Jerry Jarrett Passes Away - Legendary Wrestling Promoter Dead At 80
Rest in peace to Jerry Jarrett, the TNA founder whose Memphis dominance revolutionised wrestling.
Jerry Jarrett, the legendary Memphis wrestling promoter and TNA co-founder, has passed away at 80 years old.
This sad news comes from wrestling historian Mark James via PWInsider, as well as Dutch Mantel, who worked alongside Jarrett extensively in Memphis:-
SAD NEWS: I’m hearing reports of my friend and long time booker/promoter Jerry Jarrett died this morning in TN. I last saw him last year when we did the VICE show THE TERRITORIES in Atlanta. Very creative booker. Condolences to Jeff/Deborah and the Jarrett family. pic.twitter.com/CYOguhr5KY
Advertisement— ??. ????? (@DirtyDMantell) February 14, 2023
Jarrett's family, including son Jeff, are yet to release a statement on the matter.
Born in 1942 and making his in-ring debut in 1965, Jerry spent his formative wrestling years working in Tennessee's NWA Mid-America, where he was a multi-time tag team champion. But for all he accomplished between the ropes, Jarrett will be best remembered for his revolutionary work as a promoter.
Jarrett founded the Continental Wrestling Association in Memphis in 1977. The group soon came to dominate the Memphis territory with such stars as Harley Race, Terry Funk, Ric Flair, and particularly Jerry 'The King' Lawler, around whom many of the CWA's top programs were built. Much of why Memphis is seen as such a critical bridge between wrestling's territorial era and the modern age is down to Jarrett's booking, which emphasised deep-rooted personal issues, red-hot feuds, and the importance of skits and big angles.
Continental would regularly draw monster crowds at its signature venue, the Mid-South Coliseum, during its peak years. Eventually, the group merged with World Class Championship Wrestling in 1989, creating the United States Wrestling Association, in which Jarrett eventually sold his stake to Lawler in 1995.
Seven years later, Jerry and Jeff Jarrett founded NWA: Total Nonstop Action, the promotion that would eventually become IMPACT Wrestling. The Jarretts started the group in May 2002, selling to Panda Energy that October, though Jerry remained on management until 2005, eventually departing due to a dispute over the promotion's direction. IMPACT, for all the struggles it has faced over the past 21 years, remains a North American wrestling fixture today.
Jarrett is survived by his wife, Deborah, and four children. We at WhatCulture wish to extend our deepest condolences to his friends and family at this difficult time.