Heroes of World Class Wrestling (Director's Cut) [DVD]

"Heroes of World Class" is for wrestling fans who want to learn about the behind-the-scenes story of the great Dallas-based NWA affiliate of the early 1980s and its stars. Fans who want to relive wrestling bouts in their entirety will be disappointed, but this 2 1/2 hour documentary with bonus disc full of interviews and wrestling clips is what I hoped for and thoroughly enjoyed. I watched World Class back in the late 1980s in syndication in northern California. It was several years after the organization's heyday, but the stories and stars were fresh to me. I remember watching it everyday after school on TBS, I think, and taping my favorite wrestlers (tapes I still have) and wishing I could visit the Sportatorium. I also bought back issues of Pro Wrestling Illustrated that had covers or features on my favorite World Class stars. I did not know about the background of World Class though I knew the heartrending story of the Von Erich family and their many tragedies through the book "The Von Erich Family Album." I did not realize how important and innovative World Class was until I watched this DVD.Director Brian Harrison (who is about my age and also became a fan of World Class as a kid watching the shows in syndication) has collected interviews with many important people like Kevin Von Erich, manager/producer Gary Hart, announcer Marc Lowrance (now a Methodist minister), the late "Gentleman" Chris Adams, Gen. Skandar Akbar, executive producer Mickey Grant, commentator/associate producer Bill Mercer, and referee David Manning who, I learned, was much more to World Class than just a referee. They talk about the innovative techniques they used to bring the wrestling action to life. Clips from some of the major feuds are shown including the Freebirds vs. the Von Erichs, Devastation Inc. vs. the Freebirds, the Von Erich/Chris Adams and Gino Hernandez feud, Jim Cornette and the Midnight Express vs. the Fantastics, Chris Adams vs. "Gorgeous" Jimmy Garvin, as well as clips from when Garvin had to be David Von Erich's valet.Sadly, no story on World Class can be complete without covering the many tragedies that fell on the stars. The most poignant was the sudden death of David Von Erich. David Manning talks about having to break the news to Fritz. The funeral procession is described which demonstrates how important David was to the city of Dallas and not just Dallas wrestling. Kevin reminisces on growing up with David. Mike's toxic shock syndrome and later suicide is discussed as is Kerry's motorcycle accident and later suicide. The death of Gino Hernandez is covered. David Manning gives reasons why he suspects foul play. Gary Hart talks about Bruiser Brody's stabbing and the murder of Chris Adams. Chris Von Erich is also discussed. Another very poignant moment in the DVD is when Kevin talks about his father's behavior towards him after he was diagnosed with brain cancer.The most interesting part of the documentary for me was when Kevin Von Erich visits the Sportatorium before it was torn down. He goes through the building and describes what it was like back in the day. It was a miserable dump as described on the bonus disc by Jim Cornette and Bill Mercer, but the producers and crew made it look like an awesome place to be. Unfortunately, the audio in the clip where Mickey Grant and Bill Mercer visit the Sportatorium is almost non-existent. Even with the volume turned up to the max, it can barely be heard.The bonus disc offers many additional interviews. Manager Jim Cornette talks about the good ol' days and gives his frank opinion on the Von Erich brothers. He also gives a disgusting story about the grease trap for the fries at the Sportatorium. There is an interview with Pro Wrestling Torch's Wade Keller and Bruce Mitchell. Mitchell is critical of the documentary and thinks it glossed over Fritz Von Erich's treatment of his sons. Mitchell has a different take on David Von Erich's death. It is odd that a DVD will include an interview criticizing it. Mitchell is very critical of the Von Erichs in general. He also points out some story lines WCCW used to cover up or overshadow things that would be detrimental to the promotion. It is a very long interview but is worth checking out. He also mentions the Dingo Warrior (later to be the Ultimate Warrior) and it dawned on me that he was not covered in the documentary. An interview with DVD creator Brian Harrison and announcer Bill Mercer is included as well as trailers. My only criticism is that the wrestling clips that are placed between the interviews seem a little disjointed at times. For example, the Midnight Express clips seemed to be dropped in wherever as if they knew they needed to include them somewhere so they just plopped them in. They didn't flow well with the rest of the documentary. Also, I remember the World Class name coming to an end after a match involving Eric Embry, but nothing is mentioned of that. Otherwise, I recommend this DVD to anyone interested in the story behind World Class Championship Wrestling.

