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Chappell: You did the ring
announcing at many different
venues in Richmond.
Landrum: We moved in and
out of the Fairgrounds. At times
we went to the Arena, and of
course the Coliseum. I even
remember doing one at the race
track at the Fairgrounds…for some
reason we were outside over there.
Oh, I remember…they had a cattle
auction or something coming up, so
we did it at the race track. It
was still a dirt track back then.
Lou Thesz was a special referee
for a Main Event match on that
card...I think the match might
have involved Paul Jones…
Chappell: I remember Thesz
would come in as special ref once
in a while during that time frame.
Joe Louis would do the same thing.
Landrum: Uh huh…I remember
that, too.
Chappell: Tell the folks
about the old Richmond Arena…that
was some place! (laughs)
Landrum: (laughs) Boy, in
the summer that was a killer!
Chappell: (laughing) Kinda
hard to describe how hot that
place could get!
Landrum: It is, it is man!
You’d sweat off ten pounds in that
place!
Paul
Jones in the ring at the Richmond
Arena, a building that no longer
exists.
Rich
Landrum can be seen at ringside
(in coat and tie.) | Bill Janosik
Photo
Chappell: I remember when
Crockett went back to the Arena
for a few shows in 1981 when they
were renovating the Coliseum, and
in your promos for the matches
when they went back to the
Coliseum you said, ‘Mid-Atlantic
Championship Wrestling returns to
the AIR CONDITIONED Richmond
Coliseum!!’
Landrum: (laughing)
Yeah…with the Coliseum, Crockett
didn’t lock in all the shows for a
year. It depended on what was
going on in the Coliseum. Like
when they had the circus come in
every year, that knocked us out
that weekend. Things like that.
We even did shows outdoors at
Parker Field sometimes…now called
the Diamond…
Chappell: The home of the
Richmond Braves Triple A baseball
team. That place got hot in the
summers too! Not to mention those
summer thunderstorms!
Landrum: That’s right! I
remember Joe Murnick getting on
the mic during those storms and
saying, ‘We’re gonna leave it up
to you fans…we understand that
this is dangerous for everyone and
we don’t want to put anybody in
jeopardy and we’ll certainly give
you a refund. If you want us to
continue, we’ll continue, if not
we won’t.’
Of course, everyone wanted to
continue!
Chappell: And you also did
the ring announcing at the spot
shows in the small towns outside
of Richmond.
Landrum: I’ve done them at
high school football fields, high
school gyms, college gyms. They
were fun too.
Chappell: And Friday nights
were almost always when Crockett
ran in and around Richmond.
Landrum: It was, and it was
EVERY Friday night for a long,
long time.
Chappell: Rich, you can
probably convey this to our
readers better than
anybody…Mid-Atlantic Championship
Wrestling on Friday nights in
Richmond was a BIG deal!
Landrum: Oh…it was! It
really was.
I’m trying to remember who said
this to me, I think it was Joe
Murnick or one of his boys, but he
said there were only three sports
that ever survived in
Richmond…they were baseball,
racing and rasslin’.
Chappell: He was right! And
speaking of racing, the funny
thing is, that Southside
Speedway’s regular night in
Richmond was Friday night too!
Landrum: That’s right!
Chappell: You would have
thought that Southside Speedway
would cut into the size of the
wrestling crowds…but I’m not so
sure it dented attendance for
wrestling that much. But I always
wondered how huge the wrestling
crowds would have been if
Southside Speedway had run on a
different night!
Landrum: You would think
so! And ironically enough, one of
the Murnick boys ended up owning
part of Southside at one time…with
Joe Baldacci.
Chappell: Yep, sure did.
Landrum: But that didn’t
take off too well…
Chappell: No, not at all.
Landrum: But yeah, David,
Friday night was the big deal. I
remember when it moved to the
Coliseum from the Fairgrounds and
the Arena, people were saying,
‘I’m not coming, I’m not going
downtown…I have to pay to
park---I’ll NEVER come!’
The first night we were there (at
the Coliseum), it was a big
crowd…and everybody that said they
weren’t gonna be there was there!
Chappell: And it was air
conditioned!
Landrum: (laughs) Yes it
was air conditioned…that was so
nice! Dressing room’s air
conditioned…everything.
It was fun to do it at the
Coliseum. It was a great venue,
because it was really different
from anywhere we’d been before
that.
