INCW History:

# The following is an abbreviated transcript of the documentary "NWCW: Legend and Legacy."

*"Some other promotions will sell their brand of wrestling as ‘entertainment.’ We at NWCW promote a sport, the purest form of full-contact athletic competition to be found anywhere in the world!"* -Jerry Wilcox, President of North West Championship Wrestling

By the turn of the 21st century, a once great professional wrestling promotion, Seattle Wrestling Unlimited, had seemingly run its course.  Since the 1950s, it had been a major competitor as a top promotion in the National Wrestling Council, but had fallen on hard times beginning in the late 1980s.  By the 2010s, despite the top-tier talent in the locker rooms, it had been reduced to an indie parody of itself, now owned by a surfboard company with strong pseudo-political ties and drug-fueled social agendas.

“Broadway” Bobby Fame:  *“When I got there, I thought I'd made a big mistake.  Give you an example.  There was a little guy there who worked at the surf shop, great shape but a stoner who just didn’t care about the business.  He liked surfing over the fans on fishing wire or something, like he was Iggy Pop or something, and doing acrobatics, and his fights were all fixed.  Contracts said we had to do whatever he said.  I was about to leave, no notice, and head back to New York, seriously!  That stopped, though, when Bill Cody arrived.  He didn’t give the beginning of a damn.  First time they were in the ring together, he started pulling Little Boy Blue apart!  It was great!  So he left, Cody was fired, and we were dying on the vine again.”*

That all changed on what was supposed to be their closing night.

An early match between “The Natural” Kevin Starr and masked sensation El Piedra resulted in bad blood that erupted again later in the same evening.  The headline match pitted “Dropkick” Murphy O’Riley against “Broadway” Bobby Fame.  The match was a vicious, bloody affair, wherein Fame took a heavy toll on Murphy, but the Dublin-born favorite simply wouldn’t stay down.  Fame’s then-manager, Marty Dinkle had been interfering.  He was soon confronted at ringside by El Piedra, which in turn brought Starr running out, and one by one, more wrestlers ran to the ring.

By the end of the pier-six brawl, the event had garnered such attention that it was determined the issue should be settled at a pay-per-view the following year in New Orleans.

David Perry, Sports Journalist:  *“It was incredible.  Something about that evening, about all of those rugged competitors leaving it all in the ring, sent a surge of excitement through Seattle and the surrounding areas.  And that wouldn’t have meant as much as it did if it weren’t for Lance Polanski stepping in, the hometown hero, and guiding the local momentum.  Now, our old building we’d been in since the ‘70s was condemned, so we had to leave.  Lance said, ‘Fine, we’ll hold the event in New Orleans on a river boat, like in the1800s.  See you all when we get back.’  And THEN, he took as many locals with us as he could afford to!  It was our first pay-per-view event in years, so our fans who couldn’t make the trip were still able to watch, AND we broadened the fan base by growing it in the Big Easy.”*

The significance of what happened in the ring resulted in a sudden renewed interest in professional wrestling in the north west, but the vital business interest led a retired New Orleans promoter, Jerry Wilcox, to purchase SWU and inject it with a much needed business leadership.  The event’s headlining match was a ten-man tag team that pitted El Piedra, “Dropkick” Murphy O’Riley, Red Hawk, the Warmaster, and Jack James against “The Natural” Kevin Starr, “Outlaw” Billy Cody, “Broadway” Bobby Fame, "Divine Psycho" Nakamura, and Yuri Kruchiev, the Siberian Grappler.  It was the start of a new beginning for them as North West Championship Wrestling.

“Retired” Jack James:  *“I developed a ringing in my ears that night that, nonstop, persists to this day.  Thinking about that night … still hurts.”*

“Divine Psycho” Nakamura:  ***calmly eats a handful of glass from a popcorn bag***

Over the next few years, NWCW fostered many great talents.  Aside from the aforementioned, their ring was home to Gojira, the Kaiju of the Ring; Lance Polanski, the Polish Superman on his final run before retiring; the Lumberjack, a plaid-collar hero; Jack James and his later alter ego, the Jersey Devil; Jaycee Green, Mr. Money In the Ring; Charles Nelson, the joint-separation specialist; Sgt. Powers, a former U.S. Marine combat instructor; and, the Icon of a Generation, the good old-fashioned lover itself, Average Joe.  In the following years, the one promotion with two homes became an international mainstay of the wrestling scene, helping to regrow the influence of the NWC and helping, inadvertently, to foster a rival promotion.

Lance Polanski, the Polish Superman, had brought with him from WWW that promotion’s heavyweight championship belt.  When that belt was returned, the 40+ year ring veteran was awarded the then-vacant NWCW All-Wrestling Championship, and with it the lineage of the SWU championship.  He defended it several times until it was finally taken from him in his retirement match by “Angel-Face” Damion Black.  However, Damion in turn left with the belt and started his own promotion, Prestige Wrestling Association, the PWA.

