Friendly Encounters

This is a regular series featuring friends who have met celebs.

Previous to his recent reports on Legends of the Ring, when we last saw Josh Watko, he was meeting the Icon Sting.  Today, Josh is going to tell us about meeting the King, Jerry Lawler.  Before we get to that though, I'll give a little update on Josh.
Josh's website is JW's Wrestling Memorabilia. and it is full of great wrestling stuff.  Josh covers autograph signings, live events and products (new and old).  He also writes wrestling opinion pieces and other interesting posts.  Josh is gaining exposure and is already widely known within the wrestling circle.
I have asked him to share some wrestling stories and he has contributed one about meeting Mike McGuirk, Mae Young and the previously mentioned meeting with Sting.  Finally, here are Josh's thoughts on Jerry Lawler.
Back in 2001, it was Jerry Lawler's name on the marquee that got me to attend my first independent wrestling show.  Ten years and many meetings with The King later, I once again encountered the WWE Hall of Famer at a show for the very same promotion.  Although many stars fill IWC's annual Night of Legends show, it was clear that Jerry was the draw of the night.
The King, despite his often rotten in-ring character from years past, is one of the most fan-friendly wrestlers of all time.  He always has time for a word, a handshake and of course, photos and autographs.  A friend of mine even asked why his legendary piledriver did not come into play at his recent match at WrestleMania.  (The answer:It was discussed but ultimately shot down by the WWE.)

Lawler also has one of the most beautiful signatures I've ever seen.  I've always felt that this may be due to The King being an accomplished artist.  If you have paid attention to the announcer segments on Raw in recent years, you may have seen Jerry's shirt which includes a large facsimile of his exquisite John Hancock!
As always, I appreciate Josh sharing his experiences.  I like his insight.  As a longtime autograph collector, I can appreciate his insight about Lawler's signature.  If you have any interest in wrestling or even if you just want to check out some interesting things, give a look to Josh's site.

John Watko and Jerry Lawler in Elizabeth, PA-May 2011.