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Getbig Misc Discussion Boards => Wrestling Board => Topic started by: Montague on July 15, 2009, 04:55:42 PM
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Tom Billington has talked about this incident in detail in his book and within various interviews.
The injury occurred in Hamilton, Ontario and would begin a long series of back problems consisting of increasing severity for Billington.
Tom’s work and body were never the same after this match, which is widely considered to be the beginning of the end of the Dynamite Kid’s career.
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Don't mean to be a dick who the fuck is this or care ???
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It's amazing how the smallest movement can cause such a serious injury. All he did was jump over the guy, but he must have misplaced his feet and twisted something. It's a shame to see that happen to a talented guy.
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it can happen.
remember this:
kevin Nash returns after months with a quad injury and reinjures it simply by WALKING.
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Tom Billington has talked about this incident in detail in his book and within various interviews.
The injury occurred in Hamilton, Ontario and would begin a long series of back problems consisting of increasing severity for Billington.
Tom’s work and body were never the same after this match, which is widely considered to be the beginning of the end of the Dynamite Kid’s career.
Good find Montague, I remembered hearing about this back in '86 but I always wondered how it happened.
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it can happen.
remember this:
kevin Nash returns after months with a quad injury and reinjures it simply by WALKING.
I've always thought the Vince one was funny, how he just sits there after it happens.
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I've always thought the Vince one was funny, how he just sits there after it happens.
The thing is, what is he supposed to do? He tore his quad, he couldn't get up. That was embarassing for him. If i'm not mistaken he tore both quads there and was wheelchair bound for a while.
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The thing is, what is he supposed to do? He tore his quad, he couldn't get up. That was embarassing for him. If i'm not mistaken he tore both quads there and was wheelchair bound for a while.
It shows how tough the old man is, both quads torn, and he still gets on with the show! Big Kevin Nash went down like a big girl. ;D
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Good find Montague, I remembered hearing about this back in '86 but I always wondered how it happened.
Glad you guys liked it.
Last night was the first I’ve ever seen it myself – I didn’t even know that footage existed.
Yes, little things can lead to big injuries, although there is usually a lot more underlying factors leading up to it.
Remember that Dyno was big time into steroids, cocaine, speed, pain pills, uppers, downers, etc.
He was injecting cortisone into his shoulder several times per week at one point!
And, most of all, he was taking some MAJOR bumps.
He was the first to do the superplex off the top rope, and his matches with Sayama a few years before this incident were brutal – lots of wear and tear on the body.
And don’t forget that he usually took the brunt of the big impact moves for his team, while Davey often came in to make the save at the end of the match.
In his book, Tom goes into great detail about the circumstances leading up to, during, and immediately after this accident:
How he didn’t want to give Vince the tag belt while injured, the job the Bulldogs did to the Heart Foundation, how he was planning to really mess up Brutus Beefcake in an upcoming cage match, the infamous Jacques Rougeau incident(s), and the downslide of his ring career following all of this.
You can also find some of that info in various interviews he’s done since retiring.
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Glad you guys liked it.
Last night was the first I’ve ever seen it myself – I didn’t even know that footage existed.
Yes, little things can lead to big injuries, although there is usually a lot more underlying factors leading up to it.
Remember that Dyno was big time into steroids, cocaine, speed, pain pills, uppers, downers, etc.
He was injecting cortisone into his shoulder several times per week at one point!
And, most of all, he was taking some MAJOR bumps.
He was the first to do the superplex off the top rope, and his matches with Sayama a few years before this incident were brutal – lots of wear and tear on the body.
And don’t forget that he usually took the brunt of the big impact moves for his team, while Davey often came in to make the save at the end of the match.
In his book, Tom goes into great detail about the circumstances leading up to, during, and immediately after this accident:
How he didn’t want to give Vince the tag belt while injured, the job the Bulldogs did to the Heart Foundation, how he was planning to really mess up Brutus Beefcake in an upcoming cage match, the infamous Jacques Rougeau incident(s), and the downslide of his ring career following all of this.
You can also find some of that info in various interviews he’s done since retiring.
I read in a magazine that he was taking 1,200 mgs of testosterone & injectable d-bol each day
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He also once purchased and used horse steroids when his regular supply ran out. Got a pretty bad reaction from it, too. :)
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is he still alive?
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is he still alive?
Yeah, but he’s not doing so hot.
I know that, shortly after retiring, he went to work on his old friend/former opponent John Naylor’s farm – not sure what kind of arrangement they had.
He remarried – don’t know what the status of that is now.
Last time he got any kind of mainstream press was when they interviewed him following the Chris Benoit incident.
They also interviewed his ex-wife Michelle (Julie Hart’s sister).
She had some shocking stories to tell.
Even more shocking is that he confirmed some of them.
FF to about 1:30 to see Dynamite Kid today:
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Don't mean to be a dick who the fuck is this or care ???
For all its worth and despite all the injuries Dynimate Kid had, he was probably the greatest and most talented wrestler ever. A price he has to pay for the wheelchair and injuries today.
So if you like wrestling, you should care.
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He also once purchased and used horse steroids when his regular supply ran out. Got a pretty bad reaction from it, too. :)
The "horse steroids" he used was the old original veternary Ganabol (EQ). he ushered it in with the above two I mentioned. I seen him and Davey Boy Smith at the Toronto airport once back in 1986 when I was only 11 years old. They were built like buses and ripped.
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Do you remember Davey around 1991/92 – when he had the dreadlocks?
He worked a program with Hennig, and absolutely dwarfed him. Curt was no slouch, either.
Then he started tanning, and looked like he was about 8 weeks out from stepping on an IFBB stage.
But that period when he jumped back & forth between WCW and the Fed, leading up to his IC win over Bret at Wembley…that is the best I remember Bulldog ever looking.
PHENOMENAL.
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Do you remember Davey around 1991/92 – when he had the dreadlocks?
He worked a program with Hennig, and absolutely dwarfed him. Curt was no slouch, either.
Then he started tanning, and looked like he was about 8 weeks out from stepping on an IFBB stage.
But that period when he jumped back & forth between WCW and the Fed, leading up to his IC win over Bret at Wembley…that is the best I remember Bulldog ever looking.
PHENOMENAL.
I agree. He bulked up even more in '91-92' when he returned wrestling solo. He was huge. It doesn't surprise me about dynamite though. I read his "Pure Dynamite" book and it was very interesting. He fucked up his back in that 1986 vid that you showed us and ever since then he has been on a Pain killer, rec drug, steroid, alcohol crash coarse. Add 300+ days of travel and taking bumps and sooner or later, your body is going to crash. He was taking 3 perkisets alone before each wrestling match against doctor's orders from late '86 - '92 when he retired.
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How about the chapter where he outlines his daily drug regimen:
Speed to wake up and catch the plane,
Valium to sleep on the plane,
Steroids before the gym,
Cortisone before the match,
Cocaine, booze, and percosets after the match,
Valium to fall asleep at night.
I don’t know if that’s exactly correct (my book is still packed up in one of many boxes from moving), but it’s close.
Out of all the pro wrestler autobiographies I’ve read, "Pure Dynamite" is on my "top 2 favorites" list.
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How about the chapter where he outlines his daily drug regimen:
Speed to wake up and catch the plane,
Valium to sleep on the plane,
Steroids before the gym,
Cortisone before the match,
Cocaine, booze, and percosets after the match,
Valium to fall asleep at night.
I don’t know if that’s exactly correct (my book is still packed up in one of many boxes from moving), but it’s close.
Out of all the pro wrestler autobiographies I’ve read, "Pure Dynamite" is on my "top 2 favorites" list.
Close enough.... 8)
I remember reading that he took 3 perkoset before each match to numb his ailing back and musle relaxants afterward. Either way, that is a lot of druguse. Thats why I get nervous when these guys die because you have the general public blaming juice for it. Its not the juice. Its all the other crap they do plus the hectic scheduals. Its murder on your body.
Have you read the Bret Hart book? Its a good read as well. Very interesting.
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Thats why I get nervous when these guys die because you have the general public blaming juice for it. Its not the juice. Its all the other crap they do plus the hectic scheduals. Its murder on your body.
Repeat for the masses.
Have you read the Bret Hart book?
No.
I was worried it would only be a pity-party vehicle for Bret.
Does he do more than whine the whole way through?
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Repeat for the masses.
No.
I was worried it would only be a pity-party vehicle for Bret.
Does he do more than whine the whole way through?
It's a good read. He basically tells you what happens behind the scenes, the parties, the drugs, the affairs with women, etc.
Quoted from Dynamite's autobiography...
In his autobiography, he writes: "A normal working day for me was: speed to wake me up in the morning to catch an early flight, valium to make me sleep on the plane, Percoset just before the match, then we'd wrestle, hit the beer, and the cocaine, until the early hours, before taking another valium to sleep at night."
"I was in good company, because the majority of wrestlers all shared more or less the same lifestyle."
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For all its worth and despite all the injuries Dynimate Kid had, he was probably the greatest and most talented wrestler ever. A price he has to pay for the wheelchair and injuries today.
So if you like wrestling, you should care.
During my “indy training days” NJPW was required study material, and we bought up anything with the Bulldogs – not that we would/could do ¾ of that stuff, but you paid attention to body language, cues and other subtleties. That’s how you learned psychology and “acting” in the ring.
Always interesting, too because Dyno spoke very little Japanese, and many of the Japs couldn’t speak much English. How do you communicate with your opponent?
One of the promoters I worked for was a huge mark for early Japanese pro style.
While on the topic of rare Bulldog footage, below is a little seen clip of both cousins training in the gym.
It’s more of a promo than a workout, but fun for nostalgia nonetheless.
**I’m turning this into a British Bulldogs thread.
If anyone has anything even remotely interesting (good or bad), feel free to post it here – matches, interviews, facts, etc.**
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I said this before and I'll say it again, after the Road Warriors, the British Bulldogs are the greatest tag team of all time. And they probably would be the best if they had a longer run together. There was nothing this team couldn't do. I was simply in awe of them.
Does anyone remember one of their first squash matches on WWF t.v. and they got a standing ovation from the crowd? Like them, I never saw anything like it. They were truly that good.
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I don’t remember their first match, and I didn’t know it was a squash.
Here’s a clip I posted in another thread a few months ago featuring a young Mick Foley’s first WWF appearance – the same match he writes about in “Have a Nice Day” in which Dynamite dislocated his jaw.
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Dyno was so stiff on that clothesline according to Foley he couldn't eat solid food for a week.
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I remember watching the dynamite Kid years ago when he used to be on World of Sport on saturday afternoon here in England.This is how he looked before he moved to the states and gained a lot of size.
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Good find Crownshep. I never saw this rare footage before. Goes to show you how much size he later gained.
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I was about 16 at the time and thought he looked massive even back then for someone so young.Then he disappeared for a few years and the gym i moved to had a bar area and a satelite dish installed,so all of a sudden we could watch the WWF wrestling,and who should turn up,but the Kid.I couldn`t believe how much size he had put on since he moved to America.Theres quite a few videos of him from the 70s,if you type in World of Sport Dynamite kid on youtube.
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I was about 16 at the time and thought he looked massive even back then for someone so young.Then he disappeared for a few years and the gym i moved to had a bar area and a satelite dish installed,so all of a sudden we could watch the WWF wrestling,and who should turn up,but the Kid.I couldn`t believe how much size he had put on since he moved to America.Theres quite a few videos of him from the 70s,if you type in World of Sport Dynamite kid on youtube.
Nice. I will check it out. I always loved the dynamite kid. His snap suplex is untouchable.
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For all its worth and despite all the injuries Dynimate Kid had, he was probably the greatest and most talented wrestler ever. A price he has to pay for the wheelchair and injuries today.
So if you like wrestling, you should care. i always wonder why a guy with no knowledge tries to weigh in with why should we care, if you don't want to discuss wrestling history in an intelligent fashion why the hell are you bothering to come on this section of the site. could it be that you are a post whore only trying to improve your stats why only god knows. sorry for the rant, but this is a good thread and i am tired of seeing it ruined by a@@holes.
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1.) This thread is anything but ruined.
2.) Enjoy!
8)
P.S. - I'll be adding some more Bulldog stuff here next week.
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/b.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/c.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/i.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/a.jpg)
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/h.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/g.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/f.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/d.jpg)
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/2.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/3.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/1.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/5.jpg)
Dynamite with Bret Hart
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/4.jpg)
Dyno with – I believe – George Takano (the original “Cobra”)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/6.jpg)
Dyno with a young Chris Benoit in Stampede Wrestling
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Benoit looks completely different there, although I suppose he still had all his teeth in that pic.
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Dynamite was extreme before that was even a wrestling word. Anyone remember his super-duper-plex he gave Randy Savage off the top rope at the "Wrestling Classic" tournament back in 1985 (?). JYD went on to win the tournament. I was just a kid and when I saw that suplex I was speechless because I never saw anything like that before.
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Lots of guys do the "superplex" today, but he was the first.
edit: Some guys half-ass it and execute it from the second turnbuckle. Dyno always launched from the topmost rope...
which I suppose would be a lot harder on his opponent than him. ;D
But Dynamite took most of the hard bumps in his matches - both singles and tag.
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z4.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z1.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z2.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z3.jpg)
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z6.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z5.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z10.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z11.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/z12.jpg)
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And Davey...
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Smith3.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Smith1.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Smith2.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Smith4.jpg)
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Not exactly a shoot, but some good archival footage of Davey:
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Anyone know what Davey's wife is doing now? I always thought she was very attractive.
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I remember when Daveyboy made his return in 1991 or so. he was huge. much more massive than during his tag run. they had him feud with Warlord.
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How good would a British Bulldogs dvd set be? Simply Amazing.
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It's a good read. He basically tells you what happens behind the scenes, the parties, the drugs, the affairs with women, etc.
Is it Bret that details how Hellwig and Davey were released from the Fed around '92 because it was found they were receiving HGH from a pharm in England?
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How good would a British Bulldogs dvd set be? Simply Amazing.
Most of their best stuff took place in Japan.
If interested, search youtube.
Or, if you want, I can send you links to DVD's.
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Is it Bret that details how Hellwig and Davey were released from the Fed around '92 because it was found they were receiving HGH from a pharm in England?
No, Warrior stated this in his website and blogs. Wether their is truth to it is unknown.
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A little Japanese footage:
Dynamite Kid vs. Tiger Mask 4-21-83 highlights
Dynamite vs. Davey Boy
Dynamite retirement ceremony
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Simply awesome. Dynamite kid is pure greatness.
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Davey Boy vs. Bret – Prime Time Wrestling 04/87
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in his book, Bret went into details on how Davey had smoked crack for weeks straight before their big match and couldn't remember a single spot they had rehearsed. If you go back at watch many times during the match you can see Davey's eye darting around all over the place just like a junkies.
Bret also told how Davey's drug use had deteriorated into straight morphine injections and drips prior to his death.
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I haven’t read Bret’s book.
I know the Hart family ostracized Davey due to his drug use/behavior.
Did Bret also mention bad feelings when Davie started dating one of the Hart brother’s (maybe Keith’s) ex-wife?
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in his book, Bret went into details on how Davey had smoked crack for weeks straight before their big match and couldn't remember a single spot they had rehearsed. If you go back at watch many times during the match you can see Davey's eye darting around all over the place just like a junkies.
Bret also told how Davey's drug use had deteriorated into straight morphine injections and drips prior to his death.
This is true. Bret had to carry that match as Davey missed a few spots due to being high on pills.
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The following article/interview appeared in the Aug. 24th 1999 edition of the Calgary Sun. It discusses the details of Davey Boy Smith’s WWF return following Owen Hart’s fatal accident, and Bret Hart’s reaction:
(http://slam.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_aug99.jpg)
It's Rocky and Family Feud all wrapped in one.
Davey Boy Smith, the 35-year-old wrestler the world calls The British Bulldog, returns to the ring next month.
He's inked a five-year, multi-million dollar deal with Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation.
Still, with all that, Davey is angry.
Angry at those who thought he was all washed up.
Angry at the WWF's rival, World Championship Wrestling, which fired him months ago as he lay in hospital.
Angry at brother-in-law Bret Hart, who dragged Davey through the dirt when Davey vowed to wrestle again.
"I'm really psyched. My strength is ungodly. I feel I could run through a wall," says Davey, in his first interview with the press since his signing a few weeks ago.
"I baffled the doctors. There were the doubters who said I was all washed up.
"There were those who said the Bulldog was a lazy, fat slob.
"There were some people in my own family who were hoping I wouldn't come back.
"But I said: I'll show you all. And I'll show Bret. When I really get mad, I get furious. Make me motivated and I'll go for it. I'm not afraid of anyone. If Bret's got a problem with me, he knows where I live."
When this column informed the public of Davey's comeback in July, Bret used his Sun column to slam Davey.
"Saw a strange sight yesterday. Dogs rolling in manure and loving every minute of it.
"For some reason, it made me think of how the British Bulldog will do anything to work for the WWF," wrote Bret.
"There were these four little pigs in the pig races. The guy there told me they'd sell out their mothers and brothers and sisters to the slaughterhouse, just for those mini donuts. Kind of reminds me of ... er ... I won't go there this week," Bret also wisecracked.
Davey can't understand Bret. Davey does not think his comeback is in any way defiling the memory of Owen Hart, who died in a WWF match earlier this year.
"Why does Bret attack me? What have I done to him except stick by him? I can't figure out why. He even called my wife on the phone and said: If I see you on the street, I'll run you over, you..."
The rest cannot be printed in a family newspaper.
"I'm really angry at Bret. I went with him to the WCW. I paid a $100,000 fine to leave the WWF. I was backing Bret up. I felt responsible for what happened to Bret, when he lost his belt.
"After all that, he nails me. When I was let go, who the hell backed me up?"
"Why should I leave what I love for one person? Does Bret expect me to sit at home and do nothing the rest of my life? Does he want me to lose everything just to satisfy him? I refuse to do that.
"What happened to Owen is tragic but there is nothing I can do about it. Vince did not push Owen."
Six days a week down at B.J.'s Gym, Davey shakes aside all the naysayers and keeps his eye on the prize.
He diets like crazy and sweats like crazy to get down to his fighting weight of 245 lbs.
There is something in the heart and guts of this former delivery boy from the English town of Golborne, near Manchester.
Something that will not say no.
The way back amazes even Davey.
Davey smashes his back against a trap door in the ring a year ago.
He gets hooked on painkillers and enters rehab.
Three discs in his back dissolve in a sea of infection.
Doctors say his career is through.
His sister dies. His mom dies. Owen, his brother-in-law and one-time tag-team partner, dies.
But he does not give up.
The road to his new contract begins in April with Davey in a bed at the Rockyview Hospital. His back battered, his wrestling career seemingly over.
It was then Vince McMahon called. Davey and Vince joke around. Vince asks about Davey's back.
"Six specialists tell me I'll never wrestle again but Vince told me: 'If anyone can do it, you can do it.' Then I was really psyched. I was ecstatic."
WWF stars Chyna, Triple H, The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin called Davey.
WWF star Mankind visited him. "I thought to myself: This is where I belong, where I started. With Vince," recalls Davey.
Davey signed the deal last month but kept quiet until now.
In July, Vince sent first-class tickets to Davey and his wife Diana.
A limo took them to their suite at the New York City's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
At lunch the next day, the deal was done.
"I felt like a bloody movie star," says Davey, who is counting the days to his first match -- expected to be Sept. 20.
"If you put yourself down, you stay down.
"I get back up. If I can't perform, then I'll hang up my tights and burn my boots.
"But it will not happen. No way. I mean it. No way."
And, in that very moment, Davey once again takes on all the doubters, the critics, the WCW, and yes, even Bret Hart.
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The following article/interview appeared in the Aug. 24th 1999 edition of the Calgary Sun. It discusses the details of Davey Boy Smith’s WWF return following Owen Hart’s fatal accident, and Bret Hart’s reaction:
(http://slam.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_aug99.jpg)
It's Rocky and Family Feud all wrapped in one.
Davey Boy Smith, the 35-year-old wrestler the world calls The British Bulldog, returns to the ring next month.
He's inked a five-year, multi-million dollar deal with Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation.
Still, with all that, Davey is angry.
Angry at those who thought he was all washed up.
Angry at the WWF's rival, World Championship Wrestling, which fired him months ago as he lay in hospital.
Angry at brother-in-law Bret Hart, who dragged Davey through the dirt when Davey vowed to wrestle again.
"I'm really psyched. My strength is ungodly. I feel I could run through a wall," says Davey, in his first interview with the press since his signing a few weeks ago.
"I baffled the doctors. There were the doubters who said I was all washed up.
"There were those who said the Bulldog was a lazy, fat slob.
"There were some people in my own family who were hoping I wouldn't come back.
"But I said: I'll show you all. And I'll show Bret. When I really get mad, I get furious. Make me motivated and I'll go for it. I'm not afraid of anyone. If Bret's got a problem with me, he knows where I live."
When this column informed the public of Davey's comeback in July, Bret used his Sun column to slam Davey.
"Saw a strange sight yesterday. Dogs rolling in manure and loving every minute of it.
"For some reason, it made me think of how the British Bulldog will do anything to work for the WWF," wrote Bret.
"There were these four little pigs in the pig races. The guy there told me they'd sell out their mothers and brothers and sisters to the slaughterhouse, just for those mini donuts. Kind of reminds me of ... er ... I won't go there this week," Bret also wisecracked.
Davey can't understand Bret. Davey does not think his comeback is in any way defiling the memory of Owen Hart, who died in a WWF match earlier this year.
"Why does Bret attack me? What have I done to him except stick by him? I can't figure out why. He even called my wife on the phone and said: If I see you on the street, I'll run you over, you..."
The rest cannot be printed in a family newspaper.
"I'm really angry at Bret. I went with him to the WCW. I paid a $100,000 fine to leave the WWF. I was backing Bret up. I felt responsible for what happened to Bret, when he lost his belt.
"After all that, he nails me. When I was let go, who the hell backed me up?"
"Why should I leave what I love for one person? Does Bret expect me to sit at home and do nothing the rest of my life? Does he want me to lose everything just to satisfy him? I refuse to do that.
"What happened to Owen is tragic but there is nothing I can do about it. Vince did not push Owen."
Six days a week down at B.J.'s Gym, Davey shakes aside all the naysayers and keeps his eye on the prize.
He diets like crazy and sweats like crazy to get down to his fighting weight of 245 lbs.
There is something in the heart and guts of this former delivery boy from the English town of Golborne, near Manchester.
Something that will not say no.
The way back amazes even Davey.
Davey smashes his back against a trap door in the ring a year ago.
He gets hooked on painkillers and enters rehab.
Three discs in his back dissolve in a sea of infection.
Doctors say his career is through.
His sister dies. His mom dies. Owen, his brother-in-law and one-time tag-team partner, dies.
But he does not give up.
The road to his new contract begins in April with Davey in a bed at the Rockyview Hospital. His back battered, his wrestling career seemingly over.
It was then Vince McMahon called. Davey and Vince joke around. Vince asks about Davey's back.
"Six specialists tell me I'll never wrestle again but Vince told me: 'If anyone can do it, you can do it.' Then I was really psyched. I was ecstatic."
WWF stars Chyna, Triple H, The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin called Davey.
WWF star Mankind visited him. "I thought to myself: This is where I belong, where I started. With Vince," recalls Davey.
Davey signed the deal last month but kept quiet until now.
In July, Vince sent first-class tickets to Davey and his wife Diana.
A limo took them to their suite at the New York City's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
At lunch the next day, the deal was done.
"I felt like a bloody movie star," says Davey, who is counting the days to his first match -- expected to be Sept. 20.
"If you put yourself down, you stay down.
"I get back up. If I can't perform, then I'll hang up my tights and burn my boots.
"But it will not happen. No way. I mean it. No way."
And, in that very moment, Davey once again takes on all the doubters, the critics, the WCW, and yes, even Bret Hart.
Well, don't forget that Davey was married to Bret Hart's sister. Their divorce caused all the termoil. Davey cheaton Hart's sister with Hart's other sister (fucked as it maay seem). This tore the relationship between Hart and his sisters apart. How would you react if someone banged your sister and then banged another broad and caused termoil in your family?
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Well, don't forget that Davey was married to Bret Hart's sister. Their divorce caused all the termoil. Davey cheaton Hart's sister with Hart's other sister (fucked as it maay seem). This tore the relationship between Hart and his sisters apart. How would you react if someone banged your sister and then banged another broad and caused termoil in your family?
In July, Vince sent first-class tickets to Davey and his wife Diana.
A limo took them to their suite at the New York City's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
At lunch the next day, the deal was done.
Yes, I'm not contending that the inter-family tension was unjustified, but it appears as though Bret lashed out about Davey's WWF return before the bigger soap opera errupted.
Even Stu publicly commended Smith on the move:
http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99jul5.html (http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99jul5.html)
Calgary's wrestling patriarch said he wouldn't want to hold Davey Boy Smith back from entering the ring again -- even after the tragic death of Owen Hart.
"It'd be like telling a hockey player like Wayne Gretzky to find another vocation. 'All I can do is play hockey,' " said Stu Hart.
That's even after the May 23 death of Owen Hart -- Smith's brother-in-law and Hart's son -- who fell while attempting a dramatic entrance to the ring in a Missouri arena.
Hart said he wasn't surprised to learn that Smith wants to return to wrestling.
"I don't know what the hell (Smith) could do if he doesn't go back," said Hart. "There's nothing that could compete with that."
Davey was no angel, but I’ve got to agree with his and Stu’s stance.
Really, Davey paid out of pocket to follow Bret to WCW – even Bret’s own brother Owen didn’t do that.
Davey got hurt and was released from WCW.
What exactly would Bret like him to do?
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Yes, I'm not contending that the inter-family tension was unjustified, but it appears as though Bret lashed out about Davey's WWF return before the bigger soap opera errupted.
Even Stu publicly commended Smith on the move:
http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99jul5.html (http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99jul5.html)
Davey was no angel, but I’ve got to agree with his and Stu’s stance.
Really, Davey paid out of pocket to follow Bret to WCW – even Bret’s own brother Owen didn’t do that.
