The 1983 Era

What a great year! No, not 2023. I don’t know anyone who had a great 2023. Forty years ago, however, I bet the sentiment was a lot different. It was 1983. What was not to like? We were just coming out of that “the first few years of a decade are part of the previous decade” time period and we were going headfirst right into the ‘80s! But in between listening to “Thriller,” going to see “Return of the Jedi” and spending time with me in my first full-calendar year on earth (now you know how old I am), you needed some great wrestling reading. As was the norm in the ‘80s, Pro Wrestling Illustrated was your answer.

Why 1983? A few reasons. First off, it was forty years ago. Not quite a half-century but a definite nice chunk of time regardless. Again, it’s just a smidge shorter than I’ve been alive. It’s a scary thought. Secondly, look at all the cool covers we got from PWI in ’83. We have a total of ten true blue Hall of Famers spread over twelve covers. A “Who’s Who” of wrestling and definitely some of the most recognizable visages ever to grace the squared circle. Not to mention that three of my top five all-time favorite wrestlers are here. Lastly is that one day, probably around a decade ago, I suddenly noticed something regarding these covers in my own collection.

I’m honestly not sure if I’d just gotten one of them signed or was just enjoying my collection, but I noticed that I was very close to having a complete signed run of the 1983 PWI lineup. At the time all ten “cover boys” were still alive and I’m thinking that I was down to three autographs necessary in order to “complete the set.” Looking at them all my best guess is that two were February (Dusty Rhodes) and July (Rick Martel). I remember specifically getting the February issue signed in one of the final times that I saw “The Dream” and it’s been quite a long time since Martel has made an appearance. Since then I’ve thought about how, while it isn’t my favorite Martel magazine cover (he has two other PWI covers that are much better), I’m glad that I ended up getting this one signed for the sake of the lineup. While he has done a private signing or two in recent years, I have not personally run into him since I had the issue signed.

I will always remember the last autograph needed for the set being Mil Mascaras on the April issue. While I’d met “The Man of 1,000 Masks” many times, for whatever reason this magazine never ended up signed. With an absolute plethora of covers from the ‘70s to choose from and loads of other merchandise, there are always plenty of autograph options when it comes to Mil. Somewhere around 2018 I finally ended up getting the issue signed and “completing the set,” as it were. I will also note that Mascaras has never been anything but gracious with me and I’ve always enjoyed my interactions with him. He’s actually a lot more personable than the self-proclaimed “world’s friendliest wrestler” who likes to complain about the match he had with Mil on TBS, but that’s another rant for another time.

In addition to the aforementioned three we’ve got another Rhodes cover as well as appearances by Ricky Steamboat, Bob Backlund, Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka, Tommy Rich (twice), Rowdy Roddy Piper, Bruno Sammartino and Harley Race. We get great representation of both the WWF and the NWA as well as their respective championship belts at the time. Someone was obviously pretty fond of armbars as the move is shown in all three of the “action shot” covers featuring Rhodes, Martel and Rich, respectively. I wonder if this choice was made on purpose? I know most will agree that the studio shot covers are the ones that really stand out here. The only thing that could make the collection even better would be if the Jerry “The King” Lawler cover from the following year had been done here instead. 

The issues themselves are still plentiful but sadly it’s no longer possible to get the set autographed yourself. With the amount that all of these men signed I’m sure that there are other copies of each signed, but who knows how many. I’d venture to guess that the studio portrait covers are more likely to be out there signed with how nice they look autograph-adorned. I’m never usually a completist on anything myself as I prefer a bit of this and a bit of that, but once I saw how close I’d gotten with this set, how could I stop then? And hey, maybe I looked into the future a bit. Maybe I knew that 2023 just wasn’t going to be all that great and that we’d need a nice, pleasant fortieth anniversary to look back on. It worked.

From The Musty Yellowed Pages—NWA Wrestling Magazine Vol. 1 No. 1

After nearly fifteen years of maintaining this blog, at times I forget everything that I have, or haven’t, covered. I felt for certain that we’d taken a voyage through the debut, and only, issue of the NWA Wrestling Magazine. Aside from some mentions here and there, as well as plenty on its sister publications, I don’t think that it’s been done. Wait no longer, NWA fans, the time to revisit an era when the territories were king, Terry Funk was champion and Jesse Ventura was “The Great” instead of “The Body” has finally arrived.

