Tag: karl stern
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: History of the NWA title, pt. 2
In part two of my look at the history of the NWA World heavyweight title, I start with the decision in 1948 to form the National Wrestling Alliance, why Orville Brown was the first NWA World champion, why he was set to face Lou Thesz who also held an NWA World title, and everything you…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: A look at Dave Meltzer’s Andre The Giant bio
One of Dave Meltzer’s first mega obituaries is the subject of this episode of the DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show. When Andre The Giant died while attending his father’s funeral in France, Dave wrote a near book length synopsis of his life in the February 8, 1993 edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, packed full of…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: Old Tyme Wrestling Hour with Dave Wills
On this brand new Old Tyme Wrestling Hour on the Dragon King Karl Classic Wrestling Show, I talk about something I have been working on for a couple of months: the secret history of pro wrestling. The history of pro wrestling isn’t what a lot of people think it is and a lot of the bickering…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: ICW 1986 TV review
Have I got a special treat for you today: an episode of Joe Savoldi’s International Championship Wrestling from a winter 1986 TV taping. Watch along on YouTube. I call this episode “Daddy Issues” because it is full of sons and fathers and various issues. Cpl. Terry Daniels (apparently promoted from Private) is looking for his deadbeat…
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DragonKing Dark: 1977’s ‘In Search of…Bigfoot’
My DragonKing Dark retro TV review this week goes back into the ‘In Search Of…’ collection and tackles an icon of the 1970s: Bigfoot! In this episode of the series, the one and only Leonard Nimoy navigates us through the usual Bigfoot stories: men trapped in a cabin under siege from a group of creatures,…
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DragonKing Dark: 1972’s Future Shock
Orson Welles. We all know the name as one of the greatest directors and minds of the last 100 years. He narrates the focus of this week’s DragonKingDark: the amazing 1972 documentary Future Shock based on the book of the same name. Unlike so many other futurism documentaries and books, this one gets it right.…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: 1986 WCCW retro TV review
On last week’s Dragon King Karl show, I reviewed an episode of WWF TV from the first week of July 1986, so I thought we would see what World Class Championship Wrestling from Texas was doing the same week. Well, Kerry Von Erich was wrecking his motorcycle, so that’s what. So, it was Mike Von…
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DragonKing Dark: ‘Unacknowledged’ documentary review
This week on Karl Stern’s DragonKing Dark podcast, I review a 2017 documentary currently available on Netflix, Unacknowledged. It is an explosive expose on UFOs and what the world governments know. Interviews with very credible insiders leave little doubt that UFOs have been here, are currently here, and those facts are known inside the halls…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: USWA 1991 TV review
This week’s retro TV review looks back at the September 21,1991, edition of USWA Wrestling…or, as it should have been called, The Eric Embry Hour. I found this one on YouTube. It features the Dirty White Boy, Dutch Mantel, Jeff Jarrett, Tom Pritchard, and other southern luminaries as the battle between Texas and Tennessee is…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: Heroes of Wrestling, 20 years later
You asked for it. You said, “Hey Karl, we like your new burn it to the ground attitude” and “Hey Karl, more snark please.” So what did I do? I watched what is commonly thought of as the worst pay per view in the history of pro wrestling, the 1999 Heroes of Wrestling PPV, a…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: Huge 1920s shoot match
On this episode we look at the era of Ed “Strangler” Lewis and some really interesting stuff that happened during the early 1920s, including a big shoot match between an Olympic silver medalist and a mystery opponent known only as The Unknown! It’s pro wrestling at its finest, only this wasn’t the 1980s — it…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: A longform history of pro wrestling, pt. 4
Your host Karl Stern (also of When It Was Cool) presents the fourth part in a long series covering the chronological history of pro wrestling. Still in the Pioneer Era, we meet Richard K. Fox, a hugely important figure in wrestling history, and Col. James H. McLaughlin kills another man. Additionally, we get thoughts on newly…
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WOL: Sempervive & Stern on The Last Battle of Atlanta
Wrestling Observer Radio was back over the Sports Byline airwaves Tuesday with Mike Sempervive being joined by our own Karl Stern to talk about our feelings on the release of the LAST BATTLE OF ATLANTA — the final match between Tommy Rich and Buzz Sawyer on October 23, 1983. Considering you’re just getting a match of great…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling: A long-form history of pro wrestling pt. 1
Karl Stern begins an open-ended series about the history of professional wrestling, starting with the time before the pioneers of wrestling era even began. What exactly is pro wrestling and how did it come to be? Karl will be taking a deep look at this question and looking at President Abraham Lincoln’s time spent as…
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DragonKing Dark: Haunted houses & horror movies
On this episode of DragonKing Dark, host Karl Stern talks about the upcoming season of haunted attractions! Karl talks about his experiences with haunted attractions so far and what is going to be covered this year. Then, the conversation turns to horror movies and what most of them are lacking including a DragonKing Dark call to action to find a…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling: Marathon leftovers, Q&A
Karl Stern returns to the regular format of questions and answers and begins catching up on questions generated during the July marathon. Questions, corrections, and conversations include: When Tommy Rogers isn’t Tommy Rogers The wonderfully horrible job Sports Illustrated did with their ranking of wrestlers Marathon follow-ups on Canek, Marty Jannetty, and Sgt. Slaughter An incredible article…
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Dragon King Karl Audio: Lizmark, Star Wars spoilers, a little rock’n’roll
This week’s show is a change of pace to wrap up 2015 with the only wrestling talk being the death of luchadore Lizmark who was a major career rival of Karl’s mentor in pro wrestling, the late Ken Timbs. Timbs and Lizmark had a big feud in CMLL in the late 1980s over one of the major…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: Your holiday season wrestling gift buying guide!
On this special family-friendly edition of the Karl Stern Show, the Dragon King (and his wife!) talk about buying gifts for the wrestling fan in your life this holiday season. It can be intimidating for a non-fan to buy gifts for a wrestling fan, so Karl’s wife sits down with him to talk about what she looks for,…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Audio: Bruiser Brody biography special
On the latest episode of the DragonKing Classic Wrestling Show, host Karl Stern bring you the latest in a series of wrestler biographies. This week, Karl takes a look at the incredibly popular, mythical, and controversial “Intelligent Monster” Frank “Bruiser Brody” Goodish. Brody was a wild bearded powerhouse who ran roughshod through the United States, Japan, and Puerto…
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DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Biography Special: Abdullah the Butcher
This show is part two of a series of biographies on some of the wild and craziest wrestlers in history. Very few were more wild and crazy than the Madman from the Sudan, Abdullah the Butcher. The WWE Hall-of-Famer’s story is a complicated one. From his days to team with and battling against The Sheik to…