James Hines (born October 4, 1960) is a retired American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

, better known by his

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...

Bobby Fulton. He was one half of the

tag team Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establish ...

The Fantastics The Fantastics were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers that worked together extensively between 1984 and 2007. At times, Bobby Fulton would team up with his brother Jackie Fulton under the same name. Te ...

with Tommy Rogers.

Professional wrestling career

James Hines started wrestling as a 16-year-old, under the name Bobby Fulton. His first match was on June 17, 1977, in Clarksburg, West Virginia, in which he defeated Mad Dog Michaels by disqualification. In the main event of that same card, he lost a battle royal. He spent his early career in Ohio, training and wrestling with the likes of

Lord Zoltan Ken Jugan (born October 16, 1957), better known by the ring name Lord Zoltan, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler, manager, promoter, referee, and trainer. Jugan has been a mainstay in the Pittsburgh Tri-state area (Pennsylvania, Oh ...

Fred Curry Fred Thomas Koury Jr. (born June 12, 1943) better known by his ring name ”Flying” Fred Curry, is an American professional wrestler of Lebanese descent. The son of "Wild Bull" Curry, Fred Koury was one of the most popular stars in the Midwes ...

Bull Curry Fred Thomas Koury Sr. (May 2, 1913 – March 8, 1985) was an American of Lebanese descent who was best known as a professional wrestler under the name ”Wild Bull” Curry. He is recognized as the originator of the hardcore style predating leg ...

and Dr. Jerry Graham. He worked for the WWWF on the Allentown and Hamburg television tapings where he faced Steve Travis and Fred Curry. He worked for

Nick Gulas Nick Gulas (September 3, 1914 – January 21, 1991) was an American professional wrestling promoter in the Southern United States, partnered with Tennessee promoter Roy Welch for decades. Gulas was also known as "The King of Managers", "King B", ...

's Nashville territory, where he paired up with

Eric Embry Douglas Eric Embry (born July 10, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with Championship Wrestling from Florida, World Class Championship Wrestling, and the United States Wrestling Association. H ...

as the "brother" tag team of Bobby and Don Fulton. He then moved on to

Stu Hart Stewart Edward Hart (May 3, 1915 – October 16, 2003) was a Canadian amateur and professional wrestler, wrestling booker, promoter, coach, trainer, football player and sailor. He is best known for founding and handling Stampede Wrestling, a ...

's Calgary territory working with the likes of

Bret Hart Bret Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legend's contract. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling backgr ...

The Dynamite Kid Thomas Billington (5 December 1958 – 5 December 2018), best known by the ring name the Dynamite Kid, was a British professional wrestler. Trained by former wrestler "Dr Death" Ted Betley, he competed in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), ...

, The Cuban Assassin, Bobby Bass,

Ross Hart Ross or ROSS may refer to: People * Clan Ross, a Highland Scottish clan * Ross (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name Ross, as well as the meaning * Earl of Ross, a peerage of Scotland Places * RoSS, the Republic of Sout ...

, Bruce Hart,

Giant Haystacks Martin Austin Ruane (10 October 1946 – 29 November 1998) was an English professional wrestler of Irish parentage, best known by the ring name Giant Haystacks. He was one of the best-known wrestlers on the British wrestling scene in the 1970s ...

and

Davey Boy Smith David Smith (27 November 1962 – 18 May 2002) was an English professional wrestler. Born in Golborne, Lancashire, Smith is best known for his appearances in the United States with the World Wrestling Federation under the ring names Davey Bo ...

. Then it was on to the short-lived Knoxville territory forming a tag team with

Terry Taylor Paul Worden Taylor III (born August 12, 1955) is an American retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name Terry Taylor and for his time as an in-ring performer in National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and Wo ...

called "The Fantastic Ones". After the territory closed, Hines and Taylor split up. He then moved on to the

Jerry Jarrett Jerry Winston Jarrett (born September 4, 1942) is an American retired professional wrestling promoter and professional wrestler. Along with his long-term business partner Jerry Lawler, Jarrett is a key figure in the history of professional wrestl ...

