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Upon completion of nearly 80 minutes interviewing Ted DiBiase over the phone, there’s a parallel easily drawn between this dialogue and his past wrestling promos.  Be it as a rising babyface talent, or from listening to his heel comments broadcast nationwide at the desk of Gordon Solie on Superstation WTBS, it is a self-assured coolness he conveys.  A confident quality that with every word uttered, his audience can see that he believes what he says, and thus they can too, even if they might disagree with his viewpoint.

Only once during the course of the interview is there a deviation from his baritone.  DiBiase’s voice wavers slightly as he is asked to comment on the scope of his being selected as the Cauliflower Alley Club’s 2010 recipient of the Iron Mike Award.  “This is one of those times when I wish my Dad was here to see this,” DiBiase says.  “This award is voted on not only by my peers… but by my father’s peers as well.  It’s the highest award that can be given to a pro wrestler.  It’s perhaps the most sentimental award you could receive.  I think it’s pretty cool, and it’s very special to me.”

This sentimental quality holds dual meaning for DiBiase.  Not only is the Iron Mike name a tribute to CAC founder and long-serving President, Iron Mike Mazurki; the  moniker also can be attributed to Ted’s father, Iron Mike DiBiase.  The elder DiBiase carved his niche as a rugged individual in the already rough sport of wrestling, and was married to ladies’ wrestling star Helen Hild, Ted’s mother. “I can remember seeing Mike DiBiase on the TV show TEXAS RASSLIN’ with Ves Box,” recalls Larry Matysik, longtime office manager of the St. Louis Wrestling Club and host of WRESTLING AT THE CHASE in St. Louis.  “He wrestled alongside a lot of great stars like Danny Plechas, Lou Thesz, Ray Gunkel and Larry Chene.”  After a match in Texas in 1969, Iron Mike DiBiase suffered a heart attack and passed away shortly afterward.

Iron Mike DiBiase (right) and frequent partner Bulldog Danny Plechas, with one of their many tag team championships.

Just a few years later, perhaps more than ironically, young Ted DiBiase received his early doctrination into the pro wrestling business, also in a Texas ring.  “I started by refereeing in the Amarillo territory after I left college in the summer of 1975.  I was the next on the long list of guys who attended West Texas State University and played on the football team to go into professional wrestling,” DiBiase said.  That list included Terry Funk, Dory Funk, Jr., Dusty Rhodes, Bobby Duncum, Bruiser Brody, Stan Hansen, Tito Santana, Tully Blanchard, Manny Fernandez, Barry Windham and Kelly Kiniski; some got their start earlier and some followed in Ted’s footsteps.

“Refereeing gave me a huge education just by being in the ring, and it was a great workout.  Working with seasoned veterans, you’re as close as you can get to feeling the people… and learn about timing,” DiBiase said.   Faced with an injury that was sure to mean reduced playing time in his senior year, Ted took the advice of someone who would play an integral part in his career down the road.  “Dick Murdoch invited me to come get my feet wet, and then go back to finish my senior year.  I already knew that I wanted to wrestle because I loved it so much,” DiBiase said.  “In hindsight, I should have gone back to get my college education.  But I was 21 years old, and stupid.”

DiBiase used Bill Watts’ Mid-South Wrestling as a base of operations for the first 12 years of his career beginning in 1975.  He notes his appearances in the ring for the Funk Brothers in Amarillo, and also for Bob Geigel in the Central States office.  ‘”Bob, Pat O’Connor, and Harley Race… these were men my father was close with,” DiBiase said.  But it was a multi-year love affair between Ted and the St. Louis wrestling fans that made the second generation DiBiase grow into a polished star.

St. Louis promotional pic has Ted DiBiase all smiles early in his career.

“St. Louis was essentially a one-city territory… and if you got over there and were featured, that LAUNCHED you,” DiBiase said.  “The value of my experience in St. Louis is huge.”  Larry Matysik concurs.  “I really think that, especially for the time of what wrestling was in the 1970s, Ted was the perfect example of a babyface.   Athletic, literate… and gave a good accounting of himself in public. Sam Muchnick was a strong booster of Ted’s.   After his first St. Louis television match (a draw with Buck Robely) we knew it; I said ‘the kid’s gonna be good.’  He just needed to get experience and avoid getting hurt or burned out.  we knew he had ‘IT’ and it fit within the context of our circumstances.”

Both DiBiase and Matysik enjoy retelling one tale of St. Louis wrestling that took place at the KPLR-TV studio for WRESTLING AT THE CHASE.  “Before every taping, Sam Muchnick would give “the speech” to the wrestlers.  It was the same every time…. we are guests of this station, so respect their property.  No two men on the floor…stay away from tables and chairs… and don’t touch the TV equipment,” Matsyik said.  “Ted heard that speech, and then went out for a tag team match with Bob Sweetan and Dick Murdoch, facing Ted and Rocky Johnson.”

