Greetings From Allentown

By Peter Winson

Greetings From Allentown is a podcast taking a look at the history of pro wrestling through the lens of weekly TV episodes from the 70s through the 90s covering WWF, WCW, and much more!... more

· Comedy

4.6

161161 ratings

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FAQs about Greetings From Allentown:

How many episodes does Greetings From Allentown have?

The podcast currently has 489 episodes available.

Greetings From Allentown episodes:

October 05, 2017 34. WWF Halftime Heat 01-31-1999
Close the windows because the Heat is on: WWF Halftime Heat from January 31, 1999!
- Why Vince McMahon would have called the Rock-Mankind empty arena match even if Jim Ross was healthy
- The true winner of the empty arena match
- The difference in how head injuries were viewed in 1999 versus today
- Shane McMahon as an announcer: the most annoying man in the world
- Chyna’s heel turn and examining it from a kayfabe perspective
- An appreciation of late 90s Big Bossman and the evolution of the character
- A look back at the fun “UFC-style” matches between Ken Shamrock and Owen Hart from summer 1998
- Triple H becomes a misogynist in putting down Chyna
Also:
- A recollection of the most boring NHL game the host attended, which was on the same date as this show
- A personal story about the Will Smith song “Miami” turns into a rant
- Low blow after low blow after low blow
- What was the actual halftime show of Super Bowl 33 that anyone watching this would have missed
- The reluctant return of Vinnie Vegas Corner!
...more
1h 40min
September 28, 2017 33. WCW Saturday Night 06-20-1992
Get off that top rope because Bill Watts is large and in charge for WCW Saturday Night from June 20, 1992!
Included:
- The good and bad of the changes made by Bill Watts upon his arrival
- Johnny B. Badd: One of the greatest WCW character creations
- Checking in with Scott Steiner, Shoney’s restaurant franchisee
- The greatest hits of enhancement talent Bob Cook
- Cactus Jack’s voice sounds a bit like a guy named Foley, but not Mick
- What Greg Valentine and former MLB pitcher Jack Morris have in common
- Dusty Rhodes gets profane
- Tony Schiavone is totally sick of Jesse Ventura’s crap
- Finding another problem with Terry Taylor: his whiny voice
Also:
- A plea from the host for any El Dandy matches announced by Dusty Rhodes
- One animal in nature that Arn Anderson cannot defeat, based on his own remarks
- The changes in the Steve Harvey-hosted version of Family Feud and potential parallels to wrestling
- WCW inadvertently honoring Pride Month?
- The debut of a new segment honoring Vinnie Vegas
...more
1h 35min
September 21, 2017 32. Bobby Heenan Tribute Show
On this special episode of Greetings From Allentown, Peter pays tribute to the storied career of the late Bobby “The Brain” Heenan.
Included:
- Heenan’s feuds with Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant that stretched for years and Bobby’s instrumental role in making WrestleMania 3 as big as it was
- The Brain’s wheelings and dealings with his charges and those he helped elevate
- His 2004 WWE Hall of Fame induction speech and how it compares with other HOF speeches both in WWE and in other sports
- Heenan as a superlative comedian
- Gorilla and Bobby: A Plan B for two different shows
- A musical tribute to the Brain’s sublime call of the 1992 Royal Rumble
...more
1h 25min
September 14, 2017 31. WWF All American Wrestling 11-13-1983
Raise the stars and stripes as this week features a look at WWF All American Wrestling from November 13, 1983!
- The early format of WWF All American Wrestling and how it evolved with the sneaky use of wrestlers from other promotions
- Sorting fact from fiction on the career of the Fabulous Moolah
- The life and times of Ken Jugan
- Tony Garea and Iron Mike Sharpe renew their rivalry in “The Last Battle of Allentown”
- Bob Backlund helps Eddie Gilbert rehab an injury and things get weird
- Hulk Hogan is all over the map in late 1983 and forms a tag team with the highest ego rating ever
- The origins of the phrase “Katy bar the door”
