ECW 1999- Going National?

[Hitman23]

No big back story just what wikipedia has on ECW

 

ECW had its origins in 1991 under the banner Tri-State Wrestling Alliance owned by Joel Goodhart.[1] In 1992, Goodhart sold his share of the company to his partner, Tod Gordon, who in return renamed the promotion Eastern Championship Wrestling. When Eastern Championship Wrestling was founded, it was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). At the time, "Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert[2] was the lead booker of Eastern Championship Wrestling. Gilbert (after a falling out with Tod Gordon) was replaced in September 1993 by Paul Heyman (a.k.a. Paul E. Dangerously), who had just left World Championship Wrestling and was looking for a new challenge.

 

Eastern Championship Wrestling contrasted contemporary professional wrestling, which contained many cartoonish gimmicks and was marketed more towards children. Extreme Championship Wrestling, aiming at males between 18 to 35, broke a few taboos such as blading. Heyman saw ECW as the professional wrestling equivalent to the grunge movement and focused on taking the company in a new direction.[3]

 

[edit] Secession from the NWA

See also: NWA World Heavyweight Championship: Extreme Championship Wrestling

In 1994, Jim Crockett's non-compete agreement with Ted Turner, who purchased World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from Crockett in 1988, was up and he decided to start promoting with the NWA again. Crockett went to Tod Gordon and asked him to hold a tournament for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship at the ECW Arena on August 27, 1994. NWA President Dennis Coralluzzo thought that Crockett and Gordon were going to try to monopolize the title[4] (much like Crockett did in the 1980s) and told them they did not have the NWA board's approval so he took control over the tournament. Gordon was upset at Coralluzzo for his power plays so Gordon and Shane Douglas, who was booked to win the title against 2 Cold Scorpio, planned to have Douglas throw the title down after he won it and break ECW from the NWA.[5][6] So after the match, Douglas threw down the NWA belt stating that he did not want to be champion of a "dead promotion." He then raised the Eastern Championship Wrestling Heavyweight Title and declared it to be a World Heavyweight Championship—calling it the only real World Title. According to the Forever Hardcore DVD, Douglas only agreed to throw down the NWA belt.[7] The idea of throwing down the NWA World Title was planned and only two other people were in on it: Todd Gordon and Paul Heyman. Paul told Shane the negative would be that many he grew up loving would peg him as a "backstabber" if he did it. What made the decision easy is Dennis Carluzzo's commentary about Shane at the time. Carluzzo went on the radio and behind his back and told everyone not to book Shane as he would no show and was a "bad risk." Shane can't recall ever no showing an event. Carluzzo, a high-ranking NWA official, apparently was talking about a show Shane no showed because he was worried about pay. The promoter kept backing out of parts of the agreement and in the end wanted Shane to drive instead of fly as was planned in the arrangement. So, Shane told the promoter to take his name off the show and not to book him again. Shane credits Mike Tenay for telling him the story as Shane did not even remember it. The day of the event, Shane was to throw down the NWA belt, he was still undecided. It was not until Carluzzo showed up and was stuck to Shane's side "like a dingleberry" and wanted him to sign a contract which Shane could not sign. When he saw how disingenuous Carluzzo was being, he decided to do it using his father's theory of doing right by the people that do right by you. Shane feels there is some left over anger from the NWA about the tossing of the belt. When he went to TNA, he feels they could have had him do the typical heel "nobody beat me for the belt" angle but opted not to after Dennis Coraluzzo[6] buried Douglas on Mike Tenay’s radio show.

 

In accord with this speech, Paul Heyman later stated that "the National Wrestling Alliance was old-school when old-school wasn't hip anymore. We wanted to set our mark, we wanted to breakaway from the pack, we wanted to let the world know that we weren't just some independent promotion."[1]

 

After ECW withdrew from the NWA, it officially changed its name from "Eastern Championship Wrestling" to "Extreme Championship Wrestling". The unorthodox style of moves and controversial story lines made it popular among many wrestling fans in the 18- to 35-year-old male demographic. The group showcased many different styles of professional wrestling, popularizing bloody hardcore wrestling matches and the 3-Way Dance. ECW was always intended to be counterculture and a grittier alternative to multi-million dollar organizations such as WWF and WCW. In addition to their hardcore match types, they provided an alternative to North American wrestling with technical wrestling that was common overseas.