Chappell: In my opinion,
the only thing bad about the
Coliseum was when that became the
primary venue, eventually, we
didn’t get the weekly cards
anymore.
Landrum: Yes, but it
continued every Friday night for
several years…
Chappell: For a while, when
the Coliseum got the ‘A’ cards one
week, and the Arena got the ‘B’
cards the alternate week.
Landrum: Yes, until they
started going to every other week
cards…just at the Coliseum.
Chappell: During your ring
announcing days in Richmond, any
card or match particularly stand
out to you?
Landrum: (pauses) Yeah,
there was one. And it’s really
because of what happened at the
end of the match.
It was Greg Valentine…cage match I
think. And (the Masked) Superstar
was also on the card…he’d been in
an earlier match. Superstar came
in to do a save at the end. Now,
security at the Coliseum was
always good…never had a problem to
speak of. They were right on top
of things 98 percent of the time.
So Superstar comes in and makes
the save, and everybody takes
off…and the cops are going with
the other guys and they forget
we’re still back there at the
ring! We start heading back to the
dressing room, and we’re kind of
pushing and muscling our way
through the crowd…Superstar is
right next to me. Then the cops
finally look back and see us and
come back and get us, and we go on
out.
Chappell: So you and
(Superstar) Bill Eadie make it
back to the dressing room?
Landrum: We get into the
dressing room, and Superstar is
standing up against the wall
holding his left side and he said,
‘I’ve been stabbed!’ I said,
‘WHAT?’ Then I said, ‘When, I’ve
been next to you the whole time?’
He said, ‘I don’t know when…all I
felt was a pop.’ I said, ‘Let me
see it Bill.’ So, he took off his
top and I went, ‘Hey man, we need
to get you to the hospital.’
Chappell: When I
interviewed Bill, he brought up
this very same incident!
Ironically, it was during a part
of the interview where he was
talking about liking Richmond so
much!
It sounds like it was at a card
when Blackjack Mulligan had just
turned into a babyface, and
Valentine was trying to collect
the bounty that Flair had put on
him. Superstar made several run
ins around that time. So, you were
next to Eadie the whole time and
never realized he’d been stabbed?
Landrum: I was standing
RIGHT next to him. Of course,
you’re not looking down…you’re
looking ahead to see what’s coming
at you.
Because, occasionally, I’d have a
drunk fan come after me…because I
was the closest thing they could
get to. You never liked it, but it
was just part of it. Or they would
just get in your face, and not
leave you alone.
Chappell: As the ring
announcer, did you ever have a bad
incident with a fan?
Landrum: I remember one at
the Coliseum, [the fan] just kept
after me. I mean, the show was
over…and he’s still comin’ after
me! And I finally said, ‘Alright,
enough is enough.’ And I hauled
off and hit him, and knocked him
through three rows of chairs…
Chappell: Really??
Landrum: Yeah, and I went,
‘Oh crap, why did I do that?’
Chappell: (laughing) And
this is for just being the ring
announcer!
Landrum: (laughs) Yeah…I’m
just the ring announcer, why did I
do that! I’m not supposed to be
drawing heat!
So, the next week I’m back, and
about an hour before the show I’m
sitting out front where all the
wrestlers came out…in the
bleachers, talking to some people.
And I look up, and I see this guy
coming…
Chappell: The same guy you
KO’ed?
Landrum: Same guy, and I
mean, it really worried me. So he
came up, and I’m kinda trying to
ignore him…because I don’t want to
get back into anything with him.
And I’m thinking, he’s gonna sue
me anyway.
Chappell: (laughs) Did he
have legal papers with him?
Landrum: Yeah, I should
have asked him, ‘Are you carrying
a subpoena with you?’
Chappell: (laughing)
Landrum: But anyway, he
comes up to me and says, ‘Mr.
Landrum, look, I just want to
apologize to you for last week…I
was wrong to go after you, I
shouldn’t have gone after you.’ He
went on and on…very apologetic.
I’m kinda like…wow!
A friend of his was with him…he
was sober that night. Where the
other guy wasn’t. But I shook his
hand and said, ‘Well, look, I
really appreciate you coming to me
and telling me that.’ I told him
it wasn’t my intention to hurt
him, but he wouldn’t stop---and I
was sorry that it happened. He
said, ‘No, I deserved what you
gave me.’ And I told him that it
took a man to say that, and I
appreciated him saying that.
Then his friend, the other guy,
was going, ‘HIT HIM AGAIN, HIT HIM
AGAIN!’
