Mike Cline's MID-ATLANTIC GRAPPLIN' GREATS
A fond look back at the great days of JIM CROCKETT PROMOTIONS professional wrestling.
Saturday, June 28, 2025
Friday, June 27, 2025
STATESVILLE, NC WRESTLING
Statesville, North Carolina wrestling fans (and I was one) were treated to THREE nights of JIM CROCKETT PROMOTIONS wrestling shows during the summer of 1966.
A perfect location for wrestling during the summer months...the wooden grandstand ball park similar to that in the movie BULL DURHAM. Sponsored by the COMMUNITY BASEBALL CLUB, who also gave us DOUBLE A BASEBALL at the same site. The ring was set up at home plate, surrounded by metal ringside seat chairs all around. The grandstand served as the General Admission area. The wrestlers entered the ring from the two dugouts.
No rainouts during the summer of 1966. THREE shows in TWO months.
As a fifteen-year old 'rasslin' fan, I found myself at all three shows parked in my $2.00 ringside seat.
This was the first card of the 1966 summer...

For whatever reasons (maybe analysis would reveal why), two memories come back to me about this night.
(1) My cousin, who attended with me, spilled a cup of Coca-Cola on himself during the matches.
(2) One of The Masked Red Demons (either Billy or Jimmy Hines) came out of the dugout for the main event smoking a cigarette (through the mask), discarding it as he approached the ring. I thought to myself - "Athletes aren't supposed to smoke." Give me a break, I was a naive fifteen year-old who was reading FAMOUS MONSTERS and wrestling magazines, instead of PLAYBOY, at the time. (Don't worry, the PLAYBOYs came later.)
Regardless of my mental stability, I remember the evening fondly.
Thursday, June 26, 2025
Wednesday, June 25, 2025
BASHIN IN 1987 - - THE END WAS APPROACHING

JIM CROCKETT PROMOTIONS, into its sixth decade of operation, would soon be no more. The sale to TURNER ENTERTAINMENT was on the horizon.
In one of its final big programs, THE GREAT AMERICAN BASH was a month-long event, starting JULY 1 in Lakeland, Florida and ending July 31 at the ORANGE BOWL in Miami. But in-between these two Sunshine State shows, THE BASH journeyed as far west as Los Angeles and San Francisco, and north as Landover, Maryland. Cross-country shows were held in Chicago, Atlanta, Richmond, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Oklahoma City, Baltimore, Charlotte, Greensboro, Norfolk, Richmond, Dallas, Houston, Philadelphia and Cleveland, among others.
Tuesday, June 24, 2025
Monday, June 23, 2025
THE SUPER DESTROYER INVADES JCP
The year was 1973. JIM CROCKETT PROMOTIONS brought back one of their most popular wrestlers, GEORGE SCOTT, not as a ring competitor, but rather as head booker. One of Scott's priorities was to shift emphasis from tag team competition to singles matches.
To accomplish this, Scott brought in a couple of top heels he felt could achieve the transition. One was Johnny Valentine. The other, a rugged, vicious man in a mask, known in many territories as THE SPOILER.
However, in MID-ATLANTIC CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING rings, he would be known as THE SUPER DESTROYER.
Regardless of his in-ring monocle, the man who wore the mask and pulverized his opponents was the 6' 4", 270 pound Canadian named DON JARDINE (1940-2006). Already in the pro wrestling business for nearly twenty years, Jardine was known as an incredibly agile worker for such a big man, known for 'walking the ropes' before lowering the boom on his competition. His ring style was rough and tough and, being the consummate 'heel', rule breaking was a big part of his m.o.
THE SUPER DESTROYER rose to main event level in JCP almost immediately, going against such greats as Johnny Weaver, Bearcat Wright, Wahoo McDaniel, Paul Jones, Rufus R. Jones and Sonny King.
A major program involving THE SUPER DESTROYER would be with a hooded 'babyface' who called himself THE AVENGER. The battle between these two escalated to a MASK VERSUS MASK battle in which the loser would reveal his identity. I witnessed the Greensboro, N.C. encounter between these two (seems like it was on Thanksgiving night) in which THE AVENGER was eventually pinned and revealed to be none other than Reggie Parks. This same type match was probably held in other cities as well.
However, the program with THE SUPER DESTROYER I enjoyed the most was his incredible matches with SWEDE HANSON. The long-time JCP heel, big SWEDE was now a single, as partner RIP HAWK had bolted to the newly-formed IWA. Swede joined forces with SUPER D as a new tag team, but things went sideways between the two, with the masked man humiliating Hanson after a defeat. From this point on, Swede turned 'babyface' and went after his ex-partner.
The two went from town-to-town in the MID-ATLANTIC territory fighting each other in mostly bloody battles. It would be Swede's swan song as a JCP main eventer. After this program, Hanson would finish his career as a mid-card wrestler, splitting his time between JCP and the then-WWF.
THE SUPER DESTROYER would continue on in JCP for a while, later leaving abruptly over 'corporate issues', with JCP announcing on its weekly wrestling programs he had been unmasked and showing Jardine's photograph without the mask.
Some thought this was not the most professional way to end things between the company and the employee, but we see things like this in the corporate world everyday, don't we?
Sunday, June 22, 2025
Saturday, June 21, 2025
THERE'S ACTION, ADVENTURE, MYSTERY
Actually, that is the phrase that was used for TV's ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN.
But, think about it. It could also apply to the great storylines and matches of JIM CROCKETT PROMOTIONS throughout the years.
The greatest wrestling talent in the world worked in the MID-ATLANTIC CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING territory.
Here are but a few...


