It's the first Go Figure Friday episode of 2019 so I figured I'd share the story of my first Hasbro action figure. My Ted DiBiase is still MOC and for a special reason. Take a look at the video posted below.
Thirty years ago, Hulk Hogan lost the WWF Championship in controversial fashion to Andre the Giant. The Giant surrendered the title to "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase, who was then stripped of the belt by WWF President Jack Tunney. That, of course, led to the championship tournament at WrestleMania IV and the crowning of "Macho Man" Randy Savage as "the man" in WWF.
I'm not suggesting changing the ending of the tournament or the title run for Savage by any means. In my 1-2-3 cents, the buildup and implosion of the Mega Powers are one of the greatest storylines in the history of professional wrestling. Instead of 14 men in that tournament though, how about just eight competitors?
Tournaments involving more than eight Superstars are usually too many. While I love guys like Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan and Don Muraco, I knew none of them stood a chance in this tournament. A year earlier, I would have believed in Steamboat, but I digress. So here's how I would have done the tournament some 30+ years after the fact.
Hulk Hogan
Andre the Giant
Randy Savage
Ted Dibiase
One Man Gang
Bam Bam Bigelow
Jake "The Snake" Roberts
"Ravishing" Rick Rude
Savage wins Courtesy: WWE
Opening round: Hogan beats One Man Gang. DiBiase gets a win over Jake, Andre beats Bam Bam, and Savage pins Rude. Then DiBiase beats Hogan by count out and Savage wins against Andre by disqualification. This still sets up the finals for DiBiase and Savage, with Savage winning the gold and the celebration goes on as it originally did.
A smaller tournament would have allowed for longer matches. The 14 man concept meant quick matches. The remaining six men, Muraco, Steamboat, Duggan, Greg Valentine, Butch Reed and Dino Bravo could have been injected into the battle royal. Again, I'm not minimizing their contributions, but in hindsight, it was clear none of these Superstars was going to win the gold.
This scenario would have also given us Savage and Rude on pay per view. I don't recall these two ever wrestling in WWE nor WCW. Plus Roberts and DiBiase would have torn it up in the opening round. So much potential there, but of course I'm biased since it's my idea.
Stride Pro Wrestling is turning to fans to help determine the next guest who comes to one of our shows. Note we already have James Ellsworth lined up for the April 14 show in Mt. Vernon, Illinois. You can vote on the choices here. Note I am merely fantasy booking here and have no influence on what's going to happen with these particular stars. The contenders include:
Ryback vs. Hatton
Courtesy: WWE
Ryback. He, of course, is a former WWE Intercontentinal Champion. Could Heath Hatton and Ace Hawkins team up and get revenge on the former Skip Sheffield. Remember that duo faced Ryback at WWE Extreme Rules in 2012.
Billy Gunn and I have gone against each other in video game form. We also told the crowd in Herrin to "Suck it!" back in April 2005. He's a former WWE tag team, Intercontinental and Hardcore champ. Maybe he and I could team up for a match...
Courtesy: WWE
Who is most likely to get hardcore with Hardcore Holly? He's been the Hardcore champ along with tag team champion in WWE. He's tougher than a two dollar steak, just like Roger Matheus.
J. Wellington Beauregard and the "Million Dollar" Man Ted DiBiase could compare bank accounts if you chose the former tag team champion. I'm sure DiBiase wouldn't mind funding the DR Party's mission to "Make Stride great again" either.
And last but not least, we'd all give Jerry "the King" Lawler the royal treatment should he be selected. He's old school like Ax Allwardt. Maybe the two could team up against members of the DR Party.
Please vote. We'll let you know soon who we are able to strike a deal with.
I'm counting down to the 30th annual Survivor Series by looking back at my ten favorite teams in the history of the event. Survivor Series ranks among my favorite events every year and if you've read this blog in the past you know I'm a fan of the traditional elimination matches. In 1991 my all time favorite wrestler Ric Flair jumped WCW's ship and landed in the WWF. His first feud there was with "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, which led to a Survivor Series encounter. I really liked both teams that were assembled in this contest, however, I was not a fan of how the match went down. Piper was joined by Virgil, Davey Boy Smith and Bret Hart. Flair's team consisted of the Mountie, the Warlord and the "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase. However, since I'm picking ONE team per blog and not picking teams from the same year, I'm going with Piper's team. Flair was my favorite, however, I wasn't so high on the Warlord or the Mountie. Bret and the Bulldog were awesome along with Piper. Virgil was the weak link there in terms of my fandom.
