Memories
Chapter Five: The Day That I Knew THAT I KNEW Wrestling Was Pre-Determined
#PWHS #Article #Memories #TommyYoung
“Tommy Young’s Booking Sheet For the Week”
It was about 09:00 Friday, March 18, 1977. My life would never be the same again when it came to Pro Wrestling, and more personally, Mid-Atlantic Wrestling. I had gone to bed with my mind busy reliving the JCP product I had just seen locally at Augusta Expo that same night. And with the subject of Pro Wrestling, once again I was playing a mental game of Ping Pong wondering what percentage of matches were predetermined as I fell asleep. Were all the matches predetermined? Maybe just the prelims were? Surely the Main Events, and all the top matches, were determined by mental and physical skills?
I went to work at a picturesque motel the next morning where I lived in a suite of theirs, a perk for being the manager. A millionaire owned the entire mountain which included a hotel, a motel, a service station, and a local oil company. I went to the service station to get a non-healthy breakfast….and I was at one of those life moments never to be forgotten.
To spare you the minute details, the attendants started joking with me about the results of the wrestling matches the night before. I accused them of having been there, but they all swore on a stack of Bibles it was not true. In fact, they even went further to say that they wanted to sell me something I would be interested in. They then teased me with a sheet of paper that seemed like finding secret government details, or maybe an unknown treasure map that guaranteed riches. IT WAS A JIM CROCKETT BOOKING SHEET FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 14 to 20, 1977! It had so much detail on it that I wanted to dissect. They explained to me that a car full of wrestlers, that included Flair and ref Tommy Young, stopped to gas up before continuing to Expo to wrestle. As they went to the restroom and get some snacks also, a piece of paper flew out of the car unnoticed by anyone but the attendant. He stuffed it in his pocket seeing my face and dollar marks.
The next five minutes seemed like hours until I paid the attendant $5 and he FINALLY handed over the treasured booking sheet to me; to belong to me FOREVER. I walked the 100 yards back to my desk and spent every moment possible dissecting the sheet and enjoying each find like a special dessert.
I recognized that I was holding something that tens of thousands would be envious of. Let’s spotlight each treasure I found that day:
1. Tommy Young must have been the guilty party who did not secure his Company Notes. Notice how “Young” is penciled in on the right side of the page. I wonder how long he took tearing up the car looking for his “insider” notes when he realized he had misplaced them somewhere?
2. The top of the sheet says, “Booking Sheet For Week of March 14 to 20. I discovered the year by the use of Mark James Book, “Wrestling Record Book: Jim Crockett Promotions 1971-1979”. In fact this sheet contains some cards unknown by certain historians.
3. The intended results of Augusta Expo in Fishersville (Fishersville is correct but all Wrestling Companies called it, and advertised it as, Fishersville, Virginia:
I went to work at a picturesque motel the next morning where I lived in a suite of theirs, a perk for being the manager. A millionaire owned the entire mountain which included a hotel, a motel, a service station, and a local oil company. I went to the service station to get a non-healthy breakfast….and I was at one of those life moments never to be forgotten.
To spare you the minute details, the attendants started joking with me about the results of the wrestling matches the night before. I accused them of having been there, but they all swore on a stack of Bibles it was not true. In fact, they even went further to say that they wanted to sell me something I would be interested in. They then teased me with a sheet of paper that seemed like finding secret government details, or maybe an unknown treasure map that guaranteed riches. IT WAS A JIM CROCKETT BOOKING SHEET FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 14 to 20, 1977! It had so much detail on it that I wanted to dissect. They explained to me that a car full of wrestlers, that included Flair and ref Tommy Young, stopped to gas up before continuing to Expo to wrestle. As they went to the restroom and get some snacks also, a piece of paper flew out of the car unnoticed by anyone but the attendant. He stuffed it in his pocket seeing my face and dollar marks.
The next five minutes seemed like hours until I paid the attendant $5 and he FINALLY handed over the treasured booking sheet to me; to belong to me FOREVER. I walked the 100 yards back to my desk and spent every moment possible dissecting the sheet and enjoying each find like a special dessert.
I recognized that I was holding something that tens of thousands would be envious of. Let’s spotlight each treasure I found that day:
1. Tommy Young must have been the guilty party who did not secure his Company Notes. Notice how “Young” is penciled in on the right side of the page. I wonder how long he took tearing up the car looking for his “insider” notes when he realized he had misplaced them somewhere?
2. The top of the sheet says, “Booking Sheet For Week of March 14 to 20. I discovered the year by the use of Mark James Book, “Wrestling Record Book: Jim Crockett Promotions 1971-1979”. In fact this sheet contains some cards unknown by certain historians.
3. The intended results of Augusta Expo in Fishersville (Fishersville is correct but all Wrestling Companies called it, and advertised it as, Fishersville, Virginia:
Ricky Steamboat over Ricky Ferrara.
Bill White DRAW Geoff Portz (misspelled as Ports on Sheet).
Dino Bravo & Johnny Eagles over Hollywood Blondes {Buddy Roberts and Jerry Brown).
Johnny Weaver over Greg Valentine by disqualification.