 

[edit] ECW Arena and television syndication

See also: ECW Hardcore TV

The bulk of ECW's shows remained at the ECW Arena, a bingo hall secluded under a section of Interstate 95. Seating comprised simple folding chairs and four sets of portable bleachers, and the whole sort of unconventional set up reflected the gritty style of the wrestling itself. Shows were actually broadcast on a Philadelphia local cable sports station (SportsChannel America's local affiliate, SportsChannel Philadelphia) on Tuesday evenings. After Sports Channel Philadelphia went off the air in 1997, the show moved to WPPX-TV 61. It later moved to a former independent broadcast station (WGTW 48) in Philadelphia on either Friday or Saturday night at 1 or 2 a.m. Shows were also aired on the MSG Network in NYC on Friday nights (Early Saturday morning) at 2 a.m. Due to the obscurity of the stations and ECW itself, as well as the lack of FCC oversight at that late hour, many times expletives and violence were not edited out of these showings, helping to get ECW noticed.

 

[edit] Paul Heyman and cross promotion

In 1996, Tod Gordon sold ECW to his head booker, Paul Heyman. Afterward, Gordon remained in ECW as a figure-head commissioner. Years after being the ECW "Commissioner", Gordon left ECW. His absence was explained on-air that he retired from wrestling due to family. Rumors circulate, however, that Gordon was fired by Heyman after he was suspected as a "locker room mole" for a rival wrestling promotion, helping to lure talent to World Championship Wrestling. Many years later, in an interview, Gordon claims that the "WCW mole" situation was nothing more than a work.

 

Storyline-wise, Vince McMahon first became "aware" of ECW while at the 1995 King of the Ring event in ECW's home base of Philadelphia. During the match between Mabel and Savio Vega, the crowd suddenly started to angrily chant, "ECW ECW ECW!". On September 22, 1996, at the In Your House: Mind Games event in Philadelphia, ECW stars The Sandman, Tommy Dreamer, Paul Heyman, and Taz were in the front row with Sandman even interfering in one match (when he threw beer on Savio Vega during his strap match with Bradshaw). McMahon acknowledged ECW's status as a local, up and coming promotion on the air. On February 24, 1997, ECW "invaded" Raw from the Manhattan Center. They advanced a storyline, plugged their first ever pay-per-view and worked three matches in front of the WWF audience while McMahon called the action with both Jerry "The King" Lawler and Paul Heyman. The Manhattan Center in New York was peppered with a large number of ECW fans, who gave the WWF wrestlers "Boring!" chants when they felt it was warranted. Likewise, when the ECW performers arrived, they popped and introduced the WWF Monday night audience to some trademark ECW group chants. This invasion sparked an inter-promotional feud between ECW and Lawler's United States Wrestling Association. Lawler disparaged ECW on-camera and convinced wrestlers such as Rob Van Dam and Sabu to join him in an anti-ECW crusade. Throughout 1997, ECW wrestlers appeared on USWA television programs, and vice versa.

 

On April 13, 1997, ECW finally broadcast its first pay-per-view wrestling card, Barely Legal, highlighted by Terry Funk winning the ECW World Heavyweight Title from Raven. That June, the company's Wrestlepalooza '97 event featured Raven's final ECW match before leaving for WCW. In this match, Tommy Dreamer finally beat Raven, his long time nemesis. Dreamer's celebration was short-lived, though, as Jerry Lawler, along with Sabu and Rob Van Dam showed up to attack Dreamer. This set up a match between Dreamer and Lawler at the company's second pay-per-view, 1997 Hardcore Heaven, on August 17, which was won by Dreamer. ECW continued through 1998 and early 1999 with a string of successful pay-per-views.

