Larry Cameron

**Larry Leon Cameron** (November 4, 1952 – December 13, 1993) was an American professional wrestler and football player.

## Professional wrestling career

Larry Cameron was born and raised in Natchez, MS. When he was a teenager, he played football in high school and college.

He was drafted in the NFL in 1973 by the Denver Broncos and later by the Canadian Football League, where he played with the BC Lions and Ottawa Rough Riders. In 1975 and 1976 he was an all-star and won the Grey Cup with Ottawa. His football career would be cut short due to injuries. After his football career ended, Cameron became Mr. Minnesota and Northern States Bodybuilding champion before he got discovered by Ed Sharkey and wrestled in his promotion.

Later he also went up to Calgary to train with Stu Hart in the Dungeon, where he trained alongside another former NFL and CFL star, former Cincinnati Bengals, Buffalo Bills, and Calgary Stampeders nosetackle Brian Pillman. Cameron made his wrestling debut with Stampede Wrestling in 1985, where he would wrestle as "Lethal" Larry Cameron. He was a straight up powerhouse with a bad attitude.

He would also wrestle in various promotions in the United States. He won his first championship in September 1987, when he won Pro Wrestling America's Heavyweight Championship, defeating Ricky Rice.

In 1988, he had wrestled handful of shows for the National Wrestling Alliance and the American Wrestling Association. In April 1989, he defeated Davey Boy Smith to win the Stampede North American Heavyweight Championship. He would hold on to the title, until the promotion closed in December 1989.

After Stampede shut down, he would return to the AWA in 1990. He would also wrestle for New Japan Pro-Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling, where he was managed by Teddy Long.

After the AWA shut down and a tryout with the World Wrestling Federation, he went on a tour of Austria, where he caught the eye of Otto Wanz. Wanz offered Cameron to work for his promotion, Catch Wrestling Association.

And in September 1991, Cameron began touring with the CWA. He would return to NJPW for a month in April 1992. In July 1992, he won the CWA World Tag Team Championship with his partner Mad Bull Buster.

The two would hold the titles for 53 weeks, before losing them to Dave Taylor and Mile Zrno. In April 1993, he wrestled one show in the United States for an NWA territory in Minnesota. That October, he and Mad Bull Buster regained the CWA Tag Team titles and held them, until the unfortunate accident that led to his premature death.

## Death

Cameron had a history of heart problems that were speculated to be steroid related, and was once instructed to stop wrestling at an independent show in New Jersey due to an irregular heartbeat.

On December 13, 1993, Larry Cameron suffered a heart attack during the fourth round of his match with Tony St. Clair in Bremen, Germany, so the match had to be stopped at the decision of the referee and Clair was announced the winner. He was taken backstage but attempts to revive him were unsuccessful and he died before the ambulance arrived; he was 41 years old at the time of his passing. As a result of Cameron's death, Mad Bull Buster had to vacate the CWA World Tag Team Championship, on behalf of himself and his late partner.