DiBiase tags in at this point to heighten the suspense.  “Dick grabs me and says ‘no two men on the floor’… and then tosses me outside and follows me!  Next he says ’stay away from the furniture’ and proceeds to slam my head into the announcer’s table!   Then he says ‘don’t touch the TV equipment’ and starts to choke me with one of the TV camera cables!   When he was done, all he said was ‘now do all of that stuff to me’!!   So that’s exactly what I did; I fought him all over the place, slammed his head into the table, and choked him with the cable,” DiBiase said.

Dick Murdoch menaces Ted DiBiase on the floor with a chair during their St. Louis feud.

The tremendous match finally concluded and DiBiase walked up the steps to the control room, where he met Sam Muchnick at the top.  “I expected us to get our asses chewed… and there’s Sam.  All he says is, “Great match, guys!”   Smiling in the doorway down the hall was Dick Murdoch.  It was only one of the times DiBiase and Murdoch would cross paths in the course of their careers. 

“Dick Murdoch doesn’t get the credit that he deserves; he was one of the greatest workers we ever had.   I think the powers-that-be were afraid to ever put the World title on him for fear he wouldn’t take it as seriously as he needed to,” DiBiase said.  “Dick was just like a little boy who didn’t want to grow up.  He was such a naturally-gifted guy, one of those that I really admired.”

DiBiase became Missouri State champion in February 1978, being used as a replacement for Murdoch as a way to unseat Dick Slater from the throne.  But Murdoch captured the strap just a few weeks later in a back-and-forth struggle on television.  Despite the loss, DiBiase had been established, with Murdoch playing a large part in getting him over with the audience.

Upon mentioning Murdoch as one of his influences, he is pressed for a short list of others who he would include in that category.  “Terry Funk, Harley Race, Bill Watts, Murdoch…and Killer Karl Kox.  He’s the one who taught me that ‘less is more’… it wasn’t just what you did but WHEN you did it that was important.  He had such great timing, and really told the story and the drama of the match.  When people tell me I was a great technician, I have to say that it puts me right up there with some people who I hold in high esteem… guys who helped shape me,” DiBiase said.

Another watermark in Ted’s career was another St. Louis TV tag bout with NWA World Champion Race and DiBiase on opposing sides.  Following a suplex attempt that was reversed by DiBiase, Race found himself pinned for the three-count, victim of DiBiase’s belly-to-back suplex.  In the excitement of the upset, ring announcer Mickey Garagiola announced DiBiase as “the NEW NWA World Heavyweight Champion” which sent Sam Muchnick into temporary panic mode.  Larry Matysik remembers, “Because it was Mickey getting carried away in the moment, and with his honest excitement it came off so naturally, I don’t think it would have worked if it had been planned.”

Longtime CAC member Darla Taylor counted DiBiase among her favorites in St. Louis rings as this early 1980s picture shows.

That boosted DiBiase into a main event for the World title on November 24, 1978 against Race.  After a close battle, DiBiase’s misjudged Thesz press on Race left him whiplashed on the top rope and unable to continue.  “But Ted had made it,” Matysik said.  “It was a textbook way to be making a young star.”

Indeed, there were many chapters in the DiBiase textbook during the close of the 1970s and the start of the eighties.  Fan support was strong and undying at this point, as Darla Taylor, CAC member and longtime St. Louis fan remembers.  “Look at these stars Ted clashed with -Jerry and Jack Brisco, Bob Slaughter, Jim Valiant, Roger Kirby, Ox Baker, Ken Patera, Big John Studd, Baron Von Raschke. and so many more.  Is it any wonder Ted DiBiase is a name everyone in St. Louis still remembers?  He was a true babyface who never had to beg for a crowd response, because they were with him from the opening bell !”

The infamous rematch with Race for the NWA World title at Kiel Auditorium on February 6, 1981 ended with what became known as “the Dusty finish” for its frequented use while Dusty Rhodes booked for Jim Crockett in the mid 1980s.  But in St. Louis, the result was booked to make all parties come out strong.  The referee of record, Charles Venator, was knocked down, yet he still witnessed Race tossing DiBiase over the top rope, an act that served as grounds for disqualification. Yet before that decision could be rendered, DiBiase returned to the field of battle, and Race fell victim to another belly-to-back suplex, which led to a three-count at the hand of a second official.

Ted's bread-and-butter move, the belly-to-back suplex, snared Harley Race for a three-count more than once, but the NWA title always eluded DiBiase.

Slowly the official decision of a DQ on Race became apparent to the throng in attendance through well-timed referee pantomime and Matysik’s announcement of the result over the house mic.  The St. Louis crowd shared DiBiase’s visible disappointment.  But it was the right decision technically, and thus they respected the referee’s call, especially after he was endorsed by a handshake from the challenger, who came ‘just that close’ on this night.  The anticipation of DiBiase being on the brink of striking gold led the fans back to the rematch at the Checkerdome on June 12, 1981.  Sixteen thousand fans watched as Race turned back DiBiase’s challenge.  “But it proved Ted was a main eventer who delivered good matches and drew money,” Matysik said.

At this point, DiBiase recalls, “I was highly considered for the NWA title, and I wish it would have happened for me.  But there were politics involved, and things happen.  I think I was one of the few guys who had the Missouri belt who didn’t make it to the World title.”  

