Before the WWE Network launched its’ recurring Hidden Gems dumps in May 2018, they had put up a few Collections over the last couple years of wrestling stars who had passed: Mr. Fuji, Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka, and George “The Animal” Steele. With “Hidden Gems” now a section of the Vault and no longer its’ own separate Collections, a few parts of these Fuji/Snuka/Steele Collections slipped through into this new section.
And I’ve watched them!
The basic format here is this: I will start with some history (or, for WWF, some bullet points, because the story has been told a lot), then review the match. The star rating at the bottom has little bearing on how awesome or weird the thing was. Read the review for that.
Mr. Fuji vs. Pedro Morales – Pedro Morales vs. Mr. Fuji (WWWF All-Star Wrestling 8/22/72)
This is a non-title match during Pedro’s first and only run as WWWF World Heavyweight Champion. He had won the title in February 1971 from Ivan Koloff, who had ended Bruno’s 7-and-a-half year reign a month earlier. With Bruno taking a more limited role, this was Pedro’s WWWF for a few years. Mr. Fuji meanwhile had debuted with the WWWF just a couple months before this after about six years of wrestling. He came in as a team with Professor Toru Tanaka, and at this time the two held the WWWF World Tag Team Title.
I have no clue when this match actually happened. It aired on WWWF’s flagship program All-Star Wrestling but I can’t figure out the date. WWE Network lists 8/22/72, but though there was a Pedro/Fuji match on a show on 8/22/72 in Scranton, PA, it ended in a countout while this did not. Graham Cawthon’s History of WWE website lists an All-Star taping from “late 1972” in Hamburg, PA with this finish, so that adds up – but there is no other information I can find about the show or taping.
Fuji is announced from Osaky (!), Japan, while Pedro signs autographs for some lucky fans at ringside, “as he always does.” Young Vince McMahon is on commentary. This is a total enhancement match but it has its’ charms. It’s cool seeing young Mr. Fuji just a few months into his WWWF run, and he grins through the first minute, as if he’s saying: “I’m a cheater – you know it, I know it, and I’m gonna cheat, bitch.” Pedro pops the crowd by leapfrogging over Fuji to get out of an armbar and chopping him down. Fuji dishes out a very basic beating that’s not real credible but effective heel stuff, during which he throws Pedro over the top and bodyslams him on the floor. The fun comes when Pedro makes a comeback and does the exact same thing. A reverse roll-up eventually downs the WWWF Tag Team Champion. Nothing special but everything worked. **1/2
A Magnificent Partnership – Junkyard Dog & Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Magnificent Muraco & Mr. Fuji (Capital Centre 8/17/85)
By 1985, Mr. Fuji had settled down into a managerial role with some limited wrestling gigs. The WWF at this point was in the midst in its’ national expansion and Steamboat and JYD had been brought in over the last year to flesh out the midcard. Muraco had also recently returned with Mr. Fuji at his side, and had won the inaugural King of the Ring tournament just a month prior to this. Steamboat and Muraco had just begun a feud that would last for the rest of the year, highlighted by an infamous angle where Muraco and Fuji hung Steamboat with his karate belt. The Capital Centre show this took place on also saw Hulk Hogan beat Brutus Beefcake as well as squashes from Terry Funk, The Hart Foundation, and Randy Savage that eventually appeared on Prime Time. This match did not, though it did eventually make it on WWF’s Amazing Managers Coliseum Home Video.
Gorilla and Ventura are on commentary. This same match takes place on a bigger stage in January 1986 on Saturday Night’s Main Event. This is a super formula tag and the Muraco/Fuji beatdown ain’t pretty but it’s got 3 things going for it: 1) a heck of a sell job by Steamboat, 2) Muraco doing his goofy bumping, 3) the crowd buzzing the entire damn time. Muraco at one point takes a flying chop from the top, then slowly bumbles into hanging himself by the top and middle rope, which is just SO wonderfully stupid and wonderful. Steamboat is so impressive here, getting the crowd invested in a nerve hold from Fuji among other amazing bits of selling. More impressive is that he basically makes up for JYD’s bum hot tag by tagging in and doing his own that has the crowd going nuts. He enzuigiri’s Muraco into Fuji, knocking salt out of Fuji’s hands, and sunset flips Fuji for the 3. ***
An Iconic Encounter – Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka vs. Shawn Michaels (MSG 1/31/92)
This right here is nothing special but it’s definitely pretty cool. For the WWF, 1992 was certainly a transition year – Hulkamania was winding down, Flair was here, and stuff was about to get weird with a pretty infamous Vince McMahon indictment around steroids and a transition to Bret Hart as the top guy.
After his initial big run with the WWF ended after WrestleMania, Snuka had returned in 1989, though he never returned to his old glory, instead mostly putting over newer stars including The Undertaker at WrestleMania VII. He would leave the WWF soon after this for Tod Gordon’s Eastern Championship Wrestling and become an integral part of early ECW as Paul Heyman began to take over. Michaels meanwhile just a few weeks earlier had done that thing where he superkicked his tag team partner Marty Jannetty through a Barber Shop window and had begun coming into his own as the Heartbreak Kid (check out his super generic theme here).
This show took place at MSG with various matches shown on Prime Time Wrestling. It marked Snuka’s last MSG appearance as a full-timer, and was also Jake the Snake’s last as a full-timer, as well as Kerry Von Erich and Elizabeth’s last MSG appearances period. Sgt. Slaughter & Jim Duggan vs. The Nasty Boys, The Undertaker vs. Bret Hart, and Randy Savage vs. Jake the Snake were also on the show.
The best part of this match might be the Heenan/Gorilla exchanges:
Gorilla: What’s he got on the back of that jacket?
Heenan: Leather.
Gorilla: That Fujian fluid is flowin’!
