The Son Of Death

The Son Of Death is such a cool name. Who can't dig a name like that. The name just catches one off guard.

The Son Of Death never caught on as a national star. Southwestern states in general and Arizona in particular were his stomping grounds. he emerged for Dragon Den promotions in the late 1990s, stucka round for a time and then just moved on or quit.

He still had a bitching name.

The black mask he wore added much to his dark image. He knew how to work a crowd and work his routine. 

 For a rime, he made the rounds on the Arizona circuit and even gained some local newspaper coverage as well as net mentioning. As a smaller man, he fit in well on the Indy scene, where he would have been dwarfed in the WWE. He used a lot of high risk moves, as did most of his contemporaries at the time, had a good super kick and could fly like a bird when so inclined. he could also brawl with the bets and live up to his wicked ring name.

Though not nationally known, The Son OI  Death remains an integral part of Tucson wrestling lore.Though he did not stick around as long as others, he did his part to contribute to the game.  

Jerry Beats Cancer

Jerry Cray joins The Time Traveler, lord Zoltan, Nikita Bresnikov, Vandal Drummond, Bret Hart, Phil Melby, Pedro El Grande and Smith Hart as a cancer survivor.

He remarkably has beaten Stage 4 colon cancer.

Petrov On The Move

Koloff. Volkoff. On and on. The names of evil Russians are scattered through wresting history form their boom in the 1950s onward. The routine is not dead, with Petrov making a name for himself in several western states.

Paired with former Arizona mainstay and ageless wonder, The Time Traveler, on some cards, has increased the heat he gets from the fans even more. The new pairing proved successful recently when Petrov engage din a feud with the towering Ignatius Victor price in a Hardcore Match in Washington.

Petrov is on the move, with a number of bookings in different states. Arizona, California and New Mexico are in the negotiation stage. He recently made his debut in Idaho for an indie promotion there. He is also a regular in Washington and Oregon

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Reyes Garcia

Reyes Garcia, billed from San Antonio, Texas, worked in Arizona in the late 1960s and early 1970s, bit  like so many others, has become lost in the shuffle as far as memories go, with the passing of history.

Garcia was always a fan favorite, with a capacity for high-flying dropkicks to put his oppobebts down and enable the pinfall.

His most distinguished feud was with the Mad Mongol. Who this Mongol was remains a mystery as it was not Mongol Lu Kimm (Rive Wright) fromthe 1950s and not Mikko Mongol (Mike Gordon, hence the name Mikko, pronounced Mike-o for inside humor) from the 1970s.

Garcia and The Mad Mongol traded wins on the circuit for some time, before the villain injured Hispanic   opponent, leading to a different feud pitting Mongol vs Tito Montez.

Garcia leftArizona after that.

His whereabouts afterward would be anyone's guess.

Honkytonk Man

Hestarted out in tennessee long ago as Wayne farris, unde rhsi real name, but it was when he became Honytonk man in the WWF that his career really took off. As an arrogant Elivis clone, using the Shake, rattle &Roll as a finisher, hewa spropelled to stardom and the Intercontinental blet. His itnerviews were classic as well.

"The people want to ehar the Honkytnk Man sing. The people want to hear The Hobkytonk Man dance."

Uh, how do you ehar someone dance?

Some years ago, Farris relocated from Germantown, Tennessee to Phoenix and still lives there, He still gets an occasional Arizona shot, though he gets booked elsewhere everywhere.

His biggest Arizona push came, predictably, during the WWF years, where his major feuds were seen everywhere on the circuit.

He is  gong strong. Even now.

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WWE Home Page Link

http://www.wwe.com

Wrestling In Akron At Western Shows

Wretslign in Akron, available in varied stores and orderable in any of the book store chains, found on Amazon and form Arcadia publishing, is going to be sold at a number of shows in he western states.

This stands to reason as many of the people int hsi book, depicted in never before seen photos, also worked in the west, inducing Gold Dust, Dory Funk, Sheik, Abdullah, Professor Shire, Thesz, Rogers, Chris Colt, Chris Kole, Ron Dypree, Don Fargo, Bobo Brazil, Gil Guerrero, Kerry Von Erich, Billy Anderson and many more. o,

The Purple Wizards

Thr wets ahs always attracted crazy tag teams. The Scufflin Hillbillies, The Lumberjacks, The Royal Kangaroos, The Hornets, The Reptiles,The Interns, The Assassins,  The Comancheros. The list goes on and on.

Add the Purple Woizrds to the list fo uncanny heels.

These two lunatics would likely remind some older fans of the names noted in the opening paragraph. They are part clown and part murderous psychopath as a pairing.. At one minute fans are laughing at their antics abd the next they are yelling for the scalps of this duo..

The Purple Wizards are smaller men, but very capable and more intimidating than they look on the surface. They also possess a certain arrogance about them that drives many fans wild.A tendenacy to liek tos care little kids at rignside when the chance arises willa gain remind older fans of evil villains in an era long gone.

The two have been feuding with a pair of cowboys who are more conventional fan favorites.

Reported;y, The Wizards and the team they feud with so often are both only a year or so into the game. For relative inexperience, they ahve shown considerable knowledge of ring psychology and ability. They have, of course, wrestled a number of other tams as well and have been expanding to a number of different promotions, which again will gain them some needed experience to wally make a name for themselves.

Keep an eye on these two loony birds. They could go far in spite of their small stature in size. Time will tell, but they are so crazy in a predominately insane business, there is nor one season to think they won;t really become stars.

The Return Of King Milo

Look for the return of King Milo in Tucson this fall with Revelation Pro Wrestling.

