recursal/Fanatic-Fandom huggingface dataset:
Chaz Rocco

**Chad J. Floyd** (April 15, 1968 - December 10, 2005) was an American professional wrestler.

## Professional wrestling career

Born on April 15, 1968 in Clarendon County, he graduated from East Clarendon High School and attended Francis Marion University.

He eventually adopted the ring name Chaz Rocco, and co-owned the ACW Wrestling League and even the Strand Tan Tanning Salon when he wasn't in the ring.

Rocco was a mainstay for Lake City based promotion South Atlantic Pro Wrestling, winning the SAPW Tag Team Championship two times with partners Tommy Gunn and future WWE Hall of Famer and legend Rob Van Dam.

By 1999, his career came to an abrupt end. Rocco noticed two men attempting to steal a car near his tanning salon which he owned and operated when not wrestling. Rocco tried to intervene and scare off the would be car thieves, instead they brutally attacked the wrestler.

The men repeatedly smashed Chazz’s head into the car and left him bloodied and unconscious. Chazz suffered a serious head trauma which caused brain damage. The head injuries led him to suffer two strokes. Chazz was able to survive the strokes, but his health steadily declined after the assault.

## Death

Chad "Chaz Rocco" Floyd died "after a long illness" on December 10, 2005. According to his obituary:

> *Besides his parents, Chaz is survived by his wife, Son H. Park Floyd; a son, Alex Floyd of Florence; a brother, Nicholas Lynn Floyd of Charlotte, N.C.; a beloved grandmother, Virginia Webster of New Zion; a niece, Keena Floyd of Columbia, and a nephew, Brian Floyd of Barrineau; and special cousin, Renea Lowder of Lake City.*
> Floyd's cause of death was later revealed to be heart failure.
>
>
Rick McGraw

**Richard Emmett McGraw** (March 19, 1955 – November 1, 1985) was an American professional wrestler best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) under the ring name **"Quickdraw" Rick McGraw** during the 1980s.

McGraw also had a notable career in various regional territories of the National Wrestling Alliance. He was one half of the New York Dolls with Troy Graham in the World Wrestling Association, winning the WWA World Tag Team Championship in 1982, the Carolina Connection with Steve Travis and later formed a tag team with André the Giant.

## Professional wrestling career

McGraw began his career in 1976 in the Florida area. He competed in the Mid-Atlantic region a couple of years later before entering the World Wrestling Federation.

McGraw defeated enhancement talent, but mostly put over heels that were ready to challenge WWF champion Bob Backlund. He also competed on the Showdown at Shea show in August 1980, losing to Greg Gagne.

McGraw then moved to Memphis and was part of the tag team duo called "New York Dolls" with Troy Graham. The team was managed by Jimmy Hart.

Rick then re-entered Vince McMahon Sr.'s WWF as part of the tag team called the Carolina Connection with Steve Travis.

   Quickdraw had notable matches with numerous top heels during his time in the WWF. He was once managed by Arnold Skaaland and also had his neck "broken" by Killer Khan in a match.

Towards the end of his career, McGraw teamed up with André the Giant to form a lopsided tag team duo: McGraw was 5'7" with the Giant billed at 7'4".

## Death

On a 1985 episode of WWF Championship Wrestling, McGraw was a guest on the "Piper's Pit" segment and got on host "Rowdy" Roddy Piper's case about always shooting his mouth off and not wrestling on television, prompting Piper to accept a challenge to wrestle him on the show the very next week. McGraw faced the "Hot Rod" in the nationally televised match; before that, Quickdraw wore a "Hot Rod" t-shirt to the ring and blew his nose into it in Poughkeepsie, New York. McGraw took such a beating that referee Dick Kroll stopped the match after Piper delivered numerous DDT's.

On November 1, 1985. McGraw died of a heart attack in Fair Haven East, Connecticut just days after wrestling Piper. Though some less savvy fans felt the match led to McGraw's death, the two incidents were not related. McGraw was well known in the business as having a severe drug problem, and was one of the first of many in professional wrestling to die from one.

In Bret Hart's autobiography *Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling*, Bret wrote: "Every night he'd swallow a handful of Placidyls and wind up passed out face down in his dinner...The cause of his death was labelled a heart attack, but we all knew his heart had given out under deadly dosages of downers." Shortly after McGraw's death, Roddy Piper headlined a show held to benefit McGraw's family. He had left behind a wife "Lisa" and a newborn son "Ricky".
Randy Anderson

**Randall "Randy" Anderson** (July 17, 1959 – May 5, 2002) was a professional wrestling referee who worked for the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA)'s Jim Crockett Promotions and World Championship Wrestling.

## Professional wrestling career

Anderson was a childhood friend of Arn Anderson. He started out training for a professional wrestling career with Arn under the tutelage of Ted Allen. Anderson was an amateur wrestler in high school, winning a state championship in the 119-lb class.

Anderson started working as a referee upon his graduation in 1978 in Mid-South Wrestling. He also refereed in Florida Championship Wrestling before arriving in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA)'s Jim Crockett Promotions in 1985. He quickly rose up the referee ranks and was the referee for several main event matches.

   In 1988, when Ted Turner bought Crockett and renamed it World Championship Wrestling, Anderson stayed on. Anderson was the referee in charge of the main event six-man tag match at Bash at the Beach 1996 which saw the heel turn of Hulk Hogan and the formation of the nWo.

