ECW House Show 6/30/1996

Written by: Bob Colling

Extreme Championship Wrestling House Show
Date: 6/30/1996
From: Deer Park, New York

Opening Contest: Taz vs. Prodigy: The fans seem to be quite anti Taz. Prodigy dropkicks Taz to the floor and hits a missile dropkick off the top for a near fall. Taz powers out of the cover and clotheslines Prodigy after a rollup attempt. Taz snap mares Prodigy and puts a sleeper on him briefly. Prodigy attempted a head scissors out of the corner but Taz countered with a double leg slam. Taz takes Prodigy over with an overhead suplex. Taz continues with a German suplex and locks in the Taz Mission for the submission win. (NR. Honestly, for a less than three minute squash match, this was really good. Prodigy getting the early offense seemed to get the fans attention, but Taz destroying him was nicely done.) After the match, Bill Alfonso gets on a microphone and taunts the fans about Sabu. Alfonso wants Sabu to come to the ring, but he’s apparently not at the building on this night. There’s a female fan in the front row and Taz insults her. She doesn’t seem to be bothered by it and continues to dance around in the front row. Taz says he doesn’t give a shot about Paul Heyman, ECW, Ken Shamrock, Royce Gracie or any other fighters. All he cares about is Sabu and ending his miserable career.

Richards gets a microphone when the bell sounds for the next match. Stevie also rips on the female fan saying that Blue Meanie is the man he is because of her. Richards says that he and Meanie were supposed to be part of a pro-Gay rally in NYC but they are here instead. Richards suggests to Mikey Whipwreck that they skip out on the match and go to the rally. Whipwreck responds with a clothesline.

Second Contest: Mikey Whipwreck vs. Stevie Richards: Whipwreck misses a spinning heel kick but clotheslines Richards over the top to the floor. Whipwreck takes both Richards and Meanie out with a slingshot cross body to the floor. Whipwreck comes back from the apron to hit Richards with a neck snap. Whipwreck takes Meanie out again with a somersault dive to the floor! Mikey goes to the top and hits a flying cross body for a two count. Mikey controls Richards with a sleeper hold in the ring and Richards yells at some fans to shut up. Richards fights out of the hold and misses a dropkick as Mikey held onto the ropes. Whipwreck gets a near fall after an elbow drop. I think the female fan from earlier screamed something and the fans all yelled at her, so she’s not well liked. Richards eye rakes Whipwreck and sends him across the ring but Mikey stops him with a low blow. Whipwreck controls Richards on the canvas with a headlock. Richards chops Whipwreck and send shim chest first into the corner. Whipwreck gets on Richards shoulders and Stevie plants Mikey with a power bomb! Richards misses a clothesline but doesn’t miss on a low blow to crumble Whipwreck on the mat. Richards chokes Whipwreck over the middle rope and Blue Meanie gets a cheap shot in as the referee was distracted. Richards goes for the cover managing a near fall. Richards punches Whipwreck and Mikey is upside down on the apron before getting pulled back into the ring. Richards back elbows Whipwreck for another two count. Richards signals for the power bomb and plants Whipwreck with another one for a two count. Whipwreck fights back with a Fame Asser and heads to the top rope. Whipwreck leaps off missing a frog splash and Richards nearly wins the match. Whipwreck comes off the ropes to plant Richards with a DDT. Whipwreck makes his way to the top turnbuckle but Richards knocks him off with a super kick! Meanie rolls Whipwreck into the ring and Richards gets a near fall. Meanie heads to the top rope but Whipwreck crotches Richards on the top which also knocks Meanie off the top rope. Whipwreck super kicks Richards and bulldogs Meanie onto Richards for a near fall! Whipwreck continues with a leg drop for a near fall. Meanie tries to help again but Mikey sends Richards into Meanie who hit a power bomb. Meanie was blinded by Mikey so he hit his own buddy. Whipwreck splashes Richards but can’t keep him down on the cover. Richards gets up first and super kicks Mikey for a near fall. Richards heads to the top rope but Mikey crotches him again. Mikey hits a top rope hurricanrana and pins Richards in the middle oft he ring. (***. This was a really solid match and constant action. The comedy provided by Meanie served a purpose and didn’t overstay its welcome. An enjoyable undercard match and was a match I was hopeful it would be entertaining and it luckily was.)

Prior to the next match, JT Smith decides to sing for the fans and they don’t respond very well to him. So, JT and Guido decide to head backstage, but don’t worry, they return. To seemingly even the odds, they have a rather large guy to combat Big Dick Dudley. Bubba Dudley taunts JT’s singing with his stuttering gimmick.

