THE INFERNOS (masked and unmasked) with MGR. J.C. DYKES

 

HIRO MATSUDA - GREAT JCP HEEL

 

THEY WORKED HARD FOR THEIR MONEY

            Working for JIM CROCKETT PROMOTIONS meant lots of hours on the road, going from city to city, almost EVERY day.

And once they arrived at their destinations, they worked hard to give us, the wrestling fans, our entertainment dollar's worth.

They seldom failed...

RUFUS R. JONES feels the impact of a HARLEY RACE pile driver.

GENE ANDERSON grimaces as KOA TIKI puts on the pressure.

LUTHER LINDSAY attempts to remove the hood of THE MASKED MARVEL.

BELLE STARR and PENNY BANNER slug it out.

RONNIE GARVIN lets the air out of an opponent.

JERRY BRISCO and SANDY SCOTT work on the leg of SWEDE HANSON.

THE MUMMY puts the boot to a downed opponent.

GEORGE 'TWO TON' HARRIS takes a time-out during a TV match taped at WBTV-CHARLOTTE.

RIP HAWK and SWEDE HANSON

 

SOUTHERN TITLE ON THE LINE

                                                                       April 8, 1967

LEXINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA

58 Years Ago

The SOUTHERN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP is on the line tonight when the current title holder, THE MISSOURI MAULER, defends against the former champ, KLONDIKE BILL, in the headline match at the LEXINGTON YMCA.

KLONDIKE, the popular Alaskan, is out to regain the title from the MAULER, the man he first lifted it from a few months ago.

The MAULER managed to regain the belt from BILL recently under a dark cloud of controversy. KLONDIKE says that justice will prevail tonight in LEXINGTON. The title match is under stipulations of a one-hour time limit with the winner gaining two falls out of three.

The torrid Texan team of cowboys TEX McKENZIE and NELSON ROYAL will have their hands full when they meet big and rugged "Apache" BULL RAMOS and the mysterious masked grappler THE MUMMY. This best-of-three falls co-feature should produce plenty of action.

In single matches, the mammoth HAYSTACK CALHOUN returns to the YMCA to meet rough PEDRO GODOY.

Popular GREG PETERSON squares off against FRANK MARCONI in the 8:15 opening match.

GEORGE SCOTT

 

THE MAN IN THE WHITE MASK (sometimes)

 

He wrestled barefaced as TIM WOODS. He donned an all-white mask and wrestled as MR. WRESTLING. Either way, he sold a lot of wrestling tickets.

Ole Anderson about to taste a MR. WRESTLING elbow.

GEORGIA HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION

Gene Anderson takes a tumble from the masked man.

Ready for ring action.

George Burrell Woodin began his wrestling career at the age of 29 using the ring name TIM WOODS. He was given the name 'MR. WRESTLING' by Nebraska promoter Joe Dusek. Woodin would go on to become a main event superstar in the Georgia, Florida, Texas and the MID-ATLANTIC territories.

During his tenures with JIM CROCKETT PROMOTIONS, TIM WOODS had several title runs - - MID-ATLANTIC TV CHAMPION, U.S. HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION, MID-ATLANTIC TAG TEAM CHAMPION (with Dino Bravo) and WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPION (also with Bravo).

Tim (along with Ric Flair, Johnny Valentine, Bob Bruggers, David Crockett and pilot Michael Farkas) was aboard the 1975 Wilmington, N.C. bound aircraft that
came up short in landing and crashed. Pilot Farkas eventually died from injuries and Valentine and Bruggers never wrestled again. Woods and Bruggers were 'babyface' wrestlers, the rest were 'heels'. To protect the business from exposure, when arriving at the Wilmington hospital, Tim gave his real name and said he was a wrestling promoter. And to quash rumors among wrestling fans that Tim Woods had been on the plane with the 'heels', he was back in the ring within two weeks.

Ric Flair later said in his book 'TO BE THE MAN', that Tim Woods was more than just MR. WRESTLING that day---he was the man who saved the wrestling business.

A gentleman in and out of the ring, Tim Woods passed away November 30, 2002. It's difficult to imagine he's been gone that long.

Just imagine what a hit Tim would have been if he had attended wrestling fan gatherings.

The Man...JOHNNY WEAVER

 

RED CLOUD / LITTLE EAGLE ON A ROLL

                                                                 JANUARY 13, 1968

LEXINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA

57 Years Ago

Winning tag teams on last week's card will go against each other on tonight's LEXINGTON YMCA professional wrestling card.

