Roller Derby
Robert Stewart
on the Classic Sports channel. I hadn't seen roller derby in 10 years or
so. The match involved the L.A. Thunderbirds. I don't recall the name of
their opponent. The match, like wrestling, involved feuds, angles, heels
and faces. I would appreciate someone with some knowledge of roller derby
enlightening me as to the similarities between it and wrestling.Are
outcomes pre-determined? Is the action choreographed?
Michael Rogers
writes:
>As I was satellite dish surfing this morning, I came across Roller
Derby
>on the Classic Sports channel. I hadn't seen roller derby in 10 years
or
>so. The match involved the L.A. Thunderbirds.
Anyone who could supply me with these on a regular basis in trade for
wrestling tapes please contact me so we can make arrangements.
Thanks,
-Mike Rogers-
Jihad
James Fabiano
roller derby!!!!!! Remember the IRSL? Bill Hill and the Southern Stars
were GREAT!!!!!!!!
Any other IRSL (especially mid/late 80's) fans out there? Email me!
Craig Warner
> on the Classic Sports channel. I hadn't seen roller derby in 10 years or
> their opponent. The match, like wrestling, involved feuds, angles, heels
> and faces. I would appreciate someone with some knowledge of roller derby
> enlightening me as to the similarities between it and wrestling.Are
> outcomes pre-determined? Is the action choreographed?
>
>
>
I remember watching it when it was called "Roller Games". I remember the
overtimes involved an alligator pit!! I looooved it!!!
Craig D. Warner--Thank God I'm Me!!
Quote Of The Week!
-------------------
"Doing what you love is freedom,
loving what you do is HAPPINESS!!"
-Denny Schaffer
WVKS, 92.5 KISS-FM
Toledo, Ohio
Joe Malecki
: As I was satellite dish surfing this morning, I came across Roller Derby
: on the Classic Sports channel. I hadn't seen roller derby in 10 years or
: so. The match involved the L.A. Thunderbirds. I don't recall the name of
: their opponent. The match, like wrestling, involved feuds, angles, heels
: and faces. I would appreciate someone with some knowledge of roller derby
: enlightening me as to the similarities between it and wrestling.Are
: outcomes pre-determined? Is the action choreographed?
And the young guy Stars and stripes!
Some other teams were The Violators , Bad attitude , The Hot Flash , and
The Rockers
THis was the show where if there was a tie they fight alligators it was
so cool!
--
Mike Malecki!
Sooo Thirsty!.....eh whatta ya gonna do!
I do what I can!
Bob Grevis
>
> As I was satellite dish surfing this morning, I came across Roller Derby
> on the Classic Sports channel. I hadn't seen roller derby in 10 years or
> so. The match involved the L.A. Thunderbirds. I don't recall the name of
> their opponent. The match, like wrestling, involved feuds, angles, heels
> and faces. I would appreciate someone with some knowledge of roller derby
> enlightening me as to the similarities between it and wrestling.Are
> outcomes pre-determined? Is the action choreographed?
I recently discovered this channel at a friend's house and me thinks it's the coolest
channel on the tube. I didn't remember Roller Derby but when I told my older brother
about it he just about went crazy. They seem to have it on every saturday and sunday
morning, and the LA Thunderbirds kick ass.
PS I called my cable company to find out why we don't get this Classic Sports Netowrk
and they said they would only add it if enough people called. Let's keep calling...
Stephen Tiszenkel
there. Not just wrestling is "sports entertainment", y'know!
-Steve
Stephen Tiszenkel
Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. USA
kil...@nwu.edu
Reedcw
Leroy Gonzales, Lester Quirrels, etc?
David Pava
What else do they have?
Jeff Amdur
> Anyone remember Jim Trotter, Ronnie, Raines, Judy Arnold, Little Richard,
> Leroy Gonzales, Lester Quirrels, etc?
The two things I remember about Roller Derby (which for some strange
reason I never really marked out for) are:
1) Current Maryland indie referee Handsome Howard Goldman was a RD star
for the Baltimore Warcats or Catwars or whatever that team was called.
and
2) Wrestling's #1 all-time fan, Georgette Krieger (1899-1982), was also a
big fan of what she always called (in that cute little French accent of
hers) the "Rolling Derbies".
--
Jeff Amdur
Quality foreign language instruction since 1971 (Oy, gevalt! THAT long?!?)
Quality timekeeping for sports events since 1973
Doing all that stuff at Arundel High School in Gambrills, Md. since 1977
e-mail je...@clark.net or (VERY last resort) jia...@umd5.umd.edu
Paul Stacy
>> As I was satellite dish surfing this morning, I came across Roller Derby
>> on the Classic Sports channel. I hadn't seen roller derby in 10 years or
>> so. The match involved the L.A. Thunderbirds. I don't recall the name of
>> their opponent. The match, like wrestling, involved feuds, angles, heels
>> and faces. I would appreciate someone with some knowledge of roller derby
>> enlightening me as to the similarities between it and wrestling.Are
>> outcomes pre-determined? Is the action choreographed?
>overtimes involved an alligator pit!! I looooved it!!!
I remember that too. I always enjoyed it, especially the fights.
When a wrestler kicks someone, that's one thing...but with rollerskates
on? (:
--
Paul Stacy
sta...@scis.acast.nova.edu
Joseph Heffernan
Yea I remember watching Roller Derby in the NYC area in the mid-70's.I
believe the name of the local team was the Sky Chiefs.They used to play
mostly in the Commack
Arena(a renovated airplane hanger that also housed WWF cards),with
occasional trips into MSG.The Chiefs were always the "face" team,as most of
the local teams in the league were in their areas.
The play-by-play guy was a man by the name of Scott Howard who vaguely
resembled
Babbabooey from Howard Stern.Howard also worked in the 70's as heel manager
the
Great Scott for some NY indies(I remember him guesting on Jimmy Mack and
Jay Rosen's WHBI radio show.His heel mic work was pretty shabby,as he kept
on calling
the hosts and call-ins "you knucklehead".Later,Scott would later go on to
host "International Wrestling" ,an East Coast indie ran by Bruno Sammartino
(Bruno was in
between WWF mic gigs at the time).
There was also a Roller Derby team from Philadelphia (they played in the
Arena) that
was seen in the NYC area on ch.47.
JackStraw
>From: ree...@aol.com (Reedcw)
>Subject: Re: Roller Derby
>Date: 18 Apr 1996 08:24:09 -0400
>Anyone remember Jim Trotter, Ronnie, Raines, Judy Arnold, Little Richard,
>Leroy Gonzales, Lester Quirrels, etc?
Also, how about Charlie O'Connell, 'Peanuts' Meyers, and Joan Weston, of the
SF Bay Bombers? BTW, re:Lester Quirrels--wasn't there a black guy named
Dewitt Quarrels, or are they two different people?
