Saturday Night's Main Event 9
It's a new year, and the Supreme Court is in attendance to celebrate with the WWF Superstars! So in honour of lawful justness, we get an evening of assault, lynching, and kidnapping...It's the Cartoon Era of the WWF in all its family-friendliness!
History In The Making
It’s a new year, and before we get underway with one of the biggest and most successful years in WWF/E history, let’s find out what the WWF Superstars were making in the way of resolutions for this bumper year… (Spoiler: Only Randy Savage seems to understand the difference between a resolution and wanting to receive something...)
After six months of making a lot of money, it was time to end the Hulk Hogan-Paul Orndorff missed phone call feud. And there was only one way to do it: the Supreme Court. Well, the Supreme Court of wrestling, that is: the steel cage! For the first time ever, the big blue bars were going to be on network television, and after their disqualification finishes at The Big Event and the seventh Saturday Night’s Main Event, it was time to have a decisive finish, which one got from a cage match in those days.
‘Mr Wonderful’ had not felt the true effects of his neck injury yet, and he was still in good shape. He also, crucially, was doing such a good job of being Hogan’s nemesis that there was no chance of getting cheers on network television, a problem that Jake Roberts had encountered as fans cheered him giving a DDT to the Hulkster, which unfortunately put an end to his chances of a sustained main event run.
‘Mr Wonderful’ had not felt the true effects of his neck injury yet, and he was still in good shape. He also, crucially, was doing such a good job of being Hogan’s nemesis that there was no chance of getting cheers on network television, a problem that Jake Roberts had encountered as fans cheered him giving a DDT to the Hulkster, which unfortunately put an end to his chances of a sustained main event run.
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Elsewhere, ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage had taken out Ricky ‘The Dragon’ Steamboat on an episode of Superstars, crushing his larynx with an axehandle from the outside all the way on to a Dragon lying prone on the security rail. It was a great angle, Steamboat’s third fantastic injury story since his arrival in the WWF, and resulted in him leaving the screen for a few weeks. It was obvious he would return at some point to challenge Savage, but in the meantime Macho would need a challenger for his Intercontinental title…Enter ‘The Animal’. Yes, George Steele returns to network television after a long absence in order to reignite his feud with Savage and his disturbing groping/stalking/general uneasiness for Elizabeth. From a purely in-ring standpoint, it’s going to be a step down from November’s intriguing heel vs. heel encounter with Jake Roberts, but at least we get Macho Man on SNME for two shows in a row.
More returns: ‘Adorable’ Adrian Adonis had recovered from his dislocated arm at the hands of Roddy Piper’s crutch, meaning ‘The Rowdy One’ could finish his revenge list, although The Magnificent Fat Albert Muraco didn’t get a chance to get his beating on network television…Junkyard Dog is back in the limelight, too, having lost his way after giving up on Jimmy Hart’s underwear. He’s found a new cause, however, being his quest to avoid bowing to ‘King’ Harley Race…
The Hartford Civic Center is the venue, and the Supreme Court of Wrestling declares this…a happening!
The Hartford Civic Center is the venue, and the Supreme Court of Wrestling declares this…a happening!
It's A Happening
Highlights from the opening promo package: Bobby Heenan and Paul Orndorff are happy that Hulk Hogan has nowhere to run; Hogan himself is already inside the cage, which he refers to again as “the Supreme Court of professional wrestling”; Adrian Adonis is back and not feeling so adorable; George ‘The Animal’ Steele has “surprise” for Randy Savage, but no definite articles; Harley Race is the King and also very uncomfortable; and Junkyard Dog only bows down to God, who has made him understandable for tonight’s promo.
We’re in the insurance capital of the world, Hartford, Connecticut, and Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura are excited about the first-ever steel cage match on network television. Jesse is predicting a change of title tonight.
We’re in the insurance capital of the world, Hartford, Connecticut, and Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura are excited about the first-ever steel cage match on network television. Jesse is predicting a change of title tonight.
