WCW 1989 and Beyond: Re-Writing Wikipedia

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Early usage of the name

 

Although the name "World Championship Wrestling" had been used as a brand and television show name by various promotions affiliated with the NWA (National Wrestling Alliance) since 1982, it was not until five years later that an actual NWA-affiliated promotion called World Championship Wrestling appeared on the national scene, under the ownership of media mogul Ted Turner, based in Atlanta, Georgia. Finally, in September of 1989, WCW officially split from the NWA to become its own company.

 

Leadership and booking

 

While initially the new company was planning on changing its name to Universal Wrestling Corporation, very shortly following the purchase the decision was made to utilize the familiar "World Championship Wrestling" name for the new promotion. The company went through various changes in its leadership and booking during the following years. Some people, like Jim Herd and Kip Frey, were completely lacking in wrestling experience; others, like Bill Watts and Ole Anderson, had extensive wrestling experience, but were so entrenched in the old territorial methods of promotion that they were ineffective at building WCW's audience.

 

Week 1, September 1989

 

Eric Bischoff, a relatively unknown announcer at the time, made a very convincing case to WCW owner, Ted Turner, that would grant him the position of executive producer over many other interviewees. At this point, the mutual goal between Eric Bischoff and Ted Turner was for WCW to make money and gain national popularity.

 

WCW had a lot of big name wrestlers but still fell far short of their national counter-part, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), in terms of its wrestlers' popularity. Some of WCW's top wrestlers included: Ric Flair, Lex Luger, Sid Vicious, Sting and Terry Funk.

 

Also, at the time, WCW had four championships: WCW World Heavyweight (Ric Flair), WCW United States (Lex Luger), WCW Television (Sting) and WCW Tag Team (The Fabulous Freebirds - Jimmy Garvin and Michael Hayes).

 

WCW had a weekly television show that was taped on Wednesday nights and aired on Saturday nights on TBS. The show lasted one-hour and generally was used to hype their main source of revenue - pay-per-views. Eric Bischoff's first move, in regards to WCW Saturday Night, was to move its location from dimly lit arenas to a studio with a hot crowd and good sound. WCW Saturday Night began recording its shows at Orlando Universal Studios Sound Stage 21, in Orlando, Florida. The show's announcers were Gordie Solie, Jim Ross and Eric Bischoff.

 

Originally, WCW held only a handful of pay-per-views each year, but Eric Bischoff decided to change that. He made the early move of setting up twelve pay-per-views, which was almost unheard of at the time. He was conviced that this move would bring in much more popularity and money. WCW's next pay-per-view, under the management of Bischoff, was the September version of WCW Clash of the Champions. Despite WCW Saturday Night being recorded in only one location, WCW's pay-per-views were scheduled through out the country.

 

WCW Saturday Night

Orlando Universal Studios Sound Stage 21

Orlando, Florida

 

Dark match: Scott Hall defeated Tommy Rich in 5:51 by pinfall with a Hall Buster. (D)

Dark match: Shane Douglas defeated Samu in 4:34 by pinfall with a Pittsburgh Plunge. (E)

Segment: Eric Bischoff announced his new position with the company and vacated the WCW Television and the WCW United States championships and announced a tournament for the WCW United State belt. (C+)

The Steiners defeated Midnight Express in 6:14 when Scott Steiner defeated Stan Lane by pinfall with a Top Rope Bulldog. (D)

Segment: The Fabulous Freebirds attacked The Steiners after the match. ©

Segment: Ric Flair and Sid Vicious are shown arguing backstage (B+)

WCW United States Championship Quarterfinal Match: Tom Zenk defeated Norman The Lunatic in 5:14 by pinfall. ©

Segment: Brian Pillman wanted a shot for the WCW Television title but was attacked by Stan Lane (D)

Segment: Lex Luger came to the ring upset about losing his belt and wanted a shot to prove his legitimacy. Terry Funk accepted that challenge. (B+)

WCW United States Championship Quarterfinal Match: Cactus Jack defeated Steve Williams in 4:49 by pinfall with a Double Arm DDT. (C+)

Segment: 'Cowboy' Bob Orton had an interview backstage claiming that the WCW Television title was the best chance Sting had to make it in the WCW. Sting interrupted the interview. (B+)

WCW World Heavyweight Championship: Ric Flair © defeated The Great Muta in 6:41 by submission with a Figure Four Leglock. Ric Flair makes defence number 1 of his WCW World Heavyweight title. (B)

 

Attendance: 1,000 (sellout)

Show Rating: B-

TBS Television Rating: 0.64

 

Eric Bischoff and others around WCW were said to be very pleased with their first show. Bischoff was happy with the outcomes of the matches as well as the segments that the workers put on. Fan response to the show seemed to be great. However, on a side note, following the show, Keiji Mutoh (The Great Muta), provoked Stan Lane which led to a fist fight. Eric Bischoff was said to be very disappointed as The Great Muta was just headlining his show. Bischoff fined Mutoh, hoping to set a tone to the rest of WCW workers.

