7/08/06

Drawing paying customers is the name of the game in professional wrestling, just as it is in major league baseball, the National Football League, selling cars for General Motors, or moving hamburgers at MacDonald’s. If a business doesn’t take it in more money than it spends on expenses, that business – wrestling or hamburgers – ceases to exist.

In the golden era of wrestling, St. Louis wrestling was at the top of the heap under wily promoter Sam Muchnick. There were towns that maybe had a few bigger gates, or perhaps had a better year. But year in and year out, show after show, St. Louis was the most consistently profitable and successful. It had a loyal fans and widespread interest in the community thanks to Muchnick’s philosophy of how to present an often bizarre sports/business.

Today World Wrestling Entertainment is essentially the only promotion, but it has the same goal as St. Louis wrestling did. Make money through luring fans to the product. The pay-per-views (PPV) of today are basically the Kiel Auditorium/Arena programs of yesteryear. In 1980, merchandising was in its infancy and wasn’t available to Sam. The technology for tapes and PPV didn’t exist.

If anyone thinks that Sam Muchnick wouldn’t have jumped in on opportunities like that, they are naïve as to the type of sharp businessman Sam was.

Sam also understood that stars drew crowds. Great talent that also happens to be a drawing card is worth its weight in gold, not only in 1960, but in 1980 and today in 2006.

When I began working in the office for Sam in 1971, we began did a graph that was updated after EVERY card that marked what the paid attendance was all the way back to 1959. Sam studied this, as some dates always seemed to draw better and some did poorly.

For instance, first card in January, first card in February, second show in March, an April date, June for sure, usually August, and maybe first in October always did well. Winter and spring were better than summer (forget July!) and fall. A second card in May did not work and was dropped. A second show in June, yuck! Same for August and September.

December was always a question mark.

Of course, it wasn’t just the date that mattered. The names on top could change the picture. St. Louis was blessed in that virtually every performer who was in a main event here had feature experience somewhere else. We could pick and choose and then let the best of the best rise to the top.

We also kept track for every show other things that might affect the gate. Thunderstorm at 8 p.m. Cardinals at home versus Cubs. Big concert at Arena. Six inches of snow Thursday night. Sam, though, knew the truth.

He’d heard all the excuses and even talked about them himself. Once in a great while, those excuses were correct. But Sam would tell me, "That didn’t matter. We didn’t draw as much as we expected because the fans just did NOT want to see that. Look at the records. We could have the same competition or conditions when we had a sellout. The fans wanted to see that!"

Why didn’t a PPV in 2006 lure as many buyers as expected - same reason Sam knew at heart was always the key. Not enough people wanted to see that match or that talent.

Sam also had a funny moment now and then after a sellout. Of course, everyone loved a sellout. What a feeling of accomplishment to know the house was packed with fans who wanted to see what we provided! But Sam would often ponder and say, "Maybe it’s better to be 100 short of a sellout. That way no new fan is turned away and discouraged from ever coming again because he couldn’t get in." What a wise consideration. At least PPVs don’t have that problem.

St. Louis was built around the World Heavyweight Championship. The title itself would draw an audience simply because of the respect and care with which Sam and St. Louis treated the gold belt and the person who wore it. Of course, someone who was not a solid drawing card was not going to get the title. That was a simple fact. The National Wrestling Alliance king worked in many different areas, with different philosophies than St. Louis, so the champion had to be a magnetic character.

Who were the best drawing champions? In St. Louis for sure, nobody who had the crown drew poorly. Everyone at least in my knowledge from 1959 (when "Wrestling at the Chase" began) on drew at least good. But some brought in just a few more fans, maybe more sellouts and when a s card flattened out a hot champion maybe had a house of 9000 paid at Kiel where a lesser drawing titleholder brought in perhaps 7500 or 8000.

Nobody sells out all the time!

The best drawing champions from 1959 through the early 80s were Buddy Rogers, Lou Thesz, Dory Funk, Jr. and Ric Flair. A hair below that quartet, but a small notch above the next level, were Harley Race and Gene Kiniski. The second tier was Jack Brisco, Terry Funk, and Pat O’Connor (from 1959 to 1961).

Dusty Rhodes isn’t considered because he was champion for only a short time. And all of them, after a long enough time and running through so many challengers, didn’t draw quite as well as he had at first. Go back into the 1940s and "Wild Bill" Longson would be in the top group.

Don’t get me wrong. Every single performer named there was a terrific drawing card while on the throne. They drew excellent crowds against each other and against different opponents when they weren’t champions. But, for whatever indefinable reason, as the champion some had just that little extra.

As to those who did NOT have the title but always drew well.....first and foremost, Dick "the Bruiser" for a twenty year period. Close to him but sadly often forgotten was a great drawing card – Johnny Valentine. And for special circumstances, Andre the Giant was superb though keep in mind Andre was often on a loaded lineup with a battle royal, maybe a dream tag match, another feature and as hot special attraction. Andre, though, was excellent for attention and paying customers.

St. Louis had so many folks who drew good houses. Think "Cowboy" Bob Ellis in the 60s and David Von Erich in the early 80s. What about Fritz Von Erich? It’s unfair to mention names, really, because there were so many who had been stars in other locales. Yet some did not draw as well in St. Louis, and perhaps slipped to just below main event or just came only a few times.

My old pal "King Kong" Brody may have said it best. He felt St. Louis was a dangerous town to work in for a reputation because the stakes were almost as high as the standards.

Brody said if he went to a spot that always struggled to draw, and he jumped a crowd from maybe 1000 to 2500, or even 500 to 1500, everybody in the business was talking about how a certain wrestler popped a town and he must be a drawing card.

Go to St. Louis, where business is respected and crowds are always good. Be in a main event and draw 9000. The wise guys (i.e. other promoters and bookers) say that the talent is good, he drew okay and of course it was St. Louis anyway.

Sellout St. Louis. Mmm, now they’re looking. This guy must be something special.

But catch one of those once-a-year houses of 6000, or even 5500! A good house elsewhere and a stinker in St. Louis! And who got the blame? Brody said, it would be the guy in the main event.

St. Louis was a special town with high standards. And those standards existed for even the best wrestlers in the business. No wonder all of us remember those days so fondly!

To Email Larry, click HERE