Professional Wrestler. He was best known for holding the record for the longest title reign (8 years) as World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) Heavyweight Champion. Born in Pizzoferrato, Italy, his mother hid him from the Nazi occupiers during World War II (WWII). After the war, he and the rest of his family joined his father in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he attended Schenley High School. Due to bullying, he turned to wrestling and weightlifting. He was a runner-up in the Olympic trials in weightlifting in 1956 and set a world record in the bench press in 1959, which led to his discovery by a local wrestling promoter. In 1963, he won the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) Heavyweight Championship from "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers at Madison Square Garden in less than 2 minutes, which he would hold until 1971, losing the belt to Ivan Koloff. He would regain the championship in 1973 and hold it for another four years. But injuries began to take their toll, as he broke his neck during a match in 1976 against Stan Hansen. He lost the championship to "Superstar" Billy Graham in 1977, and although he had a number of rematches with Graham, he was unable to win the title back. He initially retired in 1981 but then came back in 1984 and wrestled until 1988. He was inducted into the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) (the successor to the World Wide Wrestling Federation) Hall of Fame in 2013. He also made his name working for Frank Tunney's Maple Leaf Wrestling territory based in Toronto and Shohei "Giant" Baba's All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), as well as the Japan Wrestling Association (JWA).
Professional Wrestler. He was best known for holding the record for the longest title reign (8 years) as World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) Heavyweight Champion. Born in Pizzoferrato, Italy, his mother hid him from the Nazi occupiers during World War II (WWII). After the war, he and the rest of his family joined his father in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he attended Schenley High School. Due to bullying, he turned to wrestling and weightlifting. He was a runner-up in the Olympic trials in weightlifting in 1956 and set a world record in the bench press in 1959, which led to his discovery by a local wrestling promoter. In 1963, he won the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) Heavyweight Championship from "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers at Madison Square Garden in less than 2 minutes, which he would hold until 1971, losing the belt to Ivan Koloff. He would regain the championship in 1973 and hold it for another four years. But injuries began to take their toll, as he broke his neck during a match in 1976 against Stan Hansen. He lost the championship to "Superstar" Billy Graham in 1977, and although he had a number of rematches with Graham, he was unable to win the title back. He initially retired in 1981 but then came back in 1984 and wrestled until 1988. He was inducted into the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) (the successor to the World Wide Wrestling Federation) Hall of Fame in 2013. He also made his name working for Frank Tunney's Maple Leaf Wrestling territory based in Toronto and Shohei "Giant" Baba's All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), as well as the Japan Wrestling Association (JWA).
Bio by: Kenneth Gilbert
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