Geeto Mongol

**Newton Alexander Tattrie** (July 12, 1931 – July 19, 2013) was a Canadian professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, **Geeto Mongol** (also spelled **Geto Mongol**). Tattrie wrestled all over the globe, wrestling for promotions across the United States and Canada, Africa, Japan, Singapore, and Puerto Rico. He also competed in the World Wide Wrestling Federation and teamed with Josip Peruzovic as The Mongols.

## Professional wrestling career

At age 12, Tattrie ran away from home and headed to Toronto, living on the streets during World War II. He was interested in boxing and accidentally stumbled into a wrestling gym that he thought was a boxing dojo. It was there that he met wrestler Dave "The Wildman" McKigney who offered to cross train with him. Another wrestler that he met at the gym, Waldo Von Erich, got Tattrie in the door with the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF), where he wrestled for a time as Tony Newbury.

As Tony Newbury, he wrote "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)", a hit song for Kenny Rogers and The First Edition. In 1963, he took his craft to Calgary, Alberta, Canada, where he continued to train and work for Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling.

While working in Stampede Wrestling, Tattrie met Josip Peruzovic (better known in pro wrestling as Nikolai Volkoff). Tattrie took Peruzovic under his wing as a protégé and trained the non-English speaking, 315 pound man to become a professional wrestler. Tattrie became known as Geto Mongol and Peruzovic as Bepo Mongol; together they were the Mongols. They had a very unorthodox appearance with bald heads and little "horns" of hair on the very top of their skulls.
After meeting his would-be tag team partner, Bepo Mongol, Tattrie returned to the WWWF as Geto Mongol and The Mongols were brought to the United States in 1968. By 1970, Tattrie was a very busy man. From 1971 to 1972 he ran the Pittsburgh territory which worked closely with McMahon's WWWF. He built a home in Pittsburgh and continued to wrestle, using Ace Freeman as a figurehead promoter, so as not to confuse the fans. In 1972, Bepo went off on his own to become Nikolai Volkoff and Geto (Tattrie) sold his promotion to Pedro Martinez. It was also at this time that Newton Tattrie learned to read, after spending years "bluffing it".

While competing in the WWWF, The Mongols won the WWWF International Tag Team Championship from Tony Marino and Victor Rivera on June 15, 1970. They held the belts for just over a year before losing them to Bruno Sammartino and Dominic DeNucci on June 18, 1971. The Mongols regained the title in a rematch the following month and held it until losing them on November 12 to Luke Graham and Tarzan Tyler. Geto held the championship once more, teaming with Johnny DeFazio to win the belts on December 18, 1972. They held the belts until the promotion changed ownership and the title was vacated.

Tattrie went on to train young wrestling hopefuls including Bill Eadie (better known as The Masked Superstar and Demolition Ax). Eadie joined up with Tattrie to give a rebirth to the Mongols on the Japanese wrestling circuit. Eadie was given the name Bolo Mongol. In 1975, the duo worked for the outlaw IWA promotion where they held its World Tag Team Title. In 1982, finding it hard to get out of bed, Tattrie retired from active competition.

## Death

On July 19, 2013, Newton "Geeto Mongol" Tattrie died at the age of 82 in Virginia Beach, where he had resided in his later life.