These amazing amateur photos of wrestling superstars from the 1980s are pure WWF gold
Jake’s snake, André’s posse, and Hulk rules everything
On March 7, 1989 the El Paso Convention Center was teeming. Wrestling fans had packed the room that Tuesday to see Hulk Hogan, and in the ringside rows teenage boys clamored and clawed to steal a view or snap a photo of The Hulkster in all his maniacal glory. Hogan was the undisputed star of pro wrestling at the time, and this was his first visit to Chuco Town. But if his fans were happy to see him they were in for an unexpected treat. Fifteen-year-old Steve Kaplowitz was seated in the third row and remembers what was about to happen:
“What nobody knew that night was that the WWF would bring every big name on their talent roster to El Paso. Andre the Giant, Randy “Macho Man” Savage, the Ultimate Warrior, Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Jimmy Snuka and Tito Santana were just some of the stars that wrestled that night in El Paso. Nearly 30 matches were on the card that night, and many were replayed over the next few weeks on WWF Superstars and Prime Time Wrestling television shows. […] It was a pro wrestling fan’s dream.”
In the late 1980s, WWF Superstars was the flagship weekly television program of the now defunct World Wrestling Federation entertainment company. It was a golden era for the sport, when celebrity wrestlers were as recognizable as rock stars, and pre-internet ratings gave Superstars a prime-time viewership in addition to the live audience who paid to be there. Unlike the MMA bouts most popular today, professional wrestling had an innocence about it. This was choreographed entertainment. Easy to digest and predictable in its pairing of good against bad, babyface vs heel. The thrill of violence without the blood and broken bones.
John McKeon was another attendee that night in El Paso. His photos, snapped from the front row or even closer, give us a ringside view of the stars of wrestling and the fans who loved them most.