Davey got hurt and was released from WCW.
What exactly would Bret like him to do?
Owen didn't leave because he was still contracted to the WWE. Davey left out of his own reconisance and had his lawyer negotiate him a 100,000 dollar release fee.
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Well, isn’t this sweet?
After all their differences Bret Hart publicly admits just who he feels is the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be:
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Bret Hart was definately one of the best performers of all time. People can say what they want about him but its the truth.
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I agree.
I also believe he was very full of himself, but most of the top guys were/are. Besides, his ego & behavior pale in comparison to the Hellwig’s and Nash’s.
At least Bret was respectful and polite to coworkers and fans.
I don’t know when this interview took place, but I was surprised to hear him say what he did about Billington.
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I agree.
I also believe he was very full of himself, but most of the top guys were/are. Besides, his ego & behavior pale in comparison to the Hellwig’s and Nash’s.
At least Bret was respectful and polite to coworkers and fans.
I don’t know when this interview took place, but I was surprised to hear him say what he did about Billington.
Billington is definately a loose cannon. The guy had a shot gun to his first wife's head back in the early 90's.
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Did you view that clip from the Benoit case I posted a few months ago?
They interviewed Tom & his ex-wife Michelle.
She talked about the shotgun incident, and later in the segment he confirmed it!
He then followed up by saying he was never violent, and that the shotgun under the chin was unloaded.
Shit. I guess that makes everything okay, then.
I wonder what she’s all worked up about.
::) ;D
I actually saw that program with my girlfriend the night it originally aired. We came across it accidentally while flipping channels.
Imagine my surprise when, while channel-surfing, finding Dynamite Billington being interviewed from his wheelchair at his posh public housing complex near Manchester.
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Did you view that clip from the Benoit case I posted a few months ago?
They interviewed Tom & his ex-wife Michelle.
She talked about the shotgun incident, and later in the segment he confirmed it!
He then followed up by saying he was never violent, and that the shotgun under the chin was unloaded.
Shit. I guess that makes everything okay, then.
I wonder what she’s all worked up about.
::) ;D
I actually saw that program with my girlfriend the night it originally aired. We came across it accidentally while flipping channels.
Imagine my surprise when, while channel-surfing, finding Dynamite Billington being interviewed from his wheelchair at his posh public housing complex near Manchester.
Yup...lol, "I had a shot gun to her chin, but it didn't have any shells."
That was pretty intense. How did he let himself get like that. 250 thousand dollars a year for 8 years with the wwe plus all his Japan work and Stampede work. How the hell did he wind up so broke? Kinda makes one wonder....
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From reading the book, it sounded like he left everything he’d made (up to that point) to Michelle and their kids.
He claims he returned home to Lancashire as broke as when he left for Calgary as a teenager.
I don’t think he did much after that.
He did some work for Stew just prior to the divorce, but that was peanuts.
IIRC, after returning to Manchester Baba used him a couple of times – some of them in a “special guest” capacity – for his old tour rate, but that money would have run out way before now, even living well under his means.
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From reading the book, it sounded like he left everything he’d made (up to that point) to Michelle and their kids.
He claims he returned home to Lancashire as broke as when he left for Calgary as a teenager.
I don’t think he did much after that.
He did some work for Stew just prior to the divorce, but that was peanuts.
IIRC, after returning to Manchester Baba used him a couple of times – some of them in a “special guest” capacity – for his old tour rate, but that money would have run out way before now, even living well under his means.
I'd love to see on pen and paper what his AAS intake was. I know he did a lot of EQ and injectable d-bol plus God knows what else. He was big and ripped in the eighties.
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I think it was one of his tours for All Japan with Davie – it was the best I’ve ever seen him look.
He was more huge & ripped than I can remember him at any other time in his career.
He literally looked like he was less than 2 weeks out from stepping on an NPC stage.
-
I think it was one of his tours for All Japan with Davie – it was the best I’ve ever seen him look.
He was more huge & ripped than I can remember him at any other time in his career.
He literally looked like he was less than 2 weeks out from stepping on an NPC stage.
Speed to wake up, steroids gallore, hit the gym, go to the show, 3 percocets before the show, muscle relaxants after the show, beer & cocaine and 3 percocets before bed. Typical day in the life of the dynamite kid. And no this is not a joke.
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Here's an old TNT clip that aired shortly before the Bulldog's title win against The Dream Team at WM II:
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Here's an old TNT clip that aired shortly before the Bulldog's title win against The Dream Team at WM II:
Nice clip..brings back memories.
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You’ve read the book so I know you already know this, but for the other 3 people who read this thread…
:)
I’ve gotta hand it to Dynamite. If it wasn’t for his assertiveness, the Bulldogs may not have become tag champs – at least not at WM II.
Both cousins were still going strong in Japan at that time.
Typical Vince wanted them to work only for him, but he didn’t want the tag titles to change hands at Mania (from Beefcake & Valentine).
Vince booked Dyno & Davey for WM, but wouldn’t give them a bigger push without a contract.
Billington didn’t want him & Smith to be used in that capacity and basically told Vince they’d be going back to Japan after Mania.
Well, Vince agreed to give them the belts & a main event push, but only if they signed a contract and worked only for WWF. The rest is history.
-
You’ve read the book so I know you already know this, but for the other 3 people who read this thread…
:)
I’ve gotta hand it to Dynamite. If it wasn’t for his assertiveness, the Bulldogs may not have become tag champs – at least not at WM II.
Both cousins were still going strong in Japan at that time.
Typical Vince wanted them to work only for him, but he didn’t want the tag titles to change hands at Mania (from Beefcake & Valentine).
Vince booked Dyno & Davey for WM, but wouldn’t give them a bigger push without a contract.
Billington didn’t want him & Smith to be used in that capacity and basically told Vince they’d be going back to Japan after Mania.
Well, Vince agreed to give them the belts & a main event push, but only if they signed a contract and worked only for WWF. The rest is history.
I remember reading this. Very interesting stuff and billington was way more street smart then davey boy smith.
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I remember reading this. Very interesting stuff and billington was way more street smart then davey boy smith.
No question.
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Listen to the audience laugh at Dustin Rhodes @ the 2:00 mark, when he delivers a piss-poor elbow from the second rope.
Japanese fans appreciate good wrestling, but they also demand it.
Rhodes wasn’t even jumping from the top rope to begin with.
Then when he does jump, he lands squarely on his feet and then falls with the elbow.
Japan is not the place to work like that.
Davey also growing well into the “pre-Whoopi Goldberg” mullet.
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Listen to the audience laugh at Dustin Rhodes @ the 2:00 mark, when he delivers a piss-poor elbow from the second rope.
Japanese fans appreciate good wrestling, but they also demand it.
Rhodes wasn’t even jumping from the top rope to begin with.
Then when he does jump, he lands squarely on his feet and then falls with the elbow.
Japan is not the place to work like that.
Davey also growing well into the “pre-Whoopi Goldberg” mullet.
Holy Christ...I could have dropped a better elbow than that. That was embarassing.
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One of the biggest criticisms regarding Davey is that he was always more of a follower in the ring - never much of a leader.
Here’s a match from the program he worked with the Warlord back in the early 90’s. I think it shows Davey’s ability to adapt to his opponents’ strengths AND weaknesses. And being that Smith was the more experienced & talented of the two, I would attribute more of the match's success rate to him than Warlord (sorry, W).
Warlord was an impressive physical spectacle, but he had some obvious limitations in the ring. Davey worked with both to partake in what I thought was a pretty good match.
Besides, if their chemistry was that bad, Vince would have shit-canned the angle well before WM.
-
One of the biggest criticisms regarding Davey is that he was always more of a follower in the ring - never much of a leader.
Here’s a match from the program he worked with the Warlord back in the early 90’s. I think it shows Davey’s ability to adapt to his opponents’ strengths AND weaknesses. And being that Smith was the more experienced & talented of the two, I would attribute more of the match's success rate to him than Warlord (sorry, W).
Warlord was an impressive physical spectacle, but he had some obvious limitations in the ring. Davey worked with both to partake in what I thought was a pretty good match.
Besides, if their chemistry was that bad, Vince would have shit-canned the angle well before WM.
Davey boy smith was one of the very few wrestlers that was big and muscular and could also wrestle soundly.
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A very young Davey Boy vs. Fit Finlay:
-
Some good footage there Mont.
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I'm a total mark for the Bulldogs (duh), but I always enjoy watching some good, alternative wrestling - be it from a different time and/or place.
As you know, both cousins came up essentially the same way in U.K. wrestling – Ted Betley, Max Crabtree, etc...
You can certainly see shades of Davey’s later work in this match.
Finlay's no slouch, either.
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I'm a total mark for the Bulldogs (duh), but I always enjoy watching some good, alternative wrestling - be it from a different time and/or place.
As you know, both cousins came up essentially the same way in U.K. wrestling – Ted Betley, Max Crabtree, etc...
You can certainly see shades of Davey’s later work in this match.
Finlay's no slouch, either.
Finley is a great wrestler. Very good ground technichian.
You'll never be upset with a bulldogs match.
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I'm a total mark for the Bulldogs (duh), but I always enjoy watching some good, alternative wrestling - be it from a different time and/or place.
As you know, both cousins came up essentially the same way in U.K. wrestling – Ted Betley, Max Crabtree, etc...
You can certainly see shades of Davey’s later work in this match.
Finlay's no slouch, either.
Finley is a great wrestler. Very good ground technichian.
You'll never be upset with a bulldogs match.
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Damn…
Look how young Taker looks here – 1991, shortly after his WWF debut.
Even though not a clean JOB, Davey was still pretty much “fed” to Taker throughout much of the match.
Never really thought of either of the Bulldogs as enhancement talent, but I believe this was shortly before Davey's first WCW departure.
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Did any of you guys see a match in WCW with Finlay and Regal where they wrestled part of it outside, on a car, etc...? That match was incredible, but of course it got little to nothing for them during that time in WCW. I would love to find a vid of it, but haven't yet.
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How dare you derail my Bulldog thread, you stupid, little jabroni.
Anyway, here:
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How dare you derail my Bulldog thread, you stupid, little jabroni.
haha, sorry about that.....but hey, I got what I wanted. Thanks!
Awesome match. That was so out of character for WCW at the time. Two favorite moments are Regals elbow drop on the truck hood. And the piledriver at the end. Plus the punches were so stiff.
Fav comment by Hennan....."He's outta gas!" at the finish. haha
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Damn…
Look how young Taker looks here – 1991, shortly after his WWF debut.
Even though not a clean JOB, Davey was still pretty much “fed” to Taker throughout much of the match.
Never really thought of either of the Bulldogs as enhancement talent, but I believe this was shortly before Davey's first WCW departure.
ya, Taker was pretty young back then He's definately been around for a while. Davey Boy Smith IMO could have been yused much better then what he was.
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haha, sorry about that.....but hey, I got what I wanted. Thanks!
:)
ya, Taker was pretty young back then He's definately been around for a while. Davey Boy Smith IMO could have been yused much better then what he was.
I was always surprised he never had a HW championship run – at least as a “transitional” champion.
Back then, an I.C. win was often a precursor to getting the big strap (there were a few exceptions like Tito Santanna & Steamboat).
Davey proved he could work both sides as a heel & baby face.
I’m disappointed it never happened.
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Here’s a clip from Stampede Wrestling some time after the Bulldogs’ only WWF run as a tag team:
And here’s why they seldom gave Dynamite a mic:
Calling someone a “test tube baby” is some of the meanest, dirtiest fightin’ words I’ve ever heard used anywhere.
-
From the Wrestling Classic:
-
Davey – World of Sport / 2-80:
Davey – Return to WWF / 10-90:
-
I remember when Dynamite Kid first came to the WWF. He was in a tag team with Bret Hart. At the time, had you told me Bret would be the one who would go on to be the bigger star, I would've said you were nuts. Bret was so non-descript; whereas Dynamite was the most exciting in-ring performer I had ever seen.
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I know exactly what you mean.
Dynamite was incredible, but ascertive - and often a stubborn bully who was difficult to do business with - whether you were another wrestler or the promoter.
Bret was a cooperator, and improved tremendously throughout his tenure.
And even though he got "screwed" in the end, he was rewarded for his work ethic, performance, and loyalty for a lot of years in which Vince took pretty good care of him.
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I know exactly what you mean.
Dynamite was incredible, but ascertive - and often a stubborn bully who was difficult to do business with - whether you were another wrestler or the promoter.
Bret was a cooperator, and improved tremendously throughout his tenure.
And even though he got "screwed" in the end, he was rewarded for his work ethic, performance, and loyalty for a lot of years in which Vince took pretty good care of him.
I remember back in 1989, Jauques Rougeau took a roll of quarters and sucker punched Dynamite as he walked by in the dressing room for an earlier dispute. He hit him four times and Dynamite would not go down. He remained on his feet. He was one tough SOB.
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I remember back in 1989, Jauques Rougeau took a roll of quarters and sucker punched Dynamite as he walked by in the dressing room for an earlier dispute. He hit him four times and Dynamite would not go down. He remained on his feet. He was one tough SOB.
And Vince got a wood over it.
Tom has always questioned if Vince was in on at least part of JR's little number - particularly when Rougeau jumped him in front of Pat Patterson, who was standing right there.
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And Vince got a wood over it.
Tom has always questioned if Vince was in on at least part of JR's little number - particularly when Rougeau jumped him in front of Pat Patterson, who was standing right there.
I always wondered that myself. Vince and Dynamite had heat after he hurt his back in hamilton as Vince wanted the bulldogs to drop the titles to Sheik & Volkoff (thank Christ that didn't happen) but Dynamite said FU and would only drop the titles to the Hart Foundation. Vince is very vindictive so who knows.
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Remember when the old man sent Bret to try getting the tag belt from Dyno, and Tom refused?
Then Vince called him & said, “You were right to keep the belt, Tom ( ::) lie of the decade), but we’re running out of taped footage of you & Davey, and I’m gonna need those belts to be defended soon.”
So Vince didn’t want to have a tournament for vacant titles, but he was willing to give them to Sheik & Nikolai? ???
From a story line standpoint, holding out for a job to the Hart Foundation was the best thing for the Bulldogs, HF, and the fans.
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I would take HBK as h/w champ over Edge anyday.
JMO.
Anyway...
2 of the best workers:
This match – my favorite in their series – showcased HBK shortly before the start of his back problems that would happen just several months later.
-
I think maybe Shawn might have been the beginning of the loss of credibility for the Federation Championship? But HBK sure looked good holding that belt though.
He sure did. My favorite HBK matches:
HBK vs Mankind (In your house "Mind Games" PPV)
HBK vs Undertaker (both Hell in the Cell "bad blood" PPV & WM 25)
HBK vs Bret Hart (any match these two had was amazing as they clicked so well in the ring despite their anomisity toward eachother)
HBK vs Kurt Angle (WM match)
HBk vs Vince McMahon (WM street fight match) HBK made Vince (a non-wrestler) look incredible in that match. A feet that is very hard to do.
HBK vs Hogan (Summerslam match) Made the aged hulkster look incredible.
HBK vs British Bulldog (In your house PPV)
HBK vs Razor Ramone (WM 10 ladder match)
HBK vs Diesel (In your House street fight match)
Thats all I can think of now although there are probably tons more.
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Bulldogs vs. Goulet & Rodz:
-
I remember this match, what a time to be a wrestling fan. No one ever saw anything like the British Bulldogs during this time, especially Dynamite Kid. Great match too, Goulet and Rodz had some chemistry.
I have been saying this throughout this thread and I'll say it again. The British Bulldogs were the second best tag team of all time bar none. The only reason why they don't rank in at number 1 is because they didn't last as long as the Road Warriors (how could they with the way Dynamite wrestled). But I think they revolutionized the wrestling world almost almost as the Road Warriors did on a different level.
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Road Warriors received the biggest pops of any tag team in history – especially in Japan, where even the Bulldogs were icons.
Rather than derailing my own thread, I will continue this discussion in you “Most Revolutionary Tag Teams” thread:
http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?topic=310638.0 (http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?topic=310638.0)
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Davey & David Golf cart racing:
-
Road Warriors received the biggest pops of any tag team in history – especially in Japan, where even the Bulldogs were icons.
Rather than derailing my own thread, I will continue this discussion in you “Most Revolutionary Tag Teams” thread:
http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?topic=310638.0 (http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?topic=310638.0)
There were tons of great tag teams in wrestling over the years but I will have to agree with you. Road Warriors caused the most impact.
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There were tons of great tag teams in wrestling over the years but I will have to agree with you. Road Warriors caused the most impact.
X2 - Road warriors/legion of doom were rocking during the 80's. Unfortunately their final matches before hawk
passed away were less than stellar.
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Few wrestlers go out at the top of their game - for quite a variety of reasons.
I suppose that, at the time, it makes little sense to do so.
They have that "why stop now?" mentality.
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Bulldogs vs. Petruzzi & Gladiator - very early WWF:
-
Back in my training days, I probably studied this one match more than any other.
From 1/28/89 – AJPW, this is my favorite British Bulldogs match of all time:
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I loved the Bulldogs as a kid. In that footage you just posted reflects to 1989-1990. The Bulldogs brocke up not long after that (Shame). Davey Boy Smith was called by McMahon to return to the WWE so he told the Japan promoter that Dynamite Kid had been hurt in a car accident so they wouldn't be able to wrestle. Dynamite got pissed that Davey Boy did this behind his back. It was pretty low. Dynamite then teamed up with another fellow to form the "British Bruisers" as Davey Boy trademarked the "Bulldogs" name. Thats why there was so much hostility between the two towards the end.
-
Playboy, do you remember – in the AJPW section of his book – Dynamite writing about this match? It wasn’t much, but he wrote how both Joe & Dean were trained by Karl Gotch. He also mentioned the conversation he & Davey had with the Malenko’s to plan out the match.
The brothers (especially Joe) I think tended to rely a little too much on more amateur style work at times. This match was – to me – a perfect blend of amateur AND pro style.
IIRC – according to Dyno, opportunistic Diana was the one who took the initiative to trademark the Bulldog name & likeness.
Then Tom showed up at one of Max Crabtree’s shows that Davey was working to confront him about it, and Smith ran into another room locking himself inside.
I’ve heard some good & bad stuff about each of the cousins, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard or read anything good about Diana.
-
Playboy, do you remember – in the AJPW section of his book – Dynamite writing about this match? It wasn’t much, but he wrote how both Joe & Dean were trained by Karl Gotch. He also mentioned the conversation he & Davey had with the Malenko’s to plan out the match.
The brothers (especially Joe) I think tended to rely a little too much on more amateur style work at times. This match was – to me – a perfect blend of amateur AND pro style.
IIRC – according to Dyno, opportunistic Diana was the one who took the initiative to trademark the Bulldog name & likeness.
Then Tom showed up at one of Max Crabtree’s shows that Davey was working to confront him about it, and Smith ran into another room locking himself inside.
I’ve heard some good & bad stuff about each of the cousins, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard or read anything good about Diana.
I certainly do! That book was a great read. Lots of interesting stuff in there and you are right...nothing good about Diana. Billington was / is one of the toughest men around. No one fucked with Dynamite kid. No one. Randy Savage used to ask him to watch his back in the mid-late eighties when they frequented bars where NWA or AWA wrestlers also went to. Jaques Rougeau sucker punched him with a roll of quarters back in late '88 three times and Dynamite still wouldn't go down. A lot of people feared him backstage. Jake Roberts confirmed this on his dvd.
-
Did you ever catch a look at Diana's "tell-all" book?
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Did you ever catch a look at Diana's "tell-all" book?
No...but i'm sure its a slamfest toward her husband and Dynamite.
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I've read a little bit about it.
My god...
The way she makes it sound, you'd think she was the bigger star than Davey.
Interesting what Bret had to say about spotting her with dyed hair & flirting with Austin backstage while Davey was in detox.
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I've read a little bit about it.
My god...
The way she makes it sound, you'd think she was the bigger star than Davey.
Interesting what Bret had to say about spotting her with dyed hair & flirting with Austin backstage while Davey was in detox.
Sure, I believe it. She looks like she would stiff Davey and go for the real money in Austin.
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I certainly do! That book was a great read. Lots of interesting stuff in there and you are right...nothing good about Diana. Billington was / is one of the toughest men around. No one fucked with Dynamite kid. No one. Randy Savage used to ask him to watch his back in the mid-late eighties when they frequented bars where NWA or AWA wrestlers also went to. Jaques Rougeau sucker punched him with a roll of quarters back in late '88 three times and Dynamite still wouldn't go down. A lot of people feared him backstage. Jake Roberts confirmed this on his dvd.
Just so you know Road Warrior Hawk was also tremendously feared backstage by other wrestlers.
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Just so you know Road Warrior Hawk was also tremendously feared backstage by other wrestlers.
Really? I never knew that. I always thought that Road Warrior Animal would have more aggression backstage. Did Hawk ever get into it with anyone?
Lol...can you imagine a 275lb 6'5" angry road warrior backstage?
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Bulldog takes German lessons:
-
Shouldn't be too hard to figure out who the "Black Phantom" is.
-
-
Shouldn't be too hard to figure out who the "Black Phantom" is.
WHo is it? I'm having a brain freeze today....
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Look at the "build."
Listen to the laugh.
Think WCW.
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Look at the "build."
Listen to the laugh.
Think WCW.
Flair?
-
You're VERY close...
;)
Try Hugh Morris.
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You're VERY close...
;)
Try Hugh Morris.
Really? Wow...I know the Halloween Phantom was Rick Rude so I thought if may have been Flair...like that cheezy 1990 WCW match he had with Sting in the cage while wrestling him as the Phantom.
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Really? Wow...I know the Halloween Phantom was Rick Rude so I thought if may have been Flair...like that cheezy 1990 WCW match he had with Sting in the cage while wrestling him as the Phantom.
And people complain about Russo & Bischoff's booking...
:-\
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And people complain about Russo & Bischoff's booking...
:-\
Exactly. I always thought Russo was worse. Lol...how stupid....David Arquette...WCW World champion. What an insult and shot to all wrestlers who had to pay their dues, years of hard work, on the road every single night 365 days a year, 25 g's deposite to be champion and then this guy comes alon....ridiculous. :-\
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The only good thing about that was Arquette donated the money he made from that angle to the families of Pillman and one other wrestler who’d died around that time (name escapes me at the moment).
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The only good thing about that was Arquette donated the money he made from that angle to the families of Pillman and one other wrestler who’d died around that time (name escapes me at the moment).
So they say....I don't buy it for a minute. I think it went straight into Arquette's pocket.
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Bobby Heenan confirmed it in his one book.
Of course, he wasn’t there to see exactly where that money went, but did you notice Arquette never did any of those ATT commercials after that.
In fact, you didn't see him in much of anything after Ready to Rumble.
Maybe he should have kept that money!
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Bobby Heenan confirmed it in his one book.
Of course, he wasn’t there to see exactly where that money went, but did you notice Arquette never did any of those ATT commercials after that.
In fact, you didn't see him in much of anything after Ready to Rumble.
Maybe he should have kept that money!
lol...ready to rumble....talk about a lame movie.
-
Bodyslam was a better wrestling movie, and probably filmed for about 1/38 the budget - maybe less.
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Bodyslam was a better wrestling movie, and probably filmed for about 1/38 the budget - maybe less.
I actually enjoyed "The Wrestler". It pretty much summed up how a small time guy in the indies lives his life struggling just to get by.
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I'm one of three people left in North America who hasn't seen it, yet.
:D
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I'm one of three people left in North America who hasn't seen it, yet.
:D
Watchi it, Mont. You'll enjoy it. It shows more of an underbelly side of pro wrestling but it is a good movie non the less that pretty much shows you what these guys to while in the lower ranks....and some maybe still in the higher ranks.
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Bulldog was awesome. I miss watching him wrestle. I want to buy the new Hart & Soul dvd just to get some of that old bulldogs tag team footage.
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It was unfortunate that their WWF run didn’t last longer.
Dyno hurt his back shortly after winning the tag belts, which – I believe – was within a year of them signing their fulltime contracts.
They did return for some feuds with HF & Demolition, etc., but their matches slowed down a bit for a while.
It seemed that their ring work picked up some (in Japan) around ‘88/’89.
Maybe getting off the WWF schedule and using the extra time to recover, train, etc. did them well.
But, it didn’t matter.
The cousins had developed differences & grown apart by that time.
Regardless, if you want to see the pinnacle of Bulldog tag action, check out their New Japan & All Japan matches.
A lot of it can be found on youtube, but you can also purchase compilation DVD’s that are loaded with footage for less than $15.
Thank God Vince doesn’t own the Japan stuff, too…
Yet!
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It was unfortunate that their WWF run didn’t last longer.
Dyno hurt his back shortly after winning the tag belts, which – I believe – was within a year of them signing their fulltime contracts.
They did return for some feuds with HF & Demolition, etc., but their matches slowed down a bit for a while.
It seemed that their ring work picked up some (in Japan) around ‘88/’89.
Maybe getting off the WWF schedule and using the extra time to recover, train, etc. did them well.
But, it didn’t matter.
The cousins had developed differences & grown apart by that time.
Regardless, if you want to see the pinnacle of Bulldog tag action, check out their New Japan & All Japan matches.
A lot of it can be found on youtube, but you can also purchase compilation DVD’s that are loaded with footage for less than $15.
Thank God Vince doesn’t own the Japan stuff, too…
Yet!
Didn't they split up because while in Japan, Davey told a Japan promoter that Dynamite was hurt in a car accident so they couldn't perform. Meanwhile it was because Davey Boy Smith was setting up his singles return to the WWE. They he even copy righted the name "Bulldog" do Dynamite had to use the name "British Bruisers" with his new tag partner. I know Dynamite was fuming over this and wanted to strangle Smith for it. Its all in his book.
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Right.
According to Dynamite, things had been going downhill between him & Davey for some time.
But, it was the Japan incident that drove the final wedge.
It was apparently Diana’s idea to copyright the Bulldog name.
When Tom received a formal legal document demanding he stop using the name “British Bulldog,” he was irate.
