WWE's Golden Age - Part 2 (1985-1987)

The first WrestleMania was in the books for the rapidly expanding WWF. Hulk Hogan and Mr T stood tall to end the afternoon, but it was Vince McMahon behind the curtain who stood taller. This massive home run would go on to define WWE's future as an industrial powerhouse, and they were just getting started.
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Cultaholic provides video coverage of professional wrestling - including WWE (including WWE Raw, WWE SmackDown,, and NXT), AEW, IMPACT Wrestling (formerly TNA), NJPW, ROH, and more with daily news updates, reviews, lists, highlights, predictions, reactions, podcasts and much, much more.

[@Cultaholic]

We hope you enjoy it! This was a monumental undertaking, so If you want to support us in producing more documentary content then do consider pledging on Patreon at www.patreon.com/cultaholic for early access to select videos, exclusive video podcasts and exclusive merch. Thank you!

[@michaelvazquez7851]

I enjoyed it

[@nevdrogbra10]

This is execllent boys cant wait for part 3 like it gone too brillant like ya alright

[@anthonymatis2977]

What year are you guys going up too with the series ?

[@JokersVsZombies]

This is honestly the only content I come back to the channel for. Great job.

[@ODRWolf]

Absolutely amazing just a minor detail involving the Ring carts at Mania 3 that was omitted as to why they were used it was due to the size of the entrance ramp as while planning for the event the WWE event team realised that with the rampway the event would've been 3 hours on entrances alone as a result they had everyone sans Hogan and Piper for 2 differing reason Piper seemingly heading to retirement and Hulk as the Golden Boy of the company use the Carts for their entrance so that Mania would hit a reasonable runtime. outside of that missing factoid tho amazing content can't wait for part 3

[@B33FY2011]

I seriously hope you continue this throughout the New Generation, Attitude, Ruthless Agression, and the PG era's. This is absolutely gold and amazing. The work that has been put into both Golden Era parts 1 and 2 is unbelievable.

[@gatorbait96nc]

Same here. These are so good.

[@ifgwelf]

If they do, I'm especially looking forward to them covering New Generation and Ruthless Aggression

[@flingfangflung4089]

Totally agree

[@mrg8581]

​@@gatorbait96nc Agreed.

[@mrg8581]

​@@ifgwelf👍

[@wbcwinnipegbeltcollector]

Haven't watched for a while Sorta hit a dark patch and needed some content that comforts me ...these documentary style videos on my first love pro wrestling is a beautiful way to spend 2 hours away from my issues

[@danmount9462]

Hope things get better for you.

[@georgeholloman9644]

Yeah man. I know things get dark sometimes. I hope you can pull through whatever you have going on.

[@jacksheppard3591]

Keep at it mate. It'll get better.

[@Darkstar-rg8ze]

Hope things get better for u friend

[@mrg8581]

I watched this twice so far. Things haven't been ☀️ for me lately either. Hang in there. 👍

[@ernestoa.jimenez3206]

Even for those of us that were kids and lived the era, this brings so much that you would miss back on the day. I love this series. Really shows how much Cultaholic Wrestling has developed in production. This is top level 5 stars documentary quality.

[@poppa_squirrel]

I got goosebumps when you said "moments later Elizabeth emerged leading Hogan by the arm" like i was 9 years old again jumping around in the living room watching the TV. Love you guys keep up the fantastic work fellas

[@styve6205]

lol idk why i chuckled as much as i did at Orndorff kissing his biceps back and forth swaying to the music @ 14:26 🤣

[@fordid42]

I remember when Jake Roberts started appearing in the WWF. When he was in shape, he was pretty fantastic. People don't really realize how good he was in the ring, or how damn great he really was on the mic. Dude's promos were outstanding, would make you feel creeped out when he was a heel, and make you get behind his bottled rage when he was a babyface. If you can find his promos and matches I'd check them out. So underrated by so many. EDIT: Also, Ozzy looked like he didn't know where the hell he was!

[@aaronsugar7228]

I remember seeing him at a WWF house show before he even appeared on TV. He hit the DDT on Lanny Poffo - I thought he had botched a suplex and really hurt him.

[@PatI-zg9gm]

Roberts paid his dues in the 70’s but once the 80’s hit, he was terrific, in the ring and on the mike. He had great runs in Florida, Mid Atlantic, and Mid South before jumping to New York. His descent began when he was hit by that non gimmicked guitar.

[@aaronsugar7228]

@@PatI-zg9gm he also couldn't get past his demons for many years - which is a shame.

