WWF in 1986: The Stars
Hulk Hogan is the complicated do-gooder at the center of the show, all tanned and muscular with a bald head you never questioned for some reason. He was really interesting to watch before his formula ate itself, and in 1986 he was halfway through his first WWF World Title reign and outrageously over. The WWF in 1986 was about television, merchandise, and Hogan.
I’d argue that either the Real American music video (SNME 3/1/86) or the “THIS IS WHERE THE POWER LIES!” promo (SNME 11/29/86) were the most important things that happened for him, but Hogan’s 1986 was probably more defined by two things: a rivalry with King Kong Bundy and Bobby Heenan leading to WrestleMania, then a rivalry with Paul Orndorff and Bobby Heenan through the rest of the year. Orndorff had become a babyface after the original WrestleMania, but after a lackluster year as Hogan’s friend and one ignored phone call he attacked Hogan from behind and these two drew millions and millions of dollars.
Hogan’s promos are so overplayed that they might be underrated – it’s half raaa raaa uninspired bullshit, but half powerful and hilarious. He also had quality title defenses against Terry Funk, Randy Savage, Paul Orndorff, and Hercules Hernandez, as well as plenty of fun tags teaming with the midcard babyfaces that could never surpass him. Hogan promos in this era are a trip too, just rambling about Gods in bodies of water and police offers shielding crying children as he was carried away on a stretcher.
Rowdy Roddy Piper is all over the place in 1986, still on the high of his original heel run through WrestleMania 2 where he again faced off with Mr. T in an ultimately misguided Boxing Match. He takes off after Mania, then returns at the end of the summer as a babyface in a feud with Adrian Adonis and Jimmy Hart. They play with the idea of a Hogan/Piper alliance, but don’t quite deliver. The spark of 1985 isn’t all there and things feel a little mailed in – plus there’s the whole part where he says he doesn’t want his children seeing a guy like Adrian Adonis on TV as a fired up Clint Eastwood guy. Otherwise, Piper is god damn Piper.
Andre the Giant is around even less than Piper, winning the WWF/NFL Battle Royal at WrestleMania 2 then taking time off to film The Princess Bride and recover from injuries, which is covered by him being suspended. He only works a few loops with Big John Studd and Battle Royal’s after Mania, but the announcement of his suspension being lifted and the possible involvement of Bobby Heenan sets the stage for 1987.
The Heenan Family, led by King Kong Bundy and Big John Studd, are frequent dance partners for all of the above, the heels that occasionally get heated up but ultimately fall to the hero. 1986 is Studd’s last big run, mostly playing backup for Bundy who is Hogan’s opponent at WrestleMania 2.
The build-up of Bundy is a classic, helped by Bundy having the perfect wrestling look – tall, wide, bald, and scary, a thick-necked monster for Heenan to stand behind and talk shit. Bundy might not be the dynamic guy you want, but he’s the villain Hogan needs. Week-to-week TV also reveals a sense of humor to him that adds a layer to the big scary guy. Bundy’s stretcher job on Hogan on SNME 3/1/86 is great, but the one on TNT 2/21/86 where he takes out poor Denny Bowlin is a strong #2.
Paul Orndorff plays deputy babyface for the first half of the year, though outside of the opener with Muraco at WrestleMania 2 he isn’t on TV much. After he turns on Hogan and takes Heenan back as his manager, he is all over – wrestling, flexing, gloating. Orndorff has one of the great heel runs in wrestling history during 1986, with quality promos and matches that made for one of Hogan’s best feuds.
Also – over a decade removed from his last WWF World Heavyweight Title reign, Bruno Sammartino had been doing commentary for the WWF and working the very occasional Northeast house show while the WWF tried and failed at re-capturing the Sammartino magic in Bruno’s son David. In 1986, Bruno got the in-ring itch again and in addition to another few Northeast house shows, he worked two-month programs at Boston Garden early in the year and Madison Square Garden in the summer. They are AWESOME, real to-the-point matches with great performances and some of the most classic babyface/heel dynamics you’ll ever see. The crowds are all in on it too as Bruno remained the Lord and Savior of those arenas.
