“History consists of a series of accumulated imaginative inventions.†– Voltaire
The Opening Chapter
The year 1996 was a turbulent one for the World Wrestling Federation. The New Generation era had become passé and the company was heading in a new direction. Wrestlers who seemed like cartoon characters or had second profession on the side were either eliminated or shunted to the bottom of the card. More realistic characters were introduced, and the hard and fast divide between the “good guys†and “bad guys†was slowly dissolving. The 1996 Survivor Series was a card that follows my thesis to a “T.†Because it was a card that featured so many different people it was easy to see the change in scenery.
So this wee I am going to look back at Survivor Series ’96, an oft-forgotten edition of the “fall classic,†but really a wonderful jumping point into the company’s most profitable period, the “Attitude†era.
The Free For All
Bart Gunn (c), Jesse James, Bob “Spark Plugg†Holly & “Portuguese Man ‘o’ War†Aldo Montoya v. Billy Gunn (c), Justin “Hawk†Bradshaw, The Sultan and Salvatore Sincere
Back in the old days the WWF would produce a free half hour show on the PPV channels live before the actual pay per view would air. It would give last minute updates and provide a free match for the viewing public. This was the free match before Survivor Series ’96, and provided an elimination match much like in the spirit of those that would be airing later on in the show.
That being said, this is where all the gimmicks went to die. This is like a WrestleCrap wet dream right here. All eight were considered low-level jobbers at this point, with The Gunns the only ones to see significant pay per view appearances at this point. On one side the good guys featured two cowboys, one who also sang, a racecar driver and whatever the hell Montoya was supposed to be. The bad guys also featured two cowboys, a Middle-Eastern sultan and a walking Italian stereotype. The main issue of the match was that the Smoking Gunns had split up, and it was obvious that one would be the Shawn Michaels and one would be the Marty Jannetty. The match was pretty paint-by-numbers and it came down to the predictable Gunn-Gunn finale. Bart ended up taking the clean pinfall here but it was Billy who ended up becoming the better off of the pair in the long run.
As for the rest of guys involved here, they became a mixed bag of success. Bart found unexpected success in WWF thanks to his surprising Brawl For All victory in 1998, but has since headed to Japan and faded in obscurity. Jesse James and Billy Gunn also found unexpected success in the WWF as a cutting edge tag team and they are now living on their past successes in TNA. Aldo Montoya reinvented himself as Justin Credible in ECW, but now is rumored to be working at an Olive Garden somewhere up north. The Sultan you know better as Headshrinker Fatu or Rikishi, while Salvatore Sincere became a perpetual low card journeyman working through various promotions under a variety of gimmicks. Inexplicably of the eight involved only Bradshaw and Holly remain working for WWE. Both men reinvented themselves numerous times through their storied WWE careers, but Bradshaw hit pay dirt when he became John “Bradshaw†Layfield, a Wall Street by-way-of-Texas tycoon, and became a legit main event heel for the company. You just really know who is going to make in this crazy business.
The Tag Team Elimination Match
Doug Furnas, Phil Lafon and Henry & Phineas Godwinns v. “British Bulldog†Davey Boy Smith, Owen Hart and The New Rockers
Furnas and Lafon were an interesting story within WWE. They were a solid technical wrestling pair with little flash or substance, but could make it look easy within the squared circle. They were coming in at the tail end of the New Generation, where they would have stuck out like sore thumbs, but they are about to embark into the Attitude era, where their lack of characters also lost them in the shuffle of this new era. Just them being paired with the cartoon-like hog farmers showed their glaring differences. They were really square pegs in trying to fit in round holes. They did make their marks in the old ECW, where their styles were appreciated, and really would shine in Ring of Honor. This match was their unannounced, un-hyped debut in the company, and it was obvious they would programmed against Smith and Hart, who were not only the company’s Tag Champions, but were two guys that they were familiar with and could have a good match with. The New Rockers were Marty Jannetty and a young Al Snow working as Leif Cassidy, working as a ‘70s teen idol send-up.
The match was essentially just a platform for the company’s burgeoning tag team scene, and a showcase for the debuting Furnas and Lafon. The new pair looked like world-beaters and ended up winning the match for their team after eliminating both Hart and Smith. It made them look like top-notch performers that they could beat the WWF Tag Champions in their first match out and also set up a ready-made Title program between the two teams.
As for the rest, The Godwinns worked in the WWF for the next couple of years until Henry Godwinn went out with a broken neck and Phineas Godwinn reinvented himself as occult Mideon. Marty Jannetty left the WWF shortly after this match, but would be back and forth in the company about a dozen times after this. Al Snow finally found success as a crazy man that talked to a mannequin head in ECW that allowed him to also gain success in WWE as well. But it was his success as a trainer within the WWE system that gained Snow his legacy. Unfortunately Furnas and Lafon didn’t catch on in the WWF, which was expected, and left the company a year later after Survivor Series ’97 where they ironically teamed with Bulldog and Hart’s brother-in-law Jim “The Anvil†Neidhart.