Yes, this publication had just the one issue. Could you think of a better cover for just one issue of the NWA Wrestling publication? I can’t. If it reminds you of the WWWF Wrestling Action and Mid-Atlantic Wrestling magazines it probably should. It was done by the same artist, Cal Byers, and wrestling renaissance man Les Thatcher was at the helm of all of them. Wrestling, broadcasting, training, promoting and publishing. He did it all and has the stories to tell about it. I’ve had input from him while covering the aforementioned publications here on the blog and I still remember how surprised he was to see a copy of this one when he signed it awhile back.

More familiar names come about when looking at the list of contributors from then-NWA President Eddie Graham to Gordon Solie, Freddie Miller, Paul Boesch, Larry Matysik, Jeff Walton and Gene Gordon. The magazine covered all of the NWA wrestling hotbeds of the era and seemed to want to devote adequate press to all of the big territories. Even NWA members in other countries were not to be excluded. After all, this was the only publication to be “sanctioned” by the National Wrestling Alliance!

Though he was still relatively new to the game that he would eventually become the dirtiest player of, it’s telling that Ric Flair is the topic of one of the first features of the issue. The Crockett’s knew what they had and that’s why he was proudly displayed as the Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Champion. You’ll note the famed Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling logo adorns the article here. As noted with all of the Thatcher publications, the art direction was second-to-none. There are logos for most, if not all, of the NWA territories featured within. In the late ‘70s this isn’t something that I would expect in a wrestling magazine at all, but here it is.

More familiar names pop up with looks at Georgia Championship Wrestling and Gulas Wrestling Enterprises Inc, the latter of which being the fabled Memphis wrestling territory. We have great color photos of Dick Slater, Mr. Wrestling II and Jerry “The King” Lawler. We also get a printing of one of my favorite Memphis photos displaying Jackie Fargo, Jerry Jarrett, Tojo Yamamoto and…George Gulas. Ok, so three out of four isn’t bad as far as levels of greatness. Still, I’ve always liked that photo ever since I saw it grace the cover of an “NWA East” edition of “The Wrestling News,” probably around the same time.

A very different Terry Funk than the version many are familiar with today graces the centerfold of the first and only NWA issue. This isn’t the “middle aged and crazy” Funker that’s so beloved today, but rather a tad more serious NWA World Champion who was continuing on the family’s championship legacy. I often talk about how much I admire wrestlers who are able to successfully reinvent themselves during the course of their careers. Terry Funk may own everyone else when it comes to that. I could picture the later Funker taking a flaming branding iron to the attire he’s wearing here. From champion to legend, that’s for sure.

One of my favorite pages in the issue has always been the feature on Chavo Guerrero. Talking about his famous exploits in the rings of California, it gives you an idea that Chavo may be one of the more underrated stars of the decade. I feel that his popularity was of the type that you really had to be around for to experience. I also think that, through no fault of his own, the popularity of brother Eddy may have overshadowed Chavo’s legacy. Still, ask most any wrestler who was around at that point and they’ll tell you what a huge star Chavo was in the business. A family photo here really tickles me as we get to see young Chavito, who we all got to know better many years later. Pepe was not invited to participate in the photo.

“The Great Ventura?” What? Yes, before he was “The Body,” Jesse was just “The Great.” I think we can all agree that “The Body” fit and rolled off the tongue much better. He has a short blurb in the magazine right alongside the likes of Dusty Rhodes and Jimmy Snuka. It’s amazing to think how many bonafide all-time greats came from wrestling in the ‘70s. I truly believe that the territorial system helped in that regard and would’ve been beneficial to many wrestlers in the past twenty years who seemed destined for greatness. In the old system you could try different things, work plenty of different opponents and move along when things got stale. Sadly, many of the newer generation stars had virtually “one and done” shots thus robbing us of quite a few talents who could’ve made it to superstardom.

Speaking of “one and done,” those are just some highlights of this, the only issue of NWA Wrestling Magazine. There are more photos and articles to peruse and you can see several of them on our Instagram account right here! Despite their age and rarity, copies of this magazine do show up available but almost always at a price. You never know, some shrewd searching may yield one for your collection. It’s certainly worthy as a collection centerpiece for any fan of the NWA, Terry Funk or just the last great wild west era of wrestling – the ‘70s!