[@donniewynn3277]

Ozzy probably didn't know where he was lol

[@Powers3848]

I remember reading an article years ago, where they had shown Ozzy that he was at WM2 and he was shocked that he was actually there. He in fact had no memory of it lol.

[@gregpeloquin6345]

The Richter/Spider Lady match really is the OG Montreal Screwjob in a way.

[@ladynikkie]

Yes Vince and Moolah planned it

[@WarriorSmurf]

The original Superstars of Wrestling show became Wrestling Spotlight. According to Marty Jannety, the Midnight Rockers/Rockers were backstage at WrestleMania 3.

[@jamesreece9502]

I remember watching all these matches when I was growing up. I was born in '75. I love this series! Nostalgia is a wonderful feeling.

[@jordigan6060]

So good. This is one of the periods of wrestling i have the least lnowledge about. This series is filling so many gaps for me, and with aplomb. Excellently produced, written and narrated as is the Cultaholic way. Im so excited for the final part.

[@Cultaholic]

Thank you so much!

[@deatherbradley]

I ate those damn WWF ice cream bars like every time the ice cream truck would roll through. They were either bomb as hell or I just really like the pictures. Cause I bought those things every chance I got. 😅😅

[@fratbronation]

They were bomb as hell 😂

[@samadagoat7769]

Same

[@DeejayVillain]

Me too! Thinking back on it, they weren’t even that nice… what flavour were they meant to be?!

[@jackpotwinner8486]

Honestly, this series was EPIC..Much respect Cultaholic this was very well done even without actual footage you guys killed it….Hands down the best wrestling doc on KZbin. I was a kid during the Golden era and I remember going to Blockbusters in Peckham in the early 90’s with my dad and renting some of these classic ppv’s from the 80’s as I was born in 88. I stopped watching wwe soon after the attitude era but it was so good seeing all of the background stories on how they produced such a classic product. Cuktaholic you’ve made a former wresting fan a new wrestling fan all over agin. Congratulations on a job well done 🫵🏾⭐️’s

[@crou8040]

I enjoyed this two-part documentary more than I can even convey. It brought me back to my childhood, and at some points made me so whimsical I teared up. Thank you for this.

[@nicolemerrill9167]

Lmao orndorff coming out to Hogans entrance is the only time people could see what Hogan might look like with a full head of hair lmao

[@davefogle7747]

the Cultaholic team should be proud of this one

[@joshhale9355]

This is the best wrestling documentary. When I say Cultaholic doesn’t miss, I fucking mean THIS CHANNEL CANNOT MISS. Just incredible.

[@christopherbaker9676]

These are the absolute best docs about the WWE I've ever seen. Great job looking forward to the next one. Also i commented on the first video. How long did it take to put this project together. Its quite thorough. I know ive watched since 87. I was lucky enough to have a huge satellite dish. I got tonwatch all wwf wrestling shows. I loved it

[@jaysonlopez6669travieso1]

True... i agree !!!!!!

[@jpberm-on-sea]

I had a friend who was also lucky enough to have a satellite dish back then, he would record anything WWF related and lend me the tapes. We had a head start on the rest of the UK, by late 89 satellite tv was much more wide spread and all the kids were getting the WWF bug.

[@k00b33k0]

This is freaking AWESOME! I'm a huge wrestling fan from Kazakhstan, I've started to watch WCW in late 90's, so I didn't knew much about wrestling industry of 80's. This video tells so much

[@joeswar123]

I know these are huge doings and take up a massive chunk of time, but I hope to god you do these documentaries for the Attitude and Ruthless Aggression Era's cause this is incredible

[@the_weird_scientist]

Vince McMahon as "The Million Dollar man that evolved into "Cooporate McMahon" would've been parallel universe level crazy!!!

[@angusdog22]

Saturday Nights Main Event was the best show of that era . It wasn’t on every Saturday so when it was it was very exciting. They’d have world champion matches which they wouldn’t do very often in that era. I’d beg my parents to stay up to watch

[@MAGAGYPSY]

These documentaries literally are perfect there's no other word to describe them They are perfect

[@jeffreythomas5138]

These have been some of the absolute best documentaries on the wwe I have seen. The guys at cultaholic should be proud.

[@LwandaMandla-eo3io]

*Another certified Cultaholic classic*

[@GameTime-yj6qv]

Amazing work. I was a kid during the golden era, a young teen during new generation era, and an older teen during attitude era, which was all perfect for me.

[@davidsamuels9557]

The irony about the Ventura wrestlers union story is Ventura had an adversarial relationship with unions, during his term as Minnesota governor.