This match was definitely a case of throwing sh!t at the wall to see what works, by introducing the realistic act of Furnas and Lafon while phasing out cartoon acts of years gone by. Ultimately the experiment didn’t work out, but props for trying. At least they were smart enough to pair them up with credible guys like Hart and Bulldog who could go with them and make them look good in the process.
Undertaker’s Revenge
Undertaker v. Mankind
This was about halfway into the yearlong rivalry between Undertaker and Mankind. Up until this point in his career, Mankind had been the only person who had been able to get any substantial long-term heat on Undertaker. This was Undertaker’s return (one of many that would happen over the next decade) after Paul Bearer had turned on him and joined up with Mankind at SummerSlam.
The Dead Man debuted his “dark angel†gothic look that would last for the next two years. Undertaker ended up winning this match clean as a whistle, but ultimately their rivalry would rage on well into 1998 before the dust settled and both men became bigger stars because of it. Undertaker has made Survivor Series his home in regards to blowing off big feuds and this was just another one of those moments.
Rocky’s Debut
â€Wildman†Marc Mero (c), “The Stalker†Barry Windham, Jake “The Snake†Roberts & Rocky Maivia v. Hunter Hearst-Helmsley (c), Goldust, Crush & Jerry “The King†Lawler
Before the Survivor Series vignettes had been airing on WWF TV for weeks touting the debut of young Rocky Maivia. He was gong to be the first third-generation star in WWF history, coming out of the historic lineage of famed Samoan star “High Chief†Peter Maivia and “Soul Man†Rocky Johnson, the first black athlete to win WWF gold. Without wrestling a match he was already billed “The Rookie Sensation†and “The Blue Chipper.†This, like Furnas and Lafon before him, would be his debut match on television.
The issue coming into the match was the Intercontinental Championship rivalry between Mero and Helmsley. There was also a secondary feud between Windham and Goldust, who had known each other for years dating back to their more traditional roles in WCW. Roberts was here as a replacement for Mark Henry, but both men had issues with Lawler so it worked out okay. Crush was here for moral support and to act as the spoiler for Maivia’s debut. Not surprisingly this was Rocky’s coming out party as the all the main players were eliminated early so Maivia could have the spotlight. Crush looked like a world-beater by eliminating both Mero and Roberts, but it was all a ploy to make Maivia look even better, as he eliminated both Goldust and Crush to solidify his star status.
This is a great match to look at to see eight legit stars of the industry that have all had such divergent careers combined into one mid-card match designed to put over a some rookie. In hindsight they definitely got it right with Maivia, it just took a couple turns and a well-placed name change to get there. Mero was on the downside of his career as a knee injury that he suffered months later would severely hinder the remainder of his career. Windham too was on the downside, as he would shuffle through numerous gimmicks in the WWF before winding up in WCW for a final swan song. Roberts was riding the last wave of his career before his addictions would catch up with him and he became the walking punch line he has become today. As for the heels, Helmsley has became one of THE biggest stars in the industry, Lawler is still in the exact same position he was twelve years ago and Goldust is still making that same gimmick work all these years later. Unfortunately we lost Crush last summer in much of the same so many forty-something wrestlers have gone out over the past few years.
Ultimately this match was supposed to be all about the Rocky Maivia, but in hindsight it ended up being a fascinating look at how eight men’s careers could intertwine at one moment in time and see where they all ended up. Some were on their way down and some were on their way up, while the rest were riding the current career level they have been enjoying for years. Who knew that Rocky would end up becoming “The Rock†and a legitimate movie star while Helmsley would secure himself a company position for life.
The Return of the Hit Man
Bret “Hit Man†Hart v. “Stone Cold†Steve Austin
Steve Austin was the new red-hot character on the WWF scene that was shattering the old New Generation philosophy one cuss word and middle finger at a time. He was the catalyst for the Attitude era and destroyed the good guy-bad guy mantra. Bret Hart was the returning hero who was looking to regain his dominance after losing the WWF Championship months earlier. From both a kayfabe and non-kayfabe perspective, Hart wanted to work with Austin to see if he had “it†anymore and make a superstar out of Austin in the process. This was just the first shot in their war that waged for the entire year that followed and help carry the WWF into their new direction in the war against WCW. This match is often overshadowed by a variety of their following matches, including their mind-blowing match at WrestleMania 13, their street fight on RAW later that spring and of course the wild 10 man tag from Calgary that July.
