Joe Pedicino
Encyclopedia
Joe Pedicino is a retired American
professional wrestling
announcer, commentator
, promoter
, television
and radio producer
. He was a well-known on-air personality in regional territories of the Southern United States
during the 1980s, being an announcer and commentator for Jim Crockett Promotions
and World Championship Wrestling
, and as host of the nationally syndicated "Superstars of Wrestling" with his wife Boni Blackstone
and Gordon Solie
from 1986 to 1992.
The series, created and produced by Pedicino, aired eight hours of wrestling from around the country and was the first to provide national coverage of the National Wrestling Alliance
as well as from Puerto Rico
and Japan
. He and Solie also hosted a popular segment on the show, "Pro Wrestling This Week", which discussed the then current news from the "Big Three" (AWA
, NWA
and the WWF) and regional promotions. Scott Hudson
and Steve Prazak, both former WCW announcers, were fans of the show and given their first big break by Pedicino when he began promoting events in the late 1980s. Bill Apter
, editor of Pro Wrestling Illustrated
, has also credited Pedicino for considerably raising his profile among wrestling fans due to his weekly segment.
He was also the booker
and part owner of the Global Wrestling Federation
with former USWA
commentator Max Andrews, as well as part of the announcing team for GWF Wrestling Superstars on ESPN
, and had a similar role in the short-lived Ladies Professional Wrestling Association
. Popularly known as the "round mound of sound", Pedicino has been compared to some of the top commentators of the mid-to late 1980s and is regarded as one of the most recognizable personalities during the final years of the "territory era". Brian Westcott, wrestling historian and writer, has called Pedicino one of his all-time favorite play-by-play/color commentators.
Following his retirement from wrestling, Pedicino has owned and operated local radio station
s based in central Georgia
, as well as general sales manager for WCNN radio Atlanta. Pedicino, with over 40 years experience in radio and television broadcasting, has also been a management consultant for several major media companies including Turner Broadcasting, Susquehanna Broadcasting and Clear Channel Broadcasting. He and his wife also began a successful publishing company, Food Fax, which puts out six annual specialty advertising guides. Their company, the first to offer such service, originally started out sending fax listings
to office workers of lunch menus and daily specials from over 1,000 local restaurants in Cobb County, Georgia
.
on October 6, 1949, and moved to Atlanta, Georgia
with his family three years later. He began working in radio at age 14, attended Georgia State University
, and later graduated from the RAB School at University of Pennsylvania
's Wharton Business School. In August 1985, Pedicino joined the sales staff at the Atlanta-based WATL TV 36
. In early-1986, Pedicino developed a "new concept" wrestling program for the station. The show, "Superstars of Wrestling", would feature over eight hours of professional wrestling from National Wrestling Alliance territories throughout the United States as well as from Puerto Rico
and Japan
. It was also the earliest U.S. television show to regularly broadcast Japanese puroresu and joshi wrestling
as part of the Fuji Television Network's efforts to develop a market in the American television industry.
and Birmingham, Alabama
were broadcast during its first year. These would later include the Continental Wrestling Association
, Georgia Championship Wrestling
, Mid-South Wrestling and World Class Championship Wrestling
as well as events from around the world. Because the show never disclosed that the wrestling being shown was pre-taped, with Pedicino adding commentary later on, fans watching the show at home would often travel to the studio hoping to attend the show. In November, twenty fans drove in a van all the way from Snellville, Georgia
to the locked studio
in downtown Atlanta
only to be turned away by security.
Pedicino served as both executive producer
and host throughout its near 7-year run. He was joined by fellow ring announcer Rhubarb Jones and 21-year-old Boni Blackstone, who later became his wife. Blackstone had been one of 20 girls, chosen out of a total of 70, to become Pedicino's co-host. Gordon Solie
, a popular wrestling announcer, also joined the show as a regular color commentator
. Solie would also host a featured segment with Pedicino, "Pro Wrestling This Week", which discussed wrestling news from around the country. They were sometimes joined by Bill Apter
, who had his own segment, and co-produced interview segments with Pro Wrestling Illustrated
featuring many of wrestling stars of the 1980s. Apter's appearances, as well as those on TBS
, considerably raised his profile among wrestling fans of the era.
