Argentino Apollo Arrives in JCP (1970)

THE AUDIO TAPE LIBRARY: AN OLDIE BUT GOODIE
By David Chappell
Mid-Atlantic Gateway

Argentina Apollo

While November 14, 1970 predates the time period that encompassed Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling (by name), that date nevertheless carries some significance for me. It is the Saturday afternoon program of “Championship Wrestling” taped at the Channel 5 studios in Raleigh, North Carolina that represents the oldest program in my Jim Crockett Promotions audio collection. This program is also important to me as it introduced a newcomer to the Carolinas that I have many fond memories of.

In what was the second bout of that show, TV ring announcer Joe Murnick told the studio audience, “Now ladies and gentlemen, the second bout is also one fall and a 15-minute time limit, for the first time for our viewers, at 222 pounds from the Argentine, Buenos Aires, here is the sensational jumping jack of the ring, Argentina Apollo…Apollo!

Apollo, quick as greased lightning and wrestling barefooted, made quick work of the journeyman Joe Soto in the show’s second match with a rapid-fire backbreaker, and he received a strong and favorable reception from the studio audience in attendance. Soon after the bout concluded Apollo came out to the interview area and chatted with play-by-play announcer Nick Pond.

Pond began, “At ringside once again, it’s our distinct pleasure to have with us our winner of this afternoon’s second bout here on Championship Wrestling, a newcomer to our show, Argentina Apollo. You’re like a jumping jack Apollo!” The muscular newcomer responded, “Well, it’s like everything, you’re supposed to be in good shape to do things in the ring.” Pond interjected, “Tell us about that hold that you finished off Joe Soto with, it looked like a backbreaker of some kind.” Apollo explained, “Yeah, I call it Argentina backbreaker. It’s my hold. It’s not too easy to do, you need to be in very good shape to do a hold like that.”

The announcer continued and marveled at the acrobatic abilities of the area’s newest grappler. Nick gushed, “You did some moves up there we hadn’t seen, in fact we’d never seen before! You jump around a lot, and it looked like you kind of befuddle and mix up your opponent some.” Apollo agreed and noted, “Well, that’s why I say to be a wrestler you need to train very, very hard like I do. I get up early every morning and I train very, very much. I eat well; but I try to stay in good shape.”

Apollo then chuckled, “I’m in the best country in the world, and eat good, and try to keep in better shape even when I eat good! Of course, it’s very important for everybody, mostly the young generation, to train like I do and be in better shape than I do.”

Pond then segued to Apollo’s first arena bout in the territory saying, “Alright Argentina, you’re going to go against a tag team Tuesday night here in Raleigh, you’re going to be teamed with a great wrestler, the U.S. Negro Heavyweight Champion Luther Lindsey and you’re going to meet Chris Markoff and Bronco Lubich, two tough guys from Yugoslavia.” Apollo answered, “Well, it will be my first time over here in Raleigh, and I’m very proud and happy to be over here and I have in mind to be here a long, long time. As I told you these two men are very tough men Chris Markov and the other man, I’ll do my best to beat these men.”

Argentina Apollo's debut in Raleigh for Jim Crockett Promotions

 Apollo concluded, “I want to tell all of you people over here in the South, I’m very proud to be over here. I have never seen so many friendly people like I see over here in the few days I’ve been over here. I say ‘Thanks’ very much and I will repay you people the best I can and do everything I can to beat these men.” 

The November 17, 1970, card at the Dorton Arena in Raleigh saw Apollo’s career in the area’s arenas get off to a flying start as he and Luther Lindsey polished off Markoff and Chris Tolos, who was subbing for Bronco Lubich. Despite the constant interference by the bad guys’ manager Mr. George “Two Ton” Harris, Apollo and Lindsey got the dukes when Lubich and Tolos were disqualified in the third and decisive fall. 

The high-flying Argentina Apollo was off to the races and would have a strong year and a half run in Jim Crockett Promotions after these initial days in Raleigh that are memorialized on my oldest “oldie but goodie” wrestling tape!

Promoter Joe Murnick Was Key to Crockett TV Business

By Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway

In an article about wrestling promoter Joe Murnick in the Raleigh papers in the early-1980s, Murnick explained how it came to pass he wound up in the wrestling business and shed light on the origins of TV wrestling in Raleigh which would become the center of the TV aspect of Crockett's business.

Promoter Joe Murnick

"I worked in Norfolk after serving there in the Navy, and later moved to Charlotte, where I bought a paint store," he said. "Jim Crockett was promoting wrestling matches in Charlotte and I used to go watch them every Monday night." 

Murnick stayed in Charlotte for the decade of the 1950s and became very active in the community and in civic life. It was there that he also formed a friendship with - - and became a business ally of - - the biggest event promoter in the Southeast, Jim Crockett, Sr.

"I loved wrestling, and I thoroughly enjoyed the friendship that developed between Crockett and me," he continued. "This was in the early 1950s when pro-wrestling was just beginning to be on television. Jim knew I had friends in the media in Raleigh and he suggested that I might get a television package for wrestling there. That's how I got into it."

Later in 1961 following the death of eastern Virginia/North Carolina promoter (and Crockett business partner) Bill Lewis, Crockett sent Murnick to Raleigh to take over Lewis's part of the vast Crockett wrestling empire, a territory which stretched from Raleigh eastward to the coast of North Carolina, and included eastern Virginia and the key cities of Richmond, Norfolk, Hampton and that area. Murnick became a huge promoter in Raleigh, not only of wrestling but, like Crockett, of concerts and other events.

Crockett was also able to establish local television wrestling in Charlotte and the Greensboro/High Point market in the 1960s, but it was Murnick's early arrangement with WRAL television in Raleigh that would make Raleigh the TV hub for the organization. 

"We'd go to a city that had television and supply the Raleigh tape [to the local station]," Murnick recalled. "The station would use it to collect the advertising." The barter arrangement allowed the Crocketts to significantly grow their business through the exposure of the growing TV industry. By the mid-1970s, all of Jim Crockett's TV production was merged into the weekly Wednesday night TV tapings at WRAL. The shows were syndicated to TV markets blanketing North and South Carolina, Virginia and also selected markets in West Virginia, Georgia, Florida and even Texas.

It was just another example of how Joe Murnick was a pioneer in the wrestling business for Jim Crockett Promotions in the 1950s until his death in 1985.

Hailing From the Great State of Texas!

by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway 

Part 1

Growing up in East Tennessee, I didn't know a whole lot about the geography of the state of Texas as a youngster. I knew it was big, but that's about it. But when I started regularly watching Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling on a regular basis in the early 1970s, that all changed for me.

I had an Atlas that my parents had given me and I loved looking up far away places and day-dreaming about what it would be like to go there. It seemed to me that more wrestlers came from the state of Texas than from any other state in the union. And from some very cool sounding places.

