Death Of The Territories - The WCCW Story

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[CENTER][IMG]http://img64.imageshack.us/img64/5742/worldclasscg5.png[/IMG] [FONT="Times New Roman"]Death Of The Territories [B]The WCCW Story[/B][/FONT][/CENTER] [INDENT]Wrestling in Dallas was a lot of things to a lot of people. It was an attraction for the fans, a must see; it was a passion for the Von Erichs and it was a business that was the most bustling in the 80's. Over the years, World Class Championship Wrestling had been pronounced under many names, one of the most recent Big Time Wrestling. After they began a boom period, the genius producer for WCCW television provided the "World Class" name. And so it came to the pass that Fritz Von Erich's legacy would continue with this most popular wrestling promotion. Already had his sons, David, Kerry and Kevin landed a hard impact on the federation, and Mike Von Erich was still laying in wait for a big breakout. We are in the breakout period of the promotion; April 1983. Many of the more seasoned superstars, such as The Great Kabuki, Skandor Akbar and Bugsy McGraw are all seeing downtime as Fritz, the booker Ken Mantell and Gary Hart are all in unison, preparing for a new launch of international superstars that will take WCCW even higher in the ranks of the National Wrestling Alliance. So now the questions remains. Will the new generation pitch World Class Championship Wrestling higher then it already is? Or will it by some strange twist of fate, turn to a negative side for the storied Von Erich family? Time will show as we enter the stubborn and twisting world of [B]The Death Of The Territories[/B].[/INDENT]

[D. Boons Ghost]

Very cool. Besides Georgia Championship, World Class was one of my favorites of the territorial promotions. Following them through the Apter Mags of the day, it amazed me how many hot angles WCCW strung together in that three year period between '83-85; the Freebirds v. Von Erichs, the Battle of the Valets, Chris Adams turning against Kevin Von Erich, and then the Dynamic Duo. I wish you luck on this. And shortlist Gino Hernandez! That guy is gold. :)

[theoutlaw321]

Growing up in the heart of MACW(about 20 minutes east of Charlotte) you wouldn't have thought I had access to the WCCW. But by some strange twist of fate I was able to pick up a feed of WCCW wrestling on an independent tv station out of Greensboro, anyway. I spent my Sat mornings growing up watching the Von Erichs and Freebirds as well as Ric Flair, Steamboat, the Koloffs, etc. I wish you luck and look forward to what you do with this diary.

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Friday, Week 4, March [INDENT][QUOTE][CENTER][SIZE="3"]================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------[/SIZE] [B][SIZE="5"]WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER[/SIZE][/B] [B][SIZE="0"]You're weekly update on wrestling[/SIZE][/B] [SIZE="3"]------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ================================================== [FONT="Times New Roman"][B]CHANGES IN WCCW AS "NEW GENERATION" ROLLS IN[/B][/FONT][/SIZE][/CENTER] [INDENT]We are going to Dallas, Texas. Right to the heart of the World Class Championship Wrestling headquarters. As April rolls in, news of change are already sturring up the pot in Dallas. As proposed by Gary Hart and Ken Mantell, a "new generation" of WCCW superstars are about to roll in. The mainstays that propelled WCCW into starlight in 1981 and 1982 are expected to go a step backwards, to introduce some fresh, young and athletic superstars to the world of wrestling, most prominently in Texas and the Dallas area. We all know The Great Kabuki, Skandor Akbar and Bugsy McGraw just to name a few, and these are some of the ones stepping back. Akbar will be strictly managing from now on, as to before were he also did some wrestling appearances. We have exclusive news saying that Kabuki will only stay short in the upper scene, but will then be sat down on the midcard stage, probably to feud with the newer stars. Lastly, McGraw is not to be found in the promotion anymore, as he has found work elsewhere. It has to be said though, that it is obvious that he left on good terms with Fritz Von Erich. Also, we have exclusive news concerning the booking in World Class Championship Wrestling. As March comes to an end, the booking team has been changed from two men to three men. Before David had a pick in the booking decisions, but as April begins he is out of the mark, leaving only Ken Mantell and Fritz Von Erich, and another third man. This persons name is Bob Swane. He is a representative of CBS's Mid-South station, where WCCW has their current tv-show scheduled upon. Swane has appeared after Fritz was in recent negotiations with the station, but WON does not at this point have any information about the seemingly closed meeting. Swane doesn't seem to have any experience in booking at all, and it is regarded that he is only their to supervise the promotion, probably because of some consequences of the before mentioned meeting. We will keep you updated as this story develops.[/INDENT][/QUOTE] [QUOTE][B]OOC:[/B] Not to crush all of you're dreams, but I haven't actually watched most of WCCW. I've recently picked up Heroes Of World Class, and that fits perfect as i've always loved WCCW in the DOTT game. To tell you the truth, I wasn't even born in 1983, but wrestling from the 80's have always appealed to me. And just to say, the only feud that i'll continue on is the Freebirds/Von Erich one, generally because I have no knowledge of other feuds. But I hope this doesn't take off you're attention and excitement, as i'm ready to do this diary all the way.[/QUOTE][/INDENT] [COLOR="White"]...[/COLOR]

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Tuesday, Week 1, April [INDENT][QUOTE][CENTER][SIZE="3"]================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------[/SIZE] [B][SIZE="5"]WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER[/SIZE][/B] [B][SIZE="0"]You're weekly update on wrestling[/SIZE][/B] [SIZE="3"]------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ================================================== [FONT="Times New Roman"][B]WCCW PULLING IN ON NEW STARS[/B][/FONT][/SIZE][/CENTER] [INDENT]As World Class Championship Wrestling launches it's "new generation" of stars, headed by the young Von Erich boys most prominently Kerry Von Erich, Fritz Von Erich and Ken Mantell are already showing interest in a international superstar. This man is known as Bruiser Brody and has competed all around the world, most recently in the Puerto Rican World Wrestling Council. Brody is known for his immense brawls, and raw strength skills and would certainly be an exciting addition to the WCCW roster. Although we here at WON are quite sure that no kind of contact has been established yet, it sure that Von Erich and Mantell is keeping an open eye out for Brody. Also, it is rumored that Gino Hernandez, who has worked with WCCW before though only for a brief period, is coming back to enter the "new generation" of WCCW superstars. This is only a rumor though and we nothing to confirm. To take eyes off the Texas promotion, great news arrived today as the first annual Crockett Cup was held by Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling. As always, this is a scheduled tag team tournament that sees eight teams enter an elimination tournament and the winner will take the Crockett Cup Trophy. And for the first tournament, it was shown to the combination of Jos Leduc and Dory Funk Jr. They defeated Roddy Piper and Bob Orton Jr. in the finals to be crowned the first ever Crockett Cup Champions.[/INDENT][/QUOTE][/INDENT] [COLOR="White"]...[/COLOR]

[Showtime4Lajf]

WCCW not only had great storylines and wrestlers, but is also a facinating and tragic story, which is part of why I love the company so much. I hope that you'll be able to take them all the way to the top and crush all the competition :D Also: Bugsy McGraw is awesome, so you should bring him in again if you get the chance. He could beat up all the young talent and be a grumpy old bastard. How awesome would that be? Huh? And of course Gino should be hired if you get the chance, as DBG said. Good luck