When It Was Real

Here's a pre-Super Bowl Bonus coming your way! Originally aired July 16, 2025, Nikita and Benny take a deep dive into the epic WWWF run of Eldridge Wayne Coleman, known and loved the world over as Superstar Billy Graham. Billy did the unthinkable when he pinned reigning WWWF Champion Bruno Sammartino at the Baltimore Civic Center on April 30, 1977. Superstar would be the first WWWF transitional champion to hold the belt for any length of time, defending the title for nearly 10 months before dropping it to Bob Backlund in Madison Square Garden on February 20, 1978. 

🔥 EPISODE 49 – WHEN IT WAS REAL 🔥

💥 “The Cobra Clutch Challenge – 45 Years Later!” 💥

Joining Nikita and Benny is WWF mainstay and master storyteller John Callahan — a former Killer Kowalski student and one of the very first men to survive the Cobra Clutch Challenge. First-hand stories. Locker-room memories. Old-school wrestling the way it was meant to be remembered.

💬 Jump into the LIVE chat and be part of the action

🎯 Destination: WHEN IT WAS REAL

#WhenItWasReal #CobraClutchChallenge #SergeantSlaughter #BobRemus

Join Nikita and Benny for another episode of "When It Was Real!" This week's episode is titled "Double Duncum In Philly", as a tribute to the late great Bob Duncum. The guys will be covering the epic Philadelphia Spectrum cards from January 12th and February 9th of 1980, with Duncum vs. Backlund as the centerpiece for both.

The weather is cold outside, but what better way to escape than with some great hot stove old school wrestling chat! Hop inside the Wrestling Wayback Machine! Destination: When It Was Real...

Here is another bonus episode to help cope with the snow and the cold! This is Episode 40 of our sister show, Classic Pro Wrestling With The WFIA. This is their 4th "Hollywood Squares" show, and the all=star panelists include former Big Time Wrestling announcer Terry Sullivan, wrestling historians George Schire and Wes Maidment, and indy wrestling legends "Boston Bad Girl" Brittany Brown and "Dangerous" Dave Star, both former students of the great Killer Kowalski. Why not take a break from the cold and listen to some good old school wrestling chat!

This episode was originally broadcast on September 17, 2025, but due to the impending inclement weather, here is one of our favorite episodes to distract you from the snow and the ice! Join Nikita and Benny as they welcome "The Three Amigos" - Johnny Rodz, Tony Garea, and Davey O'Hannon! These men graced the squared circle, as well as our TV sets, from the mid-60s well into the 1980's. The Amigos will share stories of their times in the ring, behind the curtain, and on the road...Enjoy and stay safe!

🔥 WHEN IT WAS REAL – Episode 47 🔥

Step into the Wrestling Wayback Machine as Nikita Breznikov and Benny “The Playa” Scala relive one of the most legendary nights in WWF history!

Two more championship battles, six additional hard-hitting matches, and wall-to-wall old-school action—this card had everything that made wrestling real.

📺 LIVE Wednesday, January 21st | 7:30 PM

Strap in and travel back to a time when the lights were bright, the stakes were high, and the Garden ruled them all.

#WhenItWasReal #Episode47 #WWFHistory #MSG #BobBacklund #KenPatera #OldSchoolWrestling #WrestlingPodcast #ProWrestlingHistory #ThePlayaEntertainmentNetwork #WrestlingWaybackMachine

BRUNO vs. SUPERSTAR 🔥

Step into the Wrestling Wayback Machine as Nikita & Benny rewind to the first run of Superstar Billy Graham—including those legendary MSG clashes with Bruno Sammartino on Jan 12 & Feb 2, 1976.

🎙️ WHEN IT WAS REAL — Live

Because there was a time when it wasn’t sports entertainment…

#WhenItWasReal #BrunoSammartino #SuperstarBillyGraham

🔥 LIVE AT THE GREEK! 🔥

From riot-level heat on January 7, 1975, at the Hamburg Field House, 🏟️ as Spiros Arion turns heel (with the assistance if “Classy” Freddie Blassie)—and a frustrated Larry Zbyszko in January, 1980, blocked by mentor Bruno Sammartino, until a shocking betrayal that still echoes today…

🎙️ Join Nikita Breznikov & Benny “The Playa” Scala as they fire up the Wrestling Wayback Machine and take you back to those halcyon days WHEN IT WAS REAL.

📅 LIVE Wednesday, January 7 | 7:30 PM

#WhenItWasReal #ANightAtTheGreek #ClassicWrestling #ProWrestlingHistory #SpirosArion #FreddieBlassie #LarryZbyszko #BrunoSammartino #OldSchoolWrestling #WrestlingPodcast #TerritoryEra #HeelHeat #WrestlingWaybackMachine

Ring in the New Year the old-school way! 🎆 Join Nikita & Benny for a special New Year’s Eve LIVE episode of When It Was Real, streaming Wednesday, December 31st at 7:30 PM on The Playa Entertainment Network — and don’t forget to like & subscribe!

This week, the guys break down an epic Madison Square Garden card from December 28, 1982 featuring the reigning WWF Champion Bob Backlund vs. arch-nemesis Superstar Billy Graham in a heated Lumberjack Match! Plus, both the WWF Tag Team and Intercontinental Championships are on the line, and Jimmy Snuka vs. Ray Stevens collide in a bout worthy of headlining anywhere in the country.

Make it a weekly tradition — every Wednesday at 7:30 PM — as Nikita and Benny relive the halcyon days… WHEN IT WAS REAL.

#WhenItWasReal #NewYearsEve #WWFClassics #MadisonSquareGarden #ProWrestlingHistory #OldSchoolWrestling #LumberjackMatch #TagTeamTitles #IntercontinentalTitle #PlayaEntertainmentNetwork

EPISODE 43 — When It Was Real

🎄 Christmas Eve • December 24th • 7:30 PM

One night. One bell. One moment that changed wrestling forever.

If you ever wondered when it stopped being “real,” this is the night the music died.

👉 Please like and subscribe!

#WhenItWasReal #Episode43 #TheNightTheMusicDIed #WWFHistory #BobBacklund #IronSheik #MSG1983 #WrestlingHistory #SportsEntertainment #ChristmasEvePodcast #PlayaEntertainmentNetwork