The most fame Anderson received was in 1997 when Eric Bischoff and the nWo bullied him around. Bischoff fired Anderson and he ended up having a match against fellow referee Nick Patrick of the nWo and defeated him by using a foreign object, from fellow WCW referee Jimmy Jett, to get his job back.

Immediately following this match, Eric Bischoff reversed the decision and fired both Jett and Anderson. In 1999 when Ric Flair became the President, they ran a story line that Randy Anderson was still fired, and then became reinstated by Ric Flair, never mentioning that he had beaten Nick Patrick for his job back in 1997 or that the decision was ultimately reversed. Anderson continued as a referee in WCW until he was forced to retire in 1999 due to his battle with cancer.

## Death

Anderson was diagnosed with testicular cancer at the age of 36. He was diagnosed after recognizing his symptoms while reading a medical magazine. Because of a malignant tumor, he had to have his left testicle removed. Anderson noted: *“I was in cancer row. That’s an elite group of people. It (the experience) really changed my life. It woke me up. It made me feel kinder to people. It makes me look at little words like hope and makes me enjoy my kids more. I see things in a different way. Instead of walking by people, I stop and give them a couple of minutes.”*

He died on May 5, 2002 at the age of 42. He was survived by his wife Kristy, daughter Montana, and son Chase.
Lia Maivia

**Ofelia "Lia" Maivia** (1927 – October 19, 2008), also known as **Leah Maivia**, was a Samoan veteran wrestling promoter. Maivia was the wife of Samoan professional wrestler Peter Maivia and the grandmother of actor and wrestler, Dwayne Johnson, also known as The Rock. Dwayne Johnson is the son of Rocky Johnson and Peter Maivia's only daughter, Ata Maivia.

## Professional wrestling career

Maivia was born **Ofelia Fuataga** in Lalomanu in Aleipata, Western Samoa. (The country is now known as Samoa).

Maivia took over the Polynesian Pacific Pro Wrestling in Hawaii following the death of her husband, "High Chief" Peter Maivia, in 1982 from cancer.

She became one of wrestling's only female promoters and worked closely with the World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment (WWE/F) during her career.

She continued to run Polynesian Pacific Pro Wrestling until the promotion came to a close in 1988.

Maivia attended the March 2008 posthumous induction of her husband into the WWE Hall of Fame in Orlando, Florida.

Peter Maivia was inducted by Dwayne Johnson at the ceremony and the award was accepted by Leah Maivia's daughter, Ata. Maivia's former son-in-law, Rocky Johnson, was also inducted during the same ceremony.

## Death

Maivia died of a heart attack at her home in Davie, Florida, on October 19, 2008. There were conflicting reports of her age, as most outlets reported that she was 81 years old, while *The Miami Herald* reported that she was 77. Bill Apter, a writer and journalist who specializes in wrestling, wrote of Maivia following her death: *When my daughter Hailey, who is now 23, met Lia at a wrestling event in upper New York state, Lia went to a gift shop at a nearby hotel and bought Hailey a stuffed bunny as a gift. She had never met her before this day, and this shows what a heart she had!*
Mighty Igor

**Richard Joseph "Dick" Garza** (July 16, 1931 – January 7, 2002), better known as **Mighty Igor Vodik**, or simply **Mighty Igor**, was an American professional wrestler. He is a one time American Wrestling Association World champion. As Mighty Igor, he was frequently billed as the "World's Strongest Wrestler".

## Professional wrestling career

Garza grew up in Michigan and competed in bodybuilding contests. He won the Mr. Michigan title in 1954 before competing in Mr. America and Mr. Universe competitions. At a gym, Garza got into an argument with professional wrestler Brute Bernard and knocked him unconscious. This gained him the interest of wrestling promoter Bert Ruby, who convinced him to enter professional wrestling.

Garza wrestled in Michigan and Ohio during his early career. He competed for a promotion named Wolverine Wrestling, where he won his first title, the Wolverine Wrestling Mid-West Heavyweight Championship, on February 14, 1957. He also competed in California, where he won the Los Angeles version of the WWA International Television Tag Team Championship in 1962 while teaming with Eric Rommel.

Garza used the gimmick of a friendly, but physically strong Polish man. At times, he would wear nurse's shoes and long underwear in addition to his wrestling attire to make himself look friendly or kind but he would be superhuman strong. He was also known for bringing toys and kielbasa to the ring, and he shared the kielbasa with his fans. The other component of Garza's gimmick was his strength.

He performed several feats of strength for the audience, including leaning with his back against a wrestling ring and using his legs to hold back a car driving toward him. Other performances included bending iron bars or placing cement blocks on his head and having someone break them with a sledgehammer.

Garza later joined the American Wrestling Association (AWA), where he was given the ring name Mighty Igor Vodik by Verne Gagne. On May 15, 1965, he won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship by defeating Mad Dog Vachon. He held the title belt for one week before dropping it back to Vachon. In 1965 and 1966, Vodik also had two reigns as the Nebraska Heavyweight Champion. The following year, he defeated Bob Orton to win the AWA Midwest Heavyweight Championship. In the 1970s, Garza wrestled as "The Mighty Igor" in the "Big Time Wrestling" circuit from Detroit, Michigan, performing with the likes of Bobo Brazil, The Sheik, Pampero Firpo, "Big" Tex McKenzie, The Stomper, Flying Fred Curry, and The Fabulous Kangaroos.