Jackstraw
Peter Stein
In <4l6irs$a...@tribune.usask.ca> Christopher Lane Filbey <clf...@mail.usask.ca> writes:
>Sorry, I was sucked in by that Rollergames crap, and...who posted this,
>anyway? :)
I just had a thought. If you went to a roller-derby match before you went
to see wrestling, would the derby count as your first wrestling card? I
remember going to MSG for roller derby around '81-82. It was the World
Famous T-Birds vs. the Detroit Devils, and there had to be at least 15,000
people there. Fun stuff, because they had some real characters there. Was
Ralphy the old Mexican/Puerto Rican on the 'Birds? He was a blast...
--
Pete Stein, AKA Dark Patriot Dudley sch...@camelot.bradley.edu
"The world's coming to an end, and Peter still looks darn snappy!"
-Tom Servo, _It Conquered The World_
RMiller775
with Wahoo McDaniel, Jose Lothario, Nick Kozak, The Spoiler, Gary Hart
and, of course, Fritz Von Erich...followed by Roller Derby.
As a kid, I knew wrestling was choreographed but never really sure about
the Derby until about 1970 when the Derby tried to go nationwide. In the
championship game, Charlie O'Connell's New York Chiefs (the glamor team
for the national league) were trailing in the last minute when a jammer
fell down allowing the Mideast Jolters to take control. The Jolter jammer
immediately called off the jam and reached down to pick up the fallen
Chief.
In wrestling terms, this is your major kayfabe violation.
No wonder it came on after wrestling.
FrankA9007
When a wrestler kicks someone, that's one thing...but with rollerskates
on? >>
hell yea....i used to watch the roller derby in philadelphia....that and
the wrestling shows.....nothing much different really, ya pitch a guy over
the top rope or over the boards and off the track.....same manager fights,
same shtick....still fun
okay, we're off-topic, but....:-)
FrankA9007
they two different people? >>
there definitely was a lester quarrels (with an "a")....dewitt? don't
remember
best part about rd was the coed bit.....guys did a turn, then the ladies
teams (once each each half or some such).....and oh the bench-clearing
brawls! :-)
DrFrankn1
(match?) where if it went into overtime it would be played one-on-one over
a gator pit. Anybody else remember this?
Craig Warner
> (match?) where if it went into overtime it would be played one-on-one over
> a gator pit. Anybody else remember this?
>
>
Actually, that was called Roller Games. I use to watch it all the time
and loved it!!!!!
Craig D. Warner--Thank God I'm Me!!
Quote Of The Week!
------------------
"Tough Moooonnnkeeeeyyyyy!!!!!"
-Billy Packer (sp?)
*I thought that this one fit with the NCAA tourney and all!*
Stephen M. Strange
through my head.
"Rock, Rock, Rock & Rollergames....."
This show kicked ass....
Ms. Georgia Haas (sp?) was the "heel" manager, kind of a Jim
Cornette. They also had another heel manager kind of like the Grand
Wizard. I also remember the 60 some year old super face on the T-Birds.
They would have music acts during the intermission like Kool Moe Dee or
Tiffany. Back home in Seattle, this show came on late Saturday nights in
the middle of a block of wrestling including WWF Superstars, Glow, UWF,
Pro Wrestling This Week, POWW, and the classic (as opposed to today's
dispicable) NWA Worldwide wrestling.
<sigh>
Steve.
Ergosic
>Richard,
>Leroy Gonzales, Lester Quirrels, etc?
Yup! All from the Philadelphia team. I ran into Jim Trotter when I was in
college. I was delivering pizzas. He worked at a bus repair station in
Philly. Always ordered a pizza with extra anchovies.
CWM7128
James
Ronnie Rains skated for the N.Y. Bombers and then the L.A.
Thunderbirds. Leroy Gonzales skated for the Detroit Devils.
Lester Quarles managed the Texas Outlaws. Just to keep the
record straight....
Richard Sheir
Phil Ochs classic!
Bay Area Bombers fan,
--
Richard
Recourse
Strange) writes:
>Back home in Seattle, this show came on late Saturday nights in
>the middle of a block of wrestling including WWF Superstars, Glow, UWF,
>Pro Wrestling This Week, POWW, and the classic (as opposed to today's
>dispicable) NWA Worldwide wrestling.
> <sigh>
We used to have something like that here too. Really makes you miss the
late 80's and 1990 in wrestling entertainment.
LQ
"Why walk around dead when you can be buried for twenty dollars?"
Precious Paul Ellering
James
Joanie did rule. i was living in chicago after the
expansion draft and she, Gil Orozco and ronnie robinson
headed up the Midwest Pioneers. But tell me, who is Phil
Ochs. I thought Walt Harris did all of the Bombers' play by
Play from "Kezar Pavilion in Golden Gate Park in the City
of San Fansico".
Richard Sheir
: rsh...@freenet.columbus.oh.us (Richard Sheir) wrote:
: >JOANIE WESTON RULED(S)!!!! If you have to ask who she was, listen to the
: >Phil Ochs classic!
: >
: >Bay Area Bombers fan,
: Joanie did rule. i was living in chicago after the
: expansion draft and she, Gil Orozco and ronnie robinson
: headed up the Midwest Pioneers. But tell me, who is Phil
: Ochs. I thought Walt Harris did all of the Bombers' play by
: Play from "Kezar Pavilion in Golden Gate Park in the City
: of San Fansico".
Phil Ochs was a noted folk singer of the sixties who recorded a roller
derby minor hit in the seventies. The song was a left handed tribute to
Joanie Weston, the queen of roller derby.
--
Richard
Rob E 15
>"Rock, Rock, Rock & Rollergames....."
Yes!!!!! This was one of those shows that you never missed and never
talked about. My favorite part of the show was the huge wall that the
skaters went up only to build enough momentum to jump an 18" ramp. Liz
Ard (green hair and all) should have been in the WWF. I even bought one
of the few editions of Rollergames Magazine. Talk about a mark!
As always I am EXTREMEly Rob E
Joey Styles in 96!!!!! Joey Styles in 96!!!!!
"Shawn Michaels turns to me and says 'Hey, I got a couple vertebrae out.
You mind puttin' em in with that chair?' He turns his back, I whack him,
and all of a sudden I'm the bad guy."
- WWF wrestler Diesel
David Taub
<cwa...@wcnet.org>' wrote:
>Actually, that was called Roller Games. I use to watch it all the time
>and loved it!!!!!
goofy-looking, I thought he was just a joke (life Brother Love). I was so
shocked to find out he actually had a right-wing/extremist talk show.
BTW, George is the father of actress Rebecca DeMorney (as if any of you
care).
--
David Taub
Los Altos, CA
zorga...@usa.pipeline.com
(Stephen M. Strange)' wrote:
>Ms. Georgia Haas (sp?) was the "heel" manager, kind of a Jim
>Cornette.
Bob Grevis
CWM7128 wrote:
>
> Do they have roller derby anymore? I miss it
They do! On a new cable channel called Classic Sports Network. Apparently the only way
to get it is to call your cable company!
