Great Debates '87

[seanvogt221]

I think the incident at the end started Bobby Heenan's neck problems.

[walka112]

WTF? Is there no uncencored version floating around? and my god Patera was utterly woeful beyond all known levels of awful on the mike. And they stick him in a "debate" with probably one of the best in the business, if not the best lmao

[Irockgswift]

I was 12 when I saw this. Patera was in great shape back then. Heenan made a big mistake attacking Ken Patera with that belt.

[Castleinthesky007]

Like I said before I can only remember about two scripted points at any given time and then have to repeat them over and over again ........

[GlorifiedTruth]

Heenan raises a good point.  Patera's kids did have a lot of snot coming out of their noses.

[rollerdisco]

This was before. This is the incident which led to e Heenan Family beat down.

[MrHandsallover]

Was this before or after he got that beatdown from Hercules, Orndorff and Race?

[unorthodoxtrotsky]

@MrHandsallover

If you are talking about the moment when Hercules, Orndorff, Race and King Kong Bundy whipping Ken Patera, I think this was WAY before that.

[MrHandsallover]

@unorthodoxtrotsky Thank you sir I appreciate it I loved this as a kid I couldn't stand Heenan but he is the greatest manager in the history of professional wrestling hands down not even a contest

[nept1974]

Poor Ken got all upset that Bobby never contacted him in the big house lol.

[PeeboTyson]

Ronald McDonald should've debated Patera since it was a McDonald's restraunt he threw a boulder into!

[cobbcon2001]

Bobby Heenan is the greatest thing pro wrestling has ever had, bar none.

[NJPlayer79]

Just to clarify, did Patera pay his debt to society?

[tonypanz]

The "debate" just made Patera look like a bumbling, raging idiot! He was 1 of the worst guys on the mic ever. Check out the Patera promo when he was so bad Mean Gene had to turn away from the camera because he was laughing so hard at patera's nonsense lol!

[stali28]

@tonypanz If you have this footage i would love to see it...whats the name of it lol(i'll look it up)

[tonypanz]

@stali28 Look up "Ken Patera murders a promo" on the youtube search. There are a few other vids on there too showcasing Pateras terrible mic work lol.

[Dan164usa]

The Weasel Got What He Deserved I Loved it And its Worth Laughing At Everytime I See This Video

[NoirFan01]

Did Patera actually win any medals at the 1972 Olympics? I know he competed but don't recall him winning.

[TVfanfanatic]

This was a great storyline. Heenan's neck injury provided tons of material for Gorilla Monsoon to goof on Heenan! The program where Heenan had his "doctor" on to confirm his severe neck injury was great!

[gamehound83]

Patera was shit. Heenan was and is gold

[Kubrickfilmfan73]

8:19  "Bobby the Heenan asked for it."

[fashizze]

"pressin weights pressin weights .and all your good for now is pressin license plates" LMAO

[fashizze]

this was a mismatch heenan was so quickwitted

[battleship423]

I will say that series of beeps was still easier to understand then any promo that Ultimate Warrior ever cut.

[KedrickBurton]

Bobby Heenan Cursing. 2:41

Bobby Heenan: You want an belt, You want a belt, I give an belt. 7:35

[alrussell1985]

best line ever on wwf tv, 'i had alot time to think about the bobby heenan types of the world, types like youself'. im glad to know bobby heenan is, actually, a bobby heenan type

[tonypanz]

@alrussell1985 LMAO! I also found it interesting and coincidental that Bobby Heenan was a Bobby Heenan type!

[alrussell1985]

@tonypanz very strange coincidence to me ha

[DukeofColumbia]

hmm . . . the first work/shoot angle ever (they did mention Patera's time in prison)

[danteras23]

This was a good angle. It had some depth and wasn't as ridiculous as some of the other angles in the WWF.

[jcp1977]

Ken Patera:I'm proud of being an ex-convict LOL

[Srd1126]

since when can prisoners get phone calls in their cell?

[stndrds79]

cmon refs! i always hated how when stuff like this happened to the heels, refs wouldnt come out to help them!

[OldSchoolRasslin]

It was the evil jap Saito's fault that Patera got arrested at McDonalds. He took loads of sachets of salt and threw them in the managers eyes, blinding him, then stole all the hamburgers. Patera was standing there when the managers vision cleared so he got the blame.

[brpierce]

Man...could Heenan sell a belt around the neck, or what?

[tifflover]

@7:54 isnt that a probation violation?

[pazios2002]

"I called my family"? Didnt they come to see him in prison? LOL God I miss Mcmahon behind the mic.

[WatchVenusSpa]

Is it just me or did I expect more from Heenan here? Solid performance but not his best.