Third Contest: Bubba Ray Dudley & Big Dick Dudley vs. JT Smith & Little Guido: Smith and Guido attack the Dudley’s before the bell but the Dudley’s don’t really sell it and press slam their opponents. Guido and Smith are sent into the corner and Bubba hit a splash in the corner on both men. Bubba gets backdropped to the floor by JT while the large man with Guido and Smith is using a chair on the floor. Big Dick no sells a double suplex and attempts a chokeslam but they get out of it. Dick comes out of the corner with a running clothesline. The mystery guy comes in and trade shots with Bubba. The guy power bombs Bubba. Dick chokeslams both Guido and Smith. Dick trades shots with the guy before clotheslining him over the top to the floor. They both end up on the floor and brawl into the crowd. Dick no sells a few chair shots over the head. Dick and the guy head backstage away from the fans. In the ring, Bubba is getting worked over but won’t stay down on the canvas. JT slams Bubba and along with Guido deliver a double elbow drop. D-Von enters the ring and whacks the referee with a chair before hitting everyone with a chair. D-Von gets a microphone as it appears the match is over with. D-Von slaps Bubba before cutting a promo on him. D-Von ends up whacking Bubba over the head with a chair. Dances With Dudley comes in and confronts D-Von but they hug. D-Von destroys Dances with a chair. Big Dick Dudley makes his way back down to the ring but D-Von has left. (1/2*. This wasn’t much of a match, really and there wasn’t an official decision announced. So, I’m not entirely sure what the point of the match was, really.)

Fourth Contest: The Sandman vs. Blue Meanie: Meanie has been acting like and dressed similar to Goldust including a blonde wig. Sandman whacks Meanie with a kendo stick and wins the match. So, that was an easy night for them. After the match, Sandman drinks a beer with his manager Missy Hyatt.

Fifth Contest: Shane Douglas vs. Pitbull #2: Douglas goes to the apron at the start but is shoved away on the lockup. Douglas tries for a headlock but gets tossed away again. Douglas goes to the apron and yells at the same female fan in the front row. The other fans chant “fat bitch” towards her since they don’t care about her. Douglas tries to hammer away on Pitbull, but Pitbull pummels Douglas in the corner. They go to the floor where Pitbull holds Douglas to allow Francine to slap Douglas. Pitbull sends Douglas into the guard railing and hammers away on Douglas some more. Douglas tries to escape by going backstage but Pitbull brings Douglas back to the ring. Pitbull press slams Douglas for a near fall. Pitbull continues to hammer away on Douglas and connects with a power slam for a two count. Pitbull sends Douglas into the corner and puts a bear hug on him right in the middle of the ring. Douglas drops to his knees and then lays on the mat but gets his shoulders up as the referee made a count. Pitbull rams Douglas into the corner and delivers several kicks. Pitbull runs into a big boot in the corner and Douglas connects with a bulldog for a near fall. Pitbull fights back with a press slam and a couple of clotheslines. Douglas is able to backdrop Pitbull over the top to the floor followed by a cross body to the floor. Douglas hits Pitbull with a drink. Pitbull sends Douglas into the railing and drops Douglas across the guard railing. Pitbull whacks Douglas over the back with a chair.

Pitbull grabs a chair from a fan and whacks Douglas over the head and over the back. Back in the ring, Pitbull is stopped by Douglas with a swinging neck breaker. Douglas is busted open a little bit on his forehead. Douglas takes Pitbull down with a suplex for a near fall. Pitbull takes Douglas down and delivers a headbutt to the lower midsection area. Pitbull rams Douglas head first into the corner several times. Pitbull comes off the ropes but Douglas drops down from exhaustion and is nearly pinned. Pitbull gets poked by Douglas on the apron and Douglas kicks Pitbull to the canvas. Douglas slaps Francine on the apron and nails Pitbull with the ring bell! Douglas goes for the cover with his feet on the ropes to win the match. Chris Jericho comes down and tells the referee that Douglas had his feet on the ropes. Apparently the referee saw it and Pitbull pins Douglas after a spin kick from Jericho. Douglas rams Francine into the corner head first. Jericho saves Pitbull from a piledriver on the ring bell by clotheslining Douglas. Douglas gets clotheslined by both Jericho and Pitbull. The Eliminators come into the ring and hit Total Elimination on Pitbull. They also attack Jericho. Jericho is on Kronus shoulders and Douglas hit a clothesline. Saturn comes off the top to hit a splash on Jericho. (*1/2. A relatively simple match but the aftermath got my interest and was quite entertaining. The finish was a little annoying since it came across like Douglas had zero interest in doing a clean job on a house show.)

