Career (1960–1988) He debuted as a wrestler in 1960, adopting the ring name "Bob Armstrong". By 1966, Armstrong had become a popular
face in the
Savannah, Georgia area, and in 1970 he ceased working as a firefighter and began focusing on his wrestling career. Armstrong achieved considerable popularity in the Southeastern United States, particularly in
Alabama and his home state of
Georgia. He frequently wrestled for affiliates of the
National Wrestling Alliance, and on October 9, 1974, in
Miami Beach, Florida, Armstrong unsuccessfully challenged
Jack Brisco for the
NWA World Heavyweight Championship. While
bench pressing a
dumbbell weighing upwards of 180 lb (82 kg) in a
gym in Georgia, the bench that Armstrong was lying upon broke, leading to the weight falling on his face. Armstrong's face was severely damaged and his nose was torn entirely off, and he required $38,000
USD worth of
plastic surgery to repair it. While undergoing surgery, Armstrong donned a
wrestling mask to conceal his disfigured features and began using the ring name "The Bullet". As "The Bullet", Armstrong
feuded with the
Stud Stable in
Continental Championship Wrestling. He eventually discarded the mask after his surgeries were complete, but retained the nickname "Bullet" for the remainder of his career until retiring in 1988. Armstrong trained each of his sons to wrestle, and formed
tag teams with them in the 1980s and 1990s. In the course of his career, he toured both
Japan and Korea.
Semi-retirement (1992–1997, 2001) Armstrong went into semi-retirement in 1988. In addition to making occasional appearance on the
independent circuit in Georgia and Alabama, Armstrong acted as the
commissioner of
Smoky Mountain Wrestling and worked backstage with Southeast Championship Wrestling and the Continental Wrestling Federation. He came out of retirement and wrestled for
Smokey Mountain Wrestling between 1992 and 1995 when the promotion closed its doors down. In 1995 he made a few appearances in the
United States Wrestling Association. On April 27, 1996, he teamed with his son
Brad to defeat
Bunkhouse Buck and
Lord Steven Regal at a
World Championship Wrestling house show in Canton, Georgia. He lost to
Ken Lucas at a Robert Gibson Promotion event in Mobile, Alabama, on February 22, 1997. Afterwards, he retired once again and did not wrestle for a few years. On December 12, 2001, he teamed with
Dusty Rhodes and
Larry Zbyszko to defeat
Barry Windham,
Ron Reis and
Steve Lawler at
Turnbuckle Championship Wrestling.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2002–2008) Armstrong appeared on the first weekly
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling pay-per-view on June 26, 2002, alongside fellow
National Wrestling Alliance veterans
Corsica Joe,
Dory Funk, Jr.,
Harley Race,
Jackie Fargo and Sarah Lee. His next appearance was on the August 14, 2002 pay-per-view, where he was introduced as an on-screen authority figure and informed
Jeff Jarrett that he would face a mystery opponent one week later. The mystery opponent was revealed to be "The Masked Bullet", a masked wrestler who imitated Armstrong's mannerisms (although Armstrong himself came to the ringside during the match, proving that he was not the Bullet). On the August 28, 2002 pay-per-view, Jarrett fought the Bullet to a no contest before striking Armstrong with a chair. On the September 18, 2002 pay-per-view, the Bullet unmasked, revealing himself to be Armstrong's youngest son
Brian Gerard James, who would subsequently go by "B.G. James" in TNA. On December 5, 2005, Armstrong underwent
arthroscopic knee surgery. Despite being advised to refrain from wrestling until March 2006, Armstrong resumed wrestling later that month. On the December 3, 2005 episode of
Impact!, Armstrong returned to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, congratulating the newly formed
Four Live Kru on their unity. However, at
Turning Point on December 11, 2005, the Four Live Kru disintegrated, with
Konnan betraying fellow members
Kip and
B.G. James. Armstrong declared that he would reunite the Kru and unsuccessfully petitioned the fourth former member,
Ron Killings, to that effect on the December 24, episode of
Impact!. One week later, Armstrong tried once more to reform the group, this time approaching Konnan. Apparently willing to negotiate, Konnan led Armstrong backstage, only for Armstrong to be ambushed and beaten down by Konnan's newly formed
stable,
the Latin American Xchange (LAX). Footage from Armstrong's knee surgery earlier that month aired on
iMPACT! in January 2006, with the
kayfabe explanation that the assault at the hands of the LAX had necessitated the surgical repair of Armstrong's knee. (bottom) and
Mr. Wrestling II at a 2007 show At
Against All Odds on February 12, 2006, Kip and B.G. James (
The James Gang) faced the Latin American Exchange, with B.G. intent upon avenging the harm done to his "daddy". The James Gang was victorious, but ambushed by the LAX after the match. They were saved when the returning Bob Armstrong entered the ring and chased LAX away. The confrontation led to a six-man bout between LAX and Armstrong and The James Gang at
Destination X on March 12, which was won by Kip James. Despite the two consecutive victories, Armstrong remained hungry for revenge, and challenged Konnan to an
arm wrestling contest on the April 8
Impact!. The contest did not finish due to interference from Homicide and the newest LAX member,
Hernandez, who had been sent to the locker room prior. The James Gang (also sent backstage) ran in to help Armstrong. This led to a rematch at
Lockdown on April 23, in which Armstrong scored the pin. On the January 18, 2008 episode of
Impact!, B.G. chose Armstrong as his tag team partner for his Feast or Fired Tag Title shot. The two lost the championship match. This was his final appearance with TNA.
Final years (2009–2019) A retirement show was held on May 29, 2009, at
The Dothan Civic Center where many past stars came out to honor Armstrong before his match in the main event. In 2010, Bob returned to the ring at the "GOTJ 2010" event, where he defeated former rival "Cowboy"
Bob Orton Jr. From 2010 to 2015, Armstrong worked occasional matches around Georgia, mainly working for promotions such as All Pro Wrestling, Superstars Of Wrestling and Combat Sport Pro. Armstrong wrestled his last match on May 11, 2019, for Continental Championship Wrestling in Dothan, Alabama, where he defeated The Assassin. ==Death==