He was 85. However, Miyako Blassie, surviving wife of the legendary "Classy" Freddie Blassie, is offering that chance as the WWE Hall of Famer's Lincoln Town Car becomes available on WWE Auction. "Classy" Freddie Blassie is a legendary wrestling personality, both as a wrestler and a manager. Classy Freddie Blassie was pro wrestling's 'Fashion Plate' 'The Destroyer' Dick Beyer story archive | Slam Wrestling Freddie Blassie - The Truth (and Somewhere In-Between) Freddie Blassie, Pro Wrestler Popular as Villain, Dies at 85, https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/08/sports/freddie-blassie-pro-wrestler-popular-as-villain-dies-at-85.html. He's also written for Pro Wrestling Illustrated, WrestleZone, The Windsor Star, and other publications. Between matches, he gave loud and boastful interviews, making Originally from Chicago, he has called London home since 2008. He had been in poor health for quite a while, and it was as if he wanted to wait to get his story out before he passed on. Blassie also was seen with the comedian Andy Kaufman in ''My Breakfast With Blassie,'' a 1983 spoof of ''My Dinner With Andre.''. [21] The segment featured Blassie, his wife, and Raw co-General Manager Eric Bischoff, who was about to allow 3 Minute Warning to attack him, until Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Dudley Boyz stepped in. He also reportedly excelled as a boxer. [20] Because of this, Blassie is one of, if not the only man to have worked with all four generations of the McMahon family. [22][2] Rose Marie's character Sally Rogers brought him on at the end of the episode claiming to have discovered another new dance sensation. Recommended:10 Wrestling Book Must Reads and 5 You Dont Want To Waste Your Time On. My wife joined Toastmasters International in October of last year. In this match Hogan was once again victorious. Despite Blassie not actually holding any titles to unify, his feud with Sammartino saw Bruno become a national hero, but in the process, Blassie became lifelong friends with another WWWF employee, Gorilla Monsoon. [6] On July 7, Blassie successfully defended his title against the former NWA World Heavyweight Champion Lou Thesz. His wife is Miyako Morozumi (30 September1968 - 2 June2003)( his death), ? Blassie would turn heel during this period, developing a lot of the characteristics that hed become known for. My Breakfast with Blassie: Directed by Linda Lautrec, Johnny Legend, Mark Shepard. Backstage, Jilly Rizzo club owner, Frank Sinatra's bodyguard, and . You can check out an almost unlimited array of WWE content on theWWE NetworkandPeacock. His ex-manager would turn out to be an enemy, representing The Iron Sheik in the match where Hulk Hogan won the WWE Championship and held it for a shade over four years. You hit a guy in the neck. Managed by "Loud" Lou Albano, Blassie continued his winning ways, but never won the WWWF's championship. You pencil neck geek! For those who were brought up on pro wrestling in the 1980s and 1990s, one of the most colorful managers of the day was WWF stalwart, Classy Freddie Blassie. It was a wonderful look back at "old-school" wrestling as told by one of the masters, both as a wrestler and as a talker. book. 10 Things Fans Should Know About Classy Freddie Blassie - TheSportster [6] His cousin John Frank Holaus often refereed his matches. Replying to. [3], In 1952, Blassie moved to Los Angeles to work for Jules Strongbow. One poll ranked him as the most hated wrestler in the United States. Blassie was a regular on the WWWF's "All-Star Wrestling" and "Championship Wrestling" weekly TV shows that were videotaped at small arenas in Pennsylvania and aired throughout the Northeast. One of the men was Jilly Rizzo, Frank Sinatras number one sidekick and the owner of his own saloon. At 85 years old, Freddie Blassie height His penchant for biting opponents earned him the nickname "The Vampire". Most recently, he co-authored the 2016 edition of the WWE Encyclopedia of Sports Entertainment. According to Walton, Blassies biggest achievement came Aug. 27, 1971, when he met and defeated Canadian wrestler Golden Greek John Tolos at the Coliseum before 25,000 wrestling fans. Vampire". Blassie came into the WWWF with his own world title belt, claiming to be the Pacific World Champion, and was coming to Sammartino's "back yard" to unify the world title. [3] Blassie, Lou Albano, and The Grand Wizard were named "The Three Wise Men of the East", as the top three heel managers in the company. Lynne Margulies, who would later become Kaufman's girlfriend, plays a role; in fact, she and Kaufman met for the first time on camera. [15] Blassie led Shiek to the WWF World Heavyweight Championship over Bob Backlund on December 26, 1983, in Madison Square Garden. [13][6][dubious discuss], While touring Japan in 1965, and by this point divorced, Blassie met the woman who would eventually become his third wife, Miyako Morozumi, at a train station. Matches Freddie Blassie Wrestlers Database - CAGEMATCH Fans might recall his interviews with local announcer Dick Lane in which he would proclaim his vast superiority over a number of lesser opponents, branding them all pencil-neck geeks. Those colorful interviews helped make him a celebrity in the newly expanding medium of television. [2] He was given a commentary tryout in 1986 and 1987 for WWF Wrestling Challenge, calling a few matches with Gorilla Monsoon. "Classy" Freddie Blassie with Keith Elliot Greenberg, NWA Georgia Southern Heavyweight Championship, WWWF United States Heavyweight Championship, NWA North American Heavyweight Championship, NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship, North American Wrestling Alliance/Worldwide Wrestling Associates/ NWA Hollywood Wrestling, WWA International Television Tag Team Championship, NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Championship, Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum, Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame, "Classy Freddie Blassie was pro wrestling's 'Fashion Plate', "Before The Client List: "Classy" Freddie Blassie", "Blassie toast of Cauliflower Alley Club", "WWF WrestleMania XV Results - 3/28/99 (Stone Cold vs. In the late 1960s, he moved to the East Coast and the World-Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF, later the World Wresting Federation (WWF) and now World Wrestling Entertainment WWE)). Blassie was a contemporary of six-time NWA world champion Thesz, who died in 2002 at the age of 86. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Fred Blassie was born and raised in the St. Louis, Missouri, area. The Rock for the WWF Title)", "TJR Retro: WWE Royal Rumble 2000 Review (The Rock wins Rumble, Triple H vs. Cactus Jack)", "Freddie Blassie - Dick Van Dyke Show - 1962", "My Breakfast with Blassie: An appreciation", NWA North American Heavyweight Title (Hawaii version) history, NWA Southern Heavyweight Title (Florida) history, NWA World Tag Team Title (Florida) history, NWA International Tag Team Title (Georgia) history, NWA Southern Heavyweight Title (Georgia) history, NWA World Tag Team Title (Georgia) history, "NWA Hall of Fame Class for 2011 announced", WWA International Television Tag Team Title history, NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Title history, Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum Inductees, 1853 Shepherd Circle SW, Blassie's Atlanta home (1960), 1950 Campbellton Road SW, Blassies Atlanta home (1966), WWE Hall of Fame Profile of Freddie Blassie, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Freddie_Blassie&oldid=1142698000, NWA World Tag Team Champions (Florida version), Professional wrestling managers and valets, United States Navy personnel of World War II, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Pages using infobox military person with embed, Articles with disputed statements from February 2023, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, The Mysterious Medics (Mysterious Medic #1 and Mysterious Medic #2), This page was last edited on 3 March 2023, at 22:16. Hell, the article is entitled "Freddie Blassie - The Truth (and Somewhere In-Between)" for crying out loud. Blassie is survived by his wife, Miyako, and three children. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Three injured in shooting outside Bronx funeral home, Canadian teacher with size-Z prosthetic breasts placed on paid leave, What's next for Buster Murdaugh after dad's murder conviction, life sentence, US home prices just did something they haven't done since 2012, How a retired detective snared his seventh 'Torso Killer' confession, It's insane that NYers can use but not buy pepper spray for self-defense: Change this now, Celeb-loved jewelry brand Dorsey drops dazzling new styles, White Lotus actor jokes about being hit on following shows success, Is this the couple behind the Worst Art Job Listing Ever?, Undertaker transforms coffin into barbecue grill, Kellyanne Conway and George Conway to divorce. Managed by "Loud", Countless World Wrestling Federation TV and Pay Per View Ads. He kept track of all of his matches during his career, including personal anecdotes. Blassie retired from active wrestling in 1974, due to a California law that prohibited anyone over 55 from getting a wrestling license. Vince McMahon interviews "Classy" Freddie Blassie & Nikolai Volkoff In By the mid-1970s, Freddie Blassie was in his 50s and began to settle into a role as a manager in WWE, though he would still occasionally wrestle a match. Keith Elliot Greenberg coauthored Legends of Wrestling: Freddie Blassie -- Listen, You Pencil Neck Geeks with wrestling icon "Classy" Freddie Blassie shortly before his death in 2003. Accounts about his early athletic career do not quite agree, but he first tried to make his mark as a boxer, despite warnings that his arms were too short. This story has been shared 143,593 times. For Freddie Blassie, there was no question why he took on a villian's persona - he loved it. As much as governing body politics held back minorities, the wrestlers themselves had even more power. This story has been shared 104,709 times. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. Given that Hogan was the top babyface in the 1980s, this iteration of The Hulkster was actually a heel and would depart in 1981 after a dispute with Vince McMahon Sr. over Hogans taking a role in Rocky III. In order to impress a girl, he entered a carnival show match in a shoot fight and won. Professional Wrestling Online Museum - Spotlight on Freddie Blassie He achieved the rank of Petty Officer (Second Class) before he was discharged. The two spoke the same dialect of German, their parents had mutual friends, and . . After managing Sheik through a brief feud with Andre the Giant, he also became the manager of Nikolai Volkoff, with Sheik and Volkoff later becoming a tag team. Classy car for a class act | WWE The defendants had a duty to provide reasonably safe conditions for its customers, the suit charges. At an early age, Blassie was enamored with pro wrestling, particularly the "shooters" of the early era of pro wrestling in the 1930s, and would often sneak into a local gym to watch the technical masters stretch and submit their opponents. However, Blassie wanted nothing to do with him because he too had a massive drinking problem and felt that it would "hit too close to home." Renowned as "The Hollywood Fashion Plate", [3] he was a one-time NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion, and was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame in 1994. His wife is Miyako Morozumi (30 September 1968 - 2 June 2003) ( his death), ? In reality, Blassie was a major on-screen figure in wrestling, both in competitive and managerial roles, and had a status in overall pop culture. Fred Blassie would meet his wife, a Japanese actress.. November 15, 1968: Fred Blassie defeated Buddy Austin in a "Stretcher" match in the Olympic Stadium.. Born: 1921. Using his newfound skills, Blassie became a wrestler starting in the carnival circuit, debuting in 1935 but taking a break in the 1940s to fight in World War II. They had no connecting hallways, so he was stuck with a bunch of these people, kayfabing his gimmick as Bruno was being hauled in on a stretcher. He finally defeated Rikidozan and won back his title at a WWA event in Los Angeles but it had served his purpose. [3][23] (The film was referenced by American rock band R.E.M. [8] He was often billed as "The Vampire" during this time for biting his opponents and filing his teeth during interviews and promos. Still a motormouth, he gave interviews in which he bragged about himself and his protgs and denounced anybody he didn't like as a "pencil necked geek". If you're not from the midwest you're not allowed to have an opinion on this. Blassie originally wrestled mainly in the Southeast and West Coast, winning many titles in both. Blassie also mastered the television interview, boasting his superiority over other wrestlers he liked to call ''pencil-neck geeks.'' 10 Backstage Stories About Bruno Sammartino WWE Fans Should Know He started a second career as a manager in the WWWF. After being pounded by a longer-limbed opponent, he switched to professional wrestling. Towards the end of Freddie Blassies life, he began to realize that it all may be coming to an end soon. He is a member of famous Actor with the age 85 years old group. Why FREDDIE BLASSIE Was So Great f/ WRESTLINGBIOS - YouTube A nice man, with a lovely wife and it was great having him there to cut a wonderful promo during my show. So when I saw this book I had to get it and read it. [20] Images from his WrestleMania XV promo were also included in the opening of the 2001 Survivor Series. [22], Filmed in 1982, My Breakfast with Blassie featured Andy Kaufman and Freddie Blassie eating at a Sambo's in Los Angeles. He did an advice segment on the Tuesday Night Titans TV program, made personal appearances and did radio interviews. Some NFL teams dont make the grade, players say, New era of football begins at Mater Dei under coach Frank McManus. During his time on the West Coast, he was a frequent guest and/or interruption on a local show hosted by Regis Philben, and Blassies appearances thanks to his massive appeal as a wrestling draw helped push Philben into a national celebrity. (bad guys) got better pay. 3 Saving Freddie Blassie Thanks To Kayfabe. Accounts about his early athletic career do not quite agree, but he first tried to make his mark as a boxer, despite warnings that his arms were too short. Fred Blassie had a shocking heel turn during his stint in Georgia, which led to him becoming an extremely hated wrestler! He joined the Navy at the start of World War II and started wrestling initially under the name of Sailor Fred Blassie while stationed at Port Hueneme. By the 1970s, Blassie had relocated to the East Coast where he successfully pursued his mat career. One of Blassies most notable clients during