VIEW FROM THE RISING SUN
by Masanori Horie

Millennium Glitches

What are "Nostradamus" and the "Year 2000" problem? Who is a "King of Terror"? Will "digital" pro wrestling take over all and kill "analog" pro wrestling?

Missing Link and Masanori

[1] The French prophet Nostradamus (1503-1566), in his quatrain 10-72, has been quite frightening for Japanese for years: "In the year 1999, seventh month ... From the sky will come a great King of Terror ... To bring back to life the great King of the Mongols ... Before and after, Mars will reign through good fortune." It has almost been in the latter part of July, but nothing has happened here in Japan.

Abdullah the Butcher

In the Japanese wrestling business, New Japan Pro keeps running alone, but they don't focus on long-time "wrestling" fans anymore. All Japan Pro keeps having great quality matches, but they can't appeal to the non-wrestling fan in the least. Other indie groups have struggled hard to draw 1,000 fans. The Japanese wrestling business may need "a great King of Terror," if it means a "great impact." It is very difficult to find it, and the Japanese nation's economy is still in a stagnating recession. It is very weird that magazines and newspapers have overestimated the possibility of a combined New Japan Pro / All Japan Pro Super Show. Actually, New Japan Pro and magazines need to do so, because New Japan Pro has to keep up a much bigger office and crew than All Japan Pro. However, the consensus of both Japanese and gaijin (foreign) wrestlers of All Japan Pro is that it won't be to their benefit to do business with their opposition. They are always in a disadvantageous position because of the late Giant Baba's traditional and conservative business style, but their real abilities are much more superior than their opposition, whose business style is much more Americanized. Wrestling history says New Japan Pro has eaten out and dumped other offices after having interpromotional business. "A great King of Terror" is, in fact, a "distrust." There is a big dilemma, because both know it will be the biggest business.

Gray Skull and Masanori

[2] Government and private corporation officials, not only in Japan but all over the world, are alarmed by so-called millennium glitches, as the year 2000 is just around the corner. As is widely known, many computers and their software applications record the year as a two-digit number, meaning they will have trouble coping with the year 2000, which they may recognize as the year 1900. The date 01-01-00 may be interpreted by many software applications as January 1, 1900.

Vader and Masanori

The time has made great strides in both American wrestling and Japanese wrestling in these years. For example, we have watched some turning points ... The World Wrestling Federation debuted Monday Night Raw, live from the Manhattan Center in New York City, New York, on Monday, January 11, 1993. Eastern Championship Wrestling renamed itself Extreme Championship Wrestling at the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylviania, on Saturday, August 27, 1994. World Championship Wrestling debuted Monday Nitro, live from The Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, on Monday, September 4, 1995. Kanji "Antonio" Inoki retired as a pro wrestler at the Tokyo Dome on Saturday, April 4, 1998. Shohei "Giant" Baba died at Tokyo Medical College Hospital on Sunday, January 31, 1999. Then, we will encounter the "alternative" or "millennium" wrestlers who will follow the way where Steve Austin, Mick Foley, Rocky Maivia, Sabu, Rob Van Dam, Shane Douglas, Goldberg, Chris Jericho, The Giant (Paul Wight / The Big Show), Keiji Muto, Masahiro Chono, Jushin "Thunder" Liger, Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Jun Akiyama have run. Nearly 100 years have passed since George Hackenschmidt, as the European Heavyweight wrestling champion, traveled to Vienna (Austria), Russia, Dresden (Germany), Budapest (Hungary), Paris (France), and London (England), and the "Tag Team match" and "18-foot padded mats laid atop risers" were innovated in San Francisco, California in 1901.

Leather Face and Masanori

Pro wrestling, pro wrestlers, and we pro wrestling fans always keep pace with the times. How can we keep a great variety of PRO WRESTLING? How can wrestlers keep their own originality? How can pro wrestling survive? These are Herculean tasks.

View From Rising Sun
Introduction--Update

Jeremy Lopez, whom VFTRS introduced on June 28, has just signed a contract with WCW. I hope his dream will come true in WCW!