It was around this time that Ted ventured from Mid-South and moved into Georgia rings.  “The key was to get over on the national TV there,” DiBiase said.  “The formula I was told is, there were three guys picked that the belt would rotate between, which would create interest.  The three guys, in theory, were myself, Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes.  Well, the booker had been Ole Anderson, who one day was gone as booker, and Jim Barnett brought in Robert Fuller.  I had nothing against Fuller as a person, but as a booker I wasn’t impressed.  Well, one night in St. Louis I learned a lesson about keeping my mouth shut.  I expressed my opinion, and word got back to Barnett.  After that, he no longer considered me as part of that formula.”

While, as mentioned, the grooming of young Ted DiBiase was taking place in Atlanta and St. Louis, it was Bill Watts’ Mid-South Wrestling that served as his home base.  “I was Bill’s guy for 12 years,” DiBiase said.  His memories of those days, 1975 to 1987, were mostly positive.  

“With Bill, he had the kind of personality that wasn’t easy to like.  We had at times a real love/hate relationship.  But I respected him for being so smart, so knowledgeable about wrestling.  I loved the way he told stories in his programs; just the whole way he did business… he and LeRoy McGuirk had one of the hottest territories.”  There were a few drawbacks, however.  “It was a great learning experience, but get ready to wear your car out,”  DiBiase said.

Travels to other territories in the early days made DiBiase appreciate his Mid-South roots at various times.  “I went to the WWWF in 1979 around the same time as Tito Santana,” DiBiase recalls. “They did phenomenal business but the the ring work was atrocious.  I couldn’t understand why such lackluster work was well-received.  I felt fortunate to have started with Watts and gained knowledge under Murdoch, Kox and Race…Bob Sweetan, a great heel, and Buck Robely, a great booker and a good hand, with very good knowledge of the business.”

DiBiase’s style was an amalgam of his mentors by this point, a polished repertoire culled from the ranks of those he idolized.  “I picked up little things.  Like the diving punch I became known for?  That was something I saw Murdoch do.  Or for my figure-four leglock, I would set it up using the spinning toehold that the Funks made famous.  Terry was a big influence, but also Dory Jr.   To this day I think the Dory vs. Jack Brisco matches were so well done, with such exquisite timing.  It’s what I tell my sons today; pick the things you like from other guys, and create your own style.”

Ted with son Ted Jr. just after he and Joe Hennig scored a tag team win at a 2007 World League Wrestling card, promoted by Harley Race, at the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Hall of Fame weekend in Waterloo, Iowa.

The million-dollar riches would come soon enough.  But in 1982, DiBiase’s Mid-South experiences had led him to work alongside Bob Roop as a tag team partner, and later a bitter rival when Roop turned heel.  “Our matches weren’t work at all; Ted’s a good hand and our matches were smooth and easy,” Roop said.  Uh, check that.

“There is one exception, and it’s now become an ongoing gag whenever we see each other,” Roop continued.  “Ted was leaning on the apron standing on the floor, selling…and I came down the apron to boot him.  Well, as I did that, Ted moved!  The end result was the toe of my boot connecting with Ted’s chin.  It busted his lip and it called for stitches.”

Such an end result might have led to a lesser man’s outburst.  Not so with DiBiase, according to Roop.  “If he was angry at me for it, he never complained.  He was gracious about the whole thing… he was so smooth I don’t think he ever hurt anyone,” Roop said.  “Accidents are bound to happen, where people get hurt, of course… but whenever we see each other it’s not ‘Hello’… it’s “Ted, you moved!”   DiBiase appears to have moved on from any anger he might have expressed, stating “I had a lot of fun working with Bob Roop, and have a lot of respect for him.”

Later in 1982, with Roop providing color commentary during one of Ted’s Mid-South matches, DiBiase realized another of his goals.   He was able to turn heel.  “I always wanted to heel, just like my father,” DiBiase said.  “He always had this attitude, I guess you could call it aloof… he had a way of speaking down to the audience, calling them things like freeloaders.  I had watched how he walked to the ring, and his body language.  That’s what I tried to do as a heel.”

The purpose for the heel turn came out of necessity, for both the promotion and DiBiase himself.   While he had enjoyed multiple years of success in his babyface build, it was yet another formidable challenge to DiBiase to tackle.  “As talent was leaving Mid-South, the booker, Ernie Ladd, was telling me to keep an eye out for the next big heel for JYD.  At the time we were the top two babyfaces,”  DiBiase recalls.   “I used to tease the Dog and tell him all he did was shake his butt for ten minutes… that, and make all the big money.”

With some introspection and perhaps his own clear vision of making that big money alongside Junkyard Dog, DiBiase made his pitch.  “It was in the Shreveport hotel; I went up to Ernie’s room and told him ‘I found your heel’.  And when he asked who, I told Ernie, ‘You’re lookin’ at him!’

“You should have seen Ladd’s face… his eyes widened, and he took a couple of steps backward, pointing at me while grinning, saying, “You rascal!’   Who would have ever thought I would turn against my best friend?” DiBiase asked.