[@tommypearson9260]

I ,still can't believe i was able to witness this era in full growing up. The somber music and voiceover brings back so many memories these guys were like hero's back then.

[@allenownz]

I don’t think there’s a single wrestling channel with the storytelling ability of cultaholic, there’s something about these specific videos that I love

[@MoneyMayle1]

This is my 2nd go at this series in 2 weeks. Just tremendous work here; unbelievable production and commentary. 10/10🤝

[@glenndurgan8655]

James Avery = uncle phil Also voiced shredder on tmnt 87 series Voice of my childhood lol

[@TMC1982Part2]

James Avery also voiced War Machine on the Iron Man animated series from 1994. He would do it again on the Spider-Man animated series from that same time frame.

[@philippschaefer6136]

Amazing work guys. Being 21 years old I don't know much about the era and this doc is really helping me catch up on it. Thanks

[@RexMckinnis]

I’m 31 and grew up with the attitude era and still learning more. Good on you!

[@ChocolateMilk1978]

The birth of The Mega Powers is something I’ll never forget!

[@JH-lk8tm]

Man this series is absolutely amazing. Well done Cultaholic team 👏

[@JitteryJackanape]

God bless Dick Ebersol for revamping production WWE has benefited greatly over the years with his changes and ideas.

[@johnepants]

Ebersol could be a good candidate for the Hall of Fame based off his massive production contributions

[@ncascadehiker]

In 1985, I thought this stuff was such low brow trash, but now I feel very nostalgic about it. Nice work on this video.

[@Daring2Win]

This is a masterpiece! As someone who lived through most of this, the nostalgia only serves to underpin the casual yet evocative storytelling. I could watch this weekly instead of modern wrestling. Anyone who lived then can tell you, there has been nothing like it. It felt as grand as it sounds.

[@sabusteveswrestlinghistory5914]

This documentary is one of the greatest wrestling docs ever created.Please continue it to Modern day.

[@michaelmclaren1333]

Saturday nights main event is magical in my memories. I'd watch with my grandma and that's how I became a lifelong wrestling fan

[@bebl]

Part 1 was amazing, can't wait to see this one!

[@JimmyPeaTV]

Wow, I was so fortunate growing up during this time. Thanks so much for these, so many memories and so much Nostalgia ❤️

[@dannytickner3040]

Great series. Became a WWF fan in the UK when Sky sports started showing it, around 1988 I think I started. Great memories of watching the silver vision videos. Keep up the excellent work 👏🏼

[@rosefarrell2440]

World of sport on itv was where I first saw wwf bk in 1988. Every now and again they'd show 🇺🇸 Wrestling. I vividly remember the bulldogs,Hart foundation,and the killer bees. I'm sure WOS showed Strike force winning the titles off the foundation.

[@dannytickner3040]

@@rosefarrell2440 yes of course! I remember world of sport on ITV, think it may have been around 1983 ish I saw wrestling on it. Great throwback there! Thanks

[@gatorbait96nc]

These documentaries are the best thing on KZbin. I wish you all would make one on the new gen and attitude era.

[@NevetsRetsof]

I had the original Road Warriors action figures when they were with AWA. I'm 50 now and still miss those toys. Thanks mom

[@darylmixan8170]

Born in 80'... (raised in Nebraska, not a big territory, none really) when King Harley Race wrestled, me and my brothers used to call him King Hardly Can't win Race... I remmeber him looking old old... It was long before I knew how much of a badass he was in the 70's.

[@nickm8874]

I’ve been really looking forward to this. The first one was tremendous content. Thank you

[@MoeyViews]

Born during the golden days. Preschool was new generation n teenage years attitude/Monday-night wars! Greatest journey ever!

[@mikehopkins9463]

I mean this from the bottom of my heart, cultaholic do the best Wrestling documentaries on YT...Can't wait for part 3 🙌🙌

[@carmaaa8508]

As left the comment in part one. I'm leaving another here in part 2.. Well, The 1980s was a very good decade for me. And going to so many of those events I've seen . I remember every bit of it. McMahon took so many chances and just about all of them not all of them, but many, many, many of them paid off. Now I'll be on the search for part three I appreciate all of these videos. You brought back many memories. Thank you

[@andremarc1275]

Hogan and Macho Man are the strongest tag team of all time.... The Brothers of Destruction are number 2 i believe.

[@tdubya75]

These are amazing! As I’m watching these I’m reliving my childhood in a way I didn’t know was possible. Thank you!

[@kdailey4315]

Absolutely phenomenal again! Ending on that "cliffhanger" was perfection. Well done and we will definitely need more of these.