I’m sure the reason for the return was something cynical like the WWF just needed a draw, but I like to think Bruno was inspired by the WWF’s new crop of heels, particularly Roddy Piper and Randy Savage. Bruno and Paul Orndorff lost to Piper and Bob Orton via countout (Boston Garden 1/11/86), then he beat Piper bloody in a Steel Cage (Boston Garden 3/8/86). Later in the year, Bruno and Tito Santana (what a team of babyfaces!) lost to Savage and Adrian Adonis, again via countout (MSG 6/14/86). A month later, Bruno and Tito beat that ass in a Steel Cage (MSG 7/12/86).
WWF in 1986: The Midcard
The WWF in 1986 is a mixed bag, but anything Macho Man Randy Savage does is great. The Intercontinental Title carried the show just as much as the WWF Title – if not more. More TV at least. And Savage took advantage, providing a ton of great promos, matches, and moments. He is a performer: loud, colorful, amped up, angry, funny, infuriating, and with the exception of maybe Piper and Hogan he more than any other wrestler in history feels like he is from another planet. This is the template for pro wrestler right here, and nobody committed as hard as Savage.
He pulls a classic con to win the IC Title from Tito Santana (Boston Garden 2/8/86), calls out Hogan every chance he gets (TNT 9/10/86), tears it up with Ricky Steamboat, has the best squash matches, kills it with a TNT audience Q&A (TNT 9/10/86), has a sweet random match with Pedro Morales (Prime Time 9/15/86), and you must absolutely watch him laying down on a therapist’s couch from TNT 7/2/86.
Ricky Steamboat is one of the best in the world in 1986, as he plants his already great babyface act firmly into the WWF formula which results in a spectacular match. Steamboat’s feuds are the key to the midcard – Muraco (martial arts!), Roberts (kimodo dragon showdown!), Savage (ring bell to the throat!). He sells like a genius, but even his squashes are great – all fired up and purposeful and whatnot. It can hurt a little bit watching him work extra hard to play an alpha male in the WWF, but put that aside and watch the wrestling.
Tito Santana becomes less prominent after losing IC Title to Savage in February, though he can always be relied on for a great babyface performance. His run of matches with Bruno Sammartino vs. Savage and Adrian Adonis at MSG show he is really as good as ever.
Jake “The Snake” Roberts joins the WWF in March, just in time to have a dominant performance against George Wells at WrestleMania 2. He immediately becomes the guy, another legend born in 1986. Incredible, alluring, tremendous – he goes on to completely blow WWF audience’s minds by being unlike anything they’ve ever seen: tall and lanky, with the energy of both Luke Perry and a pervert carny. He goes against the WWF grain as when he speaks into a microphone, it is softly. So they pay attention. His wrestling style is based around timing, mind games, and the DDT.
Jake also carries around a bag with a snake. A real snake. That snake is used for those mind games. And then after he wins he takes the snake, a big-ass python, out of his bag, and he lays the thing over the poor guy who just wanted a quick payday with the World Wrestling Federation (Prime Time 5/12/86) for a real nasty one. Watch the confidence of his introduction (TNT 3/14/86), his calm dirtbag energy (Prime Time 8/4/86), how he handles a long match with Sivi Afi (Prime Time 79 9/8/86), and his explanation of his MORALS (TNT 9/24/86).
Adrian Adonis is prominent throughout the year, being re-introduced as an out gay man under the guidance of Jimmy Hart. Thing is, it’s the WWF so that means he’s really flamboyant and wears dresses and crazy makeup and pigtails. He’s fat too and bumps all over the place. Adonis is great, though the framing of the act is occasionally a reminder that maybe wrestling is fundamentally bad. Adonis’ Flower Shop replaces Piper’s Pit, he steals Cowboy Bob Orton and puts him in a pink hat, and he forms a brief but promising team with Randy Savage.
Magnificent Muraco and Mr. Fuji are still playing around in the movie business, though Muraco occasionally joins up with Heenan or Hart’s crew to hate on Hogan or Piper. The infamous Fuji Vice debuts in 1986, and Muraco grows a beard later in the year.
