The first post is always the hardest...

I often find myself wondering what motivates people to get into professional wrestling/sports entertainment in this day and age.  I think as we all get older, we like to think of things "back when" as being so much better than they really were.  Nostalgia is nice, but were things really better or just different back then?

I grew up a wrestling fan in the 1960s and '70s.  No cell phones, remote controls, computers, you know the deal.  "Back in MY day, blah, blah, blah."  I guess you can't miss something if you never had it.

My first recollection of seeing pro wrestling was on a black and white TV.  The show was taped in a small studio and it aired Saturday afternoons after Roller Derby.  I was just a kid living in El Paso, Texas and I was drawn into the matches, interviews and angles by some of the greatest wrestlers in the world.  Dory Funk Sr. and Doc Sarpolis owned the Amarillo territory at the time and were very influential names in the business.  I had no idea where this TV show was being taped but there were interviews inserted throughout the show, plugging that the wrestlers I saw on TV would be appearing at the El Paso County Coliseum that Monday night!

There was no pyro, music or entrance ramp.  Just a ring and two wrestlers with a commentator's table close by.  There was always that "doubt" placed in a young kids' mind about wrestling being 'fake' and the fact that those guys are all friends and aren't really hurting each other.  You couldn't convince me though.  I was a believer.  The guys I watched made me believe.

I don't know why the thought of wrestling in a small TV studio and traveling to small, big and every size in-between towns appealed to me, but it did.  I know I wasn't the only one who felt that way but I thought I was one of a rare breed.  It seemed like I was the only kid at my school that watched religiously every Saturday.


As a matter of fact, I watched Roller Derby with interest but not as much as I did wrestling.  Both sports seemed to have colorful characters, but professional wrestlers had an aura and mystique about them.  My dad tried to explain "you can't hit someone ten times in the face and not leave a mark, get a bloody nose, black eye, or something!"

Well, the guys I watched like The Funks, Harley Race, "Iron" Mike DiBiase, The Von Braunners, The Infernos, Ricky Romero, Nick and Jerry Kozak, Dusty Rhodes, Dick Murdoch and countless others actually DID bleed and get black eyes and suffered injuries! Back then the people in the business protected and defended it to the point where they couldn't and wouldn't back out of any challenge by someone off the street, in a bar or what ever town they would find themselves in.  There's a lot of stories about how the "old timers" would stretch or just beat the hell out of somebody because they questioned if the business was real or not.

I only got to see a handful of live events in El Paso.  The shows were on Monday night, a school night, and my mom and dad weren't going to let us stay out that late.  The times we did go was incredible!  It was in the old El Paso Coliseum.  Looking back now, I realize it was just a big barn-like structure that seated maybe 5,000 people.  But for a six year old kid it was magical.  We pulled up at the same time JC Dykes and The Infernos did.  All three were dressed in a suit and tie.  JC Dykes had bright red hair (remember we had a black and white TV at the time, so JC's red hair along with the Inferno's blue masks, laced up in the back made for an interesting sight upon arriving to my first live wrestling match.

The Infernos were an interesting and unique team.  JC Dykes would accompany his team to ringside dressed usually in a tuxedo and carrying a canteen. On occasion he would also bring a whistle and flashlight.  He would blow the whistle to give his team "coded signals" until it got to where the fans started bringing whistles and would blow them to confuse and irritate Dykes and his team.

Then JC got the idea to use a flash light to give signals and the fans again would bring flashlights from home and the arena would look like hundreds of flash bulbs going off constantly during the Infernos matches.  They were usually involved in 2-out-of-3 fall matches, so in-between falls they would take a drink of water from the canteen. Later in the next fall, the canteen would somehow find its way in the ring or used to stop their opponent.

JC Dykes was the first guy I ever saw throw fire.  He threw a fireball at Terry Funk and burned his face!  Wearing a mask was always interesting because it gave the other guy or guys in this case, to try and take it off during the match.  The Infernos wore masks that laced up in the back and it was the drama watching their opponents attempt to unmask these guys 'one lace at a time' and almost getting it off, until...

The other Inferno would come in and break up any unmasking their opponents had planned for that night.  The Infernos looked identical and it was hard to tell them apart, with one obvious distinction.  One Inferno wore a built up wrestling boot.  According to JC Dykes, this man was born with one leg shorter than the other but overcame the odds and thanks to this 'orthopedic boot' he was able to not only lead a normal life, but he became a world champion wrestler as well. 

