The First Time

[nWo]

It was the mid to late 70's. My older brother and I were watching TV and watching the WWWF. I remember the first wrestler that caught my attention was Ivan Putski. He was facing some jobber. He crushed him with the Polish Hammer and I was hooked. After that I lived and died wrestling. I can still remember being crushed when Larry Zbyszko turned on Bruno Samartino. I hated Zbyszko for a long time... probably still do. Might be the 2nd greatest heel turn ever (right behind Hogan to the nWo).

My wife doesn't understand my fascination with wrestling, but she humors me.

[Pariah]

It is very easy to remember the EXACT date of the first time I ever watched professional wrestling on TV... It was WWF Superstars on Saturday, February 7th, 1987... How could I not wind up hooked for years to come?

[Vegas]

I first got into wrestling 30 years ago back in 1985 because of the Saturday morning cartoon and I soon started watching it on TV.


My first experience going to it live was in 1986 when I was in 6th grade at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma where I lived for most of the 1980s (after being born in Seattle and then later moving back there.)

This was the lineup for my first-ever wrestling show:

February 1986 at the Tacoma Dome

1. Siva Afi vs Rene Goulet
2. SD Jones vs Hercules
3. George Wells vs Adrian Adonis
4. Cousin Luke vs Mr. X
5. Corporal Kirschner and Dan Spivey vs The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff
6. Junkyard Dog vs Terry Funk
7. George Steele vs Intercontinental Champion Randy Savage

So my first-ever wrestling show I attended included the Macho Man, JYD, Sheik and Volkoff, and the Animal.

no, I didn't make any signings at this show, I was only in 6th grade at the time

[graymar]

1970...local TV...and one man drove me to wrestling..."Motermouth" Ron Wright who just passed away.

[cruefan68]

For me it was circa 1981. I had known about wrestling, at least WWWF, going back to the mid-1970's because my brother was a fan. It was on too late to watch but on the odd occasion I saw some of it and vaguely remember seeing Haystacks Calhoun in probably the first match I ever saw. When Saturday Night Live was in it's prime years (John Belushi, etc) and I was able to stay up late I always wanted to watch that. Back then we only had a few channels and a dial to turn them and I always fought with my brother because he wanted to watch wrestling and I wanted to watch SNL.

When SNL went into its off season I would go to sleep so he could watch his wrestling. What was I thinking? Anyway around 1981 it was an SNL repeat and when he wanted to watch wrestling I decided to join him. I saw Stan Hansen, George Steele and Killer Khan and I was hooked. Fast forward to now and I am a wrestling junkie and i need my fix daily

[cman]

It was the early fall of 1989. I had to be in bed for school, but my mom would flip through channels and came upon Prime Time Wrestling. After awhile she let me stay up one monday night and told me about this wrestling. As soon as I watched I was hooked. I dont remember the matches from then, but it was still awesome to see. Almost 26 years later I am still here.

[Casey]

I don't really remember my first wrestling experience I just know it was always around. I remember watching a clash of the champions marathon on TBS watching Sting wrestle Flair to the 60 draw. I also remember watching Wrestle Mania 5 live on PPV. I remember wrestling with my friends using a move call the "Hammer Jammer" using my soccer shin guards just like Ronny Garvin. I was a tape trader before I knew it was a thing. I would record every thing and don't get me started on the magazine's I have a collection over 20 years old. I remember wishing I had the money to order those cool looking cards from PWI I also wanted to join the play by mail game going so far as filling out the card, creating my own move a topropepowerbomb all one word cause there's no room for spaces, this was years before the Awesome Bomb.

[joebreakdown]

Wow, you all have cool stories.

Mine is probably about the age of four, watching Saturday afternoon wrestling on World Of Sport. Wrestling was a family event and very much a working class pastime in the UK. Everybody knew who the top stars were. My Gran loved it and even when she got cable when I was about 14, she began watching WWF, but would mostly tell me it was a 'load of tripe.' My Granddad would claim that Les Kellet would beat all the WWF guys and me and my older brother would laugh at him!

But anyway, British wrestling, the first matches I really remember involved Danny Boy Collins V 'Fit' Finlay. I hated Finlay because he cheated and was the 'villain.' His manager/wife, Princess Paula used to annoy me too. Poor Danny Boy! He could never beat him!