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Date Posted: 15:37:37 01/13/02 Sun
Author: SMK
Subject: International Wrestling 1976 - A Season In Review

* Please note - There are probably some mistakes here; all I had to work with were the line-up cards.



International Wrestling 1976 - A Season In Review
A View Of The Loop From North Sydney, Nova Scotia

April

- As was the norm in the previous few years, the season kicked off with a battle royal on the 18th. The match likley acted as a way to introduce new stars, re-introduce old ones, and set up potential matches and feuds for future shows. This year's was headlined by Andre The Giant, already a huge star in wrestling but who was picking up steam as a mainstream star after his guest appearance on TV's "The Six Million Dollar Man." Other participants in the 11 man battle royal included, among others, The Brute, Mad Dog Martel, Frenchy Martin, Tommy Gilbert, Leo Burke, and Rudy Kay. I'd be surpriseed to find out if this show wasn't a sell-out.

- Tommy Gilbert, who became North American Heavyweight Champion sometime within the opening week, had his first title defense in North Sydney against Bulldog Brown on the 25th.

- Ticket prices remain unchanged from the 1975 season with Ringside seats at $3.00, Rush at $2.00, while Children Under 12 were granted admission for $1.00.


May

- Opened up with a bang as former N.W.A. Heavyweight Champ Dory Funk Jr. rode into the Maritimes. Funk, 3 years removed from losing the title to Harley Race, and in his only stop in North Sydney, met the challenge of former N.A. Champ and defender of Maritime pride, Leo Burke, in a grudge match on the 2nd.

- Gilbert, of Southern Tennessee fame and the father of Eddie, spent the month both defending the N.A. title and working tag matches - mainly against Frenchy Martin and Mad Dog Martel.

- Since the start of the season, one of the stars of the undercard was "The Brute" Jim Bernard. Bernard, a heelish bald man and no stranger to the area, having been a star here as far back as th late 50's, was placed in several squash matches from the start of the season, one a handicap match, to prove his worth as a title contender. In no time, Bernard was ready for a more challenging opponent. Rudy Kay, perrenial contender and local favorite fit the bill. As you'd expect, Bernard didn't just plow through Kay as he did with the Willy Trembleys and Ted Heberts of weeks prior. Twice he squared off against Kay, on the 9th and 16th. But as good as Kay was, he wasn't enought to stop The Brute. So with the win over Kay under his belt, the next logical step to the title would be Tommy Gilbert himself.

- The tag team ranks were owned by heels Frenchy Martin and Mad Dog Martel. While both had success touring the area before, together as a team they were untested. Immediately they were thrust into headline matches against combinations of Rudy Kay, Leo Burke, and Tommy Gilbert, perhaps to let the fans know they could hang with the big boys. And it worked. They found success soon after and became Maritime Tag Team Champions.


June

- The Brute had originally received his first crack at Tommy Gilbert's title back on May 23rd. A Return match - a 10 man lumberjack match - was set up for the 30th - perhaps indicating no clear winner had been decided. The verdict of this match would be clear by week's end though as The Brute would make his first title defense of the North American championship June 6th.

- Tomnmy Gilbert's final appearance of the season was in a six-man tag team match June 6th.

- The Beast makes his first appearance of the season June 6th.

- If May was the month of the Brute and his ascent to the championship, then June can be considered the month of the Brute/Beast wars. June 6th not only marked The Brute's first title defense it also marked The Beast's return to competition, ironically, against the champ.
This defense signalled the first in a series of three matches between the two. In this, the first meeting, The Brute escaped with his title. The second encounter, a non-title, big chain match on the 13th, must have really been a donnybrook. The title was clearly put on the backburner for this affair and the chance to simply punish each other was the definite objective. As brutal as it might have been, this match didn't settle anything either as the third encounter was booked for the following Sunday, June 20th. The stipulation this time around? A 10 man lumberjack match.
When the dust settled on this one, the result was clear. The Beast came out out on the short end of the stick, The Brute retained his title, and the push of a heel champion continued.

- Emile Dupre's Grand Prix Wrestling made a stop in Glace Bay's Miner’s Forum on Saturday, June 26, 1976. Features included a six man tag, midgets, and a Ladies match. Among the wrestlers who appeared were Cuban Assassin, Nature Boy Nelson, Buddy Austin, Emile Dupre, Farmer Brooks, and Vicky Williams.


