LightningLynx89
Banned
Hopefully good ole' Rowdy Roddy gets a great deal of respect in this TL. Man was amazing, hopefully he has a great career in your TL.
The Rise of the Dragon: An Altered History of the World Wrestling Federation
- Thread starter The Walkman
- Start date
- Status
September 1987: A New WWF Champion
September 1987: A new WWF champion
September 7, 1987
The WWF holds a special show at the Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston, Texas, in honor of former UWF promoter and current WWF writer Paul Boesch, who announced his plans to retire from the wrestling business on August 28th. Special guests at the show include Stu Hart, Red Bastien, Gene Kiniski, “Big Cat” Ernie Ladd, and Lou Thesz. Many superstars of the WWF compete at the show, as well as numerous talents from the UWF and Mexico, such as Terry Funk and Mil Mascaras. In the show’s main event, WWF Champion Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat successfully defends his title against the One Man Gang, who was coincidentally the final UWF Heavyweight Champion before the promotion was sold to Jim Crockett. During the show, Boesch receives a telegram from his personal friend, Vice President George Herbert Walker Bush. [1]
September 14, 1987
WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER – 9/14/1987
The biggest news this month is the announcement that McMahon’s WWF and Crockett’s NWA are going to be running head-to-head cards on Thanksgiving Day. Crockett, of course, will present the annual Starrcade show, and McMahon will present his newest show, Survivor Series. Both will be on pay-per-view, and McMahon is purposely threatening to drop the WWF from any cable company that carries Starrcade instead of the WWF show. More details will be given as this unfolds.
WWF
Corporal Kirchner is apparently gone. The last show he worked was a TV taping on 6/24, where he lost to Brutus Beefcake. No word yet on where he plans to go.
Boris Zukhov debuted at a TV taping on 9/6 as Nikolai Volkoff’s new tag team partner (no shock there). There is no word yet on whether the AWA Tag Team Championships (last held by Zukhov and Soldat Ustinov) will be held up. [2]
John Studd is scheduled to return at Survivor Series. Studd has been doing voice work for a new Saturday “X-Men” cartoon, apparently voicing a hairy, half-animal super villain. Sounds about right, if you ask me.
The newest “Saturday Night’s Main Event” will be taped on 9/14, and airs on 9/26. The card will feature Steamboat vs. Hogan for the WWF Title, Richter vs. Martel for the Women’s Title, Randy Savage vs. Honky Tonk Man for the Intercontinental Title, and Andre the Giant vs. King Kong Bundy. If done smartly and halfway well, this show could turn out to be one of the highest, if not THE highest, rated primetime show the WWF has ever churned out.
Ricky Steamboat is almost guaranteed to drop the WWF Title on SNME. The only question is whether Hogan is only an interim champion until Steamboat returns, or not.
NWA
Dusty Rhodes appears to be the frontrunner to challenge for the U.S. Championship at Starrcade. At a 9/9 TV taping, champion Arn Anderson cut a promo about how Dusty didn’t deserve all his successes (which may or may not have been a shoot, to be honest), and Dusty later told him he’d prove his worth by taking his title at Starrcade.
Lex Luger won the NWA TV Title from Nikita Koloff at the same 9/9 TV taping. Early word is Crockett plans to unify the UWF TV Title with the NWA TV Title at Starrcade, which probably points to a Luger vs. Terry Taylor match at the show.
Several signs point to Flair’s title reign ending at Starrcade. Leaked banners advertising house cards the day after the event list Magnum T.A. as the NWA Champion - though to be fair, it could be a misprint.
AWA
The AWA Championship may be held up. In a match between Curt Hennig and Greg Gagne on 9/7 (to be aired on ESPN soon, but we all know how that goes), Hennig and Gagne’s shoulders were both down for a pinfall attempt. The match ended with no definitive winner. Verne appears to be winning over his bookers in his desire for Greg to win the World Title. I give the AWA a month if that truly does happen… [3]
Iron Sheik is close to reaching a deal with Verne. He was offered to work several dates back in August without pay, which he rightly declined.
LETTERS SECTION
Dear WON:
I live in New York, and I am a longtime watcher of the WWF (formerly WWWF). Even though I love some aspects of the product as of late, I can’t ever remember being so amazed with how much suspension of disbelief is present in it as of late. No, I’m not talking about a wrestling Elvis impersonator or a guy in steel chains acting like a dog. I’m talking about a man as small as Ricky Steamboat beating guys ten times larger than him. I recently got a phone call from my cousin in Texas (who is also a wrestling fan) who attended a show in Houston, where he saw Ricky Steamboat face the One Man Gang. Not only did Steamboat give the Gang a very convincing fight, but he pinned him CLEAN. CLEAN, I say! A man who weighs as much as a damn Volkswagen got his ass handed to him on a silver platter by a man barely over 200 lbs. That’s like Pee-Wee Herman beating Arnold Schwarzenegger in a fist fight. Are we, as fans, seriously supposed to believe something like that? We’re not stupid! Now, don’t get me wrong, as I do like Ricky Steamboat. I think he’d do well as the Intercontinental Champion. But I truly feel as though the WWF has gone downhill with him as their World Champion. I think the WWF higher-ups should turn Hogan back babyface and put the title back on him, or possibly give a larger guy like Savage a turn at the top. I still love wrestling, and I will until I die, but Steamboat as champion is just not something I can buy.
Shawn Martinez; Syracuse, NY [4]
September 14, 1987
QUOTES FROM THE OPENING OF SATURDAY NIGHT’S MAIN EVENT #12
(as the show comes on the air, we see the Honky Tonk Man and his manager Johnny Valiant in front of a graphic for the Honky Tonk Man)
HONKY TONK MAN: Two things are gonna happen tonight when I challenge the Macho Man for the Intercontinental Title!
JOHNNY V: Tell him about it, Honky!
HTM: The first thing’s gonna happen is I’m gonna Shake, Rattle an’ Roll Mr. Big Shot Champion and leave him folded up in the ring like a pretzel!
JOHNNY V: Oooh, humiliate him, Honky baby!
HTM: And number two, I’m gonna steal your woman. I’ve seen the way she looks at me; that look in her eyes. She likes the way the Honky Tonk Man walks, she likes the way the Honky Tonk Man talks. She likes a winner, Macho Man, and I can promise you I’m gonna…love her tender! Ha ha ha!
(camera cuts to Randy Savage, wearing the Intercontinental Title, with Miss Elizabeth beside him, in front of a Macho Man graphic)
RANDY SAVAGE: FREAK OUT, FREAK OUT! That cheap dime store Elvis impersonator has uttered his last insults ever about the “Macho Man” Randy Savage and Elizabeth, YEAH! Macho Madness is ready tonight, and tonight’s the night we settle this once and for all! Honky Tonk Man, you got a big mouth. But tonight, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, INTERCONTINENTAL HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION, in front of thousands of people all around the country, is gonna SHUT IT FOR YA!!! [5]
(camera cuts to Wendi Richter, the WWF Women’s Title belt on her shoulder, in front of a Wendi Richter graphic)
WENDI RICHTER: Scary Sherri, if you think I’m scared o’ you, you better think again! I ain’t scared o’ nothin’, and tonight, I’m gonna prove it when I stop you from takin’ this belt from me!
