The Gambler (wrestler)

Last updated
The Gambler
Birth nameJeffrey Gann
Born Chattanooga, Tennessee
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) The Gambler
Jeff Gamble
Billed weight231 lb (105 kg) [1]
Billed fromBiloxi, Mississippi
Trained by WCW Power Plant [2]
DebutOctober 30, 1990
RetiredAugust 31, 1999 [3]

Jeffrey Gann is an American retired professional wrestler, best known for his time with World Championship Wrestling (WCW), under the ring name The Gambler. He appeared with the company as a jobber to the stars between 1990 and 1999. He initially competed as Jeff Gamble during the early years of his career before developing his Gambler character. He also briefly competed in the United States Wrestling Association, where he was a one-time World Tag Team Champion with Brickhouse Brown. [4]

Contents

Professional wrestling career

World Championship Wrestling

Jeff Gamble (1990–1991)

Gann started his professional wrestling career in 1990 by signing a contract with World Championship Wrestling (WCW). He was trained at the WCW Power Plant and made his debut on WCW television as an enhancement talent on the November 17 episode of World Championship Wrestling , where he lost to The Big Cat under the ring name Jeff Gamble. The following week, on the November 24 episode of World Championship Wrestling, Gamble and Scott Sandlin lost to Big Cat and The Motor City Madman. [5] His next appearance was on the January 13, 1991 episode of Main Event , where he lost to Bobby Eaton. [6]

The Gambler (1992–1995)

Gann developed his character of The Gambler in United States Wrestling Association (USWA), where he teamed with Psycho in a loss to The Power Twins on May 30, 1992. Gamble assisted in carrying the Fabulous Moolah's caravan to the ring at Slamboree '93 on May 23, 1993, and later was one of Rick Rude's two "belt guards" that guarded the vacated US Title inside a briefcase. He returned to WCW action at a live event on September 21, 1993 under the Gambler character, where he lost to Jim Steele. His televised return was on the October 23 episode of Saturday Night, where he teamed with Fred Avery and Todd Zane against The Shockmaster, Ice Train and Charlie Norris. His first televised appearance as Gambler was in a tag team match with Big Bad John against Thunder and Lightning on the November 28 episode of Main Event. He would make a unique entrance by taking out a set of playing cards from his jacket and showing them to the audience as part of his character. He was a regular jobber to the stars against major stars including Sting, Ricky Steamboat, Dustin Rhodes, Erik Watts, Johnny B. Badd, Brian Pillman, Arn Anderson, The Patriot, Marcus Alexander Bagwell and 2 Cold Scorpio. [7]

Gambler gained his first win in WCW on the September 10 episode of Pro against Scott Studd. He received his only title shot in WCW on the October 22, 1994 episode of Saturday Night against Jim Duggan for the United States Heavyweight Championship and lost in a short match. [8]

United States Wrestling Association (1995)

As part of WCW's working relationship with Memphis-based USWA, Gann toured with USWA in 1995, returning to the company after three years. Gambler formed a tag team with Brickhouse Brown upon debuting in USWA and the duo were booked to win the promotion's World Tag Team Championship by beating PG-13 on April 15. They made a successful title defense against PG-13 on April 24 before dropping the title back to PG-13 on May 1. [4] After failing to regain the titles on May 8, Gann formed a new tag team with Gorgeous George III to regain the title from PG-13. Gambler and George received a title shot at World Tag Team Championship against PG-13 on June 5, but were defeated. At Memphis Memories II, Gambler, George, Mr. World Class and Maxx Muscle defeated Scott Studd, Davey Haskins, Super Mario and King Cobra. On July 3, Gambler lost a match to his former tag team partner Brickhouse Brown. Gambler closed his run in USWA with a loss to Steven Dunn on September 4, 1995. [9]

Return to WCW (1995–1999)

After a stint with USWA, Gann returned to WCW television on the December 2, 1995 episode of Saturday Night against Mr. JL. After the launch of Monday Nitro , Gann became a regular jobber on WCW's B-shows such as Saturday Night, WorldWide, Pro and Main Event. [10] Gann put over many rising and established stars during his career and also served as the first opponent of Prince Iaukea on the June 1, 1996 episode of Saturday Night [11] and Glacier on the September 8 episode of Pro. [12] Chris Jericho, another young WCW wrestler, recalled a bout against Gann:

[He was a] journeyman wrestler that I'd never seen before (or since). His gimmick was he was a Kenny Rogers impersonator. Even though that gimmick would rule, his actual gimmick was of a Maverick-style riverboat gambler. It was a horrible feeling knowing that my future was in the hands of a man who did card tricks on his way to the ring. I didn't know if he was good or if he sucked, but my self-esteem was at such a low that I was going to leave the match up to him. I was gambling on the Gambler.

