The Medic recruited former World's Jr. Heavyweight champion Danny Hodge as his partner. They defeated the Pro/Miller team, but the Medic wasn't satisfied. He next brought in the legendary 600 pound Haystack Calhoun (Bill Calhoun). The Medic & Calhoun gave Miller and the Pro quite a beating, but the match ended in a no contest ruling.

Hodge attempted to regain the World's Jr. title from the man who had defeated him for it, Ken Mantell, in a rematch in Mobile. Just when it appeared that Hodge would regain the title, Mantell scored a disputed victory to remain the champion.

The United States Tag Team Championship changed hands twice in January. Champions Kubla Khan and Gunga Din, managed by Rock "Mr. Wonderful" Riddle lost the titles to the team of Rocket Monroe & Norvel Austin. In a scheduled rematch, Austin failed to show, therefore the belts were forfeited back to the former champs. Monroe protested the decision but was overruled. He did manage to gain a little revenge when he and Cowboy Bob Kelly defeated the team from the Middle East in a non-title match. Monroe also teamed with Mike Boyette, but they failed to win the titles from the rugged Din and Khan.

Boyette had more success on the singles front. He managed to defeat manager Al "Spider" Galento's "Wildman" and run both of them out of the area.

Battlin' Billy Spears felt the wrath of Cowboy Bob Kelly after injuring Kelly's protege, Rick Gibson with his spinning neckbreaker. Kelly gave Spears some severe poundings in a series of matches.

Thundercloud defeated Rock Riddle in an Indian Strap match to regain his Apache headdress that had been stolen by the arrogant blonde wrestler/manager.

389-pound lady wrestler Heather Feather came to the Gulf Coast in January. She teamed with Dwayne Bailey to defeat the team of Kay Casey and Jim White.

Others in the area this month were Black Bart, Sandy Black, Big Jim Williams, John Luker, Jimmy "Bad Boy" Hines and Latin lady wrestlers Rita Gomez and Maria Garcia.

FEBRUARY:

NWA World's Heavyweight Champion Jack Brisco returned to the Gulf Coast on February 5 to face the tough challenge of the Wrestling Pro. The Pro seemed to actually have defeated the champ when he managed to apply his suplex hold to Brisco. However, the Pro had failed to break on the ropes just prior to slamming the champ and was disqualified by the referee The Pro was beside himself and vehemently protested the decision. Brisco, feeling lucky to be leaving with his title intact, promised a rematch to the rugged masked man.

Ken Mantell, the NWA World's Jr. Heavyweight champion managed to defeat former champion Danny Hodge once again in another hotly disputed match. Mantel was also scheduled to defend the title on February 26 against Southeastern Jr. Heavyweight champion Les Thatcher in Mobile. Thatcher, however, was hospitalized and unable to make the match. Ken Lucas substituted for Thatcher and defeated Mantell. But since Lucas was not the scheduled opponent, the title was not at stake. Lucas immediately started campaigning for a title match.

Duke Miller lost the Gulf Coast heavyweight title briefly to the Mysterious Medic. Miller agreed to put his hair on the line in order to get a rematch. The Medic managed to get Miller in the Boston Crab, but failed to break when Miller reached the ropes. The referee disqualified the Medic and awarded the match and the title to Miller. With the win, Miller also got to keep his long locks. The Medic also got involved in a tag team match between Miller and the Pro against Mike "Hippie" Boyette and Dynamite Dick Dunn a week later. The Medic  came to ringside and slammed the Duke onto the concrete floor causing Miller to get counted out and therefore costing he and the Pro the match. This led to a non-title match between Miller and the Medic. The Medic was getting the upper hand in this match when Miller got help from an unexpected source. Gorgeous George Jr., who had not been in the Gulf Coast in over a year, jumped into the ring to help Miller pummel the masked man.

Cowboy Bob Kelly continued his battles with Billy Spears. Spears began carrying a suitcase everywhere, which he claimed contained a large and dangerous snake. He threatened to use the snake on Kelly, but the Cowboy from Kentucky wasn't worried. He put up his City of Mobile championship in a match against Spears in a match that had the special stipulation that neither man could leave the ring. The first one whose feet hit the arena floor would be disqualified. Kelly hoped that this would prevent Spears from slipping out of the ring and avoiding another pounding. Kelly got a little carried away and was disqualified for beating Spears with his belt wrapped around his fist. Spears was awarded the Mobile trophy, but Kelly took the snake (which turned out to be rubber) and tossed it to the crowd. A rematch between the two ended with both men being disqualified after a wild melee.

Gunga Din & Kubla Khan, managed by Rock Riddle, remained the U.S. tag team champions. They worked mainly in singles matches or in six-man matches with Riddle as their partner.

Others in the area in February were Rocket Monroe, Joe Turner, Ray Steele, Thundercloud, Duane Bailey, Steve Lawler and Bobby Whitlock.

MARCH:

A rematch was scheduled between the Wrestling Pro and Jack Brisco on March 5, but Brisco was unable to appear. It was reported that the passenger plane that Brisco was on was unable to land in Mobile due to faulty landing gear. The plane had to return to Memphis, Tennessee where it was forced to belly land on the runway. No one was injured. I do not know if this actually happened or not. As it was, the ever ready Ken Lucas replaced Brisco and defeated the Pro after a torrid bout.

Lucas' problem with NWA World's Jr. Heavyweight champion Ken Mantell continued as well. Lucas was promised a return title match with Mantell scheduled for April 24 in Mobile. Mantell was determined that Lucas not be able to make that match and put a $500 bounty on Ken's head. A masked man known simply as The Bounty Hunter, was the first to try to collect it. Lucas defeated him with the use of his famed sleeper hold. Pierre Martine was the next to try. He, too, fell victim of the sleeper. A third bounty hunter, Dr. Death, failed to show for his scheduled match against Lucas. Rock Riddle sent his man Kubla Khan out to collect the reward, but Lucas defeated him as well.

