STORM: I got married literally the day before I moved to Smoky Mountain and my wife ended up renting an apartment in the same apartment complex as Chris and Tammy. Every night he went out there and busted his hump. 7/22 American professional wrestling promotion, NWA World Heavyweight Championship Tournament (1994), List of former Smoky Mountain Wrestling personnel, SMW "Beat The Champ" Television Championship, SMW United States Junior Heavyweight Championship, List of independent wrestling promotions in the United States, "Smokey Mountain Wrestling > Ring Results > 1991-92", "Smokey Mountain Wrestling > Ring Results > 1993", "Smokey Mountain Wrestling > Ring Results > 1994", "Smokey Mountain Wrestling > Ring Results > 1995", "A Look Back at Smoky Mountain Wrestling", "Nostalgia Review: WCW SuperBrawl III; Sting vs. Vader Strap Match, Hollywood Blondes, Barry Windham vs. 2/18 It was Marilyn Manson before he got famous. They wanted an edgier, alternative product. All-WNC wrestling 2023: Top high school wrestlers from Western NC Being commissioner, they knocked me out and painted an X on my back. 4/22 People had never seen it before. 9/17 10/1 7/22 10/8 6/11 [29], After SMW closed, Brad Armstrong declared himself SMW champion and defended the SMW Heavyweight Championship in the United States Wrestling Association. When he looked to start his own promotion he met Rick Rubin and got the funding to start SMW. Day 3: Herrenchiemsee Palace. The SMW Tag Team Championship Tournament was a tournament to crown the first-ever SMW Tag Team Champions. I asked him if he wanted to be a mummy and he drove to South Carolina so we could make the suit out of giant rolls of gauze and tape. Folded 2/6 10/15 6/20 James / Road Dogg) and D'Lo Brown, but ultimately, like most independents, was not financially successful. The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) vs. Now picture a company trying to keep him in their employ. After SMW folded, The Louisville Slugger, Jim Cornette went to work for WWE. 8/21 CORNETTE: DLo Brown was a CPA, had a good job, but he quit and moved to Knoxville to be in the wrestling business. Smoky Mountain Wrestling was an organization staging professional wrestling in the Appalachian area of the United States from October 1991 to December 1995, when it was run by Jim Cornette. For everyone who has paid a lick of attention to Jim Cornette over the past decade or two then you already know how bombastic the guy is. 2/18 He became a serious student of the business. They had been bugging me to come down to Smoky Mountain, so I said, Youve gotta wear dresses. You couldve heard a pin drop. ARMSTRONG: It was really bad. He was the best performer of the three of them, so I made him their posse member. 12/24 3/19 CORNETTE: The last one to come was young Brian [aka Road Dogg]. SMW - Pro Wrestling The Smoky Mountain Wrestling 1991-1995 He was such a class act. 2/13 9/12 Smoky Mountain was a big tag team territory and Cornette asked if wed be willing to come in as a team. 9/3 SMW event tours also included high school gyms and fairs in cities throughout Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina. 12/12 CORNETTE: Tracy Smothers was the epitome of the perfect Smoky Mountain hero. 10/21 One time, before I took the hood off, I worked with my dad in a Loser Leaves Town Match dressed up as a ninja. 4/15 9/3 Non-Televised Smoky Mountain House Shows . 4/17 9/19 ARMSTRONG: I was commissioner, so Jimmy and I were always at each others throats. . Watch every Premium Live Event and enjoy some of your favorite WWE content on Shahid. Cornette eventually signed a working agreement with the World Wrestling Federation to trade talent, manage and serve as an on-air talent for that company. Four years later, it was gone. If you're thinking Rubin produced a Fozzy album at some point, you'd be wrong. He beat up my dad and put him down on the chairs and went to do a moonsault off the top. It presented a great product for a particular region in the world and gave a place for many to work and hone their craft when there was only a few big promotions to earn a living in. ROAD DOGG: Once my skills were improving and could carry the Armstrong name, I started wrestling as Brian Armstrong and tagging with my brothers. Hotels near Residenzschloss Oettingen Hotels near Der Marktplatz - Oettingen in Bayern Hotels near Stadtmauer und Holzgraben Hotels near Knigsturm Hotels near Heimatmuseum Oettingen in Bayern Hotels near Evangelische Pfarrkirche St. Jakob Hotels near Das Rathaus - Oettingen in Bayern Hotels near Katholische Pfarrkirche St. Sebastian Hotels near Vlkerkundemuseum im Residenzschloss Hotels . 5/15 Much like several others, including Ric Flair had left the company, Cornette as well felt he had no choice other to leave or run headlong into a brick wall, since he was getting nowhere to begin with. The good guy wore the white hat, the bad guy wore the black hat. SMOTHERS: It was originally going to be Steve [Armstrong] and I together to work a program with The Heavenly Bodies, but Steve got a job with WWE. Smokey Mountain Wrestling was a wrestling promotion founded by Jim Cornette, Rick Rubin and others. 8.8/10 Excellent! 2/12 Ive seen him destroy rings. 