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Professional Wrestling: 8 Things We Miss from Old School Promotions

Posted: Feb 13th 2012 By: mikeiles

There are plenty of things I miss about old school wrestling.

But maybe more than anything, I miss the gimmicks that made territories and promotions unique: different superstars, different titles and different definitions of what wrestling is in a place like San Antonio under Joe Blanchard as opposed to Robert Fuller in Tennessee.

Wrestling had its own identities. More so in a company like the NWA than any other place where wrestling night after night took you to places like Wheeling, West Virginia and Owensboro, Kentucky. And with the gimmicks we saw some of the best ideas for matches.

But most of all, there were unique qualities of wrestling's heyday that made it better than any other time period. And the wrestling companies of today (are you listening, WWE, TNA and ROH?) could all take a lesson from them.

Here are some things I really miss about old school wrestling.

Loser Leaves Town Matches

If a wrestler lost a match, he had to leave the territory for a bit.

That meant they either left the area to wrestle in another promotion, or they hung around and played the role of another "wrestler."

The Midnight Rider was great. He "played by Dusty Rhodes" lost a "Loser Leave Town Match" and came back as The Midnight Rider.

Rider even beat Ric Flair for the World Title, but under a stipulation could not win the title and be a masked superstar.

Ironically, Rhodes made a comeback a few days later.

The Man from "Parts Unknown"

Wrestlers did not always give their whereabouts to the announcer.

Maybe they were hiding from an ex-wife or even the authorities.

There was something always golden about a wrestler who could care less what people knew about his whereabouts. Wrestlers like The Missing Link, George "The Animal" Steele and, of course, "Mr. Ichiban" were some of the best at this.

Japanese Wrestling with the "Green Mist"

Did every wrestler from the Far East have some mystical code that forced them to spit green spew in someone's face?

It was awesome, like they were born with that ability.

Jimmy Valiant got wise to it and always wore goggles when he wrestled Kabuki or wore a dog collar to avoid being chopped in the throat.

Seeing someone like Kabuki, Muta or Tajiri fire his mist in the air was always part of the show.

Texas Bull Rope Matches

Dusty Rhodes or Dick Murdoch or Bob Orton, Jr.: Usually wrestlers from Texas or Louisiana or some place in the Southwest were dynamic at this.

Two wrestlers connected to a bull rope with a cowbell in the middle was epic. As was the wrestler who could use the cowbell and the rope, for that matter, to inflict harm on their opponents.

It was also a way to even the playing field when a smaller wrestler was pitted against a larger and more dangerous foe.

One Fall to a Finish

This usually happened when there were opponents who genuinely did not like each other or the feud had reached such heights that there needed to be a winner and an end to an angle like with Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat and Greg Valentine vs. Roddy Piper.

All had these types of matches and some other kind of gimmick added to it to send it over the top.

Gordon Solie

Nothing sounds better to me than having Solie call a match. I love Jim Ross, but, for me, Solie is the king of all time.

His raspy voice is a concerto of bliss. Everything is a crimson mask. Everything is not quick, it's sudden. Everything is breaking down.

I could go on for hours with Gordon-isms. He was that damn good.

Captain Lou Albano

I love Albano even as a heel manager. He was a cartoon character in the sport and business of wrestling.

Albano's personality fit in wrestling. There may not have been anything else he could do in life.

The manager of fifteen tag teams and four singles wrestlers who earned singles titles, Albano did just about anything and everything in wrestling.

And to this day, there are few others who could outtalk or outwit him.

Cross-Promotional Events

I loved the 1970s and 1980s for the idea that champions could face champions, and it meant something.

Especially when we saw a Nick Bockwinkle take on Ric Flair or Flair battle Bob Backlund or Rick Martel.

Those types of matches tore the house down and had fans screaming for more.

That is when wrestling mattered.