Ergosic
: Joanie did rule. i was living in chicago after the
: expansion draft and she, Gil Orozco and ronnie robinson
: headed up the Midwest Pioneers. But tell me, who is Phil
: Ochs. I thought Walt Harris did all of the Bombers' play by
: Play from "Kezar Pavilion in Golden Gate Park in the City
: of San Fansico".
Phil Ochs was a cooler, more political version of Bob Dylan (if that is
possible). Nowadays, Phil is a not-so-famous dead guy.
JackStraw
>: >JOANIE WESTON RULED(S)!!!! If you have to ask who she was, listen to the
>: >Phil Ochs classic!
>: Joanie did rule. i was living in chicago after the
>: expansion draft and she, Gil Orozco and ronnie robinson
>: headed up the Midwest Pioneers. But tell me, who is Phil
>: Ochs
>Phil Ochs was a noted folk singer of the sixties who recorded a roller
>derby minor hit in the seventies. The song was a left handed tribute to
>Joanie Weston, the queen of roller derby.
>--
>Richard
Also, though we stray far from the topic of 'rasslin, leave us not forget Jim
Croce, who penned a more generic tribute to Roller Derby (Roller Derby Queen
..."the meanest hunk of woman that anybody's ever seen, down in the arena")
JackStraw
Tom George
I used to watch the Roller Derby and the Roller Games when I was a
kid. Also the attempted revival as Rock 'n' Roller Games a few years
ago. I liked the Roller Games because there were feuds and story
lines just like in pro wrestling.
Nobody mentioned one of my favorites: Earlene Brown (sp?), #747 for
the LA T-Birds.
There was once a really neat angle where Ronnie Rains did a face turn
and became a T-Bird.
Here is a true test to see if you are a true Roller Derby fanatic: Did
you watch the movie "Kansas City Bomber" *more than once*?
** Tom George MS 120 (214)519-3168 tge...@spdmail.spd.dsccc.com **
** DSC Communications Corporation; 1000 Coit Rd, MS 120; Plano TX 75075 **
I actively disclaim speaking for DSC Communications Corporation. I do not
purport to advertise or represent its position, operations, or activities.
Le Metropolitain
David Taub wrote:
>On Apr 21, 1996 21:35:21 in article <Re: Roller Derby>, 'Craig Warner
><cwa...@wcnet.org>' wrote:
>
>
>>Actually, that was called Roller Games. I use to watch it all the time
>>and loved it!!!!!
>
>I remember Wally George doing a half-time commentary. This guy was so
>goofy-looking, I thought he was just a joke (life Brother Love). I was so
>shocked to find out he actually had a right-wing/extremist talk show.
>
Wally George also has a small part in the movie Body Slam. This gem starred
Dirk Benedict (of The A-Team), Roddy Piper and Sam Fatu. There were some very
funny bits with Captain Lou and the Samoans as well as tiny cameos by Flair,
Blassie, Sheik Adnan, and Sammartino.
Francesca
Joseph Heffernan
Subject:A Parody was Re:
Note:Remember,the following is false,fake,untrue.I wouldn't want any little
Hulkamaniacs out
there to break down and cry.
VPI(Vince Press International) April 26-Turner Broadcasting System
announced yesterday major
changes in it's schedule.Among the new shows will a revival of the '80s
cult TV classic "Roller
Games",which will replace the network's now-canceled wrestling programming
on Saturday and Sunday nights."Frankly,we've really been out of the
rasslin' business for a couple of years now.",admitted
Turner at a press conference during the first tapings at Atlanta's Center
Stage last night,"Judging by a resurgence of interest in various areas
including the internet,it's high time to give roller derby another
shot".Newly appointed vice president of WCS(World Championship Skating)
Verne Gagne added "I
knew the 'team' concept would make a comeback!Our announcers are Gene
Okerland and Bobby
Heenan,whose voices are more suited for roller derby anyway."
To cut down on costs,all the ex-wrestlers under contractual obligations
to Turner will be used as
skaters.One such player,going by the name of "Terry the Hulk",received
multiple injuries including
two broken legs during last nights game."I don't know why why everyone
including my own teammates
jumped and beat me up" he said while also complaining about contract
stipulations that call for him
to only make minimun wage during skating appearances."I don't know what
that big klutz is bitchin'
about,the way his legs fell down on those skates looked like his old
wrestling finisher anyway.At least
he hasn't had to stoop down to the level I have",whined Eric,an ex
executive and announcer turned
towel boy.Terry's team of the Maniacs(a bunch of egomaniacs who actually
don't know how to skate)
are scheduled to go up against the Poffos,a lingerie wearing group of guys
including a fat old man
clad only in a bra and panties nicknamed "Daddydust".The two teams will
meet in an October pay
per view entitled "Halloween Hardwood".New rules have been made to replace
the alligators from the
old show including a hot coffee pit and two women throwing high heel shoes
onto the skating track.
Other teams include Team Natureboy,consisting of one guy and several
ex-girlfriends of other players.
The guy also plays for Team Horsemen,a mysterious troupe that is never
seen.
Two other new programs were also announced at the press conference.One
will be a new version of
GLOW on TNT,Monday nights at 9PM."I want female wrestling to be taken
seriously" said GLOW star Medusa,wearing a see-through top exposing her
nipples and dental floss for a thong.Old episodes of
"Hulk Hogan's Rock-n-Roll Wrestling" cartoon show will be seen in place of
TBS Saturday morning
wrestling,even though executives admitted not seeing any difference after
viewing both shows.
-VKM
No mentally challenged marks were harmed in the making of this spoof.
Rob E 15
In article <722.6689...@io.org>, lem...@io.org (Le Metropolitain)
writes:
>Wally George also has a small part in the movie Body Slam. This gem
starred
>Dirk Benedict (of The A-Team), Roddy Piper and Sam Fatu. There were some
>very
>funny bits with Captain Lou and the Samoans as well as tiny cameos by
Flair,
>Blassie, Sheik Adnan, and Sammartino.
>
>
You forgot about the Barbarian!!!! Trivia question: What
twenty-something TV actress played Piper's daughter in Body Slam?
David Taub
I remember one year they had an "All-star" game (members of the heel teams
vs. members of the face teams). I think Mr. Mean got so high on the
figure-8, he went over the ramp and "broke his leg."
What were the teams? Violators, Rockers, T-Birds.....?
DAVE CONLEY
Hi, Tom.
Yeah, I've seen it three times. Remember when it came out and the weekly
derby telecasts were pushing it? And that started a whole angle with, I
think, the Texas Outlaws' Terry Toledo (aka Torpedo) going Hollywood
because she was an extra in the flick--which created hard feelings with
the T-Birds big blonde, Sherry Jakowski, supposedly a Hollywood actress
before she returned to her roots (dark) as a roller queen.
My faves were Ronnie Raines (especially after the face turn, because he
remained such a bastard for the opposition), Greg Robertson and yes,
ol' 747 herself. It was also funny to watch John Hall come back over and
over, like some four-wheeled El Cid, only to have the Bombers' villains
beat the crap out of him. Headfirst into the penalty box!