Davey was working one of Max Crabtree’s shows a short time later, and Tom went looking to confront him.
But Smith locked himself in a dressing room & police & security were called.
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From interviews about him, Earthquake always sounded a bit like “Baby Huey” outside the ring.
But in the ring, he was a terrific and fearsome heel.
Sounded like an overall nice guy.
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Right.
According to Dynamite, things had been going downhill between him & Davey for some time.
But, it was the Japan incident that drove the final wedge.
It was apparently Diana’s idea to copyright the Bulldog name.
When Tom received a formal legal document demanding he stop using the name “British Bulldog,” he was irate.
Davey was working one of Max Crabtree’s shows a short time later, and Tom went looking to confront him.
But Smith locked himself in a dressing room & police & security were called.
Sure....Tom would have cleaned Davey Boy's clock had he gotten a hold of him.
Leave it to a woman to drive a wedge between to friends / cousins in this case.
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I’m sure it was Diana putting most of those ideas into Davey’s head - egging him on.
No disrespect, but in regards to certain matters, Davey didn’t seem to be the sharpest “spoon” in the drawer.
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David Hart Smith vertical suplexed the Miz tonight on the Draft Show for at least a minute. What an awesome suplex!
I was happy to see them win the titles. Big Show needs to be on his own. Much more effective that way.
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That was a fun match to watch. How much longer is Uncle Bret gonna be around? Are we gonna see the Anvil anytime soon?
lol...I think its safe to say the Anvil is done. Bret shouldn't be around too much longer. They said he was leaving shortly after WM so I would say the next month or so.
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Man, I love this thread. Some great classic stuff here. Bulldogs were gold and built like shit brickhouses.
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Man, I love this thread. Some great classic stuff here. Bulldogs were gold and built like shit brickhouses.
Thanks.
I presume you watched Maple Leaf Wrestling back in the day, Playboy?
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Thanks.
I presume you watched Maple Leaf Wrestling back in the day, Playboy?
All the time. Every saturday from 12-1pm and again from 1-2pm and then you had the odd saturday night's main event once per month. Those days were gold. My first WWF live event was Hogan vs Orndorff in front of a sell out 68,000 crowd at Toronto's CNE outdoor arena back in the summer of 1986. I was 11 years old.
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That was a fun match to watch. How much longer is Uncle Bret gonna be around? Are we gonna see the Anvil anytime soon?
According to Dave Meltzer's site, Bret is said to be engaging in some very hands-on mentoring of the Dynasty.
He apparently watches all of their matches and sends them feedback when they are on the road and he is away from the group.
Thus, it appears that Bret's role with the group is much more than that of an on-air personality.
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According to Dave Meltzer's site, Bret is said to be engaging in some very hands-on mentoring of the Dynasty.
He apparently watches all of their matches and sends them feedback when they are on the road and he is away from the group.
Thus, it appears that Bret's role with the group is much more than that of an on-air personality.
Which is exactly what a good mentor should do.
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I'm so jealous of those little Dynasty shits.
:D
If I'd had Bret Hart as a mentor...
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I'm so jealous of those little Dynasty shits.
:D
If I'd had Bret Hart as a mentor...
You'd be making:
1,000,000 dollars per yr
2 first class flight tickets paid for by the company
Use of the company jet ten times per year
Ground transportation paid for by the company
5 star hotel accomadations paid for by the company
;D ;D ;D
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Seems like Uncle Brett is gonna be around a little longer.
Should be done next monday. Raw is in my town...TO.
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Not the best quality video, but some good footage:
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Was this match taking place while Dynamite's back was injured?
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Was this match taking place while Dynamite's back was injured?
I don’t believe so.
It may have aired on TV after Dyno’s injury, but I think the Bulldogs only wrestled one more match as champions after Dynamite hurt himself - that being the job to the Hart Foundation.
By his own admission, Tom couldn’t even walk to the ring unassisted for that bout - that’s how badly he was hurt.
Finally, if this match had taken place between Tom’s injury and the HF job, I strongly suspect he would have appeared in roughly 99% worse condition than we see him here.
Here is the match in which Tom & Davey dropped the titles to the Foundation:
Although not seen in this footage, Dynamite was “jumped from behind” en route to the ring.
The shot he sustained from Jimmy Hart’s megaphone was used to explain why he could not wrestle in the match.
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;D
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I don’t believe so.
It may have aired on TV after Dyno’s injury, but I think the Bulldogs only wrestled one more match as champions after Dynamite hurt himself - that being the job to the Hart Foundation.
By his own admission, Tom couldn’t even walk to the ring unassisted for that bout - that’s how badly he was hurt.
Finally, if this match had taken place between Tom’s injury and the HF job, I strongly suspect he would have appeared in roughly 99% worse condition than we see him here.
Here is the match in which Tom & Davey dropped the titles to the Foundation:
Although not seen in this footage, Dynamite was “jumped from behind” en route to the ring.
The shot he sustained from Jimmy Hart’s megaphone was used to explain why he could not wrestle in the match.
That was a great angle with Danny Davis. I enjoyed that back in the day.
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I don’t believe so.
It may have aired on TV after Dyno’s injury, but I think the Bulldogs only wrestled one more match as champions after Dynamite hurt himself - that being the job to the Hart Foundation.
By his own admission, Tom couldn’t even walk to the ring unassisted for that bout - that’s how badly he was hurt.
Finally, if this match had taken place between Tom’s injury and the HF job, I strongly suspect he would have appeared in roughly 99% worse condition than we see him here.
Here is the match in which Tom & Davey dropped the titles to the Foundation:
Although not seen in this footage, Dynamite was “jumped from behind” en route to the ring.
The shot he sustained from Jimmy Hart’s megaphone was used to explain why he could not wrestle in the match.
I really enjoyed that angle back in the day.
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Here's a Bulldogs vs. Harts match from when Dynamite was still healthy:
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After they lost the titles to the hart's, dynamites back didn't look to bad like it was bothering him. He wrestled through WM3 in that big six man tag match and again for several months before taking a couple of months off.
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The combination of juice, coccaine, vicodin, and cortisone have miraculous healing effects.
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The combination of juice, coccaine, vicodin, and cortisone have miraculous healing effects.
I remember even in Brett's book, he stated that Tom Billington would take three percosets before every match after he hurt his back. 3 PERCOSETS. I know people who take only a quarter tablet and thats for extreme pain.
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39.
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39.
And getting ready for a comeback. Too bad that he had to die. I always like the Bulldog(s).
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During, I think, his last WWF comeback, Davey remarked that he sensed that a lot of the guys had pegged him for a has-been who was WAY PAST HIS PHYSICAL PRIME and hanging on for dear life to a business that had passed him by.
He claimed that everyone was nice to him backstage, but more as a sign of respect for his past accomplishments.
Then he climbed in the ring to warm up.
After a few handsprings, etc., people’s attitude changed as they realized that, not only was he serious about this, but he still had it.
Stu Hart once said something to the effect that, when he's in shape, nobody can put on a show like the Bulldog.
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During, I think, his last WWF comeback, Davey remarked that he sensed that a lot of the guys had pegged him for a has-been who was WAY PAST HIS PHYSICAL PRIME and hanging on for dear life to a business that had passed him by.
He claimed that everyone was nice to him backstage, but more as a sign of respect for his past accomplishments.
Then he climbed in the ring to warm up.
After a few handsprings, etc., people’s attitude changed as they realized that, not only was he serious about this, but he still had it.
Stu Hart once said something to the effect that, when he's in shape, nobody can put on a show like the Bulldog.
He's had some great matches with Shawn Michaels, Curt Henning, Bret Hart and as the Bulldogs with Dynamite Kid some phenomenal tag matches. When he stepped into the ring you were guaranteed a great match.
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They need to do a Bulldog's DVD.
They have the archival footage, and there are plenty of guys who could provide personal accounts of the cousins.
I hate to think that they'll just throw together some matches and have Matt Stryker & Maria sit there and talk about them.
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They need to do a Bulldog's DVD.
They have the archival footage, and there are plenty of guys who could provide personal accounts of the cousins.
I hate to think that they'll just throw together some matches and have Matt Stryker & Maria sit there and talk about them.
Lol...I know. I would be the first to buy that DVD, believe me. But I can't stand striker and thank God they got rid of Maria. They made me sick in the Randy Savage dvd.
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Good job, Mont!
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Excellent match between Davey & Hennig:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x272f9_british-bulldog-vs-mr-perfect-wwf-i_sport
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I remember when this match took place.
Bulldog's return was a big deal in the wrestling biz because it was not long after Owen’s accident and Smith's lengthy stay in the hospital.
Bret kept taking digs at Davey in his Calgary Sun column, labeling him a traitor.
Stu actually stood up for Davey.
Vince supposedly signed Smith to a generous contract with some lucrative conditions.
But, we didn’t find out the really juicy stuff until years later through books & interviews.
If anyone still hasn’t picked up Bret’s autobio, I highly recommend it for that reason.
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I remember when this match took place.
Bulldog's return was a big deal in the wrestling biz because it was not long after Owen’s accident and Smith's lengthy stay in the hospital.
Bret kept taking digs at Davey in his Calgary Sun column, labeling him a traitor.
Stu actually stood up for Davey.
Vince supposedly signed Smith to a generous contract with some lucrative conditions.
But, we didn’t find out the really juicy stuff until years later through books & interviews.
If anyone still hasn’t picked up Bret’s autobio, I highly recommend it for that reason.
Probably because he was divorcing Bret's sister.
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More of a bump than anything:
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Okay, here's a much better one - sort of a truncated version of their 1997 Berlin match for the European title.
If you look, it's easy to see many of the same spots from the latter:
Still hard to imagine/believe that both of these guys are long gone.
Seems like only yesterday...
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Okay, here's a much better one - sort of a truncated version of their 1997 Berlin match for the European title.
If you look, it's easy to see many of the same spots from the latter:
Still hard to imagine/believe that both of these guys are long gone.
Seems like only yesterday...
I wa watching my Stone Cold dvd the other night and saw the match where he fought Owen Hart for the IC title back in 1997. That was the same night Owen accidently dropped Austin on his head in the reverse pile driver. It was a phenomenal match and it does seem like only yesterday he fell 7 stories from the Kemp Arena in St.Louis. Sad shit.
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Back on page 4, I posted the video of Davey vs. Steamboat from The Wrestling Classic.
In the interest of fairness...
This next clip is a superb match with the added bonus of a wonderful shot of Liz's gorgeous tits as she climbs the steps at the 1:08 mark.
I can say that now because I would no longer have to fight Macho for it.
:)
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LOL OMG.. I remember the day this thread popped up.. like years ago LOL!
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Their infamous SS match always gets a lot of accolades, but this PPV match was a very solid outing for both men.
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Raymond Rougeau's account of the 1987 backstage scrap between his brother & Dynamite:
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check out the insane slam at around the 9 min. mark.
:o
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Probably because he was divorcing Bret's sister.
Bret actually buried his sister worse than Davey Boy IMO; talked about her pushing him to trademark the name British Bulldog, screwing Dynamite out of any chance to use it. Bret's account of the Summer Slam match at Wembley didn't do Davey any favors, though. Basically said he was high and blown up early, making Bret feed him one move at a time. Still, I loved watching them work together- I'll never forget Davey Boy's second run in WWF; he looked like they'd hooked him up to an air pump when he came out, he was so swole.
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[ Invalid YouTube link ]
check out the insane slam at around the 9 min. mark.
:o
Davey was always regarded as one of the strongest guys in the locker room..
Even considering he was almost always "on," it's pretty impressive, given you had guys like Warlord, Dino Bravo, and Ken Patera around at the time.
Did you see Earthquke go for an Andre move by "walking" across Davey's chest at 8:44?
His foot slipped & slid into Davey's chin.
Smith's lucky he didn't get seriously hurt there.
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Bret actually buried his sister worse than Davey Boy IMO; talked about her pushing him to trademark the name British Bulldog, screwing Dynamite out of any chance to use it. Bret's account of the Summer Slam match at Wembley didn't do Davey any favors, though. Basically said he was high and blown up early, making Bret feed him one move at a time. Still, I loved watching them work together- I'll never forget Davey Boy's second run in WWF; he looked like they'd hooked him up to an air pump when he came out, he was so swole.
Bret put together a great match for that card.
He & Davey had several excellent singles matches together.
I think the Wembley SS match gets all the attention because of the magnitude of the event: the attendance and Davey winning the I-C belt.
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I think my favorite "family" match on a major card was Owen and Bret at WMX, when Bret put Owen over. That's one reason Bret is my favorite; the more he sold, the more over he got, and the more his opponent drew heat; not many guys could build themselves at the same time they built up someone else.
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I think my favorite "family" match on a major card was Owen and Bret at WMX, when Bret put Owen over. That's one reason Bret is my favorite; the more he sold, the more over he got, and the more his opponent drew heat; not many guys could build themselves at the same time they built up someone else.
Same reason I think Flair is the greatest of all-time.
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I’ve always liked Bret’s grading system regarding the three qualities that constitute a good wrestler:
1.) Physical look/presence: 1-10
2.) Ability to talk: 1-10
3.) Wrestling ability: 1-10
The best wrestlers score somewhere in the high 20’s.
I can only think of Flair and a few others with that type of score.
IMO, Hogan would only score about a 4 on wrestling ability with 9-10 on look and mic. work.
Fortunately for Hulkster, he peaked at a time in which technical ability was overlooked because the main emphasis was on talking & appearance.
He had & excelled at what he needed.
That’s what made him extremely marketable, and I believe it is also why he began to lose some steam towards the end of his first WWF run.
The Hulkamania act was getting a little stale, but also, fans were demanding a little more substance for their money.
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I’ve always liked Bret’s grading system regarding the three qualities that constitute a good wrestler:
1.) Physical look/presence: 1-10
2.) Ability to talk: 1-10
3.) Wrestling ability: 1-10
The best wrestlers score somewhere in the high 20’s.
I can only think of Flair and a few others with that type of score.
IMO, Hogan would only score about a 4 on wrestling ability with 9-10 on look and mic. work.
Fortunately for Hulkster, he peaked at a time in which technical ability was overlooked because the main emphasis was on talking & appearance.
He had & excelled at what he needed.
That’s what made him extremely marketable, and I believe it is also why he began to lose some steam towards the end of his first WWF run.
The Hulkamania act was getting a little stale, but also, fans were demanding a little more substance for their money.
I agree. Its the same thing that put a damper on Steamboat returing to WCW. His time period of "family guy" was not what the public was looking for as this was the time of Miami Vice, etc... where the bad guys didn't always lose at the end. Simply put, it was the beginning of it being "cool" to like heels on a large scale. Hogans time in the WWF was the same way, UW kinda picked up as Hogan was fading, but people grew tired of him as well. And I think it's why the next go-around for Hogan in the WCW, he was smart enough to hitch his wagon to Hall/Nash/nWo as soon as the opportunity was ripe. Hogan might not be able to technically wrestle, but he is probably the smartest business guy in the history of the sport.
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And, I think that’s one of the biggest reasons that Hulkster was always so marketable.
He adapted and did the most with what he had.
As far as UW…had he come up the same time Hogan did in the early 80’s, he may have had greater success, but IMO, he wouldn’t have had the same longevity as Hogan because Hellwig was a little too one-dimensional.
Whereas Hulk Hogan was charismatic, “Jim” seemed more of a novelty.
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And, I think that’s one of the biggest reasons that Hulkster was always so marketable.
He adapted and did the most with what he had.
As far as UW…had he come up the same time Hogan did in the early 80’s, he may have had greater success, but IMO, he wouldn’t have had the same longevity as Hogan because Hellwig was a little too one-dimensional.
Whereas Hulk Hogan was charismatic, “Jim” seemed more of a novelty.
Agree. UW was a great entrance and about 3 minutes of action before the finish. anything other than that and he looked lost in the ring....somebody posted a vid of one of his matches and thought it was good, but i just thought he looked like he wasn't sure what to do.
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Yeah.
On the "Bret Scale," I'd give him
Look: 10
Mic: 7 (I'm fussing a bit with this one because some of his promos were decent, while others...)
Wrestling Ability: 2 (1 being able make it to the ring apron)
Total: roughly 19
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Agree. UW was a great entrance and about 3 minutes of action before the finish. anything other than that and he looked lost in the ring....somebody posted a vid of one of his matches and thought it was good, but i just thought he looked like he wasn't sure what to do.
I thought where UW fell apart was when he got the World title and aped Hogan's ring routine. He'd get the tar knocked out of him the whole match, then "hulk up" at the end becoming invincible. Also, he dumped the press slam as his finisher and replaced it with the flying shoulder tackle, which was awesome, but not as cool as the slam. He rose to the top being an unstoppable monster, but looked totally human as champ.
The other thing with UW was he was only as good as his opponent. Rick Rude sold Warrior's moves like a condom salesman in a whorehouse. Without that, his weaknesses were pretty blatant. And I say that as a guy who was a fan as a kid.
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The other thing with UW was he was only as good as his opponent.
Unfortunately, Warrior never understood this, and thus, he never respected the other talent who enabled him to pass his matches.
I know Hogan gets ragged on a lot, but UW could never have worked a program with someone like Zeus/Lister the way Hogan did.
If Hellwig was as good and valuable as he thought he was in his O.W.N. mind, then Vince would have given him the Hogan/Austin/Rock type contract.
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Warrior and Davey Boy side by side in 1988 just after Warrior won the IC title at SS 88.
classic:
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Bulldogs, Warrior & the Barbarian all lifted together on the road for a while.
I believe that Davey & Hellwig were both receiving hGH from the same British pharmacy.
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I never realized how much size warrior lost from his early 1988 matches as compared to his later 89/90 ones.
even by WM6 he was super cut but not nearly as big as he was in his early WWF matches.
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I never realized how much size warrior lost from his early 1988 matches as compared to his later 89/90 ones.
even by WM6 he was super cut but not nearly as big as he was in his early WWF matches.
You gotta remember too that back then they were on the road 325 days a year, straight. Hard to train when you are on the move constantly in different cities, having to find a good gym, make time to eat, get to a hotel, rest, etc. He still looked phenomenal and I give him credit for always bringing a good physique to the table.
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I like the Brett Hart Scale. We should rate some wrestlers. This is how I would rate a few of them.
Ric Flair
1. Physical look/presence: 10 (the aura and prestige of what a champion should look like)
2. Ability to talk: 10 (top 5 in the history of the sport)
3. Wrestling ability: 10 (could have a match with anyone and has had some of the best ever in the sport)
Hulk Hogan
1. 10 (Champion of the world, with his look he became a cultural icon)
2. 9 (despite some flaws, Hogan always got your attention and could sell the match)
3. 4 (got better as time went on and he had some of the most memorable matches ever)
Brett Hart
1. 7 (Not iconic by any means, but had a unique look for his time but eventually became dated)
2. 5 (promos is where Brett lacked, they were 50/50, some good some bad. His debate against Flair in WCW showed just how far below Hart was to someone with Flairs level of mic work)
3. 10 (Awesome technical wrestler, could have a match with a broom)
Ultimate Warrior (I agree with Montage on this one)
1. 10 (the look of a cartoon character)
2. 7 (despite his promos, Warrior always got your attention)
3. 2
Randy Savage
1. 10 (One of the best looks and presence ever)
2. 8 (Savage sometimes went off on rants that no one could understand but he was still so charismatic)
3. 10 (could do it all and anywhere in the arena)
Roddy Piper
1. 7 (it was Piper's mouth that carried him more than his look. The kilt was awesome though)
2. 10 (top 5 ever no doubt)
3. 6 (Piper was more of a brawler, but some of his moves were fantastic especially the two finger eye poke)
Ricky Steamboat
1. 8 (Ric Flair said it best, the women went more nuts for Steamboat than even the Von Erichs. His only knock was that he couldn't be a heel)
2. 4 (He could get the point across but it always lacked drama and suspense)
3. 10 (I think he was one of the top 5 workers of all time. He could have a match with anyone and make it believable. He was so fluid.)
Shawn Micheals
1. 9 (I rate him in the same category as Steamboat but he was a lot more flashy and arrogant)
2. 7 (I thought he got much better as time passed but he was far from the best or quick witted
3. 10 (Maybe the 2nd best worker ever and could go down as the greatest considering he took wrestling to the next level)
You guys got some??
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Well, since this is a BB thread, I'll rate the cousins:
Look: 9-10 (at their best, though Davey improved even more later)
Talk: 2-3 (Dyno getting more the 2)
Wrestling skill: solid 10
Total: apprx. 22
Although, I still feel that Smith was deserving of at least one h-w title run, if only as a brief, transitional champ.
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Well, since this is a BB thread, I'll rate the cousins:
Look: 9-10 (at their best, though Davey improved even more later)
Talk: 2-3 (Dyno getting more the 2)
Wrestling skill: solid 10
Total: apprx. 22
Although, I still feel that Smith was deserving of at least one h-w title run, if only as a brief, transitional champ.
Had it not been for the steroid trial, I expect we might have seen some kind of title run on Davey Boy; he was one of the only guys who physically looked like he could match UW, and with that kind of wrestling ability, it could have been a strong man feud for the ages.
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Had it not been for the steroid trial, I expect we might have seen some kind of title run on Davey Boy; he was one of the only guys who physically looked like he could match UW, and with that kind of wrestling ability, it could have been a strong man feud for the ages.
Agree.
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Had it not been for the steroid trial, I expect we might have seen some kind of title run on Davey Boy; he was one of the only guys who physically looked like he could match UW, and with that kind of wrestling ability, it could have been a strong man feud for the ages.
He had the IC title for two months...i'm sure he would have had it a lot longer had Vince not been scrutinized for steroids.
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Dynamite mentioned this match in his book.
Interesting is that towards the end, Adonis hooks a scorpion death-lock on Dyno.
The move barely elicited a reaction from the crowd.
A decade later, it would be the finisher for two of the industry's biggest stars.
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Dynamite mentioned this match in his book.
Interesting is that towards the end, Adonis hooks a scorpion death-lock on Dyno.
The move barely elicited a reaction from the crowd.
A decade later, it would be the finisher for two of the industry's biggest stars.
F**k me.....that was a great classic! Classic Adrian Adonis with the black leather jacket and black hair!
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F**k me.....that was a great classic! Classic Adrian Adonis with the black leather jacket and black hair!
Yeah, that was the Adonis legacy; not that fruitcake gimmick the old man gave him at the end.
A lot of people go on & on about Bam Bam being a great "athletic big man," but Adrian was no slouch either.
He was a damn good worker and did spots that most guys his size and... um... shape would never dream of.
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Well, it's almost Spring...
Time to bump the 9-page "dead guy & cripple" thread:
http://espn.go.com/magazine/vol5no24davey.html
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Yeah, that was the Adonis legacy; not that fruitcake gimmick the old man gave him at the end.
A lot of people go on & on about Bam Bam being a great "athletic big man," but Adrian was no slouch either.
He was a damn good worker and did spots that most guys his size and... um... shape would never dream of.
Check out the bumps he took against Piper at WM3. I liked Adonis especially in his black hair / leather jacket days.
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Well, it's almost Spring...
Time to bump the 9-page "dead guy & cripple" thread:
http://espn.go.com/magazine/vol5no24davey.html
Nice find, Mont! This is the part that gets me...
"Things soon got worse. On Sept. 13, 1998, Davey was hurled into the air during a match in Winston-Salem, N.C., and landed on the handle of a trapdoor built into the ring for a stunt. "I think I hurt my back," he told Diana when he came home to Calgary, where the couple had recently returned. For weeks, he wolfed down pills he'd hoarded: Tylenol 4, Valium, Soma. Finally, he pleaded with drug connections to get him something stronger. And so Davey Boy was introduced to morphine."
And yet, they always blame Roids.....its not roids!
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Adrian Adonis was a helluva worker....especially his Southwest Championship Wrestling days. I remember reading where his wife said that the gimmick vince forced on him changed him drastically and sent him into depression, etc....
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Adrian Adonis was a helluva worker....especially his Southwest Championship Wrestling days. I remember reading where his wife said that the gimmick vince forced on him changed him drastically and sent him into depression, etc....
I thought he did his best work in the AWA paired with Ventura.
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I thought he did his best work in the AWA paired with Ventura.
East-West Connection was great too, no doubt. Adonis should have come to the mid-atlantic. his style would have fit perfectly, and with his accent people would have hated him immediately.. haha
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Nice find, Mont! This is the part that gets me...
"Things soon got worse. On Sept. 13, 1998, Davey was hurled into the air during a match in Winston-Salem, N.C., and landed on the handle of a trapdoor built into the ring for a stunt. "I think I hurt my back," he told Diana when he came home to Calgary, where the couple had recently returned. For weeks, he wolfed down pills he'd hoarded: Tylenol 4, Valium, Soma. Finally, he pleaded with drug connections to get him something stronger. And so Davey Boy was introduced to morphine."
And yet, they always blame Roids.....its not roids!
I still maintain it's the media's fault for the "facts" (and, I use that term very tongue-in-cheek) they portray & how they portray them.
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I still maintain it's the media's fault for the "facts" (and, I use that term very tongue-in-cheek) they portray & how they portray them.
I totally agree.
On a side note, how f****n stupid was WCW putting a trap door with hinges sticking out of the mat in the corner of the ring not even realizing that someone could really hurt themselves? It was pretty much over for Bulldog after that. And for what? A dumb ass Hellwig entrance......wow....
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I totally agree.
On a side note, how f****n stupid was WCW putting a trap door with hinges sticking out of the mat in the corner of the ring not even realizing that someone could really hurt themselves? It was pretty much over for Bulldog after that. And for what? A dumb ass Hellwig entrance......wow....
...that didn't get him over, either!!
;D
Seriously, it was all the wrong people in charge of that place.
You can blame Ted for that.
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oWn
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oWn
Yep, WCW got "oWn'ed" alright...BY VINCE!!!
;D
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Yep, WCW got "oWn'ed" alright...BY VINCE!!!
;D
haha, I remember on an old wrestling forum I went to a guy had a thread titled "What do I do with my oWn t-shirt now?" a few months after UW left...... lol...
