Jerry Jarrett was a man of many skills. He was an American businessman, professional wrestling promoter, and also a professional wrestler.
Jerry Jarrett Facts
| Born on | 4 September 1942 |
| Born in | Nashville, Tennessee, United States |
| Death | 14 February 2023 |
| Net Worth | $15 million (estimated) |
| Education | Peabody College |
| Wife | Deborah Marlin |
| Height | 5 ft 11 inches |
| Debut | 1965 |
Jerry Jarrett Personal Life
Jerry Jarrett was born on September 4, 1942, in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. His mother Christine “Teeny” Jarrett and his father got divorced when he was just 3 years old.
Christine began working as a ticket vendor at the Nashville Hippodrome for Nick Gulas and Roy Welch, the promoters of NWA Mid-America. By the early 1970s, Christine was promoting shows on behalf of Gulas and Welch in Indiana and Kentucky. Jarrett began selling programs for Gulas and Welch at the age of 7.
Jerry Jarrett tied the knot with Deborah, who was Eddie Martin’s daughter. They had four children – Jerry Jr., Jeff Jarrett, Jason Jarrett, and daughter Jennifer.
Jerry and Jeff got into a dispute while running TNA back in 2005 but they managed to let bygones be bygones in 2015.
Jerry Jarrett Career as a Wrestler
Jarrett began working as an office assistant for Welch and Gulas after graduating in 1963 from Peabody College. He also had to do the duties of a referee when a referee no-showed at an event.
After working as a referee in the 1960s, Jarrett decided to pursue a wrestling career. He took training from a friend Tojo Yamamoto and an experienced wrestler Sailor Moran. Jarrett made his wrestling debut in Hayti, Missouri in 1965.
He spent the first few years of his career wrestling in NWA Mid-America. He became the NWA Mid-America Tag Team Champion once and also the NWA World Tag Team Champion once. The NWA Southern Tag Team Championship was won by Jarrett on 10 occasions.
Jarrett also performed for Gulas’ Southeastern Championship Wrestling where he won the NWA Tennessee Tag Team Championship in 1975.
In 1977, Jarrett founded the Continental Wrestling Association. He would occasionally wrestle in the promotion. Jarrett and Yamamoto became the inaugural CWA World Tag Team Champions in July 1980. In 1985, Jarrett wrestled under a mask and was called “The Hawaiian Flash”.
Jarrett retired in 1988 but broke retirement to wrestle a few more matches in the mid-1990s for his United States Wrestling Association.
Jerry Jarrett Career as a Promoter
Jerry and his mother joined hands with Jerry Lawler and Buddy Fuller to make the Continental Wrestling Association (CWA) a successful venture. This was after Gullas and Jarrett had a dispute before the formation of CWA.
In 1981, NWA Mid-America ceased to exist after facing stiff competition from CWA. Gulas sold his territory to Jarret.
Jarret and Lawler wanted to have more young wrestlers compete in their promotion so that they could attract younger fans, especially women, who bring their boyfriends to the shows.
In 1989, Jarrett merged his promotion with the World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW) promotion to form the United States Wrestling Association.
After operating for a few years, WCCW withdrew after a revenue dispute. Jarrett sold his stake in the promotion to Jerry Lawler and Larry Burton.
Jarrett took a break from promoting and started working as a consultant for both World Championship Wrestling and the WWF.
Jerry alongside his son, Jeff tried to give WWF stiff competition by starting NWA:TNA. On May 9, 2002, they announced the formation of J Sports and Entertainment (JSE), the parent company of NWA:TNA, a new wrestling promotion that began airing weekly.
In October 2005, Jarrett introduced professional wrestler Oleg Prudius to World Wrestling Entertainment. Prudius was hired by WWE and went on to wrestle for them as Vladimir Kozlov.
After moving on from professional wrestling, Jarrett operated a construction company and an international television distribution company.
Jarrett breathed his last on February 14, 2023, at the age of 80.
Jerry Jarrett Net Worth
He has an estimated net worth of $15 million (approx), thanks to his numerous endeavors with pro wrestling.
Some FAQs about Jerry Jarret
Yes, Jeff Jarrett is one of Jerry Jarrett’s three sons.
No, Jerry Jarrett wrestled in various wrestling promotions but not in WWE.
Jerry Jarrett married Eddie Marlin’s daughter, Deborah Marlin.
Jerry Jarrett made his wrestling debut in 1965.
More WWE news
- What happened to Sasha Banks as she missed SummerSlam 2021
- Bayley joins Team John Cena after controversial Roman Reigns comments
- Baron Corbin shares plans after stealing Money in the Bank briefcase from Big E
Follow our dedicated WWE page for instant WWE news and updates
