I often think back, as my mind wanders at times, to those days when I first started in the business. I try and bring into focus the names and put faces with them, as they are, for the most part, now only memories. Some of the biggest names in the business started out by paying their dues in smoke-filled, dimly lit arenas that were packed to capacity every week.

Towns like Detroit, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus and Chicago, and the list could include a host of other big town promotions, could handpick talent from an army of wrestlers who battled in those small towns. Seemingly unknown faces that fought their way up the ladder of success, to be handpicked by matchmakers to compete in the big time arenas. Some just fought and went on their way to other professions.

Sometimes, they were given a new name to further enhance their drawing ability. Names like "Killer," "Strangler," "Nature Boy" or "Moose," to name a few. Sometimes, they donned masks or wore outlandish costumes into the ring, made of the finest Brocade, adorned with sequins. Sometimes they brought things to the ring with them, like mascots or managers. Sometimes they were midgets, and sometimes they were women. Sometimes they were families involved in the business. Nonetheless, they were a vital part of our business and have all paid the price to the fans.

A couple of top women wrestlers that come to mind are the late Mary Jane Mull and June Byers. Those gals fought their hearts out in exhibition matches, as the wrestling commissions did not originally sanction them. They traveled many more miles then the guys did, as the towns were few and far between that would let them battle. Sometimes politics would enter into the picture, as promoters just didn't like them and would not book them on big cards because of personal indifferences. Wrestling was a man's world for a lot of years, and it took a special breed to break the barriers.

I have been a referee in a lot of matches that Mary Jane Mull was in and wrestled on a lot of cards that she battled in. She was a good ol' gal who pulled nothing when it came to locking on a toehold or grabbing a full Nelson. She was meaner then a snake with its mouth tied shut, she meant business, and her opponents learned that in the early minutes of the match. I would have never put on a pair of boxing gloves and gone toe to toe with her, or with any of the other gal wrestlers, for that matter.

Midgets also paid their dues in getting into the business. Of course, the "little people," as they like to be called, lived out their own dreams. Each took a page out of history and became a counterpart of their namesakes. Sky Lo Lo, Fuzzy Cupid, Billy the Kid, Lord Littlebrook, Little Bruiser, Bobo Johnson, Irish Jackie and Little Beaver are just a few that became household names when talking about midget wrestlers. Girl midgets like Little Darling Dagmar, Diamond Lil and a few others were outstanding attractions. They were in a class of their own and provided more excitement per pound than the big guys on most cards. In fact, sometimes they stole the show with their antics. Don't kid yourself, though ... they could wrestle and could take a lot of the bigger guys in a one on one competition.

Some early performers like Joe Smith, "The Battle Creek Whiz Kid," who was hand-picked after putting in over a decade of grunts and groans in the small arenas, making barely enough to travel to the towns he wrestled in, overnight became Don Kent of "The Fabulous Kangaroos." He was in the right spot at the right time, and the rest is history about the arenas they packed all over the globe. I still remember growing up and going to see Joe at the old Flint Arena as he did battle with guys like Martino Angelo, Johnny Gates and Steve Zold. He paid his dues ... now he is gone ... but his memories are left with me to carry on.

Brother teams like the Gallagher Brothers, Doc and Mike; the Brunettis, Guy and Joe; the Fargos, Don and Jackie; the Kozaks, Nick and Jerry; and the Grahams, Dr. Jerry and Eddie, also provided an important part of our business as they battled with their foes. It seemed that when these teams got into a battle, it was honor more so than pride when you saved your own from getting beaten in the ring.

They all paid their dues one way or the other, no matter what part of the business they did, whether it was carrying the ring to a town or being a participant in a match. Those "OLD TIMERS" were a big part of what is happening today. They paved the way so the upstarts could have a road to travel on.

The next time you have the opportunity to see a superstar from the old days involved with a promotion on a card, like Gene Kiniski or Buddy Roberts or Moose Cholak or Verne Gagne or Crusher Lisowski or Harley Race, go to the matches and thank them, or drop them a note on their website, or send them a card in the mail. Let them know that they were SOMEBODY and STILL ARE.

'Til next time.