Gulf Coast champion Duke Miller began surrounding himself with his friends the Wrestling Pro, Billy Spears and Gorgeous George Jr. They formed a foursome, which they dubbed "Murder, Inc.". It started with Miller and the Pro constantly interfering in each other matches, particularly Miller's matches with the Medic. Then Gorgeous George Jr. returned after a long absence. He also became involved in a match between Miller and the Medic. The Medic then challenged Miller and George to a tag team match and recruited former Gulf Coast champ Sweet Daddy Watts as his partner. The Medic was so anxious to get his hands on the two that he agreed to unmask and reveal his identity. The Medic had only appeared once without his mask in all the years in the Gulf Coast. That was in 1970 when he did so only as a way to get a Gulf Coast title match with Cowboy Bob Kelly. Even then he did not reveal his name, but this time he made it known that he was Tony Gonzales and would remain unmasked until he rid the Gulf Coast of Duke Miller and his cronies. During this match, Billy Spears interfered on behalf of Miller and George, which brought out Cowboy Bob Kelly to even out the odds. This naturally led to a six-man tag team match between Gonzales, Watts & Kelly against Miller, George & Spears. In the six-man match, the Pro got involved in helping Miller's team. This brought Mike "Hippie" Boyette into the fray. The next step was an eight-man tag team match with Gonzales, Boyette, Kelly & Watts facing "Murder, Inc." This match was so wild that all eight fought at the same time. Finally, Murder, Inc. was disqualified. A confrontation between the eight men on TV the following week led to Boyette hitting on a brilliant idea. If Miller and company wanted to rumble, they'd rumble. But he said they were going to rumble, California style! This meant that all eight men would wear street clothes to the ring and basically fight a street fight in the ring. Anything goes, no disqualification. When Murder, Inc. entered the ring, the Pro, Spears and GG were wearing T-shirts, boots and jeans. Miller, however was dressed in a suit! Kelly, Boyette, Gonzales and Watts came out looking like a motorcycle gang and looking for a fight! Miller quickly left the ring and headed to the dressing room, leaving his teammates to fight it out in a savage battle. All seven men ended up bleeding, but the odds were soon against the remaining Murder, Inc. members and they were soundly beaten.

Bob Kelly took time away from his problems with Murder, Inc. to team with former hated rival Rocket Monroe to defeat Kubla Khan & Gunga Din to win the U.S. tag team titles.

Khan & Din had a bad month as they also fell victim to the world's largest twins, Billy & Benny McGuire. This took away any chance of the Lebanese duo had of getting a rematch for the U.S. belts. They left the area as did their manager, Rock Riddle.

300 pound Big Mack (Doug McMichen) made his debut in the Gulf Coast. Mack would become better known a few years later as "Tank Patton".

Others in the Gulf Coast in March were The Great Gamma, Thundercloud, Mitsu Sito and Jimmy Jones.

APRIL:

Even after increasing his bounty on the head of Ken Lucas to $1500, Ken Mantell found no takers. So the NWA Jr. Heavyweight champ decided to stop Lucas himself. He was determined that the April 24th title match would not take place. Their initial meeting resulted in savage and bloody battle ending in no contest. The second match between them was a best 2 out of 3 fall match where there had to be a winner. Ken Lucas won the match when Mantell ceded the third fall. Each man had won one fall apiece when Mantell told the referee that he could not continue. In a last ditch effort to get Lucas out of the title picture, Mantell offered $2500 to an old buddy from the Oklahoma territory, Grizzly Smith (Aurelean Smith). Lucas managed to come back from a bloody beating to climb on the 7-foot, 360 pound Smith and apply the sleeper. Lucas had gotten past the final hurdle and Mantell was forced to face Lucas with the title on the line. The 24th arrived and Lucas was still healthy and raring to go. It was a furious battle that seesawed back and forth several times before Mantel managed to eke out a win.

NWA Heavyweight champion returned to Mobile for his promised rematch with the Wrestling Pro. Brisco was determined to prove to the Pro why he was the World's champion. He began the match by tossing the Pro out of the ring three different times in the first minute. But the rugged masked man was not to be taken lightly. He came back to batter the champ around for several minutes before Brisco caught him for a pin.
 
Duke Miller made several defenses of the Gulf Coast crown, all in a unique way. He was determined to exact revenge on those who had beaten his Murder, Inc. cronies in the California Rumble match. So he decided he would defend the title against each one of them and knock them out of contention for the title. Each week in Mobile, the names would go into a hat. The name that was drawn would be the one who would face Miller for the title. If Miller defeated the man, the next week only three names would go into the hat, and so on until Mike Boyette, Tony Gonzales, Sweet Daddy Watts and Cowboy Bob Kelly were all defeated. The first week, the name drawn was that of the Medic, Tony Gonzales. The Medic was so anxious to get Miller, he said that if he didn't beat Miller for the title, he would leave town. Miller won the match and kept the title and the Medic left town. Next man to be chosen was Sweet Daddy Watts. Miller again emerged victorious after a furious battle with the 400-pound Sweet Daddy. The next week Miller faced and defeated Mike "Hippie" Boyette. That left only Cowboy Bob Kelly to end Miller's long reign as Gulf Coast champion. Except for a one-week loss of the title to the Medic, Miller had been the champion for nearly six months. Only Kelly had had a longer title reign than the one Miller was currently enjoying and he was determined to end it. Too determined it seemed. Kelly went a little too far in his punishment of Miller and was disqualified, allowing Miller to retain the title. Kelly then challenged Miller to a street fight match. Miller had managed to escape the California Rumble eight-man street fight the month before, but this time there was no getting out of it. He would have to fight. And fight he did! He and Kelly had such a ferocious battle that both men were exhausted and could not continue. The match was declared a no contest.

