54-639: NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship Details Promotion NWA Hollywood Wrestling Date established June, 1967 Date retired December 26, 1982 Other name(s) WWA Americas Heavyweight Championship Statistics First champion(s) Pampero Firpo Most reigns Chavo Guerrero Sr. ( 17 reigns ) Longest reign Freddie Blassie (295 days) Shortest reign The Monster (24 hours,1 day) Oldest champion Bobo Brazil (56 years, 177 days) The NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship
108-662: A California law that prohibited anyone over 55 from getting a wrestling license. His knees were also in terrible condition, which also contributed to his retirement. Afterwards he became a manager in the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) and its subsequent incarnation the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). He performed for that promotion until his full retirement from professional wrestling in 1986. Blassie, Lou Albano , and The Grand Wizard were named "The Three Wise Men of
162-475: A best-of-three-falls match for his first WWA World Heavyweight Championship. On July 7, Blassie successfully defended his title against the former NWA World Heavyweight Champion Lou Thesz . During that same title reign, in a match against Lord James Blears a fan threw acid on his back, and he had to return immediately to the locker room to wash it off; over the course of his career, he was also stabbed 21 times and lost vision in his right eye after being struck by
216-597: A car salesman and married a second time to a woman whose name Blassie later claimed not to remember. In 1968, Blassie returned to Japan and was reunited with Miyako. When he asked for her parents' blessing, they were hesitant because of his reputation with Rikidōzan and because he was 28 years older than she. However, they eventually consented and Miyako returned with Blassie to the United States; they were married on September 30, 1968. In 1964, Blassie feuded with Bruno Sammartino and Bobo Brazil . Blassie came into
270-569: A few matches with Gorilla Monsoon. He briefly turned face in 1989, making an appearance on Prime Time Wrestling angry with Bobby Heenan over money Heenan hadn't paid him back. He returned again in 1990 briefly to do color commentary for Prime Time in April with Vince McMahon, as an emergency fill-in after Tony Schiavone quit, playing a heel once again. Blassie was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame in 1994 by Shane McMahon . In 1998, Blassie
324-511: A girl he brought to the show. Later, he received regular work wrestling at local carnivals. His cousin John Frank Holaus often refereed his matches. Blassie's famous "pencil-neck geek" catchphrase originated early in his career while describing a fellow carnival performer who appeared in a geek show . Blassie described this performer as "having a neck like a stack of dimes and a real pencil-neck geek". His career continued; he
378-478: A little old lady in a housekeeper outfit that Blassie claims to be his own mother. "Classy" Freddie Blassie also made a cameo appearance as himself, along with "Wrestling's Living Legend" Bruno Sammartino , and Ric Flair in the 1986 film Body Slam starring Dirk Benedict , "Captain" Lou Albano , and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper . In the early 1990s, the wrestler starred in a documentary directed by Jeff Krulik , titled Mr. Blassie Goes To Washington . In it, Blassie
432-499: A match against Black Gordman in Los Angeles, CA Mil Mascaras 3 June 6, 1969 Los Angeles, CA Defeats Gordman in rematch. The Great Kojika 1 December 19, 1969 Los Angeles, CA Rocky Johnson 1 January 16, 1970 Los Angeles, CA Fred Blassie 4 March 6, 1970 Los Angeles, CA Held up March 20, 1970 Title held up after
