The Russian team of Boris & Ivan Kosloff came into the area in January. They made it clear that they were out to capture the U.S. tag team titles, but after losses to the teams of Dick Dunn & Greg Peterson and Ken Lucas & the Wrestling Pro, they were gone.

Others in the area in January were Rocket Monroe, Pedro Columbo, Gary (Charlie) Fulton, Tony Russo, Tiny Frazier, Billy “Boy” Hines, and Blackjack Slade.  

FEBRUARY: 

Kelly and Fargo continued their war. Besides the Gulf Coast and Brass Knuckles titles, the two also had many battles on the Mississippi end of the promotion over Kelly’s Mississippi State Heavyweight Championship. Fargo was a demon. His personality and look totally changed. Never the friendliest of sorts, he went from being the strutting braggart to being an absolute animal. He grew his hair out, grew a mustache, changed from wearing wrestling tights and boots to jeans and motorcycle boots.  The “Nature Boy” had become the “Wild Man”. He was absolutely obsessed with destroying Cowboy Bob Kelly! And Kelly was just as intent on destroying Fargo! 

On Tuesday February 29, Lee Fields presented the “Leap Year Festival”. It was the first wrestling festival of the year and the only card held in Mobile during the month of February. Over 7000 fans were on hand to witness the matches. 

The following are the results of that card: 

·         Rick Gibson defeated Jimmy “Bad Boy” Hines

·         Frank Dalton won over Tony Russo

·         Dick Dunn pinned “Killer” Buddy Austin (Frances Gabor)

·         Bobby Fields defeated “Crazy” Chuck Karbo

·         Ken Lucas defeated Blackjack Slade

·      Gorgeous George Jr. won the City of Mobile championship by defeating the Wrestling Pro. Before the match, the Pro had said that he would beat George two falls in 30 minutes or give up the title and leave the area. George lasted the entire 30 minutes, so he won the title and the Pro had to leave the Gulf Coast.

·      A nine woman battle royal, with the winner getting $250 and a chance to meet the Fabulous Moolah later in the evening for the Ladies World Championship. Those involved were Vicki Williams, Paula Kaye, Peggy Patterson, Toni Rose, Donna Christentello, Dottie Downs, Jan Sheridan, Barbara Owens and Susan Green. Vicki Williams was the winner.

·      Cowboy Bob Kelly put his Gulf Coast title on the line against Donnie Fargo. This match never really got started as Fargo attacked Kelly before the bell. They took turns hitting each other with the Gulf Coast title belt. Finally, the referee threw the match out and it took eight wrestlers to pull the two of them apart.

·      Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan successfully defended the U.S. tag team titles against the newly formed team of The California Hippies, Mike Boyette & Mickey Doyle. Doyle was a newcomer to the Gulf Coast. Originally from Detroit, the great Lou Klein trained him. The Hippies got a little carried away and were disqualified, allowing Tyler & Sullivan to keep the titles.

·      Moolah defeated Vicki Williams to keep the Ladies’ World title. 

MARCH: 

The Bob Kelly/Donnie Fargo feud finally came to a head. These two had headlined cards throughout the Gulf Coast. They fought in cities such as Pensacola and Mobile, as well as Hattiesburg and Laurel in Mississippi. Even after facing each other every night of the week in these various cities, nothing was resolved. Then on Wednesday March 8^th in Mobile, the unthinkable happened. Cowboy Bob Kelly was suspended! Here is what happened. A match between the two was held with both the Gulf Coast and Brass Knuckles titles on the line. It quickly became one of their typical brawls. Unknown to either man, or to promoter Lee Fields, an NWA representative named Bob Caldwell in the audience. The NWA had gotten wind of the situation between Kelly and Fargo and had sent him down to observe their match. When things got out of hand between the two, Caldwell proceeded to enter the ring to try and stop the match. Kelly, not knowing who he was, slugged him and knocked him unconscious. By this time the police entered the ring, handcuffed both wrestlers and led them back to the dressing room. When Caldwell was revived, he informed promoter Lee Fields as to who he was and why he was there. Furthermore he stated Kelly was to be indefinitely suspended and Fargo was to be declared Gulf Coast and Brass Knuckles champion. Kelly and Fields’ protests fell on deaf ears and a hearing was scheduled for April 5 at NWA headquarters in St. Louis. Fields did manage to get the hearing moved up to a March 29 date in Nashville. He and Kelly attended the meeting to express Kelly’s side of the story. Along with them they took petitions signed by some 70,000 fans (I admit it. I signed one too. Hey, I was only in the sixth grade!). As it turned out, Kelly was completely cleared and reinstated.

Mike & Mickey, the California Hippies defeated Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan to win the U.S. tag team titles.

