Between The Sheets

Kris & David are joined by Beau James (@KingOfKingsport) to discuss the week that was February 3rd - 9th, 1987. We talk about Andre the Giant officially turning heel on Hulk Hogan and the Hart Foundation winning the WWF Tag Titles from The British Bulldogs all on the same episode of Superstars of Wrestling that kicked off February sweeps and also featured the debut of Outback Jack. We also talk about Riki Choshu flirting with returning to New Japan, clips of Ed Whalen, “Diamond” Jim Davies, Drago Zhivago, and others in Stampede, multiple promotions talking about forming a new NWA, Jerry Lawler teaming with Nick Bockwinkel in Memphis, “Iceman” King Parsons turning heel on Chris Adams in the UWF, and Mike Von Erich’s legal issues. Then we close with Jim Crockett Promotions, featuring Ricky Morton in concert and Magnum T.A. returning to TV for the first time since his accident. Fantastic show so don't miss it!!!!Timestamps:0:00:00 WWF1:09:43 Int’l: AJPW, NJPW, Montreal, Stampede, Vancouver, EMLL, UWA, &a

Kris Zellner & Devon Hales (@kingmotivatorh) are BACK with a Royal Rumble Reaction Show....it's been a while since we’ve done one of these, but here we go! We talk about all the major happenings on the show such as who won...who lost....who looked good…who didn’t…who looked gassed…who wasn’t…and much more. We had a blast getting back in the saddle, and it's always great to chop it up with Devon, so we hope you enjoy the show!!!!To support the show and get access to exclusive rewards like special members-only monthly themed shows, go to our Patreon page at Patreon.com/BetweenTheSheets and become an ongoing Patron. Becoming a Between the Sheets Patron will also get you exclusive access to not only the monthly themed episode of Between the Sheets, but also access to our new mailbag segment, a Patron-only chat room on Slack, and anything else we do outside of the main shows!Shop at Amazon via our link (go here for Amazon UK if you’re in Europe)— Nothing extra comes out of your pocket; for you, it’s th

Kris & David are joined by Joe Gagne (@joegagne) to discuss the partial week that was January 25th - January 30th, 1995. We talk about the NATPE bTV syndication convention taking place in Las Vegas, which featured a live WCW Clash of the Champions at Caesars Palace capped off by Hulk Hogan & Vader having their first physical angle, plus all the other wrestling news involving NATPE and who had booths there. We also talk about the return of Big Bubba Rogers, the evolution of Brian Pillman, Japanese wrestling magazines fighting amongst themselves, a tragic death in New Japan, the birth of the Triple Threat in ECW, Eddie Gilbert's last TV appearance in SMW, the early hype for Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Lawrence Taylor at WrestleMania, the WWF flirting with shoot angles, and much more. Joe is always a great guest, and this was a blast, so check it out!!!!!Timestamps:0:00:00 WCW1:20:49 NATPE1:37:32 Japan: AJPW, NJPW, Heisei Ishingun vs. WAR, IWA Japan, SPWF, W*ING, Pancrase, RINGS, & AJW2:20:46 Classic Com

Kris Zellner & Rob Naylor are back with the latest episode of Cover 2 Cover, where we talk about the October 1984 issue of Wrestling All-Stars Magazine. We talk about that magazine and it's placement in the wrestling magazine pecking order, plus the sister magazines they were promoting as well. We also go over their ratings, which were a little different from the other magazines, all of the great full color pinups—which was also different from other magazines, plus stories on Paul Orndorff, Curt "Henning" and his rise to stardom, Kerry Von Erich's 18 day reign as NWA World Heavyweight Champion, the NWA invading New Jersey, the Sheepherders & the Fabulous Ones tearing it up in San Antonio, and so much more. This was an extremely fun show as always, so LISTEN NOW!!!!!!!!!!!To support the show and get access to exclusive rewards like special members-only monthly themed shows, go to our Patreon page at Patreon.com/BetweenTheSheets and become an ongoing Patron. Becoming a Between the Sheets

Kris & David are joined by Daniel Makabe (@danielmakabe) to discuss the week that was January 20-26, 2003. We talk about Hulk Hogan making yet another return to WWE, this time to heat up his angle with Vince McMahon for WrestleMania XIX in Seattle, which Dan attended. We also talk about all of the other WWE news, such as the dependance on big names and part-timers for WrestleMania that still goes on today, The Rock speaking with "Jake T. Icon" about his future in pro wrestling, John Hennigan & Matt Cappotelli winning contracts in the finale of Tough Enough season 3, and a set of house shows in Japan & South Korea, which included Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, Ric Flair, Satoshi Kojima, & Keiji Mutoh all hanging out together in a fantastic story. Speaking of Japan, we go over basically all of the promotions—of which there are many—and we were all watching as much of it as we could at the time, so we have some interesting and detailed takes on what was going on. We also talk about the ECCW