486-2388: A match against John Tolos. Mil Mascaras 5 1971 Los Angeles, CA Wins rematch. Black Gordman 1 November 5, 1971 Los Angeles, CA Frankie Laine 1 December 8, 1971 Los Angeles, CA Killer Kowalski 1 January 31, 1972 Tampa, FL Fictitious title change John Tolos 3 March 10, 1972 Los Angeles, CA Black Gordman 2 June 30, 1972 Los Angeles, CA John Tolos 4 July 14, 1972 Los Angeles, CA Wins rematch. Ernie Ladd 1 July 28, 1972 Los Angeles, CA Victor Rivera 1 December 1, 1972 Los Angeles, CA Black Gordman 3 March 9, 1973 Los Angeles, CA Victor Rivera 2 April 20, 1973 Los Angeles, CA Terry Funk 1 July 3, 1973 Odessa, TX Fictitious title change. Victor Rivera 3 July 27, 1973 Los Angeles, CA John Tolos 5 August 24, 1973 Los Angeles, CA Pak Song 1 November 16, 1973 Los Angeles, CA John Tolos 6 January 15, 1974 Long Beach, CA Porkchop Cash 1 March 22, 1974 Los Angeles, CA Black Gordman 4 May 31, 1974 Los Angeles, CA Porkchop Cash 2 June 14, 1974 Los Angeles, CA Ernie Ladd 2 July 12, 1974 Los Angeles, CA Pampero Firpo 2 August 16, 1974 Los Angeles, CA John Tolos 7 November 8, 1974 Los Angeles, CA In San Diego, CA, Firpo defends against Tolos on 74/11/12 but loses to Tolos on 74/11/19. Pampero Firpo 3 November 22, 1974 Los Angeles, CA Tolos may continue to be billed as champion in San Diego, CA but loses to Firpo on 74/11/26. John Tolos 8 November 27, 1974 Los Angeles, CA Edouard Carpentier 1 December 25, 1974 San Diego, CA Greg Valentine 1 February 14, 1975 Los Angeles, CA John Tolos 9 March 27, 1975 Los Angeles, CA Greg Valentine 2 April 4, 1975 Los Angeles, CA Vacant April 1975 Valentine gives up
540-651: A match against Rocky Johnson in Los Angeles, CA Rocky Johnson 2 May 15, 1970 Los Angeles, CA Defeats Blassie in rematch Fred Blassie 5 June 12, 1970 Los Angeles, CA Kinji Shibuya 1 March 26, 1971 Los Angeles, CA Fred Blassie 6 April 23, 1971 Los Angeles, CA John Tolos 1 May 7, 1971 Los Angeles, CA Don Carson 1 July 16, 1971 Los Angeles, CA John Tolos 2 July 30, 1971 Los Angeles, CA Mil Mascaras 4 September 24, 1971 Los Angeles, CA Held up after
594-416: A new dance craze called The Twizzle. Rose Marie 's character Sally Rogers brought him on at the end of the episode claiming to have discovered another new dance sensation. In the demonstration of the dance, Blassie picked up Rob Petrie and twirled him over his head. Filmed in 1982, My Breakfast with Blassie featured Andy Kaufman and Freddie Blassie eating at a Sambo's in Los Angeles. (The film
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#1732790702242648-756: A period in the mid-1970s. One of Blassie's most famous proteges was The Iron Sheik. Blassie led Sheik to the WWF World Heavyweight Championship over Bob Backlund on December 26, 1983, in Madison Square Garden . After Sheik lost the belt to Blassie's former managed wrestler Hulk Hogan, Blassie managed Sheik in various rematches around the country throughout the first half of 1984, culminating into another major televised rematch on December 28, 1984, once again in Madison Square Garden. In this match Hogan
702-507: A thrown hard-boiled egg. Blassie lost the title to Rikidōzan on March 28, 1962. Blassie claims that he made Regis Philbin into the celebrity he is today. When Philbin had a late-night weekend talk show in San Diego, Blassie would routinely show up to yell at the audience, throw furniture, and threaten Philbin; the confrontations were wholly kayfabe and both of them were friends when the cameras weren't rolling. In later years, Blassie also appeared on The Mike Douglas Show when Philbin
756-513: Is War segment for the Invasion storyline , wherein he exhorted a gathering of WWF wrestlers to stand tall against The Alliance – and later got mocked by Alliance leaders Shane and Stephanie McMahon . Because of this, Blassie is one of, if not the only man to have worked with all four generations of the McMahon family. Images from his WrestleMania XV promo were also included in the opening of
810-2939: Is billed as champion San Bernardino, CA on 83/07/16 References [ edit ] ^ Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4 . ^ WWA/NWA Americas Heavyweight title history ^ Hoops, Brian (January 16, 2019). "Pro wrestling history (01/16): Arn Anderson & Bobby Eaton win WCW Tag Team Titles" . Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online . Retrieved January 18, 2019 . ^ Hoops, Brian (January 15, 2019). "Pro wrestling history (01/15): Big John Studd wins 1989 Royal Rumble" . Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online . Retrieved January 18, 2019 . ^ Hoops, Brian (July 12, 2015). "On this day in pro wrestling history (July 12): Gagne, Bruiser & Crusher, Ladd wins Americas title, 1992 Bash with Sting vs. Vader" . Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online . Retrieved February 11, 2017 . ^ Hoops, Brian (September 3, 2015). "ON THIS DAY IN PRO WRESTLING HISTORY (SEPT. 3): RIC FLAIR VS. TERRY FUNK TEXAS DEATH MATCH, GREAT MUTA VS. STING, TED DIBIASE AND STAN HANSEN WINS AJPW TAG TITLES" . Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online . Retrieved February 10, 2017 . ^ Hoops, Brian (January 14, 2019). "Pro wrestling history (01/14): Christian wins NWA World Title" . Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online . Retrieved January 18, 2019 . ^ Hoops, Brian (February 12, 2017). "On this day in pro wrestling history (Feb 12): Christian Cage wins gold in TNA" . Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online . Retrieved February 15, 2017 . ^ Hoops, Brian (July 1, 2015). "On this day in pro wrestling history (July 1): Ric Flair stripped of WCW title, Von Erich win WCCW Tag titles" . Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online . Retrieved February 11, 2017 . ^ Hoops, Brian (February 10, 2017). "DAILY PRO WRESTLING HISTORY (02/10): MASA SAITO WINS AWA GOLD AT THE TOKYO DOME" . Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online . Retrieved February 10, 2017 . ^ Hoops, Brian (January 12, 2019). "Pro wrestling history (01/12): The Outsiders win WCW Tag team titles" . Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online . Retrieved January 18, 2019 . External links [ edit ] NWA Americas Heavyweight title history at Wrestling-titles.com Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=NWA_Americas_Heavyweight_Championship&oldid=1240787040 " Categories : National Wrestling Alliance championships NWA Hollywood Wrestling championships List of NWA territories Formed in 1948,
864-1572: Is billed as champion in San Bernardino, CA as of 79/08/12. Pat Barrett 1 August 8, 1979 Bakersfield, CA Pat Patterson 1 November 1979 Hawaii Fictitious title change and Sometime after 79/09/30. Chavo Guerrero 16 November 16, 1979 Los Angeles, CA The Hood (Johnny Mantell) 1 1980 Sometime after 80/01/26. Chavo Guerrero 17 March 14, 1980 Los Angeles, CA The Spoiler #2 1 April 18, 1980 Los Angeles, CA Walter Johnson 1 May 9, 1980 Los Angeles, CA John Tolos 10 August 8, 1980 Los Angeles, CA El Medico 1 October 26, 1980 Sometime after 80/08/24. Victor Rivera 4 December 1980 Sometime after 80/12/07; still champion as of 81/02/08. Bobo Brazil 2 1981 Chris Adams 1 March 01, 1981 John Tolos 11 1981 Victor Rivera 5 March 1981 Mike Masters 1 March 27, 1981 Los Angeles, CA Bobo Brazil 3 April 10, 1981 Los Angeles, CA Rick Davidson 1 April 17, 1981 Los Angeles, CA Victor Rivera 6 May 01, 1981 Los Angeles, CA Peter Maivia 1 May 25, 1981 San Jose, CA Chino Chou 1 August 7, 1981 Los Angeles, CA Starts claiming
918-891: Is killed in an auto accident Chavo Guerrero 12 August 25, 1978 Los Angeles, CA Wins tournament. Roddy Piper 5 September 29, 1978 Los Angeles, CA Twin Devil #1 1 October 1, 1978 San Bernardino, CA Chavo Guerrero 13 December 1978 Twin Devil #1 2 January 12, 1979 Los Angeles, CA Chavo Guerrero 14 January 26, 1979 Los Angeles, CA Eddie Mansfield 1 March 16, 1979 Los Angeles, CA Chavo Guerrero 15 March 23, 1979 Los Angeles, CA Leroy Brown 1 April 26, 1979 Los Angeles, CA Al Madril 1 June 15, 1979 Los Angeles, CA Bull Ramos 1 June 28, 1979 Los Angeles, CA Al Hobman
972-495: Is suspended by WWA. Mil Mascaras 1 June 7, 1968 Los Angeles, CA Defeats Buddy Austin in tournament final. El Mongol 1 September 20, 1968 Los Angeles, CA Renamed NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship Bobo Brazil 1 October 4, 1968 Los Angeles, CA Has abandoned the WWA World Heavyweight title on October 1, 1968, when WWA rejoined
1026-709: The 2001 Survivor Series . Blassie also appeared in a segment at the Vengeance pay-per-view event in December 2001, where an "undisputed" champion would be crowned. His final wrestling appearance was May 12, 2003 in Philadelphia on Raw , three weeks before his death. The segment featured Blassie, his wife, and Raw co-General Manager Eric Bischoff , who was about to allow 3 Minute Warning to attack him, until Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Dudley Boyz stepped in. His final words on WWE television were "D-Von, get
1080-572: The Dr. Demento Radio Show, and the latter song was featured on several albums, including Dr. Demento's 20th anniversary collection, The Very Best of Dr. Demento , and Dr. Demento Presents the Greatest Novelty CDs of All Time . In 1983, Rhino Records released a 14-track album by Blassie, titled I Bite the Songs . Blassie appeared in an episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show that featured