Boyette also made an unsuccessful attempt to take the Gulf Coast title from Donnie Fargo. Fargo needed a only little more than 10 minutes to dispose of the popular Hippie. Fargo also defeated both Hippies in a match in Pensacola in defense of the Gulf Coast title.

Gorgeous George Jr. wasn’t as lucky in his defense of the City of Mobile title. After a successful defense against Frank Dalton, he lost it to newcomer Bill White in White’s very first match in the area. White surprised GG with a full nelson roll-up for the pin.

Others in the area in March were Ken Lucas, Billy “Boy” Hines, “Killer” Buddy Austin, Tony Russo, Dick Dunn, Jack Terry, and Rick Gibson.

APRIL:

The suspension of Cowboy Bob Kelly was lifted as of 12:01 am, Monday April 3^rd. To make up to Kelly for having to suffer the suspension, promoter Lee Fields staged a “Cowboy Bob Kelly Appreciation” night in Mobile on Wednesday April 12^th. The main event was a scheduled Gulf Coast championship match between Kelly and champion Donnie Fargo. When match time came, Kelly entered the ring and awaited his opponent while signing autographs for the throng of admirers. Then down the aisle came Fargo with the Gulf Coast title. But it wasn’t Donnie Fargo…. it was Jackie Fargo (Jack Faggart). It had been many, many years since the Gulf Coast fans had seen the original “Fabulous One”, and they were none two pleased. Jackie climbed into the ring and hurled insults at the ringside fans. He informed the crowd that he was there to take Donnie’s place and that no one could take a championship from a member of the Fargo family. Lee Fields and commissioner Preston Hall then announced that Donnie was thereby fined $500 for failing to appear and suspended indefinitely. But Bob Kelly wanted more than that. He wanted Fargo blood, and he didn’t care which Fargo it came from. He jumped Jackie and the two of them fought a bloody battle outside the ring for nearly 25 minutes. They were finally separated and Kelly was awarded the Gulf Coast title.

Jackie Fargo then challenged Kelly to a title match, to which Kelly agreed. Promoter Fields ordered the ring to be enclosed in a wire fence to ensure that all of the fighting would remain in the ring. As with his fence matches before, Kelly would be on hand to help build the wire fence. Kelly defeated Fargo in this match to hold onto his title, but Fargo wasn’t through yet. He still had his brother Donnie’s Brass Knuckles trophy and challenged Kelly to a brass knuckles match. Kelly accepted the challenge on the condition that this match also be fought behind a wire fence. Fargo agreed and the match was set. During the match, referee Buddy Carson would be on the outside of the wire cage holding the Brass Knuckles trophy. Whichever wrestler had subdued his opponent enough to climb over the top of the cage and down to the floor, and then retrieve the trophy from Carson would be the winner. Both men spent considerable time trying to climb the cage. Finally with both men straddling the top of the cage, Kelly gave Fargo a kick that sent him crashing back into the ring. Kelly then proceeded to climb down from the cage and claim the Brass Knuckles title. With nothing left to tempt Kelly into another match, Jackie Fargo left the area. It would be quite a while before any Fargos would be seen in the Gulf Coast.

Gorgeous George Jr. managed to regain the City of Mobile title from Bill White. White was in the area one more week after losing the title and then left. George also made a successful defense against former champion, Mike “Hippie” Boyette.

Several newcomers arrived in the area during the month of April. The first to arrive was a man calling himself The Spoiler. Now the most famous Spoiler was of course Don Jardine, who had made a name for himself in Texas and in Florida. The fans knew right away that this man was not Jardine. The fans easily recognized this man as the big Blue Yankee (Curtis Smith). They even chanted “Yankee Go Home” at him during his match. The Spoiler vehemently denied that he was the Blue Yankee. Plus the fact that he wore a built-up boot the same as the Yankee didn’t help his case any.

The Spoiler brought with him a young partner named Jerry Lawler. Now whether or not this is the man who would later become “The King” in Memphis is open to debate. Some swear that it was and some say that it wasn’t, so I will leave it at that. He was only here for three weeks and never appeared on television, so I cannot say for sure.

The third new arrival was Arman Hussein (Mike Barber). Hailing from the Republic of the Sudan in Northern Africa, Hussein was an instant hit with the fans. With his curled toe boots and his “Camel Walk” that he did upon entering the ring, he was a sight to see. He was just as exiting inside the ring as well. He finished most of his opponents off with a “Camel Roll”, a kind of somersault on top of his opponent and then a “Desert Crab” (a version of the Indian Death lock).

