Then the to-that-moment-placid
Patterson took the mic and demonstrated to anyone who didn't know
exactly why he was called Thunderbolt. Modeling after the great
preachers and prophets of the '60s and '70s, and showing why some of
the best promo men in the sport's history stole as much as they
could from him, T-Bolt tore the house down with a five minute
you-better-call-somebody-I'm-so-full tour-de-force promo-sermon that
was the last word on
while-the-work-in-the-ring-may-be-generations-better-script-THAT. I
had my mouth open in awe for about four of those five minutes.
- Bruce Mitchell
Excerpt from a
PWTorch VIP Exclusive
PWTorch.com
Sometimes, you don't even have to close
your eyes to imagine that you are living in a world of 25 years ago.
You just have to listen. Thunderbolt Patterson, still displaying the
shuck-n-jive speak that made him one of the biggest gate attractions
of the 1960s and 1970s: "I love all of ya; the boys that done me
wrong and the boys that done me right ... Often imitated, but never
duplicated ... You better call somebody!"
- Steve Johnson
Excerpt from "Legends Abound at
Charlotte Fanfest"
Canoe SLAM! Wrestling
THUNDERBOLT PATTERSON
Thunderbolt Patterson is involved in
wrestling work these days, but for a much higher order of promoter.
An ordained minister, the 67-year-old Patterson is working with Tony
Evans, a pastor and founder of the Youth Dynamics ministry in
Georgia, to promote Kingdom Championship Wrestling. The goal is to
incorporate family-oriented pro wrestling as a springboard to
spiritual causes, with free shows and motivational speaking that
promotes church and community. “So Pastor T and I, we just try to
clean up wrestling a little bit,” Patterson explained. “When I say
clean up, I mean all the vulgar stuff, hitting below the belt and
cussing, and misconduct dealing with ladies. We’re just trying to
clean it up a little bit.” According to Evans, Patterson is a
perfect fit for his ministry, since he’s a white minister tending
mostly to disadvantaged and at-risk black youths. “These children
needed a black role model and I couldn’t think of anybody better
than Thunderbolt. I tracked him down, asked him to come and be a
part, and he’s been a part of it ever since,” Evans said.
With his colorful style and often
controversial full-bore approach, Claude Patterson was one of
wrestling’s top gate attractions during a career that stretched from
the 1960s to the 1990s. After growing up in Iowa, he got involved in
wrestling in Kansas City, and then headed to Texas and California,
where he won the promotion’s version of the World tag team title
with Alberto Torres. “He was a pretty good wrestler, and would show
off a lot of wrestling moves. He knew how to wrestle,” said veteran
star Jose Lothario, the trainer of a young Shawn Michaels. “He
always treated me really good. To me, he never thought he was better
than me or anybody else. He was a very, very nice man.” Always ready
to roughhouse, Patterson had a boxing match in Raleigh, N.C., one
night against Gary Hart. Citing lingering racism, Hart recalled that
some wrestlers had a problem with whites wrestling blacks at the
time. “I was more than happy to do it,” Hart said. “We sold the
building out.” And Lanny Poffo remembered how Patterson was willing
to take an up-and-comer under his wing. “When I got to Atlanta,
Thunderbolt Patterson gave me a lot of advice on interviews, and a
lot about my individuality and being myself,” Poffo said. “Going in
a car with him was an education because he was the biggest star at
[Georgia-based] Gunkel Enterprises.” Among his championship claims
were the NWA National tag team title with Ole Anderson, the NWA
Mid-Atlantic tag team title with Jerry Brisco, and Brass Knucks
titles in Florida and Amarillo, Texas.
What stood out about Patterson, then
and now, was the ability to move masses with his oratory. It’s that
speech-making ability, straight from the heart, that had a dramatic
impact on an entire generation of wrestlers. As Brickhouse Brown put
it, “The guy that used to influence my promos was T-Bolt Patterson.
You know the time I heard T-Bolt Patterson preach like he was
talking in church I say, ‘Now yeah, that’s the way to do
interviews.’ ” Hart, who managed Rhodes in Florida, acknowledged
that his charge lifted his soulful shuck-and-jive mannerisms
directly from Patterson.
Patterson has long been a fighter
against racism and an activist on touchy issues such as
unionization, which did him little good with what he describes as
the tightly knit wrestling establishment. He’s not “bitter,” he
emphasized; just puzzled by how a business that banked on star power
blackballed one of its brightest lights. “I just thank God that Tony
called me because all these years, all the so-called wrestling
friends or whatever – the promoters or bookers or owners or whatever
– had no interest in myself,” said Patterson. “I thank God that I
found Jesus Christ … here we are in 2008, God has kept me all the
way.”
- Steve Johnson
(L) Thunderbolt brought down the house
in his acceptance speech on the floor of the banquet. (Photo by
David Layne); (R) Thunderbolt thanks Ole for his grand induction
speech with a big kiss! (Photo by Peggy Lathan)
Photos by Blake Arledge, David Layne,
Peggy Lathan, and
Steven Johnson (Slam! Wrestling)
The image used for the 2008 NWA
Legends Fanfest t-shirt and VIP pass features a Bill Janosik photo
of Thunderbolt Patterson doing battle with the Anderson Brothers in
the Richmond Arena in Richmond VA.
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