The Wrestler Who Was Cancelled

There is talk of a fabled 1985 Memphis promo, in which the filterless Schultz buried the WWF and incurred a legal threat in the process, which substantiates that narrative (this, supposedly, was how the WWF happened upon Randy Savage; the tape was not watched in order to recruit him, rather learn what Schultz had said, but Savage's performance generated buzz within the organisation).

The Memphis tape library however is scattered, the full extent of it probably no longer exists, and the footage hasn't been located. Still, it must exist, and its existence lends some credence to the "blackballed" narrative. If Schultz was enough of a liability to get promoters in trouble, it's easy to see why he was deemed not to be worth the hassle.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter used Occam's razor to make a great point when writing up the DSOTR episode. Why would a group of wrestling promoters band together and support Vince McMahon in excommunicating a wrestler from the entire North American industry?

In 1985, two years after McMahon had seceded from the NWA, and was months away from making his boldest attempt at the national expansion that would doom them?

If anything, with Vince gutting his competitors of their star talent with New York money, a great worker whom New York wanted nothing to do with was a "get", controversy or no. It never happened; after bouncing between Memphis and New Japan Pro Wrestling in '85, Schultz ventured north to Canada in 1986 before working sporadically and retiring in 1989.

Meltzer downplayed the legend of David Schultz in the same piece.

CONT'D...(4 of 5)