Backstage, Mean Gene is with ‘Mr Wonderful’ and ‘The Brain’. Orndorff refuses to be interviewed, and just marches back and forth as Mean Gene criticises Heenan for having already bought “belt insurance” for the WWF Championship. There is also one more denial of betrayal from Heenan, and it sparks the exit of the heels to the ring.
Jesse Ventura again does a great commentary job, putting over the fact that Orndorff and Hogan have been feuding for six months, and the only to settle their dispute is within the confines of a steel cage. Vince becomes irate when referee Danny Davis appears at ringside. Davis had been playing a heel referee gimmick with more intensity over the previous few weeks, and his presence along with assigned official Joey Marella has the crowd wondering if there might not be a screw job title change on the cards…
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Hogan is now with Mean Gene, having some sort of a seizure, muttering “Wonderful” and grimacing. Gene asks him why he didn’t just settle this earlier in a cage, to which Hogan answers that it’s brutal and Orndorff’s about to find out. Didn’t answer the question there, Hulkster.
WWF Championship Steel Cage Match:
Hulk Hogan (c) vs. 'Mr Wonderful' Paul Orndorff (w/Bobby 'The Brain' Heenan)
Hogan marches down to the ring and shakes the blue-barred cage to test its stability, as Orndorff tries a few cheap kicks through the bars. The champion then climbs the cage from the outside, pausing at the top to pose and of course, rip that shirt off.
Orndorff jumps Hogan as soon as the Hulkster lands in the ring, ripping the WWF Championship belt from his waist and whipping him with it. ‘Mr Wonderful’ goes straight for the door, but Hogan crawls across to clutch his ankle and stop his progression. Orndorff nails some very precise elbows but is again blocked from escaping. The fans are already chanting, “Hogan!” at the top of their lungs. More exact elbows follow, and Orndorff climbs the cage…and gets over the top! However, Hogan manages to scale the cage and grabs Wonderful by the hair, grinding his head into the cage and dragging him back over. Jesse: “Hulk Hogan would not be champion now if ‘Mr Wonderful’ was bald!” |
Hogan hangs Orndorff upside down from the top of the cage and rams his head into the steel bars before he crumples down between the ropes and the cage. Hogan proceeds to lay some rights into his former friend, and then begins to choke him with his Hulkamania bandana. Hogan’s own attempt at escape is unsuccessful, as Orndorff pulls him forcefully back down and punches him down into the mat. Some rope-assisted knees to Hogan’s throat allow Orndorff another chance at escape, but the champion again blocks him. This time ‘Mr Wonderful’ misses his precise elbows and we get a mini-Hulk Up. Big rights take Orndorff down, but when Hogan tries to get out of the cage, Danny Davis has the door locked and it takes the officials a while to get the key to unlock it. This gives Orndorff the chance to head-butt Hogan in the abdomen and then steal a page from JYD’s short playbook with crawling head-butts. Both men end up banging heads on the cage and take their time returning to their feet. Each of them slowly climbs up opposite sides of the cage, and make it over the top. Vince is screaming at Hogan to “Drop now! Drop now!” and both men do drop to the floor – at the same time!
Joey Marella lifts Hogan’s arm in victory, whilst on the other side Danny Davis raises Orndorff’s. Confusion reigns, as the refs argue and Davis ends up shoving Marella down to the floor. Hogan threatens Davis, as any good babyface should, and then inadvertently wipes him out when Orndorff nails the champ from behind with a big knee. Orndorff then takes his turn threatening, this time aiming his chagrin at Joey Marella. Howard Finkel announces the match as a tie, but that we must have a winner and it will continue…after this commercial break!
