Jimmy Valiant Confronts Tommy Rich's Mom (Memphis)

[shoprite118]

NEVER SAW THIS ONE..PRETTY EXTREME SHIT..GUESS IT GOT TOMMY OVER AS A FACE..

[mdhotstuff]

I love Jimmy but this was wrong... I wonder what the date was

[patvilhauer]

This is such an excellent piece of footage. Tommy Rich's (big fat) mom performes beautifully...she cuts a better promo than almost ant WWE wrestler could do in 2011. Jimmy Valiant is great here too. He and Jimmy Hart never fail to mention that she is "big and fat...grandma." Absolutely hilarious!

[excelsior544]

"FI-AY-UN-Z" ==FANS. YOU SOUTHERNERS TIAULK FUNNY.

[DeepSouthWrestling1]

@excelsior544 : You northerners apparently have trouble finding the "caps lock" button...

[excelsior544]

@DeepSouthWrestling1

CAYUPS LAWK?? WHUT'S THAYUT??

[DeepSouthWrestling1]

@excelsior544 : It's official... you're an idiot.

[excelsior544]

@DeepSouthWrestling1

Uh oh! Sunday School lesson no 1: "Be kind to one another and build each other up!" Tisk, tisk . . .

[DeepSouthWrestling1]

@excelsior544 : When it comes to Memphis Wrestling, and those whom insult it, I'm afraid I cannot comply...

[excelsior544]

@DeepSouthWrestling1

Ha! Yeah, I was raised on Knoxville wrestling in the 60's: Sam Steamboat, Jackie Fargo, Lester Welch, Ronnie Etchinson (sp?), Luke Graham, Timothy Geohagen, the Von Stroheims, and my favorites--Al and Don Green. I wuz a rale fayun I tail yew whut! This bit here is almost as good as what all Hillbilly Ron Wright used to pull over in East Tennessee. But then there was Andy K!!

[DeepSouthWrestling1]

@excelsior544 : Ah yes... awesome Ron Wright! Glad he had one last run as a manager in SMW during the 90s... even then, he could talk 'em into the seats!! It's too bad so little footage of the wrestlers you mention is available... for all the promoters insights, very few thought to save the films of the matches/shows... imagine a great collection of Ron Wright, Jackie Fargo or the Greenes on DVD!!! If you haven't already, check out the recent film "Memphis Heat", it's pretty good...

[BigBlackBootyDaddy]

this redneck bullshit,fucking awful

[DeepSouthWrestling1]

@BigBlackBootyDaddy : You structure/punctuate your sentences as if you were a troglodyte.

[68rch]

Wonder if Peggy is still with is. Classic Tommy Rich.

[onemisguidedrose]

I remember watching this one tv when it firsthappened wrestling was so much better thenit was'nt as hokey as it is now tank you Vince Macmahon I still love the old school wrestling as opposed to today;s movie star wanna-be's.

[shaneshane316]

classic lance russell greatest commentator ever

[mudstud05]

I hope today's wrestler are watching these old clips of how to sell an angle..Wrestlers today can't put over an angle like they did back then..Awesome video..Wrestling back then puts the BS product today's wrestling to shame..

[deptofcorrections1]

"Get it seperated ToJo".Like that was gonna happen,lol

[bigD5172]

Imagine if Vince McMahon used a mother to get one of his wrestlers over.

[moggy1231]

lance russell is horrible

[DeepSouthWrestling1]

@moggy1231 : Your intelligence is officially in question.

[TheLeroyMoon]

Handsome Jimmy...going for the cheap heat!

[yardape99]

Tommy's mother should have bladed for dramatic effect!

[Somesubjekt]

@yardape99:

haha ye.why she not blade herself?

funny is the fact ,nobody look at her 5:05

[arkansoul]

Lance Russell knew how to sell EVERY angle. He is the true voice of professional wrestling.

[lvw100]

@sammy- Valiant was a heel several times before this- in Memphis, WWWF, and Florida.

[Hawk02a]

This is how to do a heel turn!

[Hawk02a]

This is gold! This is how to do a heel turn!

[litehouse6]

"Come on you guys. Knock it off." That's telling them Lance!

That looks like Tom Pritchard with Hart.

[litehouse6]

"Come on you guys. Knock it off." That's telling them Lance!

