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Jim Crockett Promotions

Jim Crockett Promotions is the name of a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett up until the late 1980s. It was a member of the NWA, and was the fore-runner to WCW.

Eastern States Championship Wrestling

In 1935, Jim Crockett Sr. began promoting wrestling events under the banner Eastern States Championship Wrestling, or ESCW. The older Crockett was an early member of the NWA, and his territory covered Virginia, North and South Carolina. He would promote shows in this region for 38 years, until 1973, when his son, Jim Crockett Jr. (known to many fans simply as "Jim Crockett") took over.

Mid Atlantic Championship Wrestling

In 1973, the younger Jim Crockett took over the territory after his father retired. He decided to change the territory's name from ESCW to Mid Atlantic Championship Wrestling or MACW. He managed to arrange television tapings at WRAL in Raleigh; an arrangement that would last until 1981. The shows were syndicated throughout the territory.

During this period MACW had a working agreement with Frank Tunney's Maple Leaf Wrestling in Canada that allowed Crockett to co-promote shows north of the border, while MLW talent would occasionally appear in Mid Atlantic. These combined to make Mid Atlantic perhaps the most influential and exciting wrestling federation in North America.

Recognizing this fact, Crockett would become president of the NWA in 1980. It would be a turbulent time to be NWA president.

By the 1980s, the wrestling world was undergoing significant changes. The old NWA territory system was collapsing under pressure from the nationalized WWF, now WWE. Jim Crockett's vision was to create a united NWA by purchasing out, or merging, all of its member territories.

In 1981, MACW switched from taping in the WRAL studios to taping in the WPCQ studios, in Charlotte.

Ted Turner had realised the value of pro wrestling for cable in the early 1980s (around 1982), when he began broadcasting Ole Anderson's Georgia Championship Wrestling on his TBS cable network. This was a smart move for Turner, as pro wrestling was a source of cheap, live entertainment; well suited to his cable network.

Jim Crockett would end his first term as NWA president in 1982.

Meanwhile, to make GCW more marketable on the fledgling national cable channel, it changed its name to "World Championship Wrestling" in 1983; though it reverted to its old name in 1984.

Also in 1983, MACW would go from recording its weekly shows in a television studio, to recording them live in an arena.

1984 saw the WWF purchase Georgia Championship Wrestling's timeslot. This was part of the WWF's attempt to go national; in part by co-opting local wrestling timeslots. However, TBS received many complaints for the move, which also lost the federation money. Also around this time, it is rumored that Ted Turner attempted to purchase the WWF, though Vince McMahon refused to sell. This refusal to sell to Turner would be critical in Turner's later decision to purchase WCW.

An extra sense of urgency was added to Crockett's national ambitions when, after Frank Tunney's death, Maple Leaf Wrestling was sold to the WWF. If Crockett wanted to run shows outside the Mid Atlantic states, he'd have to either find other willing promoters, or buy out their territories.

This period would also mark Crockett's first attempt to create a national federation. Together with Verne Gagne's AWA, Mid Atlantic Championship Wrestling would create Pro Wrestling USA. It would collapse soon after, leaving Crockett to attempt to achieve his vision on his own. Crockett would not be involved in the AWA's subsequent (failed) unification attempt.

NWA Unification

1985 would be a big year for Jim Crockett. First, Crockett was re-elected NWA president. Crockett also purchased the saturday evening TBS timeslot from McMahon, and reverted it to the name "World Championship Wrestling". He would also buy out Ole Anderson's Georgia Championship Wrestling circuit, giving Crockett the power to run his shows as far south as Georgia, including in Atlanta.

In 1986, Jim Crockett Promotions would add to its Mid Atlantic and Georgia territories, NWA's St. Louis territory.

In the same year, he also purchased Heart of America Sports Attractions Inc, which owned the rights to promote wrestling shows through several central states (Kansas, Missouri, and Iowa). HASA was known to many fans as NWA Central States, and ran a TV show called "All Star Wrestling".

While this second term as NWA President ended in 1986, he would be elected for a third in 1987.

And Crockett's buying spree continued through that year, with the purchase of Championship Wrestling Florida, and Universal Wrestling Federation (which covered Oklahoma, Mississippi, Arkansas, Texas and Louisiana).

Crockett had almost accomplished his goal of creating a national federation. Between his purchasing several NWA territories, World Class Championship Wrestling in Texas and Continental Wrestling Association in Memphis merging into the United States Wrestling Association and leaving the NWA, the once highly viable Portland territory going backrupt, and the WWF leaving the NWA, he was the organization's last significant member. He was certainly the last member with any significant national television exposure. And most of the general public began believing that Jim Crockett Promotions was the NWA.

Note, however, that this belief was erroneous. Jim Crocket Productions and the NWA were two separate entities, though (with Crockett as NWA President) both were controlled by him. By this point, the NWA was effectively an 'on paper' organization that was effectively funded by Crockett, and allowed Crockett to use the NWA brand-name.

However, it takes a large ammount of capital to take a wrestling federation on a national tour. After his acquisitions in recent years, capital was not something Crockett had a lot of. He was in a similar situation to that of the WWF in the early 1980s; a large debt load, and the success or failure of a federation hinging on the success or failure of a couple of Pay Per Views. Crockett marketed Starrcade '87 as the NWA's answer to WrestleMania, however neither it, nor Bunkhouse Stampede, drew enough money to keep Jim Crockett Promotions afloat.

On the verge of bankruptcy, Jim Crockett had no choice other than selling his federation to Ted Turner as World Championship Wrestling in November, 1988. Crockett would remain as NWA president until 1991.