Jimmy Valentine

I remember in the early 1980s how on an Indy card in Ohio, I ran into some dipshit calling himself Billy Valentine, who claimed to be Greg's brother and Johnny"s son. He couldn't even lie straight as he offered this gem.

"Johnny's wrestling in Texas and Greg's in Washington now."

First off, Greg was in the southern states at the time and Johnny for a second point, wasn't doing anything, as he was in a wheelchair.

Thirdly, this fool was no relation. Trying to scam the marks was one thing, but NOT the wrestlers.

Arizona had another Valentine in the 1970s, but at least he never claimed to be kin to the famous Johnny .

Jimmy Valentine drifted into Arizona in 1971 and stayed for a couple years. He was tall, but not particularly  well-built. I would no call him fat, but he was on the heavier side. He carried it well due to his height.

For the bulk of his Arizona run, he was seen on the undercard in Pheonix, Tucson, Casa Grande, Flagstaff and other locations. Some of the people he faced included Ali Bey, Rudy Navarro,  Chuck Karbo, Jody Arnold, Kurt Von Steiger, Jody Arnold, Mitri, Jay Dillon, The Hornets, Al Seneceros, Tom Ramirez, Chris Colt, Ron Dupree,  Johnny Mann and Apache Gringo. Sometimes he won. Sometimes he lost.

Regardless of whether he ended the match up or down, he was always popular with the fans. He used an airplane spin, a power slam and other strongman moves to finish the matches where he did obtain a victory. 

Valentine also had some main event matches with Bobby Mayne (Jaggers). Afterward, he dyed his brown hair blond, announced he was teaming with his former enemy and the Valentine/Mayne connection was born. It was not the proverbial marriage made in heaven. After a short run as a villain, the team was dissolved and Valentine left Arizona for good.