[9][13] While Cannon possessed a strong TV syndication network throughout Canada and parts of the Midwestern United States, Superstars of Wrestling had difficulty securing talent and promoting house shows.
In 1983, in an effort to counter Ole Anderson's planned "invasion" of Detroit, Cannon made a deal with World Wrestling Federation promoter Vince McMahon to co-promote shows in the area.
[9] In late 1974, a group of The Sheik's top mid-card wrestlers led by Karl Von Shotz and Jack Cain left BTW to form their own promotion, "Universal Wrestling", running shows in Ohio and Canada.
[24][25][26] Cannon's decision to promote Newfoundland locals Sailor White and Hartford Love as the top stars were a big part of what made these summer tours so successful.
Among those who made unannounced appearances included Chief Jay Strongbow, Johnny Valiant, Killer Kowalski, Mad Dog Vachon, Spiros Arion and Waldo Von Erich.
Using Sailor White as the main "heel" performer,[35][36] the show also boasted names such as Buddy Austin, Bull Curry, Crusher Cortez,[37] Don Kent, Hartford Love,[23][38][39] Mighty Igor, Johnny War Eagle, Bob Dellassera, Tony Parisi and Otto Von Heller.
[16][18][42][43] Drason was the manager of the mysterious El Santos, a pair of masked wrestlers originally portrayed by Duncan McTavish[44] and Terry Yorkson,[45] who were a popular tag team during the show's early history.
While being punched, Cannon would occasionally perform a humorous monologue (e.g. reading from the works of Shakespeare) or, describing the action in a mock play-by-play voice, playfully taunting the participants by asking "Is that the best you can do?".
[27] Five years later, encouraged by the strong attendance at the Superstars TV tapings, Cannon planned to hold their first major supercard at the CNE Coliseum which was to feature Lou Thesz in the main event.
The case was taken all the way to the Canadian Supreme Court who supported Cannon and Avruskin, and stated "it would be injurious to the sport of wrestling and to the interest of the fans if competing matches were held on the same date in Toronto."
The co-main event was The Crusaders (Billy Red Lyons and Dewey Robertson) defending the NWA International Tag Team Championship against Rip Hawk and Swede Hanson.
[48] Yes, I was working for Cannon from the start and managed Eric the Red against Tony Parisi and also Hartford Love & Bruce Swayze against Don Serrano & Gino Brito at the CNE show.
Oh well, life goes on in this crazy business called professional wrestling.Cannon stayed away from Toronto after the CNE Coliseum debacle knowing that Tunney would simply book the Gardens on the same day of a Superstars show.
A wrestling manager did not need a license in Quebec, however, the local athletic commission ruled that Drason had become a wrestler the moment he entered the ring and banned him from working in the city.
Consequently, Superstars had significantly reduced production values and a very thin roster whose main stars included The Great Wojo, Mohammed Saad, Bobby Colt and Chris Carter.
In another cost-cutting measure, Cannon had several people perform as the masked wrestler "El Santos", a character originally created early in the show's history, so that they could wrestle twice in one night.
Although it aired at 11:15 pm Saturday nights, Cannon's audience were attracted to the WWF's superior production values as well as the popular feud between of the Bruno Sammartino and Larry Zbyszko.
[14] The 1980 tour of Newfoundland featured Cannon battling Calhoun in a chain match at the Memorial Stadium and George "The Animal" Steele's short-lived reign as Canadian Heavyweight Champion.
[24][26] The following year, Cannon was able to bring in a handful of American stars for one-time appearances on Superstars including The Alaskan, Dick the Bruiser, Swede Hanson and Greg "The Hammer" Valentine.
The new company had just launched a weekly show, "Les Étoiles de la Lutte" (The Stars of Wrestling), which was airing on All-Star's old Sunday morning time slot on CHLT in Sherbrooke, Quebec.
The partnership was a natural fit since Varoussac was able to provide the show with a steady stream of talent and Superstars could give the promotion valuable television exposure both in Montreal, particularly via the much sought after English language TV outlet on CFCF-DT, as well as outside of French-speaking Quebec.
[13] Several French Canadian wrestlers who had been regulars on Superstars made their return including, most notably, Gino Brito and Dino Bravo, as well as the television debuts of Mad Dog Lefebvre, Raymond Rougeau and Michel "Justice" Dubois among others.
In 1982, Cannon and Milt Avruskin began producing an English-language version of Varoussac's flagship program "Les Étoiles de la Lutte" (The Stars of Wrestling).
On a February 1983 episode, for example, the official contract signing between International Heavyweight Champion Billy Robinson (with Lord Alfred Hayes) and challenger Dino Bravo for their upcoming title bout at the Paul-Sauve Centre was conducted in French.
[60] Even longtime rival Frank Tunney was involved at one point,[51] and was able to use Jim Crockett's wrestlers at the Cobo[29][47] but, despite his efforts, Cannon failed to resurrect the territory to its former glory.
The production values of WWF programming were much more sophisticated compared to those of Cannon and other promotions and McMahon believed the show would make a powerful impression on the average wrestling fan.
[74] Superstars of Wrestling was generally presented as a studio show although it often aired matches from high school gyms and small arenas in Newfoundland, Ontario and Quebec, as well as in the Great Lakes region of the United States.
In February 1983, for example, Superstars of Wrestling broadcast the official contract signing between Dino Bravo and Billy Robinson (with manager Lord Alfred Hayes) for their bout at the Paul-Sauve Centre for the Canadian International Heavyweight Championship.
The years Cannon spent promoting in Montreal, Ontario and Detroit, and his television syndication efforts, paved the way for the WWF to expand into those markets during its national expansion during the 1980s wrestling boom.
Cannon's cooperation allowed Vince McMahon to get into Detroit ahead of Ole Anderson in 1983 and his English-language timeslot on CFCF was instrumental in the WWF's successful takeover of the Montreal territory from Lutte Internationale several years later.