The Bass Family returned to the Gulf Coast in April. Ronnie & Donnie, along with Maw were disqualified in their first match back against the World's heaviest twins, Billy & Benny McGuire. They also defeated such teams as Frank Dalton & Burrhead Jones, Dalton & Silento Rodriquez and the tough team of Rocket Monroe & Mike Boyette. The Bass Boys were definitely back.
  
Cowboy Bob Kelly and Rocket Monroe ventured to the Louisiana territory of promoter LeRoy McGuirk to defend the U.S. tag team titles. Unfortunately, they lost the belts to the team of Bruiser Bob Sweetan & Dr. X (Jim Osbourne). This would be the last time the U.S. tag team titles would be seen in the Gulf Coast area. The titles were merged with the Tri-State version in McGuirk's promotion and stayed there.

Klondike Bill (Bill Soloweyko) debuted in the area. The big man from the North Woods made life very rough for those who had to face him. He quickly crossed paths with an old foe from Georgia, Billy Spears. Bill teamed with various partners such as Rodriquez, Boyette and Johnny Wayne Fields to face Spears and his Murder, Inc. partner Gorgeous George Jr.

Another big man made his way to the Gulf Coast in April. His name was Red Beard. This was not Doug "the Professional" Gilbert who had used the name Red Beard in Florida a couple of years before. This was a young man who weighed about 325 pounds with red curly hair and beard. I have no idea who he was or if he worked anywhere else under another name.

Others in the area were Big Mack and lady wrestlers Toni Rose and Vicki Williams.

MAY:

Duke Miller continued his battles with Cowboy Bob Kelly. Kelly called on his boyhood days growing up near the coal mines in Kentucky when he challenged Miller to a Coal Miner's match. In this match, an object is hung from a 10-foot pole in the corner of the ring. Whoever retrieves the object first is allowed to use it as a weapon against his opponent. Kelly reached the object first and used it to pummel Miller into submission. Miller bounced back from this defeat to add the City of Mobile title to his Gulf Coast title. Billy Spears had been stripped of the title for not defending it, so an eleven-man tag match was held with the winner to be declared the new city title-holder. Miller was the remaining man and new champion. Others in the match were Spears, Gorgeous George Jr., the Wrestling Pro, Red Beard, Rocket Monroe, Burrhead Jones, Frank Dalton, the Samoan, Bobby Adcock and Klondike Bill. Miller lost the trophy to Ken Lucas two weeks later.

The Gulf Coast Tag Team Championship was reinstated in May. The GC tag titles had not been defended in the Mobile/Pensacola end of the territory since January of 1970. They were still used periodically on the Dothan end, and many times the same team that held the U.S. tag belts in Mobile also had the Gulf Coast belts in Dothan. A tournament was held to determine the new champions on May 21, 1974 in Mobile. Teams entered were:

Lars & Ole Anderson (Larry Heinimi & Alan Rogowski)
Ronnie & Donnie Bass
Sputnik & Rocket Monroe
Bulldog Don Drummer & Sigfried Stanke
Dennis & Jimmy Condrey
Mike Boyette & Ken Lucas
Ricky & Johnny Fields
Duke Miller & the Wrestling Pro
Frank Dalton & Burrhead Jones
Gorgeous George Jr. & Billy Spears
Klondike Bill & Dick Dunn
The Mysterious Medics (George & Oscar Gonzales, twin sons of Tony Gonzales)

In the second round:

.       Ronnie & Donnie Bass defeated the Medics
.       Miller & the Pro defeated Dalton & Jones
.       Lucas & Boyette defeated Ricky & Johnny Fields

Semi-finals:

.       Lucas & Boyette drew a bye
.       Miller & the Pro defeated the Bass Boys

Lucas & Boyette defeat Miller & the Pro to win the Gulf Coast Tag Team Championship.

Lucas also took on the duty of managing the young Fields cousins, Ricky (son of Lee) & Johnny (son of Don).  Dandy Jack Donovan (Jack Dunnivant) returned to the Gulf Coast after many years' absence. He teamed with Mike "Hippie" Boyette to take on Ronnie & Donnie Bass, but turned on Boyette and helped the Bass boys give the Hippie a terrible beating.

Billy Spears and Gorgeous George Jr. both left the area at the end of the month. Though the Wrestling Pro and Duke Miller were still in the area, Murder, Inc. was for the most part disbanded.

Others in the area this month were Bad Boy Hines, Jay Clintstock, Tom Tate, Rock Riddle and the Scorpion (Don Duffy).

JUNE:

A unique match was set for June 11 in Mobile that saw Jack Brisco defend his NWA World's Heavyweight championship against the challenge of the NWA World's Jr. Heavyweight champion, Ken Mantell. Had he won the bout, Mantell would have become the first man to hold both titles at the same time. As it was, Brisco emerged victorious after a terrific match.

Duke Miller and Ken Lucas continued to feud over Lucas' City of Mobile trophy. They had a tremendous battle that ended with both men being counted out of the ring. A rematch saw both men disqualified and the title held up. A third battle saw even more controversy. Two referees were involved and each declared a different man the winner. This caused the match to get thrown out and the title remained held up. Finally, Lucas scored a clear-cut victory over Miller by causing Miller to submit to his abdominal stretch hold.

