Betty Wade-Murphy (born November 9, 1952), better known by her ring name Joyce Grable, is an American former

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 ...

. She was the long-term

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 ...

partner of

Wendi Richter Victoria "Wendi" Richter (born September 8, 1961) is an American retired professional wrestler. She began her professional wrestling career in companies such as the National Wrestling Alliance, where she teamed with Joyce Grable, with whom she ...

. She held the

NWA United States Women's Championship The NWA United States Women's Championship was a sporadically used women's professional wrestling championship in the National Wrestling Alliance from 1968 until 1987. Title history Footnotes See also *List of National Wrestling Allianc ...

once and the

NWA Women's World Tag Team Championship The NWA World Women's Tag Team Championship is a women's professional wrestling tag team championship defended in member promotions of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). History From the early 1950s through 1983, it was the first women's w ...

four times—twice with Richter and twice with her other tag team partner

Vicki Williams Vicki Williams (born April 21, 1956) is a retired female professional wrestler. She held the NWA Women's World Tag Team Championship three times with Joyce Grable. Professional wrestling career During a match in June 1971, midget wrestler Dar ...

Professional wrestling career

Training

Joyce Fowler (who also competed as Joyce Becker) was the first female wrestler to use the

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 ...

"Joyce Grable". Fowler was active from 1963–1974 and then retired from professional wrestling to focus on her family. In the early 1970s, Betty Wade-Murphy was trained by professional wrestler

Judy Grable Nellya Baughman (August 21, 1935 – May 11, 2008) was an American professional wrestler who was best known by her ring name Judy Grable. She was an active wrestler during the 1950s and 1960s. In addition to her nickname "The Barefoot Contessa" d ...

(who was her childhood idol) to become a female wrestler. Upon her professional debut, she was given the ring name "Joyce Grable" both as a tribute to her idol and trainer, Judy Grable, and because

Fabulous Moolah Mary Lillian Ellison (July 22, 1923 – November 2, 2007) was an American professional wrestler better known by her ring name The Fabulous Moolah. She began her career working with promoter Billy Wolfe and his wife, wrestler and trainer Mild ...

felt she bore a strong physical resemblance to the original Joyce Grable (portrayed by Fowler).

National Wrestling Alliance

The team of Grable and

won the

from Donna Christanello and

Toni Rose Toni Rose is an American retired professional wrestler. Professional wrestling career Rose grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana. She decided to become a professional wrestler at the age of seven, but first attended Terre Haute High School and col ...

on October 15, 1973 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. It was not until October 1975 that Rose and Christanello regained the title from Grable and Williams. In 1978 at Superbowl of Wrestling II, she defeated seven other wrestlers in an eight-woman

battle royal Battle royal (; also royale) traditionally refers to a fight involving many combatants that is fought until only one fighter remains standing, usually conducted under either boxing or wrestling rules. In recent times, the term has been used in a ...

. Later that year, she defeated

Ann Casey Lucille Ann Casey (September 29, 1938 – March 1, 2021) was an American professional wrestler, better known by her ring name Ann Casey, or Panther Girl. Early life Casey was born in Saraland, Alabama, one of nine children to John and Viola Cas ...

to win the

. In 1979, she helped train Judy Martin. In August 1979, the team of Grable and Williams defeated The Glamour Girls (

Leilani Kai Patty Seymour (born January 23, 1960) is a semi-retired professional wrestler, better known by her ring name Leilani Kai. She began training with The Fabulous Moolah right after finishing high school. In the 1980s, as part of the World Wrestling F ...

and Martin) to begin their second reign as NWA Women's Tag Champions. During the time period from 1973–1983, Grable frequently competed in the

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

, often in singles matches against

WWF Women's Champion WWF may refer to: Non-profit organizations *World Wide Fund for Nature or World Wildlife Fund, a nature conservation group *World Water Forum, an international forum for water issues *Working Women's Forum, a training, trade and credit union in In ...

Fabulous Moolah and in tag team matches with Williams. In 1982,

became her

partner after Grable trained her for six months in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. She wrestled in a series of matches in

Stampede Wrestling Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta. For nearly 50 years, it was one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies. Originally established by Stu Hart in 1948, the prom ...

with partner Richter against

Velvet McIntyre Velvet McIntyre (born November 24, 1962) is an Irish-Canadian retired professional wrestler. After beginning her career in 1980, she wrestled in American independent promotions before joining the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). She ...

and Judy Martin. Joyce Grable Also appeared that in Puerto Rico for 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 ...

. The teams continued their rivalry into April 1983 in

Verne Gagne Laverne Clarence Gagne (February 26, 1926 – April 27, 2015) was an American amateur and professional wrestler, football player, wrestling trainer, and wrestling promoter. He was the owner and promoter of the Minneapolis-based American Wrestling ...

American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo. The territory was originally part o ...

. In May 1983, she returned to Stampede Wrestling, where she once again teamed with Richter against McIntyre and Penny Mitchell. In 1986, Grable participated in a 10-woman battle royal at the

WrestleRock 86 WrestleRock was a professional wrestling supercard event promoted by the American Wrestling Association (AWA). In June 2016 the event was added to the WWE Network. Background The event was held at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapoli ...

event, losing to

Sherri Martel Sherry Schrull (née Russell; born February 8, 1958 – June 15, 2007) was an American professional wrestler and manager, better known by her ring names, Sherri Martel and Sensational Sherri. Martel began her professional wrestling career in the ...

