. I loved reading what I believed as "real stories" of guys like Nick Bockwinkel, Hulk Hogan, Jerry Lawler. My favorites stories were about the Managers such as the Grand Wizard, Freddie Blassie, Bobby Heenan, Jerry Valiant (who I really beleived was the brother of Handsome Jimmy Valiant as they advertised).
This was my beginning era in wrestling and it was the only era that I was truly 100% a Mark of the profession. This was my innocent period, and just like our childhood, I certainly appreciate those days as much as any period in my life. Wrestling was complete fun to get completely and emotionally wrapped up in what was happening.
So, this was my FIRST favorite era!
Definitely the mid 90s to 2000 for me.
Ive all but quit watching since the early 2000's.
I loved the day when we had goldberg, nwo, the undertaker was real, the wcw/wwf wars, the rock, stonecold.
I haven't watched pro wrestling since October '99.... When I started wrestling in high school, I gave up the "pro wrestling".
But anyways, the point I want to make with this post is how much more believable and realistic pro wrestling was back in the mid 80's to early 90's. I have this discussion pretty regularly with some of friends that watch pro wrestling now-a-days.
John Cena, The Miz, Chris Jerico or any other of the main eventer's today wouldn't even be on the same card as the main eventer's of the mid 80's to early 90's. The TV shows for today's wrestling are not even close to what we had back then on Saturday mornings.
The storylines back then were developed over several months if not years. Getting to see the headliners on a Saturday morning show as a youngster made your week.
Pulp Fiction Wrote:I haven't watched pro wrestling since October '99.... When I started wrestling in high school, I gave up the "pro wrestling".
But anyways, the point I want to make with this post is how much more believable and realistic pro wrestling was back in the mid 80's to early 90's. I have this discussion pretty regularly with some of friends that watch pro wrestling now-a-days.
John Cena, The Miz, Chris Jerico or any other of the main eventer's today wouldn't even be on the same card as the main eventer's of the mid 80's to early 90's. The TV shows for today's wrestling are not even close to what we had back then on Saturday mornings.
The storylines back then were developed over several months if not years. Getting to see the headliners on a Saturday morning show as a youngster made your week.
I'm not so sure. You are discounting that John Cena as of last November was 2nd only to Stone Cold all-time in merchandising. Main Event guys are based 100% on popularity, not ability!
Stardust Wrote:I'm not so sure. You are discounting that John Cena as of last November was 2nd only to Stone Cold all-time in merchandising. Main Event guys are based 100% on popularity, not ability!
I don't doubt that.... But let's be real, had Hogan, Andre the Giant, Macho Man, The Ultimate Warrior been around today with the internet, toy stores, and as many events and TV shows as the WWE does now-a-days, there is no question Cena wouldn't be in the top 10 of merchandising. Hogan is a terrible wrestler, my granny could do a better leg drop than him. Be he is without a doubt the most popular pro wrestler of all time.
And could you really see the main event of Wrestlemania 3 being John Cena vs. Andre the Giant?
Pulp Fiction Wrote:I don't doubt that.... But let's be real, had Hogan, Andre the Giant, Macho Man, The Ultimate Warrior been around today with the internet, toy stores, and as many events and TV shows as the WWE does now-a-days, there is no question Cena wouldn't be in the top 10 of merchandising. Hogan is a terrible wrestler, my granny could do a better leg drop than him. Be he is without a doubt the most popular pro wrestler of all time.
And could you really see the main event of Wrestlemania 3 being John Cena vs. Andre the Giant?
Only argument that I have would be that Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant were anomalies of there time. How many guys in the business now are 6-7 305? Hogan was so much bigger than everyone that people were in awe that a guy that big could actually have a muscular body. Now Hogan would look normal. We now have guys over 300 pounds that have RIPPED muscular bodies. As for Andre, we never saw anyone 7-0 tall before. There was absolutely nothing to compare Andre with. We now have Big Show that not only rivals Andre's size, but can talk and wrestle.
Macho Man gave us a great heel persona that would be successful in any era. To me, today's wrestlers emulate Macho Man more than they do Hulk or Andre. Macho was not only ahead of his time like Hogan and Andre, Macho is now a model for all of today's wreslters - good body, high flyer, above average talker.