A Hall of Fame Surprise
Savio Vega, Yokozuna, Flash Funk & Superfly Jimmy Snuka v. Vader, Faarooq, “Razor Ramon†& “Dieselâ€
This was the definition of a get-everyone-on-the-card match. There were no pertinent issues between any of the players involved here, and the good guys team was an incredible hodge-podge of talent. Savio Vega was the only regular active member of the good guy team, as Yokozuna hadn’t been seen since he jobbed to Steve Austin in two minutes at SummerSlam. And Snuka had been inducted into the Hall of Fame the night before and was brought in as a mystery partner to pop the New York crowd that had grown up with Snuka. As for Flash Funk, he was another brand new unannounced wrestler who was making his debut here as well. He was the company’s first attempt at a pimp, two years before they had the balls to actually pull it off with The Godfather. It was a weird situation to have four new faces debut on one event, but then again this was a time to throw it all against the wall to see what sticks and what falls.
As for the heels, Vader and Faarooq were fixtures in the upper mid-card, and the fake Diesel and Razor, while terrible in thought and execution both, were quite visible in the mid-card at the time so were also logical choices for the team.
The matched ended up being colossal waste of time as Snuka eliminated “Razor†with his patented Superfly Splash just to pop the crowd and then everyone ended up getting disqualified for brawling with each other in the ring. It was the only elimination match in Survivor Series history to have no decisive winner. The match was there just get some of the boys on the card and give Snuka a nice send-off. Flash Funk’s debut was handled poorly here and really he never recovered from his inauspicious debut.
The WWF Championship
Shawn Michaels © v. Sycho Sid
This too was another turning point in the shift towards the “Attitude†era. Michaels came into this match as squeaky clean, good guy underdog ready to defend his belt against the monster Sid. The New York crowd is a fickle bunch that plays by their own rules, and so naturally they booed the hero Michaels and cheered the evil giant Sid. It was clear to see the old way of the doing things was not going to work with this new generation of fans. Sid ended up taking out Michaels’ mentor Jose Lothario with a ringside camera and then took Michaels out himself and won the Championship. Rather than draw the uber-heel heat the company was expecting, Sid ended up getting cheered by the jaded northeastern fans.
Michaels ended up winning the belt back from Sid at the Royal Rumble in his hometown of San Antonio, where he got the hero’s welcome the company was hoping for. But it wouldn’t last as by the end of 1997, Michaels would embrace the jeers of the crowd and revolutionize the industry with DeGeneration X.
The Perspective
In hindsight this event is probably most remembered for the debut of Rocky Maivia than anything else. The three singles matches, while all fine matches in themselves, would ultimately only become small chapters in the stories of those three rivalries. It was event where you could see the paradigm of the WWF slowly shifting to something more adult oriented, but it was almost like the company was waiting for a spark to really ignite the whole change. The elimination matches saw the arrival of some new stars and the farewell to some others. A year later at Survivor Series ’97, the climate of the company had changed drastically, and I would argue that the catalyst for change started on this night in Madison Square Garden.
For this week the vault is closed…
Linked to the Pulse
Marshall continues his run through Hulk Hogan’s CCW.
Norine fondly looks back at the pioneer Gorgeous George.
Glazer throws his love behind Randy Orton as WWE’s top heel for years to come.
This Day in History
I figured if we are talking history around here we should pay homage to what has happened on this very day in the years gone by. It will either make you long for the old days or be happy for what we have now.
1992 – The Rock n’ Roll Express defeated the Heavenly Bodies for the Smokey Mountain Tag Team title
1993 – Sabu defeated Terry Funk for the ECW Television title
1993 – Tommy Dreamer & Johnny Gunn defeated Tony Stetson & Johnny Hot Body for the ECW Tag Team title
1995 – Kensuke Sasaki defeated Sting for the WCW U.S. Heavyweight title
1993 – ECW November to Remember was held at the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, PA
1999 – Masato Tanaka defeated Kodo Fuyuki for the World Entertainment Wrestling Heavyweight title
2002 – Brian Lee & Slash defeated Chris Harris & James Storm for the NWA Tag Team title
2002 – The Hussla defeated Rory Fox for the Heartland Wrestling Association Cruiserweight Title
1966 – Mike Anthony was born
1993 – Rufus R. Jones died of a heart attack at 60
1999 – Tony Rumble died of a heart attack at 43
The Assignment
In keeping with the Survivor Series theme, I recommend everyone to take a look back at the original Survivor Series, which took place back in 1987. I had an edited two-hour copy of this on Coliseum Video that I got at a pawn shop for like a $1, but got a chance to relive in its pure unedited form courtesy of WWE 24/7. I found it a fascinating display of how pay per view has changed over the years, as the show featured a lot of dead spots, a slow open and a blatant intermission that they filled with “Million $ Man†Ted DiBiase vignettes. It’s also a great study to see how the Survivor Series format has changed over the years. Don’t take my word, take a read of my colleague Scott Keith who also gave a fresh rant on the old show.
