Jimmy Garvin

Infobox Wrestler
name =Jimmy Garvin
names ="Gorgeous" Jimmy Garvin
Beau James
Jimmy "Jam" Garvin
height =5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
weight =235 lb (107 kg)
birth_date =Birth date and age|1952|9|25
birth_place =Tampa, Florida
resides =
billed =
trainer =
debut =1968
retired =1994|

James Williams (born September 25, 1952 in Tampa, Florida) is a retired American professional wrestler. He is best known by his ring name Jimmy "Jam" Garvin and as a member of the legendary Fabulous Freebirds.

Throughout his career, Garvin competed in the Mid-Southern and Florida regions, along with World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the Global Wrestling Federation (GWF), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), and the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). Since his retirement from professional wrestling, Garvin has become an Airline Transport Pilot.

Career

Early career

Garvin began his wrestling career in 1968 as Beau James. He soon took the name "Gorgeous" Jimmy Garvin and was given two "brothers", Terry and Ron Garvin, whom he briefly managed.

He toured the Mid-Southern and Florida territories from 1978 until 1983, when he joined World Class Championship Wrestling.

World Class Championship Wrestling

He brought along his cousin Sunshine, who became his valet. As a heel, he started a feud with beloved David Von Erich which he lost and ended up spending a day with Sunshine on David's ranch, doing ranch duties.

He next moved on to feud with Chris Adams and he replaced Sunshine with his wife Patti under the name of Precious. Precious and Sunshine feuded and Jimmy traded the American Title with Adams until 1984, when Garvin left World Class for the American Wrestling Association. Garvin and Adams would revive their feud ten years later in the Global Wrestling Federation, but the promotion went out of business before that angle got off the ground.

American Wrestling Association

In the AWA, he formed a tag team with "Mr. Electricity" Steve Regal (not to be confused with WWE wrestler William Regal, who performed in WCW was "Lord" Steven Regal) and they won the World Tag Team Titles from the Road Warriors with the help of the Fabulous Freebirds.

Jim Crockett Promotions/World Championship Wrestling

1986

After losing the titles to Scott Hall and Curt Hennig in 1986 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, he went to the NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions. He debuted as a heel often taunting Wahoo McDaniel, calling him "Yahoo." Garvin and McDaniel would feud throughout the summer and fall of 1986 in a series of "Indian Strap" matches. He also feuded with Brad Armstrong and was in the middle of a feud with Magnum T.A. when Magnum had the car wreck that would end his career.

1987

In 1987, Jimmy's "brother" Ron (really Jimmy's stepfather), was in a feud with Jim Cornette and his stable. During a match with Cornette's Midnight Express, Cornette threw fire in Ron's face. Several faces came out to help and then Jimmy ran out and took him to the hospital.

Jimmy turned face and helped Ron feud with the Midnight Express. One of the bigger matches during that feud was when the two teams were matched against each other during the 1987 Jim Crockett Memorial Cup tag team tournament. The Midnight Express won by countout to advance.

Later that year, Jimmy had one of the most memorable feuds in his career with Ric Flair, who was eyeing Precious. He sent her gifts and this caused lots of buildup for a big cage match between Flair and Jimmy during the 1987 Great American Bash stop in Greensboro, North Carolina for Flair's NWA World Title. The stipulation was added that if Flair won the match, he would get a date with Precious. During the match, Jimmy attempted a leap frog at one point but landed on one knee instead of his feet. Pain in the knee was "sold" by him during the rest of the match. This match got so heated that a fan actually attempted to climb into the cage to help Garvin. The fan was apprehended just at the moment he was about to get in. Flair ended up winning the match when he put Jimmy in the figure four leglock, Jimmy blacked out from the pain in his knee and his shoulders hit the mat for a count of three. Ron Garvin then entered the cage when the match was over and attacked Flair in order to defend Jimmy from further damage to his knee. When the date with Precious that Flair won occurred, Flair and James J. Dillon ended up being punched out by Ron Garvin, who was dressed in his "Miss Atlanta Lively" outfit.

1988

In 1988, Garvin had a feud with Kevin Sullivan and his Varsity Club. This one was over Precious too but it was never made clear why Sullivan wanted her. He made references to her calling her "Patty" instead of Precious, possibly referring to the past somehow. Sullivan would stalk her and taunt her with papers in his robe, but they never revealed anything. Jimmy had some memorable matches during this feud including challenging Varsity Club member Mike Rotunda for the NWA World TV Title at the first Clash of the Champions event during March of that year. Rotunda pinned Jimmy to retain the title.

During the 1988 Great American Bash in Baltimore, Maryland held in July, Jimmy and Sullivan each captained 5 men teams opposing each other in the first ever "Tower of Doom" match. This match was actually a copied idea from World Class Championship Wrestling based out of Texas who held a similar match a short while before this. It involved three cages stacked up on top of each other. A member of each team would start out climbing a ladder and facing off in the top cage. Every few minutes, new members from each team would enter the top cage in a similar fashion. Every so often, the doors between the cages would open for ten seconds allowing wrestlers to slip through to the next level. Jimmy's teammates consisted of Ron Garvin, Steve Williams, and the Road Warriors. They were victorious over Sullivan's team but the feud between Jimmy and Sullivan was not quite yet over.