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Week 2, September 1989

 

Following the previous week's WCW Saturday Night, one key aspect stood out as one of the few low points of the show - and that was James E. Cornette. Bischoff was not satisfied by how Cornette was performing as a road agent, and immediately took action. Bischoff appointed Bob Caudle as WCW's new road agent.

 

WCW Saturday Night

Orlando Universal Studios Sound Stage 21

Orlando, Florida

 

Dark match: Scott Hall defeated Rip Morgan in 4:49 by pinfall with a Hall Buster. (D)

Dark segment: Scott Hall taunted Shane Douglas having seen him wrestle the week before. (D-)

Segment: Sid Vicious challenged Ric Flair for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship at WCW September Clash of the Champions. (B+)

Doom defeated Road Warriors in 5:33 when Ron Simmons defeated Road Warrior Animal by pinfall with a Powerslam after Woman interfered. (D+)

Segment: The Fabulous Freebirds were backstage taunting The Steiners (C+)

WCW United States Championship Quarterfinal Match: Ole Anderson defeated The Iron Sheik in 4:36 by pinfall with a Spinebuster. (D+)

Segment: Sting was in the ring hyping his pay-per-view match with Bob Orton, when Orton surprise attacked him. (B-)

Brian Pillman defeated Beautiful Bobby Eaton in 6:51 by pinfall. (C-)

Segment: Stan Lane attacked Brian Pillman in the ring. (D)

Ric Flair, Sting and Lex Luger defeated Terry Funk, Sid Vicious and 'Cowboy' Bob Orton in 10:38 when 'Cowboy' Bob Orton was disqualified while fighting Ric Flair. (B)

 

Attendance: 1,000 (sellout)

Show Rating: C+

TBS Television Rating: 0.66 (+0.02)

 

Fan feedback following the show remained fantastic for the second consecutive week. However, another backstage conflict arose as Michael Hayes, one half of the WCW Tag Team Champions, antagonized Ole Anderson almost to the point of a fight. Bischoff, once again, had to act quickly and fined Hayes for his actions. After the fine, Hayes was much more positively responsive than Mutoh the week before.

 

Also, WCW was trying to push a Tom Zenk/Bam Bam Bigelow feud, however those plans were quickly scratched because Bigelow prioritized New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) over WCW, causing Bigelow to miss out on WCW September Clash of the Champions, much to the disliking of Bischoff.

 

WCW September Clash of the Champions

Dallas Auditorium

Dallas, Texas

 

Segment: Ric Flair hyped his upcoming match with Sid Vicious (A)

WCW Television Championship: Scott Hall defeated Shane Douglas in 9:43 by pinfall after using a foreign object. Scott Hall wins the WCW Television title. (E)

Segment: 'Cowboy' Bob Orton taunts Sting. (B-)

Brian Pillman defeated Stan Lane in 9:48 by pinfall. (C-)

Segment: Before their match, Doom attacked the Road Warriors. (C-)

Doom defeated Road Warriors in 10:05 when Ron Simmons defeated Road Warrior Hawk by pinfall with a Powerslam. (C-)

Segment: Dan Spivey claimed he was going to win the WCW United States Championship tournament. ©

WCW United States Championship Quarterfinal Match: Dan Spivey defeated Junkyard Dog in 11:31 by pinfall with a Bulldog. ©

Segment: Terry Funk called out Lex Luger as another response to Luger wanting to prove himself. (B)

WCW Tag Team Championship: The Fabulous Freebirds © defeated The Steiners in 11:31 when Michael 'P.S.' Hayes defeated Scott Steiner by pinfall after using a foreign object. The Fabulous Freebirds make defence number 1 of their WCW Tag Team titles. (D+)

Segment: After the match, The Fabulous Freebirds continued their assault on The Steiners. ©