Milo started as a manager in 1996 for Rage in the Cage wrestling, handling Gamara and Rodan, but became a wrestler himself and later a promoter. He returns to actions oon with this new office.

Also look for a special one time appearance of the Time Traveler in winter for this group, sometime in winter.

Cody Baker and several Mexican luchadores have also signed with the group.

Give Eddie A Visit

Eddie Guerrero made his Arizona debut in 1992 for an independent promotion running Graham Central Station in Phoenix. He and CC Starr faced Sgt. Shultz 1 and 2. Eddie would  be a Phoenix regular for the WWF and WCW until his tragic from heart  failure.

Arizona fans may still give Eddie a visit. His grave may be found at the Green Acres Memorial Cemetery in Scottdale.

Reported;for whenever he passes, Superstar Billy Graham has a plot reserved next to him.

Jesus Ortega

Jesus Ortega wrestled in Texas, Arizona, new Mexico and the Mexican border tons throughout the 1950s

Ortega was usually on the under card, except when propelled in a feud with Tokyo Joe on the Arizona circuit. The evil Joe won most of these matches, but Ortega held his own within.

Unlike many compatriots, Ortega did not sue a lot of fancy lucha moves, but remained on the ground with technical holds for the most aprt. He used a routine body slam and a cover when he did win.

Ortega was billed from San Antonio, Texas during his Arizona stay, which may or may not have been his real origin. Though he spoke perfect English, he usually did his interviews and challenges in Spanish.

 Late in his career, he would go to the Michigan area where he became known as Jess "Bull" Ortega and later as Ortega-San, the manager of Kabooki.

He died of a heart attack while still active as a manager. .

He was no relation to either Frank Ortega from the 1960s or Nano Ortega from the 1970s-1980s.

Dragon's Den Wrestling Link

The history of the Dragon's Den promotion which ran in Tucson some years ago is offered at this page. It gives a fine presentation on this promotion.

http://www.blackvenom.net/T_DragonsDenHistory.html

Pedro El Bello In San Luis

The ageless wonder and Mexican super heel, Pedro El Bello, was sen in Arizona in the  1990s facing Indio Seri, Amadeus, Thrillseeker Terry Zeller and others.

He is still in action across the border from Yuma in San Luis every Saturday night, with no indication slowing down.

Kristian Kross

 Kristian Kross may not be known to everyone and his face may not be familiar to fans, being it is hidden behind a mask.

While he would be unknown to many fans, he did serve an added role in being the first managerial prospect handled by The Time Traveler in June, when the longtime heel manager made his comeback after a triumphant battle against prostate cancer.

It will be interesting to see where the career for Kross goes. As of now, his inexperience shows, but he seems to be learning fast.  He seems to show a fair knowledge of amateur wrestling and these moved out there, though in the pro ranks one deals with a whole different ballgame.

Recent bouts with Dave Turner and Ron Von Hess (Ron Sutherland/Section 8 of Arizona) in Bremerton,   Washington, These matches did not see him come out on top. They were, however, an evident learning experience and he has chosen to continue in the profession, more determined than ever.

It will be with a needed passing of time to see how far he will go and what states he will be traveling to upcoming.

  

Meet Dale Pierce In Lacey, Washington

Meet Dale Pierce for a book signing this fall at the Senior Center in Lacey Washington, with a date to be announced shortly, as well as time.

Wrestling books will include Wrestling In Akron, available also at some wrestling show merchandise tables, un stores, on Amazon and from Arcadia Publishing. The book is bot exclusive to Akron, with never before seen photos of many international stars, including The Sheik, Roy Shire, The Swedish Angel, Gold Dust, Brian Pillman, Kevin Sullivan, Bull Curry, Killer Brooks, Don Kent and many more.

Also being signed are copies of the  horror novel, Play Me The Song Of Death, with a wrestler and manager as supporting characters, Plus  The History Of Arizona Wrestling, And The Crowd Goes Wild and Tales From The Cemetery On The Hill. The last book carries a grim horror tale with a wrestling theme called They're Tearing Down Joe Finn's Arena, which is worth a look. .;

Links for other Dale Pierce books are....

http://www.lulu.com/shop/dale-pierce/and-the-crowd-goes-wild-the-story-of-ron-sutherland/paperback/product-22773277.html

 http://www.lulu.com/shop/http://www.lulu.com/shop/dale-pierce/the-history-of-arizona-wrestling/paperback/product-22755582.html

 http://www.lulu.com/shop/dale-pierce/tales-from-the-cemetery-on-the-hill/paperback/product-15118275.html

John Cosper

Give a visit to the page of writer John Cosper and check out some of his books, including one on the late Lord Carlton, who was once a top draw in Arizona.

http://www.johncosper.com/

Jesus Garcia

Jesus Garcia may have raised some eyebrows with his first name, but this is a common name in Spanish, while not so much in English.  It is pronounced as Hay -Zeus.

Garcia wrestled in Arizona in the early 1960s, usually coming out on the losing end to varied Anglo opponents, with his losses angering the Hispanic portion of the audience, which brought them back week after week in hope of seeing him finally get a win over his underhanded opponents.

When he could not win fairly, Jesus decided to turn bad and start breaking the rules, which infuriated his Latino fans all the more. He was then  seen as a traitor.

In this capacity, he was handed more wins.

Garcia was billed as being form Juarez, Mexico, but whether this was correct or not would be anyone's guess.

He used a conventional airplane spin to win his matches when he did gain victories. Usually, as stated, however, he came out on the losing end.

By 1963, Garcia's name drops from the roster in Arizona. Where he may have went afterward is unknown tot his writer.

Perhaps, he returned to Mexico.

If, indeed, that was where he was really  from.

San Luis Rio Colorado, Mexico, Across From Yuma