Paul Jones

Paul Frederick (June 16, 1942 - April 18, 2018) was an American professional wrestler and manager best known by his ring name Paul Jones. He had success in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA)'s Mid-Atlantic region, including an NWA World Tag Team title reign with Ricky Steamboat.

Career[]

Paul Frederick was born on June 16 in Port Arthur, Texas. He started wrestling around 1968 in the Mid-Atlantic promotions on the east coast, where he spent most of his career. He was known as Al Fredericks before changing his ring name to "Number One" Paul Jones.

He became famous in the NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions, where he won the NWA United States Heavyweight title and the NWA World Tag Team titles. His most frequent partners were Rick Steamboat and the Masked Superstar.

Briefly in 1980, Jones wrestled as Mr. Florida, a masked wrestler in Championship Wrestling from Florida.

In the 1980s, he became a heel manager, and he called his stable Paul Jones' Army. He was involved in a huge feud with "Boogie Woogie Man" Jimmy Valiant where he ended up having his head shaved. Among the members of his "Army" were Rick Rude, Manny Fernandez, Pez Whatley (known as Shaska), Baron Von Raschke, The Barbarian, Teijho Khan, The Mighty Wilbur, Abdullah the Butcher, Superstar Billy Graham, Ivan Koloff and Vladimir Petrov, The Assassins and The Russian Assassins (David Sheldon & Jack Victory). He also managed the Powers of Pain. He left Jim Crockett Promotions around the time Ted Turner bought it and renamed it World Championship Wrestling (WCW).

Jones last competed in the Mid-Atlantic indy promotion South Atlantic Pro Wrestling, where he won its heavyweight championship in 1990, and he also reunited with former NWA World Tag Team Championship partner Rick Steamboat for one tag team match, a loss to Robert Fuller and Matt Borne on September 4, 1990 in Spartanburg, South Carolina. He retired in 1991 to Charlotte, North Carolina, where he owned an automobile repair shop called the Paul Jones Body Shop.