There have been several wrestlers who also worked as teachers such as “The Franchise” Shane Douglas, George “The Animal” Steele, and Tim Storm. Look at that—two former NWA World champions! This was used as the premise of the late 80s Canadian sitcom Learning the Ropes.
I discovered Learning the Ropes via WrestleCrap and had to watch it for myself. It’s one of those shows where you probably weren’t aware of it when it first aired but you vaguely remember it from syndication.
Learning the Ropes
The show starred Super Bowl XVIII Champion and Raiders defensive end Lyle Alzado as a private school teacher and vice-principal who wrestles to supplement his bills. This wild because he’s a private school teacher and should be making enough.
Then again, it was the 80s so maybe he had to slam some bodies, right? His friends are mainly wrestlers but the principal of the school and his kids are aware of his secret career. The whole show is about the situations he gets into balancing his two professional lives.
Learning the Ropes ran on CTV for six months between 1988 and 1989 before being shown in some U.S markets. A number of NWA wrestlers appeared on the show such as Ric Flair, the Road Warriors, and Tully Blanchard among others.
“Dr. Death” Steve Williams pretty much co-starred in the show as he played Alzado’s masked gimmick “The Masked Maniac.”
A Must Watch for Wrestling Fans?
Actually, you could skip this one as well. I love the idea for the show and I’ll sit and enjoy a cheesy 80s sitcom, so this was a fun watch for me.
However, I know most fans wouldn’t want their time wasted on a show that everyone knows isn’t good—especially when wrestling is just in the show for flavor.
I will say that Learning the Ropes has a lot of potential to be rebooted. The idea isn’t bad but the late-80s wasn’t the time for this show at all. Sure, it fit the 80s sitcom aesthetic down to a corny theme song but I feel like it would’ve been better written today.
That doesn’t mean it would’ve been breaking new ground in comedy but it would’ve likely made it to a second or third season. Check out the pilot episode below:
Remember to stay up to date with the latest news on TheOvertimer. Don’t forget to visit Gamestingr for great videos, news, and gameplay!
