Posted in: The Classroom The Classroom - History Of: WrestleMania Part 5
By Sean Taylor
Jan 21, 2009 - 2:17:00 AM
You’re late! Where have you been? I just took attendance. Do you have a note? Let me see it. Dentist appointment, eh? Well, a healthy set of teeth and gums are important to a person so I’ll let this tardiness slide. But next time, don’t come to school without pants. That’s right. This is a nightmare. Now, wake up and pay attention. It’s minus 25 degrees Celsius outside (-13 Fahrenheit) so sit up straight up and get out your pencils; it’s time for The Classroom.
This time around we’ll be discussing the events and happenings around WrestleMania V. But before we get started, the answer to the Pop Quiz was Jimmy Hart took 25% of The Hart Foundation’s contractual earnings and used it to promote The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers. Dex, Mike, Wizcow, Keith, and Alan earn Star Pupil status. Congrats. But don’t rest on your laurels. It’s time to continue our history lesson. Enjoy Part 5.
WrestleMania V: The Mega Powers Explode
Date: April 2, 1989
Venue: Trump Plaza (Atlantic City, New Jersey)
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon & Jesse “The Body” Ventura
Attendance: 18,946
With WrestleMania V, the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino became the first venue to host two WrestleManias and the only to date to host WrestleMania for two consecutive years. In order to make the event a bigger success than WrestleMania IV, Trump Plaza added eight hundred seats. The WWE was continuing to gain in popularity and mainstream appeal and as a result a number of celebrities appeared at WrestleMania V including rap group Run DMC – who performed the WrestleMania Rap - and Donald Trump who watched the event from ringside.
WrestleMania V’s pay-per-view buyrate was threatened by the National Wrestling Alliance’s Clash of the Champions VI: Ragin Cajun event. Clash of the Champions was aired free on the TBS Superstation in front of 5,300 fans from the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans. The show was headlined main event featuring NWA Champion Ricky Steamboat defending against Ric Flair in a 60-minute Two out of Three Falls match. It drew a 4.3 television rating which equated to approximately 4,923,500 viewers. Considering WrestleMania V drew approximately 2,360,000 viewers on pay-per-view, it could be argued that the strategy worked. The war between the WWE and the NWA was still going strong.
As a bonus for the fans in Atlantic City, the WWE held the first Body Slammin’ Brunch. The event was held the morning of WrestleMania and was a chance for the fans to meet the WWE superstars for pictures and autographs. This was the precursor to the Fan Axxess events that would later become a staple of WrestleMania weekend.
Another special event of WrestleMania V was the 5km race. Fans could sign up and run a marathon for charity. Before the marathon starts, Mr. Fuji, dressed in a tuxedo, appears and announces that he had entered the race to prove that he was in shape for his match. The tape then shows Fuji finishing the race in record time without even breaking a sweat.
Let’s Get It Started
After WWE Women’s Champion Rockin’ Robin sang “America The Beautiful”, King Haku was led to the ring by his manager Bobby “The Brain” Heenan. When King Harley Race suffered a hernia injury in a cage match against Hulk Hogan, Heenan crowned a new “king” in Haku (aka Meng in WCW). His opponent, Hercules, was able to outsmart the royal one late in the match by ducking a chair shot and hitting a bridging back suplex for the win.
The next match featuring three of the thirteen superstars making their WrestleMania debut and was a textbook size versus speed tag team match. Newcomers The Rockers (Marty Jannetty/Shawn Michaels) faced the newly formed Twin Towers comprising of The Big Boss Man and Akeem. Akeem was the new gimmick given to the One Man Gang. Gang was a thug from the streets of Chicago but in an attempt to modernize him, his manager Slick dressed him in bright yellow and blue and renamed him “The African Dream” Akeem. Fans didn’t quite take to the boombox carrying, jive dancing gimmick mainly because Akeem was white. Regardless of Akeem’s gimmick, The Twin Towers were able to use their size and strength to defeat The Rockers.
After being interviewed backstage by future WCW play-by-play announcer Tony Schiavone, the now self-proclaimed “Million Dollar Champion” Ted DiBiase took on Brutus “The Barber Beefcake. DiBiase debuted his new Million Dollar Title belt that night. It was an unsanctioned championship that DiBiase brought in because he couldn’t buy a WWE title. During the WrestleMania match between DiBiase and Beefcake, DiBiase’s bodyguard Virgil pulled down the top rope causing Beefcake to fall to the outside. DiBiase followed and the two brawled until the referee counted both men out ruling the match as a draw.