Kris Zellner is joined by Jeff G. Bailey (@JeffGBailey1) & Dan "The Dragon" Wilson (@dragonsrejects) to take yet another walk on the Wildside as we discuss the months of January & February of 2001 in NWA Wildside. We talk about the burgeoning relationship between WCW & Wildside where the young stars of WCW were getting some seasoning in Cornelia and two men named Air Paris & A.J. Styles would get signed by WCW. We talk about the Paris/Styles feud that was going on and how hot it was before they signed with WCW, as well as how that affected both men's status in Wildside. We also talk about Jimmy Rave making his Wildside TV debut, "THE BEAST" Bob Sapp appearing in Cornelia, how Wildside handled David Flair differently from every other promotion, Jeff wanting to murder Terry Knight in the ring, random house shows throughout Georgia, and so much more. This was a blast to do as always, as Jeff & Dan are tremendous telling stories, so you know the drill.....LISTEN NOW!!!!!To 

Kris & David are guestless this week as we discuss the week-plus that was January 12-21, 1994. We talk about the WWF getting into the “kick boxing” business by partnering with Leisure Concepts on the World Martial Arts Federation—which would eventually become WMAC Masters, the build to Owen Hart turning on Bret Hart, 1-2-3 Kid injuring his knee at Madison Square Garden, the going big in Israel, and Gorilla Monsoon hosting a local show in Baltimore called Bingo Break which has to heard to be believed. We also talk about the Steiners making plans to return to New Japan, Gedo & Jado debuting in WAR and how that changed their lives, Koji Kitao starting up his own promotion, Dynamite Kid being covered in News of the World, CMLL having union issues again, 911 debuting in ECW, lots of great SMW & USWA clips, and Hulk Hogan talking with Jonathan Ross among other things before bringing it home with WCW. There, we talk about a new booking regime, Zane Bresloff signing with the promotion to head live event p

Kris & David are joined by Jeff Hawkins (@Crapgame13) to discuss the week that was January 6-12, 1986. We talk about the AWA re-upping with ESPN and what that means for the wrestling business as a whole, plus we talk about the AWA gates and how different they could be across the various major towns. We also talk about Mike Rotundo & Barry Windham showing up in AJPW, Jim Duggan doing the opposite in NJPW, Krusher Kruschev seriously injuring his knee on TBS, the Dream Date with The Fantastics contest in Memphis, Ted DiBiase & Dr. Death cementing their babyface in Mid-South, the breakup of the Dynamic Duo in World Class, some wild clips from Texas All-Star, the birth of Adorable Adrian Adonis in the WWF, and much more. This is an extremely fun show with some great clips, so you know the drill.....LISTEN NOW!!!!Timestamps:0:00:00 AWA0:33:44 Int’l: AJPW, NJPW, Stampede, EMLL, UWA, Tijuana, & WWC1:06:55 Jim Crockett Promotions1:46:05 Classic Commercial Break1:49:53 Housekeeping/The Amazon Game2:16:5

In this free preview clip of the sixth and final episode of our deep dive Patreon series about the ECW on TNN saga, Kris and David take a look at ECW’s Canadian debut, which featured a major locker room speech from Paul Heyman. The speech and fallout result in discussion of a lot of themes that come up in the full episode, including Paul’s habit of claiming to have meetings with TV networks in Los Angeles in scenarios that are not exactly realistic.To hear the whole show, you need to become a Between The Sheets patron at the $5/month level or higher by going to Patreon.com/BetweenTheSheets. Also: Please make sure to remember that if you're still not convinced, the first installment in the ECW on TNN series is available for free right here in the regular Between The Sheets podcast feed.-----Full show description:It's finally time to wrap up ur our ECW on TNN series, with the sixth and final episode covering August through early November of 2000, which is the most loaded Patreon show to date. Topics inc

Kris & David are guestless this week as we discuss the week that was December 30th 2009-January 5th, 2010, a Patreon request, and boy, is this a show. We begin talking about TNA's first foray into running shows live on Monday nights head-to-head with WWE Monday Night Raw, featuring the debuts of Hulk Hogan, Jeff Hardy, Eric Bischoff, Ric Flair, and many others on Impact. We go down the show in full detail both inside and outside the ring, especially Homicide getting stuck trying to escape the big red domed cage, the wackiness involving "The Band,” A.J. Styles vs. Kurt Angle, and so much more. We also talk about the tapings the next night featuring the TNA debut of The Young Bucks, plus KNOCKOUTS NEW YEARS EVE, which was a doozy. We also talk about all the drama surrounding Hulk Hogan coming into TNA, which is a huge story itself, of course. There is also a New Japan Tokyo Dome show going on, not to mention ROH on HDNet and some other things in North America to touch on. Then we close with WWE, fea

