Jerry Jarrett

**Jerry Winston Jarrett** (born 4 September, 1942)  wrestled and promoted in Memphis.

He got his start as a referee in the Nick Gulas Mid-America territory, before becoming a wrestler in 1965. He was trained by Tojo Yamamoto, forming a popular tag team with him. He began booking and promoting for the Gulas territory in Memphis, Louisville, Evansville, Lexington, Tupelo and Jonesboro in 1967 , before falling out with him and breaking away to form his own promotion in 1977.

Jarrett had believed he was a 50% owner in the promotion, before finding out he had paid $50,000 for nothing more than an option to buy which had now expired.  It was a fateful decision by Gulas, the towns he promoted had been losing money for several years, with Memphis the most profitable area of the territory. While he couldn't immediately access the Mid-South Coliseum he quickly signed key figures like Jerry Lawler, Lance Russell, and Dave Brown, and found a timeslot on Memphis station WMC-5, where he would air programs for the next 20 years.

Jarrett soon drove Gulas out of Memphis and won the promotional war by 1980, buying his competitor's company. The two groups traded legal disputes. In May 1978, Gulas filed suit against **Jerry Jarrett**, Roy Welch, Jerry Lawler, Las Vegas Louie, Ron Garfield and Don Fargo. He claimed $1.5 million in damages, alelging that Lawler paid Louie, Garfield and Fargo $200 not to appear on his cards. Gulas claimed the three had signed contracts to work exclusively for him.

Jarrett and Welch hit back in 1980, suing Gulas for $850,000 . They still owned 37.5% of Gulas' territory, and alleged that he sabotaged the Mid-America promotion to cost them money. It was revealed that Gulas had sold his part of the promotion to Jarrett for $106,703.

After six months of Robert Fuller booking the territory in 1979, Jarrett took the job over himself. From 1983 he shared booking duties with Jerry Lawler.

He rarely worked in the ring on his own events, not appearing at the Mid-South Coliseum until 1980, then not again after that until 1985. He had lost the sight in his right eye in 1983.

In 1989, Jarrett purchased a share in the Texas based World Class Championship Wrestling, merging it with the CWA to form the USWA. The dual state territory folded when the Von Erich family pulled out of the promotional agreement. From there until he sold the business to Jerry Lawler in 1997, Jarrett focused on cities in and around Tennessee. In 1988 he had tried to purchase the American Wrestling Association from Verne Gagne.

Jarrett also worked with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wresting. In 2002 he co-founded the NWA:TNA promotion.

His son Jeff Jarrett also wrestled in Memphis, and he was the son-in-law of Eddie Marlin. His mother Christine Jarrett originally worked for Gulas' promotion in Nashville, and helped Jerry promote when he formed his own company.

## Career

### 1980

* Monday 2 June - with Bill Dundee against The Blond Bombers
* Monday 9 June - with Bill Dundee against The Blond Bombers (No Disqualification match)
* Monday 16 June - with Tojo Yamamoto against The Blond Bombers
* Monday 23 June - with Tojo Yamamoto against The Blond Bombers
* Monday 30 June - with Tojo Yamamoto against The Manchurians
* Monday 7 July - with Tojo Yamamoto against The Manchurians
* Monday 14 July - with Tojo Yamamoto in a double elimination tag team tournament against The Blond Bombers, The Manchurians, Ken Lucas and Ricky Morton, Sonny King and El Mongol, and Jimmy Valiant and Carl Fergie
* Monday 21 July - in a double elimination tournament with Carl Fergie, Eddie Gilbert, Bill Irwin, Sonny King, Karl Krupp, El Mongol, Jimmy Valiant and Tojo Yamamoto.
* Monday 28 July - with Tojo Yamamoto against Austin Idol and Dutch Mantel (CWA Tag Team Championship)
* Monday 4 August - with Tojo Yamamoto against Austin Idol and Dutch Mantel (CWA Tag Team Championship)
* Monday 11 August - with Tojo Yamamoto against El Mongol and Karl Krupp (Southern Tag Team Championship)

### 1985

* Monday 13 May - with Tojo Yamamoto against J.R. Hogg and Jerry Bryant
* Monday 20 May - with Tojo Yamamoto against The PYT Express
* Monday 27 May - with Tojo Yamamoto against The PYT Express (Strap on a pole match)
* Monday 3 June - with Tojo Yamamoto against The PYT Express (Southern Tag Team Championship)
* Monday 24 June - with Tojo Yamamoto against Phil Hickerson and The Spoiler
* Monday 1 July - with Tojo Yamamoto against Billy Joe Travis and Ron Sexton
* Monday 8 July - with Tojo Yamamoto against Terry Adonis and Bill Smithson
* Monday 22 July - with Jerry Oski and Tojo Yamamoto against The Spoiler, Man Mountain Link and Jerry Bryant
* Monday 29 July - with Tojo Yamamoto against Man Mountain Link and Jerry Bryant
* Monday 5 August - with Tojo Yamamoto against The Master Blaster and Jerry Bryant
* Monday 12 August - against Tom Branch
* Monday 12 August - against Jerry Bryant
* Monday 12 August - against Bota The Witch Doctor
* Monday 19 August - with Tojo Yamamoto against Bill Smithson and Terry Adonis
* Monday 16 September - with Candi Divine against Buddy Wayne and Sherri Martel
* Monday 21 October - with Tojo Yamamoto against Bota The Witch Doctor and Tarras Bulba
* Monday 11 November - with Koko Ware and Tojo Yamamoto against The Masked Maulers and The Spoiler

### 1986

* Friday 26 September - against Tojo Yamamoto
* Monday 29 September - with Jeff Jarrett against Akio Sato and Tarzan Goto (Strap on a pole match)
* Monday 6 October - with Jerry Lawler and Jeff Jarrett against Tojo Yamamoto, Akio Sato and Tarzan Goto
* Monday 13 October - with Jerry Lawler and Jeff Jarrett against Tojo Yamamoto, Akio Sato and Tarzan Goto
* Monday 20 October - with Austin Idol, Tommy Rich, Jerry Lawler and Jeff Jarrett against Dirty Rhodes, Don Bass, Tojo Yamamoto, Akio Sato and Tarzan Goto (Hospital Elimination Match)
* Monday 27 October - against Tojo Yamamoto (Martial Arts match)
* Monday 3 November - against Tojo Yamamoto
* Monday 3 November - against Tojo Yamamoto (Boxing Match)

### 1987

* Sunday 22 March - with B.T. Express against Pat Tanaka and Boy Tony (No Disqualification match)

### 1995

* Monday 4 December - against Bob Armstrong
* Monday 11 December - with Frank Morrell against Gene Johnson and Bob Armstrong

## External links

* Wikipedia profile
* WrestlingData.com profile

## References

1. ↑ Wikipedia profile
2. ↑ *1977 - The War for Memphis* by Mark James
3. ↑ 1977 - The War for Memphis by Mark James
4. ↑ The Tennessean - 27/05/1978
5. ↑ The Tennessean - 29 October, 1980