In May, Harley Race made the surprising transition to the WWF where he messes around with enhancement guys (see his match with Lanny Poffo on Prime Time 6/23/86) and also, after winning the second King of the Ring, dons a crown and cape to become “King” Harley Race. Though the WWF refuses to mention his NWA World Champion past you just know he has credibility, as even through the goofy King costume he appears to be a grandfather you don’t want to mess with.
Terry Funk rules while he lasts. He had come to the WWF in 1985, talked shit, fought Hulk Hogan and Junkyard Dog, teamed up with his brother Dory (or Hoss) at WrestleMania 2, and left. Jimmy Jack Funk had since joined The Funk Brother crew, and he becomes a pale imitation as Hoss’ partner the rest of the year. It makes the whole loss of Terry presence in the WWF worse.
Junkyard Dog is still touring like a madman in 1986, but Junkyard Dog on TV feels completely de-emphasized, even if he’s usually feuding with one of the top midcard guys like Funk or Race or Adonis.
I always liked how George “The Animal” Steele would use his old heel shtick – wavy arms, foreign object, flying hammerlock – as babyface spots. In 1986, the man is in love with Randy Savage’s wife, Elizabeth. It is a problem for everybody. Steele’s performance is seriously endearing and even though this feud goes the entire year for some reason it works as a thread to follow for Savage. The angle where Liz gets delivered flowers (TNT 2/14/86) is fun, but the angle where Savage beats Steele down and stuffs flowers down his throat is special (TNT 3/21/86).
Cpl. Kirchner continued his slow crawl up the midcard in 1986, offering a flop attempt at a new Sgt. Slaughter to feud with guys like Sheik and Volkoff. The All-American push was strong, but the man just came off as a bozo.
Was Hercules Hernandez the WWF’s take on Bruiser Brody? If it was it didn’t work, but Hercules made it his own. He does some legitimately impressive rope-running opposite Billy Jack Haynes of all guys on Prime Time 9/8/86, and any time he is in there opposite some meat like Hogan or Santana it delivers.
Going into watching all this WWF 1986 stuff, I had a loose idea of most of the beats but I was not prepared for Big John Studd being easily picked up and slammed by relative newcomer King Tonga. This led to Bobby Heenan ducking Tonga for the $15,000 he was still offering anyone who could slam Studd, and created the perception of a budding midcard babyface before his skills were determined more useful for the WWF’s tag team division, and The Islanders were formed. If you want to see a hot angle, you go and check out Prime Time 6/16/86.
Haku becomes Haku before moving to the Islanders. He goes twice cause I’m scared.
WWF in 1986: The Tag Teams
The WWF had World Tag Team Championships since 1971, but my cursory understanding of the WWF in the 1970s leads me to believe that for a long while the WWF’s tag team division was based around one, maybe two teams. After a dominant run by Adrian Adonis & Dick Murdoch, the WWF tag team division of 1985 was pretty much Iron Sheik/Nikolai Volkoff, The U.S. Express, and eventually the throw together but very inspired “Dream Team” of Greg Valentine & Brutus Beefcake. For 1986, Vince McMahon seemed to say: let’s ramp that up pal.
The British Bulldogs and The Hart Foundation are the centerpiece of this. The Bulldogs are another act that feels unlike anything seen yet in the WWF, all high octane and high-flying and British. They get the big PUUUUSH in 1986, downing The Dream Team for the Tag Titles at WrestleMania 2 with no less than Ozzy Osbourne in their corner. Despite one strange squash loss to Bundy and Studd in the midst of their Tag Title reign, you know the WWF is all in on them because they get a mascot: an English bulldog named Matilda.
Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart provide not just quality tag matches but quality singles matches, and I mean that from both guys. Bret vs. Steamboat (Boston Garden 3/8/86) and Bret vs. Sivi Afi (Prime Time 5/12/86) are so good, as is something like Neidhart vs. B. Brian Blair (Prime Time 5/19/86) or Dynamite Kid (MSG 10/20/86).
Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff are no longer dominant but remain prominent. Same for The Dream Team of Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake. All four of these guys provide solid, occasionally frustratingly boring wrestling. Beefcake is occasionally mentioned as a star of the future.
