Russell's career began at a television station in Jackson, Tennessee. He was asked to work as an announcer for a match promoted by Nick Gulas and Roy Welch. He had previous experience calling other sports such as basketball, boxing, football, and baseball. He worked as an announcer in Memphis beginning in 1959. He called matches primarily for NWA Mid-America and its descendant promotion, the Continental Wrestling Association. His long-term announcing partner was Dave Brown; their partnership began in 1967. They gave a young Jerry Lawler some of his first exposure by showing his wrestling cartoons on their Saturday morning broadcast. Russell also announced Monday night matches at the Mid-South Coliseum. In addition, he live-announced taped house show matches from Tupelo, Mississippi during the late 1970s. He called the "Tupelo Concession Stand Brawl" between The Blonde Bombers and Jerry Lawler and Bill Dundee. He also called the 1981 "Empty Arena match" between Lawler and Terry Funk. An episode from 1981 found Russell being physically attacked by the Dream Machine and footage of the angle was included in the 2011 documentaryMemphis Heat. He was also involved in angles where Jimmy Hart dumped flour on his head and was physically attacked by The Road Warriors. He also called the match where Jerry Lawler won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship from Curt Hennig.
He has been called "one of the greatest wrestling announcers of all time" by SLAM Wrestling and "integral" to Memphis Wrestling. Steve Bowden, a professional wrestling manager, said of Russell, "In my heart, he's the announcer equivalent of Lou Thesz." Jim Ross included Russell in his top 10 list of favorite wrestling announcers and commentators, calling him a "class act" and "southern legend". Mike Mooneyham, a professional wrestling journalist, has called him "the voice of Memphis wrestling". His style and delivery has been described as earnest and smooth. He was known for his euphemisms such as "Sam Hill" and "Don't start with the smart stuff."
Other media
Russell's work in Memphis Wrestling is shown in the 1989 documentary, I'm from Hollywood. He is also interviewed in regards to the film's primary subject, Andy Kaufman. Russell appears in the 1999 Kaufman biographical filmMan on the Moon as the Memphis ring announcer. Russell's original commentary of the Lawler/Kaufman match can be found on the WWE Home VideoDVD release Greatest Wrestling Stars of the 80's, as part of the profile of Lawler.
Personal life
Russell was married for 67 years to his wife Audrey until her death in 2014. They met in high school. They had three children: William, Valerie, and Shane. On October 3, 2017, Russell died in Memphis of complications from a broken hip sustained after a fall, at the age of 91, just days after his daughter Valerie died from cancer on September 29.
