Crockett Night at Charlotte's BB&T Ballpark Sunday 9/3

BaseballParks.com    

On Sunday, September 3, it's Crockett Night at the ol' ballgame.

This coming Labor Day weekend, make your plans to head out to BB&T Ballpark, home of the Charlotte Knights baseball team, for a great evening of baseball and to visit with some of the great legends of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling and Jim Crockett Promotions.

It's the 2017 Crockett Foundation Night at the ballpark, part of the final weekend of the regular season for the triple-A Charlotte Knights.The event is organized by the Crockett Foundation, the charitable organization run now by Jim Crockett, Sr.'s granddaughter Debbie Ringley.

Crockett Foundation

DATE: Sunday evening, September 3, 2017
WHERE: BB&T Park, 324 South Mint Street Charlotte, NC (Parking & Directions)
TIME: Gates open at 6:00 PM, First Pitch at 7:05 PM (Wrestlers available before the game)
SPECIAL EVENTS: NWA Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Legends plus Fireworks after the game!

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INTERVIEW WITH DEBBIE RINGLEY

I recently had the opportunity to chat with Debbie about what's planned for Crockett Night this year.
  
Dick Bourne: How did "Crockett Night” at BB&T Ballpark in Charlotte come about?

Debbie Ringley: It came about as a way to celebrate the 85th anniversary of Jim Crockett Promotions, both baseball and wrestling, last year. I had to come up with a way to put what Granddaddy created and the things that came after his death. Hosting wrestlers at a baseball game seemed to be the perfect way of bringing the two together. Last year’s event went so well that the Knights asked us back and we are going to make it a staple of both the Foundations and Knights events schedule each year.

Bourne: So the purpose for the event is to help raise awareness for the Foundation?

Ringley: It is to raise awareness. The wrestlers will not charge for their picture or autograph but they will be asking fans to throw some money in a jug towards a donation.

Bourne: You guys have some very cool wrestling-related merchandise that you sell on the Crockett Foundation website. Will some of that be available for fans to purchase at this event?

Ringley: We will have shirts, including our new "TBS 6:05" shirt, for sale and we will also have both of our wrestling books.

Bourne: I've seen the new "TBS 6:05" shirt - - very cool, it immediately conjures up memories of so many Saturday evenings where I wouldn't miss "World Championship Wrestling" out of Atlanta with David Crockett and Tony Schiavone.

Crockett Foundation / Mid-Atlantic Gateway

Ringley: The back of the shirt is awesome, too, with our Crockett Foundation logo and signatures of many of the wrestling personalities that are "tag team partners" of the Crockett Foundation.

Ringley: Jackie will be there to autograph his ["When Wrestling Was Wrestling"] and our second book contains stories about three of the wrestlers that will be there that night so it would be a great opportunity for a fan to get the books autographed by the subjects in the books. Both the books and the shirts will be on sale for $15.00

Bourne: Nice to have Jackie Crockett there to sign his book of photographs. He took some really amazing photos in the late 1970s and early 1980s. That is a wonderful collection.

Ringley: Both the books and the shirts will be on sale for $15.00

Bourne: What wrestling celebrities will be there?

Ringley: Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson of the Rock n Roll Express, Magnum T.A., J.J. Dillon, Baby Doll, Tommy Young, and Jackie Crockett.

Bourne: Wow, that's a great line-up and a small "who's who" of some of the big names of Jim Crockett Promotions in the hot period of the mid 1980s.

Ringley: It is, and since there was no [Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Legends] Fanfest this year, it may be the only gathering of this type in the Charlotte area this year. I don’t know of any opportunity like this around.

Bourne: I always enjoy seeing these guys get recognized and for fans to be able to show their appreciation for all they gave to the wrestling business. Will there be a special introduction of your special wrestling guests that evening at the game?

Ringley: All of the attendees will be introduced on the field prior to the game and just like last year Baby Doll will arrive on her Harley. I will be throwing out the first pitch but don’t expect much from that!

Bourne: Excellent! No pressure there, right?

Ringley: No, not at all!

Bourne: How will fans be able to interact with your special guests that night?

Ringley: They will be signing autographs and taking pictures with fans. All they will ask is a donation of some kind. Or a swag purchase from our merchandise table will get them pictures and autographs.

Bourne: Will Frances be there? Your mom [Frances Crockett] is such an important part of both the family history and baseball history in Charlotte.

Ringley: Yes, she should be. I think one of my sisters is bringing her. I have my hands full with all the others!

Bourne: I'll bet! Debbie, thanks for filling us in on Crockett Foundation Night 2017. I know both wrestling fans and baseball fans will have a blast.

Ringley: Thanks! Looking forward to seeing everyone there!