Courtesy: WWE
This match started off great with Flair getting some experience with some of the WWF's top guys in the first few minutes. In a surprise move, Bulldog was the first to be eliminated when he was pinned by Flair. Piper's team even the score when Hot Rod pinned the Warlord. But then chaos ensued and everyone but Flair was disqualified for brawling. This wasn't the first time a Survivor Series match went this way. I don't like when they do that. It's a lazy way to eliminate guys. But there's no doubt this was the match with the most talent on the roster at that time.
Flair vs. Bulldog
Courtesy: WWE
This could have been a good opportunity to let Flair shine as he was a couple of months away from winning the WWF Title. Beating Bulldog, Hart, Virgil and Piper in the same match would have been a testament to his greatness, but I will admit I'm biased. At least Naitch ended up being the sole survivor here. Wooo!
I was happy to see earlier today that the WWE is inducting the Big Bossman into the Hall of Fame this year. He was one of the best big men in the business. He captured everyone's attention as Big Bubba Rogers, defending the honor of Jim Cornette and the Midnight Express.
Bossman vs. Hogan Courtesy: WWE
Bubba quickly stepped out of that role and became an established star when he pinned the One Man Gang for the UWF Heavyweight title. Eventually he'd make to the land of big men, the WWF, and take on a new persona as the Big Bossman. He prison guard from Cobb County, Georgia almost immediately took aim at Hulk Hogan. The cage match between the two on Saturday Night's Main Event in 1989 proved to me that Bossman had truly earned his stripes.
Bossman vs. Mr. Perfect Courtesy: WWE
A face turn a year later and a significant amount of weight loss made Bossman even better in the ring. He was quicker and more agile and still as aggressive as ever. Feuds with Ted DiBiase, Mr. Perfect and The Mountie are a few of my favorite from that era. He very nearly walked out of WrestleMania VII with the Intercontinental Championship.
Hardcore Champion Courtesy: WWE
But all good things must come to an end and Bossman went back to WCW, under several different gimmicks. I was happy to see him return to WWF a few years later as an updated version of the Big Bossman. He and Ken Shamrock won the tag team titles and Bossman held the Hardcore Championship too. But let's not speak of the Hell in a Cell match at WrestleMania XIV or the Kennel from Hell match.
In 1998 I had a chance to interview Ray Traylor (along with Bobby Heenan) who had just left the nWo in WCW. He's in character for it and it's very brief, but I appreciate the chance to have met him. May he rest in peace.
The Undertaker has been a part of 15 SummerSlams, and next week he'll return to the summertime tradition after missing several of the past few years. He's wrestled the likes of Edge, Randy Orton and even the legendary Kamala at SummerSlam. But maybe his greatest opponent of all-time was against himself. Yes, the Undertaker stepped into the ring and did battle against the Undertaker at SummerSlam '94.
Quick backstory (if it's possible to be quick)... The Undertaker was beaten by Yokozuna in a casket match at the Royal Rumble in 1994 and disappeared from TV for months, even missing Wrestlemania X that year. By late spring or early summer, Ted DiBiase was a manager and claimed he had seen Taker and was bringing him back to the WWF (he and Brother Love introduced Undertaker originally at Survivor Series 1990).
Leslie Nielson on the case
Paul Bearer claimed that DiBiase's Undertaker was a fake and for some reason Leslie Nielson from Police Squad and The Naked Gun was brought in to investigate. It was very cheesy, but this was all happening around the same time as the steroids trial and sexual abuse allegations. I don't remember much of Nielson's involvement beyond the vignettes that aired leading up to SummerSlam.
Tombstone! Courtesy: WWE
Speaking of SummerSlam for some reason this match went on last and is recognized as the main event, following a more than 30 minute steel cage battle between Owen and Bret Hart for the WWF World championship. Bearer's Undertaker was the real deal, easily beating the bogus 'Taker who was played by Smoky Mountain Wrestling star Brian Lee. After the defeat, the druids took Lee away and he'd come back years later as Chainz in the DOA with Crush and the Harris twins.
While I don't agree with all the words in his vocabulary, I do think that "erasing" Hulk Hogan from the history of the WWE is foolish. In fact, he's the only WWE Superstar to have a record of 6 and 0 at the annual event. He's also in a four-way tie for the most SummerSlam final match appearances (4). John Cena, Triple H and the Undertaker share that distinction.