## Death

On January 7, 2002, Garza died after suffering a heart attack at a hospital in Detroit. Near the final years of his life, he had been suffering from heart problems.
Cousin Junior

**Lanny Neal Kean Jr.** (March 19, 1960 – January 13, 2009) was an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation under the ring name **Cousin Junior**, as well as for his appearances on the independent circuit as **Moondog Cujo**, a member of The Moondogs.

## Professional wrestling career

Kean made his professional wrestling debut for promoter Dale Mann in Kentucky in 1983, where he competed as **"Luscious" Lanny Kean**. Fast forward to 1984, and Kean began wrestling for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) as a jobber, performing as **Lanny Kean**.

In 1985, he was given the gimmick of **Cousin Junior**, a member of Hillbilly Jim's hillbilly family stable. The Hillbilly family were portrayed as simple rural Southerners who performed square dances in the ring. They feuded with wrestlers including Jesse Ventura, Bob Orton, Jr., and Roddy Piper.

Kean's character was modeled on the character of Jethro Bodine from the television program *The Beverly Hillbillies*. Kean left the WWF in 1986 after problems with substance abuse.

In 1986, Kean joined the Continental Wrestling Association under the ring name **Hillbilly Junior**, where he formed a tag team with Giant Hillbilly. The duo won the AWA Southern Tag Team Championship on August 30, 1986 by defeating the MOD Squad. Kean wrestled sporadically on the independent circuit throughout the mid-1980s, including in the NWA in 1988 under the name Cousin Junior once again.

In 1992, Kean joined the United States Wrestling Association (USWA) as **Moondog Cujo**, a member of The Moondogs, a rabid bone-wielding tag team. He was managed by Richard Lee.

Later, he was renamed **Big Daddy Cyrus** and feuded with Jerry Lawler, who held the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship. He formed a tag team with Crusher Bones in 1995, main-eventing the Mid-South Coliseum against the likes of Lawler, Bill Dundee, and Sid Vicious. In 1996 he lost to John Tenta on WCW Saturday Night. In 1997, Dutch Mantel gave Kean the ring name "**Bloody**" **Ox Brody**, which was a tribute to Ox Baker and Bruiser Brody.

Kean took several years off of wrestling but decided to return to competition as Moondog Cujo. In one match on April 27, 2007 after his comeback, Moondog Cujo, managed by Sal Corrente, defeated The Barbarian in a Hardcore match in Memphis Wrestling. He also resumed his feud with Lawler. Kean wrestled his last match on December 6, 2008 in a tag match.

## Death

On January 13, 2009, Kean allegedly took his girlfriend Sandra to a hospital in Franklin, Indiana due to a migraine headache. When he got to his truck, he suffered a heart attack and was found unconscious, slumped over the wheel, having died at 1:54 AM. According to his death certificate, his cause of death was a result of acute intoxication after chewing on patches of fentanyl. An initial report from the *Wrestling Observer Newsletter* believed his death was the result of a car accident. He was 48 years old.
Mitsu Arakawa

**Mack Mitsukazu Arakawa** (May 23, 1927 – April 17, 1997) was an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the Minneapolis, Minnesota-based NWA Minneapolis Boxing & Wrestling Club/American Wrestling Association.

## Professional wrestling career

Arakawa was trained to wrestle by The Great Yamato. He made his professional wrestling debut in 1953. Wrestling as a heel throughout his career, Arakawa was billed as being a Japanese citizen who had survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and bore a grudge against the United States as a result. He spent the early years of his career wrestling throughout the Midwest United States.

In 1957, Arakawa debuted in the NWA Minneapolis Boxing & Wrestling Club (later renamed the American Wrestling Association), where he was billed as Kinji Shibuya's cousin. In August 1957, he and Shibuya defeated The Kalmikoffs to win the NWA World Tag Team Championship *(Minneapolis version)*.

They lost the championship to Joe Brunetti and Guy Brunetti in November 1957. In December 1967, Arakawa and Dr. Moto defeated Pat O'Connor and Wilbur Snyder for the AWA World Tag Team Championship. They held the championship for over a year before losing to The Crusher and Dick the Bruiser in December 1968.

In 1959, Arakawa joined the Indianapolis-based World Wrestling Association (WWA). In October 1966, he defeated Dick the Bruiser to win the WWA World Heavyweight Championship. He lost the championship to Wilbur Snyder in September 1967.

Arakawa toured Australia in 1965, 1966 and 1970, winning the IWA World Heavyweight Championship during his first tour. In the mid-1960s, he performed in Canada with Shibuya, with the duo winning the Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship in 1963.

In the late 1960s, Arakawa and Toru Tanaka began wrestling for the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) as "The Rising Suns". In June 1969, The Rising Suns were crowned the inaugural WWWF International Tag Team Champions (they were billed as having won a tournament that never took place). They lost the championship to Tony Marino and Victor Rivera in December 1969.

In 1973, Arakawa appeared in *The Wrestling Queen*, a documentary on rookie professional wrestler Vivian Vachon. Arakawa retired in 1976.

## Death

Arakawa died on April 17, 1997, from heart failure in Concord, California.
Sammy Steamboat

**Samuel K. Mokuahi** (May 4, 1934 – May 2, 2006) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, **Sammy Steamboat**.

