Mike Rickard
Remembering Gary Hart
By Mike Rickard II
Mar 17, 2008 - 6:32 PM

Gary Hart was a rarity among wrestling managers in that he looked legitimately dangerous.   In an era when most managers were larger than life loudmouths, Gary Hart usually spoke calmly with the eyes of a methodical killer.   Given some of the men that he managed it was an approach that worked to a tee, helping Hart become one of the greatest managers during the age of the territories.   Given Hart’s background growing up in Chicago, Illinois, his image was more realistic than you might imagine.

Born Gary Richard Williams, Hart grew up in the inner city of Chicago, Illinois.   As he grew older, he became involved in organized crime as a collections man.   Williams’ life on the streets no doubt helped him cultivate the image he portrayed on-screen.   A competitive swimmer in high school, Hart broke into the business in 1960 after he met wrestler Billy Gales at a swim meet and Gales began training him as a wrestler.    A year later, Hart debuted in the ring against Sailor White and before long, began using the name “Playboy” Gary Hart (Hart adopted the “Playboy” nickname since Playboy magazine was headquartered in his home town of Chicago, Illinois).   About a year later,   Hart filled in as Angelo Poffo’s second during a match, later forming a tag team before switching gears to managing Poffo.   Like virtually all of his contemporaries, he found himself working around the country [1] as he developed his trade.   Hart continued managing, becoming known as “Playboy” Gary Hart. The list of wrestlers Hart managed during his early years as a manager was impressive including such names as Brute Bernard, Angelo Poffo, Skull Murphy, Pak Song Nam, “Bulldog” Brower, George “The Animal” Steele, and the Fabulous Kangaroos (Al Costello and Karl Von Brauner).

Among Hart’s many accomplishments was his role in breaking Dusty Rhodes into the business.   In a recent interview, Hart recalls how he suggested that Virgil Runnels wasn’t the best name for a wrestler and before too long, Dusty Rhodes was born.   Hart would play a key role in Rhodes’ career during the mid 1970’s when he was part of the famous angle where Rhodes turned babyface and feuded with Hart’s charge Pak Song Nam (Hart also played a pivotal role in Rhodes taking on the nickname “The American Dream” after cutting a promo on Rhodes).   The feud was a monumental success with the two men selling out arenas in Florida week after week and establishing Rhodes as a bonafide babyface sensation.  

While many fans are familiar with the plane crash of 1975 that nearly ended the career of “Nature Boy” Ric Flair, many are unaware of another fatal crash from that very year.   On February 20, 1975, Hart’s life took an unexpected turn when he was involved in a devastating plane crash with fellow wrestlers Bobby Shane, Mike McCord (who would transform himself into Austin Idol after recovering from the crash), and Buddy Colt.   The crash took the life of Shane and sidelined Hart for months.   Hart recuperated and moved on to working in Georgia as a booker.    

Over the next few years, Hart continued managing established stars and helping to create new ones.   One of his biggest finds was Taka Choi, the man who would become the legendary wrestler the Great Kabuki.   While traveling on a plane, Hart happened across an article on Kabuki dancers and he soon came up with the idea of an Asian wrestler adorned in traditional Kabuki makeup.   The Great Kabuki became a sensation as Hart managed him and helped shape his image.   Through the years, Hart made a habit of forming close friendships with the men he managed, preferring to work only with wrestlers he got along with outside the ring as well as inside it [2] .   This proved to be a good business decision as Hart’s wrestlers were usually fiercely loyal to him and they would pull out of a promotion if Hart felt he and his men were being taken advantage of.

After two decades in the business, Hart’s experience in and out of the ring was ready to help Fritz Von Erich’s Texas promotion take off to new heights.   While Hart had many successful runs throughout the territories, he is best remembered for his run in World Class Championship Wrestling both as a booker and as a manager.   In WCCW, Hart booked the famous angle where the Freebirds turned heel on the Von Erichs, setting the territory on fire and making WCCW arguably the hottest promotion at the time.  Hart would be involved in many famous angles in WCCW none bigger than the heel turn of longtime babyface “Gentleman” Chris Adams. Unfortunately for Hart, the payoffs in WCCW weren’t what he expected given his contributions and he parted ways with WCCW for some time.  

Always in demand, Hart found work later in his career working for Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP) as the manager of Terry Funk, the Great Muta, “Mad Dog” Buzz Sawyer, Dick Slater, and the Dragonmaster.   Managing these wrestlers as his J-Tex Corporation stable, Hart was involved in major programs for the company including the Muta/Sting feud and the highly regarded Terry Funk/Ric Flair feud.   When JCP was bought out by Ted Turner, Hart found his working environment had changed dramatically and he parted ways with the company.

As the years rolled on, Hart continued managing less and less.   By 1999 he had retired only to surprise the fans when he began working for his nephew Court Bauer’s promotion Major League Wrestling.   After the promotion folded, Hart turned his attention to helping his son Chad break into the business as a professional wrestler.   Hart was recently seen on two documentaries covering WCCW; the independent production Heroes of World Class and the recent WWE release The Triumph and Tragedy of World Class Championship Wrestling. 

Gary Hart was truly one of the all-time greats both as a manager and a booker.   His celebrated career as a manager is even more impressive when you factor in that he worked during a time when managers were everywhere and it was hard to stand out in a crowd.   His time as a booker is equally impressive with Hart having played a major role in the rise of WCCW during the early 1980’s.   Hart passed away on March 16, 2008 at the age of 66.   World Wrestling Insanity sends its condolences to the friends and family of “Playboy” Gary Hart.