[@JOSHUAWILL]

Will there be a part 3

[@kdailey4315]

Looks like it dropped today!@@JOSHUAWILL

[@charliechaz1982]

I used to laugh so much at Heenan. Used to automatically hate any of the wrestlers he worked with. He was utterly brilliant TV every week. Such a talent. I go back and watch all the old stuff from time to time and every time his smug chops and razor wit are no less effective.

[@maximillionzen]

@Cultaholic These are the most fascinating pieces you guys have ever put together...More era retrospectives and timeline episodes please!

[@teamamerica5987]

Probably due to age and bias but this is my favorite era! Not that it was the greatest card, but WM 3 just in terms of sheer buildup and hype for the main event cannot be matched.

[@JaysonK19]

I grew up and began watching wrestling in this era. These videos were extremely well done. Thank you🙏

[@Corndog1997]

Haven't been to a Cultaholic premiere before. So this was a good one to start on. Phenomenal job to everyone involved. Can't wait for the next one.

[@lukemcgarry4538]

Loving this series guys, solid work as always, Sam’s narration 🔥

[@ceejluige4816]

These docs are just brilliantly put together. All the props in the world for these. Keep em going!

[@alexandertroy9621]

Piper vs Mr T was still WAY more realistic than McGregor vs Mayweather.

[@bmbxiii2045]

You’re doing fantastic work! Im loving the series

[@ants8527]

I still remember my 1st time watching the Wwf for the 1st time ever back in 1984'' I was 9 years old And the 1st Match i seen that got me Hook on watching it was Roddy Piper Vs Jimmy Superfly Snuka after that match I been watching The long list of story lines from the 80s 90s 2000s 10s And up until the current storylines in this Era. Its been a wild journey watching wrestling as long as i have starting watching as a kid to still be watching it now with my kids And even my Grand Kids.😊

[@eshep71]

I've put this series on at least 10times. I can always listen to it and I usually pick up new info since I'm always pre occupied while I listen. It's fantastic

[@garygage14]

I really like these videos. So much nostalgia. Great job!!!

[@tobiaslofi]

Absolutely fantastic!!! Like WATCHING instead of just hearing what Jim Cornette and many others have said about those years. Thank you!

[@AFMountaineer2000]

I never knew Real American was anybody elses intro music until this

[@chrisclearwater3521]

Let me tell you something brother! This shit rocks dude what a complete and comprehensive history lesson!

[@andremarc1275]

Part 3 is going to be the best of all.... Warrior ... Macho Man ... Hogan and everybody!

[@sampleoffers1978]

This part was really good. Idk some of these things like Missy Hyatt, road warriors negotiations, and the voice over actors for the cartoon.

[@pinnacleproductions6275]

Excellent video series! Thank you for helping us all go back in time to a simpler & easier time.

[@ShowdeQuetzal]

I honestly tought that the territory days were over by Wrestlemania 1, I'm learning a lot from these documentaries

[@nevaagen1133]

Sam has really outdone himself with this series of documentaries fantastic work lads

[@BrianRosenbergMusican]

The scariest wrestling move I have ever seen was a GLOW piledriver because they actually connected.

[@sampleoffers1978]

Did you watch wow Saturday night, because they still might not train those women, they look insane.

[@BrianRosenbergMusican]

@@sampleoffers1978 I think I heard of women of wrestling(?) years ago but I thought that was gone unless it something else?

[@sampleoffers1978]

@@BrianRosenbergMusican It's glow but called wow now. It's on Viacom channel 10 or equivalent in your market but they have youtube channel anyway. Only problem is sometimes they looked train pretty bad like they might hurt each other. Anyways, Some them look pretty good.

[@woobgamer5210]

Man, finding out that Hulk Hogan basically whistleblew a potential union, meaning he got Vince to union bust before union busting as a crime, makes him even more detestable than he already is

[@GraceAndTruthRevolution]

How did you just find that out now? Been under a rock?

[@tjcadotte37]

Seriously. I appreciate Hogans work and what he did for the business. But what a POS. Screwed over all the boys in the locker room so he could have a fatter check. Disgusting

[@somebodyoncetoldme8317]

Unions are not the saving grace you think they are. They are a cancer really

[@nickm8874]

@@GraceAndTruthRevolutionhe or she might be a teenager man honestly we don’t have to be obnoxious all of the time

[@ryanmcdevitt2966]

@@GraceAndTruthRevolutionthe fact that it’s mentioned in this video is both to recap and educate, do you only watch videos to hear things you already know? Chillax

[@talonthehand]

Fantastic video! Another historical point of interest for Mania 2's Battle Royal - this was the sole WWE appearance of Russ Francis, a football player who's also the son of the promoter of NWA Hawaii, and Russ had a decent amount of AWA matches as well. He lasted to the final four of the battle royal, and looked right at home there.