When we return Davis has been taken from ringside and Marella is the only official left standing. Orndorff drags Hogan back in the ring and stands on the top turnbuckle. Vince wonders why he doesn’t just climb out with Hogan clearly incapacitated, but Jesse covers by saying he can’t legally climb out until both his feet have touched the mat again. Nice work, Jesse. A flying precise elbow means he can now leave, but he uses a foreign object to grind Hogan’s face. The Turncoat Clothesline connects, but it enrages the Hulkster, leading to the Hulk Up. The crowd explodes with ever-louder “Hogan! Hogan!” chants as Orndorff’s punches do nothing. Hogan hits his own rights and some chops, then rams ‘Mr Wonderful’ into each side of the cage. The champion hits a backbreaker and then the legdrop, as we see Orndorff is bleeding. Hogan climbs the cage, but Bobby Heenan runs in and grabs desperately at his leg.
Orndorff recovers enough to start climbing himself, but Hogan dispenses with Heenan, grabs his opponent, connects with a big atomic drop and then whips ‘The Brain’ into the cage for a big, popular bump. Hogan climbs over as Orndorff crawls towards the door, but he doesn’t make it in time, and the Hulkster drops to the floor to take the win.
Ever the good winner, Hogan re-enters the ring and atomic drops Bobby Heenan to the outside. A split-screen shot shows both men touching the floor at the same time, but Jesse insists that Orndorff was a three-hundredth of a second faster because his knees were bent. Hogan celebrates in the ring as Jesse laments the result and calls him “lucky.”
Joey Marella lifts Hogan’s arm in victory, whilst on the other side Danny Davis raises Orndorff’s. Confusion reigns, as the refs argue and Davis ends up shoving Marella down to the floor. Hogan threatens Davis, as any good babyface should, and then inadvertently wipes him out when Orndorff nails the champ from behind with a big knee. Orndorff then takes his turn threatening, this time aiming his chagrin at Joey Marella. Howard Finkel announces the match as a tie, but that we must have a winner and it will continue…after this commercial break!
When we return Davis has been taken from ringside and Marella is the only official left standing. Orndorff drags Hogan back in the ring and stands on the top turnbuckle. Vince wonders why he doesn’t just climb out with Hogan clearly incapacitated, but Jesse covers by saying he can’t legally climb out until both his feet have touched the mat again. Nice work, Jesse. A flying precise elbow means he can now leave, but he uses a foreign object to grind Hogan’s face. The Turncoat Clothesline connects, but it enrages the Hulkster, leading to the Hulk Up. The crowd explodes with ever-louder “Hogan! Hogan!” chants as Orndorff’s punches do nothing. Hogan hits his own rights and some chops, then rams ‘Mr Wonderful’ into each side of the cage. The champion hits a backbreaker and then the legdrop, as we see Orndorff is bleeding. Hogan climbs the cage, but Bobby Heenan runs in and grabs desperately at his leg.
Orndorff recovers enough to start climbing himself, but Hogan dispenses with Heenan, grabs his opponent, connects with a big atomic drop and then whips ‘The Brain’ into the cage for a big, popular bump. Hogan climbs over as Orndorff crawls towards the door, but he doesn’t make it in time, and the Hulkster drops to the floor to take the win.
Ever the good winner, Hogan re-enters the ring and atomic drops Bobby Heenan to the outside. A split-screen shot shows both men touching the floor at the same time, but Jesse insists that Orndorff was a three-hundredth of a second faster because his knees were bent. Hogan celebrates in the ring as Jesse laments the result and calls him “lucky.”
We get a recount of the revived George Steele-Randy Savage feud with Mean Gene. Gene tries to ask Elizabeth about her view, which upsets the Intercontinental champion, who tells Gene he will “Slap your face and put it up against the wall.”
We of course get the Elizabeth cleavage shot before we are sent backstage again to George Steele with Gene. Okerlund tries to find out what the surprise is, but ‘The Animal’ just shoves his head right up close to the camera for some unflattering close-ups of the pair of them. In the arena, he is carrying his own action figure, which Jesse decries is a terrible surprise.
We of course get the Elizabeth cleavage shot before we are sent backstage again to George Steele with Gene. Okerlund tries to find out what the surprise is, but ‘The Animal’ just shoves his head right up close to the camera for some unflattering close-ups of the pair of them. In the arena, he is carrying his own action figure, which Jesse decries is a terrible surprise.
