Jimmy Hart

At 80 years old, Jimmy Hart has this physical status:

James Ray Hart (born January 1, 1943) is an American professional wrestling manager, producer, arranger, and performer, who has signed with WWE in a Legends contract.

He is best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling, where he coined the phrase "The Mouth of the South" to describe himself. He has worked with many professional wrestlers, including Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart (no relation) and Jim Neidhart (The Hart Foundation), Greg "The Hammer" Levie, Ted DiBiase, Ken Rice, The Mountie, Earthquake, Typhoon, Dino Bravo, The Honky Tonk Man, and The Honky Tonk Man.

He was the AWA Southern Heavyweight Champion at one time. Hart, the former member of rock band The Gentrys, best known for their 1965 top-five Billboard Hot 100 hit, "Keep on Dancing," before being involved with professional wrestling.

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Professional wrestling career

Jimmy Hart was born in Jackson, Mississippi. Jerry "The King" Lawler, who knew of Hart because the two boys had attended Memphis Treadwell High School, welcomed him into wrestling. Hart later became Lawler's boss after being asked to sing back-up with Lawler. Hart, Jr., created the First Family of Wrestling, which included Hulk Hogan, King Kong Bundy, "Ravishing" Rick Rude, "Realising" Michael Phelpo, "Macho Man" Randy Savage, "Macho Man" Gary Gilbert, The Iron Sheik, and Kevin Sullivan.

Hart earned national recognition for his 1982 appearance with comedian and television actor Andy Kaufman. This feud between Hart, Lawler, and Kaufman will continue for over a year. Hart was nicknamed "The Wimp," a legal term sung by gebenders, and the subject of a music video featuring Lawler, announcer Lance Russell, and wrestlers such as Randy Savage, Jimmy Valiant, Tommy Rich, and Rufus R. Jones; along with a video showing Lawler versus Hart and his "First Family" at this time, there were other "Wimpbusters" by Lawler; around this time. Hart won the NWA/AWA International Championships from 1981 to 1984.

Hillbilly Jim, Hart's brother, recommended him to WWF boss Vince McMahon, who had hired him in 1985. Due to his loose-lipped style, which was often enhanced by his trademark megaphone, which he used to teach and inspire his protégés to avoid and annoy opponents and announcers (especially Gorilla Monsoon), he was often referred to as "The Mouth of the South." Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, the Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion, who Hart fought at WrestleMania, was Hart's first purchase in the WWF. Hart briefly co-managed the Dream Team (Valentine and Beefcake), until he was phased out and handed over to "Luscious Johnny" Valiant after Valentine lost the Internal Heavyweight Championship to Tito Santana. As he defeated S.D., Hart defeated King Kong Bundy at WrestleMania. Jones, a.k.a. Jones. Bundy's deal was eventually sold to Bobby "The Brain" Heenan for The Missing Link and Adrian Adonis. He helped him establish his "Adorable Adrian" gimmick. Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart was also managed by Hart. The appearance of Bret "Hitman" Hart in 1985 was also a factor. Jimmy Hart teamed up with Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart to create The Hart Foundation. Hart guided the Hart Foundation to the WWF World Tag Team Championship, which they received from the British Bulldogs on January 26, 1987. Danny Davis, a disgraced reff selector turned wrestler, was also handled by Jimmy Hart.

boys. Hart took the Funk Family under his care in 1985. Terry and Hoss Funk, as well as their kayfabe brother Jimmy Jack Funk, were among the Funks. Hart and the Funks debated on house shows. Hart defeated a royal to win $50,000 at Madison Square Garden on July 12, 1986. Hart became his boss after the Honky Tonk Man fell on his feet. In this role, Hart was referred to Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis Presley's boss, and he was named "The Colonel" in a reference to him. The Honky Tonk Man, with Hart as his corner, captured the Intercontinent Heavyweight Championship from Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat on June 2, 1987 and held it until August 1988. The Honky Tonk Man feuded with Randy Savage and his boss Miss Elizabeth during this period. Even after the Honky Tonk Man left the company in early 1991, "the Colonel" moniker stayed with him for years. Hart was involved in three matches and received some amazing bumps during the show. Adrian "Adorable Adrian" Adonis, who defeated Rowdy Roddy Piper, was his first appearance. Danny Davis and the Hart Foundation were matched against the Bulldogs and Tito Santana in a six-man tag match. When The Honky Tonk Man defeated Jake "The Snake" Roberts, who had rock legend Alice Cooper in his corner, Jimmy Hart's third appearance on the program was when he met him on the show. Hart was left alone in the ring where Roberts and Cooper teamed up to terrorize him with Roberts' pet snake Damien. In 1987, Hart was the WWF Women's Tag Team champions Judy Martin and Leilani Kai, also known as The Glamour Girls. (Noriyo Tateno and Itsuki Yamazaki) Martin and Kai mostly disagreed with the Jumping Bomb Angels, a Japanese team.

