Greetings From Allentown

Close the windows because the Heat is on: WWF Halftime Heat from January 31, 1999! - Why Vince McMahon would have called the Rock-Mankind empty arena match even if Jim Ross was healthy - The true winner of the empty arena match - The difference in how head injuries were viewed in 1999 versus today - Shane McMahon as an announcer: the most annoying man in the world - Chyna’s heel turn and examining it from a kayfabe perspective - An appreciation of late 90s Big Bossman and the evolution of the character - A look back at the fun “UFC-style” matches between Ken Shamrock and Owen Hart from summer 1998 - Triple H becomes a misogynist in putting down Chyna Also: - A recollection of the most boring NHL game the host attended, which was on the same date as this show - A personal story about the Will Smith song “Miami” turns into a rant - Low blow after low blow after low blow - What was the actual halftime show of Super Bowl 33 that anyone watching this would have missed - The reluctant return of Vinnie Vegas Corn

Get off that top rope because Bill Watts is large and in charge for WCW Saturday Night from June 20, 1992! Included: - The good and bad of the changes made by Bill Watts upon his arrival - Johnny B. Badd: One of the greatest WCW character creations - Checking in with Scott Steiner, Shoney’s restaurant franchisee - The greatest hits of enhancement talent Bob Cook - Cactus Jack’s voice sounds a bit like a guy named Foley, but not Mick - What Greg Valentine and former MLB pitcher Jack Morris have in common - Dusty Rhodes gets profane - Tony Schiavone is totally sick of Jesse Ventura’s crap - Finding another problem with Terry Taylor: his whiny voice Also: - A plea from the host for any El Dandy matches announced by Dusty Rhodes - One animal in nature that Arn Anderson cannot defeat, based on his own remarks - The changes in the Steve Harvey-hosted version of Family Feud and potential parallels to wrestling - WCW inadvertently honoring Pride Month? - The debut of a new segment honoring Vinnie Vegas

On this special episode of Greetings From Allentown, Peter pays tribute to the storied career of the late Bobby “The Brain” Heenan. Included: - Heenan’s feuds with Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant that stretched for years and Bobby’s instrumental role in making WrestleMania 3 as big as it was - The Brain’s wheelings and dealings with his charges and those he helped elevate - His 2004 WWE Hall of Fame induction speech and how it compares with other HOF speeches both in WWE and in other sports - Heenan as a superlative comedian - Gorilla and Bobby: A Plan B for two different shows - A musical tribute to the Brain’s sublime call of the 1992 Royal Rumble

Raise the stars and stripes as this week features a look at WWF All American Wrestling from November 13, 1983! - The early format of WWF All American Wrestling and how it evolved with the sneaky use of wrestlers from other promotions - Sorting fact from fiction on the career of the Fabulous Moolah - The life and times of Ken Jugan - Tony Garea and Iron Mike Sharpe renew their rivalry in “The Last Battle of Allentown” - Bob Backlund helps Eddie Gilbert rehab an injury and things get weird - Hulk Hogan is all over the map in late 1983 and forms a tag team with the highest ego rating ever - The origins of the phrase “Katy bar the door” Also: - Saying goodbye to the Grand Wizard and his glorious attire - Multiple references to 1960s star Luis Martinez - So many plugs for Victory magazine, including what may have been Lord Alfred Hayes’ first WWF on-camera appearance - Iranian shenanigans in the Middle East in 1983 - YouTube comment theater!

Get ready for some explosive talk show action for this episode of Greetings From Allentown looking at WWF’s TNT (Tuesday Night Titans) from August 16, 1985. - A brief history of Tuesday Night Titans, issues with the name, and how the 1984 version of the show was like a modern day WWE problem - The original opening song to TNT: what it was originally supposed to be used for, and a later sporting event where it served as the theme - Terry Funk starts and finishes a barroom brawl after being insulted by Lord Alfred Hayes - A bounty on Mr. Wonderful leads to the first ever Paul Orndorff/Phil Collins mashup - Tony Garea and his hair tell us all about New Zealand but mostly about the sheep population - Corporal Kirchner is coming….but was he already there? - Jim Neidhart complains about future wrestling fans on the internet without even realizing it Also: - The missed opportunity of Vince McMahon playing a true Johnny Carson role - Sympathy for England getting screwed in the 1986 World Cup - Research about Tony G