I just watched this last night. The main documentary is about 2 1/2 hours long but worth every minute to watch! It really explores the glory and downfall of WCCW without all the political influence of the WWE release (which was good despite that). While the production values are low budget and the tone of the video is darker than the WWE version, it still comes off quite well in telling the story of WCCW.Who I was most impressed with was Kevin Von Erich himself. This man has had the proverbial "scars of time" roasted onto him yet he manages to see the positive in nearly everything. Through all that tragedy and the loss of his brothers and father, he manages to stay sane! I found him to be a very inspirational man. Definitely pay close attention to how he deals with all of what he's been through because if he can go through that and still stay strong, none of us have any excuse since most of us have never had to deal with that kind of tragedy.I also liked the interviews with former ring announcer Mark Lawrence, III (who is now a minister), Gary Hart, ring commentator Bill Mercer and others that I remember from that era but can't think of their names at the moment. They provided great insight into the rise and fall of World Class as well as their views on the Von Erich family.My disc came with two DVD's. On Disc 1, it has the main documentary plus nearly 30 minutes of deleted scenes from the film. One of the "deleted scenes" was a match between the late David Von Erich and the late "Freebird" Terry Gordy! The match was only about 2 minutes but it was wild and it does give you a glimpse into the talent of David and why he was being touted as the next NWA World Champion before his untimely death in 1984. Counting this added footage, there is really about 3 hours of footage on Disc 1 alone!Disc 2 is interviews with various people about World Class Championship Wrestling. The main ones of interest are Jim Cornette and Bill Mercer but all the interviews total up 4 hours so you are really getting about 7 hours of footage with this set!There are some things that are done better on this one than on WWE's "Triumph And Tragedy Of World Class Championship Wrestling." The deaths of Bruiser Brody, Gino Hernandez and Chris Adams are covered better here than they were on the WWE release (in fact, neither Brody's nor Adams' deaths are even brought up on their documentary). The Fabulous Freebirds, while given due credit for their part in WCCW's success, aren't as praised on here as in the WWE release (though they certainly weren't slammed in any case). Plus, the death of Fritz Von Erich is discussed in detail here too.To give credit where its due, the WWE's version discusses the end of World Class in more detail than this release does (though "Heroes" does mention it as well as their union with the AWA).Overall, I can't say enough good things about this documentary. My personal recommendation is to get both "Heroes Of World Class" & WWE's "The Triumph And Tragedy Of World Class Championship Wrestling" because what one of them lacks, the other fills the gaps. My fancy way of saying that between the two videos, you will have a near complete look at one of the best NWA territories and organizations ever in the 1980's! See it!

Growing up as Dusty Rhodes and Magnum T.A. were battling the Four Horseman in the NWA, I had barely even heard of the WCCW and only read of the Von Erich family, usually in regard to the Von Erich curse. After veiwing the trailer for this DVD, I had to check it out. This is extremely well done and ranks right up there with the best wrestling documentaries that I have ever seen(in no order; Beyond the mat, Forever Hardcore, Rise and Fall of ECW, Ric Flair and the Four Horseman). It could be the best. I watched the 2 1/2 hour documentary, then I watched it again. Non wrestling fans actually sat through it and enjoyed it. The story is just so compelling and tragic.The filmmakers have done a great job in gaining access to the WCCW video library before WWE snatched it for their own use. Being able to get some good information from Kevin made all the difference in the world. Unfortunately, in exchange for that access, you could tell that the director chose to lay off the criticism of the Von Erich family. I have heard they were all on drugs constantly and often missed matches or showed up drunk. No mention of that at all. I think Ricky Morton (Rock n Roll express) mentioned he once had to go and bust out a truck window to get Kerry out of the truck where he was passed out so they could have their match. This documentary doesn't really dwell on the drug abuse much expect to justify some of the suicides.Overall, the documentary gets up close to the people who lived it and created it and they seemed genuine in their responses to relive the past for us for a couple of hours. The documentary does a good job of taking us chronologically through the years until the organization crumbles and way too many great wrestlers pass away. I would say this one is a MUST SEE dvd for any wrestling fan.