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A Visit With Paul Jones & George South Charlotte, North Carolina • May 13, 2003 |
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RELATED LINKS:
The Greensboro Photograph: George South and Dick Bourne hold a photograph that once hung in Jim Crockett's office.
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Full Circle by Dick Bourne When George South was ten years old, his brother would drop him off right in front of the Charlotte Park Center every Monday night. He would wait in line, ticket in hand, ready to continue his forays into the exciting world of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling. Those Monday nights at that venerable old building that sat in the shadow of Charlotte Memorial Stadium would form the foundation of a lifetime of adventures in the world of professional wrestling. Wrestling was what kept George South on the straight and narrow. Born in Boone, NC, his parents died when George was six years old, and he went to live with his brother in Charlotte. Largely unsupervised, every opportunity presented itself for George to find himself in a lot of trouble, but what kept him on course was wrestling. If he got in trouble, he wouldn't get to watch wrestling Saturday on TV on channel 3, and he wouldn't be able to go to the Park Center on Monday night. And worse yet, he wouldn't be able to follow the exploits of his childhood hero, Number One Paul Jones.
George South loved Paul Jones. He celebrated when Paul won the U.S. belt from Terry Funk; he missed three days of school when Paul lost the U.S. belt to Blackjack Mulligan. "What do you mean, why don't I have my homework? Don't you know, teacher? Paul Jones lost the belt!" Anyone ought to understand how such a traumatic and disastrous event could disrupt one's life for days at a time. But those losses only meant passing the time until wrestling would come on TV again and he could go to the Park Center again and scream for Paul Jones to regain that championship. To once again wear the belt. I grew up watching Mid-Atlantic Wrestling, too. My heroes were Blackjack Mulligan, Wahoo McDaniel, Ole and Gene Anderson, Ric Flair and of course Paul Jones. These guys were larger than life. I eagerly, yet patiently, waited for Saturday afternoons when Bob Caudle and David Crockett would welcome me back for another hour of Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling. And I lived and died by their triumphs and misfortunes. That was 28 years ago. George South had already been a die hard wrestling fan for three years by the time I was hooked. And here we were 28 years later, George South inviting David Chappell and me to Charlotte to meet and have dinner with Number One Paul Jones. Paul and George had developed a close friendship over the years, first professionally, then personally. They visit once a week. Paul wears the scars of over 30 years in the ring, taking those bumps night after night, year after year. But he still has that twinkle in his eye when you get him to talk about drawing a sold out house in Greensboro to beat Terry Funk for the U.S. Championship. Or shocking a sold out Charlotte Coliseum by turning on Ricky Steamboat. Or working a 90 minute broadway with Wahoo McDaniel against the Anderson Brothers in Richmond. Get him talking about those glory days, and it seems as though Number One is ready to get in the ring again at that very moment.
Heck, George wants him to. It's George South's dream to put Paul over with Paul using the Indian Death Lock. It's not going to happen, but that doesn't stop George from talking about doing what in his mind would be the ultimate tribute doing the ultimate job. After dinner, we close out the evening by taking a "Mid-Atlantic" tour of Charlotte, with Paul taking us by the old Crockett offices on Carmel Road and Briarbend Drive, the old Charlotte Coliseum (now called the Independence Arena), and of course the Charlotte Park Center, where 28 years ago George South bought his ticket and took his seat, and years later would climb in the ring himself.
We finish our drive coming to a slow stop. George South has come full circle. As he did 28 years ago, he waits in front of the Charlotte park center, but this time his childhood hero isn't getting in the ring, he is sitting beside him in his van parked right in front, right at the spot where he used to wait, ticket in hand. Paul Jones is telling us all about all of those Monday nights in that jam packed smoke-filled auditorium. Tonight it sits empty, old and battered. The sun is dropping down behind the adjacent Memorial Stadium. George South has tears in his eyes. We sit quietly for a moment, and then pull away from the curb. Paul Jones smiles and starts in on one more story. -Dick Bourne May 2003 * * * * * David Chappell and I want to thank George South and Paul Jones for their generosity and the gift of their time. We look forward to sharing with the visitors to our site some of their memories and insight into pro wrestling in the Mid-Atlantic territory in the 70s and 80s. We will be finishing our interview with Paul in June, and look forward to presenting it on the site. And you simply won't believe George South's wrestling room. There could not possibly be a grander collection of wrestling memorabilia anywhere. We'll be showing you some of that, too. |
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PHOTOS (CLICK TO VIEW LARGER IMAGES)
We will be visiting with Paul again in June to complete our interview, and will hopefully have it online by the end of that month.
In the mean time, I'll be adding some scans of photographs, programs, and clippings from George South's amazing memorabilia collection that spans six decades.
George South
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