Show: Wrestling Epicenter
Guest: “Gorgeous” Joey Jackson
Date: 01/07/2026
Your Host: James Walsh”I’m really looking forward to it. It is a great thing that Nick is doing. Portland was such a great territory. And, it had some of the best fans. This is a way to give a little something back to the fans.””A little bit of both! First, the fans of Portland were some of the best fans. But, none of us are promised a tomorrow. So, getting back with the guys is always a great time too.””It is called Louisiana Wrestling Alliance. We run once a month in Lafayette. We have a training school as well. People seem to have a hunger for it again, the old school style of wrestling.””Well, I was Louisiana born but I was working in Texas down in the oil fields. That is when things started to slow down and they started laying people off. I was introduced to a guy named Sputnik Monroe. Sputnik turned me on to a guy named Len Denton. And, the rest is history!””The funny thing was, I had been working out with Len Denton before I got into wrestling and I just didn’t know who he was. In wrestling, he always wore a mask. We worked out at a health club called President First Lady. Well, I went in to where the wrestling school was and I saw him and I was like, “I know you!” (laughs) I knew him by face, but not name. But, because he wore the mask, I didn’t know he was The Grappler!””Well, it is a little bit more faster paced! (laughs) They come in and they want to mimic the moves they see on TV. It is challenging to teach them, “You gotta learn this first.” You’ve got to slow them down. They need to learn to crawl before they can run.””(laughs) I would agree with that. Sometimes, the challenge is you’ve got to get them in shape before you can get them in the ring. They come in and they’re athletic, good bodies and stuff. But, they don’t take care of themselves. You have to get in shape to do this.””You can thank Don Owen for that. Don Owen introduced me as “Gorgeous” and I was like, “What’s all that Gorgeous stuff about?” He said, “Well, you’ve got the long blonde hair. You’re Gorgeous!” I was like, “All right.” He would introduce me from places like Tennessee and Kentucky. I said, “Don, the second I open my mouth, they’re going to know I’m from Louisiana.” (laughs) When he called me “Gorgeous”, I was like, “That’s not me!” Rip Oliver told me, though, “If they put a gimmick on you, you better do it or somebody else will.””””Oh yeah. At the time, he wasn’t underrated. People knew how good he was. But now, yeah, he was good. He was real good.””When Roddy was on top of his game, he was great. And, he and Lenny, they just clicked. When you click with someone, you can just roll ideas off of one another. It is something to see. The loudest I ever heard a crowd was Piper in the Portland Sports Arena. When he would come out, you could be shouting at the person next to you and not hear your own voice. It was amazing.””Those are some great old wrestling buildings. I always appreciated working in places that had history like that. There was something different about those kinds of places.””They were good. They were real good. Scott Peterson and Steve Doll. Then, Rex King came along. They were real good.””Mat Borne! He was a tough man. I knew his dad too, “Tough” Tony Borne. I saw the Dark Side of the Ring they did on him. I didn’t see a lot of what they talked about with him. But, he was a great wrestler and a very tough man.””Well, I wasn’t getting booked as much so I worked for Billy Jack’s deal. He thought because he was Billy Jack haynes, he could run Don Owen right out of business. I did a few shows for him. He found out it wasn’t going to happen. It didn’t last long. People are loyal. So, I called Don Owen and he took me back. There was no problem there. I had to work!””I had heard for a long time that he had issues. I did not have any problem with him. But, what his last few years has been? Wow. He has had a tough go of it.””I enjoyed Japan. But, the crowd was very different. They clapped in appreciation. What I had trouble with was the food. That kind of food in the United States is Americanized. But, over there, it is authentic. And, it wasn’t for me. The chop sticks and things. It just wasn’t for me.””Yes, I did. I did that match with Steve Austin and Brian Pillman. I went in there with a guy named Amos Moses. We were told that they probably wouldn’t give us too much in the match. And, they didn’t. That was OK. It was what we were there for.””It was a good starting point for a promotion. There was a lot going on that stood in its way. But, there was some great talent there. And, getting the (POP) TV deal was a great starting point. It went from being in Las Vegas to being back up in Portland. Len Denton was involved. It could have been more than it was.””That was special. I was asked and of course I was willing to do that. He trained me. And, he has been my friend for a long time. I was honored to do that for him.”