“Portland Wrestling”
Sports Arena
11/17/82
 
Don Coss and Dutch Savage open the show from the Crow’s Nest.
 
Coss, “If Lonnie Mayne were with us, he’d say, ‘There’s excitement in the air!’ We have, maybe, the greatest night of wrestling ever in the Northwest. Dutch, what do you think?”
 
Savage, “Well partner, you may be right. This might be the most exciting show I’ve ever seen scheduled. We have the top wrestlers in the world, right here, in the area, but tonight we add two of the biggest names in the game.”
 
Coss, “We do just that. We will see the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World’ Andre the Giant. Then we have a huge tag team match. ‘Playboy’ Buddy Rose and Rip Oliver team up to take on Billy Jack and the NWA World Champion Dusty Rhodes. Fans, it doesn’t get any better than this. Let’s get things started.”
 
Match #1
“Kangaroo” Bob Heffernan w/”Playboy” Buddy Rose def. Buck Ramstead, w/Boomerang
 
Jimmy Snuka is in the Crow’s Nest.
 
Coss. “With us is Jimmy ‘Superfly’ Snuka. Jimmy you will be keeping a close eye on the World Title match at the ‘Portland Special’. You will meet Rip Oliver on next Saturday’s program. It might be a Northwest Title match, it might be a World Title match, but either way, it will be an important night for you.”
 
Snuka, “Bruddah, it will be the night of my life. I came back to the Northwest to win a title. I wanted the Northwest Title, but the chance at the World Title is here and I’ll win that, if I get a chance.”
 
Coss, “The ‘Superfly’ is ready and I think Rip Oliver is in trouble, no matter what happens on Tuesday.”
 
Match #2
Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka def. Ron McFarlane, w/Superfly Leap
 
“Playboy” Buddy Rose and his Army are in the Crow’s Nest.
 
Coss, “With us are Buddy Rose and his Army. Mr. Rose, you, and your men, remain in the forefront of the action. Rip Oliver has a World Title match on Tuesday. On the same night you and Ed Wiskoski meet Matt Bourne and Steve Pardee, with Dutch Savage as the referee and then tonight, you and Oliver take on Billy Jack and Dusty Rhodes. You have a lot on the line in the next few days.”
 
Rose, “Coss, you and Savage expect me to be worried, well I’m not. Savage thinks he’s so tough and we won’t be able to win with him as a referee, well that’s not going to happen. Listen to me old man, we have a plan and you are not going to stop us from keeping those belts!”
 
Savage, “Rose, you’ve got such a big mouth and so little brains, you’re an embarrassment. I told you I was going to call the match down the middle, and if I do that, you can’t beat Bourne and Pardee, that’s what I believe.”
 
Coss, “O.K. Let’s move on. What about tonight?”
 
Rose, “Billy Jack and the American Nightmare, that’s not enough brain power to light a match! Rhodes, you’ve got Oliver on Tuesday, after tonight, you might just hand over the Title tonight!”
 
Coss, “I can’t see that happening. Let’s see Ed Wiskoski in the ring.”
 
Match #3
Ed Wiskoski w/”Playboy” Buddy Rose def. El Bracero, w/Falling headbutt
 
Andre the Giant is in the Crow’s Nest.
 

 
Coss, “With us is a certified legend, Andre the Giant. Andre welcome to the Northwest.”
 
Andre, “Thank you, it’s great to be here.”
 
Coss, “O.K. tonight you have a handicap match vs. two men and then on Tuesday, you meet the veteran from San Francisco, Christopher Colt. You wrestle all over the world and it’s a different type of match for you every night.”
 
Andre, “I don’t care who I wrestle, or how many guys I wrestle at once. In Japan they give me four or five men in one night and I beat them.”
 
Coss, “Well the fans in the Northwest are overjoyed to see you. Let’s see Andre against only two men, not five.”
 
Match #4
Handicap Match
Andre the Giant def. The Masked Gladiator and Pat McGinnis, w/Big Splash vs. Both Men
 
Coss, “Our main event is next.
 
Main Event, Two out of Three Falls
Dusty Rhodes and Billy Jack vs. “Playboy” Buddy Rose and Rip Oliver
 
First Fall-Oliver and Rose wait in the ring and when Rhodes and Billy Jack come to the ring, the crowd explodes. Don Owen talks to Rhodes and Billy Jack.
 