Having confidence is a huge part of being successful. When you have it, you can do no wrong. When you don't, all you can do is wrong. At that point all of my previous accomplishments didn't mean a damn thing. This was my last chance.

The Gambler led the match and I followed him. He was a meat-and-potatoes wrestler so it was nothing fancy, but it was exactly what I needed. It was the type of basic match that I would've had in wrestling camp. No bells or whistles, just a good story and solid execution. Lo and behold, we had a good little match and within five minutes I had regained my confidence and once again became Chris Jericho - World Beater. [13]

After a few matches in early 1997, Gambler took a hiatus and returned to television on the July 18, 1998 episode of Saturday Night, where he suffered a loss against Norman Smiley. He picked up a victory against David Taylor on the April 27, 1999 episode of WorldWide. [14] Gambler's final match was on the August 21 episode of WorldWide, a loss to Johnny Attitude. He was released from his WCW contract on August 31, 1999. [3]

Personal life

It was falsely reported that Gann died on June 7, 2023. It was mentioned by wrestler Sue Green. [15] The next day it was revealed that Gann had not died and that it was independent Florida wrestler, Rusty Stallings who wrestled as The Gambler that died. [16] Gann's son would later confirm on Twitter that his father is alive and that he spoke with him. [17]

Championships and accomplishments

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koko B. Ware</span> American professional wrestler

James W. Ware, Jr., better known by his ring name Koko B. Ware, is an American retired professional wrestler. He debuted in 1978 and became widely popular in 1986. He later went on to the World Wrestling Federation, where he went from strong mid-carder to jobber to the stars. "The Birdman" came to the ring with a blue-and-yellow macaw named Frankie, both flapping and dancing before and after his matches. Before joining the WWF, he was in several tag teams, most notably with Bobby Eaton in Memphis and with Norvell Austin in several promotions. In 1993, he lost the first Monday Night Raw match to Yokozuna. In 2009 he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

Steven James, better known by his ring name Steve Armstrong, is an American professional wrestler. He is the son of fellow wrestler "Bullet" Bob Armstrong, and has three brothers who also wrestled: Scott, Brad, and Brian.

The Godwinns were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Dennis Knight and Mark Canterbury that they used in the WWF. The team has used other gimmicks before they joined the WWF and had a gimmick change in the WWF shortly before disbanding. Their original WWF gimmick was that of two brothers who were hog farmers from Arkansas.

Todd Bradford is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Todd Champion. He competed in the Southeastern United States, winning titles in several promotions, including World Championship Wrestling (WCW).

Stars and Stripes was a professional wrestling tag team in World Championship Wrestling composed of The Patriot and Marcus Alexander Bagwell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joey Maggs</span> American professional wrestler

Joseph Magliano, better known by the ring name "Jumping" Joey Maggs, was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from 1991 to 1998.

Timothy Alan Smith was an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring names Rex King and Timothy Well. He wrestled in several promotions, including All Japan Pro Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Much of his career was spent wrestling as a tag team with Steve Doll throughout his career. While in WWF, they were known as Well Dunn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Powers</span> American professional wrestler

James Manley is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Jim Powers. He worked for the World Wrestling Federation from 1984 to 1994, then elsewhere until 2010. He was born in Washington Heights, Manhattan, and grew up watching the then-regional promotion at Madison Square Garden.

Steven Stewart, known by his ring name Bart Sawyer, is an American retired professional wrestler, color commentator, and occasional actor. He is best known for his time in Championship Wrestling USA and the United States Wrestling Association during the 1990s. In his career, Sawyer also wrestled for Extreme Canadian Championship Wrestling, House of Pain Wrestling Federation, Memphis Wrestling, NWA Georgia, NWA Main Event, NWA Worldwide, World Xtreme Wrestling and W*ING. Additionally, he competed as a preliminary wrestler in World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation.

Todd Dale Veasey is a retired American professional wrestler, better known by his ringnames Dale Veasey and Lt. James Earl Wright, who competed in North American regional promotions including the Mid-South region and the National Wrestling Alliance, particularly the Georgia and Florida territories, as well as brief stints in the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling, most notably as one half of the tag team State Patrol with Buddy Lee Parker during the 1990s.