1134-675: The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum , and set new California records for both attendance and gate. In 1962, Blassie had a feud with Japanese wrestling icon Rikidōzan that established his reputation in Japan. After Blassie lost the WWA World Heavyweight Championship to Rikidōzan in Los Angeles, the two had a rematch on live Japanese television. Many of the viewers were horrified by Blassie's treatment of their hero. One of Blassie's gimmicks
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#17327907022421188-607: The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) was the largest governing body in professional wrestling until the 1980s Rock 'n' Wrestling Era . Under the control of the NWA Board of Directors (consisting of various prominent, regional promoters), the governing body oversaw wrestling's national territory system, a system which saw promotions (referred to as "territories") recognize one world heavyweight champion, participate in talent exchanges, and collectively protect
1242-542: The World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF). Blassie returned to WWA in 1968 just as promoter Mike LeBell decided to rejoin the NWA. In the early 1970s, Blassie "turned face ", or became a good guy, since so many fans were cheering his famous antics. While there, he feuded with Soulman Rocky Johnson , The Sheik , and "The Golden Greek" John Tolos . One of his most famous feuds took place in southern California in 1971, against Tolos. The final match of their series took place in
1296-730: The East", as the top three heel managers in the company. Among the men he managed were Nikolai Volkoff , The Iron Sheik , Blackjack Mulligan , High Chief Peter Maivia , "The Crippler" Ray Stevens , Adrian Adonis , Jesse Ventura , Dick Murdoch , Swede Hanson , Killer Khan , George 'The Animal' Steele , Professor Tanaka , Mr. Fuji , Ivan Koloff , Tor Kamata , Masa Saito , Lou Albano , Victor Rivera, Kamala , Hercules Hernandez , Louis Cyr, and Hulk Hogan . Blassie also managed Muhammad Ali in his boxer vs. wrestler match in 1976 against Antonio Inoki . Blassie also publicly represented Ali for media events and interviews for
1350-836: The McDaniel Brothers, but when they went east, they were known as the Blassie Brothers. In 1953, he worked in the Atlanta -based Georgia Championship Wrestling territory for Paul Jones (the wrestler of the 1930s, not the wrestler/manager of the 1980s ). While there, he won the NWA Georgia Southern Heavyweight Championship , the holder of which was generally first in line to challenge the NWA World Heavyweight Champion whenever he passed through
1404-482: The NWA reintroduced the territory system. The first NWA-affiliated promotion introduced under the new system was NWA Exodus Pro Midwest , owned by then NWA World's Heavyweight Champion Michael "EC3" Hutter . The following promotions joined the NWA after the re-establishment of the territory system in October 2023. The following promotions were members/licensees of the NWA between its founding in 1948 and
1458-647: The NWA. Fred Blassie 2 January 10, 1969 Los Angeles, CA Bobo Brazil 2 February 7, 1969 Los Angeles, CA The Sheik 1 February 21, 1969 Los Angeles, CA Held up March 21, 1969 Title held up after Blassie defeats The Sheik in a non-title match Fred Blassie 3 April 11, 1969 Los Angeles, CA Defeats The Sheik in rematch. The Sheik 2 April 25, 1969 Los Angeles, CA Mil Mascaras 2 May 9, 1969 Los Angeles, CA Held up May 23, 1969 Title held up after
1512-553: The WWF and into retirement. On an episode of WWF Championship Wrestling , Blassie barged into the announcer booth to proclaim that he had sold half of the contracts of Sheik and Volkoff to a mysterious benefactor for a large sum of money. This benefactor was later revealed to be Slick . Blassie appeared alongside Slick to co-manage Sheik and Volkoff for a few television appearances before finally bowing out in November 1986, with Albano,
1566-596: The WWWF with his own world title belt, claiming to be the Pacific World Champion, and was coming to Sammartino's "back yard" to unify the world title. The series began at Roosevelt Stadium, Jersey City, New Jersey in 1964, with Blassie winning on a technicality, but not a pin. The rematches were held at Madison Square Garden in New York, with Sammartino winning out. He returned to the company in 1971, reaching
