Jerry O’Neil Lawler, also known as “The King”, was born on 29 November 1949, in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. He is a color commentator and semi-retired professional wrestler, best known for his career as a commentator in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Prior to becoming a commentator he held more championships than any other current WWE wrestler. His various exploits have raised his net worth to where it is now.
How rich is Jerry Lawler? As of early-2016, sources inform us of a net worth that is at $7 million, mostly acquired through a successful career in the wrestling industry. Aside from the WWE, Jerry has several independent projects. He’s also worked on music recordings, film, and art, all of which have helped raise his wealth.
Jerry Lawler Net Worth $7 Million
Before starting a career in wrestling, Lawler worked as a disc jockey, and his abilities attracted the attention of a local wrestling promoter. In an agreement, Jerry was given free wrestling training and soon debuted as a wrestler in 1970. A year later he won his first championship, then had a Tag Team Championship run with partner Jim Wight, and also had a feud with mentor Jackie Fargo. He continued to make a name for himself and win championships until he was derailed by a broken leg in 1980. He returned to the ring shortly after recovery, and began a long feud with Andy Kaufman. The feud was closely followed, only was it later revealed that the two were actually good friends and everything was staged. Lawler continued to wrestle until the early 1990s, using his gimmick of a crown and cape, and referring to himself as “The King”.
His voice talents were noticed while he was a wrestler, and he soon signed with WWF to become a color commentator. During this period, Jerry was not just an announcer but was involved in various feuds as well, in particular with Bret Hart and later on with Vince McMahon. After those, it would be a while before Lawler would have any other feuds due to legal problems. He soon returned to face Bret Hart which eventually led to the King of the Ring 1995 “Kiss My Foot” match, in which Lawler lost. Of course, his net worth grew steadily.
After Jerry’s legal issues were settled, he returned in Wrestlemania X for the first time as a commentator for a main event. He made fun of “Rowdy” Roddy Piper which eventually led to the two wrestling in the King of the Ring. In 1994, Lawler continued to wrestle for Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW) and did so while being a color commentator for the WWF. He then became heavily involved in the WWF and Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) feud. By 1998, Vince McMahon left the commentator table, which then resulted to the famous partnership between Jerry “The King” Lawler and Jim Ross. In 2001, Lawler left the WWF as a protest for the company firing his wife Stacy Carter, and went to wrestle independently.
He eventually returned to WWF later in 2001, continuing to become a color commentator and occasionally be a part of the show’s storylines. He was involved in memorable feuds, and in 2007 became a part of the WWE Hall of Fame. One of the scariest events that Lawler had was an on-air heart attack after a match with him and Randy Orton facing CM Punk and Dolph Ziggler. Presently he is a commentator for main events and for WWE’s Smackdown.
For his personal life, he has been married three times. His first marriage was to Kay(1971-78) and they have two children, one of whom became a wrestler. His second marriage was to Paula and they were together from 1982 to 1991. His third wife was Stacy “The Kat” Carter(2000-03). Lawler is also a known to be a collector of Superman and Coca-Cola merchandise.
