Nick Gulas (September 3, 1914 – January 21, 1991) was an American

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

promoter in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

, partnered with Tennessee promoter Roy Welch for decades. Gulas was also known as "The King of Managers", "King B", and the "Dean of Promoters". Gulas helped start the careers of such wrestling stars as

Tojo Yamamoto Harold Watanabe (January 6, 1927 – February 19, 1992) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Tojo Yamamoto. Early life Watanabe was born in Hawaii in 1927 to a Japanese father and an American mother. He served ...

Jackie Fargo Henry Faggart (June 26, 1930 – June 24, 2013) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jackie Fargo. He competed in Southeastern regional promotions and the National Wrestling Alliance during the 1950s, 1960s and ...

, and

Jerry "The King" Lawler Jerry O'Neil Lawler (born November 29, 1949), better known as Jerry "The King" Lawler, is an American color commentator and professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, although he has not performed as a full-time commentator since Ap ...

in the 1960s and 1970s, the Bounty Hunters with Jimmy Kent, and the Interns with Dr. Ken Ramey in the 1970s and 1980s.

Personal life

Nick Gulas and his wife Katharine were married until her death on 4, 1986. The couple had one child, a son, George, who would join his father in the wrestling business. Nick Gulas died in 1991, aged 76, in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

. He is buried there in Mount Olivet Cemetery. The Nashville Sports Arena at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds was renamed the "Nick Gulas Sports Arena" in his honor.

Professional wrestling promoter

Gulas became involved in

in the 1940s, working both as a

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activitie ...

and later behind the scenes as well as a promoter in Florida. In the late 1940s he joined with

Roy Welch Roy Edward Welch (December 19, 1901 – September 27, 1977) was an American professional wrestler and promoter. He is best known as the promoter of the NWA Mid-America territory (also known simply as the Nashville office) alongside Nick Gulas. ...

to form the "Gulas-Welch Wrestling Enterprises Inc." promotion, based in

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

and

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...

. In 1949 the group joined the

National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA began as a governing body for a ...

, a national sanctioning body that divided the US into territories. The promotion became known as

NWA Mid-America NWA Mid-America was a professional wrestling promotion territory under the umbrella of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) that promoted shows in Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama from the 1940s until 1981. The company was founded in the 1940s ...

at this point. In 1953 they added

to their territory as promoter John Cazana joined the group, expanding the territory across several states. Over the years NWA Mid-America worked closely together with the surrounding southern NWA territories, especially those run by Roy Welch's siblings. With time Roy Welch's health began to fail, which led to him bringing in

Jerry Jarrett Jerry Winston Jarrett (born September 4, 1942) is an American retired professional wrestling promoter and professional wrestler. Along with his long-term business partner Jerry Lawler, Jarrett is a key figure in the history of professional wrestl ...

as a booker to help handle the day-to-day work behind the scenes. In the early 1970s, his son George became a wrestler for NWA Mid-America and was promoted as one of the top names in the territory despite not being a very talented wrestler according to the wrestlers in the territory. In 1977 Gulas' insistence on making George Gulas one of the featured names in the promotion led to a split between Gulas and Jerry Jarrett, who broke away from Gulas and began the

Continental Wrestling Association Continental Wrestling Association (later the Championship Wrestling Association) was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually re ...

(CWA) in Memphis, essentially splitting Tennessee between himself and Gulas. By late 1980 NWA Mid-America closed down and Gulas went into semi-retirement as did his son George Gulas since no one wanted to hire him as a wrestler.

Championships and accomplishments

NWA Hall of Fame The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) Hall of Fame is an American professional wrestling hall of fame maintained by the NWA. It was established in 2005 to honor select wrestling personalities, mostly alumni of the NWA. Inductees receive commemora ...

(2010)

References

External links

*
Nick Gulas at OWW.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gulas, Nick 1914 births 1991 deaths American people of Greek descent Professional wrestling managers and valets Professional wrestling promoters Sportspeople from Memphis, Tennessee Sportspeople from Nashville, Tennessee

Personal life

Professional wrestling promoter

Championships and accomplishments

See also

References

External links