In September 1988, Garvin left to sell a broken leg that he had gotten from Sullivan and Mike Rotunda. On an edition of "NWA World Championship Wrestling" from the TBS studios, Sullivan broke cement blocks over Jimmy's leg. Jim Ross commentating at the time yelled out "He's breaking blocks all over his leg! Jesus!"

1989-1990

Garvin returned to Jim Crockett Promotions in June 1989 minus Precious and became the newest member of the Fabulous Freebirds (in reality, he has been a Freebird since 1983, although the fans never believed it until then) by winning the World Tag Team Titles with Michael Hayes at Clash of Champions VII. The titles were won as part of a tournament for them that had been ongoing. That night, Hayes and Garvin scored victories over the Dynamic Dudes in the semifinals and the Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton & Stan Lane) in the finals. They feuded with the Midnight Express some more following that, as well as Rick & Scott Steiner. Garvin had worked in the past with Hayes, Buddy Roberts and Terry Gordy during the height of the Freebird-Von Erichs feud in World Class, and was always considered "The fourth Freebird".

1991-1992

In 1991, under the new company name of World Championship Wrestling (WCW), the Freebirds added a masked Freebird, Badstreet, and they feuded with the "Southern Boys" (Steve Armstrong & Tracy Smothers). They also added two managers, Big Daddy Dink & Diamond Dallas Page. By 1992, Badstreet and their managers were gone and the Freebirds had no direction. They briefly added Precious as their manager but she only made one appearance. During this period, Hayes and Garvin won 1 World Tag Team title, 1 World Six-Man Tag Team title (with Badstreet), and 2 United States Tag Team titles.

Global Wrestling Federation

They had some minor feuds and then Garvin left WCW in 1993 and went to the Global Wrestling Federation, where he reformed the Freebirds with Terry Gordy and Hayes. He won the Tag Team Titles with Gordy in 1994 and retired.

Brief return to WCW and retirement

Garvin made one final appearance in 1994 at Superbrawl IV in place of the "injured" Michael Hayes in a losing effort to Hayes' scheduled opponent Johnny B. Badd.

After wrestling career

Garvin, along with his stepfather Ronnie Garvin, is an accomplished pilot and flight instructor. He holds an Airline Transport Pilot rating for multi engine aircraft and a commercial rating for single engine airplanes. [ [https://amsrvs.registry.faa.gov/airmeninquiry/Detail.aspx?uniqid=A2065717&certNum=1 Federal Aviation Administration] ]

Garvin is prominently featured in "The Triumph and Tragedy of World Class Championship Wrestling" DVD released by World Wrestling Entertainment in late 2007. The DVD was comprised of interviews with former WCCW stars as well as footage and matches from various WCCW broadcasts.

In wrestling

* Finishing and signature moves
** "Bombs Away" (Brainbuster)
** DDT

* Managers
** Sunshine
** Precious
** James J. Dillon
** Little Richard Marley
** Oliver Humperdink
** Diamond Dallas Page
** Bill Dundee

Championships and accomplishments

* American Wrestling Association:* AWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with "Mr. Electricity" Steve Regal

* Championship Wrestling from Florida:* NWA Florida Bahamian Championship (1 time):* NWA Florida Global Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Big John Studd (First):* NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (2 times):* NWA Florida Southern Heavyweight Championship (2 times):* NWA Florida Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Steve Keirn (1) and Jack Brisco (1):* NWA Florida United States Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Killer Kox

* Continental Wrestling Association:* AWA Southern Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Bob Ellis

*Global Wrestling Federation:* GWF Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Terry Gordy

* NWA Tri-State | Mid-South Wrestling Association:* Mid-South Louisiana Heavyweight Championship (1 time):* NWA United States Tag Team Championship "(Tri-State version)" (1 time) - with Herb Calvert

* World Championship Wrestling:* NWA World Tag Team Championship "(Mid-Atlantic version)" (1 time) - with Michael Hayes¹:* WCW United States Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Michael Hayes:* WCW World Six-Man Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Michael Hayes & Badstreet:* WCW World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Michael Hayes

* World Class Championship Wrestling:* NWA American Heavyweight Championship (4 times):* NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship (1 time):* WCCW Television Championship (1 time)

¹Garvin's reign with the Mid-Atlantic version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship occurred after the Mid-Atlantic promotion was sold to Ted Turner in November 1988 and remained World Championship Wrestling. It was also prior to the championship being renamed the WCW World Tag Team Championship.

Notes

External links

* [http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/profiles/j/jimmy-garvin.html Profile at OWW]
* [http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingBios/garvin_jimmy.html 2000 interview on Canoe.ca]