As mentioned, Bob Roop called the action for the rare case of these friends and partners, DiBiase and the Dog, as opponents.  After a few uncomfortable moments during the fray that built the drama, DiBiase resorted to pulling a black glove from his tights and wayleighed JYD to knock him senseless, with the three-count immediately after the punch.  Bob Roop’s commentary, that of someone with a negative opinion of DiBiase at the time, in essence built up both the incredible staying power of JYD, and how it took underhanded tactics on DiBiase’s part to emerge victorious.   The heel wheels were in motion.

“Almost from the beginning of that run, I second-guessed myself on the decision to go heel,” DiBiase said.  “Things I was doing just didn’t feel believable, so I called up Terry Funk for some advice.  Since JYD was great on the mic but limited in the ring, Terry gave me the greatest bit of advice he could.  He told me to let JYD stand in the center of the ring, and to work around him, calling the spots that utilized what he could do.”

Ted and mentor Terry Funk delivered a riveting seminar at the 2009 CAC reunion, to a full house of young wrestlers.

Now on the other side of the fence, DiBiase continued to hone his heel persona, with that cool confidence mentioned at the outset.  His move back into Georgia rings in 1984 allowed a nationwide audience to see his latest style with notable battles with other established babyface stars like Bob and Brad Armstrong, Ronnie Garvin and Wildfire Tommy Rich.   Bob Roop’s travels led through Georgia as well during this time, and on occasion they would travel the loop of the satellite towns WTBS beamed their cable signal into.

DiBiase chuckles when recalling a tale that Roop had asked to see what Ted’s remembrances would be.  “We started after flying into Columbus, Ohio on a Saturday after taping TV, then drive all through the week to the towns on the loop, and wind up back in Columbus with a flight at the end of the week back into Atlanta for the next Saturday’s TV,” DiBiase explains. 

Roop in particular wanted DiBiase to look back, fondly or otherwise, at their traveling companion for the week, King Kong Bundy…the 450 pound mammoth.  “Bundy couldn’t fit in the back seat, but he took up more than half of the front,” Roop groans.  “Then he’d fall asleep the whole way, only waking up when he wanted to eat.  Two or three straight days of driving like this in gray, overcast weather.”

DiBiase then fills in some of the blanks.  “HORRENDOUS,” he begins, “I remember that Bundy would wear these tennis shoes, but he’d never wear any socks with them.  So when he took them off in the dressing room, the smell was awful!  So one night while he’s in the ring… we burned his shoes!  He came back to see this pile of ashes on the floor.  Get the message, Bundy?” DiBiase asked.   “Smarten up, or we’ll do something about it!”

Ah, but the Bundy-bash continues only for a brief time.  “Then, when we got in our car, after Bob and I woke up, worked out, and took a shower at the hotel, we then picked up Bundy, who was ready for lunch.  He asked us to go through the drive-thru at Wendy’s.  His order was two triple cheeseburgers… two large fries…a frosty… and a DIET COKE!?!  I just exploded when I heard that,” DiBiase said.

By 1987, following his long run as a heel in various territories, and pairing with the sport’s toughest hombres, including Stan “The Lariat” Hansen and “Doctor Death” Steve Williams for main events in the tag team division, DiBiase was ready to open another window of opportunity.  It was answering Vince McMahon’s call for a spot with the WWF, for a characterization that embodied much of the qualities Ted had admired in seeing his father years before.  “Vince saw what kind of heel I had become, understanding the psychology, looking down on the people… he told me I was the guy to fill the Million Dollar Man role,” DiBiase said.  “That was me, with the volume turned up.  I saw what Vince saw, that wrestling was great entertainment, and the business needed to adapt.  So even though I came out with this Million Dollar Man character, once the bell rang I was the same wrestler I always was, a credible and believable worker.”

For six years, DiBiase criss-crossed the globe with the dollar signs prominent on his gear, and in his bank account.  But the schedule was grueling.  “My Mid-South schedule was rough, but at least I would make it home!  In the summer of ‘87, it was three weeks on and one week off.  Eventually that changed to ten days on, three off, four days on, and three off.  But it was the most money I ever made in my career,” DiBiase.  

As his Million Dollar Man catchphrase “Everybody’s got a price!” became a rallying cry, there were periods of trouble, proof that the limelight often blinds those it shines upon.  “By 1993, I had made the decision to leave.  I was fatigued, and was in the process of putting my family back together.  I had almost lost them due to my own stupidity.   I left WWF and went back to Japan where I teamed with Stan Hansen again,” DiBiase said.  “We were champions in All-Japan, but then I hurt my neck, which ended my active career.”

In 1994, DiBiase returned to WWF as a commentator and manager.  “I had been asked to go on the road and groom Sid, and then work with Steve Austin,” DiBiase said.  “But by then, I feared the road.  I didn’t want to get sucked back in, and be away from my family for long stretches.  They were my priority now.”

