twin wrestlers from the '70s twin wrestlers from the '70s

In it there are many variations of the species, each peculiar to its own terrain and indigenous populous. He went on to win one world title. Hebner's twin brother Dave is also a wrestling referee. They'd be 74 today", "Benny Loyd McCrary, World's Heaviest Twin", "McCrary Twins Awe Wrestling Fans Across Country", "Services for Billy McCrary to be Held Here Tomorrow", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_McGuire_Twins&oldid=1141937960, 666kg (1,468lb) (Billy and Benny McGuire), This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 17:23. And although his identity is now known worldwide, hes one of the few masked wrestlers to have never revealed his face to the public. Wrestle: A compilation of old school images of 80s wrestlers has been published by nostalgia website These Americans and the best (or worst) of the bunch can be seen here The Point: The fashion. RELATED: 10 Things Fans Should Know About Curt Hennig. With adopted names like Little Bruise, Sky Low Low, Billy The Kid, Little Beaver, Lord Littlebrook and Little Tokyo, men (and a few women) who might have eked out a living in the circus started a spectatorport. Cowboy Bob Bradley was born Robert Claton Bradley in Dickens County, TX, in February 1935. This was an era where there were three major United States promotions in the NWA. Both Manuel and Victor were eliminated by fellow behemoths, Yokozuna and Vader. In the '70s, he had a chance to work title matches in the WWWF against Bruno Sammartino and Pedro Morales before returning to the AWA, where he finally became a babyface.He ended up feuding with former allies Nick Bockwinkel and Ray Stevens. From an early age, Lamonte had a great interest in wrestling deciding at eight to become a wrestler, telling his mother Im gonna be a dirty one. Trained by Lord Littlebrook, Lamonte made his debut in 1963. He was one of Vince McMahon's most trusted confidants and is the man who created the Royal Rumble match. Original release. In 1963, Bruno Sammartino defeated the WWE champion, Buddy Rodgers in just under 48 seconds, a feat that no wrestler managed to replicate. Did a WWE legend just take a shot at Sami Zayn's physique right here? Whatever the roles may be, theres no overlooking the upper hand some identical siblings have over their rivals. Thanks to his massive size, Haystacks Calhoun became an instant hit during the golden era. The American Dream Dusty Rhodes rose to the top of the professional wrestling world in the 1980s. In 1974, Killer Kowalski would have his last match against Bruno Sammartino for the WWF World heavyweight championship. Many of the guys on this list were legit tough guys and gave the sport the credibility lacking in a sense today. 10. All of this when the AWA sported one of the deepest rosters in territorial wrestling. He moved to the US in the early 1960s, where he became NWA World Midget Championwinning a record three times (tied with Little Tokyo). In 1974, Pro Wrestling Illustrated named Robinson their Most Popular Wrestler of the Year. He died aged 76 in January 2013. Both Hebners served as referees, with Dave taking on more of the backend stuff like promoting and working as a road agent. The company released Dean from his contract in 2007. In 1955, she began working for Vince McMahon Sr. as Fabulous Moolah. Please logout and login again. The nature of professional wrestling dramatically changed in order to better suit television audiences. The barnstormers competed as traveling wrestlers did and often cooperated with the carnies to stage the matches, providing enormous profits for both sides in betting. Having made appearances in Japan, Mexico and North America, The Headhunters (consisting of twins Manuel and Victor Santiago) are best known for their stints in WWE and ECW. He lost it to Pedro Morales but cemented his place in history. Only Keith would be given PPV time, competing in the Lethal Lottery alongside Ron Simmons at Battlebowl 1993. The Niedhart legacy these days is carried on through current WWE superstar Natalya, but her father frequently known as The Anvil had cemented his heroic status long before she began fighting. Played by Satoru Sayama, who Bret Hart once called the Bruce Lee of professional wrestling, Tiger Mask I was both a real-life wrestling character and the star of a popular Japanese cartoon. The result, a ripped cauliflower ear and tons of bandages. Men of few words, the Wild Samoans would resort to weird antics and gimmicks including plucking feathers off a live chicken to grunting in primitive languages. Rick Martel is perhaps best known as The Model - an arrogant heel who sprayed cologne and acted as though he was one step above the rest of the WWE Superstars. They were tough, savage-like and had some of the hardest. DiBiase ran rampant in NWA, NJPW, and WWF throughout the '80s and proved himself to be a paragon of in-ring excellence in each federation. He started his career as a circus acrobat before taking up wrestling in the 1950s. Theyve competed against two major tag teams on the indie circuit in War Machine and Best Friends, and they make appearances regularly as Dalton Castles boys as two elegant and dreamy studs that had an episode alongside Japanese legend Jushin Liger at this past years Global Wars in Canada. Prior