The following match featured The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers (Jacques/Raymond) squaring off against the animalistic, face licking Bushwhackers (Luke/Butch). The Rougeau’s manager “The Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart ran interference constantly during the match and eventually distracted referee to allow a double team beat down on Luke. They then celebrated which allowed The Bushwhackers to recover and hit Raymond with the Battering Ram. Luke covered and gained the pinfall victory. On their way back to the dressing room, The Bushwhackers stopped to meet roving interviewer Sean Mooney and give him a celebratory double face lick.
The fifth match of WrestleMania V featured two young, athletic performers making their WrestleMania debut as Mr. Perfect put his perfect record on the line against the masked Blue Blazer (aka Owen Hart). The match was a pure wrestling contest mixed with great aerial moves. In the end, Mr. Perfect hooked the Blazer into his PerfectPlex and walked out victorious.
The Road Warriors Part 2 vs The Road Warriors Part 3
When Michael Hegstrand and Joseph Laurinaitis debuted as Hawk and Animal in 1983, they revolutionized tag team wrestling. They called themselves The Road Warriors and joined a stable known as The Legion of Doom – a name they would later use when they joined the WWE in 1990. The Road Warriors introduced a new style of tag team wrestling. They would utilize their power and strength to beat down opponents while no-selling their offensive moves. They were unstoppable monsters who wore spiked shoulder pads and colourful face paint.
In response to the Road Warrior’s popularity, the WWE created their own version with Ax and Smash, Demolition. While Demolition started off as a Road Warriors rip off, they soon developed their own identity and became the WWE Tag Team Champions under the tutelage of the devious Mr. Fuji. But at the 1988 Survivor Series, Fuji turned on Demolition and joined forces with The Powers of Pain.
The Powers of Pain – Warlord and Barbarian – were another attempt to capitalize on the success of the Road Warriors. After Survivor Series, the Powers of Pain were a mission to take the belts from Demolition. A match was signed for WrestleMania pitting Demolition against the Powers of Pain and Mr. Fuji in a 3-on-2 Handicap Match. At the end of the match, Fuji attempted to throw salt into Smash’s eyes but Smash ducked the salt incapacitated Warlord allowing Demolition to hit Fuji with their Demolition Decapitation to retain the belts.
The Rugged and The Turncoat
The next four matches featured some of the biggest names in wrestling history. The first was Dino Bravo (with Frenchie Martin) against “Rugged” Ronnie Garvin. After sneak attacking Garvin from behind before the opening bell rang, Bravo gained control for most of the match. Despite a comeback attempt Bravo was able to get the sideslam and the pinfall. After the match, Garvin hit Frenchie with the Garvin Stomp (a maneuver copied by Randy Orton years later).
The next match was Strike Force (Tito Santana/Rick Martel) taking on former Four Horsemen members Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard – The Brain Busters. The Brain Busters had recently jumped from the NWA to the WWE because they had discovered that his manager James J. Dillon was being paid three times more than they were. Upon entering the WWE, they joined forces with Bobby Heenan and thus became members of the Heenan Family stable.
Strike Force had recently reformed after Martel spent most of 1988 out with an injury suffered at WrestleMania IV. The former tag champions were in control of their match against The Brain Busters when Santana accidentally hit Martel with a flying forearm. A few minutes later, Santana crawled to his corner to make the tag but Martel turned his back and walked out. Santana was unable to stay alive against the formidable Brain Busters and was eventually pinned. Martel later claimed that he was sick and tired of carrying Santana’s “dead weight” and disbanded the team.
Return of the Pit
After two years in Hollywood making movies, “Rowdy” Roddy Piper was scheduled to bring back Piper’s Pit at WrestleMania V. His first guest, Brother Love (played by former WWE television producer Bruce Pritchard) walked out to Piper’s music and wearing kilt before performing a mock interview with “Rodney Piper” (himself). The second guest was controversial shock-jock Morton Downey Jr. Morton had gained notoriety by hosting a television show in which he constantly yelled at, insulted, and blew smoke in the face of his guests.
Then the real “Rowdy” Roddy Piper came out. He wasted no time embarrassing Brother Love and eventually pulled his kilt off. Brother Love left running up the aisle in his bright blue tightie whities. Piper and Downey then got into a battle of stinging insults. Downey continued to blow cigarette smoke in Piper’s face. After repeatedly asking Downey to stop, Piper then changed his tune and asked Downey to light a cigarette for him. Downey turned his back to Piper and lit a cigarette for him. When Downey turned around, Piper doused him with a fire extinguisher.
After Piper left the ring, “Mean” Gene Okerlund presented the world debut of the trailer for No Holds Barred. The movie, co-produced by Vince McMahon, starred Hulk Hogan as a wrestler trying to save a small television company by competing against an unstoppable monster named Zeus. The movie debuted later that summer and was panned by critics. It was Hogan’s first venture in making Hollywood movies.
We Have Nothing To Fear But Fear Itself . . . and Damien
Up next was Jake “The Snake” Roberts versus Andre the Giant. Roberts had recently discovered that Andre only fear was snakes. At the Royal Rumble, Jake threw his python, Damien, into the ring causing Andre to eliminate himself. WrestleMania V would be the climax of their feud. But Andre’s archenemy, Big John Studd – the 1989 Royal Rumble winner - was added to the match as a special guest referee. During the match, Ted DiBiase and Virgil came down to the ring, grabbed Damien, and took off up the aisle with Roberts chasing them. Back in the ring, Andre attacked Studd with a neck nerve hold and several headbutts. Roberts caught up with DiBiase and took back Damien. Jake then ran back to the ring and slid Damien inside which scared off Andre. Studd raised Roberts’ hand as the winner via a disqualification.
The tenth match of the night was a tag team match between The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart/Jim Neidhart) against The Honky Tonk Man and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine (with Jimmy Hart). The Hart Foundation were still trying to get revenge on Jimmy Hart for taking twenty-five percent of their paychecks and giving it to the Rougeau Brothers. In the end, Bret hit the Honky Tonk Man with Jimmy’s megaphone behind the referee’s back and gained the pinfall victory.
Ultimate Upset
Since arriving in the WWE, The Ultimate Warrior was an unstoppable force. He defeated The Honk Tonk man in less than a minute at SummerSlam to become the WWE Intercontinental Champion. His chiseled, muscular physique, brightly coloured facepaint, and high-energy entrance made him stand out among the WWE superstars.
“Ravishing” Rick Rude also had an impressive physique and touted himself as “the sexiest man alive”. After his matches, he would pull a woman from the audience and kiss them to the mat – which he called The Rude Awakening. At the 1989 Royal Rumble, Rude challenged the Ultimate Warrior to a Posedown Challenge. The audience chose Warrior as the winner prompting Rude to attack him. After that, a match between the two was signed for WrestleMania V with the Intercontinental Title on the line.
The Warrior dominated most of the match with his trademark high impact and powerful moves. After knocking Rude outside of the ring, Warrior attempted to suplex Rude back into the ring but Rude’s manager, Bobby Heenan, grabbed Warrior’s leg and held it down allowing Rude to get the win. Warrior attacked Heenan after the match and nearly legitimately injured him with an improperly executed press-slam.
This match marked two somewhat significant happenings. Rude’s Intercontinental Title win was the first title win for the WWE’s version of the Heenan Family (discounting Andre’s World title win because he was stripped of the title). Rude would also be the first of only two men to ever defeat the Ultimate Warrior for a championship title.
Brawlers and the Barnyard
The third to last match of WrestleMania V pitted two the WWE’s toughest brawlers against each other – Bad News Brown versus “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan. The match ended quickly when both men attempted to use foreign objects on each other. The match was ruled a double disqualification.
The next match was Bobby “The Brain” Heenan in a rare wrestling appearance against The Red Rooster. The Red Rooster was an often-mocked gimmick of Terry Taylor. Taylor was an accomplished wrestler who had had a measurable amount of success in both the NWA and WCCW prior to signing with the WWE. But when Taylor entered the WWE, he played the character of a novice wrestler who didn’t know how to make his way around the ring. Taylor was soon taken under the wing of Bobby Heenan who promised to make him a star.