Intercontinental Title Match:
'Macho Man' Randy Savage (c) (w/Elizabeth) vs. George 'The Animal' Steele
George gives Elizabeth his doll, causing Savage to yank the toy out of her hands, throw it to the floor and point accusingly at her. This gives Steele the chance to attach from behind, then lift Savage up in the air with a chokehold. A battering ram to the corner from ‘The Animal’ leads to two big slams and Steele beckons to the back for something. This gives Savage the chance to pull Steele down and get a slam of his own. Macho climbs to the top rope, but before he can drop the elbow, Ricky Steamboat’s music hits!
The crowd are very excited to see ‘The Dragon’ running to the ring, and he challenges Savage to come and face him. The distraction allows Steele to press slam the champion from the top rope, and then throw him over the top rope to the outside. ‘The Animal’ then follows, but instead of going after his opponent, he grabs Elizabeth and carries her to the back. Savage realises what is going on, but his attempts to rescue Liz are thwarted by ‘The Dragon’. Ventura rightly calls it a “kidnapping”, but Vince says, “at least she’s in the arms of someone who cares for her.” Officials appear to take Steamboat away and prevent him from aiding and abetting the kidnapping, and we get a replay of Savage’s attack on ‘The Dragon’ in November 1986.
After the break, Steamboat is trying to charge the ring and get at Savage, and Steele still hasn’t been counted out. The police arrive to take Steamboat away, as ‘The Animal’ reappears and rams Macho’s head into the turnbuckle. Steele starts to rip open the turnbuckle and have a chew on its foamy contents. He shoves/throws foam at the referee, but Savage prevents another turnbuckle incident by pushing Steele out of another battering ram attempt. Jesse is wondering where Elizabeth is and Vince nonchalantly ponders that, “maybe he’s locked her up back there, who knows.” Apparently that will also be an improvement on her relationship with Randy Savage. Really?
We see the foam all matted up with Steele’s body hair as he comes back with some kicks and a bite to the head. Jesse takes umbrage with this move, but Vince argues that he is “salivating, not biting – he likes to salivate.” Savage tries to slip him into a sleeperhold, but Steele again bites to get out of the move. Steele procures a foreign object from his tights, and proceeds to knock Savage clear out of the ring and onto/through the timekeeper’s table. Steele craftily hides the object and shoves the referee down, with no disqualification following. Jesse is so upset that he decides he will go to Jack Tunney personally to complain about this bending of the rules for ‘The Animal’. Savage, however, reappears with the ring bell and clocks Steele from behind. The three count follows shortly thereafter.
Savage goes to get the bell again and climbs to the top rope. Steamboat returns, still taking the time to slap hands with fans along the way, and stands over Steele to protect him. The Macho Man bails, but Ventura says it’s because he’s going after Elizabeth, but Vince thinks he knows better. Steele comes around and hugs his beloved turnbuckle foam as Steamboat drizzles it lovingly over his bald head. They lift their hands together and the crowd give a big ovation to the kidnappers.
The crowd are very excited to see ‘The Dragon’ running to the ring, and he challenges Savage to come and face him. The distraction allows Steele to press slam the champion from the top rope, and then throw him over the top rope to the outside. ‘The Animal’ then follows, but instead of going after his opponent, he grabs Elizabeth and carries her to the back. Savage realises what is going on, but his attempts to rescue Liz are thwarted by ‘The Dragon’. Ventura rightly calls it a “kidnapping”, but Vince says, “at least she’s in the arms of someone who cares for her.” Officials appear to take Steamboat away and prevent him from aiding and abetting the kidnapping, and we get a replay of Savage’s attack on ‘The Dragon’ in November 1986.
After the break, Steamboat is trying to charge the ring and get at Savage, and Steele still hasn’t been counted out. The police arrive to take Steamboat away, as ‘The Animal’ reappears and rams Macho’s head into the turnbuckle. Steele starts to rip open the turnbuckle and have a chew on its foamy contents. He shoves/throws foam at the referee, but Savage prevents another turnbuckle incident by pushing Steele out of another battering ram attempt. Jesse is wondering where Elizabeth is and Vince nonchalantly ponders that, “maybe he’s locked her up back there, who knows.” Apparently that will also be an improvement on her relationship with Randy Savage. Really?