Kris & David are joined by Emil Jay (@theemiljay) to discuss the week-plus that was December 22nd - December 29th, 1995. We start off by talking about Starrcade ’95, where WCW went against New Japan in a best of seven series of matches and we saw a new World Heavyweight Champion crowned, on top of a highly controversial U.S. Title match among other highlights. We also talk about the pre-taped Christmas episode of Monday Nitro, plus Mean Gene dropping one of his biggest Hotline doozies ever. We also go over the business of Japanese wrestling in 1995, all of the indies running Korakuen Hall during our week, plus year-end awards in Mexico and a famously wild Christmas night in Tijuana. We then go to the U.S. indie scene, starting with ECW, talking about their New York City debut with a pretty big show in the form of Holiday Hell at the Lost Battalion Hall, the USWA vs. SMW feud getting close to the end but still going strong, COMPTON LUCHA, and even some Incredibly Strange Wrestling—the J.R. Benson version—a

This month, given the season and the fact that we’re about to complete the six-part ECW on TNN series on our Patreon page, we’ve decided to gift everyone the first episode in the series, posted for Patrons back in July. This one covers everything up through the week before the show premiered, also documenting the genesis of ECW’s video game deal with Acclaim, which was reportedly more intertwined with the TNN deal than you may realize. It’s one of the best shows we’ve ever done, both in general and because we spontaneously do a journalism in the middle of the show and discover some information that completely changes how we look at ECW from 1999-on. So it’s finally time to stop being coy on the free shows and social media, as now, you can all learn about the massive plot twist that is the existence of ECW Management Group, which looms over the rest of the series.For dozens more deep dives like this, including the rest of the six-part ECW on TNN series—which will conclude in the coming days—and other entries i

Kris & Bix are joined by Alan Counihan (@Alan4L) to discuss the week that was December 16-22, 2001. We talk about the plans for the upcoming WWF brand split and how it was definitely needed at this time, as well as the Hardys & Lita being taken off TV, negotiations with Rey Misterio Jr., and Steve Austin chasing Booker T around a church on Raw. We also talk about the Tokyo Sports Awards in Japan and the extremely political nature of them, as well as Dave Meltzer experiencing T2P for the first time and all the other Japanese news and results. We also talk about the extremely fun lucha libre scene at the time and all kinds of U.S. indie results, including Shinya Hashimoto defending the NWA World Heavyweight Title in a very intimate setting in Pennsylvania, before closing with updates on the post-WCW startup promotions such as the WWA & XWF. Alan is only with us for the first half of the show, but he was great as usual, so don't miss this one!!!!!Timestamps:0:00:00 WWF2:17:30 Japan: Tokyo Sports

Kris & David are guestless this week as we discuss the week-plus that was December 8th-December 15th, 1992. We talk about the end of Nailz in the WWF after he attacked Vince McMahon backstage at a TV taping and everything surrounding that, the name of the new WWF show on Monday nights, “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan possibly leaving the WWF, New Japan vs. WAR heating up, AAA leaving CMLL & UWA in the dust in Mexico, Kevin Sullivan terrorizing SMW, a crazy, angle-filled episode of USWA TV, Cecil Fielder showing up in Global, and, in WCW, the aftermath of Dusty Rhodes being removed as the head booker, plus the controversial push of Erik Watts. This is a fantastic show, so listen now!!!!!!!Timestamps:0:00:00 WWF1:35:37 Eurasia: NJPW, WAR, NOW, OPW, W*ING, AJW, & CWA1:55:51 Classic Commercial Break2:00:42 Housekeeping/The Amazon Game2:34:16 Latin America: AAA, CMLL, UWA, & WWC2:56:32 Other USA: Buddy Landel, SMW, USWA, GWF, Verne Gagne, Portland, Superstar Billy Graham on TBN, & George South4:29:37 WCWT

Kris Zellner & Rob Naylor are back for another episode of Cover 2 Cover, this time discussing the May 1993 issue of The Wrestler. We go over all of the great letters to the editor, What's Happening with Bill Apter covering the death of Andre the Giant, thoughts on Jim Cornette working with WCW, Bob Smith and his interesting opinions on Yokozuna, Correspondents’ Reports that end up with talk about New Japan guys working the WCW Christmas tour, questions about the WWF adding more titles and 2 Cold Scorpio going light heavyweight. We also talk about Tony DeNucci in the “Introducing…” section, a Q&A with Jim Cornette conducted by a 21 year old Joey Styles, the Brian Christopher/Jeff Jarrett feud, and so so much more. This was a fantastic show, so don't miss it!!!!To support the show and get access to exclusive rewards like special members-only monthly themed shows, go to our Patreon page at Patreon.com/BetweenTheSheets and become an ongoing Patron. Becoming a Between the Sheets Patron will also ge