The only thing was, when it looked as though the Infernos might be in danger of being un-masked or beaten, the 'club-foot' Inferno would come in (as the referee was trying to restore order or just happen to have his back turned) tap his built up boot three times on the toe, and kick their opponent in the head, back or stomach. That usually did the trick as the Infernos would get the pin.  After the match, 'club foot' would un-load his boot by kicking down on his heel another three times!

If he kicked his opponent in the head, you could expect blood nine times out of ten.  Either way, the boot was a dangerous and mysterious arsenal in the Infernos playbook.  It also gave their opponents something else to try and take off.  Going after the loaded boot, laces hanging out, mask laces hanging out, whistles, canteens, flashlights, fire, anytime the Infernos stepped in the ring everybody knew there would never be a dull moment!

The only thing they had to work with was a ring, house lights turned down and the ring lights over the ring.  And the Infernos never said a word on TV or at the live events.  JC Dykes was their manager and mouth piece.  They were billed as being from Europe, when most masked men of the day were from "Parts Unknown." 

The Infernos were one of the best tag teams I've ever seen.  JC Dykes was the perfect person to put with them as their manager. After interfering on numerous occasions the promoter or commissioner would see fit to "force" JC to get in the ring and team with his men.  In West Texas, that meant JC Dykes and his Infernos would eventually face off against the most popular family in the area at the time, the Funks; Dory Sr, Jr. and Terry.

The Funks could do no wrong in West Texas.  But it seemed like everywhere else they went they were the heels.  In 1969, Dory Funk Jr. won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship from Gene Kiniski in Tampa.  The Funk family could do no wrong in West Texas!  But venture outside of that area of the world and it seemed like they were the biggest heels to ever come to town!  And they were!

It was a great set up.  You had younger brother Terry come in a territory to stop the number one contender and if he couldn't do it, here came Papa Funk to knock him down.  Once the top man in that territory went through Sr. and Terry, he was guaranteed a shot at the champion Dory Funk Jr. I moved to Houston shortly after Dory won the title and got to see him, Sr. and Terry in a new light.  I had only seen them as the good guys in El Paso.  Now they were wrestling against heroes like Wahoo McDaniel, Jose Lothario and Johnny Valentine.  Being world champion back then meant going in a new territory and being able to wrestle one hour straight through and make the challenger (usually the top guy in that territory at the time) look like he would have beat you "if only there was more time..."

I recently found a lot of old programs, cards, pictures and posters that brought back a lot of memories.  I am just getting my feet wet and learning how to scan pictures, articles and make some of the programs and pictures I have available.  I have Houston programs from 1969-80s.  I have a lot of magazines and pictures.  I have old Portland and Los Angeles programs as well.  It's going to take some time but I believe there is a market out there for those who are interested in the history of what the business is and how it evolved.  I would like to hear any comments and feedback. 

I've followed this business my whole life and have been very fortunate.  I kept a lot of stuff and lost some along my travels. 

I did a seminar in Amarillo a few years ago and Chris Romero had the Rocky Mountain Championship belt that his dad Ricky Romero held for years.  I took pictures with the belt and can't find them now.  Old belts, pictures and artifacts have always interested me.  A good friend of mine, Chris Gaugh, interviewed Orville Browns' son years ago and took a picture of the original World Title that Brown held in 1938:

I like knowing the history of who came before us in this business.  I think seeing the old belts, robes or gimmicks from the past can spark an idea for the future. And I think they're interesting to look at.

  I started out asking why anybody would want to get into the business in this day and age. I guess the real question would be why would anybody want to have been a wrestler way back then?  Travel was

a lot harder, the buildings were a lot smaller and the conditions were less than idealistic on most occasions.  I think it's something you really can't explain.  You have to love this business and have a passion for it.  Whenever the question of 'real or not real' came up, it was usually explained this way:

For those who believe, no explanation is needed. 

For those who don't, no explanation will do.

So why do I love professional wrestling and have made it my life?  I can't explain it. 

 This is just who I am and what I do. 

You can follow me on Twitter @drtomprichard.  Or you can email me at bookdrtom@aol.com for camps, seminars and appearances.  Please bear with me as I figure this out, search for programs, pictures, magazines and whatever else I can find.  I am going to do my best to keep this post updated and am open for suggestions.

I have some announcements and will be posting some items for sale in the next couple months.  Again, I am just learning how to do this, but I have to start somewhere!

Thanks for reading!