Saturday Night’s alright for fighting as this week features a look at Saturday Night’s Main Event from January 4, 1986 in part 2 of the Fortnight of (Terry) Funk - Terry Funk’s history with Hulk Hogan which dates to the early 1980s and all the way to Sun City in Africa - Jesse Ventura calls out Brent Musberger and Vin Scully as he works a match and does commentary on the same show - Calling out Mr. Fuji for blatantly misrepresenting the Japanese people - George “The Animal” Steele and why he was a critical figure in the first few years of Saturday Night’s Main Event - Corporal Kirchner: It’s 4:20 somewhere! - Iron Sheik promos: unselfish in his patriotism - The beauty of the original music used in the show Also: - A quick rundown of the ill-fated 1985-86 season of Saturday Night Live, which was preempted for this show. - Referee Dean Malenko: Man of 1000 holds but doesn’t remember the rules for pinfalls - Hulk Hogan and his alternate uniform system - Cousin Luke as the #9 hitter in the lineup - Discussion o

Clear off all the tables and keep your head on a swivel because Greetings From Allentown kicks off a Fortnight of (Terry) Funk with a look at NWA Pro from May 20, 1989! - Excerpts from Terry Funk’s book giving insight to how he saw his role for this run in the NWA/WCW and why the tone of his feud with Ric Flair was changed midstream - The legendary Lance Russell is full of wisdom and also disgust for the heels - Terry Funk interrupts the Rookie Challenge match as only he can - Breaking down the six different kinds of “wrestling mists” as The Great Muta busts out the green kind - Lex Luger’s righteous indignation toward his top ten ranking by the NWA board - How Dick Murdoch’s honesty toward management sunk his 1989 run - The battle of (Eddie) Gilbert and (Kevin) Sullivan: Clash of the southern bookers - Ron Simmons turns up yet again and why Randy Rose is back so soon - A sudden realization about the relative attractiveness of Terry Gordy Also: - A comparison of Terry Funk and baseball legend Nolan Ryan - T

The forecast for this week’s Greetings From Allentown calls for Sunny skies with a look at WWF Mania, rebranded temporarily as The Sunny Show, from March 9, 1996. - A fair-minded look at the career of Tammy Lynn Sytch and her key role in launching the WWF’s online presence - Shawn Michaels’ run to WrestleMania 12, his connection with Sunny, and the peculiar thing he was into back then - An appreciation of old commercials for bizarre merchandise - Ranking the Bret Hart WWF World title reigns from worst to best - Breaking down the Billionaire Ted skits piece by piece, with things that were funny, things that were slanderous, and things that backfired completely - Taking several minutes to slam JBL as a wrestler, character, broadcaster, and human being in general - The definition of “diminishing returns”: The Ultimate Warrior’s 1996 run - Goldust toeing the line of homophobia in Piper’s Pit - Bret Hart as environmentalist: recycling perfectly good finishes - A struggle to find a theme song this week leads to a

This week on Greetings From Allentown, take cover because the Megapowers are going to explode on The Main Event II from February 3, 1989! - How the WWF masterfully built to the split between Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage and their use of the Rashomon effect in the leadup to the WrestleMania V match - A rundown of the events leading up to the breakup, laying blame at the feet of all of them - The passion of Vince McMahon reading the intro to the show - A look at what was going on at the ABC television network, which was beating this show in the ratings that night - Breaking down the mechanics of the Elizabeth bump - Fun with the original broadcast bloopers from Hogan, Brutus Beefcake, Akeem, and the Big Bossman - Months ahead of No Holds Barred, Hulk Hogan gives a national audience a preview of his acting chops - One of wrestling’s greatest tag teams reunite to break up the Hogan-Savage fracas - Hulk Hogan channels the Incredible Hulk and works over a couple of future WWF champions - Hercules slips on a banana

This week Greetings From Allentown takes its first peek at Jim Crockett Promotions with a look at NWA Worldwide from September 24, 1988! - An overview of the dying days of JCP, struggling to hang on long enough to be sold to Turner - The huge issue that the financial problems caused with long term booking - Dusty Rhodes in late 1988: contender for the most annoying babyface ever - Who is John Ayers and why is he here, and what happened that might explain a big 1989 storyline in kayfabe - Complaints about the “squash-promo-squash-promo-repeat” format of the Crockett TVs of the time period - Dr. Death Steve Williams with a promo for the ages - The hindsight hilarity of Rick Steiner being bullied - Ron Simmons: Drug warrior or just a spokesman for D.A.R.E.? - Celebrating babyface Jim Cornette going all loose cannon and mentioning those who shall not be named Also: - Five things from 1984’s The Karate Kid that will enhance your viewing experience - How the Reagan-Gorbachev thaw in US-Soviet tensions ruined the

