Not too long ago, I was listening to an episode of Bob Smith’s podcast, The Outdated Wrestling Hour. The theme of the episode was “My Favorite Things.” One of the questions was “what is your favorite year of professional wrestling?” I really liked that question and decided to think about what my own answer would be. I really didn’t have to think about it for very long. 1996 came to me very quickly.

1996 may go down as one of the most important years in professional wrestling history. WWE and WCW’s “Monday Night War” was heating up as both companies had shows that aired Monday nights at 8pm. Neither company started off the year with much to talk about. Meanwhile, over in Philadelphia, the most game changing “indy” company of the past 50 years, ECW was about to start (in my opinion) the best year that they ever had.

The summer of 1996 in particular was where things happened in all three companies that changed the direction of the industry forever. On June 23rd, WWE held their King of the Ring event. That was where “Stone Cold” Steve Austin had his “Austin 3:16” speech which started his rise to being the biggest star in the business. Just two weeks later at WCW’s Bash at the Beach, Hulk Hogan was revealed to be the third member of the group that became the New World Order. Those two events were the catalyst of WWE and WCW being set up for the future. For a few years, they were both getting amazing television ratings and were doing great business.

ECW didn’t necessarily have one single moment as obviously huge as “Austin 3:16” or the forming of the NWO, but they had great show after show. If you don’t know, Extreme Championship Wrestling ran shows out of a small venue in Philadelphia that was (unofficially) known as the ECW Arena. ECW’s then owner, Paul Heyman, would eventually say that ECW was there to “disrupt the status quo” of the industry. And they certainly did. 1996 featured some of the future stars of business such as Rob Van Dam, Chris Jericho, the Dudley Boyz, and Rey Mysterio just to name a few. Other legends such as Terry Gordy, Bam Bam Bigelow, Terry Funk, and “Dr. Death” Steve Williams appeared in 1996. And I’ll get to Williams in a few minutes.

I attended every single show that ECW did at the ECW Arena in 1996. In general, ECW would do a show at the ECW Arena every third Saturday. And the night before would be a show at some other town, likely in Pennsylvania. Twice a year, they would do “internet conventions” where fans could get tickets to both weekend shows and attend some ECW events. I participated in the August 2nd and August 3rd version of that. It was the August 3rd show where “Doctor Death” Steve Williams made his ECW debut as the mystery partner against Taz and Brian Lee.

That weekend means the world to me. The wrestling was good. In fact, “The Doctor is In” show on August 3rd is one of most memorable shows that I ever attended, but the wrestling wasn’t the important part of the weekend. I went to Philadelphia with three of my best friends. While I was there, I got to see some of my AOL friends that I didn’t have the ability to keep in touch with as easily as I do now. I even met one of those AOL friends in person for the very first time. That friend has gone on to do some very Elite things in wrestling.

Many times in my entries, I’ve discussed how social media has played such a positive influence on my life. America Online (AOL) was social media, before we called it that. I will never not be grateful for what my (countless) hours browsing AOL wrestling message boards did for me. I have great memories and lifelong friendships. What more can I ask for?

I may do a deeper dive in 1996 in pro wrestling at some point. I’ve covered some of it in other entries. But, getting back to the inspiration for this post, my favorite things. While 1996 may be my favorite year in wrestling, not all of my answers are necessary from 1996. I also offer them with no commentary.

Wrestler: Barry Windham
Babyface: Ricky Steamboat
Heel: Roman Reigns (2020-2024)
Tag Team: Demolition
Woman: Sherri Martel
Manager: Bobby Heenan
Arena: ECW Arena
Match: Sabu and Rob Van Dam vs. The Eliminators (ECW November to Remember ’96)
TV Match: John Cena vs. CM Punk (WWE Money in the Bank 2011)