WRESTLING COLUMNS

George the Animal Steele George Steele's wrestling career began in Detroit 1962. He wore a mask, and wrestled under the name 'the Student'. During the mid 1960's, Bruno Sammartino and his team of WWWF Pittsburgh promoters visited Detroit for one of Bruno's title defenses. The Student was wrestling in the under card, and the WWWF promoters happened to be watching the Student at work. The group of promoters were so impressed, that they invited him to wrestle in Pittsburgh, on the condition that he leave his old gimmick behind in Detroit. Steele happily accepted the offer, and debuted into the WWWF as George 'the Animal' Steele. George played a heel for 16 years. He occasionally teamed with Dr. Bill Miller, and also received WWWF Title matches against Sammartino at the Pittsburgh Civic Centre. It wasn't long before Steele/Sammartino matches were in heavy demand in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and other WWWF territories. George Steele continued to go after future champions, Pedro Morales, Bob Backlund and Hulk Hogan, helping to strengthen the integrity of the WWWF Title. In 1985, George the Animal Steele became a fan favourite. He immediately turned into one of the most loved WWF characters. Steele's feud with Randy Savage helped cement his new status, as he fought to protect the lovely Elizabeth from Savage's constant verbal abuse. The storyline contained a "Hunchback of Notre dam" like theme, which added an element of compassion. The feud also helped establish Savage as a WWF superstar. Steele later formed a friendship with Ricky Steamboat, and at WrestleMania III, he accompanied Steamboat to the ring for his match against Randy Savage. George Steele retired as a wrestler in 1988, and worked behind the scenes of the WWF for 9 years, before making one last appearance in late 1998 as a new member of the Oddities stable. George Steele later retired from pro wrestling. His free time is spent giving back to his community though charity work. NWA Detroit Tag Team Titles (1980) Gorilla Monsoon Gorilla Monsoon came from an impressive wrestling background before making the transition as a pro wrestler. Gorilla made his professional debut in 1963; this was also the same year that the WWWF was formed. Gorilla wisely invested a piece into the company, and soon became a close and trusted friend to the McMahon family for many years. Gorilla gained a reputation of being a feared, yet loved and respected person backstage, and was affectionately named 'Gino' by his peers. During his first six years, Gorilla played the role of the heel, posing as a serious threat to WWWF Champion Bruno Sammartino. The two wrestlers engaged in a number of battles, which headlined Madison Square Garden cards. Even though he was unable to dethrone Sammartino, Gorilla's contribution further strengthened Bruno as a credible champion. Gorilla retired from active competition in 1980 and became an announcer. Gorilla instantly became the voice of the WWF, hosting live events, MSG cards, TV shows Wrestling Challenge, Prime Time Wrestling, and pay per views throughout the 80's and early 90's. His announcing pairing with Bobby Heenan is highly regarded as the greatest wrestling announcing team ever. In 1995, Gorilla stepped away from commentating to take up the role of the WWF President. Gorilla Monsoon's last TV appearance was at WrestleMania XV; he unfortunately passed away in October of 1999. In Gorilla's tribute video, Vince McMahon Jr described him as a dear friend, and a cornerstone for the World Wrestling Federation. WWA Los Angeles Tag Team Titles (1966, 1966) IWA Heavyweight Title (1968) WWC North American Title (1977, 1978)] Greg Valentine Greg the Hammer Valentine was considered as one of the toughest wrestlers to step foot in the ring during the 1970's, 80's and 90's, a family tradition, which he continued after his father Johnny Valentine. Greg Valentine began his career wrestling for the NWA, travelling from region to region picking up a number of titles. He soon arrived to the WWWF, and established himself as a prominent superstar. It wasn't long before Valentine earned a series of title shots at the WWF champion Bob Backlund. One of Greg Valentine's proudest moments was when he wrestled Bob Backlund to a 60-minute time limit draw in Madison Square Garden. One of the most controversial events during the Valentine/Backlund war took place on October 19, 1981, when a dazed referee awarded Greg Valentine the WWF Title. Both wrestlers wore the same coloured black tights, which further confused the referee's decision. The WWF Title was declared vacant, until November 23, when Backlund defeated Valentine to settle the dispute. Valentine continued to wrestle for both the WWF and NWA, before making the WWF his permanent home in 1984 during the nationwide expansion. Greg Valentine was persistent to pursue WWF gold, which he finally accomplished on September 24, 1984, when he defeated Tito Santana to win the Intercontinental title. The Valentine/Santana epic wars would last for 10 months - another great Intercontinental Title Battle. The Valentine/Santana feud reached it's climatic finale on July 6th, 1985 in the Steel Cage where Santana came out the victor. Greg Valentine holds the honour of wrestling at the first WrestleMania and the first Starrcade as the secondary champion (IC & US Titles) for both federations. He did not go for long without a title, on August 24, 1985, Greg Valentine & Brutus Beefcake defeated Mike Rotundo & Barry Windham to win the WWF Tag Team Titles. Valentine & Beefcake held onto the tag titles for 8 months, before losing to the British Bulldogs at WrestleMania II. NWA Americas Heavyweight Title (1975, 1975) NWA Mid-Atlantic TV Title (1976, 