We sometimes hear – especially in the early days of professional wrestling – about ‘shoots’ taking place inside the ring. This was all before it became ‘sports entertainment.’ But there was a time when the wrestlers took the business very seriously, and as a result, so did the fans. There’s been tales of the public trying to get at the […]
Born: March 20, 1959 | Birthplace: Omaha, NebraskaBilled Hometown: Venice Beach, California | Billed Weight: 250 lbsOther Aliases: Flash Born in Nebraska but raised in Southern California, Steve Borden played football and basketball in high school, before embarking on a bodybuilding career. Not initially a fan of professional wrestling, he was inspired to enter the business after attending a live […]
There seems to be some confusion about exactly WHEN Earthquake (John Tenta) had his “shoot” with Koji Kitao in Japan. Some sources – even JJ Dillon in his book Wrestlers are Like Seagulls – claim that it occurred in the Toyko Dome on March 30; it didn’t. While Tenta and Kitao did have a match, it was perfectly fine, and […]
Hawk Born: January 26, 1957 (Michael Hegstrand) | Died: October 19, 2003 Billed Hometown: Chicago, IL | Billed Weight: 270 lbs Animal Born: September 12, 1960 (Joe Laurinaitis) | Died: September 22, 2020Billed Hometown: Chicago, IL | Billed Weight: 305 lbs Michael Hegstrand (Hawk) and Joe Laurinaitis (Animal) were childhood friends with a passion for weight-lifting. They became bouncers at […]
The Mall of America in Minneapolis, Minnesota, was used just once as a wrestling venue. While it would not necessarily compare to other great wrestling buildings like the Tokyo Dome, Dallas Sportatorium or the old ECW Arena, it did host a momentous night in the history of professional wrestling. On September 4, 1995, World Championship Wrestling launched their new flagship […]
Born: January 12, 1962 | Birthplace: Atlanta, GeorgiaDied: August 27, 2010Billed Hometown: Montreal, Quebec, Canada/The Other Side of DarknessOther Aliases: Trudy Herd, Princess Luna, Angel Baby The future Luna Vachon was adopted by Paul “Butcher” Vachon as a young girl, when he married her mother Rebecca Pierce – his second wife – in 1966. Gertrude wished to carry on the […]
Born: August 14, 1958 | Birthplace: Huntsville, AlabamaDied: August 4, 2021Billed Hometown: The Dark Side/Stoke-on-Trent, England | Billed Weight: 233 lbsOther Aliases: Beautiful Bobby, Earl Robert Eaton Bobby Eaton was a big fan of professional wrestling from a young age, and watched the local promotion, Nick Gulas’ NWA Mid-America. At thirteen, he began setting up the ring in his hometown […]
Born: May 14, 1955 (Leon White) | Birthplace: Lynwood, CaliforniaDied: June 18, 2018 (Heart Failure)Billed Hometown: The Rocky Mountains | Billed Weight: 450 lbsOther Aliases: Baby Bull, Bull Power, Big Van Vader, Super Vader Leon White started his pro wrestling career in 1985 with Verne Gagne’s American Wrestling Association, after his NFL career (1978-79 with the Los Angeles Rams) ended […]
In September 1995, World Championship Wrestling launched their new flagship television programme Nitro, in direct competition with the WWF’s Monday Night RAW. Eric Bischoff – in his role as President and play-by-play commentator – aggressively went after the WWF. For the first year and a half of Nitro, he repeatedly took potshots at his competition, even going so far as […]
Born: July 2, 1957 (Bret Sergeant Hart) | Birthplace: Calgary, Alberta, CanadaBilled Weight: 234 lbs Bret Hart was the eighth child of Stu and Helen in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He became an amateur wrestler in high school and won a number of tournaments, including the 1974 city championship in Calgary. Bret became collegiate champion at Mount Royal College in 1977, and […]