The Scufflin’ Hillbillies (Chuck Conley & Vick Nichols) had some matches in the area. They had a particularly thrilling match in Mobile with Billy Boy & Bad Boy Hines. Talk about reliving the sixties! Nichols had replaced original Hillbilly Rip Collins on the team due to an injury Collins had received in a 1969 car accident.

The California Hippies, Mike & Mickey, stayed undefeated in defending their U.S. tag team titles. They defeated former champs Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan, and also turned back the team of the Spoiler & Jerry Lawler. Lawler and the Spoiler had earned the title shot by defeated the rough team of Frank Dalton & Ken Lucas.

Others in the area in April were Dick Shannon, Ron Sanders, Black Bart, Don Duffy, and Jack Evans.

MAY:

The big news in May was the presentation of the “Spring Festival” in Mobile on May 24^th. Several thousand fans witnessed the following matches:

·      The Wrestling Pro (returning after 3 months absence) won over Jimmy “Bad Boy” Hines

·      Arman Hussein defeated Rip Tyler

·         Eddie Sullivan defeated Ken Lucas

·         Dick Dunn defeated Red Donovan

·         Mickey “Hippie” Doyle won over Black Bart

·         Rick Gibson defeated Billy Hamilton

·         Bobby Fields defeated Eric Stanky

·      Mike “Hippie” Boyette won over the Spoiler via disqualification. This was a surprise because the Wrestling Pro, who was popular with the fans when last in, came out to help the Spoiler causing the DQ.

·      All of these wrestlers then returned to the ring to participate in a tag match with the winner receiving $500. A draw determined which two men would start the match and then they could tag out to anyone else around the ring. The final man would win the money. Ken Lucas defeated the Pro to win the match.

·         Ladies’ match Vicki Williams won over Paula Kaye

·         Ladies’ match Jan Sheridan beat Dottie Downs

·      Main Event – Cowboy Bob Kelly defeated Gorgeous George Jr. to win the City of Mobile Championship. Kelly was now the holder of three championships, the City of Mobile, the Brass Knuckles, and the Gulf Coast.

JUNE:

Gorgeous George Jr. avenged his City of Mobile title loss to Cowboy Bob Kelly when he defeated the popular cowboy to win the Gulf Coast title. George then refused to give Kelly a rematch for the title. In fact he refused to wrestle Kelly at all in singles matches. He would only face Kelly in tag matches. George teamed with newly arrived Spoiler #2 and with another newcomer Rick Renaldo to face Kelly and protégé Rick Gibson and Kelly and Frank Dalton, respectively. George finally agreed to face Kelly alone, but it would be for Kelly’s Mobile title. It was agreed if Kelly successfully defended the Mobile title against George, he would get a shot at the Gulf Coast title. Kelly did defend the title successfully, but hardly looked like a winner at the end of the match. George was disqualified for fouling Kelly and continued dishing out the punishment after the match had ended. But Kelly did earn the promised shot to regain the Gulf Coast title.

The biggest news this month was the battles between the California Hippies and the masked team of the Spoiler #1 & the Wrestling Pro. The Pro had returned after a three-month absence at the end of May and shocked everyone by helping the Spoiler dole out a beating to the popular Mike “Hippie” Boyette. So Boyette and his “Hippie” partner Mickey Doyle challenged the masked ruffians and agreed to put their U.S. tag titles on the line as well. The Spoiler and the Pro actually won the titles upon the first meeting of the two teams, but then got a little carried away. They attacked Boyette after winning the match, only to have the decision reversed by referee Buddy Carson. Thus the titles went back to the Hippies. The next meeting resulted in an unprecedented triple disqualification. Here’s what happened.  Doyle pinned the Pro for the winning decision. Boyette then attacked the Pro after the fall and was disqualified and the decision reversed. Then the Pro attacked Boyette and the Pro and Spoiler were disqualified and the decision reversed again. Then all four men went at it and referee Carson disqualified everybody and held up the titles. The third meeting between the two teams resulted in the Hippies regaining the titles. As Boyette and the Pro were fighting outside the ring, Doyle forced the Spoiler to submit with the Hippie hold. The Hippies also defeated the Spoilers #1 & #2 in a non- title match. Spoiler #2 left shortly after that.

The Wrestling Pro also had his share of problems with old nemesis Ken Lucas. The two had gotten into an altercation on television and Lucas challenged the Pro to a match. The two fought furiously for twenty minutes when Lucas managed to capture the Pro in his patented Sleeper hold. Lucas put the Pro out and won the match. After reviving the masked man Lucas left the ring and headed for the dressing room. However the Pro “lapsed” back into unconsciousness and the referee summonsed Lucas back to wake him again. As Lucas was climbing into the ring, the Pro got to his feet and attacked Lucas. He suplexed him three times and continued to beat on him. It took two referees to pull the Pro off of Lucas and force him from the ring.

