Slater made a couple of house show appearances in JCP in the late 70’s, but didn’t have a run in the area until late 1982. Slater entered the area as a face, but I’m sure everyone knew that it wouldn’t last long and it didn’t. In a match on TV, Slater was involved in a six-man tag match with his teammates Bob Orton Jr. and Jerry Brisco against the team of Larry "Red Dog" Lane, Dory Funk Jr., and Greg Valentine. Whenever Slater walked in the ring, the heel that was in there would always tag out or leave the ring, so Slater never touched anyone until Bob Orton Jr. had Greg Valentine in a figure-four and then Slater walked in the ring and started dropping elbows on Orton. Brisco came in the ring and then Slater started beating him up until the heels left the ring. Slater started out 1983 by feuding with Roddy Piper and Mike Rotundo over the T.V. title and he eventually beat him on February 22, 1983 in Columbia, South Carolina. Slater’s feud with Piper now had a belt involved and Piper won the belt on March 27, 1983 in Asheville, North Carolina, but Slater won it back on April 3, 1983 in Greensboro, North Carolina. Slater moved on to a feud with the newly turned babyface Jos LeDuc who was stripped of the T.V. belt in November 1982. They had a series of confrontations and matches on T.V. and then LeDuc won the belt on April 30, 1983 in Richmond, Virginia. Slater bounced around the territory teaming with Jake "The Snake" Roberts and Greg Valentine for a couple of months until Ric Flair lost the NWA World Title and Ric came back to JCP. Flair and Slater had a series of matches on the house show circuit trying to collect the bounty that Harley Race had placed a Flair’s head, for a few weeks until Harley Race came back to the area and had a televised title defense against Flair in August 1983. Flair and Race wrestled a tremendous match, then Slater comes walking out and eventually jumps Flair from behind. Then out comes Bob Orton Jr., who was Flair’s best friend and what do ya know, Orton jumps Flair. Slater, Orton, and Race just destroy Flair and leave him laying. The cameras followed the heels to the locker room and it showed Race giving Slater and Orton the bounty money, then Jim Crockett walks in and suspends both Slater and Orton indefinitely. A few weeks go by and the suspension is lifted because of Flair, but Flair sent in a retirement speech on video and it looked like the real deal, but as Slater and Orton were wrestling a squash match, Flair came out of the crowd wearing a neckbrace and carrying a baseball bat. He chased the heels out of the arena and then gave a tremendous promo vowing revenge on Slater and Orton.  More...