Wrestling MarketWatch: The Return To WCW

It’s hard to believe that WCW has been gone for over two decades. It’s even harder to believe that the company itself, as World Championship Wrestling, really only lasted a little over one decade. It produced enough memories, and memorabilia, to conjure up classic wrestling excitement to this day. The product had its ups and downs and everyone has their favorite era, but one thing is for sure: WCW was the ‘90s in a nutshell. Bright, neon and maybe some bad music in the first half of the decade. Dark, faux-edgy and worse music in the second half. It sounds like I’m putting it down, but I’m not. Nevertheless, it’s been nearly a decade itself since WCW was the topic of one of our MarketWatch posts. That means that it’s time to “Return To WCW!” As always the recent selling prices quoted are for unsigned examples.

*As big of a Hulk Hogan fan as I am (oh, you missed that?), I never truly warmed up to his WCW run. I mean, it’s ok, and the nWo turn was a shocker, but it just never felt the same as the WWF-Hulkamania glory years did. That doesn’t keep me from Hogan WCW merchandise, of course. In fact some of the early WCW-Hulkster items rival those from the decade prior with “those other guys.” Some say Hogan’s arrival took WCW marketing and merchandising to the next level, but you and I both know that’s not true. I think an argument could be made that the nWo concept shot it through the roof, but WCW merch was great from its inception. The Hogan “bow and arrow” pose foam hand recently sold for $57.

*Think you have all of the Starrcade programs? Think again! There were two editions of Starrcade in 1991 and the first was held on March 21st at the Tokyo Dome. In the United States the show was touted as “WCW/New Japan Supershow,” but on the soil on which it was held, this was Starrcade. An oversized program was sold for the show similar to many other Japanese wrestling programs of the time and some produced over the last twenty years or so here in the states. Think large, glossy, lots of pictures and some bios. All of the ’91 WCW names are inside as well as NJPW stars and some killer photos. WCW merchandise is sprinkled throughout, too! The program recently sold for $90.

*Another great WCW event was Fall Brawl, often featuring the beloved Dusty Rhodes creation of “War Games: The Match Beyond.” One of the final pay-per-view events of the 1990s was the 1999 edition of Fall Brawl held at the Lawrence Joel Center in Winston-Salem, NC. With Sting, Hogan, Diamond Dallas Page and Goldberg among the headliners of the show, the past decade of the company was certainly represented. It may not have been signed “Keep That Ass Warm” by DDP like my personal one is, but the promotional seat cushion from the event recently sold for $160.

*Along with The Hulkster came “The Mouth Of The South” Jimmy Hart to WCW. Initially aligned with the red and yellow hero, Hart went on to manage The Dungeon of Doom and even a reprisal of his “First Family” stable of many years prior. Managers weren’t quite the focal point that they once were by the time that Hart came to WCW, but The Mouth was still part of many storylines and feuds during his run. He also returned to the recording studio to create theme music just as he did in the WWF. Of course the world remembers Jimmy for his ubiquitous megaphone and his merchandise has always reflected that. The WCW souvenir version of his megaphone recently sold for $34.

*By now everyone knows that the classic Galoob WCW figure line went a tad longer in the United Kingdom than it did here in the states. Characters like The Fabulous Freebirds, Dustin Rhodes, Big Josh and El Gigante were added to the lineup while old favorites were reimagined with new colors. Sting and Lex Luger even received entirely new “entrance gear” sculpts. You may remember a near copy of this figure for The Stinger in the mid-1990’s line by The Original San Francisco Toymakers. The original was indeed produced by Galoob and is one of the most striking figures of the line. The Man Called Sting has recently been selling for an average of $45.

Well, that was quite an assortment of goodies from “Where The Big Boys Play!” Even still, like with most of the topics on MarketWatch, there are countless more great items out there. Say what you want about the WWF marketing machine, WCW knew how to do it pretty well, too.

Wrestling MarketWatch: Hidden Gems

Just when all seemed pretty okay in "the new world of wrestling," our window into seeing new content from the past just may have closed. At least a bit. It seems that the WWE Network's weekly additions to their Hidden Gems section are coming to an end. Whether this is a permanent end has yet to be determined, but many of us have consistently looked forward to the weekly release of something either rarely viewed or downright never-before-seen. It was just a few weeks ago that one of my top requests suddenly popped up.

