Jim Cornette

James ("Jim") Cornette (born September 17, 1961) is an American professional wrestling manager, commentator, promoter, and booker. Cornette is the former "Commissioner" of Ring of Honor and current "Management Director" of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.

Career
Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Cornette always loved wrestling, reportedly installing a ten-foot antenna on top of his house as a youth so he could watch as much regional wrestling as possible. He began working at wrestling events at the age of 14, serving as a photographer, ring announcer, magazine correspondent and public relations correspondent. In 1982, promoter Jerry Jarrett made the 21 year old Cornette the manager of Sherri Martel and gave Cornette the gimmick of a rich kid turned inept manager whose clients kept firing him after one match. The most notable wrestlers in this angle were Dutch Mantell and Crusher Broomfield (who would later gain fame as The One Man Gang and Akeem, The African Dream).

In 1983, he would take on his best-known role as a valet with the Fabulous Moolah, becoming the frontman for the Midnight Express (Dennis Condrey and Bobby Eaton, and later Stan Lane). With Cornette as manager, the team were 2-time National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) World Tag Team Champions and 2-time NWA United States Tag Team champions. As a manager, Cornette was known for both his loud mouth and for his ever-present tennis racket, which Cornette often used to ensure victory for his wrestlers, with the implication that the raquet case was loaded. Cornette was at his best as a heel manager; fans loved to see the constantly-yelling Cornette and his equally annoying charges beaten and humiliated. He and the Midnights were so hated, in fact, that they had to be escorted by police to and from the ring at the house shows and have a police escort to the city limits for fear of being attacked by overzealous fans. Additionally, Cornette suffered serious injuries to his knee during a scaffold match between the Midnight Express and the Road Warriors at Starrcade '86; when dropping to the mat from the edge of the scaffold, Cornette didn't allow his legs to buckle quickly enough because he hoped to have a waiting Big Bubba Rogers there to cushion his fall. Rogers didn't react in time and Cornette ended up blowing out one of his knees when it folded inwards.

World Championship Wrestling
In 1986, Cornette became the color commentator for Jim Crockett Promotions' nationally-syndicated NWA television show, and later took over the same role on the Saturday night TBS broadcasts alongside play-by-play announcer Jim Ross. Years later, after leaving World Championship Wrestling (WCW) (the new name for Jim Crockett Promotions after its purchase by Ted Turner) for the WWF, the announcing team of Cornette and Ross was reunited for several WWF shows and pay-per-views.

In 1989, Cornette became a member of WCW's creative team, also known as a booker. As a booker for WCW, Cornette helped write storylines and shape the format of its television shows. Due to friction and animosity between himself and WCW head Jim Herd, Cornette quit the company.

Smoky Mountain Wrestling
A firm believer in "old-school" territorial wrestling, Cornette began the Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW) promotion in 1992. SMW promoted shows in Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Georgia, and the Carolinas. By this point, however, the nature of wrestling in the United States had already changed irrevocably, leading Cornette to seek a working relationship with the WWF in 1993. This did not change the new national perception that regional promotions were "minor league." The move also did not help the federation's finances, and Cornette closed SMW's doors in 1995. Cornette later said that he chose the wrong time to start a wrestling federation because the business as a whole was in a recession.

World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment
Cornette went to the WWF in 1993 while serving as promoter of SMW. As he had in other promotions, Cornette wore many hats in the WWF, including manager, color commentator, and booker. Cornette's most notable managerial role in the WWF was as the "American spokesperson" of WWF Champion Yokozuna.

Cornette joined the WWF full-time in 1996 after the demise of SMW, and had a major role in scouting and developing new talent. On screen, he led a top heel stable known as "Camp Cornette", which consisted of Vader, Owen Hart, and Davey Boy Smith.

Behind the scenes, he served as booker for several years before being removed from the creative team after frequently butting heads with head writer Vince Russo.

Cornette later became lead booker and part owner of OVW, WWE's lead developmental territory, run by "Nightmare" Danny Davis of Cornette's hometown of Louisville. As a talent developer, Cornette helped discover current and former WWE Superstars Kane, D-Lo Brown, Sunny, Al Snow&mdash;all of whom had previously worked in SMW&mdash;and others.

Cornette returned to WWF television for one night at the WrestleMania X-Seven pay per view in Houston, Texas, where he took part in the "gimmick battle royal".

Cornette was suspended for several weeks in May 2005 as a result of a backstage altercation with Kevin Fertig, and released by WWE in July 2005 due to another incident shortly after returning from suspension involving slapping OVW wrestler Anthony Carelli for breaking character and laughing at wrestler The Boogeyman.

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Recently Cornette joined TNA Wrestling as the new face of TNA Management. He holds the title of "Management Director" according to the press releases following his premiere at the Slammiversary PPV event on June 18, 2006 in Orlando, Florida. After a brief speech, he departed, but returned at the end of the show in light of the Orlando Screwjob, taking the NWA World Heavyweight Championship belt after Jeff Jarrett, Larry Zbyszko and Earl Hebner tried to execute a screwjob on Christian Cage and Sting.

Cornette is seen by some as "bringing the NWA back to TNA", although this has never been officially stated. During Cornette's first TNA iMPACT! appearance he got into a verbal confrontation with Jeff Jarrett. One of the things that could be heard from Cornette was "This is the NWA!" and "This is the NWA Title!". He also referred to Jeff Jarrett's family, discussing his father and grandmother. His shouts of the NWA could have been a simple mistake on his part as a common mistake made by many people is still listing TNA as "NWA: TNA".

At the first ever company meeting, which aired on the June 29 version of TNA iMPACT!, Cornette cleaned up several issues:
 * Forcing the Latin American Exchange to start wrestling again under the threat of termination.
 * Booking Raven and Zbyszko in a hair vs. hair match against each other for Victory Road 2006.
 * Disbanding Team Canada as a result of their overly cheating ways (he would later offer them a match which, if they won, would allow them to stay as a unit, with the winner to get a future shot at the championship. They would lose the match).
 * Firing Earl Hebner for his role in the Orlando Screwjob at Slammiversary 2006.
 * Booking America's Most Wanted and Gail Kim in a match against AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels, and Sirelda in an intergender six-person tag team matchup with Styles and Daniels' NWA World Tag Team Championship on the line.
 * Booking a fatal four way between Christian Cage, Sting, Scott Steiner, and Samoa Joe for Victory Road 2006
 * Finally declaring Jeff Jarrett the official NWA World Heavyweight Champion given that Jarrett defend his title against the winner of the fatal four way at Victory Road.

With the return of Vince Russo to TNA, Cornette's run with the company has come into question. Cornette has been one of Russo's harshest critics and has blamed him for the "disintergration of the business". He has also stated that he wished to inflict bodily harm on Russo due to his involvement in a WCW angle with Ed Ferrara in which they mocked WWE commentator Jim Ross' Bell's Palsy condition. However, since then he has come to working terms with Russo and also become more involved in TNA.

Awards and accomplishments

 * Pro Wrestling Illustrated
 * 1985 Manager of the Year
 * 1993 Manager of the Year
 * 1995 Manager of the Year


 * Wrestling Observer
 * Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (inducted in 1996)
 * 1984 Manager of the Year
 * 1985 Manager of the Year
 * 1986 Manager of the Year
 * 1987 Manager of the Year
 * 1988 Manager of the Year
 * 1989 Manager of the Year
 * 1990 Manager of the Year
 * 1992 Manager of the Year
 * 1993 Manager of the Year
 * 1994 Manager of the Year
 * 1995 Manager of the Year
 * 1996 Manager of the Year
 * 2006 Best Non-wrestler