From The Musty Yellowed Pages—Wrestling’s Main Event March 1984

When thinking of ‘80s wrestling magazines certainly the Weston/Apter mags and the official WWF Magazine come to mind, but they weren’t the only boys on the block. Often you would find other titles with some great photography and perhaps even peeks at wrestlers that you didn’t see in the other publications. Most of those are discussed nowadays as “The Napolitano Mags” as their editor was legendary photographer George Napolitano. These titles were often just as visible at the newsstand as Pro Wrestling Illustrated or The Wrestler and were even perhaps a bit less “kayfabe” than those books. In this look back we’re going thirty-nine years into the past to March of 1984 with Wrestling’s Main Event. Ric Flair following his NWA Championship win at Starrcade 1983 is our lead story and cover picture.

The magazine, published by Pumpkin Press in NYC, was a mere sixteen bucks for a full year subscription back in 1984. Not even $2 an issue! No wonder Haku himself, King Tonga as he was known then, is letting us know that this publication is numero uno. I wouldn’t disagree with the man, even being the true sweetheart of a guy that he is. It should be noted that Les Thatcher is listed on the staff here. In addition to wrestling, announcing and training, Thatcher helmed many wrestling magazines of the ‘70s including Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Magazine and WWWF Wrestling Action. Both of those titles have been covered extensively here on the blog over the past near-fifteen years. Les has always been kind enough to share memories and stories of these magazines both for publication here and in comments on social media.

The official rankings are a bit different and less extensive than in other wrestling magazines of the day. One page covers what seems to be the contenders for four major championships, listing those champions above all else. The NWA, WWF, AWA and WWC Championships are the titles featured. WWC action featuring Carlos Colon, Abdullah the Butcher, Bruiser Brody and others was featured more than once on the covers of these titles. Unlike the other magazines which tended to shy away from bloody covers as the ‘80s dawned, the Napolitano mags still seemed to go by the old adage that “red equals green.” Still, it wasn’t as prevalent as the blood-soaked covers of the ‘70s were. I love going through old rankings sections and counting who all I’ve been lucky enough to meet over the years. Counting all of the champions and contenders on this page only four eluded me. That number may go down to (and stay forever at) three soon, but I never count my chickens.

Up-and-comers who weren’t getting much press at the time were often featured in these pages. A great write-up later in the issue features a very young Dr. Tom Prichard, but early in the pages we get an article on someone who’s a favorite of many, The One Man Gang. The OMG is obviously not too far removed from his early incarnation as Crusher Broomfield. The long hair was a great look and possibly made him look even more maniacal than he did with the later mohawk. Of course, I’m partial to Akeem The African Dream, but I’ll take George Gray in any shape or form. He’s a great guy and was a great big man wrestler. The article tells of how he’d recently been managed by both J.J. Dillon and the sort of lost-to-time “Gentleman” Jim Holliday.

The Gang is shown in an epic battle with Florida hero Mike Graham. Are you ready for your centerfold? Feast your eyes on more Graham than you thought you could handle. In all seriousness, Mike Graham gets bad talked these days for no good reason. It seemingly stems from his appearances on the old WWE Legends of Wrestling roundtable shows, but come on. He acts just as braggadocios as virtually anyone else on that (great) show did. In my meetings with Mr. Graham I found him to be nothing but kind, humble and engaging. I treasure the autographs and memorabilia that I have from him and was saddened by his untimely passing and its circumstances. If anyone says that he wasn’t over, they know nothing of the Florida wrestling legacy. I wish that he were still here to celebrate it.

Next we have my pin-up. No, not Jimmy Garvin. Sure, we all love Precious and her Remco AWA figure. There was even the original Precious (yes, before Jimmy’s wife, Patti) for a spell. But the best of them all, in my view, was Sunshine. If there was ever a “girl next door” look, she had it. Sadly, for various storied reasons, she wants nothing to do with the business today. She should be out there milking it like some who had far less visibility than she did, but we have to respect her decision. Nevertheless, here she is flanking Gorgeous Jimmy himself. The article discusses Garvin’s feud with David Von Erich, a World Class Championship Wrestling classic, for sure!