Revisit View From The Rising Sun Introduction--Jeremy Lopez

Harley Race's Complete Record of Title Matches in Japan

(L-R) Harley Race, Dory Funk Jr., and Jack Brisco---past, present, and future NWA World Champions on January 27, 1974, at Higashi-yodogawa, Osaka, Japan

Harley Race is one of the most famous gaijin (foreign) wrestlers in Japanese wrestling history. He was called "Mr. Puroresu" (Mr. Pro Wrestling) by Japanese fans. He came to Japan for the first time with Dick The Bruiser, Dirty Dick Murdoch, Killer Buddy Austin, Baron Mikel Scicluna, and The Masked Tennessee Rebel (Mike Paidousis) from February 23 to March 23, 1968. He had 36 tours for JWA, All Japan Pro Wrestling, and Tokyo Pro Wrestling for 28 years and had countless rough and tough matches with the late Giant Baba, Jumbo Tsuruta, Dory & Terry Funk, Abdullah the Butcher, and many more. We Japanese fans will never forget about "Mr. Puroresu," Harley Race. Take a look at his record of title matches in Japan.

February 26, 1968---Osaka Furitsu Gym
International Tag Team title match
Giant Baba & Antonio Inoki (2-1) Dick The Bruiser & Harley Race
(1) Baba (13:14 disqualification) Bruiser & Race
(2) Bruiser (1:56) Baba
(3) Baba (6:10) Race

December 1, 1969---Hiroshima Prefectural Gym
All Asian Tag Team title match
Antonio Inoki & Michiaki Yoshimura (2-1) Dory Funk Jr. & Harley Race
(1) Race (16:28) Yoshimura
(2) Inoki & Yoshimura (6:23 disqualification) Dory & Race
(3) Yoshimura (2:32) Race

March 13, 1972---Miyagi Prefectural Gym, Sendai
United National Heavyweight title match
Seiji Sakaguchi (2-1) Harley Race
(1) Race (8:43) Sakaguchi
(2) Sakaguchi (5:18 countout) Race
(3) Sakaguchi (4:30) Race

September 13, 1973---Nichidai Kodo (Nihon University) Hall, Tokyo
PWF Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (2-1) Harley Race
(1) Race (17:05) Baba
(2) Baba (3:12) Race
(3) Baba (8:46 countout) Race

January 24, 1974---Hiroshima Prefectural Gym
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Jack Brisco (1-1) Harley Race
(1) Race (23:55) Brisco
(2) Brisco (8:56) Race
(3) 60 minutes time up

January 27, 1974---Higashi-yodogawa Gym, Osaka
PWF Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (2-1) Harley Race
(1) Race (12:48) Baba
(2) Baba (4:39) Race
(3) Baba (7:50) Race

January 29, 1975---Tokyo Metropolitan Gym
PWF Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (2-1) Harley Race
(1) Baba (11:42) Race
(2) Race (2:05) Baba
(3) Baba (7:56) Race

June 11, 1977---Setagaya-Ward Gym, Tokyo
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (2-1) Jumbo Tsuruta
(1) Tsuruta (8:26) Race
(2) Race (8:08) Tsuruta
(3) Race (5:24) Tsuruta

June 14, 1977---Matsudo City Sports Center, Chiba
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (1-1) Giant Baba
(1) Baba (24:23) Race
(2) Race (17:55) Baba
(3) 60 minutes time up

January 18, 1978---Sapporo Nakajima Sports Center, Hokkaido
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (2-1) Harley Race
(1) Baba (14:54) Race
(2) Race (5:40) Baba
(3) Baba (11:26 disqualification) Race

January 20, 1978---Obihiro Gym, Hokkaido
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (1-1) Jumbo Tsuruta
(1) Race (28:09) Tsuruta
(2) Tsuruta (16:30) Race
(3) 60 minutes time up

May 7, 1979---Osaka Furitsu Gym
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (1-1) Jumbo Tsuruta
(1) Race (20:17) Tsuruta
(2) Tsuruta (2:50) Race
(3) 6:10 double countout