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haha, I remember on an old wrestling forum I went to a guy had a thread titled "What do I do with my oWn t-shirt now?" a few months after UW left...... lol...
Sell it as a "vintage" N.W.O. shirt to a dyslexic kid.
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I still have my black NWO teeshirt. I also have my Austin 3:16 teeshirt too as well as the one with the giant skull on the front. Austin from what I understood made his own teeshirt designs and they were all awesome!
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Sell it as a "vintage" N.W.O. shirt to a dyslexic kid.
hahaha......reminds me of Dumb and Dumber and the bird being sold to the blind kid...... ;D
And Playboy, i believe you are correct that Austin did design all of his own stuff. Pretty amazing since it is by far some of the best stuff the WWE ever had.
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Some of the teeshirts that are out are amazing. But the only thing I hate is the huge crowd at the concession stands. Man oh man...at least half an hour before you get to buy. It is always rammed no matter how early you go during an event.
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Some of the teeshirts that are out are amazing. But the only thing I hate is the huge crowd at the concession stands. Man oh man...at least half an hour before you get to buy. It is always rammed no matter how early you go during an event.
they are making a killing on that stuff......just unreal how much each shirt costs vs how much it was to produce it.
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they are making a killing on that stuff......just unreal how much each shirt costs vs how much it was to produce it.
When I bought my Austin 3:16 teeshirt they wanted 40 bucks Canadian. The bigger stars merchandise is very expensive. I saw one kids father shell out 500 bucks...yes you read that correctly....for a WWE replica spinner belt. The World Title (as seen on Edge) was 400 bucks Canadian. What they make money wise on merchandise is unreal.
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When I bought my Austin 3:16 teeshirt they wanted 40 bucks Canadian. The bigger stars merchandise is very expensive. I saw one kids father shell out 500 bucks...yes you read that correctly....for a WWE replica spinner belt. The World Title (as seen on Edge) was 400 bucks Canadian. What they make money wise on merchandise is unreal.
Wow..... a little different than when I would buy a 5x7 of Wahoo for $3 and then walk over to a table where he was sitting and he would chat with you and sign it..... and take a pic if you wanted to at no charge.... 8)
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Wow..... a little different than when I would buy a 5x7 of Wahoo for $3 and then walk over to a table where he was sitting and he would chat with you and sign it..... and take a pic if you wanted to at no charge.... 8)
I would take that anyday over standing like a herd of sheep at a concession stand with 100 other people for one lousy teeshirt.
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When I bought my Austin 3:16 teeshirt they wanted 40 bucks Canadian. The bigger stars merchandise is very expensive. I saw one kids father shell out 500 bucks...yes you read that correctly....for a WWE replica spinner belt. The World Title (as seen on Edge) was 400 bucks Canadian. What they make money wise on merchandise is unreal.
I know for a while you could get decent deals on WWE merchandise through Earl & Dave Hebner.
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Time for a bump...
Here are some misc. pics of Davey to add to the collection:
(http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110312003528/prowrestling/images/d/d6/01_-_British_Bulldog_(RIP).jpg)
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesHarts/owenfuneral.jpg)
(http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x310/The_Ultimate_Wrestling_Gallery/Davey%20Boy%20Smith/DaveyBoySmith025.jpg)
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesS/smith_daveyboy_oct00.jpg)
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesS/smith_daveyboy_oct31-sun.jpg)
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesHarts/bulldog_andreahart-sun.jpg)
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(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_jul99.jpg)
(http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/pictures/bulldogowen.jpg)
(http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100622222709/prowrestling/images/d/dd/Davey_Boy_3.jpg)
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_99mar.jpg)
(http://percypringle.com/Gallery-Pictures/Room-5/Photos/PBDaveyBoy.gif)
(http://i479.photobucket.com/albums/rr160/fishbulb-suplex/Wrestlers/Bret%20Hart/summerslam1992brethartvqs9.jpg)
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(http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100622222710/prowrestling/images/4/44/Davey_Boy_8.jpg)
(http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100622222708/prowrestling/images/6/6d/Davey_Boy_2.jpg)
(http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100622222708/prowrestling/images/2/2f/Davey_Boy_1.jpg)
(http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100622222710/prowrestling/images/e/e7/Davey_Boy_6.jpg)
(http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100622222710/prowrestling/images/3/3c/Davey_Boy_9.jpg)
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(http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsS/tve74574-19911203-1877.jpg)
(http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsS/tve74574-19940829-1877.jpg)
(http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsS/tve74574-19950402-1877.gif)
(http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsS/tve74574-19961020-1877.gif)
(http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsS/tve74574-19961212-1877.gif)
(http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsS/tve74574-19970803-1877.jpg)
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(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51quSOc6fIL._SL500_AA300_.jpg)
(http://royalrumbler.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/british-bulldog.jpg?w=260&h=300)
(http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSTYGavae6wmMmVK90dwlV5lG905d-Q2RlWcmx66v_V5bk-HwPzQQ&t=1)
(http://www.bigbillanderson.com/britishbulldog.jpg)
(http://sp0.fotolog.com/photo/32/13/88/wwe_favorits/1264105697142_f.jpg)
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(http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110312010915/prowrestling/images/8/8d/03_-_Harry_%26_Davey_Boy_Smith.jpg)
(http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110312011433/prowrestling/images/8/8b/08_-_The_Smith_Family.jpg)
(http://sp0.fotolog.com/photo/32/13/88/wwe_favorits/1264107300138_f.jpg)
(http://www.georgetheanimalsteele.com/slide-show/rwx_gallery/1151541189_sc00014f55.jpg)
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haha, almost forgot about the braids.....haha
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haha, almost forgot about the braids.....haha
Or, as Heenan said: "He gets Whoopi Goldberg to do his hair."
:D
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Or, as Heenan said: "He gets Whoopi Goldberg to do his hair."
:D
I noticed Davey being handcuffed by a cop an a pic above. What happened there?
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I noticed Davey being handcuffed by a cop an a pic above. What happened there?
http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/arrest_00oct27-sun.html
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http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/arrest_00oct27-sun.html
Wow.....
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Wow.....
Later this week, I may arrange and post a chronological account of some local headlines/new pieces featuring Davey.
Some involve controversy, but quite a few show a good side to the British Bulldog.
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Later this week, I may arrange and post a chronological account of some local headlines/new pieces featuring Davey.
Some involve controversy, but quite a few show a good side to the British Bulldog.
Let me know if you get anymore info in Dynamite Kid too.
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The following articles are from the Slam Sports section of www.canoe.com:
Memories of a fateful night haunt Bulldog
July 6, 1997
By RICK BELL -- Calgary Sun (http://www.canoe.ca/images/slam/wrestling/bulldog_sm.jpg)
The sun shines Saturday afternoon and the British Bulldog roars on his Harley to a Stampede barbecue at dad-in-law Stu Hart's place.
Family and friends gather just 24 hours before today's wrestling megashow In Your House, where Davey and the rest of the Hart Foundation grapple with the backstabbing likes of Stone Cold Steve Austin.
"It would be a great victory, right here in Calgary. It would be like the day I won in court," says Davey Boy.
That day is Feb. 7, 1996, and the British Bulldog walks out of the Calgary courtroom a free man, cleared of a charge of aggravated assault.
The threat of a long stretch behind bars and a career in ruins vanishes as a judge rules the wrestler acted in self-defence on the summer night in `93 when Davey Boy and his wife Diana went to the Back Alley.
"I'm not a thug. I'm not a big bully wrestler who goes around and beats up kids. I do my job in the ring and that's it. I don't go into nightclubs picking fights," the British Bulldog tells me.
"I'm an easygoing guy. If somebody asks me to do something for people like sick children. I never turn them down.
"This whole thing cost me a lot. Somebody saw an opportunity to challenge me and I wouldn't hit him. Six months later they say I assaulted him. But the truth came out. If anyone was assaulted it was me."
Yes, the court finds on that summer night Kody Light verbally harasses Diana and gives Davey Boy a test-of-strength handshake. The wrestler puts Light in a front face lock and takes him over to the bouncer.
When the bent-over Light stands up he falls, cracking his head on the cement floor.
The judge says Davey Boy didn't assault Light. It was Light who assaulted the British Bulldog.
The grappler's mind still holds memories of the call from Stu in Calgary months after the incident telling Davey Boy of the assault charges.
And how the cops surrounded his house in Tampa to pick him up while he was off in England.
And surrendering to police in Calgary.
And the sight of his name, The British Bulldog, dragged through the world's press.
"I'm past it now. I'm bitter in a sense because of the way the law works. Police telling me I'm going to prison before it went to court. You're convicted before you start."
But this day is a happy one. The working class kid from just outside Manchester has come a long way from the days of delivering fruit and vegetables on a bicycle.
"My parents didn't want me walking the streets, smashing windows and wrecking cars. They put me in wrestling school and it paid off."
It sure did. As we talk of today's hoped-for victory, young kids fool around Stu's outdoor wrestling ring, the burgers sizzle, the beer is cold and the sky is clear.
The British Bulldog is home.
source: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingArchive/jul6_bell.html
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pt.1
Fan Q & A with The British Bulldog
January 30, 1998
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_sm.jpg)
One on one with The Bulldog
It may have taken longer than expected, but SLAM! Wrestling's Greg Oliver finally interviewed The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith over the phone from his Calgary home on January 30, 1998.
Most of the questions were submitted by SLAM! Wrestling readers. Unfortunately, some of the three-week old questions were a little out of date by the time the interview was conducted, as The Bulldog had returned to action on WCW Monday Nitro January 26, beating Steve Mongo McMichael.
Below is the transcript of the 45-minute interview. I've given credit to the readers who sent in questions. As always, we welcome your comments at goliver@canoemail.com.
Q: Did it feel good to get back in the ring Monday night?
A: It felt great. I wasn't really expecting to be in the ring so fast in WCW. But they wanted to put me out there. They wanted me to be out there in the last pay-per-view, the Starrcade one, because Diesel, what's his name, Kevin Nash was hurt. They wanted me to wrestle Scott Hall. But my knee wasn't fully recovered. But I got there on Monday and found out I was working with Steve McMichael. It was good to get back in the ring. But I was a little bit ring rusty. It's like riding a bike, you just never forget right. You just keep going.
Q: How is the knee? [Frank Livyns, Belgium]
A: It's really good, you know. I got four tears fixed in it, but my anterior cruciate ligament [ACL] is still torn in half. They said that if they fixed that, it would take five to six months to heal. I didn't want to take five to six months off. I'd already taken two and half, almost three months off. I'd rather just get back in the ring. It doesn't feel like it's torn but it is. My legs are so strong that it doesn't really bother me.
Q: Are you going to take any precautions, like wearing a knee brace?
A: Yeah, I've got the knee brace still. I'll take some precautions -- wrap my knees, and really warm up before I go into the ring. Stuff like that. Since he fixed the four tears in it, it's been really strong. It feels as strong as it ever felt.
Q: Got a question here wondering how long you're signed for, and whatever details of the contract you can give. [Mike LaValley]
A: I don't really want to disclose the money part of it. I got more money than the WWF and less days.
Q: So how many days of the year would you be working?
A: I would say 180. As opposed to the 280 or whatever it was in the WWF. They had me going every single night. Just mind-boggling how many nights I would wrestle. I would never get a day off.
Q: How long have you signed for?
A: I've signed for three years.
Q: Did you learn anything from having the longer contract before? Did you purposely sign for less?
A: No, the WCW contracts are basically three-year contracts where Vince's [McMahon] were five-year contracts. It's the same old situation where you sign a WWF contract and everything's for them, and nothing's for you. You're locked in, you can't get out. It's always stipulations. Everything's for them, and nothing's for you. You have all these masterminds in the WWF running it, running a sinking ship I should say. That's what I told Vince on the phone. They're wannabes. They thrive on bad taste, shock value, fancy angles, things like that. Vince told me in December before I had the knee surgery that he wanted to go a different route. He wanted to get away from the wrestling and more to entertainment. I don't want to be involved in this sexual stuff and racism. All I've done is be a wrestler. I'm not turning obscene gestures towards the camera, talking about sending your wife over to my house and I'll show her a good hard time. It got to a point where I can't even let my kids watch the show. I told Vince that. I can't let my kids watch the show. Vince came out on TV and said we've going a different route, it's going to go be an adult show. If you don't want your kids watching, then don't let them watch TV. He said that himself right on TV. Shawn [Michaels] comes out on TV and says Davey's hurt his knee or something. He went on TV and forfeited the belt. Supposedly a knee injury that was career ending. They did an MRI on his knee and couldn't find anything wrong with it. They did an MRI on mine and said your knee's shot. I've actually had surgery. I told Vince I didn't appreciate Shawn saying that Davey had supposed knee injury. We all know about supposed knee injuries, because that's what he did when he forfeited the belt. He forfeited the Intercontinental belt too. I've always been business with Vince. In my match in England, they screwed me. The same referee that did my match did Bret's match. [The referee was Earl Hebner.] He rang the bell and gave Shawn the European belt. I don't mind putting someone over. It's just not the way to lose a belt.
Q: Back to the reader questions. What are some of your best gym lifts? [JEFF]
A: On a good day, I can squat five-six hundred pounds. I don't do too much deadlifting because of my back. It's not as strong as it used to be. My whole back. I've got to watch my discs, and that. I've been known to bench-press 525 pounds. 550.
Q: How many hours a day would you work out?
A: I work out two hours a day. Every day.
Q: That's just with weights?
A: Yeah.
Q: What would you do cardio-wise?
A: I do half-an-hour on the stairmaster. I just finished completing my workout video. I've got my own workout video coming out on the market sometime next month.
Q: Well you should tell your company to get in touch with us when it's all prepared and get in touch with us.
A: It's actually prepared now. We're just waiting for them to bring it to my door. I okayed the video. It's called The British Bulldog's Basic Bodybuilding Workout. It's open-close on the Bulldog. It's my private life. It shows my holiday, return, my cars, my house. And Diana's in the video with me too. So it appeals to young kids and women who want to get in shape.
Q: Where's this going to be available?
A: It's going to be available in Canada. We're going to try to get it into Europe. I'm going to try to get it everywhere I can. The women who does the movie show, Kirstie Day, and her husband does the news, Larry Day, they want to enter it in the Houston Film Festival. She thinks it's going to be a really hot seller. I think its one of the first times a wrestler has ever done a workout video. I don't know anyone else who's ever done a workout video.
Q: I've got a question here. How did you meet your wife Diana? [Kes107]
A: I met her when I first came to Calgary in 1981. She saw my picture in the Stampede Wrestling Magazine and she asked who I was. I'd met Bruce [Hart] in 1977 in England when I was training to be a wrestler. Bruce said [to Diana] that I was Dynamite's cousin and was coming over to wrestle for Stampede wrestling. She took my picture out of the magazine and put it in her high school binder. I came over and I met her. She came over the Bret's house and was looking for someone to go to a movie with her and a friend. She was trying to call Owen, and I said I'll go with you. I don't mind. We went to the movie together, and we've been together even since.
Q: How many children do you have?
A: I've got two children. Harry and Georgia.
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pt. 2
Q: What do you think about the state of British wrestling, and what do you think could be done to improve it? [gary@infernal.demon.co.uk]
A: It's gone downhill. I was back there in 1993 and I was doing my own little thing with the old promoter I used to wrestle for in '78 to 1980. We ran all over the U.K. We did really well. But it was taken off TV, so people lost interest in it. All tuned in to WWF and WCW. So it's just gone downhill. I'd love to see it come back up. I can see with myself back in WCW, and Bret, all we're missing is Owen, really, to put wrestling back on the map in the United Kingdom. It's a weird place to be and to wrestle. And people are just dying for it. When I wrestled Shawn Michaels in Birmingham, it was sold out in two hours. You just can't give people enough. And England's so big, there's so many places you can run. Right now there's, well I shouldn't say there's no talent there -- there is talent there. It's just not shown on TV, on British TV. For the independent circuit, the British wrestlers, it's a shame because there's some potential there.
Q: What do you miss the most about England? [Inderdeep]
A: I miss my family and all my friends. The fans are really good to me. Especially being born and raised in the United Kingdom, I just missed England period. There's rumors I might buy a house there. Could be a possibility to move my family there.
Q: Is that just a rumor, or are you just trying to float that?
A: No, I'm thinking of it. I just got off the phone with my Mom. She told me there was a house that I really liked for sale. I'm supposed to go and check it out. I might just check it out. My wife and kids, they love England. They'd move there in a heartbeat.
Q: What's your favorite British football team? [Inderdeep]
A: I used to follow Manchester United.
Q: Back to the video a little bit. Following Bret's footsteps, are you considering getting into acting? [Inderdeep]
A: I'd like to. I'm kind of like Bret. You've just got to know the right people and be in the right place at the right time. I'd like to do things. It's not like I'd need a stunt man to take my bumps. I can do it. If someone wants to go through a window, I can go through a window. As long as there's something to land on.
Q: What are some of your favorite pastimes? What do you like to do in your spare time? [Inderdeep]
A: I play video games with my kids. When it's not cold out, I like to ride my Harley. I play around a lot on the computer. I like to play the Flight Simulator games. I've got a real neat computer. I like to learn how to fly planes and helicopters and things like that. Play solitaire.
Q: Do you do much on the Internet?
A: A little bit. Not too familiar with the keyboard. I'm like, aw geez, where's the next letter. But when it comes to video games, that's my favorite.
Q: That completes our more personal section. We're getting into the most wrestling-related questions now. The next bunch are about the end of your WWF run. The next question comes from Charlottetown, PEI. Would you call your break-up with the WWF a clean one? [Mike Gallant, PEI]
A: It was pretty clean. The only thing that left a sour taste in my mouth was that I was straight lied to. Vince looked me straight in the face and just lied to me. He said what's going to happen in Bret and Shawn's match [Survivor Series 1997]. I was going to run down there when Shawn gave the superkick to Bret and I was supposed to pull the referee's leg, and he was supposed to DQ Bret for outside interfere. I was actually waiting in the gorilla position -- what we call the production position -- to run to the ring. All of a sudden I hear Shawn's music, and I wonder what's going on. And Bruce Pritchard [a WWF honcho, formerly Brother Love] took his headset off and threw it down. I thought, something's wrong here. They didn't show it on TV, but I walked down to ring and I talked to Bret and asked what was going on, that wasn't the finish I was given. And Bret said 'They screwed me.' I said, 'Did they really screw you? Don't play mind games with me. This is serious. They're playing with someone's life, career here.' He said, 'No, they screwed me.' I just couldn't believe it. So he'd been screwed and I'd been lied to. And Owen. We were both standing behind the curtain ready to run down.
Q: What will you miss the most about the WWF and who were some of your friends there? [Topper Lee]
A: They were all basically my friends, all the wrestlers. I don't think that I'll really miss that much. It was good to be, but it's not good to be lied to. If they're going to do that to Bret, then what are they going to do to me? They had already done it to me in England, which I accepted. But when they did that to Bret, I said this is going way too far. There's no telling what they're going to do the next night on RAW. That's when I went back to the dressing room to talk to Bret. When I got to the dressing room, I saw Vince coming. I said 'Bret, Vince is coming.' He said to tell him not to come in. So I told Vince not to go in there. 'He doesn't want to talk to you, to see you right now.' He said that he wanted to address the matter. Bret was taking a shower. He came out of the shower. Bret said 'If you're still here when I put my clothes on, I'm going to punch you out.' He called Vince a bunch of names, and some of the office guys told us to leave, everyone else to leave. I got up to leave, and Owen got up to leave. And I said to Owen, 'don't leave Bret here by himself. He doesn't know what's going to happen.' So we sat back down. Bret finished getting dressed, and then went over and just punched Vince. Knocked him out with one punch. Then Shane [McMahon, Vince's son] jumped on Bret's back and I pulled him off. And then after Bret a few more times, Vince grabbed him around the waist and I pulled Bret off. I kind of twisted my knee. I said 'enough's enough.' I didn't want Bret to do any serious -- I shouldn't say serious damage, it was kind of too late for that. He was already knocked out. I thought enough was enough.
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pt. 3
Q: How do you feel about Owen staying there? [Jaime Cole, Barbara]
A: Vince is just keeping him there in spite of Bret. When I talked to Vince in November-December before my surgery I told him that I didn't want to be a part of these obscene gestures and stuff like that. He said that he's going a totally different way, and I said that I didn't like the way he was going. He said, 'You sound like you're bitter.' And I said that I am. He said, 'well maybe you should find yourself a new job.' And I couldn't believe that he'd say that to me. And I said, 'Really?' And he said 'Yep'. So then I called my lawyer, and he called WCW. Within 20 minutes I was hired. My lawyer called up Vince. Jim Ross and Vince's attorney told him that Davey's got a full release. And the next day, they denied saying it. They said 'we never said that. If he wants out of his contract, he'll have to pay a fine of $150,000.' I said to my lawyer, 'I can't believe that. I'm the one that saved Vince. I pulled Bret off Vince. And I'm getting fined?' How the hell can you fine me $150,000? For what? What have I done wrong? Vince said, 'that's the way it's going to be, pal.' I said, 'that's a rotten way to treat me after all the service I've given you.'
Q: What was your take on the USA Vs Canada feud you were involved with in the Hart Foundation? [Brian Gilbert]
A: "I didn't really mind the feud. That was allright. I didn't really like going out there and putting the USA fans down. They paid their money to see us wrestle. You can't really get on the microphone and insult the fans of the United States of America. That's what kind of put a bad taste in my mouth, too. I felt very uncomfortable saying some of the things that I was told to say, doing some of the things I was told to do. Like planting someone in the audience with an American flag, and having to pull the American flag out of the guy's hand and break it in half. I didn't really want to do that. The feud itself -- there was a lot of money-making involved in it for Vince. I think that Bret, myself, the whole Hart Foundation was so strong that when we went to the States we were just selling out no matter what. When we came to Canada, the fans would just cheer the hell out of us. Some the wrestlers from the States, they didn't like that, but that's just the way things go. The fans would cheer me or Owen and boo other wrestlers. They couldn't handle it. We'd say, well this is what we have to go through in the States. It's a turnabout.
Q: That leads to a logical question that everyone wants to know. Will the Hart Foundation be re-united in WCW? [Johnny G., Queen's, NY]
A: One of my stipulations in my contract was that we couldn't use the name. The only way that I could get my release and sign an agreement was that we couldn't use the name Hart Foundation. Or any similarities at all to the Hart Foundation. I told my lawyers, 'I'm not the Hart Foundation. I'm the British Bulldog. What's that got to do with anything?' That was just a matter of Vince holding on to me. Him thinking 'what else can I do to hold him back from appearing in the WCW ring? Let me think of something. Well, he can't be a part of the Hart Foundation. You can't wear the jackets. You can't tag up with Bret.' It's like, fuck off. Gimme a break here. We're the ones who came up with the whole Foundation. We're all together. We're all brothers or brothers-in-law. It's like breaking up a family. You just can't do that.
Q: We've got a question that leads from that. Do you think that any member of the Hart Foundation will ever go into the WWF Hall of Fame? [anita]
A: I don't think so. Not after what happened at the Survivor Series.
Q: There's one question here. It hurts to say, but Jim Neidhart is, and has been for a while, a high-profile jobber. How do you feel about that, and will that ever happen to you? [Dustin Diaz]
A: I don't know what to say about that. Jim's had a good run in the WWF. Then they let him go, and I got him hired in WCW in 1993. He kind of overpriced himself when he went in 1993. And so they didn't really want to touch him. I don't think that they'd do that to me, on the basis that if they want to run England, or run Europe, it would be silly to do that to me. To sign me up for three years, they will use me to the best of my abilities to draw them money in Europe.
Q: Have you discussed with WCW any plans for a British/European tour? [Ryan Gray]
A: Yeah, they're working on Europe right now. And they're working on Canada. They're getting the TVs [shows] all on good stations. So hopefully they'll do good.
Q: More questions about allegiances here. Before you were in WCW, you were with Lex Luger as the Allied Powers. Do you see that re-uniting? [Greg]
A: We could possibly tag up. I've still got my jacket, even though Vince gave me a contract, wanting me to sign it saying that he owns all the rights to the name Allied Powers. I never did sign it. They day that we were supposed to sign it was the day that Lex left for the WCW. So I never did sign the contract saying that I'd give the name to Vince. I've still got the jacket upstairs. I think that I've worn it one time.
Q: Would you consider teaming up with fellow Brits like Chris Adams or Steve Regal? [Clifford D. Pine]
A: Yeah. There's a lot of potential there. There's Steve Regal. There's Fit Finley, who I've known for a very long time. There's always potential to get together. The more the merrier, I guess. There's strength in numbers.
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pt. 4
Q: Even the Canadian contingent is there. There was Benoit and Jericho last night [Thursday Thunder]. It was nice to see.
A: Yeah, I was just traveling with Chris [Benoit] last week. We drove because I had not seen Chris in a few years. It was nice to travel with him again and talk to him. WCW's expanded so much. When I was there, it was go to the Centre Stage [where WCW used to tape] and try to give tickets away to people to get them to come into the arena. Things like that. We couldn't even fill that. Now it's like, this is really weird, you know. It's just packed. These big arenas, and you go backstage and you've got all the talent people and agents. It's almost like the WWF, the way it was in the early 80s. That's what I see WCW as -- what wrestling used to be like in the early 80s. And Hogan was nice to me. And Savage was nice to me. Everyone was nice to me.
Q: In your past WCW tenure, you shared a main event with Sting. What are your memories of that, and where do you see yourself fitting in to WCW? [Meladdin1]
A: I have good memories of tagging with Sting. We laughed about some of the things, some of the Clashes, some of the photo shoots we did in England. Where you had the guy blow up the boat, and I saved Sting. It was a kind of mini-movie thing. We just laughed at how horrible it was. It was a mistake. He asked, 'you remember when we did this?' And I said 'yeah. That was the worst thing I ever did.' 'Yeah, that was the worst thing I did too.' We just laughed about it.
Q: Do you see yourself on par with Sting, who is by far the biggest thing they have going at the moment? Where do you fit in the scheme of things?