Michael Rogers
Could anyone who has any of the old Thunderbirds shows on tape please
e-mail me.
Thanks,
-Mike Rogers-
Jihad
Mike Beeby
Are the Roller games still going??????? I loved them when they were on
tv. The last thing I remember hearing about was "The Living
Legend" Ralphie Valadares, and that he was going to skate two on one
against Guru Drew and that other manager, and if Ralphie lost he'd retire.
I also remember the same week that Liz Ard and the other main guy for the
Maniacs were going to do a face turn to the T-Birds. The next week they
started showing repeats, and then they disapeared all together. If that
matchup and/or anything else happened in Rollergames since, please let me
know!!! Especially if they are still going. Are there any sites on the
net that have to do with them. Please contact me if anyone knows any
continuing storylines.
Mike
"Rock, Rock 'en Rollergames!!!"
Joe Malecki
David Taub (zorga...@usa.pipeline.com) wrote:
: I remember one year they had an "All-star" game (members of the heel teams
: vs. members of the face teams). I think Mr. Mean got so high on the
: figure-8, he went over the ramp and "broke his leg."
: What were the teams? Violators, Rockers, T-Birds.....?
Mr. Mean ruled!!!!!! The violators were the coolest , some other teams
were Bad Attitude , and Hot Flash there was also another team but I
forgot who? Remember the halftime show , with that goof? One time he was
saying that the Rockers CD played backwards said "Give us your parents
money" It was a great show .
:
: --
:
: David Taub
: Los Altos, CA
--
Mike Malecki!
Sooo Thirsty!.....eh whatta ya gonna do!
I do what I can!
Mr. Opus
Joe Malecki (ae...@freenet.hamilton.on.ca) wrote:
: David Taub (zorga...@usa.pipeline.com) wrote:
: : I remember one year they had an "All-star" game (members of the heel teams
: : vs. members of the face teams). I think Mr. Mean got so high on the
: : figure-8, he went over the ramp and "broke his leg."
: : What were the teams? Violators, Rockers, T-Birds.....?
: Mr. Mean ruled!!!!!! The violators were the coolest , some other teams
: were Bad Attitude , and Hot Flash there was also another team but I
: forgot who? Remember the halftime show , with that goof? One time he was
: saying that the Rockers CD played backwards said "Give us your parents
: money" It was a great show .
I think the six teams were
T- Birds
Rockers
Hot Flash
Maniacs
Violators
Bad Attitude
The first three teams were the face teams, the others were the heel
teams. It would be fun to have come back on
enough of my babbling though...
RMiller775
Rollergames was the Los Angeles derby group's attempt to pull a McMahon
and cash in via syndication.
Unfortunately for them, it didn't work.
The show was a comeback attempt for Chet Forte, who had been a bigtime
sports director with ABC before he threw it all away with a gambling
addiction.
Unfortunately for him, it didn't work.
war...@nando.net
ae...@freenet.hamilton.on.ca (Joe Malecki) wrote:
>David Taub (zorga...@usa.pipeline.com) wrote:
>: I remember one year they had an "All-star" game (members of the heel teams
>: vs. members of the face teams). I think Mr. Mean got so high on the
>: figure-8, he went over the ramp and "broke his leg."
>: What were the teams? Violators, Rockers, T-Birds.....?
>Mr. Mean ruled!!!!!! The violators were the coolest , some other teams
>were Bad Attitude , and Hot Flash there was also another team but I
>forgot who? Remember the halftime show , with that goof? One time he was
>saying that the Rockers CD played backwards said "Give us your parents
>money" It was a great show .
I remember watching Roller Derby in its heyday, and I liked it more
than wrestling, because it was more of the hokieness and bullshit I
enjoy so much.
For instance, the manager of Bad Attitude was this cranky old lady
named Georgia Haas. She gave one member of her team, Randi Whitman,
absolute HELL because she used to be with the ultimate good guy team,
The T-BRIDS!!! Haas would always loan Whitman out to whatever team was
going against the T-Birds so she'd constantly have to oppose her old
teammates.
It got so hokey, this was a classic moment in kayfabe. Georgia was
standing aside, brooding and doing her evil planning, when a
cameraman did a close-up of here. SHe turned towards him, gave him a
cross look, and started shaking her finger at him, saying "Get that
camera out of my face or I will string you up by your entrails etc
etc etc" THE CAMERA STARTED SHAKING!!!! LIKE HE WAS SCARED TO
DEATH!!!! *GOD* *I* *LOVE* *ROLLERDERBY* !!!!!!
.
SNORT
"Easy my ass, why don't you dweebs go out and get a drink and lighten up."
---Howard Stern, after stumbling into
Prodigy's Recovering Alcoholics room.
Craig Warner
Chet Forte can now be heard on XTRA sports 690-AM radio in Southern Cali.
Craig D. Warner--Thank God I'm Me!!
Quote of The Week!
-------------------
"...I'm ELECTRIC!! And, if you touch
me you'll get SHOCKED!!!"
-Puck
Roger Marcus
I would appreciate it if someone corrected my facts, but this is the best
of my recollections.
Roller Derby as I remember it had a huge heyday back in the early 70's.
At the time, the Seltzer family owned one of the leagues, and based the
"home" team out of San Francisco, as the Bay Bombers. Heel teams were
the Braves, the Pioneers and the Cardinals. Charlie O'Connel and Joanie
Weston were the main faces for SF. After a while, they tried expanding
regionally, and cities like Chicago had "home" teams, like the Midwest
Pioneers with Ronnie "The son of Sugar Ray" Robinson, Tony Roman and Nick
Scopus, along with Joanie Weston. The New York Cheifs were another face
team, with (I think) Sandy Dunn and Bill Groh, Charlie O and Mike
Gammon. Cliff Butler and Ann Cavelo led the Jolters, who were also a
face team, but I'm not sure what their home base was. Heel teams were
the Red Devils with Bob Woodbury, the SF Bay Bombers with Bob Hein.
At this time, the Griffin family was running a Roller Game league out of
LA, with the T-Birds as the face team. Ralph Valaderez, Terry Lynch,
Danny Reiley (who eventually turned heel) and some big oaf named John
Johnson were the main stars. They played teams like the New York Bombers,
with Ron "Psycho" Rains, who was a terrific heel, and Judy Sowinsky.
Other heel teams were the Texas Outlaws with Lester Quarrels, the
Northern Hawks with John Parker, and the Detroit Devils with Leroy
Gonzolez.
I'm not real clear about this, but I think there was another organization
out of Philadelphia, with teams like the Warriors with Buddy Atkinson, Jr.
and Judy Arnold, and the Baltimore Cats with Jim Trodder.