How do the Hidden Gems tie into memorabilia? Let's take a look at recent selling prices of items related to some of the stars who've been featured in the Hidden Gems section. As always in MarketWatch, prices listed are for unsigned examples.

*So just what was that top-requested Hidden Gem of mine? I don't know that it was my most-wanted, but it was certainly something that I'd always wanted to see. When WWE Network decided to post Survivor Series Showdown 1992, they didn't just leave us with the original show as broadcast on USA Network. They also included many dark matches that occurred at the same taping. What I was most interested in seeing was a never-aired platform interview conducted by Mean Gene Okerlund. His interview subject? Jimmy Garvin. In an obvious tryout for an announcer or manager role, Garvin plays heel while reviewing the then-upcoming Survivor Series card. A fun fact learned upon viewing is that a sound byte of Garvin from this interview was used for the "Are you ready for the Survivor Series?" line that comes at the beginning of the 1993 WrestleMania song. Garvin had just come off of his WCW run as part of the Fabulous Freebirds. The U.K. exclusive Galoob figure produced from that run has recently sold in loose condition for prices ranging from $20 to $80.

*WCW itself was featured in one of the longest Hidden Gems. World Championship Wrestling produced two "All-Nighter" specials in 1994 and 1995, respectively, featuring matches spanning the run of the company to that point. Only the 1995 version has made WWE Network as of yet, but it would be nice for the first version to show up eventually to "complete the set." After his arrival in '94, Hulk Hogan dominated merchandise for the company. Around this time, a cool toy race car convoy set based on The Hulkster was produced by Matchbox. The set recently sold for around $40.

*A major treat with Hidden Gems is getting to see many of the legends from the territorial area in matches and situations that we haven't seen before. One of those stars is "Dirty" Dick Murdoch. Not only is the Texas outlaw featured in several full show uploads, but also with his most famous tag team partner, Dusty Rhodes. In the most recent Hidden Gem featuring Murdoch, the Waxahachie-born grappler is shown battling Harley Race in a match uploaded to memorialize the recent death of the latter. Murdoch's only figure, a "Big Head" from Japan, recently sold for $12.

*Answering the wishes of many fans, full shows from various companies have been included as Hidden Gems. Many of these shows were even thought not to exist. Among these shows were several complete Great American Bash cards from various years. While a match here and there may have been featured on NWA television or even a home video release, it's likely that the full events had not been seen aside from those who bought a ticket to attend. A show from the 1988 Bash tour was uploaded and the corresponding program recently sold for around $40.

*While a variety of promotions have been featured, World Class Championship Wrestling featuring The Von Erich family may have topped the rest in terms of frequency. David, Kerry, and Kevin Von Erich have all appeared in rarely seen matches against foes both foreign and frequent. While WCCW and the boys produced a variety of merchandise, it's the board game that often gets the most talk. Produced at a time when generally only the WWF was churning out such merchandise, the WCCW board game recently sold for $125.

I can't see Hidden Gems going away for good. I certainly hope not, anyway. If what has been uploaded already is any indication, more exists on tape than we ever thought possible. And if the company has Garvin's infamous "tryout" interview, you know those pay-per-view dark matches exist...

An Ill Memory

Like so many thousands across this great land of ours, I've been caught in the clutches of sickness. Though I'm largely over it, the fatigue and general feeling of uselessness almost caught me blog-less this week for the first time since I went weekly years ago. Never one to disappoint, I had to think of a way to equate wrestling memorabilia and illness. Bingo!

Many years ago, when I was in the third grade to be exact, there was to be a birthday party at my house with a few friends and their parents. I was thrilled with the idea of multiple families converging at my house, as it just wasn't something that happened regularly. I was anticipating the evening greatly.

That afternoon at school, as much as I tried to fight it, the feeling hit me like a ton of bricks. I was sick. Although I managed to make it to the restroom or nurse's office before creating a disgusting mess, let's just say that I made it quite known. In fact, I did something that I never did at school. Between the pain of the bug, as well as disappointment in the inevitable, I cried. In some sort of private personal policy, I simply did not cry at school. I knew kids who did, but it just wasn't something in which I partook. Even my teacher at the time, a miserable boy-hating battle ax, was compassionate at this most pathetic hour of my life.

