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Post by rhodesfan on Feb 9, 2010 19:36:11 GMT -5
Thanks for the response and sorry about your collection Danny.They say you can't go back and its true. But I do miis those days so. Take care man.
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Post by dannygoddard on Feb 10, 2010 17:00:40 GMT -5
I wonder if anyone remembers the interview Gordon Solie did with Professor Toru Tanaka when Tananka was going to demonstrate his martial arts skill by breaking a board on TV. He was explaining what he was going to do as he lifted the board and it fell apart from where it had been pre-sawn! He got tickled and covered his laughter. He also had another board or two to make his presentation. The TV studio crowd bursted out in laughter. As photographer, I was such a part of the outfit that I was embarassed and was glad it was during a taping and not live.
I watched the show that evening on TV and when he picked up the board, suddenly there appeared a screen explaining there was "technical difficulty." The audio remained, but no visual. After the incident, the "difficulty" was repaired and returned to the show.
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Post by dannygoddard on Feb 10, 2010 17:08:05 GMT -5
Corsida Jean used to promote Covington, GA on Sunday afternoons. My Mom, a real mark who was definitely not smart to the business, knew that I was going to shoot pictures for Corsica Jean. While I was there, I met a young rookie named Kevin Sullivan. I told him I wrote articles for wrestling magazines out of New York and we decided to do an interview after the matches for a story on him. He invited me to follow him to a nearby restaurant where I had a Coke and he had apple juice and there he talked as I took notes.
I was a teenager in those days and when I didn't get home at the usual time, my Mom got worried. She told me later that she called the long distance operator asking for a phone number for "Corsica Jean!"
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Post by rhodesfan on Feb 10, 2010 20:05:00 GMT -5
I never saw Corsica Jean wrestle. I have some old Florida programs with a ad for a bar run by Jean. I have heard Tim Woods ran a bar in Atlanta,did you ever go there or have a story about his place Danny? I've heard there were bars and restaurants the boys like to go to but seems that would have had a hard time going out and not being bothered by fans.
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Post by frontrow on Feb 10, 2010 21:18:02 GMT -5
rhodesfan, I started going to wrestling in Atl. in '78 and didn't miss a show until it ended on black saturday. The closest thing I ever saw to a near riot was when Ole turned on Dusty. I think it took every cop in the building to get the heels back to the dressing room. You can see some footage of the big turn and the complete awesome interview Ole gave on tv the following saturday in the video section right here at Ga Wrestling History. And yes, Tim Woods ownd a bar on Stewart Ave. called LP Pipps, and many of the wrestlers went there after the matches. When I have more time, I'll post a couple of things I saw there. Also to Bobby Simmons, I can relate to what you said about the last night at the city auditorium, as I loved that place too. The Omni just wasn't the same. The auditorium was just made for wrestling.
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Post by Bobby Simmons on Feb 11, 2010 11:05:09 GMT -5
I had to wear several hats at GCW. My first love was working in the ring, but working as the office manager for GCW was what made me the most money and saved wear and tear on the body. Working for the office everyone thought you were a crook or a stooge toting tales back to the owners. I tried very hard to stay neutral with the boys because I was in the ring with them several times a month and stay true to my employers as well. The bar Tim Woods opened was a real sore spot with Jim Barnett. Tim was a shareholder of GCW and the one of the biggest babyfaces the territory had ever known. So naturally all the guys want to hang out there and so do the fans. Babyfaces and heels did not mingle but in a place that small that were bound to come face to face. Barnett paid one of the boys a tidy sum to go there every Friday and Saturday night to report back to him what was going on. The story was put out that I had a girl going there to report back putting the heat on me rather than the guy who was actually doing it. This may seem childish but wrestlers could come and go as they pleased, Jim was just trying to protect the company. Kayfabe was alive and well in those days and we protected it to the hilt. LP Pipps eventually turned into a heel hangout which drove Barnett nuts because of Tim being such a huge babyface and catering to the heels. I was only there one time and that was to keep a certain babyface from being locked up for chasing another babyface around the parking lot with a shotgun. All in fun I was told and that was the story I put on the cop that showed up. Thank goodness the shotgun was not loaded. Names are witheld to protect the innocent.....
Bobby
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Post by dannygoddard on Feb 11, 2010 13:10:54 GMT -5
I never ever knew Tim Woods owned a bar! Stewart Avenue wasn't far from the apartments where many of the heels lived, just behind I believe K-Mart off I-75. I went to Rocket and Flash Monroe's apartments a lot. Joe Turco was over there, Jerry Lawler, Don Green. I usually hung out on Friday nights after the matches at the Varsity with Bobby Simmons and Tom Renesto Jr. Boy, what would I do right now for a couple of Varsity hamburgers and a Georgia peach fried pie? Can't get that here in Indiana!
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Post by rhodesfan on Feb 11, 2010 14:50:58 GMT -5
Thanks for another story Bobby. Chasing one wrestler around with a shotgun,thats wild. I'm sure a wrestlers life could be hard but I kind of see those old wrestlers as the last real cowboys or rebels. What a life some of these guys had. Ever considered doing a book Mr. Simmons,sounds like you could write a good one. As for the Varsity Danny those onion rings are still greasy but darn good.
