I know he worked early on as a baby before he stopped playing football all together but the Big Cat was meant to be a heel.bwith his size and voice and delivery and ability to talk shit just made him a good bad guy. Also unlike most big guys he had the ability to appear like he was getting his ass kicked by a much smaller guy. There is a match on here from midsouth in 84 with Rick Morton where it looks believable Morton was getting the best of him
The late, great Ernie "Big Cat" Ladd knew how to provoke during a promo, and was very vicious verbally and in the ring. Outside the wrestling business, he was a true gentleman and a scholar. R.I.P. Ernie Ladd.
The late Mr. Ladd was also an All-Pro football player for the San Diego Chargers back in the 60s. He was All-AFL and has a world championship ring with Chargers (1963).
patrick veljanovich he was never underrated. Made lots of money anywhere he went. He often said he preferred the freedom of not having a title belt and he made just as much money without one.
LOL,'The General Public"LOL .Andre the Dummy.Hey,classic stuff.I remember the Big Cat way to well.From the Mid South to GCW to the Carolinas,oh yes.One of my all time favorites a true legend.God Bless you Mr Ladd.
Joe Namath had a great story about Ernie Ladd. Ladd was with Kansas City and sacked Namath particularly hard. Namath said his helmet got turned around and he was looking out of the ear hole when Ladd helped up Broadway Joe and said "Don't worry Broadway, I won't go for your knees, I'll hitcha high!"
What a talent! Ernie, arguably one of the first marketable black wrestlers, won us over with a combination of southern-influenced, ethnic droll! He was one of the best!
I agree on that Ernie Ladd was one off the true Black wrestling heels in his day in my opiniion the greatest heel ever he paved the way for the Butch Reeds to even the Bobby Lashley and even Moose because off that Lashley and Moose are the dominant Black heels now in this era off Wrestling. Lol,
Those were the days. Ernie Ladd saying, "All he(whichever opponent he had) does is go 'yick, yick, yick, and yack, yack, yack' out the side of his neck."
I was there back in the 70s in New Orleans @ the Municipal Auditorium at one of the battle royals Ernie took from the Giant. I have to give it to the Big Cat as soon as the battle royal started he roll out of the ring and hide by the poll the and watch everyone get eliminated. Andre thought he won. Ernie rolled in from behind and drop kicked Andre from behind. First time I saw Andre go over the top rope. I was the only one cheering when Ernie won!!
The ultimate heel. Whenever he came to Detroit my brother and I made sure we were present at Cobo or the Olympic. He used to kill me with that injured thumb! It was wrapped in some sort of steel exoskeleton of a cast that he would use to injure his opponents. He would never allow it to be examined. The ultimate "foreign object" is the one you can open carry into the ring. Shut up out there!
I did'nt know he died. He was my next door neighbor in Tampa in the late 70's when he was wrestling there. Went to the beach with his family many times there. His whole family was very good friends with ours. It was very cool to know them.
rip big cat. he was my all time favorite. watching this brings me back many years to when i loved wrestling. i remember watching ernie on channel 41 and 47 in the new york area. i smile when i see this video. "I'LL SLAP YOUR FACE REAL GOOD IN THE GENERAL PUBLIC". he did the best interviews.he was one of the true greats in a period of wrestling that had so many colorful characters. IF ANYONE HAS MORE INTERVIEW FOOTAGE OF ERNIE CAN YOU PLEASE POST IT? thanks again.
There was one time Erine won a battle royal against the Giant n New Orleans. Ernie ease out of the ring early in the battle royal. He hung by the ring post hiding. Andre thought he won Ernie slide in and drop kicked the Gaint from behind. Classc Ernie Ladd! "Two things I hate, cats chasing dogs and broken down wrestlers chasing me".
im consider myself lucky to have been a wrestling fan in the late 60s and 70s and saw so many great characters of the wrestling world. Ernie Ladd was my favorite. He was great in interviews and a great heel in the ring. He was awesome. Please post more of The Big Cat. Thanks , these are great videos.
Ernie Ladd was before my time, but this promo was funny! This still holds up today! I don't watch wrestling now, but I am sure this promo is way better than promos of today.
He didn't say 'in public'; he said 'in the general public!' LMBO. The Big Cat was one of those dudes that made pro wrestling worth tuning in for. Respect and RIP.
The old school wrestlers gave such good promos. It is truly a lost art. They were also a lot tougher back then. They spent more time in the gym and less time in the salon.
Bill Watts & Mid-South Wrestling was a Non-member official member of the N.W.A., McGuirk & Welch were the actual owners of the N.W.A. membership. Watts continued the recognization and even attended N.W.A. BOD Meetings.
Ernie Ladd. Called Andre The Giant, Andre The Dummy numerous times. Amusing heel promo and one of the best heel promos from the past. I got a kick out of what he said. Sorry I missed out on this classic wrestling villain.
I probably knew her. They used to live next door to me in Tampa in or around 1979. He was wrestling there. He and my family went to the beach there quite a few times together. It was funny how many people came over to us to visit him. Wrestling in Tampa was really big there at the time. He was a VERY nice person and his family was too. I have alot of great memories with them. I was a skinny 13 year old white boy hanging with this huge black family and they treated me like their own.
what a great clip. Ernie Ladd and Reeser Bowden. Ernie was the best on the mic. I'd love to see a Boyd Pierce clip with him wearing his white suit with the big roses on it. That's great stuff.
Ernie Ladd. the first blackman to set it off as a heel in wrestling. i never got to see him do his thing but i read about him in the magazines sho'nuff.Thanx to youtube i can see what i missed.bigup rolochosu.R.I.P.BIG CAT.
I remember Ernie Ladd had a match on TV one time, he threw the guy into the ropes and then put his foot out to catch the guy in the chest, but the guy was too short so he caught the foot in the top of the head, bent his neck back all the way.
Ernie Ladd rocks man he inducted the JunkYard Dog into the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2004. He was entered in 1st in 1995. These inductions + Mr Perfect's and The Iron Sheiks brought be back to the WWE/WWF.
Now that,s the way interviews are supposed to sound like no hell yes no candy asses true wrestlers can still give great heel interviews with out talk like that.
They probably didn't archive a lot of their matches and other footage. They probably recorded over many of their tapes. Just like when it became Mid South,there's not too much footage from the promotion from 1979 or 1980 around as far as I know. At least I haven't seen any on this site.