[amindlessidiot]

HEINOUS REMARKS

[utsavman47]

I wish wrestlers were original ,unlike the actors in wwe

[pbrick6301]

Heenan has just compared Olympic medals to Boy Scout badges.

[forbesmh]

Bobby Heenan = Outstanding! This happened 23 years ago and I still remember Heenan's comments line for line, because it was THAT good.

[DanimalBr]

Some of Heenan's remarks actually were a little vulgar for 1987 WWF tv. If they had this debate today, Heenan would probably get cheered and Patera would get booed.

[mmkaviator]

Heenan played the ultimate scumbag

[PBNYC1271]

JUne 2 1987 if I remember correctly

[GlorifiedTruth]

Yes, it's all Heenan's fault that Patera went berserk and attacked a bunch of cops. Shame on you, Bobby Heenan. And what a great gimmick for a babyface--blaming someone else for all your screw-ups.

[nasalstyle]

Talking to you .. EX-CON! WTF.. a debate....LOL. for what?

[queenofscene16]

it's interesting how so many of these "old school" WWF angles seem so much more REAL than the TV product today. WWE presents a "slicker" more well-produced product, but it's so sterile and scripted that it lacks any true "heat" or "realism"

[NYCMESBRNX]

Heenan was on top of his game at this period in time...some of his best acting

[sadiqq7]

u wanna a belt u wanna a belt i give you a belt lol been funny since then

[kid66625]

Heenan was not saying nuttin bad when he got beeped the producers wanted u to think that so it seem's real

[itlogcrusher]

I was about 8-9 years old when I watched this, and 23 years later, I still wonder what Heenan was saying when he was getting bleeped out. This is classic!

[jimpsyd]

mean gene sure didnt seem to offended by whatever boby heenan said . during the whole bleep out ,he just stood there like heenan was reciting jack and jill lol

[toyotas2006]

LMFAOOO!

That is, without a shadow of a doubt, the FUNNIEST OPENING STATEMENT anybody has ever made, anywhere!

"Ex-CON!"

LOL

We'll start the segment THERE?

[Pattonfrodo]

anyone know what Bobby Heenan said on the part they "bleeped" out?

[hyline2000]

I always wondered what Bobby Heenan said and why they bleeped it out.I asked everyone I could.I've even asked a few wrestlers who were in the WWF back then.I've asked Hillbilly Jim,HonkyTonk Man,King Kong Bundy,and Tito Santana.They either didn't know or didn't want to say.

[Pattonfrodo]

You know, it could be just part of the story line. For all we know it was a bunch of made up nothing. Too bad we don't know any of the people who where there ringside. LOL

[landrykkb]

@Pattonfrodo It is true about Ken Patera doing time,although it was slightly exaggerated for storyline purposes and effect.

[809Ollie]

@Pattonfrodo he beat up 2 cops after smashing a mcdonalds window he served 2 years in jail

[Pattonfrodo]

@809Ollie yeah I knew that (and thanks for the reminder I did forget) WWE (WWF)

at the time would take real live events in a wrestler's life and make them into part

of the story line . What I wanted to know was If what Bobby said was made up and

they bleeped it out to make him look more like a heel. Or was facts ? who knows?

could be ALL Kayfabe for all we know. based on his going to jail.

[809Ollie]

@Pattonfrodo oh yeah i expect it was to make him seam worse

[Bkamlem]

i wouldn't blame bobby for his problems. I blame the grimace

[Stugazza]

Funny shit. Heenan really could work it. One of the greatest mangers of all time

[Irockgswift]

Looking at this many years later Heenan is right. Why is Ken Patera holding Bobby Heenan responsible for something he did? Then wanting Bobby to be supportive while he is incarcerated. I don't get it if Patera was innocent then his point would be valid but unfortunately it not.

[yogafan6500]

I miss the glory days of Bobby Heenan, he's a lot more better than that 'Piggy' i mean Vickie Guerrero. Classic WWF.

[cliffyboy215]

How many times did petera remind hennan and the crowd he paid his debts?? Good lord Hennan carried this debet all the way.

[yogafan6500]

I remember seeing this debate between Bobby Heenan & Ken Patera back in 1987and it was so shocking.

[echo685]

I love Bobby Heenan! Greatest manager ever. Wrestling needs to bring back managers the caliber of Heenan, Cornette, Blassie etc.

