Grilling JR - Smackdown Debut 08.26.99 Watchalong [Show Notes] (Patreon)

We’re talking about the series debut of SmackDown! Now this isn’t the pilot episode where the Ministry & Corporation merged. This is the actual series debut taped on August 23rd, 1999 at the Kemper Arena in St. Louis. Fire up the Peacock machine and we’ll get into it!

Can you explain to our listeners who may not know what the difference is between the pilot episode that aired in April and the series debut in August?

This is the first time the WWF is back in this building since the death of Owen Hart. Did you or anyone you talked to have an eerie feeling being back in that building?

We’re going all the way back to Season 1...Episode 1...which aired 22 years ago today!

3-2-1!

As we get into the show Jim how much were you a part of the progress of putting together this television deal or was that done by mainly Vince and Kevin Dunn and the such?

How big a deal for you is it to be back on Network TV. UPN isn’t one of the top 4 stations then...and isn’t even around today...but still it’s network TV.

The company announces they’re going public a few weeks previous to this debut. How big a deal was that to the people in the company and what did you expect to get out of it being so high up in the company?

Was it put on Thursday to destroy Thunder which was airing on TBS at the time and falling apart?

We’re coming off Monday Night Raw after SummerSlam where Triple H broke your arm and won the WWF Title from Mankind. You’re at ringside doing commentary with a cast.

From the Observer…”Ross & Lawler did the first week on Smack Down after WWF originally announced Cole & Kelly would be doing the show, and the second week was Cole & Lawler. McMahon made the call basically at the last minute because he wanted more back storyline figuring a lot of viewers would be watching the new show and figured Ross with his experience could pull it off better”

Were you excited to be part of the debut but knew that you were not going to be on the show for long considering you had Michael Cole right there or was this something you opted out of over time?

This SmackDown is taped the day after Eric Bischoff...who recently talked about this on 83 Weeks...goes into the WCW locker room and realistically blows it up...shitting on people left and right about their actions in the media and their attitude and basically offers up anybody to get their release. Supposedly some of the wrestlers even call Terry Taylor while at Nitro. What do you know about this and what do you remember hearing about this?

Does anything come across your attention that Monday night into Tuesday? It’s reported that people like Raven (who actually does leave and ends in ECW in a few days), Billy Kidman, Konnan and Rey Misterio Jr. ask for releases.

The set is interesting as it’s somewhat different from Raw as Raw is all angles and lines while SmackDown is all ovals and curves. Do you know who came up with that change in concept?

We are at the exact end of Vince Russo’s run here as he’s only with the company for a couple more weeks. Did you see the exhaustion and burn out on Russo at this point?

Any consideration to run SmackDown live or was the cost just too much?

I’m asking all these questions during Triple H’s promo as it’s just this talk about he overcame the office holding him back. It doesn’t really get interesting until The Rock interrupts and challenges him for a World Title match. Shawn Michaels...current commissioner...announces the match and how he’ll be the referee and than Shane McMahon comes out and says he’ll be the outside referee. Lots of authority figures here Jim. Shawn makes a cute comment about Shane having a “4 star match” at SummerSlam. Shawn says Shane can’t do that because he’ll be too busy wrestling Mankind tonight. Jim...this is the last appearance of Shawn Michaels for a long time in a WWF ring. What do you remember of him that night?

Here comes Mankind and he brawls with the Rock as the Mean Street Posse come out and it’s a slobberknocker Jim. Is this the beginning of the Triple H opening promo 15 minute segment?

Kurt Angle...a member of the Ad Free family...does a dark match over the California Kid and gets the win. Did you get a chance to see Angle on this night and what did you think?

What is held off the airing of this episode and edited out is the Blonde Bytch Project that Blue Meanie & Stevie Richards hold up a copy of the TV Guide with Sable on it and saying they’re out on the search for her. I guess cooler or better minds prevailed here Jim but what do you remember of this?

Our first match is a non-title match between Billy Gunn with Chyna versus the Intercontinental Champion...your friend and mine...Jeff Jarrett with Debra and Miss Kitty. Gunn gets the win when Chyna swings the guitar for Miss Kitty and hits Debra by accident and Jarrett is distracted. Look Steve Austin & Debra are together at the time. Did Austin have any issue with this happening?

It’s also odd that Chyna...who was a heel with Triple H in the first segment is a complete and total babyface here...besides the whole hitting a woman in the head with a guitar...is this just shades of gray stuff from Russo?

Chyna then is almost mooned by Billy Gunn but she hits him with a low blow...what in the hell is going on here Jim?

Al Snow is not happy Jim. He’s missing Pepper.

And then Howard Finkel polishes Chris Jericho’s boots. Jim...did Finkel enjoy being on screen in a role outside of being a ring announcer? And why did Vince love to torment him?

We have an interesting match next Jim. Undertaker & Big Show are defending their tag team titles in a 3-way against X-Pac & Kane and the Acolytes. Undertaker decides to join you on commentary to show tough love for Big Show. What was Big Show’s standing at this point in the company? You talked a lot about his weight in the Ross Report at the time...was this just office punishment or Taker needed a rest on his body as not much longer than this he goes on the shelf.

X-Pac, Kane, Faarooq & Bradshaw are all veterans who go out and do their job but it can’t be fun in terms of pride to lose to a one-man team basically. Anybody object to this that you know of?

Here’s Bossman threatening to do terrible things to Pepper if he doesn’t get a Hardcore title shot. You can say a lot about how dumb and stupid this angle is but man Boss Man is great in this role isn’t he?

Bossman gets the win and keeps Pepper which as we all know will lead to him cooking Pepper. When does this bleed into bad taste in your opinion?