Main Event: Mighty Igor over Ric Flair.
Tommy Young was the referee.
Bill White DRAW Geoff Portz (misspelled as Ports on Sheet).
Dino Bravo & Johnny Eagles over Hollywood Blondes {Buddy Roberts and Jerry Brown).
Johnny Weaver over Greg Valentine by disqualification.
Main Event: Mighty Igor over Ric Flair.
Tommy Young was the referee.
4. The Sheet shows the Referee for each city-look at line after each card. The four refs were:
Tommy Young, Zach Murray, Sonny Fargo and one of the Hebner twins.
5. Notice March 14's match in Greenville, South Carolina. In the semi-main event we notice the Hollywood Blondes won by the means of some “screw job” against Tiger Conway Jr. and Ron Starr. I’m sure there must have been some unhappy people leaving the Auditorium that night.
6. Notice there were three sets of matches going on nightly usually. For example: on Thursday, March 17 there were matches being held simultaneously in:
Fishersville, Virginia.
Anderson, South Carolina.
Murfreesboro, North Carolina.
7. Notice TV taping on Wednesday, March 16 with nineteen different wrestlers being scheduled.
8. Notice “2 girls” would be added to March 18th card in Forrest, Virginia. They ended up being midgets Marie LeVeau and Princess Little Dove. It says “Midget Girls” on March 19 at Kings Mountain, North Carolina.
9. Huge Card on Sunday, March 20 at Greensboro (North Carolina) Coliseum. It's impossible to read what the card was without some help:
Bill Dromo over Butch Malone.
Ron Starr over Ricky Ferrara.
Ricky Steamboat over Bill White.
I would guess: Crusher Blackwell and Wild Bill Irwin Vs. Dino Bravo and Tiger Conway Jr.
Japanese Tenyu and Jumbo VS Masked Gladiators I and II.
No Mention of these two matches in Mark James Book.
Johnny Weaver OVER Dory Funk Jr.
Giant Baba over Baron Von Raschke.
Wahoo McDaniel over Kim Duk.
Main Event: Gene and Ole Anderson over Ric Flair and Greg Valentine by Countout.
Anderson, South Carolina.
Murfreesboro, North Carolina.
7. Notice TV taping on Wednesday, March 16 with nineteen different wrestlers being scheduled.
8. Notice “2 girls” would be added to March 18th card in Forrest, Virginia. They ended up being midgets Marie LeVeau and Princess Little Dove. It says “Midget Girls” on March 19 at Kings Mountain, North Carolina.
9. Huge Card on Sunday, March 20 at Greensboro (North Carolina) Coliseum. It's impossible to read what the card was without some help:
Bill Dromo over Butch Malone.
Ron Starr over Ricky Ferrara.
Ricky Steamboat over Bill White.
I would guess: Crusher Blackwell and Wild Bill Irwin Vs. Dino Bravo and Tiger Conway Jr.
Japanese Tenyu and Jumbo VS Masked Gladiators I and II.
No Mention of these two matches in Mark James Book.
Johnny Weaver OVER Dory Funk Jr.
Giant Baba over Baron Von Raschke.
Wahoo McDaniel over Kim Duk.
Main Event: Gene and Ole Anderson over Ric Flair and Greg Valentine by Countout.
The unknowing had ended and a new era of life had begun. I was surprised how this newly discovered knowledge really didn’t change things. In the Mid-Atlantic territory the Main Event wrestlers were excellent and the “mark” in all of us came alive. I would watch the matches on TV and live and thought I could just observe and enjoy. But especially at the live matches you could feel the sensation of “something” growing and growing. More than once I found myself yelling for the good guy, and even sometimes the special villain. I was supposed to know it was fixed, rigged, predetermined but yet I yelled until I found myself hoarse. My yelling wasn’t going to change anything…or was it? It might not change the outcome, but I have reached the conclusion my cheering did change the outcome; the match was better because the excitement encouraged the participants to give the best of their skill levels to the paying customers. It happens at a concert, at a sporting event, even at a fiery debate or speech. The crowd pulls on the personalities’ depth of talent. There are better nights of investment by the individuals performing, and it mainly comes from the demand being placed on them by the crowd (it is also true it became better by my personal investment into the event).
Thanks for reading my story of coming of age about Pro Wrestling. It didn’t ruin anything for me after all. In some ways it causes me to appreciate the skill levels better. Support the independents and make sure you yell for them, and I bet they will have one of their best matches ever no matter if they won or lost.
Thanks for reading my story of coming of age about Pro Wrestling. It didn’t ruin anything for me after all. In some ways it causes me to appreciate the skill levels better. Support the independents and make sure you yell for them, and I bet they will have one of their best matches ever no matter if they won or lost.
Unique content strictly for the Professional Wrestling Historical Society.
Memories: Chapter Five.
Author: Terry Kent.
Published: August 10, 2016.
Article: #146.
Editor: Jimmy Wheeler.
Memories: Chapter Five.
Author: Terry Kent.
Published: August 10, 2016.
Article: #146.
Editor: Jimmy Wheeler.
Memories: Chapter Four - Read Here.
Other articles by Terry can be Read Here.