1620-2893: The belt to wrestle for the NWA World Heavyweight title Don Muraco 1 May 2, 1975 Los Angeles, CA Wins tournament Les Thornton 1 May 16, 1975 Los Angeles, CA Louie Tillet 1 June 13, 1975 Hollywood, CA Ernie Ladd 3 October 1975 Philadelphia, PA Fictitious title change. Chavo Guerrero 1 October 31, 1975 Los Angeles, CA Inferno I 1 January 30, 1976 Los Angeles, California Chavo Guerrero 2 February 6, 1976 Roddy Piper 1 March 12, 1976 Los Angeles, CA Chavo Guerrero 3 April 23, 1976 Crusher Verdu 1 June 11, 1976 Los Angeles, CA Defeats Gori Guerrero. Chavo Guerrero Sr. 4 July 16, 1976 Los Angeles, California The Hangman 1 September 3, 1976 Los Angeles, California Chavo Guerrero 5 October 1, 1976 Ken Mantell 1 October 15, 1976 Chavo Guerrero 6 November 19, 1976 Dr. Hiro Ota 1 November 26, 1976 Los Angeles, California Chavo Guerrero 7 December 3, 1976 Dory Funk Jr. 1 January 14, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Chavo Guerrero 8 February 4, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Toru Tanaka 1 February 12, 1977 San Bernardino, CA The Hangman 2 March 18, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Keith Franks 1 May 13, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Mando Guerrero 1 May 20, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Texas Red 1 July 1, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Chavo Guerrero 9 August 6, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Roddy Piper 2 August 12, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Chavo Guerrero 10 August 19, 1977 San Bernardino, CA Texas Red 2 September 7, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Choi Sun 1 September 16, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Chavo Guerrero 11 September 18, 1977 San Bernardino, CA The Masked Canadian 3 November 4, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Mando Guerrero 2 December 9, 1977 Los Angeles, CA The Masked Canadian 4 December 16, 1977 Los Angeles, CA Hector Guerrero 1 February 10, 1978 Los Angeles, CA Moondog Lonnie Mayne 1 April 2, 1978 San Bernardino, CA Hector Guerrero 2 June 30, 1978 Los Angeles, CA Moondog Lonnie Mayne 2 August 11, 1978 Los Angeles, CA Vacant August 13, 1978 Mayne
1674-682: The biggest or most successful within the ranks of the National Wrestling Alliance. Title history [ edit ] Wrestler: Times: Date: Location: Notes: WWA Americas Heavyweight Championship Pampero Firpo 1 1967 Mexico Defeats Coloso Colosetti in a fictitious match Mike DiBiase 1 June 16, 1967 Los Angeles, CA Mark Lewin 1 July 28, 1967 Los Angeles, CA Fred Blassie 1 August 25, 1967 Los Angeles, CA Vacant March 1968 Blassie
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1728-570: The final member of the Three Wise Men, retiring a few weeks later. Because of his close relationship with Vince McMahon, Sr. and his family, Blassie remained on the WWF payroll until the day he died. He sporadically returned to make brief appearances following his retirement in 1986, mostly in produced video packages hyping the "new generation" of wrestling. He was given a commentary tryout in 1986 and 1987 for WWF Wrestling Challenge , calling
1782-538: The final of a tournament in January for the vacant WWWF United States Heavyweight Championship before losing to Pedro Morales . Blassie later challenged Morales for the WWWF Championship , but came up short. During this stint with the company, Blassie was managed by his future fellow "Wise Man of the East" and eventual nemesis, "Captain" Lou Albano . Blassie retired from active wrestling in 1974, due to
1836-418: The first ever Wrestlemania . Blassie got involved when he threw his cane into the ring, with Sheik and Volkoff using it to their advantage to gain the victory. When Gene Okerlund confronted Blassie in an interview after the match, Blassie said, "what cane, I didn't have no cane!" Blassie continued to manage Sheik and Volkoff even after they lost the tag team titles. Blassie unsuccessfully campaigned along with
1890-456: The governing body, the NWA would discontinue its memberships in August 2012 and adopted a licensing model. In 2017, the NWA was purchased by Billy Corgan 's Lightning One, Inc., which abandoned the licensing model and gradually transformed the NWA from a governing body to a stand-alone wrestling promotion. In October 2023, while still under the ownership of Billy Corgan's Lightning One, Inc.,
1944-557: The organization's acquisition by Lightning One in 2017. † indicates a founding member of the NWA Michigan Mississippi New Jersey Connecticut Nevada Frisco, Texas Fred Blassie Frederick Kenneth Blassie (February 8, 1918 – June 2, 2003) was an American professional wrestler and manager , known by the ring name " Classy " Freddie Blassie . Renowned as "The Hollywood Fashion Plate", he