My first memory of being interested in learning about Texas was in 1976 during the year-long war between Paul Jones and Blackjack Mulligan over the United States Heavyweight Championship. Paul was from Port Arthur and Blackjack famously hailed from Eagle Pass, Texas. Both of these places sounded very exciting to me. Part of it was the way they were announced by WRAL TV ring announcer (and promoter) extraordinaire Joe Murnick:

These were the first Texas towns I heard about on wrestling that I remember looking up in my Atlas. I learned that Port Arthur was a relatively small town on the Gulf of Mexico, just east of Houston.

I looked up Eagle Pass, too, and saw that it was a small Mexican-border town about two and a half hours west of San Antonio on the Rio Grande river. But this confused me a bit, because Eagle Pass was nowhere near all the colorful places Blackjack talked about in his local promos. Blackjack always mentioned west Texas towns like Odessa, Abilene, Sweetwater, Midland, or Duvall County in the tales he would weave into the local promos for upcoming Mid-Atlantic area events. But that string of west Texas towns was along the I-20 corridor well over 300 miles north of Eagle Pass. This wasn't adding up.

I asked Blackjack about this once, asking how he came to be billed from Eagle Pass. He confessed that it just had an outlaw sound to it that he liked. And some of Mama Mulligan's kinfolk were from there, too, he said with a smile. Blackjack was always working.

So here is a short list of wrestlers that I watched in the 1970s and 1980s that hailed from the great state of Texas. It isn't a complete list by any means, just the ones I think of the most. I remember looking up all these hometowns in my trusty Atlas during those years. All of them seemed like magical places to me.

Blackjack Mulligan - Eagle Pass
Blackjack loved telling tall tales about the characters he encountered in Texas, many of them archived in our section of this website called Blackjack's Bar-b-que. Of all the wrestlers who hailed from Texas, none of them was more Texan in my eyes than the great Blackjack Mulligan. He set an early  record for the most U.S. title reigns, and was both a hated heel and beloved babyface during his seven years headlining our territory.

Paul Jones - Port Arthur 
Port Arthur always had this very cool, classy sound to it to me as a kid. And Paul Jones was that kind of babyface in his peak years for Jim Crockett Promotions in the 1970s. The quintessential good-guy fighting the uphill battle against the dangerous Texas villain Blackjack Mulligan. Their rivalry in the area is still remembered to this day. Paul held just about every title you could hold in our area, and was a main eventer here for over a decade.

Dick Murdoch - Waxahachie
When Dick Murdoch came for a multi-month stay in our area in 1978, he was billed from Waxahachie, Texas. It took me a while to learn how to spell it to be able to look it up on my Atlas! Waxahachie is just south of Dallas. Murdoch was later billed from Canyon, Texas, which is just south of Amarillo in the west Texas panhandle, and a much more appropriate place to be from given his ties to other west Texas wrestlers like Blackjack Mulligan, Dusty Rhodes, and the Funk brothers. But how cool is the name of a town like Waxahachie? Unforgettable.

Dusty Rhodes - Austin
I knew of Austin of course, being the state capitol of Texas. But it didn't have that same exotic feel to it that some of these lesser known Texas towns I was learning about. But for years I knew that Dusty was the "son of a plumber" from Austin, Texas. Rhodes made regular appearances in our area in the 1970s as a special attraction, similar to Andre the Giant. He was a semi-regular on the big cards held in Crockett's main town of Greensboro. In 1984, he came in full time as booker and led the company to heights it hadn't seen since the George Scott Mulligan/Flair/Steamboat era of the 1970s.

Dory Funk, Jr. and Terry Funk - Amarillo
Amarillo was always a fascinating place to me as a kid because it was where the famous Funk family originated from, and the Funks were wrestling royalty that you read about in all the wrestling magazines. They were the only two brothers to have ever held the NWA World Heavyweight championship and both had many title defense in our area. Real men came from places like Amarillo, Texas. I knew this for a fact.  Late addition: David Chappell reminds me that Dory Funk also worked under a mask as the Texas Outlaw and held the Mid-Atlantic title managed by Paul Jones.

Tiger Conway, Jr. - Houston
Conway was a breakout star here in 1975, teaming with rookie Steve Keirn to upset the world tag team champions, the Anderson Brothers, in a non-title match on television. He and his father had success in Houston, and were billed from that city while wrestling here.

Nelson Royal - Amarillo
Nelson's heyday was before my time as a fan, but he was always around, especially in the 1980s where he made a brief return as the mentor and tag partner of fellow Texan Sam Houston. I loved that Royal always looked like the quintessential Texas cowboy. He was actually originally from Kentucky and lived most of his life in North Carolina and was actually once billed as being from London, England! Our friend Carroll Hall seems to remember that when Nelson turned babyface in the mid-1960s and began teaming with Tex McKenzie, he was billed from Amarillo. Who can ever forget those cool vignettes beginning in December of 1985 when Nelson would invite us for a cup of coffee around the campfire to smarten us up on the Bunkhouse Stampede? During the 1980s he was billed from Mooresville, NC (his legit home), although he was seemingly always considered a Texan.

Wahoo McDaniel* - Midland
Wahoo is listed here with an asterisk because in our area he was primarily billed as being from Oklahoma, where he had great success playing college football at the University of Oklahoma. But occasionally he was billed as being from Midland, Texas, where he actually did grow up and graduated from high school. His father worked the oil fields there. Wahoo's little league coach in Midland was future U.S. president George H.W. Bush, part of another famous Texas family. Wahoo was occasionally billed from Houston, too. I'm guessing it was because his biggest early career success in pro-wrestling was working that city for promoter Paul Boesch. I remember how surprised I was learning later that Wahoo and Johnny Valentine had battled for years in Texas long before both were brought to the Mid-Atlantic area by booker George Scott. I just assumed as a kid that their first battles were in our area. Boy was I wrong about that.

Stan Hansen - Borger
My exposure to Stan "The Lariat" Hansen in the 1970s was from watching "Georgia Championship Wrestling" when Superstation WTCG-17 (which later became WTBS) first appeared on our local cable system in 1976 or 1977.  Gordon Solie always called him "the bad man from Borger, Texas." Borger is about 30 miles northeast of Amarillo in the Texas panhandle. Hansen only wrestled in the Mid-Atlantic area occasionally, most notably in a late-70s tag team tournament with partner Blackjack Mulligan, and as a NWA world tag team champion with partner Ole Anderson in 1982.

Bobby Duncum - Austin
Duncum had a big battle with Blackjack Mulligan in the early 1980s which always seem centered around their real and/or fabled history with each other in Texas. Whether it was in Texas bullrope matches or Texas death matches, they shed some blood in our rings, and it always seemed to be a fight over the love of some former Texas sweetheart like Sarah Joe Puckett. Or at least that's how I remember it. Mulligan and Duncum's promos were filled with west Texas references, and I always wondered if it was was part of the lore or was part of a shoot!

Jake Roberts
Jake "The Snake" Roberts came here in 1981, when he was a tall, lean and lanky Texas cowboy through and through, and had a great look in that regard. This was before he carried around a snake or had created the DDT or was possessed by the devil and all the rest.  I always liked the Texas cowboy version of Jake Roberts the best. He was later billed from Stone Mountain, Georgia, but in our area in the early 1980s he was billed from Texas, although I can't recall them ever saying where in Texas. (If you remember, let us know!)

