10 Things You Didn’t Know About Jim Ross

We know that Jim Ross is one of the absolute greatest commentators in the history of professional wrestling. We know that he’s been responsible for some of the most memorable calls that our airwaves have ever been graced with.

And now we know that on Oct. 6, he’ll be making his What Culture Pro Wrestling debut as he provides commentary for the WCPW: Refuse to Lose iPPV event, coming to you from Newcastle, England. Tickets for which are still available at this link.

But beyond the know facts, what about some of the more nuanced details regarding JR and his career? Over the years, there’s been plenty of JR-based trivia amassed, but a lot of it has slipped us by. And in many cases, its these lesser-known nuggets that have a tendency to be all the more intriguing.

So in anticipation of his upcoming WCPW appearance, this article looks to bring you some of the finest and less common JR tidbits as we count down ten things you may not have known about the Oklahoman orator.

Okay, so first things first:, I lied: He’s not even technically from Oklahoma.

Everything I thought I knew about Good Ol' JR was recently torn asunder, when I was informed that he’s actually a native of California. James William Ross was born in Fort Bragg, CA, a small coastal city in the northern part of the state, with a population of a little over 7,000.

However, he did of course end up moving to his adopted state at a very young age, where he would grow up as an “only child on a 160-acre cattle ranch in Westville, Oklahoma,” a town that sits smack-bang on the state’s easternmost border with a population of just 1,500.

There, he and his father would soon become immersed in the local football scene, whether it be the Westville High side or the Oklahoma Sooners themselves. And it wouldn’t be long before Ross was won over, soon being moulded into the Sooner-supporting, cowboy-hat-wearing JR that we know and love today.

So while he may have been California-born, he was very much Oklahoma-bred.