The U.S. Express is also still around, kind of. Barry Windham left the WWF in 1985, and so did Mike Rotundo. Rotundo comes back and Danny Spivey is his partner. They eventually become The American Express, but Spivey gets injured in the fall.
Kind of in the tag division and kind of not is the WWF’s big summer angle, which kills the summer: The Machines. Whispers begin in June on Prime Time Wrestling (6/30/86) of a new masked tag team from Japan coming to the WWF, and after Mean Gene Okerlund puts on his tuxedo and searches the streets of Tokyo for them he finds what appears to be a pair of fellows wearing masks, one of them obviously Andre the Giant. The shtick isn’t very good and Andre gets injured almost immediately, so in comes another Machine and you’ve just got Ax and Blackjack Mulligan having a bunch of bad tag matches. Occasionally Hulk Hogan or Roddy Piper donned the mask for a big 6-man, but nobody seemed to care.
Terry Funk is gone, but The Funk Brothers live on. Jimmy Jack’s bumbling around the ring and curly hair is no substitute for Terry Funk, but the gimmick occasionally works like when he and Hoss torture poor Alfred Hayes with BBQ sauce on TNT 5/14/86. The Dory WWF run is so weird – he comes in for the Mania 2 tag, stays around when Terry leaves, and in the mid-80s they’re still talking like Terry might be back. Doesn’t happen.
Other young teams are either brought in or formed. King Tonga becomes Haku and Tonga Kid becomes Tama to form The Islanders. They are fired up babyfaces. So are The Killer Bees of AWA fellas B. Brian Blair and Jumpin’ Jim Brunzell, a team famous for their gimmick where they occasionally wore bee masks and switched mid-match to get the win. They’re good wrestlers, but the gimmick is dumb.
The Fabulous Rougeaus of Jacques and Raymond debut in a long tradition of generic babyfaces that eventually became heels. Bobby Heenan hates them from the start, which makes for fun commentary. Jacques is also already doing his famous crossbody bump.
And if ANY of these babyface teams needed a pair of guys to put them over, The Moondogs were right there. They were the guys who lost to Hogan and Orndorff before the big turn. They wore torn up jean shorts and carried bones to the ring, I guess as if a full moon caused dogs to become human. Weird how much dogs liked chinlocks.
WWF in 1986: The Managers
On Prime Time 5/5/86, Bobby Heenan actually discusses what a manager does: contracts, reservations, travel, matchmaking, bookings, and making sure they “get a fair deal, fair shake, and nobody stabs them in the back.” It makes a lot of sense, if you think about it. Heenan is the king of the managers, the main event manager, and Hulk Hogan’s lead foil. He went after Andre the Giant in 1985, and in 1986 aimed the only place higher.
This was all while he took on more duties as a “voice” of the WWF. Whether he was on the TNT set, Piper’s Pit, Saturday Night’s Main Event commentary, or eventually hosting Prime Time Wrestling alongside Gorilla Monsoon – Heenan was bringing it with the promos and quick wit. He was the talker of all talkers, an immaculate mix of sliminess, humor, and occasional menace. On the rare occasion he got physical, he revealed an agile man willing to eat absolute shit for the business. King Kong Bundy, Big John Studd, Paul Orndorff, King Harley Race, and Hercules Hernandez all took orders from The Brain.
Jimmy Hart is the backbone of the WWF in 1986, a perfectly tacky and angry little man who aligned himself with all the toughest dudes. Adrian Adonis and Cowboy Bob Orton got a mouthpiece, The Hart Foundation got a reason to exist, and any of The Funk Family plus Jimmy Hart was good old-fashioned chaos. Hart screamed into his megaphone like a pro, and absolutely ate it in some great angles with Junkyard Dog and Roddy Piper.
Miss Elizabeth is an all-star, completing the Macho Man Randy Savage act. He is a complete asshole to her, as she stands by her man all shy and only able to speak when he allows her. Even if she isn’t saying a thing Elizabeth plays the part brilliantly, and this dynamic is what puts the whole Savage thing over the top. That thing is like the best thing in wrestling too.
