The Retro Wrestling Re-View USWA Podcast rolls on with Episode #85, and this week’s episode is a perfect snapshot of early 1991 Memphis wrestling: bizarre gimmicks, Rutter chaos, accidental comedy, and angles that began to turn things around.
Gene Jackson is joined by Josh Briley and Brian Tramel as they break down an unforgettable episode of USWA Championship Wrestling, Eric Embry promises the debut of his next Texas ally, Leatherface, the in-studio debut of Ta-Gar: Lord of the Volcano, a kickboxing experiment straight out of a Jean-Claude Van Damme movie, and one of the most unintentionally hilarious promos in territory history.
On this episode:
- Eric Embry introduces Leatherface by retelling the entire plot of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (complete with clips)
- Jerry Lawler immediately undermines the gimmick by calling it “a guy in a Halloween mask”
- Why the Leatherface angle still worked — and drew nearly 1,000 fans at the Pipkin Building!
- Ta-Gar debuts in the studio, shooting fire from his shield and clawing people with a flaming glove
- The debut of “Pistol: Pez Whatley, including a promo that turns into an unintentional Corey Maclin impression
- Miss Texas, Dirty White Girl, and one of the strangest catfight segments ever aired
- A mysterious “Vietnamese Kickboxing Match” featuring Dong Chao Mang and Rob Zukowski
- Why Chris Frazier deserves a medal for surviving this episode
- Doug Gilbert’s unpredictable Roughhouse gimmick lives for another week
- Real attendance numbers that explain why this madness seemingly actually mattered
This episode is USWA at its most grindhouse — ridiculous on paper, oddly compelling in execution, and endlessly fascinating in hindsight.
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