Damion Black:  *"I regret how I acted during my brief run in NWCW. I was a different person back then. When I wrestled Lance Polanski, there was more than the title on the line. There was also Polanski's Home for Wayward Boys. I won the match and turned the Home into a nightclub before leaving the territory. I'm not proud of it. Incidentally, the nightclub doesn't exist anymore. Damion Black's Home for Wayward Boys stands in its place."*

In the wake of this scandal, NWCW President Jerry Wilcox commissioned a new belt to represent the old lineage, and held an all-comers tournament to claim the title.  In the end, it was won by Kevin Starr.  The Natural held the belt for nearly two years when it was taken from him by Average Joe, who went undefeated for the rest of the promotion’s history.

The voices of NWCW were award-winning sports journalist David Perry and retired wrestling great and radio personality Zack Pringle; the former delivering concise play-by-play while the latter gave color commentary based on his own years of experience in the ring.  Together, they presided over a resurgence in world-class competition in the north west.  One of the first, and bloodiest, grudges in the NWCW ring was Red Hawk’s feud with the Outlaw.

“Outlaw” Billy Cody:  *“I know how it looked to everybody on the outside, the cowboy-and-indian thing, but that was just coincidence, and a source of cheap-shots, maybe.  It had nothing to do with all that sh-t, not at all.”*

Zack Pringle:  *“Those two men genuinely hated each other.  They bled each other in the ring, out of the ring, all over the place, because they were out to seriously hurt each other.  It’s that simple.”*

***(Billy Cody stands, bloody, in the ring after a match, mic in hand)**  “Lemme tell you somethin’, son! I fought that injun tooth and nail! My only mistake was fightin’ him fair! He- **(crowd boos him down)** SHUT UP! Him & his sneaky injun tricks... that ... The next time I get you in this ring, son, all bets are OFF! **(Crowd cheers louder as Red Hawk victoriously raises his hand again)**  List’n’a me! I’m gonna take you apart and mail the pieces back to the rez! ‘Cause when it comes to scratchin’ an’ bitin’, wrastlin’ an’ fightin’, let it be clear- the OUTLAW is HERE!!”*

Red Hawk:  *“Y’know, a lot of people think it was all a show, that me and Cody shared a few beers and talked about how we wanted each match to go, but that just isn’t the case.  I legitimately despise that ugly hick cracker.  A guy like him doesn’t just kick puppies, he boils them alive.  F— that guy.”*

“Outlaw” Billy Cody:  *“It wa’n’t never like that cartoon sh-t.  Just personal.”*

Another presence at NWCW with great impact was not a wrestler, but no less competitive:  Marty Dinkle, manager and leader of the infamous stable, Dinkle International Enterprises, D.I.E.

Marty Dinkle:  *“I been a carnival outside-talker, an insurance salesman, a 4 a.m. lounge act, a cruise ship farro dealer, an emcee in a burlesque teater, a used car salesman, a boxing promoter, and an embalmer. I once even worked for tree months as a Marine recruiter before dey realized I wasn't no Marine. The long and the short of it is dat I is a hustler, and dat's what makes me such a good manager.”*

El Piedra:  *“Everyone hated that pequeño lamedor de pene furtivo.  He was slime.  He gave slime a bad name, probably still does.  I heard he’s using his international contacts to work for ICE these days.”*

Marty Dinkle:  *“I am not at libitty to say.”*

“Dropkick: Murphy O’Riley:  *“Prick still owes me two grand, American.”*

Though he had a preference for working with international talent from other countries, Dinkle would bring anyone into his organization that he thought had the talent and drive to make the most of the opportunities that he worked to present to his clients, even when that hustle included his own special brand of interference.

***(At ringside, the referee is stopping the action to tend to Dinkle, who appears to be having a heart attack.  Switch scene to a different match wherein he hooks the Warmaster’s ankle with his cane, tripping the big man long enough for Bobby Fame to drop an elbow on the Warmaster.)***

Marty Dinkle:  *“As long as everyting is above board, who’s to complain?”*

    The athleticism of the NWCW roster took a backseat to none, but even more characteristic was the earnest brutality of their big shows.  The first ever NWCW Wargames was a drawn out match that redefined the term “intestinal fortitude,” as did the mighty annual Battle Royals that emptied the locker room and filled the fans with awe.

The Lumberjack:  *"You lot may not have seen me as much as some of these other folks, but when you did I brought the house down! My run in that hardcore Battle Royal was a sight to behold. TIMBER!!!"*

Among the most fearsome of competitors, no matter the ruleset, was the mysterious Warmaster, a wrestler with a Howardian perspective on in-ring competition.