 
Owen, “Dusty, Billy, this is about the biggest match I’ve ever had on our TV program. The fans love both of you and hate Rose and Oliver. They want you to win tonight and beat Oliver again on Tuesday.”
 
Rhodes, “Don Owen, the ‘Dream’ is so happy to be in Portland, with the beautiful scenery and the great fans, and a great partner like Billy Jack. Look at this guy, look at those muscles! Then look over at old beached whale Rose and bleached blond Oliver! Who do you think is going to win, those two, or two handsome men like me and Billy?”
 
The crowd explodes again.
 
The match begins and it’s a fast paced brawl. Both teams tag in and out and all four men are on top of their game. Rose and Oliver can’t seem to solve the strength and power of Billy Jack. He traps Rose in the Full Nelson and Rhodes cuts off Oliver. Rose submits and he and Dusty are up one fall to none.
Winners-Dusty Rhodes and Billy Jack
 
Matt Bourne and Steve Pardee are in the Crow’s Nest.
 
Coss, “With us are the two men who will challenge for the Northwest Tag Team Titles on Tuesday night. Gentlemen, you get the chance of a lifetime at the ‘Portland Special’, but Rose says he and Wiskoski have a plan. What does that mean?”
 
Pardee, “It means they’re scared. They know we can win and they know Dutch will keep the match with the rules. I know Matt and I will win.”
 
Bourne, “I agree, they’re worried. They know they have to cheat to win. If it’s a wrestling match, we win. Rose may think he has a plan, but it doesn’t matter. Steve and I will be the Champions.”
 
Savage, “I want to wish both of you good luck. I’ll make sure the match is fair and the best team will win.”
 
Coss, “Don’t miss the ‘Portland Special’. There are a few tickets remaining. Get down to Sandy Barr’s flea market on Monday and get you tickets early, they won’t last long. Let’s go back to the ring for the second fall.”
 
Second Fall-This fall is even more wild than the first one. Again both teams tag in and out quickly. Billy Jack and Rip Oliver are on the floor, slugging it out. Referee Sandy Barr is counting. The veteran Oliver senses the count and dives back in the ring ahead of Billy. Barr’s count reaches 20 and Billy Jack has been counted out. The match is even.
Winners-Buddy Rose and Rip Oliver (Count Out)
 
Coss and Savage are in the Crow’s Nest.
 
Coss, “Dutch, this is a wild tag team match.”
 
Savage, “Yes it is Don. Rose and Oliver are desperate and that’s when they are most dangerous. You have to wonder what will happen in the third fall.”
 
Coss, “You know both teams will pull out all stops. Now let’s talk about the ‘Portland Special’. Don Owen has outdone himself this time. When we see one of these Tuesday night cards, you know they will be special, but this one is an all-timer. Here’s what you will see.
 
Billy Jack and Stan Stasiak meet the Davidson Brothers
 
Jimmy ‘Superfly’ Snuka takes on ‘Kangaroo’ Bob Heffernan
 
Rocky Della Serra meets Doug Somers
 
Those three are great matches, but the next two are the ones the fans have been waiting for.
 
Andre the Giant meets Christopher Colt
 
Matt Bourne and Steve Pardee challenge ‘Playboy’ Buddy Rose and Ed Wiskoski for the Northwest Tag Team Titles with Dutch Savage as the guest referee. Then in the main event, Rip Oliver challenges the ‘American Dream’ Dusty Rhodes for the NWA World Title. What a night of action, but don’t forget next week’s ‘Portland Wrestling’. Jimmy Snuka meets Rip Oliver in a title match. Will it be a Northwest Title match, of an NWA World Title match? We will know after Tuesday. Now let’s go back to the ring ring for our deciding fall.”
 
Third Fall-Rose and Wiskoski pull out all stops, but it’s not enough. Rhodes and Billy Jack are in control when Ed Wiskoski and Bob Heffernan hit the ring. Now it’s four on two. Heffernan and Wiskoksi occupy Billy Jack while Rose and Oliver corner Rhodes. Oliver grabs a chair and he and Rose attack the World Champion and smash his knee with the chair. Oliver lands seven, or eight, vicious chair shots to Dusty’s knee. The Champion is in agony. Suddenly, Andre the Giant hits the ring and helps Billy Jack clear the ring. Rose’s Army leaves the ring while Andre and Billy check on Rhodes. The World Champion is severely injured.
Winners-Dusty Rhodes and Billy Jack (Disqualification)
 

Excellent TV. Great main event.