[sammys70]

I never knew Valient was a heel.This must have been before he became the Boogie Woogie Man in mid-atlantic wrestling.Why didn't Jim Crockett ever allow him to turn heel?JImmy would've made a awesome heel in mid-atlantic.

[yardlet6]

@sammys70 The Valient Brothers;Luscious Johnny and Handsome Jimmy. WWF tag team champs and worked other places too.

[xcellken1]

Does Tommy's Mom know what he allegedly did with Jim Barnette to get that short title run in 81???

[yardlet6]

@xcellken1 That never happened. Good story though.

[xcellken1]

@yardlet6 Yeah, I know. I just thought it was funny given that his mom was there, I wondered if she ever heard the rumors. Would've been a good angle. Some heel tells Mrs Rich what Tommy alledgedly did, Tommy gets mad, a fight ensues, its finally settled in a cage match in The Omni!!!

[The80srox]

At 3:43 did Valiant say 'bitch'?

[Joeyg50]

This is what wrestling should be about, storylines but not cartoons

[denzelsnipes69]

Tommy Rich's Mom is a great actress.

[WillHear432]

Was that Bobby Eaton with Hart? Hard to tell.

[mamacornettesmoney]

@WillHear432 yep, that's Beautiful Bobby Eaton.

[nwajoe]

I take it this was Tommy's face turn in Memphis?

[lvw100]

It was a double turn- a face turn for Rich and a heel turn for Valiant.

[eslubin]

what a low down dog Jimmy Valiant is manhandling a old mother like that

[jswags]

This is a CLASSIC wrestling angle...for all you fucks who think today's crap is great. Watch this and see what true classic wrestling was all about. Sadly, this kind of thing is gone forever and has been replaced with no talents like John Cena talking in the ring for 15 min and saying nothing....Its sad really

[DaveInOCNJ]

Watching this for the first time, having never seen Lawlerland on tv (just didn't have it in our area back then), it felt like Tommy was the face & Valiant was the heel. But from the description posted, I can't be sure.

Makes me wonder if Mrs. Rich(ardson) was "smart" to the business or not (only semi-joking, based on her performance).

[mamacornettesmoney]

@DaveInOCNJ They are both heels, but Rich is turning face.

[mikey777799]

I love Lance Russells demeanor. He sells it this way. Screaming and yelling commentators are annoying.

[catbird007]

lol...Bobby eaton is just clueless

[satchelmcqueenvideo]

nobody could bleed better than flair except rich.

[lockenjr]

you should check out some of the old portland footage with roddy piper and playboy buddy rose. They could bleed with the best of them in the late 70's and early early 80's

[joetodaro]

I have some, I'll be posting it eventually...

[lockenjr]

omg man do you really have som portland to post. I know it probably means nothing to you but I cannot express how grateful I would be for some portland posts. IT was my life growing up in the 80's and late 70's

[denzelsnipes69]

I like the way Mr. Wrestling II used to bleed through his mask back in the day.

[Rebel6911]

Who was that announcer? I expected him to say "Come on boys now, play nice" at any time. He acts like he's bored with the whole thing. Not a good sell at all.

[daveyjay15]

that was Lance Russell. The guy in the white suit that Tommy Rich pushed down near the end was Jimmy Hart

[Rebel6911]

Yes I know who he is. But he does an awful job here.

[yardlet6]

C,mon,they were doing a serious angle with Rich's mom so Russell underplayed himself. It was not the typical Memphis mini-riot.

[mamacornettesmoney]

@Rebel6911 That's the way he always di dit. "Come on boys, play nice now" is a great description of the way Russell would handle many of thiese situations.

[MrDeray5]

Classic angle, Tommy was a helluva bleeder

[traditionalwrestling]

What the hell was Tommy Rich wearing!!!?? LOL

[BigOrangePred]

He'd been out all night at Studebaker's on Overton Square. It is (or sadly WAS) a Memphis thing...

[styx38632]

LOL at 5:12 you can see someone finally starting to sweep up the busted tv set.

[stevemtc1]

I remember when this was on tv live one saturday afternoon. They never let you down. Always exciting watch the build up.

[ECOOL76]

Back when people were still descent inside and when wrestling was great.

[GohModley]

Back when wrestling was fun.

[Warchief01]

Who was the short round dude with Valiant?