Chappell: (laughing) Some
friend!
Landrum: (laughs) I said,
‘Whoa, whoa…wait a minute, man---I
don’t want to do that!’ But it
always made you worry later!
But with Bill, when I was with
him, Bill Eadie, it was like WHEN?
Chappell: Bill’s getting
stabbed?
Landrum: Yeah, we’re right
there next to each other! Both of
us pushing our way out. So, we
took him over to Henrico Doctor’s
Hospital. I didn’t want to take
him over to MCV (Medical College
of Virginia), because I figured
people would follow.
Chappell: Yes, MCV is
within walking distance of the
Coliseum. It’s funny, when Bill
talked to me about this
incident…he remembered the name of
the hospital in Richmond he went
to. And that’s like 27 years ago,
and Bill’s not from the Richmond
area!
Landrum: They treated him
very well there, David…I think
that was it.
He was very fortunate, that even
though it was a pretty good stab
wound, it didn’t penetrate the
peritoneum. Son of a gun…he worked
the next night. I told him he
shouldn’t have, but he did.
So, that’s one I really remember…
Chappell: You and Bill
both, for very good reason!
I’m glad you made the comment
about the guy that harassed you
coming back and apologizing to you
at the next show. Richmond has a
bit of a reputation for unruly
fans…of course there was the big
riot at the Fairgrounds involving
(Boris) Malenko and Bob Orton, Sr.
It was a wild atmosphere for
wrestling in Richmond, but for the
most part don’t you think the real
fans pretty much behaved
themselves?
Landrum: They did. There
was a lot of mouthing and a lot of
beer, but generally they behaved
themselves.
Chappell: It’s amazing
talking to the wrestlers in these
interviews, how much they loved
Richmond.
Landrum: They did, and it
was a good town. But there were
nights I can remember at the
Fairgrounds…I remember one we
didn’t have but 50 people there.
For whatever reason, we didn’t
have but 50 people. And I went to
Joe Murnick and asked him, ‘Are we
gonna do this?’ He said, ‘We sure
are.’ But I said, ‘There’s only
FIFTY people!’ He said, ‘Yeah, but
if we don’t do it tonight, they
won’t come back next week.’
The secret, no matter what, was do
it EVERY week. Every Friday night,
you have a show. You didn’t even
have to advertise! They knew you’d
be there.
Chappell: Absolutely…
Landrum: I can only think
of one time that Richmond got
cancelled, and that was because of
a snowstorm.
Chappell: Yep, in the
winter of 1980 if I recall
correctly…
Landrum: And that was a
last minute thing when they
decided to cancel it!
Chappell: A few years ago I
went back into the microfilm of
the old editions of the Richmond
Times-Dispatch newspaper, just to
see if the wrestling cards in
Richmond were always on Friday
nights. Lo and behold, I find a
promo ad for a card in the
mid-1950s, and it was on Friday
night!
I think Freddie Blassie and Dick
Steinborn were on that card.
Landrum: (laughs) That was
back in the Bill Lewis days!
Oh yeah, Friday night…that was it.
Chappell: On the site, I’ve
done a little piece on ranking
Richmond’s All-Time Top 15 cards.
I think I’m about halfway through.
I may need to consult with you to
finish the job!
Landrum: (laughs) Well,
David, I may not remember them all
either!
Let me think about some other
memorable Richmond cards. I guess
another one for me was when Andre
the Giant made his first
appearance in Richmond. If I
recall correctly, that was either
Christmas Day night or
Thanksgiving Day night.
(pauses) It had to be Christmas
Day night…that was typically the
biggest night of the year.
Chappell: Back then in the
mid 70s, Andre was in his
prime---and was a huge attraction.
Literally!
Fans that only remember him up in
New York well into the 80s didn’t
see the real Andre.
Landrum: It was something
special when he appeared in
Richmond in the 70s. I remember,
they paid for somebody to put a
spotlight up in the ceiling to
target him as he came to the ring.
And you know the house was blacked
out, so that was a big entrance!
Chappell: Back then, that
was really something…stuff like
that was almost never done.
Landrum: That was really
something. So, that was another
one I remember well.
Then I think back about another
time, when Ricky Steamboat made
his first appearance in Richmond…
Chappell: He was over the
first time he crawled through
those ropes!
