10 Wrestling Bookers Who Damaged Their Own Promotions
8. Nick Gulas (NWA Mid-America)
In the 1970s, Tennessee was a highly lucrative market for the wrestling territory system. Jerry Jarrett, a wrestler and (eventually) one of the area's most famous bookers, initially plied his trade in NWA Mid-America working under promotional co-founder Nick Gulas.
Gulas, a longtime manager and promoter, began shooting himself in the foot when he insisted on pushing his son George into the stratosphere. Or, well, trying to at least. George Gulas wasn't exactly a technical marvel between the ropes, nor was he a fountain of charisma. His unrelenting push disinterested crowds and outright infuriated the rest of the roster.
Frustrated with Gulas' poor booking and shafting of considerably more talented wresters, Jerry Jarrett bailed. He formed the Continental Wrestling Association in 1977. The great schism of Tennessee wrestling quickly proved to be a death sentence for Nick Gulas' once profitable promotion.
While the CWA thrived with major stars like Jerry Lawler and Austin Idol, NWA Mid-America floundered horribly and shut down in 1980. Gulas, who was well into his 60s by then, went into retirement. Owing to no one beyond his old man wanting to hire him, George Gulas was forced to do the same.