Sam Muchnick & Bob Geigel – Two Different Approaches

 - John Edwards

Sam Muchnick, in St. Louis, and Bob Geigel, in Kansas City, ran two of the most successful NWA promotions in the midwest during the glory days of territorial wrestling in the 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s.

Muchnick’s “territory” was essentially the St. Louis promotion of the NWA. He generally ran two shows and a TV taping per month. This led to a minimal time commitment of three days per month for his workers. This allowed Sam to showcase familiar names to his patrons (Harley Race, Bulldog Bob Brown, and Pat O’Connor) as well as to highlight big names from other promotions. (AWA or WWA, for example) Since the time commitment was minimal, stars from other NWA territories, such as Texas (the Von Erichs) could find the time for Kiel Auditorium events and TV tapings, where St. Louis fans would see them on TV for a month. In the days of strict kayfabe, this allowed the fans to believe the workers were really “in the area” for the weeks leading up to a big Kiel main event. This strategy worked very well for Muchnick, evidenced by high TV ratings and great gates for his Kiel Auditorium and Arena shows. It was considered an honor and an achievement in the business to work for Sam Muchnick at the Kiel Auditorium on a Friday night.

Bob Geigel, on the other hand, ran a more traditional territory. His workers generally worked for him alone, and incurred a more rigorous schedule. The highlight of the Central States territory was working the big Thursday night shows at the Memorial Hall in Kansas City. In addition, Central States ran other towns in the region: St. Joseph, Sedalia, and Columbia, Missouri, as well as other towns in Kansas, Iowa, and Nebraska. Spot shows were held in a number of towns in this area. My research has shown that these workers were on the road 20+ nights a month in the Central States area. Working for Bob Geigel was really a full time proposition.