(camera cuts to Andre the Giant, in front of an Andre the Giant graphic)
ANDRE THE GIANT: Bundy, you are a despicable person! Only a coward would attack someone from behind like you did weeks ago. But tonight… (punches his hand) …tonight I teach you a lesson! [6]
(camera cuts to Hulk Hogan and Bobby “the Brain” Heenan, in front of a Hulk Hogan graphic)
BOBBY HEENAN: What happened at Wrestlemania was just a small setback for the Heenan Family! That little pipsqueak “the Drag Queen” Ricky Steamboat scored the biggest fluke in World Wrestling Federation history by beating this man! (pats Hogan’s shoulder) But tonight, Steamboat, there’s nowhere to run! There’s nowhere to hide!
HULK HOGAN: Dragon, you got lucky once! But mark my words, brother…lightning won’t strike twice! Tonight, Hulk Hogan is gonna run wild all over you, and take back what’s rightfully his!
(camera cuts to Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat, wearing the WWF Title belt, in front of a Dragon graphic)
RICKY STEAMBOAT: You can spew all the garbage about me you want, Hulk Hogan! I beat you 1-2-3 at Wrestlemania, and tonight, “the Dragon” Ricky Steamboat is going to prove that that was no fluke! I am the real deal, Jack, and tonight, you and that weasel Bobby Heenan are going to feel the unbridled fire of the Dragon!
September 26, 1987
The twelfth episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event airs on NBC. The show features the long-anticipated rematch between WWF Champion Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat and challenger Hulk Hogan, which is branded as “The Rematch of the Decade” by the World Wrestling Federation in the weeks leading up to the match. The Intercontinental Title and Women’s Title are also defended on the show, making this the only Saturday Night’s Main Event to feature three titles on the line. The show garners a whopping 12.8 rating, the highest-ever for a SNME episode.
In the preliminary matches, Randy Savage defends his Intercontinental Championship against the Honky Tonk Man. Late in the match, Honky attempts to roll up Savage with a handful of the Macho Man’s tights to win the title, but the referee catches it. Honky manages to hit a Shake-Rattle-and-Roll neckbreaker late in the match, but Savage kicks out. Johnny V hits Savage in the back with Honky’s guitar while Savage recovers on the ropes, causing a blatant disqualification and a victory for the Macho Man. Elizabeth jumps in the way of a second guitar shot, prompting Honky to stop and try to “put the moves” on Savage’s manager. Savage, however, has recovered by this time, and knocks Honky down before escaping quickly with Elizabeth.
“Scary” Sherri Martel, accompanied by former Women’s Champion Misty Blue Simms, attempts to wrest the Women’s Title away from Wendi Richter in the next match. Richter puts up an admirable fight, but in the end, Sherri’s offense proves too much for the popular Richter, and a scoop slam puts Richter down for a 3-count, making Sherri the new WWF Women’s Champion. Andre the Giant, who was attacked by King Kong Bundy several weeks prior, defeats the “Walking Condominium” to gain some revenge, and continue his streak of being unpinned in the WWF. Davey Boy Smith defeats one-half of the Tag Team Champions, Jim Neidhart, after the Rougeau Brothers distract Neidhart, allowing Davey Boy to hit a powerslam for a pinfall. And in the final match before the main event, Tito Santana defeats Don Muraco by disqualification when Mr. Fuji and “Cowboy” Bob Orton join Muraco in triple-teaming Santana. Rick Martel (whose tag team partner Tom Zenk had been released a few days prior to the episode’s taping) comes down to make the save, starting a long-time tag team between Santana and Martel. [7]
In the main event, Ricky Steamboat gets the upper hand multiple times during the match, only to have Hogan ground the Dragon each time. Steamboat manages to hit his signature flying crossbody (now known as the Dragon Dive [8]) on Hogan late in the match, but to the shock of the crowd (and commentators Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura), Hogan kicks out. Steamboat attempts to deliver a second Dragon Dive, but as he climbs to the top rope, Bobby Heenan and Hercules Hernandez attempt to distract the Dragon. Steamboat manages to shove Heenan away, causing “the Brain” to fall to the floor, but Hercules grabs Steamboat and slams him into the ring. The Hulkster manages to grab the distracted Steamboat and hit an Axe Bomber, knocking the Champion down. Hogan then hits a leg drop and covers Steamboat, pinning him 1-2-3 to become the new WWF Champion. The crowd boos lustily as Hogan grabs the title belt from ringside, climbs into the ring, and clocks Steamboat over the head with it. The Heenan Family leave Steamboat in the ring, out cold, as Andre the Giant comes out to check on his friend. As Hogan retreats up the ramp with his newly won title, Andre glares and points at the Hulkster as the show ends…
Full Saturday Night’s Main Event #12 results, 9/26/1987
WWF Intercontinental Championship: Randy “Macho Man” Savage (C) (w/ Miss Elizabeth) def. Honky Tonk Man (w/ Johnny V) by Disqualification (4:11)
WWF Women’s Championship: Sherri Martel (w/ Misty Blue Simms) def. Wendi Richter (C) (3:12) – TITLE CHANGE!
Andre the Giant def. King Kong Bundy (4:25)
Davey Boy Smith (w/ Jimmy Hart & the Fabulous Rougeaus) def. Jim “the Anvil” Neidhart (w/ Bret Hart) (5:22)
Tito Santana def. “Magnificent” Don Muraco (w/ Mr. Fuji & “Cowboy” Bob Orton) by Disqualification (3:14)
WWF Championship: Hulk Hogan (w/ Bobby “the Brain” Heenan & Hercules Hernandez) def. Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat (C) (9:30) – TITLE CHANGE!
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[1] Aside from Steamboat as champion, all of this is as OTL—even Boesch’s telegram from George Bush!
[2] When the Iron Sheik heads out on such a bad note, Zukhov (whose name was respelled “Zhukov” when he joined the WWF IOTL) is contacted by the WWF a bit earlier, and debuts in the company about a month earlier than OTL. As OTL, Doug Somers will take Zukhov’s place as Soldat Ustinov’s tag team partner in the AWA.
[3] Despite this report, Hennig’s reign as AWA Champion will continue ITTL, as will (unfortunately) Greg Gagne’s push.
[4] People have been writing letters to the Newsletter since it first started being published, and this one gives us a little taste of a fan whose attitude is…slightly different than the norm of TTL.
[5] The Honky and Savage promos are based on the promos from OTL’s 12th edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event, broadcast on October 3, 1987, which can be seen here.
[6] Bundy attacks Andre after Andre (still a babyface, and still unpinned ITTL) returns to WWF television ITTL in an onscreen interview, later boasting that he “took down the Giant”.
[7] IOTL, Santana and Martel also formed a tag team when Zenk was let go from the WWF. The team was eventually called “Strike Force” (after an impromptu comment made by Martel during an interview). ITTL, while Santana and Martel are still teamed together, they will not be known as “Strike Force”.
[8] The WWF was big on naming finishing moves at this time, so Steamboat’s signature move gets a new name ITTL. Oddly, they never did it with Hogan’s leg drop IOTL (unless you want to consider “atomic leg drop” as canon).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hello again, everyone! I’m back from a lengthy absence, and hopefully will be much faster on these updates for a while! As Steamboat takes a leave of absence to be with his family, the Hulkster’s second title reign begins, and it looks like we’re set for a feud we also famously saw IOTL—only the roles are very much reversed!
Up next: we drive toward the WWF’s Survivor Series and the NWA’s Starrcade. Who will have the superior show? Plus: a sneak peek at pop culture—mostly through Steamboat’s (and his family’s) eyes.