his run with WWE, however, was Hulk Hogan, who he managed as soon as Hogan debuted in the company in 1979. [10] He had main event-level feuds against stars such as The Destroyer. By doing this, he saved Freddie Blassies life. His first public wrestling match was a shoot fight which he accepted hoping to impress a girl he brought to the show. [spoken to the WWF wrestlers during Invasion 2001] Gentleman, there In one memorable instance, Blassie, playing up the heel character, would berate Brunos followers backstage with promos, calling them derogatory names such as "grease ball" and "spaghetti bender." ROH Best in the World (7/11/21) Preview and Predictions, Preview: Ice Ribbon 1133 in 176Box (7/11/21), first African-American to hold a World title. Blassie, whose late hubby [inset] was known for his gravel-voiced put-down pencil-neck geek, claims to have suffered excruciating pain in the January 2011 tumble, which broke her right wrist, and permanent scarring from a cut eyebrow. Born Fred Blassman in St. Louis, Blassie played baseball and football in high school. Greenberg would add that Jerry Grahams drinking issues may have been combined with mental illness. [2] In 1963, Bearcat Wright defeated him to become champion, and it was quite a statement during the fight for civil rights that an African-American had won such a title. Blassie would eventually come to be known as a manager (see below) in WWE, but in the 1960s and 1970s, he actually wrestled for the promotion, back then known as the World Wide Wrestling Federation. He claimed to file his teeth to draw blood from opponents, and among his nicknames was the Vampire. Discover Freddie Blassie's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. The Genius Cast with Lanny Poffo (2018-19), HOMAGE.com Our favorite in retro wrestling attire! He grabs his balls!" Now is In addition to his pro wrestling notoriety, Classy Freddie Blassie also has some amusing notability in wider pop culture. @megantheevalium. If they refused to drop a title, it didnt matter what the bookers thought. [3], Upon Blassie's return from the war, he was billed as "Sailor" Fred Blassie to capitalize on the wave of war-time patriotism sweeping the country, but that gimmick was unsuccessful. But for nearly 40 years, Fred Blassie was an in-ring talent who ruled the West Coast, a multi-time World Champion, and one of the most feared villains in pro wrestling history. Without further ado, lets do an overview of Blassies career for fans who may not know much about him. *The 100 deaths claim was an exaggerated myth that Blassie used. On a mid-July 2001 episode of Raw, the Invasion storyline was in full swing, and Blassie was brought in to motivate the WWE in the face of their ongoing war with the WCW/ECW Alliance. Im not implying that Bruno would ever have any dealings with the mafia on his own. Take Linda McMahon, for instance. Blassie, well-known for exaggerating a story or two, stated that when he was wrestling Rikidozan in Japan, 100 Japanese wrestling fans dropped dead of heart attacks because the matches were so gory. He heard Blassie say that and whipped out a gun saying, "Ill kill that sonuvabitch! 304K views 6 years ago The Dudley Boyz put Rico through a table after getting the call from WWE Hall of Famer "Classy" Freddie Blassie at ringside. While there, he feuded with Soulman Rocky Johnson, The Sheik, and "The Golden Greek" John Tolos. [8] His death was announced by Jim Ross, 20 minutes into that same day's episode of Raw. In 1973, knee problems largely forced Blassie to stop wrestling personally, though he occasionally donned the tights to tag-team with one of his heels, as he did in Madison Square Garden in June 1974, teaming with the hulking Nikolai Volkoff to face then-champ Bruno Sammartino and Chief Jay Strongbow in a tag team match (Blassie was forced to submit for the final fall by a Bruno bearhug, and the fans almost tore the Garden's roof off). In March of 1962, Blassie lost the WWA World title to Rikidozan, and for the next four months, Blassie competed in Japan, determined to regain his title from the Japanese wrestling innovator. The World's Most Entertaining Car Website. Freddie Blassie, 85, died of heart failure on June 2, 2003. On top of that, hed take on English legend Billy Robinson, WWE Champion Superstar Billy Graham, and legendary masked heel wrestler Destroyer. The film My Breakfast With Blassie, which came out in 1983, was a spoof of My Dinner With Andre. The camera followed Blassie and Kaufman as they ate and discussed life at a local restaurant that looked like a Dennys. Professional wrestler Freddie Blassie, who became a cult figure for fans by playing the villain inside the ring during the 1950s and 1960s, has died. We have estimated After Blassie lost the WWA World Heavyweight Championship to Rikidzan in Los Angeles, the two had a rematch on live Japanese television. In it, Blassie is picked up at the Washington, D.C., airport by a limo full of young women, escorted