Kris & David bring you a special edition of Between The Sheets this week, as we have both Beau James (@kingofkingsport) & Robert O'Connor (@ghostofquinones) joining us to discuss the (almost) week that was December 2-7, 1988. We start off with the new Universal Wrestling Corporation, a.k.a. WCW, talking about the major changes going on in the company from the top of the food chain all the way down to the wrestlers, including the hiring of Jim Herd, Dusty Rhodes losing his head booker job while still being on the roster, and many more. We also talk about Steve Beverly attending a TV taping in Columbus, Clash of the Champions IV: Season’s Beatings in Chattanooga with its Flair/Windham vs. Midnight Express headliner, Rick Steiner as “Mr. Pain,” and so much more. We also go to Japan, talking about the Real World Tag League in AJPW, the Japan Cup in NJPW, Inoki’s plans for Russia’s state-sponsored athletes, and Gran Hamada vs. Atsushi Onita happening in JWP of all places. We also get the Stampede rundo

Kris & David are joined by Lenny Leonard (@WWNLennyLeonard) to discuss the week that was November 25-December 1, 2007, a Patreon pick. Lenny is here specifically for an extended Ring of Honor section, which is one of the best we've ever done. We talk about the "Man Up" pay-per-view event that premiered during our week (it was taped in September) in detail, as well as the full lay of the land for the promotion at that time. We go down the matches and talk about the big angles and happenings from the show plus the house shows that weekend as well. We also go over all the shows in Japan, and there were a *lot*, including the first BTS appearance of GUTS WORLD, plus Cibernetico catching fire (literally) at AAA Guerra de Titanes, great matches and workers in CMLL, all sorts of U.S. and Canadian indie happenings featuring current stars and office staff, before bringing it home with WWE. There, we have Ric Flair returning to Raw in Charlotte to kick off his retirement storyline, Teddy Long returning

Kris & David are joined by Dave Prazak (@DavePrazak) as we discuss All Japan Women’s Big Egg Wrestling Universe super show as part of this week's Between the Sheets. This deserved its own section because of how long the card was, as well as how important a show it was. Dave is one of the most qualified people to do this segment justice and he killed it here, as we went match by match going over all the big happenings on the show, including Akira Hokuto's "retirement” after winning the V-Top tournament, Bull Nakano winning the WWF Women's Title from Alundra Blayze in the co-main event slot, the "shooting matches,” just how great Aja Kong vs. Manami Toyota was, what should've been done in the tournament, and much more as we expound on the greatness of all of the women involved. This was a great piece of audio, folks, so listen to it!!!!!To support the show and get access to exclusive rewards like special members-only monthly themed shows, go to our Patreon page at Patreon.com/Between

Kris & David are not only joined by Dave Prazak (@DavePrazak), also the Patron that requested the show, Big Tros Man (@BigTrosMan) as we discuss the week that was November 18-23, 1994. We talk about Ricky Steamboat getting fired from WCW and his subsequent retirement, the anger from the younger WCW guys over Hulk Hogan's guys getting pushed, a live and “interactive” episode of WCW Main Event at Center Stage, and much more. We then go to Japan where Dave Meltzer attended a big AAA vs. New Japan show while he was there for Big Egg Wrestling Universe, plus all the other Japanese happenings, Canadian stars in Germany, the big wrestling war in the Philadelphia area between ECW & Dennis Coralluzzo's NWA as the follow-up to November to Remember went head to head to the crowning of Chris Candido as the new NWA World Heavyweight Champion. We then close with the WWF, where we talk about all the new young talent they were bringing in, plus the Survivor Series featuring CHUCK NORRIS!!!!! All that and a ba

Kris & David are joined by Dominic Garrini (@dgarrinibc) to discuss the week that was November 17th-23rd, 1996, a requested from Brian Blake. We start off with the WWF and their big Survivor Series pay-per-view at Madison Square Garden and what a hoot this was. We talk about Jose Lothario's heart attack angle, Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin, the debut of Rocky Maivia, and tons more from this show, not to mention all of the events after the fact, featuring a major press conference with the WWF & AAA in San Antonio to announce the Royal Rumble at the Alamo Dome. We also talk about all of the wrestling & MMA events in Japan, including U-Japan, featuring Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Kimo Leopaldo atop a loaded card, as well as the MARS PPV with Oleg Taktarov vs. Renzo Gracie in the United States. We also talk about Hijo del Santo turning rudo for the first time at Arena Mexico in a major shock, Jerry Lawler shooting on the Memphis Commercial Appeal newspaper on live TV, New Jack slices Erick Kulas’s head open