4/29 Watch a Tammy Sytch manage Brian Lee in a Coal Miner's Glove Match. Smoky Mountain was, however, the birthplace of the controversial "Gangstas" gimmick, where black wrestlers New Jack and Mustafa would cut promos about activist Medgar Evers, use fried chicken and watermelons as props and win matches as a result of a two count (rather than the conventional three count), which the Gangstas (kayfabe) insisted on due to Affirmative Action. 8/5 9/23 Eventually, he was walking around in a full body cast. List of former Smoky Mountain Wrestling personnel - Wikipedia It doesnt matter what kind of match I prefer, I have to deliver the kind of match that the people who bought the tickets want. ARMSTRONG: You never knew what he was going to do next and I always had to be on my best. ROAD DOGG: I got to travel with my family, do what I love to do and be with the people I love. 5/13 Having my sons with me, it was a great family experience and one of the greatest experiences of my life. Fright Night Fire On The Mountain 1994 10/23 Visit Sony LIV to sign in or sign up and enjoy WWE's premium content. I looked at his arm and there was a dent where one bone was supposed to be and he could bend his forearm in the middle. 3/11 1/23 The basketball teams are voted on by league coaches. 11/13 145: Wesley Murray, East Henderson. Cornette, Lane, and Scott had five years to try and earn the music maven some money. Not meant to be an exact copy, but this is basically the Palace of Versailles of Bavaria. Smoky Mountain Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that held events in the Appalachian area of the United States from October 1991 to December 1995, when it was run by Jim Cornette. The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) for the SMW Tag Team Championship, Chris Candido vs. Tracy Smothers for the vacant NWA World Heavyweight Championship, The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) vs. But we knew they were going to be stars. The basketball teams are voted on by league coaches. Though they did eventually run events over that large of a region, including a few shows at the Cobb County Civic Center in Marietta, Georgia, the promotion's biggest towns included Knoxville, Tennessee, and Johnson City, Tennessee. So I thought to myself, Well at least Knoxville is still an old-time wrestling town. I started booking a territory in my mind to keep myself from going crazy. He was just intimidating. Related: 5 Things Jim Cornette Gets Right About Modern Wrestling (And 5 He's Wrong About). He has a bad temper and sometimes he lets it get the best of him. I offered Chris and his girlfriend Tammy to come to Knoxville. World Wrestling Entertainment 8/20 When we finally had a wrestling match together, it sold out Knoxville Civic Center. In hindsight, considering where we were, Jim was right. Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW) Play all Shuffle 1 SMW Episode 1 2/1/1992 Old School Rasslin! Unfortunately, four years in, Smokey Mountain had to close its doors in 1995. 4/23 Cornette formed the promotion in October 1991 upon leaving World Championship Wrestling, with Sandy Scott and backed financially by music producer Rick Rubin. Show me what you got. I guess he liked what he saw because I started working for the company two weeks later. SMOTHERS: He carried a pistol on him at that time. 7/31 11/4 3/5 1/22 11/10 7/7 Smoky Mountain Wrestling (1991-1995) A firm believer in "old-school" territorial wrestling, Cornette began the Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW) promotion in 1991. CORNETTE: We ran shows in Marietta, Ga., wed use some of the local promoters guys and there was New Jack. . Thats why it was cutting-edge and ahead of its time. 2/6 They were close to 60-years-old at the time and he was doing moonsaults off the top into those chairs. Though they did eventually run events over that large of a region, including a few shows at the Cobb County Civic Center in Marietta, Georgia, the promotion's biggest towns included Knoxville, Tennessee, and Johnson City, Tennessee. 4/22 I pay those lessons forward now. Owner 8/5 (24 reviews) "Room and hotel were not as described. 1 and No. 7/1 James / The Road Dogg) and D'Lo Brown, but ultimately, like most independents, was not financially successful. CORNETTE: At The Night of Legends show in 94, The Heavenly Bodies were coming back from WWE to wrestle [Jericho and Storm]. 10/9 DUTCH MANTEL: Sometimes the best baseball managers are not the greatest players, but they spend their playing days in the dugout watching the manager manage the game. 1/17 It was a really big deal and Jericho did more than he should have. 1/16 2/11 Smoky Mountain Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion based in Knoxville, Tennessee from 1991 to 1995. 4/8 This page is not available in other languages. It was more about the moral high ground than the action. 7/9 There, he functioned as both a singles competitor and a tag team specialist, capturing pretty much every title one could win in the company save for the Heavyweight Championship. 7/1 5/14 10/9 8/19 CORNETTE: We would get VHS tapes from wrestlers who wanted to come to Smoky Mountain. The day-long Smoky Mountain Bigfoot Festival will be 10 a.m.