But one thing is for sure about Bearcat, this smooth talker-slick walker, was a pioneer. You see in the late 1960's there were no black stars in the Mid-South. In fact there were only a handful of black stars in Pro-Wrestling, ANYWHERE in the world. Much less top drawing black stars. Yes, you often hear about "such & such" pioneered the way for guys like the Rock, and Booker T, but the reality is....Bearcat Brown REALLY did. Many guys would imitate Bearcat’s unique style over the years, including guys like Butch Reed. Bearcat entered the promotion in the late 1960's, he was at first a heel. He was similar to Jackie Fargo, or as you modern day wrestling fans might say, Ric Flair. He strutted, had the bleach blonde hair, and talked a good game. Bearcat was different then those others though, cause A. He was Black, B. He was pretty big, and C. He had a steel plate in his head!
Big Bad Bearcat Brown was mostly a tag team wrestler. He most often tagged with longtime fellow face and friend Len Rossi. Rossi of course, was one of the first wrestlers to have a "feared" dropkick. Bearcat Brown became the first regular African-American performer on the circuit and formed a memorable and major-drawing tag team with area favorite Len Rossi in 1969, the same year Jerry Jarrett debuted in the area.
Bearcat wrestled into the mid to late 1970's, but what happened to Bearcat Brown since then is anyone's guess. I've searched high and low on the internet and through various news clippings, but somewhere around the time of Gulas split with Jarrett and the formation of the USWA, Bearcat Brown is lost. Perhaps he was injured? Perhaps he died? Perhaps he still wrestles today somewhere. Its hard to say, there is only a handful of information about the legendary Bearcat Brown's career on the internet. In fact, I can't find a single picture of the fabulous Bearcat Brown. Some of which is likely because Wrestlers weren't photographed a lot back then, add to that he was a black wrestler and you'll see why it'd hard to find photos of Brown. I was able to locate a thumbnail of a photo of Bearcat Brown, but the details remain sketchy if this is indeed the legend. At the time there were several black wrestlers using the "Bearcat" moniker, most notably a Bearcat Wright. Hopefully someday Bearcat Brown will get his due in the Wrestling History books, complete with picture. Until then we'll have to do with my "Butch Reed as Bearcat Brown". If I do come across a better photo of him, of course I'll pass it along.
(source:
http://www.lethalwrestling.com/opinions/news_content.php?fileName=703 )