As I was picked up to go home, I knew that the parents would be called and the party would be cancelled. As my feeling improved in the evening, I was at least given my presents from my parents. What did I receive? Several Hasbro and Galoob wrestlers as well as a new ring! Although I already had the Hasbro WWF ring, this was a knock-off sold at Hills Department Store. It was vinyl, had a soundbox attachment, and was something that I'd had my eye on for a long time.

In the second disappointment of this birthday, the ring turned out to be a dud. Soon after assembly, the ring ropes caused the turn posts to cave in, thus rendering it useless. Never ones to waste money, my parents gave me a choice. I could either exchange it and try another, or return it and use the money to buy more figures. Of course I was going to expand my roster! I can confirm with certainty that Akeem, Demolition Ax, Butch Reed, and Rick Steiner were among the new talents to join my "company" because of this debacle.

Sick? I was sick? It was time to wrestle!

The Wrestling Classic Figure Review--Galoob WCW Arn Anderson

A fact suddenly hit me while writing one of the more recent action figure reviews here on the blog. Although we look at loads of other classic memorabilia, I haven't truly done a classic action figure review in the over seven years since the inception of this blog. We now have over thirty years of action figures to choose from ranging from the good, to the bad, and even to the downright ugly. Multiple companies on several continents have seen wrestling figures of some of the all time greatest grapplers and even many of the worst. Thus was born a new blog feature, The Wrestling Classic Figure Review.

Kicking off the new recurring feature is a figure that I'm admittedly biased towards. It was one of the first non-WWF products in my collection. With as much love as I have for the entire wrestling world, I grew up a child of the WWF. While I knew that there was other wrestling out there, and I now have just as much fondness for those companies as I do the stuff that I watched back then, until the age of 9 I knew everything else as "that other wrestling." Once I discovered the larger world, I made it a point to absorb any info that I could through magazines and videotapes, thus these days no one would be the wiser about my WWF-exclusive past.

I can pinpoint my first real WCW exposure to my dad. One day, while looking at wrestling figures in the now-defunct Family Toy Warehouse store, my dad picked up the Galoob WCW Ric Flair figure and told me that we were buying it as he was coming to the WWF soon. What kid would say no? It was another wrestler to add to my Hasbro WWF roster and he included a new championship belt! Sure enough, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan shortly thereafter started to tease the arrival of "The Real World's Champion" on WWF television. My dad was not only the most giving guy who ever lived, but apparently he had some "inside" info, too!

But this review isn't about that figure of "The Nature Boy." I began to watch WCW (thanks to my mom, a story that I believe I've already told here), but knew some of the other Galoob figures from their pasts in the WWF. One of those wrestlers was "The Enforcer" Arn Anderson.

To me, Arn Anderson was one of those guys who just looked like a wrestler. Not menacing in the traditional sense, but someone who could take you out in an instant. Just rugged and tough. The Galoob figure resonated with me because it capture Anderson's look completely. For those unfamiliar, these WCW figures were devoid of poseability. They were solid plastic making it essential for the sculpted pose to not only capture the likeness of the wrestler but all of the action as well.

Anderson's pose was spot on. You could do a spinebuster, DDT, piledriver, slam, and various other maneuvers thanks to the way that Galoob produced the figure. Some of the other figures in the line were a lot less pleasing to play with. I took care of my toys, but there's a reason that the Arn from my childhood (the one shown here is an example that I picked up later) has a lot of paint wear--he fought the ring wars! He battled alongside fellow Galoob Horsemen members, took the bionic elbow of the Hasbro WWF Dusty Rhodes, and even battled with JusToys WWF Bend-Ems as the 1990's wore on.

Each Galoob WCW figure came packaged wearing a championship belt. The belts all had the identical WCW design, but I'm sure that I'm not the only one who used these belts as Intercontinental and Tag Team championships. It just worked out great. The belt itself really didn't closely resemble any of the actual WCW championships, but it was still a nice add-on that Hasbro might have been wise to copy.

Arn saw some variations, including the infamous "bald spot." While I've owned three over my lifetime, only my carded example actually has the bald spot. The rest have it painted over. My carded Arn is also one of the early releases that has "NWA" on the right side of the card back. There is also a second series re-release in the UK that has completely red tights. Arn additionally came packaged in a tag team set with longtime ally, and occasional "cousin," Ric Flair.

To many, this will always be the quintessential action figure version of Arn Anderson. The Jakks versions seemed a bit too bulky. The more recent Mattel examples were just a bit too spindly. Galoob's Arn is probably the best that we will ever get. While signing my carded version, Arn even pointed out to Dean Malenko that he preferred this one. Not to toot his own horn, but "toot, toot," the original is still the best!

