The Kaufman Lawler Feud: Chapter 34 - On Andy's Death

[peterp21]

People should also realize that wrestlers back then didn't break character on screen for any reason. Hell, Fritz von Erich worked his son's death into storylines. It's obviously a much different today now that the veil has been pulled back on pro wrestling for awhile now. For a look at breaking character back in the early 90s involving Lawler, as luck would have it, watch Doug Gilbert mention Lawler's arrest for raping a 13 yo on TV (charges were later dropped). Gilbert was blacklisted for it.

[dustyflair]

WOW...What an awesome series. I watched over the last 2 days. I think that this was awesome and classic and thank you for uploading it!

[shenyain]

Now that's a heel.

[TheGlarkCable]

Believing that Lawler had hated Andy Kaufman equals believing that wrestling is non-theatrical. Well, that's really dumb.

[WatchVenusSpa]

This must have been by far the toughest promo of Jerry's career considering how close they were in real life. Anyone who questions Lawler's place in the WWE Hall of Fame needs to watch this.

[ranchump]

who is the bigger genius- lawler or kaufman? i mean, lawler never breaks character or winks at the camera. he's unbelievable. but... maybe kaufman is the bigger genius for recognizing lawler's genius! either way, to prove the genius, plenty of people still think it was a real rivalry. every time i watch this stuff, my stomache hurts from laughing. i love the reaction of people in the stands- pure gold.

[Erndogg12]

@ranchump add Bill Apter to the list, he's the one who introduced Kaufman to Lawler

[adjuster57]

Dude!! Thank you so much for all 34 chapters of this feud. This was the best wrestling angle of all time.

[rocktrollet]

What if he would promise to wrestle Andy Kaufmans corpse for the belt?

That would have been fun

[fosponomot]

i always knew there was more than the few clips we've seen here and there. Thx for posting. fantastic. I'd love to get a copy of the whole thing before its taken away-thats what happens to all good videos. any torrent, filetube, or usenet action? thx again.

[ridingroy]

Good for you Jerry, "feud" forever ! Andy would have loved it...

[smcauley600]

"i wouldnt want jimmy hart talking about me when i die" or micheal cole

[Maribuu]

I like lawlers bangs

[jerzeefranky3475]

In the AWA,it's the Southern Title...In the NWA,it's the MId-Southern (International) Title...Mainly cuz the NWA already had recognized a Southern Title in CWF (Florida)...Unless they changed it later on in the 80s...Idk 4 sure...I was/am just guessing...

[xaviervonrottie]

It was just part of the show. Jerry never hated Andy. But no one ever knew this to years after his death.

[echalone]

That one was for Andy... thank's, Lawler, for keeping his spirit alive, even after his death... you two knew about entertainment!

[danteras23]

I think there is some genuine dislike at times in the business. I'm not sure Lawler really liked Andy and was maybe being honest. I can't say for sure, but it wouldn't surprise me.

[rekke41]

@danteras23

In the Man on the Moon biopic, Lawler revealed that not only was the feud staged but that the two were actually very good friends.

To me Lawler might have stayed in character in this clip, but he looks upset while talking about it.

[radioheadkids2]

Why do we always need a happy ending? Proof that Andy Kaufman wanted to keep the secret. Damn, nothing is sacred...

[grecon001]

Beautiful playlist. Thank You!

[douglasdnn]

Two great, great, great professional entertainers. You don't see that no more these days.

[quietriotfan1976]

I got to work a show with Jimmy Hart a few years ago. Hart had nothing but kind words about Kaufman, saying that it amazes him to this day the way the angle got over with the crowd, and the true passion that Kaufman had for being the villian.

[RSXemperor85]

@quietriotfan1976 Had Kaufman lived, he may have been booking somewhere. He loved wrestling. Can you imagine Kaufman in ECW?

[quietriotfan1976]

@RSXemperor85

That would have been money, especially with how passionate the ECW fans were about old school wrestling

[sanfranman123]

This series is totally excellent. Thanks so much for putting this up. For us Andy fans this stuff is simply priceless. Thanks again and again and again.

Watch Lawler's face carefully when Lance asks him the question about Andy. It looks to me like he really had to keep it under control because he's actually bummed out. They were friends and Andy actually boosted Lawler's career onto the national stage.

[TheRyryramone]

@ sunsetstripent .Lawler knew that Kaufman was not cashing his checks ,but it makes a better story in his book to tell the story of what kaufman's family told him other than what the territories accountant was telling him

[sunsetstripent]

How do you discover that checks weren't cashed? Did they not balance their check book that whole time? To anyone reading this...have you ever written a check for hundreds or thousands of dollars and didn't realized that it was never cashed and the money was still in your account? Ever do that with 20 checks for hundreds or thousands of dollars each? Just makes you go "hmmm" when things don't add up. Other than that, this was the best fued in wresling ever!