[RayNDeere]

Tojo Yamamoto, a mainstay in Memphis in the 80s and 90s

[keymankeys1960]

Man!!!!!!!! Ya gotta love it!

[RevDarkehorse]

I remember this from my childhood. Thank You.

[bitter49er]

All that Lance Russell did was say, "Hey break it up, come on now guys", every week.

[eslubin]

@bitter49er he should have clubbed Jimmy in the chops w/the mic

[lawlersarmy]

Also, check out a VERY young Ricky Morton. He's the blonde headed kid that tries to help Bill Dundee separate the action. The other guy is Ken Lucas, he and Morton were southern tag champs around this time.

[egkjr]

Is that bobby eaton with hart?

[joetodaro]

Yes it is.

[Infinitespeculator]

Rich is a classic juicer. This worked I am sure to successfully turn him back to babyface. Brilliant!

[joethecabdriver]

Is there more footage of Valiant as a heel? He spent half his career as one, and it's a shame if there isn't more footage out there, because apparently he was a great one!!!

[debaucheryBotched]

Oldschool was better 'cause you never expected the surprise....now its a given

[eslubin]

@debaucheryBotched old school was better cause it was real

[BigOrangeTitan]

@eslubin The idea behind pro wrestling was you know it's scripted but make it look real.

[oldschool6804]

@BigOrangeTitan it's not all scripted jerry jarett told me they improvise!

[BigOrangeTitan]

@debaucheryBotched They used to do wild stuff. It wasn't as PC back then either. If they did this promo today they'd get sued.

[bigroy38]

Nothin sweeter than a Southern momma's accent.

[Tiderolls67]

God I miss the old days.

[ntcw]

Good video, Lance Russell is one of the most underrated announcers of all time.

[jswags]

great old classic stuff...you watch stuff like this and then you watch WWE today and realize how fuckin lame it really is

[STACKOLA31]

Will u fuckin look at bobby eaton's leotards

[DeathNebula]

Tommy Rich was the first wrestler I remember being nuts for...his matches w/Race in KC were were my first exposure to the glory of Pro wrestling

We didn't get the Memphis telecast in KC....so I never saw Valiant as a heel (never like him as a face)but I like what I saw

[lawlersarmy]

The Rich and Ko Ko incidents were either a week apart, or the same day. I still can't figure if it was done to make Vaiant a better heel, or Rich a face. Regardless, Rich went from Hart's mid-card tallent to "I'm my own man" main eventer, overnight. And Valiant became the most hated man in Memphis. Maybe the Greatest angle and turn ever, and wonderful post joetodaro. Like everyone else, I've waited years to see it again. I was speachless when it happened originally.

[sammytater]

This was in late Nov or early Dec of 1980, about 3 weeks before lawlers return from his broken leg. I used to record memphis wrestling on cassette tape in my early teens and listen to it over and over. I remember this incident word for word but havent actually seen it for almost 30 years! thank you very much for putting this on. I would love to see the 1981 louisville gardens brawl with lawler,dundee,mantell and the dream vs sullivan,farris,hart and the nightmares...remember that one?

[king4916]

do you have any footage of the match between lawler and harley race,when jimmy valiant jumped in and hit lawler with the bottle?

[volstar88]

Wasn't that when the fans rioted and did some major damage to the MSC ? I remember Lance going off on the fans, but that was a ripoff for the people who came to the match.

[gregm89]

wow was there ever an instance where tommy didn't blade? wildfire is the greatest bleeder ever

[volstar88]

The more I think about it, this seems like a really desperate move to get Rich over as a good guy. I am thinking this was around '79, could be wrong. About the time Lawler went out with an injury. They were faced with declining gates with Lawler gone. Valiant came in as a heel, I guess this was before his face turn. He packed the MSC as Lawler's foe in a series of matches but I am not sure he drew well when Lawler was out.

[mkl62]

This was around 1980/81. After his series in Memphis, he returned to Georgia and got into a blazing feud with The Freebirds. He later won the NWA Title from Harley Race, but lost it back 5 days later.

[eslubin]

@volstar88 He didn't. Cause Jimmy was a body guy and his looks were going. And he couldn't wrestle! That's always a problem. Especially in something called "wrestling"

lol

[volstar88]

Hmmm, Rich's mom gives a clearer interview than Tommy. Good to see some old Valiant. He was a great bad guy before his turn.

[hardcorehanna]

thanks man got any more memphis