Others in the area in June were Dick Dunn, Black Bart, Jimmy “Bad Boy” Hines, George Strickland, Jack Nelson, Arman Hussein, Bobby Fields, Greg Peterson, George McCreery, Jerry Oates, and Walter Fayad.

JULY:

The month started with Lee Fields presenting his “Firecracker Festival” on July 4^th in Mobile. This is how the card went:

·         Don Carson returned and fought to a draw with Rick Renaldo

·      Greg Peterson and Mickey “Hippie” Doyle also fought to a draw in a crowd pleasing scientific match.

·         Dick Dunn defeated the Red Destroyer #1

·         Jackie Welch beat the Red Destroyer #2

·         Jerry Oates took the measure of Rick Gibson

·         Frank Dalton defeated Billy Hamilton

·         Arman Hussein won out over Black Bart

·         Mike “Hippie” Boyette defeated the Spoiler #1

·      These sixteen men plus Cowboy Bob Kelly, Ken Lucas, Gorgeous George Jr. and the Wrestling Pro were all involved in a 20 man tag match with the winner receiving $500. Kelly and George were continuously tagged in but George kept tagging out to avoid the cowboy. The Spoiler #1 was the last man standing and won the money.

·      Special challenge match - Lucas also avenged his beating at the hands of the Wrestling Pro. The two met in a rematch that saw Lucas putting the Pro to sleep on the outside of the ring. The Pro was unable to get back into the ring and therefore was counted out. After Lucas revived him he tried to attack ken put found himself in the sleeper again. He managed to escape this time and fled the ring for the safety of the dressing room.

·      Main event – Gulf Coast title match - Kelly had earned his shot at George's Gulf Coast title, but had suffered a tremendous beating in doing so. He was out for revenge! In his title shot, while George and his valet, Frenchy were preening in the ring, Kelly sneaked in from the opposite side of the building from where George was expecting him. Before getting into the ring Kelly had removed his belt from his wrestling shorts and had wrapped it around his fist. As soon as he climbed into the ring he belted Frenchy to get the pesky little valet out of the way. Then he walked up to George and tapped him on the shoulder. When GG turned around he got a mouthful of leather. Kelly continued to pound George until his blonde curls turned crimson red. Kelly also slugged the referee who was trying to come between he and George and got disqualified. At this point he really didn’t care, he just wanted to dish out the same type of punishment to George that he had received the week before. George managed to slide out of the ring and head back to the dressing room, but Kelly was right behind him all the way, strapping him across his back with his belt. By the way, Frenchy wasn’t seen around much after this.

GG demanded another match with Kelly and put the title up again. This time Kelly kept his head and defeated George to regain the Gulf Coast title. Kelly also successfully defended his Brass Knuckles trophy against George in a brutal and bloody match. Kelly came out on the short end on this one as well as he was attacked by George and the Spoiler #1 after the match. This led to a tag team battle between George & the Spoiler against Kelly & Ken Lucas. Lucas and Kelly won the match after double back flipping the Spoiler.

The third match between the Pro and Lucas was a match that carried the stipulation that Lucas could only win by using the sleeper within a thirty-minute time frame. Three weeks pay was also riding on this match as both wrestlers’ pay had been held up the previous weeks.  The Pro managed to avoid the sleeper for the thirty minutes and ended up with the match and the money.  Lucas did put the Pro to sleep after the match was over. The Pro then left for a tour of Japan.

Rip Tyler and Eddie Sullivan returned after a short absence. They defeated the veteran team of Dick Dunn and Silento Rodriguez their first match back. S&T were also involved in an eight-man tag team match that saw them paired up with Black Bart and Rick Renaldo. They opposed the team of Mike & Mickey, the California Hippies, Arman Hussein and Billy Wicks (Billy Wickson), a two time former Gulf Coast champion who was returning after a 10 year absence. Hussein got the pin on Sullivan that set off a feud between Hussein and Tyler & Sullivan. Hussein teamed with Wicks to give Sully and Rip a pounding only to lose the match when Tyler pinned Wicks.

Others in the area this month were Johnny Eagles and Jimmy “Bad Boy” Hines.

AUGUST:

The dog days of summer were nothing compared to the heat generated by the Gulf Coast wrestling promotion. Bob Kelly & Ken Lucas continued their battles with Gorgeous George Jr. & the Spoiler #1. In order to prevent double-teaming by both teams, Lee Fields ordered a match using tag ropes. The team member outside the ring had to hold onto a rope tied in the corner until tagged. This stipulation cost George and the Spoiler the match as GG got careless and let go of the rope before being tagged. George and Spoiler decided that they would challenge Kelly and Lucas to a “Texas Tornado” match with all four men in the ring at the same time with no tagging. They didn’t fare any better in this match. The Spoiler accidentally slugged George allowing Kelly to get the pin.

