Rocky Johnson

Wayde Douglas Bowles (August 24, 1944 – January 15, 2020) was a Canadian professional wrestler best known by his ring name Rocky Johnson. Quite popular in his own right in the 1970s and 1980s, he was also known for being the father of actor and former wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. During his wrestling career he became a 1-time National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) Georgia Champion and also became a 1-time NWA Southern Heavyweight Memphis Champion as well as winning many other championships. Along with his partner Tony Atlas, Johnson was a part of the first black tag team to win the WWF World Tag Team championship in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF).
==Early life==
Rocky Johnson was born Wayde Douglas Bowles in Amherst, Nova Scotia, where he was raised, the fourth of five sons of Lillian and James Henry Bowles. His ancestors were slaves who escaped from the American South. At the age of 16, Johnson moved to Toronto, Ontario, where he began wrestling and worked as a truck driver. Initially, he trained to be a boxer and eventually sparred with greats such as Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, but he was always fascinated by wrestling.
==Professional wrestling career==
===National Wrestling Alliance===
Johnson began his career as a professional wrestler in the mid-1960s. He was a top contender in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) in the 1970s, receiving title matches against then-NWA World Heavyweight Champions Terry Funk and Harley Race. He was well-suited to tag team wrestling, winning several regional tag team championships in the NWA.
===World Wrestling Federation===
In 1983, he was recruited by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and paired with Tony Atlas. They defeated the Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika) for the Tag Team Championship on November 15, 1983. They were the first black wrestlers to hold the title. Together, Johnson and Atlas were known as "The Soul Patrol".
===Retirement===
After retiring in 1991, Johnson along with Pat Patterson, trained his son Dwayne to wrestle. While he initially resisted his son's entry into the business because he knew it was extremely difficult, he agreed to train his son on the condition that he would not go easy on him. Johnson was instrumental in getting Dwayne (later dubbed "Rocky Maivia" after both Rocky Johnson's and Peter Maivia's ring names) signed to a WWF developmental deal. Initially, Johnson had an on-camera presence at his son's matches, jumping into the ring on his son's behalf after he was attacked by several other wrestlers at WrestleMania 13. Johnson was not seen on-camera again after the Rocky Maivia character flopped, but this was actually a blessing, as his son achieved crossover popularity as a cocky heel, The Rock.
Johnson was hired as a trainer for the WWE developmental territory, Ohio Valley Wrestling, in early 2003 but was let go in May of that year. On February 25, 2008, Johnson was announced as an inductee for the 2008 class of the WWE Hall of Fame along with his father-in-law "High Chief" Peter Maivia. They were inducted into the Hall of Fame on March 29, 2008 by his son and former professional wrestler, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. One week earlier on March 22, Rocky Johnson wrestled his retirement match in Toronto for Stranglehold Wrestling.
==Personal life==
Johnson married into the prolific Samoan wrestling family, which included the Anoa'i family, by marrying "High Chief" Peter Maivia's daughter Ata Maivia. Ata met Rocky after Maivia and Johnson were tag team partners in a match on the independent scene. Maivia disapproved of the relationship—not because of anything personal against Johnson, but because of Johnson's chosen profession. The couple had a son, Dwayne, in 1972. Dwayne Johnson portrayed his father in an episode of That '70s Show.
Johnson lived in Davie, Florida with his wife, Ata, but they later divorced. He also has two other children, as he announced in his 2008 HOF induction, a son Curtis, and a daughter Wanda from his first marriage in 1967. Johnson is honored being the first non-Samoan to be named High Chief. His title is High Chief Tafiaiafi.
==In wrestling==
*Finishing moves
**Dropkick
**Johnson Shuffle (Three left-handed jabs followed by a right-handed knockout punch)
**Boston crab
==Championships and accomplishments==
*American Wrestling Association
**AWA Southern Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Jimmy Valiant (1) and Soul Train Jones (1)
*Championship Wrestling from Florida
**NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Florida version) (1 time)
**NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
**NWA Florida Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Pedro Morales
**NWA Florida Television Championship (1 time)
*Georgia Championship Wrestling
**NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
**NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jerry Brisco
**NWA Macon Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Danny Little Bear
*Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling
**NWA Mid-Atlantic Television Championship (2 times)
*NWA All-Star Wrestling
**NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship (Vancouver version) (1 time) – with Don Leo Jonathan
*NWA Big Time Wrestling
**NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Texas version) (1 time)
**NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
**NWA Texas Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jose Lothario
*NWA Detroit
**NWA World Tag Team Championship (Detroit version) (1 time) – with Ben Justice
*NWA Hollywood Wrestling
**NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
**NWA Americas Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Earl Maynard
**NWA Beat the Champ Television Championship (2 times)
*NWA Mid-America / Continental Wrestling Association
**CWA/AWA International Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Bill Dundee
**NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Memphis version) (1 time)
*NWA San Francisco
**NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (San Francisco version) (1 time)
**NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) (4 times) – with Pat Patterson (3) and Pepper Gomez (1)
*Pacific Northwest Wrestling
**NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
**NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Brett Sawyer (1) and Iceman Parsons (1)
*Pro Wrestling Illustrated
**PWI ranked him #211 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003
*World Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Entertainment
**WWF Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Tony Atlas
**WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2008)
==External links==
* WWE.com Profile
* Profile
Category:1944 births
Category:American wrestlers
Category:WWE Hall of Fame inductees
Category:American Wrestling Association alumni
Category:Big Bear Promotions alumni
Category:Championship Wrestling From Florida alumni
Category:Continental Wrestling Association alumni
Category:Eastern Sports Association alumni
Category:Future Of Wrestling alumni
Category:Georgia Championship Wrestling alumni
Category:Houston Wrestling alumni
Category:Jim Crockett Promotions alumni
Category:Maple Leaf Wrestling alumni
Category:Memphis Wrestling alumni
Category:National Wrestling Alliance alumni
Category:New Japan Pro Wrestling alumni
Category:NWA All-Star Wrestling alumni
Category:NWA Big Time Wrestling alumni
Category:NWA Detroit alumni
Category:NWA Hollywood Wrestling alumni
Category:NWA Polynesian Wrestling alumni
Category:NWA San Francisco alumni
Category:Ohio Valley Wrestling alumni
Category:Pacific Northwest Wrestling alumni
Category:St. Louis Wrestling Club alumni
Category:World Wrestling Council alumni
Category:World Wrestling Entertainment alumni
Category:1964 debuts
Category:1991 retirements
Category:WWE World Tag Team Champions
Category:African American wrestlers
Category:Canadian wrestlers
Category:Nova Scotia wrestlers
Category:Male wrestlers
Category:2020 deaths
Category:Wrestlers who have died