MACW History December 1975

[HardcoreHeroes]

Just checking out the feature at the Gateway:

"The man who Paul Jones defeated for the U.S. Heavyweight Title, Terry Funk, pulled a major upset and unseated Jack Brisco for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on December 10, 1975. However, due to the time the promotion took off during the month of December, Mid-Atlantic fans were not told of the change on TV until a number of weeks later. In fact, on the Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling 1975 Year In Review show that ran in most Jim Crockett Promotions cities on Saturday, December 27th and featured Funk against Wahoo McDaniel and Paul Jones in great matches from the year 1975, Terry Funk was not introduced as the new NWA World Champion! On the Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling TV show featuring Bob Caudle and David Crockett, this would not happen until the show that ran during the first week of 1976."

Okay, so here'e my question...

I seem to remember Ed Capral announcing on the Worldwide show that he'd just received a phone call and that Terry Funk had defeated Jack Brisco for the NWA World championship.

Granted, my memory isn't what it used to be, but I thought I remembered it like this: the mid-week Worldwide taping was indeed on 12/10/75, the night of the title change. And I also believed this Worldwide show aired the following weekend.

I know my first knowledge of the title change came from the Crockett TV show.

Anyone else recall?

[Baltimore Jack]

You are correct, Hardcore. And I will be updating the Almanac historical narrative to reflect that within the next few days.

David Chappell and I can be forgiven for this, however, since the Mid-Atlantic show was the only show that aired in Richmond at the time. Wide World did not air on TV in the Richmond market until much later, soon after Richmond area ring announcer Rich Landrum became host of that show, I believe. What David reports for Mid-Atlantic Wrestling is correct, and would have been what fans knew in Richmond or other markets that only got the Mid-Atlantic show. The change was only announced on Wide World Wrestling during the weeks following the change, and Richmond didn't get that show. I knew of the Wide World/Capral announcement, but failed to make the change in the Almanac.

The Crocketts had an unusual taping schedule in December, which I am in the process of ironing out for an upcoming Gateway feature. This resulted in four (4) Wide World shows being taped on Wednesday 12/10/75, which began airing the following Saturday 12/13. This included the annual year-end highlights show and allowed for the two week break David Chappell mentions in the Almanac for December 1975.

The final Mid-Atlantic taping at WRAL for 1975 was done on an unusual Sunday 12/7 at 1 PM, taping three (3) live studio shows and also the annual year-end highlights show to round out the year. Since the NWA title change occurred after this taping on 12/10, the Mid-Atlantic show did not report the change until their first show back for 1976 which was taped Wednesday 1/7/76 and aired 1/10/76.

We recently came across some additional audio tapes of Mid-Atlantic and Wide World TV shows from 1974-1976, and combined with George Scott’s datebook/journal from 1975, we were able to figure all that out. It was VERY confusing until we had the tapes to match up with the datebook. And we could have never done it without it. (Thanks HH! )

I am working on a page which will document all of this as an addendum to the Alamance for December 1975, and may possibly include the audio clips, as they are fascinating to listen to.

You have an excellent memory. During the program, Capral informs the crowd that they have just received a phone call, that Terry Funk defeated Jack Brisco for the NWA title. (The taping was indeed taking place the same night as the NWA change in Miami Beach, FL.) Capral confirms this as Paul Jones is wrestling Larry Sharpe in the ring. (Jones had just defeated Terry Funk for the US title on Thanksgiving night in Greensboro, and they subsequently made a big deal of this in order to set up NWA title shots for Paul Jones against Funk.)

At the very end of the show, Capral announces to the television studio audience at WRAL, and first informs Paul Jones as well, that Brisco had lost the NWA title and the man who won it was Terry Funk, who Paul had just beat for the US title.

(For more on the origin of the audio tapes and who they belonged to, visit this link in the 30th Anniversary of the 1975 US title tournament:

www.midatlanticgateway.com/Resource_Center/gateway_remembers/nov1975greensboro/nov1975_tourn_audio.htm)