A move to WCW kept DiBiase working, and limited his road trips.  “Show up on Mondays and pay-per-views… and make a great living,” DiBiase said of the three-year WCW contract he signed.  “Looking back, it was the right decision for my family, if not necessarily right career-wise.  But I do not regret that decision.”  The reasons for departing the WWF were not out of anger; it was during his WCW time that he appreciated what he had walked away from.  “McMahon really does know how to create stars; I’m watching him do it with my son right now.  It’s the little things he brings out, and when it’s time to recap the story, he has all the footage there to capitalize on.   WCW only created one big star: Goldberg,” DiBiase said.

The sharp-dressed men shown here are Ted DiBiase Jr., Ted Sr., and Brett DiBiase.

For all the individual accolades, title belts and career success, DiBiase sees the repaired relationship with his family as the true prize.  He’s collected a few compliments along the way that must hold meaning as well.  “Ted paid the cost of being a star, but he made a new life for himself, and didn’t let the business destroy him,” Bob Roop offered.  “He’s always been the same, friendly guy; what you see is what you get.  Ted is a guy I trust, have a lot of confidence in and respect.  He’s someone I knew would always have my back.  Ted was one of the standup guys.  He deserves to get a nice accreditation.”

Getting the Iron Mike Award is a fitting way for Ted DiBiase to take his place in wrestling lore, yet pay homage to those who blazed a trail ahead of him, in addition to those that stuck by him in good times and bad.   “Wrestling fans are the most loyal, the greatest fans in the world.  People who have followed my career can tell me things that I thought I had forgotten.   I’m so grateful to them all… once you get ‘em you have ‘em forever.   I love the wrestling business and always will.,” DiBiase said.

Ted received the 2007 Frank Gotch Award from the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Hall of Fame in Waterloo,Iowa, sharing the podium with two faces very familiar to CAC members: past president Red Bastien and the late Steve "Dr. Death" Williams.

The Cauliflower Alley Club reunion affords DiBiase the opportunity to bridge wrestling’s illustrious past with the determination and ambition of the future stars, a role he would enjoy immensely.  “CAC is a great stage to bring both sides to appreciate the other.  It’d be very easy to reminisce, stay stuck in my old ways and be unwilling to embrace how wrestling has changed  In many ways it has changed for the better,” DiBiase said.  “I want people to know wrestling is still loved by people watching worldwide.  In lots of ways I’m still old school, but as time moves on, we need to see that change is the only constant, and that’s how we grow.  In wrestling…in life…everything.”

Angelo began his wrestling career in 1948, and several years later paired up with Bronco Lubich as a wrestler-manager tandem that lasted through the 1950’s, and ranked as one of the hotter attractions of the day.  In the 1970’s and ‘80’s, he operated his International Championship Wrestling promotion, running events in Tennessee, Kentucky and Arkansas.  He retired after nearly 35 years in the ring.

Poffo held the U.S.Navy record for consecutive sit-ups for many years, after logging 6,033 rapid-fire repetitions over a period of four hours 10 minutes.  Given that kind of dedication to physical conditioning, it’s little wonder that he was attracted to wrestling several years later, and made it his life’s work.

Jimmy Valiant’s first ring jacket came from Poffo. Jimmy stated today,”Angelo sold me my first ring jacket in the 60s. I paid $25.00 for that beautiful red sequin jacket from Angelo. I always admired the jacket when he wore it to the ring with his tag team partner, Chris Markoff. They were a great tag team known as The Devil’s Duo, who were WWA tag team champions.
Chris had a green sequin jacket same style as Poffo’s. Brother, under the lights in the darkened arenas with their blonde hair they looked great. At one time, Angelo’s hair was, in deed, platinum bleached blonde.”

The Cauliflower Alley Club extends its deepest condolences to Angelo’s wife Judy, his sons Randy and Lanny, and family and friends.

A more complete biography will appear shortly.

Photo courtesy Brian Bukantis, www.wrestleprints.com

Last Thursday on our way to Dallas we stopped by JR’s BBQ in Norman, Oklahoma for a late lunch. We had set this up several weeks ago, and what a great 4 hour lunch. We got there around 2:00 pm Jim came in a few minutes later.

By this time we had already polished off a order of the greatest fried dill pickles this side of the moon. They are habit forming, and so good.

Jim then suggested the JR sampler plate, my oh my, here comes a large platter of BBQ Ribs, Brisket slices, Pulled Pork and fantastic Cole slaw (ala JR style) and country green beans with a side of Fried Okra. Desert was topped of with a cup of coffee and his special fried pies, Cherry and Chocolate.

About 2:30 the real reason JR is so good at what he does, his inspiration of 17 plus years arrived and joined us for lunch, Jan Ross. What a delightful lady,  her and Babs hit it off right from the get go. The girls had a nice visit, I suspect they were telling each other how glad they were to have two guys like us.

Jim and I had a nice visit, reminisced about the first lunch we had back in the early 80’s.  Talked about everything from the BBQ business, to the world problems and very little about wrestling, We did touch on his days with the Von Erich’s. He truly has done it all in the wrestling business. His unique style of commentating has made him a one of a kind household name.