We head out to the Bay area for some WWF Superstars of Wrestling action from June 18, 1988! - A look at the Hogan-less WWF of mid-1988, which also lacked Gene Okerlund leading to some forgotten broadcast teams - Harley Race is just severely injured and not dead despite all appearances to the contrary - The best in-ring work Superstar Billy Graham did in his WWF run: selling a figure four leglock - The debut of the Big Bossman and how he is like David Ortiz - Underage Louie Spicolli as spectacular enhancement worker - The Rockers debut and are talked about as being in the tag title picture instantly - Bret Hart continues his face turn by sending Jimmy Hart to get his shinebox once again - The beautiful subtlety of the Rougeau Brothers heel turn - Tough times for the Heenan Family in mid-88 as the Brain cuts a promo nearly in tears - Sean Mooney can’t stop yelling and kind of spoils an upcoming angle - Bam Bam Bigelow is all over the place in 1988 Also: - A commercial for WWF fundraiser cards of the era - A l

Put on your Mickey Mouse ears and Disney ponchos for a trip to the Disney-MGM Studios for some WCW Worldwide action from May 14, 1994! - A recap of all the fun that was pre-Hogan WCW with babyface Ric Flair leading the way - Lord Steven Regal: Nobody better at simply walking to the ring - How the Marquess of Queensbury Cup series helped both Flair and Regal - Proto-HHH Terra Ryzing and the eerie commentary discussing his future - Trying to imagine Rick Rude as a babyface and his best option for the future had he stayed healthy - Tully Blanchard does a babyface promo…from the edge of the woods?!? - The chemistry between Jesse Ventura and Tony Schiavone - Sting falls in love with the back body drop Also: - Imagining a world in which Dusty Rhodes became a game show host - The time Regal taught me how to properly set a table for formal settings - A request for what I want airing on TV when I am on my deathbed - Noting Gary Michael Cappetta introductions of job guys and how it amuses me - Bunkhouse Buck stuns To

It’s back to Allentown for a look at the birth of the Rock and Wrestling Connection on WWF Championship Wrestling from June 16, 1984 - The motivations for everyone involved in Cyndi Lauper’s WWF appearances: Cyndi, Dave Wolff, and the WWF. - The seven week build to Lauper’s appearance and how Piper acted differently with her than in other Pit segments of 1984 - The wheelings and dealings of the WWF in mid-1984 invading various territories - Dr. D the bounty hunter and what his 1985 might have looked like had he not been fired - Jesse the Body wears a very risqué shirt to the ring for his match - Why it was a terrible idea for Rudy Diamond to taunt a guy like Paul Orndorff with a shirt that said “Paula” - Tito Santana as IC Champion: why it made sense and also didn’t make sense on different levels Also: - Taking Howard Finkel to task for his reading of promos for upcoming events - How is Bob Orton in two places at the same time? - Feeling conflicted about “the mighty midgets” - Marking time by looking at the

This week we journey back to May 31, 1986 for some UWF action, Bill Watts style. Included: - Eddie Gilbert lays a perfect trap for fervent anti-Communist Bill Watts by flattering the Cowboy - What quality commentary can add in wrestling for both good matches and bad ones - Thoughts and theories on why the UWF died - Korchenko: Fake Russian turned reality TV star - An unexpected detour to WWC in Puerto Rico to discuss the TNT vs Original TNT feud - Michael Hayes’ failure in his outreach to Dark Journey and his misunderstanding of the meaning of the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution - Gustavo Mendoza is committed to his Cuban cigars - Connections between Ted DiBiase and Terry Taylor - Going to Buzz Sawyer as a mentor and why that’s a terrible idea for young Rick Steiner Also: - Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA” as theme music - Misspelling someone’s first and last names - Hearing an unbelievable phrase during a promo for UWF fundraisers - Two references to Carl Weathers movie characters and neither

Break out your American flag shirts because patriotism fills the air on this episode of WWF Wrestling Challenge from July 11, 1993! Included: - The USS Intrepid Yokozuna Bodyslam Challenge: Bios of the random athletes involved, such as Peter Taglianetti and Scott Burrell, and what the crowd chanted as Luger’s helicopter came in - Lex Luger as Vince McMahon’s “rebound girlfriend” after the breakup with Hulk Hogan - Scott Levy’s one of a kind career arc - Jim Ross’ difficulty in working with funny color guys not named Jerry Lawler - A defense of Bret Hart’s “demotion” to a feud with Lawler - Owen Hart’s hair - Gene Okerlund is just exhausted and fed up - More fun with Bret Hart mispronunciations! - Tatanka: Not the greatest Native American gimmick, but very far from the worst Also: - Bad U.S. National Anthems of the early 1990s, and its role in one of the all-time greatest moments on ESPN SportsCenter - Expressing a longing for something better than the mid-90s WWF tag team division through the power of song

