 Armstrong,c. 1982 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Joseph Melton James (1939-10-03)October 3, 1939 Marietta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | August 27, 2020(2020-08-27) (aged 80) Pensacola, Florida, U.S. |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Alabama Jaw Jacker Bob Armstrong Georgia Jaw Cracker Jim Durango Bullet |
| Billed height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[1] |
| Billed weight | 227 lb (103 kg)[1] |
| Debut | 1960 |
| Retired | May 11, 2019 |
Joseph Melton James (October 3, 1939 – August 27, 2020) was an Americanprofessional wrestler, better known by hisring name,"Bullet" Bob Armstrong. In the course of his career, which spanned five decades, Armstrong held numerouschampionships throughout theSoutheastern United States. His four sons,Joseph Scott,Robert Bradley,Steve andBrian Girard, all became wrestlers.
Joseph Melton James was born inMarietta, Georgia on October 3, 1939.[2][1] When he was a child, Joseph James's father took him to seeGorgeous George wrestle. The young James was impressed and intrigued by the flamboyant performer. As a young man, James served in theUnited States Marine Corps in the early 1960s and was stationed inKorea. During hisrecruit training inMarine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island onParris Island, South Carolina, James was named Honor Man. After leaving the military, he began working for the Fair Oaks (later Cobb County) Fire Department as afirefighter in 1962.
He debuted as a wrestler in 1960, adopting the ring name "Bob Armstrong". By 1966, Armstrong had become a popularface in theSavannah, Georgia area, and in 1970 he ceased working as a firefighter and began focusing on his wrestling career.
Armstrong achieved considerable popularity in the Southeastern United States, particularly inAlabama and his home state ofGeorgia. He frequently wrestled for affiliates of theNational Wrestling Alliance, and on October 9, 1974, inMiami Beach, Florida, Armstrong unsuccessfully challengedJack Brisco for theNWA World Heavyweight Championship. Whilebench pressing adumbbell weighing upwards of 180 lb (82 kg) in agym in Georgia, the bench that Armstrong was lying upon broke, leading to the weight falling on his face. Armstrong's face was severely damaged and his nose was torn entirely off, and he required $38,000USD worth ofplastic surgery to repair it. While undergoing surgery, Armstrong donned awrestling mask to conceal his disfigured features and began using the ring name "The Bullet". As "The Bullet", Armstrongfeuded with theStud Stable inContinental Championship Wrestling. He eventually discarded the mask after his surgeries were complete, but retained the nickname "Bullet" for the remainder of his career until retiring in 1988. Armstrong trained each of his sons to wrestle, and formedtag teams with them in the 1980s and 1990s. In the course of his career, he toured bothJapan and Korea.
Armstrong went into semi-retirement in 1988. In addition to making occasional appearance on theindependent circuit in Georgia and Alabama, Armstrong acted as thecommissioner ofSmoky Mountain Wrestling and worked backstage with Southeast Championship Wrestling and the Continental Wrestling Federation. He came out of retirement and wrestled forSmokey Mountain Wrestling between 1992 and 1995 when the promotion closed its doors down. In 1995 he made a few appearances in theUnited States Wrestling Association. On April 27, 1996, he teamed with his sonBrad to defeatBunkhouse Buck andLord Steven Regal at aWorld Championship Wrestling house show in Canton, Georgia. He lost toKen Lucas at a Robert Gibson Promotion event in Mobile, Alabama, on February 22, 1997. Afterwards, he retired once again and did not wrestle for a few years.
On December 12, 2001, he teamed withDusty Rhodes andLarry Zbyszko to defeatBarry Windham,Ron Reis andSteve Lawler atTurnbuckle Championship Wrestling.
Armstrong appeared on the first weeklyTotal Nonstop Action Wrestlingpay-per-view on June 26, 2002, alongside fellowNational Wrestling Alliance veteransCorsica Joe,Dory Funk, Jr.,Harley Race,Jackie Fargo and Sarah Lee. His next appearance was on the August 14, 2002 pay-per-view, where he was introduced as an on-screen authority figure and informedJeff Jarrett that he would face a mystery opponent one week later. The mystery opponent was revealed to be "The Masked Bullet", a masked wrestler who imitated Armstrong's mannerisms (although Armstrong himself came to the ringside during the match, proving that he was not the Bullet). On the August 28, 2002 pay-per-view, Jarrett fought the Bullet to a no contest before striking Armstrong with a chair. On the September 18, 2002 pay-per-view, the Bullet unmasked, revealing himself to be Armstrong's youngest sonBrian Gerard James, who would subsequently go by "B.G. James" in TNA. On December 5, 2005, Armstrong underwentarthroscopic knee surgery. Despite being advised to refrain from wrestling until March 2006, Armstrong resumed wrestling later that month.
On the December 3, 2005 episode ofImpact!, Armstrong returned to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, congratulating the newly formedFour Live Kru on their unity. However, atTurning Point on December 11, 2005, the Four Live Kru disintegrated, withKonnan betraying fellow membersKip andB.G. James. Armstrong declared that he would reunite the Kru and unsuccessfully petitioned the fourth former member,Ron Killings, to that effect on the December 24, episode ofImpact!. One week later, Armstrong tried once more to reform the group, this time approaching Konnan. Apparently willing to negotiate, Konnan led Armstrong backstage, only for Armstrong to be ambushed and beaten down by Konnan's newly formedstable,the Latin American Xchange (LAX). Footage from Armstrong's knee surgery earlier that month aired oniMPACT! in January 2006, with thekayfabe explanation that the assault at the hands of the LAX had necessitated the surgical repair of Armstrong's knee.
AtAgainst All Odds on February 12, 2006, Kip and B.G. James (The James Gang) faced the Latin American Exchange, with B.G. intent upon avenging the harm done to his "daddy". The James Gang was victorious, but ambushed by the LAX after the match. They were saved when the returning Bob Armstrong entered the ring and chased LAX away. The confrontation led to a six-man bout between LAX and Armstrong and The James Gang atDestination X on March 12, which was won by Kip James. Despite the two consecutive victories, Armstrong remained hungry for revenge, and challenged Konnan to anarm wrestling contest on the April 8Impact!. The contest did not finish due to interference from Homicide and the newest LAX member,Hernandez, who had been sent to the locker room prior. The James Gang (also sent backstage) ran in to help Armstrong. This led to a rematch atLockdown on April 23, in which Armstrong scored the pin.
On the January 18, 2008 episode ofImpact!, B.G. chose Armstrong as his tag team partner for his Feast or Fired Tag Title shot. The two lost the championship match. This was his final appearance with TNA.
A retirement show was held on May 29, 2009, atThe Dothan Civic Center where many past stars came out to honor Armstrong before his match in the main event. In 2010, Bob returned to the ring at the "GOTJ 2010" event, where he defeated former rival "Cowboy"Bob Orton Jr.
From 2010 to 2015, Armstrong worked occasional matches around Georgia, mainly working for promotions such as All Pro Wrestling, Superstars Of Wrestling and Combat Sport Pro. Armstrong wrestled his last match on May 11, 2019, for Continental Championship Wrestling in Dothan, Alabama, where he defeated The Assassin.[3]
In March 2020, Armstrong was diagnosed with bone cancer in his ribs, shoulder, and prostate. He refused treatment as he knew the cancer was terminal.[4] He died from complications of bone cancer on August 27, 2020, at the age of 80.[5]
1Title was awarded to them sometime in 2005 though the records are unclear as to the exact date and which promotion they wrestled in at the time.
List of oldest surviving professional wrestlers
,Cagematch,Wrestlingdata,Internet Wrestling Database
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