If you ever get anywhere near Oklahoma City your only minutes to Norman, treat yourself to a great meal, at very affordable prices and if Jim is there your in for a double treat, and if Jan should be around you hit the triple jack pot.

If you looking for that BBQ sauce you just have’nt seamed to find yet, head on over to www.jrsbarbq.com That’s where it is! Beef Jerky? It’s there! You can always find a special deal at JR’s BBQ. So jump on over and place your order and tell JR how good it is when your in Vegas!

2010 CAC REEL Award recipient Magic Schwarz with another dadgum wrestler-gone-Hollywood, awards banquet co-host Terry Funk.

As the opening credits to the Darren Aronofsky-directed 2008 motion picture THE WRESTLER begin, a seemingly endless stream of professional wrestling magazines roll off the presses.  Each publication is focused on the film’s star character, Randy “The Ram” Robinson, portrayed by Mickey Rourke.  Winning awards and emerging triumphant from bitter feuds, The Ram typified the rush of mass media that began to give wrestling more notoriety in the 1980s.   And while it was Lex Luger, having had the benefit of this type of promotional push during this time period, who had served as the Rourke body double for this opening sequence, Rourke was drawing inspiration from another source for his characterization.

In an interview with the Chicago Tribune’s Michael Phillips during THE WRESTLER’s initial appearance at film festivals, Rourke was quoted as saying, “My younger brother, Joe, back in the day in Venice Beach, we used to go lift weights at Gold’s Gym, which was the Mecca of bodybuilding back then. And there was a guy named Magic. He had long blonde hair. He had two hearing aids and couldn’t hear a (expletive deleted) thing. He was a character, a biker dude who lived in a bus behind the gym. He wrestled on the side, and I based my character on this guy Magic more than on anybody else.”

That “biker dude” happens to be the 2010 Cauliflower Alley Club Reel Award recipient, Greg “Magic” Schwarz.

The hearing aids element is one which made the final cut, as was a variation on the Magic Bus, by having Randy The Ram struggling to make rent payments on his mobile home.   For someone who had reached the zenith of his profession, it was intended to highlight unheroic qualities of the hero; the fall from grace shown as a hard tumble, by necessity, for these indignities have pinned many a grappler in the shadows of obscurity.  It is a situation Magic Schwarz would find himself at times.  “Mickey saw me when I was down and out, when I put the enjoyment of life ahead of the things I should have.  I spent too much time doing that.  It’s the Gemini in me; always trying to keep myself happy.”

A coming attraction: Magic points toward an Oscar-nominated role for the future "Randy the Ram" aka Mickey Rourke.

Schwarz was more than a character study to Rourke; he served on numerous film projects Rourke was involved with.  Bodyguard.  Stuntman.  Actor.  These are titles not easily earned in Hollywood.   The final scene in THE WRESTLER leaves Randy The Ram’s future up for speculation, just prior to his giant leap from the turnbuckles.  This is one area where the character deviates from its inspiration.  Magic Schwarz made his own leap — into retirement, residing now in Austin, Texas with his wife.

So by giving away a happy ending to the tale of Magic Schwarz , it seems a prequel is needed to give you the back story.    It’s a relatively short trip from Austin over to the San Antonio, Texas area.  It was there Magic first became interested in the wrestling scene.  “I was training at the same gym that Bruiser Brody did,” Schwarz recalls.  “He was already a superstar.  I always followed what was going on with him, and wondered what I could do to become part of that world.  But the wrestling business was so tight knit at that time; you really needed a sponsor, or someone who would speak on your behalf.”

Toward the latter half of the 1970s, Schwarz ventured to Southern California.   It was there he began work as a trainer for the world-famous Gold’s Gym in Venice.  At Gold’s, a bevy of the top names in bodybuilding, professional wrestling and entertainment passed through the doors.  Two names in particular would later become intertwined with Magic’s wrestling career.  At the time, though, the passion they shared was training and bodybuilding.  There was “Wildman” Jack Armstrong, who by the end of the 70s had opened his own gym business and would be staying out of the ring for a few years before returning around 1983.  Another wrestler, Ric Drasin, a.k.a. The Equalizer, was a Gold’s mainstay at this time as well.   While Drasin had wrestled professionally since the mid 60s and displayed great vascularity, it was his artistic vein which was most prominent.  Drasin had designed and created the famous Gold’s Gym logo which is emblazoned across the chest of T-shirts and other merchandising today.   Their memories of Magic Schwarz detail his ever-growing interest in the TV and motion picture world.

Armstrong, in listing the many film roles Magic would become known for, mentions a few projects with Schwarz behind-the-lens.  “Magic had one of the first Beta video cameras.  At that time, not many people were into photography and videotaping.  But Magic went around and got all this footage of the old time bodybuilding legends working out at Gold’s.  Back then we thought he was crazy to film all that stuff,” Armstrong said.  “But today, you can ask people who they know from bodybuilding…and the two names that come up — the ONLY two– are Arnold and Lou Ferrigno.   You could give Magic the Reel Award for capturing those days on tape, making people aware of the bodybuilding pioneers.”

