10 Times WWE Tried To Kill Wrestling
9. Black Saturday
On July 14, 1984, the World Wrestling Federation took over Georgia Championship Wrestling's time slot on Superstation WTBS.
Booker Ole Anderson is cited as the accidental architect of what became known as 'Black Saturday', though his many, countless enemies would attest that he was an awful man by ingrained, miserable design. His toxic backstage conduct grew so insufferable that his partners, Jim Barnett and Gerald and Jack Brisco, were convinced by McMahon to sell up - for lifetime gigs in return, apocryphally - and they in turn convinced a 52% majority of shareholders to follow through with the plan.
The ardent fanbase was less than convinced of McMahon's creative vision; raised on serious athleticism and intricate, hard-hitting physicality, they loathed what they perceived as the cartoonish, brawling-heavy action. In a stark illustration of just how much things have changed, much of the written complaints were grounded on the absence of a commentator: the beloved Gordon Solie. A modern analogue would see New Japan Pro Wrestling fans balk at the WWE Network commandeering New Japan world.
It marked the first, unsuccessful soft launch of his so-called expansion strategy, but Vince didn't get to where he is now without persisting through an unpopular idea...