As with most old magazines when chronicled here, we have to dive into the seedy side. This is usually near the back pages, in black and white, and somewhat hidden. While there are plenty of black and white pages in this title like most magazines of the day, they’re all slick. These magazines also seemed to feature much more color (and not just blood…) than their rivals. While the ads are much tamer than some from the ‘70s that have been featured in this blog, they’re really no less shady. Mail-order brides? 8mm film? Wholesale fishing equipment? Don't threaten me with a good time, right? The last listing is probably the most amusing. For only $3.95 you could get your hands on a newsletter with information on a certain infamous viral infection. Who did you write to in order to receive this fountain of information? “ROH.” See, decades before Ring of Honor was making wrestling magazine headlines you had yet another ROH getting print in the back pages.

What better way to end this than with a hoe down? But this isn’t just any hoe down. This is Scott Casey’s Texas Hoe Down in San Antonio. Casey hosted droves of Southwest Championship Wrestling fans in addition to Bobby Jaggers, Buddy Moreno, Alex Perez, Mando Guerrero, Ricky Morton and El Santo Negro. If the pictures are to be believed, there was music, dunk tanks, Hoe-Down Queens and smiles all around. I can only imagine the stories that could be told out of this one. On second thought, maybe those stories best go untold. Just call it a hunch. I must say, though, that there is a definitely a joke to be made when “Scott Casey” and “Hoe Down” are used in the same sentence. I’m sure that a good time was had by all.

Like with all of the magazines shown here on the blog we can’t show every page. Check out Instagram (@JWs_Wrestling_Memorabilia) this weekend for even more goodness from the issue and while you’re at it, give a follow!

WWF '80s Cover Boys (& Girl)

What were you doing a decade ago this week? If you were a reader of this blog back then, and I hope that you were, you may have been reading about Pro Wrestling Illustrated. It was ten years ago here on the blog that I chose my five favorite covers of everyone’s favorite then-33 year old (now 43!) wrestling magazine. A magazine that’s slightly less aged yet just as classic is the official WWF Magazine. I can proudly say that I’ve long chronicled the history of the now defunct publication, even garnering the attention of WWE itself. No matter what their official take is, the first in-house publication was the WWWF Wrestling Action Magazine. All five issues have been displayed and discussed here on the blog and probably will be again. The two issues of WWF Victory Magazine from 1984 are what WWE considers to be their first and those two editions certainly hold a value similar to that of the earlier Wrestling Action titles. No matter how you look it at, the publication that eventually became WWF Magazine in its longest incarnation was bound for success. I’m sure you have some favorite issues and often that’s determined by the cover. So just as I did with PWI ten years ago, here are my top five favorite covers from the 1980s… 

*Who personified the ‘80s wrestling boom better than Hulk Hogan and Wendi Richter? Certainly had the latter stayed with the company longer she would be even better remembered, but don’t discount the impact of Miss Richter. Managed by Cyndi Lauper, Wendi Richter was a household name around the time of the first WrestleMania. Her cover appearance on the October/November 1984 WWF Magazine, teamed with The Hulkster himself, reflects just how popular women’s wrestling had grown. Was it the first women’s wrestling revolution? It absolutely was. Nearly forty years later and we’re actually able to recreate this cover in action figure form. Hmm… 

*He’s cool, he’s cocky and he’s bad. You know he’s The Honky Tonk Man and in September 1987 he proudly displayed his newly-won Intercontinental Championship on the cover of the WWF Magazine. This isn’t just a nice cover, it’s a striking cover. Between Honky’s expression, the hair and of course that legendary championship belt (complete with the beloved red WWF logo), this photo is a work of art in my opinion. This is the type of photo that would be featured if some hoity toity magazine were doing a fluff article on pro wrestling. Instead it’s here in a magazine for wrestling fans as opposed to putting down wrestling fans. 

*I’m a Christmas guy. There have been several great Christmas wrestling magazine covers over the years but the one that makes my list is the December 1984/January 1985 WWF Magazine featuring Sgt. Slaughter. The Rowdy Roddy Piper cover of a year later comes ever so close, but something about the Christmas card-quality of the Slaughter design just wins out for me. It’s also interesting to think that Slaughter was gone from the company by the time that the cover date came around with his last recorded match being in early December. I miss when holidays were celebrated more publicly like this. 

*Flying up to March 1989 we’ve got a purely 1980’s cover featuring my all-time favorite tag team, Demolition. It may also be notable that three of my five favorite covers shown here feature championship belts in addition to the stars that held them. Demolition was in the midst of their first of three WWF Tag Team Championship reigns and were undoubtedly the hottest tag team going. I respect The Road Warriors, but Demolition carved out a legacy all their own. In addition to being able to have great, entertaining matches with any style of team, the boys also didn’t overstay their welcome. Bill Eadie and Barry Darsow are also two of the nicest guys in the business. Let’s just say that with Demolition the best part of the match wasn’t limited to their ring entrance. 

