“Friends all tried to warn me
But I held my head up high
All the time they warned me
But I only passed them by
They all tried to tell me
But I guess I didn't care
I turned my back and
Left them standing there” 

“Burning Bridges,” Mike Curb Congregation 

Mike Bowyer, as he was still known, worked in the American Wrestling Association after leaving California. He was used as “enhancement talent” and worked televised squashes, though apparently did some house shows as well. Bowyer then headed to Memphis for a while before entering the Alabama-based Gulf Coast Championship Wrestling. Promoter Lee Fields saw something in Mike that others had apparently overlooked, as the Hippy was hatched upon unsuspecting GCCW fans. As Mike Norris describes in the aforementioned link,

“…Initially a ‘heel’ wrestler, Boyette’s mere appearance upset the conservative fans. Wearing wild long hair and beard, along with tie-died tights and beaded vests, he proudly called himself ‘The California Hippie’.  Fans hated him and his wild tactics. He relied mainly on judo throws and elbow smashes to wear his opponents down for his finisher, a version of the Camel Clutch that he called the ‘Hippie Hold’.

Anybody attempting that gimmick in the Deep South in the early ‘70s had to have some measure of intestinal fortitude. Though he started as a natural heel, Boyette eventually turned face and became a steady headliner from 1971 through 1975. Along with Cowboy Bob Kelly, Don Fargo, Rip Tyler, Ken Lucas and Seguin, Texas’ own late Medic, Tony Gonzales, the Hippy was either at or near the top of the card during this period. He won the territory’s Heavyweight Title in 1973 and enjoyed multiple runs as tag team champion. The Hippy did, however, have the unfortunate knack to get turned on by his partner(s), a la Jose Lothario and Sting. His most notable partner was Micky Doyle, a fellow Hippy. As a heel team, they held the straps in 1972 and even ventured into Tennessee.

So Mike Boyette was a hippy, but not a hapless one in GCCW. He worked successfully as a heel and a face and won titles as a singles and a tag competitor. So, how did all of this relate to the UWF? Well, there was a teenaged fan who dreamed of creating a persona that was equal parts Ric Flair and Ronnie Van Zant, dually enthralled by the wrestling life as he was by the deep grooves of Lynyrd Skynyrd. His name? Well, we would come to known him as the leader of the Fabulous Freebirds, Michael “P.S.” Hayes. And one of his favorite wrestlers? The Man Known as The Hippy… 

“Well I've been ridin' a winning horse for a long, long time 
Sometimes I wonder is this the end of the line 
No one should take advantage of who they are 
No man has got it made 
If he thinks he does, he's wrong 

Every mother's son better hear what I say 
Every mother's son will rise and fall someday”

“Every Mother’s Son,” Lynyrd Skynyrd. 

According to Percy Pringle, the young P.S. would hang out in arena parking lots and carry Mike Boyette’s bags in for him. Now, I would never doubt Percy, but I were to ride the KM Wayback Machine to 1987, I would have never, EVER believed that Michael Hayes, the real Rock and Wrestling Connection, would have been a roadie for the 0-99 Hippy? No way, Jose Lothario! From 1977 though 1978, the Hippy worked under both his given name and his ring moniker in Tennessee and Georgia. The Hippy also found time to tutor and train the future Freebird, who eventually turned pro in 1978. Evidently much of Hayes' in-ring repertoire—minus the judo cops and camel clutch-- and his mic skills were influenced the Hippy’s. Don’t tell me that P.S. learned the moonwalk from him, too… 

“If you see me getting mighty
If you see me getting high
Knock me down
I'm not bigger than life” 

“Knock Me Down,” Red Hot Chili Peppers. 

Mike Bowyer wrestled briefly in Mid-South in 1980, working the early matches, doing jobs for guys like Iron Mike Sharpe. The Hippy spent much of the 1980’s in anonymity. Well, that decade wasn’t particularly friendly to hippiedom so, who knows, maybe he was following the Grateful Dead around. In 1987, Mike Boyette appeared in the UWF. His protégé Michael Hayes had, along with his Freebird brethren Terry Gordy and Buddy Roberts, taken over as the promotions elite heel group, arguably the best “bad guys” in wrestling. I’m guessing that Hayes didn’t forget his mentor and was influential in getting Boyette a place in the UWF. It was also Hayes that came up with an idea of a streak, a streak that would live on in our kayfabe memories, a legendary streak that began when Bill Goldberg was still spearing kids on his elementary school playground in Tulsa… 

‘Just a hard luck boy from a hard luck town
Hard luck story that's goin' around
You can make a fool wear a crown
Prop him up but he falls back down
Fall back down” 

“Hard Luck Boy,” Georgia Satellites. 