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Post by Bobby Simmons on Feb 11, 2010 15:34:42 GMT -5
Mr. Goddard, Charlie Smith has been lurking and reading your posts. He wanted me to ask you if remembered who put the ring up in Atlanta, who sold programs, and who was responsible for the wrestlers robes and jackets?
The Varsity is not nearly as good as it used to be. They are now using oil that is supposedly better for you, but the taste is not the same. Plus as time marches on you cannot afford to eat there much anymore. Two burgers or dogs, fries or rings and a large coke is over $9.00. If you splurge for the pie you are talking $11.00. My office is only 1/2 mile from the Varsity Jr. and I only go about once a month.....
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Post by Bobby Simmons on Feb 12, 2010 9:07:49 GMT -5
The same baby face that had the shotgun was involved in another incident with a gun. As I stated earlier LP Pipps beacame a heel hangout so the baby faces had to relocate. They landed at two places both on Stewart Avenue. Anyone that knows anything about Atlanta can tell you Stewart Avneue is not the best place in the world to hang out. One of the places they frequented was D-Ford's. One night a couple of the locals decided to jump on one of the guys. The other baby face came to his aid. He had watched one too many TV detective shows and thought if he hit the guy on the head with the butt of his handgun it would knock the guy out. What he didn't realize is if you butt a loaded gun hard it will discharge. You guessed it, it went off......and shot the other babyface in the leg. Fortunately it him in the meaty part of his calf and they were able to get gone before the police were summoned. No one said anything and it was never made public. Because of where the bullet hit the guy he lost no ring time. The guy was a top hand, but he was no Barnaby Jones.(LOL)
Bobby
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Post by rhodesfan on Feb 12, 2010 10:12:06 GMT -5
Another great story Mr. Simmons. Keep them coming please,I feel like a kid getting to look behind the curtain.Stewart Ave. was and still is a bad place to be.Did any of the guys ever get there butt kicked down there by a non wrestler. I've read that Bill Watts would fire you in Mid South if you didn't win a fight. Also any storys about how things worked in the office would be cool.You're a walking history book man.
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Post by rhodesfan on Feb 12, 2010 16:09:36 GMT -5
We having a rare snow day in GA, I'm sure you and the boys must of had a few times that it was hard to get to or from the matches. Any stories?
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Post by dannygoddard on Feb 16, 2010 14:21:48 GMT -5
Bobby, Charlie Smith is one of my friends. The last time I saw him though, was in the late 70s in Nashville. Ask him if he remembers. I was in college there and working as photographer for Lou Thesz, Al Costello, and Saul Weingeroff in the UWA. Charlie stopped by the dressing room one night for a visit. I think he was there to check on a house he owned or something.
To answer Charlie's questions, I think Red (?) and Jim McGowen put up the ring, Red (Can't remember his last name) sold the programs, and Donny took care of the jackets. That right?
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Post by Bobby Simmons on Feb 17, 2010 9:37:02 GMT -5
Danny, you are close....
Franklin "Red" Head was indeed the program salesman. "Blassie out for blood, Ray Gunkel here next week, programs .15 cents read while you wait"....Remember that as you entered the front door. Benny Massey was the gentleman who put the ring up and down. He worked for the City of Atlanta and was paid by the wrestling office to take care of the ring. You might remember anytime there was a problem they would page, "Mr. Benny" to ringside please...... Donnie Payne was the second. He owned more wrestling outfits than most of the boys did. Matching outfits and boots. He was sharp and we only paid him 10.00 a week.
After Benny died Red did take over ring duties at the auditorium. Charlie McGowen, Scrappy's dad became the timekeeper and later worked for the office driving the ring truck for spot shows after I became the office manager.
Bobby
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Post by Bobby Simmons on Feb 17, 2010 11:41:27 GMT -5
Snow was the only thing that would make promoters even consider canceling a show. I have worked outdoor shows with it pouring down rain and also where it was so hot the mat would almost blister anything that touched it. I have actually burned my hands and knees refereeing outdoor shows. In 1973 while I was working for Gunkel Enterprises we ran a show in Thomaston, Ga. We were working in the National Guard Armory and I arrived with the ring truck about 2:00 PM. The sun was shining and it was cold. At about 3:00 it clouded up and at 3:30 it started snowing. If you are familiar with the topography of Ga. there is the Plains, the Piedmont, and the Mountains. This storm blew in from Alabama right across the line where the Piedmont meets the mountains. It was such a low storm that the mountains kept it from going north it blew east by north east or along a line from Columbus to Augusta. At 8:30 that night there was 18 inches of snow on the hood of the ring truck and I am not exaggerating. We were measuring with a wooden yard stick. The National Guard was activated and I was sworn in as a temporary guardsmen to sit and answer the phone. They would go out and bring stranded motorist back to the armory for the night. People slept in the ring and anywhere else they could find a spot. It was kinda fun, but would not want to go thru it again. The next day the promoter from Griffin, Ga came and picked me up so I could work the show in Griffin. This is the truth and only God can do this. Fifteen miles from Thomaston the ground was dry and it had not even rained. The people in Griffin thought we were lying. It was really a strange experience.
Bobby
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