to The Model, Rick Martel was one half of Strike Force along with Tito Santana. Handsome Jimmy, Luscious Johnny, and Gentleman Jerry dominated the tag team scene in the NWA and WWWF. Referee George Gadaski talks to the legendary Little Beaver (back to camera) with tag partner Jamaica Kid to his left, and rivals Billy the Kid and Cowboy Bradley to his right. Little Bruiser and Billy the Kid, September 23, 1972. A wrestler called Jack Cassidy ready to rumble in 1968. Fans and pundits even began referring to him as the 8th Wonder of the World, thanks to his colossal size and ability to attract the masses. Terrys wrestling career spanned for more than 50 years, enabling the wrestler to compete in all the well-established promotions. And you can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Graham would then go ahead and hold the championship for about 10 months making it one of the longest reigns by a villain. While other '80s wrestlers are known as much for their bombastic personalities as for their actual fighting ability, its the latter quality that continues to endear industry insiders to Hart. Born in a wrestling family, Mil Mascaras began his training at an early age. The Hardcore Legend Terry Funk had memorable matches in the 1980s and 90s, but the 70s might have been his golden age. Little Tokyo (aka Shigeri Akabane) who was inspired to quit homeland and join Lord Littlebrook and his troupe after they visited Japan in the 1960s. The cartilage in his knee wore out and he was eventually bedridden. Cheerfulness kept creeping in." Meltzer has previously described her as the most popular womens wrestler of all time.. Although he was often relegated to WWFs midcard, he garnered immense popularity as a working mans hero. Hebner's twin brother Dave is also a wrestling referee. After working for AWA for a few years, Tito Santana eventually attracted the attention of Vince McMahon. Countless wrestling entertainment talent lives on in our history and memories. Larry "The Axe" Hennig remains known as the father of Mr. Her matches with her aforementioned nemeses were attended by sold-out crowds in Japan and bolstered the reputation of Japanese womens wrestling worldwide. He eventually big-splashed his way to co-holding the WWWF Tag Team titles. Sky Low Low (outside ring) in a tag team with Little Beaver (nearside) versus Mighty Atom, May 5, 1967. Legendary British wrestlers and promoters tell you what. Because of his immense popularity back in the 60s and 70s, Haystacks Calhoun got the opportunity to go head to head with some of the biggest names in wrestling at the time. Since then,both Bellas have worked hard and improved drastically in the ring. Brie held the belt once and wonthe Wrestling Observers Newsletters Worst Feud of The Year in 2014 (among having a number of terribly worked matches). In a book that became to be known as 'The People of the Abyss' London described the time when he lived in the Whitechapel district sleeping in workhouses, so-called doss-houses and even on the streets. Dean has a twin brother, Don Bucci, who has also worked in the wrestling business. This, however, was before professional wrestling was called sports entertainment. She also likes to stay away from the public eye. Please consider making a donation to our site. He dropped out of West Texas State College in 1953 to take up the fight game. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you. DONATE, Before the money moved in, Kings Cross was a place for born-and-bred locals, clubs and crime, See what really went on during that time in NYC's topless go-go bars, Chris Stein 's photographs of Debbie Harry and friends take us back to a great era of music. Meanwhile, his brother continued refereeing in several companies, including IMPACT Wrestling and AEW. He sadly died at the age of 56 in January 2007. In 2014, the New Age Outlaws would win the WWE World Tag Team titles from the Brotherhood. According to Wikipedia, kayfabe, /kefeb/ is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically the portrayal of competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants as being genuine and not of a staged or predetermined nature of any kind. They include: The Executioners (Kowalski, Stuff, & Volkoff), The Blackjacks (Blackjacks Mulligan & Lanza), The Wild Samoans (Wild Samoans Afa & Sika), The Valiant Brothers (Johnny, Jimmy, & Jerry), The Strongbows (Chief Jay & Jules Strongbow). Professional wrestling in the 1970s was huge! This ones a little cheeky, but with reason; the Olsen Twins (not to be confused with the starlets of Full House), were branded as twin brothers in Chikara, yet Jimmy Olsen and Colin Delaney are not real-life brothers. Despite being a well-known name in the wrestling industry, many fans may not know that Adams has a twin sister, Brittaney. His IRL truculent personality and tendency towards bridge-burning made him an unlikely favorite in the industry and although he was likely portrayed as a villain (along with his partner Nikolai Volkoff) due to xenophobia within the USA, he certainly lived up to his dastardly, devil-may-care reputation out of the ring. In the early-1990s, The Cole Twins became a tag team to keep an eye on in WCW, competing regularly on shows such as WCW Worldwide and WCW Saturday Night. In the 70s, kayfabe was alive and well