Mike Boyette started his UWF tenure, as far as I can tell, at a card I attended in Houston on February 6, 1987, dropping a match to Rick Steiner. There may have been some losses previous to this—send ‘em my way at CL11@swt.edu if you know if any—but The Streak, as it shall be referred to henceforth, had started. A succession of singles matches produced the same result. Whether the opponent was Sting, Sam Houston, Chavo Guerrero, Savannah Jack, “Dr. Death” Steve Williams, Chris Adams, Steve Cox, or, in the latter days of the promotion, the Terminator and Shane Douglas, the Hippy never won. He even dropped a decision to Mike Jackson. Boyette had matches at the Superdome Extravaganza and the Superblast at the Superdome, facing Chavo Guerrero and Shaska Whatley, respectively. Neither resulted in a trip to the pay window. He participated in tag competition, teaming with fellow job guys such as the Red Shadow, the Red Devil, and Mike George. Needless to say, his success in GCCW wasn’t matched in these bouts. He tried to find a victory whilst paired with Gary Young and the Angel of Death, but these efforts were fruitless as well… 

“Sometimes You Just Can’t Win”

George Jones. 

The UWF, in keeping with its attention to detail and continuity, kept promoting the Hippy weekly on television as having the longest losing streak in wrestling. Jim Ross and the company’s other announcers pushed him as a guy who would lose, and he never disappointed. A graphic with his won/lost record –always 0 and something—would appear beneath his profile during the Hippy’s introduction. I distinctly remember a match between the Hippy and Barry Windham during the promotion’s final months where announcers Ross and Magnum T.A. made fun of Boyette's “perfect” record, 0-23 at that juncture .During this and other matches, Ross would explain that the Hippy held the record for most consecutive losses and would joke and crack on his career. The Hippy refused to go quietly, as he would sometimes yell at Ross from the ring prior to the start of a match about how this was the “big one,” the match that would break the streak. Ha! That ‘80s perm must have affected the synapses in the Hippy’s brain. Ross would drolly respond that "Mr. Boyette” was having problems adjusting to the UWF style of action… 

“Born to lose, I've lived my life in vain
Every dream I dreamed has only brought me pain.” 

At 0-99, and the Hippy was determined not to go down in infamy for losing 100 matches in a row His opponent, however, was the up and coming Sting, and after the Hippy controlled the early part of the match, Sting mounted a comeback and downed Boyette to enable him to hit the century mark. By the time The Streak was into the early hundreds, Jim Ross interviewed the Hippy before a match. He was, to borrow from Tommy Rich, all farred up, and told Ross he'd been worked real hard, giving 110%,  and he that he knew that he was finally going to win one.! The Hippy projected sheer, if deluded, exuberance when he told Ross "tonight, I'm gonna win! I'm gonna win!" and dashed to the ring.

Ross did a turn to the camera, slightly chuckled, and told us "folks, Mike Boyette's opponent tonight is Terry 'Bamm-Bamm' Gordy. I don't think he's gonna win."

“…Better come back later next week
’cause you see I’m on losing streak.
I can’t get no, oh no no no.
Hey hey hey, that’s what I say. 

I can’t get no, I can’t get no,
I can’t get no satisfaction,
No satisfaction, no satisfaction, no satisfaction” 

“Satisfaction,” the Rolling Stones. 

Well, that’s it’s for this time. Thanks for taking the time to read my ramblings. I’ve been absent from here for a couple of months, and it sure feels good to get a chance to write for KM again. Special consideration and inspiration for this installment goes to those who have posted on the popular UWF Jobber Thread on the message board. Any thoughts, corrections, suggestions, or other comments should be sent to CL11@swt.edu. My prayers go out to the families of Johnny Cash and Warren Zevon, two American originals. John wore black to remember those who were “beaten down,” and Warren “(appreciated) the bestbut (was) settling for less” when “Looking for the Next Big Thing,” so perhaps the Hippy could relate to those songs .

Until next time, take care.  

NEXT MONTH: 

More of the Hippy and, er, Some Other Stuff.