July

. After the series with The Beast, a new challenger was needed for The Brute. Former 2-time N.A. champ Eric Pomeroy fit the bill. Not seen in these parts since the '74 season when he was one of the top babyfaces battling the evil forces of The Great Kuma and The Mongols, Bolo & Geeto, Pomeroy would make his return June 27h - a non title bout against The Brute.
The Brute and Pomeroy would occupy the main draw the following three weeks. While this series was less gimmick oriented than that of Brute/Beast, there is no doubt these encounters were any less heated or dramatic. At one point, The Beast even entered the game, acting as special guest referee in 2 of the 4 contests, likely to ensure some measure of fair play existed. But alas, at months end, the N.A. title remained around the waist of The Brute and there was nothing else to do but call up the next batter to the plate.

- The Stomper rolled into town for the 25th and a non-title shot at The Brute. He'd follow that up with a title match for the North American Heavyweight Championship on the 31st.

- The Taped Fist Trophy, equivalant to today's Hardcore titles, is put up for grabs as Champion Leo Burke defends against Frenchy Martin in a 1 Fall To A Finish match July 11th.

- Regular names in the undercard included John Firpo, Neil Guay, Jack Ruffin, Mike Sharpe, and Bill Coady. A note on Ruffin; he was shot to death in 1982 outside a bar in Ohio. He was 23.


August

- Bulldog Brown returned after a 3 month absence to headline a special Elimination match with The Brute, August 8th.

- After spending most of the season feuding with Frenchy Martin & Mad Dog Martel, Leo Burke gets his first crack at the N.A. title August 15th. He went on to main event the rest of August. A sign of things to come? Read on.

- Frenchy Martin and Mad Dog Martel continued their tag team dominance. It was from an easy ride, though, as The Beast remained a thorn in the champions side for 8 consecutive weeks. Rudy Kay, Leo Burke, and Eric Pomeroy each took turns in teaming with the man from Dorchester, NB., but no matter how hard they tried, it just wasn't enough to strip away the titles.
With the season past the halfway mark, it began to look like the champs were unbeatable.

- A Mr. Wrestling joined the promotion in time for the August 15th show and remainded on tour for the duration of the season. I'm not sure if this was the most famous Mr. Wrestling (Tim Woods), though.

- The Taped Fist Trophy, virtually owned by Leo Burke in the past, is vacated and put up for grabs on August 29th. Mad Dog Martel and Rudy Kay wrestle to a finish for the championship.


September

- Some new faces included Pat Ryan, Tapov Tio, Pretty Boy Anthony, and Hubert Gallant.

- September 5th was a great day to be a wrestling fan here; billed the Biggest Wrestling Card Ever Presented To The Cape Breton Area, N.W.A. World Champion Terry Funk defended the Heavyweight Title against Leo Burke. You would have been hard pressed to pass up on the chance to see what was at the time THE World's Championship being defended in your own backyard. And, while others might argue the title meant more when Dory Funk Jr. and Jack Brisco held the strap, quite simply, the NWA champ didn't make many stops here, and, as a result, made the event that much more special. Furthermore, when looking back at the events, September 5th proved to be a once in a lifetime opportunity as the title was never defended here again.

- Interesting to note is the way Burke and the North American Title were positioned both prior to and after the September 5th bout with Funk. It would seem to me that if one of the promotion's top guys, if not the top guy, is going to headline against the NWA Champ, you're going to want him to look strong going into the match, and, knowing full well Funk is going to leave town with the belt in hand, look good after the bell, too. And so, after spending most of the season in the semis with Martin & Martel, Burke was "elevated" into the title picture with The Brute on August 15th.
At the time though, Burke was the Taped Fist Trophy holder, so, in a smart move, he vacated the title. This not only allowed Burke to concentrate on bigger and better things ahead for storyline purposes, it also allowed 2 other wrestlers to grab some spotlight and battle for what was considered a credible title.
Therefore, with Burke free of having to defend the Taped Fist Trophy, you would think the North American title was his for the taking. Not quite. See, The Brute was a near unstoppable force as N.A. Champion, why job him to Burke in Burke's first shot, especially considering The Beast and Eric Pomeroy wrestled wars with The Brute and got nowhere.
Instead, Leo was matched up with The Stomper, a game veteran who could not only provide a solid challenge for Burke, but also someone who could put Burke over clean and and in turn give him a rub. Not that Burke neccessarily needed the help, but with him heading into the big title match, it certainly couldn't have hurt. And, the fact this was just the third appearance of the year for The Stomper in the area, it likely created the perception, reality or not, that Burke could not only beat local talent but also defeat names from away; ie. Terry Funk.
Meanwhile, The Brute and the N.A. title were pushed back a slot into the semi-final. This cleverly shifted the fan's attention from The Brute's title defenses to Burke's main event push and impending match with Funk.