This means that the Indian team of BOBBY RED CLOUD and CHIEF LITTLE EAGLE, victorious over P.Y. CHUNG and THE MUMMY last Saturday, will be facing LARS and GENE ANDERSON, who defeated HAYSTACK CALHOUN and THE AMAZING ZUMA in their encounter.

Another tag team contest is scheduled with ABE JACOBS and LUTHER LINDSAY meeting the Spanish / Mexican duo of PANCHO VALDEZ and THE MATADOR.

Both tag contests are for the best two-out-of-three falls.

Popular BOB NANDOR, the Hungarian freedom fighter, meets "BULLDOG" LEE HENNING, and young ALEX MEDINA squares off against CHUCK CONLEY in the supporting events.

The first bell rings at 8:15.

JERRY BRISCO

 

SCOTTS FACE DEMONS

                                                                       June 25, 1966

LEXINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA

59 Years Ago

A big tag team battle, matching two swift-moving teams against one another, headlines tonight's four bout card at the LEXINGTON YMCA starting at 8:15.

The FLYING SCOTTS, GEORGE and SANDY, will take a crack at the hooded terror duo of THE MASKED RED DEMONS.

The SCOTT brothers are known for their fantastic aerial maneuvers, while the DEMONS are gaining a local reputation for having no regard for law and order. They conceal their identities behind crimson masks and have been racking up a huge win streak since arriving in this wrestling area. GEORGE and SANDY will try to derail this runaway freight train in the best two-out-of-three fall contest. They have a one hour time limit to do it.

JAN MADRID, a strutting bully, returns after a long absence to run head-on into the able ABE JACOBS in tonight's semi-final match.

GEORGE 'CATALINA' DRAKE meets ALEX MEDINA in a one-fall encounter.

KEN HOLLIS battles TONY NERO in the evening's first match.

THUNDERBOLT PATTERSON

 

INFERNOS ARE HOT

                                                  CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA

JUNE 9, 1969

56 Years Ago

Any time THE INFERNOS and manager J. C. DYKES enter an arena, trouble is on the way. DYKES and his masked team approach the art of wrestling as if they're engaging in war, and DYKES can make matters even worse.

The team challenging THE INFERNOS tonight is SILENTO RODRIGUEZ and GREG PETERSON, and they have promised to give the hooded duo a tough outing on the PARK CENTER wrestling card, starting at 8:15. And this is only the semi-final match of the night.

"We will win fair and square, as we always do," smirked the red-haired manager DYKES. "THE INFERNOS are the hottest (pun intended) team in professional wrestling today. I say bring them all into the ring. The team that marches out the victors will be my blue tigers."

In the headliner tonight, two sets of brothers will be feuding again, as a return tag match pits GEORGE and SANDY SCOTT (really brothers) against GENE and OLE ANDERSON (not so).

The "FLYING SCOTTS" were disqualified their last time out with the "MINNESOTA WRECKING CREW" and tonight, that can't happen as the match will be fought with a NO DISQUALIFICATION stipulation, so anything goes.

Both tag matches are set for the best two-out-of-three falls.

In a special event, ladies PENNY BANNER and TONI ROSE will offer their contrasting brands of wrestling in a one-fall encounter. PENNY wrestles according to the rule book, and TONI has never bothered to read it.

Tough Cuban PANCHO VALDEZ tangles with SONNY FARGO in the opening one-fall contest.

Fans are encouraged to arrive early as a sellout is expected.

ABDULLAH THE BUTCHER

 

PLAYBOY GARY HART GETS HIS

                               You could push a mild-mannered guy like JERRY BRISCO only so                                                            far. 'Playboy' GARY HART crossed the line and paid the price!

"Chain matches disgust me," claimed JERRY. "If a wrestler can't win a match on his ability alone---then he should get out of the business."

Then why did BRISCO end up in a 1973 CHARLOTTE COLISEUM ring battling 'Playboy' GARY HART in a CHAIN MATCH?

The whole bloody mess stemmed from a title match the night OLE ANDERSON hoped to grab JERRY's EASTERN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP.

At a point in the match, it seemed that OLE was really on the short end of a wrestling match, and that didn't happen often. ANDERSON was the victim of a series of dropkicks, spinning toe holds and the abdominal stretch. The end appeared to be near.

Enter GARY HART. Angry that he hadn't been given a title match as he had demanded, HART jumped into the ring to OLE's defense---with a chain.

The heavy metal object left its marks on BRISCO. The referee disqualified ANDERSON due to HART's outside interference. JERRY remained EASTERN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION.