*The early years of the magazine certainly produced a lot of memorable covers. October/November 1985 featured an absolutely dramatic scene with Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat. Though the exciting superstar had torn through the NWA over the years, Steamboat was still relatively new to the WWF and “The Dragon” persona. Evoking thoughts of Bruce Lee was always a goal during Steamboat’s time in the WWF and that is certainly evident here. Though he would get a few program covers, including a very memorable one featuring the Intercontinental Championship belt, this would prove to be his only solo appearance. 

Well, that was certainly a bit of a “who’s who” of ‘80s WWF talent. I guess in another decade we’ll go with a different magazine. The Wrestler? Wrestling Revue? Championship Wrestling Magazine from Memphis? For the latter we’d only have six issues to pick the five from so it certainly wouldn’t be too difficult. In the meantime, keep flipping those pages of the past!

Wrestling MarketWatch: Million Dollar Memorabilia

Every piece of wrestling memorabilia has got a price! I mean, really. Whether it’s pennies on the dollar or a price into the four digits, there’s a buyer for nearly anything wrestling related. Since we look at recent selling prices here on MarketWatch and stick to a theme in each edition, who better to examine  the power of the almighty dollar with than “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase? In addition to the greenback connection, DiBiase also has countless items from which to choose from. Being a top WWF heel for the better part of six years during the golden age to nearly always being active in legends merchandising programs has ensured that. Grab your bodyguard, open your wallet and maybe even buy out the local pool, it’s time to revisit the merchandise of The Million Dollar Man. As always, prices are for unsigned examples unless otherwise noted. 

*In the ‘80s there wasn’t any streaming and cable wasn’t available absolutely everywhere yet. So what did many, especially in rural areas, do? Buy a satellite dish, of course! These weren’t the dishes that we think of today that virtually hang off of the side of the house. These were big dishes that usually had a prominent place in the yard. In the early days of their use even premium television such as HBO could be picked up, though not legally. Shout out to Captain Midnight! If you know, you know. Anyway, like everything else back then there was a publication just for satellite tv users. Satellite TV Week was the name and featured on the cover of the March 5-11, 1989 issue was none other than The Million Dollar Man, himself! An article on who watches wrestling is inside, but the classic green-suited pose of DiBiase is what would attract most collectors. A copy recently sold for $20. 

*DiBiase wore many different colored suits over the years as The Million Dollar Man. One of the earliest was the silver suit which was most prominently featured when DiBiase briefly purchased the World Wrestling Federation Heavyweight Championship from Andre the Giant. Jakks attempted to make a figure version of this look in a Classic Superstars set along with the Million Dollar Belt,  but it came out more ivory colored than anything. Mattel finally tackled the look in the WWE Legends line. The two strikes against that version were that figure was too short over all and it was the “chase” version of the figure. The more common version was the ubiquitous black suit style. Although the chase figures in the WWE Legends line have been relatively easy to locate in recent series, this particular one was not. It’s still selling for between $60 and $90. There’s a chance that this could change in the future. A certain large online wrestling figure retailer has been getting the WWE Legends series in stock. While they don’t sell for retail price at first, this has been causing the after market prices to drop a bit. If that company continues the trend of selling these sets, Series 9 containing DiBiase would be next in line to arrive on their site. 

*Ted DiBiase wasn’t always The Million Dollar Man. In fact, he was fast becoming one of the top stars in the NWA before he joined the WWF. In June of 1984 DiBiase was featured on the cover of Pro Wrestling Illustrated. It’s a great studio shot where DiBiase is showcasing the glove that he was famous for in those days. We’ve been so conditioned to remember The Million Dollar Man (and rightly so being one of the best heel characters of all-time) that it can be easy to forget that DiBiase had carved out quite a career before the World Wrestling Federation came calling. Look around and you will even see speculation that DiBiase was in the running for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. Consider the stranglehold that Ric Flair had on that title during the ‘80s I don’t know that it would’ve happened, but a run in Jim Crockett Promotions against the other top stars there is definitely something that we can all dream about. This issue of PWI has been selling for an average of $20. 

