Memphis Heat opens at Market Street Cinema Friday.

  • “Memphis Heat” opens at Market Street Cinema Friday.

“MEMPHIS HEAT: THE TRUE STORY OF MEMPHIS WRASSLIN'”
7 p.m., Market Street Cinema. $6-$8.

Advertisement

Before cable got involved, local and regional wrasslin’ was big business, and nowhere was it bigger than in Memphis, Tenn. The new documentary “Memphis Heat” captures the movement’s heyday, beginning in the late ’50s with the likes of Sputnik Monroe (an early civil rights champion with a skunk-colored pompadour) and continuing into the ’70s and ’80s, when modern wrestling legends like Jerry “The King” Lawler and Jimmy Hart dominated the scene.

The Southern territory wrestlers traveled, which included Jonesboro, Blytheville and Fayetteville, merits some coverage. And Lawler, the doughy, trash-talking, self-styled king of the ring, gets a lot of welcome screen time, both in archival footage and from contemporary interviews. Reliving his feud with Andy Kaufman, from the Memphis wrestling community’s perspective, is great fun.

Advertisement

And of course fans of piledrivers, top-rope dives and folding chair smashes can look forward to dozens of montages. The film sticks around at Market Street for one week. Co-producer Ron Hall will be on hand Friday to sign copies of his book “Sputnik, Masked Men, and Midgets,” which inspired the film and makes a fantastic coffee table book.

50 years of fearless reporting and still going strong

Be a part of something bigger and join the fight for truth by subscribing or donating to the Arkansas Times. For 50 years, our progressive, alternative newspaper in Little Rock has been tackling powerful forces through our tough, determined, and feisty journalism. With over 63,000 Facebook followers, 58,000 Twitter followers, 35,000 Arkansas blog followers, and 70,000 email subscribers, it's clear that our readers value our commitment to great journalism. But we need your help to do even more. By subscribing or donating – as little as $1 –, you'll not only have access to all of our articles, but you'll also be supporting our efforts to hire more writers and expand our coverage. Take a stand with the Arkansas Times and make a difference with your subscription or donation today.

Previous article Republican voter suppression, Chapter II Next article Republicans press McDaniel on Broadway opinion