So I moved a year ago. I didn’t really get back to Ecto-Containment until I was at better quarters way off campus. (Ecto-Containment Blog Post, September 22, 2017)
As is usually the case I’ve also been wanting to write about non Ghostbusters topics. I hadn’t made time for it. These other interests don’t warrant full blown sites, though I played around with lay outs way back in case it made sense.
Today I have something I’ve been wanting to cover. It can be “nerdy,” it isn’t the usual topic I could write about. That is:
Professional wrestling.
To partially take a break from real life through the years, I’ve watched professional wrestling or “sports entertainment.” If you look or are my friend at Ecto-Containment Facebook page you may have seen me talk about the ’90s Monday Night Wars.
I’ve thought about adding those posts here. If I do that I thought I’d give some context. Grab some Skittles and a can of Surge. Or prepare to take a nap.
I grew up in New Jersey during the 1980s, part of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) territory. It was easy to be all things WWF such as Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling before I ever knew about syndication or the fact (at least nationally) the United States had been divided into wrestling territories.
If it hadn’t been for my dad and cable I could be doing something else right now. In my childhood house my parents were onboard with cable pretty early on. I don’t remember about USA Network, I knew when my dad could he’d watch on the mothership (mutha ship?) TBS WCW Saturday Night at 6:05. I was a little older by then, so it would have been hard not to have noticed the promos and at least enthusiasm from the commentators. Along with a different feel from WWF.
I remember being younger when my dad would watch WWF shows. I’m not sure if they were on later. I know professional wrestling was one thing my dad and I used to spend time together, it brought us closer. Sure, I’d fall asleep. When I was a teen and an adult, it was a shared interest. By the 1990s and 2000s we had much different interests.
In the ’80s I watched Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling, maybe had a Hulkamania t-shirt, and had wrestling figures with accompanying WWF ring I’m sure. Because you need to know, I still have my original Ric Flair figure. Somehow it survived along with a Larry Zbyszko figure. Was my dad a fan of the Living Legend?
Sometime in the 1980s WWF ran a house show or “live event” in East Rutherford, NJ aka Meadowlands. The venue, the no longer there Continental Airlines Arena. For some reason that didn’t have to be complicated my cub scout troop and our parental guardians went to this event. Wow right? Well could have been if it hadn’t been at night probably close to kid bedtime. Or if I had photos. What I do remember is fact and maybe I made something up decades ago that has stuck with me.
The group of classmates and at least my dad had the worse seats. The wrestlers appeared the size of ants and naturally their wasn’t any commentary. Boredom might have been the best word to describe going to my only ever WWF event. I’m sure I had fallen asleep.
Sometime at the event in this big arena where the Nets and Devils use to play we were walking around. Maybe for snacks or maybe for the exits. This is where my memory could have made something up. It feels real, I doubt I will ever know.
Thanks to the genius of the WWF or Vince, I like a lot of kids knew who Hulk Hogan was. Household name right? Hulkamania running wild!! Macho Man would have disagreed.
In a court of law to this day I would talk about how I saw Hulk Hogan at a table signing WWF sneakers. Maybe with Macho Man. If this was real, their was a line. Even I knew getting an autographed pair of WWF sneakers wasn’t free. If this was real, it’s the closest away from a television set I’d ever been to either Macho Man or the Hulkster. Then it was over and we were on our way home.
I briefly tried to find at least video proof that in the 80s their was either a Hulk Hogan/Hulkamania sneakers or WWF sneakers. Nothing yet. However I did find a 57 second commercial for WCW sneakers from Roo. Whoever they were?
Featuring Sting, Lex Luger, The Road Warriors, and Rick Steiner!
Thanks for reading about some of my more memorable 1980s pro wrestling memories. I have other original wrestling memories I could and may write about brother.
Sources:
- Sports Illustrated (Macho Man Photo)
- WWE (Rock ‘n’ Wrestling)
- On-line World Of Wrestling (WWF Logo)
- Wrestling Rocks (WCW Roos Commercial)
Ecto-Containment 