## Professional wrestling career

Mokuahi was trained to wrestle by Lord James Blears and Lou Thesz. He debuted in the 1950s, adopting the ring name "Sam Steamboat", the English translation of his birth name.

Steamboat began his career with the Honolulu-based promotion 50th State Big Time Wrestling. He won his first championship on August 5, 1956, teaming with Billy Varga to defeat Great Togo and Tosh Togo for the NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship. On January 25, 1961, Steamboat defeated Dick Hutton to win the NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Championship. He lost the championship to Luigi Macera on April 15, 1961.

In the early 1960s, Steamboat relocated to the contiguous United States, where he competed for the Los Angeles, California-based promotion Worldwide Wrestling Associates. In 1960, he won the WWA International Television Tag Team Championship with Dick Hutton.

Steamboat went on to compete in the Atlanta, Georgia-based Georgia Championship Wrestling, where he won the NWA Southern Tag Team Championship (Georgia version) with Eddie Graham in 1964, and the North Carolina-based Mid Atlantic Championship Wrestling, where he held the NWA Southern Tag Team Championship (Mid-Atlantic version) with Graham in 1965.

In the mid-1960s, Steamboat began wrestling for Championship Wrestling from Florida, where he reformed his alliance with Eddie Graham. Steamboat won the NWA World Tag Team Championship (Florida version) on five occasions between 1964 and 1967, as well as the NWA World Tag Team Championship (Mid-America version) on two occasions in 1965 and the NWA Florida Tag Team Championship in 1969.

Steamboat returned to Hawaii in the late 1960s, winning the NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Championship on three further occasions and the NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship on four further occasions. He also won the NWA North American Championship (Hawaii version) on four occasions. He retired in the late 1970s.

## Death

Mokuahi died at the age of 71 in Hawaii from complications from Alzheimer's disease on May 2, 2006.
Oyama Kato

**Stanley Shinichi Mayeshiro** (January 8, 1919 – January 9, 1961) was an American professional wrestler who notably competed under the ring name of **Oyama Kato**, a Japanese heel.

## Early life

The eldest son of Okinawan immigrants to Hawaii, Shinichi Mayeshiro was born January 7, 1919. One of his siblings was lightweight boxer Kenyu "Jackson" Maeshiro. As a young man, Mayeshiro did extensive training of judo and sumo, and also signed up for the US Army.

## Professional wrestling career

Mayeshiro, his wife and seven children located to California in the early 1950s so he can become a professional wrestler. Among his ring names included Sesue Oyama, Kato the Great, The Great Kato (as the protege of the Great Togo), Kato Yama and Oyama Kato.

During the era he wrestled in, Kato had the stereotypical Japanese heel gimmick due to his Asian descent. He wrestled barefoot and pretended to speak only Japanese, but was also feared for his dirty tactics such as throwing salt in his opponent's eyes and his dreaded sleeper hold.

On January 27, 1954, Kato defeated Frankie Talaber to win the MWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship, holding it until February 23 when he dropped it back to him. He found great success in Al Haft's Ohio promotion, holding the American Tag Team Championship with Danny McShain. Kato was also flanked by a manager called Sugi, and was involved in a series of matches with the likes of Talaber and Buddy Rogers.

Among the other titles he won included the NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) with Karl Von Schober from November 26 to December 13, 1957, and the Texas Junior Heavyweight Championship from April 15 to the 23rd of 1958.

## Death

On January 9, 1961, Kato won a match against wrestler Clair Robinson in Vancouver, British Columbia. After the match, Oyama complained that he was not feeling well and collapsed. He was later pronounced dead from a heart attack at a local hospital. He was 42 years old.
Russ Haas

**Thomas Russell Haas** (March 11, 1974 – December 15, 2001) was an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his work alongside his older brother Charlie in Memphis Championship Wrestling and Jersey All Pro Wrestling.

## Professional wrestling career

Haas was a former collegiate wrestler at Seton Hall University. On July 22, 1998, The Haas Brothers won the Jersey All Pro Wrestling Tag Team Championship by defeating The Skin Head Express. They lost it to The Nation of Immigration just over a month later on August 25. They won the championship for the second time on May 21, 1999, by defeating The Big Unit (Rick Silver and Dave Desire), and held the championship until February 25, 2000 when they were defeated by Da Hit Squad. During 2000 they also held the Pennsylvania Championship Wrestling Tag Team Championship, which they won by defeating Jeff Peterson and Boogie Woogie Brown, and the ECWA Tag Team Championship in the East Coast Wrestling Association promotion, which they won by defeating The Backseat Boyz (Trent Acid and Johnny Kashmere). They also competed in Maryland Championship Wrestling and the Pennsylvania-based World Xtreme Wrestling.

The Haas brothers began competing for Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) in November 1999, losing to The King Pinz at The War Begins on November 20, 1999. They competed regularly for CZW throughout early 2000, and won the CZW World Tag Team Championship on February 12 at Climbing The Ladder by defeating The Kashmerino Brothers and The Thrill Kill Kult in a three-way match. On July 10, they lost the championship to The Backseat Boyz at Caged To The End, when Johnny Kashmere defeated Russ in a singles match and was awarded the championship.

After a World Wrestling Federation (WWF) tryout match at Madison Square Garden on August 7, 2000, they signed a developmental contract with WWF the following day. The two worked their way through the tag ranks in the WWF's developmental territories, Memphis Championship Wrestling (MCW) and the Heartland Wrestling Association (HWA). The brothers won the MCW Southern Tag Team Championship three times during early 2001, defeating The Dupps the first time and the Island Boyz and Joey Matthews and Christian York in a three-way match on both the second and third occasions.

