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Between The Sheets

Between The Sheets

Written by: Kris Zellner & David Bixenspan
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Every Monday, Kris Zellner and David Bixenspan go over how a given week in professional wrestling history was covered by the wrestling media, primarily in the "dirt sheet" newsletters. The deepest dive into wrestling history that you can find.

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Episodes
  • Ep. #538: January 2-7, 1988

    Ep. #538: January 2-7, 1988
    Jan 12 2026

    Kris and David ARE BACK!!!!! after our battles with the epic Winter 2025-2026 Flu and discussing the (almost-)week that was January 2-7, 1988. Topics of discussion include:

    • Andre the Giant attacking Hulk Hogan after his match with King Kong Bundy on an otherwise not very newsworthy episode of Saturday Night's Main Event to heat up their match in prime time on The Main Event a month later.
    • King Kong Bundy and his job as the celebrity spokesman for Vendex Head Start Computers, which allowed him to more or less retire from wrestling
    • Curt Hennig defending his AWA World Title in AJPW…in disappointing fashion, at least according to insiders.
    • NJPW kicking off the first ever Top of the Super Juniors tournament with a LOADED lineup of talent.
    • ICW trying to heat up an Iron Sheik vs. Georga Skaaland feud of all times.
    • Renegade Tobacco getting heavily involved with Jarrett Promotions, complete with a press conference on TV.
    • Shawn Michaels being completely hammered on live TV as he’s going off on Scott Hall and Ken Wayne.
    • Jerry Lawler and Bill Dundee talk about their friendly rivalry and the importance of the Lord of the Ring…ring.
    • World Class starting to heat up with Ken Mantell is back in power.
    • JCP TV starting to get spiced up as Lex Luger is catching fire as a babyface and they experimented with taping the TBS show on the road.
    • Ric Flair accosting photographer Linda Roufa for a TV promo, which was quite the 1988 moment.

    This was a damn fun show and it's great to get back in the saddle again!!!

    Timestamps:

    0:00:00 WWF

    0:48:23 Int’l: AJPW, NJPW, All-Star, Stampede, & WWC

    1:07:55 Classic Commercial Break

    1:13:58 Halftime

    1:41:06 Other USA: WOW, Continental, CWA/Memphis, WCCW, Wild West, AWA, Central States, & Portland

    2:55:24 Jim Crockett Promotions

    To support the show and get access to exclusive rewards like special members-only monthly themed shows, go to our Patreon page at Patreon.com/BetweenTheSheets and become an ongoing Patron. Becoming a Between the Sheets Patron will also get you exclusive access to not only the monthly themed episode of Between the Sheets, but also access to our new mailbag segment, a Patron-only chat room on Slack, and anything else we do outside of the main shows!

    If you’re looking for the best deal on a VPN service—short for Virtual Private Network, it helps you get around regional restrictions as well as browse the internet more securely—then Private Internet Access is what you’ve been looking for. Not only will using our link help support Between The Sheets, but you’ll get a special discount, with prices as low as $1.98/month if you go with a 40 month subscription. With numerous great features and even a TV-specific Android app to make streaming easier, there is no better choice if you’re looking to subscribe to WWE Network, AEW Plus, and other region-locked services.

    For the best in both current and classic indie wrestling streaming, make sure to check out IndependentWrestling.tv and use coupon code BTSPOD for a free 5 day trial! (You can also go directly to TinyURL.com/IWTVsheets to sign up that way.) If you convert to a paid subscriber, we get a kickback for referring you, allowing you to support both the show and the indie scene.

    To subscribe, you can find us on iTunes, Google Play, and just about every other podcast app's directory, or you can also paste Feeds.FeedBurner.com/BTSheets into your favorite podcast app using whatever “add feed manually” option it has.



    Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/between-the-sheets/donations

    Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
    Show More Show Less
    3 hrs and 37 mins
  • Patreon Flashback — John Collins' MECW Supercut with Beau James

