Jim Crockett Promotions History

[cwh47]

I have begun researching the history of JCP from the beginning.
I would like to share a little of what I have found.The following
is part of a article from August 5,1936.It was part of a column
entitled "Sports Roundup" syndicated out of New York.

.....five years ago Jim Crockett,Charlotte,N.C. wrestling promoter,
borrowed $50,hired a hall and put on a match in Bristol,Tenn.
Today he features the grunt-and-groaners in 20 leading cities
between Norfolk and Miami.

He has offices in five cities and pays three publicity men $100 a
week each.Jack Curley,dean of wrestling promoters thinks well
of Crockett.( If this 1936 article is accurate,then Jim Crockett
promoted his first wrestling match in 1931.Also this is the first
time I ever read of him promoting all the way down to Florida
in those days).

More tidbits from later:

1937- A 21 year old athlete from Iowa comes to wrestle for Jim
Crockett.His name is Lee Henning.(He would continue to work
for Jim Crockett as late as the early seventies as "Bulldog" Lee
Henning).

1940- Jim Crockett engages in a N.C. promotional war with
promoter Sgt. Leo McMahon ( I have not yet detemined if he
was related to Vince McMahon's family).

[RowdyRoddy]

Any more info on this???

[cwh47]

Yes RowdyRoddy,I have found more articles on Jim Crockett Sr.
There was a time when he promoted weekly shows in
Greensboro on Wednesday nights.The venue was called the
"Sports Arena".

Also Baltimore Jack showed me a Charlotte program last week.
Jim Crockett was celebrating 25 years of promoting in Charlotte,
1933-1958. It looks like the first article I found indicating he
promoted his first match in Bristol,TN during 1931 may be
accurate.

I have also found some great articles from the fifties and sixties.

In December 1967,the Lashinsky Bros.from West Virginia signed
an agreement with Jim Crockett Sr. to run 18 shows per year in
the Charleston Civic Center.In most of the early ads it was
advertised as "All Star BigTime Wrestling".

I will be posting some of this material in the near future.

[RowdyRoddy]

Thanks for the info

[danpoutsma]

Cool stuff. According to the Crockett promotion itself, Jim Crockett Promotions was established in 1935 and was celebrating it's 50th anniversary in 1985. According to North Carolina corporation records though, it wasn't actually incorporated until 1965.

[RowdyRoddy]

Did JCP die in October 1988???

[Baltimore Jack]

We now have two sources of evidence that indicate Jim Crockett started promotiong in 1931 rather than 1935. I'm wondering if the 1935 date (which is indeed the date universally accepted that the company began) is actually the date Jim Sr. started the company, even though he promoted some events in the four years prior to that.

Regarding when JCP "died", I don't know the exact date the sale to Ted Turner went through, but it was in the fall of 1988. I've always thought it was in November, but it certainly could have been October.

[RowdyRoddy]

I know it was before Starrcade. I thought that Starrcade was a Thanksgiving night tradition (1983 - 1987), but I think that JCP made a huge mistake by taking Starrcade away from Greensboro, NC and Atlanta, GA & moving it to Chicago, IL.

[cwh47]

Jimmy Valiant states in his autobiography that the sale of Jim
Crockett Promotions to Turner was finalized on Nov.21,1988.
Mr. Valiant's contract with JCP ended the same month.

[RowdyRoddy]

I think that Starrcade took place a bit after the sale of JCP to Turner. Valiant left JCP to go to the AWA. His autobiography is great for those that have not read it yet. Koloff was given the option to stay or leave. He stayed for a few months and then left.

[bobbyryates]

i believe it was 11/1/88 when the sale took affect.

[danpoutsma]

J.J. Dillon's book also has 11-21-88. The TBS "milestones" page, which I tried to look up on Google but couldn't find since it might no longer exist, had 11-2-88.

Turner was seemingly in charge going into Starrcade because Jim Herd just about had an aneurism when he found out Dusty had booked Flair to drop the title in about five minutes to Rick Steiner. Without Flair, Turner wouldn't have bought the promotion and now he was going to walk after agreeing to do the job. After talking to Larry Matysik, Sam Muchnick's former right hand man in St. Louis where Herd was manager for KPLR TV and used to produce their show, he discovered that his position was above Dusty's and he could overrule him. So he changed the match to Flair vs. Luger w/ Flair going over.

As for Crockett Promotions itself, it seems the corporation continued to exist in some capacity beyond the sale to Turner. A new TBS subsidiary corporation called Univeral Wrestling Corp, the title of which was later changed to World Championship Wrestling, Inc., was formed in the deal. Jack Petrik, Vice Pres. of Syndication for TBS, was made president of the new company, and he in turn named Herd as the Exec. Vice Pres. to run the day-to-day operations. Crockett, who was the Pres. of Jim Crockett Promotions, Inc., was made Vice Press. According to Dave Meltzer, the Crocketts also continued to own a minority interest in the promotion until eventually selling out altogether, and since North Carolina records indicate that JCP, Inc. wasn't dissolved until April 1993, it might be possible that their shares were held through the corporation.