## Death

On September 24, 2001, Haas had a heart attack. On December 15, 2001, he died of heart failure in his sleep at the age of 27. He was found dead by his wife Deedra shortly after his brother Charlie had left for the night.

Following his death, several wrestling personalities paid tribute to Haas, including Low Ki and Kevin Kelly. JAPW held the Russ Haas Memorial Show in February 2002, and in August 2002 Phoenix Championship Wrestling held The Russ Haas Memorial Tag Team Tournament. In 2004, he was inducted into the ECWA Hall of Fame and in 2007 he was inducted into the JAPW Hall of Fame.
Max Palmer

**Max Edmund Palmer** (November 27, 1927 – May 7, 1984) was an American actor and professional wrestler.

## Career

### Basketball and acting

After high school Palmer left Mississippi to play with the professional basketball team Rochester Royals. After basketball Palmer went back to Mississippi only to work odd jobs working his way to Hollywood to get into acting. Palmer was discovered by an ex-Chicago newspaper man named Fritz Blocki. Palmer's first appearance on film was on the *Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis Comedy Hour*.

Palmer's acting career spanned from 1952 to 1954. He starred in such movies as *Invaders from Mars* and *Killer Ape* with Johnny Weissmuller. He also guested variety shows such as *Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis Comedy Hour*, *The Spade Cooley Show*, and *The Jimmy Durante Show*.

### Professional wrestling

After he left acting, Palmer became a professional wrestler in Salt Lake City, Utah. He started competing early in 1955, initially under his real name.

Not long afterwards, he was billed as "Paul Bunyan" and competed in many battle royals, most of which he won. Known for his great height, in 2014 he was described as the second tallest professional wrestler in history.

## Death

He preached until his death from heart disease on May 7, 1984, at the age of 56. When measured for his coffin, he measured 8 feet 2 inches (2.49 m) and needed a 9-foot (2.7 m) coffin.
Chris Von Erich

**Christopher Barton Adkisson** (September 30, 1969 – September 12, 1991) was an American professional wrestler, best known under the ring name **Chris Von Erich** of the Von Erich family.

## Professional wrestling career

The smallest and least athletic of the Von Erich family, all Chris wanted to be was a wrestler. He was the youngest son of wrestler Fritz Von Erich. His brothers, Mike, David, Kerry and Kevin all had success as wrestlers.

He grew up working cameras and doing other odd jobs backstage for WCCW. He became a wrestler in 1990, but faced numerous issues.

Aside from drug problems similar to his much older brothers, his asthma held him back and his bones were so brittle that he would often break them while performing simple wrestling maneuvers.

He stayed with it as much as he could, and even had a small feud with Percy Pringle in the USWA.

## Death

Frustrated and depressed over the deaths of his brothers (Mike in particular, whom he idolized) along with his inability to excel in the wrestling business, Chris shot himself in the head on September 12, 1991 aged only 21.
Herb Calvert

**Herbert "Herbie" Calvert Jr.** (July 28, 1956 - January 27, 2002) was an American professional and amateur wrestler.

## Professional wrestling career

Calvert was born on July 28, 1956 in Passaic, New Jersey. Described as a tremendous heavyweight amateur wrestler at Oklahoma University, he scored 18 pins in 1976, something that hasn't been matched by OU since.

During his pro career, he worked in the Mid-South and Florida areas. His obituary notes that he was the original Spoiler; however, this is inaccurate, as Don Jardine first used the gimmick (created by Fritz Von Erich) starting in the late-1960s.

A worker who could entertain the fans, Calvert never skipped a beat and found success in both singles and tag team action. So much so, he won both the NWA Tri-State Tag Team Championship and the NWA United States Tag Team Championship (with Jim Garvin). Overall, the promotions Calvert worked for include MSW, TSW, NWA, Championship Wrestling from Florida (FL), Georgia Championship Wrestling (GA), and Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling (NC/SC).

In 1983, he became a Deputy for the Tulsa County Sheriff's Department. Ten years later he was nominated as Deputy of the Year. He later worked for Canteen Vending and was referred to as "The Candy Man".

His accomplished background in amateur wrestling earned him a spot in the Clifton Hall of Fame in 1999.

## Death

Calvert died of a heart attack on January 27, 2002 at the age of 45.
Hercules

**Raymond Constantino Fernandez** (May 7, 1956 – March 6, 2004) was an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name **Hercules Hernandez**, or simply **Hercules**.

## Professional wrestling career

Fernandez started wrestling in 1979 in the NWA territories as **Hercules Hernandez**. He feuded with Billy Jack Haynes within almost every promotion he worked. He also had feuds with Jim Duggan and Iceman Parsons.

During the early 1980s, Hernandez wrestled under a mask as a member of the tag team with the highly touted Masked Assassin. He was known as **Masked Assassin #2** until being unmasked.

He went to the WWF in 1985. In the fall of 1986, Hernandez would rekindle his feud with Billy Jack Haynes over the use of the full nelson. On an episode of *Superstars*, Bobby Heenan called out Haynes and defied him to break the full nelson of Hercules. During the confrontation, Hayes smashed Heenan which led to an altercation with Hayes and Hernandez.

