WWF Coliseum Video Collection: Wrestling's Most Embarrassing Moments (1987)

WWF Coliseum Video Collection: Wrestling's Most Embarrassing Moments (1987)

Coliseum Video compilation. The front cover features Brutus Beefcake working a sleeper. Which, honestly, not embarrassing at all. Not compared to a lot of other stuff that dude did in the ring

Gene Okerlund hosts from the control center. A very scaled back version compared to the much bigger one we became familiar with later on 

We start with bloopers! Or, well, one blooper where Gene can’t remember the name of Koko B Ware’s finisher in some bit with Lord Alfred Hayes. That’s hardly a blooper, no one gives a shit about Koko

Mr Washington v Chris Curtis: From the August 23 1987 episode of Wrestling Challenge (taped August 5) in LaCrosse Wisconsin. This is supposed to be Ted DiBiase against Curtis, but he thinks the match is beneath him, and pays Washington $500 to ‘do (his) sweating for him.’ That’s a great gimmick! But then Curtis ends up pinning Washington anyway at 1:06, thus embarrassing DiBiase. DUD

More bloopers, this time with Lord Alfred tripping over words

We get clips of Jesse Ventura squashing someone, which segues into Jesse on Tuesday Night Titans, doing a stupid bit where he can’t remember Vince McMahon’s name, and accuses Hayes of having herpes. This wasn’t funny, and Jesse was surprisingly not entertaining here

Clips of Hulk Hogan stealing Randy Savage’s sunglasses, and wearing them while beating him up during a match. Savage would get his revenge at Halloween Havoc in 1996, so no worries fans

On Tuesday Night Titans, Fabulous Moolah is on in a witch’s costume, so Hayes suggests that she get on the broom and fly away, so she beats him with it instead

Also from TNT, Hulk Hogan makes protein shakes for McMahon and Hayes. This is actually a great skit, and you can see why Hulk was such a huge star. He’s just so naturally charismatic 

Next, we get assorted clips of guest referees getting involved in matches. Not the most interesting bits here

Clips of Hulk Hogan and Gene Okerlund tagging against George Steele and Mr Fuji in Minneapolis Minnesota on August 26 1984. Sadly, they don't include the training videos that set it up, which are awesome and hilarious. Hulk pressing his hand on Gene's ass to leverage the pin on Fuji is still great, though

Blooper reel, this time with Vince trying to host Best of the WWF Vol I, with limited success. Maybe he needs someone in his ear? I hear that helps

Junkyard Dog v Terry Funk: From Saturday Night's Main Event III on November 2 1985 (taped October 31) in Hershey Pennsylvania. This was setup when Funk beat JYD with his branding iron back in August. Dog jumps him before the bell, and goes to work with right hands. He stops to take out Jimmy Hart, and when Funk attempts a cheap shot, Dog crotches him on the top rope, and bounces him there. Back in, Terry manages a bodyslam, but misses an elbowdrop, and Dog delivers a bodyslam of his own, then ups the ante by slamming Terry out of the ring onto the exposed floor! That's a pretty crazy bump, especially for the pre-floor mat era. Today, ringside is so padded up, it's probably safer to take that bump than it was to get slammed INSIDE of the ring in 1985. Back in, Dog with a third slam, but Hart trips him up during a criss cross. Dog goes after him on the floor, and Funk tries another sneak attack, but the Dog is ready again - backdropping him on the exposed floor! Back in, Terry is finally able to put him down with a series of jabs for two, and he grabs a sleeper, but JYD gets the ropes, then reverses. Hart hops onto the apron to protest, so Dog goes after him again, but this time Terry is able to capitalize by whacking him with the megaphone for the pin at 5:16. Not a classic, but good TV, with Funk bumping all over the place like a madman, and a cheap finish to further the angle for the house show blowoffs. And then the ‘embarrassing’ bit, as JYD brands Jimmy after the bell. * ¼

Lord Alfred bloopers. Not even remotely funny

A Ted DiBiase vignette, as Ted shows up to a hotel, and wants the best room in the house, but sadly it’s booked. So he slips the desk clerk a few hundred bucks, and they let Virgil bounce them like a couple of deadbeats

Lanny Poffo reads a poem insulting DiBiase

Clips of Andre the Giant squashing masked wrestler Black Demon so viciously that Demon loses his mask

Clips of Randy Savage and Adrian Adonis attacking Hulk Hogan, but Adrian’s wig falls off

More bloopers with Gene and Alfred. Well, at least they look like they’re having a good time

From TNT, Paul Orndorff fires Bobby Heenan after they squabble about WrestleMania I

From 1987, Heenan is doing an interview on TV, and claims that Rick Rude has the best body in the WWF, so Orndorff (at that point aligned with Bobby again) comes out to fire him again

More Vince bloopers. He seemed so down to earth and loose in those days

Harley Race v George Steele: From Boston Massachusetts on September 12 1987. Steele destroys him early on, until Race manages to fire off a headbutt to the abdomen to turn the tide. Harley goes to work, but Steele bashes him into the post a few times when they spill to the outside. Race responds by grabbing a chair, and he whacks George for the DQ at 5:42. Well, Gene did promise that this would be one of the most embarrassing matches in WWF history. Can’t take issue with that. DUD

The camera crew pranks Gene by refusing to hold the camera steady as he hypes WWF Magazine

Wrestling Classic Tournament First Round Match: Nikolai Volkoff v Dynamite Kid: From The Wrestling Classic, November 7 1985 in Chicago Illinois. Not even really a match, as Kid blasts Volkoff with a missile dropkick during his singing of the Soviet national anthem, and scores the fall at 0:06. Nothing, but it was memorable, and I don't think anyone felt particularly short changed at not getting to see Nikolai Volkoff wrestle. Still, DUD

From August 1987, Bam Bam Bigelow turns down heel Slick and selects Oliver Humperdink as his manager

A live episode of Piper’s Pit in Madison Square Garden sees Piper bringing two ‘fans’ into the ring (one of whom is Tim White), and then getting insulted when the fans don’t think he’s their favorite wrestler. So Roddy boots them, and brings his actual guest, Bruno Sammartino, out. Roddy is Roddy, Bruno slaps him around, you know the drill

Clips of Paul Orndorff performing a sunset flip on Piper that ends in Roddy mooning the audience 

More McMahon bloopers. He’s a very laughy puppy

At WrestleMania III the Dream Team breaks up, leading to Brutus Beefcake putting Johnny Valiant in a sleeper on TV a while later, and giving his former manager a haircut

From the Slammy Awards, Gorilla Monsoon comes out with his shirt sticking out of his fly, and Vince fixes it for him 

Later on at the Slammys, Nikolai Volkoff ‘wins’ an award, but it’s a Razzie style ‘award’ and he flips out

Jesse Ventura interviews Andre the Giant, and they’re having a good time, until Andre starts touching Jesse’s feather boa, and Roseanne Barr the door. Andre was another one that had just incredible natural charisma

From TV in 1987, Ted DiBiase invites a kid onto the stage to try bouncing a basketball fifteen times for $500, and then kicks it away from him after fourteen. Oh God, this was just brutal

Another Okerlund blooper where he gets a cake shoved in his face by his ‘mom’

Okerlund signs off. The credits list WCW veteran Craig Leathers as having worked on the production. I never realized he was part of the WWF!

BUExperience: This was terrible. Easily one of the worst tapes they ever did, with no interesting matches, and boring ‘comedy.’ The only thing this one succeeded at is proving that Ted DiBiase is one of the best heels ever. 

Not a good addition to your Coliseum Collection