Looking at how wrestling heating up in modern times with the sellout drawn by the All In event set for Labor Day weekend. In many ways wrestling not only goes through periods of prosperity it also has periods of extreme weakness much like it had during the mid 1990's. However, things begin to change September 1995 when the WCW debuted a brand new Primetime show called Nitro which would go head to head with Monday Night Raw. Things wouldn't pick up right away though as it was business as usual until May 1996 when things would really begin to change and all it took was one challenge. Now don't get me wrong most fans don't know that match between The Mauler & Steve Doll was actually a historic moment in wrestling because it was during that match when Scott Hall made his return to WCW. 

The story is known that the NWO angle was something Eric Bischoff came up with after seeing a similar story come together in Japan. The only thing that most people don't under is that even though Eric came up with the idea is that he needed the right people to make it work and things just came together incredibly. Though his first run with the company didn't go very well and that is really understatement to be fair, but this time around it was very different. Following his departure the first time he headed to the WWF and would tap into the gimmick he would be famous for as Razor Ramon and this would actually be one of the reason his return would be so important. 

One promo, One challenge, One moment changed everything and gave the wrestling world a spring board moment. The spring board moment in question started with four little words "You Want a War?" and that changed everything. Over the course of the next few weeks we will be looking back at the beginning of the Monday Night Wars. 

As a way to continue the conversation about women's wrestling from where we left off yesterday with Judy Grable we land here. Now for those fans who weren't watching or just don't remember women's wrestling sort of tailed off a tad during the Attitude Era in the WWE and it never really got going in WCW. Though to the WCW's credit they did try and do the same thing WWE had done with their women's division and that is building it around Madusa much like WWE had done for years prior. 

If I told you that the women of today have not only changed their perception among of how good a women's wrestling much could be but also much like their male counter parts they have more talent then those from the past. Now to narrow it down and to avoid making anyone angry with me I will point out that I mean those stars of today have been given more opportunities then those who came before them which speaks to perception changing. However, I also think that the main thing that has changed is the current crop of women's wrestlers have had many more opportunities to get over and succeed at a higher level then those before them. 

This is not to say that those who were active in the past didn't deserve more opportunities or have the skills to put together some of the borderline five star matches we've seen in recent years. In reality this just shows how much wrestling has evolved in recent years from where were back in the 1990's.  

It is hard to put into words the impact that certain talent had on the wrestling business and the legacy they have left behind. One of the most difficult names to explain the impact they had on the wrestling business is Eddie Graham. The main cog in the Florida wrestling machine who lead the way for many of wrestling greats getting into the business and or learning about the backstage work. Starting with the talent who got started in Florida with Eddie having a major part in their careers the names include Bob Backlund, Hulk Hogan, Jack Briscoe, Barry Windham, Lex Luger, and a variety of others.

As I mentioned Eddie also played a part in teaching some of wrestling's top bookers like Kevin Sullivan, JJ Dillon, and Dusty Rhodes; and it doesn't stop their as the line keeps going with Sullivan teaching Paul Heyman then Heyman teaching Gabe Sapolsky. Keeping it going Dusty had his protégés as well with one of them being Triple H and look no further then NXT to see Dusty's influence on Hunter.

​For this reason it is very difficult to explain the impact that Eddie had in wrestling but it is also the reason the NWA went onto honor him following his passing. Though I could point out the lackluster card and the odd fact that Dory Funk Jr competed in two matches on this show back to back mind you that isn't the point. The point of this show was to remember one of the smartest minds in history of wrestling. Just to share a useless fact one thing that Eddie would always make sure is that he would make sure to mention why his top star wasn't on the show normally this would be done for the World Champion to explain his absence. Imagine if the WWE did this every week that Brock Lesnar wasn't on the show they would need a lot of excuses.   

NWA Eddie Graham Memorial Show 

Bob Armstrong & Brad Armstrong def. (pin) Basher & Spike
Steve Armstrong & Tracy Smothers def. (pin) Krusher Kruschev & Ron Bass
Jimmy Garvin def. (pin) Teijho Khan
Mike Graham def. (DQ) Dory Funk, Jr.
Barry Windham & Ed Gantner def. (pin) Dory Funk, Jr. & The Tahitian Prince
Mike Rotunda (c) def. (DQ) Kevin Sullivan NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship
Animal (c) & Hawk (c) def. (DQ) Manny Fernandez & Rick Rude NWA Tag Team Titles
Dusty Rhodes def. (DQ) Ric Flair (c) NWA World Heavyweight Title

As always wrestling gives us both great memories and memories we try and forget, but with the amount of moments worth remembering that have happened we are bound to forget some. The same could be said about some talent that were very much underrated during their career or never at the top of a company during a run this unfortunately makes it easier for fans to forget certain talent. I would like to wish a very big Happy Birthday to all who are celebrating their special day today and especially to the one featured below. ​