. She continued to appear sporadically on the independent circuit and competed in the Delta Tiger Lilies promotion in 1988.

Retirement

She retired in 1991 and had back surgery. On January 29, 2005, Grable appeared at

WrestleReunion WrestleReunion (or Wrestle Reunion) is a professional wrestling event, and fan convention, founded by Sal Corrente in 2005. WrestleReunion 1 The first WrestleReunion event occurred January 29, 2005, at Doubletree Hotel in Tampa, Florida. The ...

managing Sherri Martel,

Peggy Lee Leather Peggy Lee (born January 19, 1959), also known by her stage names Peggy Lee Leather, Lady X, and Thug, is an American professional wrestler. Professional wrestling career World Wrestling Federation Peggy Lee competed in the World Wrestling Federa ...

Krissy Vaine Kristin Parmeter (née Eubanks; born January 12, 1981) is an American model, professional wrestler and valet. She is better known by her ring name Krissy Vaine and also for her time in World Wrestling Entertainment. She also trained at WWE's devel ...

, and

Amber O'Neal Kimberly Dawn Davis (born June 22, 1974) is an American professional wrestler, better known by her ring name Amber O’Neal. She formerly wrestled in Ring of Honor (ROH) in their "Women of Honor" division as well as various promotions on the U. ...

in an eight-woman tag team match against Wendi Richter,

Bambi ''Bambi'' is a 1942 American animated drama film directed by David Hand (supervising a team of sequence directors), produced by Walt Disney and based on the 1923 book ''Bambi, a Life in the Woods'' by Austrian author and hunter Felix Salten. ...

Malia Hosaka Malia Hosaka (born October 7, 1969) is an American professional wrestler. She is a former NWA World Women's Champion. Professional wrestling career Malia Hosaka was trained by Killer Kowalski at the wrestling training camp run by Misty Blue Simmes ...

, and Jenny Taylor. Grable continues to make appearances at wrestling reunions and conventions, as well as occasional independent shows. Grable appeared at a

Magnificent Ladies Wrestling This is a list of women's professional wrestling promotions in the United States, both active and defunct women's promotions from the 1950s through the present. See also *List of women's wrestling promotions This is a list of women's prof ...

event on April 30, 2011, where she managed

Melanie Cruise Melanie Goranson (born January 7, 1987) is an American professional wrestler, better known by her ring name Melanie Cruise. She is best known for her appearances in All Elite Wrestling (AEW), SHIMMER and POWW Entertainment. She currently perform ...

in a match against "Pryme Tyme" Amy Lee, and also managed Million Dollar Baby in a street fight against Robbie Rage. On May 20, 2011, she (along with several other retired professional wrestlers) was a guest at a

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promot ...

live event in Amsterdam, New York.

Personal life

Grable was originally from

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it ...

. Grable had one biological son, Derek Murphy and a step daughter, Melissa Wade and stepson, Richard Wade from her second husband, Richard Wade's, first marriage. She worked as a trainer at the women's wrestling training facility ran by Fabulous Moolah and was responsible for training several notable female wrestlers, including Wendi Richter and Sherri Martel. After retiring from wrestling, Grable worked as a receptionist at a center for mentally and physically disabled people. In 2013, Grable revealed she had

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

, prompting a

benefit show A benefit concert or charity concert is a type of musical benefit performance (e.g., concert, show, or gala) featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate hu ...

to be held in Florida.

Championships and accomplishments

Cauliflower Alley Club The Cauliflower Alley Club is a non-profit fraternal organization, which includes a newsletter and website, comprising both retired and active professional wrestlers and boxers in North America. Established in 1965 by Mike Mazurki and Art Abram ...

** Women's Wrestling Award (2010) ** Courage Award Winner (2022) *

Deep South Wrestling Deep South Wrestling (DSW) is a professional wrestling promotion in the state of Georgia. Deep South worked in tandem with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as a developmental territory from September 1, 2005, until April 18, 2007. Deep South w ...

** DSW Women's Championship (1 time, final champion) *

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 ...

NWA Texas Women's Championship The NWA Texas Women's Championship is the National Wrestling Alliance's women's professional wrestling championship in the state of Texas. Title history See also *Jim Crockett Promotions *National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestl ...

(1 time) **

NWA World Women's Tag Team Championship The NWA World Women's Tag Team Championship is a women's professional wrestling tag team championship defended in member promotions of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). History From the early 1950s through 1983, it was the first women's w ...

(6 times) - with

(3) and

(3) **

NWA Hall of Fame The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) Hall of Fame is an American professional wrestling hall of fame maintained by the NWA. It was established in 2005 to honor select wrestling personalities, mostly alumni of the NWA. Inductees receive commemorat ...

(Class of 2012) *

Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame (PWHF) and Museum is an American professional wrestling hall of fame and museum located in Wichita Falls, Texas currently closed to water leaks. The museum was founded by Tony Vellano in 1999, and was previo ...

:* Class of 2013 *

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 Girl Wrestler of the Year This is a list of both active and inactive ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' awards which are voted on by ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') readers every year from 1972 onwards, expanding to more categories in later years. Unlike other wrestling ...

(1973) * Pro Wrestling This Week ** Wrestler of the Week (November 23–29, 1986) * St. Louis Wrestling Hall of Fame ** class of 2022

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Grable, Joyce American female professional wrestlers Professional wrestling trainers 1952 births Living people People from LaGrange, Georgia Professional wrestlers from Georgia (U.S. state) Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum Stampede Wrestling alumni 21st-century American women 20th-century professional wrestlers