September 7, 1987
The WWF holds a special show at the Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston, Texas, in honor of former UWF promoter and current WWF writer Paul Boesch, who announced his plans to retire from the wrestling business on August 28th. Special guests at the show include Stu Hart, Red Bastien, Gene Kiniski, “Big Cat” Ernie Ladd, and Lou Thesz. Many superstars of the WWF compete at the show, as well as numerous talents from the UWF and Mexico, such as Terry Funk and Mil Mascaras. In the show’s main event, WWF Champion Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat successfully defends his title against the One Man Gang, who was coincidentally the final UWF Heavyweight Champion before the promotion was sold to Jim Crockett. During the show, Boesch receives a telegram from his personal friend, Vice President George Herbert Walker Bush. [1]
September 14, 1987
WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER – 9/14/1987
The biggest news this month is the announcement that McMahon’s WWF and Crockett’s NWA are going to be running head-to-head cards on Thanksgiving Day. Crockett, of course, will present the annual Starrcade show, and McMahon will present his newest show, Survivor Series. Both will be on pay-per-view, and McMahon is purposely threatening to drop the WWF from any cable company that carries Starrcade instead of the WWF show. More details will be given as this unfolds.
WWF
Corporal Kirchner is apparently gone. The last show he worked was a TV taping on 6/24, where he lost to Brutus Beefcake. No word yet on where he plans to go.
Boris Zukhov debuted at a TV taping on 9/6 as Nikolai Volkoff’s new tag team partner (no shock there). There is no word yet on whether the AWA Tag Team Championships (last held by Zukhov and Soldat Ustinov) will be held up. [2]
John Studd is scheduled to return at Survivor Series. Studd has been doing voice work for a new Saturday “X-Men” cartoon, apparently voicing a hairy, half-animal super villain. Sounds about right, if you ask me.
The newest “Saturday Night’s Main Event” will be taped on 9/14, and airs on 9/26. The card will feature Steamboat vs. Hogan for the WWF Title, Richter vs. Martel for the Women’s Title, Randy Savage vs. Honky Tonk Man for the Intercontinental Title, and Andre the Giant vs. King Kong Bundy. If done smartly and halfway well, this show could turn out to be one of the highest, if not THE highest, rated primetime show the WWF has ever churned out.
Ricky Steamboat is almost guaranteed to drop the WWF Title on SNME. The only question is whether Hogan is only an interim champion until Steamboat returns, or not.
NWA
Dusty Rhodes appears to be the frontrunner to challenge for the U.S. Championship at Starrcade. At a 9/9 TV taping, champion Arn Anderson cut a promo about how Dusty didn’t deserve all his successes (which may or may not have been a shoot, to be honest), and Dusty later told him he’d prove his worth by taking his title at Starrcade.
Lex Luger won the NWA TV Title from Nikita Koloff at the same 9/9 TV taping. Early word is Crockett plans to unify the UWF TV Title with the NWA TV Title at Starrcade, which probably points to a Luger vs. Terry Taylor match at the show.
Several signs point to Flair’s title reign ending at Starrcade. Leaked banners advertising house cards the day after the event list Magnum T.A. as the NWA Champion - though to be fair, it could be a misprint.
AWA
The AWA Championship may be held up. In a match between Curt Hennig and Greg Gagne on 9/7 (to be aired on ESPN soon, but we all know how that goes), Hennig and Gagne’s shoulders were both down for a pinfall attempt. The match ended with no definitive winner. Verne appears to be winning over his bookers in his desire for Greg to win the World Title. I give the AWA a month if that truly does happen… [3]
Iron Sheik is close to reaching a deal with Verne. He was offered to work several dates back in August without pay, which he rightly declined.
LETTERS SECTION
Dear WON:
I live in New York, and I am a longtime watcher of the WWF (formerly WWWF). Even though I love some aspects of the product as of late, I can’t ever remember being so amazed with how much suspension of disbelief is present in it as of late. No, I’m not talking about a wrestling Elvis impersonator or a guy in steel chains acting like a dog. I’m talking about a man as small as Ricky Steamboat beating guys ten times larger than him. I recently got a phone call from my cousin in Texas (who is also a wrestling fan) who attended a show in Houston, where he saw Ricky Steamboat face the One Man Gang. Not only did Steamboat give the Gang a very convincing fight, but he pinned him CLEAN. CLEAN, I say! A man who weighs as much as a damn Volkswagen got his ass handed to him on a silver platter by a man barely over 200 lbs. That’s like Pee-Wee Herman beating Arnold Schwarzenegger in a fist fight. Are we, as fans, seriously supposed to believe something like that? We’re not stupid! Now, don’t get me wrong, as I do like Ricky Steamboat. I think he’d do well as the Intercontinental Champion. But I truly feel as though the WWF has gone downhill with him as their World Champion. I think the WWF higher-ups should turn Hogan back babyface and put the title back on him, or possibly give a larger guy like Savage a turn at the top. I still love wrestling, and I will until I die, but Steamboat as champion is just not something I can buy.
Shawn Martinez; Syracuse, NY [4]
September 14, 1987
QUOTES FROM THE OPENING OF SATURDAY NIGHT’S MAIN EVENT #12
(as the show comes on the air, we see the Honky Tonk Man and his manager Johnny Valiant in front of a graphic for the Honky Tonk Man)
HONKY TONK MAN: Two things are gonna happen tonight when I challenge the Macho Man for the Intercontinental Title!
JOHNNY V: Tell him about it, Honky!
HTM: The first thing’s gonna happen is I’m gonna Shake, Rattle an’ Roll Mr. Big Shot Champion and leave him folded up in the ring like a pretzel!
JOHNNY V: Oooh, humiliate him, Honky baby!
HTM: And number two, I’m gonna steal your woman. I’ve seen the way she looks at me; that look in her eyes. She likes the way the Honky Tonk Man walks, she likes the way the Honky Tonk Man talks. She likes a winner, Macho Man, and I can promise you I’m gonna…love her tender! Ha ha ha!
(camera cuts to Randy Savage, wearing the Intercontinental Title, with Miss Elizabeth beside him, in front of a Macho Man graphic)
RANDY SAVAGE: FREAK OUT, FREAK OUT! That cheap dime store Elvis impersonator has uttered his last insults ever about the “Macho Man” Randy Savage and Elizabeth, YEAH! Macho Madness is ready tonight, and tonight’s the night we settle this once and for all! Honky Tonk Man, you got a big mouth. But tonight, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, INTERCONTINENTAL HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION, in front of thousands of people all around the country, is gonna SHUT IT FOR YA!!! [5]
(camera cuts to Wendi Richter, the WWF Women’s Title belt on her shoulder, in front of a Wendi Richter graphic)
WENDI RICHTER: Scary Sherri, if you think I’m scared o’ you, you better think again! I ain’t scared o’ nothin’, and tonight, I’m gonna prove it when I stop you from takin’ this belt from me!
(camera cuts to Andre the Giant, in front of an Andre the Giant graphic)
ANDRE THE GIANT: Bundy, you are a despicable person! Only a coward would attack someone from behind like you did weeks ago. But tonight… (punches his hand) …tonight I teach you a lesson! [6]
(camera cuts to Hulk Hogan and Bobby “the Brain” Heenan, in front of a Hulk Hogan graphic)
BOBBY HEENAN: What happened at Wrestlemania was just a small setback for the Heenan Family! That little pipsqueak “the Drag Queen” Ricky Steamboat scored the biggest fluke in World Wrestling Federation history by beating this man! (pats Hogan’s shoulder) But tonight, Steamboat, there’s nowhere to run! There’s nowhere to hide!