May 8, 1979---Chiba Prefectural Gym
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (1-1) Dick Murdoch
(1) Murdoch (14:45) Race
(2) Race (20:46) Murdoch
(3) 60 minutes time up

May 9, 1979---Miyagi Prefectural Sports Center, Sendai
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (1-1) Giant Baba
(1) Baba (32:50) Race
(2) Race (14:45) Baba
(3) 60 minutes time up

October 26, 1979---Matsumoto City Gym, Nagano
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race drew Jumbo Tsuruta (30:29 double countout)

October 31, 1979---Aichi Prefectural Gym, Aichi
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (18:29) Harley Race
Baba became the 55th champion.

November 5, 1979---Kushima City Gym, Miyazaki
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (20:38) Harley Race

November 7, 1979---Amagasaki City Gym, Hyogo
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (20:58) Giant Baba
Harley Race became the 56th champion.

November 8, 1979---Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race drew Abdullah the Butcher (5:08 double countout)

May 27, 1980---Akita Prefectural Gym
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (2-1) Tiger Toguchi (Kim Duk / Tiger Chang Lee)
(1) Race (11:59) Toguchi
(2) Toguchi (8:50) Race
(3) Race (5:30) Toguchi

May 28, 1980---Sapporo Nakajima Sports Center
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (1-1) Jumbo Tsuruta
(1) Tsuruta (30:05) Race
(2) Race (17:10) Tsuruta
(3) 60 minutes time up

September 1, 1980---Kanoya City Gym, Kagoshima
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race drew Jumbo Tsuruta (15:35 double countout)

September 4, 1980---Saga Sports Center
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (14:05) Harley Race
Baba became the 57th champion.

September 10, 1980---Ohji-ga-oka Park Gym, Ohtsu, Shiga
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (11:58) Giant Baba
Race became the 58th champion.

September 12, 1980---Ichinomiya Industrial Gym, Aichi
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race drew Mil Mascaras (14:45 double countout)

February 15, 1981---Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (2-1) Harley Race
(1) Baba (9:39) Race
(2) Race (3:36) Baba
(3) Baba (6:28 disqualification) Race

April 2, 1982---Civic Center Coliseum, Amarillo, Texas
International Heavyweight title match
Dory Funk Jr. (22:45 countout) Harley Race

April 19, 1982---Hiroshima Prefectural Gym
United National Heavyweight title match
Jumbo Tsuruta (22:43 double countout) Harley Race

April 22, 1982---Tokyo Metropolitan Gym
United National Heavyweight title match
Jumbo Tsuruta (13:06 referee stop) Harley Race

August 1, 1982---Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
United National Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (15:29) Jumbo Tsuruta
Race became the 20th champion.

October 24, 1982 Kitami Sports Cente, Hokkaido
United National Heavyweight title match
Jumbo Tsuruta (20:14) Harley Race
Tsuruta became the 21st champion.

October 26, 1982 Obihiro Gym, Hokkaido
PWF Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (12:45) Giant Baba
Race became the sixth champion.

November 2, Aichi Prefectural Gym, Nagoya
PWF Heavyweight title match
Harley Race (12:41 double disqualification) Giant Baba

February 11, 1983---Checker Dome, St. Louis, Missouri
PWF Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (13:04) Harley Race
Baba became the seventh champion.

April 20, 1983---Tokyo Metropolitan Gym
PWF Heavyweight title match
Giant Baba (11:24 double countout) Harley Race

October 31, 1983---Fukushima Prefectural Gym, Aizu-wakamatsu
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Harley Race beat Ted DiBiase

May 25, 1984---Funabashi Civic Gym, Chiba
NWA World Heavyweight title match
Ric Flair (1-1) Harley Race
(1) Race (16:06) Flair
(2) Flair (6:31) Race
(3) 10:46 double disqualification

September 19, 1985---Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
International Heavyweight title match
Jumbo Tsuruta (16:12 double count out) Harley Race

May 24, 1986---Numazu City Gym, Shizuoka
International Heavyweight title match
Jumbo Tsuruta (13:02 double disqualification) Harley Race