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 promotion was based in Knoxville, Tennessee, with offices in Morristown, Tennessee.
History and overview
Formation Cornette formed the promotion in October 1991 upon leaving World Championship Wrestling, with Sandy Scott and backed financially by music producer Rick Rubin. The first events and TV tapings were held in October and November 1991. Matches from these shows were first shown in February 1992. The first Smoky Mountain Heavyweight Champion, "Primetime" Brian Lee, won the championship in a tournament held at Volunteer Slam on May 22, 1992, in Knoxville, Tennessee. The first Smoky Mountain Tag Team Champions were crowned in a tournament final at a TV taping on April 23, 1992, in Harrogate, Tennessee, when The Heavenly Bodies defeated The Fantastics; the match would air on May 9, 1992.
Territorial reach Cornette had initially envisioned a territory reaching from Kentucky into as far as South Carolina and Georgia. 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. SMW event tours also included high school gyms and fairs in cities throughout Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina.
In 1993, Smoky Mountain Wrestling signed deals with World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation to showcase their wrestlers on the larger companies' shows. This led to The Rock 'n' Roll Express wrestling The Heavenly Bodies (Tom Prichard and Stan Lane) at SuperBrawl III in February 1993. The Heavenly Bodies (Prichard and Jimmy Del Ray) then faced The Steiner Brothers for the WWF Tag Team Championship at SummerSlam 1993, and then defeating The Rock 'n' Roll Express at Survivor Series 1993 for the SMW Tag Team Championship.
Notable talent The promotion featured a number of wrestlers who were regulars in the Southeastern wrestling scene including the Heavenly Bodies, Stan Lane and Tom Prichard and later, Prichard and Jimmy Del Ray. The Heavenly Bodies, managed by Jim Cornette, were featured heavily throughout the years as they worked storyline feuds with The Rock 'n' Roll Express, The Fantastics and The Armstrong Family (especially Bob Armstrong). Smoky Mountain Wrestling also featured a number of younger wrestlers who had not yet made their mark on a national stage, including Bob Holly, New Jack, Al Snow, Balls Mahoney, Chris Jericho, Glenn Jacobs (then known as Unabomb, later better known under the ring name Kane), Lance Storm, Chris Candido, Tammy Lynn Sytch, Brian Girard James (B.G. James / Road Dogg) and D'Lo Brown, but ultimately, like most independents, was not financially successful. 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.
Brian Hildebrand was a Smoky Mountain mainstay, occupying such myriad roles as Head of Merchandise, referee (under his alter ego Mark Curtis), and sound director.
Style and controversy Cornette, a traditionalist, catered to fans that Mick Foley described as "old-time fans...who still believed in good guys and bad guys, and to whom cheating was still reason to get upset." Bob Caudle, who was the play-by-play announcer on the TV program, would also proclaim at the beginning of each show that Smoky Mountain Wrestling was "professional wrestling the way it used to be, and the way you like it." This was in sharp contrast to ECW, in which edgy angles, "tweeners" and anti-heroes increasingly took precedence over clear-cut heroes and villains. 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, while also using fried chicken and watermelon as props. 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. The promotion also caused controversy when they gave Chris Powers "The StormTrooper" gimmick, whose uniform, including mask were emblazoned with Swastikas, and upon entering the ring, would raise their arm to the crowd.
National Wrestling Alliance The promotion had a brief association with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), whose flagship promotion Eastern Championship Wrestling had split away in August 1994, leaving the NWA with no World Heavyweight Champion. A 10-man tournament was held in Cherry Hill, New Jersey in November, featuring many SMW wrestlers; the participants were Tracy Smothers, Devon Storm, Eddie Gilbert, Johnny Gunn, Chris Candido, Al Snow, Dirty White Boy, Jerry Lawler, Lou Perez, and Osamu Nishimura. The winner was Chris Candido, who defended his title mostly at SMW events. In February 1995, however, Candido lost the belt to Ultimate Fighting Championship winner Dan Severn, who as a freelancer, decided to become a traveling World Champion, depriving SMW of a basis for World Heavyweight championship matches. However, in April 1995, The Rock 'n' Roll Express won the NWA World Tag Team Championship for the fifth time, giving SMW a handful of World Tag Team championship matches.
Demise Though the promotion was highly thought of, it struggled to get a profitable television deal and had only aired on a handful of stations within the territory, as well as operated throughout a wrestling recession that would not end until the second half of 1996. In early 1995, due to the company not turning a profit and music projects taking up more of his time, Rubin pulled out of the deal and Cornette ended up financing the promotion himself. The last SMW show was held on November 26, 1995, in Cookeville, Tennessee (though it had been announced on SMW TV's November 25, 1995, episode that upcoming shows were to be held at the Collett Street Rec Center in Morganton, North Carolina on December 1, 1995, and at Cloudland High School in Roan Mountain, Tennessee the following night), and featured the entire SMW roster attacking Jim Cornette, who was then pinned by referee Mark Curtis. Several SMW wrestlers would soon obtain work in the WWF, including Tracy Smothers, The Dirty White Boy, and Boo Bradley. After that, Cornette shut the company down to work full-time with the WWF. WWE now owns the SMW video library.
Both Curtis Comes Home and the 2005 sequel show, held in memory of SMW head referee Mark Curtis are considered "unofficial" reunion shows.
Former personnel
Major events
1992 Date Event Venue Location Main event May 22 Volunteer Slam Civic Coliseum Knoxville, Tennessee Brian Lee vs. Paul Orndorff in a tournament final for the inaugural SMW Heavyweight Championship July 17 Summer Blast Brian Lee & Ron Garvin vs. Paul Orndorff & The Dirty White Boy August 8 Fire on the Mountain Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, Tennessee The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) (c) vs. The Fantastics (Bobby Fulton and Jackie Fulton) in a Barbed Wire Steel Cage match for the SMW Tag Team Championship November 26 Thanksgiving Thunder Memorial Gym Hazard, Kentucky The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) (c) vs. The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) in a Falls Count Anywhere match for the SMW Tag Team Championship November 27 National Guard Armory Welch, West Virginia The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) (c) vs. The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) in a Texas Deathmatch for the SMW Tag Team Championship November 28 Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, Tennessee The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) (c) vs. The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) in a street fight for the SMW Tag Team Championship November 29 Civic Coliseum Knoxville, Tennessee The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) (c) vs. The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) in a Steel Cage match for the SMW Tag Team Championship December 25 Christmas Chaos The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) vs. The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) and Jim Cornette December 26 Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, Tennessee December 27 Raleigh County Armory Beckley, West Virginia
1993 Date Event Venue Location Main event April 2 Bluegrass Brawl Pikeville College Gymnasium Pikeville, Kentucky Bobby Eaton and The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) vs. Arn Anderson and The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) vs. Dutch Mantel and The Stud Stable (Robert Fuller and Jimmy Golden) May 9 Volunteer Slam II: Rage in a Cage Civic Coliseum Knoxville, Tennessee Brian Lee, The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) and The Stud Stable (Robert Fuller and Jimmy Golden) vs. Kevin Sullivan, The Tazmaniac, Killer Kyle and The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) in a Rage in a Cage match May 15 The Last Tango in Tennessee Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, Tennessee The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) (c) vs. The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) in a Loser Leaves SMW match for the SMW Tag Team Championship July 8 Summer Blast Memorial Gymnasium Hazard, Kentucky The Armstrong Family (Bob Armstrong, Scott Armstrong and Steve Armstrong) vs. Jim Cornette and The Heavenly Bodies (Tom Prichard and Jimmy Del Ray) July 9 Fleming-Neon High School Fleming-Neon, Kentucky July 10 Raleigh County Armory Beckley, West Virginia July 15 Evarts High School Evarts, Kentucky July 16 Civic Coliseum Knoxville, Tennessee July 17 Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, Tennessee August 13 Hot August Night in Mo-Town East High School Gymnasium Morristown, Tennessee August 14 Fire on the Mountain Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, Tennessee The Armstrong Family (Bob Armstrong, Scot Armstrong and Steve Armstrong) and The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) vs. Jim Cornette, The Bruise Brothers (Ron Bruise and Don Bruise) and The Heavenly Bodies (Tom Prichard and Jimmy Del Ray) in a Rage in a Cage match with the Big Boss Man as special guest referee August 20 K-Town Showdown Civic Coliseum Knoxville, Tennessee Bob Armstrong vs. Jim Cornette in a Lumberjacks with Tennis Rackets match with the Big Boss Man as special guest referee October 1 Big Apple Grapple Paintsville High School Gymnasium Paintsville, Kentucky 13-man Battle Royal October 7 Parade of Champions Memorial Gymnasium Hazard, Kentucky The Heavenly Bodies (Tom Prichard and Jimmy Del Ray) vs. The Steiner Brothers (Rick Steiner and Scott Steiner) October 8 Civic Coliseum Knoxville, Tennessee October 9 Knox County High School Barbourville, Kentucky October 10 Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, Tennessee November 25 Thanksgiving Thunder Memorial Gymnasium Hazard, Kentucky The Bruise Brothers (Ron Bruise and Don Bruise) vs. The Heavenly Bodies (Tom Prichard and Jimmy Del Ray) in a street fight November 26 Civic Coliseum Knoxville, Tennessee November 27 Knox Central High School Gymnasium Barbourville, Kentucky November 28 Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, Tennessee December 25 Christmas Chaos Civic Coliseum Knoxville, Tennessee Brian Lee (c) vs. Tracy Smothers vs. The Dirty White Boy for the SMW Heavyweight Championship December 26 Freedom Hall Civic Center Johnson City, Tennessee December 27 Knox Central High School Gymnasium Barbourville, Kentucky
1994