HULK HOGAN: Dragon, you got lucky once! But mark my words, brother…lightning won’t strike twice! Tonight, Hulk Hogan is gonna run wild all over you, and take back what’s rightfully his!
(camera cuts to Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat, wearing the WWF Title belt, in front of a Dragon graphic)
RICKY STEAMBOAT: You can spew all the garbage about me you want, Hulk Hogan! I beat you 1-2-3 at Wrestlemania, and tonight, “the Dragon” Ricky Steamboat is going to prove that that was no fluke! I am the real deal, Jack, and tonight, you and that weasel Bobby Heenan are going to feel the unbridled fire of the Dragon!
September 26, 1987
The twelfth episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event airs on NBC. The show features the long-anticipated rematch between WWF Champion Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat and challenger Hulk Hogan, which is branded as “The Rematch of the Decade” by the World Wrestling Federation in the weeks leading up to the match. The Intercontinental Title and Women’s Title are also defended on the show, making this the only Saturday Night’s Main Event to feature three titles on the line. The show garners a whopping 12.8 rating, the highest-ever for a SNME episode.
In the preliminary matches, Randy Savage defends his Intercontinental Championship against the Honky Tonk Man. Late in the match, Honky attempts to roll up Savage with a handful of the Macho Man’s tights to win the title, but the referee catches it. Honky manages to hit a Shake-Rattle-and-Roll neckbreaker late in the match, but Savage kicks out. Johnny V hits Savage in the back with Honky’s guitar while Savage recovers on the ropes, causing a blatant disqualification and a victory for the Macho Man. Elizabeth jumps in the way of a second guitar shot, prompting Honky to stop and try to “put the moves” on Savage’s manager. Savage, however, has recovered by this time, and knocks Honky down before escaping quickly with Elizabeth.
“Scary” Sherri Martel, accompanied by former Women’s Champion Misty Blue Simms, attempts to wrest the Women’s Title away from Wendi Richter in the next match. Richter puts up an admirable fight, but in the end, Sherri’s offense proves too much for the popular Richter, and a scoop slam puts Richter down for a 3-count, making Sherri the new WWF Women’s Champion. Andre the Giant, who was attacked by King Kong Bundy several weeks prior, defeats the “Walking Condominium” to gain some revenge, and continue his streak of being unpinned in the WWF. Davey Boy Smith defeats one-half of the Tag Team Champions, Jim Neidhart, after the Rougeau Brothers distract Neidhart, allowing Davey Boy to hit a powerslam for a pinfall. And in the final match before the main event, Tito Santana defeats Don Muraco by disqualification when Mr. Fuji and “Cowboy” Bob Orton join Muraco in triple-teaming Santana. Rick Martel (whose tag team partner Tom Zenk had been released a few days prior to the episode’s taping) comes down to make the save, starting a long-time tag team between Santana and Martel. [7]
In the main event, Ricky Steamboat gets the upper hand multiple times during the match, only to have Hogan ground the Dragon each time. Steamboat manages to hit his signature flying crossbody (now known as the Dragon Dive [8]) on Hogan late in the match, but to the shock of the crowd (and commentators Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura), Hogan kicks out. Steamboat attempts to deliver a second Dragon Dive, but as he climbs to the top rope, Bobby Heenan and Hercules Hernandez attempt to distract the Dragon. Steamboat manages to shove Heenan away, causing “the Brain” to fall to the floor, but Hercules grabs Steamboat and slams him into the ring. The Hulkster manages to grab the distracted Steamboat and hit an Axe Bomber, knocking the Champion down. Hogan then hits a leg drop and covers Steamboat, pinning him 1-2-3 to become the new WWF Champion. The crowd boos lustily as Hogan grabs the title belt from ringside, climbs into the ring, and clocks Steamboat over the head with it. The Heenan Family leave Steamboat in the ring, out cold, as Andre the Giant comes out to check on his friend. As Hogan retreats up the ramp with his newly won title, Andre glares and points at the Hulkster as the show ends…
Full Saturday Night’s Main Event #12 results, 9/26/1987
WWF Intercontinental Championship: Randy “Macho Man” Savage (C) (w/ Miss Elizabeth) def. Honky Tonk Man (w/ Johnny V) by Disqualification (4:11)
WWF Women’s Championship: Sherri Martel (w/ Misty Blue Simms) def. Wendi Richter (C) (3:12) – TITLE CHANGE!
Andre the Giant def. King Kong Bundy (4:25)
Davey Boy Smith (w/ Jimmy Hart & the Fabulous Rougeaus) def. Jim “the Anvil” Neidhart (w/ Bret Hart) (5:22)
Tito Santana def. “Magnificent” Don Muraco (w/ Mr. Fuji & “Cowboy” Bob Orton) by Disqualification (3:14)
WWF Championship: Hulk Hogan (w/ Bobby “the Brain” Heenan & Hercules Hernandez) def. Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat (C) (9:30) – TITLE CHANGE!
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[1] Aside from Steamboat as champion, all of this is as OTL—even Boesch’s telegram from George Bush!
[2] When the Iron Sheik heads out on such a bad note, Zukhov (whose name was respelled “Zhukov” when he joined the WWF IOTL) is contacted by the WWF a bit earlier, and debuts in the company about a month earlier than OTL. As OTL, Doug Somers will take Zukhov’s place as Soldat Ustinov’s tag team partner in the AWA.
[3] Despite this report, Hennig’s reign as AWA Champion will continue ITTL, as will (unfortunately) Greg Gagne’s push.
[4] People have been writing letters to the Newsletter since it first started being published, and this one gives us a little taste of a fan whose attitude is…slightly different than the norm of TTL.
[5] The Honky and Savage promos are based on the promos from OTL’s 12th edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event, broadcast on October 3, 1987, which can be seen here.
[6] Bundy attacks Andre after Andre (still a babyface, and still unpinned ITTL) returns to WWF television ITTL in an onscreen interview, later boasting that he “took down the Giant”.
[7] IOTL, Santana and Martel also formed a tag team when Zenk was let go from the WWF. The team was eventually called “Strike Force” (after an impromptu comment made by Martel during an interview). ITTL, while Santana and Martel are still teamed together, they will not be known as “Strike Force”.
[8] The WWF was big on naming finishing moves at this time, so Steamboat’s signature move gets a new name ITTL. Oddly, they never did it with Hogan’s leg drop IOTL (unless you want to consider “atomic leg drop” as canon).
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Hello again, everyone! I’m back from a lengthy absence, and hopefully will be much faster on these updates for a while! As Steamboat takes a leave of absence to be with his family, the Hulkster’s second title reign begins, and it looks like we’re set for a feud we also famously saw IOTL—only the roles are very much reversed!
Up next: we drive toward the WWF’s Survivor Series and the NWA’s Starrcade. Who will have the superior show? Plus: a sneak peek at pop culture—mostly through Steamboat’s (and his family’s) eyes.
Next update is in the works, and will be up probably sometime later this week! But for right now, let's get to some questions.
Time will tell!
An interesting question, and one that I hadn't really thought of that much until the news came up recently. Any suggestions (via PM) are indeed welcome.
Well, you could count his two reigns as ECW Heavyweight Champion (including being the very first Champion). But at that point, the promotion was still a branch of the NWA, so I can agree with you to some degree.
Time will tell!
An interesting question, and one that I hadn't really thought of that much until the news came up recently. Any suggestions (via PM) are indeed welcome.
