Ep. #553: August 4-10, 1987

**Kris Zellner** (0:14)
Hello, everyone, and welcome to Between The Sheets, episode number 553 I'm your host Kris Zellner, joining us all as my host, David Bixenspan and Bix.
We're back to the 80s this week, as we have a lot of fun stuff to talk about. Before we get into all that, we've got a new Patreon show we'll go ahead and plug first. As we are starting the first part of, it looks like three, as the way it's going to go. Three parts of Cowboy Bill Watts' Torch Talk with Wade Keller, which was featured in the Torch Weekly and in the Torch Summer Annual in summer 1991

**David Bixenspan** (0:49)
Yes, that one.

**Kris Zellner** (0:53)
Yes, and...

**David Bixenspan** (0:55)
Are we given a title to the series? Is it because they intermarried the 1991 Bill Watts Torch Talk?

**Kris Zellner** (1:02)
I don't know. I ain't decided yet.
We'll get into the part that was in the weekly, and that's where we start off with...

**David Bixenspan** (1:12)
Well, there are two parts in the Torch Weekly, and part one covers the first part of that.

**Kris Zellner** (1:17)
Yeah, part one covers what everybody was really talking about, and part two covers anything else. Bill Watts talking about his opportunities to join WCCW, NWAWCW in 89, and then talking about 90 and 91, and we're at now, as far as what he would do if he was in charge, in a way. And he talks about all that stuff. He buries Jim Hur.
He kind of buries Jack Petrik. He talks about, you know, Dusty Rhodes' shortcomings and how that's a major problem as a booker. He talks about, you know, what the real most important thing to him is in the, you know, in being in that position.
And that's the bottom line. And just gets in all kinds of stuff about his issues with Jimmy Crockett, you know, his issues with Dusty, Ted Turner, and how he would need to have, you know, basically one-on-one contact with Ted Turner to get the job.

**SPEAKER_3** (2:25)
Good luck with that.

**Kris Zellner** (2:26)
And yeah, I mean, it's a lot of bombastic Bill Watts in this interview. And it's really good shit to set up was to come in the future parts where part two will get into Bill Watts talking about steroids in wrestling. And then when we get to part three, we will get into the racism and homophobia of cowboy Bill Watts.

**David Bixenspan** (2:48)
It's probably going to be part two of the series, but it's part of the interview. That steroid thing is a little more than a page, Kris.

**Kris Zellner** (2:57)
Yeah, but did you look at the annual, how much they talk about his early career?

**David Bixenspan** (3:03)
Oh, you think you want to just skip over that stuff?

**Kris Zellner** (3:06)
No, I'm just saying there's a lot that he gets into. You put it all in there.
That's why I thought we were going to do everything.

**David Bixenspan** (3:13)
I thought we are doing everything, but I'm saying it's like we'll have to divide it up. I don't think we're cramming all of this.

**Kris Zellner** (3:19)
That's why I said it's going to be three parts. That's why I said it's going to be a three-part series.

**David Bixenspan** (3:24)
I was distinguishing between part two of The Torch Talk and part two of the series. I'm talking about the show.

**Kris Zellner** (3:29)
I'm not talking about that.

**David Bixenspan** (3:30)
Well, what we said at the end of part one was that part two is probably going to be the second Torch Weekly part and some of the early parts of the series.

**Kris Zellner** (3:37)
It's going to be three parts. I don't think you've read the annual because I looked at it and there's a lot in that about other stuff before it gets to the meaty stuff.

**David Bixenspan** (3:49)
Well, I thought we were talking about that stuff.

**Kris Zellner** (3:52)
I don't know what you're saying here. I'm confused.

**David Bixenspan** (3:55)
I don't know what you're saying anymore either.

**Kris Zellner** (3:57)
I'm confused. Anyway, it's just three parts and the meaty stuff will be on part three.

**David Bixenspan** (4:01)
I think it might go four, but we'll see.

**Kris Zellner** (4:04)
If it goes four, I'll be shocked. But anyway, that's up on Patreon, patreon.com.
But anyway, and Center Stage Chronicles is out as well. As Charles Naylor and myself go back and look at the month of July, 1991 in World Championship Press and Pop Culture, where, yes, we'll get into the Great American Bash, which is basically just a total background story to the month long issue of Nature Boy Ric Flair. As they start the month with him being fired by WCW, and then ending the month with them basically begging to bring him back and offering the booking position. And so we'll have all that plus just a terrible job of building the Great American Bash pay-per-view. The complete confusion going on in the creative at this time, especially revolving around Barry Windham.