[danpoutsma]

Here's an SEC filing I found on Turner Broadcasting from the mid-90s that has a list of all subsidiares. Take a look at the very bottom. I guess that answers the question I posed in the post above.

  SEC Info  
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Turner Broadcasting System Inc · 10-K405 · For 12/31/95 · EX-21
Filed On 3/21/96   ·   SEC File 1-08911   ·   Accession Number 950144-96-1095
  in   Show  and Help... Wildcards:  ? (any letter),  * (many).  Logic:  for Docs:  & (and),  | (or);  for Text:  | (anywhere),  "(&)" (near).
As Of Filer Filing On/For/As Docs:Pgs Issuer Agent
3/21/96 Turner Broadcasting System Inc 10-K405 12/31/95 6:84 950144
Annual Report -- [X] Reg. S-K Item 405   ·   Form 10-K
Filing Table of Contents
Document/Exhibit Description Pages Size
1: 10-K405 Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. Form 10-K 42 300K
2: EX-11 Computation of Primary Earnings 2 11K
3: EX-13 Annual Report 28 212K
4: EX-21 Subsidiaries of the Company 10 30K
5: EX-23 Consent of Independent Accounts 1 6K
6: EX-27 Financial Data Schedule 1 9K
EX-21   ·   Subsidiaries of the Company
EX-211st Page of 10TOCTopPreviousNextBottomJust 1st
EXHIBIT 21 LIST A TURNER BROADCASTING SYSTEM, INC. (WHOLLY-OWNED SUBSIDIARIES) 1. Atlanta National League Baseball Club, Inc. ("ANLBC") ANLBC Subs: a. Atlanta Braves, Inc. b. Braves Productions, Inc. c. The Stadium Club, Inc. *d. Atlanta Braves Spring Training Corp. 2. CR Acquisition Co. 3. Cable News Network, Inc. ("CNN") CNN Subs: a. CNN America, Inc. b. CNN Business News International, Inc. c. CNN Germany, Inc. d. Cable News International, Inc. 4. Castle Rock Entertainment, Inc. 5. Goodwill Games, Inc. ("GWG") GWG Subs: a. Gamma Productions, Inc. b. Turner Leasing Company, Inc. ("TLC") TLC Sub: *1. Turner Capital Corp. 6. HB Holding Co. ("HBC") HBC Sub: a. Hanna-Barbera Entertainment Co., Inc. ("HBEC") HBEC Subs: 1. Hanna-Barbera Enterprises, Inc. 2. Hanna-Barbera Home Video, Inc. 3. Hanna-Barbera Music Corp. 4. Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. ("HBPI") HBPI Subs: a. Fil-Cartoons, Inc. b. Hanna-Barbera B.V. 5. Hanna-Barbera Retail, Inc. 6. R-S Pictures, Inc. 7. Raby-Spar Enterprises, Inc.
EX-212nd Page of 10TOC1stPreviousNextBottomJust 2nd
7. Hanna-Barbera, Inc. ("HB") HB Subs: a. Barhanna Music, Inc. b. Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ("HBCI") HBCI Subs: 1. Bedrock Productions, Inc. 2. The Endangered Film Company, Inc. c. Newbar Music, Inc. d. Orbit City Art Company e. Vineland Productions, Inc. 8. Hawks Basketball, Inc. 9. ICC Ventures, Inc. 10. New Line Cinema Corporation ("NL") NL Subs: a. Alex Entertainment, Inc. b. Juno Pix, Inc. c. Katja Motion Picture Corp. d. Lampline, Inc. e. Mitchell Entertainment, Inc. f. New Line Distribution, Inc. g. New Line Home Video, Inc. h. New Line International Releasing, Inc. *i. New Line New Media, Inc. j. New Line Productions, Inc. ("NLP") NLP Subs: 1. Justine Pictures AVV 2. Venus Productions Ltd. k. New Line Realty of New York, Inc. l. New Line Television, Inc. m. New Line Television International Limited n. Nicolas Entertainment, Inc. 11. RET Corporation 12. RET Music, Inc. 13. Soviet-American Trading Corporation *14. TBS Funding Corp. *15. Techwood Clearinghouse, Inc. 16. Turner Arena Productions and Sales, Inc. ("TAPS") TAPS Subs: a. Atlanta Coliseum, Inc. b. The Omni Promotions Management Company ("OPMC")
EX-213rd Page of 10TOC1stPreviousNextBottomJust 3rd