Wrestling MarketWatch: WCW

"I stopped watching wrestling when WCW ended."  I cannot count how many times I have heard that phrase in the past decade.  For all of its shortcomings, WCW had quite a following.  World Championship Wrestling wasn't that "off brand" wrestling that some who grew up on the WWF initially thought.  WCW had its roots in several classic wrestling promotions that are still revered today. Although little remained from those days when WCW came to an end, it's a true testament to the company that each of it's incarnations and "eras" are still fondly remembered.

The mat-based "We Wrestle" beginning in 1989.  The post-Flair Watts era.  The Vader-Sting title picture and battles.  The arrival of Hulk Hogan.  Monday Nitro and the nWo.  Even the final years.  You don't have to look far into a group of wrestling fans to find someone who still yearns for the days of any or all of these eras. Most of all, these times were when there was truly a choice as far as professional wrestling branding. It's been beaten to death over the years, but the notion that "competition is best" remains true.

Just as the footage and stars of WCW remain popular well over a decade later, so does the merchandise. Although there were some lean years, products emblazoned with the familiar WCW logo are plentiful.  No one in wrestling may have ever had a bigger marketing machine than WWE, but WCW more than held its own with items that hold collectors interest to this day.  In this edition of Wrestling MarketWatch, we'll take a look at some of those items and their recent auction prices.

*Until the second incarnation of WCW Magazine, the company lacked a steady and long-running periodical.  Several previous attempts were made, including Wrestling Wrap-Up.  This publication began in 1989, just as Ricky Steamboat became NWA World Heavyweight Champion.  The original format was almost a small newspaper style, and while cool today, actually seemed almost outdated then.  Wrestling Wrap-Up eventually changed to a magazine format with some very fun covers not long into its run.  An example of the premiere issue recently sold for $15.99.

*Right around the time that the Hasbro WWF figure line hit shelves, WCW followed suit.  Galoob produced a line of WCW figures that were compatible in size with the Hasbro figures, but featured no articulation. Most were sculpted in poses that allowed the figures to provide just as much fun as their WWF counterparts.  The line was sadly short lived, and a second series was only available in the United Kingdom. Many of the figures, mainly tag team partners, were also released in two-packs.  The carded Steiner Brothers tag team set recently sold for $117.50.

*Hulk Hogan's 1995 arrival made many collectors realize that a glut of new merchandise was coming.  WCW began to show up on items that had never appeared on the company's radar before as well as some that had.  The nicest WCW trading card series appeared at this time, and it was the WCW Main Event set produced in 1995 by Cardz.  Bright photos, a variety of wrestlers, managers, and broadcasters and even mascot Wild Cat Willie were featured in the set.  You can still pull an autograph today, and hopefully the bidder that recently paid $5.99 for a pack did just that!

*Publications weren't just limited to magazines, but programs as well.  When Hogan arrived, programs were changed to the format that remains with WWE today: an oversized publication with large photos and some brief biographical information.  A black and white lineup sheet was also often included.  One of these programs recently sold at auction for $20.50.  This particular program features a great cover shot of The Hulkster wearing "Big Gold," which at the time was the WCW Championship.  As much as some complain about the days when "Hulkamania" ran wild in WCW, he looked awfully right wearing the nicest championship belt in history.

*One of the many unique ideas that WCW presented was War Games.  A holdover from the Jim Crockett Promotions days, the Dusty Rhodes brainchild of two teams battling it out in a two-ring steel cage with a roof appealed to any wrestling fan.  Many different stars left their own mark on the match over the years, but one of the best remembered versions took place at the 1992 WrestleWar event.  Sting's Squadron battled The Dangerous Alliance in a great match that ended up being the last big moment for the latter group.  The event poster featuring for the pay-per-view recently sold for $61.00.

Although it was actually only a company for about twelve years, WCW lives on.  A new generation is being introduced to the company and its stars thanks to an ever-growing presence on WWE Network.  One of WCW's biggest stars, Sting, is a featured selling point of the upcoming WWE 2K15 video game.  Who is to say what else the future holds for the brand name, but an undying love for its past will never allow it to fade into the sunset.

Wrestling MarketWatch: Action Figures

"That's not a doll, it's an action figure..."