The feud culminated at the Pontiac Silverdome at Wrestlemania III in a double count out after Haynes applied his full nelson on the floor. After the match, Hercules busted Haynes wide open with a right punch with his chain.
In the early part of 1988 during an episode of *Superstars* Hercules was swinging his chain in the direction of The Ultimate Warrior. Warrior caught the chain, and the two began a tug of war with the chain.

This led to the steel chain snapping at the middle. This led to their match at Wrestlemania IV which ended with Warrior pinning Hercules after kicking off the corner pads and landing on top of Hercules all while trapped in the full nelson.

In 1988 Hercules' contract was sold to the Million Dollar Man. Hercules stated he was owned by no man and turned face. He feuded with Dibiase which culminated at Survivor Series 1988.

    In 1990, he turned heel and teamed up with Paul Roma (who had also turned heel against former Young Stallions partner Jim Powers) as "Power & Glory", managed by Slick.

Fernandez went to WCW in 1992 as the masked **Super Invader** managed by Harley Race, but he never rose above mid-card level.

In 1996, he wrestled in the ill-fated American Wrestling Federation promotion. His appearance in the AWF made clear that he was no longer taking steroids, as he had lost most of his muscular definition.

    He finished his career in 1999 after working the independent circuit and for New Japan Pro Wrestling.

## Death

Fernandez died in his sleep from a heart attack on March 6, 2004, at the age of 47. He is survived by his wife and six kids.
Bobo Brazil

### Burial

Crystal Springs Cemetery in Benton Harbor, Michigan; considering his body was cremated, Harris' ashes were presumably placed here

## Professional wrestling stats

### Trained by

Joe Savoldi

**Houston Harris** (July 10, 1924 — January 20, 1998), known professionally as **Bobo Brazil**, was an African-American professional wrestler who was known for breaking down barriers of racial segregation in professional wrestling.

He was a favorite of not only African-American wrestling fans, but of fans of any race, creed or color. Bobo Brazil is regarded as the first successful African-American professional wrestler, he is often referred to as "the Jackie Robinson of professional wrestling."

## Professional wrestling career

Harris was trained by Joe Savoldi after meeting him at matches at the Naval Armory. Savoldi originally named Harris, BuBu Brasil, "The South American Giant," but a promoter misprinted his first name as "Bobo" in an advertisement and it stuck.

Early in his career, some wrestling promoters would match Brazil against fellow African American wrestlers, including Ernie Ladd and Abdullah the Butcher. Fans clamored to see Brazil face opponents of any type and Brazil would have many matches with competitors such as Killer Kowalski, Dick the Bruiser, Johnny Valentine, and The Sheik, who feuded with Brazil over the course of several decades.

These and other rivals would all fall victim to Brazil's finishing maneuver, the Coco Butt. Brazil also once wrestled Bill Miller to a draw, and challenged Bruno Sammartino for the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship in a battle of two top babyface competitors.

On October 18, 1962, Brazil made history by becoming the first African American to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship by defeating "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers (this distinction is usually given to Ron Simmons, the first recognized African American world champion after winning the WCW World Heavyweight Championship). Although Brazil initially refused the title (because of an "injury" that Rogers had claimed to have), Brazil was awarded the title the next day after doctors had found nothing wrong with Rogers. However, this title change is not recognized by the NWA.

On October 9, 1970, Brazil and El Mongol defeated Mr. Ito and The Great Ota in the first racially mixed match in Atlanta history.

Brazil served as a mentor to wrestler "Soulman" Rocky Johnson. Brazil's manager was James Dudley, the first African American to be in charge of a major arena in the United States. Dudley would run to the ring waving a towel, as Brazil followed behind.

    Brazil retired in 1993 after a four-decade career. His last official match was in Chicago, Illinois against Kelly Kiniski, son of rival Gene Kiniski. Brazil was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame class of 1994 by Ernie Ladd. The following year, Brazil inducted Ladd into the WWF Hall of Fame.

## Death

Harris died on January 20, 1998, at the Lakeland Medical Center in St. Joseph, Michigan. He had been admitted to the hospital on January 14, after suffering a series of strokes. Harris' body was cremated.
Cowboy Lang

**Harold Robert Lang** (August 28, 1950 - January 4, 2007) was a Canadian midget professional wrestler best known by his ring name **Cowboy Lang**.

## Early life

Harold Robert Lang was born in Saskatchewan but raised in Rimbey, Alberta. He came from a poor family as the youngest of seven kids and dropped out of school in the eigth grade.

## Professional wrestling career

Cowboy Lang was recognized for more than 30 years as one of the top midget wrestlers in the world. Lang made his professional wrestling debut in the mid-1960s when he was 16 years old, having learned from Lord Littlebrook, another midget wrestler.

He would regularly rush to the ring wearing his trademark cowboy hat and boots. During his career he worked for various National Wrestling Alliance's promotions such as Jim Crockett Promotions, Stampede Wrestling, AWA and WWWF. On April 20, 1986, Lang and Little Mr. T. beat Little Tokyo and Lord Littlebrook at AWA WrestleRock.

Throughout his career, Little Tokyo showed that he was one of Cowboy Lang's biggest rivals. In the early 1980s they fought for the NWA World Midget's Championship. He would retire in 1988. He would return to wrestling in 1995 working for All Pro Wrestling in California. His last match was in 1999. After Lang's retirement, he lived in an apartment building for elderly and disabled people.

