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- While Hillbilly Jim’s in-ring career was surprisingly short at roughly eight years with exactly zero title wins, he’s definitely a legend worth knowing about. He doesn’t have the reputation of other stars of the Golden Era like Macho Man Randy Savage, Rowdy Roddy Piper, or Jake “The Snake” Roberts, but he was wildly popular with fans in the mid-’80s, with many looking back fondly on Hillbilly Jim’s antics, and stands out among many of the top stars by not having a depressing, tragic story. Let’s take a look at a few more things fans should know about the legendary Hillbilly Jim.
Hillbilly Jim is one of the most beloved performers to ever grace a WWE ring. His work as a fan favorite had kids around the world dancing and clapping whenever they saw the jolly big man making his way to the ring. While his gimmick likely wouldn’t go over all that well these days, he was a prominent figure during a time when wrestlers were more similar to Saturday morning cartoons.
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While he never won a championship, his legacy was solidified by managing to be one of the most entertaining talents of the era. Most people may have not even been aware that he never won a championship despite his popularity, which should tell anyone that there is a lot to know about Hillbilly Jim.
UPDATE: 2022/07/19 15:41 EST BY Danny Djeljosevic
While Hillbilly Jim’s in-ring career was surprisingly short at roughly eight years with exactly zero title wins, he’s definitely a legend worth knowing about. He doesn’t have the reputation of other stars of the Golden Era like Macho Man Randy Savage, Rowdy Roddy Piper, or Jake “The Snake” Roberts, but he was wildly popular with fans in the mid-’80s, with many looking back fondly on Hillbilly Jim’s antics, and stands out among many of the top stars by not having a depressing, tragic story. Let’s take a look at a few more things fans should know about the legendary Hillbilly Jim.
13 He Was A Biker Before He Was A Hillbilly
Everyone knows Hillbilly Jim is best remembered as, well, a hillbilly, but that doesn’t mean he hadn’t tried out other concepts before he got big. Before he was a big and lovable hillbilly, Jim was instead a bit of a biker.
He had the rather on-the-nose name of Harley Davidson. You may think that wouldn’t go over well, but he was a member of a surprisingly popular tag team at that time. The gimmick is quite a bit different from what made him famous, but it’s likely he made a great biker thanks to his look.
12 * Discovered By Pat Patterson
The man who’d come to be known as Hillbilly Jim was less than a decade into his wrestling career, when he got noticed by WWE. It was Jim’s friend, wrestler Bruce Swayze, who made the introduction, taking Jim backstage to meet WWE people backstage at an event in Nashville. He made such an impression that Pat Patterson decided to give him a shot that night, putting him in an undercard match. Jim had to perform in gear borrowed from other wrestlers, but it seemed to work out, as Patterson invited him to work another show days later.
11 * Chief Jay Strongbow Came Up With The Hillbilly Gimmick
WWE flew Jim out to wrestle in front of Vince McMahon himself, and backstage, he sat with McMahon, wrestler-turned-booker George Scott, and retired star turned road agent Chief Jay Strongbow as they talked about how to package Jim. It was Strongbow who suggested the hillbilly gimmick, having teamed with super heavyweight hillbilly wrestler Haystacks Calhoun on countless occasions in the 1970s. From there, McMahon came up with the name Hillbilly Jim, while Jim came up with billing the character from Mud Lick, Kentucky.
10 He Originally Started In WWE As A Fan
A lot of people seem to have completely forgotten about how Hillbilly Jim actually made his way onto WWE television. Rather than making some kind of dominant debut over a jobber, he instead started out as a fan in the stands.
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He was simply a fan for a period of time, eventually getting the chance to be interviewed on Piper’s Pit. It would be that appearance that would set him on the path to becoming a fan favorite once Hulk Hogan got himself involved in the angle.
9 He Had To Choose Between Roddy Piper & Hulk Hogan
Not many wrestlers are immediately put on television with the likes of Hulk Hogan and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, but Hillbilly Jim was. It was a big angle in which Jim had to decide between which of the two men would help him become a wrestler for real.