In this special episode of Greetings From Allentown, the first 1987 WWF appearances by Ted DiBiase are examined. Included: - A brief history of DiBiase and his career across various territories from the mid-70s up to his return to the WWF in May 1987 - The impact of Houston Wrestling and Paul Boesch spurning the NWA and Jim Crockett Promotions in favor of working with the WWF and a big reason why that was done - A look at the Houston-only storyline that turned babyface Ted DiBiase into a heel literally on the eve of the first Million Dollar Man vignettes and why the WWF would feel they needed to do it - My personal favorite Million Dollar Man vignette and Ted’s crossover to super-villainy Twitter: @GFAllentownPod Facebook: G.F. Allentown Email: GreetingsFromAllentown@gmail.com

It's back to the Golden Age for some WWF Superstars action from November 16, 1991! - The sheer awesomeness of Ric Flair cutting a promo in Hulk Hogan's face at their first meeting on WWF TV - Legal codes to live by if you are an actual Repo Man - The Life and Times of Reno Riggins - Greg Valentine as a babyface: is another Hammer to blame? - The many changes to the 1991 Survivor Series card - The Big Bossman ups his jacket game - The problem that the Natural Disasters faced as "monster heels" - The Beverly Brothers work a man hug Also: - The varied voices of Howard Finkel - Sean Mooney predicts the future for the Big Bossman - What is the British Bulldog doing in his team's Survivor Series promo? - What you can glean from looking at Hulk Hogan's eyebrows - The debut (and finale?) of a new segment "Questions"

Take a trip down to Georgia (or wherever they taped this) for some December 1990 WCW action! - Defending Sid Vicious and his love for the great game of softball - Growing weary from Missy Hyatt on commentary and her attempts at humor - Gordon Solie is very disappointed in the Nature Boy's actions at Starrcade - 1990 WCW as the land of missed and wasted opportunities, such as with Brian Pillman - Mr. Hughes: a great trainer against all expectations - What exactly is the selling point on Tom Zenk beyond his looks? - A side by side comparison of the York Foundation theme and the into song to the 1980s TV show "Dallas" - Big Van Vader and his giant smoking helmet thing Plus: - American football video games and a palpably unfair act committed in a game of Madden football - A critique of the movie Home Alone - Sega Genesis vs Super Nintendo in my world - An earlier example of Russian meddling in American life - the WCW hotline Twitter: @GFAllentownPod Email: GreetingsFromAllentown@gmail.com Facebook: G.F. Allent

Get the flux capacitor ready because this week we take a trip back to November 1985 for some WWF action! Including: - The lovely Elizabeth with a complete departure from everything her WWF character would become - Attempting an "Andre to English" translation of Andre the Giant on commentary - Hulk Hogan faces Rusty Brooks and an unwelcome visitor - Paul Orndorff as a commodity in today's wrestling landscape - The British Bulldogs and their well-traveled 1985 - One thing that shows that Bret Hart isn't being given respect - Roddy Piper during a particularly turbulent time in his career - Vince McMahon's fondness for hillbillies and the probable source - So many masked jobbers! Plus: - Pondering an all-wrestler football all star team - Items of note from Philadelphia, Mississippi - Trying to figure out what the deal is with WWE and online content - A shout out for the doctor who fixed Hillbilly Jim's leg Twitter: @GFAllentownPod Facebook: G.F. Allentown Email: greetingsfromallentown@gmail.com -

Get out your nWo Wolfpac shirt for a look at WCW Worldwide from June 6, 1998. Included: - The crazy level of my commitment to watching WCW in early 1998 - The exact point where WCW turned sour for me, which is likely different from common opinion - A plea to anyone who still defends Chris Benoit, 10 years later - Fit Finlay and his confusing ring gear - It's The End Of Lex Luger As We Know It! - One thing I really liked about Larry Zbyszko as an announcer - Digging the work of Disorderly Conduct - Alex Wright turns the tables on Lee Marshall in an interview - Ron Reis: Beyond the "Yetay" Plus: - An abbreviated YouTube Comment Theater - Exciting announcement about the show! Twitter: @GFAllentownPod Facebook: G.F. Allentown Email: GreetingsFromAllentown@gmail.com