The show was watched in over 20 major television markets in its first year. By the summer of 1987, the show broadcast in 40 cities, including New York
, Los Angeles
and Chicago
, and eventually syndicated throughout the country. Pedicino and Blackstone became seen as local celebrities in Atlanta but Pedicino brushed off the attention regarding themselves as "wrestling fans who got lucky". Earlier that year, he and Blackstone hosted the three-day 20th annual Miller High Life World of Wheels car show held at Atlanta's World Congress Center. Sponsored by the National Automotive Parts Association
, the event displayed over 500 of the most expensive custom designed antique vehicles in the world including the 18-wheel
Volvo
"Elvis' Eldorado". French entertainer "Miss World of Wheels" Danielle Cheavalier and wrestling valet Miss Sunshine of The Freebirds were also at the event. In 1988, he became involved with the Southern Championship Training Center, a rival training facility of Jody Hamilton
's American Academy of Professional Wrestling, in Cumming, Georgia
by helping promote the school.
On July 17, 1988, Pedicino and Blackstone hosted a two hour wrestling show, "Wrestlethon '88", which was broadcast nationwide via satellite
by Fox Broadcasting as part of The Late Show
. This was the third annual Wrestlethon and had been a successful fundraiser in past years. The first show raised an estimated $10,000 and helped save the life of teenager Deloris Wadsworth who needed a liver transplant. The second show raised between $12,000-$13,000 for wounded police officers J.J. Biello and Richard Williams; the third show was raise enough money to purchase 200-300 bulletproof vests of the 1,100 needed for the Atlanta Police Department
. Four months later, Pedicino appeared with a number of media figures and television celebrities at a benefit show, "Celebrity Cookoff for a Cure", held by the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation at Benihana
. Other participants included Atlanta Magazine editor Lee Walburn, Atlanta Business Chronicle editor Anita Sharpe, Creative Loafing
publisher Deborah Eason and local WSB-TV
personalities John Pruitt and Bebe Emerman.
, Pedicino was able to bring in a number of former stars from around the region. Among these included Jimmy Holiday, Tony Zane, Billy Starr, John Michaels and Mr. Wrestling II
, then working for Jody Hamilton
's Deep South Championship Wrestling. Future WCW star Marcus Bagwell also made his debut in the promotion under the name Fabian.
In early-1990, he hired Scott Hudson
and Steve Prazak as announcers for the promotion. According to Hudson in a later interview, both men had been fans of his show and they persuaded Pedicino to hire them for free after a poor performance given by the regular announcer at a show in Carrollton, Georgia
. As Hudson and Prazak had prior experience in radio and television, they soon became valuable members of the promotion. Pedicino later brought the two with him when he became involved with the Global Wrestling Federation
. He and Hudson were also given their own segment on Superstars of Wrestling, styled in a comedic "Laurel and Hardy
" fashion, called "Point-Counterpoint" which was sometimes aired on ESPN for the GWF. Craig Johnson, then a play-by-play commentator for the United States Wrestling Association
, was also hired by Pedicino as head announcer over other applicants including Chris Cruise and Eric Bischoff
.
That same year, he and Blackstone became married. This came a surprise, both to wrestling fans and the staff, as the two had a well-known kayfabe
adversarial relationship on the show much like Gorilla Monsoon
and Bobby "The Brain" Heenan
on WWF Wrestling Challenge
. Pedicino played the "straight man" of the team who teased and played pranks on Blackstone. The two would continue their routines off-camera, keeping even the studio in the dark, by driving home in separate cars and Blackstone addressing her then boyfriend as "Mr. Pedicino" in front of studio employees during the first two years of their relationship. Pedicino also had an 11-year old son, Vince, from a previous marriage and was also sometimes seen on the show.
's World Class Championship Wrestling
the previous year, he and former USWA commissioner Max Andrews decided to start a new promotion and moved into the Dallas-area in June 1991. It was claimed that this new promotion, the Global Wrestling Federation
, was an established wrestling organization that promoted events worldwide and intended to become a competitor of World Championship Wrestling
and the World Wrestling Federation.
Pedicino and Andrews were originally backed by a supposed Nigeria
n businessman, Olu Oliami, who had offered to invest $10 million in the promotion. When the deal fell through, Pedicino instead went to the Overton family for assistance. The Overtons later backed out as well and Pedicino took on the bulk of the financial backing himself. By late 1991, he had signed a deal with ESPN
to air GWF events from the Global Dome
as well as purchasing the United States Wrestling Association
's syndicated time slot from Jerry Jarrett
providing additional television coverage for the GWF. Joined by Craig Johnson, Scott Hudson and Steve Prazak, Pedicino and his wife became part of the regular GWF broadcast team on ESPN. As well as being a major on-air personality for the promotion, Pedicino was also involved in a major storyline which saw him reveal GWF Commissioner Max Andrews as the unknown leader of the heel stable The Cartel (Rip Rogers
, Cactus Jack
, Scotty the Body
and Makhan Singh
).