Young Magic Schwarz pumps up his early fitness interests for a Texas bodybuilding contest photo.

Drasin and Schwarz both accepted auditions and subsequent casting in a variety of jobs, their unique physiques ideal for the producers who needed a physical presence in their projects.  Drasin explains, “Gold’s Gym had a casting department right on the premises.  You could get many roles because at the time, there was not a lot of competition; only a few of us had the look.”  In addition, there was enough disparity with their individual looks that they were not often up for the same parts.  “Magic had all the tattoos, so he would get the biker roles, the hard-core guy like in STONE COLD,”  Drasin said.  “I was more often the guy they called for the cigarette and beer ads.”

In the mid 1980s, Schwarz auditioned for a film role that jump-started his career in the wrestling ring.  New World Films was casting for the lead character in a “mockumentary” style picture that seemed to showcase wrestlers at their most extemporaneous; GRUNT! THE WRESTLING MOVIE was its title.  “The character was a wrestler named Mad Dog Joe DeCurso, and out of the people who auditioned, I was chosen by the wrestling coordinator for the film, Mando Guerrero,” Schwarz recalls.  “It was before I actually started in wrestling.  I literally had only one week of training in the ring before I started work on the film.”

GRUNT! had a familiar wrestling plot line as the backdrop: a masked man (dubbed as The Mask, portrayed by Steve Strong) had begun wrestling who looked remarkably similar to DeCurso, a wrestler who had disappeared from sight a few years earlier.  The mystery of The Mask and the other characters’ search to discover his identity cover the majority of the story arc.  Along the way, flashback scenes of earlier DeCurso matches are shown along with modern bouts of The Mask.  Familiar faces can be seen in the course of the action.  CAC stalwarts like Guerrero, Dick “The Destroyer” Beyer, Golden Greek John Tolos, Exotic Adrian Street and Miss Linda, and Billy Anderson are a few names to watch for in the closing credits, and while they stay true to the overall plot, it would appear that many of the promos have a decided ad-lib feel to them, a spontaneity that few films can attain in a way that brings out the best in the characters.

Schwarz opens the film engaged in a fierce battle with a masked Skullcrusher Johnson, portrayed by Victor Rivera.  “It was a real honor to work with him in that scene,”  Magic said.

Without revealing too much detail, a later scene shows the Mad Dog character riding his motorcycle into the arena.  CAC Executive Vice-president Karl Lauer, who would later book Magic on his shows once he entered the wrestling business, says that this was a staple of Schwarz’s ring entrance.  “The Olympic Audtiorium, where we ran shows, had a big garage door that we could open up, and have Magic ride right down to the ring.  He was billed as ‘Harley Davidson’ at the time,” Lauer said.

“GRUNT! was a film ahead of its time,” Schwarz opines.  “Back then it went straight to video, but today I think it would be a popular film, and could make money.  I was trying to find out if I could buy the film rights to re-release it myself.  But the director, Allan Holzman … he’s a very hard-to-find guy.”

As filming for GRUNT! progressed, Schwarz sought ways to become even more adept in the ring.  “I started to go to the school where Billy Anderson and Red Bastien were training guys like Sting and the Ultimate Warrior.  I was a very unofficial student,” Magic said.  “Mando continued to coach me, and I started wrestling regularly after the film wrapped.”

As the 1980s progressed, Magic Schwarz was active in bookings up and down the west coast.  Lauer remembers Magic on a whirlwind tour that stretched to Hawaii and back.  “It was the Hot August Nights, and Lia Maivia was promoting it on the island.  Magic worked with Rocky Johnson, and there were matches that came back to the mainland; we toured towns like San Luis Obispo, San Diego and L.A.,” Lauer said.

  A quick check of YouTube leads to the discovery of ‘Harley Davidson’ in action at the Showboat Hotel in Vegas, where Magic faced current CAC President, Nick Bockwinkel.  “I learned a lot from wrestling Nick; he talked me through most of the match.  He taught me the benefits of listening and doing what you’re told,” Schwarz said.  “That same night I also wrestled a good match against Curt Hennig.”  Other memorable moments in the ring?  “I got to wrestle all of the Guerrero brothers…even Eddie, when he was just 18 years old.  My last singles match, I wrestled Doctor D, David Shults,” Schwarz said.  That match also makes the YouTube viewing circuit.

From there, Magic’s longtime Gold’s Gym associates, Drasin and Armstrong, had the opportunity to share their passions of the wrestling world with him.  “Magic teamed up with me on a number of shows Karl ran, as well as some shows I promoted myself,” Drasin said.  “He was old school, like me … and had such a great look.  The only problems we ever had were when he would take his hearing aids out, and he couldn’t hear anything in the ring!  But Magic was the type of guy who made it fun.”

Armstrong fondly recalls Magic as a frequent ring foe, as well as a friend who helped him outside the ropes.  “Magic and I wrestled all over the place in these army bases, where I was a heel named ‘Sailor Jack’.  It was a natural way to get heat in these places. Every bout we had together got better; we progressed each time from the previous match,” Armstrong said.  “Plus, Magic and his video camera were a big help in getting me some good footage of my feud with The Chief (Jay Strongbow, Jr.).  Without him taping my dark match bouts at the college campuses and other house shows, I would have no footage to look back on that time.”