and crowds believed what they were seeing. Theyve also shared rings with two promising Scottish standouts, Carmel Jacob and Nikki Storm, as well as Japans Tsukasa Fujimoto. Morales also became the first Triple Crown Champion in company history after winning the World Tag Team and Intercontinental Championships. Through the interest in money-making among the three groups, wrestling became a business-oriented entertainment venue, distinguishing itself further and further from its authentic amateur wrestling background.. Billy Leon McCrary (December 7, 1946 - July 14, 1979) and Benny Loyd McCrary (December 7, 1946 - March 26, 2001), known together as The McGuire Twins, were American professional wrestlers listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the "World's Heaviest Twins" (328 kilograms (723 lb) and 338 kilograms (745 lb), respectively). However, he was an enormous star in the 70s as well, working almost exclusively in the NWA and its territories. During her wrestling career in the WWE, Fabulous Moolah won various Womens World Championship titles. Starting her career at the age of 15, it wouldnt take her too long to start snatching titles. They are the main cast members of reality show Total Divas, and if thats not enough, both sisters are dating WWEs top stars, John Cena (dating Nikki) and Daniel Bryan (married to Brie). However, like many of his colleagues, his career and achievements have been sadly overlooked. One of the first true giants in professional wrestling, Haystacks Calhoun weighed more than 600 pounds making him one of the biggest wrestlers of all time. Funk was the PWI Wrestler of the Year in 1976 and won the inaugural AJPW Real World Tag League tournament in 1977 and won it again in 79. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. And of course, the omnipresence of Hulk Hogans red and yellow logo will forever be etched into wrestling history. In 1972, Moolah made history by becoming the first-ever female star to wrestle at Madison Square. Even when he fell in love - and that was frequently - he was never submerged by disappointment. Ed Farhat, uncle and trainer of Sabu and trainer of Rob Van Dam, held a number of regional titles across the Midwest in the 70s. WWE billed Andre as an undefeated wrestler until his loss to Hulk Hogan, but that was not entirely true. Three years later, a young Mascaras would make his international debut in Los Angeles where he faced various wrestlers including Goliath, John Tolos and Ernie Lad. Known for his signature evil laugh, "The Million Dollar Man" bragged about you guessed it his extraordinary wealth while trouncing opponents around the world. By the end of his illustrious wrestling career, The Macho Man had accumulated an impressive 11 titles. Born Wayne Coleman, the bodybuilder with the 22-inch biceps spoke as well as the Christian preacher whose name he used as his own. [2], The twins were married to sisters Maryse and Danielle Juarry, whom they met in Montreal. Inspired by the legendary Muhamad Ali, Billy Graham would step in front of a microphone and deliver a promo that is full of rhyming words. Entering the ring to Queens infectious anthem, Another One Bites The Dust, Junkyard Dog was a paradigm of pure power. RELATED: The 10 Best Wrestlers In The World Outside WWEHe later went to the WWE where he would become the first masked wrestler to appear at Madison Square Garden while working alongside legends like Superstar Billy Graham, Andre the Giant, and Dusty Rhodes. Billy Leon McCrary (December 7, 1946 July 14, 1979) and Benny Loyd McCrary (December 7, 1946 March 26, 2001), known together as The McGuire Twins, were American professional wrestlers listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the "World's Heaviest Twins" (328 kilograms (723lb) and 338 kilograms (745lb), respectively). Benny then opened a pawn shop and worked as an auctioneer in Hendersonville. Rikishis boys have grown by leaps and bounds since debuting in 2010, winning the WWE Tag Team titles twice and considered by many to be the premiere tag team in the company. A gimmick that kind of worked out but was really cheesy. Billy the Kid born John William Guillot in Waco, Texas in 1936. They were victims of some of the worst gimmicks in the history of the business. After a ban on masks in the WWF was lifted, Mil Mascaras would join WWE where he began his long-running feud with Superstar Billy Graham for the World Heavyweight title. Rikishi spent over a decade in Vince McMahon's company, during which he won the Intercontinental Championship twice and the tag titles three times. Although the world of 80s pro-wrestling was filled with neon tiger stripes and cocaine dreams that decade was also a time of immense athleticism, over-the-top characters, and intrepid innovation in the art of combat sports. Years later, the brothers appeared on WWE programming, this time accompanied by fitness freak Simon Dean as Gymini, an offshoot from the mythical Gemini twins. Wrestling journalist In the book WCW: The Ultimate Guide, Dave Scherer described Hennig as "one of the best all-round competitors this business has ever produced.. During his first reign as WWE tag champion, Mr Fuji and Tanaka reigned supreme in WWEs tag team division for more than a year. It turns out Earl was hired by The Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase, which