In October 1991, Pedicino turned over his booking position to Eddie Gilbert. While television ratings improved under Gilbert, house show attendance dwindled due to declining business brought on by a series of scandals in the wrestling industry involving the World Wrestling Federation. The cost of maintaining the roster as well as television production costs slowly drained the promotion's finances. The financial situation became so serious that the promotion was forced to release Pedicino and Blackstone, Eddie Gilbert, Craig Johnson and other key GWF members on April 9, 1992. Pedicino sold his share of the promotion and the GWF eventually folded after going through a series of failed owners including Grey Pierson and Jim Crockett
.
of 24 restaurants and their daily specials to office workers. The first company of its kind, the listing was sent out five nights a week to over 1,000 businesses in the Cobb County area
. In 1993, Blackstone was brought to the WWF as an interviewer for several months while Pedicino joined Sgt. Slaughter
, Jim Cornette
and Ken Resnick as commentators in Ladies Professional Wrestling Association
.
Although he considered bringing back Superstars of Wrestling, Pedicino instead distanced himself from professional wrestling and returned to the radio industry. With nearly a decade of experience in virtually all aspects of radio and television broadcasting, he was hired as management consultant for several major media companies including Turner Broadcasting, Blair Broadcasting, Outlet Broadcasting, Susquehanna Broadcasting, and Clear Channel Broadcasting. He was also the owner and general manager
of several Georgia-based radio station
s, most notably WMKJ, and WMGP
, and produced WTLK TV-14 infomercial
"Shoppers' Showcase" with his wife prior to joining Legacy Media Holdings as vice president
and chief marketing officer
in 1996.
In August 2000, Pedicino and his wife Boni began hosting Pro Wrestling this Week on FOX Sports Radio
, which ran on Sunday nights from 11:00 pm to 1:00 am, and later appeared together at the NWA 52nd Anniversary Show.
In July 2007, Pedicino bought WEKS
was given approval by the Federal Communications Commission
to increase its broadcasting range two months later. The country music
station, originally only available in Griffin, Georgia
, could now be heard on 92.5 FM
in Troup
, Meriwether
, Coweta
, Pike
and Spalding counties
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
announcer, commentator
Sports commentator
In sports broadcasting, a commentator gives a running commentary of a game or event in real time, usually during a live broadcast. The comments are normally a voiceover, with the sounds of the action and spectators also heard in the background. In the case of television commentary, the commentator...
, promoter
Promoter (entertainment)
An entertainment promoter i.e. music, wrestling, boxing etc is a person or company in the business of marketing and promoting live events such as concerts/gigs, boxing matches, sports entertainment , festivals, raves, and nightclubs.- Business model :Promoters are typically hired as independent...
, television
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
and radio producer
Radio producer
A radio producer oversees the making of a radio show. There are two main types of producer. An audio or creative producer and a content producer. Audio producers create sounds and audio specifically, content producers oversee and orchestrate a radio show or feature...
. He was a well-known on-air personality in regional territories of the Southern United States
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
during the 1980s, being an announcer and commentator for Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions was a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett, Jr. until the late 1980s. It was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and was the forerunner to World Championship Wrestling .-Early history:...
and World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
, and as host of the nationally syndicated "Superstars of Wrestling" with his wife Boni Blackstone
Boni Blackstone
Bonnie "Boni" Blackstone is a retired American professional wrestling announcer, commentator, model, television and radio producer. She was a popular on-air personality in regional territories of the Southern United States during the 1980s, as part of the announcing team in the Global Wrestling...
and Gordon Solie
Gordon Solie
Jonard Frank Labiak , better known as Gordon Solie, was a Florida-based professional wrestling play-by-play announcer working for World Championship Wrestling...
from 1986 to 1992.
The series, created and produced by Pedicino, aired eight hours of wrestling from around the country and was the first to provide national coverage of the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
as well as from Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. He and Solie also hosted a popular segment on the show, "Pro Wrestling This Week", which discussed the then current news from the "Big Three" (AWA
American Wrestling Association
The American Wrestling Association was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 to 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo...
, NWA
Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions was a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett, Jr. until the late 1980s. It was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and was the forerunner to World Championship Wrestling .-Early history:...
and the WWF) and regional promotions. Scott Hudson
Scott Hudson
Raymond Scott Hudson is a professor of electrical engineering and computer science at Washington State University. Hudson was educated at Caltech, where he received his bachelor's degree in engineering and applied science in 1985, his master's degree in electrical engineering in 1986, and his PhD...
and Steve Prazak, both former WCW announcers, were fans of the show and given their first big break by Pedicino when he began promoting events in the late 1980s. Bill Apter
Bill Apter
Bill Apter is a journalist specializing in professional wrestling and best known for the kayfabe or so-called "mark" magazines for which he edited and photographed matches from the 1970s to the present. The magazine he became most prominently known for was Pro Wrestling Illustrated...