Sixth Contest: Brian Lee vs. Dances With Dudley: I can’t imagine Dances has a chance in hell against Brian Lee here. Lee quickly brings the match to the floor and I feel bad for Dances already. Lee works over Dances in the crowd with a chair and tosses him into several chairs in the crowd. They go outside and Lee sends Dances into the ring truck. They return to the building only to go back outside on the other side. Dances tries to fight back with some strikes as they head back into the building. They return to ringside where they are trading blows. Dances ducks a clothesline to dropkick Lee. Dances continues his offense with a clothesline. Dances hits a middle rope double axe handle and an elbow drop. Dances hits another axe handle off the middle rope. On the third attempt, Lee catches Dances and hits a chokeslam for the win. (1/2*. I think the brawling outside was done just because nobody was going to care about this match and I can’t blame them.)

The Eliminators say they have been kicking ass since they showed up in September 1995 and issue an open challenge. Chris Jericho runs into the ring and attacks them before Saturn gets control with strikes. Jericho hits the champs with a springboard moonsault and a standing hurricanrana on Saturn. Jericho dropkicks Kronus after being lifted into the air by Saturn. Saturn dropkicks Jericho to stop his momentum. Kronus kicks Jericho in the back of the head and Saturn delivers a kick to the face. Mikey Whipwreck has come out and the bell sounds as he sent Kronus to the floor.

Seventh Contest: ECW Tag Team Champions The Eliminators vs. ECW Television Champion Chris Jericho & Mikey Whipwreck: Saturn and Jericho legally start the match. Saturn takes Jericho down to the canvas with a headlock but Jericho counters with a head scissors. Saturn kicks Jericho against the ropes but Jericho comes back with a spinning heel kick. Jericho lifts Saturn up for a delayed vertical suplex and drives Saturn down to the canvas followed by a senton splash. Saturn super kicks Jericho to the floor. Mikey and Kronus tag into the match. Kronus shoves Whipwreck down to the canvas. Kronus misses a leaping kick and is arm dragged by Whipwreck followed by a dropkick sending him to the floor. Kronus takes Whipwreck down with a back suplex to gain control of the match. Kronus drops Whipwreck with a right hand and a gut wrench suplex. Kronus kicks Jericho on the apron and Saturn enters to double clothesline Mikey. Saturn knocks Jericho down in the corner to shut him up, too. Saturn kicks Whipwreck in the corner but Mikey comes back with a springboard cross body for a two count. Whipwreck dropkicks Saturn and Kronus. Jericho gets tagged in but the champs are on the floor following that flurry. Saturn gets in the ring and rolls around with Jericho on the canvas. Jericho clotheslines Saturn and plays to the crowd afterward. Jericho has a submission on Saturn but Saturn reaches the ropes. Jericho gets Saturn on the top rope and dropkicks Saturn off to the floor where he hit the guard railing chest first. Jericho comes off the top to take Saturn out with a cross body. Kronus sends Jericho into the railing and delvers a chair shot. Whipwreck dives off the top onto Kronus as all four men are on the floor now. Jericho slams Kronus on the floor. Whipwreck sends Saturn into the railing as Jericho hit Kronus with a chair. Jericho springboards off the middle rope to splash Kronus on the floor.

Jericho rams Saturn into the corner and Whipwreck enters to backdrop Saturn for a near fall. Whipwreck controls Saturn on the canvas with a headlock. Saturn super kicks Whipwreck after missing a clothesline attempt. Kronus enters and a double super kick nearly takes Mikey’s head off. Kronus slams Whipwreck and hits a diving headbutt off the middle rope. Kronus drives Whipwreck down with a power slam. Kronus plants Whipwreck with a Samoan Drop and tags in Saturn. Saturn comes off the top with a diving headbutt for a two count. Saturn tosses Mikey overhead with a suplex for a near fall. Saturn nearly wins after a leaping forearm shot. Kronus tags in and works over Mikey with a strike. Kronus slams Whipwreck to the canvas and delivers a headbutt to the lower midsection. Kronus misses a leg drop and Jericho tags in. Jericho kicks Kronus on the back a few times but Kronus fights back with several strikes. Saturn holds Jericho on the apron but gets knocked off by Kronus on accident. Saturn gets up and kicks Jericho before hitting an overhead belly to belly suplex and a splash for a two count. Jericho ducks a clothesline and sunset flips Saturn but is met with a clothesline quickly. Saturn spikes Jericho with a piledriver for a near fall. Saturn controls Jericho on the canvas with a sleeper hold. Kronus attempts a power bomb but Jericho countered with a German suplex. Whipwreck hits a cross body off the top and a hurricanrana off the top on Kronus for a near fall. Kronus stops Whipwreck with a boot to the face. Kronus hits a rolling fireman carry and Saturn comes off the top to hit a splash for a near fall. Mikey nearly wins with a rollup on Saturn.

