Ricky Jackson

The matches (not complete) http://wrestlingdata.com/index.php?befehl=konst&letter1=D&wrestler1=5569&letter2=B&wrestler2=5561&letter3=&wrestler3=0&letter4=&wrestler4=0&matchtyp=0&anzeige=matches

Two men once locked in perpetual combat, careers and lives intertwined, but mostly forgotten in the modern age. They were professional wrestlers, in the classic sense of two men in trunks pretending to fight. They were successful in what they did. They drew money. One was popular, the other was hated. They wrestled decade after decade, starting when Elvis became popular, TV was new and the NWA was supreme, ending when Michael Jackson became king, computers had entered homes, and Kayfabe and the NWA were crumbling. By the end they were the subject of ridicule, lowly "jobbers" losing every match they wrestled. But who were they? They wrestled each other perhaps as many times as any two wrestlers ever, and their lives had many parallels. -Both were from Europe. DeNucci from Italy and Scicluna from the Isle of Malta -Both came to Canada as young men. DeNucci to Montreal and Scicluna to Toronto -Both fell into wrestling by hanging out at gyms -Both initially wrestled for long periods under different names than they would become famous for. DeNucci as Dominic Bravo, Scicluna as Mike Valentino -Both made it to New York. Scicluna in 1965, DeNucci in 1967. While they continued to travel and preform in other areas for several years, New York became their home and by the mid-70s they were more or less a permanent fixture of Vince McMahon Sr's undercards -Both were significant stars in Australia during the 60s, a time when wrestling in that country was as hot as anywhere in the world -Both achieved success in the tag team ranks of the WWWF, holding the straps multiple times -Both, in the twilight of their careers, existed only to lose to established stars or young, up-and-coming talent. Night in and night out. Year after year. -Both, post-wrestling, drove a trucks for, fittingly, rival newspapers. DeNucci for the New York Daily News, Scicluna for the New York Times. They first wrestled each other in 1961, when DeNucci was Dominic Bravo and Scicluna was Mike Valentino. They last wrestled each other in 1982. They wrestled each other a lot over the years, hundreds and hundreds of times. Gone but not forgotten

Same thing in Bryan's book in the chapter intro parts written by a WWE writer. He's constantly referred to as "the WWE's Yes!Man". All the other nicknames are shoehorned in. Wrestlemania is always referred to by one of its nicknames..."The Show of Shows", "The Grandest Stage of Them All" etc.

Damn right. It's an awesome match.

Well, I think the plan was to strap the rocket to Sheamus, and he did end up beating Bryan in 18 seconds of course, but somewhere along the line it was derailed. Totally can't remember why without Googling though

Then my question is did they false advertise Sting?

Totally agree that Paige wasn't a very convincing babyface. Zero sympathy, doesn't smile, stilted promos...

So they announced earlier in the day Sting was going to appear on Raw and make a "major announcement". Did they announce later that he wasn't going to be there?

Good show but by the end I remembered why I only watch the big shows and haven't seen a Raw since January

The fan who made it into the ring looked bad ass Lol. Should've called an audible

Really good match and a solid show so far

Xavier Woods is the greatest performer in the company

Nothing but the most sophisticated humour on Titans of Wrestling!

Awesome to see a pod covering a fresh topic. I'm looking forward to this show giving me the excuse to finally dive into the promotion

My recollection is a friend telling me about reading an article in, I think, Playboy that detailed a bunch of WWF behind the scenes sleaze, including the Snuka stories. This would've been around 1994 or so, but my memories are a little fuzzy