Sting defeated 'Cowboy' Bob Orton in 12:31 by submission with a Scorpion Deathlock. (B)

Terry Funk defeated Lex Luger in 12:31 by pinfall with a Texas Piledriver. (A)

WCW World Heavyweight Championship: Ric Flair defeated Sid Vicious in 12:44 by submission with a Figure Four Leglock. Ric Flair makes defence number 2 of his WCW World Heavyweight title. (B)

Segment: Ric Flair celebrated in the ring. (A*)

 

Attendance: 10,000 (sellout)

Show Rating: B-

Pay-Per-View Buyrate: 0.71

 

The show was considered a success and Eric Bischoff was very happy with the results. He said he felt a little disappointed in Scott Steiner's performance, but he was ecstatic to see Ric Flair put on such great segments and to see Terry Funk and Lex Luger to put on such a fantastic match. Bischoff was also reported as being very high up on Sting after his recent in ring performances.

 

However, once again, after the show there was more controversy. Scott Steiner, one half of The Steiners, provoked a fight between himself and young Shane Douglas. Bischoff reportedly fined Steiner and felt it was a big step backward for the young potential break-out star.

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Week 3, September 1989

 

Eric Bischoff was said to be very happy with the results of WCW September Clash of the Champions, but was not happy with the buy-rate. In order for his idea of having a pay-per-view for each month, he realized that the company would need much more exposure. Bischoff immediately axed his deal with Viewer's Choice U.S. and began negotiations with larger pay-per-view carriers within the United States, and even began talking with carriers outside of the country. Many within the company thought that this move was dangerous as it might cause WCW to start spending more money than it's making.

 

WCW Saturday Night

Orlando Universal Studios Sound Stage 21

Orlando, Florida

 

Dark match: Shane Douglas defeated Samu in 5:37 by pinfall with a Pittsburgh Plunge. (E)

Segment: Sid Vicious taunted Ric Flair. (B+)

Brian Pillman defeated 'Hotstuff' Eddie Gilbert in 5:49 by pinfall. (D)

Segment: Scott Hall came out after the match and now that he was the WCW Television champion, he needed to start climbing the ladder and he wanted Pillman to be his first step. (D-)

Segment: Backstage, The Road Warriors had an angry interview after being screwed again at WCW September Clash of the Champions. ©

WCW United States Championship Semifinal Match: Tom Zenk defeated Cactus Jack in 7:35 by pinfall. (D+)

Segment: After the match, Dan Spivey came and attacked Zenk. (C-)

Segment: Lex Luger promised revenge on Terry Funk. (A)

Sting defeated The Great Muta in 8:55 by submission with a Scorpion Deathlock. (B)

Segment: 'Cowboy' Bob Orton came to the ring and a brawl broke out between him and Sting. (B-)

 

Attendance: 1,000 (sellout)

Show Rating: C+

TBS Television Rating: 0.65 (-0.01)

 

After this edition of WCW Saturday Night, Eric Bischoff and others came to a few new realizations. First, the first impressions of Shane Douglas were that he could be a star someday, but everyone, at this point, was sadly let down. Also, Bischoff expected a lot more out of the Tom Zenk and Cactus Jack match, but it was apparent that the two had very little chemistry. On the positive side, the Lex Luger and Terry Funk feud was heating up much more than expected within the company.

 

Eric Bischoff was able to strike a deal with Closed Circuit United States, which was a bigger pay-per-view carrier than WCW's previous carrier. Bischoff now expected a larger buyrate for their next pay-per-view, WCW Halloween Havoc, on Sunday, Week 4, October. WCW Halloween Havoc is one of WCW's most prestigious events and to have a larger potential audience made things very exciting for those within the company, despite the struggling United States economy.