Also:
- Saying goodbye to the Grand Wizard and his glorious attire
- Multiple references to 1960s star Luis Martinez
- So many plugs for Victory magazine, including what may have been Lord Alfred Hayes’ first WWF on-camera appearance
- Iranian shenanigans in the Middle East in 1983
- YouTube comment theater!
...more
1h 39min
September 07, 2017 30. WWF TNT 08-16-1985
Get ready for some explosive talk show action for this episode of Greetings From Allentown looking at WWF’s TNT (Tuesday Night Titans) from August 16, 1985.
- A brief history of Tuesday Night Titans, issues with the name, and how the 1984 version of the show was like a modern day WWE problem
- The original opening song to TNT: what it was originally supposed to be used for, and a later sporting event where it served as the theme
- Terry Funk starts and finishes a barroom brawl after being insulted by Lord Alfred Hayes
- A bounty on Mr. Wonderful leads to the first ever Paul Orndorff/Phil Collins mashup
- Tony Garea and his hair tell us all about New Zealand but mostly about the sheep population
- Corporal Kirchner is coming….but was he already there?
- Jim Neidhart complains about future wrestling fans on the internet without even realizing it
Also:
- The missed opportunity of Vince McMahon playing a true Johnny Carson role
- Sympathy for England getting screwed in the 1986 World Cup
- Research about Tony Garea leads to a sense of profound sadness
- A bit of prior history between Al Hayes and the Funk family
- Projecting the perfect TNT guest from late 80s WWF
- Recommending a NFL Wins Pool for you and four friends, barely in time for the season to begin
...more
1h 22min
August 31, 2017 29. WWF Saturday Night's Main Event 01-04-1986
Saturday Night’s alright for fighting as this week features a look at Saturday Night’s Main Event from January 4, 1986 in part 2 of the Fortnight of (Terry) Funk
- Terry Funk’s history with Hulk Hogan which dates to the early 1980s and all the way to Sun City in Africa
- Jesse Ventura calls out Brent Musberger and Vin Scully as he works a match and does commentary on the same show
- Calling out Mr. Fuji for blatantly misrepresenting the Japanese people
- George “The Animal” Steele and why he was a critical figure in the first few years of Saturday Night’s Main Event
- Corporal Kirchner: It’s 4:20 somewhere!
- Iron Sheik promos: unselfish in his patriotism
- The beauty of the original music used in the show
Also:
- A quick rundown of the ill-fated 1985-86 season of Saturday Night Live, which was preempted for this show.
- Referee Dean Malenko: Man of 1000 holds but doesn’t remember the rules for pinfalls
- Hulk Hogan and his alternate uniform system
- Cousin Luke as the #9 hitter in the lineup
- Discussion of the USA For Africa supergroup, the “We Are The World” video, and Bruce Springsteen’s hair therein
- A lengthy YouTube Comment Theater!
...more
1h 49min
August 24, 2017 28. NWA Pro 05-20-1989
Clear off all the tables and keep your head on a swivel because Greetings From Allentown kicks off a Fortnight of (Terry) Funk with a look at NWA Pro from May 20, 1989!
- Excerpts from Terry Funk’s book giving insight to how he saw his role for this run in the NWA/WCW and why the tone of his feud with Ric Flair was changed midstream
- The legendary Lance Russell is full of wisdom and also disgust for the heels
- Terry Funk interrupts the Rookie Challenge match as only he can
- Breaking down the six different kinds of “wrestling mists” as The Great Muta busts out the green kind
- Lex Luger’s righteous indignation toward his top ten ranking by the NWA board
- How Dick Murdoch’s honesty toward management sunk his 1989 run
- The battle of (Eddie) Gilbert and (Kevin) Sullivan: Clash of the southern bookers
- Ron Simmons turns up yet again and why Randy Rose is back so soon
- A sudden realization about the relative attractiveness of Terry Gordy
Also:
- A comparison of Terry Funk and baseball legend Nolan Ryan
- The pizza choices of Johnny Ace and Shane Douglas as the Dynamic Dudes
- Nashville, TN: Where tables injure legends
