Susie Mae McCoy (December 22, 1938 – July 25, 1989), better known by her ring name Sweet Georgia Brown, was an African-American female professional wrestler who was recognized as the first Black woman to win a title in professional wrestling history.[3]
| Sweet Georgia Brown | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Susie Mae McCoy |
| Born | December 22, 1938 Cayce, South Carolina, US[1] |
| Died | July 25, 1989 (aged 50)[2] |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Sweet Georgia Brown Black Orchid African Lioness |
| Trained by | Fabulous Moolah Buddy Lee |
| Debut | 1958 |
| Retired | 1972 |
Wrestling career
editBrown was trained by the Fabulous Moolah and Buddy Lee in South Carolina. She made her wrestling debut in 1958. On October 21, 1963, Brown made history when she defeated Nell Stewart for the NWA Texas Women's Championship becoming the first black woman to win a title in wrestling history.[4] During her career she wrestled in Florida, Calgary, Mid-Atlantic, Alabama and Hawaii. She retired from wrestling in 1972.
Death
editBrown passed away from breast cancer at 50 on July 25, 1989.[5]
Legacy
editIn 2019, she was featured on Vice's Dark Side of the Ring episode on the Fabulous Moolah. Her son, Michael mentions his mother's life and the abuse she suffered in wrestling.[6][7]
One of the most notorious accusations is from the family of Sweet Georgia Brown (Susie Mae McCoy), who was trained by Moolah and her husband, Buddy Lee. The Columbia Free Times reported allegations made by her daughter in 2006, in which she said her mother told her that she was often raped, given drugs, and made an addict in an intentional attempt by Ellison and Lee to control her.[8]
Michael McCoy, Sweet Georgia Brown's son, refuted allegations made by his sister, stating that she has an agenda and that the allegations are false.[9] However, on the Dark Side of the Ring episode about The Fabulous Moolah, Michael McCoy stated that she was indeed made to have sex with paying promoters.[10] Bruce Prichard said she was protecting herself from the promoters and the only negative thing he heard of her was "took a percentage of their pay, which was laid out in their contract clearly before they even started training, day one."[11]
Championships and accomplishments
editReferences
edit- ^ "Sweet Georgia Brown". Cagematch.
- ^ Saalbach, Axel. "Wrestlingdata.com – The World's Largest Wrestling Database". wrestlingdata.com. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
- ^ Greer, Jamie (2018-02-02). "The Pioneers: Sweet Georgia Brown - First African-American Women;s Champion". Retrieved 2024-08-05.
- ^ "Texas Women's Title". wrestling-titles.
- ^ Jamie Cruicksank. "Sweet Georgia Brown". Retrieved 2021-03-07.
- ^ Shorey, Eric (2019-05-15). "The Fabulous Moolah's True Story From Dark Side Of The Ring".
- ^ Featherstone, Chris (2018-03-30). "Son of Sweet Georgia Brown defends The Fabulous Moolah over Recent Allegations".
- ^ Murfee Faulk (December 20, 2006). "Baby of Sweet Georgia Brown". free-times.com. Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved August 14, 2008.
- ^ Satin, Ryan (March 28, 2018). "Son of Sweet Georgia Brown Refutes Fabulous Moolah Pimp Allegations". Pro Wrestling Sheet. Archived from the original on July 15, 2019. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
- ^ "The Fabulous Moolah". Dark Side of the Ring. Season 1. May 15, 2019. Vice TV.
- ^ "411Mania". Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.