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Week 4, September 1989

 

WCW Saturday Night

Orlando Universal Studios Sound Stage 21

Orlando, Florida

 

Dark match, WCW Television Championship: Scott Hall © defeated Johnny Ace in 5:34 by pinfall with a Hall Buster. Scott Hall makes defence number 1 of his WCW Television title. (D+)

Dark segment: Scott Hall taunted Brian Pillman. (D-)

WCW Tag Team Championship: The Fabulos Freebirds © defeated The Steiners and Road Warriors in 8:45; the order of elimination was The Steiners first by cheating, and finally Road Warriors with help from interferences by Butch Reed and Ron Simmons. The Fabulous Freebirds make defence number 2 of their WCW Tag Team titles. (D+)

Segment: Terry Funk told Lex Luger to watch his back. (B+)

WCW United States Championship Semifinal: Dan Spivey defeated Ole Anderson in 6:47 by pinfall with a Bulldog. (D+)

Segment: After the match, Dan Spivey ran to the backstage area, found Tom Zenk, and gave a relentless beatdown. ©

Sid Vicious defeated Steve Williams in 3:56 by pinfall with a Choke Slam. ©

Segment: Sting came to the ring to tell 'Cowboy' Bob Orton that last week was a mistake on Orton's part and that he should fear the Stinger. (B)

Segment: Ric Flair was shown backstage studying the Sid Vicious match from earlier when Sid came in and hit him with a cheap shot. (B+)

Lex Luger defeated Bam Bam Bigelow in 5:31 by pinfall with a Running Forearm. (C+)

Segment: After the match, Funk attacked Luger. (B+)

 

Attendance: 1,000 (sellout)

Show Rating: C+

TBS Television Rating: 0.61 (-0.04)

 

Fan feedback from the show was once again fantastic. WCW officials felt like Bischoff's storylines were finally starting to pan out and with a month before one of their biggest pay-per-views, things might be heading in the right direction. However, despite their feelings, the ratings were fluctuating a little too much for Bischoff and he felt that WCW Saturday Night needed a pay-per-view type main event, so he scheduled Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. Also, the finals for the WCW United States Championship match was scheduled for the show. WCW had never really use pay-per-view type matches on the show, but Bischoff and others backstage were really looking forward to opening the month of October with a bang. Behind the scenes, some were skeptical of the main event, saying that it tarnishes the pay-per-view matches and may begin to lower their buyrates if their televised shows continued to have matches with this magnitude. Bischoff, in his infinite boldness and arrogance, decided to go ahead with the match.

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Week 1, October 1989

 

To start the month, WCW Executive Producer Eric Bischoff and WCW Owner Ted Turner came to a deal with SkyMovies+ to air WCW pay-per-views in the United Kingdom. The deal was set for 6 months. This was considered by many to be another big step in the expansion of WCW.

 

WCW Saturday Night

Orlando Universal Studios Sound Stage 21

Orlando, Florida

 

Dark match: Road Warriors defeated Midnight Express in 4:34 when Road Warrior Hawk defeated Beautiful Bobby Eaton by pinfall with a Doomsday Device. (D+)

Dark match: Brian Pillman defeated Cactus Jack in 6:22 by pinfall. ©

Dark segment: After the match, Scott Hall attacked Pillman. (D-)

Segment: Ric Flair cut a promo on Sid Vicious. (B+)

The Steiners defeated Varsity Club in 4:59 when Scott Steiner defeated Mike Rotundo by pinfall with a Top Rope Bulldog. (D)

Segment: The Fabulous Freebirds came out with microphones and taunted The Steiners. ©

Sting defeated 'Hotstuff' Eddie Gilbert in 5:21 by submission with a Scorpion Deathlock. (C+)

Segment: 'Cowboy' Bob Orton claimed to not be afraid of a little sting by The Stinger. (B-)

WCW United States Championship Final: Dan Spivey defeated Tom Zenk in 7:37 by pinfall with a Bulldog. Dan Spivey wins the WCW United States title. (C-)

WCW World Heavyweight Championship: Ric Flair defeated Terry Funk in 6:47 by disqualification. During the match we also had Sid Vicious run in and attack Flair. Ric Flair makes defence number 3 of his WCW World Heavyweight title. (B+)

Segment: After the match, Sid Vicious and Terry Funk began a beatdown of Ric Flair until Lex Luger came for the save. (A)

 

Attendance: 1,000 (sellout)

Show Rating: B

TBS Television Rating: 0.67 (+0.06)

 

Fan response to the show was phenomenal, despite hesitations from some within WCW about a main event of pay-per-view caliber. This episode of WCW Saturday Night drew its highest television rating to date. Bischoff's early and aggressive style was proving to be successful, however, his true success was yet to be determined until WCW Halloween Havoc, to be held on Sunday, Week 4, October 1989.

 

The card, at this point, featured only one match: Ric Flair© vs. Sid Vicious for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. Having been three weeks from its past pay-per-view, the WCW creative team was once again questioning Bischoff's decision making, wondering why he was waiting so long to fill the card. Bischoff claimed that the delay was to emphasize the importance of WCW Saturday Night.