Outlaw Ron Bass - Pampa 
I confess I never looked up Pampa on my Atlas, and never knew where it was until I saw it included on an exit sign driving on I-40 from Amarillo to Oklahoma City in 2011. Pampa is a tiny little town between the two. Booker Ole Anderson brought "Outlaw" Ron Bass in to our area in 1981 to fill the Texan role left vacant by the departure of Blackjack Mulligan, but because the two had such a similar persona, the fans never rallied around Bass here the way they always had ol' Mully. 

The Von Erich Brothers* - Denton
No wrestlers were more associated with the state of Texas in the 1980s than the Von Erich brothers. David and Kevin only wrestled once in the Mid-Atlantic area, in a tournament here, and so they have an asterisk beside their name, too. But they have to be on my list. Their syndicated TV show aired in many markets in our area, and even if you didn't see them on TV here, you were well aware of them through their endless coverage in the wrestling magazines. David Von Erich's nickname was "the Yellow Rose of Texas" which became younger brother Kerry Von Erich's symbol, too, after David's untimely passing. It was part of a memorable tribute to David when Kerry defeated Ric Flair for the NWA World Championship. The Von Erich exploits in the ring were primarily carried out in Dallas, Fort Worth, and surrounding areas, but the town always associated with them is Denton, some 20 miles north of the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

Tully Blanchard - San Antonio
Tully was always billed from San Antonio, and his father Joe Blanchard promoted wrestling there in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Joe Blanchard actually had some of the Crockett champions down to his territory to defend their titles occasionally (which we cover in part two of this series.) Tully first made a name in the Mid-Atlantic area in the late 1970s on the mid-card, but returned in 1984 and headlined here until leaving in 1988 for the WWF.  He also brought another notable Texan into the area in the mid-80s, Nickla "Baby Doll" Roberts, to accompany him as his "perfect 10."

Sam Houston - Houston
In the tradition of the "tall drink of water" cowboys like Jake Roberts a few years before him, Sam Houston personified the Texas cowboy image for Jim Crockett Promotions during the Dusty-era of JCP. (Dusty had assumed more of a "David Allen Coe truck-drivin' hat" persona in the mid-1980s.) I always thought Dusty had really big plans for Sam, but they never panned out for various reasons. Houston teamed with veteran Nelson Royal during those years, too, and that gave him even more Texas street cred.

Late Addition!
Black Bart - Pecos
"Dadgum!" I can't believe I left out Black Bart! Brian Rogers reminded me, and dadgum it, how can I not include a guy who yells "TEXAS!!" as he leaps from the second turnbuckle with a big legdrop! Bart was billed from Pecos, Texas, which is further west on out that I-20 corridor past Odessa. The former Ricky Harris in the Mid-Atlantic area in the early 1980s, Black Bart was one half of the Mid-Atlantic tag team champions with the aforementioned Ron Bass managed by James J. Dillon. He was National Champion as well. But my lasting memory of Bart was that Stan Hansen-esque primal yell of 'Texas!!" as he lept from the turnbuckle with that big leg drop. Sorry I forgot you to begin with, Bart!


Those are the wrestlers that I think of when I think of Texas wrestlers working for Jim Crockett Promotions in the 1970s and 1980s. I fully realize my list isn't complete. David Chappell, who has an incredible memory for details for things like this, sent me his list of wrestlers in our area who were billed as coming from Texas during his years watching JCP wrestling. He also admits he's probably left someone out, so if you can recall any others, please let us know.

CHAP'S LIST

Scott Casey, Sonny King, Paul Jones, Tiger Conway, Jr., Wahoo, Blackjack, Brian Adias, Baby Doll, Tully Blanchard, Bobby Duncum, Dory Funk, Jr., Terry Funk, Chavo Guerrero, Jr., Stan Hansen, Sam Houston, Killer Karl Kox, Dick Murdoch, Barry Orton, Dusty Rhodes, Jake Roberts, Richard Blood, Barry Windham, Mark Youngblood, Skandor Akbar, Bruiser Brody, Skip Young, Gary Young, Len Denton.

In 2011, I took a long road trip through the Southwestern and Midwestern United States. I met a good friend in Dallas and we went to the State Fair and rode the Texas Star. Afterwards I headed west through the oil and cotton country of west Texas, driving through towns like Abilene, Sweetwater, Midland and Odessa. Then I headed north into the panhandle through Lubbuck, Canyon, and Amarillo. This was Funk country, Rhodes and Murdoch country, Mulligan country. Throughout that beautiful drive, I heard the echos of bodyslams in the ring and the voices of Bob Caudle, Gordon Solie, and Joe Murnick naming those towns whenever they spoke of these great Texas legends. I treasure the memories of that adventure west.

In PART TWO of this "Texas Connections" feature, we'll take a look at some of the many times Jim Crockett's area championships were defended for other promoters in some of the Texas territories of the NWA including the NWA World Tag team titles, the U.S. title, and the NWA TV title.

Originally published October 31, 2017 on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway.

A Brief History of Wrestling in the Mid-Atlantic Area

A Look Back at the Promoters and Television History of Jim Crockett Promotions
by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway

Professional wrestling has been one of the most popular live events in the Carolinas and Virginia since the early/mid-1900s. Several key players were responsible for making pro wrestling an institution here, some familiar to fans, others perhaps not so familiar.

The company known for promoting wrestling across Virginia and the Carolinas for decades was Jim Crockett Promotions. Jim Crockett, Sr. started promoting wrestling in our area when he bought an old warehouse in Greensboro, NC, in December of 1933, named it the “Sportrena”, and held his first matches there. With that first card, the company that later grew to be known as Jim Crockett Promotions was born.

Crockett established his base of operations in Charlotte a year later in 1934, moving in on a chaotic promotional scene at that time. In 1939 he and successful Richmond promoter Bill Lewis bought out the interests of promoter Pete Moore who had been in partnership with Crockett for nearly 10 years going back to their days headquartered out of Bristol, VA. Moore’s promotional interests spanned the width and breadth of the area that we think of now as the Mid-Atlantic territory.  After buying Moore out, Lewis based his operations out of Richmond, and Crockett based his out of Charlotte. Together they brought top pro-wrestlers from around the country to the halls, armories, and small arenas throughout the Carolinas and Virginia.

As the companies evolved, Crockett had become the main promoter, with Lerwis booking all of his talent through the Crockett's Charlotte office. Lewis died in 1961, and Crockett sent Joe Murnick, his top lieutenant in Charlotte, to replace him. Murnick would headquarter out of Raleigh, but assumed all of Lewis's territoy to the east, including Fayetteville, Richmond, Hampton, and Norfolk and all points in between.

Over the years, Crockett had many local promoters like Murnick working for him within the various regions of the main territory including such men as Henry Marcus (central and lower South Carolina), Paul Winkhaus (Western North Carolina and Upstate South Carolina) and Pete Apostolou (Central and Southwest Virginia.). These promoters coordinated the local promotion of Crockett’s wrestling events. However, it was Murnick who became Crockett’s largest and most trusted partner.