- As for the match, if you're curious how it unravelled, a meeting between the two 3 days later in Halifax ended with Funk disqualifying himself by throwing Burke over the top rope, a no-no at the time. Apparently, Burke had gotten the better of Funk through most of the matchup, but with just under 5 minutes remaining, Funk, sensing he was on the brink of defeat, drew the DQ to save his belt.

- Leo Burke arrives in town on the 12th as N.A. Champion; a predicatable but nonetheless smart move, especially if the finish of the Burke/Funk match in North Sydney was anything like that of the Halifax show. After all, what better way for a promotion to get over their title, the sacrifice of The Brute notwithstanding, than to say the holder is the man World Champion Funk ran from?

- The Brute regains the North American Title by week's end, showing up in North Sydney as champion Sept. 19th. Perhaps the switch was made to restore any credibility he might have lost by putting Burke over the week prior.

- Mr. Wrestling, a heel, was really picking up heat as he squared off in a match with Rudy Kay on the 27th. The stipulation was, if Kay won, Mr. Wrestling would have to unmask. No word on how the match ended :)


October

- The final card of the year is held on the 2nd. Leo Burke, who regained the North American title sometime between Sept. 26th and Oct 1st, defends here against Michael "The Judge" Dubois.
With The Brute getting his win over Leo 2 weeks prior, I suppose closing the year with a babyface on top was the smart thing to do rather than finish with a heel as champion.
Interesting, though, is the choice of opponent. This was Dubois' first stop in North Sydney since August of '75. While he was a contender here before, why now? Where was The Brute? The former champ wasn't even listed to appear in the line-up ad. Did the promoters feel it was overkill to have The Brute re-challenge? Was his aura as being undefeatable diminished, or did the promoters not want the public to think the title was going to change hands "yet again?"
Whatever the reason, it's odd that The Brute would appear on every card dating back to the opening show April 18th, only to miss the final card of the year.

- The Beast fininshed off the year battling Frenchy Martin in a chain match. No doubt the fan favorite came out on top here, putting an end to his year long bloody feud with the tag team champs.

- At the conclusion of the season, the hottest wrestler would easily have been Leo Burke. He capped off the year headlining the final 8 main events, highlighted of course by the battle with Funk. You can't discount the team of Frenchy Martin & Mad Dog Martel, though. Or The Brute. Both held the promotions top titles the majority of the year and that can't be forgottton.


In Closing

What appears on the outside isn't always a tell tale sign of what's going on in the inside. 1976 seemed like a great year and featured many top flight attractions - Andre The Giant, Dory Funk Jr., The Stomper, The Brute, Terry Funk. The goings on in the ring certainly didn't seem to indicate problems, either, as great action was provided in the form of Grudge matches, Chain matches, Lumberjack matches and the straight scientific stuff, too!
More shows were presented to North Sydney fans in 72-76 than I ever thought possible. Never did I think 0000's of fans could pack the Forum on a weekly basis. Nor did I think it would be possible to run a weekly show from the beginning of April to the last week of November. And I can't tell you how cool it would have been to see the NWA Title defended or to see Lou Thesz wrestle (years past his prime, or not) in person.
But all this stuff did happen.
However, it was between 1976 and 1977 that a change took palce. It seems to have been at this time the reigns of the promotion were taken over by Emile Dupre. While the '77 season began under the banner of 'International Wrestling,' to local wrestling fans, it might as well have been called something else as it must have felt like they were watching a whole new group. Names familiar from the past several years were now a memory, and a new crew of wrestlers were brought in (not that this was necessarily bad, just different, that's all).
But the the biggest change of all would get more noticeable as each week went by. No where on the cards would you see the Beast, Leo Burke, and Rudy Kay. The family whose back carried wrestling here in the late 60's and 70's was now no where to be seen.

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