My World with Jeff Jarrett - SummerSlam 1998 [Show Notes] (Patreon)

Welcome to the next edition of My World and today Jeff we’re turning back the clock to 1998 as we discuss SummerSlam 1998.

There’s a lot going on in professional wrestling at this time so let’s set the stage. Over on the WCW side Karl Malone & Diamond Dallas Page just main evented Bash at the Beach against Hulk Hogan & Dennis Rodman. Goldberg is now WCW World Champion. Road Wild...the competing pay-per-view with SummerSlam...was announced as being main evented by Jay Leno & DDP against Eric Bischoff & Hulk Hogan. Jeff, you've been in pro wrestling all your life. You’ve seen the celebrity angles come through Memphis highlighted by Andy Kaufman among others...what did you think of this from a creative standpoint?

Robert Fuller comes in in March to be your manager after the failed NWA run with Jim Cornette. First off...tell me about the differences between Robert Fuller and Jim Cornette.

What was it like working with Fuller?

Southern Justice...the former Godwinns...Mark Canterbury and Dennis Knight...are put with you as heaters. Who’s idea was this?

What did they think about being in this gimmick?

The WWF is coming off Fully Loaded which was from Fresno, California.

Do you know at this point you’re going to have a hair match at SummerSlam? Were you always scheduled to face X-Pac for it or was Waltman placed into the match after the fact? I ask because you work with Sean right before the Fully Loaded show at the Cow Palace.

You were the curtain jerker with Tennessee Lee losing to Val Venis. You bang into Lee...get it bang into...and Val rolls you up for the win. You’re just kind of stuck in mid-card hell at this point are you not?

You’re not on Raw the night after Fully Loaded but you tape Sunday Night Heat from Anaheim that night and you lose to Edge due to Tennessee Lee’s interference backfiring again. You’re building to a split with Tennessee Lee obviously. Was Tennessee Lee always supposed to be a short term deal?

The next night in San Diego the split happens on Shotgun...when Shotgun was the C show...after Droz pins you after hitting you with Lee’s boot. Southern Justice comes out after the match and is told to attack you but they attack Lee instead and Dennis Knight hits the Slop Drop and it’s the last time Robert Fuller is ever seen on WWF TV again.

Were you sad to lose Lee as part of the gimmick?

Same night Monday Night Raw is taped because that’s when they were doing these tapings like that and you wrestle Hawk. It’s a big deal to be wrestling Hawk normally but he’s in the middle of his “I’m Michael Hegstrand and I’m a drunk” gimmick and yet...still defeats you. It’s not the Hawk of old but this seems more like a way to get Southern Justice and LOD heated up as after the match they brawl. Were you being used as a backdrop here?

What is it like working Droz & Hawk on the same night?

Coming off that on August 1st you’re in Toronto losing to X-Pac in front of 14,688, August 2nd you’re in Montreal losing to X-Pac in front of 11,209, August 9th in St. Louis losing to X-Pac in front of 16,733. These are some big time houses Jeff.

Also there’s a change of look in your appearance. At the next TV...August 10th in Omaha which is a live Raw is War you’re showing some facial hair and a guitar with DON’T PISS ME OFF painted on it. Who’s idea is this? Where does the “edge” come from? Was this something you feel you needed to do as we’re at the height of the Attitude era?

LOD is scheduled to face Southern Justice but Hawk was...drunk...high...whatever you wanna call it and you come out and nail Drozdov with the guitar. Any issues or hesitation on using a guitar? You’re only a year removed from Honky Tonk Man being on WWF TV. Was there any worry that’s how you were going to be typecasted?

Main event of Sunday Night Heat later that night is Triple H & X-Pac against Southern Justice and DX gets the win when you come out and hit X-Pac with a low blow and attempt to cut his hair before Billy Gunn makes the save. What are you Brutus the fucking Barber Beefcake out there?

The next night in Des Moines, IA for the next set of TV tapings has Southern Justice vs….yes we are in the height of the Vince Russo era here...the Oddities which is Kurrgan and Golga who is John Tenta. Luna interferes causing the DQ and you come out and cut off her dreadlocks. Obviously this is going to build to a hair match at SummerSlam against X-Pac...but how did Luna feel about you cutting her hair?

What’s it like to see someone like John Tenta dressed up in the gimmick of Golga? Did you think we had gone too far in terms of changing someone to fit into an era?

For Raw The Nation faced off against DX in a Street Fight that you & Southern Justice got involved in. HHH and Gunn end up getting juiced and you guys come out and attack and it ends with you cutting some of Waltman’s hair. Did Sean have any issues with getting his hair cut?

Were you worried that no one would believe that X-Pac would be the one to lose his hair?

You work Droz again for Sunday Night Heat and you get the win by DQ when X-Pac interferes and cuts some of your hair off.