A: I think I'll slowly but surely fit in somewhere. I don't know where right now. I talked to Bret the beginning of this week, he said he was in Boston tomorrow night [January 31] then they're taking him off TV for three or four weeks. I don't know if they don't know what to do with him, or if they're planning something big or what. There's so many guys right now in WCW that are under contract that they don't know what to do with them. So I'm just sitting back waiting for my opportunity, my chance to get in there and do something. I don't want to rush into it.
Q: Do you think there's too many people in WCW?
A: There is a lot of guys, but I think there's enough guys that they could run, if they wanted to, two or three shows a night in different cities. You could have Sting in one place in the main event, Bret in another place and event.
Q: But if you all have contracts that say you can only wrestle 150 to 200 dates, doesn't that make the planning a lot harder?
A: I don't really know. That's a hard one. I'm not the one that's planning it. They're the ones that are planning it. If they want me to wrestle more than that, then I guess I'll wrestle more than that. They came up with the number of days, I didn't. If they want me to wrestle three or four times a week, I'll do it. I'm used to it. It's not going to turn me off any. But again, it's a lot easier than WWF. It's a lot easier on my body. I'm not taking all these bangs, getting hit by chairs, being physically damaged. I think being in the WCW, you can look at it and go, this schedule I'm doing, I could do this for another ten years. Whereas in the WWF, you go, the schedule I'm doing here, I could get hurt tomorrow night. You just don't know.
Q: I've got a question that leads well from that. If you were to retire tomorrow, who would you like your last match to be against? [Dr. Placid Lasrado]
A: I would say Bret. I could say Hogan, because I've never wrestled Hogan. I'd love to go over to Europe and wrestle Hogan.
Q: Interesting answer. I hadn't considered that you'd never wrestled Hogan.
A: No, I've never, never wrestled him. If he was the world's champion, I like to go over to England. Bulldog Vs Hollywood Hulk Hogan. People have never seen that. I'd be interesting to see.
Q: The next bunch of questions deal with the past. When did you first start wrestling pro? [Rob Taylor, Niagara Falls, ON]
A: I started when I was 15. I started training when I was 12, and turned pro when I was 15. So I've been around for a number of years.
Q: Who trained you?
A: Ted Betley.
Q: Obvious question here. Do you still keep in touch with the Dynamite Kid? [Caetano Pereira]
A: I haven't spoken to him in a number of years.
Q: Do you know his status? What's going on with him these days?
A: He has a job in England. Just a regular job. His back's bad. My Mom sees him more than I do. His Mom and my Mom live practically next door to each other. He's just got a regular job.
Q: So we'll probably never see him in the wrestling ring again? [Caetano Pereira]
A: He went to Japan a couple months ago, last month, or something like that. And he broke his foot, or something like that. That's what I was told. I don't know how true that is. That's what my Mom said. That's the first I'd heard of it.
Q: How as your childhood growing up? Any bullies or family problems or were you fairly normal? [Bean62]
A: Normal. No bullies. Never really had a problem in the dressing room, with any of the wrestlers. I'm a pretty happy, go-lucky guy. I don't look for trouble. I don't want trouble.
Q: In the past, you never really got much shot at the WWF World Title, despite being a main eventer. Do you regret that, or is that something that you thought would have eventually happened? [creasy]
A: I thought that it eventually would have happened. When Bret had the belt, I worked with him a few times overseas and in the States. We always had good matches. Yeah, I regret not having title matches.
Q: Bret, in his interview with us, called his match against you at Wembley the best match he ever did. What are your thoughts on that match?
A: That was the best match I ever had.
Q: What are your favorite memories from Stampede? [Chris Brady]
A: Oh, god. Stampede wrestling was probably some of the happiest days of my life. Really. We did lots of driving no matter what the weather conditions were like. Twelve guys in a van and just set off to Vancouver or Regina every Tuesday or Lethbridge. There were funny jokes played on all of the wrestlers. I was living with Bret at the time. I used to live with Bret in a little house in Calgary. I was going out with Diana. I was just really happy. It was a really good territory to be in. It was really booming at that time. In the early eighties, no matter where you went, Edmonton or Lethbridge, Red Deer or Calgary, it was sold out no matter what. I was just glad that they gave me the opportunity to come over and wrestle for them.
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pt. 5
Q: What are your thoughts on Bruce Hart's attempts to be the area started again?
A: I think it's good that he gets something going. He's really bored with his time and his brother Ross's. When they can be doing something. They've got some investors and they're trying to get wrestling established in Calgary once again because WWF comes once or twice a year. I don't think WCW has ever been here. There's a lot of fans out there who want to watch wrestling. They'll want to come down to see it. It's just a matter of Bruce and Ross getting the right talent to come down at wrestle for them. We've heard that they've already got TV time and Ed Whalen's going to be doing commentary again. I heard it's going to be just like the old Stampede wrestling days. That's what they're aiming for anyways. It's always good when you've got competition out there, I always say.
Q: This may be a simple one to answer. Was the sexual harassment accusation of Shawn Michaels by Diana legitimate or just another attempt by the WWF to get ratings? [JEFF]
A: It was just an attempt by the WWF to get ratings.
Q: Your feelings on that?
A: I didn't mind it at first. I'm working the main event, and this and that. But it was Jim Cornette's idea, and Bruce Pritchard's. They took it one step, and then tried to take it one further and I just put the brakes on it and said no. You've got to stop doing this now. You're not dealing with someone out of the crowd now, you're dealing with my wife. I'm not standing for it. There was the thing with Brian Pillman. You know, he's passed away, just leave him alone. Don't have his wife and family on TV and keep plugging it on TV. They'll do anything for ratings. It's unbelievable.
Q: What are your thoughts on Brian's passing away?
A: I was really sad because I was traveling with Brian. He roomed with me, we drove together. I was supposed to meet him that same day. I flew in to Minneapolis and saw Bret and Owen and Jim Neidhart at the airport in Minneapolis and they were going to the show in Minneapolis. I'd just come off a knee injury again and Owen said 'come to the arena and chat with the boys.' And I said that I didn't want to go, but everyone was trying to get me to go to the arena. I said I was going to go to St. Louis, check in, and get a good night's sleep. Get ready for the pay-per-view. I've got to meet Brian there. I got to the hotel and asked if he had checked in. They said, no he's not checked in. I thought, that's real weird, he's not checked in. The next day, about 4 o'clock that afternoon, that's when I found out. I just couldn't believe it.
Q: Who was a tougher opponent, Bret or Owen and why? [TheLouje]
A: That's really hard. Bret's a good technical wrestler, one of the best. Owen's a good technical wrestler. Owen's a little sneakier than Bret, more mischievous than Bret. I would say Bret's tougher. Just when you think you've got him beat, he turns your move. It's like playing a game of chess. You get so frustrated with Bret. Another great match was with Owen in Germany for the European title. Thirty-five minutes of non-stop, packed action. That's what I'm known for. That's what I do. That's what I do best. That's all I've done for 20 years. And for someone to turn around and say to me, we don't want you to wrestle like that anymore, we want to go this way, that's like ... I don't want to do that.
Q: On the topic of the European title, what are your thoughts on it being defended almost exclusively in the U.S.? It's not a European title anymore.
A: No it's not. When they took it off me, it didn't mean anything. Then the way Hunter won it ... When you had seen Owen and I go at it for 30 minutes in Germany, giving a non-stop wrestling action match. Then to see Shawn and Hunter lock-up, and hit the ropes and splashing, and covering. It's like ahhhh ... After the match I had with Shawn in Birmingham, it just degraded the belt like poof. It doesn't mean anything. Like the tag team belts don't mean anything any more in the WWF. It's switched back and forth so many times it doesn't mean a thing.
Q: What has been your most memorable moment in your career? [Dr. Placid Lasrado]
A: I would say, again, Wembley Stadium. That was the biggest of events. My most nervous event. I'd come back from staph infection of my knee. Not wrestling for six weeks, and then going into the ring with Bret for 40-45 minutes in front of 83,000 people. Wow. Having Lennox Lewis carry my flag out to the ring.
Q: He's Canadian too.
A: Yeah, I know.
Q: He's from Kitchener [Ontario], where I grew up. One of the heroes around town.
A: It's weird, I think he tries to have a London accent.
Q: It think that's the word - tries.
A: It think that was his downfall. They tried to put him over in England. When he stepped into the ring with me in Wembley Stadium, he couldn't believe it. He was just totally shocked. He just couldn't believe a wrestling could pull in as many people as we did. He tried to do the same thing with Frank Bruno where he did that thing in Cardiff, or somewhere like that, in the outdoor arena. He wasn't the same. He tried to it. In England, he tried to portray himself almost as me, I think. With interviews, and commercials and things like that, drinking the tea. When they found out he was born and raised in Canada, it was like 'you're not really English.' These people are not stupid. You're either from there or you're not. When I went over there for the first time for the WWF, they quizzed me up and down. They swore blind that I wasn't British. It's like, where do you think I'm from? They thought I was acting like a Britishman. Newspapers came down to my house, and I had to take them to my house, to my school, introduce them to the people who taught me in school and everything to prove. Show them my passport, birth certificate and everything. Because if they found out you're not really from England ... His [Lewis'] parents are British, but he was born in Canada. They just bury you.
Q: That leads right into the last couple of questions. Can you ask Dave Smith about his time at Golborne Comprehensive School. This is from someone named Simon Swzandt.
A: [Laughs] Yeah, that's where I went to school!
Q: Yeah, he apparently knows that. So he asks what your days were like at school there? [Simon Swzandt]
A: They were good. I was still going to that school when I started wrestling. The headmaster had come up to me and said you've got to go home. Your Mom called. That's when the promoter called saying some wrestler's sick and you've got to be Brighton tonight. We're going to need you there. I was like, oh my god. So I had to leave school at noon that day. Then one day, on Saturday afternoon, they put me on TV with Big Daddy against Nick McManus and Steve Logan. That's when the whole country saw me on TV. I had my headmaster come up to me and say, 'that's what you're doing. You're wrestling on the side.'
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pt. 6
Q: So how did your life change from there? Were you recognized everywhere?
A: Oh yeah. All the kids at school -- 'we saw you on TV on Saturday's wrestling'. It brought me out in a new light, because I had kept it really secret. No one knew what I was doing, that I was training to be a wrestler. All of a sudden, I couldn't keep it a secret anymore because I was on World of Sport on ITV on a Saturday afternoon when everyone's watching it. It's like, 'young David from Golborne'. 'Oh my god, he's on TV! We didn't know he did that.'
Q: There's a question from the same guy. Do you still go to the Queen Anne? [Simon Swzandt]
A: Oh my god, this guy must live next door to me.
Q: What is the Queen Anne?
A: It's my local pub. When I go home, I go there every night.
Q: How often would you get home? [Simon Swzandt]
A: I like to get home as often as I can really. If I'd known I was going to be off this long, I'd have gone home for a week or two. But you never know when someone's going to call and say we need you right now. So I was kind of on hold. Then I got sick after my surgery. I got staph infection in both of my legs. Both my legs went completely black. That was pretty scary because no one knew what was wrong. I couldn't eat. I was just throwing up constantly. One of my nephews died from the same disease. So I went to one hospital and the doctor said get off anything you're taking, off antibiotics. You might be having a allergic reaction. So I did and I got even sicker. So my brother-in-law came over, he saw my legs. This is the same guy who's son died. [Editor's note: Matthew, the son of Georgia Hart and B.J. Annis died in July 1996] He took me to the same doctor that took care of his son. He said to me that I've got a staph infection in both of your legs. You've got to get on antibiotics right away. So as soon as I started taking them, then I got better. It was pretty scary, especially after going through a surgery and being so healthy. And I was under a lot of stress too. I think that's what caused the too, a lot of stress. This crap with Vince. Fining me $150,000, things like that. Going through a lot mental stress. Not knowing what I was going to do next, not knowing where I was going to be. My wife was under a lot of stress because everything was so tense.
Q: Got two more questions here. Who was your favorite tag team partner? [Kathy Elsi]
A: The Dynamite Kid.
Q: What ever happened to Matilda? [Roger Brown]
A: She passed away a couple of years ago.
Q: Now who's dog was that?
A: That was my dog.
Q: Would you like to say any final things to your fans?
A: Just keep watching The British Bulldog. I'll get my break in the WCW. I'll bring wrestling back to TV where it should be [in Britain], not some freak show.
Q: Thanks for your time.
A: You're welcome.
source: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_interview.html
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Bulldog on the shelf
December 2, 1998
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog2.jpg)
By GREG OLIVER -- SLAM! Wrestling
Davey Boy Smith wants to set the record straight.
He's still employed by WCW, but is off on disability with full insurance coverage, but at only a third of his pay.
"My back's screwed up pretty bad," said the British Bulldog from his Calgary home. The cold weather "really screws" with his back and he is getting sick of needles. His wife, Diana, takes care of him.
The British Bulldog was injured in a match against Alex Wright and Disco Inferno when he was slammed onto the elevated trap door in the WCW ring set up for Ultimate Warrior appearances. Smith said that he didn't even know the trap door was there until he was dropped onto it.
Contrary to internet scuttlebut, he isn't bound for the WWF.
"I've not been in contact with them at all," he said.
And when asked if he was going to be the Blue Blazer, he laughed hard.
He's happy with the work schedule with WCW -- "I'm getting more money with WCW, working four or five days a month ... it's simple mathematics" but not with everything in the company.
The cut in pay while on injury leave upsets him as does the release of brother-in-law Jim 'The Anvil' Neidhart.
"I don't know why [they let Neidhart go]," he said, then reconsidered. "Well, I know why, but they weren't big reasons."
A few missed shows were part of the problem, but the Bulldog knows that Neidhart's career was hitched to his own, and with him on the shelf, there wasn't much incentive to keep The Anvil.
The British Bulldog Workout video appears poised to finally hit the shelves soon, after being in the can for over a year.
He approached WCW President Eric Bischoff about marketing and selling the tape, but that didn't pan out. Now, it appears that Blockbuster Entertainment will get the tape to market.
The bad back is preventing the him from working out in the gym, and that too is frustrating the fitness fanatic.
"That's what has been pissing me off too," he said. Doctors speculate that it could be anywhere from four to six months before he can resume an active lifestyle.
Davey Boy Smith knows that there is a possibility that his wrestling career may be over, but isn't ready to give in yet, even if it means facing more doctors with more needles.
He will likely get involved with the Cambridge, Ontario-based ICW as an investor, but not as a wrestler. A chain of gyms has also been talked about.
source: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingArchive/dec3_bulldog.html
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Bulldog on the shelf
December 2, 1998
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog2.jpg)
By GREG OLIVER -- SLAM! Wrestling
Davey Boy Smith wants to set the record straight.
He's still employed by WCW, but is off on disability with full insurance coverage, but at only a third of his pay.
"My back's screwed up pretty bad," said the British Bulldog from his Calgary home. The cold weather "really screws" with his back and he is getting sick of needles. His wife, Diana, takes care of him.
The British Bulldog was injured in a match against Alex Wright and Disco Infernowhen he was slammed onto the elevated trap door in the WCW ring set up for Ultimate Warrior appearances. Smith said that he didn't even know the trap door was there until he was dropped onto it.
Contrary to internet scuttlebut, he isn't bound for the WWF.
"I've not been in contact with them at all," he said.
And when asked if he was going to be the Blue Blazer, he laughed hard.
He's happy with the work schedule with WCW -- "I'm getting more money with WCW, working four or five days a month ... it's simple mathematics" but not with everything in the company.
The cut in pay while on injury leave upsets him as does the release of brother-in-law Jim 'The Anvil' Neidhart.
"I don't know why [they let Neidhart go]," he said, then reconsidered. "Well, I know why, but they weren't big reasons."
A few missed shows were part of the problem, but the Bulldog knows that Neidhart's career was hitched to his own, and with him on the shelf, there wasn't much incentive to keep The Anvil.
The British Bulldog Workout video appears poised to finally hit the shelves soon, after being in the can for over a year.
He approached WCW President Eric Bischoff about marketing and selling the tape, but that didn't pan out. Now, it appears that Blockbuster Entertainment will get the tape to market.
The bad back is preventing the him from working out in the gym, and that too is frustrating the fitness fanatic.
"That's what has been pissing me off too," he said. Doctors speculate that it could be anywhere from four to six months before he can resume an active lifestyle.
Davey Boy Smith knows that there is a possibility that his wrestling career may be over, but isn't ready to give in yet, even if it means facing more doctors with more needles.
He will likely get involved with the Cambridge, Ontario-based ICW as an investor, but not as a wrestler. A chain of gyms has also been talked about.
source: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingArchive/dec3_bulldog.html
A guy with talent like the bulldogs wrestling these idiots.....wow....way to go WCW creative suit and ties.....
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Let me know if you get anymore info in Dynamite Kid too.
Do you want current news or archival stuff?
He keeps a pretty low profile these days.
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Do you want current news or archival stuff?
He keeps a pretty low profile these days.
Sorry for the delayed reply...I just read all the Davey Boy Smith Q/A stuff. Very interesting. Do they have the same sort of thing for Dynamite? Also, I read in the above interview with Davey that Billington had a job in England. What could he be possibly doing if he's in a wheelchair?
Very good find on that Davey stuff, Monty. :)
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Sorry for the delayed reply...I just read all the Davey Boy Smith Q/A stuff. Very interesting. Do they have the same sort of thing for Dynamite? Also, I read in the above interview with Davey that Billington had a job in England. What could he be possibly doing if he's in a wheelchair?
Very good find on that Davey stuff, Monty. :)
I'll do some digging later on today, but I've got a lot more I can post on Davey.
The last I'd heard, Dyno was working on former wrestler John Naylor's farm.
Now, that was more than 10 years ago, and I'm not even sure what the extent of that "work" encompassed.
Being a UK born citizen and living there now, I would imagine he's able to collect some type of disability compensation, or possibly does/can do some type of job(s) through their DPW...I don't know if that's contingent on settling prior tax debts, nor do I know if Billington owed or settled any UK tax debts.
I believe Bret claimed Tom owed a ton of Canadian back taxes before leaving in the early 90's, but I don't know whatever became of that, either.
I should call him up later and ask!
;D
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I'll do some digging later on today, but I've got a lot more I can post on Davey.
The last I'd heard, Dyno was working on former wrestler John Naylor's farm.
Now, that was more than 10 years ago, and I'm not even sure what the extent of that "work" encompassed.
Being a UK born citizen and living there now, I would imagine he's able to collect some type of disability compensation, or possibly does/can do some type of job(s) through their DPW...I don't know if that's contingent on settling prior tax debts, nor do I know if Billington owed or settled any UK tax debts.
I believe Bret claimed Tom owed a ton of Canadian back taxes before leaving in the early 90's, but I don't know whatever became of that, either.
I should call him up later and ask!
;D
Very very interesting stuff.
Taxes are a whore anywhere in the world. Everytime I get my pay stub at work and I examine it, I cringe at what they take off.
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Davey Boy feared he was dying
March 24, 1999
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_99mar.jpg)
By ERIC FRANCIS -- Calgary Sun
In the midst of a year full of personal tragedies, Calgary wrestler Davey Boy Smith was convinced he'd finally met an opponent he couldn't beat -- cancer.
Dealing with undiagnosed back and abdominal pain that put a hold on his wrestling career and caused him to lose 40 lb., the British Bulldog figured he was about to meet the same fate as his younger sister and mother did a few months earlier.
"I thought my life was over and I was going to die," said Smith, 36, whose sister Tracy lost a battle with cancer Nov. 7, just 12 weeks before the disease claimed his mother.
"I was a nervous wreck," he said.
"After seeing several specialists who weren't able to figure out what was causing the pain, they thought maybe it was a cancerous tumour.
"Knowing the history of cancer in my family, I thought I had cancer of the stomach."
With his head spinning, Smith spent four agonizing days awaiting the test results which would heavily impact the rest of his life.
"I kept thinking about my mom and sister and what they went through," said Smith, whose chiropractor started the battery of tests that ultimately determined his ailments weren't cancerous growths.
"I'm still in pain and they still don't know what's wrong with my back, but I'm just glad it's not what I thought it was."
Following a powerslam on a steel trap door that injured his back and knocked him from the World Championship Wrestling circuit six months ago, doctors have finally narrowed down the root of his pain.
"It's either two discs in my upper back that are smashed against the nerve, or it's an infection," said Smith, whose horrible year was made worse when his 13-year-old son, aspiring young wrestler Harry, had a steel plate inserted in his right arm to repair a broken humerus.
"If it's an infection they can give me antibiotics.
"If it's smashed discs, they'll want to operate which I won't let them do."
Despite the fact Smith compares his excruciating back pain to being stabbed with a knife, he vows to return to the ring.
The 240 lb. Smith has regained 20 lb. and wants to dispel any notion that he has retired.
He still has plans to return to the WCW, where he hopes to wrestle alongside brother-in-law and former partner Bret Hart.
"It's been a really bad year, but I'll be back -- hopefully at the end of April," said Smith who credits his wife, Diana, a former Mrs. Calgary, for helping him through it all.
"I can't stay out another six or eight months. It'll drive me crazy," he said.
"I'm going to come back bigger and better than ever."
Smith was hoping to make his return to the ring April 2 at the Stampede Pavilion when his brother-in-laws Bruce and Ross re-introduce Stampede Wrestling to the city.
However, doctors won't allow it, forcing him to settle for a role as one of the event's TV commentators.
source: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99mar24.html
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Wrestlezone.com contributor Ken Napzok wrote & submitted this rather touching tribute to Davey Boy Smith on the anniversary of his passing:
The British Bulldog
On May 18th, 2002, the pro wrestling world lost Davey Boy Smith. His family, of course, lost way more than we can measure. Hard to believe it’s been nine years. While Rowdy Roddy Piper, Shawn Michaels, and Bret Hart were, and remain some of my all-time favorites, a special place in my book always remains for Davey Boy Smith.
I always loved Piper, but my true appreciation of the Hot Rod came a little later on when I got older and began to soak in the performance side of the sport. I rooted for Michaels from the very moment he put Marty Jannetty’s face through the Barbershop’s gimmicked window, but before that I honestly had trouble remembering which Rocker was which. And while I screamed at Vince through my TV set with Bret was screwed in Montreal, the big confession was I didn’t think he would make it on his own when The Hart Foundation broke up. Before they became my favorites, I was a little kid who proudly called “The British Bulldog” Davey Boy Smith my favorite wrestler.
It was my early obsession with The Beatles and childhood interest in England that first lead me to the Union Jack-sporting British Bulldogs circa 1986, but it was the dazzling moves of Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith that kept my interest. At the time, they stood apart in the clothesline and legdrop landscape of professional wrestling. They were dazzling and different. Fast beyond comprehension. When The Islanders stole Matilda, I was furious... and therefore hooked on wrestling.
The Bulldogs disappeared. (Remember this was pre-Internet. I had no idea Dynamite Kid has backstage heat with the Rougeaus or that they were back in Stampede Wrestling as well as tearing up Japan.) So did my weekly routine of watching wrestling. I was growing up, entering Junior High, and discovering “adult” things like baseball and science homework. Wrestling looked to be a thing of my past. Then, one fateful day, a good friend of mine named Gavin told me that this new guy had shown up in the WWF. His name was The British Bulldog. Just like that I was back on my living room floor the following Saturday watching WWF Superstars. I had to see if this “new” guy had anything to do with my old favorites. I was overjoyed when “Rule, Britannia” hit and out came Davey Boy Smith. He was bigger than I remembered, and I remained innocently and blissfully unaware as to why. He had long dreds now, no mascot, and the announcers rarely called him Davey Boy. But it was the same guy I had rooted for.
For a short time in 1992, it could be argued that Davey Boy Smith was the most over face in the WWE and 80,000 plus in attendance at Wembley Stadium for SummerSlam ‘92 would agree. That card’s Bret Hart versus Bulldog main event remains my personal all-time favorite. I was prepared for a long Intercontinental Title reign, but it wasn’t to be. He dropped the belt Shawn Michaels by November and was soon gone for reasons I didn’t know at the time. Sometimes I wish I never did find out.
I tried watching him in WCW, but he was playing volleyball with Sting and pirate midgets were blowing up their speedboats. Then I had to endure The Bulldog standing next to someone called The Shockmaster and I turned off my TV, never really watching WCW again.
To my utter most excitement Davey Boy returned to the WWF at the 1994 SummerSlam as part of the Bret versus Owen family feud. By then my appreciation and support for other wrestlers had grown and Davey Boy was just “one” of my favorites. But it was a great time to be a card carrying member of the Bulldog Fanclub. His 1994-1997 run was probably his most successful period with many great moments, title runs, and main event spots. I missed most of the Attitude Era, which means I missed the tragic end. I heard about Davey Boy’s death through a news clip. While I can never, ever feel the loss of Davey Boy with the great weight felt by family and friends, his death struck a particularly painful chord in me as it was a chord directly tied to my childhood. When I think of Davey Boy Smith, I think of watching wrestling with wide eyed innocence and wonder.
When you look back to the 1980’s and the explosion of pro wrestling, there are bigger names and personalities than Davey Boy that jump out at you. Most of these names get the “influential” status and rightfully so. It would be a gross oversight, though, to not include Davey Boy Smith in that category. He was a key part of a new style of wrestling that paved the way for the awe inspiring moves and moments of the present day. God Save the Queen and may God forever bless Davey Boy Smith.
credit: http://www.wrestlezone.com/editorials/article/the-british-bulldog-over-the-pay-per-view-limit-more-130091
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These are really good articles. Nice find. :)
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These are really good articles. Nice find. :)
Thank you.
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Spinal infection sidelines Davey Boy
April 2, 1999
By ERIC FRANCIS -- Calgary Sun
Calgary wrestler Davey Boy Smith has been hospitalized in a fight against an undiagnosed spinal infection doctors say will inflict intense pain on his body.
Smith was admitted to the Rockyview Wednesday after tests determined a lump on his back was a bone infection requiring aggressive antibiotics and rest.
"Although it feels like there's a Rambo knife in my back, they tell me I haven't even started feeling the real pain yet -- it's not something I'm looking forward to," said a sedated Smith, 36, with his wife Diana by his side.