, editor of Pro Wrestling Illustrated
Pro Wrestling Illustrated
Pro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...
, has also credited Pedicino for considerably raising his profile among wrestling fans due to his weekly segment.
He was also the booker
Talent agent
A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds jobs for actors, authors, film directors, musicians, models, producers, professional athletes, writers and other people in various entertainment businesses. Having an agent is not required, but does help the artist in getting jobs...
and part owner of the Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation was a professional wrestling promotion based in Dallas, Texas. It started in June 1991 and folded in September 1994. At one time its shows were presented on the ESPN television network. On many weeks, the promotion provided programming five days a week airing at 4 p.m...
with former USWA
United States Wrestling Association
The United States Wrestling Association or USWA was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. It was founded by former CWA owner Jerry Jarrett.-Foundation:...
commentator Max Andrews, as well as part of the announcing team for GWF Wrestling Superstars on ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
, and had a similar role in the short-lived Ladies Professional Wrestling Association
Ladies Professional Wrestling Association
The Ladies Professional Wrestling Association was an all-female wrestling promotion which operated in the early 1990s . It was considered a successor to such women's promotions as Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling , but it differed in that, while GLOW slanted more toward WWF-style sports entertainment...
. Popularly known as the "round mound of sound", Pedicino has been compared to some of the top commentators of the mid-to late 1980s and is regarded as one of the most recognizable personalities during the final years of the "territory era". Brian Westcott, wrestling historian and writer, has called Pedicino one of his all-time favorite play-by-play/color commentators.
Following his retirement from wrestling, Pedicino has owned and operated local radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
s based in central Georgia
Central Georgia
Central Georgia refers to the region containing the metropolitan region surrounding the city of Macon, in Bibb County in the U.S. state of Georgia....
, as well as general sales manager for WCNN radio Atlanta. Pedicino, with over 40 years experience in radio and television broadcasting, has also been a management consultant for several major media companies including Turner Broadcasting, Susquehanna Broadcasting and Clear Channel Broadcasting. He and his wife also began a successful publishing company, Food Fax, which puts out six annual specialty advertising guides. Their company, the first to offer such service, originally started out sending fax listings
Fax
Fax , sometimes called telecopying, is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material , normally to a telephone number connected to a printer or other output device...
to office workers of lunch menus and daily specials from over 1,000 local restaurants in Cobb County, Georgia
Cobb County, Georgia
Cobb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. Its county seat and largest city is Marietta, which is located in the center of the county. The county was named for Thomas Willis Cobb, who in the early 19th century was a United States representative and senator from Georgia...
.
Early career
Joe Pedicino was born in New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
on October 6, 1949, and moved to Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
with his family three years later. He began working in radio at age 14, attended Georgia State University
Georgia State University
Georgia State University is a research university in downtown Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Founded in 1913, it serves about 30,000 students and is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities...
, and later graduated from the RAB School at University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
's Wharton Business School. In August 1985, Pedicino joined the sales staff at the Atlanta-based WATL TV 36
WATL
WATL is a television station in Atlanta, Georgia, USA affiliated with MyNetworkTV. It is owned by the Gannett Company and is a sister station to WXIA-TV , Atlanta's NBC affiliate. WATL's callsign refers to ATLanta, the station's city of license, also known as "the A-T-L" for its airport code...
. In early-1986, Pedicino developed a "new concept" wrestling program for the station. The show, "Superstars of Wrestling", would feature over eight hours of professional wrestling from National Wrestling Alliance territories throughout the United States as well as from Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. It was also the earliest U.S. television show to regularly broadcast Japanese puroresu and joshi wrestling
Joshi
Joshi is a family name common in India and Nepal. Whereas the Joshi's of India are of Brahmin origin, the Joshi's of Nepal are either Newars or Khas-Brahmin...
as part of the Fuji Television Network's efforts to develop a market in the American television industry.
Superstars of Wrestling
The show debuted in May 1986, airing on Saturday nights from 8:00 pm to 3:00 am, was a ratings success. Eight different wrestling organizations from as far away as Dallas, TexasDallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
and Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
were broadcast during its first year. These would later include the Continental Wrestling Association
Continental Wrestling Association
The Continental 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 referred to as Mid-Southern Wrestling...
, Georgia Championship Wrestling
Georgia Championship Wrestling
Georgia Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion whose self-titled TV program aired in the 1970s and 1980s on Atlanta, U.S., superstation WTBS. Though based in Atlanta, the company also ran live wrestling shows throughout its geographic "territory" of Georgia Georgia...