[michaelisajerk]

@sunsetstripent Most employers don't force their employees to cash their checks, so if a company's books are in the positive they certainly will not complain. Wrestling companies, in particular, don't have the greatest accountants (see ECW, Jim Crockett Sports, Verne Gagne, Vince McMahon), so they probably never noticed, as you pointed out. As for the checks, Lawler described the checks as still intact and connected to the paystubs. Andy Kaufman never cashed his checks.

[ranchump]

lawler was brilliant, to be sure, but he had to play along even after andy's death not so much because of andy, but because he would have harmed his career once everyone knew he was not for real. but god bless lawler- he played it so well.

[draculascoffin]

Yes Lawler was at Andy's funeral, Andy Kaufman was one of the greatest , I just wonder where he would be today in his career if he was still alive ?

[Bigum99]

Wow, couldn't even give a little bit about Andy's death...sorry statement but I quess he was at least honest.

Andy gave HIM a lot of publicity

[brabon1]

@Bigum99 lawler was still playing along...almost as brilliant as kaufman...he and andy were friends

im sure he wanted to really say what he felt about andy, but didnt want to destroy the illusion

[pureevilfnord]

@Bigum99 Andy ABSOLUTELY would have wanted it this way. He probably would have had him say WAY meaner things if he had his say.

[MiketheCabbie]

In the movie "Man On the Moon," Lawler is seen at Kaufman's funeral. Does anyone know if he attended the funeral IRL?

[ETW206]

I wholly agree with Stereolab; watching these videos has been a trip. Thanks Popculturestu.

Both Kaufman and Lawler played this so well. It's such a credit to Kaufman's integrity and love of the sport that he let Jimmy Hart attribute his "brain" (read "lung") cancer to Lawler's piledriver. Both of these guys are consummate showmen.

[cribbiesteve]

Love Andy's sense of humor,

Just spent 2+ hours watching 80's wrestling video's, nothing could have made me do that except genius comedy,

got sad when I realized there wasn't a video #35

you are missed,

who will screw with the childrens minds?

[jerzeefranky3475]

i loved "it came from hollywood"...as well as "the man in the moon"...the scene where george shapiro(danny devito) has kaufman(jim carrey) & lawler(himself) in the room 2 stop the "feud" ('cause it was getting A SKOOTCH outta hand from VARIOUS standpoint[s])...& lawler called the situation "a geat thing 4 wrestling"(?)!!!

[Stereolabdream]

Its been a fun journey from 1-34...tinged of course with sadness.

Thanks for the effort involved in posting these!

Much appreciated by this UK Kaufman fan.

[micmore007a]

I watch all these videos and would like to Thank You for all the Posts. Hard work I bet, but worth every minute. Thanks.

[ShiksaWithChutzpah1]

I gotta say, Lawler handled this really well.

[hopz316]

lol @ the muppet who says lawlers piledrive caused his death...either your a dumbass...or...u r a mark an think lawler n kaufman actually hated each otha lol duhhhhh

[jksonny]

I think Kaufman or Zmuda probably discussed with Lawler how he should react when/if Andy died. In any event, I'm sure Kaufman would have approved of keeping up the illusion.

[jpwjr1199]

lol!!!

[YouDickwod]

He died of cancer.

[klwewf]

I know you're joking and everything. But, be careful making jokes like that. You sound too serious & people will believe you to be dumb.

[virgin4lyfe]

Lawler is a good guy for not giving in and revealing the gag; kaufman's greatest practical joke. Lawler knew andy wanted to fuck with people even in his death.

[jerzeefranky3475]

i heard somewhere...maybe from reading the comments during this thingy...that andy WANTED jerry 2 act like he did 2 keep the act up 4 as long as possible...even during "it came from hollywood"...which was made a few or-so years later..."mr russell"/lawler/etc. ALL stayed true 2 the wishes 'till MITM/zmudas book/jerrys book ALL came out...question is...how do u think andy feels/thinks about ALL THIS being revealed the way its been?!?!?!?

[cenax3]

i think andy kaufman dided in 1985 and the guy was like and his 30s or 20s

[ALittleBitOfGreen]

Andy died in 1984 age of 35

[Word4Life]

he should bring back his beard!

[ballplayer1799]

Wow. Sad/but great feud. Wrestling used to be so much better. I wish there was a time machine... for so many reasons.