We see the foam all matted up with Steele’s body hair as he comes back with some kicks and a bite to the head. Jesse takes umbrage with this move, but Vince argues that he is “salivating, not biting – he likes to salivate.” Savage tries to slip him into a sleeperhold, but Steele again bites to get out of the move. Steele procures a foreign object from his tights, and proceeds to knock Savage clear out of the ring and onto/through the timekeeper’s table. Steele craftily hides the object and shoves the referee down, with no disqualification following. Jesse is so upset that he decides he will go to Jack Tunney personally to complain about this bending of the rules for ‘The Animal’. Savage, however, reappears with the ring bell and clocks Steele from behind. The three count follows shortly thereafter.
Savage goes to get the bell again and climbs to the top rope. Steamboat returns, still taking the time to slap hands with fans along the way, and stands over Steele to protect him. The Macho Man bails, but Ventura says it’s because he’s going after Elizabeth, but Vince thinks he knows better. Steele comes around and hugs his beloved turnbuckle foam as Steamboat drizzles it lovingly over his bald head. They lift their hands together and the crowd give a big ovation to the kidnappers.
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Mean Gene is with ‘The King’ Harley Race and Bobby ‘The Brain’ Heenan. We see a flashback to his coronation, as a decade of serious NWA title runs were banished into the past with the placing of a cheap crown on Race’s head. Everyone will bow to The King in servitude, and he makes Gene do so rather forcefully.
JYD notes that America “ain’t never had no Queen, ain’t never had no King” and that he was taught to only bow down to God above. Mean Gene leaves us, thoughtfully, with, “there comes a time perhaps when a King has sat on his throne for too long.” Ooh… |
Junkyard Dog vs. 'King' Harley Race (w/Bobby 'The Brain' Heenan)
Despite his absence from the big shows over the autumn, JYD is still very popular with the crowd. Danny Davis is the referee, much to Vince’s disgust. Heenan insists that JYD bows, so he bends over rather insultingly.
We start with Davis distracting JYD and allowing Race to club him. An elbow gets an early two count. Jesse talks about how much he loves seeing Race drop a knee, so ‘The King’ obliges. JYD roars back and throws Race shoulder-first into the ring post. Head-butts do some damage, but an eye rake allows Race the opportunity to nail a beautiful belly-to-belly suplex. Race makes the mistake of dropping a head-butt of his own to JYD’s noggin, which of course hurts him more than it does his opponent, because JYD is black and in WWF land that means he has a three-inch cranium. JYD connects with his trademark crawling head-butts and whips Race into the turnbuckle and outside.
Heenan tries to help Race as the crowd goes crazy with the “Weasel!” chants. JYD gets a hold of the crown and robe and puts it on as Danny Davis takes his time counting Race on the outside. JYD prances around the ring in his royal finery, until Heenan jumps onto JYD’s back. ‘The Brain’ eats a big right that sends him flying 360 degrees through the air. His beating is not in vain, however, as Race comes off the top rope with an elbow to the back of JYD’s head. Things get out of control, and the bell rings as Davis does nothing to stop Heenan and Race double team JYD.
A disqualification is called, proving that Davis is not biased in the opinion of Ventura. Heenan tries to make JYD bow forcefully, but the Dog escapes and the heels scarper. When JYD tries to attack, Davis throws his arms around his stomach, having done nothing to stop Race and Heenan. JYD then head-butts Davis, much to the delight of Vince and consternation of Jesse. JYD quickly helps Davis up, having realised that he had actually won and had no real reason to attack him. He checks on the ref and then begins to boogie, his guilt rather easily forgotten.