[Filmaker25]

BIG BIG EX CON

[Filmaker25]

Snot nose kids LOL LOL

[goykur]

the brain was by far one of the very best talkers in the history of wrestling. check out his commentating in the royal rumble 1992 and wrestlemania 8

[Srd1126]

whoa---dangerous move for Heenan who had neck problems in real life

[jakamneziak]

bobby heenan is much ebtetr at debating than ken patera. Big time. He might not be popular but bobby heenan was far better at debating and commentary than a lot of WWF superstars.

[landrykkb]

@jakamneziak Then again,that's why Bobby Heenan was Ken Patera's manager in the first place because Heenan could help get him over better.Keep in mind that Patera had previously been an I-C Champion before Heenan even arrived in the WWF.

[fashizze]

LOL @ 7:19 "all youve ever concerned yourself with was pressin weights pressin weights well all youre good for now is pressin license plates" lmao hhahahaha Owned

[fashizze]

.he jerked heenans neck like a dog on a leash..and that was back when .you could make an easy distinction between a face and a heel ..what patera did to heenan was graphic ..even the fans were confused how to react what just happened

[Filmaker25]

I remember the weekend when this aired, it was awsome!! I was soooo looking forward to the Patera Hercules match!!

[jayb1964]

I keep trying to figure out Bobby the brain heenan and the dumbest thing he ever did-I keep thing it was when Bobby Slapped Andre the giant in the face at wrestlemania 6-but then I come across this-I would say it's a tie!

[ideveloper1]

This is hilarious. I remember when this first aired - was too young to realize that nothing was actually being debated.

[bastlake]

Great stuff, absolutely great. We don't see heel managers doing stuff like this anymore.

[natureboy84]

I totally remember this! Great stuff! Bobby is just amazing. lol.

[jcp1977]

this happened after WrestleMania III and as for Patera he was a fuckin monster he nearly killed Bobby Heenan with that jerk of the belt around The Brain's neck.

[zique33]

If anyone ever asked me what my favorite wrestling moment was I would definately say it was this one. I laughed so hard that night when I watched it on T.V. and I laughed for 22 more years. I'm sure I'll laugh for more years to come :D LOL

[EternalDeathSavior]

The Brain was always entertaining. This is something of history in wrestling.

[932sd]

Heenan was brilliant here.....The older I get it never fails to amaze me that I come back to the 'family entertainment' era, the era often branded as cartoonish and you rediscover intense, adult angles like this where Patera's very real life mistakes are used as basis for a storyline.

Oh and has anyone noticed Heenan gets a few people clapping for him. Even then heels in the WWF had fans it seems.

[landrykkb]

@932sd I thought Bobby Heenan was hilarious then,even if he was a heel manager.On another note,in order to reaggravate an already bad neck injury and risk paralysis from the shoulders up,you knew that he was dedicated to selling this angle all the way.

[jaybyrd77]

Pure Gold from Heenan. So believable.

[reanimate21]

Patera ain't no Angle...do the math.

[BaronofBooya]

Kurt Angle didn't debut for another 12 1/2 years.

[buttheadsexy]

Haven't seen this in a loooong time! At the time I had no idea that Ken Patera was in prison until this angle. I thought that like many other wrestlers his time had come and gone. Even thought this was a great angle, it's just too bad that Patera's mike skills and wrestling skills were too far gone to make this what it could have been.

[landrykkb]

Bobby Heenan was arguably the best manager ever in pro wrestling because he knew how to draw heat like he did here.I remember watching this and getting a huge adrenalin rush.

[tygtback]

totally owned??? heenan was left on his face with neck pain. i remember when this happen. dat sh*t was funny as hell. heenan deserved everything he got. i truly believe heenans neck should have been broke. snap, crakle , pop goes the weasel. heenan looked like a crash test dummy when the car hits the wall. lol.

[Dundasholes]

That looked like it hurt. I remember seeing this as a child but I can't remember what Heenen said during the bleeps. Does anyone know?

[madmax21000]

Must've been extremely bad.

[uncletomthall]

The Brain totally owned Patera here.

[keijimuto]

How did the Patera/Heenan Family came to a close, was their any deciding match?

[gamehound83]

It think it ended the old way Nobody cared anymore about Patera anymore

[hyline2000]

Patera suffered a torn bicept and had to take time off.Then WWF started to bury Patera.They teamed him up with Billy Jack Haynes.Hayes and Patera were used to put Demolition over.

[badguy99]

Fuck that would've hurt when Heenan was swung like that, ouch!

[uofmrules1]

I figured even in reality it hurt because Heenan's neck was hurt already from a couple of years earlier.

[ShaneMullaney]

''He deserved it. He F#####g deserved it. I wish I would have broken his Fuc***g neck instead of just sprained it, Son of a Bitch!''