At some point around 1973, I think, the Griffin family must have bought
out the Seltzers, because they started "interleague" play. At one point,
the T-Birds played the Pioneers at Comiskey Park in Chicago, and they
drew something like 51,000 fans. However, instead of maintaining a lot
of different regional teams, they tried to make the T-Birds the big
national team. I remember when the T-Birds played the Bombers, and the
story line was how Ralph Valaderez was going to score 50 points against
the great Charlie O'Connel. After what struck me as some serious
shooting by O'Connel, the Bombers skated around the aging Valaderez and
he scored his points. I remember both Charlie O and Tony Roman
disappearing after that fiasco, although they returned breifly as members
of the Thunderbirds, along with Ronnie Robinson and Danny Reilley. These
were like big all-star games, but eventually the league cut down to 3
teams, the Warriors, the T Birds and the Cheifs. Not sure what happened
after that, but Griffin and company really seem to have screwed things up.
If anyone could fill in the gaps on this era, I would appreciate it.
-
ROGER MARCUS TAB...@prodigy.com
"Let that boy boogie-woogie. Its in him,
and it got to come out" - John Lee Hooker
swe...@wrestling.microserve.com
> I would appreciate it if someone corrected my facts, but this is the best
> of my recollections.
>
> Roller Derby as I remember it had a huge heyday back in the early 70's.
> At the time, the Seltzer family owned one of the leagues, and based the
> "home" team out of San Francisco, as the Bay Bombers. Heel teams were
> the Braves, the Pioneers and the Cardinals. Charlie O'Connel and Joanie
> Weston were the main faces for SF. After a while, they tried expanding
> regionally, and cities like Chicago had "home" teams, like the Midwest
> Pioneers with Ronnie "The son of Sugar Ray" Robinson, Tony Roman and Nick
> Scopus, along with Joanie Weston. The New York Cheifs were another face
> team, with (I think) Sandy Dunn and Bill Groh, Charlie O and Mike
> Gammon. Cliff Butler and Ann Cavelo led the Jolters, who were also a
> face team, but I'm not sure what their home base was. Heel teams were
> the Red Devils with Bob Woodbury, the SF Bay Bombers with Bob Hein.
>
We used to get a syndicated version of the Bay Bombers here. I always got a
kick out of Charlie O's voice, it was high and squeaky like Tyson's, it always
seemed funny to hear the big, bad Charlie O. The teams were faces at home and
heels on the road. This was before the days of cable and most fans never knew
this. If I remember, the faces were "blues" and the heels "reds."
We got a two hour program every Saturday night out of Philly that showed the
whole match except those wonderful halftime match races. This was before TBS
was available on local cable.
> At this time, the Griffin family was running a Roller Game league out of
> LA, with the T-Birds as the face team. Ralph Valaderez, Terry Lynch,
> Danny Reiley (who eventually turned heel) and some big oaf named John
> Johnson were the main stars. They played teams like the New York Bombers,
> with Ron "Psycho" Rains, who was a terrific heel, and Judy Sowinsky.
> Other heel teams were the Texas Outlaws with Lester Quarrels, the
> Northern Hawks with John Parker, and the Detroit Devils with Leroy
> Gonzolez.
>
> I'm not real clear about this, but I think there was another organization
> out of Philadelphia, with teams like the Warriors with Buddy Atkinson, Jr.
> and Judy Arnold, and the Baltimore Cats with Jim Trodder.
The Warrior's league was a bit more "gritty." And it was Trotter. Used to go
seem them every week at the Farm Show Building in Harrisburg and I believe it
was Central Catholic in Allentown where they had to pad the bottom of the
basketball backboards on the turns.
I was told one of the major reasons for the folding of the derby was the huge
increases in fuel prices killed the promotions by driving overhead up to a
point that it was no longer feasible to run the shows.
>
> If anyone could fill in the gaps on this era, I would appreciate it.
Bob Raskin tried to bring it back a few years ago with a few shows including
one at Heshey Park Arena. It drew around 4,000. He used some of the old names
but the "pack" talent wasn't up to the task. I don't think the second show
there drew nearly as well.
And I believe Jeff Admur should ask a mutual aquaintance of ours some questions
about the Baltimore team that his buddy skated on. Hi Jeff.
A couple of trivia notes, I remember Gary Hart as the manager of the Texas
Outlaws and I believe Meltzer started out with a roller derby sheet or at least
a hybrid that covered the derby and wrestling.
> -
> ROGER MARCUS TAB...@prodigy.com
> "Let that boy boogie-woogie. Its in him,
> and it got to come out" - John Lee Hooker
----
EZ
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to the cutting edge of de-evolution.
Duh Net!
James
TAB...@prodigy.com (Roger Marcus) wrote:
>I would appreciate it if someone corrected my facts, but this is the best
>of my recollections.
>
>Roller Derby as I remember it had a huge heyday back in the early 70's.
>At the time, the Seltzer family owned one of the leagues, and based the
>"home" team out of San Francisco, as the Bay Bombers. Heel teams were
>the Braves, the Pioneers and the Cardinals. Charlie O'Connel and Joanie
>Weston were the main faces for SF. After a while, they tried expanding
>regionally, and cities like Chicago had "home" teams, like the Midwest
>Pioneers with Ronnie "The son of Sugar Ray" Robinson, Tony Roman and Nick
>Scopus, along with Joanie Weston. The New York Cheifs were another face
>team, with (I think) Sandy Dunn and Bill Groh, Charlie O and Mike
>Gammon. Cliff Butler and Ann Cavelo led the Jolters, who were also a
>face team, but I'm not sure what their home base was. Heel teams were
>the Red Devils with Bob Woodbury, the SF Bay Bombers with Bob Hein.
>
>LA, with the T-Birds as the face team. Ralph Valaderez, Terry Lynch,
>Danny Reiley (who eventually turned heel) and some big oaf named John
>Johnson were the main stars. They played teams like the New York Bombers,
> with Ron "Psycho" Rains, who was a terrific heel, and Judy Sowinsky.
>Other heel teams were the Texas Outlaws with Lester Quarrels, the
>Northern Hawks with John Parker, and the Detroit Devils with Leroy
>Gonzolez.
>
>I'm not real clear about this, but I think there was another organization
>out of Philadelphia, with teams like the Warriors with Buddy Atkinson, Jr.
> and Judy Arnold, and the Baltimore Cats with Jim Trodder.
>
>out the Seltzers, because they started "interleague" play. At one point,
> the T-Birds played the Pioneers at Comiskey Park in Chicago, and they
>drew something like 51,000 fans. However, instead of maintaining a lot
>of different regional teams, they tried to make the T-Birds the big
>national team. I remember when the T-Birds played the Bombers, and the
>story line was how Ralph Valaderez was going to score 50 points against
>the great Charlie O'Connel. After what struck me as some serious
>shooting by O'Connel, the Bombers skated around the aging Valaderez and
>he scored his points. I remember both Charlie O and Tony Roman
>disappearing after that fiasco, although they returned breifly as members
>of the Thunderbirds, along with Ronnie Robinson and Danny Reilley. These
>were like big all-star games, but eventually the league cut down to 3
>teams, the Warriors, the T Birds and the Cheifs. Not sure what happened
>after that, but Griffin and company really seem to have screwed things up.