Heenan: Fujian fluid – is that something you put in your lighter?
The match has a cool old star vs. new star dynamic, even if they don’t really take advantage of it. Snuka is over but this is the Shawn Michaels Show – he might’ve been still figuring out his taunts, but he is bumping, begging off, and being a total dick. Snuka meanwhile seems like he’s on another planet – early on the referee does these crazy fast countout counts, but once he realizes that every time Snuka goes to the floor he sells forever, he slows them down. Michaels works over Snuka a bit, there’s a weak comeback, and a Totally Regular Superkick and teardrop suplex wins it. I bet Shawn told Vince to fire Snuka after the match. **1/2
Challenging Morales – WWWF World Heavyweight Title: Pedro Morales [c] vs. George “The Animal” Steele (MSG 6/30/73)
I find it very cool that you can see Steele work all the top champs throughout the 70s and 80s on the WWE Network – Bruno in 70, Pedro in 73, Backlund in 73, and Hogan in 84. And this is all before the run he’s most known for, as the dim-witted good guy getting psycho-analyzed on TNT and being in love with Miss Elizabeth.
In the summer of 1973, Pedro Morales’ nearly three year reign was winding down, as Bruno Sammartino was ready for another run on top. George “The Animal” Steele meanwhile was knee deep in his run as a reliable top WWWF heel. I talk more about Steele in the Hidden Gems Collection (Part 2) review, which features him going up against Bruno Sammartino in an awesome 1970 Steel Cage Match. These next few George matches are fun, but that is PRIME heel George Steele.
This match takes place on the 6/30/73 MSG card, an ultra-basic 70s WWWF MSG card: Monsoon vs. Albano, Strongbow vs. Fuji, 2/3 falls women’s match, Haystacks Calhoun squash, and a WWWF Title match.
This is classic WWWF 80’s stuff so it’s ultra-basic but there’s some special stuff here: 1) the crowd being fired the fuck up for Pedro’s offense and George’s over-the-top selling and 2) Vince McMahon’s disgusted reaction to ol’ George. He describes him a man with “no hair whatsoever” and resembling one from the cro magnon period, just really laying into the poor guy. Steele was the #1 challenger to the title at that point, though that could simply mean he was just the guy chosen to wrestle Pedro on this particular show. Steele’s selling is incredible – he takes a slam into the turbuckle and stumbles on the apron to the other side and it is just mesmerizing. Pedro had an undeniable connection with the crowd and could get real fired up but this isn’t exactly his best outing, just a real straightforward punch-and-kick experience. Steele is eventually busted open and Pedro keeps hammering at his open wound, so the ref calls the match off. Average match but a hot crowd and great Steele performance. **1/2
Steele Meets Gold – WWF World Heavyweight Title: Bob Backlund [c] w/ Arnold Skaaland vs. George “The Animal” Steele w/ “Classy” Freddie Blassie (Philadelphia Spectrum 7/16/83)
In the summer of 1983, Bob Backlund was in the midst of his nearly 5-year run at the top of the WWF where he fended off a who’s who of stars from before the wrestling boom and during it: Hogan, Valentine, Patera, Adonis, Orton, Studd, Graham, and even Antonio Inoki. It would be over in a few months, as Hogan was about to return to New York as a babyface. George “The Animal” Steele meanwhile, 10 years removed from the Morales match, was still kicking, and at this point had “Classy” Freddie Blassie was his manager. This show also featured Tito Santana, Muraco vs. Snuka, and a 3/5 Falls match with Andre, Ivan Putski, Jay Strongbow & Rocky Johnson vs. Big John Studd & The Samoans.
The thing about this match is that it’s 60 seconds long. Gary Michael Cappetta is ring announcing; Dick Graham and Gorilla are on commentary. They fool around early – George rolls out, Bob rolls in. Backlund chats with Arnie Skaaland and Steele attacks him from behind, then goes to work on the arm. He tries a flying hammerlock, but Backlund sneaks over him and does a reverse cradle with a bridge for the 3. Steele snaps and grabs Mel Phillips, throws chairs around, and storms off with Blassie. Nice pop! *
Battling the Immortal One – WWF World Heavyweight Title: Hulk Hogan [c] vs. George “The Animal” Steele w/ Mr. Fuji (St. Louis 8/10/84)
In August of 1984, The Hulkster was balls deep in his first WWF World Heavyweight Title reign while Steele had scaled back and was pure undercard heel guy. In the next year, he’d turn babyface for his final big run with the World Wrestling Federation. A lot of stuff on this St. Louis show aired in syndication but not this, so I guess you could say that what we have here is a Hidden Gem. Muraco, JYD, Volkoff, Patera, The Spoiler, Kamala, and the FREEBIRDS all squashed some guys on this show, while Pat Patterson and Cowboy Bob Orton had a pretty sweet short match together that’s on TNT #10.
This match is good fun because it’s George “The Animal” Steele reacting to Hulk God Damn Hogan and it is wonderful. Steele does his wavy arms pose right away, but Hogan flexes and Steele FREAKS OUT and runs outside. The crowd goes completely batshit for Hogan working over George. Steele bumps big, though not as big as he would’ve 10 years prior. Steele works over Hogan for the bulk of the match by using a foreign object and hiding it from the ref, causing Vince McMahon to come to the realization: “Unfortunately, if this continues there’s no doubt that George “The Animal” Steele will represent the World Wrestling Federation as its’ champion.” Thank Christ however as there is a HULK UP…. only for Fuji to throw salt into Hogan’s eyes, leading to a COUNTOUT. THAT’S RIGHT: GEORGE THE ANIMAL STEELE BEATS HULK HOGAN VIA COUNTOUT. People throw all kinds of shit in the ring at Fuji post-match. Super basic stuff but a fucking incredible scene. **1/2
