2010 Posthumous Honoree Lee Fields

 2010 Posthumous Honoree Lee Fields

 

Professional wrestling has been around the American sporting scene for over one hundred years.  A look back over ring records covering a huge chunk of that lengthy timespan in the nation’s deep south, some 75-plus years, reveals that one or another of four famous names crops up repeatedly.  And with that, we’re off on a lesson in wrestling history, a complicated genealogy, and an introduction to a 2010 CAC honoree all in one swoop…..

Welch.  Fields.  Fuller.  Golden.  Four generations of wrestlers, each a branch of a family wrestling tree that began in the 1930’s in Pawhuska, Oklahoma.  Taken together, they constitute what may very well be the largest wrestling family in history.

Roy Welch was the first to leave, putting down roots in Dyersburg, Tennessee in the 1930’s.  Younger brothers Jack, Herb and Lester Welch migrated there a little later, followed by sister Bonnie and her husband Virgil “Speedy” Hatfield.  While the four Welches brought their brand of action to rings across the south, brother-in-law Speedy policed the mat action as one of the best referees around, in the opinion of many.

The Hatfield’s three sons didn’t take long to hit the mat.  Albert Lee became Lee Fields, Donald Wayne became Don Fields, and Luther Eugene worked as Bobby (or sometimes Luke) Fields.  Lee’s son Ricky and Don’s son Johnny Wayne wrestled for a short time, tag teaming often but preferring to stay near home.  Bobby’s sons Shane and Randy followed in their grandfather’s footsteps to become referees, while Herb’s sons Doyle and Bobby both wrestled and refereed.

This wrestling family’s growth didn’t stop there, not by a long shot.  Roy’s son Edward made his name in the ring as Buddy Fuller, and his two sons became Ron and Robert Fuller, the latter sometimes working as manager Colonel Robert Parker.  Roy’s daughter Ruby married promoter Bill Golden, and their son Jimmy Golden also did double ring duty under his own name and as the brawling Bunkhouse Buck.  Ruby’s brother-in-law Phil Golden also promoted.  Jimmy’s son Bobby Golden was in the family trade for a time, while Lester’s sons Jackie and Roy Lee Welch wrestled for some years.

Lester Welch, of the family that launched this wrestling dynasty, was deservedly honored with the Men’s Award at the CAC reunion in 2004. 

And in just a few short months, at CAC’s 45th anniversary “Sapphire Event” on April 19-20-21, 2010, the Posthumous Award spotlight will fall on the memory of a second generation member of this wrestling family, Lee Fields.

Virgil and Bonnie Hatfield moved their family from Oklahoma to Yorkville, Tennessee in 1946, following his four brothers who had wrestled successfully across the southern states for a number of years.  The three Hatfield boys started their mat training with their uncles and Charlie Carr, and 19 year old Albert Lee began refereeing in 1949, following in his father’s footsteps.  Just two years later, well-schooled in wrestling by his uncles and the up-close experience of reffing, he had his first pro match and never looked back.

He adopted the ring name Lee Fields, and became a fine singles and tag team competitor. Lee’s first taste of gold was in 1957, when he and Mario Galento paired to topple Corsica Joe and Jean for the Mid-America version of the world tag team title.  The next year he repeated the title victory alongside uncle Lester Welch, again downing the Corsica tandem.  Between 1958 and 1960 he held the Gulf Coast heavyweight title three times.

Lee then turned to brother Bobby as his tag team ally, and together they took over the Southern tag titles from the Medics in 1963.  From 1966 to 1968, they held the U.S.,  Southern and Gulf Coast tag team belts six times, snatching them from such well-known tandems as Jack and Frank Dalton, The Infernos and J. C. Dykes, The Mighty Yankees, and Jose Lothario and Joe Scarpa – better known today as veteran WWWF stalwart and WWF road agent Chief Jay Strongbow.

In the late 1950’s, Lee and Edouardo Perez wrestled a match in Mobile’s Ladd Stadium that drew an amazing 20,000 fans.  A similar-sized crowd turned out for a later tag war pitting Lee and Don Fields against Jackie and Don Fargo; amazing gates for a city with a population of perhaps 90,000 at the time. 

The Fields boys, and Lee in particular, showed their true mettle in a pair of Lafayette, Louisiana brawls with Jack and Jim Dalton.  In their first collision there, the teams were heading for a red-hot finish when Jack aimed Lee through the ropes.  Moving fast and off balance, Lee raked the  taut middle rope down the side of his head, and his shoulder caught on the rope, stopping his forward motion.  The unforgiving strand sheared his ear almost completely off!  The Daltons played it for all it was worth, tossing Bobby out and savaging a bloody and helpless Lee.  Fearful of a riot, referee Cowboy Bob Kelly halted the bout, and the Daltons went on the run with the title belts.

Since they hadn’t in fact won, the Daltons were forced to return the belts on the next TV show, and the four were rematched the following week.  Bob Kelly again refereed and recalls it vividly.

“Believe it or not, Lee went out with his ear surgically reattached and heavily bandaged the next week.  The Daltons went to work on Lee’s ear again, a little at a time as Bobby stayed in the ring most of the time.  Bobby took the first fall, but lost the next one and was hurt doing it.  Bobby had to start the third fall and the Daltons went right to work on him.  The people could tell that Bobby didn’t want to tag Lee in because of his ear, but the Daltons made it so hot on him, he had to tag out.  Lee made a good strong comeback, but they stopped him and went to work on his ear.”

Kelly continues, “They tore the bandages off and had it bleeding again.  Bobby was still hurt and couldn’t help Lee very much, but he was trying.  The Daltons did everything legal, tagging in and out, doing nothing behind my back.  Lee finally gave up, and the belts went to the Daltons.  We had to take Lee back to the hospital to get his ear fixed again, but it shows you what a man he was, and how he took care of business back then.”

In 1959, Lee had the chance to acquire a sizeable chunk of the Nick Gulas/Roy Welch- promoted territory that stretched from Lake Charles, Louisiana to Tallahassee, Florida.  He transformed it from what had been essentially a spot show area to a stand-alone territory, dubbing it Gulf Coast Championship Wrestling.  Complete with its own set of titles, the entire area thrived under Lee’s careful promotion, and solid relationships with arena managers, the media, city fathers and most importantly, the fans.  NWA world champions, Andre the Giant and other notables appeared periodically, spicing up cards that featured many southern favorites.

Cowboy Bob Kelly booked a big block of the territory for many years, giving him an especially close-up view of Lee Fields the man, and leading to a deep friendship and mutual respect between the two.  “The boys all respected Lee for his wrestling ability, and appreciated his respect for them as human beings.  He honored other promotions’ borders, exchanged talent with them, and got along well.” 

Lee Fields continued to wrestle until 1968, but concentrated more and more on his Gulf Coast promotion until selling it in 1978.  He also developed a deep interest in auto racing that led to him buying the well-established Mobile International Speedway in 1972.  Lee even took a turn at the wheel himself, winning the first big race he competed in at Pensacola, shortly after buying the track.  He and his wife Ida operated the venture successfully until 1999, when his health took a turn for the worse.

Leukemia claimed Lee’s life on June 4, 2000 at the age of 69, closing a major chapter in southern wrestling history and the Hatfield family.  “I say Lee Fields was the very best, and I miss him very much, every day,” Bob Kelly says of his long association as referee, wrestler, booker and friend.  “Meeting Lee Fields was another blessing in my life.”

With special thanks to Cowboy Bob Kelly for his recollections.  Photos courtesy of Bob Kelly, Percy Pringle III, and Chris Swisher, www.csclassicwrphotos.com