Friend Encounters: Jacqueline Moore and Crystal

Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring my friends meeting celebrities.

This one should have really run last Month in Black History Month. These ladies have done a lot for Black women wrestling.

Jacqueline Moore (or Miss Jackie or Miss Texas or any other of the several names she used) is truly one of the pioneers of pro wrestling. Not only was she a great black women wrestler, she also became a great manager. Of course, there were others before her, but in her era, she paved the way for many more.

One of those who followed Jackie is Crystal White (or Crystal Carmichael). Billed as "The Original Diva," came up when being a diva was a thing. While she certainly embodies all that is a true diva, she can also wrestle with the best. Her career spans 20+ years and she hasn't slowed or aged a bit.

I recently met both ladies at Great Lakes Championship Wrestling's Blizzard Brawl. While they obviously met each other, they did not interact on the show, which I think was a bit of a missed opportunity. While the ladies need not be liimited to a black match, putting the two women from different areas together in some way would have been interesting. Still, it was great seeing them and seeing them intereact during the meet0-and-greet.

Jacqueline Moore and Crystal in Waukesha, WI-December 2024.

Friend Encounters: Santino Marella and Crystal

Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring my friends meeting celebrities.

Santino Marella made his mark in wrestling as a bit of a comedy act. It wasn't that he wasn't a good wrestler. It was more that he was hilariously funny. Whether intentionally mispronouncing names (John Chaina) or bringing out the Cobra (sock over his hand), Marella kept all entertained. In fact, he may have been too funny for the sake of his wrestling. Don't discount his wresling though. This wouldn't work if he wasn't a solid wrestler.

Someone else you shouldn't discount in the ring is Crystal White. She might look beautiful, but she is a force in the ring. Crystal has been doing more wrestling lately, but she has built a solid 20+ career in the ring.

As I have written, I first met her back about 10 years ago at Resistance Pro. Unfortunately, a video cam malfunction costs me my interview with "The Original Diva." I'm still trying to get that interview done. Let this serve as my public plea or my manifestation to interview Crystal this year.

Crystal and Santino met at Great Lakes Championship Wrestling's Blizzard Brawl. This is a great annual event, featuring wrestling legends and current stars. I was fortunate enough to get a picture with both of them.

Santino Marella and Crystal in Waukesha, WI-December 2025.

Crystal White and the Missed Interview

I first saw Crystal White on the Chicago wrestling scene more than a decade ago. She was one of the first women wrestlers I saw live in action.

Then a bit later, she wrestled for Resistance Pro Wrestling. It was there that I had a rare interview flub. I had the pleasure of interviewing Crystal after her match, but the audio failed and the interview was no good. It is one of three such interview failures, which is a pretty good success percentage, but I still am bothered by those three.

Crystal seems to be wrestling more of late and that is a good thing. She is entertaining in and out of the ring.

A Chicago gal, Crystal says she has wrestled for 20 years, but I don't see how that is possible. She doesn't look nearly old enough, unless she started at 10. 

Crystal is awesome to fans, too, as the story behind this picture illustrates. At GLCW's Blizzard Brawl, Crystal was at the meet and greet, but behind a table, seemingly trapped by neighboring wrestlers on both sides. When I approached her for a picture, she graciously immediately crawled under the table to get to my side to take the picture. Now that is dedication to her fans.

With 2025 starting, one of my interview goals is to finally get Crystal again. Then I can let go of the previous mishap. I am putting it out to the universe for it to happen.

 Crystal White and me in Waukesha, WI-December 2024.

Friend Encounters: Coop and Crystal

Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends meeting celebrities.

Coop is the lovable mascot of the Schaumburg Boomers. Crystal White is the lovable, yet fierce, wrestler. There can be a debate as to which is the bigger celebrity.

Coop is a prairie chicken. Legend states Coop was born in the shadows of Mt. Rushmore. Coop's ancestors are a variety of birds that used to live on prairies throughout the midwest. Greater Prairie Chickens are known for their dances. Coop took his dancing all over, eventually landing in Schaumburg, because he was attracted to the baseball hats featuring Greater Prairie Chickens. While he is beloved in the Chicago area, I am not sure how far his celebdom reaches.

On the other hand, Chicago-based wrestler Crystal has wrestled all over the country. Unbelievably a in-ring veteran of 20 years (did she start when she was 10?), Crystal has wrestled for too many companies to list and even appeared in non-wrestling roles on WWE television. She currently is mostly wrestling for Ohio Valley Wrestling, owned and run by Al Snow.

Crystal is one of a handful of interviews I flubbed over the years. I interviewed her about 10 years ago while she wrestled for Resistance Pro Wrestling. Unfortunately, the mic failed and you can't hear any of it. Someday, I hope to make good on that interview.

It was a wrestling night at the Schaumburg Boomers game that brought these legends together. Unfortunately, I wasn't there to witness this epic moment, but at least I have this photo.

Check out Crystal on social media and in a ring near you. She also does training. Go to BoomersBaseball.com for more info on Coop and the team. 

Crystal and Coop in Schaumburg, IL-June 2024.

Friend Encounters: Dave Bautista and Crystal White

Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring my friends meeting celebrities.

Crystal White is one of my few lost interviews. Several years ago, when she wrestled for Resistance Pro at Excalibur, I interviewed her, but the audio frizzed out. Unfortunately, it was a fun interview, too. Oh well. It was one of only a few of the more than 1,000 interviews I have done that have been lost for some reason.

Crystal is a model, wrestler, trainer, fighter and more. She currently trains at the Super Beast Academy in Las Vegas, Nevada, but I am hoping she will make a return to Chicago sometime. If she does, I will do my best to get an update interview from her.

A few years back, while training in Florida, Crystal ran into (then) WWE wrestler Dave Bautista. Since then, Bautista has retired from wrestling and ventured into movies, becoming a big action star.

Crystal looked pretty happy to snap a selfie with Bautista. For some reason, I don't think I would have gotten the selfie with Bautista. I think Bautista would be much more receptive to a beauty like Crystal than an old guy like me.

So Crystal is on notice. If she is ever around Chicago and available, I am going to try for that interview finally!

Dave Batista and Crystal White in Tampa, FL-July 2018.

We Had and Lost Crystal White

Crystal White represents a lost opportunity for me.  It si one of the rare times our equipment failed and JohngysBeat.com lost an interview we thought we had.  

In September of 2012, White was making her debut for Resistance Pro Wrestling at Excalibur.  We always like to talk to new performers in R Pro and we locked in an interview with White.

After her match with Thunderkitty, White gave us an interesting interview.  We thought our mic was working, but it wasn't.  I was left with a solid 5 minutes of White talking to me, which was drowned out by the background noise.

While staring at White for 5 minutes is not a bad thing (many men stared at her all night), it pales in comparison to hearing her thoughts (while staring at her for 5 minutes).

White lives and works in the Chicago area.  She is still involved in wrestling.  I should have an opportunity to make up this lost opportunity.  This is one of my goals for 2014.

I will be checking her schedule and I will attend one of her events and ask for the replacement interview.  This time, I will take no chances on faulty equipment.  This time, I will make sure Ms. White officially joins the JohngysBeat.com interview club.

Crystal White and me in Chicago, IL-September 2012.