[@jrsmith1998]

Damn. Vince did Wendy Richter so wrong!

[@sampleoffers1978]

And she was tied to Cyndi Lauper, as hollywood put over wwf in 1985. Balls to do that...

[@PatI-zg9gm]

The guy was absolutely ruthless.

[@SamsonTJ423]

Another masterpiece!! couldn't stop watching!! Look forward to more videos! Thank you!!

[@deralfenderson]

They showed footage of Superstar Billy Graham’s hip surgery on the Monday night program at the time (pre-RAW). I think there’s a clip on KZbin somewhere… It was weird seeing that as a kid on TV.

[@sampleoffers1978]

As a kid I thought he was dying in every promo. Then Gang splashed him on a stretcher in 1987.

[@jesterskully563]

Thank you for making this video series! It brings back lots of wonderful memories!!

[@ryanlindauer7083]

been watching cultaholic vids here and there as a former fan (early 90s to early 00s), but this series captivated me to the point i couldnt resist hitting that subscribe button

[@davindavis3085]

I learned sooooo much watching this and it kept my attention the entire time. Really enjoyed it! Thank you for making it!

[@billwehadababyitsaboy8308]

I was at wrestlemania two in Los Angeles they set up the close circuit screens around the big blue cage so we could see what happened in the other two cities. It was fantastic.

[@bbonds7849]

Why Hogan walked to the ring is up for debate, but Piper has stated on record that his motorized ring malfunctioned, so he opted to just walk to the ring versus wasting time for it to be fixed.

[@mrvincentjackson]

As someone who was born in this era, these docs fill in gaps I truly did not know about. Thank you for preserving history and looking forward to New Generation, Attitude, etc.

[@Mike-rv7gs]

Best ice-cream ever!!!!

[@iggycieplinski2082]

these two volumes were amazing. Please keep going.

[@gras1hoppa420]

Savage vs. Steamboat is still an amazing match. Two fantastic athletes in their prime. Both guys were among the best to ever do it. Macho Man had it all! He was one of the few guys who would be a crowd favorite in any era and was just on another level.

[@davidowen6625]

These videos are so well done

[@Cosmic_Gorilla]

Another fantastic documentary, can't say enough good things about these videos.

[@Spidey5050]

Good stuff. The first years I started watching wrestling and still my favorite era

[@ShaneWreck83]

Back in December, while decompressing from all the Christmas festivities.. I had a marathon/binge watching of this entire series, mini series, documentary/biography or whatever one chooses call it. And like countless others, I was just bowled over. The time, energy & passion that was put into project is painfully obvious. At the time of this comment's posting I'm watching the whole thing again. This is easily not only my favorite bio/recap about the WWF but i think it's the best ever created. And don't get me started on the non-stop tidal waves of childhood nostalgia. I was born in February of 1983, so some of my earliest memories is seeing Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, The Hulkster, Macho Man and of course good ol' Mean Gene Oakerland.

[@ruggeddrelouris3597]

These WWF Golden Age videos are GOLD, thank U soon much 😊

[@roysnow6943]

This brings back so many memories. I was born in 1980 and grew up watching WWF with my father and grandfather. I'll never forget when Adrian Adonis passed. I'm from the place where that accident happened. I was only 7 years old at the time. It was an absolute miracle that anyone survived that crash.

[@markshepherd9153]

How at 47 am I only just learning about Adrian Adonis's Flower Shop😂

[@PatI-zg9gm]

Adonis was awesome in the ring. He was on the comeback trail before running into a moose in 1988.

[@paul89512]

These documentaries give me chills. Amazing work

[@stuartrandall2584]

This and the previous video are fantastic 80's throwbacks Cant wait for part 3 and hopefully more

[@christopherfidler3019]

imagine the pop Dynamite Kid would get if he did a run in at Summerslam 92 to save Davey Boy. Miss The British Bulldogs 🇬🇧🇨🇦

[@TheMiike1980]

Absolutely Brilliant! I hope that you do more like this through other era’s of WWE/F

[@82habit]

Y’all got me revisiting my very early childhood this is good stuff

[@danstevens6515]

Million Dollar Man was great, man I hated him as a kid

[@daveparky18]

So now I just anxiously wait for part three...stunning work lads