When It Was Cool Wrestling and Retro Pop Culture by DragonKingKarl

On this edition of the 1000 Hours Podcast, the podcast all about the pioneer era of pro wrestling, author and historian Karl Stern takes a look back at 1881 in pro wrestling history including the evolution of William Muldoon from New York City Police officer to touring pro wrestling champion. Also, a physical description is given for an early championship belt, plus the death of former American champion James Owens at the age of 30.

YOU CONTROL THIS SERIES! It will only run as long as it is supported. In order to get another hour of 1000 hours we need a new Patreon supporter at any level or a cash donation via the front page of WhenItWasCool.com to either PayPal or CashApp (Please put "1000" in the note). As soon as it is received, I will produce a new hour. Presently, we are funded up to hour 100.

I am back this week with a new podcast looking back at the 1990s. Recently, I took a look at the first pro wrestling newsletters of the 1990s to get a feeling for where the 1990s era begin, and it began in a very low place. Today, we look at the last newsletters of the 1990s, from 1999 to discover that the WWF / WWE is flying high and WCW is trying to regroup, yet again, from a failed reset. Steve Austin, Bill Goldberg, Vince Russo, Hollywood Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart, and many others are discussed through the pages of the insider newsletters of 1999.

The extended Patreon version is here.

Today is my birthday! And what better way to celebrate than with a packed mailbag and this month is probably our best yet with questions ranging from the pioneer era up to the 1990s! We have a few new great pioneer era finds via wrestling historian Jason Campbell to discuss, plus more 1990s talk, interesting twist on second generation wrestler question, the NWA, and much more!

There is an extended Patreon version of the show here -

The 1000 Hours podcast this week answers a sponsor's question: Why should we study the pioneer era of pro wrestling? What relevance does it have to the modern era? Well, I am glad you asked. The mythology of the pioneer era and men like William Muldoon, Evan Strangler Lewis, Farmer Burns and others is often misunderstood as the origin of mixed martial arts, Catch wrestling, and belongs to that world. While there are elements which do belong in that world, make no mistake, ninety percent of what happened back then influenced and began what we now recognize as worked American entertainment style pro wrestling. Please also check out my book on the pioneer era of wrestling: DragonKingKarl's Pioneer Era Pro Wrestling Omnibus.

The expanded Patreon edition is available here.

YOU CONTROL THIS SERIES! It will only run as long as it is supported. In order to get another hour of 1000 hours we need a new Patreon supporter at any level or a cash donation via the front page of WhenItWasCool.com to either PayPal or CashApp (Please put "1000" in the note). As soon as it is received, I will produce a new hour. Presently, we are funded up to hour 98

What did the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s look like in pro wrestling? What did it look like in real time through the lenses of the pro wrestling newsletters? There was a real business and fan shift going from 1989 into 1990, pro wrestling was getting smaller, scandal ridden, and less popular but how did the pro wrestling media cover it at the time? On today's show I take a look at the first issues of pro wrestling newsletters for January 1990.

The extended Patreon version of the show is here.

Join pro wrestling historian and author Karl Stern as he talks about the complicated history and legacy of pro wrestling legend Hulk Hogan, who passed away on July 24, 2025, at his home in Florida. Hulk Hogan, who began his pro wrestling career in the late 1970s, became one of the most famous pro wrestlers in history and a major pop culture star as well. From his movies to his reality show, Hulk Hogan was one of the biggest media stars pro wrestling ever produced.

As I continue my look back at the 1990s, I make a stop in one of the strangest eras of pro wrestling history- 1992. The pro wrestling business has cratered. Ticket sales are terrible, PPV is struggling, TV rating are nothing impressive, and the business is scandal ridden. However, there were still plenty of great wrestlers. WCW, in particular, had many pieces to a great puzzle but no one to put it together. The NWA was still around for some reason. This week I look back at the WCW Great American Bash 1992 and how it represents just how bad... yet also, good, things were then!

This is hour 76 our podcast series looking back at the pioneer era of pro wrestling. We pick up in 1880. H.M. Dufur has recently defeated James Owens as American heavyweight champion and on this episode, we cover most of his first reign as champion. The collar and elbow scene was changing and William Muldoon is still rising in the Greco-Roman world but is seriously being held back by the New York City Police Department. Pro wrestling is really ramping up in this era and I am excited for us to learn about it. This episode is taken from my latest book: DragonKingKarl's Pioneer Era Pro Wrestling Omnibus available from Amazon here - https://amzn.to/44SMdSf

YOU CONTROL THIS SERIES! It will only run as long as it is supported. In order to get another hour of 1000 hours we need a new Patreon supporter at any level or a cash donation via the front page of WhenItWasCool.com to either PayPal or CashApp (Please put "1000" in the note). As soon as it is received, I will produce a new hour. Presently, we are funded up to hour 96.

I am back with the latest long form history of pro wrestling series from my book DragonKingKarl's 1984-1985 Pro Wrestling Omnibus book taking a detailed look at August of 1985. On this show we discuss the continued growth of the WWF, Jim Crockett Promotions is coming on strong, the AWA continues to hang on, plus news from the young Continental wrestling, World Class, Japan, and much more!

There is an extended Patreon version of this show here - https://www.patreon.com/posts/134196339

#wrestling, #WWE, #AEW, #NJPW, #TNA, #NXT, #NWA, #ROH, #sport, #sports, #history, #movie, #movies, #WCW, #retro, #WIWC

You've got the questions, and I have the answers! We have several great topics and questions to discuss on this edition of the show including the Roddy Piper movies Hell Comes to Frogtown and Body Slam, masked wrestlers of the territorial era, Mr. Wrestling II and his legal mystery unearthed, Jake Roberts, Sting, Rick Rude, Sonny King, early 1990s WCW feuds, and much more!

The extended Patreon version with extra questions answered and discussed is here.

#wrestling, #WWE, #AEW, #NJPW, #TNA, #NXT, #NWA, #ROH, #sport, #sports, #history, #movie, #movies, #WCW, #retro, #WIWC, #truecrime, #crime