A Wedding on a Busy Wrestling Sunday
February 14, 1982, brought Jerry Lawler two very different appointments. In the afternoon, the Memphis wrestling star lost the AWA Southern title to Dutch Mantell. That evening, according to the surviving account of the day, he married Paula Jean Carruth. I find that pairing memorable because it places an ordinary personal milestone inside the relentless rhythm of professional wrestling. A championship changed hands, and then a couple began a marriage.
Paula’s name is usually encountered within that marriage. She was Lawler’s second wife, also known publicly as Paula Lawler, and their relationship lasted into 1991. Yet her story contains a few distinctive details beyond a line in a spouse list: a fairgrounds photo booth, a seasonal football segment, and an appearance in a locally familiar music video.
Those details offer glimpses of a person around the edges of a very visible career. They do not provide a complete biography. Her birth date, birthplace, education, and later family life remain unestablished in the available account.
The Fairgrounds Connection
The account of Paula’s first meeting with Lawler places it at the Mid-South Fair in the late 1970s. She was working in a fairgrounds photo booth and was reportedly not a wrestling fan. That is an appealingly specific beginning. Memphis wrestling had its own devoted audience, but Paula apparently approached Lawler from outside that circle.
I would keep the approximate dating intact. “Late 1970s” supplies a period, not a precise anniversary, and there is no basis here for assigning a particular day to their meeting. Nor does the photo booth detail establish a lifelong career in photography or event work.
The setting nevertheless helps explain how their paths could cross. Lawler’s identity was closely associated with Memphis, where wrestling extended beyond the ring into television, public appearances, and local entertainment. A fair was one more place where that public world could meet a private life.
Nine Years as Paula Lawler
The marriage began on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 1982. Its commonly given end date is October 2, 1991. That makes the relationship’s legal span approximately nine years and seven months, although the precise divorce date is less firmly established than the consistently repeated wedding date.
Paula appears under several forms of her name: Paula Jean Carruth, Paula Carruth, and Paula Lawler. I read those as connected public identifiers rather than evidence of different people. No later surname is reliably established here.
| Period | Event | Detail worth preserving |
|---|---|---|
| Late 1970s | Reported first meeting | Mid-South Fair photo booth |
| February 14, 1982 | Marriage to Jerry Lawler | Valentine’s Day ceremony |
| 1980s | Local television appearances | Seasonal football picks segment |
| 1980s | Music video appearance | Participation in Wimpbuster |
| Early 1990s | Marriage ended | Commonly dated October 2, 1991 |
| After the divorce | Reported continued friendship | A limited description, not a full later biography |
The account that they remained friends after their divorce adds a human note. I would not stretch it into assumptions about their present relationship or how often they stayed in contact. Friendship can take many forms, and the available detail stops at that description.
Football Picks and a Music Video
Paula’s most distinctive public activity was a seasonal segment called Paula’s Picks on the Sunday-morning Jerry Lawler Show. Its subject was NFL football. That small television role gives her a more individual place in the story than the label “wrestler’s wife” alone would suggest.
The available detail does not establish when the segment began, how many seasons it ran, or whether Paula held another production role. I would describe it as a local television appearance rather than build a broadcasting career around it. The distinction matters because a recurring feature can be real without proving a full professional résumé.
She also appeared in Lawler’s Wimpbuster parody video. Brian and Kevin Lawler appeared in it as well, connecting the production to the family around him. A playful video is a snapshot of that entertainment world, not evidence that Paula became a wrestler or recording artist.
There is no established record here of her competing in wrestling. Her appearances belonged to the broader media orbit of Lawler’s career, where television personalities, relatives, and performers could share the same screen.
The Family Paula Married Into
Jerry O’Neil Lawler was born on November 29, 1949. His professional identity as Jerry “The King” Lawler developed through wrestling and later WWE commentary. Paula’s marriage placed her within a family already connected to that business.
Lawler’s first wife was Martha Kay Williams, usually called Kay. Their marriage is generally dated from 1971 to 1978. The consistently used family account identifies two sons from that relationship, Brian Christopher Lawler and Kevin Lawler. Paula became their stepmother when she married their father.
Brian performed as Brian Christopher and Grandmaster Sexay. He died on July 29, 2018. Kevin also worked in wrestling, including as a referee and under the name Kevin Christian. Their careers belong to them, although they help explain why the family’s names recur in wrestling history.
Lawler later married Stacy Carter, known to wrestling audiences as The Kat, in September 2000. That marriage followed Paula’s and is a separate chapter. I find the sequence useful mainly because it prevents confusion between the women who have been identified as his wives.
| Person | Connection to Paula’s story |
|---|---|
| Jerry Lawler | Former husband |
| Martha Kay Williams | Lawler’s first wife and mother of Brian and Kevin |
| Brian Christopher Lawler | Stepson during Paula’s marriage |
| Kevin Lawler | Stepson during Paula’s marriage |
| Stacy Carter | Lawler’s later wife |
| Dutch Mantell | Wrestling opponent on Paula’s wedding day |
No children of Paula herself are established in this account. Her income, property, divorce settlement, and net worth are likewise unknown. Public familiarity with her former husband cannot supply those missing details.
FAQ
Who is Paula Jean Carruth?
Paula Jean Carruth is publicly known as Jerry Lawler’s second wife. She also appeared in his local television and video projects during the 1980s.
When did Paula and Jerry Lawler marry?
They married on February 14, 1982. The wedding is described as taking place that evening, following Lawler’s afternoon title loss to Dutch Mantell.
Was Paula Jean Carruth a wrestler?
No wrestling career is established for her. Her known entertainment appearances include Paula’s Picks and the Wimpbuster video.
When did the marriage end?
The marriage ended in the early 1990s, commonly dated October 2, 1991. I retain that precise date with some caution because the broader early-1990s timing is more securely supported.
What is known about her life afterward?
A continued friendship with Lawler has been described, but a detailed later biography is not established. No reliable later surname, independent profession, or financial figure is available here.
