William Boulware Jr., (January 30, 1958 – March 27, 2022) 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 projectin ...

, Rocky King, was an 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 ...

and referee in

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 promo ...

and

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Natio ...

Professional wrestling career

Boulware was homeless before he began his wrestling career. He was hired by

Jim Crockett Jr. James Allen Crockett Jr. (August 10, 1944 – March 3, 2021) was an American professional wrestling promoter. From 1973 to 1989, he was part owner of Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP), a wrestling company affiliated with the National Wrestling Allian ...

after he would hang around the wrestlers trying to get a job. Boulware, using the

Rocky King, started wrestling in 1985 in the

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

in North Carolina. He began his career in the promotion as a jobber. He quickly improved and was often allowed a lot of offense during his jobber matches. He was a frequent opponent of the

Four Horsemen The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are figures in the Christian scriptures, first appearing in the Book of Revelation, a piece of apocalypse literature written by John of Patmos. Revelation 6 tells of a book or scroll in God's right hand th ...

. After spending some time in Florida, King returned to North Carolina where he wrestled under promoter

Pez Whatley Pezavan Whatley (January 10, 1951 – January 18, 2005) was an American professional wrestler best known for his time with NWA Mid-America. Professional wrestling career Whatley played football and wrestled for Notre Dame High School in Chatt ...

. In 1987, he teamed with

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 Wrestl ...

. King was loosely associated with the Dudes With Attitudes in early 1990 during their feud with the Four Horsemen. In late 1990, after Crockett was purchased and renamed

, King got a gimmick change and became Little Richard Marley, manager of Michael Hayes and

Jimmy Garvin James Williams (born September 25, 1952) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring names "Gorgeous Jimmy" Garvin and Jimmy "Jam" Garvin. A member of The Fabulous Freebirds, Garvin is best known for his appearances ...

, the

Fabulous Freebirds The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team who attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed ...

. He helped them in their feud with the

Southern Boys The Southern Boys - also known as The Wild-Eyed Southern Boys and The Young Pistols - were a professional wrestling tag team active between 1987 and 1991 in Championship Wrestling from Florida, Southeastern Championship Wrestling, and World Cham ...

for a couple of months. At

Starrcade Starrcade was a recurring professional wrestling event, originally broadcast via closed-circuit television and eventually broadcast via pay-per-view. It was originally held from 1983 to 2000, first by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) from ...

in 1990, he inadvertently cost the Freebirds their match against

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 ...

and

Ricky Morton Richard Wendell Morton (born September 21, 1956) is an American professional wrestler, currently performing on the independent circuit. He is the current GCW Television Champion, after pinning Matt Cardona at GCW Say You Will. For most of his care ...

. After the match, the Freebirds attacked him. He then went back to wrestling as Rocky King. King became a WCW referee before retiring in 1998. In July 1999, he started BWA Professional Wrestling to give fans a family-oriented product on the independent scene. He also formed Boulware Enterprises, Inc. to run his promotion Boulware Wrestling Association. The BWA ran shows for churches, non-profit organizations and private organizations on the east coast. He partnered with Bill Heard III of Bill Heard Chevrolet 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 498,71 ...

to operate ''Kids Nite Out'', a program to keep kids off the streets. King also partnered with Frank Aldridge's

World Wrestling Alliance 4 In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

- WWA4, and together they ran hundreds of wrestling shows every year.

Death

Boulware died on March 27, 2022, aged 64.William "Rocky King" Boulware Jr.
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References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Rocky 1960 births 2022 deaths 20th-century professional wrestlers 21st-century African-American people African-American male professional wrestlers American male professional wrestlers Professional wrestling referees Professional wrestling managers and valets Sportspeople from Atlanta