Continental Wrestling Association Continental Wrestling Association (later the Championship Wrestling Association) was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually ref ...

territory where he worked preliminary matches. He then went to

Southwest Championship Wrestling Southwest Championship Wrestling (SCW) was a professional wrestling promotion that was owned by Joe Blanchard and based in San Antonio, Texas, from 1978 to 1985, when it was purchased by Texas All-Star Wrestling and absorbed into that company. ...

in San Antonio, Texas for

Joe Blanchard Joseph Edgar Blanchard (December 7, 1928 – March 22, 2012) was an American football player, professional wrestler and promoter. His son is original Four Horseman member Tully Blanchard and his granddaughter is former Impact Champion Tessa Blanc ...

, battling

Adrian Street Adrian Street (born 5 December 1940) is a retired Welsh professional wrestler and author known for his flamboyant, androgynous wrestling persona, brought to prominence in the 1970s and 1980s. Street was often accompanied to the ring by his long- ...

and Eric Embry in a series of scaffold matches. His new tag team partner Tommy Rogers started for

Bill Watts William F. Watts Jr. (born May 5, 1939) is a retired American professional wrestler, promoter and former American football player. Watts garnered fame under his "Cowboy" gimmick in his wrestling career, and then as a promoter in the Mid-South Un ...

Mid-South Wrestling The Universal Wrestling Federation was a 1986 re-branding of wrestler-turned-owner Bill Watts' Mid-South Wrestling promotion. Watts' goal was to elevate his promotion from a relatively smaller, regional-level business, to a national-level rival ...

. There the Fantastics (Fulton and Rogers) formed and feuded with the Midnight Express. In 1984, the team continued their feud with The Midnight Express in

World Class Championship Wrestling World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), later known as the World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA) (1986–1991) was an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed ...

that later extended into

Jim Crockett Promotions Jim Crockett Promotions Inc. is a family-owned professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, restarted by Jim Crockett's son and Jim Crockett Jr's brother, David Crockett. Founded in 1931, the promot ...

. In 1986, they had a feud with

The Sheepherders The Bushwhackers are a professional wrestling tag team who competed first as the New Zealand Kiwis and then as The Sheepherders during their 36-year career as a tag team. They wrestled in the World Wrestling Federation, Jim Crockett Promotions, ...

(who would become the "Bushwhackers"), Butch Miller and Luke Williams in the Universal Wrestling Federation. In 1987, back in WCCW, they feuded with the

Rock 'n' Roll RPMs The Rock 'n' Roll RPMs were a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Tommy Lane and Mike Davis, that competed in several professional wrestling promotions throughout the Southern United States. They were known for their bright colored tig ...

( Mike Davis and

Tommy Lane Tommy Lee Jones was born on January 4, 1949, and is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Tommy Lane. Lane is best known for his appearances in Southern United States professional wrestling promotions as To ...

). They won the feud by winning a scaffold match at the "

Parade of Champions The WCCW Parade of Champions was a series of professional wrestling supercards promoted by Fritz Von Erich's World Class Championship Wrestling first in 1961, in 1972 and then annually from 1984 through 1988. Von Erich used the "Parade of Champions ...

" on May 3, 1987. The Fantastics also made an appearance at the

World Wrestling Council The World Wrestling Council (WWC) (Spanish: "Consejo Mundial de Lucha"), is a Puerto-Rican professional wrestling promotion based in Puerto Rico. It was originally established as Capitol Sports Promotions in 1973 by Carlos Colón Sr., Victor J ...

in Puerto Rico. They next went to the

NWA NWA or Nwa most commonly refers to: * N.W.A ("Niggaz Wit Attitudes"), a hip hop group from Compton, California, US * National Wrestling Alliance, a professional wrestling organization NWA or Nwa may refer to: Music * New Weird America, a subgenr ...