## Death

In late 2004, Lang underwent triple bypass surgery and was suffering from blackouts. He stopped taking medications thereafter and refused to visit the doctor. On January 4, 2007, Lang died from heart disease at the age of 56, with one report stating that he died from a broken heart after a falling out with his girlfriend.
Ali Baba

**Arteen Ekizian** (September 28, 1901 – November 16, 1981), better known by the ring name **Ali Baba**, was an Armenian American professional wrestler and World Heavyweight Champion who was active in the early portion of the twentieth century.

## Early life

Ekizian was born on September 28, 1901, in Samsun, Ottoman Empire. During the Armenian genocide, his father and younger brother were murdered and Ekizian was sold as a slave to Arabs. After four years of hard labor, he escaped and moved to the United States in 1920 with help from his uncle Garabed in Massachusetts.

## Professional wrestling career

Ekizian began amateur wrestling while serving in the United States Navy. He became the Fleet Championship in the middleweight, light heavyweight, and heavyweight divisions. After an international match in Copenhagen, Ekizian was awarded the title of World Champion Navy Wrestler and, in 1927, was honored at a White House Reception by President Calvin Coolidge.

Ekizian started a professional wrestling career in 1932 after leaving the navy and moved to Los Angeles. He adopted the ring name Ali Baba, shaving his head to present himself as a menacing heel.

On April 24, 1936, Ekizian defeated World Heavyweight Champion Dick Shikat in front of over 8,000 spectators in Detroit, Michigan. A rematch for the title took place on May 5 in Madison Square Garden. Ekizian won again and was formally declared the World Heavyweight Champion. He continued to wrestle until retiring at the age of 50.

According to his obituary on The Tribune, Ekizian wrestled all over the world and had 3600 matches during his career.

## Death

On November 16, 1981, Harry "Ali Baba" Ekizian died at Arroyo Grande Community Hospital from complications of a stroke at the age of 80.
Vivian Vachon

**Diane Vachon** (January 23, 1951 – August 24, 1991) was a Canadian professional wrestler known by her ring name **Vivian Vachon**. A member of the Vachon family of wrestlers, she was the sister of Maurice and Paul Vachon, and the aunt of Luna Vachon. She is considered one of the best female wrestlers of the 1970s.

## Early life

Diane Vachon was born on January 23, 1951, in Newport, Vermont, to Ferdinand and Marguerite Vachon, and was part of the Vachon family.

The youngest of thirteen children, Vachon was raised on a farm near Montreal, Quebec. She left high school following 10th grade and attended Constance Brown's Charm School. She later modelled for a short period and worked in an office.

## Professional wrestling career

At the suggestion of her brother Maurice, she began to train as a professional wrestler, and went to South Carolina to train under The Fabulous Moolah, turning professional by the age of 18. It was also Maurice who suggested she adopt the ring name Vivian Vachon (sometimes spelled Viviane Vachon).

In 1969, she wrestled for World Wide Wrestling Federation where she teamed with Bette Boucher feuding with The Fabulous Moolah and Toni Rose. During that same year, she also wrestled in Georgia Championship Wrestling using the ring name Vivian Vance. She went on a tour to Australia in 1970.

In February 1971, she became the California Women's Champion. She became the American Wrestling Association's (AWA) Women's Champion for a time on November 4, 1971.

In the early 1970s she starred in the movie *Wrestling Queen*, which also included her brothers and other wrestlers. She wrestled in the early 1980s on a tour of Japan, and in 1986 for her brother Maurice's retirement tour.

In 2006, she was honored posthumously by the Cauliflower Alley Club. Existing autographs signed by Vachon are rare.

## Death

40-year-old Diane Vachon and her nine-year-old daughter Julie died in a car accident on August 24, 1991. They were reported to have been hit by a drunk driver who ran a stop sign in Mont Saint-Grégoire at the corner of route 104 and Rang de la Montagne.
The Mighty Axis

**Steven Thomas Ranton** (October 16, 1984 - March 26, 2007) was an American professional wrestler.

## Professional wrestling career

Ranton received his training from Kevin Knight and made his pro wrestling debut in early 2002. Throughout his short career, he wrestled as the Mighty Axis for the New Jersey based promotion known as the Independent Wrestling Federation (IWF), among other companies on the independent circuit.

At the IWF Thanksgiving Thunder event on November 23, 2002, Axis teamed with Dante, winning the IWF Tag Team Championship from the team of Shawn Donavan & Travis Blake. On December 29 at IWF Tournament Of Champions, Axis and Dante would retain their championships in a fatal four-way match. On February 23, 2003, Axis and Dante dropped the titles in a triple threat to Brandon Young & Travis Blake.

In 2003, Axis would challenge for the IWF American and Tag Team titles, albeit unsuccessfully.

## Death

On March 26, 2007, Ranton died at the age of 22 after he wrapped himself in toilet paper, dowsed himself with gasoline and set himself on fire. His cause of death was ruled a suicide and Ranton had been suffering from depression for some time, as evident in this post:

*"Maybe I’m not worthy to live. Maybe I think about that every day…I think about all the wrongs I’ve done to people in this world and how much I’ve fucked up in my life and think to myself, “why am I alive?”; I don’t know why I’m alive. I try to do the best I can, and follow whatever it is that I believe in at the time. Because beliefs change every day….maybe I’ll believe in God one day, and not the next. All I know is that I am alive. I can either choose to end my life or keep progressing with it to maybe….just maybe, eventually find an answer to why it is that I am alive."*
Moondog Nathan

**Nathan Brian Randolph** (June 23, 1970 – July 4, 2007) was an American professional wrestler.

## Professional wrestling career

Nathan Brian Randolph was born in Athens, Alabama on June 23, 1970.