"The infection is going through my body right now and the doctor told me I'm in for the long haul. I'm scared because if this infection gets into my spinal column, well, the doctors said they didn't even want to talk about what that would mean."
Smith's family physician, Dr. Ronald Lim, suspects Smith is suffering from a staph infection in his spine, although test results aren't in yet. Lim says the infection isn't life-threatening but could keep him in hospital for at least six weeks.
"He'll feel a lot of pain -- I don't doubt that," said Lim.
"The worst is definitely not yet over but he's getting the proper treatment."
Smith saw two other specialists yesterday who determined his initial antibiotic treatment wasn't working and increased its strength.
"Right now I don't know about surgery -- we'll have to wait and see his response and won't know for a couple of weeks," said Lim.
"It's too early to say if it could threaten his career, but it's safe to say he'll be out four months at the very least."
Smith, known worldwide as the British Bulldog, was sidelined from the World Championship Wrestling circuit following a powerslam on a steel trap door that injured his back six months ago.
Smith's hopes of returning to the ring as early as next month came crashing down Wednesday when his thoughts turned to simply being able to walk.
"Everything has been put on hold with this," said Smith, who hoped to be a commentator at tonight's return of Stampede Wrestling at the Pavilion.
"This is pretty bad but I'm trying not to think about it. I'm scared."
Several months after losing his sister and mother to cancer, Smith got a similar scare recently when doctors ran tests to see if his back pains were linked to the deadly disease. It was determined at that point his ailment was either two crushed discs or an infection.
However, Tuesday night his daughter noticed a large lump on his back that caused his body to seize up.
Doctors have Smith on severe painkillers and antibiotics with hopes of avoiding surgery to remove portions of the infection.
Smith has a history of staph infections, including one that threatened to have his leg amputated in 1992.
Surgery cleared that up and was also needed for a knee injury he suffered just over a year ago breaking up a fist fight between Bret Hart and World Wrestling Federation president Vince McMahon. A year ago he had an infection in his hand that also required surgery.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99apr2.html
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Davey Boy taking fight to court British Bulldog primed to fight WCW axing with a lawsuit
April 11, 1999
By ERIC FRANCIS -- Calgary Sun
Davey Boy Smith knows all about getting kicked when he's down. After all, he's a professional wrestler.
But despite the fact he's lying in a local hospital awaiting possible back surgery, the British Bulldog isn't about to submit to his latest opponent.
Out of the wrestling loop since September with a back injury suffered in the ring, Smith received written notice this week his contract has been terminated by World Championship Wrestling. Incensed by the decision, and the impersonal way it was delivered, Smith said he's going to sue his former employer.
"It's a crock of (bleep)," said Smith, suffering from an undiagnosed and painful bone infection in his back.
"I'm shocked. I hurt myself in their ring because of their (negligence) and they do this? They put me in an unsafe environment and that's why I'm here."
Smith was sidelined in September when a WCW opponent power slammed him on a hidden trap door beneath the ring he wasn't told about. Doctors told him Friday they might have to replace 4 ins. of his fractured spine with titanium, which would end definitely his wrestling career.
Ironically, earlier this week, Smith's brother-in-law, Bret (Hitman) Hart, was also in Rockyview Hospital for groin surgery. And a couple floors below him was Bret's sister, Ellie, who is married to Jim Neidhart.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingArchive/apr11_bull.html
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Davey Boy taking fight to court British Bulldog primed to fight WCW axing with a lawsuit
April 11, 1999
By ERIC FRANCIS -- Calgary Sun
Davey Boy Smith knows all about getting kicked when he's down. After all, he's a professional wrestler.
But despite the fact he's lying in a local hospital awaiting possible back surgery, the British Bulldog isn't about to submit to his latest opponent.
Out of the wrestling loop since September with a back injury suffered in the ring, Smith received written notice this week his contract has been terminated by World Championship Wrestling. Incensed by the decision, and the impersonal way it was delivered, Smith said he's going to sue his former employer.
"It's a crock of (bleep)," said Smith, suffering from an undiagnosed and painful bone infection in his back.
"I'm shocked. I hurt myself in their ring because of their (negligence) and they do this? They put me in an unsafe environment and that's why I'm here."
Smith was sidelined in September when a WCW opponent power slammed him on a hidden trap door beneath the ring he wasn't told about. Doctors told him Friday they might have to replace 4 ins. of his fractured spine with titanium, which would end definitely his wrestling career.
Ironically, earlier this week, Smith's brother-in-law, Bret (Hitman) Hart, was also in Rockyview Hospital for groin surgery. And a couple floors below him was Bret's sister, Ellie, who is married to Jim Neidhart.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingArchive/apr11_bull.html
That trap door incident shouldn't have even happened. A trap door in the ring....gimmie a break. They had to know that someone was prone to get hurt via taking bumps in the ring. Can you imagine getting suplex or slammed on a steel hinge?
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That trap door incident shouldn't have even happened. A trap door in the ring....gimmie a break. They had to know that someone was prone to get hurt via taking bumps in the ring. Can you imagine getting suplex or slammed on a steel hinge?
That's because a trap door was the ONLY way a bum like Hellwig could get over.
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That's because a trap door was the ONLY way a bum like Hellwig could get over.
;D ;D ;D
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;D ;D ;D
When trying to get over a guy who can't work, these are the kinds of ridiculous things you must do.
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When trying to get over a guy who can't work, these are the kinds of ridiculous things you must do.
You mean like puking all over Gene Okerlund alla PapaShango curse? ;D
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You mean like puking all over Gene Okerlund alla PapaShango curse? ;D
ROFLMFAO!!!
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ROFLMFAO!!!
Or Warrior getting buried alive by Jake Roberts? ;)
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Davey Boy overwhelmed by support
April 16, 1999
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_hospital1.jpg)
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_hospital2.jpg)
By MATT BURNS -- Stampede Wrestling
Let me start this update with the following: WOW!
The enormous support for Davey Boy continues to pour in, with an average of 1500 messages being received every 2 days! I am buried in e-mails but I want to assure everyone that they ARE being delivered to Davey on a regular basis. Due to the enormous volume it is simply impossible for him to reply to the mails, however you are all brightening his days with your warm wishes.
I just returned from visiting Davey in the hospital and have attached a couple of pictures I snapped while visiting. When I arrived, the room was already quite full with family members, namely Davey's wife Diana, Stu & Helen Hart, Ellie Neidhart, and BJ Annis (Georgia Hart's husband). The family is behind Davey 100% and are doing what they can to keep up his spirits. Oh, did I mention THE DOGS? That's right, somehow Davey's two dogs MaryLegs and Dainty were smuggled in for a visit. The first photo shows Davey with Diana, MaryLegs and Dainty. For the record, Mary is sitting on the batch of e-mails I delivered on this visit! The second shows Davey with, of course, the Legendary Stu Hart. The strange-looking apparatus on Davey's midsection is a custom-fit brace that stretches from his waist to his neck. Between the family and the stacks of high-tech medical gizmos around his bed, the room gets awful small very quickly!
His treatments are extremely painful and wear him right down, however his spirits are up and he remains optimistic in this time of uncertainty. It is still unknown when he might be released from the hospital. He asked me to pass on a big hello to all his fans around the world and to thank you all very much for rallying behind him while he has been ill.
Further updates on Davey's condition will follow as they happen.
That's it for this edition, which is dedicated solely to the update of Davey Boy's condition. I will have another edition of the Mailing List in the next couple of days with updates regarding Stampede Wrestling show dates and information on the cards. Note that there has been a show update on the main page of the website, cards to follow shortly. Also, there are some rumblings about an Edmonton show next month...nothing official at this time, however the Mailing List readers will be the first to know!
Remember, if you know of someone who may be interested in joining our Mailing List, they can send a msg with their E-mail address in the subject line to mailinglist@stampedewrestling.com to join.
So in the meantime and in between time, that's it, another edition of the Mailing List.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99apr16.html
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Nice article!
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Nice article!
Thanks.
What's interesting is you can often follow along, correlating the events in these articles to the chronology of Bret's book.
For instance, the article mentions Davey's back surgery, but from Bret, we know that it was during this time, also, that Diana was fooling around behind Davey's back while he was in the hospital recovering from surgery AND going through detox.
Bret ran into Austin backstage at a WWF show & saw him fraternizing with Diana - who'd recently dyed her hair dark - and he mentioned what a lousy thing that was to do with Davey in the shape he was in.
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Thanks.
What's interesting is you can often follow along, correlating the events in these articles to the chronology of Bret's book.
For instance, the article mentions Davey's back surgery, but from Bret, we know that it was during this time, also, that Diana was fooling around behind Davey's back while he was in the hospital recovering from surgery AND going through detox.
Bret ran into Austin backstage at a WWF show & saw him fraternizing with Diana - who'd recently dyed her hair dark - and he mentioned what a lousy thing that was to do with Davey in the shape he was in.
Wow...I never heard that one. Very interesting. Steve should have stayed with Debra. I could spend the next 25 years or so with her tits swinging like a pendulum in my face. 8)
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Wow...I never heard that one. Very interesting. Steve should have stayed with Debra. I could spend the next 25 years or so with her tits swinging like a pendulum in my face. 8)
Yeah, it's in his book; he only devoted about two lines to it, but he didn't even recognize her at first.
In the end, I believe she ended up in a relationship one of Bruce's (substantially younger) Stampede trainees.
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Davey Boy Smith won't let dream die
May 26, 1999
By BILL KAUFMANN -- Calgary Sun
Davey Boy Smith is hoping to create his own ring legacy for a fallen friend, brother-in-law and former tag-team chum.
The one-time British Bulldog said he was recently asked by Owen Hart to revive their tag-team liaison, one that captured four world championships with the World Wrestling Federation.
That dream is now gone, but Smith hopes to mobilize for the next-best thing -- a solo comeback in memory of Hart.
"He wanted me to go back, so I'll try my hardest to fulfil his wish," said Smith, standing on the mat in the Hart home's "dungeon" gymnasium, where Owen learned his craft.
Smith is still recovering from a serious injury suffered during a bungled trap door stunt in a WCW ring last September.
Smith, who has also been recovering from an infection in his spinal cord, was visited in hospital last week by his close confidante Hart.
"He was like a brother to me -- we stayed in the same rooms, we drove, flew and ate together," said Smith. "I was tagged-teamed with Owen longer than anyone within the federation."
The WWF leadership shouldn't take the blame for the death of his close friend, said the husky wrestler.
"They're running a business and we all do crazy things."
Performing risky feats without stunt doubles is a point of pride, said Smith.
"We're stunt men -- we take our own falls, we use harnesses and pulleys.
"It really makes me mad when when they say wrestling's phony."
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/OwenHart/may26_dav.html
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Davey Boy Smith determined to re-enter the wrestling ring
July 4, 1999
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_jul99.jpg) (http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_harry_jul99.jpg)
By RICK BELL
Calgary Sun
A rainy weekday morning at B.J.'s Gym, jogging distance east from City Hall and the St. Louis Hotel.
A Jaguar roars up. The driver smiles and gets out.
Davey Boy Smith, known throughout the world as The British Bulldog, is back where he belongs.
He works out, twice a day six days a week, and is now finished his new bodybuilding video. He gains lost weight and bangs the proteins and vitamins.
He feels no pain in a spine that's gone through hell.
We are witnessing the first step back from that day last September when Davey was slammed against a steel trap door in a World Championship Wrestling bout.
Davey, brother-in-law and one-time tag team partner of Owen Hart, is planning a return to wrestling, perhaps to Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation.
"I'm an addict to wrestling. It's almost like a drug. I've been down but I have always returned to the ring. It's the only thing I know -- working out and wrestling. That's all I've done since I was 10," says Davey.
"I love to make people laugh, I love to hear them cheer." Then he adds: "Owen and me would fool around in the ring. He was so comical with those funny faces."
Yes, Davey has seen much.
In the past months, Davey's 27-year-old sister died. His mom died. Owen died.
"I lost my brother-in-law and lost one of my best friends. Martha and Bret have the right to do what they want with the lawsuit. But I don't point fingers.
"I am still on good terms with both the WCW and the WWF. There is no personal animosity. I have nothing against Vince McMahon. I never badmouth a promoter. It's not my style. I never burn bridges."
He's come a long way.
Short weeks ago, Davey lay in a hospital, three crushed discs and a terrible infection.
He had a body cast from waist to neck. Every time he sat up, the cast would choke him. Davey hated it.
Then the letter came by Federal Express. Davey's wife Diana threw it on Davey's bed. The WCW had canned him. He was through.
Davey had wrestled two decades.
"I am not a bitter man. But if you put me in the ring when there's a trap door, tell me. I'm not injured because of clumsiness but because they were at fault."
Looking back now, Davey recalls his decision last fall to try and keep wrestling though something was wrong with his back. He felt the terrible pain. He was shying away from falls and getting really out of shape.
There were the painkillers. Demerol. Morphine. He grew to depend on them.
By Boxing Day of '98, Davey had enough. He flew up to Grande Prairie to check in to rehab and get clean. A 28-day program. Davey stayed seven weeks.
Without the drugs, Davey felt the back pain again. He got an X-ray. The docs couldn't find anything.
His last week in Grande Prairie, Davey collapsed and flew back to Calgary. He went to Foothills and Rockyview, once going by ambulance. Some thought Davey just wanted a fix.
The pain in his back got worse. Davey couldn't sleep. Sometimes he'd walk around all night at home, crying.
A chiropractor suggested a bone scan. The next thing Davey knew, he was in the hospital for almost two months with three crushed discs and a vicious staph infection. Davey even lost half an inch in height.
But Davey never, ever lost sight of the ring. He just kept saying: "I don't have a date when I'm back or who I'm going to work for, but I will be back one day."
After all, Davey had wrestled forever.
Growing up in England between Manchester and Liverpool, in the town of Golborne. Wrestling because his dad didn't want him smashing windows.
There was Ted Betley, his trainer from the age of 12, who looked, talked and acted like the trainer in Rocky.
There were the times Davey delivered fruit and jumped over the fences at every delivery just to get in shape.
There was Davey's first pro match at 15 years old. He ran 8 km to pick up the contract. "I would have wrestled for free."
At almost 18, Stu Hart brought him to Calgary. The wrestlers were so big. Davey thought he was in The Land of The Giants.
In his first match, Davey fought his cousin, The Dynamite Kid.
And, of course, there was Davey's fame as The British Bulldog and beating Bret Hart before 83,000 at London's famed Wembley Stadium. Lennox Lewis carried Davey's Union Jack into the ring.
Yes, he is determined to be back. The WWF, for its part, tells me it would welcome a call from Davey when he's ready.
"After my injury, a lot of the scandal sheets said I was all washed up. That really ticked me off. I want to show them all.
"I'm not washed up. I'm not finished.
"I'm not a quitter. It may be in a year from now or 20 years. But I'll never quit. I never have. I never will."
Davey then heads into the gym and takes a step closer.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99jul4.html
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Some good info here. I wonder if there's any youtube or vids of Davey training in the gym?
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Some good info here. I wonder if there's any youtube or vids of Davey training in the gym?
RF Video released the training DVD he & Diana made a few years before his passing.
I believe Highspots now has the rights to it.
I've searched, but can't find anything on YT or dailymotion - however, I suspect it's only a matter of time before it pops up.
I'm totally amazed at some of the obscure footage I've found.
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Stu supports Bulldog's comeback
July 5, 1999
By NOVA PIERSON -- Calgary Sun
Calgary's wrestling patriarch said he wouldn't want to hold Davey Boy Smith back from entering the ring again -- even after the tragic death of Owen Hart.
"It'd be like telling a hockey player like Wayne Gretzky to find another vocation. 'All I can do is play hockey,' " said Stu Hart.
Davey Boy Smith told the Sun last weekend he was working out and hopeful for a return to the wrestling ring after hurting his back last year.
That's even after the May 23 death of Owen Hart -- Smith's brother-in-law and Hart's son -- who fell while attempting a dramatic entrance to the ring in a Missouri arena.
Hart said he wasn't surprised to learn that Smith wants to return to wrestling.
"I don't know what the hell (Smith) could do if he doesn't go back," said Hart. "There's nothing that could compete with that."
Hart said it was likely the best shot Smith had at making a good living.
"When Davey is is good shape he's a pretty good attraction."
And Hart said he himself has made wrestling his whole life.
"Wrestling helped me a whole lot. It gave me a lot of confidence in myself. It's been a way of life for me since 1949," Hart said.
But the whole family is still reeling from Owen's sudden death at Kansas City's Kemper Arena during a World Wrestling Foundation match.
His widow, Martha, said she will keep quiet her thoughts, after she and Owen's parents filed a wrongful death suit last month.
Among the 13 defendants are the WWF and its chairman Vince McMahon.
"Owen has died and there is nothing I can do to bring him back," she said during a June 15 press conference. "But one hope above all is that his death will not be in vain. I believe those responsible should be held accountable under the law."
And Hart said Owen's death has been felt worldwide.
"I must have a couple black garbage bags filled with cards from people all over the world," he said of the condolences.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99jul5.html
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RF Video released the training DVD he & Diana made a few years before his passing.
I believe Highspots now has the rights to it.
I've searched, but can't find anything on YT or dailymotion - however, I suspect it's only a matter of time before it pops up.
I'm totally amazed at some of the obscure footage I've found.
I was looking for it a while ago too. This site listed his workout
http://bulldogtribute.tripod.com/training.html (http://bulldogtribute.tripod.com/training.html)
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I was looking for it a while ago too. This site listed his workout
http://bulldogtribute.tripod.com/training.html (http://bulldogtribute.tripod.com/training.html)
Sweet...
Now, I can look just like Davey!!
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Davey Boy defies critics and signs deal with WWF
August 24,1999
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_aug99.jpg)
By RICK BELL -- Calgary Sun
It's Rocky and Family Feud all wrapped in one.
Davey Boy Smith, the 35-year-old wrestler the world calls The British Bulldog, returns to the ring next month.
He's inked a five-year, multi-million dollar deal with Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation.
Still, with all that, Davey is angry.
Angry at those who thought he was all washed up.
Angry at the WWF's rival, World Championship Wrestling, which fired him months ago as he lay in hospital.
Angry at brother-in-law Bret Hart, who dragged Davey through the dirt when Davey vowed to wrestle again.
"I'm really psyched. My strength is ungodly. I feel I could run through a wall," says Davey, in his first interview with the press since his signing a few weeks ago.
"I baffled the doctors. There were the doubters who said I was all washed up.
"There were those who said the Bulldog was a lazy, fat slob.
"There were some people in my own family who were hoping I wouldn't come back.
"But I said: I'll show you all. And I'll show Bret. When I really get mad, I get furious. Make me motivated and I'll go for it. I'm not afraid of anyone. If Bret's got a problem with me, he knows where I live."
When this column informed the public of Davey's comeback in July, Bret used his Sun column to slam Davey.
"Saw a strange sight yesterday. Dogs rolling in manure and loving every minute of it.
"For some reason, it made me think of how the British Bulldog will do anything to work for the WWF," wrote Bret.
"There were these four little pigs in the pig races. The guy there told me they'd sell out their mothers and brothers and sisters to the slaughterhouse, just for those mini donuts. Kind of reminds me of ... er ... I won't go there this week," Bret also wisecracked.
Davey can't understand Bret. Davey does not think his comeback is in any way defiling the memory of Owen Hart, who died in a WWF match earlier this year.
"Why does Bret attack me? What have I done to him except stick by him? I can't figure out why. He even called my wife on the phone and said: If I see you on the street, I'll run you over, you..."
The rest cannot be printed in a family newspaper.
"I'm really angry at Bret. I went with him to the WCW. I paid a $100,000 fine to leave the WWF. I was backing Bret up. I felt responsible for what happened to Bret, when he lost his belt.
"After all that, he nails me. When I was let go, who the hell backed me up?"
"Why should I leave what I love for one person? Does Bret expect me to sit at home and do nothing the rest of my life? Does he want me to lose everything just to satisfy him? I refuse to do that.
"What happened to Owen is tragic but there is nothing I can do about it. Vince did not push Owen."
Six days a week down at B.J.'s Gym, Davey shakes aside all the naysayers and keeps his eye on the prize.
He diets like crazy and sweats like crazy to get down to his fighting weight of 245 lbs.
There is something in the heart and guts of this former delivery boy from the English town of Golborne, near Manchester.
Something that will not say no.
The way back amazes even Davey.
Davey smashes his back against a trap door in the ring a year ago.
He gets hooked on painkillers and enters rehab.
Three discs in his back dissolve in a sea of infection.
Doctors say his career is through.
His sister dies. His mom dies. Owen, his brother-in-law and one-time tag-team partner, dies.
But he does not give up.
The road to his new contract begins in April with Davey in a bed at the Rockyview Hospital. His back battered, his wrestling career seemingly over.
It was then Vince McMahon called. Davey and Vince joke around. Vince asks about Davey's back.
"Six specialists tell me I'll never wrestle again but Vince told me: 'If anyone can do it, you can do it.' Then I was really psyched. I was ecstatic."
WWF stars Chyna, Triple H, The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin called Davey.
WWF star Mankind visited him. "I thought to myself: This is where I belong, where I started. With Vince," recalls Davey.
Davey signed the deal last month but kept quiet until now.
In July, Vince sent first-class tickets to Davey and his wife Diana.
A limo took them to their suite at the New York City's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
At lunch the next day, the deal was done.
"I felt like a bloody movie star," says Davey, who is counting the days to his first match -- expected to be Sept. 20.
"If you put yourself down, you stay down.
"I get back up. If I can't perform, then I'll hang up my tights and burn my boots.
"But it will not happen. No way. I mean it. No way."
And, in that very moment, Davey once again takes on all the doubters, the critics, the WCW, and yes, even Bret Hart.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99aug24.html
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Bret was pissed at Davey for divorcing his sister. Naturally Bret would side with his blood. Thats why this rule is so under-rated, keep your business and family completely seperated. Its like having two dicks and no bitch.
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Bret was pissed at Davey for divorcing his sister. Naturally Bret would side with his blood. Thats why this rule is so under-rated, keep your business and family completely seperated. Its like having two dicks and no bitch.
I think if Diana was "my blood," I'd get a transfusion.
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I think if Diana was "my blood," I'd get a transfusion.
You and me both
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Bulldog content to be back in WWF
November 18, 1999
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_sm.jpg)
By ALEX RISTIC -- SLAM! Wrestling
You'd be hard pressed to find someone who's been in as many wars as The British Bulldog, Davey Boy Smith. Wrestling since he was 15, Smith has had to work his way up everywhere he's gone for his entire 22-year run in the business. You can probably count on your fingers and toes how many grapplers among the thousands that have lasted as long.
It's a quite afternoon, three days before Survivor Series 1999 that Smith called the offices of CANOE for a free-for-all -- about his past, present, and the state of wrestling in general today.
One thing that seems ironic is that Smith instantly captured championship gold (hardcore title) upon his return to the WWF, after his self-imposed two-year hiatus from the company, and then cashed it in for the European belt. It's ironic because Smith was the first bearer of the title of European Champion, and now holds it once more, but he says it won't hold him back from his loftier goals.
"I'm glad to be the European Champion," said the genuinely friendly Smith. "Whatever comes next, comes next. I'm not trying to rush anything; I'm just trying to get myself back into ring shape basically. It took me longer than I thought to get back into ring shape because I took that year off. With not wrestling for a year it took me a while to get my wind back. It's just the past couple of weeks that it's just starting to come back. I can really feel it because I've dropped 15 to 20 pounds since I've back, just lightening up so I can move better."
Not everything is planned 100% in advance. Smith won't know if he'll get a full world championship push for a while, but says it's not out of the question, and that there's plenty of time because he's currently inked a five-year contract. Still after promoting his desire to win the "big strap" after his return, does he think it will happen sooner rather than later?
"I would say so," Smith said. "I didn't want anyone to rush me in right away. I explained to Vince (McMahon, owner of the WWF), 'I've not wrestled for a year, and I should take it easy before I start going and make sure everything's okay with my back.' What happened, The Undertaker got injured, he tore his groin, and basically my first night back was the six-man tag, with me, The Rock and Kane, and it was like 'Whoa!' I went against The Big Show, and I've never been in the ring with The Big Show. He's one big, strong dude. That was my first match back, and it was a big shock to me."
Recently Smith has been teamed up with the Mean Street Posse, something puzzling many of the squared circle observers. Bulldog seemed to be on the right path going solo, so many were surprised at his new mates. Smith explained the affiliation.
"I think it's just to bring me in slowly," said Smith. "They'll help me in the ring, and I can help them, as far as working. It's basically you scratch my back, I'll scratch your back. They're good guys too, They're funny guys, and it's fun to be in their with them."
What was just as bizarre was the booking of Survivor Series, which pitted Bulldog and his Posse against other heels. Smith is at a loss to explain that one.
"It was a big shock to me to," he admitted. "I thought I wasn't going to be working The Survivor Series. It was going to be one night off, out of a million working. No one told me until the last minute. Basically at Smackdown! I found out who the teams were. Basically we're all heels. You've got Gangrel, myself, Val Venis, Mark Henry, Steve Blackman, Joey Abs, Rodney and Pete Gas."
It is also an interesting time in the locker room for the Bulldog at the moment. He is the only superstar from the WWF's heyday in the 1980's that's still in the federations' stable. Smith says he's looked upon with respect, instead of being perceived as taking away the spotlight from the younger talent.
"There is quite a bit of locker room respect," Smith revealed. "People think I just came in for my last run. I was in the ring, at Smackdown! in Baltimore. A few hours before the match started I was stretching in the ring and felt like messing around. I started doing handsprings and nip-ups, and I tried some moonsaults from the top rope, trying to land on my feet, and I was doing it, you know. I went back to the dressing room and all the guys are staring at me and I'm like ‘What's wrong?' 'We didn't know you could still do that,' I said 'Oh yeah.' 'Well why aren't you doing it in the ring?' I said 'Well, I really don't need to do it in the ring right now.' It's always good to have a time and a place to do that. Maybe when I become a babyface, but right now there's really no reason to do it."