Well, you could count his two reigns as ECW Heavyweight Champion (including being the very first Champion). But at that point, the promotion was still a branch of the NWA, so I can agree with you to some degree.
This is amazing to read, like just considering how much wrestling would be different with a history like this is staggering. Honestly I'm most interested in how this effects the careers of guys like HBK and Bret. I mean the audience would be far more accepting of them with Steamboat being the icon over Hogan. Though Steamboat is more of a company man that Hogan was so I don't see WCW getting as big as it did since Steamboat likely wouldn't jump ship.
Steamboat jumped ship a couple of times in his career, and he has a huge history with Flair (they had major feuding in the 80s in Mid-Atlantic where both of them got their start)
Steamboat jumping ship is not ASB at all, especally when he has more leverage than OTL.
That said, Steamboat if he avoids injury unlike OTL would have more longevity than Hogan- Steamboat/Jericho a few years back was surprisingly awesome. That said, injury is more likely since a lot of Hogan's laziness was to keep himself healthy (and the fact he could get away with it, Hogan worked hard when he had to)
Magnum not getting crippled in his arm is a huge butterfly. Could really impact the NWA and hold back a few guys (Nikita never turns face for example)
Steamboat jumping ship is not ASB at all, especally when he has more leverage than OTL.
That said, Steamboat if he avoids injury unlike OTL would have more longevity than Hogan- Steamboat/Jericho a few years back was surprisingly awesome. That said, injury is more likely since a lot of Hogan's laziness was to keep himself healthy (and the fact he could get away with it, Hogan worked hard when he had to)
Magnum not getting crippled in his arm is a huge butterfly. Could really impact the NWA and hold back a few guys (Nikita never turns face for example)
Well he jumped to WCW because they promised a run at the top of the card. Since he's already getting megapushed by WWF he has no reason to go anywhere else.
Steamboat also got buried by McMahon just because he asked for time off to be with his wife and his soon-to-be-born son in our own TL. That's why he was stripped of his Intercontinental title (won from defeating Randy Savage at Wrestlemania 3 in our TL) by losing to the Honky Tonk Man. Talk about disproportionate retribution.
Last edited:
LightningLynx89
Banned
Steamboat also got buried by McMahon just because he asked for time off to be with his wife and his soon-to-be-born son in our own TL. That's why he was stripped of his Intercontinental title (won from defeating Randy Savage at Wrestlemania 3 in our TL) by losing to the Honky Tonk Man. Talk about disproportionate retribution.
Well it is 80s ruthless Vince, from his shoes it's what had to be done. Still pretty fucked up. Hey but we got Honky Tonk Man's amazing one year title reign.
Well he'd have to drop the title if he was going to leave, but Vince has never been understanding that people have families. There's an old joke that the reason Vince put his kids into storylines all the time is because it was the only way he'd be able to see them.Steamboat also got buried by McMahon just because he asked for time off to be with his wife and his soon-to-be-born son in our own TL. That's why he was stripped of his Intercontinental title (won from defeating Randy Savage at Wrestlemania 3 in our TL) by losing to the Honky Tonk Man. Talk about disproportionate retribution.
I was just thinking about something. In OTL, Andre the Giant turned heel just before Wrestlemania III which led up to his match with Hulk Hogan. After that, he joined up with Ted DiBiase aka the Million Dollar Man to form the MegaBucks.
Since this has been butterflied away, namely due to the Hogan-Steamboat feud, how will this affect DiBiase's WWF run in this TL?
Will the Million Dollar Man have a different ally for the MegaBucks?
Since this has been butterflied away, namely due to the Hogan-Steamboat feud, how will this affect DiBiase's WWF run in this TL?
Will the Million Dollar Man have a different ally for the MegaBucks?
September-October 1987: Downtime with the Dragon
September-October 1987: Downtime with the Dragon
September 28, 1987
Ricky Steamboat stretched back in his bed in his home in Mooresville, North Carolina. [1] With his demanding schedule, it was great to have a little time off. Granted, he liked being the WWF Heavyweight Champion and all the publicity it brought, but after the strenuous schedule of being on the road with the most successful wrestling company in America, he was glad to get some time to himself and his family. The clock in the hallway began to strike nine, and Steamboat smiled as he looked down the hallway from the bedroom. His one-month old son Ricky, Jr. (“Richie”, as they called him) was asleep in his room, and for once, the child wasn’t crying. After the constant feeding, cuddling, and changing of diapers throughout the day from him and his wife, Steamboat was indeed quite tired.
Ricky’s wife Bonnie emerged from the bathroom, her long blonde hair wrapped in a towel. She smiled at Steamboat as he looked at her. “Little early for you to be taking a shower, honey,” he said matter-of-factly.
“I know, I know,” Bonnie replied as she straightened her bathrobe. “But these last few days have been pretty hectic.”
“Definitely,” Steamboat said as he reached for the bedside table, picking up the remote control for the bedroom TV set. “I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world, though. Still, it’s nice to get a little bit of time to regroup, no matter what goes on.”
Bonnie smiled and nodded in agreement. Just then, the familiar sound of crying came from down the hall. Bonnie sighed. “I think that one means he’s hungry again,” she said. “The doctor was right: after a while, you recognize which cries are which.”
Steamboat stifled a laugh. “Call if you need anything, honey,” he said, watching his wife disappear down the hall. He turned to the television set, turning it on with the remote. A news report was on, discussing the Republican Presidential candidate race to take place next year. Reverend Pat Robertson had announced his candidacy a few days prior [2], and with current President Ronald Reagan’s impending exit from the White House next year, the race was predicted to be a tight one.
Just then, Bonnie came back through the door. “We’re good…for now, anyway,” she said, climbing into bed beside her husband. “Anything on worth watching?”
“Mostly just the news,” Steamboat said, flipping through another channel or two. He eventually caught a glimpse of an older, bald-headed man in a red uniform entering a spaceship, as an array of people in brightly colored uniforms went about their business on board. Steamboat chuckled to himself: he’d heard that Star Trek: The Next Generation was premiering tonight, but he hadn’t made it a point to check it out. [3] He was only vaguely familiar with the original Star Trek, but to him, anything without Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock in it just wasn’t Star Trek. Still, Steamboat paused to watch a bit of the show for a while. Patrick Stewart, the man who played Captain Picard, seemed to be a very good actor, and the young blonde lady in the yellow uniform sort of reminded him of his wife, except with shorter hair. [4]
Steamboat’s wife yawned beside him. “Turn that off, please, honey…I’m getting kind of tired.”
Steamboat looked at his wife. “You don’t want to stay up and watch Johnny Carson?” he joked.
“No,” she said. “Besides, that Shandling guy is hosting tonight—I checked the TV Guide.”
Steamboat nodded, turned off the television with the remote, and settled into bed.
“When do you have to be back to work again?” asked Bonnie.
“The 12th,” Steamboat replied, stretching out comfortably under the sheets. “And I’m going to enjoy all the time off I can.” [5]
October 1, 1987
Music producer Maurice Starr tapped his fingers nervously as he held the phone to his ear. “I know the last album flopped,” he said, “but the same thing happened to a lot of acts that were eventually given second chances!”