*The WWF wasn’t shy about featuring DiBiase on their cover either. After all, he was one of their top heels as has been mentioned and was a great character who drew. When his run in the world title picture ended (though he would and could be plugged into title shots in subsequent years being the reliable star that he was) it was clear that DiBiase deserved some sort of championship. Did his character need it? No. Did his character want it? Absolutely. Thus was born the Million Dollar Championship. I don’t know a single wrestling fan who, as a kid, wasn’t mesmerized by that belt. I remember wanting the Hasbro Million Dollar Man figure as one of my first of the line specifically because it included the belt. It’s a thing of beauty and replicas of it are popular to this day. To show it off shortly after its creation the WWF threw it and DiBiase onto the cover of the May 1989 issue of their magazine. It’s a great shot with a green background (greenback…), DiBiase’s iconic black suit, and plenty of money. What’s not to love? It sells for an average of $15, so adding a copy to your collection won’t break your bank…even if you aren’t The Million Dollar Man. 

*Speaking of Hasbro, what better way to end than with one of the classic DiBiase figures. This one is the third figure of The Million Dollar Man to be produced (first being from LJN, second arriving in the first Hasbro series) and hit shelves in 1991. It features a stomping action and includes The Million Dollar Championship belt just as the first one did. We would have to wait a few years to get a wrestling gear DiBiase figure which ended up being his final appearance in the line. Being up there with Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior and Randy Savage as far as who had the most Hasbro figures isn’t bad at all! Prices are all over the place for this one, sometimes (but not always) depending on which version of the card back is being sold. No matter the language or country of origin you always get the great “laughing” photo on this version of the figure, so you can’t go wrong regardless. He’s recently sold from anywhere between $160 and $255. Not quite a bargain but definitely a figure needed for any Hasbro lineup. 

Ted DiBiase remains one of the more popular legends on the convention circuit. Between his abundance of merchandise, popular character and high-profile feuds with Hogan, Savage and Dusty Rhodes among others, it’s no wonder that everyone has a price…for The Million Dollar Man.

Forty Years of PWI

September 1979. Were you alive? I was a few years away from arriving, but it had to be a great time to be alive. A great decade was ending, another good one was on the way and those nasty '90s were a good ways off. Bias towards eras aside, I will always be partial to Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Beginning this month some forty years ago, PWI became the standard in wrestling magazines. In 2019 it's the only wrestling magazine still regularly on the newsstands. Have you ever peeked into that first issue? You're about to.

Is it any surprise that the cover of that first issue features '70s wrestling icons? "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes and Mil Mascaras are nicely photographed by editor Bill Apter with an inset action shot of Nick Bockwinkel. Mascaras was always billed as the favorite wrestler of Apter and neither the masked luchador nor Dusty were strangers to the covers of this family of magazines. I had the opportunity to witness a reunion between Mascaras and Apter this summer. When the legendary photographer and editor is present with "The Man of 1,000 Masks," he tells me that he suddenly becomes "Mil Moscawitz."

Speaking of Apter, in this first issue we get his well-remembered "Ringside" potpourri column as well as "The King's Court" with Peter King, "On Assignment" with Steven Farhood, and "Dressing Room Confidential" with Randy Gordon. The first letters section, "Between Falls," is a star-studded affair for this first issue with correspondence from the stars themselves! Dusty, Rick Steamboat, Bruno Sammartino, Johnny Valiant, Ric Flair, Captain Lou Albano, The Grand Wizard, and Andre the Giant have all sent their thoughts on this new publication! A worthwhile read if only to see how eloquently Andre pens his congratulatory letter. And just how are the legends shown reading this first issue that we're reading? Hmmm...something's fishy here!

Speaking of fishy, we come to none other than Matt Brock. Brock was already known to the readers of the Weston wrestling magazines and here he is "Looking At..." Jerry Lawler. Brock was always described as a grizzled, tough-as-nails, veteran wrestling reporter who shunned computers in favor of a vintage typewriter. This was forty years ago. Last I checked, ol' Matt was still plugging away as if time has stood still. It's as if he was a special being living in a world reserved for unique people such as himself, fellow wrestling writer Liz Hunter, Little Jimmy, and Sister Abigail.

Next up we get articles featuring some of my favorites such as Harley Race, Rick Steamboat, and our cover boys Dusty, Mil, and Bockwinkel. Steamboat is also shown in the "heel" column "Off The Top Rope" written by Dan Shocket. Unlike with Matt Brock, there's no question that Shocket was true blue. As was reported in the magazines several years later, Shocket tragically passed away from cancer. Eddie Ellner and Brandi Mankiewicz would carry on the "bad guy" writer legacy in a way that corporate pretenders like "Vic Venom" in the WWF Magazine couldn't quite match.

