11-27-1985: Starrcade 1985 The Gathering, produced by Jim Crockett Promotions, Thanksgiving Night in Atlanta, Georgia and Greensboro, North Carolina
Starrcade 1985, subtitled “The Gathering,” stands as a landmark event in the annals of professional wrestling, marking the third annual installment of Jim Crockett Promotions’ (JCP) flagship spectacle under the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) banner. Held on November 28, 1985—Thanksgiving Day—this event innovated by splitting its action across two venues: the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina, and the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta, Georgia. This dual-location format not only accommodated a combined attendance of approximately 30,000 fans but also represented JCP’s ambitious response to the growing competition from the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), which had recently launched its own mega-event, WrestleMania. As a closed-circuit television broadcast, Starrcade 1985 drew significant viewership and revenue, underscoring JCP’s dominance in the southeastern United States during the mid-1980s wrestling boom.