Immediately, HART challenged BRISCO to a match...a CHAIN MATCH. The 'Playboy' and the man he managed, RIP HAWK, told everyone that JERRY wouldn't accept the challenge...because he was yellow.

But they were wrong.

The match was signed for The Big Dome in CHARLOTTE.

It was a night GARY HART would regret. Although he had a few shining moments during the match, the night belonged to JERRY BRISCO. HART was soon a bloody mess, so bad that RIP HAWK grabbed his manager and dragged his limp body to the dressing room and on to the hospital.

Talk about a plan that backfired.

The referee secures each end of the chain to the combatants' wrists.

HART gets the advantage by choking BRISCO with the heavy chain.

The 'Playboy' inflicts more damage to JERRY.

The tide of battle changed, as RIP HAWK helps his manager from the ring.

The EASTERN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION is victorious.

LES THATCHER versus BULL RAMOS

 

LET THE BULLIES BATTLE

                                                                      July 28, 1969 

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA

PARK CENTER is a great venue for professional wrestling as proven over the years, but the building may not be able to handle the action tonight when two of the very roughest and brutal tag teams (and constant rule breakers) in the business collide head-on in the evening's headline attraction.

In what has to be billed as a BATTLE OF THE BULLIES, the skin headed duo of BRUTE BERNARD and SKULL MURPHY clash with wrestling's 'BLONDE BOMBERS' RIP HAWK and SWEDE HANSON. Sympathies to whichever referee is assigned the job of officiating this two-out-of-three falls contest. One may describe the match as two locomotives colliding at breakneck speed.

BRUTE BERNARD and SKULL MURPHY

RIP HAWK and SWEDE HANSON

EL LOBO

ABE JACOBS

JOHNNY HEIDEMAN

ROCK HUNTER

LES WOLFE

More tag team action is in store for fans attending tonight when the popular duo of New Zealander ABE JACOBS and his youthful partner LES WOLFE face the rugged ROCK HUNTER and his masked partner EL LOBO. No one seems to know the identity of EL LOBO, and if HUNTER actually does, he isn't talking. This is also a best-of-three falls match.

Two singles matches will open the 8:15 card when JESSE JAMES takes on TOM BRADLEY and the youngster MATTI SUZUKI faces veteran tough guy JOHNNY HEIDEMAN.

RONNIE GARVIN

 

BECKER BATTLES BOLO

                                                                  September 12, 1960

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA

65 Years Ago

The long-awaited return bout between fan favorite GEORGE BECKER and the much-hated masked man, THE GREAT BOLO, will headline tonight's PARK CENTER wrestling card starting at 8:15.

Hero BECKER, who recently returned to the ring after a six month absence due to a severe knee injury, has won three straight matches here preparing for his return tussle with the hooded BOLO.

In their first meeting, BECKER won the first fall, and then the pair fought a standoff the remainder of their one hour time limit.

Perhaps a technical BECKER victory, it was not an official one as two winning falls were not recorded, therefore THE GREAT BOLO was NOT required to unmask. BOLO has a stipulation in his contracts stating that he will unmask in the ring after losing two-out-of-three falls to a pin fall or submission.

Tag team action makes up the semifinal tonight when GEORGE and SANDY SCOTT face JAN MADRID and GYPSY JOE in another best-of-three falls contest.

Singles action opens the card with FARMER JONES returning to Charlotte to meet TOM BRADLEY, and JACK CURTIS goes against LOUIS TILLET in the opening contest.

WAHOO McDANIEL and MARK YOUNGBLOOD

 

LOVE THOSE INFERNOS

THE original INFERNOS

ROCKY SMITH (left) and FRANKIE CAIN (right)

A bloodied (and nearly unmasked) FRANKIE CAIN is checked out by manager J.C. DYKES.

DYKES consoles one of his men during a wild match.

Why the headgear on INFERNO ROCKY SMITH? It's because boxing champion JOE LOUIS was refereeing the match.

THE INFERNOS fall victim to GEORGE BECKER & JOHNNY WEAVER's "row your boat".

J.C. and the boys celebrate another victory.

During their Florida campaign, J.C. and ROCKY took issue with JOSE LOTHARIO's being on the wrestling program instead of THE INFERNOS.

Another bloody night in the ring.

J.C. DYKES submits to an interview, but refuses to disclose his men's identities.

A young TERRY FUNK gets an INFERNO boot to the face.

INFERNO FRANKIE CAIN unmasked.

INFERNO ROCKY SMITH unmasked.