The Assassins

The Assassins, Joey Hamilton and Tom Renesto, were a worldwide famous pair of masked men, known for their black and yellow costumes with matching masks. Though some of their biggest pushes came down south, they were also regulars in western states such as Washington, California and Arizona.

Often duplicated, but never surpassed, this pair main-evented everywhere, including shows at the Phoenix Madison Square Garden and other arenas. Hamilton mentioned Arizona in his book a  few years back. He is still alive as of this writing, but his partner passed away several years back. 

Long after this pair left the Arizona circuit, there would be others to come along and use the name of The  Assassin, as singles competitors, including David Gordon, maniac Mike Gorgon, John Ringer and David Mendoza.

No one could ever come close to matching Hamilton and Renesto for  the heat they provoked from  the crowds, their original and crafty ways of cheating or their boisterous interviews.

Sergeant Shultz Back

Sergeant Shultz was a major draw among independents in Arizona in the early 1990s, running his own shows which drew incredibly, in the 1000-2000 at Graham Central Station in Phoenix. He was also big in Mexico as Commando Nazi at the same time. Eddie Guerrero, Mando Guerrero and Louie Spicolli were some of the people who appeared for him.

Shultz is back in action in Phoenix, but not physically in the ring. He has once again gone into promotional efforts of both boxing and wrestling shows.

A Rift Between Bill Anderson & Sting?

Bill Anderson, who along with Red Bastien, trained both The Ultimate Warrior and Sting, among many others, is reportedly truly miffed that both he WWE and Sting himself have rewritten history as to his origin and training.

The whole story has not yet come out yet and seems quite confusing. This is odd as just before his death, The Ultimate Warrior credited Bastien and Anderson for his training on national television.

On recent Facebook entries, Anderson gave long and perhaps justifiably angry rants concerning this and the nature of the wrestling world as a whole.

The Death Of The Ultimate Warrior

By now everyone who is a wrestling fan and is not living on the moon, knows of the saddening and unexpected death of The Ultimate Warrior, especially after just finding reunification with the WWE. Some have pointed out that at his speech he did not look well and was almost, in an eerie way, seeming to speak of his own passing just a short time afterward.

So much is said and will be said about him now, there is no point in rehashing any of it.

His memory, as he touched upon in said speech, will live on ....

He was 54.

Dale Pierce Book Signing in Dover, Ohio

Meet Dale Pierce, signing copies of Play Me The Song Of Death, The Garden Will Not Die, Wrestling in Akron and Matadores Latinos at the Dover library in downtown Dover, Ohio, across from the high school. The event is part of a book fest with many other authors, April 19, from 1-4.

The Death Of Jerry Kozak

Longtime professional wrestler, Jerry Kozak, passed away recently. Though known mainly for his work in Texas as a tag team with his brother Nick and as a single, he also mad numerous trips to Arizona in the 1960s and 1970s.

One of his finest Arizona matches came in a scientific struggle with the famed Lou Thesz. Though he was beaten, the match held at the then Travel Lodge Theater (Now Celebrity Theatre) was and is considered a classic.

Others Kozak faced in Arizona included Mack Quarry, the Von Steigers, Chuck Karbo,  Buck Robley, Goliath and Mr. Wrestling (Gordon Nelson)

The Death Of David Rose

Arizona mainstay David Rose has passed away after a lengthy battle with numerous respiratory problems.

Rose first drifted into Arizona in 1975, wrestling under that name, first as a heel and later as a baby. He would also work under a mask as The American and Mr. Wrestling, During his varied runs, he promoted as well as wrestled, holding a number of indy titles. A few years ago, he left Arizona for Kansas, when his health really declined.

Rose was instrumental in helping to train numerous regional wrestlers as well. Some are still active to this date.

Among the varied people Rose had notable feuds with in Arizona were Jody Arnold, Billy Anderson, Paul Harvey, Mr. Southern Comfort, Cowboy Bob Yuma, The Lumberjacks, The Black Mamba,  Maniac Mike Gordon, John Ringer and Special Forces.

His remains were evidently cremated, with the family planning to scatter them someplace in the future..

We Are Back

The reason why there have been so few posts as of late, frankly, was due to my being found with a rampant diabetic condition. My blood sugar in the hospital in early February was a near fatal 700. Now running normal thanks to losing 20 pounds in weight and taking pills.

The blog page is again up and running.

Stay tuned.