Superstars of Wrestling (American TV series)

History

Joe Pedicino came up with the idea for Superstars of Wrestling in 1985 while he was employed at WATL TV 36. He had only been working in the station’s sales department for two months after graduating from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Professional wrestling was still very popular in Atlanta a year after the Black Saturday incident, but the station’s Saturday morning show from the NWA’s Memphis territory was getting poor ratings despite the sport’s television success.

Pedicino, a lifelong wrestling fan, told the program director that WATL was airing the wrong program at the wrong time. The Memphis promotion sent disorganized footage that confused local fans because match results from one week were never followed up the next. Pedicino compared it to a soap opera that teases a cliffhanger but never resolves it. He suggested that WATL take advantage of the popularity of Jim Crockett Promotions’ WCW Saturday Night on TBS by shifting their show to prime time.

Taking inspiration from Elvira’s Movie Macabre, Pedicino proposed broadcasting eight hours of wrestling from various NWA regional territories, plus Puerto Rico and Japan, which would let fans see programming from across the country for the first time. The station agreed to expand the show to fill its nighttime schedule. Pedicino later secured Japanese puroresu and joshi wrestling as part of Fuji Television Network’s push to enter the American television market.

Production

Superstars of Wrestling was a Saturday night program that ran from 8:00 PM to 3:00 AM, with episodes lasting about 368 minutes. The segment "Pro Wrestling This Week" ran for 46 minutes. Filmed at WATL TV 36 in downtown Atlanta, some interviews and segments were recorded on location. When WATL became a Fox affiliate in 1988, the show moved to WGNX to keep its prime-time slot, and later broadcast from WTLK-TV in Rome, Georgia.

Unlike standard wrestling shows that aired matches from house shows, this program was a news and entertainment format. Episodes featured pre-taped matches mixed with interviews, light comedy, and news commentary. Its unique structure let wrestlers from different promotions appear together. For instance, on July 27, 1987, Paul E. Dangerously from the American Wrestling Association and Lou Albano from the World Wrestling Federation debated who was the best manager in professional wrestling.

Legacy

Superstars of Wrestling was the only U.S. wrestling TV show ever produced independently. Before widespread internet access, most wrestling broadcasts were limited by region, but this series gave fans their first chance to see promotions from elsewhere. It started in Atlanta, Georgia, before reaching viewers nationwide. Chris Bridges of Banks County News described it as "a teenage pro wrestling fan’s dream come true."

The wrestling industry backed the show, including WWF owner Vince McMahon, who treated it as free advertising. WCW Saturday Night commentator Jim Ross noted that "our fans in Atlanta are lucky to get to see it." The program acted as a "launching pad" for emerging talent. Bill Apter, Gary Hart, Michael Hayes, and Paul E. Dangerously hosted segments for "Pro Wrestling This Week."

Dangerously said his time on the show helped him improve as an on-air performer. Scott Hudson and Steve Prazak, both fans of the series, got their first big break from Pedicino when he started promoting events in the late 1980s, later becoming announcers for World Championship Wrestling. In June 2014, wrestling columnist Brian Bayless proposed that WWE study Pedicino’s program to enhance its 24-hour wrestling network.