, Mid-South Wrestling and World Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling ' was a regional professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich...
as well as events from around the world. Because the show never disclosed that the wrestling being shown was pre-taped, with Pedicino adding commentary later on, fans watching the show at home would often travel to the studio hoping to attend the show. In November, twenty fans drove in a van all the way from Snellville, Georgia
Snellville, Georgia
Snellville is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States, east of Atlanta. The population was 15,351 at the 2000 census. The city's mayor, Jerry Oberholtzer, was elected to a 4-year term in 2007. The city's commercial and residential development has grown enormously in recent years...
to the locked studio
Closed set
In geometry, topology, and related branches of mathematics, a closed set is a set whose complement is an open set. In a topological space, a closed set can be defined as a set which contains all its limit points...
in downtown Atlanta
Downtown Atlanta
Downtown Atlanta is the first and largest of the three financial districts in the city of Atlanta. Downtown Atlanta is the location of many corporate or regional headquarters, city, county, state and federal government facilities, sporting facilities, and is the central tourist attraction of the city...
only to be turned away by security.
Pedicino served as both executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
and host throughout its near 7-year run. He was joined by fellow ring announcer Rhubarb Jones and 21-year-old Boni Blackstone, who later became his wife. Blackstone had been one of 20 girls, chosen out of a total of 70, to become Pedicino's co-host. Gordon Solie
Gordon Solie
Jonard Frank Labiak , better known as Gordon Solie, was a Florida-based professional wrestling play-by-play announcer working for World Championship Wrestling...
, a popular wrestling announcer, also joined the show as a regular color commentator
Color commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...
. Solie would also host a featured segment with Pedicino, "Pro Wrestling This Week", which discussed wrestling news from around the country. They were sometimes joined by Bill Apter
Bill Apter
Bill Apter is a journalist specializing in professional wrestling and best known for the kayfabe or so-called "mark" magazines for which he edited and photographed matches from the 1970s to the present. The magazine he became most prominently known for was Pro Wrestling Illustrated...
, who had his own segment, and co-produced interview segments with Pro Wrestling Illustrated
Pro Wrestling Illustrated
Pro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...
featuring many of wrestling stars of the 1980s. Apter's appearances, as well as those on TBS
TBS (TV channel)
TBS , stylized in the logo as tbs, is an American cable television channel owned by Time Warner that shows a variety of programming, with a focus on comedy. TBS was originally known as WTCG, a UHF terrestrial television station that broadcast from Atlanta, Georgia, during the late 1970s...
, considerably raised his profile among wrestling fans of the era.
The show was watched in over 20 major television markets in its first year. By the summer of 1987, the show broadcast in 40 cities, including New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, and eventually syndicated throughout the country. Pedicino and Blackstone became seen as local celebrities in Atlanta but Pedicino brushed off the attention regarding themselves as "wrestling fans who got lucky". Earlier that year, he and Blackstone hosted the three-day 20th annual Miller High Life World of Wheels car show held at Atlanta's World Congress Center. Sponsored by the National Automotive Parts Association
National Automotive Parts Association
The National Automotive Parts Association was founded in 1925 to meet America's growing need for an auto parts distribution system. It is a retailers' cooperative that distributes parts to both corporately and independently owned auto parts stores.NAPA's parent company is Genuine Parts Company , ...
, the event displayed over 500 of the most expensive custom designed antique vehicles in the world including the 18-wheel
18 wheeler
18 wheeler is a colloquial term for a semi-trailer truck.18 wheeler may also refer to:* 18 Wheeler , a Scottish indie band* 18 Wheeler , a 1979 arcade game designed by Midway Games...
Volvo
Volvo
AB Volvo is a Swedish builder of commercial vehicles, including trucks, buses and construction equipment. Volvo also supplies marine and industrial drive systems, aerospace components and financial services...
"Elvis' Eldorado". French entertainer "Miss World of Wheels" Danielle Cheavalier and wrestling valet Miss Sunshine of The Freebirds were also at the event. In 1988, he became involved with the Southern Championship Training Center, a rival training facility of Jody Hamilton
Jody Hamilton
Joseph "Jody" Hamilton is an American retired professional wrestler and current wrestling promoter and trainer. In his active days Hamiltion was best known as known as one half of the tag team The Assassins where he was called "Assassin #1"...
's American Academy of Professional Wrestling, in Cumming, Georgia
Cumming, Georgia
Cumming is a city in Forsyth County, Georgia, United States. The population was 5,430 at the 2010 census. However, places with a Cumming mailing address have a population of around 100,000...
by helping promote the school.
