Category: Portland Wrestlecast
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Portland Wrestlecast: Buddy Rose starts shaving heads
In the third and final part of our interview with Rip Rogers on his time in Portland Wrestling, we talk about the beginning of the build up to the famous hair match between Rowdy Roddy Piper and Playboy Buddy Rose. It took months to build heat for the blow-off match as Rose was challenged by…
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Portland Wrestlecast: How Roddy Piper helped Rip Rogers
On this week’s Portland Wrestlecast, it’s part two of our interview with “Hustler” Rip Rogers. In part one, Rip, one of the most respected wrestlers and trainers in the world, talked about teaming with Buddy Rose. In 1979, Rogers called himself a “greenhorn” who needed advice and guidance from veterans in the territory like “Rowdy”…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Rip Rogers on teaming with Buddy Rose
On this week’s Portland Wrestlecast, I talk to the one and only Rip Rogers for some great stories from a legendary time in the history of Northwest U.S. wrestling. He first arrived in Portland, OR, in June 1979 when the territory was really starting to heat up thanks to the feud between “Playboy” Buddy Rose and…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Jerry Grey and Bobby Jaggers’ tall tales
We continue our conversation with Jerry Grey. On this episode, he talks about how his relationship with Billy Jack seemingly affected his career in Portland Wrestling as he was stuck in the middle of disagreements between Billy Jack, Rip Oliver, and Playboy Buddy Rose. In May 1985, Don Owen sold out the Portland Memorial Coliseum…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Don Owen vs. The OWF
In 1988, Portland had a very brief promotional war when Billy Jack Haynes came back to Oregon after a few years in the WWF. He ran opposition to Don Owen by starting the Oregon Wrestling Federation. Billy Jack brought in wrestlers like Kevin “Nailz” Kelly, Fred Ottman, Corporal Kirschner, Johnny Ace, The Terminator, Bryan Adams, Ray…
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Portland Wrestlecast: 1986 with Ricky Santana
Ricky Santana has wrestled all over the world: the WWF, WCW, NWA, Japan and, in 1986, he found himself in the Northwest. 1986 was a year of transition for Portland Wrestling. As the WWF and Jim Crockett Promotions went national, Don Owen continued to run big cards in the Memorial Coliseum every quarter or so.…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Mike Rodgers on 30 years of Pacific Northwest history
Fresh off last week’s Cauliflower Alley Club reunion in Las Vegas, I talk with this year’s recipient of the James Melby Award, Mike Rodgers. The Melby goes to the pre-eminent journalists in wrestling and our Dave Meltzer won it two years ago. For 30 years, Mike wrote “Ring Around the Northwest”, a wrestling newsletter focused…
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Free Portland Wrestlecast: The legacy of ‘Playboy’ Buddy Rose
This weekend marks 10 years since the death of “Playboy” Buddy Rose. If you only know Buddy from the Blow Away Diet in 1990 WWF, then this show is for you. I talk with Rich Patterson, longtime Portland Wrestling fan and Buddy’s friend, about Rose’s legacy. We talk about Buddy’s feuds with Bull Ramos, Jesse Ventura,…
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Portland Wrestlecast: ‘Golden Boy’ Jerry Grey on 1980s wrestling politics
The mid 1980s were a transitional time for Portland Wrestling as established stars like Billy Jack Haynes, Rip Oliver, and Buddy Rose were in and out of the territory. Former wrestler Jerry Grey was there and seemingly caught in the middle of a political game between Billy, Rip, and Buddy. With Buddy reportedly going into the…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Doug Masters on the end of Portland TV
You may not know former pro wrestler Doug Masters, but he worked for Portland Wrestling during the time period you probably know best (1990-91) and was part of the last Portland Wrestling television show in 1991. In this episode of the Portland Wrestlecast, Masters talks about getting his nickname “Pretty Boy” from Roddy Piper and working with Raven,…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Scott Norton
You know Scott Norton was the IWGP Heavyweight Champion and a member of the NWO. But before he was world famous, he was teaming with Steve Doll, fighting The Grappler, and learning the ropes in Portland Wrestling. In 1990, Norton worked double duty as the ridiculous lumberjack character Scott “Flapjack” Norton for Verne Gagne in…
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Portland Wrestlecast: The legend of Tom and Gloria Peterson
Editor’s Note: This is a free edition of the show. No subscription needed! With catchphrases like “Wake Up!” and his famous flat-top haircut, Tom Peterson as synonymous with Portland Wrestling as Buddy Rose or Don Owen. Tom and Gloria Peterson sponsored Portland Wrestling for almost 25 years. With the recent passing of Gloria at the age of…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Dr. D’s real-life rivalry with Buddy Rose
Before he infamously slapped reporter John Stossel on ABC’s 20/20, David Schultz came through Portland. And on this episode of the Portland Wrestlecast, Dr. D talks to me about his feud with Playboy Buddy Rose. While it wasn’t unusual for a wrestler to come into Portland as a heel and then turn babyface to feud with…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Toni Rae Borne’s marriage to Buddy Rose
There are bad people and abhorrent behavior in all walks of life, including professional wrestling. This episode of the Portland Wrestlecast may be too intense for some people. If you have been affected by domestic violence, you may want to skip this show. Toni Rae Borne grew up around the wrestling business. She’s the daughter of Tough Tony Borne…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Toni Rae Borne, daughter of a legend
We’ve talked about her since the very first episode of the Portland Wrestlecast. Now, Toni Rae Borne joins me to talk about her memories of Portland Wrestling. Growing up as the sister of Matt Borne and the daughter of Portland legend “Tough” Tony Borne, hear her stories about growing up with a father in pro…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Raven in Portland Wrestling, pt. 2
It’s part two of our conversation with Raven — who was Scotty the Body in 1989 and 1990 in the Portland territory. During this interview, Jim Valley talks with the former “Scotty the Body” about his feud with referee Sandy Barr that actually popped the territory, his relationship with promoter Don Owen that eventually led to his…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Raven in Portland Wrestling
You know him best as Raven, ECW’s grunge-era cult leader. Before he was dark and brooding, he was loud, brash, and colorful as Scotty the Body in Portland Wrestling. This week on the Portland Wrestlecast, Jim Valley talks to Raven about his time as Scotty the Body in Portland. Scotty was responsible for many firsts in…
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Portland Wrestlecast: The night Santa attacked Billy Jack Haynes
While Don Owen did promote a show at the Portland Sports Arena on Christmas night, it was never the biggest or most important show of the year. However, it’s Christmas time on this week’s edition of the Portland Wrestlecast. If you ask fans who grew up in the 80s about the most memorable holiday angles,…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Remembering Larry and Curt Hennig
Before he was perfect, Curt Hennig was a young, green wrestler in Portland Wrestling. Then, he won his first-ever pro wrestling title, the Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship, with his late father Larry “The Axe” Hennig. In this edition of the Portland Wrestlecast, I recaps Curt’s career in Portland, including his feuds with Buddy Rose and Rip…
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Portland Wrestlecast: Dynamite Kid in the Pacific Northwest
You know Dynamite Kid from England, Japan, Calgary and the WWF, but do you know he also had a run in Portland and Don Owen’s territory? Not only was he a former Pacific Northwest Heavyweight and tag team champion, he played a key role in one of the most famous angles in Portland Wrestling history: the…