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DATE: Sunday evening, September 3, 2017
WHERE: BB&T Ballpark, 324 South Mint Street Charlotte, NC (Parking & Directions)
TIME: Gates open at 6:00 PM, First Pitch at 7:05 PM


If you are in the Charlotte area over Labor Day weekend, come out and support the Crockett Foundation and Charlotte Knights baseball. Buy some peanuts and some Cracker Jack and spend some time with the great legends of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling.

Crockett Foundation/Mid-Atlantic Gateway Partner on New Book

Earlier this year, we announced our pleasure in partnering with the Crockett Foundation on a new book that features archival photographs from the glory days of pro-wrestling in Jim Crockett Promotions. The photographs were taken by Jackie Crockett, one of the four children of Jim Crockett, Sr., the patriarch of the famous Crockett family of Charlotte, NC, and founder of Jim Crockett Promotions, which promoted wrestling and other events as early as 1931.

CrockettFoundation.com

The book, "When Wrestling Was Wrestling", is part of a fund raising effort for the Crockett Foundation, whose mission it is to help veterans and veterans organizations. (Read more about them here.)

Debbie Ringley Mrozinski, seen at right with Dick Bourne of the Mid-Atlantic Gateway, is the president of the Crockett Foundation. Debbie is the daughter of Frances Crockett Ringley and the granddaughter of Jim Crockett, Sr.,

"The Crockett Foundation is happy to be joining forces with Mid-Atlantic Gateway in our ongoing efforts to help veterans," Debbie said in a press release earlier this year. "The only way the Foundation can continue to be successful is through the generosity of people like those at the Gateway. We are looking forward to working with them on this exciting book project."

As the oldest grandchild of Jim and Elizabeth Crockett, Debbie has the task of continuing her grandparent’s philanthropic efforts. Debbie watched her family’s business grow while doing everything from lowering and raising the microphone at Park Center wrestling matches to making popcorn at Crockett Park.

The Crockett Foundation has several "tag team partners" from the world of pro-wrestling working with them including Ricky Steamboat, Ricky Morton, Robert Gibson, Nickla "Baby Doll" Roberts, James J. Dillon, Bob Caudle, Road Warrior Animal, referee Tommy Young and others. Now, the Mid-Atlantic Gateway is proud to be one of those tag team partners, too.

"When Wrestling Was Wrestling" features never before seen wrestling photographs from the 1970s and 1980s featuring some of the greatest names in the history of the sport. Some of the famous names included in the book are Ric Flair, Jack and Jerry Brisco, Ricky Steamboat, Sgt. Slaughter, Don Kernodle, Jay Youngblood, Paul Jones, Baron Von Raschke, Rufus R, Jones, Bob Orton, Jr., and many others. There are even rare photos of Boris Malenko's short lived wrestling phenomenon known only as JAWS!

The book was released last month (September 2016) and is available exclusively from the Crockett Foundation website, as well as events and conventions where they have a booth.

Order your copy today!

When Wrestling Was Wrestling
Photographs by Jackie Crockett.
Edited by Debbie Ringley Mrozinski and Dick Bourne.
Independently published. © 2016 Crockett Foundation www.crockettfoundation.com

Crockett Foundation: Thunderbolt Patterson

THUNDERBOLT PATTERSON
by Debbie Ringley Mrozinski
CrockettFoundation.com

Growing up in the Crockett family meant you knew the wrestlers for different reasons other than their ring personas or their win/loss record. We never really knew who was a good guy and who was a bad guy. We only knew them through our personal interactions with them.

Whether it was being taught how to cook Japanese food by a Japanese wrestler or learning to curse in many different languages, down time around these guys was never boring. All of this teaching happened at one of two places, the JCP offices or at Jim Crockett Sr.’s home. Jim Sr.’s home was in an established neighborhood in South Charlotte. It was your typical southern neighborhood with brick ranch homes and tree lined streets so Sunday dinners at his home became a neighborhood spectacle. You see any wrestler that did not have a place to go for dinner on Sunday was invited to come to Big Jim’s house for some home cooking.

The standing invitation does not sound that unusual until you remember that those potential guests were all larger than life characters. Ric Flair, Johnny Valentine, Wahoo McDaniel, but the one that comes to mind is Thunderbolt Patterson...

Read the entire article on the Crockett Foundation website.

Read more about Thunderbolt Patterson on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway.

Crockett Family autographs Limited Edition Photo for Crockett Foundation Fund Raiser

It's the first time ever all four
have autographed one photo together.

by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway

The Crockett Foundation is selling a limited edition autographed photo signed by all four children of Jim (Sr.) and Elizabeth Crockett. The Foundation is a philanthropic organization and 100% of the proceeds for the sale of this autographed photo go towards their charity to help veterans and retired service dogs in need.

I asked Debbie Ringley Mrozinski, president of the Crockett Foundation and a granddaughter of the late Jim Crockett, Sr., how this project came about.

