 LarrySC |
February 10th, 2008 14:08 GMT |
 
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Topics: 583
Replies: 1079
Member
Post: #453510
PT: #1/4
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I've been reading Rich Tate's daily updates on Georgia Wrestling, and noticed that in 1968, the Vachon Brothers (Mad Dog, Butcher, and Stan [aka Eric Pomeroy, Stan Pulaski]) were battling the Torres Brothers (Enrique, Alberto, & Ramon) in Georgia.
Now, somtime in 1969, didn't most of them migrate up to Verne's AWA territory? I know that Mad Dog & Butcher became AWA Tag Team Champions in Aug 1969, and Stan left the Omaha territory in 1967 to go to Georgia, then returned to Omaha in 1968.
Later, in 1971, Alberto was brought into Omaha and later Ramon followed after Alberto's death in June of 1971.
It was interesting to find out that the Vachons and Torres Bros. almost seemed to move in tandem from the Georgia territory up to the AWA.
Can someone give some history behind this transition?
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| "Sometimes it is better to refrain than have to explain"
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Topics: 14
Replies: 472
Member
Post: #453539
PT: #2/4
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I think with regards to Mad Dog Vachon, he was (for the most part) an AWA mainstay from 1964 on. During the 60's, he had successful runs in the Pacific Northwest territory, but the AWA was his home for most of the 60's. He had five AWA world title reigns starting on 5/2/1964 and ending on 11/19/1966. Then in the summer of 1968, Mad Dog introduced his brother Paul (Butcher) to AWA fans for the first time, in a July 1968 Minneapolis tag bout with Crusher Lisowski & Dick the Bruiser.
The fact that Paul had been in Minneapolis about 10 years earlier as a Russian dubbed Nicoli Zolotoff, was not acknowledged to AWA fans, and it is likely no one (other than a very select few) were aware of it.
In August 1969, Mad Dog and Butcher captured the AWA tag team championship, and held it until May 1971. One note regarding the Vachon's title reign that often is overlooked is that.....in February 1971, they dropped the title in Portland, Oregon to Kurt and Karl Von Steiger, and regained the title in a rematch in March 1971. However, this quick title change was done without the authorization of Verne Gagne, and thus is not included in AWA title history.
After their May 1971 loss of the AWA titles to Red Bastien & Hercules Cortez in Milwaukee, both Vachons were gone shortly thereafter to concentrate on Paul's Grand Prix promotion in Montreal.
Mad Dog returned to the AWA off and on during the 70's, and even had a decent run in a tag team with Baron Von Raschke, and then again held the AWA tag team titles with former enemy Verne Gagne from June 1979 (winning the belts from Ray Stevens & Pat Patterson) until July 1980, when they were stripped of the championship due to Gagne missing a scheduled title defense. The title belts were given to #1 chanllengers (at the time) Jesse Ventura & Adrian Adonis.
As for "brother" Stan Vachon (aka Eric Pomeroy, Stan Pulaski, Sergi Pulaski, Mad Russian, Igor Kalmikoff, and other names), he has remained to this day a friend of the Vachon's. Maurice and Stan live in Omaha, Nebraska.
After the Georgia run in 1968 with Paul, Stan returned to Omaha, and was both the Midwest champion and Midwest tag champion with partners Dale Lewis, Chris Tolos and Reggie Parks. Interestingly, Stan and Tolos won the belts from Mad Dog and Butcher in Omaha in February 1969. Stan and Parks also feuded with the Vachon's over the AWA belts in Omaha in 1970.
In his Pacific Northwest territory days, Stan held the NWA PN title (as the Mad Russian) in March 1965, and co-held the tag team belts with El Shereef (Jerry Woods), and Stan Stasiak.
In the AWA (Minneaplis), Pulaski was given a main event program with Gagne in 1966 as Sergi Pulaski, then returned off and on in the 70's as Stan Pulaski. In 1964, Stan was teamed as "brother" Igor Kalmikoff with Karol Kalmikoff in Oklahoma until Karol's untimely death that year.
Now, you also mentioned the Torres Brothers. I'm guessing that the fact that Alberto Torres showed up in Omaha, was just coincidence. As for Ramon, he only showed up in Omaha after Alberto's death, and bascially was able to work some "getting revenge" for Alberto's passing matches. Sick promoting? I always thought so!
Ramon though, had been in the AWA in 1967, and often teamed with Rene Goulet. He also returned to the AWA in 1972, and was basically a mid-card guy often teamed with Don Muraco.
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| "THE AUTHORITY" GEORGE SCHIRE
I'M COMMITTED TO PRESERVING WRESTLING HISTORY.
NOT AN EASY TASK TO ACHIEVE WHEN WORKING WITH A BUSINESS THAT HAD A DECEPTION BASE, AND NO SENSE OF ITS OWN PAST.
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| khawk20 |
February 11th, 2008 01:43 GMT |
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Topics: 47
Replies: 2366
Member
Post: #453738
PT: #3/4
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On Butcher's "Wrestling with the Past" show, Eric, Butcher and Mad Dog tell a great story about one of their matches with the Torres brothers in Georgia. Funny stuff.
I have also seen a clip of a Mad Dog interview shown on Georgia TV in the late 60's. It's silent but I assume it is an interview taped in Minneapolis and sent down to Georgia and played on their TV.
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| Right you are, Ken!
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