Face to face with Zeus
Courtesy: WWE
The early days of SummerSlam saw Hogan in tag team matches. He and Randy Savage beat Andre the Giant and Ted DiBiase at the first event. It was Hogan who scored the pinfall. A year later, Savage was on the other side of the ring as he and Zeus (more on him coming up in the Z blog) took on Hogan and Brutus Beefcake. Hogan, who was the champ at the time as well, scored the winning pin again.
Ready for a match made in Hell
Courtesy: WWE
In 1990 the Hulkster "shared" the main event with WWF Champion the Ultimate Warrior (he defended the title in the final match of the night against Rick Rude). Hogan wrestled a grudge match against Earthquake, beating the monster via count out. A year later, Hulk and Warrior forged together in a handicap match against Sgt. Slaughter, Col. Mustafa and Gen. Adnan. Hogan pinned Slaughter and then posed with special guest referee Sid Justice after the match.
Legend killing The Legend Killer
Courtesy: WWE
Then the Hulkster joined WCW and didn't appear at another SummerSlam until 2005 when he wrestled Shawn Michaels. Watching the match Michaels oversells just about everything and seems like he doesn't want the match to end the way it does with Hogan of course getting the pin. A year later, Hulkamania ran wild over "The Legend Killer" Randy Orton. While I'm no big fan of Orton, I don't understand why Hogan won. Other legends like Dusty Rhodes, Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels had all put Orton over. Beating Hogan would have been a huge feather in his cap and helped pass the torch, but I digress...
In all likelihood Hogan's SummerSlam matches and appearances are all but over. However, I still think it's important to acknowledge the role he played in helping to shape this event.
Ted DiBiase & Andre the Giant at SummerSlam '88
Courtesy: WWE
By Kevin Hunsperger @kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter Listen to the podcast Follow my blog with Bloglovin Check out other SummerSlam A to Z blogs For the next 26 days I plan to write a blog about SummerSlam to go along with a corresponding letter of the alphabet. I'm starting the series with one of the greatest of all-time Andre the Giant. The 8th Wonder of the World was a part of the first couple of SummerSlam events, main eventing in the inaugural show. In 1988, Andre was well past his prime, but was arguably the company's top heel still, feuding with Hulk Hogan for more than a year. Andre and "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase made up the team of The Mega Bucks, set to take on WWF World heavyweight champion Randy "Macho Man" Savage and Hogan. That duo was known as The Mega Powers.
Mega Bucks vs. Mega Powers
Courtesy: WWE
The match was pretty basic. Jesse "The Body" Ventura was the special referee. Things come to an end when Elizabeth shows some skin (very tame by today's standards) to distract Andre and DiBiase, allowing The Mega Powers to rally and get the win. I don't think anyone expected The Mega Bucks to win.
Andre vs. Ax SummerSlam '89
Courtesy: WWE
A year later, Andre teamed up with The Twin Towers (Big Bossman and Akeem) against Demolition and Hacksaw Jim Duggan. Andre's team lost this one too. And SummerSlam '91 marked the big man's last on camera appearance. He was in the corner of the Bushwhackers as they battled the Natural Disasters.
Andre with LOD and the Bushwhackers SummerSlam '91
Courtesy: WWE
Despite his rapidly deteriorating health, Andre didn't get pinned at either SummerSlam he wrestled. Fans though saw the Giant was ailing as he arrived at his last event on crutches and at one point hit Earthquake with one. Andre's legacy wasn't made or broken at SummerSlam, but he was a big part of the first one and still missed by fans today. Rest in peace Andre.
Let me begin by saying that it's not my intent to pick on anyone who
uses or donates to crowdfunding sites like GoFundMe or KickStarter. These
sites are great ways for people in need to raise money for whatever they
deem necessary. It's up to the public to decide if they want to help.
But recent campaigns have made me want to share "My 1-2-3
Cents" on why I feel disheartened by the sites.
Virgil Photo courtesy: WWE
Former WWE Superstar Virgil played "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase's bodyguard in the
1980's, before breaking free and having a brief run on his own. Now, some 25 years later, the man behind that gimmick hopes to become THE
real Million Dollar Man with a GoFundMe page. To date though, Virgil has
only raised $135 and a lot of criticism online.
Potato salad Zach Brown
I'm not bashing the guy. Honestly, it's not a bad idea and goes to
show that anyone can set up a site and find some people who are willing to
donate. The other example that I want to address is the guy who raised $55,000 in a joke KickStarter fund to make potato salad.