>
>
> ROGER MARCUS TAB...@prodigy.com
> "Let that boy boogie-woogie. Its in him,
> and it got to come out" - John Lee Hooker
>
>
>
Most of what you've posted here is true however I think an
important distinction needs to be made:
Roller Derby (Seltzer owned) and Roller Games (Griffiths
owned) were radically different in terms of their
approaches to the sport. While Roller Derby engaged in some
of the theatrics that could be found in Roller Games, NONE
of the games were predetermined in terms of outcome. Rarely
were the final socres higher than 35-40 points for the
winning team. In an interview the question was posed to the
great Joanie Weston as to whether or not Roller Derby was
real. Her answer was possibly the best that could've been
given . She simply answered" I'm not going to sit here
barefaced and tell you it's all completely for
real(alluding to some of the chracters and showmanship).
But as far as fixing games goes, it's never happened.And
for that reason alone I never want to hear anyone say
anything against the game itself." I personally attended
several Pioneers games in Chicago and can attest to the
fact the outcomes weren't predetermined - most of the times
I went the home town Pioneers actually lost.
Contrasted with the Roller Games approach, the two leagues
almost seemed like different sports. Roller Games actually
had Dick Lane read (very, very quickly) a statement at the
beginning of all Thunderbird broadcasts that said verbatim
"while not an athletic contest, Roller Games is a dramatic
exhibition of bank tracked Roller Skating." You had to
listen very, very closely to make this out because Lane
read it at warp speed, but the statement essentially made
no claims to authentic athletic competition. Scores were
routinely in the hundreds and the games were littered with
bad acting and obvious set ups. The skating talent was
excellent however and the story lines were pretty good.
for any serious Roller Derby fan however, the worst time in
the history of the IRDL was Bill Griffith's purchase of the
league. It killed a product that serious skating fans
enjoyed and destroyed any legitmacy the sport had.
Sorry to litter RSPW with this unrelated topic, but I have
great memories of Roller Derby and unfortunately, there is
no group available to wax nostalgic about the good old days
James Allison
DAVID M. PARRY
The Philadelphia Franchise in the Roller Games (not the other league
called Roller Derby) had Buddy Adkinson, Little Richard Brown, later Jim
Trotter. They would do a series with heel team (often the Texas
Outlaws). The main event would be in the Old Philadephia Arena (44th
and Market STS) and later in the Spectrum. They ran spot shows in the
surrounding area during each series, usually in high school gymns. I
remember seeing them at Central Catholic High School in Allentown Pa in
1973. The track was too big for the basketball court so the baskets
were actually over the track at both ends. They did put up some extra
padding, but the skaters could not have been happy that they could
easily have banged their heads on the side of the backboard. The "game"
was pretty much pro-wrestling on wheels, with little attempt to give the
semblance of an athletic contest. Roller Derby was played much
straighter.
You could see why neither sport survived, though. The overhead for a
show must have been tremendous. Travel and lodging for two teams, which
had both a male and a female team, the expense of hauling the track
around, repairing it, setting it up etc means it would have to have a
much bigger gate to break even than an independent wrestling show.
Also, you would have to keep a team together - which means you'd have to
find work for them as a team - no 1 night fly-ins. Their only chance
would have been cable. Unfortunately, part of the original appeal was
that each area had a home team that actually played in the area. The
experiment with the T-Birds on ESPN failed for that reason. So far,
nobody has figured out how to bring it back. A shame, really
James Fabiano
rob...@aol.com (Rob E 15) writes:
>In article <722.6689...@io.org>, lem...@io.org (Le Metropolitain)
>writes:
>>Wally George also has a small part in the movie Body Slam. This gem
>starred
>>Dirk Benedict (of The A-Team), Roddy Piper and Sam Fatu. There were some
>>very
>>funny bits with Captain Lou and the Samoans as well as tiny cameos by
>Flair,
>>Blassie, Sheik Adnan, and Sammartino.
>>
>>
>You forgot about the Barbarian!!!! Trivia question: What
>twenty-something TV actress played Piper's daughter in Body Slam?
Kellie Martin, formerly the sister on "Life Goes On" as well as Christy
from the TV show of the same name, played Missy Roberts, who was the niece
(Not daughter) of "Quick" Rick Roberts, the character played by Roddy Piper.
Lyger
Actually, while your comments on overhead costs, etc, make a lot of sense,
Roller Derby suffers from the same malady that wrestling suffers:
incompetent, unscrupulous promoters. I know several people who have
involved themselves in various resurgences of Roller Derby, and they told
me tales of embezzlement of sponsorship funds, exploitation of players,
etc, that would leave your jaw on the floor!
DAVID M. PARRY
I wouldn't be surprised about that. But wrestling still survives while
roller derby does not. If the people involved in the promotion of both
wrestling and rollerderby are as equally corrupt and incompetent as you
assert, the question remains as to why one survives and the other does
not. Just look at the cost difference between booking an indy spot show
as opposed to roller derby. The wrestlers are already out there working
and can afford to do a spot show cheap. Even if you were 100% clean and
legit, you couldn't bring back roller derby foranywhere near the figure
it would take to run an indy show. You'd need real big money up front
and even then your chances of making it fly would be quite low. You'd
need to establish eight franchises, etc. It'd be as tough as starting a
new soccer or basketball league. There are other demographic changes
which suggest that the audience would be much smaller and poorer than it
was in 1973 as well. Some businesses just become impossible to maintain
for larger reasons than the personal virtues or vices of those involved.
You would expect that someone who really understood that but got a few
investors or sponsors would take steps to pursue their personal short
term economic interests rather than the long term interests of the
business.
All the best, DMP
Roger Marcus
DAVID M. PARRY <DM...@psuvm.psu.edu> wrote:
>
>The Philadelphia Franchise in the Roller Games (not the other league
>called Roller Derby) had Buddy Adkinson, Little Richard Brown, later
Jim
>Trotter. They would do a series with heel team (often the Texas
>Outlaws). The main event would be in the Old Philadephia Arena (44th
>and Market STS) and later in the Spectrum. They ran spot shows in the
>surrounding area during each series, usually in high school gymns.
I forgot all about Little Richard Brown! When they first combined Roller
Games and Roller Derby, they tried to pass off Little Richard Brown as
the equivalent of Mike Gammon, AKA "The Fastest Man on Skates". He was a
pretty damn good skater, I must say. I also recall that what looked
like a revival of the old Seltzer league appeared on Chicago TV in what I
think was the early 80's, with Richard Brown, Mike Gammon and Bill Groh
on the hometown Bombers, along with Joanie Weston. Heel teams had a
smattering of old players. I remember the Pioneers had Nick Scopus as
the infield coach, with Bill Hill and Jo Jo Stafford on the squad. I
also remember seeing the ageless Ann Cavelo skating in these games, and
she must have been in her late 50's or early 60's! Pretty amazing.
It really did strike me that the main difference between Roller Games and
Roller Derby was the quality of action in the Derby league was much more
athletic, and the Roller Game league was much more dependent on the story
line.
Are there any books on the subject? Whatever happened to folks like
Charlie O'Connel, Tony Roman, Bob Woodbury, Ronnie Robinson, etc?
