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Pro wrestling once a ritual in small towns

Posted: May 14th 2020 By: Allen Gregory

It was a ritual in small towns and cities across far Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee.

Several times a month, thousands of fans of all ages would pack high school gyms, county fairs and civic centers to witness a spectacle featuring dashing heroes and dastardly villains.

It was pro wrestling.

While the glory days of Saturday afternoon television tapings and Friday night cards at VFW centers has nearly vanished, the legacy remains.

Here’s a bit of trivia.

What current Bristol, Tennessee, resident once commanded more national and international attention than any other prep, college or pro athlete from the area?

The answer is Ricky Morton.

This consummate performer and former teen idol helped fill arenas around the United States and Japan as part of the tag team known as the Rock N’ Roll Express.

A second-generation wrestler, Morton made his debut in the squared circle in 1978. With his blond mullet and colorful television interviews, Morton was part carnival barker and part Evel Knievel. He even earned induction into the World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame in 2017 with partner Robert Gibson.

At age 63, Morton continues to work his magic on the independent level while operating his own training facility and appearing on national TV and radio interviews. Kerry Morton, the 19-year-old son of Ricky, has followed his father and grandfather into the sport.

From 1991-95, Knoxville-based Smoky Mountain Wrestling entertained fans with stars such as Stan Lane, Tom Prichard and Bob Armstrong.

The SMW promotion, which had a huge following in Johnson City, was led by Jim Cornette, a kingpin in the business who has earned fame as a manager, promoter and commentator. Famed music producer Rick Rubin was one of the early financial backers.

Wrestler Beau James founded the independent promotion known as Southern States Wrestling in 1991. Based in Kingsport, SSW featured unforgettable figures like the Mongolian Stomper, Tracy Smothers, Buddy Landell and WWW Hall of Famer Jimmy Valiant.

A historian and author, the 45-year-old James is still wrestling and promoting Southern States shows.

Over the past two decades, venues such as Viking Hall in Bristol, Tennessee, and Freedom Hall in Johnson City attracted sellout crowds for the World Wrestling Federation and WWE programs.

That popularity extended to theaters in Abingdon and Bristol, where fans would gobble up every seat to watch WWE pay-per-view events.

The days of regional promotions, or territories, have long since given way to the power of the national WWE juggernaut where wrestling is now viewed as “entertainment.”

But from Saltville to Kingsport, the memories of wild pro wrestling shows and charismatic performers burns on.