But to be fair, Zach "Danger" Brown ended up having a community
wide potato salad party and teamed up with other groups to help the hungry. But
the original purpose of the page was to raise ten bucks to buy his ingredients. Thousands pitched in much more than that.
Ayden Bell & Sheamsu
On the flip side of the coin, I did a story about a little boy in West
Frankfort, Illinois who is battling cancer. Last year he got to meet his
favorite WWE Superstar Sheamus, thanks to the folks at the Make-a-Wish
Foundation. But the family needed help with medical expenses and had a
GoFundMe page set up for those purposes. When it was up and running it
had only raised a few hundred dollars, a long way off from the $20,000
goal.
Again, I'm not judging people for making the donations they do, but I
think it's sad that a boy fighting for his life can't get the same level of
support as a man who wanted to make a bowl of potato salad. I have
donated to crowdfunding sites in the past, including one for WWE legend Kamala.
The wrestler lost both of his legs due to high blood pressure and
diabetes. The money I donated went to help pay for the publishing of his
book "Kamala Speaks." I got a "reward" of a t-shirt,
but I also made the pledge because by getting that book on store shelves,
Kamala would be able to get an income since he can no longer wrestle. Others may find that a silly reason to give.
It's a free country. We can give to whom we deem worthy of our
hard earned money. I just hope that after reading this, people will use
crowdfunding sites for legitimate purposes and not the latest "get rich
quick" scheme. And for those who donate, consider giving to a family or a cause in need in your community.
By Kevin Hunsperger @kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter My 1-2-3 Cents the Podcast Of course, the title for this blog is a bit (a lot) of an exaggeration, but I thought it was punny so I went with it. I recently came across this article, The 15 Rarest Wrestling Action Figures Worth a Small Fortune. It caught my eye because when I was growing up, I had many of the LJN WWF figures. But because I was a kid, I tore into them and had my own super cards. Only in my federation could SD Jones body slam Andre the Giant. But I digress.
A few of my figures
When I was in college KB Toys was holding a clearance sale on the Hasbro line of WWF figures. I snatched up several and never opened them. I did the same thing when I came across a few at a flea market. I put the figures in a plastic tote and left them in a closet. A few years ago I met Ted DiBiase and he autographed my Million Dollar Man figure.
The rare Kamala
whatculture.com
Anyway, back to the reason for this post. As I scrolled through the 15 rarest figures according to the website, I reached the rarest figure. You can imagine my shock when staring at me was Kamala in the yellow package. I glanced at the value: $3,000 to $10,000. "Cha-ching!" was the first thing I thought and was already spending the money on tickets for Wrestlemania 32.
I ran to my closet, riffled through The Million Dollar Man, Doink the Clown, Giant Gonzales, and Texas Tornado to find Kamala at the bottom of the heap. I looked him over and yes it was indeed in the same yellow package as the one I had seen online. Then I took a closer look.
Stars and moons...
It's all about that belly paint. The yellow crescent moon is where you'll find the green. Apparently, when Hasbro produced the figure in 1993, they made Kamala's moon a star. But there were a few that were done with the proper moon. My Kamala has a star moon and is probably worth about what I paid for it more than 20 years ago. There's plenty of speculation as to why the company made the moon look different, including avoiding gimmick infringement because James Harris owns the Kamala gimmick. Tweaking the moon to a star protected Hasbro I suppose. According to the article, there are only two dozen of these rare figures out there. Sadly, I am not the owner of one, but it's cool. I'll keep my Kamala the way he is, mint on the card and ready to rumble.
By Kevin Hunsperger @kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter Occasionally I try to be creative here on the blog. I've written a couple of posts inspired by the late, great Dr. Seuss on his birthday; including Batista Hears a Boo and The Rock He Is. This year is no exception, but instead of basing the post off of an actual story by Seuss, I'm winging it. Here's a tribute to one of the all time greats, 2015 Hall of Fame inductee, "Macho Man" Randy Savage. He carried a ball and a bat that he'd swing... But found his success in the pro wrestling ring. Bulging with muscles and stars on his tights, his finishing elbow took him to new heights Randy was macho, a champ and a royal. Despite time with Sherri to Liz he was loyal. He beat up on Hogan, on Brutus and Flair. Randy was so savage he once beat a bear. The Dragon did slay him at Wrestlemania Three, But a year later he went on a spree of beating the Hammer, the Gang and Butch Reed along with DiBiase and many agreed... Savage was awesome and so hard to stop-- No doubt about it, the cream of the crop.
