Eddie Sullivan

Eddie Sullivan started wrestling in the 1960s, first under his real name of Ruben Huizar, then under the alias for which he would be better known. Trained by Tona Tomah, he would only stay in Arizona for short stints before heading southward for promotional groups such as those run by the Fields family or Nick Gulas

During his early Arizona days, he feuded with Cowboy Bob Ellis and Tony Hernandez, but always seemed to migrate back toward Florida, Alabama or Tennessee. In these areas he had wild feuds with Dick Dunn, Armon Hussein, Tommy Rich and others. He would form a tag team under a hood with Frank Morell as The Mighty Yankees and without a mask with Rip Tyler to again have brutal bouts. He and Tyler also made varied trips to Japan.

In the southern states, Eddie also had some bloody matches with Cowboy Bob Kelly. Years later, however, they would make a low budget short film together titled Gunfight In Tombstone, shot at the defunct Apacheland Movie Ranch where among other things, Charro with Elvis was filmed. 

Sullivan likewise made it to Texas where he faced Dick Murdoch, an aging Bull Curry and more.

He was also a mainstay for the Dean Silverstone promotion operating in Washignton in the 1970s, utilizing Luke Graham, Chris Colt, Tito Montez, David Rose, Logger Larson, Jay Clintstock, Ron Dupree and Rick  Renaldo.

By 1978, Eddie had tired of the road. He moved back to Mesa, Arizona, devoted more time to his tiling business and only wrestled on occasion. He had a number of Phoenix bouts with Jody Arnold, The Lumberjacks, Nano Ortega, Reggie Parks, Ken Lucas, The Detroit Mauler Tito Montez, Chuck Hondo, John Ringer, Billy Anderson and old rival, Tony Hernandez, before calling it quits. He also ran an occasional show as promoter.

In 1996, Eddie was instrumental in organizing the first Arizona Old-Timer Reunion with msyelf and Jody Arnold. We continued to run these until 1998, when I moved from Arizona and Eddie's health started to fail.

From the late 1980s onward, his health had taken some really bad turns. A heart attack, a stroke a bizarre foot injury where he stepped on a sewing needle embedded in his carpet that broke off in his heel and needed to be surgically removed, a case of Valley Fever (a respiratory infection Arizonans are prone to due to the sand and dust from the desert air) and rampant diabetes all took their toll on him. A second stroke finally ended things for good.

Oddly enough, Eddie was buried neither in Arizona nor Florida where he owned property, but in South Dakota where he had a plot. His second wife, Barbara, would join him there some time afterward when her own out of control diabetes overcame her.

Over the years, Eddie was instrumental in training many Indy wretslers including Baron Brubaker, Killer Jack Kessig, Moses Morales and J.J. Bear. I heard he was instrumental in helping Marcel Pringle and Bob Holly, but do not hold me to that.

I learned quite a lot from Eddie, though I had already started before we met for the first time in 1981.

I miss Eddie Sullivan. I really do.

The best of wrestlers and the best of friends.