Up next It’s CHRIS JERICHO’S IN-RING WWF DEBUT. Yup that’s right the guy who went toe-to-toe with the Rock in his debut promo is having his in-ring debut happen on the first SmackDown and he’s facing...Road Dogg. Road Dogg’s presentation is completely different without Billy isn’t it?

Who the hell thought the way to get Jericho over was to give him Finkel?

Interesting note in the Observer I found in my research and something a lot of fans ask about but no one ever really has an answer for… “Titan officials weren't happy with Vic Grimes. He told friends that he couldn't punch good in the suit they had him wearing and he slipped off the ropes wearing street shoes instead of wrestling boots. Anyway, he wasn't at the tapings at all this week and the character may have been dropped for now”

We know Vic Grimes will go on to ECW but his brief appearance in all white suit and his supposed name of “Key” being a drug reference...what was the story with Vic and why didn’t it work out?

Jericho gets DQed for power bombing Road Dogg through the table and it’s just...an underwhelming debut wouldn’t you agree?

So then the real fun begins. The Ultimate Warrior’s music hits and here comes Howard Finkel to attack Tony Chimel. This is a lot of Howard Finkel isn’t it? Bruce was the one who decided to use the Warrior music for Fink right?

And Finkel attacks Tony Chimel and they “brawl” and I use that term loosely. This is just super entertaining to Vince and only Vince right?

Jericho and Shamrock bump into each other and they brawl. This angle ultimately went quick as Shamrock was not long for the WWF. Was the hope to put Jericho over strong on Shamrock to get him going?

What was it about Ken Shamrock at this time that led to his leaving the WWF? MMA?

Just a few weeks prior to this Jim you’re voted into the Observer Hall of Fame. Did Dave reach out to you let you know and is this a big honor for you?

Here is Stephanie McMahon after weeks finally accepting Test’s proposal for marriage. With Russo leaving not long after this...did this unfold exactly how you knew the original plan was? Triple H getting in there and marrying Stephanie?

What was Test’s potential in your mind at this point?

Here comes Shane and the Posse to break it all up and here comes Mankind. God damn Jim this is Vince Russo crash TV at it’s finest isn’t it? Jamming almost 15 characters into 30 minutes of segment work.

Now we have the Stooges and Mankind brawling against Shane and the Posse and I’m assuming this is the Shane vs. Mankind match promoted earlier.

I bring this up now because I think this is the best point to do so. At the moment Smack Down debuts you have the WWF with Raw and SmackDown, Jakked, and various other magazine shows. WCW has Nitro and Thunder, Saturday NIght and various syndication shows like World Wide. ECW is debuting on TNN THE VERY NEXT NIGHT and still running their syndication shows. Just two weeks ago AEW debuted Dynamite in Pittsburgh...when is too much product over exposure and is this a fear you have in Dynamite coming on the scene?

I bring this up because also there’s always a chance of creative being over exposed as here comes Chyna...back as a heel if you’re trying to keep track...to distract Mick and Triple H lays him out with a chair. Holy shit Jim. Did you have an issue keeping up with all this? Is this something as the announcer you bring up like how am I supposed to sell this and make sense of this when really nothing with Chyna so far tonight has made sense?

So now Shamrock runs Jericho off and finds Finkel who then...I’m assuming...shits himself. Jim...the debut on Network TV is off and running when someone shits himself right?

Tori’s naked too. This is like a Vince Russo acid trip is it not? Yup we got an Evening Gown match between Tori & Ivory but Tori’s not interested in having it because Tony Garea is trying to get her to force a shirt on herself but she does then runs down and in her anger rips Ivory’s dress off who then powders while Luna tries to restrain Tori. What in the hell is going on here?

With the move to Network TV was there any talk about toning down the product or worry about the advertisers. We all know the fight with the PTC (Parents’ Television Council) and Brent Bozell is coming but it hadn’t landed yet.

Anything on this show embarrassing you?

Here comes Shawn...in the tiniest shorts possible. I don’t believe they’re regulation referee shorts but it’s Shawn Michaels right?

It’s a good match Jim don’t get wrong but there’s just so much stuff in it. You got Chyna out here getting kicked out by Shawn...you got Shane out here. Shawn as the referee. We’ve all seen the finish. Rock goes for the people’s elbow and Shawn turns heel with a superkick and Triple H gets the win and retains his title and the show goes off the air with the kind of DX/Corporation mix & match of Chyna, Triple H, Shawn & Shane.

Was Vince just on cruise control at this point with Russo letting him write because this seems like this is an editor’s worst nightmare?

Only thing we really didn’t have here is feuding tag team champions.

Meltzer speculates that the turn of Shawn was to really give HHH the top guy rub.

What did you think of the show Jim?

The debut of SmackDown draws a 4.16 rating and a 7.2 share. From the Observer … “While some in WWF expressed minor disappointment with the numbers, it beat out the 4.0 that the highest rated show of the previous week on UPN delivered. Of course, with all the millions spent by UPN in hyping Smack Down as the savior of the network (40% of the company's ad budget for the fall season was for Smack Down), it was expected to be by far the highest rated show on the network. UPN during the two hours finished in fourth place among the networks, behind NBC's traditionally strong shows, ABC and FOX, but beating a pre-season football game on CBS and WB. It didn't come close to being the third highest rated prime time show of the night as Vince McMahon had predicted it would open as (and in one year be No. 2 and in two years would be the fighting for the highest rated prime time show of the night). Thunder, which did nothing to counter-program the debut of Smack Down, going with a Benoit & Saturn vs. Sid & Rick Steiner main event and little else against WWF's HHH vs. Rock title match, fell to a 1.94 rating and 3.3 share, numbers that are expected to fall even farther in future weeks.”

Was this a disappointment to you or those in the company?

The Raw after this...moved back to 11pm by the US Open...beats Nitro.