1998-479: The other managers to manage "Macho Man" Randy Savage when Savage first entered the WWF in June 1985. Blassie continued to interfere from ringside in matches, especially during Volkoff's feud with Corporal Kirchner . Blassie's interference at Wrestlemania 2 cost Volkoff his match with Kirchner, when the cane was grabbed by Kirchner instead of Volkoff. In the summer of 1986, Blassie started to slowly phase himself out of
2052-551: The table!", to a monstrous applause. His book, Listen You Pencil Neck Geeks , was released on May 13, 2003. On June 2, 2003, Blassie died of heart and kidney failure at the age of 85. His death was announced by Jim Ross , 20 minutes into that same day's episode of Raw . In 1977, Blassie recorded voiceovers for the songs "Blassie, King of Men" and "Pencil Neck Geek", which were performed by Johnny Legend , featuring Billy Zoom on guitar, Jay Phillips on guitar, Lon Osgood on bass and Steve Clark on drums. They received acclaim on
2106-431: The territorial integrity of NWA members. Unlike modern independent promotions , the territories were regarded as major promotions and often collaborated with other NWA members. In 1993, the NWA was reorganized following the withdrawals of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), with the majority of new NWA territories being small independent promotions. As other territories withdrew from
2160-582: The territory. It was also during this period of his career when he dropped his babyface gimmick and became a full-fledged heel . The fans consistently booed him because he was considered a " Yankee ". He also bleached his hair at this time, as many of the other stars of the era did, such as Gorgeous George , Johnny Valentine , and "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers . He was often billed as "The Vampire " during this time for biting his opponents and filing his teeth during interviews and promos. In 1960, Blassie returned to Strongbow's promotion in Los Angeles, where he
2214-1220: The title after his match against Maivia ends as a draw; Maivia is still billed as champion in San Bernardino, CA as of 81/08/23. The Monster 1 October 17, 1981 Timothy Flowers 1 October 18, 1981 Los Angeles, CA Gran Hamada 1 November 6, 1981 Timothy Flowers 2 November 13, 1981 Bobby Lane 1 December 13, 1982 Sometime after 81/11/29. Sweet Brown Sugar 1 February 12, 1982 Los Angeles, CA Adrian Street 1 March 12, 1982 Los Angeles, CA Timothy Flowers 3 May 1982 Los Angeles, CA Kid Koby 1 July 18, 1982 San Bernardino, CA Black Gordman 5 August 20, 1982 Los Angeles, CA Killer Kim 1 September 17, 1982 Chris Adams 2 1982 El Monarca 1 November 5, 1982 Los Angeles, CA Ciclon Negro 1 November 12, 1982 Los Angeles, CA El Monarca 2 November 26, 1982 Los Angeles, CA Title retired December 26, 1982 Promotion closes on 82/12/26; Falco de Oro
NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue
2268-414: Was a teetotaler . He graduated from McKinley High School and began work at a meatpacking plant. He also began boxing at a local community center and won a heavyweight championship title. However, he became increasingly interested in wrestling. As the wrestlers became familiar with him, they began teaching him holds. His first public wrestling match was a shoot fight which he accepted hoping to impress
2322-562: Was a big star for Worldwide Wrestling Associates (WWA) of southern California, drawing many fans to the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles . He was so hated there that uniformed police officers were regularly brought in to protect him as he made his way to and from the ring. He had main event-level feuds against stars such as The Destroyer . On June 12, 1961, Blassie defeated the "Flying Frenchman" Édouard Carpentier in
2376-562: Was a guest host. After regaining the WWA Championship from Rikidōzan on July 25, 1962, Blassie lost the title two days later to the "Masked Destroyer" Dick Beyer . In 1963, Bearcat Wright defeated him to become champion, and it was quite a statement during the fight for civil rights that an African-American had won such a title. In 1964, Dick the Bruiser defeated Blassie to become champion, and Blassie headed east to work for