Lyger
Yes, Dave, costs are high. But one of the recent revivals had some very
good sponsorship money and surprisingly good attendance, so the promoter's
personal overhead was minute.
Roger Marcus
Any insight as to how two seperate leagues got started? I thought the
Roller Derby league was a direct descendent of the original cross-
continental Roller Derby marathon tortures started by the Seltzer family
back in the depression. I was also under the impression that the sport
was big in the 1950's, and along with wrestling, became one of those
worked quasi-sports.
I don't get how the Griffith family, responsible for that LA T-Bird stuff,
got involved or started. I do know that once they took over, that
spelled curtains for the Derby.
Lyger
Though I don't know too much about it, Bill Griffith was involved with the
Northern California league while Ralphie Valladeres was one of the head
honchos of the Southern Calif. T-Birds circuit. T-Birds drew crowds like
wildfire back then.
At some point, Griffith carried the ball in the T-Birds circuit, and
apparently that's when things began to fall apart. Griffith is known for
being a CHEAP payoff man and expects the world to bow down to him. Not a
popular guy in the biz!
Michael Rogers
I am really enjoying the Roller Derby on Classic Sports. I would think
that if it were updated a bit, using in-line skates, ECW-style music
and better camera work then they used in the 70's that roller derby
would be a hit.
-Mike Rogers-
Jihad
Michael Rogers
In <4mvsf7$24...@usenetp1.news.prodigy.com> TAB...@prodigy.com (Roger
I remember watching both the Roller Games show that featured The LA
Thunderbirds and another show that featured The Pioneers. The Pioneers
came to my home town once and took on Riley's Renegades. Riley had
originally worked for the other outfit.
-Mike Rogers-
Jihad
RMiller775
The only Roller Derby book I've ever found is Frank Deford's Five Strides
on the Banked Track, a look at the Derby in the mid-'60s.
Roger Marcus
Is that right? When you say Northern California league, I'm assuming
that you are talking about the Roller Derby League featuring the San
Francisco Bay Bombers. I'm suprized that the Seltzer family would have
been dealing with Griffith, but I guess the Roller Games people had to
get experience from somewhere.
I'll bet even though Griffith screwed things up royally and pretty much
single-handedly sunk Roller Derby as we knew it, he made out like a
bandit. Does anyone know if this guy is still around?
Another question I was curious about. In the days of visiting teams,
what did the players on the visiting team do when they weren't playing
the face team? For instance, both the Bombers and T-Birds were involved
in pretty much all the games, but there was a rotation of around 3 or 4
heel teams per league that rotated in 3 week shifts against the face team
on the circuit.
Lyger
Yes, Griffith made out like a bandit on several occasions! Eventually, his
efforts bottomed out.
Don't know the scoop (or if there is any) about Griffith & Setzers. I
believe Griffith was up north in the 70s and headed south early in the
80s. At one point he either owned or managed the Olympic Auditorium.
James
TAB...@prodigy.com (Roger Marcus) wrote:
>ly...@aol.com (Lyger) wrote:
>>
>>Though I don't know too much about it, Bill Griffith was involved with
>the
>>Northern California league while Ralphie Valladeres was one of the head
>>honchos of the Southern Calif. T-Birds circuit. T-Birds drew crowds
>like
>>wildfire back then.
Bill Griffiths and Ralphie Valladares were always involved
in the same organization. Valladares skated for Griffiths
T-Birds who were based in Los Angeles. It was the Seltzer
family that ran the IRDL promotion out of San Francisco.
>
>Another question I was curious about. In the days of visiting teams,
>what did the players on the visiting team do when they weren't playing
>the face team? For instance, both the Bombers and T-Birds were involved
>in pretty much all the games, but there was a rotation of around 3 or 4
>heel teams per league that rotated in 3 week shifts against the face team
>on the circuit.
>-
> ROGER MARCUS TAB...@prodigy.com
> "Let that boy boogie-woogie. Its in him,
> and it got to come out" - John Lee Hooker
>
>
>
It may have seemed like the Bombers (IRDL - Seltzer group)
and the T-Birds (Roller Games - Griffiths group, and a joke
by the way) were involved in all of the games but that just
depended on where in the country you lived and what games
you received on television. At one point in time, Roller
Games had home (or face if you prefer) teams in Los Angeles
(T-Birds), Cleveland (Bucks), Philadelphia (Warriors) and
Baltimore (Cats). The Philly and Baltimore tams eventually
merged to form the War-Cats, but at any rate the heel teams
would be skating in any of the home team cities at any
given time. Because the Roller Games network was
regionalized however, people in Chicago and parts west only
received T-Birds braodcasts. People in cleveland only
received Bucks broadcasts etc. And because Griffiths never
scheduled home teams against eachother, T-birds fans never
saw and rarely even heard mention of the Cats, Bucks or
warriors.
IRDL was organized a little more sensibly. Even though
there were heel teams that only skated against home teams,
at one time the IRDL had home teams in San Francisco
(Bombers), Chicago (Pioneers), Cleveland (Jolters) and New
York ( Chiefs). In addition to these teams skating against
the heel teams, they also skated against eachother, so any
fan of IRDL got to see ALL of the teams in the league.
The Seltzer family really had a good thing going. It's a
shame they couldn't afford to keep going and had to sell
out to Griffiths. That was the end of Roller Derby as I
knew it.
Roger Marcus
Chuck Simalchik <cjsi...@rs01.kings.edu> wrote:
>> Was roller derby a total work like wrestling is? I say yes, but it
seems
>to have been covered up better than wrestling is.
The consensus around here seems to be that the IRDL, AKA the San
Francisco League run by the Seltzer family, was at least more of a shoot
than the LA T-Birds League run by the evil Griffin family out of LA.
When the Griffith family took control of everything, it all became a very
obvious work.
I remember when the leagues first merged and every team was a "super"
team. The T-Birds had, among others, Ronnie Robinson, Danny Reiley, Ron
"Psycho" Rains, Tony Roman and Charlie O'Connel. They were playing the
Cheifs, who still had Mike Gammon. Anyway, some skater for the Cheifs
(maybe it was Richard Brown, but I thought he was on the Warriors, not
really sure) was on a jam, and Reilly, Robinson and Rains were skating
around the guy to make it look like he was avoiding all three. The
problem was, if you wanted to make this look anything like a shoot, he
wouldn't have been able to fool even one guy of that calibre so easily.
Pretty weak performance.
Even when Tony Roman and Mike Gammon used to go up against each other,
the old IRDL would avoid having them jam against each other too often, to
at least preserve a mystique of "who's the better skater".
Also, I heard mention of a couple of Cleveland home teams. The Jolters I
remember as having Cliff Butler and the great Ann Cavelo, but what was
the Roller Game entry? Who was on that team?
Chuck Simalchik
Just a quick question to break into this thread (and probably a common
one at that):
Was roller derby a total work like wrestling is? I say yes, but it seems
whole roller-games thing, especially the new one with the "wall of death"
or whatever. That one was obviously a work. But from the way you guys are
talking in this thread, it seems like it was more legit in the old days.