Eddie Sullivan & Rip Tyler defeated the California Hippies to win the United States tag team titles for a third time. S&T were still having their problems with Arman Hussein, however. Hussein just couldn’t find a tag tam partner he felt comfortable with. He and Frank Dalton managed a disqualification win over Sullivan & Tyler, but Arman wanted a clean win. He next tried the eccentric Gypsy Joe Rosario as his partner, but again S&T were disqualified, leaving Hussein dissatisfied.   

Tuesday August 15^th saw Lee Fields present the “Mid-Summer Festival” (actually it was towards the end of summer, but never mind). 8000 screaming fans witnessed the following matches:

·         Frank Dalton defeated newcomer Dick Parlor

·         Pedro Marino defeated Mike Lawson

·      Billy Spears returned after a two-year absence. He and Don Carson battled to a draw.

·      In a mixed tag team match – Husband and wife team Greg and Bobbie Peterson defeated Ann Casey and Black Bart.

·         The California Hippies, Mike & Mickey defeated the father and son team of Frank & Jim Marconi.

·         Midget match – Johnny Reb won over Billy the Kid.

·      United States tag team title match – Eddie Sullivan & Rip Tyler successfully defended their titles with a disqualification win over Arman Hussein and the original Mysterious Medic. The Medic had not been in the Gulf Coast since September of 1970. Hussein requested that he return to the area since Hussein was having trouble finding a suitable partner to face the champions. The Medic got his team disqualified for jumping off the top rope onto Sullivan.

·      Main Event – Texas Death Match – Cowboy Bob Kelly & Ken Lucas defeated the Spoiler #1 & Gorgeous George Jr. The team of George and the Spoiler fell apart when Spoiler inadvertently kicked George with his “loaded” boot. George confronted the Spoiler only to have the Spoiler turn on him and give him three neck-breakers as Kelly and Lucas stood at ringside and applauded.  Referee Buddy Carson stopped the match and awarded it to Kelly and Lucas.

After dropping the U.S. tag team title, Mike Boyette & Mickey Doyle, the California Hippies left the area and went to Tennessee, as well as other areas.

Arman Hussein & the Mysterious Medic defeated Eddie Sullivan & Rip Tyler in a non-title match. This forced the champions to defend the titles. The title match was a wild one that ended up a disqualification for both sides and the title belts being held up.

Gorgeous George Jr. challenged former partner the Spoiler to a match and was getting the best of him when Billy Spears interfered on the Spoiler’s behalf. Referee Johnny Wayne (Hatfield, son of Don Fields) gave the match to George. The Spoiler’s alliance with Spears was seen as more proof that he was actually the “big” Blue Yankee. Spears had been unmasked in May of 1970 as the “little” Blue Yankee. Since George was no more popular than the Spoiler and Spears, he hardly had the fans' sympathy. Neither did he have anyone to team with to help him. He thought he had solved this problem when he managed to get the strange Gypsy Joe Rosario to side with him, but Joe ended up leaving him during a tag match. GG received a terrible beating at the hands of the Spoiler and Spears. After this George gradually started hearing the cheers of the fans.

Spears also tried unsuccessfully to wrest the City of Mobile championship from the possession of Cowboy Bob Kelly. Kelly used his famed bulldog hold to take the measure of the blonde Floridian.

Others in the area in August were L.D. Lewis, Silento Rodriguez, Leo Seitz, and lady wrestlers Lily Thomas and sandy Parker.

SEPTEMBER:

Another match was held between the teams of Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan and Arman Hussein & the Mysterious Medic to determine who would get the U.S. tag titles that had been held up. Things were going great for Hussein and the Medic until they attempted to ram the heads of Tyler and Sullivan together. S&T reversed it and slammed their opponents’ heads together. Tyler and Sullivan were once again the champions. They then took a couple of weeks off to recover from their battle wounds. Upon their return the faced the Medic and Don Carson in a non-title match. Carson and the Medic won this match by disqualification when Sullivan refused to break his Boston crab hold on the Medic.