Gorilla Monsoon wonders aloud a few times where Slick, an African-American man all buttoned up who debuts in the WWF in the summer of 1986 by going to a bank and paying Classy Freddie Blassie cash for his roster of wrestlers, REALLY got his money. I think he thinks he’s a pimp. But he’s a manager now, and he puts in some work for Sheik, Volkoff, Hercules, and eventually Butch Reed.
Mr. Fuji didn’t need anybody but Don Muraco. He still gets in the ring on occasion, and when he doesn’t he’s making jokes about eating dogs or introducing a midget version of himself on TNT. Fuji’s low key, definitely-not-actually-trying performance in Fuji Vice is one for the ages.
“Luscious” Johnny Valiant keeps leading The Dream Team to not much success – he gives it his all at WrestleMania 2, but Johnny V is not in the WWF by 1987.
The Wizard didn’t last long, but what an impact of madness. Is there joy in the fact that King Curtis Iaukea came to the WWF in the fall of 1986, managing both Kamala and Samoan Sika, claiming he was the reincarnation of the recently passed WWF manager Grand Wizard? Seriously, is there?
After a serious babyface run in 1985 and the start of 1986, Captain Lou Albano is basically back to being loud-mouthed obnoxious self even if he’s also promoting his MS charity and occasionally managing the Bulldogs. He also acts as George Steele’s guide as he goes through some stuff.
WWF in 1986: The Voices
Mean Gene Okerlund is a hustler: hosts All-American Wrestling, Wrestling Spotlight, and TNT. Main guy doing the interviews on-location, whether he’s looking for Mr. T at a gym or The Machines in Tokyo. Main Saturday Night’s Main Event interviewer. The mustache, the tux, the gravitas – Gene is king.
Gorilla Monsoon is the primary commentator and provides a calm, credible, slightly annoyed voice over the whole presentation. His banter with both Bobby Heenan on Prime Time Wrestling and Jesse Ventura, another primary commentator, is legendary – good without the wrestling in front of it. Jesse goes off to make Predator in the middle of the year, or as Gorilla says, “some jungle movie.”
Gorilla and Jesse is an all-timer combo, as is Jesse and Vince McMahon – another star of the WWF. Vince is still hosting TNT in the lead-up to WrestleMania, dealing with production errors and cue cards and straight-up losing his patience on TNT 2/2/86. He takes off by mid-May, but still hosts Saturday Night’s Main Event and provides ALL the energy that show needed.
Before his voice became famous for Coliseum Home Video, Lord Alfred Hayes plays Vince and Okerlund’s sidekick on TNT. His role got real quiet in 1986, though his occasional commentary work shows the skill was still there.
Ken Resnick joins the WWF in early 1987, another jump from the AWA. Resnick does commentary and acts as the primary interviewer for Prime Time Wrestling, where he fits right in with a classic bunch of characters as they prop up a backdrop in a hotel room and do promos.
WWF’s not-really President Jack Tunney becomes a bit more prominent in 1986, playing a role in the Andre the Giant return angle later in the year.
Roddy Piper and Adrian Adonis were major voices for the WWF too. I am 99.999% sure that Piper’s Pit was the first use of the format in wrestling where a backdrop is propped up in front of a live wrestling audience and a skilled talker welcomes guests to either flesh out characters or move stories forward. When Piper took time off after WrestleMania 2, Adrian Adonis and Jimmy Hart stepped in with their take on the talk show format: The Flower Shop. Jake Roberts steps in with The Snake Pit later in the year as well.
WWF in 1986: Undercard & Oddballs
This is guys like Billy Jack Haynes, who comes in with all the charisma of a guy who’s gimmick is that he is from Oregon.
And Butch “The Natural” Reed – he is all roided up, has bleached blonde hair, and is wearing sunglasses, a bandana, and ring jacket… not-so-natural if you ask me!
Dino Bravo only figures out he should dye his hair later in the year.
Honky Tonk Man comes in later in the year. There is a lot of great stuff here: his debut promo (Prime Time 10/14/86) where he is a babyface just happy to be there who really doesn’t like Bobby Heenan. By Prime Time 12/11/86, he receives results from an “approval poll” from the fans and they are not good. This leads in to a match with Mr. X, where Honky Tonk is very loudly booed anytime he does anything while Mr. X gets Hogan cheers. Still not 100% sure if this whole angle’s reaction was deliberate or not, but Honky Tonk Man staring at the fans with dead eyes after his win doing the obnoxious Elvis dance is pro wrestling gold.
