Superstar Billy Graham Eldridge Wayne Coleman ( June 7 , 1943 ) is an American fine artist and retired professional wrestler . An iconic figure in professional wrestling , he worked under the ring name " Superstar " Billy Graham and gained renown for his tenure as the World Wide / World Wrestling Federation champion in 1977 - 78 . As an award - winning bodybuilder he was also a training partner of former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger ( who is godfather to Graham ' s daughter ) . Graham is best remembered for revolutionizing the interview and physique aspects of the pro wrestling business as well as for his highly charismatic performance style . Some of his proteges have included wrestling megastar Hulk Hogan , former Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura and the " Nature Boy " Ric Flair . Early life . Wayne Coleman was born into a working - class family in Phoenix , Arizona on June 7 , 1943 . His father , of English descent , was from Mississippi , and his mother , of mixed German and Cherokee ancestry , was from Arkansas . As a schoolboy Wayne showed talent at drawing and design and developed a lifelong interest in fine art . A naturally athletic child , he was attracted to weight lifting and visited his first gym at age 10 . At age 11 he was making his own training weights from pipes and coffee cans filled with cement . As a teenager he was an avid reader of bodybuilding magazines , his idols being Steve Reeves and John Grimek . He also became a devout Christian and was a successful Assemblies of God preacher in early adulthood . His habit of incorporating feats of strength into his sermons made him very popular with youth congregations . Coleman was a shot put champion in high school and dabbled in amateur and professional boxing , participating in the 1959 Golden Gloves , before getting into football . He played professional football for the CFL ' s Montreal Alouettes suiting up for 5 games in 1968 . In between football engagements he worked as a bouncer in various nightclubs in Phoenix , New York and Los Angeles . Bodybuilding career . In 1961 Wayne was the winner of the West Coast division of the Mr . Teenage America bodybuilding contest ( Frank Zane winning in the East Coast division ) , and his photo appeared soon after in Bob Hoffman ' s Strength and Fitness magazine . Coleman began to train intensively in 1968 at Gold ' s Gym in Santa Monica , where he worked out with Dave Draper , Franco Columbu and Arnold Schwarzenegger . At this time he was able to bench press 605 lbs ( the current world record , held by his friend Pat Casey , was 616 lbs ) . One of Coleman ' s photo shoots with Schwarzenegger featured that year in Joe Weider ' s Muscle Fitness magazine . When Wayne Coleman decided to become a professional wrestler two years later , he had the revolutionary inspiration of marrying wrestling to the bodybuilding art he had perfected , thus becoming the ultimate style setter in the business and the prototype of today ' s bulked - up stars . As a wrestler he weight - trained continuously , and in 1975 prepared for the WBBG ( World Body Building Guild ) Pro . Mr . America contest in New York , where his enormous 22 inch biceps ( which as a wrestling gimmick he dubbed his " pythons " and " guns " ) won first place in the Best Developed Arms division . At the peak of his wrestling career in 1977 , Coleman ( now " Superstar Billy Graham " ) weighed 275 lbs . From 1978 he gained more weight and in 1980 , at an impressive 325 lbs , he took part in the World ' s Strongest Man competition in Great Gorge , New Jersey . Graham finished fifth in this contest ( won by future pro wrestler Bill Kazmaier ) in spite of injuring himself in one of the events . On December 6 of the same year as Wayne Coleman he hosted the U . S . Invitational Powerlifting Championship in Phoenix , Arizona , attracting Dave Draper to the event Wrestling career . Debut and National Wrestling Alliance territories . While being scouted by the Canadian Football League ' s Calgary Stampeders , Wayne Coleman was encouraged by professional wrestler Bob Lueck to train with Stu Hart for the latter ' s Stampede Wrestling promotion . Abandoning his football ambitions , Coleman trained under Hart in Calgary before debuting on January 16 , 1970 in a match with Dan Kroffat . After wrestling briefly under his real name , Coleman traveled back to the United States in May , wrestling for a few months with Dr . Jerry Graham , Brick Darrow , Rick Cahill and Ron Pritchard in Arizona before he and Jerry Graham joined the National Wrestling Alliance ' s Los Angeles promotion ( run by Mike LeBell ) as a tag team the following August . He changed his ring name to Billy Graham , as a tribute to the famous evangelist of the same name . Later , while wrestling in Championship Wrestling from Florida , the name would serve both as his ring name and to make him the ( kayfabe ) youngest brother of Jerry and the other Graham Brothers ( Eddie and Luke ) . In late December 1970 Graham went north to join Roy Shire ' s NWA San Francisco promotion , working with Pat Patterson ( his tag - team partner ) and Ray Stevens , both of whom he would later acknowledge as his models and mentors in the business , as well as with Cyclone Negro and Peter Maivia . The popularity of the big rookie with the hippie gimmick was such that his photograph made the front cover of the January 1971 issue of The Wrestler magazine , with the caption " Billy Graham : He talks peace but raises hell ! " Graham ' s nearly two - year run in central California included a stint wrestling in Hawaii in February and March 1972 . It was during his Californian period that Graham developed his pre - match arm wrestling angle , encouraging public challenges to his title of " Arm Wrestling Champion of the World " . American Wrestling Association . On October 2 , 1972 , Billy Graham premiered in Verne Gagne ' s American Wrestling Association ( AWA ) based in Minneapolis , and it was here that he took on the moniker " Superstar " . As he toured the north - central states and adjacent areas of Canada , Graham ' s popularity rose significantly during his feuds with Gagne and such grappling greats as The Crusher , The Bruiser , Wahoo McDaniel , Billy Robinson , Ken Patera and Ivan Koloff , the latter becoming his tag - team partner . Another of Graham ' s opponents during this time frame was Ric Drasin , a bodybuilder and wrestler who was one of Arnold Schwarzenegger ' s weight training partners . By this time , Graham was integrating into his performances not only arm wrestling contests but also weightlifting challenges ( mainly involving ex - Olympian Ken Patera ) and provocative posing routines . Superstar Billy Graham featured with other AWA performers in the 1973 movie The Wrestler , starring Ed Asner . Superstar Billy Graham became an overnight sensation in the AWA because of his long bleached - blond hair , the flamboyant , colorful ring attire , his witty braggadocio and improvised rhymes ( partly inspired by Muhammad Ali ) but above all for his remarkable build , the likes of which had not yet been seen in professional wrestling . The fabled " Superstar " physique was a paradox , counterbalancing a massive musculature with height and leanness , resulting in the imposing spectacle of brute strength and sheer power combined with lightness , grace and speed . Because of his unusually strong cranial features he was also arguably the most spectacular " bleeder " in pro wrestling , as can be seen from photos and footage of him wearing the " crimson mask " , with blood also streaming down his heavily muscled torso after " blading " ( self - cutting on the forehead ) at the climax of a major bout . This charismatic formula of mass , speed , emotion and even blood created unprecedented " heat " ( high drama ) in the wrestling matches of the time , filled large auditoriums and stadiums night after night and made " Mr . Technicolor " ( as he called himself ) one of the most popular performers ever to step into the ring . In September and October 19 74 Graham took leave from the AWA to join the IWA ' s " Super Wide Series " tour of Japan , where he fought such local stars as Mighty Inoue , Animal Hamaguchi and Rusher Kimura . Following his return from Japan , Superstar Graham formed a tag team with Dusty Rhodes . He left the AWA and returned to the NWA in May , 1975 , signing up with Red Bastien ' s Dallas - based promotion for five months and taking the local " Brass Knucks " title from Mad Dog Vachon on August 8 . For most of October that year , Graham worked for the Mid Atlantic promotion in North Carolina , standing in for Ric Flair , who had just been injured in a plane crash . World Wide Wrestling Federation and NWA . Graham debuted in the World Wide Wrestling Federation on October 25 , 1975 , in a tag - team match at the Boston Garden in which he and Spiros Arion defeated WWWF champion Bruno Sammartino and Dominic De Nucci . At this time The Grand Wizard became the Superstar ' s manager and the pair became wildly popular through their eccentric and vitriolic pre - match interviews , many of which were televised . This first stint with the promotion continued until June 1976 and included several spectacular and highly publicized battles with Sammartino in Madison Square Garden . The February 2 match drew a crowd of 27 , 000 spectators . Another major feud at this time was with Polish muscleman Ivan Putski . A brief contract with the NWA in Houston , Texas followed from June to August , 1976 , after which Superstar Billy Graham , now at the peak of his muscularity , went on his second tour of Japan , this time accompanied by Ivan Koloff . His confrontations with Antonio Inoki were the highlights of this Japanese run . After returning to America , Graham and Koloff made an