 

[edit] Mike Awesome controversy and promotional rivalry

In April 2000, Mike Awesome made a surprise appearance on WCW Monday Nitro — making his debut by attacking Kevin Nash — while still reigning as ECW World Champion. Awesome's friend Lance Storm has said that Awesome had refused to sign a new contract with ECW until Paul Heyman paid him overdue wages.[8] There were rumors that WCW Executive Vice-President Eric Bischoff wanted Awesome to drop the ECW World Championship belt in the trash can on television, as had been done previously with the WWF Women's title by Madusa when she jumped from the WWF to WCW. Due to concerns over legal issues, WCW refrained from having Awesome appear on Nitro with the ECW belt, but did acknowledge him as the ECW Champion. Eventually, a compromise was reached. Awesome (a WCW employee and the reigning ECW champion) appeared at an April 13, 2000 ECW event in Indianapolis, Indiana,[9] where he lost the title to Tazz (who was working for the World Wrestling Federation).[10]

 

In 2000, ECW made its West Coast debut, holding its annual summer pay-per-view Heat Wave in Los Angeles. At the time Los Angeles was home to Xtreme Pro Wrestling (XPW), and its owner Rob Black purchased six front row tickets for the show. The tickets were given to a cadre of XPW talent, and their mission was to make it clear that ECW was on enemy turf. This was not a storyline. At the beginning of the main event, the XPW contingent donned shirts emblazoned with the XPW logo, gaining the attention of security and ECW wrestler Tommy Dreamer. Security ejected the XPW group from the building and later, a brawl broke out in the parking lot between members of the XPW ring crew and the ECW locker room. The XPW wrestlers were not involved in the fracas, during which the ECW wrestlers brutalized the XPW ring crew with several of the ring crew members left in pools of their own blood.[11] Initial reports claimed that XPW valet Kristi Myst had somehow touched ECW valet Francine Fournier and that this is what prompted the incident, but Fournier herself has since gone on record as saying that she was never grabbed or in any other way touched by any of the XPW crew, and other eye witnesses support the story that Fournier never had a hand laid on her. XPW was not acknowledged by ECW announcer Joey Styles during the pay-per-view telecast, however at the November to Remember pay-per-view a few months later, color-commentator Don Callis made a subtle reference to the incident, describing a wild brawl as "looking like a Los Angeles parking lot". The XPW contingent at ringside consisted of wrestlers The Messiah, Kid Kaos, Supreme, Kristi Myst, Homeless Jimmy and XPW announcer Kris Kloss.

 

[edit] ECW on TNN

Main article: ECW on TNN

In August 1999, ECW began to broadcast nationally on TNN. AND THATS WERE WE START

[Hitman23]

ECW Hardcore TV ( B Show) results ( I’m only writing up ECW on TNN and just giving results on Harcore TV.)

 

Axl Rotten Defeated Chris Chetti

Tommy Dreamer Defeated Bill Whiles

CW Anderson Defeated Simon Diamond

 

ECW on TNN card

 

Jerry Lynn/ Sabu V. The Impact Players ( Lance Storm/Mike Awesome)

 

RVD V. Raven

 

Tommy Dreamer V. Rhino

 

CW Anderson V. Spike Dudley

 

Show will be up real soon the show is only sixty minutes

[Huntman]

Jerry Lynn/ Sabu V. The Impact Players ( Lance Storm/Mike Awesome)

 

RVD V. Raven

 

Tommy Dreamer V. Rhino

 

CW Anderson V. Spike Dudley

[CrookedRainJr]

Sorry to somewhat hijack this thread, but I assume you are using my 1999 mod for this. I always feel so happy when I see people use it or do a dynasty with it. I feel very proud people get enjoyment out of it.

 

*Wipes tear from eye*

 

I am very interested in this. I'm playing a 1999 ECW game myself but haven't really done a whole lot just yet (Only a month). Push CW Anderson though.

 

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Jerry Lynn/ Sabu V. The Impact Players ( Lance Storm/Mike Awesome) (Do you mean Justin Credible, or has Awesome joined them, or....?)

 

RVD V. Raven

 

Tommy Dreamer V. Rhino

 

CW Anderson V. Spike Dudley