    Patreon Flashback — John Collins' MECW Supercut with Beau James
    Jan 10 2026
    Later than we intended thanks to the flu, here’s what was supposed to be stopgap content over the holidays. Make sure to check out the latest Patreon shows, and be on the lookout for the return of the weekly show this Monday. Now, for the original show descriptions:—Part 1:It’s Thanksgiving, and you know what that means: A new Patreon deep dive, this time looking at the first ridiculous startup promotion of the post-WCW era, John Collins’ Main Event Championship Wrestling. And since he was right in the thick of things, we’re joined by our dear from Beau James (@kingofkingsport) throughout this first part (of two, with another episode coming in December). Topics include the initial buzz that Beau heard before the news of the startup broke publicly, Collins paying his guys to appear at shows promoted by Beau and others that he was making zero dollars from, various ridiculous interviews that Collins gave on radio shows, Bill Behrens, Mike Samples, and others publicly warning everyone about Collins’ sketchiness, the MECW “TV taping” at the ECW Arena being made a free show at the last minute, Collins doing a TV pilot taping there in the first place after already having shot a separate pilot, Terry Taylor publicly flirting with a job in MECW, all of the drama with Buff Bagwell refusing to do a job for then-NWA World Heavyweight Champion Steve Corino, and much more.Like we keep saying: John Collins is like putting Paul Heyman/ECW, Herb Abrams/the UWF, and Olu Olalyemi/Joe Pedicino/the GWF in a blender. You do NOT want to miss this show. Happy Thanksgiving!Part 2:It’s that time of the month, and you know what that means: The second anf final part of our deep dive into the utter disaster that was Main Event Championship Wrestling, John Collins' post-WCW/ECW startup. Topics include everything going to hell after the big "TV taping" at the former ECW Arena, flights to Evansville being cancelled and Collins blaming Paul Heyman when he just hadn't paid for them, an amazing (and lengthy!) lesson in promoting towns from Beau, Collins self-destructing on a conference call with Tod Gordon, Bob Ryder, and Dave Scherer, wrestlers showing up at Collins' home to demand their money, the simultaneous rise of fellow nebulous startups Super Fed and WrestleXpress, Collins harassing Crimson Mask from the Wrestling Classics Message Board on AOL Instant Messenger, Collins "having a heart attack" more than once, MECW's backer being under court order not to spend money since before MECW was even announced, Collins working as a heel manager on shows syndicated by Bill Behrens while Bill's own promotion has a heel doing a Collins parody gimmick, Terry Taylor's "Torch Talk" interview, Collins' SECOND promotion, the Torch's year-end quiz, Collins going to federal prison thanks to MECW, and MUCH more. This is an amazing show and we hope you enjoy it!Timestamps:0:00:00 Prologue & July 20011:55:15 Early August 20013:14:08 Late August 2001 (and Beau's lesson in local promotion)5:11:35 September 20016:19:55 October 2001 and beyondTo support the show and get access to exclusive rewards like special members-only monthly themed shows, go to our Patreon page at Patreon.com/BetweenTheSheets and become an ongoing Patron. Becoming a Between the Sheets Patron will also get you exclusive access to not only the monthly themed episode of Between the Sheets, but also access to our new mailbag segment, a Patron-only chat room on Slack, and anything else we do outside of the main shows!If you’re looking for the best deal on a VPN service—short for Virtual Private Network, it helps you get around regional restrictions as well as browse the internet more securely—then Private Internet Access is what you’ve been looking for. Not only will using our link help support Between The Sheets, but you’ll get a special discount, with prices as low as $1.98/month if you go with a 40 month subscription. With numerous great features and even a TV-specific Android app to make streaming easier, there is no better choice if you’re looking to subscribe to WWE Network, AEW Plus, and other region-locked services.For the best in both current and classic indie wrestling streaming, make sure to check out IndependentWrestling.tv and use coupon code BTSPOD for a free 5 day trial! (You can also go directly to TinyURL.com/IWTVsheets to sign up that way.) If you convert to a paid subscriber, we get a kickback for referring you, allowing you to support both the show and the indie scene.To subscribe, you can find us on iTunes, Google Play, and just about every other podcast app's directory, or you can also paste Feeds.FeedBurner.com/BTSheets into your favorite podcast app using whatever “add feed manually” option it has.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/between-the-sheets/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
    Show More Show Less
    7 hrs and 30 mins
  • Center Stage Chronicles Ep. #20: December 1990

    Center Stage Chronicles Ep. #20: December 1990
    Jan 5 2026

    Kris Zellner is joined by Rob Naylor and Our Good Buddy Charles as we discuss the month of December 1990 in the world of the newly-renamed World Championship Wrestling and pop culture in general. Topics of discussion include:

    • Ole Anderson's last TV as booker of the NWA/WCW scoring surprisingly very good Nielsen ratings.
    • Ty Detmer winning the Heisman Trophy.
    • The TV shows all dropping the NWA name and becoming WCW-branded shows.
    • Konnan, The Minotaur, and Larry Cameron make their debuts working TV tapings.
    • The power of The Simpsons as Christmas rolls around.
    • Ric Flair being attacked by Teddy Long's hired goons when Long served as Flair’s “chauffeur for a day.”
    • The best WCW Family Feud segment.
    • An in-depth look at Starrcade ’90, featuring the Pat O'Connor Memorial Tag Team Tournament and Ric Flair being revealed as The Black Scorpion.
    • Kindergarten Cop and how that changed the game for Arnold Schwarzenegger.
    • Will Dusty Rhodes actually become WCW’s head booker?
    • The WCW TV Title consuming the lives of Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, Terry Taylor, and Tom Zenk.
    • Jim Cornette's legendary Christmas poem in the Observer.

    …and much more. This was a great show and a great close to a wild 1990!

    ---

    To support the show and get access to exclusive rewards like special members-only monthly themed shows, go to our Patreon page at Patreon.com/BetweenTheSheets and become an ongoing Patron. Becoming a Between the Sheets Patron will also get you exclusive access to not only the monthly themed episode of Between the Sheets, but also access to our new mailbag segment, a Patron-only chat room on Slack, and anything else we do outside of the main shows!

    If you’re looking for the best deal on a VPN service—short for Virtual Private Network, it helps you get around regional restrictions as well as browse the internet more securely—then Private Internet Access is what you’ve been looking for. Not only will using our link help support Between The Sheets, but you’ll get a special discount, with prices as low as $1.98/month if you go with a 40 month subscription. With numerous great features and even a TV-specific Android app to make streaming easier, there is no better choice if you’re looking to subscribe to WWE Network, AEW Plus, and other region-locked services.

    For the best in both current and classic indie wrestling streaming, make sure to check out IndependentWrestling.tv and use coupon code BTSPOD for a free 5 day trial! (You can also go directly to TinyURL.com/IWTVsheets to sign up that way.) If you convert to a paid subscriber, we get a kickback for referring you, allowing you to support both the show and the indie scene.

    To subscribe, you can find us on iTunes, Google Play, and just about every other podcast app's directory, or you can also paste Feeds.FeedBurner.com/BTSheets into your favorite podcast app using whatever “add feed manually” option it has.



    Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/between-the-sheets/donations

    Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
    Show More Show Less
    3 hrs and 35 mins
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