Joe McCarthy | |
---|---|
Birth name | Joe Criswell [1] |
Born | [1] Obion County, Tennessee, United States [2] | April 30, 1929
Died | March 13, 2012 Dyersburg, Tennessee, United States [3] | (aged 82)
Children | Joe Criswell Jr. |
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Al Criswell Joe McCarthy Masked Mighty Yankee #1 [1] |
Albert Joe Criswell (April 30, 1929 – March 13, 2012), better known as Joe McCarthy, was an American professional wrestler who competed in the 1950s and 1960s primarily throughout the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) where he was a former NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion. He was a prominent competitor for various NWA territories including Nick Gulas's NWA Mid-America and Leroy McGuirk's NWA Tri-State.
Criswell began his professional wrestling career in the early 1950s, competing primarily within Nick Gulas's NWA Mid-America territory. As Joe McCarthy, he headlined several events in 1954/1955, including tag team bouts with his partner Buddy Fuller. [4] By the late 1950s, he was competing regularly throughout Ohio, North Carolina and Alabama. [5] By 1960, McCarthy began capturing championship gold. On April 20, 1960, he teamed with the Great Bolo to defeat Bobby and Don Fields for both the Gulf Coast and Mid-America NWA Southern Tag Team Championships in Mobile, Alabama. [6]
On April 9, 1963, McCarthy won the NWA Georgia Southeastern Heavyweight Championship. By this point, he had become a headliner for NWA Tri-State. [7] On February 12, 1966, McCarthy defeated Lorenzo Parente to win the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship. [8] He defended the title in the Southern United States before eventually losing it to Danny Hodge in Little Rock, Arkansas. [9]