Gorgeous George continued to have his problems with the Spoiler and Billy Spears, but his luck began to improve. A thirteen-man tag match was held in which those three were involved. The other participants in the match were Cowboy Bob Kelly, Don Carson, Frank Dalton, Gypsy Joe Rosario, Frank & Jim Marconi, Ken Lucas, L.D. Lewis, Black Bart and Greg Peterson. The winner would receive $250 prize money. Don Carson won the money even though he was the ninth man eliminated. The Spoiler and Spears kept tagging in and out, keeping George in the ring with one or the other of them and gave him a good going over. Kelly, who was the only other man left, stood at ringside watching while GG got knocked from pillar to post. Finally at the fans’ urging, Kelly leaped into the ring and went to George’s aid. The four men went at it in a pier six brawl until all four were disqualified. Therefore the money was awarded to Don Carson.

This, of course, led to a tag team match with the Spoiler and Billy Spears taking on former rivals Gorgeous George Jr. and Cowboy Bob Kelly. George and Kelly won the first match when the double back flipped Spears as referee Joe Powell was occupied keeping the Spoiler out of the ring.

The Wrestling Pro returned from a four-week tour of Japan and made his presence known right away. His first back match was with the same person he faced in his last match here, Ken Lucas. The Pro had spent his whole tour of Japan seething over the fact that Lucas had put him to sleep after the Pro had won their last match. The same stipulations applied in this match. Lucas had to put the Pro to sleep within thirty minutes or lose the match. The Pro also agreed that if he lost the match he would unmask. He didn’t have to worry about revealing his identity, however, because he beat Lucas with his suplex.

The Pro also got involved with Gorgeous George and Bob Kelly. He had agreed to take the place of the injured Spoiler, teaming with Billy Spears in a rematch between those four men. The match didn’t last long, though. At the sound of the bell Kelly and George charged the Pro and Spears, with Kelly winning the match by bulldogging the Pro and pinning him in 42 seconds! The Pro, Spears and the Spoiler (who was at ringside) protested bitterly, but to no avail. This led to a match between the Pro and Kelly with Kelly putting the Gulf Coast tile on the line. It was a tremendous battle, and just as Kelly seemed to have the Pro set up to deliver the bulldog, the Pro spun and tossed him from the ring. The Pro then grabbed the dazed cowboy, pulled him back into the ring and slammed him with his suplex. The Pro then pinned Kelly to become the new Gulf Coast champion.

The Spoiler #2 returned to team with Billy Spears in a match in which they lost to Gorgeous George Jr. and Frank Dalton.

Others in the area in September were Buster “Guillotine” Gordon, Jimmy “Bad Boy” Hines, Jackie Welch, Dick Dunn and midget wrestlers Johnny Reb and Billy the Kid.

OCTOBER:

The Wrestling Pro had originally planned to hold off for 30 days before defending the Gulf Coast tile. He had accepted a non-title match with Gorgeous George Jr., but after an altercation with former champion Cowboy Bob Kelly on television a return title match was scheduled. As was the case with past battles between the two, this one was a bloody affair. Kelly even managed to rip the Pro’s mask from his head. But before his identity could be revealed, the Pro ripped referee Buddy Carson’s shirt off and covered his face and fled to the dressing room. The bout was declared a no contest. The Pro was disqualified in the next match between the two men. This match too was a bloody affair, and again the Pro’s mask was torn. Kelly had managed to tear the top of the mask away as he bloodied the Pro’s forehead. The Pro fought back, and soon had Kelly bleeding as well. The Pro then hit referee Buddy Carson when he tried to separate the two men. The Pro was disqualified and Kelly was declared the new champion. However, Kelly lost the title back to the Pro the same way he won it, via disqualification. This time it was Kelly who hit the referee. The Pro had reached into his trunks and pulled out a weapon. Kelly retaliated by taking off his belt and wrapping it around his fist. But before he could reach the Pro, referee Buddy Carson stepped between the two men, only to get punched by Bob Kelly. Kelly was disqualified and the title went back to the Pro, but Kelly left with the title belt and refused to give it to the Pro. This time the Pro refused to give Kelly a return title match, so the only way Kelly could get the Pro back in the ring was to defend his City of Mobile title against the masked man. This match was just as wild as all of their other matches, but Kelly retained his trophy when the Pro was disqualified due to outside interference form the Spoiler. The Spoiler had recently had hi “loaded” boot stolen by Kelly and was attempting to retrieve it. The two masked men were closed to removing the boot from Kelly’s foot when Arman Hussein charged the ring to aid the fallen cowboy. Kelly escaped with his title trophy and the boot. He also still had the Gulf Coast belt, although the Pro was the rightful champion.