We start with Davis distracting JYD and allowing Race to club him. An elbow gets an early two count. Jesse talks about how much he loves seeing Race drop a knee, so ‘The King’ obliges. JYD roars back and throws Race shoulder-first into the ring post. Head-butts do some damage, but an eye rake allows Race the opportunity to nail a beautiful belly-to-belly suplex. Race makes the mistake of dropping a head-butt of his own to JYD’s noggin, which of course hurts him more than it does his opponent, because JYD is black and in WWF land that means he has a three-inch cranium. JYD connects with his trademark crawling head-butts and whips Race into the turnbuckle and outside.
Heenan tries to help Race as the crowd goes crazy with the “Weasel!” chants. JYD gets a hold of the crown and robe and puts it on as Danny Davis takes his time counting Race on the outside. JYD prances around the ring in his royal finery, until Heenan jumps onto JYD’s back. ‘The Brain’ eats a big right that sends him flying 360 degrees through the air. His beating is not in vain, however, as Race comes off the top rope with an elbow to the back of JYD’s head. Things get out of control, and the bell rings as Davis does nothing to stop Heenan and Race double team JYD.
A disqualification is called, proving that Davis is not biased in the opinion of Ventura. Heenan tries to make JYD bow forcefully, but the Dog escapes and the heels scarper. When JYD tries to attack, Davis throws his arms around his stomach, having done nothing to stop Race and Heenan. JYD then head-butts Davis, much to the delight of Vince and consternation of Jesse. JYD quickly helps Davis up, having realised that he had actually won and had no real reason to attack him. He checks on the ref and then begins to boogie, his guilt rather easily forgotten.
In the locker room, Paul Orndorff is pretty upset and Heenan is trying to calm his charge down. ‘The Brain’ is going to get the footage of the jump down to show to Jack Tunney, and he claims in less than a month the WWF Championship will be awarded to him. Mean Gene tries to ask questions, but is sent back out. Orndorff is worried that Hogan will get the footage first and doctor it, but ‘The Brain’ is adamant he has the tape.
Vince McMahon thinks otherwise, as he has the footage, which is again shown with the tape timer at the top of the screen to show that they both hit the floor at the same time. Jesse is not yet convinced, claiming the footage is more doctored than Nixon’s Watergate tapes.
Vince McMahon thinks otherwise, as he has the footage, which is again shown with the tape timer at the top of the screen to show that they both hit the floor at the same time. Jesse is not yet convinced, claiming the footage is more doctored than Nixon’s Watergate tapes.
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Mean Gene is with the returning – and unusually hairy – ‘Adorable’ Adrian Adonis. Adonis puts over the extent of his injury but claims he is over it now.
Roddy Piper cuts a below average interview for his standards, essentially giving Adonis credit for coming back. |
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'Rowdy' Roddy Piper vs. 'Adorable' Adrian Adonis (w/Jimmy Hart)
Piper is pretty over here. He throws his kilt over Adonis’s head, bites him, and then hip tosses. A big knee lift gets Adonis caught up rather uncomfortably in the ropes, and ‘The Rowdy One’ of course takes advantage by giving him a good boot to the head. We get the Ric Flair turnbuckle flip from Adonis as Jesse notes McMahon’s wavering voice due to his cheering for his favourites throughout the evening. Awesome. We are also informed that Elizabeth has been released from George Steele’s “protective custody”.
Piper is at work on Adonis’s arm but takes too long jawing and receives a kick to the gut from ‘The Adorable One’. Adonis nearly locks in his Goodnight Irene sleeperhold, but the momentum takes both men outside. Piper nails Jimmy Hart into the apron, but this allows Adonis a chance to club him from behind with his perfume spray canister. He squirts perfume in Piper’s eyes, blinding the Scot, who flails around on the outside until he gets counted out. Vince is rather angry, using his Mr. McMahon voice to scream that Adonis had “sprayed that crap!” The heels prance away in victory, whilst referees head in to calm Piper down and put a hot towel on his face, which is rather sweet of them, because we know Hot Rod loves his towels.