Heeeeeee's Baaaaaaaack!!!! I'm on vacation, resting up from a ridiculous move and my physical job, lying on the couch spending the day listening to 60s garage rock bands (The Seeds!) and watching random wrestling. Life is good. First up is a revival of my Johnny Rodz retrospective. Today's theme: Titans of Tag Teams Back Again Wrestling Johnny Rodz and Tor Kamata vs Tony Garea and Larry Zbyszko - 4/12/1977, Philadelphia Arena, Championship Wrestling (aired 4/23/77) Titans dream team right here, with Rodz and the legendary Tor Kamata. Tony G and Larry Z a rockin' combo themselves. Rodz Fashion watch is off the charts here, as Rodz is decked out in a beautiful multi-coloured vest AND a green singlet. Kamata is wearing pajama bottoms apparently. Larry Z looks like a virginal 19 year old. Tony G's hair outshines everything, of course. Bump-fest to start. Rodz at one point with a great corner bump where he launches himself in the air and comes down headfirst on the top turnbubkle. Faces beat the shit out of the heels to start, but soon enough Rodz and Kamata take over and both Larry Z and Tony G take turns playing face in peril. *A note about the Garea/Zbyszko team: Garea of course is known for having multiple WWWF/WWF tag title reigns with multiple partners in the 70s and early 80s. We just finished reviewing his fantastic run with Rick Martel on Titans of Wrestling. Garea's team with Larry Z is not as well known, but it was actually the longest partnership of Garea's career. They first started teaming in March 1977, and had to bide their time for months as Chief Jay Strongbow and Billy White Wolf (the future Sheik Adnan Al-Kaissie/General Adnan) reigned as champs for 237 days. That reign ended when Ken Patera broke White Wolf's neck in storyline, with the belts becoming vacant. However, it still wasn't Tony G and Larry Z's time, as they fell to Mr. Fuji and Toru Tanaka in the tournament final for the straps in September 1977. They continued to team into 1978, repeatedly coming up short as challengers, took a couple months break, and then resumed their chase in July, this time with the Yukon Lumberjacks holding the gold. Finally, on November 21, 1978 in Allentown, they captured the straps from the Lumberjacks, nearly two years after first teaming. Their long-sought reign was relatively short-lived though, as they dropped the straps to the Johnny and Jerry version of the Valiant Brothers on March 6, 1979. They teamed for a few more months before calling it quits. Both men left the territory, with Larry Z returning in the fall to begin the build towards his legendary heel turn and Garea not returning until mid-1980.* Back to the action, and Rodz unleashes a running legdrop on Garea. So now we know who the Hulkster stole that move from. The finishing sequence is totally botched. Kamata is supposed to accidently chop Rodz after Garea ducks, but instead he mistakenly chops Garea as he is attempting to duck. Kamata realizes he fucked up and proceeds to chop Rodz as well, but now it doesn't look like an accident to anyone watching. No audible is called, and they immediately re-do the spot with the correct outcome, hitting the fans over the head with "THIS IS FAKE". Yes, Kayfabe died April 12, 1977, folks. Rodz takes the pin and post-match Kamata attacks him after he complains about the screw up. Rodz is carried away by officials. This was ok. Rodz and Kamata made the good guys look decent with their bumping and stooging. Average TV bout for the time. Tor Kamata lovers be sure to check out the post-match promo he cuts on Bob Backlund! Johnny Rodz and Rene Goulet vs The British Bulldogs - 4/22/85 MSG Rodz' last MSG match is the Bulldogs first. In the dubbed voice over intro, Vince puts Rodz over and explains he is known as "Unpredictable" because of his unusual in-ring behavior and penchant for turning on his tag partners. Match opens with Rodz and Goulet in textbook ass-showing mode for the debuting Bulldogs. Both bump like madmen for the newcomers and the MSG crowd is in love with the Brits from the get-go. Heels eventually take over and maybe take too much of the match. Considering the circumstances of the Bulldogs as the hot new team on the block, from a booking standpoint they probably should have wasted these jabroni's in 4-5 minutes. Once the Bulldogs regain control the crowd is in absolute awe of their fresh, high-impact offense. The finish with Dynamite launching himself off of the back of Goulet as he rests on Davey Boy's shoulders for a headbutt on a prone Rodz is super cool and receives a big pop from the crowd. Fittingly, Rodz bids adieu to MSG by doing the job for his team and putting over new stars making their first appearance in the arena. Next Time: Once again, not the thrilling conclusion to the Java Ruuk Saga (anyone with more details of his time in Montreal circa 1980 than I can find online please let me know), but instead a look at Rodz in some Unpredictable settings!

Actually, the most accurate comparison would be one of the classic WWWF/WWF "old man - young man" teams. Specifically, since Marty stood up for one half of the team on this show, and I'm and old school guy at heart, we are 1978 WWWF tag champs Dom DeNucci and Dino Bravo

Thanks a lot. If nothing else, we want the show to be a fun listen

Or this http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xsr76_rockers-vs-rougeau-brothers-10-13-8_news I think I've only seen the former

I think this is it http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x32d1t8_fabulous-rougeau-brothers-vs-the-rockers-london-arena-10-10-89_sport

Don't mistake Marty's unbridled enthusiasm for crass vulgarity ☺

It's a sensational match, only topped IMO by Dream Team vs Santana and Steamboat as far as WWF matches I've watched for the show so far go

Playlist Harts vs Smith/JYD http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xf20xv_hart-foundation-vs-davey-boy-smith_shortfilms Can Am Connection vs Dream Team http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x31iear_the-dream-team-vs-the-can-am-connection-msg-jan-87_sport Islanders vs Harts http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6mqw9_islanders-vs-hart-foundation_sport Islanders vs Rougeau Brothers http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xc066i_islanders-vs-rougeau-brothers_sport Harts vs Bees https://youtu.be/igTphYDReFc?list=PLV6RCTo_Cd0DxIZcvvV8-Je015bl3aKxw&t=5201