Kevin Sullivan on the REAL Reason Jim Crockett Sold WCW to Ted Turner

Kevin Sullivan on the REAL Reason Jim Crockett Sold WCW to Ted Turner
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[@sonofsarek]

Selling to Turner probably saved the company. At least they had guaranteed TV unlike the AWA’s contract with espn.

[@edwardclement102]

For TBS time, yeah, but David Crockett wanted to drop off TBS, of course, AEW on TBS today, and NWA on fite tv.

[@CaptainCock-Strong]

It didn’t “SAVE the company”, it prolonged the inevitable. The company imploded from within due to horrible booking, terrible leadership at the top and poor financial decisions. Not even Billionaire Ted could save WCW from itself

[@briannettles669]

@@CaptainCock-Strong I would not say WCW going out of business was "inevitable." They went out of business due to bad decisions they made. If they made better decisions, they may still be in business today. If they hired competent management, who brought in top bookers, stayed within their budget, and they actually developed a lot of good young main event caliber wrestlers on their own, rather than overpaying past their prime veterans from the WWE, they might still be in business today.

[@drg5352]

@@briannettles669 Honestly, they went under because of the merger with AOL. Once Billionaire Ted no longer had the power to control the company, WCW was doomed. Had the merger happened in '96-97 instead, during their high point, they still would have been put up for sale. They just may not have been bought by WWF, since they weren't doing so hot, giving how many millions they were spending on NDAs with women Vince fucked at the time.

[@misterelom]

@@CaptainCock-Strong those first two reasons remind me of a certain company that airs on TBS on Wednesday nights....

[@philaman1972]

There was a lot of chaos in the NWA back in late 1988 as the company was transitioning to WCW. I remember ordering 'Starcade 88' on PPV and the show seemed a little "off" in terms of continuity.

[@jeffrichards1537]

I grew up in the 1980's. Kevin Sullivan was starting The varsity club. aka Mike Rotunda/Rick Steiner. Awesome times.

[@damonpolk4394]

Yet it remains to be excluded on a lot of Wrestling Stables\Factions list... Varsity Club was ahead of it's time..

[@georgecosrove3651]

Same here

[@battlestarmarc]

Varsity club was awesome. Should have lasted longer.

[@gary6754]

ill never Mike Rotunda randomly yelling "Precious, you bimbo" in a middle of sullivan promo on Jimmy Garvin

[@Mr.Majestic77]

Ted Turner should have immediately had Bill Watts, Jim Crockett Jr. & Ole Anderson as the WCW executive staff. I wish they had the vision to do a brand split of two shows. One WCW show for JCP and the other for the UWF, both under the WCW umbrella.

[@Ghoulies]

For a moment there, at the beginning of this clip, I thought THAT "behind the scenes" video from The Great American Bash had something do with Crockett's downfall. It's obviously unrelated though. I wonder if an extended, un-edited version of that video exists. I'm surprised Jimmy Garvin and Co were allowed to film at all, let alone capture the footage that they did. Kayfaybe was obviously alive and well. Not to mention there being some potentially incriminating moments.

[@durden2480]

Everyone went skiing

[@rondoughhowell6442]

Vince McMahon has always won a wrestling war not because of the product but because of the business

[@michaelhauser6440]

Vince changed wrestling into something that wasn't wrestling. None of the other promoters would debase themselves and were old school tough guys. They wouldn't go with the cartoonishness that Vince was doing.

[@rexirae7157]

I'll give you that, McMahon ran a business as opposed to them still running a "bidness".

[@goldendogs5398]

Vince had better marketing, but an inferior product.

[@melvynsngltn27]

@@goldendogs5398 not true

[@goldendogs5398]

@@melvynsngltn27 only if you liked cartoony wrestling, which is fine. Like what you like; that's cool, but the product was all marketing with inferior substance.

[@thack57]

Yeah, I wonder if there's a way to find out if Barnett's accountant got a job in Greenwich, Ct. afterwards.

[@ChrisHopkinsBass]

Who else shouts out "My Boy" whenever someone says Jim Barnett?

[@positively_broad_st3780]

I think Kevin meant Greensboro, not Greenville, NC. Greensboro is about 90 miles from Charlotte. Greenville is about halfway between Raleigh and the coast, and about 250 miles from Charlotte. We've had wrestling shows here in Greenville, but nothing major. Most wrestling shows in our area happen in Raleigh or Fayetteville. Two things about wrestling and Greenville, NC: Vince and Linda McMahon went to college here at East Carolina University (as well former WCW jobber Lodi, who was part of Raven's flock). And Ivan Koloff retired to, lived his final years, and passed away in Greenville's only suburb, Winterville.

[@garageguy879]

I remember when Steamboat beat Flair for the world title.I was watching it on PPV and right when the match started,the PPV signal scrambled,I was able to hear the match but I couldn't see it.Kevin was right about that.

[@danielbullock4703]

It was the Clash in New Orleans, what Kevin was talking about. They did show the match on the broadcast, Scott did not want to advertise the show saying it would hurt the towns. After they drew a dismal rating Scott was let go.

[@hollywoodhh5646]

That's insane I never seen that as growing up in Canada we didn't get any NWA or WCW access till about 93 or 94. But not showing a finish because of towns is a small minded amateur low budget thinking.

[@armandop9082]

When Magnem Ta got injured that was the beginning of the end for nwa/wcw Crockett etc, with Magnum as champion going into late 80s and early 90s wwf wouldve been in trouble.