Piper is at work on Adonis’s arm but takes too long jawing and receives a kick to the gut from ‘The Adorable One’. Adonis nearly locks in his Goodnight Irene sleeperhold, but the momentum takes both men outside. Piper nails Jimmy Hart into the apron, but this allows Adonis a chance to club him from behind with his perfume spray canister. He squirts perfume in Piper’s eyes, blinding the Scot, who flails around on the outside until he gets counted out. Vince is rather angry, using his Mr. McMahon voice to scream that Adonis had “sprayed that crap!” The heels prance away in victory, whilst referees head in to calm Piper down and put a hot towel on his face, which is rather sweet of them, because we know Hot Rod loves his towels.
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Mean Gene is with the WWF Champion, who is “getting off on the all-natural high of victory.” Gene tells him of Bobby Heenan’s plan, and Hogan pulls the best face ever as he listens. I've attempted to recapture it in drawn form, but it really is something that is best seen in the flesh, in all its pouty, outraged, wide-eyed, substance-influenced glory. After he calms down, Hogan is convinced his feet touched first and nothing is going to change.
The Battle For Texas:
Blackjack Mulligan vs. Jimmy Jack Funk
Blackjack Mulligan had been a huge star throughout the NWA territories and had been a WWF Tag Team Champion in the mid-70s with Blackjack Lanza, from whom he had copied the Blackjack gimmick. Mulligan is also the father of Barry and Kendall Windham and the grandfather of Bray Wyatt and Bo Dallas. He had recently been part of the WWF as Big Machine, and after the gimmick had been phased out, he returned to the screen in his old Blackjack persona, as well as trying to audition for future Quentin Tarantino films by promoting his Honey Wagon.
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Zorro is the only Funk left in the WWF now, with Hoss essentially retiring rather than opening shows in tag matches with his “brother”. Zorro won’t start the match until Mulligan removes the spiky spurs from his cowboy boots, which is an absolutely fair thing to request, but Jesse is made to argue it like Funk is out of order. Zorro jumps Mulligan as he’s removing the spurs, but his Irish whip is reversed and a weak clothesline sends him to the outside. Jimmy Jack returns the favour with a weak clothesline of his own but then runs into a backdrop.
In the corner of the screen Mulligan appears with Mean Gene to talk about the Mulligan family New Year Party and references some ‘stars’ of whom I have no knowledge and consequently little interest in. While this is happening, Mulligan is beating on Zorro the whole time, and swiftly finishes him with a flying back elbow. To keep in with the fantastic sportsmanship of the night’s babyfaces, he proceeds to hang Zorro with his bullrope, the same spot which a year and a half earlier had made The Magnificent Muraco the dastardly heel when he had done it to Ricky Steamboat. Mulligan is now the owner of Texas, I guess.
In the corner of the screen Mulligan appears with Mean Gene to talk about the Mulligan family New Year Party and references some ‘stars’ of whom I have no knowledge and consequently little interest in. While this is happening, Mulligan is beating on Zorro the whole time, and swiftly finishes him with a flying back elbow. To keep in with the fantastic sportsmanship of the night’s babyfaces, he proceeds to hang Zorro with his bullrope, the same spot which a year and a half earlier had made The Magnificent Muraco the dastardly heel when he had done it to Ricky Steamboat. Mulligan is now the owner of Texas, I guess.
Vince and Jesse recap the night’s events, with some clips for good measure. Jesse pleads the case for the heels, and backs Danny Davis’s decision as the senior official. Vince wishes a happy new year to all! Jesse, however, is not sure why it’s happy after what’s happened to Paul Orndorff.
Well, You Know Something, Mean Gene...