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Week 2, October 1989

 

WCW Saturday Night

Orlando Universal Studios Sound Stage 21

Orlando, Florida

 

Dark match: Cactus Jack defeated Shane Douglas in 6:01 by pinfall with a Bang Bang Elbow. (C-)

Segment: Terry Funk taunts Lex Luger. (B)

WCW Tag Team Championship: The Fabulous Freebirds defeated Varsity Club in 5:54 when Michael 'P.S.' Hayes defeated Steve Williams by pinfall with a Spike Piledriver. The Fabulous Freebirds make defence number 3 of their WCW Tag Team titles. (D)

Segment: After the match, Freebirds challenge The Steiners to come to the ring. Steiners come and clean house. ©

Segment: Backstage, Sid Vicious attacked Ric Flair. (B+)

Tom Zenk defeated Bam Bam Bigelow in 6:11 by pinfall. ©

Segment: Dan Spivey attacked Tom Zenk. ©

Segment: Doom shoot a promo on Road Warriors. (C-)

Terry Funk defeated Ole Anderson in 7:23 by pinfall with a Texas Piledriver. (B-)

Lex Luger defeated 'Cowboy' Bob Orton in 6:44 by pinfall with a Running Forearm. During the match we also had Sting run in and attack Orton. (B)

 

Attendance: 1,000 (Sellout)

Show Rating: B-

TBS Television Rating: 0.67 (-)

 

Fans once again like the show, and Bischoff was happy with the rating staying high. With the big pay-per-view rapidly approaching, Bischoff really needed to prove that he can bring WCW into new light. Also, the WWF had recently grown to global proportions and began making offers to some of WCW's pay-per-appearance talents, specifically Tom Zenk.

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Week 3, October 1989

 

WCW Saturday Night

Orlando Universal Studios Sound Stage 21

Orlando, Florida

 

Dark match: Bam Bam Bigelow defeated The Great Muta in 6:28 by pinfall with a Top Rope Headbutt. (B-)

Dark match for WCW World Heavyweight Championship: Ric Flair defeated 'Hotstuff' Eddie Gilbert in 6:31 by submission with a Figure Four Leglock. Ric Flair makes defence number 4 of his WCW World Heavyweight title. (B-)

Segment: Ric Flair and Sid Vicious cut a promo. (A)

WCW Television Championship: Scott Hall defeated Mike Rotundo in 5:42 by pinfall with a Hall Buster. Scott Hall makes defence number 2 of his WCW Television title. (C-)

Segment: Scott Hall taunted Brian Pillman. (D-)

Road Warriors defeated The Wild Somoans in 5:35 when Road Warrior Hawk defeated Samu by pinfall with a Doomsday Device. (D)

Segment: The Steiners challenged The Fabulous Freebirds to a title match at WCW Halloween Havoc. (C-)

Segment: 'Cowboy' Bob Orton demanded a re-match against Sting at WCW Halloween Havoc. (B-)

WCW United States Championship: Dan Spivey defeated Ole Anderson in 4:48 by submission with a Bearhug. Dan Spivey makes defence number 1 of his WCW United States title. ©

Segment: Tom Zenk attacked Dan Spivey as revenge for last week. (C-)

Lex Luger and Sting defeated 'Cowboy' Bob Orton and Terry Funk in 5:48 when Sting defeated 'Cowboy' Bob Orton by submission with a Scorpion Deathlock. (B)

 

Attendance: 1,000 (sellout)

Show Rating: B-

TBS Television Rating: 0.68 (+0.01)

 

Fan feedback continued to be successful as now many within WCW were feeling a big momentum push with only one show remaining before WCW Halloween Havoc.

 

However, Dan Spivey, WCW United States Champion and future breakout star in the eyes of Eric Bischoff, turned his back on WCW and accepted a written deal with the WWF. WWF was also going for Tom Zenk at the time, but Zenk continually refused to deal with WWF due to his loyalty to WCW. The stealing of Spivey lit a spark in Eric Bischoff. It was at this point that he decided to become very aggressive in terms of putting on quality shows, building talent and signing new talent. Also, at this point, Tom Zenk's loyalty proved to grow on Bischoff. Spivey had only one week remaining with WCW and many were wondering how Bischoff would handle the United States Championship.