In April of 1973, Jim Crockett, Sr. passed away and his son in law, John Ringley, took over the operations of the company. He was soon followed by Crockett's oldest son, Jim Crockett, Jr., who during his tenure expanded the reach of the company outside of the traditional territorial boundaries that had existed for years within the pro wrestling industry, and wound up being one of the two top players nationally. 

Crockett Jr.'s lieutenants included Joe Murnick and his sons Elliot and Carl, along with longtime wrestlers Sandy Scott, Johnny Weaver, and Gene Anderson, who transitioned to regional promoters at the ground level, working with and later slowly replacing those listed earlier.

The territory was always known within the business as the “Charlotte territory” because that is where the Crocketts were based. Until the mid-1970s, fans simply knew it as “All-Star Wrestling” or “Championship Wrestling.” Around the time of Jim Sr.’s passing, the promotion began to brand its wrestling business as “Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling”, which also became the name of their television program. Prior to this time, television wrestling had been taped out of multiple locations each week including Charlotte, High Point, Roanoke, and Raleigh. In 1974, the company consolidated its weekly television production to one location - - the studios of WRAL in Raleigh, NC. There had been many hosts of the local programs over the years including Nick Pond, Charlie Harville, Hal Grant, Bill Ward, and Bob Caudle. After the 1974 consolidation, Caudle became the main voice of the company, and would serve in that capacity until the company was sold to Ted Turner in 1988.

But it was from the WRAL studio that the magic we saw unfold each week on our TV screens originally took place. In 1975, Crockett Promotions added a second studio program eventually known as “World Wide Wrestling” which was hosted at different times by Ed Capral, Rich Landrum, David Crockett, and Tony Schiavone.

Eventually finding itself on the losing side of a wrestling war in the late-1980s, the 53-year old family business was sold to Ted Turner in late 1988. Turner had been a partner in Crockett's national expansion, enthusiastically providing four hours of weekly television on his nationally cable-cast Superstation WTBS out of Atlanta. This eventually included quarterly prime-time TV specials as well.

The syndicated "Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling" (later renamed "NWA Pro Wrestling") and "World Wide Wrestling", along with the national WTBS "World Championship Wrestling" battleship, drove hundreds of thousands of fans to the arenas each month. For a short time anyway, the once small Mid-Atlantic territory one of the largest and most successful wrestling promotions in the country.

This article was based on a shorter limited piece originally posted June 28, 2017 on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway.

Studio Wrestling: 1976 Weather Promo Has 5 Wrestling Connections

By Dick Bourne

Mid-Atlantic Gateway

Originally published on Studio Wrestling

WRAL produced a series of satirical promotional spots in early 1976 to announce Bob DeBardelaben as the primary weather host on WRAL newscasts, replacing Bob Caudle who was moving into other responsibilities at WRAL working for Jesse Helms (and continuing his hosting duties of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling, of course.)

Brian Rogers recently discovered a compilation of those promotional clips on You Tube. I pulled them off YouTube and edited them down to one single storyline clip and re-posted them.

The immediate interest was of course that Bob Caudle was featured, and there was also a cameo by Blackjack Mulligan in the wrestling ring at WRAL. It was cool that the video featured these two direct wrestling connections, and also a third, since it was the voice of Bob Debardelaben you heard at each of the two breaks for the local wrestling promotional spots during "Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling" and "Wide World Wrestling":

"Let's take time for this commercial message about the Mid-Atlantic Wrestling events coming up in your area."

A day or so after posting the video clip, Carroll Hall (who publishes the excellent "All Star Championship Wrestling" blog) pointed out to me that there was a fourth wrestling connection in the video I had failed to notice: sportscaster Nick Pond. Pond was host of the Raleigh-only wrestling broadcast "Championship Wrestling" on WRAL throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. 

After writing up that information and watching the video yet again, I suddenly noticed what I thought was the familiar face of Raleigh area promoter Joe Murnick in one short scene where the president of the station is seen at his desk. Mr. Murnick is seen sitting on the couch behind him. I asked Elliot Murnick and he confirmed it was indeed his father. (Elliot also confirmed that the "president" in the video is indeed longtime President and CEO of Capitol broadcasting Jim Goodmon.)

That makes a total of five people in this short video that had direct connections to Mid-Atlantic Wrestling at WRAL-TV:

Bob Caudle

Bob hosted Jim Crockett Promotions' syndicated All Star Wrestling in the 1960s that later became Mid-Atlantic Wrestling in the 1970s and 1980s. He did weather, sports, and news at various times throughout his WRAL career, and worked for Jesse Helms at the station as well. He is seen here receiving the keys to the "executive washroom" after being promoted at WRAL.

Bob DeBardelaben
"The Biggest Name in Weather", DeBardelaben succeeded Bob Caudle as the primary weather host (known then as 'weathermen') in 1976. The promotional spots featured here served to announce and promote that. DeBardelaben is the main star of the vignettes.

Nick Pond
Nick Pond hosted the Raleigh-only broadcast of Championship Wrestling (taped simultaneously alongside Caudle's All Star Wrestling) throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. He was the main sports anchor for WRAL at the time of these promotional spots, and is seen in the video joining others in welcoming DeBardelaben to the team.

Joe Murnick
Murnick was the local promoter for Jim Crockett Promotions in Raleigh (as well as other towns in eastern NC and Virginia.) He ran his own events promotion company as well, staging concerts and other events in addition to wrestling almost every Tuesday night at the Dorton Arena or the Raleigh Civic Center. He is seen here in one scene (at the :59 second mark) sitting on a couch behind the president of the station, Jim Goodmon.

Blackjack Mulligan
One of the main event wrestlers for Jim Crockett and Joe Murnick during this time period, Mulligan was chasing the United States Heavyweight wrestling championship held by Paul Jones. (He would win the title for the first time on March 13 in Greensboro.) He has a cameo role here answering the question "Will Bob (DeBardelaben) quit?" Mully leans through the ropes of the wrestling ring in the TV studio and says "He better not!"

Originally published in February of 2013 on Studio Wrestling,
part of the Mid-Atlantic Gateway family of websites.

Thanks to Brian Rogers, Carroll Hall, and Elliot Murnick.

Link to original unedited WRAL promos: WRAL-TV: "As The Weather Turns" Promos (1976)

Rare Mid-Atlantic Footage from Houston TV

Bob Caudle, David Crockett, and Joe Murnick join Paul Boesch in signing Harley Race vs. Andre the Giant in a rare video clip from WRAL in Raleigh

by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway

Another rare piece of Crockett-related footage has surfaced from Houston TV on YouTube. Houston promoter Paul Boesch flew from Texas to Raleigh, NC, in the fall of 1978 to film a contract signing segment with Andre the Giant.

The video is actually two separate segments that would have aired separately on the Houston television show, and are likely presented here in reverse order.