Back on the road on August 12th in Cedar Rapids for 5,449, August 13th in Moline for 9,854, August 14th in Chicago at the Rosemont Horizon for 16,780, St. Louis for 18,298 on the 15th and then finally Columbia, Missouri for 8,347 all with losses to X-Pac. You’re talking about a lot of people attending these shows. What’s the pay like at this point?

As we’re talking about business and who you’re working let’s talk a little bit about who else are on these shows and how they’re doing against WCW live events.

In Chicago for example here’s the card:

Faarooq over Brian Christopher

Tiger Ali Singh over Dustin Runnels

Val Venis over Marc Mero

Sable over Jackie in arm wrestling

X-PAC over you

Ken Shamrock over Owen Hart

Vader over Mark Henry

Triple H over Rock by DQ

Which goes right into Road Dogg & Billy Gunn over Rock & D’Lo

DOA over LOD

Steve Austin over Kane & the Undertaker

Just a week later Nitro ran at the United Center in Chicago on August 24th with the debut of the Warrior announced. Look how crazy wrestling is at this point.

So to compare the businesses against each other…the WWF’s average attendance is 11,311 compared to 97 which was 5,359 an increase of 111.1%. The average gate is $210,779 up 140.7% from $87,580 in 1997.

On the other side for WCW the average attendance in August was 7,879 up 50% from 1997 which was 5,224. The average gate was $172,997 up 95.4% from 1997 for $88,535.

Jeff…the business is red hot on both sides. Had you ever seen anything like it?

One of my favorite shows to find in my research was on August 23rd. Jeff we just went over as how you guys are drawing these huge houses...and then out of nowhere you’re in the Scranton CYC in front of 3,877. What do you remember of these sold shows in Scranton?

You’re in the Corestates Center (now Wachovia Center) in Philadelphia for the go-home Raw in front of 14,727 fans. This show is most remembered for the infamous Brawl for All finals where Bart Gunn knocked out Bradshaw but X-Pac ends up pissing in your boots! This leads to the New Age Outlaws taking on Southern Justice and you come out in your socks bitching about X-Pac and it somehow leads to you shaving the head of a camera man. Really drives this angle hard home don’t you think Jeff?

Later on X-Pac and Gangrel go 90 seconds before you come out and bust X-Pac in the head with a guitar. Are you surprised at this point that Russo didn’t add a guitar on a pole stip to your hair vs. hair match?

You have a rare 6 day streak where there’s no shows but SummerSlam is at Madison Square Garden. Are you in New York early for media? What do you remember of that?

Well we’re here Jeff. SummerSlam 98 from MSG!

Before the pay-per-view and this was when Sunday Night Heat was a thing...you & Southern Justice come out and attack Howard Finkel and shave off most of his hair and mustache. What was it about using Finkel to get over as a heel back then?

Finkel obviously rarely ever said no but did you feel bad about doing this?

From the Observer…

“3. X-Pac pinned Jeff Jarrett in a hair vs. hair match in 11:11. Howard Finkel, with a freshly shaved head and moustache, came out wearing a DX t-shirt and a bow tie to second X-Pac. Finkel looked like a cross between Vader's little brother and Captain Kangaroo. I don't know how to nicely put this other than when the cool group has Finkel as a member, or when Finkel starts saying "Suck it," then how cool or anti-authority can saying "Suck it" truly be? These two work together really well. Fast well-timed spots, particularly X-Pac was right on the money with his kicks and a great swinging DDT. They did some near falls back-and-forth. They did a near fall when Finkel distracted Jarrett, and Jarrett went after Finkel and decked him and X-Pac did his move which is kind of like a facebuster for a near fall. Southern Justice came out and Mark Canterbury tried to hit X-Pac with the guitar. He missed and X-Pac got the guitar and broke it over Jarrett's head for the pin. After the match the Outlaws ran out to chase Southern Justice away and held down Jarrett. The electric shears broke down, which obviously was a work since Jarrett simply wound up with a shorter haircut rather than being totally shaved in the back, so they had no intention from the start in living up to the stipulation although that has become the Titan m.o. They used scissors to cut his hair and didn't get all that much hair off him although they got enough to have some of it land on Finkel and Sgt. Slaughter's head for comedy. ***”

So Jeff a lot to unpack there. First off, what did you think of the match and were you both happy with it?

Do you think adding Finkel was a good or smart move or do you think it was a hindrance and not necessary?

Did you enjoy working with Sean and did you guys have a routine pretty well down from working all the house shows or did you switch it up fresh for the pay-per-view?

I’ve never got hit with a guitar Jeff. I’ve never swung a guitar at someone Jeff. Explain the magic behind it.

So the fiction writer says the electric shears broke and that you didn’t follow through on the stipulation. Did the shears shoot break and do you think you getting a crew cut is a rip off of the stip since you didn’t go bald bald?

Would Steve Austin had been hot at you if if you shaved your head bald?

Did you think this was the blow off or did you know the program was going to continue?

This is definitely your top ranked pay-per-view match in 1998 wouldn’t you agree?