Smith is also impressed with his colleagues. Before, he would stay backstage and relax before he was to perform, but now, he says, the talent in the WWF is so exciting that he catches many matches before going out, especially those of The Hardy Boys.
"Oh Jesus, they're crazy. I've never seen anybody like that. They really entertain me. Some of the stuff they do is just ungodly."
Speaking of "ungodly," many unkind words have come from Smith's brother-in-law, Bret Hart, about the Bulldog's return to the WWF. It seems that the memory of Hart's screw-job by the WWF still lingers with him, but Smith says he just wants the past to be the past.
"I just wish he let me live my life, you know. I've never said anything bad about him," said Smith about the Hitman. "I left the WWF because of him, to stand behind him. That is the truth. He said last week that I didn't leave to stand behind him, he said I left because I was disgusted with Vince. If I was disgusted with Vince I would have never come back. WCW, when they let me go, said I could come back when I got better. I didn't want to be there anyway, I was very unhappy there. They've got so many guys there, and to me, it's the same guys every week, like (Hulk) Hogan, taking up all the TV time. I just thought 'This is not the place for me.' I should never have left the WWF. It was a big mistake on my part."
On the horizon for Smith is the release of The British Bulldog's Basic BodyBuilding Workout video. Being that wrestlers, on the average, are over 230 pounds, and many quite muscular, he thought it logical that the public would be interested in a product geared toward "pumping up" like their favourite wrestlers. The video was actually produced last year, but has had some setbacks, including Smith's back injury, which kept him out of the ring for a year, and kept him out of the public eye.
"I think it's just a matter of time before it comes out. I was trying to get it out there, and it was really hard. I couldn't get up and at it to get things rolling. Now I'm on the road, so it might be easier to get out there. Plus I wanted to get my face back on TV first, so people would respond. I don't know a wrestler who's ever done a workout video, so I think it'll really do well. I would say if it doesn't come out by Christmas, maybe by February. That's what I'm gunning for."
It appears that Davey Boy isn't the only one gunning for greater things in the Smith household. Son Harry, all of 14-years old, has recently got involved in an angle in Stampede Wrestling in Alberta. A Stampede source said Harry is a good worker, but he's really small, "125 pounds soaking wet," was the term used. The source also said Harry has a future in the business, and could even be used in some of the TV angles, but thinks he's a little young for championship gold yet. Bulldog, however, couldn't be prouder.
"He's really enjoying it," said an elated Smith. "I've been giving him some advice about being on the microphone, and things like that. He's so much on TV right now I told him not to swear on the microphone, not to cuss on the microphone at all, because he's a young kid and people will think he's a spoiled little brat. He's not. He's worked hard for what he's got. He's wrestling in the Pavilion for Bruce and Ross Hart at Stampede. I might take a pop down there and take a look at it. He's kind of like the Hardy Boys, doing all sorts of crazy stuff."
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_99nov18.html
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Very interesting article.
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Some good spots in both of these matches:
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Bulldog battling drug addiction
March 1, 2000
By RICK BELL -- Calgary Sun
His biggest fight is in no ring. It is in a simple room in a drug treatment centre in far-off Atlanta.
The truth is very simple too.
"I'm here to get better," says Davey Boy Smith, the man the world calls The British Bulldog. The man the treatment centre calls a morphine addict.
Davey Boy Smith's story is an inspiring tale worthy of a Hollywood screenwriter. Here's the working-class, Manchester-area delivery boy who worked his way to become an international wrestling star.
Yes, Davey Boy is a character right out of Rocky.
He had his back smashed against a trap door in the ring less than two years ago, three discs dissolved in a sea of infection. He was fired as he lay in a Calgary hospital bed. He lived to see the death of his sister, his mom and his beloved tag-team partner Owen Hart.
Many wrote him off. But Davey Boy would not throw in the towel. Never.
"I'm not washed up, I'm not finished," Davey Boy told the world last year, as he signed a deal with Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation.
"My strength is ungodly. I feel I could run through a wall. I'm an addict to wrestling."
But sadly, Davey Boy is an addict to much more, an inhabitant of a hideous hell by prescription.
Morphine. Painkillers. Muscle relaxants. Sleeping pills.
Davey did it all. He took the pills. He shot up. He needed a fix every couple hours to make the back pain from the wrestling ring go away. He would even wake up through the night to do the stuff.
Sometimes he would take the drugs at home, sometimes in his garage, sometimes Davey would go out.
Before long, Davey Boy needed a fix because he needed a fix. Davey didn't start off planning to be an addict, he just wanted to wrestle. That's what he knew how to do.
One night stands out in the memory of Davey's wife, Diana. Davey was in bed, out cold. He couldn't move and his bulky immobile body needed to be lifted up.
Davey had swallowed his tongue.
In recent weeks, Diana and some of Davey's friends tried to get Davey help. He refused. Then, last week, Davey was in Nashville. Four hours before ring time, Davey talked with Vince McMahon.
He'd reached the end.
"I felt weird. I felt myself really slipping. Things were really getting on top of me. I didn't want to die," says Davey Boy.
"I told Vince: I'm really not feeling too good. I don't want to kill myself in the ring. I need help. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know where to go."
McMahon flew Davey to Atlanta that night and the wrestler checked in at the treatment centre.
McMahon will pay Davey's salary for the three months Davey is in the centre. McMahon will also pay the tab for the treatment, expected to be about $75,000 U.S.
"There's a job waiting for me," says Davey, who insists he'll be back in the ring sometime this summer.
So far, Davey has finished up the initial detox. Now he has classes all day. "I have to learn to live without drugs. I feel pretty good," he says.
"And a little bit tired.
"I'll start working out next week. Right now, I'm giving my body a rest. I came back before. I came back from a broken spine. I'll do everything I can. I don't want to let my family down or myself down or my fans down."
Yes, Davey's wife Diana plans to visit Davey when there's an open house and he's allowed visitors. She's convinced this is not her husband's last hurrah.
Davey says he's determined. He'll beat back the demons and kick the habit. He says he'll find the way.
It is then a voice in the background calls out to Davey, a voice in a place far from home and even further from the glitz and glamour of professional wrestling.
"My roommate says I've got a meeting in 10 minutes," says Davey Boy Smith, the man the world calls The British Bulldog. "I've got to go. I have to clean myself up."
And Davey says good-bye, ready to take on the biggest opponent of his life.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/mar1_bulldog.html
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Anybody remember the dog shit match he had against rock in 99/2000?
Absolutely terrible
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Anybody remember the dog shit match he had against rock in 99/2000?
Absolutely terrible
I remember the dog food match he did with Shamrock, which probably wasn't much better.
Davey could deliver whatever you needed in the ring, but you had to call most of the spots.
Bret's mentioned several times that Davey was often more of a follwer than a leader in matches.
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I just watched the Hart and Soul DVD. Stu Hart sold Stampede to Vince but said he must take Bulldogs as well as Hart and Neidhart hence their push and ongoing fued. Aside from Dynamite, the other 3 were all brother in laws....
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Bulldog fights his inner demons
July 18, 2000
Life is not always a scene out of Rocky.
Sometimes there isn't even a good soundtrack.
Calgary's Davey Boy Smith, the one-time fruit and vegetable delivery boy from England who has made a name throughout the world as wrestling's British Bulldog, has seen better days than these.
Family sources confirm Davey Boy is now in hospital in this city. Again. This time, Davey is being treated for an infected shoulder after surgery was done to save his arm. Davey was only out of hospital a few days after a bout of pneumonia.
The sources also confirm Davey has much bigger and life-threatening problems to tackle.
Despite trips to rehab, Davey is still hooked on the deadly painkillers he's abused for years and he is now mired in marital woes.
To make matters worse, computer screens across the globe recently told mat fans that Davey is trying to kill himself, to end it once and for all.
It was quite the story a year ago this very month.
Davey working out, twice a day, vowing he'd come back from a back injury caused by a slam against a trap door in a wrestling ring, a mishap that would cripple weaker men.
Vowing he'd come back from spinal discs dissolving in infection. Vowing he'd come back even though he was fired by World Championship Wrestling as he lay in pain at Rockyview Hospital.
Vowing he'd come back even when doctors said he was crazy and the maggots who feed on bad news said Davey was washed up and done.
Yes, a year ago, anyone with any sense couldn't help rooting for Davey, the working-class lad who never copped an attitude, never felt full of himself or his fame.
"I'm an addict to wrestling. It's almost like a drug," are words Davey used at the time. But sadly, wrestling is not Davey's only drug.
He endured the pain in his back.
He lived with the pain in his heart. His sister died at 27, his mom died, his tag-team partner and brother-in-law Owen Hart died.
He tried to medicate himself against the pain, a recipe for disaster. He went to rehab for the drugs.
And he came back to the ring.
Last August, 11 months ago, Davey signed a big deal with Vince McMahon's World
Wrestling Federation. Some, including brother-in-law Bret Hart, attacked Davey's decision, comparing him to a dog rolling in manure.
After all, Davey's tag-team partner and brother-in-law, Owen, was killed in a WWF match.
"I'm not afraid. I'm not a quitter," are words Davey used at the time. Davey didn't quit.
But life is not always a scene out of Rocky.
This spring, Davey called from a hallway phone in a rehab clinic outside Atlanta, still an admitted addict to morphine, painkillers with names too tough to spell, muscle relaxants and sleeping pills.
Davey swallows them, he shoots them, he wakes up in the night to get a fix.
"Things were really getting on top of me. I didn't want to die," he said at the time.
He knew he had to clean up, to get straight, to defeat his biggest opponent.
But he checked out days later. "Davey didn't need a get out of rehab card," says a family member.
Now, Davey is still not off the painkillers. He is still an addict and still must face his family problems.
But the story can still end for Davey with his hand raised. He has his supporters, his friends and family who worry about him, who encourage him, who tell him they want him to live long and triumph, no matter the odds.
And Davey can still triumph, if he has the will. Just like a scene out of Rocky.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_00jul18.html
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I just watched the Hart and Soul DVD. Stu Hart sold Stampede to Vince but said he must take Bulldogs as well as Hart and Neidhart hence their push and ongoing fued. Aside from Dynamite, the other 3 were all brother in laws....
Correct.
Although, Dynamite & Bret were also brothers-in-law.
Tom married Michelle, while Bret married Julie.
Julie and Michelle were sisters.
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Shawn could put my 87 year old Grand Father over. HBK is in a league of his own.
Truth... HBK is easily in my top 3 of all time.
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/BulldogsandMatilda.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/bbd2.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/bulldogs.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/2393969247_4775feb9c5.jpg)
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/bulldog3.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/bfbus.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/01.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/17-3.jpg)
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/18b.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/DynamiteKid_TomBillington-1-1.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/2172346834_40f44bb1aa.jpg)
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2 classics:
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/1-2.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/2-3.jpg)
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/l.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/bio-britishbulldog-0_528x297.jpg)
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A while back, someone asked me about current photos/news regarding Dynamite.
I believe these pictures were taken some time in 2010 while WWE was touring England.
And yes: that is D.H. Smith with Dyno.
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/carrierlp-david-hart-smith-with-wheelchair-bound-dynamite-kid.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/74479_455346593786_508533786_5812760_5105166_n.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/74479_455346588786_508533786_5812759_1855151_n.jpg)
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/70440_508533786_6455090_n.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/27723_388776453786_508533786_4289666_6037337_n.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Wrestling/27723_388776463786_508533786_4289667_5889931_n.jpg)
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Time to end the suffering
October 27, 2000
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesHarts/harthouse_oct00.jpg)
By RICK BELL -- Calgary Sun
Davey, give me a call. Give somebody a call. Please.
I've always been in your corner, Davey.
Yes, I've heard the stories about you. From those who defend you and those who wish the worst.
A muddle of fact and fiction.
But I don't care about the stories. This isn't about stories anymore. This is reality, Davey.
No raised arm in victory, no cheers from the crowd now. No rehearsed moves or stage roles. This is real life. And now it's time.
Time to get it together, Davey. To get help before you hurt yourself or someone else.
I've always liked you, Davey. I've watched you and compared you more than once to Rocky, hoping for the heroic Hollywood ending.
I cheered you when you worked out at B.J.'s Gym and vowed you'd return to the wrestling ring.
Even though your back had been slammed against a trap door in a match. Even though discs in your back dissolved in a sea of infection. Even though you suffered great pain. Even though World Championship Wrestling canned you while you lay in bed at the Rockyview.
And even though there was the death of your mother, your sister and your tag-team partner, Owen Hart.
"I'm not finished," you said.
Yes, I cheered when you spoke of your life.
How you got into wrestling, a working-class English lad delivering fruit and vegetables and jumping over the fences of your customers to stay in shape.
Your dad figured it was a lot better than breaking windows. And boy, it was.
You came to Calgary. You became a star. The British Bulldog. I remember how you spoke of your victory over brother-in-law Bret Hart in front of a capacity crowd at London's Wembley Stadium.
Lennox Lewis, now boxing's champ, carried your Union Jack into the ring. A long way from jumping fences.
And I cheered again when you signed with the World Wrestling Federation. Our headline writers dubbed you The Comeback Kid.
"I'll never quit. I never have. I never will," you said.
But, dammit, there was no Hollywood writer to make things work just right. No Robin Williams' character with inspiration and insight. The comeback didn't happen like in the movies. It was real life.
I remember the phone call from a pay phone in a hallway in a rehab in Georgia. You'd been on painkillers. You wanted to get straight.
But you came back from drug rehab. Things were not going well. In a column, I tried to tell your story as best I could. You didn't like the column. You haven't spoken to me since.
Davey, I'll admit I'm the last fellow to give you advice.
I've documented enough woes on this page to make Jerry Springer slink away in disbelief. A loser's litany -- the bar fights, the drunk driving, the handcuffs and the jail cell, the boozy battle with the bottle.
But, maybe through that, just maybe, I came to realize there comes a time when enough is enough.
When it's time for real life.
I met real life in Les, my previous publisher, when I finally promised to quit the sauce. I met real life in my friend B.J., when I woke up and decided to quit being a fat guy. They were there. All I had to do was ask.
And Davey, you are not alone either. There are a precious few who'll back a guy when he's down.
"If you put yourself down, you stay down. I get back up." You said those words, Davey.
Please don't forget them now. Dial the phone.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bell_00oct27-sun.html
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Davey Boy Smith arrested twice in two days
October 27, 2000
By PETER SMITH -- Calgary Sun
(http://www.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesS/smith_daveyboy_oct00.jpg)
Davey Boy Smith, the British Bulldog of the wrestling world, was arrested and charged yesterday after his estranged wife allegedly received a death threat.
Smith, 38, an international wrestling star, had been arrested and charged Wednesday night with two counts of threatening to kill Diana Hart, his estranged wife, and her sister Ellie, said Sgt. Mike Lamore.
Police allege that after being released, he made another threat on Diana's life when she arrived at his house yesterday, and they arrested him again last night after he turned himself in.
Police say they have been to the home several times for domestic disputes over the past few months.
Diana said yesterday she was scared for her life, and others around her.
"I'm absolutely terrified and everyone in my house is," she said.
Diana said after Smith was arrested Wednesday night, she went to his house yesterday to fetch her daughter, expecting he would still be in custody.
"Imagine my surprise when he was there," she said.
"If I thought for a moment he was going to be there, I wouldn't have gone."
Diana said she was intending to be in court later today where her lawyer was hoping to get a restraining order against Davey Boy Smith.
Diana's brother, international wrestling star, Bret (The Hitman) Hart, was worried about the situation.
"If the police take him seriously, then I take him seriously," he said.
Bret said he hadn't spoken to Smith or his sisters since the death of his brother Owen in a wrestling tragedy, when their reaction to Owen's death upset him.
"I don't have anything to do with the three of them. I don't talk to them," he said.
Bret said he was sure his sister wouldn't need his protection.
"Diana can get help from the police," he said.
In the past two years, Davey Boy Smith, a one-time delivery boy from Manchester, England, has admitted he was battling a difficult painkiller drug problem, and had spent some time in a rehabilitation centre in Atlanta.
credit: http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/arrest_00oct27-sun.html
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sad...dynamite kid had incredible build as kid,,ripped,agile,and great duo power/speed/in ring guile.
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The Harts distressed and in turmoil
October 28, 2000
By LYLE HARVEY -- Calgary Sun
The head of Calgary's first family of wrestling says he worries that a son-in-law's brush with the law might further fracture his once closely-knit clan.
Grappling legend Stu Hart said the arrest Thursday of Davey Boy Smith -- a pro wrestler known as the British Bulldog, who is estranged from Hart's daughter Diana -- has been tough on him and wife Helen.
"My wife, especially, was distressed about it, because we've never had any problems with any of our kids," Stu said.
"It's an ugly thing -- you don't even like thinking about it, and you don't quite know how it's going to end."
Smith, 37, was arrested and charged Thursday after Diana allegedly received a death threat.
He had been out on bail after being arrested and charged Wednesday in connection with a death-threat incident last September.
The former WCW star, who has admitted to battling a painkiller problem after a back injury, made a brief court appearance yesterday on the death-threat charges.
Smith, who was kept in custody, will be back in provincial court Monday, when government lawyers will seek to have his bail revoked.
Diana Hart's lawyer was also in court yesterday to seek a restraining order against Smith.
Diana, 37, has been separated from Smith for a couple of years, and they share custody of their two teenage children.
She said the last few years have been hard, not only on her, but also on her parents and her nine living siblings.
Brother Owen Hart died at age 34 after falling 15 metres during a WWF event in Kansas City on May 23 last year. Arsonists struck the family's guest house last July and brother Bret got fired by the WCW last week.
Diana's brother, Dean, died in 1990.
"Things are really taking a toll on our family," Diana said.
"Every family has its problems, but in this situation, everyone is very emotional."
Stu said the public attention paid to his family is something he and his wife still find hard to get used to, especially during such difficult circumstances.
"We've been fairly quiet all our lives, but I think we've had 20 or 30 police cars here in the last 48 hours," he said.
"It's hard to believe all of this is going on in one family."
credit: http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingHarts/harts_00oct30-sun.html
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Davey Boy in court on threat charge
October 30, 2000
(http://slam.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesS/smith_daveyboy_oct00.jpg)
Wrestler Davey Boy Smith will be in court today on charges of making death threats.
Police charged the 38-year-old British Bulldog of the wrestling world last week after allegations he threatened to kill both his estranged wife Diana Hart and her sister Ellie.
Until his arrest, some relatives say the international wrestling giant was on the road to recovery after a long battle with a prescription drug addiction.
Smith, a father of two teenage children, was held in police custody over the weekend and will be in provincial court today.
-- Calgary Sun
credit: http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/court_00oct30-sun.html
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Davey Boy Smith to enter drug rehab
October 31, 2000
(http://slam.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesS/smith_daveyboy_oct31-sun.jpg)
By MIKE D'AMOUR -- Calgary Sun
Wrestling superstar Davey Boy Smith said he has no drug problem, yet agreed to check into a rehab program as part of his deal to get out of jail yesterday.
"He's not admitting he has problems with drugs, but will (enter a drug rehab program) to satisfy the Crown prosecutor's terms for his release," Smith's lawyer, Jim Lutz, said outside provincial court.
Smith, known to his millions of fans as the British Bulldog, spent the weekend behind bars in Calgary's Remand Centre after being charged with allegedly telling his estranged wife, Diana Hart-Smith -- sister of another wrestling superstar, Bret (The Hitman) Hart -- he would kill her.
Police allege Diana's massively-muscled 38-year-old husband first uttered the threats to kill her and her sister, Elizabeth Niedhart -- wife of pro-wrestler Jim (The Anvil) Niedhart -- Wednesday night.
Police said Smith made a similar threat to Diana on Thursday and he was arrested the same day.
Smith admitted in the past he was addicted to painkillers, a dependency brought on by back problems and had spent some time in an Atlanta rehab clinic.
After languishing in the pokey for the weekend signing autographs for other inmates, Smith appeared yesterday in Calgary's domestic abuse court where Judge Bill Pepler granted him bail on five counts of uttering threats to kill.
Smith, shackled at the legs, sat quietly in the prisoner's dock with his hands folded in front of him.
The judge released him on the following conditions: He must pay $2,000 cash for each charge or a $20,000 surety.
He is to have absolutely no contact with his wife, sister-in-law or two others named by the court.
He is not allowed to drink alcohol or take non-prescription drugs.
Smith must also enter an addiction treatment program within 48 hours of his release, either in Alberta or in the U.S., where his lawyer said he is soon planning to visit.
Smith is also barred from going near five residences, including that of his wife and Stu Hart, father of Bret.
Smith will make his next court appearance Nov. 8.
credit: http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/release_00oct31-sun.html
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Bulldog denies threats
November 15, 2000
By NOVA PIERSON, Calgary Sun
Wrestling star Davey Boy Smith is "adamant" about his innocence against allegations he threatened to kill his estranged wife.
Smith's lawyer Jim Lutz appeared in provincial court yesterday to enter a not guilty plea for his client and set a trial date.
Smith, who is estranged from wife Diana Hart-Smith of the Calgary wrestling clan, has been charged with four counts of uttering threats, as well as charges of failing to appear and failing to comply with court conditions.
Police allege the 38-year-old wrestler known as the British Bulldog threatened to kill both Diana and her sister Elizabeth Niedhart.
"He is adamant it has nothing to do with him being guilty, but has to do with other matters," said Lutz, hinting at the marital strife the couple is going through.
A divorce has been filed in Court of Queen's Bench.
Smith was arrested in late October and spent a weekend behind bars before being released.
credit: http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/court_00nov15-sun.html
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Bulldog freed from allegations
December 8, 2000
(http://slam.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesHarts/bulldog_andreahart-sun.jpg)
By NADIA MOHARIB -- Calgary Sun
Ten minutes after giving an encouraging wink to his girlfriend, Davey Boy Smith won his courtroom battle and opportunity to return to opponents in the wrestling ring.
The Crown agreed yesterday to drop four criminal charges against the burly 38-year-old wrestler, including an allegation of death threats made to his estranged wife, Diana Hart-Smith of the Calgary wrestling clan.
"I'm really happy, just glad it's all behind me," the man known as the British Bulldog said outside provincial court.
His lawyer Jim Lutz said his client has a one-year peace bond that orders Smith to keep the peace, report to a probation officer, have no illicit drugs and no contact with his ex-wife.
Smith, who has no criminal record, said the bogus threats came in the midst of a bitter ongoing divorce.
"It's a dysfunctional family, to put it mildly," said Crown attorney Edna Konik.
Smith, a father of two, faced four counts of uttering threats, including allegations he threatened to kill both Diana and her sister, Elizabeth Niedhart.
"I was involved with the Harts for 20 years. It was the worst 20 years I've ever had. I have no intention of having anything to do with them," he said, as girlfriend Andrea Hart beamed at his side.
"I've got a new girlfriend and there is a lot of jealousy in the family. I knew this would never see the other side of the courtroom. Someone was going to get caught lying."
His "tough" ordeal included three days spent in police custody, being inundated with autograph requests and a suspension without pay from work.
"I want to step into the ring again or open a new wrestling school.
"I'm disappointed I was incarcerated for something I didn't do. But I guess that's the justice system," he said.
credit: http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_00dec08-sun.html
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Some pics of Davey & the Smith Family:
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(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/dbs.jpg)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/ddhs.png)
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p131/Class_B/Diana-Hart-and-Family.jpg)
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Here's a rarely seen Japan match with Davey & a pasty-white, flabby Bret vs. George Takano and Fujinami:
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I was watching WWE roundtable. Brett & Pat Patterson spoke about a confrontation betwwen Rougeaus and Bulldogs. Said Dynamite was a real Bully and no one ever stood up to him. Well Hennig played a rib on Dynamite and said Jaque Rogue did it.Put a lock on his bag So Dynamite started bullying Jacque. Well one day Raymond blindsided Dynamite in a venue hallway, punched him in the mouth and knocked out a bunch of teeth.Pat did say he had a roll of coins in his fist. Needless to say, Bull Dogs were shortly gone after this.
They said Ray was a quiet guy but was a genuine badass you didnt want to mess with.
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I was watching WWE roundtable. Brett & Pat Patterson spoke about a confrontation betwwen Rougeaus and Bulldogs. Said Dynamite was a real Bully and no one ever stood up to him. Well Hennig played a rib on Dynamite and said Jaque Rogue did it.Put a lock on his bag So Dynamite started bullying Jacque. Well one day Raymond blindsided Dynamite in a venue hallway, punched him in the mouth and knocked out a bunch of teeth.Pat did say he had a roll of coins in his fist. Needless to say, Bull Dogs were shortly gone after this.
They said Ray was a quiet guy but was a genuine badass you didnt want to mess with.
Yes, although the initial part of the story happened the other way around, you're right: Ray was a legitimately tough guy (boxer - maybe Golden Gloves; can't remember), and it is generally accepted that Tom "Dynamite Kid" Billington was a bully in AND out of the ring..
Hennig actually pulled the rib on Rougeau’s and told them that the Bulldogs were behind it. Jacques ran his mouth and thumped his chest to the agents about how the Bulldogs had better watch their step, etc.
Well, when word got back to Dyno, he went looking for the Rougeau’s, and - in typical Tom Billington fashion - walked up behind a seated Jacques, who was engaged in a card game, and cracked him on the head hard enough to knock him out of his chair. Tom then proceeded to slap him around a little bit more while yelling threats.
Ray was on crutches at the time and pleaded with Tom to stop. Billington then turned his aggressiveness to Ray. He didn’t do anything, but I still think it was a dick move to taunt someone on crutches.
Anyway, a few weeks later, Rougeau’s were standing in the hallway talking to Pat. Tom came walking by and Jacques blasted him in the mouth a couple of times, knocking out some of his front teeth. Though, the only one who claims there was no "knuckle-duster" used was Jacques.
Bad News Allen intervened and broke things up.
Vince held a meeting with the Rougeau’s and Bulldogs shortly thereafter ordering all parties to shake hands.
Both teams would be on opposing sides at the 1988 Survivor Series, and Vince told Tom, specifically, that if he didn’t cooperate, then Vince would withhold his last several weeks worth of pay, which included house shows, merchandise royalties, and pay-per-views.