The U.S. Express was a professional wrestling tag team composed of Mike Rotunda and Barry Windham in the World Wrestling Federation. Windham was later replaced by Dan Spivey and the team was renamed the American Express.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rick Fuller</span> American professional wrestler

Richard Fuller is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling from 1997 to 2000.

Joe Gomez is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in the 1990s.

Frank Vizi is a German born American professional wrestler, better known by the ring names Bull Pain, Rick Gantner and Psycho. He is best known for his appearances with promotion such as the American Wrestling Association, World Wrestling Federation, World Championship Wrestling and Extreme Championship Wrestling, as well as for independent promotions such as the World Wrestling Council, Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South, Juggalo Championship Wrestling and Chikara.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cousin Junior</span> American professional wrestler

Lanny Neal Kean Jr. was an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation from 1985 to 1986 under the ring name Cousin Junior, as well as for his appearances on the independent circuit as Moondog Cujo, a member of The Moondogs.

Frederick Seawright was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Brickhouse Brown. He was a top heel in several Southern promotions in the 1980s and 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. T. Southern</span> American professional wrestler

J. T. Southern is an American retired professional wrestler. Though he achieved most notoriety during his 1992 feud with Van Hammer in World Championship Wrestling, Southern also competed for Verne Gagne's American Wrestling Association, Continental Wrestling Association (CWA) in Memphis, Tennessee, and in UWF International in Japan.

Scotty "Hot Body" Summers is a retired American professional wrestler who competed in regional and independent promotions throughout the United States and Canada during the 1990s and 2000s. One-half of Hot Paradise with Johnny Paradise, the two held the unified tag team titles of Border City Wrestling and Motor City Wrestling for almost two years. He also had brief stints in Eastern Championship Wrestling, Midwest Territorial Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation before ending his career, like many former MCW stars, in the old Central States territory.

Mike Khoury is an American professional wrestler who competed in East Coast and Mid-Atlantic independent promotions during the early to mid-1990s. Though he is best remembered for his years in World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation as a preliminary wrestler, he had a successful career in Cueball Carmichael's Independent Pro Wrestling Association and the Mid-Eastern Wrestling Federation. He is a former MEWF Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Champion and MEWF Tag Team Champion as part of the original Models Inc. with Johnny Handsome.

Bobby Walker is an American former professional wrestler who is best known for his appearances in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from 1992 until 2000.

References

General

Specific

  1. ↑ "The Gambler profile". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2017-09-03.
  2. ↑ "Gambler Profile". Cagematch. Retrieved 2017-09-03.
  3. 1 2 "WCW Worldwide - Saturday, 9/4/99". DDTdigest.com. 1999.
  4. 1 2 3 "USWA World Tag Team Title (Tennessee)". Wrestling-Titles.com. Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2017-09-06.
  5. ↑ Cawthon, Graham. "WCW Ring Results 1990". TheHistoryofWWE.com.
  6. ↑ Cawthon, Graham. "WCW Ring Results 1991". TheHistoryofWWE.com.
  7. ↑ Cawthon, Graham. "WCW Ring Results 1993". TheHistoryofWWE.com.
  8. ↑ Cawthon, Graham. "WCW Ring Results 1994". TheHistoryofWWE.com.
  9. ↑ "Jarrett/Lawler: 1995". ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  10. ↑ Cawthon, Graham. "WCW Ring Results 1995". TheHistoryofWWE.com.
  11. ↑ "WCW Saturday Night - June 1, 1996 Report". DDTDigest.com. Retrieved 2017-09-06.
  12. ↑ Cawthon, Graham. "WCW Ring Results 1996". TheHistoryofWWE.com.
  13. ↑ Jericho, Chris (2007). A Lion's Tale: Around the World in Spandex . Grand Central Publishing. ISBN   978-0446408905.
  14. ↑ Cawthon, Graham. "WCW Ring Results 1999". TheHistoryofWWE.com.
  15. ↑ Middleton, Marc. "Former WCW Star "The Gambler" Jeff Gann Passes Away". WrestlingHeadlines. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
  16. ↑ Johnson, Mike. "Update On The Passing Of The Gambler (Updated 7:30 AM)". PWInsider.com. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
  17. ↑ https://twitter.com/JeffagannGann/status/1666813297579139077
  18. 1 2 Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. p. 258. ISBN   0-9698161-5-4.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.