In the segments, Boesch signs Andre the Giant to challenge NWA World Heavyweight Champion Harley Race at the Summit Arena in Houston on 10/13/1978. Paul Boesch is introduced by "Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling" host Bob Caudle. Representing the NWA for the contract signing are David Crockett and Joe Murnick of Jim Crockett Promotions in Charlotte.

The segments were taped at the studios of WRAL TV in Raleigh, NC, home of Jim Crockett's weekly television tapings.

Both David Crockett and Joe Murnich got a few words in. I especially liked Murnich's well-wishes to fellow promoter Boesch and the fans of Houston:

"I think the fans of Houston are very, very fortunate because I know this bout could be held anywhere in the world and your fans are most fortunate in having it. Good luck to you." 

David Crockett noted that the bout would be held on Friday the 13th, and suggested it might be unlucky for some (Harley Race perhaps?) but hopefully not for Andre.

The real rarity here is seeing and hearing Joe Murnick. What a special treat. Murnick was the local promoter for Jim Crockett based in Raleigh, NC, and he promoted the Raleigh area, as well as most of eastern North Carolina and eastern Virginia, including Richmond and Norfolk. Murnick was co-host of a Raleigh-only version of "Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling" in the 1960s and early 1970s, and when that Raleigh-only version was discontinued and all of the area's TV tapes were consolidated to WRAL in Raleigh, Murnick was still seen as the ring announcer on Crockett shows until his sons Elliot and Carl took over those duties toward the end of 1977 or early 1978. Joe Murnick had a deep, classically-southern voice that was just so perfect for the times and one of my favorite ring announcers ever. 

Very cool to be able to go back in time this far and see Murnick, Caudle, and Crockett in the old WRAL studio. Crockett Promotions didn't start keeping and archiving their old tapes until the early 1980s, so seeing this is very rare. The backdrop used in this tape was one frequently used in the early 1970s for local promotional spots for the various towns, but by 1978 wasn't used that frequently anymore. Nice to see it here.

These videos are bound to be pulled down soon, so we should enjoy them while we have them.

 

Originally published 10/3/17 on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway
and 10/10/17 on our Studio Wrestling website.

Article copyright © 2017 Mid-Atlantic Gateway

Joe Murnick Leaves Charlotte for Raleigh (1961)

by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway

Joe Murnick had worked for Jim Crockett in Charlotte for several years in the 1950s before moving to Raleigh. He held many roles for Jim Crockett Promotions, including promoting the Raleigh area and central North Carolina back into the late 1950s. But he did so raising his young family in Charlotte.

When longtime Richmond VA promoter Bill Lewis died in March of 1961, Murnick assumed his territory of Eastern Virginia, including Richmond and Norfolk, all under the Crockett umbrella. He relocated his family to Raleigh in the summer of 1961. C&M Promotions was born.

Murnick had been very involved in many civic functions is Charlotte, including the Charlotte Park and Recreation Commission, which oversaw the Park Center and Memorial Stadium.

The following article appeared in the Charlotte News in July of 1961, announcing Murnick leaving Charlotte for Raleigh.

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JOE MURNICK, PARK LEADER, LEAVING TOWN
The Charlotte News, July 17, 1961

The resignation of Joe H. Murnick as vice chairman of the Charlotte Park and Recreation Commission will be acknowledged today at a 4 pm meeting of the park board in Park Center.

Mr Murnick, a prominent sports promoter and member of the board for 10 years, will move to Raleigh Aug 1. His resignation is effective today and City Council will name a successor.

Mr Murnick, best known for his role in salvaging plans to rebuild the burned-out Armory Auditorium, has been promoting wrestling and other sports events in the Raleigh-Durham area. He said he is moving to Raleigh to be closer to his work.

He has served as chairman of the Park Center and Memorial Stadium committees of the commission. After the armory burned in 1954, he and Ernest Sifford, another board member, led the fight to rebuild the controversial structure as Park Center.

"Mr Sifford and I were the only two people in favor of re-building the armory" he recalled. "Many people thought that it would be competitive with the Coliseum, but results have proved otherwise."

The Coliseum handles big attractions and Park Center the smaller ores.

As chairman of the Memorial Stadium Committee, Mr. Murnick was also instrumental in bringing college football here.

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More about Joe Murnick on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway

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Joe Murnick: Raleigh Promoter and WRAL Ring Announcer

JOE MURNICK
(Capitol Broadcasting Company Staff Photo)

by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway

Joe Murnick was a well known promoter, businessman, and entrepreneur in central and eastern North Carolina and Virginia. Based out of Raleigh, North Carolina, Murnick promoted professional wrestling under the umbrella of Jim Crockett Promotions. His main towns were Raleigh, Fayetteville, and Wilmington in North Carolina, and  Norfolk, Hampton, and Richmond in Virginia, with dozens of smaller semi-regular and spot-show towns in between.

His home base was Raleigh, and he was also the executive producer of the wrestling programs taped at WRAL TV studios. In the 1960s and early 1970s, these programs were "Championship Wrestling" and "All-Star-Wrestling", taped simultaneously with Bob Caudle calling the action for "All-Star Wrestling" seen on stations around the territory, and Nick Pond on the call for the Raleigh-only "Championship Wrestling." Joe was frequently the co-host with Nick Pond for the Raleigh-only broadcast, and was marvelous at hyping up what happened at the last show, and what fans could look for at the next show. (For more see our page on Wrestling at WRAL-5.)

Murnick, along with his two sons Carl and Elliot, also promoted concerts and other entertainment events in the area under the banner of C&M Promotions, which stood for Crockett & Murnick Promotions. They brought a variety of acts to the area in the 1950s through early 1970s including the Rolling Stones, Andy Williams, Fats Domino, Ray Charles, Johnny Cash, and many others. But their main business was always professional wrestling, featuring the weekly cards every Tuesday night at Raleigh's famed Dorton Arena on the State Fairgrounds, which continued right up until Crockett Promotions sold to Ted Turner in 1988.

Murnick served his country in the Navy in World War II. He was a graduate of the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill) where he was the captain of the boxing team and played football as well. He was briefly a sales rep for WRAL. He died in June of 1985.

As far as fans were concerned, though, Murnick was most famous for also being the ring announcer on the WRAL shows in the late 1960s through the mid-1970s. His famous, classic, southern drawl for "one fawwwl, a 10-minute time limit" is remembered fondly by fans of that era. You can hear one of those classic ring introductions here.

My earliest memories of watching wrestling on television include those wonderful ring introductions that Joe did for several years. David Crockett also did some ring announcing at WRAL, and even Jim Crockett a time or two. Joe would eventually turn those duties over to his two sons, Carl and Elliot, but no one came close to the classic old-school delivery of the great Joe Murnick.