1977) NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Titles (1976, 1977, 1980, 1980) NWA Canadian Title (1979) NWA Toronto US Heavyweight Title (1980, 1982, 1983) NWA TV Title (1981, 1981) WWF Intercontinental Title (1984) WWF Tag Team Titles (1985) WWC Heavyweight Champion (1990) WCW US Tag Team Titles (1992) PWI 1975 Most Hated Wrestler PWI 1979 Most Hated Wrestler PWI 1983 Most Hated Wrestler Harley Race Harley Race debuted into pro wrestling in 1959, at the age of 16. Harley Race faced an unexpected tragedy, when he was involved in a serious car accident that almost prevented him from ever walking again. Doctors were already telling Harley that his career was over. The young Harley Race refused to give up on his dream to become a pro wrestler, and was determined to walk, and wrestle again, which he did miraculously. Harley Race wrestled throughout the NWA, winning regional titles in Missouri and Georgia. In 1965, Harley Race and Larry Hennig won their first AWA Tag Team Titles. They would go on to have 3 more reigns at the Tag titles before going their separate ways. Harley Race' first NWA World Title reign came May 23, 1973, when he defeated Dory Funk Jr. Race went on to become an 8 Time NWA World Champion. His opponents over the World Title include names such as Terry Funk, Jack Brisco, Dusty Rhodes, Giant Baba and Ric Flair, and the venues for these battles ranged from the United States, to Canada, to Japan, to New Zealand, to Singapore. At first ever Starrcade, Ric Flair defeated Harley Race in the main event to win his 2nd NWA World Title. At the WWE 2004 Hall of Fame ceremony, Flair paid tribute to Race for his contributions to Flair's career and the pro wrestling industry. Race also wrestled then WWWF Champion Superstar Billy Graham in a rare NWA Champion vs. WWWF Champion match. He would later wrestle WWF Champion Bob Backlund in another NWA vs. WWF Title for Title match at Madison Square Garden. By 1985, Harley Race had joined the WWF, and was assigned Bobby Heenan as his manager. He won a tournament in August of 1986, and was proclaimed the King of Wrestling. Race feuded with the Junkyard Dog, and Hacksaw Jim Duggan, before meeting WWF Champion Hulk Hogan. Race left the WWF in early 1989, and resurfaced in WWC where he captured the Caribbean Heavyweight. He returned to WCW as a wrestler, before becoming a manager and guiding Lex Luger to the WCW Title. Race also managed Big Van Vader to win his first WCW Title, before retiring in 1994. AWA World Tag Team Titles (1965, 1965, 1967,1967 1967) NWA Central States Title (1971, 71, 1972, 73, 74, 76, 83, 84) NWA Missouri Heavyweight Title (1972, 73, 75, 82, 83, 84, 85) NWA Central States Tag Team Titles (1972) NWA World Heavyweight Title (1973, 77, 79, 79, 80, 81, 83, 84) NWA Georgia Heavyweight Title (1974) NWA Southern Heavyweight Title (1975) NWA Florida Tag Team Titles (1975, 1975) NWA Mid-Atlantic US Title (1975) WWA Chicago US Title (1982) NWA United National Heavyweight Title (1982) PWF Heavyweight Title (1982) NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Title (1985) WWF King of the Ring 1986` WWC Caribbean Heavyweight Title (1990) PWI 1973 Match of the Year (vs. Dory Funk Jr.) PWI 1979 Wrestler of the Year PWI 1979 Match of the Year (vs. Dusty Rhodes) PWI 1983 Wrestler of the Year PWI 1983 Match of the Year (vs. Ric Flair) Wrestling Observer 1996 Hall of Fame Inductee Ivan Putski 'Polish Power' Ivan Putski was a long time mainstay with the WWWF from the 1970's to the mid 80's. stocky physique demonstrated incredible power, strength and speed, which was difficult for many of his opponents to counter. Ivan Putski was a popular upper-midcarder and tag team wrestler - a tremendous accolade. Putski had some of the most memorable rivalries with Stan Hansen, Ivan Koloff, Ken Patera, Killer Khan and Blackjack Mulligan, that have gone down in the annals of the WWE's rich history. Putski also earned a series of title matches against WWWF Champion Superstar Billy Graham, and on many occasions came close to dethroning the champion. On October 22, 1979, Ivan Putski & Tito Santana defeated Jimmy & Johnny Valiant to win the WWF Tag Team Titles. Putski & Santana were also voted PWI Tag Team of the Year. As the new era of Rock 'n' Wrestling revitalised the wrestling industry, Putski (along with many other WWWF veterans) made way for the new generation of WWF talent, using their stardom and reputation to put them over in matches. NWA Texas Tag Team Titles (1973, 1973) WWF Tag Team Titles (1979) PWI 1979 Tag Team of the Year James Dudley Jess McMahon first employed James Dudley in the 1940's. Dudley later went on to work for Jess' son, Vince McMahon Sr'. Dudley eventually became a close confidant of Vince Sr. and was given a great deal of responsibility within Capitol Sports Wrestling and later the World Wide Wrestling Federation. When James Dudley accepted Vince Sr. offer to manage the Turner Arena in Washington, DC (the home of Capitol Wrestling TV broadcasts), he became the first African-American to run a major arena in the United States. James Dudley also served as a liaison between African-American talent and the front office, and would occasionally second African-American wrestlers like Bobo Brazil to the ring for their matches. Before Vince Sr.' death, he made a special request to his son Vince Jr. to take good care of James Dudley. Vince Jr. gladly respected his father's wishes, and kept Dudley on the WWF payroll as a lifetime employee, as well as sending him gifts and other necessities to show his gratitude towards Dudley for his many years of loyalty and friendship to the McMahon family. James Dudley passed away on June of 2004 at age 93. Hall of Fame - Part 3 Biographies to include by Ites Lemalu wrote: wrote: wrote: wrote: wrote: wrote: wrote: