Local professional wrestling fans will get a historical glimpse of a squared-circle showcase held over four decades ago by the St. Louis station synonymous with the popular “Wrestling at the Chase” television series.
Image Credit: KPLR-TV
St. Louis 11 (KPLR-TV) presents “The Final Bell: The Sam Muchnick 1982 Retirement Card” on Tuesday, October 8 at 7:30 pm.
The half-hour documentary highlights the New Year’s Day swan song that honored Muchnick – a long-time St. Louis wrestling promoter and former National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) president – in front of 19,000 spectators at the historic Checkerdome.
“’Wrestling at the Chase’ was such an iconic program,” said Mike Colombo, KPLR news anchor and host of the program. “Getting the opportunity to highlight some of its stars, the man who created it and the history behind it has made it a really exciting project to be a part of.”
Image Credit: KPLR-TV
The story of how Tuesday’s production came to be is as unique as the event itself.
On the evening of the 1982 tribute, KPLR sent a staff videographer to record the proceedings and a subsequent “highlight featurette” was presented on the weekly “Chase” program the following weekend.
However, most of the 90 minutes of footage gathered sat on the shelf unseen. It included all eight wrestling matches competed during the night, the in-ring ceremony that honored Muchnick and the post-event press conference that was held afterwards.
Image Credit: KPLR-TV
Last December, a current KPLR employee discovered the entire archival footage by accident. Knowing the significance of the event, the individuals involved, and the longtime association that television program had within the cultural fabric of St. Louis, wheels went into motion to create a slice of yesteryear for those that remembered the series equally alongside today’s modern wrestling audience.
“When I first saw all the video we had from the event, I couldn’t believe it,” said Colombo, who also serves as the telecast’s associate producer and co-writer. “It was really fun to go through it all and figure out how to best showcase it in this special. It’s a really rare, cool piece of St. Louis sports and pop culture history.”
Image Credit: KPLR-TV
The program launches with a biography of Muchnick, whose four-decade career in professional wrestling promotion began in 1942 and served as the NWA’s president for a pair of tenures (1950-60, 1963-75), followed by an in-ring ceremony that had the honoree receiving accolades from state, local and wrestling executives.
The production’s brain trust felt it was important to show how this event was just not about a wrestling card but how one man was a fixture in the local landscape.
“Seeing the various dignitary’s parade through the ring to honor Sam that night solidified for me what an important figure he was, not only in the St. Louis sports scene, but also the national wrestling scene,” reflected Colombo.
The main event of the evening had “Nature Boy” Ric Flair, the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion, facing long time rival “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes in a two-out-of-three falls match-up with the title up for grabs.
Image Credit: KPLR-TV
Overall, the card featured a “who’s who” of grappling greatness. Wrestlers participating within the Checkerdome’s eight matches included former NWA world champions (Flair, Rhodes, Harley Race, Gene Kiniski, Pat O’ Connor), NWA Missouri state champions (Dick The Bruiser, Ken Patera, Jerry Blackwell), NWA Women’s tag-team champions (Wendi Richter, Joyce Grable), national title holders (Greg Valentine, David Von Erich) and long-time “Chase” fixtures (Bulldog Bob Brown, Baron Von Raschke, Rufus R. Jones).
“The star power in this event tells you everything you need to know about the respect and reverence the wrestling world had for Sam Muchnick,” said Colombo. “Some of the best, most decorated wrestlers in the history of the sport battled in the ring that night.”
Image Credit: KPLR-TV
Perspectives of Muchnick’s influence is featured with interviews from athletes and associates that were videotaped in 1999 for a prior KPLR documentary as well as from recent comments by long-time journalist/historian Bill Apter, who attended the 1982 ceremony and personally presented Muchnick an achievement award during the evening’s fanfare.
KPLR’s Tuesday chronicle does manage a connection to today’s professional wrestling complexion. By design, the program airs prior to the CW Network’s nationally-broadcasted “WWE NXT” offering that originates that evening from Chesterfield’s The Factory venue and airs on the station later for a delayed 8 p.m. telecast.
Current WWE Superstar Randy Orton, a St. Louis native who graduated from Hazelwood Central High School in the late-1990s, is scheduled to wrestle at the event. His father, “Cowboy” Bob Orton, was featured on “Wrestling at the Chase” in the early 1980’s and currently resides in the area.
Tickets for the all-ages event, which starts at 6:30 pm, are available AT THIS LINK.
Colombo feels that his station’s tribute to the respected promoter effectively blends the past and present.
“The sport would have never grown and evolved into what it’s become without Sam Muchnick,” he said. “Tying that history and St. Louis’ role in it to this new generation of wrestling provided us a cool connection we’re excited to share with viewers.”
“The Final Bell” also airs Sunday, October 13 at 12 pm on St. Louis 11.