introduced the Hebner twins to the world of pro-wrestling. Most matches started the same, being preceded by a plethora of trash talking. The World's Most Entertaining Car Website. And, if youre honest, youll just drag up from the depths all the times youve hated or felt passionately about something and play it. 3. As for championships, Nikki is the reigning Divas champ, currently enjoying her second stint with the title. IN THAT WORLD where the world of Sports & Athleticism collides with the universe of the Melodrama, the Morality Play and Mythological Heroes & Monsters, we find the American phenomenon of Professional Wrestling. Rikishi and his twin brother shared the ring a few times in WWE and other promotions throughout their careers. Aside from a week in December 1974, Brisco held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship from July 1973 to December 1975. With the sex appeal of a Chippendales performer, this Ravishing fighter was a WCW legend before career-ending injuries forced him to stop performing in 1997. [3], Benny died at age 54 on March 26, 2001 of heart failure. [4] In July 1972, at age 26, they made their in-ring debuts in Montreal, defeating John Anson and Kurt Von Hess. He went on to win a clutch of wrestling awards including the NWA Midget Wrestling Championship twice and was a firm favorite with fans. In the '70s, he was part of the WWE and was still on top of the world until his retirement in 1977. 28. Thanks to photographerDavid Maciejewskiwe can see pictures of thelittle wrestlers before the hype and hoopla of WWF took hold. A key member of The Hart Foundation faction, Niedhart ran roughshod through the WWF with his pink-clad partners throughout the 1980s. Along with Ronnie himself and his, "It is time for art to flow into the organisation of life." His over-the-top video packages established him as a kind of miraculous meta-human that, despite or because of their inherent campiness, catalyzed his global superstardom. In an homage to Dusty on the WWE Network, Vince McMahon claimed that no wrestler "personified the essence of charisma quite like Dusty Rhodes., As one half of the Crush Gals, Chigusa Nagayo was a key player in the rising popularity of Japanese womens wrestling in the 1980s and quickly became an international icon. Brooke Adams tried out for the 2006 Diva Search competition. Active since 2011, the Owens are still trying to catch their big break in the business, wrestling for smaller promotions across the United Kingdom and Japan. A hardcore wrestling pioneer, the Sheik was vicious in the ring, attacking with whatever weapons he could get his hands on. The two fought in New Japan Pro Wrestling and in the WWE, and changed wrestling in the process. With Grand Wizard by his side, it did not take long before Billy Graham became a WWE Heavyweight Champion, in the process toppling Bruno Sammartino. Hooks are illegal in conventional amateur wrestling but have high rates of success against even the most athletic and experienced of competitors, essentially removing rules from professional wrestling. Little Bruiser in Chicago, September 1, 1972. In 1965, Mascaras made his professional debut in Guadalajara, Mexico. RCW Tag Team Title: The Wrecking Crew ( Dean Richtor & Shaun Martens) defeat The Voros Twins ( Chris Voros & Patrick Voros) (c) - TITLE CHANGE !!! if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,50],'sportlister_com-medrectangle-4','ezslot_25',106,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-sportlister_com-medrectangle-4-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,50],'sportlister_com-medrectangle-4','ezslot_26',106,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-sportlister_com-medrectangle-4-0_1');.medrectangle-4-multi-106{border:none!important;display:block!important;float:none!important;line-height:0;margin-bottom:7px!important;margin-left:auto!important;margin-right:auto!important;margin-top:7px!important;max-width:100%!important;min-height:50px;padding:0;text-align:center!important}. During his stint with JWA, Antonio Inoki faced Bruno Sammartino in one of the most controversial matches of all time. During his early years as a professional wrestler, Killer Kowalski managed to land a knee on an opponents head. Mercedes Kaestner-Varnado is an American professional wrestler and actress who also known as her ring names Sasha Banks (in WWE) and Mercedes Mon (in other promotions). It is his ruthlessness and fearless nature during matches and interviews that saw him pull crowds. Dubbed the Executioners, the duo would go ahead and capture the World Tag Team belts in the same year. By that time, Johnny Valiant had moved on to managing and Jimmy had become the Boogie Woogie Man. Though he never won a title, he was a firm favorite with fans. DiBiase ran rampant in NWA, NJPW, and WWF throughout the 80s and proved himself to be a paragon of in-ring excellence in each federation. Unique lists featuring pop culture, entertainment and crazy facts. With dreams of making a huge splash in the wrestling business, both Brandon and Brent seem to be in good hands wrestling for Ring of Honor and Global Force Wrestling. In general, anything in a professional wrestling show is to some extent scripted, or "kayfabe", even though at times it is portrayed as legitimate.