Schwarz’s calendar of wrestling dates were augmented by his continuing exposure to the motion picture world.  As mentioned earlier, there was the connection to Mickey Rourke, who used Magic in various roles on the set of his pictures.  Television roles in series such as CRAZY LIKE A FOX and TALES FROM THE DARKSIDE followed. “There was a TV pilot we filmed called THE ARENA,” Armstrong remembers. “We played a tag team called the White Knights and we were facing off against H.B. Haggerty and Jay York… a young Mario Lopez was eleven years old and worked on that show.”

Legendary wrestler/actor H.B. Haggerty and Jack Warden, star of "Crazy Like a Fox" were two other believers in Magic.

Perhaps Magic’s two most notable film roles came late in the 1980s.  The was the part of Smasher in the Sylvester Stallone flick about arm-wrestling, OVER THE TOP.  Smasher challenges Sly in a diner and becomes an early victim of the hero’s secret strategy.

Sylvester Stallone goes OVER THE TOP to make the comeback on Magic Schwarz's high profile "Smasher" character.

Pro football linebacker Brian Bosworth was branching out into the film industry at this time, and Schwarz got a prime spot opposite Boz in STONE COLD, again getting the chance to appear on a motorcycle, one of his true passions in life.  “I was involved with the most expensive motorcycle stunt ever in Hollywood,” Magic laughs. “It took a million and a half dollars to kill me!”  Schwarz also wore several other hats here, including bodyguard and a consultant to the director.

Magic on the STONE COLD bike; Brian Bosworth's cinematic cycle is another example of the passion and enthusiasm between Magic and Milwaukee Iron.

For the remainder of the time, Magic occupied his days doing more cycle-related activities.  “I have owned three shops of my own, including one that was called Harley-wood,” Schwarz said.  “Celebrities who liked to ride would come in and we’d do custom cycles, built as they requested.  It was a good way to stay connected in Hollywood.”

Later in his career, Schwarz worked a gimmick known as “The Shark” which he used on Eric Shaw’s Muscle Rock events as the 1990s dawned.  But after a total of eleven years in the ring, Schwarz decided the time was right to explore other interests, and he decided to leave the bright lights of Hollywood behind him.  “Magic was a guy who was really ahead of the curve,” Armstrong said.  Karl Lauer adds, “Just a very good person; a gem of a guy.  He’d always call me to let me know when he was available to work, and we’d get a spot for him on our shows.  A really easy-going guy who never caused problems; was always a team player.”  Schwarz’s travels took him from California to Montana, and back home to Texas, which brings us back to that happy ending mentioned near the start.  “I have to say, I wouldn’t be where I am today without my wonderful wife behind me,” Magic said.

The litany of names mentioned throughout Magic’s tale have a common thread, woven by The Cauliflower Alley Club.  “Jack Armstrong took me to my first CAC luncheon in L.A. back when it was at the Spaghetti Factory, and Iron Mike Mazurki was still around,” Schwarz said.  “I found myself sitting at the table next to legends like Count Billy Varga… I considered it a super honor just to be able to be in the same room with them.”   Magic’s affiliation with CAC has grown over the years. “He’s become very involved with our Benevolent Fund,” Lauer said.  Indeed, a recent posting in THE EAR, CAC’s quarterly newsletter, alerts the readership that for the second straight year, the Texas-based Melcher Charitable Fund, which is run by Trey Melcher, Magic’s stepson and also Schwarz’s wife Yvonne, has made a ten thousand dollar donation to the CAC Benevolent Fund, which benefits former pro wrestlers in their time of need.   

As reunion time draws closer, the well-wishers continue to emerge, almost a THIS IS YOUR LIFE appearance for Magic Schwarz, who need not audition for this part.  As the CAC Reel Award recipient for 2010, Magic’s best qualities are being touted, and it becomes clear they were not put forth merely for appearances.  “I’m very happy for him; he deserves it,” Drasin said.  “Magic is a very creative person.”

Mickey Rourke may have channeled much of his interpretation of Magic Schwarz directly into his role of Randy “The Ram” Robinson for THE WRESTLER.  But if it were a true-to-life, all-encompassing look at Magic’s life, a two-word film title would not suffice.  The term ‘wrestler’ would only scratch the surface, only be just one facet of a life truly lived with enjoyment in mind.  Soon it will be time for that garage door to roll back open, and Magic will take one more ride into the spotlight as our 2010 Reel Award honoree.

Mickey Rourke gets the chair on the set of JOHNNY HANDSOME, but it's Magic Schwarz who sits pretty this year as the REEL Award honoree.

Tammy “Sunny” Sytch

 ”Im so excited to make it out to the Reunion!” Is what Sunny said about returning to the CAC Reunion. Not only is the CAC members going to be excited about meeting her, So is the workers! The boys and girls of the business is going to be excited to catch up with Sunny.

Just one more reason to attend this years Reunion!