   Although information of his professional wrestling career in general are largely scarce, it is known that he once teamed up with Moondog Spot at one time as part of the tag team known as the Moondogs.

According to his profile in Find a Grave: "*Nathan wrestled as the second Rex [original one being Randy Colley]. He was also known in the area as Moondog Nathan to workers and friends. Nathan came to surface on this site when he showed up to work as a Moondog team along with a guy named Runt in June of last year. This all sparked a controversy, which lead to a few articles and arguments throughout the summer.*"

His profile in the website Cagematch, which provides the most information about his career, shows that he predominantly wrestled in the United States Wrestling Association (USWA). He most notably competed in a tournament for a chance to win some gold in the USWA Heavyweight Title, defeating the likes of Doug Gilbert (by disqualification), Spellbinder, and Jeff Gaylord, but came up short against Tommy Rich.

## Death

On July 4, 2007, Randolph was found dead of what was reportedly a heart attack at the age of 37.
Sky Low Low

**Marcel Gauthier** (July 21, 1928 – November 6, 1998) was a Canadian professional midget wrestler who wrestled under the ring name **Sky Low Low** (a reference to Sky Hi Lee).

## Professional wrestling career

Known by his midget wrestler persona "Sky Low Low", Gauthier stood just 42 inches tall and weighed 86 pounds. He began wrestling in the 1940s.

He made his debut in the Canadian National Wrestling Alliance and soon claimed the NWA World Midget Championship in Paris, France, allegedly winning a 30-midget tournament for it.

He was managed for the bulk of his career by Jack Britton, father of Gino Brito. Gauthier and Little Beaver squared off in a match for Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and King Farouk of Egypt.

Touring with the World Wrestling Federation as late as the 1980s, one of his gimmicks was an open challenge to any other midget professional wrestlers to beat him in a two out of three falls match for $100. He could also stand on his head without using his hands to balance himself. He had a longtime feud with Farmer Brooks.

## Death

Gauthier died from a heart attack in Quebec on November 6, 1998, at the age of 70.
Doug Scoggins

**Douglas Dorsey Scoggins** (March 19, 1942 – August 14, 1972) was an American professional wrestler better known as **Doug Scoggins** or by his masked persona **Mr X**.

## Professional wrestling career

Scoggins began his career in 1971. He caught his big break when he was brought into Georgia Championship Wrestling as the masked Mr X. He was hired as a mercenary for manager Big Bad John, and Mr X. went after top star Ray Gunkel, a rival of John at the time.

On November 19 of that year, Mr X failed to win the NWA Georgia Television Championship from Gunkel. Their feud's climax came when Scoggins challenged Gunkel to a Mask vs Hair match. However, it did not go as planned for Scoggins as he lost the bout and was unmasked as well as having his head shaved.

With the Gunkel feud over, Scoggins continued to wrestle in the territory against the likes of Bob Armstrong, Dick Steinborn and Argentina Apollo. During this time, his in-ring skills improved so much that he was given invitations to wrestle for several foreign countries. However, his career was cut relatively short.

## Death

On August 14, 1972, Scoggins was traveling with wrestler Juan Caruso from Perry to Valdosta, Georgia for a show, however, Scoggins fell asleep at the wheel which caused his vehicle to crash onto a truck, killing him upon impact. Caruso survived with minor injuries. He was 30 years old and his career had only lasted a year up until that point.
Big Bubba Nuckols

**William Patrick Nuckols** (November 27, 1967 – February 17, 2002) was an American professional wrestler, also known by the ring names **Big Bubba Nuckols** and **Bubbalicious**.

## Professional wrestling career

Nuckols was born on November 27, 1967 in Fairfax, Virginia. He reportedly had passion and desire for professional wrestling and decided to pursue it as a career. According to Cagematch, his first match took place on September 23, 1997, facing Shorty Smalls to a no-contest.

During this time, he performed for the House Of Pain Wrestling Federation (HoPWF). Nuckols and Shorty Smalls found championship success during their time there as the duo won the HoPWF Tag Team Championship. However, they would soon become opponents after this.

At a Championship Pro Wrestling event called Getting Even on June 21, 1998, Nuckols lost to Smalls. He was also on an article made by The Washington Post, as Nuckols was a part of a Ultimate Championship Wrestling (UCW) show which was praised by many of the fans in attendance, where he lost to Smalls. According to the article:

*"They cheered loudly when Shorty Smalls smashed a metal trash can -- denting it in half -- on the head of Big Bubba Nuckols in the "Special Weapons Extravaganza" match. They hooted when Nuckols -- a bearded, 450-pound man -- was powdered and diapered after losing to Smalls. They yelled loudly for The Big Guy and chanted "Crybaby!" at his opponents."*

Outside of the ring, Nuckols and Smalls were close friends, reportedly like brothers.

## Death

On February 17, 2002, Nuckols died after suffering a heart attack at the age of 34. Following his death, Smalls would pay tribute to Nuckols by writing Bubba's name on his wristband before he entered the ring.