Lucas and partner Mike "Hippie" Boyette didn't fare as well. They lost the Gulf Coast tag team titles to Ronnie & Donnie Bass in Panama City, Florida after holding the belts a little over three weeks. Boyette then brought in former Jr. heavyweight champion Danny Hodge to be his partner for a series of matches against the Bass Family. In one particular bout, not only did Hodge and Boyette have to contend with Maw Bass at ringside, but Dandy Jack Donovan as well. Donovan had turned on Boyette in a match against the Bass Boys the month before and had formed an alliance of sorts with the bad boys from Pampa, Texas. To combat this, Hodge & Boyette recruited the famed Bobo Brazil (Houston Harris) to form a six-man team to battle Donovan & the Basses. The Bass Boys did manage to successfully defend the Gulf Coast belts against former champs, Lucas & Boyette at the end of the month.

Boyette and Donovan had a special challenge single match against one another as well. It was scheduled to follow the Lucas & Boyette/Bass brothers title match. However, Boyette was battered so bad in the tag-team match that he was forced to forfeit the match to Donovan. Donovan would not accept this decision and jumped Boyette. Special referee Leo Garibaldi then decided to postpone the match and schedule it for a later date. Garibaldi was a former NWA World's Jr. Heavyweight champion and member of a famous wrestling family. He was also a former promoter in Texas and a well-respected referee in Florida. He was used as a referee and special representative for the Gulf Coast Wrestling Association. This position would come into play over the course of the summer.

A new masked man arrived on the scene. He was called The Mighty Yankee and was managed by Colonel J.C. Dykes. Actually, this was Curtis Smith (the Blue Yankee, the Spoiler). The Yankee claimed that he would be the only masked man in the area and that he would unmask anyone else who dared to wear one. Dykes was the former manager of the world famous Infernos tag team and was a real asset to his new man.
  
Ken Lucas' protege team of Ricky & Johnny Fields continued to impress everyone. They defeated such teams as Rock Riddle & Red Beard, Riddle & Bulldog Drummer, Drummer & Bad Boy Hines and Drummer & Dandy Jack Donovan. They were showing that they would carry on the Fields Family tradition.

Others in the area in June were Tom Shaft, Rocket Monroe, the masked Tiger Hamilton (Billy Hamilton), Dick Dunn and Devoy Bronson.

JULY:

The feud between Ken Lucas and Duke Miller came to a head during the hot days of July. The result was a match between the two of them with Lucas' City of Mobile championship and Miller's Gulf Coast heavyweight title on the line. An additional stipulation was that the loser would leave for 90 days. Lucas emerged victorious and was now the holder of both titles and Miller was suspended for 90 days. Miller's title reign had lasted nearly eight months.

Miller protested the decision of his suspension to Gulf Coast official Leo Garibaldi and even went so far as to manhandle Garibaldi on TV. Garibaldi lifted Miller's suspension in order to allow the Duke to meet him in a match. Garibaldi failed to obtain a license from the wrestling commission so was allowed to name a substitute to face Miller. He named Big Bad John (William Goodman) as his replacement. Miller was furious and refused to wrestle the big man from Dallas, Texas. While Miller argued with the referee, Garibaldi left the ring and John tore into Miller and gave him a severe beating to win the match. Miller was not through with Garibaldi and demanded a match with Garibaldi in the ring. Garibaldi finally obtained a license and agreed to a match . on one condition. It had to be a handicap match with Leo selecting a special partner. Miller agreed, as long as it was not Big Bad John. So the match was set: Duke Miller vs. Leo Garibaldi and . Bobo Brazil. Another stipulation was added. Miller had to win two falls, where the Garibaldi/Brazil team only had to win one. Despite the fact that Garibaldi kept tagging Brazil, Miller managed to catch Leo and give him the guillotine for one fall. Miller had Garibaldi set up again for the guillotine when Brazil entered the ring to stop him. Miller ran from the ring and protested at ringside. He was so upset that he left for the dressing room and never to return. Thus he lost the fall and the match via a count-out and was now to start serving out his suspension.

Ken Lucas, now a double champion, put his City of Mobile title on the line against Colonel J.C. Dykes' masked man, the Mighty Yankee. Lucas had been injured prior to this match when he got involved in a match between the Bass brothers and his protege team of Ricky & Johnny Fields. The Fields cousins were disqualified for Lucas' interference, but the Bass boys injured Lucas' arm in the meanwhile. The Yankee took advantage of this situation and applied a flying hammerlock hold to Lucas for the victory. The Mighty Yankee was now the City of Mobile champion.

Another feud that continued during July was that between Mike "Hippie" Boyette and Dandy Jack Donovan. A rematch had been scheduled after Donovan jumped Boyette immediately after a tag team match without giving Boyette time to recover before their special challenge match. Referee Leo Garibaldi disqualified Donovan and ordered that he would have to wait two weeks before he could face Boyette again. Well, the rematch never happened either. Both men were so anxious to get at each other that they began fighting in the aisle that led up to the ring. The match was thrown out and another rematch was ordered. Boyette and Donovan both got involved in the same Fields' vs Basses match that Ken Lucas had gotten injured in. Donovan had come out to help the Bass Boys when Lucas entered to help the Fields cousins. While the Bass brothers were busy injuring Lucas, Boyette entered the ring and clamped the Hippie hold on Donovan. Once the ring was cleared, it was time for the rematch between Boyette and Donovan. Donovan was in no shape to continue and Boyette won the match on a forfeit. The following week Boyette was scheduled to face the Mighty Yankee when Donovan came to ringside and offered the Yankee's manager, Colonel J.C. Dykes, his night's pay to be allowed to take the Yankee's place in the match. Dykes agreed and the match was on. Donovan was on the receiving end of a terrific pounding from Boyette when the Yankee interfered and Donovan was disqualified.