Friday, June 20, 2025
Thursday, June 19, 2025
RING RESULTS
History made in the MID-ATLANTIC CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING territory more than fifty-five years ago...
RALEIGH, N.C. - 1968
ABE JACOBS and LUTHER LINDSAY lost to HIRO MATSUDA and THE MISSOURI MAULER.
LES THATCHER and JIM OSBORNE beat 'BULLDOG' LEE HENNING and JIM GRABMIRE.
PANCHO VALDEZ and BOB NANDOR wrestled to a draw.
PEPPY GOMEZ topped FRANK HESTER.
ABE JACOBS and LUTHER LINDSAY lost to HIRO MATSUDA and THE MISSOURI MAULER.
LES THATCHER and JIM OSBORNE beat 'BULLDOG' LEE HENNING and JIM GRABMIRE.
PANCHO VALDEZ and BOB NANDOR wrestled to a draw.
PEPPY GOMEZ topped FRANK HESTER.
RICHMOND, VA. - 1965
GEORGE and SANDY SCOTT and JOHNNY WEAVER bested ALDO BOGNI, BRONKO LUBICH and HOMER O'DELL in six man action.
'BIG' BOB ORTON topped STEVE BOLUS.
JOHNNY WEAVER won from PEDRO ZAPATA.
LUTHER LINDSAY defeated RAY DURAN.
GEORGE and SANDY SCOTT and JOHNNY WEAVER bested ALDO BOGNI, BRONKO LUBICH and HOMER O'DELL in six man action.
'BIG' BOB ORTON topped STEVE BOLUS.
JOHNNY WEAVER won from PEDRO ZAPATA.
LUTHER LINDSAY defeated RAY DURAN.
CHARLESTON, S.C. - 1968
GEORGE and SANDY SCOTT whipped THE MISSOURI MAULER and HIRO MATSUDA.
GEORGE BECKER, JOHNNY WEAVER and NELSON ROYAL toppled J.C. DYKES and THE INFERNOS in six man action.
THE AMAZING ZUMA pinned 'BULLDOG' LEE HENNING.
THE MATADOR beat JACK RICE.
GEORGE and SANDY SCOTT whipped THE MISSOURI MAULER and HIRO MATSUDA.
GEORGE BECKER, JOHNNY WEAVER and NELSON ROYAL toppled J.C. DYKES and THE INFERNOS in six man action.
THE AMAZING ZUMA pinned 'BULLDOG' LEE HENNING.
THE MATADOR beat JACK RICE.
CHARLESTON, S.C. - 1965
THE KENTUCKIANS topped BRUTE BERNARD and SKULL MURPHY via DQ.
JOHN and CHRIS TOLOS wrestled NELSON ROYAL and STEVE BOLUS to a draw.
MIKE PAIDOUSIS won over CHRIS AVEROFF.
GEORGE 'CATALINA' DRAKE defeated MIKE GALLAGHER.
THE KENTUCKIANS topped BRUTE BERNARD and SKULL MURPHY via DQ.
JOHN and CHRIS TOLOS wrestled NELSON ROYAL and STEVE BOLUS to a draw.
MIKE PAIDOUSIS won over CHRIS AVEROFF.
GEORGE 'CATALINA' DRAKE defeated MIKE GALLAGHER.
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