We also get our first "edition" of Wrestling Enquirer. This feature was two pages set up to look like the front page of a newspaper. Included were blurbs from around the wrestling world, written in a breaking news style. In the lower right corner we even get some upcoming event dates from around the country. Following that is wrestling's answer to "The Playboy Interview." Yep, it's the PWI Press Conference. And just who was the first subject? "The Living Legend" Bruno Sammartino. Among the topics covered are his title loss to Ivan Koloff and whether or not Bob Backlund will be an unforgettable champion.

Florida star and eventual gator breaker Steve Keirn gets a good write-up, as does the legendary Chief Wahoo McDaniel. While we get plenty of ads for back issues of other wrestling titles, ways to get stronger, ways to retire before 50, and other mail-away offers of questionable authenticity, the somewhat un-PC items shown for sale in other publications of the '70s are all but gone. Need a vinyl "friend" for those cold lonely nights? You will just have to find an older copy of Sports Review Wrestling to fill that need.

If your need in 2019 is to add this magazine to your collection, it may cost you. Selling prices have varied over the years, but most recently a copy sold at auction for $129.99. Also be aware that a "replica" issue from 2004 that came polybagged with the 25th anniversary edition of PWI is out there, though it has markings to indicate as such right on the cover.

For those of us who grew up with the title, the memories of articles, photos, and covers should come flooding back. It is an absolutely true story that upon my first PWI magazine purchase I knew what I wanted to do in the wrestling world. While it was only for a few issues, I am immensely proud that I was able to live that dream and can count myself among the names of writers who have been able to contribute to this long lasting publication.

While we couldn't fit every picture and page here in the blog entry, be sure to follow @JWs_Wrestling_Memorabilia on Instagram to see more of the issue, including the very first PWI Ratings page. Happy Birthday, PWI!

Wrestling MarketWatch: Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Magazine

Wrestling magazine titles like Pro Wrestling Illustrated, WWF Magazine, and The Wrestler may be the more celebrated publications, but you can't beat an issue or two of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Magazine in any collection. Great covers, solid photography, and a veritable celebration of Jim Crockett Promotions in every issue. Add all of that to the fact that, though you can occasionally stumble upon a great deal, the value of the issues has rarely waned. In this edition of MarketWatch, we'll look at a couple of recent selling prices. As always, prices noted are for non-autographed versions.

*Where better to kick it off than with The Nature Boy? In one of the later issues, Ric Flair appears on the cover holding the belt that he defended night after night, that being the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. The covers went through a multitude of changes as the years and months went by, but here on Vol. 4 No 8., Naitch appears to have been photographed after one of his many title defenses. For as big of a star as Flair was, he had fewer cover appearances on this publication than other stars of Jim Crockett Promotions. This issue recently sold at auction for $126.

*In a look at a different format of the magazine, we get a great glimpse at "Mr. USA" Tony Atlas. Atlas had runs in nearly every promotion of the '70s, '80s, and into the '90s, but he definitely saw a great deal of popularity in Jim Crockett Promotions. Did his career ultimately not live up to expectations because of self-sabotage? It's hard to say, but Tony certainly seems to be enjoying the business, and the fans, to this day. This issue, which had an artistic cover as opposed to photographs, recently sold at the bargain price of just $20.

*Dino Bravo will most likely be remembered for his tragic end, but
his career spanned decades with runs in various different promotions. Before his bleached blonde days in the WWF, Bravo was both a heel and babyface around the globe. Hearing the cheers of the fans in Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling, Bravo captured several major titles in the promotion and feuded with the likes of Blackjack Mulligan and The Andersons around the Carolinas and beyond. His cover issue recently sold at auction for $30.

*Two men who were stalwarts at the now-legendary Mid-Atlantic Fanfests promoted by Greg Price in Charlotte, North Carolina were Paul Jones and Masked Superstar. Not only did the two men team and feud in Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling, but they also shared a classic magazine cover. Many fans may have grown up knowing Jones as a manager and Superstar as Demolition Ax, but large portions of their legacies lie a decade earlier before the wrestling promotions went national. This issue, with one of my all-time favorite covers, recently sold at auction for $104. Less than a year ago on this blog, we documented that this issue had sold for roughly half of that cost.

