I wouldn't call it "great" by any means, but this is a combination you sure don't see much of. Bret actually wrote about this one in his book, as he had feared working with Andre for years over heat they used to have. As it turned out, Andre was a total professional here.
I wouldn't call it "great" by any means, but this is a combination you sure don't see much of. Bret actually wrote about this one in his book, as he had feared working with Andre for years over heat they used to have. As it turned out, Andre was a total professional here.
Regarding the "afraid to work with Andre" thing: are there specific cases of the giant shooting on guys or going into business for himself? Or is it just a matter of "he's really fucking huge and could eat me if I piss him off"?
ReplyDeleteWell, Heenan gladly tells about Andre standing on Warriors hair, the clothsline spot where he just held up a fist for Warrior to run it....I have no doubt that if Andre didn't like you, he could at least make you wish you were somewhere else.
ReplyDelete"He's learning..."
ReplyDeleteBret had to job to that elbow drop? Makes the People's Elbow look devastating.
ReplyDeleteAs said below, who was gonna stand up to Andre in a bad mood? One of Bret's brothers, Dean or Smith, really pissed off Andre with a airport run from hell, and that's where the heat stemmed from. I think.
ReplyDeleteI think this is the Andre match that's going to be on Bret's next DVD.
ReplyDeleteI was watching some other late era Andre matches the other day and apparently that really was his standard finish toward the end of his career. He looks like a crumbling statue where he holds his arm out several feet above the opponent than gingerly falls with the elbow missing by a safe distance; I guess that was the best he could do to guarantee his opponent's safety. I'm sure the lack of verisimilitude was appreciated, even if it didn't look so good on camera.
ReplyDeleteHey they had to get him to the next booking. I wish I had someone driving me like that if I was late to the airport...
ReplyDeleteIf a Hart brother pissed someone off, it was probably Smith.
ReplyDeleteToo bad the video cut out and we missed the springboard tornado DDT that Andre used to put Bret down for the elbow.
ReplyDeleteAfterwards, in the lockerroom, Andre confided in Bret that he was always one of his favorite workers to watch and he deserved to be WWF Champion.
ReplyDeleteHe actually used the butterfly suplex quite a bit as a finisher late in the game.
ReplyDeleteAndre's heat with Bret was in the early 80s from stampede. He was fine with Bret by 85 and this was 1989.
ReplyDelete"Bert Hart" graphic at the :17 mark. Gotta love it
ReplyDeleteI don't know this is the proper forum for requests, but Andre vs. Stan Hansen from 1981 New Japan is seriously amazing and worth a look. One of the best heavyweight style matches I've ever seen.
ReplyDeleteShame what happened to Bobby, he could have made a mint telling road stories...a less angry Cornette
ReplyDeleteYeah, everyone in the "Andre was a lousy worker" crowd needs to watch that match. He's *terrifying* in it, and busts out a ton of different moves, too.
ReplyDeleteI was on a class trip to Italy in 1990 and people were gathered in the hotel lobby watching a Bret/Andre match. This must be the one. (Funny how I see the Sistine Chapel, canals of Venice, etc. yet also remember a glimpse I caught of a WWF TV match)
ReplyDeleteI know Bobby never finished high school but he could still contribute thru someone with a blog or column somewhere. If roger Ebert can still make a living why can't the greatest character-manager?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp0Wo7hLTIE
ReplyDeleteI've always been in a very similar camp. I've never doubted that Andre could work a match, even as deteriorated as we was in the late 80s, he worked matches very well. My camp's credo is simply that Big Show could do it better. I still firmly believe that Andre gets a ton of credit for being Andre. Put Big Show in Andre's spot and he does twice the business.
ReplyDeleteUh Roger Ebert has been a writer for 40 years.
ReplyDeleteI just meant that Roger Ebert lost HIS ability to communicate from cancer but still manages to watch movies and write columns. Bobby, in the same unfortunate situation, can conceivably contribute his stories in a similar manner (columns, blogs, etc.) We would be able to still learn and enjoy his personality.
ReplyDeleteI kind of get that "friendly monster" vibe where he was nice to you most of the time, but if you acted like you didn't think he could tear you apart, he would remind you that he was nice because he chose to be, not because he had to be. In other words, he would remind you he could hurt you.
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