The on again/off again friendship of the Wrestling Pro and the Mysterious Medic took a strange turn. The two had originally been partners back in 1970 and then had a tremendous feud in 1972. By the end of 1972 and into 1973, they reformed their partnership and had a good run as the United States tag team champions. They split up acrimoniously and stayed friendly until the Medic's challenge earlier this year to the Pro's best friend, Duke Miller. They were on opposite sides of the Murder, Inc. vs Medic, Boyette, Watts & Kelly battles. The Medic had been forced to unmask, reveal himself as Tony Gonzales and leave the area. Gonzales gave serious thoughts to retiring after losing the loser leaves match to Duke Miller. He started training his twin sons Oscar and George to carry on the Mysterious Medics legacy. During a television match between the Medics and the Bass Brothers, Tony was at ringside commentating when the Mighty Yankee hit the ring. He unmasked both Medics and reiterated that he would be the only masked man in the Gulf Coast. Gonzales chased him from the ring and picked up one of the white Medic's mask that had been removed from his son. He came back to ringside and put the mask on. He then reminded the Yankee that the Wrestling Pro was still in the area and then stated that he would wrestle the Pro and dared the Yankee to interfere in that match. The Medic and the Pro wrestled in two matches, with the Pro being victorious in both. The two men shook hands after each match and the respect and friendship was renewed. The Yankee did not interfere in either of these matches. This took and even stranger twist when a tournament to determine the number one tag team for Ronnie & Donnie Bass' Gulf Coast tag team title. It was set up as an eight-team elimination tournament with drawings determining the teams. This made for some interesting teams. The teams formed were:

.       Ken Lucas & Tom Shaft
.       Mike "Hippie" Boyette & Dandy Jack Donovan
.       The Mysterious Medic & Big Bad John
.       Dick Dunn & Ricky Fields
.       Frank Dalton & Johnny Fields
.       Rock Riddle & Gypsy Joe Rosario
.       Tom Tate & newcomer Don Kernodle
.       The Wrestling Pro & the Mighty Yankee

  In the first round:
.       Lucas & Shaft defeated Boyette & Donovan when the losers fought amongst themselves.
.       Riddle & Rosario defeated Dunn & Ricky Fields
.       Dalton & Johnny Fields won over Tate & Kernodle
.       The Yankee & the Pro defeated the Medic & Big Bad John

  Semi-finals:
.       Lucas & Shaft defeated Riddle & Rosario
.       The Yankee & the Pro defeated Dalton & Fields

In the last match, the uneasy team of the Yankee & the Pro defeated Lucas & Shaft to earn a shot at the Gulf Coast tag team titles.

Others in the are in July were Greg Lake, Bulldog Drummer, Mike Jackson and Tony LaDue.

AUGUST:

The team of the Mighty Yankee & the Wrestling Pro had earned a shot at Ronnie & Donnie Bass for the Gulf Coast tag team title, but would they be able to cooperate enough to win the belts? And if they won the belts would they want to remain partners? These were the questions going into the title match. Colonel J.C. Dykes assured the Pro that he and the Yankee would make an exception in his case as far as the mask situation went, but the Pro was still wary. To make things even stranger, Dykes had brought in the Mighty Yankee #2. There was something familiar about this new man, but no one was quite sure what it was. Despite the uneasiness between the two of them, the Yankee & the Pro functioned well enough to defeat the Bass Brothers to win the Gulf Coast tag team title. But that when things fell apart. Dykes and the Yankee celebrated and totally ignored the Pro. Furthermore, Yankee #2 joined in and the Yankees and Dykes left the ring with the belts leaving the Pro in the ring with no championship belt. The Pro demanded that promoter Lee Fields and matchmaker Bob Kelly set up a match between he and the Yankees for the titles. Fields and Kelly agreed and allowed the Pro to take Big Bad John as his partner. The Mighty Yankees came out victorious in this match and were the new Gulf Coast tag team champions.

Another masked man entered the area, but unmasked himself almost immediately (maybe before the Yankee had a chance). The man called himself Mr. Wrestling. This was obviously not either the original Mr. Wrestling, Tim Woods (Tim Woodin) nor was it Mr. Wrestling II (Johnny Walker). But this man was a skilled wrestler none the less. After a televised match, he joined Don Griffith at ringside and stated that he wore the mask and called himself Mr. Wrestling in order to gain quick attention to himself, but he felt he was ready for the competition in the Gulf Coast area and would unmask and wrestle under his own identity. He unmasked himself and revealed himself as Ron Starr (Bobby Nutt). He said he would work his way up the ladder on his own abilities and would hopefully make a name for himself.

On August 20, Lee Fields presented his annual "Summer Wrestling Festival" at the Mobile Municipal Auditorium. The following are the results of the matches on that card:

.       Dick Dunn and the Mysterious Medic battled until a "no contest" was declared
.       Ron Starr defeated Frank Valois
.       Ken Lucas defeated Dandy Jack Donovan when Donovan left the ring and was counted out.
.       Ricky & Johnny Fields defeated the team of Pierre Bonet & Jean Pierre
.       Ronnie & Donnie Bass defeated Mike "Hippie" Boyette & Big Bad John
.       Andre the Giant (Andre Rousimoff) defeated Gypsy Joe Rosario & Duke Miller in a handicap match. Miller had been allowed to return just to face the Giant.

.       Main Event: The Wrestling Pro & Bobo Brazil defeated the Mighty Yankees. After the match, Yankee #1 and Colonel J.C. Dykes blamed the loss on Yankee #2 and began berating him in the ring. #2 then punched #1, bodyslammed Dykes and left the ring to the cheers of the crowd.

This marked Andre the Giant's first and only appearance in the Gulf Coast territory. He would return to the area several times under Ron Fuller's Southeastern promotional banner. Andre had been accompanied Frank Valois, who served as his special road manager.