's Jim Crockett Promotions to continue their feud with The Midnight Express and to win the NWA United States Tag Team Titles on two occasions. They also defeated

to win the vacant

NWA Mid-America Tag Team Championship The NWA Mid-America Tag Team championship was a tag team title promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion NWA Mid-America that ran more or less exclusively in Alabama, Tennessee, and Kentucky, United States, from the 1940s until 1 ...

. In 1989, they left and have been wrestling, sometimes together, sometimes not, in the independent circuit around the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, and in

All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW/AJP) or simply All Japan is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established on October 21, 1972 when Giant Baba split away from the Japanese Wrestling Association and created his own promotion. Many wrestlers had left with Baba, ...

. In 1990, he started his own territory in Ohio called James Hines presents Big Time Wrestling (which was a precursor to

Smoky Mountain Wrestling Smoky Mountain Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that held events in the Appalachian area of the United States from October 1991 to December 1995, when it was run by Jim Cornette. The promotion was based in Knoxville, Tennessee, wit ...

). The federation was based primarily in

Circleville, Ohio Circleville is a city in and the county seat of Pickaway County, Ohio, United States, set along the Scioto River, 25 miles (40 km) south of Columbus. The population was 13,927 at the 2020 census. The city is best-known today as the host of t ...

. Hines brought in talent like Hacksaw Jim Duggan,

Ronnie Garvin Roger Barnes (born March 30, 1945) is a Canadian former professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, "Rugged" Ronnie Garvin. He is best known for his appearances with Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federati ...

Abdullah the Butcher Lawrence Robert Shreve (born January 11, 1941), better known by the ring name Abdullah the Butcher, is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. He has a reputation for being involved in some of the most violent and bloody hardcore wrestling matc ...

, Cactus Jack,

Wahoo McDaniel Edward Hugh McDaniel (June 19, 1938 – April 18, 2002) was an American Choctaw-Chickasaw professional American football player and professional wrestler better known by his ring name Wahoo McDaniel. He is notable for having held the NWA United S ...

Jake Roberts Aurelian Smith Jr. (born May 30, 1955), better known by the ring name Jake "The Snake" Roberts, is an American professional wrestler and actor currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) where he performs as manager to Lance Archer. He is be ...

, Beau James and many more to participate in regular cards held in Circleville at the Pickaway County Fairgrounds Coliseum. Hines was the Big Time Wrestling champion several times, and also often teamed with his brother,

Jackie Fulton George Hines (born June 1, 1963) is a retired American professional wrestler, best known by his ringname Jackie Fulton, who competed in regional and independent promotions including the American Wrestling Association, East Coast Championship Wrest ...

, as the Fantastics, on these cards. These cards inspired wrestlers like

Shark Boy Dean Matthew Roll (born January 28, 1975) is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) under the ring name Shark Boy. Prior to his appearances in TNA, Roll competed on the independen ...

and many others to become pro wrestlers. Fulton and

Ivan Koloff Oreal Donald Perras (August 25, 1942 – February 18, 2017) was a Canadian professional wrestler, better known by the ring name "The Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff. He was the third wrestler to hold the WWWF Championship. Early life Perras was b ...

ran a wrestling school in North Carolina in the early 1990s. The Fantastics (Bobby and Jackie Fulton) then made regular appearances in All Japan and in Smoky Mountain Wrestling. The Fantastics made a brief appearance in the WWF in June 1997 when Fulton wrestled Rogers in what was billed as a Light Heavyweight Match. According to Fulton, they were brought in at the request of

Jim Cornette James Mark "Jim" Cornette (born September 17, 1961) is an American author and podcaster who has previously worked in the professional wrestling industry as an agent, booker, color commentator, manager, promoter, trainer, and occasional prof ...

to convince

Vince McMahon Vincent Kennedy McMahon (; born August 24, 1945) is an American media proprietor and retired professional wrestling promoter, executive, and performer. From 1982 to 2022, he served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the w ...