[uofmrules1]

Well, for me, at the time I wish Patera had pulled back harder and ripped his head off. Of course we didn't know just how fake it all was and that in real life Heenan and Patera were always friends.

[gamehound83]

Patera looks like a muscular Gene Simmons.

[Gamebox27]

@gamehound83 You mean Richard Simmons, right?

[zappatull]

I was at this taping. Worcester Centrum '87. Nice!

[JIMMYLINE]

since you were at the taping--what was Heenan saying during the "bleeps?"

[stndrds79]

@zappatull really>???? wow!! u remember it huh??

[rollerdisco]

Hey JoeMejia5,

Bobby Heenan was reading from the transcript of Ken Patera's trial.

[JoeMejia5]

does anyone know what Heenan said when he was censored???

[Srd1126]

Patera just kept saying the same thing over and over, and disrespected Heenan like the excon he was. His comeback did not last long.

[KillahWatts]

I've been waiting for somebody to post this!

This is one of the greatest angles ever!

[nightowl685]

"the bobby heenan types of the world...types like yourself!" lol, yeah i guess bobby heena is a bobby heenan type, eh?

[Nihilist69]

"I PAID MY DUES, BOBBY!"

[Dre7Guevara]

it was funny when Ken Patera yanked Bobby Heenan, but then I felt bad 4 him, because that shit looked like it hurt.

[Dietpepsivanilla]

I remember this! It was the greatest! Not since Ray "The Crippler" Stevens turned on Heenan in the old AWA did someone rip Heenan up.

[fashizze]

all your good for now is pressin license plates lol lmao

[terjer01]

Thanks for the post, disco! Heenan and Okerlund are sports-entertainment gold! Great line by Heenan: "Pressing weights... pressing license plates!" LMAO at the Weas... The Brain @ 2:10.

[Slattery2]

Is there an UNCENSORED version of this out there anywhere?

[Slattery2]

Heenan is dead. Is there an uncensored version of this debate anywhere?

[mitts61]

Not dead dummy.

[bobby13james2]

he's not dead

[dxrulz4life]

Bobby really had that coming...always keep up with a family member, even far, far away, and never disrespect Patera's family.

[PDizzo]

Wow Great Post. Ur the man. Keep it coming.

[jcp1977]

you know If I didn't know any better the mullet Patera had back then reminds me of Don Imud on steroids

[ratesforless]

Dang, check out 5:30-5:55; Heenan went off on Patera about his role as a manager. You could see some fans in the background actually cheering Heenan...

[Lannis32]

Yeah, I caught that to! You could tell the fans weren't buying the Patera angle.

[terjer01]

I was cheering for the Weas... I mean Heenan!

[CaptainPillowMusic]

I taped this when it was originally on when I was a kid, and watched it over and over. Thanks for posting it.

[stndrds79]

@CaptainPillowMusic hahah cooL!

[jaysirrock]

I remember seeing this when I was 12 years old.

I thought Heenan was dead. Thanks for posting.

[RickyD1967]

Wow, that was crazy, it looks like Bobby Heenan really got hurt there, that was a dangerous move puting that belt around his neck and yank the belt back and fling him like a rag doll.

[georgyfontaine28]

I think this is what led to his neck problems and why he had to go from manager to the least stressful job as commentator for the rest of his career.

[VolumedMusicMan]

No,Heenan's neck injury goes way back to 1983 in Japan. His opponent laid a legdrop on his neck and landed the wrong way and hurt his neck. Heenan still took bumps regardless. It's too bad wrestlers didn't have medical insurance in those days. Heenan had to go through his life in constant pain.

[gjs78]

That's why the Heenan left the WWF for WCW

WCW offered Health Insurance

So he could get surgery on his neck

[daddymak8]

This happened in 1987, Heenan didn't leave the WWF until 1994.

[OldSchoolRasslin]

@VolumedMusicMan

His opponent that day was Atsushi Onita

[thenoblegeek]

I'm really surprised that Bobby Heenan allowed himself to be yanked by the neck at this point in his career. He had suffered a broken neck in Japan back in 1983 that left him in pain all the time.

[Lannis32]

I am to. Heenan better have gotten paid well for that! I know he's rich now.

[ideveloper1]

Uhhhhhh just what was a debate going to accomplish? Would it prove Heenan was to blame for Ken & Saito getting a case of the Harold & Kumar's?

[MarvinYoureNaked]

What would Ken do for a Klondike bar?

[stndrds79]

by the way, no one is a bigger fan of bobby then myself!!

[luckychucky77]

Fantastic!

[MarvinYoureNaked]

YESSSSS!!!!

[JCPv3]

awesome, thanks so much for this.

[stndrds79]

thanks for posting this!