The Warmaster:  *“The blood of the many have been spilled by my hands! The rockets that transport us to the heavens has made touchdown once again and Warmaster is prepared!  Once more, the Unknown In the Starts and the Master of Beasts ululate their calls, and the Warmaster is destined to present the masses and the gods with gratuitous violence and agonizing torment as the bell of the Pantheon tolls!  DING!  DING!  DING!”*

KB Kronic: *"Not many people know this, but I was a huge fan of Warmaster when I saw him in NWCW.  He's the reason I started painting my face whenever I wrestle.  When NWCW closed its doors, he was the one guy I wanted more than anything.  We made a deal and Warmaster came to INCW.*

When he got here though, he just wasn't the same guy. I mean, he fought, he wrestled, but it was like all the heart in him died with NWCW.  He got on a losing streak and I ended up letting him go after a few matches.  It was just too painful to watch.

(off camera): *"What about Average Jo?"*

KB Kronic: *"............ Look, I was doing a lot of drinking in those days."*

“Broadway” Bobby Fame:  *“Scary guy, monster in the ring, almost as scary as Jersey Devil.  Almost.  He had one -ONE - weakness: the unforeseen roll-up pin.”*

The Warmaster:  *“Ding … ding … yes … ding …”*

No matter who he faced, there was one overshadowing presence at NWCW, even more that Gojira: the longest reigning champion of NWCW, and technically still undefeated, Average Joe.

“Broadway” Bobby Fame:  *“I mean, what can you say?  Average Joe wanted everyone, and took all comers.  Its … and yes, Joe prefers ‘it’ …’ its an incredible athlete, and either enjoys or is indifferent to pain.  And Joe’s killer moves, the Thigh Master and Thigh Master 2.0, man … all you were thinking about was escape!”*

DAMION BLACK (on Average Jo): *"You know, I never lost the NWCW Wrestling Championship. Average Jo is an illegitimate champion."*

(off camera) *"Would you consider wrestling Jo for an undisputed championship?"*

BLACK: *"Are you crazy? I'm not risking my head getting stuck between those thighs!"*

Just as they were hitting their second high in the industry, however, trouble loomed in the form of an unresolved problem: Damion Black’s PWA.  Both promotions were touting top tier talent, including a couple of free agents, Nakamura and Kevin Starr, who freely competed in both promotions.  PWA attempted an invasion, but were valiantly fought off, both in the ring and in the boardroom.  At this time, there was another force that seemed to confound every NWC promotion, a training facility with members everywhere that became its own faction known simply as the Camp.  Cracks had begun to form in the region as much as the promotion itself.

Zack Pringle:  *“We were already falling victim, financially, to trying to grow back to where we were in SWU’s heyday, and then PWA started competing in a way that Jerry simply hadn’t anticipated.  He thought his New Orleans good-ol’-boy contacts would see him through, but that wasn’t the case, especially one the pandemic hit.  The last straw was losing- chokes a bit Lance.”*

“Dropkick” Murphy O’Riley:  *“Mr. Polanski and I had a bond.  We were both immigrants who found our way through the sport of professional wrestling.  He’d found it years ago.  He took me under his wing, it was like having a da all over again … I need a moment.”*

Sgt. Powers:  *“When the Polish Superman died, when that powerhouse heart of his finally gave out, it took a lot of the fans’ heart with it.  They couldn’t go on like they had before, and if the fans can’t go on, neither can we.  It was just time.”*

It wasn’t long before the doors of NWCW were forced to close again.  They had survived the near death of SWU, and made a resurgence as the NWCW, but had burned too brightly, too quickly.  One by one, the talent that had shone in the north west signed on at other promotions, including PWA and iNCW.

Damion Black:  *"I've heard the accusation that PWA poaching talent from NWCW was what did the company in, but that's not how it is from my perspective. I have a lot of love for NWCW. When I started bringing some of their talent over to Prestige, NWCW was well on its way out. I gave some of their wrestlers a home and a job as my way of showing my gratitude for what NWCW did for the sport of wrestling."*

KB Kronic:  *"Let me start off by saying how disrespectful it is to wait, what, three years to talk about one of the pillar promotions of the NWC? What the F\*#k is wrong with you guys?"*

***Interviewer attempts to respond***

KB Kronic:  *"It doesn't matter what's wrong with you!  My bad…  Always wanted to do that.  But seriously, NWCW had some serious talent and kept the old-school psychology of the sport alive. You know how the tri-force has three triangles and represents something different? The NWC is like that and NWCW was one of those triangles. It sucks y'all took this long to recognize them when they had how many NWC champs? AND THEY HAD AVERAGE JOE FOR F\*#KSAKE!”*

***KB squints***

KB Kronic: *"Stockholm is that you?!? Get your ass over here!!!"*

***KB chases Stockholm***

    To this day, the NWCW’s influence is felt the industry over.  It’s roster spanned generations, it’s voice heard in the hearts of thousands, and its legend - and legacy - of stars reaches well into the future.

The Warmaster:  *“Ding …”*

The End …?