Wrestlemania 1

So the event itself, if you watch it now, is very underwhelming. In reality it's a very slight step above a typical house show. But you have to understand the context of this event. It was huge. Celebrity involvement with wrestling prior to the WM build up was pretty much unheard of and this event was filled with minor celebs for a wrestling show. Remember that Hogan and Mr. T appeared together on SNL the night before the event, again a wrestler on a mainstream show at that time was unheard of. This event really took wrestling to a new level pushing it into the mainstream and opening it up to an entire new generation of fans, leading to a national show in "Saturday Night's Main Event" and culminating in the popularity the drove the success of WMIII. Like WMIII it is one of those shows that you really had to experience to understand why it's held in such regard, considering the actual matches on the card. It's not that the main event of WMI was a great match, it's that it was a big moment in wrestling.

Watch: WWE Network

Podcast to listen to and watch along with: Lapsed Fan Review

Date: March 31, 1985

Location: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

Attendance: 19,121

PPV Buy Rate/Close Circuit Television: Wrestlemania 1 – 398,000 on Closed Circuit Television

Card:

• Tito Santana Vs The Executioner – 4:50 – 2 ½*
• King Kong Bundy Vs Special Delivery Jones – 0:09 – DUD - This match was claimed the shortest match of all time at 0:09 seconds to make King Kong Bundy seem like a huge monster.. in reality the match goes for 0:24 seconds.
• Ricky Steamboat Vs Matt Borne – 4:37 – 3 ¼* - Two years before Steambaots classic match with Macho Man Randy Savage at Wrestlemania 3 he would put a fun and short match with Matt Borne (who would later to be known as Doink the Clown).
• David Sammartino Vs Brutus Beefcake – 12:43 -2*
• Junkyard Dog Vs Greg Valentine – WWF Intercontinental Championship match – 7:05 – ½*
• Nikolai Volkoff and The Iron Sheik Vs The U.S. Express (Mike Rotundo and Barry Windham) – WWF Tag Team Championship – 1*
• André the Giant Vs Big John Studd - $15,000 Body Slam Challenge – 5:53 – 3* - A short and fun match between two big men to keep the crowd happy.
• Wendi Richter Vs Leilani Kai - Women's Championship – 6:12 - -2*
• Hulk Hogan and Mr. T Vs Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff – 13:13 – No Rating – Promo - The main event of the first WrestleMania showcased an all-star class of talent. You had the on-going feud between Hogan and Orndorff/Piper, but Hogan would get some help from Rocky 3 friend Mr.T.. ugh the 80’s. The era of Rock N Wrestling was in full effect at this time with many celebrities in attendance and actually participating in the show. It’s not the greatest match in ‘Mania history, very sloppy work from all participants, whilst it’s seen as a commercial success at the time, people still had their doubts about it compared to NWA at the time which featured more wrestling and less ‘entertainment’. I wonder if they went with Hogan Vs Piper in the first main event whether or not it still would’ve been a success. Also Wrestlemania Rewind discussing the match.

Trivia:

• Moments before the event started, a group of Hell's Angels on Harley Davidson motorcycles managed to get past Madison Square Garden security, entering the backstage area through the loading dock, determined to see the show. Despite the event being completely sold out, WWF management accommodated their request, and brought in a few extra chairs for them.
• Longtime WWF ring announcer Howard Finkel is often credited with giving "WrestleMania" its name. Vince McMahon originally wanted to call this show "The Colossal Tussle."
• The only WrestleMania not to feature a match with the WWF/E Championship on the line.
• All in-ring performers for the main event have been inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
• According to Hulk Hogan, Mr. T almost quit the show hours before show time. T was concerned that Piper and Paul Orndorff - who really disliked him - would take advantage of him and embarrass him.