The Mysterious Medic had a score to settle with one Eddie Sullivan. Sully had held the Boston crab on the Medic and refused to let go in a tag match between the Medic & Don Carson and Sullivan & Rip Tyler. As a result, the Medic suffered and injured hip. The Medic challenged Sullivan to a singles match. Again, Sullivan caught the Medic in the Boston crab, but the Medic managed to crawl under the ropes and half way out of the ring. Still, Sullivan refused to let go and was disqualified. The upset the medic even more. He also used the Boston crab as a finisher, so he challenged Sullivan to another match in which the only way for the match to end was by use of the Boston crab. The Medic won this match when he caught Sullivan in the hold, only to have Rip Tyler interfere in the match. He and Arman Hussein teamed up to face Rip and Eddie in a non-title match, but lost when Hussein was knocked form the ring and was unable to return.

The Medic was also engaged in a series of battles in Pensacola with the Wrestling Pro. The two men in white had once been partners back in 1970, but now each felt that the other was living off of his reputation. There could only be one masked man in white in the Gulf Coast.

The Spoiler #2 left the area, never to be seen again.

Mobile native Terry Lathan made his debut in the area.

Others in the area this month were Rick Renaldo, Black Bart, Frank Dalton, Billy Spears, Dick Dunn, Greg Peterson, Jackie Welch and lady wrestlers Susan Green, Peggy Patterson, Dottie Downs and Paula Kaye.

NOVEMBER:

A tag team match was set up between the teams of the Wrestling Pro & the Spoiler and Cowboy Bob Kelly & Arman Hussein. The masked men were vowing not only to get back the Spoiler’s boot, but also the Gulf Coast title belt which Kelly had even though the Pro was the champion. Before the match was able to take place, however, Kelly was suspended for not turning over the Gulf Coast title. This meant that Hussein had new find a replacement by the time the match took place. The night of the match, the Pro and the Spoiler confidently waited in the ring for Hussein and his partner to arrive. Hussein’s regular partner, the Medic had already wrestled in a singles match that night, as had Gorgeous George Jr. So even if Hussein had chosen either of them, they would be tired from having wrestled earlier. Kelly was suspended, so they felt they had this one in the bag. Hussein emerged from the dressing room with his partner. This man looked awfully familiar. He was wearing a mask, but he also was wearing a cowboy hat, one cowboy boot, and the Spoiler’s built-up boot. As they got into the ring, the pro and the Spoiler protested loudly that the man was Cowboy Bob Kelly. The masked man took the microphone and announced that he was not Bob Kelly, that he was…”The Blue Yankee”! The Spoiler howled! Every since his arrival in February he had persistently denied that he was in fact the Blue Yankee. Now he couldn’t dispute this man’s claim without admitting that he was in fact the Yankee. Besides, this man was certainly wearing the Blue Yankee’s mask (remember that Kelly and Ken Lucas had unmasked the Yankees back in 1970). So without being able to offer proof that the man in the cowboy hat wasn’t the Blue Yankee, the Pro and the Spoiler had to wrestle the match. The “Yankee” won the match by kicking the Pro in the head with the “loaded” boot and pinning him. In the return match between the two teams, the Pro and the Spoiler were disqualified when the Spoiler hit referee Buddy Carson when he attempted to stop the Pro and the Spoiler from removing the built-up boot from the Yankee. Hussein had been tossed from the ring and the Yankee was at the mercy of his two masked adversaries. Hussein, with the help of the ringside fans, managed to pull the Yankee from the ring before the boot was removed.

A third match between the rivals was scheduled, but the Yankee and Hussein received quite a shock when their opponents entered the ring. It was not the Wrestling Pro and the Spoiler. It was the Pro and  … The Mysterious Medic! The fans at ringside were shocked as well. These two masked men in white had been engaged in a furious feud over which was the better masked man. It had come down to a match in Pensacola that was scheduled to be mask vs. mask. The loser would have to remove his mask. The match never really got started, however, because they jumped each other before the bell and fought all the way back to the dressing room and the match was thrown out. After they were separated in the dressing room, each man was approached separately by Monsieur Frenchy Bernard, Gorgeous George Jr.’s former valet who had not been seen in months. Frenchy convinced the two men that instead of trying to beat each other that they should join forces and create an unbeatable tag team. After much consideration, they agreed. They had once been partners after all. Frenchy also signed on as their new manager. The new teamed debuted by defeating the Blue Yankee and Arman Hussein in a no disqualification match.

November 22 saw the presentation of the “Turkey Festival” in celebration of Thanksgiving. The following is a result of the matches:

·      Two newcomers Argentina Zuma (Manuel Chaij) and George Grant (who had once wrestled as “Gorgeous George” Grant) wrestled to a draw.

·         Arman Hussein defeated Billy Spears

·         Frank Dalton & Gorgeous George Jr. defeated Bob & Jim McKinney

·         Bobby Fields defeated Randy Tyler

·       Mike “Hippie” Boyette returned to the area and took the measure of the Medic via disqualification.

