Jim Herd: Jim Crockett’s Finishes Aggravated Ted Turner
Jim Herd became Executive Vice President of World Championship Wrestling in 1988 after Turner Broadcasting bought Jim Crockett Promotions.
As President of the NWA, Jim Crockett Jr. had some say in the booking as WCW still had a partnership with the NWA. Crockett’s booking didn’t always sit well with his new boss, leading to headaches for Herd.
“Jim Crockett was supposed to work for me, but it’s kind of a split personality deal,” Herd told Conrad Thompson on AdFreeShows. “He wanted to be in charge of the wrestling matches and I was going to be in charge of the money and the business. His penchant for run-ins and stuff aggravated the hell out of the Turner. When Turner pulls the trigger, he pulls the trigger. So, I had to go to Crockett and say, ‘Look, from here on out, you work for me. You pass everything that happens in that ring by me before we do it.’ Of course, Crockett took umbrage to that and our relationship deteriorated, not from a personal point of view, I like him, he was an honest guy. We just had different ways to run the business, so we parted ways. He was bought out by Turner and off we go. His brother David worked for me for years, traveling and setting up rings. Nice guy.”
Crockett remained NWA President until 1991.
Elsewhere during the interview, Jim Herd revealed they never had the idea to turn Ric Flair into Spartacus. You can find his full comments by clicking here.
If you use any of the quotes above, please give a h/t to AdFreeShows with a link back to Fightful for the transcription.