“I’m well aware of that,” replied Columbia Records President Walter Yetnikoff on the other end of the phone. Maurice Starr was known in the music business as the brains behind a few musical acts, the biggest being R&B sextet New Edition, who had gone on to have several big hits. However, in Yetnikoff’s eyes, this new group Starr was trying to promote—a five-man former bubblegum pop group whose members were all teenagers—just reeked of being a copy of New Edition. “But it seems to me like you’re trying to make lightning in a bottle again. I’m just not convinced these kids are the next New Edition.”
“They’ll be 20 times as big as New Edition,” Starr urged. “The only thing they need is for you to give them the opportunity…”
Yetnikoff was silent for a few seconds, but then sighed heavily. “I’m sorry, Maurice…I just can’t take that chance. I’d appreciate it if you stopped calling, too.”
With that, Yetnikoff hung up. Maurice Starr was silent for a while, but he finally sighed as he hung up the phone. It looked as though, at least for now, the record industry just wasn’t ready for The New Kids on the Block…
October 2, 1987
“…the damage from the quake was immediate, and widespread,” the man stated over the car radio, reporting on a 5.9 magnitude earthquake that had rattled Los Angeles and its surrounding areas the day before. “The most damage appeared to be near the center of the quake, as well as downtown Whittier, California. Buildings crumbled, walls collapsed, and many homes were completely destroyed. So far, the death total has climbed to thirteen, when an elderly man died of a heart attack due to the shock of the quake.” [6]
Ricky Steamboat sighed as he turned off the radio in his car. Earthquakes, floods, storms…it seemed that no matter when he turned on the news, it was something bad. He shook it off as he pulled into the parking lot of the Mid-Atlantic Gym. Steamboat had opened the place in the early ‘80s, and hoped to run it full-time one day, perhaps when he retired from wrestling. He smiled as he admired the sign out front, emblazoned proudly with the words “Steamboat’s Mid-Atlantic Gym”, with the words “Deli” and “Juice Bar” underneath. [7] He sighed nostalgically: his good friend and former tag team partner, the late Jay Youngblood, used to help operate the juice bar. Since Youngblood’s untimely passing two years ago, Steamboat had missed him terribly, and he had to wipe a small tear from his eye just thinking about his late friend. Quickly composing himself, Steamboat exited his car and headed inside the gym.
Several people were already scattered about, using the weights and workout equipment spread strategically around the gym. A John Mellencamp song faintly played on the old radio behind the front counter. A smile crept over Steamboat’s face again as he glanced around the building, taking time to notice the photos and old wrestling memorabilia on the walls. [8] It had proven to be an insanely popular decision, as many people in North Carolina were indeed huge wrestling fans, whether it was the WWF or (more often) the local territory, Jim Crockett’s NWA.
Just then, a tall, dark-haired man got up from one of the weight benches and walked toward Steamboat, smiling. “Hey, Rick,” he said, holding his hand out. “Good to see you again.”
Steamboat smiled as he shook the man’s hand. “Mike Rotunda,” he said, instantly recognizing the current NWA employee. It had been several years since Rotunda had left the WWF, and Steamboat had heard very interesting things about what he and the Four Horsemen were doing in Jim Crockett’s neck of the country. “It’s been a while, huh?”
Rotunda nodded. “How have you been?”
“Not bad,” Steamboat said. “So glad McMahon let me have a little time off…being the big fish in the company is really draining sometimes.”
“Yeah, I heard you had a new little bundle of joy,” Rotunda said, smiling. “Congratulations.”
“I heard you had one yourself,” Steamboat said, trying to contain his glee.
“Yep. Little Windham’s growing like a weed…he just turned four months old a while ago.” [9]
Steamboat nodded. “So what brings you here?”
“Just enjoying a little workout before the big house show tomorrow. You’re welcome to come watch, you know.”
Steamboat shook his head. “Nah, I’m trying to distance myself from the business as much as I can until I absolutely have to go back. I only have ten days left to myself, after all.”
“Understood,” Rotunda said as he glanced around the gym. “Well, guess I’ll get back to my weights.”
“Wait a second,” Steamboat said, smiling. “Let me buy you a protein shake—my treat. From one new dad to another.”
October 4, 1987
22-year-old Krist Novoselic was lost in thought as he fiddled around on his bass guitar, trying to get the bridge to the Ramones’ “Sheena is a Punk Rocker” just right for the umpteenth time. He had his heart set on playing music, and even though his parents weren’t too keen on it, he wasn’t about to give up on his dream.
Just then, he noticed something under his bed. He picked it up, finding it to be a cassette tape marked “Fecal Matter”. “Huh,” he said. “Forgot all about this…maybe I should give it a listen.”
He set his guitar on the bed, headed over to the old stereo in his room, placed the cassette in the tape player, and pressed play. Unfortunately, after only a few seconds, the tape started to skip, and black ribbon began to gather up in the tape well.
“Gah, shit!” Novoselic exclaimed as he pressed the stop button, then attempted to gather up the black ribbon quickly spurting from the tape player. After a few seconds of trying to pry the black tape out of the tape well, he was successful—but not without completely destroying the cassette.
He groaned, and shook his head. “Well, this thing is junk now,” he said, and tossed the cassette tape in the garbage can beside his bed. He briefly considered asking his acquaintance Kurt Cobain to make him another tape, but after thinking for a few seconds, he let it go, and flipped his stereo to the local punk station. If he was meant to form a band, he’d form one—whether or not it was with Cobain would be up to fate.
October 12, 1987
“Hey, Rick!” called Koko B. Ware from a nearby table. “Good to see you back!”
Ricky Steamboat nodded at Ware. “Good to be back,” he replied. He’d enjoyed his time off immensely, but now it was time to get back to work, providing for his family who he loved so much. Thankfully, the snowstorm that had battered the New England area hadn’t prevented him from getting back to work on time, although he was kicking himself for forgetting to bring a lot of warm clothes. Still, it was pretty warm in the World Wrestling Federation headquarters building in Stanford, Connecticut, so he wasn’t about to complain, especially since there were a few vignettes he had to shoot later on. He soon came up to Vince McMahon’s office, and knocked on the door.
“Come in,” came the familiar deep voice of the owner of the WWF. Steamboat walked into the room, smiling at his employer.
McMahon looked up from his desk and smiled widely. “Nice to have you back, Rick,” he said appreciatively. “Have a seat. Hope you’re ready to make up for lost time!”
Steamboat couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, I’ll try my best, sir.” He sat down in one of the chairs in front of McMahon’s desk. “Anything…interesting happen while I was gone?”
McMahon shrugged, smiling. “Eh, same old, same old…well, except for you not being here. I was just going through some notes on how we could bring you back in…me, Pat and the others have come up with a few things.”
Steamboat nodded. “I’m interested to see what you guys have thought of.”
McMahon shuffled through the stack of papers on his desk. “We’ve been building up a Hogan-Andre feud while you were gone—that’s been tiding most people over. But all the ‘Dragon’ shirts and headbands and stuff in the crowd…well, they tell the whole story.”
Steamboat laughed again. “Kids will be kids, I guess.”
“Oh, it’s not just kids,” McMahon said, joining in the laughter. “There are grown-ass men out there decked up and trying their damndest to do kung fu every time we play one of your videos. You’re the poster boy for this place, like it or not.”
Steamboat smiled. “You’re making me blush, sir.” He quickly decided to change the subject. “So how about those ideas?”
“Well, we’ve got our new Survivor Series show coming up,” McMahon said as he motioned Steamboat close and pointed at some of his notes. “We’ll have teams of 5 facing off against one another. And one match we’re planning has Hulk Hogan as the captain of one team…”
Steamboat smiled. He knew exactly where this was going, and he was looking forward to it.