On July 17, 1988, Pedicino and Blackstone hosted a two hour wrestling show, "Wrestlethon '88", which was broadcast nationwide via satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
by Fox Broadcasting as part of The Late Show
The Late Show (1986 TV series)
The Late Show is an American late-night talk show and the first series broadcast on the then-new Fox Network. Originally hosted by comic actress Joan Rivers, it first aired on October 9, 1986 under the title The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers...
. This was the third annual Wrestlethon and had been a successful fundraiser in past years. The first show raised an estimated $10,000 and helped save the life of teenager Deloris Wadsworth who needed a liver transplant. The second show raised between $12,000-$13,000 for wounded police officers J.J. Biello and Richard Williams; the third show was raise enough money to purchase 200-300 bulletproof vests of the 1,100 needed for the Atlanta Police Department
Atlanta Police Department
The Atlanta Police Department is the law enforcement agency of the city of Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.The city shifted from its rural-based Marshal and Deputy Marshal model at the end of the 19th century. In 1873, the department was formed with 26 officers...
. Four months later, Pedicino appeared with a number of media figures and television celebrities at a benefit show, "Celebrity Cookoff for a Cure", held by the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation at Benihana
Benihana
Benihana can refer to:*Benihana, Benihana's Hibachi Restaurant*Benihana * Benihana, the Japanese word for safflower...
. Other participants included Atlanta Magazine editor Lee Walburn, Atlanta Business Chronicle editor Anita Sharpe, Creative Loafing
Creative Loafing
CL Inc. is the Tampa, Florida-based publisher of three city newsweeklies and their associated websites. Each of the papers focuses on local news, politics, arts and entertainment, and restaurants...
publisher Deborah Eason and local WSB-TV
WSB-TV
WSB-TV, virtual channel 2.1 , is the ABC affiliate in Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship television station of Cox Enterprises and its Cox Media Group subsidiary...
personalities John Pruitt and Bebe Emerman.
Georgia All-Star Wrestling and marriage to Boni Blackstone
Pedicino started his own wrestling promotion, Georgia All-Star Wrestling, in 1989. Having been an announcer for Jim Crockett PromotionsJim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions was a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett, Jr. until the late 1980s. It was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and was the forerunner to World Championship Wrestling .-Early history:...
, Pedicino was able to bring in a number of former stars from around the region. Among these included Jimmy Holiday, Tony Zane, Billy Starr, John Michaels and Mr. Wrestling II
Mr. Wrestling II
John "Johnny" Walker , better known as Mr. Wrestling II, is a retired American professional wrestler. As Mr...
, then working for Jody Hamilton
Jody Hamilton
Joseph "Jody" Hamilton is an American retired professional wrestler and current wrestling promoter and trainer. In his active days Hamiltion was best known as known as one half of the tag team The Assassins where he was called "Assassin #1"...
's Deep South Championship Wrestling. Future WCW star Marcus Bagwell also made his debut in the promotion under the name Fabian.
In early-1990, he hired Scott Hudson
Scott Hudson
Raymond Scott Hudson is a professor of electrical engineering and computer science at Washington State University. Hudson was educated at Caltech, where he received his bachelor's degree in engineering and applied science in 1985, his master's degree in electrical engineering in 1986, and his PhD...
and Steve Prazak as announcers for the promotion. According to Hudson in a later interview, both men had been fans of his show and they persuaded Pedicino to hire them for free after a poor performance given by the regular announcer at a show in Carrollton, Georgia
Carrollton, Georgia
Carrollton is a city in West Georgia, United States, in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 24,388...
. As Hudson and Prazak had prior experience in radio and television, they soon became valuable members of the promotion. Pedicino later brought the two with him when he became involved with the Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation was a professional wrestling promotion based in Dallas, Texas. It started in June 1991 and folded in September 1994. At one time its shows were presented on the ESPN television network. On many weeks, the promotion provided programming five days a week airing at 4 p.m...
. He and Hudson were also given their own segment on Superstars of Wrestling, styled in a comedic "Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
" fashion, called "Point-Counterpoint" which was sometimes aired on ESPN for the GWF. Craig Johnson, then a play-by-play commentator for the United States Wrestling Association
United States Wrestling Association
The United States Wrestling Association or USWA was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. It was founded by former CWA owner Jerry Jarrett.-Foundation:...
, was also hired by Pedicino as head announcer over other applicants including Chris Cruise and Eric Bischoff
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
.
That same year, he and Blackstone became married. This came a surprise, both to wrestling fans and the staff, as the two had a well-known kayfabe
Kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
adversarial relationship on the show much like Gorilla Monsoon
Gorilla Monsoon
Robert James "Gino" Marella , better known by his ring name of Gorilla Monsoon, was an American professional wrestler, play-by-play announcer, and booker...
and Bobby "The Brain" Heenan
Bobby Heenan
Raymond Louis "Ray" Heenan , better known as Bobby "The Brain" Heenan , is a former American professional wrestling manager and color commentator, best known for his time with the American Wrestling Association , World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...
on WWF Wrestling Challenge
WWF Wrestling Challenge
WWF Challenge is a professional wrestling television program produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It was syndicated weekly and aired from 1986 to 1996. The show premiered as WWF Wrestling Challenge and became simply known as WWF Challenge in 1995. The show featured matches, pre-match...