Also making their first appearance was the teamed billed as the French Navy Tag Team Champions, Pierre Bonet (Rick Ferrara) & Jean Pierre (Neil Guay).  Ferrara would later wrestle in other territories under his own name and also as "Beepo" Bonet, a Mighty Igor type character. Guay later found fame under the name Jean Louie and mainly as "The Hangman" in the WWWF in the early eighties.

As a result of the breakup of his Mighty Yankees tag team Colonel Dykes brought in the Mighty Yankee # 3 (Mike McManus). The new Yankees team was allowed to keep the Gulf Coast tag team titles since the ex-Yankee #2 no longer wanted a part of the championship team. A tag team match was set up between the Mighty Yankees #1 & 3 and the team of the Wrestling Pro & the ex-Yankee #2. The match turned out to be a savage battle in which both teams were disqualified. Still the ex-Yankee #2 and the Pro worked amazingly well as a team and there was something still oddly familiar about the ex-Yankee.

Colonel J.C. Dykes, not content having one masked team on the scene, also introduced The Patriots (Bobby Hart & former Gulf Coast champion Bob Griffin). Although these men were dressed in the patriotic red, white and blue, their association with Dykes and their rough tactics made them very unpopular with the fans. So unpopular in fact that when they faced the hated Bass family in their first match in the area, the Bass Boys and Maw were cheered. During the match the referee was knocked unconscious and Maw Bass made the count when Donnie pinned one of the Patriots. The Bass Family then left the ring and went to the dressing room. The real referee was then revived by the Patriots and counted the Bass boys out. The Patriots were declared the winners. This would become very significant in the next month.

Others in the Gulf Coast area in August were Rock Riddle, the Scorpion and Frank Dalton. 

SEPTEMBER:

The battle of the Yankees came to a head when a special challenge match was set up between the Mighty Yankees #1&3 against the ex-Yankee #2 & the Wrestling Pro. The match was set as a best two out of three fall match, but the only way to win a fall was to pull the mask off of an opponent. Pins falls and submissions did not count. The Yankees won the first fall when they unmasked ex-Yankee #2 who turned out to be Duke Miller! Miller and the Pro then proceeded in simultaneously stripping the masks off both Yankees to win the next two falls. J.C. Dykes managed to cover the faces of his two Yankees to keep their identities a secret. This led to a return match in which the Yankees had to defend the Gulf Coast tag team titles against Miller & the Pro. J.C. Dykes protested that Miller was still under his suspension and should not be allowed to compete. Matchmaker Cowboy Bob Kelly made the stipulation that would allow the fans to vote before the match as to whether or not Miller be allowed to wrestle. Also the same stipulation ruled in this match as in the previous match, it would be a best two of three match and falls would be counted as a man is unmasked. Miller could also be pinned to count as a fall. When the Yankees entered the ring it was obvious that the Yankee #1 was a different man that the original Yankee #1, but the match went on. During the match, Miller was pinned to lose the first fall. Miller and the Pro roared back to win the first fall by unmasking Yankee #1 who turned out to be NWA World's Jr. Heavyweight champion Ken Mantell! Yankee #2 was then unmasked and Miller and the Wrestling Pro were declared the winners and new Gulf Coast tag team champions. They didn't hold the titles very long. They dropped the belts to the Patriots in Pensacola on September 22.

The fact that the Wrestling Pro had unmasked Ken Mantell as on of the Yankees resulted in a special challenge match between the two men. The Pro won the match but unfortunately for him, it was a non-title match.  This led to a rematch that pitted Mantell's World title against the Pro's mask. Mantell won this match and the Pro was forced to give up his mask. He managed to keep his face hidden and left the ring and headed to the dressing room. Mantell was protesting this fact so loudly that he failed to notice that the Pro also left with the championship belt. Cowboy Bob Kelly came out to the ring with the belt and gave it back to Mantell. He also stated that he had witnessed the way Mantell had won the match and as far as he was concerned, Mantell would have the belt, but the Pro was the new World's Jr. Heavyweight champion and would be recognized as such in the Gulf Coast area. The fans roared their approval as Mantell stomped back to the dressing room. This action on Kelly's part led to a protest being filed by Mantell with the National Wrestling Alliance. The NWA ruled that the Pro could not be recognized as the NWA World's Jr. Heavyweight champion. Kelly's response was that the Wrestling Pro would then be recognized as the Gulf Coast Wrestling Association World's Jr. Heavyweight champion and even presented the Pro with a new title belt.

Maw Bass took it upon herself to obtain a referees license after the trouble she had during her boys' match against the Patriots. Her initial match as a referee was a match between the Patriots and the team of Mike "Hippie" Boyette & the Mysterious Medic. Actually, Maw served as an outside referee. When she pointed out the Patriots illegal tactics to the main referee, he reversed his earlier decision, which had given the match to the masked ruffians. Maw served as the main referee in a match between former rivals Duke Miller & Ken Lucas against the Mighty Yankee (the original) & Dandy Jack Donovan. After Miller & Lucas were awarded the decision by Maw, Colonel J.C. Dykes became so upset at the loss that he hit Maw in the head with a canteen he was carrying. Dykes demanded a rematch between his team of the Yankee & Donovan and Miller & Lucas. This time Maw disqualified the Donovan/Yankee team, further upsetting the Colonel who again went after Maw.

Donovan had his problems with Gulf Coast champion Ken Lucas as well. Ken got involved in a match where Donovan was destroying one of Ken's protegees, Johnny Fields. Then later in the month the two got into a skirmish on TV that lead up to a special one fall to a finish match. Both men ended up getting disqualified in this match.

The French team of Pierre Bonet & Jean Pierre were having not so good results in their matches. They lost to the team of Ron Starr & Dick Dunn and the team of Starr & Ken Lucas and soon left the area.

