Sandy Scott: The heart of a champion

It doesn’t really seem that long ago when the name “Scott Brothers” was a regular attraction on the marquee that advertised the weekly pro wrestling shows at the old County Hall on upper King Street in Charleston.

Surprisingly enough that was more than 40 years ago. County Hall, with its distinctive art deco facade and tower, is now an affordable housing complex. Pro wrestling as we knew it is just a shadow crossing our collective memory.

But if you ever saw the high-flying Scott Brothers, George and Sandy, you’d never forget them. They were “good guys” in the truest sense of the word. Folks loved them and flocked to see them wrestle. Longtime fans still talk about them today.

Sandy, the younger of the Canadian-born brothers, had the heart of a champion back in his wrestling days. He’s still got the heart of a champion. And he’ll use it to fight the battle of his life.

Sandy recently was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. It came suddenly. There was little time to mentally prepare. He underwent a 14-hour operation two weeks ago in Winston-Salem, N.C., to remove the tumor.

His wife, Sandra, has been at his side night and day. It’s a waiting game, procedures are being done and there’s hope he could be out of the hospital and back home in Roanoke in a couple of weeks, in time to celebrate Christmas.

Little things right now, says his wife, mean a lot.

“Just that he knows people are calling and praying,” she says.

Sandy Scott was one of my first wrestling heroes. I was a fan as a kid. I later became a friend.

Sandy was the first to tell me that a 20-something Ric Flair would be world champion one day. It would be a good five years before the Nature Boy would win the gold. But sure enough he did. Again. And again. And again.

Those in the business aren’t always as good as their word. Sandy Scott always was.

So when I spoke with him last week, I listened carefully, knowing fully well that there’s never been any quit in him.

Words came slowly but deliberately. He’s down, but he’s not out.

Confined to a hospital bed, encumbered by tubes and needles, he remains optimistic. Despite the tubes that had been placed down his throat, making it difficult for his voice to rise above a whisper, he made it clear that he’s not ready to cash in any chips.

Instead he wanted to make plans for a visit to Mobile next year for the annual Gulf Coast Wrestling Reunion.

“You be sure to keep that in mind,” he said. I assured him I would.

Sandy, who was inducted into the Mid-Atlantic Wrestling Hall of Heroes last year, also wanted to make sure the fans knew that he hadn’t forgotten them.

“I just want to thank them all and wish them all a nice, happy Thanksgiving and a good, merry Christmas.”

Some babyfaces like Sandy Scott never stop being good guys.

“We’ll fight through it. We’ll fight through it,” he vowed.

Those lucky souls with the heart of a champion always do.

Fans can send their get-well cards and letters to Sandy at:

Sandy Scott

2906 Glenmont Drive

Roanoke, Va. 24018

• Miss those bygone days of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling?

Area fans will have a chance to relive some of those glory days when Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling hits town with a Saturday night show Dec. 12 at the Summerville High School gym.

The event, a fundraiser for the Summerville Police Department, will feature such names as “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes, “The Russian Nightmare” Nikita Koloff, Buff “The Stuff” Bagwell, The Midnight Express and The Rock ‘N Roll Express. A women’s match pitting Krissy Vaine and Jayme Jamison also will be featured.

Doors open at 6 p.m. Bell time is at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $35 front row, $20 ringside and $12 general admission. Tickets can be purchased at the Piggly Wiggly in Summerville and Knightsville.

• Hacksaw Jim Duggan and Malachi vs. Calie Casanova and Hans Bumgartner headlines an Old School Championship Wrestling show at 6 p.m. Dec. 6 at the Omar Shrine Auditorium, 176 Patriots Point Blvd., Mount Pleasant.

For more information, call 743-4800 or visit www.oscwonline.com.

• Mike Lebelle, who promoted pro wrestling in Southern California during the ‘60s and ‘70s, passed away Tuesday at the age of 79 of apparent respiratory failure.

Lebelle’s showcase arena, the famed Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles, hosted some of the sport’s greatest performers during that era and one of its great feuds, Fred Blassie vs. John Tolos, in 1972.

Lebelle, the son of longtime boxing and wrestling promoter Aileen Eaton, was the brother of “Judo” Gene Lebell (the two used different spellings of their names).

• Recent statements made by Hulk Hogan on an Australian radio show don’t bode well for the current TNA writing staff.

“In TNA, I’m going to listen to those fans and give them what they want. I’m not going to keep shoving a bunch of terrible, horrible, stale programming down their throats,” Hogan said, obviously alluding to the Stephanie McMahon-led creative team at WWE. “(In TNA), I’m going to take the writers and tell them, ‘Go get another job. Sit in the back. If I need you to write a jingle for a commercial, maybe we’ll use you for that.’”

Hogan, who will return to TNA once his Aussie tour concludes, added that he wants to work with wrestlers who understand the wrestling business, pointing out Kurt Angle, Sting and A.J. Styles as the top three stars in TNA.

“This is the wrestling business. If these wrestlers can’t talk and these wrestlers can’t wrestle, they need to head for the door,” said Hogan.

• WWE champion John Cena will be the grand marshal for the Fiesta Bowl parade in Arizona on Jan. 2 to promote Wrestlemania 26.

The Arizona Republic reported that Cena also will perform the ceremonial opening coin toss for the Fiesta Bowl game on Jan. 4. The bowl game will be held at the same University of Phoenix stadium where WWE will hold Wrestlemania 26 on March 28.

• Stephanie McMahon-Levesque was one of three WWE executives to make CableFax magazine’s “Most Powerful Women in Cable 2009.” Donna Goldsmith and Michelle Wilson also were named to the list.

McMahon-Levesque is Executive Vice President of Creative Development and Operations. Goldsmith is WWE’s Chief Operating Officer. Wilson is Executive Vice President of Marketing.

• NBC will air the 2009 WWE Tribute to the Troops at 8 p.m. Dec. 19.

Next month’s trip to Iraq marks the seventh consecutive year that WWE will make its annual pilgrimage to the front lines.

• For those fortunate enough to have grown up in Riverland Terrace during the 1960s, memories abound of unique characters who defined a special place in time. Donald Robinson was one of those characters.

A little bit James Dean, a little bit The Fonz, Donald represented the top of the neighborhood’s teenage food chain, the quintessential cool guy who never backed down from a fight. But, then again, he never had to because he always was the toughest guy on the block.

Donald, sadly, passed away earlier this month at the age of 59. The Legend never will.

Mike Mooneyham can be reached by phone at (843) 937-5517 or by e-mail at mooneyham@postandcourier.com.