to start a light heavyweight division, which eventually started. After 2000, Fulton started wrestling under a mask at various shows as the Sheik of Araby as a tribute to one of his idols the Original Sheik. Often he would taunt the crowd by threatening to raise gas prices. He worked with a lot of young new talent under this persona and helped them as they were breaking in. In October 2015, Fulton announced he will undergo a retirement tour called the "Fantastic Finale", which ended in 2017. On June 10, 2017, Fulton teamed up with "Big Time" Josh Lewis to win the

s from The East and West Express in NWA Supreme. The East and West Express regained the championship on June 23, 2017. In March 2016, Hines started promoting events again under the banner World Classic Professional Big Time Wrestling, in which he had an ongoing rivalry with ECW original

Shane Douglas Troy Allan Martin (born November 21, 1964) is an American professional wrestler and promoter, better known by his ring name Shane Douglas. He is best known for his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), World Championship Wrestling (W ...

. Some of the stars who have appeared in WCPBTW include Sting,

Tito Santana Merced Solis (born May 10, 1953), better known by the ring name Tito Santana, is a retired American professional wrestler and middle school teacher. Santana has stayed a babyface his entire career and he is best known for his appearances with ...

Ricky Morton Richard Wendell Morton (born September 21, 1956) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, currently performing on the independent circuit. He is the current GCW Television Champion, after pinning Matt Cardona at GCW Say You Wi ...

, Cowboy Bob Orton,

Tony Atlas Anthony White (born April 23, 1954) better known by his ring name Tony Atlas is an American bodybuilder, powerlifter, and professional wrestler who has held multiple titles and championships in each sport. He is also known by his bodybuilding ti ...

, Kevin Sullivan,

J. J. Dillon James Morrison (born June 26, 1942) is an American retired professional wrestler and manager, better known by his ring name, J. J. Dillon. Professional wrestling career J. J. Dillon had an extensive wrestling career. He broke into wrestling at th ...

Jimmy Valiant James Harold Fanning (born August 6, 1942) is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Jimmy Valiant. Early life Fanning was born in Tullahoma as the youngest of five children of James and Effie Fanning. He later incorpo ...

, The Sandman, Sabu, The Barbarian,

Buff Bagwell Marcus Alexander Bagwell (born January 10, 1970) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Buff Bagwell. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from 1991 to 2 ...

Bobby Eaton Bobby Lee Eaton (August 14, 1958 – August 4, 2021) was an American professional wrestler best known as "Beautiful" Bobby Eaton. He was most famous for his work in tag teams, especially as one-half of The Midnight Express. Under the managemen ...

The Honky Tonk Man Roy Wayne Farris (born January 25, 1953), better known by the ring name The Honky Tonk Man, is an American retired professional wrestler. He previously wrestled for World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE ...

Bushwhacker Luke Brian Wickens (born 8 January 1947) is a New Zealand professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation under the ring name Bushwhacker Luke, where he teamed with Bushwhacker Butch as The Bushwhackers. ...

Bill Dundee William Cruickshanks (born 24 October 1943) is a Scottish-born Australian professional wrestler and author better known by his stage name Bill Dundee. Cruickshanks is the father of J. C. Ice, Jamie Dundee and the father-in-law of wrestler Bobby E ...

Tracy Smothers Tracy Stanton Smothers (September 2, 1962 – October 28, 2020) was an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling, Smoky Mountain Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation, and Extreme Champ ...

, and

Tommy Rich Thomas Richardson (born July 26, 1956) is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Tommy “Wildfire” Rich. He is a one time former National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Champion and Smoky Mountain Wrestling ...

. Fulton wrestled his final match on December 14, 2019 at the independent show "Bobby Eaton: A Night of Appreciation," in an 8-man tag team match where he teamed with Brad Thomas, Ryan Dookie, and Shane Williams to defeat the team of Beau James,

George South George South (born September 7, 1962) is an American professional wrestler. In the course of his career, South has wrestled for professional wrestling promotions such as Jim Crockett Promotions, World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrest ...