2430-498: Was a one-time NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion , and was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame in 1994. He is regarded as one of the greatest wrestling heels , or villains, of all time. Blassie was born Frederick Kenneth Blassie in St. Louis , Missouri , in 1918. His parents, Anna (née Szind) and Jacob Blassie (né Blaszi), were immigrants from Austria-Hungary who arrived in the United States in 1912 via Hamburg, Germany. Frederick
2484-404: Was an only child. His father was an abusive alcoholic, prompting Frederick to stay with his grandparents whenever Jacob beat Anna. His parents repeatedly separated, only to reconcile. At the age of 13, after Jacob had beaten Anna again, Frederick threatened his father with a baseball bat; instead, he lived with his aunt for six months until his mother asked him to return home. As an adult, Frederick
2538-642: Was billed as "Sailor" Fred Blassie to capitalize on the wave of war-time patriotism sweeping the country, but that gimmick was unsuccessful. He worked for Jack Pfefer , who he claimed would only employ people who looked like sideshow freaks at his shows, and whose wrestlers included Tor Johnson , who made movies with director Ed Wood , and Lillian Ellison, the Fabulous Moolah . During this time, he went to New York City to work for promoter Jess McMahon . In 1952, Blassie moved to Los Angeles to work for Jules Strongbow. He teamed with Billy McDaniel as
2592-735: Was hired by more established promoters, including Tom Packs in St. Louis and George Simpson in Kansas City. After the US entered World War II , Blassie enlisted in the Navy and served in the Pacific Theater for 42 months. He married a girl in California while on shore leave. He achieved the rank of Petty Officer (Second Class) before he was discharged. Upon Blassie's return from the war, he
2646-534: Was once again victorious. After managing Sheik through a brief feud with Andre the Giant , he also became the manager of Nikolai Volkoff , with Sheik and Volkoff later becoming a tag team. Blassie would gain even more gold when Volkoff and Sheik defeated The US Express managed by Albano who had turned babyface in December 1984 to Blassie's kayfabe disgust, for the WWF Tag Team Championship at
2700-401: Was rarely defended outside of Southern California. As a result, the title was essentially a regional title rather than a national one. A number of NWA affiliated promoters at various points over the years have used their own regional versions or variations of "national" championships for the purpose of giving crowds the idea that the company was larger than it actually was, or that the company was
2754-457: Was referenced by American rock band R.E.M. in their 1992 song about Kaufman, " Man on the Moon ".) The movie's title and premise are parodies of the 1981 art-house classic My Dinner with Andre . "Classy" Freddie Blassie appeared in a live-action segment of the cartoon " Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling ." In the segment he is interviewed by "Mean" Gene Okerlund when the two are interrupted by
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#17327907022422808-494: Was the top singles championship in the National Wrestling Alliance 's Los Angeles territory, known officially as NWA Hollywood Wrestling , from 1968 until the promotion closed in 1982. The title was first established in 1967 as a secondary championship in NWA Hollywood's predecessor, Worldwide Wrestling Associates. Although the name of the title implies that it was defended throughout North, Central and South America, it
2862-591: Was the winner at the fourth annual Cauliflower Alley Club East Coast Banquet. In 1999, he was shown making the opening narration of WrestleMania XV . In 2000, Blassie made an appearance at the Royal Rumble as a judge in the Miss Rumble 2000 Swimsuit contest, which was won by Mae Young . Blassie also appeared in the SummerSlam opening video. In 2001, Blassie appeared in a special July 16, 2001 Raw
2916-562: Was to file his teeth, and draw blood from his opponents by biting their foreheads. The sight of the Japanese legend covered in his own blood gave several viewers heart attacks, and some reportedly died. While touring Japan in 1965, and by this point divorced, Blassie met the woman who would eventually become his third wife, Miyako Morozumi, at a train station. However, later that year Blassie suffered from kidney stones and had surgery to remove them. While recuperating in 1966, he worked as
#241758