Andrews – You could see each wrestler’s breath as they talked, but the cold weather didn’t stop them from producing an outdoor show to bring in the new year.
“We had about 200 people there at one point, but it got too cold and some of them went home to watch it on Facebook Live,” Mayor James Reid said. “During the womanless beauty pageant, we had about four times as many people watching on the internet as we did in person.”
After conforming to the will of animal rights activists and vowing never to hold another Possum Drop in Andrews, Reid organized a four-hour New Year’s Eve event that featured live music and appearances by professional wrestlers, including Johnny Swinger, who is signed to IMPACT Wrestling.
Staying true to his personality, Reid trolled those who oppose the infamous Possum Drop by hoisting a fake opossum in a cage above the outdoor stage. As those left in attendance counted down the last seconds of 2019, event organizers lowered the cage, while wrestlers battled over a title belt attached to it.
Reid said he received a lot of flak for the stunt, illustrating why he vowed to never again use a live animal in a town-sponsored event.
“People got upset just because I put a fake possum up in a pet carrier,” he said.
Although most of the attendees left before the event concluded, about 30 remained until at least the womanless beauty pageant, which Mayors Rick Ramsey of Murphy and Harry Baughn of Hayesville could not attend as planned.
“I felt like I was contagious,” Ramsey said a few days later, while explaining his absence to the Cherokee Scout. Sickness also kept other people from attending the event on Dec. 31.
An unnamed person dressed as a gorilla pretended to be Ramsey during the contest, which was ultimately won by 20-year-old Paris Annas.
“As weird as it was, it was tons of fun and I would do it again,” Annas said.