. Pedicino played the "straight man" of the team who teased and played pranks on Blackstone. The two would continue their routines off-camera, keeping even the studio in the dark, by driving home in separate cars and Blackstone addressing her then boyfriend as "Mr. Pedicino" in front of studio employees during the first two years of their relationship. Pedicino also had an 11-year old son, Vince, from a previous marriage and was also sometimes seen on the show.
Global Wrestling Federation
With the close of Fritz von ErichFritz Von Erich
Jack Barton Adkisson was an American professional wrestler under the ring name Fritz Von Erich, better known today as a wrestling promoter and the patriarch of the Von Erich family...
's World Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling ' was a regional professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich...
the previous year, he and former USWA commissioner Max Andrews decided to start a new promotion and moved into the Dallas-area in June 1991. It was claimed that this new promotion, the Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation was a professional wrestling promotion based in Dallas, Texas. It started in June 1991 and folded in September 1994. At one time its shows were presented on the ESPN television network. On many weeks, the promotion provided programming five days a week airing at 4 p.m...
, was an established wrestling organization that promoted events worldwide and intended to become a competitor of World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
and the World Wrestling Federation.
Pedicino and Andrews were originally backed by a supposed Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
n businessman, Olu Oliami, who had offered to invest $10 million in the promotion. When the deal fell through, Pedicino instead went to the Overton family for assistance. The Overtons later backed out as well and Pedicino took on the bulk of the financial backing himself. By late 1991, he had signed a deal with ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
to air GWF events from the Global Dome
Dallas Sportatorium
The Sportatorium, located in downtown Dallas, Texas , was a barn-like arena used primarily for professional wrestling events...
as well as purchasing the United States Wrestling Association
United States Wrestling Association
The United States Wrestling Association or USWA was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. It was founded by former CWA owner Jerry Jarrett.-Foundation:...
's syndicated time slot from Jerry Jarrett
Jerry Jarrett
Jerry W. Jarrett is an American promoter and former professional wrestler, and the father of wrestler Jeff Jarrett. He is the co-founder and former part-owner of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
providing additional television coverage for the GWF. Joined by Craig Johnson, Scott Hudson and Steve Prazak, Pedicino and his wife became part of the regular GWF broadcast team on ESPN. As well as being a major on-air personality for the promotion, Pedicino was also involved in a major storyline which saw him reveal GWF Commissioner Max Andrews as the unknown leader of the heel stable The Cartel (Rip Rogers
Rip Rogers
Mark Sciarra whose professional name is Rip Rogers is a former professional wrestler and trainer for Ohio Valley Wrestling. He is currently a trainer for Derby City Wrestling in Louisville, Kentucky.-Career:...
, Cactus Jack
Mick Foley
Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
, Scotty the Body
Scott Levy
Scott Anthony Levy , better known by his ring name Raven, is an American professional wrestler, wrestling producer, wrestling writer, and occasional author and actor currently working for Juggalo Championship Wrestling , where he is co-holder of the JCW Tag Team Championship, as well as other...
and Makhan Singh
Mike Shaw
Mike Shaw was a professional wrestler who was best known for his stint in World Championship Wrestling as Norman The Lunatic, and as Bastion Booger in the World Wrestling Federation...
).
In October 1991, Pedicino turned over his booking position to Eddie Gilbert. While television ratings improved under Gilbert, house show attendance dwindled due to declining business brought on by a series of scandals in the wrestling industry involving the World Wrestling Federation. The cost of maintaining the roster as well as television production costs slowly drained the promotion's finances. The financial situation became so serious that the promotion was forced to release Pedicino and Blackstone, Eddie Gilbert, Craig Johnson and other key GWF members on April 9, 1992. Pedicino sold his share of the promotion and the GWF eventually folded after going through a series of failed owners including Grey Pierson and Jim Crockett
Jim Crockett, Jr.
Jim Crockett, Jr. is a former professional wrestling promoter. From 1973 to 1988, he owned Jim Crockett Promotions , a wrestling company affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance...
.