The Mid-Atlantic titles continue to hold their own. While deals are to be had on some issues, others simply won't waiver. Only truly documented here on this blog as well as on The Mid-Atlantic Gateway, the magazine continues to be a treasure to behold in the wrestling memorabilia world.

From The Musty Yellowed Pages--WWF Magazine January 1995

Ahhh 1995. The New Generation. A gimmick that I never necessarily bought into, although I did appreciate that so many of the characters and talent that I started enjoying through wrestling were still around. The cover of this magazine featured three of those with King Kong Bundy, "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase, and Jameson. So despite the '90s being well documented as a time that I least like to remember and have probably written about the least on this blog over the past decade, here we are. Let's take a look at what the World Wrestling Federation was made of during one of its most tumultuous times.

As evidenced by the cover, this is the 1994 Christmas issue. Although magazines are all but a memory now, for those of you who are too young to know, periodicals were usually dated far ahead. We would have purchased this off of the newsstand just as Christmas trees and Kris Kringle were fresh on our minds, thus King Kong Bundy dressed as Santa Claus.

I used the word "tumultuous" above to describe the WWF at this point in time and that was no exaggeration. In front of the cameras the fans were dealing with a constant trade-out of talent in an attempt to introduce new stars and create new superstars. This didn't always work, thus displayed by King Kong Bundy being a lead heel on the roster. Behind the scenes the company was dealing with the fallout of the infamous steroid trial that saw Vince McMahon front and center. In a rare acknowledgement of McMahon as being more than just an announcer, a two page article tells of the trial and McMahon's appearance with Chet Coppock discussing some very real-life situations.

We get a preview of "Caged!," which was the first entry in what was to be a regular series of magazines labeled as "WWF Limited Edition Collector's Series." While there only ended up being two editions, these magazines were to take a look at specific concepts such as steel cage matches and Monday Night Raw. The "Caged!" issue featured glimpses at many matches that were otherwise largely unseen back in the day, seeing as that many of these "blow-off" encounters were either dark matches or limited strictly to house shows. The shot of Rowdy Roddy Piper hoisting both the WWF and Intercontinental Championship belts has always been a favorite of mine.

The magazine had other interesting features that weren't part of the WWF's standard operating procedure back in 1995. There were both "The Informer" and "The Bite" penned "secretly" by Vince Russo. Both offered "rumor and innuendo" of "insider" information that pretended to pull back the curtain in an era where kayfabe still lived in a loose sense. "Rookies to Legends," in this issue featuring George "The Animal" Steele, looked at superstars from the past in an era where only current talent was mentioned 99% of the time. To appeal to the kids, we had video game reviews as well as the merchandise catalog showcasing overpriced (for the time) Hasbro WWF figures at $9.99 a pop, as well as now-coveted items such as the Doink the Clown teddy bear, complete with Dink bear.

Jeff Jarrett got a load of coverage in the magazine. This issue may show why. Double J has always had a relationship with Vince Russo and in this particular spread the writer is even shown speaking with Jarrett. This time Double J has invaded Las Vegas complete with showgirls and celebrity impersonators. A later issue has Jarrett, along with The Roadie, invading Hollywood and hobnobbing with the likes of "Golden Girl" Estelle Getty. Talk about a clash in my interests with me being an unashamed lifelong fan of the geriatric foursome as well as Double J.

This issue also features the second annual "Dubious Achievement Awards." It's a humorous look at the then-current goings on in the World Wrestling Federation. I remember the 1993 version being a bit funnier, but here we do get a rare shot of Heidi Lee Morgan in WWF Magazine (battling Bull Nakano) as well as one of the few mentions of announcer Charlie Minn. Though I was still an avid WWF viewer at the time, I recall not knowing who Minn was. I do believe that he hosted WWF Action Zone at the time, which I did not view or record for whatever reason.

We wrap up with a look at the WWF Holiday Wish tour, Lowdown (a collection of news worthy blurbs), a puzzle game, and "Scoop Sullivan," a largely forgotten back page cartoon. Though I missed many stars of my earlier childhood, at the time I still ate these magazines up. They were what I ultimately wanted to get into then. Thankfully, as an adult, I got to live out that dream albeit briefly. In 1995, I doubt I had many more Christmas wishes other than that...