Saturn press slams Mikey and heads to the top missing a moonsault. Jericho tags in but is met with a super kick from Saturn. Saturn plants Jericho with a gut wrench sit down power bomb for a near fall. Saturn runs into a boot in the corner and Jericho hit a dropkick off the middle rope for a near fall. Jericho connects with a fisherman suplex and a springboard moonsault but Kronus breaks up the cover. Whipwreck knocks Kronus to the floor with a kick. Jericho has Saturn and they hit a powerbomb/top rope axe handle combo for a near fall on Saturn. Whipwreck puts Saturn on the top turnbuckle but Kronus whacks Jericho with a chair. Kronus puts Jericho over the railing gut first as Saturn hits a missile dropkick on Whipwreck. Kronus uses a chair on the floor to choke Jericho. Saturn avoids a tornado DDT by hitting an atomic drop on Whipwreck. Eliminators finish Whipwreck off with the Total Elimination to win the match. (***. This was a pretty solid match, but they could have cut off five minutes or so and it would have been even better.) After the match, the Gangstas show up and attack the champs for a few moments. Jesus, New Jack piledrives Kronus off a stage through a table on the floor, which looked rather dangerous. New Jack comes off the top to hit Saturn with a steel chair. As you’d expect the Gangstas destroy the champs much to the delight of the fans. Jack also hits Kronus with a chair from the top rope.

Dreamer has Kimona and Beulah with him at ringside. Raven has Sandman’s son Tyler with him for the main event, as well. Raven looks like he is taped up pretty good from a recent match. Stevie Richards has a microphone and decides to cut a promo. Richards wants to send a message to Sandman, but mentions his real name as Jim Fullington. Richards says that Sandman’s son worships Raven now. Richards says that Dreamer has never pinned Raven, which isn’t true.

Main Event: ECW World Champion Raven vs. Tommy Dreamer: Richards superkicks Dreamer from behind and Raven nearly wins after a DDT. Meanie misses a top rope moonsault but Raven hits another DDT. Kimona and Beulah attack Meanie in the corner. Raven plants Dreamer with a piledriver for a near fall. Dreamer is bleeding from the forehead as Raven knocks Dreamer to the floor. Raven rams Dreamer into the apron back first and guard railing. Dreamer sends Raven back first into the guard railing. Dreamer sends Raven back first into the railing again. Dreamer snap mares Raven on the floor before hitting him with an object. Dreamer tosses Raven into the crowd and pummels him amongst the fans. Dreamer sends Raven outside the building but they quickly return into the arena. Raven low blows Dreamer at ringside and puts Dreamer on a table. Raven elbow drops Dreamer through the table. Raven tosses Dreamer into the broken table. Raven attempts a piledriver on the floor but Dreamer counters with a backdrop onto the broken table. Dreamer sends Raven back into the ring and Raven crashes through a tiny piece of broken table. Dreamer gets a chair from the fans and tosses Raven into the corner. Dreamer misses a running chair shot and hits the corner chest first. Raven sends Dreamer into the corner but hits the referee with a chair on accident. Dreamer plants Raven with a DDT but only manages a near fall. Dreamer has a chair and he hits the second referee on accident. Dreamer still hits a DDT on Raven for a near fall. Dreamer misses a clothesline and Raven almost wins with a back suplex. The referees are arguing about the count. So, they are both met with DDTs. Dreamer hammers away on Raven pummeling him on the canvas. Bubba Dudley is on the apron saying there will be a winner. Dreamer plants Raven with a piledriver and Bubba goes for the count but Stevie super kicks him. Dreamer plants Richards with a DDT. Raven is up and DDTs Dreamer. However, there isn’t a referee for the count. D-Von whacks Dreamer over the back with a steel chair. Raven covers and pins Dreamer. After the match, Tyler whacks Dreamer over the back with a kendo stick several times. Sandman runs into the ring and whacks D-Von with the cane and Meanie, too. Raven has Tyler in front of him to block being hit. Sandman is on his knees but gets hit by Tyler several times. Raven plants Sandman with a DDT. Tyler whacks Sandman with the cane and Raven demands that Tyler hit him harder with it. Tyler and Lori do Raven’s arm taunt before leaving the ring. (*1/2. It was just your typical match between these guys and the finish wasn’t very good. The angle between Raven and Sandman is the best thing going at this point in ECW. I’d rather see a Raven/Sandman main event here.)

For some reason there is a Shane Douglas promo at the end of the tape where Douglas cuts a promo on Pitbull #2, Chris Jericho and 2 Cold Scorpio. Douglas is getting stitched up during the promo.

Final Thoughts:
It’s not often that a ECW house show as two *** level matches and this one does. Plus, the opener with Taz destroying his opponent was fun, too. I’m leaning towards giving this a mild thumbs up, so I’ll go with that.

Thanks for reading.