Hillbilly Jim and The Hillbillies are still kind of a big deal for a while and then just gone. Jim was always on-and-off, while Cousin Junior and Cousin Luke and Uncle Elmer never really got moving.
I know wrestling is always evolving, but how crazy is it that McMahon pushed a poetry reader named Leaping Lanny Poffo?
1986 had legends aging out like Pedro Morales, Ivan Putski, Tony Atlas, and Tony Garea.
It had recurring face jobbers like S.D. Jones, Paul Roma, George Wells, Salvatore Bellomo, and Scott McGhee.
It had recurring heel jobbers like Iron Mike Sharpe, Barry O, Steve Lombardi, Rene Goulet, and Terry Gibbs.
There were newcomers like Koko B. Ware, Jim Powers, Outback Jack, and The Can-Am Connection.
There were also brief strange runs, like Sika with The Wizard, Ted Arcidi, and even Mr. Wrestling II who was just used as an enhancement guy.
Sivi Afi as a Superfly Snuka replacement backfires, while “The Rebel” Dick Slater‘s Confederate gimmick never catches on but does lead to some uncomfortable fashion choices on TNT 9/10/86. Even “Mr. Electricity” Steve Regal stops by.
The women’s division was basically de-platformed after Spider Lady won the Women’s Title in November 1985, but it vaguely beats on in 1986 with occasional appearances by Fabulous Moolah, Velvet McIntyre, Leilani Kai, and Judy Martin. There are WWF Women’s Tag Team Championships but also, are there really?
The midgets have their time too, like Haiti Kid (who gets his head shaved by Piper and Orton), Lord Littlebrook, and Little Tokyo.
Others names hang around like Les Thonton, Joe Mirto, Steve Gatorwolf, Johnny K-9 (eek), Ron Shaw, Bob Bradley, and young Jack Foley who became Dude Love or something.
Also, Paul Christy. He worked with Randy Savage in the ICW and came to the WWF in the middle of 1986 for enhancement work, which led to an appearance on TNT. He joins the set and goes for some Andy Kaufman I AM NOT OF YOUR REALITY gimmick that is both compelling and uncomfortable. As Mean Gene tries to get an interview going, he refuses to sit on the couch and engage in questions, opting to repeat a manifesto about the three most powerful things: sex, money, and power.
It’s vaguely brilliant, but then he keeps going. Mean Gene grows more frustrated as he keeps going, lying that he is a magician at one point, before he is finally cut off. Can’t tell if it was on purpose or a legitimate trainwreck. Don’t want to know.
Also, Tiger Chung Lee.
Those That Made it Worth It: WWF in 1986
1. Ricky Steamboat
2. Macho Man Randy Savage
3. Jake Roberts
4. Hulk Hogan
5. Bret Hart
6. The British Bulldogs
7. Tito Santana
8. Paul Orndorff
9. Adrian Adonis
10. Bruno Sammartino
Best Tag Teams
- The British Bulldogs
- The Hart Foundation
- The Dream Team
- The Islanders
- Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff
Best Manager
- Bobby Heenan
- Jimmy Hart
- Elizabeth
- Mr. Fuji
- Slick
Best Host/Voice
- Mean Gene Okerlund
- Vince McMahon
- Jesse Ventura
- Gorilla Monsoon
- Lord Alfred Hayes
Quietly Impressive
- Leaping Lanny Poffo
- Brutus Beefcake
- Jim Neidhart
Hit-and-Miss
- Rowdy Roddy Piper
- Greg Valentine
- Sivi Afi
Most Potential
- Hercules Hernandez
- The Fabulous Rougeaous
- Honky Tonk Man
Good at Entertainment
- Magnificent Muraco
- King Kong Bundy
- George “The Animal” Steele
You Seem Good but WWF
- King Harley Race
- Terry Funk
- Velvet McIntyre
Just Fine
- The Killer Bees
- Cowboy Bob Orton
- Steve Lombardi