Retirement and recent years
Back in Atlanta, creative differences eventually caused Pedicino and Solie to part ways and Pedicino decided to end Superstars of Wrestling in August 1992. He and Blackstone started their own business, Max Foods, that same year. The business initially began by publishing a two-page fax listingFax
Fax , sometimes called telecopying, is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material , normally to a telephone number connected to a printer or other output device...
of 24 restaurants and their daily specials to office workers. The first company of its kind, the listing was sent out five nights a week to over 1,000 businesses in the Cobb County area
Cobb County, Georgia
Cobb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. Its county seat and largest city is Marietta, which is located in the center of the county. The county was named for Thomas Willis Cobb, who in the early 19th century was a United States representative and senator from Georgia...
. In 1993, Blackstone was brought to the WWF as an interviewer for several months while Pedicino joined Sgt. Slaughter
Sgt. Slaughter
Robert Remus , better known by his ring name Sgt. Slaughter, is an American former WWE personality and semi-retired professional wrestler. From the late 1970s to the early 1990s, Slaughter had success in the National Wrestling Alliance, American Wrestling Association, and World Wrestling...
, Jim Cornette
Jim Cornette
James Mark "Jim" Cornette is an American professional wrestling manager, commentator, promoter, and booker. As a manager, he has worked for Jim Crockett Promotions, World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Federation and from 1991 to 1995, was the owner of Smoky Mountain Wrestling...
and Ken Resnick as commentators in Ladies Professional Wrestling Association
Ladies Professional Wrestling Association
The Ladies Professional Wrestling Association was an all-female wrestling promotion which operated in the early 1990s . It was considered a successor to such women's promotions as Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling , but it differed in that, while GLOW slanted more toward WWF-style sports entertainment...
.
Although he considered bringing back Superstars of Wrestling, Pedicino instead distanced himself from professional wrestling and returned to the radio industry. With nearly a decade of experience in virtually all aspects of radio and television broadcasting, he was hired as management consultant for several major media companies including Turner Broadcasting, Blair Broadcasting, Outlet Broadcasting, Susquehanna Broadcasting, and Clear Channel Broadcasting. He was also the owner and general manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
of several Georgia-based radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
s, most notably WMKJ, and WMGP
WMGP
WMGP is a rock-leaning classic hits music-formatted radio station that plays hit music from the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. The station is licensed to Hogansville, Georgia and serves the southwest tip of Atlanta and Midwest Georgia area. Since February 2002, it has used the branding "Midwest Georgia's...
, and produced WTLK TV-14 infomercial
Infomercial
Infomercials are direct response television commercials which generally include a phone number or website. There are long-form infomercials, which are typically between 15 and 30 minutes in length, and short-form infomercials, which are typically 30 seconds to 120 seconds in length. Infomercials...
"Shoppers' Showcase" with his wife prior to joining Legacy Media Holdings as vice president
Vice president
A vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...
and chief marketing officer
Chief marketing officer
Chief Marketing Officer is a corporate title referring to an executive responsible for various marketing activities in an organization...
in 1996.
In August 2000, Pedicino and his wife Boni began hosting Pro Wrestling this Week on FOX Sports Radio
Fox Sports Radio
Fox Sports Radio, abbreviated FSR, is an international radio network consisting of sports talk programming. The network is a service of Premiere Networks...
, which ran on Sunday nights from 11:00 pm to 1:00 am, and later appeared together at the NWA 52nd Anniversary Show.
In July 2007, Pedicino bought WEKS
WEKS
WEKS is a radio station broadcasting a Country music format. Licensed to Zebulon, Georgia, USA. The station is currently owned by Legacy Media Holdings, LLC and features programing from NASCAR.-History:...
was given approval by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
to increase its broadcasting range two months later. The country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
station, originally only available in Griffin, Georgia
Griffin, Georgia
Griffin is a city in and the county seat of Spalding County in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 23,643.-Geography:Griffin is located at ....
, could now be heard on 92.5 FM
WEKS
WEKS is a radio station broadcasting a Country music format. Licensed to Zebulon, Georgia, USA. The station is currently owned by Legacy Media Holdings, LLC and features programing from NASCAR.-History:...
in Troup
Troup County, Georgia
Troup County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2010, the population was 67,044. The county seat is LaGrange.-History:...
, Meriwether
Meriwether County, Georgia
Meriwether County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created on December 14, 1827. As of 2000, the population was 22,534. The 2009 Census Estimate reflects a population of 22,783...
, Coweta
Coweta County, Georgia
Coweta County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population was 89,215. The 2009 Census Estimate placed the population at 131,936...
, Pike
Pike County, Georgia
Pike County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created on December 9, 1822. As of 2000, the population was 13,688. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 17,204...
and Spalding counties
Spalding County, Georgia
Spalding County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created December 20, 1851. As of 2000, the population was 58,417. The 2007 Census Estimate showed a population of 62,826...
.