OPMC Subs: 1. Techwood Entertainment, Inc. c. Seats, Inc. 17. Turner Broadcasting Sales, Inc. *18. Turner Broadcasting System Asia Pacific, Inc. 19. Turner Broadcasting System Limited ("TBSL") TBSL Subs: a. Castle Rock International (UK) Limited *b. New Line International Limited c. Turner Entertainment Networks International Limited ("TENIL") TENIL Subs: 1. The Cartoon Network Limited 2. Turner Network Television Limited d. Turner Home Entertainment UK Limited e. Turner International Advertising Sales Limited f. Turner International Network Sales Limited ("TINSL") TINSL Sub: 1. Turner Broadcasting International Limited g. Turner International Television Licensing Limited h. Turner Pictures Worldwide (UK) Limited ("TPWUK") TPWUK Sub: *1. Woodtech Productions (UK) Limited *20. Turner Entertainment Group, Inc. ("TEG") TEG Subs: *a. Turner Entertainment Networks, Inc. ("TENI") TENI Subs: 1. The Cartoon Network, Inc. 2. Superstation, Inc. ("SSI") SSI Sub: *a. Turner Original Productions, Inc. ("TOPS") TOPS Sub: 1. TBS Productions, Inc. ("TBSP") TBSP Subs: a. North Center Productions, Inc. b. Ten 50 Productions, Inc. 3. Turner Classic Movies, Inc. *4. Turner Entertainment Networks Asia, Inc. 5. Turner Network Television, Inc.
EX-214th Page of 10TOC1stPreviousNextBottomJust 4th
· Download Table b. Turner Home Entertainment, Inc. ("THE") THE Subs: *1. Rooftop Productions, Inc. 2. Turner Educational Services, Inc. 3. Turner New Media, Inc. 4. Turner Pictures Worldwide Distribution, Inc. 5. Turner Publishing, Inc. *6. Turner Records, Inc. c. Turner Pictures Group, Inc. ("TPG") TPG Subs: 1. Turner Entertainment Co. ("TEC") TEC Subs: a. Clarington Productions, Inc. b. Elstree Ltd. c. Filmland Data Processing Co. d. Filmland Production Co. e. H-B Distribution Co. f. Premier Record Corporation g. TEC Bounty Exhibition, Inc. h. Turner Affiliated Music, Inc. i. Turner Entertainment Associated, Inc. j. Turner Entertainment Co. (de Mexico) k. Turner Entertainment Distribution Services, Inc. l. Turner Entertainment Film Co. m. Turner Entertainment Manila, Inc. n. Turner Entertainment Oriental Co., Inc. o. Turner Entertainment Pictures of Canada Limited p. Turner Music, Inc. q. Turner Tape Storage Co. 2. Turner Pictures Worldwide, Inc. ("TPW") TPW Subs: a. Colbath, Inc. b. Retro, Inc. c. TNT Music Publishing, Inc. d. Techwood Music, Inc. e. Techwood Productions, Inc. f. Turner Films, Inc. ("TFI") TFI Subs: *1. Horseshoe Productions, Inc. *2. Turner Cinema, Inc. g. Turner Pages, Inc. 3. Turner Feature Animation, Inc.
EX-215th Page of 10TOC1stPreviousNextBottomJust 5th
21. Turner Home Satellite, Inc. 22. Turner International, Inc. ("TI") TI Subs: a. Turner Czech, Inc. b. Turner Entertainment Co. (de Puerto Rico) c. Turner International Argentina S.A. d. Turner International Australia Pty. Limited e. Turner International Broadcasting Russia, Inc. *f. Turner International Canada, Inc. *g. Turner International China, Inc. h. Turner International do Brasil Ltda. i. Turner International Asia Pacific Limited j. Turner International Holding Company *k. Turner International India Private Limited l. Turner International Japan, Inc. *m. Turner International Mexico, S.A. de C.V. n. Turner International Netherlands B.V. o. Turner International Television Licensing Co., Inc. *p. Turner Productions S.A. q. Turner Slovakia, Inc. 23. Turner Marketing, Inc. 24. Turner Music Publishing, Inc. ("TMP") TMP Sub: *a. Title Match Music, Inc. 25. Turner Network Sales, Inc. 26. Turner Omni Venture, Inc. 27. Turner Private Networks, Inc. ("TPNI") TPNI Subs: a. AC Holdings, Inc. b. COC Holdings, Inc. 28. Turner Program Services, Inc. 29. Turner Properties, Inc. 30. Turner Reciprocal Advertising Corporation 31. Turner Retail Company *32. Turner Second Generation, Inc. 33. Turner Security, Inc. 34. Turner Sports, Inc. ("TSI")
EX-216th Page of 10TOC1stPreviousNextBottomJust 6th
TSI Sub: *a. Turner Sports International Enterprises, Inc. 35. Turner Sports Programming, Inc. 36. Turner Teleport, Inc. 37. World Championship Wrestling, Inc.** *New Subsidiary **100 shares of non-voting Class B common stock owned by Jim Crockett Promotions, Inc. 6

[cwh47]

That is some good info there Dan.Thanks for sharing.

[RowdyRoddy]

I recall seeing a close up of the Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup in the late 1980s and I thought it stated a start date of 1935, but I cannot recall.