Landrum: That first
appearance, he was on the
undercard. The warm-up card. I
remember standing in the ring
watching him come in, and saying,
‘Hey, he’s a good looking kid.’
And the crowd was just going nuts
over him! They’d never really seen
him…of course they billed him at
first as Sam Steamboat’s nephew,
or something.
Chappell: And, of course, I
believed that!
Landrum: Ricky just went
over…right away. I mean, he was
over the minute he stepped in the
ring.
Chappell: He absolutely
was.
Landrum: That first match
was a good match. And when the
show was over, I went to Joe
Murnick and I said, ‘I don’t know
what you guys got planned for him,
because it better be good…because
he’s gonna be your franchise.’
Chappell: Was he ever!
Landrum: He was…he was.
Think of all of the angles between
he and Flair, and when he was
teamed up with Jay Youngblood.
Just fantastic!
Chappell: I recently talked
with Dick Slater about some of the
great workers in the Mid-Atlantic
area, and of course Steamboat’s
name was high on the list. And
that Steamboat never worked as a
heel, and yet he managed to stay
fresh as a babyface.
Rich
Landrum interviews US Champion
Ricky Steamboat on the set of
World Wide
Wrestling at WRAL studios in
Raleigh, circa 1978. (Rich Landrum
Collection.)
Landrum: He did…and he
could make anyone look good. You
know, he could put anyone over.
He was a fantastic guy, and he was
a fun guy to be around. I tell you
what, and I know a little bit
about his history, he was hell on
wheels before he got in wrestling.
Chappell: Really? I
wouldn’t have pictured that with
Steamboat.
Landrum: Oh yeah. Yeah…he
was quite a brawler. I didn’t know
it either until later on.
You know, I traveled with him and
with Jay (Youngblood). Our wives
were all friends…she’s now my
ex-wife. I had a great
relationship with Ricky, and when
we were here in Richmond we spent
a lot of time together.
Chappell: I remember on his
interviews, Steamboat would always
refer to you as ‘Richard’ rather
than ‘Rich.’
Landrum: (laughs) He did
always called me ‘Richard.’ We
kind of played around with that
some, because his real name was
Richard Blood.
Chappell: Right…
Landrum: Like, ‘Hey
Blood…how ya doing?’
Chappell: (laughs)
Landrum: You know, the
people didn’t know…we were just
playing around!
Chappell: When he called
you ‘Richard,’ it sounded kind of
formal, but it looked like you all
got along very well.
Landrum: Oh, we did. Then
there was Ernie Ladd, calling me
‘Mr. TV Announcer.’
Chappell: (laughing) Yeah,
I remember that!
Landrum: I told him, after
about the third time, by now if
you don’t know my name…don’t call
me ‘Mr. TV Announcer.’ He said,
‘Aw, I was just playin’ around.’
I said, ‘That’s all right…how many
times have you sat at the desk
with me and done the color
(commentary). You know my name,
let’s start doing that.’
Chappell: Didn’t Ladd do
the ‘Mr. TV Announcer’ thing
pretty much everywhere he went?
Landrum: He did it
everywhere. I just got to the
point, that I thought it was
getting ridiculous. He’d been in
the area long enough…he knew my
name!
Chappell: It made him look
silly!
Landrum: That’s right…it
did.
Chappell: What about the
Richmond cards compared to the
other towns around the Crockett
circuit? Outside of Greensboro,
North Carolina, I don’t think any
other town had better or stronger
cards than we did.
Landrum: Yeah…it was kind
of like they had an ‘A’ crew and a
‘B’ crew. Like Ringling Brothers
has a ‘Red’ and a ‘Blue’
Circus…it’s an ‘A’ and a ‘B.’ And
depending on what town you’re
going in, determines which one
gets the big one, and which one
gets the medium sized one.
I’ve thought about that too,
because Greensboro seemed to be a
hotbed down there. Charlotte was
good. And then Richmond. Those
probably were the three that they
did most of the title switches or
what have you.
Now, sometimes they’d do a switch
in Greensboro one night, and then
the next night in Richmond. I
said, ‘They’re gonna catch up with
that stuff.’
Chappell: The same title
switch that was repeated in
different towns…that didn’t happen
much, did it?
Landrum: No, it didn’t.
But, then there was the time that
the wrong commercial interviews
got sent to the wrong TV stations!
Chappell: (laughing) Opps!!
Landrum: (laughs) I’m
sitting at home going, ‘DO WHAT??’
PART
THREE
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