I remember seeing some of the old time ones with the oval track instead
of the figure eight. They seemed more legit than the new one, but still
kind of contrived. I never saw the old ones to determine if there was a
consistent face-heel structure. The only ones Isaw were on ESPN and they
all had the T-Birds. It looked like a work, but as far as I could know,
the feed may have been a T-Bird home feed, where the announcer would
always make them look good at the expense of the other teams (kind of
like the Braves announcers make them like God on WTBS). So, was it ever
reasonably legit, or was it always a work like wrestling andthey were
just better at fooling the people? You can respond through e-mail if you
have any insight. Thanks.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chuck Simalchik Move America
Pittston, PA Forward:
cjsi...@rs01.kings.edu VOTE REPUBLICAN!!!
Visit the Third District Young Republican Homepage at:
http://www.kings.edu/~cjsimalc
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
James
>
>Even when Tony Roman and Mike Gammon used to go up against each other,
>the old IRDL would avoid having them jam against each other too often, to
>at least preserve a mystique of "who's the better skater".
>
>Also, I heard mention of a couple of Cleveland home teams. The Jolters I
>remember as having Cliff Butler and the great Ann Cavelo, but what was
>the Roller Game entry? Who was on that team?
>
God! somebody with a great memory for what the IRDL used to
be.
The Jolters were headed up by, as you say Cliff Butler and
Ann Cavello. Butler was backed up by Jerry "The Blond
Tiger" Cattell, Taft Waters and Larry Smith who was married
to Francine Cochu, also on the team. Margie Laszlo was Ann
Cavello's principal back up. I've forgotten who most of the
women on that team were. Can anybody help me? I know there
were some Samoan men on the team as well.
Roger Marcus
That's right! Taft Waters, Larry Smith, Jerry Katell (the ex-Oakland
cop), and Francine Cochu, with Margie Laslo. What a bunch of great names
from the old Jolters. Here are some other names I can remember from the
IRDL.
The Pioneers out of my home town of Chicago had Nick Scopus (my favorite
skater, he always used to torment Charlie O'Connel), Tony Roman, Jim
Jackson, Darnay McPherson, Sam Teapula, Giller Roscoe and Ronnie Robinson.
The women's team I don't remember as well, but they did have Joanie
Weston, Tony Roman's wife Carol "Peanuts" Meyer, Jackie Guirrilo, JJ
Burton, and Darlene Forbes.
The "heel" Red Devil Team had the outstanding Bob "Thumper" Woodbury,
Pete Boyd, Alan Littles, Jo Jo Stafford and Ross Chadick. The women's
side had (I think) Jan Vallo and Janet Earp, supposedly a decendent of
Wyatt Earp.
When Charlie O'Conell went to the Cheifs, they also had Bill Groh, Mike
Gammon, and for a while a great skater named Ronnie Nelson, who, from
what I recall, was put over the rail by Ronnie Robinson and had his
tailbone busted. The women's side was Judy McGuire (Gammon's wife,
called the Flashing Blonde, which has new meaning to me today) and Sandy
Dunn.
The Bombers, as a heel team, had Bob Hein, Ed Krebs (a real good
character), and Jim Cook. The womens team had, I think Carol Reed, or
something like that.
Love this old naming game!
Rick Hodge
rmill...@aol.com (RMiller775) wrote:
>The only Roller Derby book I've ever found is Frank Deford's Five Strides
>on the Banked Track, a look at the Derby in the mid-'60s.
Speaking of books, does anyone know of any type of games based
on Roller Derby? I seem to recall one during the mid-70's but my
memory is kind of hazy about it. I always wondered why no one has
ever come out with a computer game based on Roller Derby, or have I
just missed any? Of course, I always thought that the board game
Circus Maximus would a good base game to adapt to a Roller Derby
format, but I'm no expert. Any ideas?
regards,
Rick Hodge
"See the dizzy spell. I would like a dizzy spell, too."
--Paul Merton, "Whose Line is It, Anyway?"
James
>
> The "heel" Red Devil Team had the outstanding Bob "Thumper" Woodbury,
>Pete Boyd, Alan Littles, Jo Jo Stafford and Ross Chadick. The women's
>side had (I think) Jan Vallo and Janet Earp, supposedly a decendent of
>Wyatt Earp.
Jan Vallow was Nick Scopus' real life wife, by the way. I
seem to remember her on the Bombers or Jolters, not the REd
devils. The Red Devils were headed up by the beautiful
Lydia Clay.
>
>When Charlie O'Conell went to the Cheifs, they also had Bill Groh, Mike
>Gammon, and for a while a great skater named Ronnie Nelson, who, from
>what I recall, was put over the rail by Ronnie Robinson and had his
>tailbone busted. The women's side was Judy McGuire (Gammon's wife,
>called the Flashing Blonde, which has new meaning to me today) and Sandy
>Dunn.
>
They also had Maureen O'Brien and Tony Smith, who later
skated for the Pioneers.
>The Bombers, as a heel team, had Bob Hein, Ed Krebs (a real good
>character), and Jim Cook. The womens team had, I think Carol Reed, or
>something like that.
>
>Love this old naming game!
>-
Her name was actually Cathy Read. They also had Delores
Tucker, a great, great skater.
Roger Marcus
James <jam...@deans.umd.edu> wrote:
>
>
>>
>> The "heel" Red Devil Team had the outstanding Bob "Thumper" Woodbury,
>>Pete Boyd, Alan Littles, Jo Jo Stafford and Ross Chadick. The women's
>>side had (I think) Jan Vallo and Janet Earp, supposedly a decendent of
>>Wyatt Earp.
>
>
>Jan Vallow was Nick Scopus' real life wife, by the way. I
>seem to remember her on the Bombers or Jolters, not the REd
>devils. The Red Devils were headed up by the beautiful
>Lydia Clay.
>>
Yikes! Nick was married to Jan Vallow? There's a honeymoon image I'd
rather not imagine. You are correct, though, Jan was on the Bombers for
a while. I remember a short-lived team that Nick Scopus captained named
the Eagles, featuring Jan Vallo and Janet Earp on the women's side, along
with Nick, Sam Teapula, Ross Chadick, Danny King, and Jo Jo Stafford on
the men's side.
>>When Charlie O'Conell went to the Cheifs, they also had Bill Groh, Mike
>>Gammon, and for a while a great skater named Ronnie Nelson, who, from
>>what I recall, was put over the rail by Ronnie Robinson and had his
>>tailbone busted. The women's side was Judy McGuire (Gammon's wife,
>>called the Flashing Blonde, which has new meaning to me today) and
Sandy Dunn.
>>
>
>They also had Maureen O'Brien and Tony Smith, who later
>skated for the Pioneers.
>
I think Bill Hill also skated for the Cheifs, he became more of a big
shot when they tried to revive the Derby using the Bombers as the face
team and Hill was a main star on the Pioneers
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