unsuccessful attempt to launch their own wrestling promotion in Southern California . In November 1976 , on the invitation of Dusty Rhodes , Graham joined the NWA promotion in Florida , beating Rhodes for the Florida heavyweight title on November 22 at the West Palm Beach Auditorium . His work in this period included occasional visits to St Louis , Missouri , where he took on NWA champion Harley Race . Return to the WWWF . April 1977 saw Superstar Billy Graham back in the WWWF after an agreement with promoter Vincent J . McMahon . Graham defeated Bruno Sammartino for the World Heavyweight Championship on April 30 , 1977 , in Baltimore , Maryland . [ 1 ] The title win set a precedent , as previous heels who had won the WWWF title would almost immediately lose it , serving as a conduit ( or " transitional champion " ) between the reigns of fan favorites . Graham would go on to hold the title for nine and a half months ; to this day , Graham ' s 296 - day reign is the longest single world title reign of any heel in WWE history , with Yokozuna ' s second championship run and JBL ' s only championship run in a tie for second place ( although CM Punk has held the title longer than all three , he began his title reign as a babyface . Punk was a face for 246 days and a heel for 188 days ) . Both before and during his championship , photos and articles about Superstar Billy Graham appeared frequently in The Wrestler , Wrestling Review , Inside Wrestling and other popular American wrestling magazines distributed all over the world . During his reign , the new champion wrestled across America and even in Japan ( February , 1978 ) , facing well - known challengers such as former champion Bruno Sammartino , Jack Brisco , Dusty Rhodes , Pedro Morales , Don Muraco , Mil Mascaras , Strong Kobayashi and Riki Chōshū . One of Graham ' s most celebrated matches took place in 1977 in Miami , Florida at the famed Orange Bowl football stadium against then - NWA World Heavyweight Champion Harley Race in a WWWF Championship vs . NWA World Heavyweight Championship unification match which ended in a bloody one hour time - limit draw . Although a defeat by Bob Backlund , who was to embody the virtuous junior " all - American " wrestler , had been written into Graham ' s current contract with the WWWF , Graham suggested another outcome to Vincent J . McMahon : that Ivan Koloff should turn on him , thus starting a feud that would make Graham a fan favorite . McMahon refused because of the handshake deal to make Bob Backlund the new fan favorite champion and he did not want to go back on his word . It was also unheard of for a counter - cultural character like Graham to be a fan favorite , because McMahon and many old promoters saw Graham as a confirmed heel and therefore a negative role model . Graham eventually " lost " the title to Bob Backlund on February 20 , 1978 . One of Graham ' s most renowned feuds as champion was with Dusty Rhodes , which culminated in a Texas Bullrope match , and his confrontations with Rhodes continued after Graham had been forced to drop the belt to Backlund . These sensational battles displayed better than any others Graham ' s other major contribution to the evolution of American pro wrestling : the radical way he changed the narrative or story line of the spectacle . In the " pre - Superstar " period , the soap opera that televised exhibition wrestling had become was all about the forces of good pitted against the legions of evil : good guys or " babyfaces " combating bad guys or " heels " . With the aesthetic priorities he had already imported from art and bodybuilding , Graham instituted a new kind of battle : physical perfection and unbridled daring challenging ordinary brawn and cautious fair play . In this new scenario the paradoxical " heel champion " required the charismatic quality of beauty as well as extraordinary strength and courage , hence the need to look his best and to cultivate a lawless style of fighting . It was in his epic and bloody duels with the happy - go - lucky unchiselled heavyweight Dusty Rhodes , the humble plumber ' s son alias " The American Dream " , that Superstar ' s classical persona was at its most spectacular . Rhodes himself , a long - time friend of Graham ' s , would recall these bloodbath matches with the Superstar in 1978 as among the most exciting and memorable of his career . As times were changing , wrestling fans were also making Graham a popular figure on their own — even Roberta Morgan ' s 1979 kayfabe book Main Event had to admit that , " Although he is a rule bender , [ Graham ] has managed to stay very popular with the fans , probably because of his skill , strength , and colorful personality " — but the era of explicit and intentional " cool heels " did not come until the 1990s with the likes of the New World Order ( nWo ) , D - Generation X , Stone Cold Steve Austin , and The Rock . As a headliner in Madison