GOOD FRIENDS AND GREAT MEMORIES - THE NWA FANFESTThis past weekend (8/7 & 8/09) turned out to be one of the best weekends I’ve had in a long time. I was in Charlotte, North Carolina as the guest of Greg Price for this year’s NWA Fanfest. Greg and his team did a very impressive job staging the event and, from my vantage point, it went off without a hitch. I had the pleasure of catching up with, not one, but two of my former on-camera side kicks. I spent a good bit of time with my WCW announcing partner Bob Caudle and his wife and what a pleasure that was. Bob and I hadn’t seen each other in a while and we picked up right where we left off. Just like old times. Equally enjoyable was having the opportunity to stand, once again, beside my long-time sidekick and good friend Dave Brown. I was honored to have Dave introduce me during the NWA Wrestling Legends Hall of Heroes induction ceremony. He was, as he always is, very generous and truly a class act. And, speaking of class acts, the ceremonies were hosted by the inimitable Jim Cornett. Jimmy is always a treat to be around and he just keeps getting better with each passing year. For those of you who might not know, Jim has a new book out, “The Midnight Express 25th Anniversary Scrapbook." It’s a great read and written in the typical Cornett “Shoot” style. Another manager who never ceases to impress me is Jimmy Hart. He and the Nasty Boys were a part of this year’s Fanfest. I don’t know where Jimmy gets the energy he has but if you could bottle it and sell it, we’d never need to import another drop of mid-east oil. The Fabulous One himself, Jackie Fargo, paid a visit to Fanfest this year. Jackie, Don and the late Roughhouse were among the inductees to the Hall of Heroes. I’ve said it before and I stand behind it, there just aren’t too many people who have the instincts and sense of showmanship that Jackie does. He’s one of the all-time best. And while we’re on the subject of “Fabulous Ones,” it was great to see a dark haired, business attired Steve Keirn. And speaking of all time bests, the big news at this years NWA Fanfest was the reunion of the four Horseman: Arn and Ole Anderson, Tully Blanchard and Ric Flair. I think I enjoyed seeing that reunion almost as much as the fans did. And the list just keeps going on. The ‘Boogie Woogie Man’ Handsome Jimmy Valiant was in attendance and promoting his book “Woo…Mercy Daddy”, as were the Steiner Brothers – Rick and Scott. I ran into former Olympian and still strongman Danny Hodge and, later, the legendary Cowboy Bill Watts shared a little of his time with me. Apparently, I just missed Austin Idol who made a rare appearance at this year’s event. Austin has a new website up and running and I understand he’ll have a book out soon. On Saturday, Scott Bowden of Kentucky Fried Rrasslin fame, among other things, hosted a roundtable ‘Memphis Wrestling Revisited’ forum in which Dave and I participated. The man who did more than anyone to make Memphis Wrestling what it was, Jerry Jarrett, joined us. It had been quite a while since the three of us shared a microphone and we had a great time reminiscing about the old days. If you’d had a tape recorder running you would’ve gotten enough stories to fill a book. All in all, it was a great time, particularly so because my number one partner was with me. My wife Audrey made the trip to Charlotte, which made my time there all the more enjoyable. Also enjoyable was having the opportunity to meet and talk with the many Memphis Wrestling fans that were in attendance. A great friend to LR.com, Howard Baum, stopped by to say hello along with his friend Pete Ledderberg. For those of you who don’t know, we have Howard to thank for so many of the great videos we’ve posted to this site. Mark James, who has become quite the Memphis Wrestling historian and authority, was there. He tells me he has another book coming out soon, can’t wait for that. It was also great to see, from Slam Wrestling, Steve Johnson, who has partnered with Greg Oliver to co-write some of professional wrestling’s most interesting and informative books and, by the way, a great article on me. I’m probably leaving out more than I’ve mentioned. It’s tough to get everything in. A tip of the hat to Greg Price for hosting me and for staging such a memorable event, very professional. This year’s NWA Fanfest got me to thinking about the incredible longevity of Memphis Wrestling. Tell you what, check back with me soon and I’ll post some thoughts on that subject. updated: August 12, 2009 - (03:43:14 pm) |