Two popular favorites returned to the area in September. Greg Peterson returned to whip the crazy Gypsy Joe Rosario in a wild match, while Pensacola native Rick Gibson teamed with Ron Starr and faced the Patriots in a match that turned into a wild melee. Both teams were disqualified and fined for fighting outside the ring.

Big Ed Wiskowski made his debut in the Gulf Coast in September. Ed would later become a top star in the Pacific Northwest under his own name and an even bigger star in the waning days of the AWA as Colonel DeBeers. He defeated popular Tom Tate in his first match and fought to a draw with Ron Starr in his second match in the area.

Others in the area this month were Ricky Fields and Rock Riddle.

OCTOBER:

The dispute over the World's Jr. Heavyweight championship continued. The NWA was adamant in its recognition of its champion, Ken Mantell. The Gulf Coast Wrestling Association, headed by matchmaker Bob Kelly, insisted that the Wrestling Pro was the true champion. And the Pro was on a roll! He won a Battle Royal at the beginning of the month with the winner getting the pay of all those who entered. He pinned one of the Patriots to win the match. Others involved in the match were Greg Peterson, the other Patriot, Ed Wiskowski, Ron Starr, Rick Gibson and Gypsy Joe Rosario. The Pro also defeated Ed Wiskowski in a singles match. The NWA decided the best way to end any recognition of the Pro as World Jr. champ was to send someone in to win the belt from him. They sent in former six-time NWA World's Heavyweight champion, the legendary Lou Thesz to do the job. It was a terrific battle, but in the end the Pro managed to pin the former champ. Next to come in was Stan Vachon (Eric Pomeroy AKA Stan Pulaski). The Pro managed to hold him off as well. Next it was announced that the NWA would send in "Iron" Mike McCord (Dennis McCord). It was said that McCord had been facing suspension by the NWA for his illegal tactics but that he could escape the punishment if he could defeat the Pro and strip away his title. As it was McCord never showed up for the match. In later years McCord (better known as Austin Idol) would become well known for his no-shows. Maybe this was the beginning of that pattern. After the thwarting of all of the men they had sent in, the NWA relented and guaranteed the Pro a rematch with Mantell to decide once and for all who the true champion was.

A rematch between the teams of Ken Lucas & Duke Miller and the Mighty Yankee & Dandy Jack Donovan was scheduled. However, on the televised show before the match Ronnie & Donnie Bass appeared and demanded that they take on the Yankee/Donovan team in order to get revenge for what they and their manager J.C. Dykes had been doing to Maw Bass when she served as a referee. Bob Kelly agreed and changed the match. With no team to face, Miller then challenged Lucas to defend the Gulf Coast title against him. Lucas agreed and a match was set between the erstwhile tag team partners. The match turned into a scientific but hard fought match. Lucas managed to score what he thought was a pin fall on Miller and stood up and raised his hand in victory. As the referee was explaining to Lucas that Miller's feet were in the ropes, the Duke rolled Lucas up from behind and pinned him. Duke Miller was once again the Gulf Coast champion. Lucas was upset by the decision and requested a rematch. Miller said he understood why Lucas was upset and that it was only fair that a rematch be set. The rematch was set as best two out of three falls. Again it was a scientific match. Lucas won the first fall and Miller the second. After the second fall, Lucas was still lying prone on the mat and Miller, fearing the loss of the title reverted back to his rule-breaking ways and twice hit Lucas with his guillotine elbow drop. The referee then disqualified Miller and declared Lucas the winner and once again Gulf Coast champion. Miller was soundly booed all the way back to the dressing room and promptly disappeared for several weeks.

Lucas tried to add another title to his collection as he teamed with Rick Gibson in order to try and take the Gulf Coast tag team titles from the possession of the Patriots. The first match between the two teams ended in a double disqualification and the titles were held up. The Patriots emerged victorious in the rematch and regained the tag team titles. They had also successfully defended the belts against the team of Gibson & Greg Peterson and the team of Mike "Hippie" Boyette & Ricky Fields earlier in the month.

The match that had been set up between the Bass Brothers and Colonel J.C. Dykes' team of Dandy Jack Donovan & the Mighty Yankee saw the Bass boys victorious. After the match, however, Dykes and Maw Bass got into a scuffle. Maw had been challenging Dykes for weeks for a match, but the loud-mouthed Colonel refused saying that a Southern Gentleman would never fight a woman. But Maw insisted and a six-person tag team match was set up with Maw joining Ronnie & Donnie against Dykes, Donovan & the Yankee. Dykes managed to avoid Maw throughout the match, but Ronnie & Donnie gave the Yankee and Donovan such a beating that they were disqualified. A winner take all match was then scheduled, but this time Maw and the Colonel would go back to serving as managers for their respective teams. This time it was the Yankee & Donovan who ended up victorious. Finally to settle things once and for all, a Texas Death match with the losers to leave the Gulf Coast was scheduled. The match was a brutal battle with all four men getting battered. Finally it ended when the Bass boys couldn't answer the bell after a ten count and they lost the match. The Bass Family had to leave the Gulf Coast.

Bearcat Brown (Matt Jewel) made his debut in the Gulf Coast at the end of October. Brown had long been a mainstay in Nick Gulas' Tennessee promotion. He defeated big Ed Wiskowski in his initial match.

Another wrestler that made his debut this month was veteran Bob Garcia.
  
NOVEMBER:

Ken Mantell was forced to return to the Gulf Coast to face the Wrestling Pro to settle once and for all who the real World's Jr. Heavyweight champion was. The match was held on November 5th in Mobile. The Pro had the upper hand throughout most of the match. He kept attempting to maneuver Mantell into position to apply his suplex, but Mantell kept grabbing the ropes to prevent him from doing so. Finally just past the twenty-minute mark, a bloody Mantell managed to catch the Pro in a jackknife and pinned him.  The Pro stated after the match that Mantell had proven himself as a great champion and that he would now recognize him as the true Jr. Heavyweight Champion of the World.

