Bob Armstrong

Joseph Melton James (October 3, 1939 – August 27, 2020) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, "Bullet" Bob Armstrong.

In the course of his career, which spanned five decades, Armstrong held numerous championships throughout the Southeastern United States.

His four sons, Joseph Scott, Robert Bradley, Steve and Brian Girard, all became wrestlers.

Joseph Melton James was born in Marietta, Georgia on October 3, 1939.

When he was a child, Joseph James's father took him to see Gorgeous George wrestle.

The young James was impressed and intrigued by the flamboyant performer.

As a young man, James served in the United States Marine Corps in the early 1960s and was stationed in Korea.

During his recruit training in Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island on Parris Island, South Carolina, James was named Honor Man.

He debuted as a wrestler in 1960, adopting the ring name "Bob Armstrong".

After leaving the military, he began working for the Fair Oaks (later Cobb County) Fire Department as a firefighter in 1962.

By 1966, Armstrong had become a popular face in the Savannah, Georgia area, and in 1970 he ceased working as a firefighter and began focusing on his wrestling career.

Armstrong achieved considerable popularity in the Southeastern United States, particularly in Alabama and his home state of Georgia.

He frequently wrestled for affiliates of the National Wrestling Alliance, and on October 9, 1974, in Miami Beach, Florida, Armstrong unsuccessfully challenged Jack Brisco for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.

While bench pressing a dumbbell weighing upwards of 180 lb (82 kg) in a gym in Georgia, the bench that Armstrong was lying upon broke, leading to the weight falling on his face.

Armstrong's face was severely damaged and his nose was torn entirely off, and he required $38,000 USD worth of plastic surgery to repair it.

While undergoing surgery, Armstrong donned a wrestling mask to conceal his disfigured features and began using the ring name "The Bullet".

As "The Bullet", Armstrong feuded with the Stud Stable in Continental Championship Wrestling.

Armstrong trained each of his sons to wrestle, and formed tag teams with them in the 1980s and 1990s.

In the course of his career, he toured both Japan and Korea.

He eventually discarded the mask after his surgeries were complete, but retained the nickname "Bullet" for the remainder of his career until retiring in 1988.

Armstrong went into semi-retirement in 1988.

In addition to making occasional appearance on the independent circuit in Georgia and Alabama, Armstrong acted as the commissioner of Smoky Mountain Wrestling and worked backstage with Southeast Championship Wrestling and the Continental Wrestling Federation.

He came out of retirement and wrestled for Smokey Mountain Wrestling between 1992 and 1995 when the promotion closed its doors down.

In 1995 he made a few appearances in the United States Wrestling Association.

On April 27, 1996, he teamed with his son Brad to defeat Bunkhouse Buck and Lord Steven Regal at a World Championship Wrestling house show in Canton, Georgia.

He lost to Ken Lucas at a Robert Gibson Promotion event in Mobile, Alabama, on February 22, 1997.

Afterwards, he retired once again and did not wrestle for a few years.

On December 12, 2001, he teamed with Dusty Rhodes and Larry Zbyszko to defeat Barry Windham, Ron Reis and Steve Lawler at Turnbuckle Championship Wrestling.

Armstrong appeared on the first weekly Total Nonstop Action Wrestling pay-per-view on June 26, 2002, alongside fellow National Wrestling Alliance veterans Corsica Joe, Dory Funk, Jr., Harley Race, Jackie Fargo and Sarah Lee.

His next appearance was on the August 14, 2002 pay-per-view, where he was introduced as an on-screen authority figure and informed Jeff Jarrett that he would face a mystery opponent one week later.

The mystery opponent was revealed to be "The Masked Bullet", a masked wrestler who imitated Armstrong's mannerisms (although Armstrong himself came to the ringside during the match, proving that he was not the Bullet).

On the August 28, 2002 pay-per-view, Jarrett fought the Bullet to a no contest before striking Armstrong with a chair.

On the September 18, 2002 pay-per-view, the Bullet unmasked, revealing himself to be Armstrong's youngest son Brian Gerard James, who would subsequently go by "B.G. James" in TNA.

On December 5, 2005, Armstrong underwent arthroscopic knee surgery.

On the December 3, 2005 episode of Impact!, Armstrong returned to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, congratulating the newly formed Four Live Kru on their unity.

However, at Turning Point on December 11, 2005, the Four Live Kru disintegrated, with Konnan betraying fellow members Kip and B.G. James.

Armstrong declared that he would reunite the Kru and unsuccessfully petitioned the fourth former member, Ron Killings, to that effect on the December 24, episode of Impact!.

One week later, Armstrong tried once more to reform the group, this time approaching Konnan.

Apparently willing to negotiate, Konnan led Armstrong backstage, only for Armstrong to be ambushed and beaten down by Konnan's newly formed stable, the Latin American Xchange (LAX).

Despite being advised to refrain from wrestling until March 2006, Armstrong resumed wrestling later that month.