"I came up with the idea when I saw the (collage image) they wound up signing," she told me. "And you mentioned in one of our earlier conversations how folks had hoped that Jimmy would have been with the rest of the family at the convention last year in Charlotte." So Debbie saw an opportunity to get them together in a different way.

This image from the Crockett Foundation website shows one of the limited edition autographed prints.
(The watermark across the photo you see here will not appear on the print you order.)

The 5x7" image features a collage of photographs of the four siblings surrounding a photo of their late father and scattered across vintage memorabilia from the 1970s and 1980s. Each of the four have autographed the image by their own photo.

"Because of their different roles in the company, I suspected that they had never signed anything together," Debbie said. "Once I confirmed that with my mom, I decided to get them all to sign the picture."

Her Mom agreed right away. Debbie then had to get her uncles on board.

"Jimmy was the first to say yes. David wanted to know who was going to sign for granddaddy," she said with bit of humor. "Jackie finally came around."

It then took some effort on Debbie's part to round them all up.

"I had to fly to Dallas to get Jimmy’s autograph, and then the following weekend I drove to Spartanburg to get Jackie's. Mom signed the following weekend while I was in Florida and then Sunday I flew home and took them to David, who is also in Charlotte. It took quite a lot of foot work, but all for a good cause."

It really is a remarkable thing, having something signed by all four of Jim Crockett Sr.'s children who all played such an important part in the success of the family business in many different ways over many years. And as Debbie mentioned, it is the first and only time it has ever happened.

You can have your own keepsake of one of the most powerful and influential families in the history of professional wrestling by purchasing one of these limited edition autographed prints. 100% of the proceeds go towards the Crockett Foundation charity to help veterans and retired service dogs in need. There are lots of other very cool items in their store that help the Foundation, too, including t-shirts, caps, baseballs, key chains, and much more.

AUTOGRAPHED CROCKETT FAMILY PHOTO

SEE ALL ITEMS IN THE CROCKETT FOUNDATION STORE

For more information on the mission of the Crockett Foundation, visit their website at CrockettFoundation.com.

A Very Crockett Christmas

Debbie Ringley Mrozinski wrote a nice piece on the Crockett Foundation website about what Christmas Day was like for the Crockett family back in the day. It's a wonderful story, check it out here: Christmas, Crockett Style

And don't miss a look back at Christmas Past in our feature on Christmas wrestling in the Mid-Atlantic area from 1968-1979.

Relive Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Christmas Day Shows on the Gateway!

We've linked to an old feature that is still found on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway archive that features the newspaper ads for Jim Crockett Promotions Christmas Day shows in the years 1968-1979. We will eventually get around to adding 1980-1988, but until then enjoy these great memories from days gone by!

Mid-Atlantic Wrestling on Christmas Day

Plus, don't miss Debbie Ringley Mrozinski's post "Christmas, Crockett Style" on the Crockett Foundation website about Jim Crockett, Sr.'s Christmas day schedule.

Also, don't miss our articles from this past weekend:

Ric Flair Tells George South: "Today You're Ricky Steamboat"
A look back at an interesting WTBS match from 1988, with video highlights and an audio except from Ric Flair's podcast "WOOOOO! Nation"

Ken Patera: A Tale of Two Very Different Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling Runs 
[ Part One ]   [Part Two ]
Ken Patera made his presence known with two impactful runs for Jim Crockett Promotions in the 1970s.

Ric Flair Newspaper Profile from 1989
from the Nashville Tennessean, a look at the champ coming to town to take on Terry Funk.

Crockett Foundation: Adventures with Ole

"Every conversation [with Ole] was a duel to the death. Nothing went unnoticed and something was always going to be said."

We've linked below to a nice little story about Ole Anderson written by John Ringley's daughter Debbie Mrozinski on the Crockett Foundation website. Debbie is the daughter of Frances Crockett and the oldest granddaughter of Jim Crockett, Sr.

The Crockett Foundation focuses its efforts on helping veterans and veteran’s organizations that are trying to make veterans lives more livable while he or she is suffering from mental illness brought on by their service to our country.

Find out more information on how you can contribute to the Crockett Foundation.



Adventures with Ole
by Debbie Ringley Mrozinski

Growing up as a Crockett meant you were surrounded by professional athletes and that they shaped you in many ways and as I sit here now writing this, I honestly can’t think of one negative way it affected me, my brothers and sisters or my cousins. The athletes, whether wrestlers, baseball players, or hockey players, were a shining examples of hard work, discipline and what it takes to achieve your dream.

Every once in a while an athlete would come along and would teach you something that would serve you equally as well in life and that was how to be quick. My shining example of that is Ole Anderson. Let me explain what I mean by quick....

>>> Read the story on the Crockett Foundation website.