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Aired: 1984 - 1996
Show Type: Live Action
Country of Origin: US
WWF Superstars of Wrestling was a professional wrestling program that debuted on September 6, 1986, replacing WWF Championship Wrestling. Superstars, as it would later be known, was the flagship of the WWF's syndicated programming from 1986 to 1996. Superstars was around before this version, as a weekly recap show hosted by Vince McMahon and Lord Alfred Hayes.
Like most wrestling programs of its time, "Superstars" was produced in an era before the proliferation of cable and satellite television, and the World Wide Web; as such, this show was the primary vehicle for wrestlers to "get over" (i.e., gain popularity) with the fans, begin feuds and promote upcoming house shows and major events. In addition, most "Superstars" episodes followed a formula similar to those of other promotions:
* Wrestlers facing "jobbers" in squash matches (that is, the main talent facing wrestlers whose primary job is to take a beating to make the main talent look good and help them gain popularity).
* An "Update" segment, which featured anything from ongoing feuds (between two or more wrestlers or factions) to title changes. Very occassionally, real life was mixed in, such as if a wrestler suffered a real-life serious injury or had died.
* "Backstage" interviews with the wrestlers, who talked about their feuds; often, these were taped weeks in advance. In addition to "stock" interview segments (which helped get them "over" with fans), these segments could be customized, particularly if there was an upcoming house show in that market.
* An in-arena interview segment. These included stage interviews, with talent including "Mean" Gene Okerlund conducting the segments; and those segments hosted by a wrestler. The most famous example of the latter was "Piper's Pit," starring "Rowdy" Roddy Piper.
The best-known commentary team was Vince McMahon and Jesse "the Body" Ventura. McMahon â his role as CEO of the WWF was never referred to â was technically the neutral announcer, although he often took the role of cheering for the good guys; the colorful Ventura, an actor and former professional wrestler who eventually went on to be the real-life governor of Minnesota, clearly favored the bad guys.
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