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Other Joe Murnick posts over at our sister-website Studio Wrestling:
Joe Murnick introduces Johnny Valentine and Bob Bruggers (1974)
Joe Murnick introduces Wahoo McDaniel and Jim Lancaster (1975)
Joe Murnick introduces Blackjack Mulligan and Big Bill Dromo (1976)

Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Luminaries Attend UNC/NCSU Wrestling Meet (1979) 
Wrestling in Raleigh with Joe Murnick (1975)
Sign the Waiver (1975)
1976 WRAL Weather Prom Has Five Wrestling Connections
Video: Paul Boesch, Andre the Giant, Bob Caudle, David Crockett, Joe Murnick

Audio clips from the collection of David Chappell, who not only was smart enough to make audio recordings back in the day, but had the wisdom and foresight to hang on to them.

The No. 1 Team That Never Held the Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship (But Should Have)

 by Dick Bourne and David Chappell
Mid-Atlantic Gateway

We finish our countdown of the 5 teams that competed in the Mid-Atlantic Wrestling area that never held the Mid-Atlantic tag team championships - - but should have. For our explanation of the process and our thinking behind this countdown, visit the original page here.

We've selected five teams that we felt fit that mold and should have been recognized or rewarded by the booker or the promotion with the Mid-Atlantic tag team championships, but for whatever reason were never given that shot.

We have spotlighted those five teams over the past few weeks, counting down to the number one team we thought should have been given that championship - - but wasn't.

The countdown so far:

5. Randy and Lanny Poffo

4. Roberto and Manuel Soto (El Rayo

3. Ted and Jerry Oates

2. Steve Keirn and Tiger Conway, Jr.

It's time to look at our pick for #1!

NUMBER ONE:
Mike "The Judge" DuBois & Sgt. Jacques Goulet (1976)

DC: This team featured two talented stars, with "The Judge" being known to Mid-Atlantic fans from previous successful stints in the area. DuBois and Goulet shined for much of 1976, battling babyface teams like Johnny Weaver and Ronnie Garvin and Tiger Conway and Ronnie Garvin with an exciting roughhouse style.

When Dino Bravo and Tim Woods held the World Tag Team Titles in the late spring and early summer of 1976, Duois and Goulet gave the champs all they could handle in several Title bouts. During this time frame, the promotion gave the Judge and the Sergeant several TV interviews, and Goulet provided a rambling, but very entertaining interview style! When the autumn of 1976 rolled around, the Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Title belts were pulled out of the mothballs and a tournament was set on TV to crown new Mid-Atlantic Tag Team champs. In a rushed match that started with only about 5 minutes of TV time remaining in the program, Tim Woods and Dino Bravo defeated DuBois and Goulet for the revived Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Titles. This loss effectively ended the DuBois/Goulet team.

I have always felt the promotion erred in not putting the belts on DuBois and Goulet in this tournament. Tim Woods would leave the area in early 1977 and Dino Bravo began concentrating on singles matches, so winning the Mid-Atlantic Tag belts did nothing to enhance them. If Dubois and Goulet would have won the Tournament, they would have kept the "undercard" tag team scene vibrant as the Anderson's and Ric Flair and Greg Valentine were beginning their epic feud over the World Tag Team Titles.


DB: More than any of the other teams that were overlooked for championship gold in the Mid-Atlantic tag team division, this team by far was the best in my book. They had great chemistry and were a tough, physical team. And they were straight out of the French Foreign Legion!

The Judge had been around for some time in the Mid-Atlantic area, most memorably as the tag team partner of Freddie Sweetan in 1973. The Sarge was a relative newcomer to the area, but would be around for several years, most notably forming a regular tag team with Gene Anderson (a team featured as one of our honorable mentions.) But these two together were tremendous.

They came close to gold once, going to the finals of the fall 1976 tournament for the vacant Mid-Atlantic tag team championships only to lose in the finals of the tournament to former NWA world tag champs Dino Bravo and "Mr. Wrestling" Tim Woods. This made no sense to me at the time. The tournament was on TV and it seemed like the better course would have been to have the heels go over and then fans would pay to see Woods and Bravo chase the titles. Plus it would have obviously elevated Goulet and Dubois in the process.

But maybe the best thing to me about this team was hearing ring announcer Joe Murnick introduce them with that wonderful North Carolina drawl. From Mid-Atlantic Wrestling in December 1976:

Joe Murnick Ring Introduction of DuBois and Goulet


You just can't beat a classic Joe Murnick ring introduction!

And so there you have it; our choices for the 5 tag teams that never held the Mid-Atlantic tag team championships - - but should have!

Here is one final review of our top 5. If you missed any of these features, click the links and explore the history. Great memories!

1. Mike "The Judge" DuBois & Sgt. Jacques Goulet

2. Steve Keirn and Tiger Conway, Jr.

3. Ted and Jerry Oates

4. Roberto and Manuel Soto (El Rayo)

5. Randy and Lanny Poffo

Take a look at our honorable mentions.

 

Originally published October 24, 2015

Studio Wrestling: 1976 Weather Promo has Five Wrestling Connections

 
by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway
Originally Published on the Studio Wrestling site

WRAL produced a series of satirical promotional spots in early 1976 to announce Bob DeBardelaben as the primary weather host on WRAL newscasts, replacing Bob Caudle who was moving into other responsibilities at WRAL working for Jesse Helms (and continuing his hosting duties of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling, of course.)

Brian Rogers recently discovered a compilation of those promotional clips on You Tube. I pulled them off YouTube and edited them down to one single storyline clip and re-posted them.

The immediate interest was of course that Bob Caudle was featured, and there was also a cameo by Blackjack Mulligan in the wrestling ring at WRAL. It was cool that the video featured these two direct wrestling connections, and also a third, since it was the voice of Bob Debardelaben you heard at each of the two breaks for the local wrestling promotional spots during "Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling" and "Wide World Wrestling":

"Let's take time for this commercial message about the Mid-Atlantic Wrestling events coming up in your area."

A day or so after posting the video clip, Carroll Hall (who publishes the excellent "All Star Championship Wrestling" blog) pointed out to me that there was a fourth wrestling connection in the video I had failed to notice: sportscaster Nick Pond. Pond was host of the Raleigh-only wrestling broadcast "Championship Wrestling" on WRAL throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. 

After writing up that information and watching the video yet again, I suddenly noticed what I thought was the familiar face of Raleigh area promoter Joe Murnick in one short scene where the president of the station is seen at his desk. Mr. Murnick is seen sitting on the couch behind him. I asked Elliot Murnick and he confirmed it was indeed his father. (Elliot also confirmed that the "president" in the video is indeed longtime President and CEO of Capitol broadcasting Jim Goodmon.)

That makes a total of five people in this short video that had direct connections to Mid-Atlantic Wrestling at WRAL-TV:

Bob Caudle

Bob hosted the syndicated "All Star Wrestling" in the 1960s that later became "Mid-Atlantic Wrestling" in the 1970s and 1980s. He did weather, sports, and news at various times throughout his WRAL career, and worked for Jesse Helms as well. He is seen here receiving the keys to the "executive washroom" after being promoted at WRAL.