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[1] Steamboat’s then- (and current-day) residence IOTL as well, better known today as the home of several NASCAR drivers.
[2] As OTL.
[3] Other than incidental butterflies, Star Trek: The Next Generation is mostly as OTL for now.
[4] All you Trekkies have probably (correctly) guessed that this is Denise Crosby’s character of Tasha Yar. I think Crosby and the former Mrs. Steamboat really did have somewhat of a resemblance to one another…
[5] IOTL, Steamboat lost the Intercontinental Title on June 19th, 1987, and returned for a match at Madison Square Garden on July 25th, for a total of about a month and a week off. ITTL, he gets slightly less time off, but at least he won’t be buried upon returning.
[6] The earthquake is as OTL, but the number of deaths is unfortunately slightly higher ITTL.
[7] Seen in the picture at the beginning of this update (taken around 1984, according to my source). Incidentally, that’s Steamboat and his wife Bonnie in the photo for sure, but I have no clue who the person on the far left is…
[8] For a peek at what Steamboat’s gym looked like, I recommend you check out this video from circa 1985, when Steamboat was in the NWA feuding with Ron Bass, Black Bart, and J.J. Dillon.
[9] Your first (and maybe only!) taste of how Bray Wyatt is doing ITTL.
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And just like that, Steamboat is back in the fold after a short absence. Pro wrestlers have very demanding schedules (especially in the '80s!), so the fact that the Dragon is back so quickly shouldn't really surprise anyone. I also hope you guys enjoyed the pop-culture and world event references sprinkled liberally throughout the update.
Coming up: the joint buildup to the WWF's and NWA's next big shows, through the eyes of one Mr. Meltzer.
September 28, 1987
Ricky Steamboat stretched back in his bed in his home in Mooresville, North Carolina. [1] With his demanding schedule, it was great to have a little time off. Granted, he liked being the WWF Heavyweight Champion and all the publicity it brought, but after the strenuous schedule of being on the road with the most successful wrestling company in America, he was glad to get some time to himself and his family. The clock in the hallway began to strike nine, and Steamboat smiled as he looked down the hallway from the bedroom. His one-month old son Ricky, Jr. (“Richie”, as they called him) was asleep in his room, and for once, the child wasn’t crying. After the constant feeding, cuddling, and changing of diapers throughout the day from him and his wife, Steamboat was indeed quite tired.
Ricky’s wife Bonnie emerged from the bathroom, her long blonde hair wrapped in a towel. She smiled at Steamboat as he looked at her. “Little early for you to be taking a shower, honey,” he said matter-of-factly.
“I know, I know,” Bonnie replied as she straightened her bathrobe. “But these last few days have been pretty hectic.”
“Definitely,” Steamboat said as he reached for the bedside table, picking up the remote control for the bedroom TV set. “I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world, though. Still, it’s nice to get a little bit of time to regroup, no matter what goes on.”
Bonnie smiled and nodded in agreement. Just then, the familiar sound of crying came from down the hall. Bonnie sighed. “I think that one means he’s hungry again,” she said. “The doctor was right: after a while, you recognize which cries are which.”
Steamboat stifled a laugh. “Call if you need anything, honey,” he said, watching his wife disappear down the hall. He turned to the television set, turning it on with the remote. A news report was on, discussing the Republican Presidential candidate race to take place next year. Reverend Pat Robertson had announced his candidacy a few days prior [2], and with current President Ronald Reagan’s impending exit from the White House next year, the race was predicted to be a tight one.
Just then, Bonnie came back through the door. “We’re good…for now, anyway,” she said, climbing into bed beside her husband. “Anything on worth watching?”
“Mostly just the news,” Steamboat said, flipping through another channel or two. He eventually caught a glimpse of an older, bald-headed man in a red uniform entering a spaceship, as an array of people in brightly colored uniforms went about their business on board. Steamboat chuckled to himself: he’d heard that Star Trek: The Next Generation was premiering tonight, but he hadn’t made it a point to check it out. [3] He was only vaguely familiar with the original Star Trek, but to him, anything without Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock in it just wasn’t Star Trek. Still, Steamboat paused to watch a bit of the show for a while. Patrick Stewart, the man who played Captain Picard, seemed to be a very good actor, and the young blonde lady in the yellow uniform sort of reminded him of his wife, except with shorter hair. [4]
Steamboat’s wife yawned beside him. “Turn that off, please, honey…I’m getting kind of tired.”
Steamboat looked at his wife. “You don’t want to stay up and watch Johnny Carson?” he joked.
“No,” she said. “Besides, that Shandling guy is hosting tonight—I checked the TV Guide.”
Steamboat nodded, turned off the television with the remote, and settled into bed.
“When do you have to be back to work again?” asked Bonnie.
“The 12th,” Steamboat replied, stretching out comfortably under the sheets. “And I’m going to enjoy all the time off I can.” [5]
October 1, 1987
Music producer Maurice Starr tapped his fingers nervously as he held the phone to his ear. “I know the last album flopped,” he said, “but the same thing happened to a lot of acts that were eventually given second chances!”
“I’m well aware of that,” replied Columbia Records President Walter Yetnikoff on the other end of the phone. Maurice Starr was known in the music business as the brains behind a few musical acts, the biggest being R&B sextet New Edition, who had gone on to have several big hits. However, in Yetnikoff’s eyes, this new group Starr was trying to promote—a five-man former bubblegum pop group whose members were all teenagers—just reeked of being a copy of New Edition. “But it seems to me like you’re trying to make lightning in a bottle again. I’m just not convinced these kids are the next New Edition.”
“They’ll be 20 times as big as New Edition,” Starr urged. “The only thing they need is for you to give them the opportunity…”
Yetnikoff was silent for a few seconds, but then sighed heavily. “I’m sorry, Maurice…I just can’t take that chance. I’d appreciate it if you stopped calling, too.”
With that, Yetnikoff hung up. Maurice Starr was silent for a while, but he finally sighed as he hung up the phone. It looked as though, at least for now, the record industry just wasn’t ready for The New Kids on the Block…
October 2, 1987
“…the damage from the quake was immediate, and widespread,” the man stated over the car radio, reporting on a 5.9 magnitude earthquake that had rattled Los Angeles and its surrounding areas the day before. “The most damage appeared to be near the center of the quake, as well as downtown Whittier, California. Buildings crumbled, walls collapsed, and many homes were completely destroyed. So far, the death total has climbed to thirteen, when an elderly man died of a heart attack due to the shock of the quake.” [6]
Ricky Steamboat sighed as he turned off the radio in his car. Earthquakes, floods, storms…it seemed that no matter when he turned on the news, it was something bad. He shook it off as he pulled into the parking lot of the Mid-Atlantic Gym. Steamboat had opened the place in the early ‘80s, and hoped to run it full-time one day, perhaps when he retired from wrestling. He smiled as he admired the sign out front, emblazoned proudly with the words “Steamboat’s Mid-Atlantic Gym”, with the words “Deli” and “Juice Bar” underneath. [7] He sighed nostalgically: his good friend and former tag team partner, the late Jay Youngblood, used to help operate the juice bar. Since Youngblood’s untimely passing two years ago, Steamboat had missed him terribly, and he had to wipe a small tear from his eye just thinking about his late friend. Quickly composing himself, Steamboat exited his car and headed inside the gym.