[@jeremymillson5504]

Kevin alluded to someone got rich when WCW folded too. Not saying it didn't happen....but twice???? ....where he worked?? Can't quite locate the smell

[@byenye6386]

He is right the ones at the top look how at the horseman Crickets paid them for their personal flight on private jets and in WCW Hogan was paid a lot and had alot of control

[@Mr559joshua]

R.I.P. Kevin Sullivan

[@bdr113080]

Just to clarify what Kevin is talking about there with the New Orleans match with Ricky steamboat and Ric Flair, it wasn’t a PPV, it was a clash of the champions. They did show the match about what George Scott got in trouble for was that he didn’t promote the clash of the champions. He didn’t promote the whole event. If you were a fan of the NWA at the time there was very little promotion about the clash of champions both on TV and down in New Orleans. They only had 5000 people show up in the Superdome for the event and there was a lot of people that could have watched it on TV that didn’t even know it was on because he was trying to hide it because he was scared it was going to kill the house shows. I’m not saying that George wasn’t a smart person but he did not understand the wrestling business in the southeast because he didn’t even know Greensboro North Carolina was a big town. The city that hosted the first four Starrcades . He was a smart guy he was just very out of touch with the current time since he wasn’t used to booking in this new era of shows like clash of the champions or PPVs, He was just used to shooting an hour of television a week and then having the guys do the territory Luke and that was it.

[@gary6754]

Didn't Scott work with Mcmahon a couple years prior? Id bet Mcmahon sent moles to help ruin the company

[@battlestarmarc]

Sullivan's devil gimmick and varsity club was awesome. Sullivan did seem creepy in his devil gimmick.

[@pbanik]

He's actually Catholic, or was, and did the gimmick so well people actually believed he really was into that because I don't think he broke kayfabe when he was doing that gimmick, and it was probably ahead of its' time for gimmicks and storylines when he was doing it.

[@jeremyrogers6179]

Praise Abuddhadeen!

[@72_Seasons]

These company leeches spent years, if not decades, ripping off wrestlers, the business and fans. Crockett put up with too much shit from too many people that didn’t know or give a shit about the wrestling business. Jim Herd was one of them.

[@MrSmitty1074]

Compare '86 to '88. smh

[@dany-ps2my]

It was a sad time when jcp went under and sold to turner, was never the same

[@ChrisHopkinsBass]

One big issue that JCP had was that it was still being run as a "mom and pop" option out of a converted shop

[@Crusader7077]

In addition to JCP's house show attendance and incoming revenue declining as well as Dusty's booking creativity not being up to par compared to earlier times, what didn't help JCP in the months leading into the sale to Turner was that quite honestly, much of the top talent was getting stale. Barry Windham was probably the freshest top talent as a heel. In contrast, Tully Blanchard was there for 4 1/2 years before he left for the WWF. Arn Anderson was there for 3 1/2 years before he left for the WWF. Even Ric Flair could get stale when on national television constantly week-in and week-out for just over 3 1/2 years leading into the sale as compared to the occasional national TV appearances in the Georgia territory in prior times. Dusty Rhodes was there for nearly 4 1/2 years leading into the sale. None of this helped JCP, and I'm sure it helped play a role in declining attendance and incoming revenue.

[@gary6754]

In a reboot, I'd have Piper return to JCP in late 87 to feud with the Horsemen.

[@douglasarnold5310]

When the Crockets sold to Turner it was the beginning of the end for wrestling...

[@durden2480]

That and guaranteed money

[@michaelrood2751]

Crockett never asked the accountant what the numbers were? Lol

[@CaptainCock-Strong]

This is a result of Too much, Too soon.

[@catyear75]

Also “ Too little , too late “ ...

[@CaptainCock-Strong]

@@catyear75 hell yeah.

[@thejmc4074]

@@catyear75 came full circle.

[@wildestcowboy2668]

Ted Turner did have a soft spot for wrestling!

[@jrtjonathanwinchell3955]

Vince McMahon Jr. style of Wrestling if that is what you want to call it is not what I grew up with. I grew up with Vince McMahon Sr style of Wrestling. I started in 1976-77. I can tell you Vince McMahon Sr. wasn't happy with Vince McMahon Jr because he did the exact opposite of his father. To me wrestling was a product and it made me a fan. It was a good time for me if you ask my family...well that's a different story.

[@TonyRichards]

Wow...Kevin got close to the answer but never really got there. So the title of this video is false, they do not get to the REAL reason. Jim Crockett is the only person who has ever answered the question on how they went out of business.

[@gregorylevi1826]

If Jim Crockett would have stayed out of the east & west coasts he would have been okay.

[@TheRydog61]

Kevin luved The Sheik

[@Jason-si8iu]

If not for the Crockett's & WCW, the braves would've won more than the 95 world series.....prove me wrong

[@bb-gc2tx]

i blame dusty i also bet he was dipping his hand in the cookie jar

[@diamondwchamp]

Crockett was wasting money buying out territories. Why? Herd was hired in 1988. A bunch of good talent left WCW because of Herd.

[@Jennifer_Lewis_Beach_Living]

Vince was doing that in the early 80s to help expand his product, so Crockett probably thought what worked for Vince would work for him. The difference was that Vince was making strategic purchases to expand his business, while Crockett made poor decisions on what he bought. He got taken for a ride by Bill Watts, whose territory was already dying and in debt when Crockett purchased it for an inflated amount.

[@jeremybaker8033]

I loved wrestling in the Carolinas. It was the best wrestling ever. No other territories compared.

[@georgeelmerdenbrough6906]

Cornette swears that George Scott was senile .