around the nation's capital, gives his opinions and confronts tourists. Blassie originally wrestled mainly in the Southeast and West Coast, winning many titles in both. He bleached his hair and quickly became a heel's heel, outraging crowds by gleefully breaking every rule in the book. [8], Blassie appeared in an episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show that featured a new dance craze called The Twizzle. After regaining the WWA Championship from Rikidzan on July 25, 1962, Blassie lost the title two days later to the "Masked Destroyer" Dick Beyer. After handing over ME duties to Alex Richards, he remains a frequent contributor to the site. After Sheik lost the belt to Blassie's former managed wrestler Hulk Hogan, Blassie managed Sheik in various rematches around the country throughout the first half of 1984, culminating into another major televised rematch on December 28, 1984, once again in Madison Square Garden. He was feuding with a wrestler known as The Geek who had a neck like a stack of dimes, making him a literal pencil neck geek. "I want you to get four Orange Juliuses for me, the girls, and you.". He bleached his hair and quickly became a Back in the dressing room, Blassie realized he was in the wrong one. Freddie Blassie - Wikipedia Feb 27. Freddie Blassie - Online World of Wrestling [18][19] Blassie also appeared in the SummerSlam opening video. The professional wrestler Freddie Blassie, who became a cult figure to fans by playing the villain inside the ring during the 1950's and 1960's, died Monday. It was in the latter that he decided to embrace his villainous side, bleaching his hair blonde like Gorgeous George. Blassie held various regional titles, Walton said, including the WWA World Title on five separate occasions, the Americas Heavyweight Title nine times and tag team belts with various partners over the years. [8] The fans consistently booed him because he was considered a "Yankee". [3][8] In 1983, Rhino Records released a 14-track album by Blassie, titled I Bite the Songs. At Freddie Blassies wake, a family member came up to Keith Elliot Greenberg, saying that Freddies son had read the book and was ready to make peace with his father. Before The Client List is an extension of our ongoing series, Before They Were Famous, which looks at wrestlers before they became internationally famous. He returned again in 1990 briefly to do color commentary for Prime Time in April with Vince McMahon, as an emergency fill-in after Tony Schiavone quit, playing a heel once again. He married his first wife Nettie Needles while on shore leave during the war. His career began in earnest after his service in the United States Navy during World War II. By 1968, WWA rejoined the NWA, becoming NWA Hollywood, but in 1971, Blassie returned to WWWF and challenged new WWWF World Champion Pedro Morales, to no avail. WWE Confidential presents a feature on the life and times of the fashion plate of professional wrestling, "Classy" Freddie Blassie. He graduated from McKinley High School and began work at a meatpacking plant. WWE Confidential: The life and times of "Classy" Freddie Blassie Ironically, during his WWWF stint, he was managed by another former wrestler who had recently become a manager, in the form of Captain Lou Albano. [6] In later years, Blassie also appeared on The Mike Douglas Show when Philbin was a guest host. Fred Blassie was born and raised in the St. Louis, Missouri, area. Credited with bringing a young Hulk Hogan into the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in late 1979. Moto-1964 and w/Buddy Austin-1967); NWA America's Heavyweight championships (5); Georgia Heavyweight title; "Beat The Champ" TV Title; NWA America's Brass Knuckles Title. Blassie would gain even more gold when Volkoff and Sheik defeated The US Express for the WWF Tag Team Championship at the first ever Wrestlemania. Over the course of his in-ring career, Classy Freddie Blassie would wrestle a number of legends, many of whom have either become legendary wrestlers or became famous in the following decades for non-competitive roles. His career began in earnest after (1965 - 1968)( divorced), Nettie Needles (September 1942 - 1964)( divorced)( 3 children). His heels were always a bit more exotic and meaner than most. Miyako Blassie, 68, says in court papers that she was shopping for groceries when she tripped near the entrance to a Pathmark in Westchester. "No. After four decades, trainer Ed Moger gets his first Triple Crown starter, An exclusive look at details of Chip Kellys two-year contract extension from UCLA, His shoe game is pretty tight. Why Dodgers hope Miguel Rojas play matches his swag, Rats in the laundry? Accounts about his early athletic career do not quite agree, but he first tried to make his mark as a boxer, despite warnings that his arms were too short. Had some great matches with Rikidozan & even back in the late 60s he was over bigtime as a heel.
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