Hart was named Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Best Manager of the Year in 1987, an award he received again in 1994. Hart received a haircut from Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake after participating in the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship match between Beefcake and the Honky Tonk Man, assisting Honky Tonk Man in keeping the title alive by being disqualified. Hart was fired as the Hart Foundation's head (and turned face) in 1988, the troupe managed to feud with his former staff but gave a piece of it to the Rougeaus, giving them the right to appear on ringside as Hart Foundation wrestled. Hart and Demolition and Mr. Fuji joined Demolition and Mr. Fuji in 1988 to help keep their WWF Tag Team title against the Hart Foundation. Ax beat Bret in the head with Hart's megaphone. After the departure of Frenchy Martin in 1989, Hart brought Dino Bravo into his stable. Hart and Bravo, a major 460-pound man from the audience, was invited into the ring to sit on the contestants' backs in a push-up fight between the Ultimate Warrior and Bravo. The large man was inevitably planted in the audience by Hart and Bravo, who then came together against the Warrior. Hart was groomed Earthquake to be the one to beat Hulk Hogan in 1990. Hart's former tag team, the Hart Foundation, fought him on Saturday. He teamed Honky Tonk Man and Greg Valentine with the short-lived team of Rhythm and Blues in 1990, though the Hart Foundation had previously worked together in 1990 to defeat the Hart Foundation for the WWF World Tag Team title, this time using a motorcycle helmet as a weapon.

At SummerSlam 1991, Hart ordered The Natural Disasters, a team made out of Earthquake and his former competitor Typhoon (formerly known as Tugboat), to depose the new champions. Hart formed Money Inc., made up of Hart's protégé I.R.S., when the disasters failed. Ted DiBiase, the million dollar man. The L.O.D. was defeated by Money, Inc. Hart and the Natural Disasters were split up after they clashed with Money Inc. and exchanged the tag team titles twice in 1992. When Money Inc. retained their positions by leaving the ring and requiring a countout, they won their biggest match at WrestleMania VIII. Hart had also brought The Mountie back in 1991, who had a short tenure as Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion from January 17, but then lost it to Rowdy Roddy Piper at the Royal Rumble just two days later. Just a few months ago, The Mountie and the Big Boss Man feuded over who was the "law and order" in the WWF. Their feud came to an end in a match at SummerSlam, where the loser (in this case, The Mountie) had to spend the night in a New York jail. As a result of Money Inc.'s continued success with tag team titles from the Natural Disasters, the Nasty Boys turned on their boss, who had regularly substituted them for Money Inc. in championship matches.

Hart broke with Money Inc. early in 1993 and later turned face when the team attacked Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake. Hart, who was aware of Beefcake's extensive facial damage from a real-life parasailing crash three years ago that required extensive reconstructive surgery to Beefcake's face and ultimately ended his full time service, felt that his team went too far and tried to discourage them. Hart even went so far as to cover an unconscious Beefcake with his own body to prevent them from doing more harm. Hulk Hogan, Beefcake's long-time companion, came out the following week and expressed appreciation to Hart for his uncharacteristically heroic acts. He supervised both Beefcake and Hogan at WrestleMania IX, who lost to Money Inc due to disqualification. Hart will be the WF World Heavyweight Champion for the first time after accepting an impromptu challenge from Mr. Fuji, the current champion of the new Yokozuna who had just defeated Bret Hart for the belt. In a short match, Hogan would defeat the new champion, 505 lb (229 kg). As he lost the WWF World Heavyweight Championship back to Yokozuna, Hart was in Hogan's corner at King of the Ring. This was Hart's last appearance in the WWF as both he and Hogan left the organisation.

Following their release from the WWF, Hogan and Hart briefly toured Mexico. Hart wrote music and appeared on Hogan's television show Thunder in Paradise shortly after his return. When Hogan went to World Championship Wrestling (WCW), they had Hart coach him. Hart won his first WCW World Heavyweight Championship by defeating "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair at Bash on the beach in 1994.

