Classic Television - Weekends

Georgia Championship Wrestling

Orginal Network

WTBS

Original Run

1972 - 1984

 Hosted by 

Gordon Solie

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 (the U.S. pro wrestling industry was a patchwork of self-contained, regional and sub-regional companies—there was no single, nationwide promotion). The territory was affiliated with what had been the world's top sanctioning body of championship titles for decades before, the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA).

The TV show, hosted by Gordon Solie, was recorded in one of WTBS' studios on West Peachtree Street near 10th Street, in Midtown Atlanta. Shows were taped before a small (yet enthusiastic), live in-studio audience, as were most professional wrestling TV shows of that era. The show featured wrestling matches, plus melodramatic monologues and inter-character confrontations—similar to the programming offered by other territories, including the Northeast-based World Wrestling Federation (WWF).

GCW's show, which aired on Saturday evenings, was complemented with a Sunday evening edition.

In Savannah and Augusta, GA in the 1960s and early 1970s there was a 60 minute wrestling program titled "Big Time Wrestling" produced Saturday afternoons at the studio of WAII channel 11 in Atlanta. The NWA program was hosted by Ed Capral, ring announcer Charlie Harben and referee Leo Garibaldi. The show was broadcast at various times on WJBF 6 in Augusta and at 11pm Saturdays on WTOC 11 in Savannah. The program included interviews with wrestlers pertaining to their upcoming matches. On WJBF the interviews pertained to matches held on Monday nights at the Bell Auditorium promoted by Steve Manderson and on WTOC they pertained to upcoming matches held Tuesday nights at the Sports Arena, later at the Savannah Civic Center promoted by Aaron Newman. The program for Savannah was taped in Atlanta on Saturday afternoons then delivered by Greyhound Bus to Savannah to be broadcast that night.