[radiofriendly]

Great classic gag. I bet this wasn't easy for Lawler.

[aj31313]

I can only guess that Andy's response might have gone some thing like:

"you're an asshole . a fucking asshole. I'm going to sue you for everything you've got. you fucking asshole.  I'm sorry i shouldn't use those words on TV i'm sorry . I'm sorry but you're an asshole."

check out Tony Clifton on Andy's death

[sanfranman123]

It is also possible that Jerry thought Andy was hoaxing his death. A lot of people did, including family members. Some people STILL think it's a hoax. Anyhow, thanks popculturestu. This fills in a lot of gaps for us Kaufman fans.

[MrDaddyCool3]

Did you know that Lawler revealed in his autobiography that after Kaufman's death, family members discovered numerous uncashed checks found in his house from his time in the wrestling business suggesting that Kaufman participated in wrestling purely for the love of the sport, and not for the money. Just goes to show how much he loved the wrestling business. A Great Guy

[CombatSportFan]

@MrDaddyCool3 I think everybody who knew him felt like he always wanted to be in wrestling first and foremost, and that when he got the chance to be in the Memphis territory that was his dreams coming true more than his acting and comedy gigs.

[michaelisajerk]

@MrDaddyCool3 I believe they gave Lawler a box full of those pay stubs, and no, not one check was cashed.

[pshclub]

this is really simple, here's the difference of why lawler can say what he did back then, and why it can't be done today...

kayfabe still existed back then ... your average wrestling fan truly could not distinguish which parts of wrestling were real or story-line ... you could honestly think that lawler & kaufman truly hated each other ... but today (and for the past 20 years), since wwe has given away the secret and openly comes out that wrestling is scripted, you can't keep kayfabe- it's gone

[SEMst500Blk]

popculturestu you are the best. Thanks for bringing back the memories.

[cryptsub]

Lawler doesn't break character, even upon the death of a collegue. Now that's a wrestler.

[dpman72]

Andy would have loved for the feud/ death conspiracy to go on for years. That's just who he was.

[BrickhouseB2]

God bless kayfabe. Andy would have loved Lawler's comments.

[RoderickStrong]

Lawler was a great worker back in the day. Most fans who see him when he wrestles today and think he sucks in the ring, but Lawler was an awesome wrestler in the 70's and 80's and even into the mid 90s. He was old school personified, but could get "hardcore" when he needed to, He was alos one of the best bumpers in the business.

[RoderickStrong]

But a lot of the fans today did not see Lawler in his prime

[ECOOL76]

So true. The guy can still move though.

[LetMeHaveAnSN]

Excellent playlist man, I love your stuff! Thanks so much for doing this for Wrestling fans everywhere especially those of us who were born after these brilliant years of the business.

[earthdog82]

i wonder if andy went to wwf who they would have had him work with :)

[annericelover]

Andy wasn't a real wrestler, it was a joke, Jerry Lawler was in on it and it only was for the Memphis Wrestling Venue. Andy and Lawler were friends and being that this is 1984 and how tight lipped wrestling was about having the matches fixed he had to stay in character even though he was also hurt by his death.

[salanh]

McMahon took over WTBS in July/August 1984 (the first time, if you will.)

I still argue that it was the greatest angle in wrestling history, as far as selling, national recognition and blurring the work/shoot line (for those who were not in the know.)

It was the same kind of eulogy that the Freebirds gave when David Von Erich died (around the same time as Kaufman actually.)

Thanks again Popculturestu for posting the entire feud highlights. It was greatly appreciated.

[DatbeRight]

Great stuff, Stu!!! Oh, man thanks so much for posting this!!!

I wonder what impact the Lawler Kaufman fued had on wrestling going from regional to a national setting.

When did Vince Mcmahon take over from Ted Turner?

[nishlord]

Thanks Stu. This playlist has been brilliant.

[sbeavers30721]

kayfabe to the end !!!!

[ThePlumber702]

ive seen lauler talk about kaufman and even in this you can see the pain in his eyes because he lost a friend

he may not be saying it with his mouth but his eyes say i miss you

[bastrdjohn]

isn't it ironic how lawler is working "caring less" when nowadays when i watch wrestlers eulogize each other i swear i think half of them are working themselves.

[excelsior34]

Great, great stuff

[Steadno]

trash

[ThePlumber702]

hush yourself now

[Steadno]

fly away

[introjectionate]

I remember reading in a wrestling magazine Jerry Lawler saying he cried when he heard that Andy Kaufman had died. Thanks for posting!