Tom agreed, and as soon as Rougeau’s were eliminated during their SS match, they bolted straight out of the arena, and headed back to Canada.
Tom & Davey then left the Fed, which was primarily Tom’s decision; based on “principle.”
Davey soon regretted it, the cousins had their final falling out, Tom went through that whole thing with his wife and moved back to England.
Diana copyrighted the British Bulldog image & likeness for Davey to use exclusively, and they threatened Tom with legal action when he began using it himself.
I don’t believe either cousin spoke to the other after that.
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Yes, although the initial part of the story happened the other way around, you're right: Ray was a legitimately tough guy (boxer - maybe Golden Gloves; can't remember), and it is generally accepted that Tom "Dynamite Kid" Billington was a bully in AND out of the ring..
Hennig actually pulled the rib on Rougeau’s and told them that the Bulldogs were behind it. Jacques ran his mouth and thumped his chest to the agents about how the Bulldogs had better watch their step, etc.
Well, when word got back to Dyno, he went looking for the Rougeau’s, and - in typical Tom Billington fashion - walked up behind a seated Jacques, who was engaged in a card game, and cracked him on the head hard enough to knock him out of his chair. Tom then proceeded to slap him around a little bit more while yelling threats.
Ray was on crutches at the time and pleaded with Tom to stop. Billington then turned his aggressiveness to Ray. He didn’t do anything, but I still think it was a dick move to taunt someone on crutches.
Anyway, a few weeks later, Rougeau’s were standing in the hallway talking to Pat. Tom came walking by and Jacques blasted him in the mouth a couple of times, knocking out some of his front teeth. Though, the only one who claims there was no "knuckle-duster" used was Jacques.
Bad News Allen intervened and broke things up.
Vince held a meeting with the Rougeau’s and Bulldogs shortly thereafter ordering all parties to shake hands.
Both teams would be on opposing sides at the 1988 Survivor Series, and Vince told Tom, specifically, that if he didn’t cooperate, then Vince would withhold his last several weeks worth of pay, which included house shows, merchandise royalties, and pay-per-views.
Tom agreed, and as soon as Rougeau’s were eliminated during their SS match, they bolted straight out of the arena, and headed back to Canada.
Tom & Davey then left the Fed, which was primarily Tom’s decision; based on “principle.”
Davey soon regretted it, the cousins had their final falling out, Tom went through that whole thing with his wife and moved back to England.
Diana copyrighted the British Bulldog image & likeness for Davey to use exclusively, and they threatened Tom with legal action when he began using it himself.
I don’t believe either cousin spoke to the other after that.
Spot on my msn!
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Not a whole lot in the way of wrestling going on in this match, but I like it because it really shows how much the Japanese fans liked Abdullah the Butcher and the Bulldogs.
Also, I think it illustrates the respect Butch had from the other wrestlers.
Watch how both Bulldogs sell for him:
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Davey Boy positive about his future
December 20, 2000
(http://slam.canoe.ca/WrestlingImagesB/bulldog_jul99.jpg)
By RICK BELL -- Calgary Sun
Davey Boy Smith, the man better known as the British Bulldog, is now weighing whether to return to the rough-and-tumble of professional wrestling.
And Davey says he is definitely off the painkillers he'd been on after slamming his back into the trap door of a wrestling ring, a battering blow landing him in the hospital, dissolving discs in his back and leading to his dependence on the drugs.
"For now, I have no intention to go back into the ring," says Davey, who is no longer under contract with Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation.
"I feel pretty good. Every day I just keep getting better and better and better. With my time off, my injuries have started to heal up now. I've still got back pain, quite a bit. But not as much as I use to have."
"My weight is up. I'm 260 pounds now. My strength is up. Both my kids live with me. I'm not on any drugs. None. The last time I took any drug was in July and that was a painkiller given to me by a doctor in the Rockyview Hospital. I was getting surgery done on my shoulder. "
"My head is really clear. I haven't been clear for a long time. My everyday life has changed. I'm like a totally different person. I'm not even taking aspirins. I was messed up for a couple of years but I don't have to worry about drugs messing up my head now."
Davey recently booked into drug rehab as part of a deal to get out of jail on bail. The grappler recently faced four counts of uttering threats but, earlier this month, the prosecution did not go forward with the charges.
In exchange, Davey must keep the peace, report to a probation officer, have no contact with his estranged wife, Diana Hart-Smith, and use no illicit drugs.
On the issue of drugs, Davey says he did stay a week in a month-long drug program in Grande Prairie but was released early.
"I'm not the first athlete or the first entertainer who's been in rehab. I'm not embarrassed. I wasn't taking drugs to feel good. I had a broken back. I was medicating myself and did what I felt I had to do to keep wrestling and put food on the table."
"After a week in Grande Prairie they kicked me out and said the program was not for me."
While Davey decides whether or not to return once again to the ring, he definitely plans to take a course in personal training and hopes to open a wrestling school in the new year.
"I'm looking forward to this school and being my own boss in Calgary," says the wrestler, who once wrestled in front of a capacity crowd at London's Wembley Stadium but has not performed on TV for almost a year.
"I don't want to get the average Joe off the street and just take his money. I want to train people who have the real potential to be a pro wrestler. I want to give my experience to other people."
"If you want to learn to wrestle, I've done that. If you want me to teach you how to get in shape, I can help people get in shape in a couple months. That's all I've ever really done is train."
Davey is heartened to hear that despite his difficulties there are still many fans throughout the world who are in his corner and recall his many triumphs.
"I'm really glad the wrestling fans are still behind me," says Davey.
"I'm glad they still look at me as a human being.
"If they spent a couple hours with me they'd know I'm a true and good-hearted man. I'm just David Smith, the delivery boy from England. I may have been a name but I'm really just a regular guy."
And as for drugs?
"We all can make mistakes. But I'm not getting back on that track. It's the loser's track."
credit: http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/future_00dec20-sun.html
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Bulldog drama heads to court
January 31, 2001
By KEVIN MARTIN -- Calgary Sun
Pro wrestler Davey Boy Smith will face a trial in July for allegedly threatening his brother-in-law, the estranged husband of his new girlfriend.
Prominent defence lawyer Alain Hepner appeared briefly in provincial court to set a hearing date of July 17.
Smith is accused of threatening Bruce Hart, the brother of Smith's estranged wife, Diana Hart-Smith.
Similar charges alleging Smith threatened his ex-wife and her sister, Elizabeth Niedhart, were dropped by the Crown last December after he agreed to sign a peace bond. Smith claimed those charges had come in the midst of a bitter ongoing divorce.
When Smith's was last in court, the burly city man appeared with Andrea Hart, his alleged victim's ex-wife, by his side.
Hepner said his client denies threatening his brother-in-law.
credit: http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBritishBulldog/bulldog_00jan31-sun.html
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(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey177.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey120.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey133.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey300.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey144.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey229.jpg)
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(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey228.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey227.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey226.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey225.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey155.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey223.jpg)
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(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey210.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey2222.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/.pond/davey441.jpg.w300h502.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey338.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey400.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey337.jpg)
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(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey336.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey335.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey334.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/.pond/davey332.jpg.w300h291.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey331.jpg)
(http://bulldogbloodlines1.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/davey199.jpg)
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anyone who hasnt read dynamites book buy it , enough said
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Rest In Peace, Davey.
Ten years ago today.
(http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_2-7AdSkZA7I/RkPa2g3AfbI/AAAAAAAAEV8/7VR0wNb-lIk/s400/britishbulldoog.jpg)
(http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lkccif4Bpj1qjsw6fo1_500.png)
(http://thehistoryofwwe.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/vnqoussykusybig1-300x225.jpg)
(http://chezalv.chez.com/catch/21.jpg)
(http://www.deadwrestlers.net/Davey%20Boy%20Smith.jpg)
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Damn... hard to believe it's been 10 years.
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Damn... hard to believe it's been 10 years.
I have a sizeable list of "favorite workers." Hennig probably ranks at the top.
But, I'll bet that I've watched more footage of the British Bulldogs than of any other wrestler(s), PERIOD.
When I was a little kid, I was a mark for the Bulldogs. I had the original LJN Bulldog figures. I saw the BD's at the first live wrestling event I ever attended while visiting family in Baltimore. Davey was one of my early inspirations to begin lifting weights as a skinny kid. And, when I started training in an indy promotion, I studied an enormous amount of BD footage; particularly their matches in Japan. Even now, I'll occasionally watch a random clip on the computer.
Yeah, I've kind of got a special place in my heart for the BBD's.
I need to get out more. ;)
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For any of you "blokes" who live within driving distance: http://www.highspots.com/p/dk-experience.html
(http://www.highspots.com/mm5/graphics/00000001/dk_experience.jpg)
Meet Dynamite Kid for an Autograph & Photo Op session! Then watch the premiere of The Dynamite Kid Documentary in Manchester, England!
Sunday - February 24th, 2013
Hilton Manchester Deansgate
303 Deansgate
Manchester
M3 4LQ
Meet & Greet with Dynamite Kid - 10:00am
Screening Starts - 12:30pm
Price: £75.00 ($120.00 USD)
Includes one Photo Op (with your camera) and one Autograph on item of your choice plus admission to the premiere screening of The Dynamite Kid Documentary.
Documentary will be shown via projector.
Additional Autographs £25 each
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Dynamite Kid
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Thank you.
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I loved watching the Bulldogs as a kid in the eighties.
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I loved watching the Bulldogs as a kid in the eighties.
That was a GREAT TIME to be a wrestling fan!!!
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British Bulldogs
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That was a GREAT TIME to be a wrestling fan!!!
Was lucky enough to see them wrestle on 2 occations at the old Maple Leaf Gardens. Once against Valentine & Beefcake and once against Demolition.
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Does any of you guys know what Dyamite Kid's training program looked like?
It's incredible how he could keep such size while either traveling or being in the ring most days of the year.
I know he had a lot of injuries later, mostly from all the bumps he took in the ring. His back was the worst, but in an interview he also mentioned his shoulder and knees.
I still want to buy his book 'Pure Dymanite', amazon doesn't have a kindle version so I will order the paperback.
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Does any of you guys know what Dyamite Kid's training program looked like?
It's incredible how he could keep such size while either traveling or being in the ring most days of the year.
I know he had a lot of injuries later, mostly from all the bumps he took in the ring. His back was the worst, but in an interview he also mentioned his shoulder and knees.
I still want to buy his book 'Pure Dymanite', amazon doesn't have a kindle version so I will order the paperback.
Many of those guys from that time were on TONS of compounds from
performance-enhancers,
recreational drugs,
Rx drugs,
OTC drugs (which were much more accessible then)
alcohol,
etc.
According to Dynamite's autobiography: Valium to sleep on the plane, speed to wake up, steroids gallore, hit the gym, go to the show, 3 percocets before the show, muscle relaxants after the show, beer, cocaine, and 3 percocets before bed.
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There used to be a video of both cousins training in Diamond Gym.
It wasn't an instructional video or anything - actually a wrestling promo with Mean Gene.
It did show the Bulldogs training, but I can't find it here, and it looks like it may have been taken off Youtube.
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I know you asked about Dynamite, specifically, but this is the only "British Bulldog" related training footage I can find now.
I used to update this thread RELIGIOUSLY for years with videos and photos.
The main reason I stopped was because so much of what I searched for is no longer viewable here because either hotlinking was disabled, or Youtube took down the clips or terminated accounts.
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Many of those guys from that time were on TONS of compounds from
performance-enhancers,
recreational drugs,
Rx drugs,
OTC drugs (which were much more accessible then)
alcohol,
etc.
According to Dynamite's autobiography: Valium to sleep on the plane, speed to wake up, steroids gallore, hit the gym, go to the show, 3 percocets before the show, muscle relaxants after the show, beer, cocaine, and 3 percocets before bed.
That is crazy shit there...I remember reading that in a shoot interview of his.
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That is crazy shit there...I remember reading that in a shoot interview of his.
Have you seen the one he filmed with Highspots.com a few years back?
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I know you asked about Dynamite, specifically, but this is the only "British Bulldog" related training footage I can find now.
I used to update this thread RELIGIOUSLY for years with videos and photos.
The main reason I stopped was because so much of what I searched for is no longer viewable here because either hotlinking was disabled, or Youtube took down the clips or terminated accounts.
PRETTY COOL,he was in good shape here not the overly thick bloated version he was usually,he had nice look to him,tanned and wife was looking in good shape too.shame what happened to these guys.
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PRETTY COOL,he was in good shape here not the overly thick bloated version he was usually,he had nice look to him,tanned and wife was looking in good shape too.shame what happened to these guys.
Yeah, he looked great when he wasn't chasing the size game.
What always impressed me most about Davey, though, was that - even at his biggest - he was still athletic as hell! I can't think of many guys north of 250 lbs. that did handsprings. He always maintained an appreciable level of agility even as a big man.
Regardless of his size, there weren't many times in his career that Davey Boy Smith didn't look impressive
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The Bulldogs vs The Hart Foundation were the best matches that I saw live back in the day (along with Steamboat vs Savage.)
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Many thanks Montague for the information and links!!
I first learned of Dynamite Kid when I was reading Bret Hart's excellent book 'Hitman'. I then watched some Youtube videos of Dynamite Kid and had never seen anything like that in the later WWF and WWE which I had followed. His combination of size, speed and high flying moves is still on another level.
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Many thanks Montague for the information and links!!
I first learned of Dynamite Kid when I was reading Bret Hart's excellent book 'Hitman'. I then watched some Youtube videos of Dynamite Kid and had never seen anything like that in the later WWF and WWE which I had followed. His combination of size, speed and high flying moves is still on another level.
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Dynamite was a true pioneer. He introduced a style that paved the way for what we see today.
He was the first wrestler to perform a "super-plex" off the top rope.
A lot of guys have done it since, but he was the first!
If you've got the time, browse the history of this thread. I apologize that many of the videos and photos have been disabled, but we've had some very decent discussions about Dynamite and Davey over the last several years.
I will ALWAYS LOVE the British Bulldogs!!
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http://www.angelfire.com/wrestling3/base/dyninter1.htm
The link is an interview with the Dynamite Kid in 1998. Don't know if it's been posted before but there's a mention of his steroid use and dosages.
He says he was injecting 1.2 grams of testosterone and liquid dianabol...every day.
When did you start taking steroids?
It was in 1978, in Germany, when Sylvester Ritter was there: he gave me some pills. When I went to Canada, I was introduced to injectable anabolic steroids, like testosterone, decadurabolin, that sort of thing.
Were you ever put under any pressure to use steroids?
Erm, no. But I knew that I had to take them, otherwise I wouldn’t have got a job.
Because, without steroids, you weren’t bulky enough?
Right. Off steroids, I could only get up to about 180 pounds. When I was on steroids, I weighed about 225. You had to look the part, and I couldn’t do that without steroids.
I was taking 200 milligrams three times a day in each of my buttocks which, in total, is 1,200 milligrams per day. Which is a lot. That was testosterone and liquid dianobal.
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Griffith:
Before now, I would very confidently have claimed to have seen and read literally EVERYTHING there is from and about the British Bulldogs. But, although I've heard much of this information before, I don't recall ever seeing this specific interview.
Thank you very much for posting it here!
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So, I decided to stay with New Japan...
That was in the autumn of 1984, right?
Correct. and, I took shit-head (Davey Boy) with me.
;D
There was a lot of bad feelings between the cousins and their families. Dynamite was very vocal about it, but I don't recall Davey ever saying a whole lot publicly.
Interestingly enough, Tom seemed to cease his public criticisms after Smith's passing.
Back in the late-90's, Billington actually had his own website complete with a message board. The board wasn't like this one. It was the kind on which you would submit a question or comment. Then, either Dynamite or one of the web guys would select and post certain ones onto the board. I think it was run by Live Audio Wrestling (L.A.W.).
Dyno would frequently drop in with a response or feedback, and there was no shortage of digs on Davey.
Tom became rather silent following Davey's death. Naturally, Smith was a popular topic for the next few weeks. A post from someone made it onto the board, which read something to the effect: "Tom and Davey shared many good times and bad. Whatever happened along the way, they were two of the top performers, a top tag team, and family. We should all respect that and their privacy during this time."
Tom finally broke his silence in a reply with a simple, "Thank you."
Despite the animosity, I suspect Dynamite Kid was affected by Davey Boy Smith's passing.
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Griffith:
Before now, I would very confidently have claimed to have seen and read literally EVERYTHING there is from and about the British Bulldogs. But, although I've heard much of this information before, I don't recall ever seeing this specific interview.
Thank you very much for posting it here!
I second that and also confirmed that last blurp on his steroid usage and it was indeed crazy. Can you imagine getting harpooned in ea butt cheek 3 times per day? Ouch...
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I second that and also confirmed that last blurp on his steroid usage and it was indeed crazy. Can you imagine getting harpooned in ea butt cheek 3 times per day? Ouch...
I remember the hugest I can ever recall seeing Dynamite...
It was on some Japan footage. I wish I knew/could figure out the timeline, but I have nothing to compare it to in the Fed or Stampede. All I know is he and Davey were still together, and I think the match was in All Japan.
Whenever it was, I would think the stack referenced above was in use.
He looked AMAZING!!!
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I remember the hugest I can ever recall seeing Dynamite...
It was on some Japan footage. I wish I knew/could figure out the timeline, but I have nothing to compare it to in the Fed or Stampede. All I know is he and Davey were still together, and I think the match was in All Japan.
Whenever it was, I would think the stack referenced above was in use.
He looked AMAZING!!!
Ya, I don't recall Dynamite ever being out of shape...or Davey for that matter. They always looked great. Loved them in 1985-1988.
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I remember the hugest I can ever recall seeing Dynamite...
It was on some Japan footage. I wish I knew/could figure out the timeline, but I have nothing to compare it to in the Fed or Stampede. All I know is he and Davey were still together, and I think the match was in All Japan.
Whenever it was, I would think the stack referenced above was in use.
He looked AMAZING!!!
I've just read his book, Pure Dynamite.
He says at first he used those doses to build up his size. After that, he injected 200 mg of testosterone and 50 mg of Deca every other day, and Winstrol V could be injected every day.
He'd do 4-6 week cycles and then one week off where he took gonadotropin (HCG).
Dynamite also says that most wrestlers didn't use oral steroids because of possible liver and kidney damage.
It seems that in 1989 he was already pretty much off steroids.
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I've just read his book, Pure Dynamite.
He says at first he used those doses to build up his size. After that, he injected 200 mg of testosterone and 50 mg of Deca every other day, and Winstrol V could be injected every day.
He'd do 4-6 week cycles and then one week off where he took gonadotropin (HCG).
Dynamite also says that most wrestlers didn't use oral steroids because of possible liver and kidney damage.
It seems that in 1989 he was already pretty much off steroids.
Being the ribbers that they were they also gave Matilda Somas many times for shits and giggles...
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Being the ribbers that they were they also gave Matilda Somas many times for shits and giggles...
Jake also accused them of throwing lit cigarette butts into Damien's bag.
Bret recounted Tom unceremoniously shooting some kind of vermin on his property, but I forget the details.
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Jake also accused them of throwing lit cigarette butts into Damien's bag.
Bret recounted Tom unceremoniously shooting some kind of vermin on his property, but I forget the details.
In Bret Hart's book, he says when he visited him at his home, he found Tom shooting rabbits with a rifle from his porch while drunk, trying to shoot their legs.
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Doesn't surprise me
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British Bulldogs
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I wonder which encounter PWI is referencing.
I've seen Davey vs. Tommy matches in both Japan and Stampede.
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I wonder which encounter PWI is referencing.
I've seen Davey vs. Tommy matches in both Japan and Stampede.
I was wondering the same.
No chance it was WWF?
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I was wondering the same.
No chance it was WWF?
No, they wrestled against each other in Japan. Davey then returned to the USA while Dynamite and another English wrestler formed the British Bruisers.
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Yeah, I don't believe they worked against each other in "the Fed."
But, I know they had matches against one another in Japan; PLUS, Stu (or one of his sons) booked the cousins in one or several matches against each other in the Canada loop.
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Yeah, I don't believe they worked against each other in "the Fed."
But, I know they had matches against one another in Japan; PLUS, Stu (or one of his sons) booked the cousins in one or several matches against each other in the Canada loop.
My favorite tag team by far of all time. I'm a huge mark for the Bulldogs. Legendary matches with Valentine and Beefcake.
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My favorite tag team by far of all time. I'm a huge mark for the Bulldogs. Legendary matches with Valentine and Beefcake.
ABSOLUTELY!!!
Their Japan matches were OUTSTANDING, as well!
Playboy,
I'm going to leave you my COMPLETE wrestling VHS/DVD collection in my living will... as soon as I write it up!!
It ain't worth shit now, but I know you'll appreciate/respect it!!!
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ABSOLUTELY!!!
Their Japan matches were OUTSTANDING, as well!
Playboy,
I'm going to leave you my COMPLETE wrestling VHS/DVD collection in my living will... as soon as I write it up!!
It ain't worth shit now, but I know you'll appreciate/respect it!!!
Lol..it will probably be worth hundreds and thousands of dollars!! :D
You won't see wrestling like that anymore.
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Lol..it will probably be worth hundreds and thousands of dollars!! :D
You won't see wrestling like that anymore.
Does the old man air any Jap footage?
I've lost track of what all he owns.
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Does the old man air any Jap footage?
I've lost track of what all he owns.
No....he only shows WWE/WWF, WCW and old ECW footage. Nothing else. He has no stock or ownership in AJPW and NJPW and I believe they would rather die a thousand deaths then let Vince in.
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No....he only shows WWE/WWF, WCW and old ECW footage. Nothing else. He has no stock or ownership in AJPW and NJPW and I believe they would rather die a thousand deaths then let Vince in.
Good!!!
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Good!!!
Dynamite's Japan work is incredible. Especially his earlier days...wow.
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Dynamite's Japan work is incredible. Especially his earlier days...wow.
Yes: before he hurt his back and later got a little "too" heavy.
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Yes: before he hurt his back and later got a little "too" heavy.
Still very athletic and very fast. Stiff as hell.
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Still very athletic and very fast. Stiff as hell.
That was for "teaching" purposes...
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I'm currently reading 'Under the Mat' by Diana Hart, I'm about halfway and so far I'm really enjoying it. A lot of it obviously deals with Davey Boy and Dynamite too.
There are a few horror stories about Dynamite.
About Davey Boy's steroid use, she says he started using steroids from doctors in 1987. Apparently he used 3 cc's of Deca twice a week as it helped reduce pain and swelling in his joints and also used some testosterone. Deca seems to have been his main steroid.
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Dynamite's Japan work is incredible. Especially his earlier days...wow.
For sure, those matches are on another level!
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I'm currently reading 'Under the Mat' by Diana Hart, I'm about halfway and so far I'm really enjoying it. A lot of it obviously deals with Davey Boy and Dynamite too.
There are a few horror stories about Dynamite.
About Davey Boy's steroid use, she says he started using steroids from doctors in 1987. Apparently he used 3 cc's of Deca twice a week as it helped reduce pain and swelling in his joints and also used some testosterone. Deca seems to have been his main steroid.
Griffith:
If you enjoy the backstage goings-on of that era, I highly recommend reading Tom Billington's book, "Pure Dynamite" (if you haven't already).
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That was for "teaching" purposes...
Lol indeed it was.
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Griffith:
If you enjoy the backstage goings-on of that era, I highly recommend reading Tom Billington's book, "Pure Dynamite" (if you haven't already).
Yes, I have read it :)
Definitely a must read for anyone interested in that era.
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Yes, I have read it :)
Definitely a must read for anyone interested in that era.
Agreed.
I believe Billington's book was among the first in the "tell-all, pro-wrestling autobiography genre."
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Agreed.
I believe Billington's book was among the first in the "tell-all, pro-wrestling autobiography genre."
I read it not to long ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. Good read and good insight as to what went on behind the scenes.
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http://www.angelfire.com/wrestling3/base/dyninter1.htm
The link is an interview with the Dynamite Kid in 1998. Don't know if it's been posted before but there's a mention of his steroid use and dosages.
He says he was injecting 1.2 grams of testosterone and liquid dianabol...every day (https://www.antenati-italiani.org/en/towns/20021-curtatone).
OMG, impressive.
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BUMP for Dyno...
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British Bulldogs training in the gym.
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2skwv
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British Bulldogs training in the gym.
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2skwv
Jeezzus WTF was that thing that was training in the Background
Shorts & Tied Vest ::) ::) ::)
Why would they have that in there video.
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Jeezzus WTF was that thing that was training in the Background
Shorts & Tied Vest ::) ::) ::)
Why would they have that in there video.
I learned a new exercise in this video, where Dynmaite is seated, lifting and twisting the dumbbells up and together to work his chest. Seems like a good exercise.
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Jeezzus WTF was that thing that was training in the Background
Shorts & Tied Vest ::) ::) ::)
Why would they have that in there video.
Friend of the owner.
;) ;D
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There's a lot of British Bulldogs and Dynamite Kid videos on this channel.
Some other wrestling matches and interviews too but mainly British Bulldogs.
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There's a lot of British Bulldogs and Dynamite Kid videos on this channel.
Some other wrestling matches and interviews too but mainly British Bulldogs.
Nice find!
This footage was very popular among "tape-traders" years ago.
I still remember the old vendor who used to set up a gimmick table at our indy shows. He had hundreds of VHS tapes from Japanese promotions and other "underground" footage. A lot of us trainees would browse and hit him up before the fans arrived to the building. He was always nice enough to cut us a break.
Then, marks and other "hopefuls" would crowd around him during intermissions.
That old guy made a killing at those shows.
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in 1991 when he was feuding with Warlord Davey Boy was HUGE
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in 1991 when he was feuding with Warlord Davey Boy was HUGE
Yep.
Allegedly, that short program was ALL Vince's idea.
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Dynamite Kid documentary.
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Dynamite Kid documentary.
I'm surprised Highspots hasn't had this taken down yet as they have in the past.