-6 p.m. May 6 at the Townsend Visitors Center, 7906 E. Lamar Alexander Parkway, after the Bigfoot 5K race at 9 a.m. Its an art. Later on, he turned into Jim Cornette the manager. I, as The Dark Secret, lost to him so he could take the baby bonnet off. Other names that helped in the founding of this promotion were: The money bag behind the whole thing was Rick Rubin, who is a well-known wrestling fan and music producer. Watch Smoky Mountains biggest moments| Watch Smoky Mountains biggest stars in action, We needed buildings and production companies and TV stations so this eccentric music genius could somehow own a wrestling company in Tennessee.. With this upheaval also came the near-overnight disappearance of the territorial era when local stars and fanbases migrated to the increasingly global organizations of WCW and WWE. Brian had worked in Memphis and had a lot of potential. $159. And that ended up as our territory. Watch a young Al Snow take on Brad Armstrong for the Smoky Mountain Title. CORNETTE: Bruce Prichard from WWE called me and asked if The Heavenly Bodies and I wanted to come for a few shows. 3/19 He had about 20 guys there sitting ringside. 12/10 The Great Muta, Cactus Jack vs. Paul Orndorff", "Weekend show pays tribute to Midwest stars", "Hank Aaron Sparked Pro Wrestling's First Major Racism Story 25 Years Ago", "THIS DAY TO HISTORY: TNA IS OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCED, WWE HOLDS SLAMMY AWARDS PRIVATELY FOR BUSINESS PARTNERS, NIKITA AND MUTA TEAM, FUNK INDUCTED INTO PRO WRESTLING HALL OF FAME, MARK CURTIS MEMORIAL, WRESTLEMANIA 24 BUYRATE BREAKS ONE MILLION, DGUSA TAPES FIRST PPV IN CANADA AND MUCH MORE", Professional wrestling in the United States, Universal Wrestling Federation (Herb Abrams), Heart of America Sports Attractions/Central States Wrestling, Independent Professional Wrestling Alliance, International World Class Championship Wrestling, Pacific Northwest Wrestling/Portland Wrestling, Southern Championship Wrestling (Georgia), Universal Wrestling Federation (Bill Watts)/Mid-South Wrestling, Wrestling Association of Championship Krushers, Ladies Professional Wrestling Association, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Smoky_Mountain_Wrestling&oldid=1136583174, Independent professional wrestling promotions based in Tennessee, Entertainment companies established in 1991, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Brian Lee & Ron Garvin vs. Paul Orndorff & The Dirty White Boy, Brian Lee vs. 7/17 Its a camaraderie thats not relevant exclusively to Smoky Mountain. 6/19 7/15 The gimmick, among other things, led to the end of the friendship between Cornette and Mark Madden and their ongoing feud to this day, as Madden--who at the time was coming off the heels of getting Bill Watts fired from WCW after informing Hank Aaron of Watts' employment within the Turner Broadcasting System following publications of controversial comments made by Watts--had called the Gangstas gimmick racist.[20][21]. Acronym From what I understand, Jim paid really well. Knoxville/MorristownTennessee 1/22 Bankrolled by an LA-based music genius who produced Eminems latest album, the fiery Louisville Slugger founded Smoky Mountain Wrestling as a throwback to what he believed to be the lost art of southern-style rasslin. Events Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW) - CAGEMATCH 9/24 And the stories were good in Smoky Mountain. 3/5 The gardens and a portion of the palace were completed before Ludwig II's mysterious death. 7/24 3/21 1/16 4/2 List of former Smoky Mountain Wrestling personnel, Last edited on 23 November 2022, at 01:50, "The Complete History of Smoky Mountain Wrestling", "The Name on the Marquee: Smoky Mountain Wrestling (2.22.1992)", "Smoky Mountain Fell Victim To Changing Times (Part Two)", Smoky Mountain Wrestling alumni at Cagematch.net, Smoky Mountain Wrestling alumni at OWW.com, Smoky Mountain Wrestling alumni at Wrestlingdata.com, Pro Wrestling Statistics: Smoky Mountain Wrestling (1991 to 1995), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_former_Smoky_Mountain_Wrestling_personnel&oldid=1123310255, Brian Logan / Gabriel Brimstone / The Hornet, Bob Armstrong, Brad Armstrong, Scott Armstrong, Steve Armstrong, Bobby Blaze, Tracey Smothers, and The Rock 'n' Roll Express, Federation of International Thugs and Eliminators, Bruiser Bedlam, Chris Walker, Killer Kyle, and The Funk Brothers, Moondog Rex, Moondog Spot and Moondog Splat, Gen. Jim Cornette, Lt. 10/13 After years of operating in red ink, Cornette shut the promotion down in December 1995 to work full-time with the WWF. They were carrying WWEs Superstars, so they aired us from 11:00 to noon and aired Superstars from noon to 1:00 and asked people to vote for which program to keep. 4/9 4/17 Chris Walker defeated Richard Slinger Doug Furnas defeated Killer Kyle (8:46) Smoky Mountain Wrestling | Pro Wrestling | Fandom Watch "The King" in Smoky Mountain against Dirty White Boy. Summer Blast I hit him with a pair of brass knux and he had to leave town. We used those shows to go to stations to sell a wrestling TV show. 9/27 I learned how to perform a basic, good guy interview and get some personality and charisma involved as well. 6.7K views 3 years ago 2 Smokey Mountain Wrestling Episode 2 Back in Time Wrestling 1.1K. Kevin opened that guy to the bone.