·       Mixed Midget tag match – Darling Dagmar & Cowboy Lang won over Diamond Lil & Lord Littlebrook.

·      Eddie Sullivan & Rip Tyler lost the United States tag team titles when the returning Rocket & Flash Monroe defeated them.

·      The Wrestling Pro lost the Gulf Coast title to the Blue Yankee. The Yankee then unmasked himself as Cowboy Bob Kelly. Kelly did lose the Spoiler’s boot after the match, when the Spoiler and the Pro attacked him. Kelly’s suspension was also up since he won the title and no longer had to return the belt.

·      Main Event – NWA World’s Jr. Heavyweight title match – Danny Hodge successfully defended his title against the challenge of the Spoiler. 

The Monroes immediately accepted the challenge of the Wrestling Pro & the Mysterious Medic in a match for the U.S. tag team titles. They managed to hold off the challengers and won the match. After the match the Monroes stated that they would wait the full 30 day period before defending the titles again. They felt since they had won the belts from Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan and had successfully defended them against the Medic & the Pro, they had defeated the best the area had to offer and had no more challenges.

Tyler & Sullivan started their road back to the championship scene by defeating the tough team of Gorgeous George Jr. and Arman Hussein.

DECEMBER:

Rocket & Flash Monroe’s plan of not defending the U.S. tag team titles for 30 days came to an abrupt end. They had been attacked on television by the Mysterious Medic and the Wrestling Pro and offered a title shot in order to get the two masked men in a match. Frenchy Bernard, the manager of the Pro/Medic team quickly agreed. The Brothers Monroe lost the belts, but it took some chicanery on the part of the masked team to do it. The Monroes had the Medic ready to be pinned when he rolled out of the ring. He and the Pro embraced on the floor and spun around in circles. When the masked man in white re-entered the ring, it wasn’t the Medic it was the Pro. Since they now dressed identically, the referee couldn’t tell that the switch had been made. The Pro then suplexed a bloody Rocket Monroe for the win. The Medic and the Pro were now the U.S. tag team champions. The masked team then defeated the teams of Arman Hussein & Gorgeous George Jr. and Flash Monroe & Frank Dalton in non-title matches. They also faced their toughest challenge when they defended the belts against the team of Rip Tyler & the Spoiler. It had been scheduled to be with former champions Tyler & Eddie Sullivan, but Sullivan was hurt so the Spoiler took his place. A furious battle ensued between the four men, but the Pro and the medic managed to pull a switch again and the pro pinned Tyler for the win. 

The City of Mobile Championship changed hands a couple of times in December. Champion Cowboy Bob Kelly lost the title to the Spoiler when he was disqualified for refusing to break in the ropes. He had the Spoiler’s foot tied in the ropes and was attempting to remove his built-up boot. Kelly did manage to get the boot, but was jumped by Billy Spears who took it back. Kelly then grabbed the Mobile trophy and headed back to the dressing room with it. He gave it back to the Spoiler on television under the agreement that he get a return title match. Kelly also managed to get the Spoiler’s boot from him on television and would be wearing it during the rematch. Kelly spent most of the match trying to remove the Spoiler’s mask, while the Spoiler kept trying to pry his boot from Kelly’s foot. The Spoiler did manage to remove the boot and slid out of the ring with the intent on heading to the safety of the dressing room. He was met in the aisle by Mike “Hippie” Boyette would punched him and took the boot away from him. Boyette then rolled him into the ring where Kelly bulldogged him and got the win. Kelly regained the Mobile trophy and still had the Spoiler’s boot.

Former referee Lynn Sasser returned to the Gulf Coast area. But this time it was as a wrestler not a referee.

The final card of the year saw Danny Hodge return to defend his NWA World’s Jr. Heavyweight championship. This time his opponent was Mike “Hippie” Boyette. It was a thrilling match that had the fans on the edge of their seats. Many were surprised when they saw that the Hippie had quite an array of wrestling skills. They were used to his usual frantic style of elbow and knee smashes. Twice during the bout, Boyette managed to catch Hodge in the Hippie hold, only to have the champ figure out an escape. After thirty minutes of scientific wrestling, Hodge caught Boyette with a suplex and pinned him. Both men shook hands after the match and Hodge agreed to give Boyette another shot at the title in the future.

Others in the area at the end of the year were Argentina Zuma, George Grant, Rick Gibson, Don Carson, Jimmy “Bad Boy” Hines, Jim Dalton, Bobby Fields, Greg Peterson, Billy Hamilton, Randy Tyler and The Liberator.

That’s our look at the year that was 1972. Another thrilling year in the Gulf Coast.

NEXT MONTH:

We will continue our time travels with a look at 1973. The year the Bass Family arrived to create havoc.