Square Garden , which was the WWWF ' s primary arena throughout his heyday , Graham sold out 19 of 20 shows . Though other wrestlers such as Sammartino and Backlund had more career sellouts at Madison Square Garden , Graham ' s 95 % percentage is easily the highest in company history . Graham has been cited – particularly by McMahon ' s son and heir Vincent K . McMahon – as a pioneer far ahead of his time . WWE sanctioned literature such as Graham ' s biography has frequently cited the elder McMahon ' s decision to press ahead with Backlund ' s planned title reign , as a conservative move . According to wrestling lore , not only would this delay the expansion and transformation of the WWF until the mid - 1980s " Hulkamania " era , but it would also have negative personal consequences for the man who had raked in such momentous earnings for the WWWF . Back to the NWA territories . The unforgettable post - championship battles with Rhodes were a virtual swan song for the " Superstar " . Disillusioned by the premature loss of his belt , Graham left the WWWF in December 1978 and accepted an offer to join Paul Boesch ' s promotion in Houston , Texas , lending himself out for other NWA events in California and Florida as well . In April 1979 he embarked on his third IWA tour of Japan , where he wrestled the same men he had worked with in 1974 . His following NWA engagements in Kentucky , Tennessee , Georgia and Texas became fewer and rarer until he stopped wrestling in April 1980 . Graham wrestled only two matches ( one in Canada and one in Los Angeles ) in the whole of 1981 . There was a temporary revival of activity in January 1982 with his fourth tour of Japan . By this time the former champion had an emaciated look , having lost a lot of weight and suffering the negative side - effects of his former steroid use . Comeback in the World Wrestling Federation . Graham returned to the now renamed World Wrestling Federation in September 1982 . He debuted in the promotion with entirely new look : lean , with a bald head and mustache , and sporting black karate pants . This gimmick was not considered successful , and Graham later stated that he wanted to retire the " Superstar " character out of frustration with Vince McMahon Sr . for not letting him turn babyface . He soon challenged Backlund for the WWF Championship , but was unable to win the title . In his scripted response , he destroyed Backlund ' s championship belt by literally tearing it half . He left the promotion in May 1983 . American Wrestling Association and the National Wrestling Alliance . Graham signed up with the AWA again in October 19 83 , wrestling mainly in the Mid West . By the following year he had regained his earlier body weight and in April 1984 he began his NWA run with Championship Wrestling from Florida , first as a member of Kevin Sullivan ' s Army of Darkness and later as the group ' s opponent after he tired of Sullivan ' s abuse of his valet Fallen Angel and stopped Sullivan from beating her at ringside . From November 1984 Graham joined Jim Crockett Promotions ( Mid - Atlantic Wrestling ) in New Carolina , working for Paul Jones in his feud against Jimmy Valiant . It was during this stint , in the summer of 1985 , that that Graham bulked up further , and returned to his tie - dyed look , growing a full goatee and dyeing the mustache blond . Hulk Hogan paid homage to elements of this look , with his villainous " Hollywood Hogan " character in World Championship Wrestling in the 1990s ( as did Scott Steiner with his " Big Poppa Pump " character around the same period ) . Return to the WWF . Graham returned to the WWF one more time in June 1986 , now as a fan favorite . After a few appearances , it was diagnosed in August that he required a hip replacement . The footage of Graham ' s hip replacement surgery was shown on WWF TV on September 27 as a means of promoting his comeback . He returned in mid - 1987 and worked a heavy schedule from mid July to late October , notably feuding with Harley Race and Butch Reed . However , the strain on his hip as well as his ankles also deteriorating proved to be too much . In Syracuse NY on October 27 ( Thanksgiving Day ) One Man Gang supposedly retired him from active competition permanently with a running splash on the concrete floor after Graham ' s win over Reed . In this incident , aired on the November 14 , 1987 episode of Superstars , Don Muraco came to Graham ' s aid , and Graham subsequently became Muraco ' s manager . Superstar Billy Graham ' s very last wrestling match , also against Butch Reed and at 44 years of age , actually took place on November 7 , 1987 , in St Louis , MO . The WWF announced that Graham was scheduled to wrestle in the main event in the first - ever Survivor Series , but Muraco took his place since Graham had now retired . Over the next year , in between bouts of surgery , Graham worked for the WWF as a commentator .