Heenan drastically changed Taylor’s appearance. He dressed him in red tights, a red ring jacket, and spiking and dyeing his hair red. Heenan then changed his name to The Red Rooster. The Rooster soon got tired of Heenan’s constant coaching and berating and turned on his manager setting up the match at WrestleMania V. Fans who blinked when the opening bell sounded missed the match as Rooster pinned Heenan in less than thirty seconds. After the match, Heenan’s cornerman, The Brooklyn Brawler, attacked the Rooster.
The Mega Powers Explode
After WrestleMania IV, WWE World Heavyweight Champion “Macho Man” Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan (dubbed The Mega Powers) went on an impressive winning streak. They defeated The Mega Bucks (Ted Dibiase/Andre the Giant) at SummerSlam ’88 despite the fact that DiBiase paid off special guest referee Jesse “The Body” Ventura. They also were the sole survivors of their Survivor Series team. The Mega Powers, with Miss Elizabeth at their side, were unstoppable.
But cracks in the foundation started to form on the January 7th, 1989 episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event. Hogan was being beaten down by the Twin Towers when Savage ran to the ring with a chair and saved Hogan. Savage got upset when after the Towers left, his wife Elizabeth assisted Hogan to the back. Then at the 1989 Royal Rumble, Hogan inadvertently eliminated Savage. Savage was upset but the two reconciled soon after stating it was nothing more than a “miscommunication”. But on February 3rd, during The Main Event, The Mega Powers teamed up to face the Twin Towers and during the match Elizabeth got knocked out. Hogan picked up Elizabeth and carried her to the back leaving Savage to deal with the Twin Towers alone. Hogan came back to the ring and Savage tagged him in by slapping him in the face and then leaving. When Savage got backstage, he accused Hogan of sabotaging the team and attacked Hogan.
The two friends had become bitter enemies and Savage put the title on the line at WrestleMania V. Miss Elizabeth, still the manager for both men, announced that she would stand in a neutral corner. Hogan got out to an early advantage but Savage pulled Elizabeth in front of him and cheap-shotted Hogan to turn the tables. Savage continued to assault Hogan and cut Hogan above the left eye. Savage dominated and eventually pulled Hogan to the outside. Savage ran Hogan into the ring post and Elizabeth went to Hogan’s side. This angered Savage and he started pushing around Elizabeth. The referee had had enough of Elizabeth’s interference in the match and ejected her. Savage went back to hitting Hogan with everything he had and soon dropped his trademarked Elbow Drop from the top rope.
But Hogan kicked out and started his patented “hulk up”. Hogan blocked Savage’s punches, hit the Big Boot, dropped the Leg Drop, and covered for the pin. Hogan was, once again, the WWE World Heavyweight Champion and Savage left vowing vengeance. Hogan posed in the ring while Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura said goodbye to WrestleMania V.
It was another successful WrestleMania event for the WWE and the biggest star in wrestling was back on top. But Hogan would face tougher challenges throughout 1989 and early 1990. Savage would team up with Hogan’s No Holds Barred opponent Zeus, “The Million Dollar” Man Ted DiBiase formed a Million Dollar Team to come after him, a steel cage match, and a Royal Rumble. Hogan would come out on top of it all but on April 1, 1990, it was no joke. Hogan would make history . . .
. . . facing his “ultimate” opponent.
Whew! That was another action packed history lesson, wasn’t it? I hope you all enjoyed it. As always, you can send me feedback here or post it in the feedback forum. All feedback will be responded to. I’ll be starting work on Part 6 in a couple of days and hope to have it posted circa the weekend, so keep your eyes peeled.
Pop Quiz
What? Two pop quizzes back-to-back? That bastard, Taylor! How dare he! Yes, it’s true. The first pop quiz got such a positive response, I decided to bring it back and make it doubly tough. That’s right. 2 QUESTIONS (duh duh duuuuhhh). Test your luck. The Star Pupil moniker is back on the line. Email your answers here.
1) At WrestleMania V, Big John Studd walked to the ring while his entrance music played. The same music (remixed) is currently being used by what WWE superstar?
2) When Terry Taylor first entered the WWE, the creative team considered him for another character/gimmick that was ultimately given to another superstar. What was that gimmick?
Gold Star Achievements
But wait! There’s still more. You know I’m spoiling you right? Anyway, be sure to check out the great columns listed below and all the other great columnists at LOPfourms.com. The Kaos Engine XI by Skaos