- Travel tips for a weekend in Baltimore!
...more
1h 57min
August 16, 2017 27. WWF Mania 03-09-1996 (The Sunny Show)
The forecast for this week’s Greetings From Allentown calls for Sunny skies with a look at WWF Mania, rebranded temporarily as The Sunny Show, from March 9, 1996.
- A fair-minded look at the career of Tammy Lynn Sytch and her key role in launching the WWF’s online presence
- Shawn Michaels’ run to WrestleMania 12, his connection with Sunny, and the peculiar thing he was into back then
- An appreciation of old commercials for bizarre merchandise
- Ranking the Bret Hart WWF World title reigns from worst to best
- Breaking down the Billionaire Ted skits piece by piece, with things that were funny, things that were slanderous, and things that backfired completely
- Taking several minutes to slam JBL as a wrestler, character, broadcaster, and human being in general
- The definition of “diminishing returns”: The Ultimate Warrior’s 1996 run
- Goldust toeing the line of homophobia in Piper’s Pit
- Bret Hart as environmentalist: recycling perfectly good finishes
- A struggle to find a theme song this week leads to a strangely produced number
...more
1h 37min
August 11, 2017 26. The Main Event II 02-03-1989
This week on Greetings From Allentown, take cover because the Megapowers are going to explode on The Main Event II from February 3, 1989!
- How the WWF masterfully built to the split between Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage and their use of the Rashomon effect in the leadup to the WrestleMania V match
- A rundown of the events leading up to the breakup, laying blame at the feet of all of them
- The passion of Vince McMahon reading the intro to the show
- A look at what was going on at the ABC television network, which was beating this show in the ratings that night
- Breaking down the mechanics of the Elizabeth bump
- Fun with the original broadcast bloopers from Hogan, Brutus Beefcake, Akeem, and the Big Bossman
- Months ahead of No Holds Barred, Hulk Hogan gives a national audience a preview of his acting chops
- One of wrestling’s greatest tag teams reunite to break up the Hogan-Savage fracas
- Hulk Hogan channels the Incredible Hulk and works over a couple of future WWF champions
- Hercules slips on a banana peel against the Million Dollar Man
...more
1h 38min
August 03, 2017 25. NWA Worldwide 09-24-1988
This week Greetings From Allentown takes its first peek at Jim Crockett Promotions with a look at NWA Worldwide from September 24, 1988!
- An overview of the dying days of JCP, struggling to hang on long enough to be sold to Turner
- The huge issue that the financial problems caused with long term booking
- Dusty Rhodes in late 1988: contender for the most annoying babyface ever
- Who is John Ayers and why is he here, and what happened that might explain a big 1989 storyline in kayfabe
- Complaints about the “squash-promo-squash-promo-repeat” format of the Crockett TVs of the time period
- Dr. Death Steve Williams with a promo for the ages
- The hindsight hilarity of Rick Steiner being bullied
- Ron Simmons: Drug warrior or just a spokesman for D.A.R.E.?
- Celebrating babyface Jim Cornette going all loose cannon and mentioning those who shall not be named
Also:
- Five things from 1984’s The Karate Kid that will enhance your viewing experience
- How the Reagan-Gorbachev thaw in US-Soviet tensions ruined the quality of Russian heels
- Two Bolsheviks references on show about the NWA!
- The NWA music video that included guys who had already quit
- The lengths I went to see a University of Michigan football game in the mid-1990s
- Getting crossed up about Nikita Koloff quitting in 1988, but how could you really tell?
- Law of 1988 JCP promos: Thou shalt mention Dusty Rhodes no matter what
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @GFAllentownPod
Facebook.com/greetingsfromallentown
...more
1h 40min

FAQs about Greetings From Allentown:

How many episodes does Greetings From Allentown have?

The podcast currently has 489 episodes available.

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