"It IS an action figure!"

If you grew up in the '80s or '90s, chances are good that your wrestling memorabilia collection started with an action figure or two. From LJN to Remco to Hasbro to Jakks. WWF to WCW to AWA. Poseable, rubbery, statuesque. You know you had them. You know you rassled em. You know you had a ton of fun.

With Mattel's new WWE Legends line recently starting to reach the hands of collectors, it's all but guaranteed that many wrestling fans will jump on the "toy" bandwagon just as they did when Jakks released their Classic Superstars line. This is a good thing, as high sales will help ensure the depth of characters in the Mattel line as similar to the Jakks line.

What about the old stuff? How are the vintage items fairing in the price market? As usual with MarketWatch, I'm going to highlight some recent pieces and the prices they're selling for.

*One item that seemingly always does well is actually only about a decade old. The ECW toy line from The Original San Francisco Toymakers was a hit with collectors because of the stars it included, the good likenesses on a lot of the figures, and the mind blowing idea that the adult-oriented ECW product had a toy line to begin with. In addition to several series of figures, a ring and cage playset was released that included exclusive figures of Sabu and Rob Van Dam. While the ring and cage were redone versions of toys from Toymakers' previous WCW line, it was a popular item and one which did not see as wide of a release as the single carded figures. A boxed example recently went for $100.

*Prices on carded WWF LJN figures have seemingly dropped a bit as of late, with a number of the figures selling anywhere from $20-$50. This is a far cry from just a few years ago. Some collectors tend to blame the WWE Classic Superstars line for this drop, however I don't agree with that assessment. This does not include the 1989 "black card" series of which prices have largely remained the same.

*Carded examples of the 1990 WCW Galoob figure line have also dipped in price. Most of the figures have recently sold on an average of about $10-$15. I think any collector would make a wise investment picking these figures up at these prices. Always an underrated line and, as I described in a past entry, the closest thing we'll ever have to an action figure line FROM the glory days of NWA wrestling. The WCW Galoob United Kingdom exclusive figures remain very expensive to be found carded.

*With its 14-year run, the Jakks WWF/WWE line will probably always be the most varied. Like 90% of the wrestling merchandise from the "Attitude Era," the figures produced during that time are dead in the water and seem doomed to stay that way. 100+ different releases of Austin, Taker, and Road Dogg simply don't equal collector demand. That said, certain figures of The Rock and Austin from more recent series such as those included in the Classic Superstars line can sell for well over $50.

The best way to tell what your items are worth? As I've said time and time again, DO YOUR RESEARCH! Remember, the best collectibles are the ones that are priceless to YOU.

A Signamania Signed Goody...And A Lesson!

As promised, a look at one of the pieces I had signed at Signamania IV. Arn enjoyed seeing and signing this figure, and even showed it off to Dean Malenko. He commented that they "got the right bodytype," which I took as a jab at the slightly over-buff Arn Anderson Classic Superstars figure which he had been signing throughout the day.

At first glance, this is like any other WCW Galoob figure released in the United States. As any collector worth his or her salt knows, in 1990 Galoob released a series of 12 WCW figures in the United States. The series included Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Barry Windham, Sid Vicious, Sting, Lex Luger, Ron Simmons, Butch Reed, Rick Steiner, Scott Steiner, Brian Pillman, and Tom Zenk. The figures were also released in two-packs as seen below.

Later on, a second series was released in the United Kingdom only. This series included Big Josh (Matt Bourne--the Original Doink), El Gigante (Giant Gonzales), Dustin Rhodes, Michael PS Hayes, Jimmy Garvin, and Sting and Luger in entrance gear. Different colored variations of the United States released figures were also released in the U.K.

The lesser known variant on these figures was actually a part of the original United States release. Infact, the Arn Anderson figure above is a variant. Can you spot it?


In the lower right corner of the packaging, the card reads "Presents Superstars of the NWA" as opposed to the MUCH more common "Presents Superstars of the WCW."

This variation has been little-talked about over the years in discussions of this line among collectors. The printing of these cards had to have been relatively short, as every example I can remember seeing and opening back in the early '90s read "WCW."

On this carding, in theory, this is the ONLY NWA action figure line featuring a cast of the classic NWA wrestlers.

In this collectors opinion, the NWA carded figures are much more desirable then their later altered counterparts and will undoubtedly rise in popularity as the years go by.