Hart used Hogan to support The Giant during Halloween's in 1995. Hart was also the boss of the Dungeon of Doom, the nefarious faction created by Kevin Sullivan. He led Ric Flair to his 12th world championship triumph over Macho Man Randy Savage at Starrcade '95. Hart recreated The First Family after the Dungeon of Doom's demise. Hart was put in charge of booking TBS's WCW Saturday Night show ahead of the program's cancellation. Hart defeated Bubba the Love Sponge by disqualification at a house show on April 18, 1999. He wrestled WCW Monday, losing a Hardcore match to Norman Smiley on November 15. Jimmy Hart was also the first Strapmaster for the Yapapi Indian strap match in which Hulk Hogan defeated Ric Flair at the Uncensored PPV on March 19, 2000. Hart was interviewed on radio personality Mancow at the Spring Stampede in 2000. Later this year, the two teams met in Mayhem for a rematch. Hart joined the WCW's booking committee in February 2001.

After the loss of WCW to then-competitive WWF, Hart, a close group of wrestlers, and investors decided to create the Xcitement Wrestling Federation (XWF) in the early 1990s, which would replace WCW as well as return to early 1990s style of fun, family-oriented entertainment with minimal story lines and better wrestling. Hart revived his rivalry with Jerry Lawler by purchasing, for the XWF, as part of the up-and-coming Memphis Wrestling promotion. Hart will wrestle for Memphis Wrestling from 2003 to 2005. On August 2, 2003, he lost to Jimmy Valiant in a Loser Eats Dog Food contest. Hart appeared at Battle of Legends in 2007. Hart appeared at the Jerry "The King" Lawler 35th anniversary celebration on November 7, 2008. In 2008, he made just a few appearances with Florida Championship Wrestling, WWE's developmental territory, as a color commentator. During the week leading up to the 25th Anniversary of WrestleMania, he made several appearances for WrestleMania Axxess.

Hart went to The Funking Conservatory, owned by Dory Funk Jr. and Marti Funk, to shoot student promos in May 2006. When talking about his change from World Wrestling Entertainment to TNA Wrestling, as well as Wrestlicious, his most notable ones are Studio Sar Ah. Both promos can be found on Facebook and YouTube. Hart continues to work at the academy and shoot promotions. Hart revealed on January 19, 2010, that his all-female wrestling team Wrestlicious would premiere on MavTV and BiteTV on March 1, 2010. Kurt Russell, the Reunion in a battle royal dominated by Roddy Piper, fought him on Pro Wrestling Guerrilla's Kurt RussellReunion II: The Reunion. He wrestled at PWS WrestleReunion VI in a match royal fought by The Godfather on January 12, 2012. Hart is currently appearing at a number of professional wrestling conventions and autograph signings around the country. He is a staple at all of the Wrestlereunion shows, and he appears on various occasions as part of the VOC Nation wrestling radio station in Philadelphia on 1360 WNJC. Hart is a regular fixture on the VOC Wrestling Nation radio show on WNJC.

Hart made his WWE debut in October 2003, hyping a match between Hulk Hogan and Jeff Jarrett, but it was eventually called off because Hogan wanted to return to WWE instead. The Naturals were aided in a title defense against Team Canada by Hart, who ran to ringside and threw his megaphone to Chase Stevens, who pinned Petey Williams with it and pinned him. Hart was the boss of The Naturals from October 3, 2005. Hart came back to TNA as a heel on February 14, 2010, helping the Nasty Boys defeat Team 3D in a tag team match. Following an incident at a TNA function with Spike executives present, the partnership, however, was short-lived. Following the incident, Hart stayed with the company, but his role was unclear. Kurt Angle yelled at Hart to play his entrance music on the Impact! edition on January 20, 2011. Zone.

Jimmy Hart left Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and re-signed with WWE to focus on WrestleMania-related initiatives, according to a press release on March 1, 2011. Hart has appeared at numerous house shows since being hosted. Hart teased a managerial role with R-Truth during a backstage segment on August 14, 2011. Hart appeared on SmackDown: Blast from the Past, where he led the team of Heath Slater and Tyson Kidd, but Mick Foley earned the mandible claw from Mick Foley on April 10, 2012.

Hart was part of "Hogan's Beach," a wrestling-themed tiki-bar in Tampa, Florida, as of April 30, 2014. Hart was a regular cast member of Legends' House on WWE Network as of April 2014. Hart appeared on the August 11 edition of Raw for Hogan's Birthday. Hart bought a beachfront property in Daytona Beach, Florida, and opened "Jimmy Hart's Hall of Fame Bar and Tiki Deck," a beach bar with an abundance of autographed pictures, wrestling paraphernalia, and even an intercontinental championship belt. He appeared on RAW Legends Night on January 4, 2021, where he appeared with Hulk Hogan, Drew McIntyre, and Sheamus.

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