, and Stan Lee. On July 16, 2020, he announced his retirement.

Personal life

Hines became a

born-again Christian Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sepa ...

and also has been preaching the Christian gospel since October 2003. Hines has been married 3 times. He has two sons, Dillon (The Good Doctor/War Eagle) and Jarron. He was diagnosed with throat cancer in December 2019, and began chemotherapy the next month. On June 6, 2020, he announced via Twitter that he was cancer-free.

Championships and accomplishments

*Big Time Wrestling **BTW Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship (2 times) **BTW Ohio Tag Team Championship (7 times) - with

, Sean Casey and

Rip Rogers Mark Sciarra (born February 7, 1954) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Rip Rogers. Early life Sciarra was born in Seymour, Indiana on February 7, 1954. He graduated from Seymour High School in 1972 an ...

**BTW Legends American Grand Prix Championship (2 times) * Central States Wrestling **

NWA Central States Television Championship The NWA Central States Television Championship was the secondary singles championship for the Heart of America Sports Attractions / Central States Wrestling promotion from 1977 until the promotion ceased to exist in 1988. Because the championship ...

( 1 time) *

AWA Southern Tag Team Championship The AWA Southern Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team title in the Tennessee area from the 1940s through the late 1980s. It was originally named the NWA Southern Tag Team Championship ''(Mid-America version)'' from its ince ...

( 1 time) – with Tommy Rogers *Heroes And Legends Wrestling **HLW Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with

NWA United States Tag Team Championship The NWA United States Tag Team Championship is a name used for several secondary tag team championship used by various National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) members since 1958. There are eleven different versions of the NWA United States Tag Team Champ ...

(

2 times "2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...

) – with Tommy Rogers *

National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA ...

(2 Times) with

Tommy Rogers (wrestler) Thomas R. Couch (May 14, 1961 – June 1, 2015) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Tommy Rogers. He was one-half of the tag team The Fantastics with Bobby Fulton. Professional wrestling career Couch started wres ...

and Josh Lewis (wrestler) *

SMW Tag Team Championship The SMW Tag Team Championship was the tag team title in Smoky Mountain Wrestling Smoky Mountain Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that held events in the Appalachian area of the United States from October 1991 to December 1995, w ...

( 1 time) – with

SCW Southwest Junior Heavyweight Championship The SWCW Southwest Junior Heavyweight Championship was a secondary title in Southwest Championship Wrestling, challenged for by lighter weight wrestlers. It lasted from 1981 until 1985, when it was abandoned after SWCW was sold to Texas All-Star ...

( 1 time) * Universal Wrestling Federation ** UWF World Tag Team Championship (

) – with Tommy Rogers * World Class Championship Wrestling / World Class Wrestling Association **

NWA American Tag Team Championship The WCWA World Tag Team Championship was the primary professional wrestling tag team championship (professional wrestling), championship promoted by the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex area–based World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA). The cham ...

(

) – with Tommy Rogers **

WCWA World Tag Team Championship The WCWA World Tag Team Championship was the primary professional wrestling tag team championship promoted by the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex area–based World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA). The championship was originally introduced as ...

(

) – with Tommy Rogers *''

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publish ...

'' **PWI ranked him # 286 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003. **PWI ranked him # 63 of the 100 best tag teams during the "PWI Years" with Tommy Rogers in 2003. * WAR Wrestling **WAR Hall of Fame (2017) *''

Wrestling Observer Newsletter The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four We ...

'' ** Feud of the Year (1988) with Tommy Rogers vs. Bobby Eaton and Stan Lane

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fulton, Bobby 1960 births 20th-century professional wrestlers 21st-century professional wrestlers American male professional wrestlers American evangelicals Living people Sportspeople from Chillicothe, Ohio Professional wrestlers from Ohio Professional wrestling promoters Stampede Wrestling alumni SMW Tag Team Champions NWA/WCW United States Tag Team Champions