Several people were already scattered about, using the weights and workout equipment spread strategically around the gym. A John Mellencamp song faintly played on the old radio behind the front counter. A smile crept over Steamboat’s face again as he glanced around the building, taking time to notice the photos and old wrestling memorabilia on the walls. [8] It had proven to be an insanely popular decision, as many people in North Carolina were indeed huge wrestling fans, whether it was the WWF or (more often) the local territory, Jim Crockett’s NWA.
Just then, a tall, dark-haired man got up from one of the weight benches and walked toward Steamboat, smiling. “Hey, Rick,” he said, holding his hand out. “Good to see you again.”
Steamboat smiled as he shook the man’s hand. “Mike Rotunda,” he said, instantly recognizing the current NWA employee. It had been several years since Rotunda had left the WWF, and Steamboat had heard very interesting things about what he and the Four Horsemen were doing in Jim Crockett’s neck of the country. “It’s been a while, huh?”
Rotunda nodded. “How have you been?”
“Not bad,” Steamboat said. “So glad McMahon let me have a little time off…being the big fish in the company is really draining sometimes.”
“Yeah, I heard you had a new little bundle of joy,” Rotunda said, smiling. “Congratulations.”
“I heard you had one yourself,” Steamboat said, trying to contain his glee.
“Yep. Little Windham’s growing like a weed…he just turned four months old a while ago.” [9]
Steamboat nodded. “So what brings you here?”
“Just enjoying a little workout before the big house show tomorrow. You’re welcome to come watch, you know.”
Steamboat shook his head. “Nah, I’m trying to distance myself from the business as much as I can until I absolutely have to go back. I only have ten days left to myself, after all.”
“Understood,” Rotunda said as he glanced around the gym. “Well, guess I’ll get back to my weights.”
“Wait a second,” Steamboat said, smiling. “Let me buy you a protein shake—my treat. From one new dad to another.”
October 4, 1987
22-year-old Krist Novoselic was lost in thought as he fiddled around on his bass guitar, trying to get the bridge to the Ramones’ “Sheena is a Punk Rocker” just right for the umpteenth time. He had his heart set on playing music, and even though his parents weren’t too keen on it, he wasn’t about to give up on his dream.
Just then, he noticed something under his bed. He picked it up, finding it to be a cassette tape marked “Fecal Matter”. “Huh,” he said. “Forgot all about this…maybe I should give it a listen.”
He set his guitar on the bed, headed over to the old stereo in his room, placed the cassette in the tape player, and pressed play. Unfortunately, after only a few seconds, the tape started to skip, and black ribbon began to gather up in the tape well.
“Gah, shit!” Novoselic exclaimed as he pressed the stop button, then attempted to gather up the black ribbon quickly spurting from the tape player. After a few seconds of trying to pry the black tape out of the tape well, he was successful—but not without completely destroying the cassette.
He groaned, and shook his head. “Well, this thing is junk now,” he said, and tossed the cassette tape in the garbage can beside his bed. He briefly considered asking his acquaintance Kurt Cobain to make him another tape, but after thinking for a few seconds, he let it go, and flipped his stereo to the local punk station. If he was meant to form a band, he’d form one—whether or not it was with Cobain would be up to fate.
October 12, 1987
“Hey, Rick!” called Koko B. Ware from a nearby table. “Good to see you back!”
Ricky Steamboat nodded at Ware. “Good to be back,” he replied. He’d enjoyed his time off immensely, but now it was time to get back to work, providing for his family who he loved so much. Thankfully, the snowstorm that had battered the New England area hadn’t prevented him from getting back to work on time, although he was kicking himself for forgetting to bring a lot of warm clothes. Still, it was pretty warm in the World Wrestling Federation headquarters building in Stanford, Connecticut, so he wasn’t about to complain, especially since there were a few vignettes he had to shoot later on. He soon came up to Vince McMahon’s office, and knocked on the door.
“Come in,” came the familiar deep voice of the owner of the WWF. Steamboat walked into the room, smiling at his employer.
McMahon looked up from his desk and smiled widely. “Nice to have you back, Rick,” he said appreciatively. “Have a seat. Hope you’re ready to make up for lost time!”
Steamboat couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, I’ll try my best, sir.” He sat down in one of the chairs in front of McMahon’s desk. “Anything…interesting happen while I was gone?”
McMahon shrugged, smiling. “Eh, same old, same old…well, except for you not being here. I was just going through some notes on how we could bring you back in…me, Pat and the others have come up with a few things.”
Steamboat nodded. “I’m interested to see what you guys have thought of.”
McMahon shuffled through the stack of papers on his desk. “We’ve been building up a Hogan-Andre feud while you were gone—that’s been tiding most people over. But all the ‘Dragon’ shirts and headbands and stuff in the crowd…well, they tell the whole story.”
Steamboat laughed again. “Kids will be kids, I guess.”
“Oh, it’s not just kids,” McMahon said, joining in the laughter. “There are grown-ass men out there decked up and trying their damndest to do kung fu every time we play one of your videos. You’re the poster boy for this place, like it or not.”
Steamboat smiled. “You’re making me blush, sir.” He quickly decided to change the subject. “So how about those ideas?”
“Well, we’ve got our new Survivor Series show coming up,” McMahon said as he motioned Steamboat close and pointed at some of his notes. “We’ll have teams of 5 facing off against one another. And one match we’re planning has Hulk Hogan as the captain of one team…”
Steamboat smiled. He knew exactly where this was going, and he was looking forward to it.
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[1] Steamboat’s then- (and current-day) residence IOTL as well, better known today as the home of several NASCAR drivers.
[2] As OTL.
[3] Other than incidental butterflies, Star Trek: The Next Generation is mostly as OTL for now.
[4] All you Trekkies have probably (correctly) guessed that this is Denise Crosby’s character of Tasha Yar. I think Crosby and the former Mrs. Steamboat really did have somewhat of a resemblance to one another…
[5] IOTL, Steamboat lost the Intercontinental Title on June 19th, 1987, and returned for a match at Madison Square Garden on July 25th, for a total of about a month and a week off. ITTL, he gets slightly less time off, but at least he won’t be buried upon returning.
[6] The earthquake is as OTL, but the number of deaths is unfortunately slightly higher ITTL.
[7] Seen in the picture at the beginning of this update (taken around 1984, according to my source). Incidentally, that’s Steamboat and his wife Bonnie in the photo for sure, but I have no clue who the person on the far left is…
[8] For a peek at what Steamboat’s gym looked like, I recommend you check out this video from circa 1985, when Steamboat was in the NWA feuding with Ron Bass, Black Bart, and J.J. Dillon.
[9] Your first (and maybe only!) taste of how Bray Wyatt is doing ITTL.
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And just like that, Steamboat is back in the fold after a short absence. Pro wrestlers have very demanding schedules (especially in the '80s!), so the fact that the Dragon is back so quickly shouldn't really surprise anyone. I also hope you guys enjoyed the pop-culture and world event references sprinkled liberally throughout the update.
Coming up: the joint buildup to the WWF's and NWA's next big shows, through the eyes of one Mr. Meltzer.
I like it!!
You mentioned a Hogan-Andre feud; I wonder how that will play out due to the differences in this TL. I'm still curious too as to what happens with the Million Dollar Man makes his debut and how his Megabucks team will be composed here.
I'm already looking forward to your next update.
You mentioned a Hogan-Andre feud; I wonder how that will play out due to the differences in this TL. I'm still curious too as to what happens with the Million Dollar Man makes his debut and how his Megabucks team will be composed here.
I'm already looking forward to your next update.
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