Bob DeBardelaben
"The Biggest Name in Weather", DeBardelaben succeeded Bob Caudle as the primary weather host (known then as 'weathermen') in 1976. The promotional spots featured here served to announce and promote that. DeBardelaben is the main star of the vignettes. It was "DeBardelaben's voice that introduced the local promo segments each week on the wrestling shows taped at WRAL. ("Let's take time for this commercial message about the Mid-Atlantic Wrestling events coming up in your area.")

Nick Pond
Nick Pond hosted the Raleigh-only broadcast of "Championship Wrestling" (taped simultaneously alongside Caudle's "All Star Wrestling") throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. He was the main sports anchor for WRAL at the time of these promotional spots, and is seen in the video joining others in welcoming DeBardelaben to the team.

Joe Murnick
Murnick was the local promoter for Jim Crockett Promotions in Raleigh (as well as other towns in eastern NC and Virginia.) He ran his own events promotion company as well, staging concerts and other events in addition to wrestling almost every Tuesday night at the Dorton Arena or the Raleigh Civic Center. He is seen here in one scene (at the :59 second mark) sitting on a couch behind the president of the station, Jim Goodmon. His son Elliot Murnick confirmed for us that was indeed his dad!

Blackjack Mulligan
One of the main event wrestlers for Jim Crockett and Raleigh promoter Joe Murnick during this time period, Mulligan was chasing the United States wrestling championship held by Paul Jones at that time. (He would win the title for the first time on March 13 in Greensboro.) He has a cameo role here answering the question "Will Bob (DeBardelaben) quit?" Mully leans through the ropes of the wrestling ring in the TV studio and says "He better not!"

Learn more about Studio Wrestling at WRAL-5 in Raleigh on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway.
Visit the Studio Wrestling website, one of the sister sites to the Mid-Atlantic Gateway.

Thanks to Brian Rogers, Carroll Hall, and Elliot Murnick.

Link to original unedited WRAL promos: WRAL-TV: "As The Weather Turns" Promos (1976)

Link to original article on the Studio Wrestling Website

Best of: How Johnny Valentine's 1000 Silver Dollars Doubled

 
 
by David Chappell
Mid-Atlantic Gateway

How Johnny Valentine's 1000 Silver Dollars Doubled
PART ONE

Early in the Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling tenure of Johnny Valentine, the “Champ” truly came up with a gimmick match that would entertain fans around the territory for years. Valentine had a stranglehold on the Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship belt during the year of 1974, but Johnny felt he needed more competition to keep him sharp beyond merely defending the Mid-Atlantic Title. This led to the birth of Johnny Valentine’s 1000 silver dollar challenge!

Around the middle of the year in 1974, Valentine began bringing a fish bowl full of silver dollars to ringside…1000 silver dollars to be exact. Johnny promised that he would give up the silver dollars to any wrestler that could pin him or make him submit in 10 minutes. These challenges occurred almost exclusively on Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling television, but as the months went on some of these challenges made it into the area’s arenas.

During the early months of these 1000 silver dollar challenges, Valentine defended his money against a host of challengers at least a couple of times a month. While Johnny said he would take on all comers, he generally defended the $1000 only against lower and mid card wrestlers, mainly on the “good guy” side of the area’s talent ledger. Interestingly, Valentine had very few easy matches defending his money, even against a slew of lesser opponents. Johnny often had to “pull rabbits out of his hat” to prevail close to the 10 minute time limit mark, and even had a few surprising draws sprinkled in.

Listen to Joe Murnick's ring introduction to Johnny Valentine vs. Bob Bruggers
for the 1000 Silver Dollars!

Despite all the close calls, Valentine continued his 1000 silver dollar challenge unbeaten streak against challenger Bob Bruggers on the Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling TV show that aired in many area markets on Saturday July 20, 1974. Immediately after the bout, Johnny was confronted by none other than “Mr. Number One” Paul Jones! Paul challenged Johnny, and “Mr. #1” said that Valentine was afraid to put his 1000 silver dollars on the line against him. Valentine scoffed at the notion of such a match, telling Paul, “Get in line boy! You’re not good enough to wrestle me!” Johnny went on to say that Paul Jones was at the bottom of the ladder, didn’t belong in the same ring with him and should be carrying his bags!

Valentine brushing off Jones’ challenge just made Paul more angry and determined. And Paul had a plan to move himself up to the top of Valentine’s list. Jones said to Johnny, “I’ll give you some incentive boy!” Jones told Valentine and the viewing audience that he would match Valentine’s 1000 silver dollars, and bring the money next week, making it a total of 2000 silver dollars. Paul then said to Johnny, “And I can beat you in 10 minutes, and I know I can! And if I can’t beat you in 10 minutes you can have the 2000 dollars! You just be here; I’ll be here! And I bet you move me right to the top of the list next week!” Johnny, who was on his way out of the ring, immediately turned around when he heard Paul say he would bring money to the ring next week!  Valentine said, “Wait a minute; wait a minute.” Jones responded, “DON’T YOU WAIT A MINUTE ME!!”

No. 1 Paul Jones battles Johnny "The Champ" Valentine

Valentine then shouted at Jones that he still thought that Paul didn’t belong in the same ring with him, but that he saw money now. The “Champ” again queried Jones if he was serious about bringing 1000 silver dollars of his own money to the ring next week. Valentine said, “You’re telling me that if you can’t beat me in 10 minutes your thousand dollars is MINE??” Jones said, “Yeah, that’s EXACTLY right! I knew I’d get you in the ring one way or the other!” Paul went on to say, “I’ll be here next week early with my 1000 silver dollars! I’ll put ‘em in there myself, and match your thousand silver dollars. And I can beat you in 10 minutes…I know I can!!”

After an instant of digesting what Jones had said, a big smile came over Valentine’s face and he exclaimed, “I ACCEPT!”

After Paul left the ring, Valentine continued to roam around the ring with a maniacal smile across his face, shouting at Jones to bring his money next week and yelling at ring announcer Joe Murnick, “I want SILVER DOLLARS…SILVER DOLLARS!!!” The “Champ” clearly had a quite odd fixation on silver coins, rather than paper money!

Listen to the final minute of the Bruggers match called by Bob Caudle and Johnny Weaver and then all of the the classic verbal confrontation between Paul Jones and Johnny "The Champ" Valentine!


The challenge has been accepted! Paul Jones battles Johnny Valentine with 2000 Silver Dollars on the Line in PART TWO!

Originally published on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway October 30, 2015 

Les Thatcher's Lost Opus: Andre the Giant arrives in the Mid-Atlantic Area (1974)

PART TWO - THE STORY
As we mentioned in Part One, Les Thatcher sent us an amazing package of memorabilia related to Andre the Giant's first visit to the Mid-Atlantic territory, including never before published photographs and a story Les wrote that has never seen the light of day. Until now.

Rarely are we fortunate enough to get such a detailed inside glimpse of a day in the life of an international star making his first tour in a territory. But that's what Les story gives us, a rare and special gift because this story was never published as originally intended, stored away for over four decades.

So now, we proudly present Les's lost article, likely originally intended for Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Magazine (which he published for Jim Crockett Promotions), rediscovered all these years later, like hidden treasure now for all of us to enjoy. Exclusive to the Mid-Atlantic Gateway, originally written in June 1974, and published for the first time.