Ken Lucas defended his Gulf Coast title against Dandy Jack Donovan in a match that was thrown out because both men refused to stop using their fists on one another. A rematch with two weeks pay at stake was scheduled but this match ended before it really had a chance to begin. The two went at it before the bell and were both disqualified. The third match saw Lucas disqualified for refusing to break his sleeper hold while Donovan was in the ropes. Donovan won the match, the Gulf Coast tile and three weeks pay, but was unconscious while doing so. A fourth match was set up as a non-title Texas Death match. This match ended in a standoff when both men were too bloody and battered to answer the ten count of referee Bill Speed.

The Patriots were dethroned as the Gulf Coast tag team champions by the new team of Mike "Hippie" Boyette & Bearcat Brown. Boyette had gone through several partners trying to win the belts before he picked Brown. The two meshed very well and defeated the Patriots on the first try. Boyette & Brown also won a rematch between the two teams and the Patriots left the area. Boyette & Brown also won a non-title match against the team of Jim White & the Scorpion.

Duke Miller returned after a short absence and formed a tag team with big Ed Wiskowski. The defeated the veteran team of Dick Dunn & Greg Peterson in a hotly disputed match. They suffered losses to Boyette & Brown in a non-title match and to Billy & Benny McGuire, the world's largest twins.

Others in the area in November were Ricky & Johnny Fields, Bob Garcia, Rick Gibson, Mr. Kamikaze, and lady wrestlers Peggy Patterson and Joyce Grable.

DECEMBER:

The year might have been winding down, but the action in the Gulf Coast certainly wasn't. Ken Lucas and Dandy Jack Donovan were so intent on beating each other with their fists that promoter Lee Fields decided to let them go at each other with boxing gloves on in a ten round boxing match. Jim White seconded Donovan, while Lucas had Bearcat Brown in his corner. The match was stopped in the seventh round and awarded to Lucas when a white towel was thrown in the ring from Donovan's corner. Both White and Donovan vehemently denied that White had thrown it. They claimed that Brown had sneaked into the corner while the referee was busy watching the action and tossed the towel into the ring. This led to Donovan challenging Brown to a boxing match. Brown was getting the better of Donovan when Dandy Jack began kicking Bearcat and was disqualified in the third round. Donovan's luck continued to go south as he bragged on TV that he would successfully defend his Gulf Coast title right there on TV against anyone who challenged him. Mobile native Terry Lathan, who had not been in the area in over two years, stepped up to the challenge. Donovan did not who Latham was and figured if he had never heard of him that he would have no problem beating him. The match was set and Lathan shocked everyone by defeating Donovan and winning the Gulf Coast heavyweight title! Latham also defeated Donovan in a rematch as well as a best two out of three falls match and ended the year as the Gulf Coast champion.

The Gulf Coast tag team titles also went through some changes. Bearcat Brown & Mike "Hippie" Boyette began the month as champions. The first challenge they face was the teamed comprised of the returning Rip Tyler who had his "nephew" Randy Tyler (Randy Rice) with him. This Randy was supposed to be the "son" of Rip's "brother" the original Randy Tyler (Carl Reed).  They then ran into a buzz saw with the arrival of The Hell's Angels on the scene. Comprised of Chris Colt (Charles Harris) & Ronnie Dupree (Russell Grobes), the Angels were quite a team. Dupree had started wrestling in the mid-sixties and had competed in the Gulf Coast as "Golden Boy Dupree" in 1966. He also wrestled throughout the Mid-West, which is where he and Colt first came together. Colt started in the late sixties in the Mid-West and in 1969 was recruited by Jack Dillinger (Don "Fargo" Kalt) to replace Frank Dillinger (Ken McMullen) in the original Hell's Angels. Frank had been shot during a run-in with the real Hell's Angels and could no longer wrestle. Colt was recruited and given the name Jim Dillinger and the name of the team was changed to the Chain Gang to avoid any further problems. The Chain Gang split up in Indianapolis and Colt ventured to Detroit where he teamed with Dupree, changed his name to Paul Dupree and resurrected the Hell's Angels name. Dupree and Colt also wrestled in Arizona as "The Commancheros". They made quite an impression when they literally tore the ring down in their first match in the territory. They were facing the team of Johnny & Ricky Fields when the ring ropes broke loose. They used the loose ropes to batter and choke the Fields boys and were disqualified. They immediately issued a challenge to Boyette & Brown for a title shot and were accepted. That match erupted into a pier six brawl and both teams were disqualified. Dupree pinned Boyette in the rematch and the Hell's Angels were the new Gulf Coast tag team champions. Bearcat Brown was injured in the match and left the area. Boyette still wanted revenge so he recruited the 7-foot tall, 400-pound Pascagoula Plowboy, Tiny Frazier to be his partner. But even with Frazier as a partner, Boyette fell short and the Hell's Angels ended the year as the Gulf Coast tag team champions.

Popular Bobby Fields returned to the scene at the end of the year to team with his nephews Johnny & Ricky Fields. The threesome fought to a wild draw with the team of Rip & Randy Tyler & Jim White.

Another returnee to the Gulf Coast was the popular man from the Republic of the Sudan, Arman Hussein. Hussein had been away from the area for over a year and a half.

Others competing in the Gulf Coast at the end of the year were the Yankee and Bad Boy Hines.

Well, that's our look at 1974. I hope you enjoyed it and it was worth the long wait it took to get it to you.

NEXT MONTH:

1975.  With the return and departure of Cowboy Bob Kelly, Jack Brisco makes more appearances, J.C. Dykes and the Mighty Yankees make another invasion and more.