This New Year’s episode got the biggest rating so far for Saturday Night’s Main Event: a huge 10.6. Even after six months, the Hogan-Orndorff feud was still hot. As for the match, it was a decent enough clash, aided as all Hogan matches were at this time by the electric crowd, and in this particular case the interesting twist of both men exiting at the same time. What was particularly clever about this idea was that it meant the feud could be extended if needed, but with all the talk of the video footage that we had after the match, a simple statement by Jack Tunney on Superstars that the footage had been reviewed and the decision was final would have closed the epic feud. There was a reason for this, if legend is to be believed, and it was that the WWF had a big idea in place for Hogan’s next feud but were unsure if they could get a certain talent to agree to it. This would leave a big gap at the top of the card for WrestleMania III, in which case they could declare that the footage from the cage match was not conclusive, and we could get one final match between Hogan and ‘Mr Wonderful’ to headline the show. As for the big angle, let’s leave that for next time…
Randy Savage was absolutely at the top of his game as a heel around this time, and from a pure wrestling standpoint it’s sad to see him wrestling George Steele all the time, as ‘The Animal’ was not in Macho’s league in terms of in-ring talent. Their feud was over, however, and there were better things around the corner in the shape of Ricky Steamboat, who received a massive reaction when he returned during the distraction-filled Intercontinental title match.
The kidnapping angle was certainly an odd one, although it was definitely the worst thing on a night of bizarre babyface actions: Hulk Hogan beat up a manager inside a steel cage even though he had won the match; Junkyard Dog attacked a referee despite winning his match; Blackjack Mulligan hung his opponent with a bullrope – despite having won his match; and, of course, Ricky Steamboat – the most good of good guys – prevented Randy Savage from running after his manager when she was abducted by a man whose nickname is ‘The Animal’. Ironically, Roddy Piper (who was doing his best to still be edgy and unpredictable in his new babyface role) was the only good guy who was treated like one, Adrian Adonis being the one to do the dastardly act by spraying perfume in ‘The Rowdy One’s’ eyes.
Strange booking ideas aside, this was another enjoyable SNME, with the likes of Hogan, Steamboat and Piper incredibly over and JYD fading somewhat but still over. Whilst none of the matches were as good as the Savage-Roberts or Hart Foundation-Killer Bees clashes at the last show, everything went along at a rapid pace and never got boring – even the nothing match for Texas was kept somewhat interesting by Blackjack Mulligan’s odd party reminiscence.
So, as 1987 began, the WWF was hurtling ever higher. The Hogan-Orndorff feud had been their biggest so far, so with WrestleMania III around the corner the next opponent for the Hulkster had to be someone pretty special indeed. If you’re reading this, you probably know who it was, but if you don’t, I won’t spoil it…
Randy Savage was absolutely at the top of his game as a heel around this time, and from a pure wrestling standpoint it’s sad to see him wrestling George Steele all the time, as ‘The Animal’ was not in Macho’s league in terms of in-ring talent. Their feud was over, however, and there were better things around the corner in the shape of Ricky Steamboat, who received a massive reaction when he returned during the distraction-filled Intercontinental title match.
The kidnapping angle was certainly an odd one, although it was definitely the worst thing on a night of bizarre babyface actions: Hulk Hogan beat up a manager inside a steel cage even though he had won the match; Junkyard Dog attacked a referee despite winning his match; Blackjack Mulligan hung his opponent with a bullrope – despite having won his match; and, of course, Ricky Steamboat – the most good of good guys – prevented Randy Savage from running after his manager when she was abducted by a man whose nickname is ‘The Animal’. Ironically, Roddy Piper (who was doing his best to still be edgy and unpredictable in his new babyface role) was the only good guy who was treated like one, Adrian Adonis being the one to do the dastardly act by spraying perfume in ‘The Rowdy One’s’ eyes.
Strange booking ideas aside, this was another enjoyable SNME, with the likes of Hogan, Steamboat and Piper incredibly over and JYD fading somewhat but still over. Whilst none of the matches were as good as the Savage-Roberts or Hart Foundation-Killer Bees clashes at the last show, everything went along at a rapid pace and never got boring – even the nothing match for Texas was kept somewhat interesting by Blackjack Mulligan’s odd party reminiscence.
So, as 1987 began, the WWF was hurtling ever higher. The Hogan-Orndorff feud had been their biggest so far, so with WrestleMania III around the corner the next opponent for the Hulkster had to be someone pretty special indeed. If you’re reading this, you probably know who it was, but if you don’t, I won’t spoil it…