As everyone knows Hillbilly Jim was best used as a fan favorite, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that he eventually chose to side with The Hulkster. Their vignettes were a bit ridiculous, but they caught the interest of a younger audience, especially when he finally became Hillbilly Jim.
8 *Got The Rub From Hulk Hogan
Hillbilly Jim’s alignment with Hulk Hogan couldn’t be more beneficial to the rookie’s career. By Jim’s on-screen debut in 1984, Hogan had been WWE Champion for almost a year, and Hulkamania was on the rise, with the champ selling out shows left and right.
Being presented as Hogan’s buddy made the likable, charismatic Hillbilly Jim one of WWE’s top stars almost immediately, with some arguing that he was the company’s #2 babyface. Despite that, the two rarely shared a ring together, with their only significant match being an elimination match at the 1988 Survivor Series pay-per-view.
7 He’s Released Music Before
Of every wrestler that has ever graced the industry, Hillbilly Jim might be the last that you’d expect would have released music. He recorded some country tunes over the years in which you can hear Jim himself singing away.
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The two different songs are "Waking Up Alone" and "Don’t Go Messing With A Country Boy". Fans may recognize the names of those tracks off of The Wrestling Album and Piledriver. While his music won’t be for everyone, it’s still fascinating and well worth checking out if you were ever a big fan of Hillbilly Jim.
6 He Once Managed To Defeat Andre The Giant
Pretty much anyone who ever beat Andre The Giant has an accolade that they can hold over a majority of wrestlers. With that said, it may be a shock to learn that Hillbilly Jim actually has a victory over Andre.
To be fair, the victory did come in the way of disqualification, but that doesn’t make the feat any less impressive. Many people forget that there were entire promotions and career eras in which Andre was essentially unbeatable, so someone like Jim beating him will always be a shock.
5 An Injury Led To The Creation Of A Hillbilly Family
After a bit of a freak accident during a match, Hillbilly Jim found himself unable to compete, but WWE had a plan. Rather than let him cut some antics-filled promos on his own, the promotion set up an entire hillbilly family.
Those that ended up accompanying Jim were Cousin Junior, Cousin Luke, and of course Uncle Elmer. While the rest of the family isn’t often as fondly remembered as Jim, the inclusion of them did help to add to the Hillbilly Jim character in the minds of fans.
4 He Was Often Used To Fill In For Others
These days, there are some people who view wrestlers who are primarily used as fill-ins in a negative light. While there certainly is an argument to be made, Hillbilly Jim never seemed to mind, because the crowd was always happy to see him.
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Occasionally, having to fill in would lead to the occasional squash match, but in other instances, he managed to pick up a win over Andre The Giant. While filling in wasn’t always a good thing, Jim got plenty of good breaks from filling in for others who left or found themselves injured.
3 He Was Arguably More Successful As A Manager
For how loved Hillbilly Jim was, that love never translated into championship success in any way. Due to that, it’s fair to say that he was actually more successful as a manager as he actually led his clients, The Godwinns, to a championship win.
While he was plenty of fun to see in a managerial role, it wouldn’t last all that long. The Godwinns began to change as a team, and once they completed their heel turn, Hillbilly Jim wasn’t the best person to pair with them anymore.
2 He’s Prominent On the Radio
Wrestlers have a bad habit of not knowing when to quit once the prime of their career is far down the road behind them. Rather than wrestling forever, Hillbilly Jim took his charisma and shifted over to radio work.
His radio work started all the way back in 2005 when he started a radio show on a country station for Sirius Satellite Radio. The show is called Hillbilly Jim’s Moonshine Matinee and while it features mostly country music, he does share stories from his iconic career.
1 He Once Suffered An Injury In A Surprising Way
Injuries can happen at any time in professional wrestling. Just about any move can cause an injury in some way even if they’re executed perfectly. With that said, Hillbilly Jim suffered a mid-match injury in a way that not many people would expect.
Rather than taking a move wrong, Jim was injured when he slipped on some water that had been spilled at ringside. That simple slip was enough to injure his knee and keep him out of action for roughly six months. It was a bit of a setback, but it all seemed to have worked out in the end for Hillbilly Jim.