Andre the Human
Story and Photographs by Les Thatcher
Charlotte/High Point/Raleigh NC, 1974

What do you think it would be like to be a seven-foot, four inch, four hundred plus pound Superstar in the world of wrestling? Well, I got the chance to find out. No, I didn’t have my fairy Godmother turn me into a giant. I just had the chance to spend the day with one!

Running late as usual, I bounded up the steps of Jim Crockett Promotions in downtown Charlotte, North Carolina, my friend and tag team partner, Scott Casey, right on my heels. As we entered the door and rounded the corner, I was almost knocked over by the “Great French Wall”.  Andre the Giant.  A large size smile looked down at me and an enormous right hand was extended. I put a meek smile on my face and stuck my hand into what appeared to be a flesh covered baseball glove. I muttered the only French word I knew, meaning hello, as my hand was engulfed by his. His smile was warm and the English hello came from down deep, but was soft and matched the smile.

On this beautiful June morning, Casey and I were to take Andre on a nice Tuesday drive. It would take us up to High Point, North Carolina for a television interview, and then on to the State Capital of Raleigh for still another interview and a wrestling match that night. After a few words with the promoters, I loaded my cargo into my car and we began our trip. As we sped through the North Carolina countryside, Scott and I both talked to the big man. His command of the English language was not great, but he made himself understood. In the hour it took us to reach our first stop, the three of us had become well acquainted.

Charlie Harville and Andre outside the
WGHP studios in High Point, NC.

We arrived at High Point’s WGHP, Channel 8, where we were greeted by their sports director, Charlie Harville. The TV crew was setting up their equipment in the parking lot below their studios. They weren’t quite ready for us. During the wait, Andre was patient and watched the goings on with great interest. He stood quietly off to one side until he was called before the camera. The whole affair took only about 20 minutes and then we headed across the state toward the Capital. On this second leg of our trip, Andre sat without speaking in the back seat, watching the small towns and trees roll by.

Our trip made Raleigh in time for lunch, which we were all in need of. Our meal consisted of four steak dinners.  Yes, four! One each for Scott and myself and two complete meals for our friend. The two dinners were joined in that massive body by at least seven glasses of iced tea and a couple of glasses of water. While we ate, we talked to “The Giant” and he told us of his travels around the world and how he enjoyed being in the United States. He was looking forward to a trip in the near future to Japan. We were pressed for time and had to hurry on to the TV station, but I was left with the impression that my recently made friend, Andre, was not full and could have eaten more.

As we pulled to the entrance of WRAL, Channel 5, a welcoming committee consisting of wrestling promoters, station officials and cameramen awaited us. They filmed Andre stepping from the car and talked with him briefly. It was all over until six o’clock when we were to return for an interview on the news program and another interview filmed.

WRAL Sports Director Nick Pond and Raleigh promoter Joe Murncik escort
Andre the Giant into the studios of WRAL TV for an interview.
(Pond was also the Raleigh-only host of  "Championship Wrestling" in the 1960s and early 1970s)

We had two hours to kill so we strolled off through a shopping center nearby. We window shopped and finally found ourselves in front of a movie theater. Andre said the tickets were on him, so inside we sent to settle down and watch Goldie Hawn in “Sugarland Express”. “The Giant” made himself comfortable in the theater seats and seemed to get the whole plot of the movie. The sight gags broke him up and the laughter would pour out. As we left the theater, Andre made the comment, “It was a good movie.”

Casey and I both agreed. Meanwhile, back at Channel 5, it was time for more interviews. Again, we met with news director Nick Pond and Raleigh’s family of wrestling promoters:  Joe Murnick and sons Elliott and Carl. The tapes were made in short order. Andre smiled and made the comments that he must have repeated a thousand times before. We piled back into the car and made our way to Dorton Arena.

Andre the Giant with Raleigh's First Family of Promoters: Joe, Elliot, and Carl Murnick

We were at the arena one and a half hours before bell time, but “The Giant” busied himself getting reach for his match. As other wrestlers arrived, Andre introduced himself and shook hands. He joined in the normal dressing room chatter and took a lot of good-natured kidding about his size. Around 9:30 he entered the ring and some 12 minutes later, was back in the dressing room, having wiped out two opponents!

Joe Murnick prepares to interview the Eighth Wonder of the World" Andre the Giant

On the return trip to Charlotte, the big man seemed more at ease than he had all day, laughing and telling stories about his travels. Upon our arrival in Charlotte, Andre put away another large size meal, had a few beers and said good night.

It had been a long day for me, but after talking to this friendly Frenchman, I didn’t feel too bad. Since rising to the top of the pro wrestling wars, Andre has been following this pattern seven days a week, wrestling from coast to coast. He is up early every morning appearing on TV shows, making interviews and wrestling someplace that night. It’s a tough pace and lonely life. My overall impression of the man was this:  His mind is as strong as the over-sized body in which it lives. In my day with him, I saw him happy, sad, moody, friendly and lonely. At the end of that day, he put it all together and was a fine human being. He patted the children on their curly heads, he smiled at the lovely ladies, he answered the same questions over and over, and above all, he was tolerant of his fellow man. As I dragged myself home to bed, I felt refreshed that I had a chance to spend some time with this wrestling Superstar and I had been touched to find him to be a super human as well.

[For a look at Andre's full tour of the Mid-Atlantic area in June 1974, visit PART ONE of this series.] 

ONE THOUGHT AS TO WHY THIS STORY WAS NEVER PUBLISHED

Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Magazine was the in-house publication of Jim Crockett Promotions that began in 1973 when Les Thatcher talked the office into letting him put together a "program" that could be sold at matches across the territory. Prior to that, Charlotte was the only town in the territory that had it's own program for its weekly events.

Those first issues in 1973 and early 1974 were printed in black and white and were only eight pages, but included a wealth of information for fans, including articles, photos, a station list, early t-shirts, and Les's own signature column that would be included in all the issues he would publish over a five year period - "Wrestler's Eye View."

Around the time Les wrote this story on Andre's first visit, JCP temporarily ceased production of the newsletter and instead published two photo albums during that year. This may be the reason that the Andre story didn't appear - - there was no magazine at that moment for it to appear in.

If you are a regular visitor here at the Gateway, you know of our deep respect and affection for Les Thatcher. It's hard to imagine a more versatile, multi-talented person in the history of the wrestling business. Wrestler, writer, photographer, publisher, commentator, host, producer, booker, promoter, trainer, podcaster - - he literally has done it all. We are eternally grateful to Les for sharing this lost story with us, as well as his photographs from that day in 1974.

Coming up in the third and final part of this series, we'll take a look at couple more of Les's photos, as well as put the whole day in t he context of the times. We'll highlight a few other things going on in the territory, including a famous (unrelated) confrontation on TV that took place at WGHP the very same day Andre visited there involving one of wrestling's greatest (and most brutal) rivalries.

Stay tuned for PART THREE.