He lives in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, with his wife and son. 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. [2] He was given a commentary tryout in 1986 and 1987 for WWF Wrestling Challenge, calling a few matches with Gorilla Monsoon. He has written several wrestling biographies including Freddie Blassies The Legends of Wrestling, Ric Flairs To Be The Man, "Superstar" Billy Grahams Tangled Ropes,and the unreleased biography of The Iron Sheik which, despite being chockful of stories that would be sure to make your jaw drop, will never see the light of day. According to Greenberg, Gorgeous George, towards the end of his career, wanted to form a tag team with Blassie. One of the 100 Greatest Wrestlers of the 20th Century (Inside Wrestling Presents, Summer 2000). Hed adopt a bleach-blond look, start biting his opponents in the ring, and would often be seen filing down his teeth to better sink his teeth in his opponent. Gross tubs? Freddie Blassie Height 5'10" Weight 220 lbs Hometown St. Louis Signature Move Stomach Claw Career Highlights 1994 WWE Hall of Fame Inductee Freddie Blassie: Bio "Classy" Freddie Blassie is one of the most memorable Superstars to ever set foot inside the squared circle. @megantheevalium. Why FREDDIE BLASSIE Was So Great f/ WRESTLINGBIOS - YouTube From there, he moved on to become a regular writer, contributor, and reporter for WWE. [11], On June 12, 1961, Blassie defeated the "Flying Frenchman" douard Carpentier in a best-of-three-falls match for his first WWA World Heavyweight Championship. Head on over to theLWOS Boardsto engage in conversation with fellow fans! Freddie Blassie Also known as Fred Blassie, Fred McDaniel Overview Career Career highlights Titles Matches Match Statistics Matchguide Feuds Promos Tournaments Tag Teams & Stables Entourage Awards Books Wrestling Games Movies Commentary Career Ratings Comments Matches Displaying items 1 to 100 of total 1631 items that match the search parameters. After handing over ME duties to Alex Richards, he remains a frequent contributor to the site. Blassie worked for the World Wrestling Federation, now known as World Wrestling Entertainment, which presented him with its lifetime achievement award in 1996. A nice man, with a lovely wife and it was great having him there to cut a wonderful promo during my show. . Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=My_Breakfast_with_Blassie&oldid=1107033235, Articles needing additional references from June 2021, All articles needing additional references, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 27 August 2022, at 19:43. Blassie later challenged Morales for the WWWF Championship, but came up short. After being pounded by a longer-limbed opponent, he switched to professional wrestling. Among the men he managed were Nikolai Volkoff,[2] The Iron Sheik,[2] Blackjack Mulligan,[2] High Chief Peter Maivia,[2] "The Crippler" Ray Stevens,[2] Adrian Adonis,[2] Jesse Ventura,[2] Dick Murdoch,[2] Swede Hanson,[2] Killer Khan,[2] George 'The Animal' Steele,[2] Professor Tanaka,[2] Mr. Fuji,[2] Ivan Koloff,[2] Tor Kamata,[2] Masa Saito,[2] Lou Albano,[2] Victor Rivera,[2] Kamala,[2] Hercules Hernandez,[2] and Hulk Hogan. Blassie also resented "Superstar" Billy Graham, at first, due to his association with Dr. Jerry Graham, who in kayfabe was Billys older brother. Freddie Blassie Obituary (2003) - San Diego, CA - San Diego Union-Tribune WWE Confidential: The life and times of "Classy" Freddie Blassie [8] The fans consistently booed him because he was considered a "Yankee". [15] Blassie led Shiek to the WWF World Heavyweight Championship over Bob Backlund on December 26, 1983, in Madison Square Garden. [8] He teamed with Billy McDaniel as the McDaniel Brothers, but when they went east, they were known as the Blassie Brothers. He, Albano, and "The Grand Wizard of Wrestling" (Ernie Roth) formed the WWWF's "Evil Trinity" of heel managers. ", "Heres some money," Blassie would say. Frederick Kenneth Blassman[2] (February 8, 1918 June 2, 2003) was an American professional wrestler and manager, known by the ring name "Classy" Freddie Blassie. Poffo, at first, played it small and declined. [8] He worked for Jack Pfefer, who he claimed would only employ people who looked like sideshow freaks at his shows, and whose wrestlers included Tor Johnson, who made movies with director Ed Wood, and Lillian Ellison, the Fabulous Moolah. Some wrestlers choose to play a villain as a way of promoting their career, while others are forced to by their promoters. Blassie also mastered the television interview, boasting his superiority over other wrestlers he liked to call ''pencil-neck geeks.'' One that stands out was his rivalry with Bruno Sammartino in the early 1960s. For Freddie Blassie, there was no question why he took on a villian's persona - he loved it. [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. 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. His eagerness to learn from 1935 to 1942 led to many of the circuits top stars sharing knowledge with Blassie, and when he returned home to the U.S. in 1946, he was determined to make an honest run as a professional wrestler. Freddie Blassie Biography, Age, Height, Wife, Net Worth, Family Born Fred Blassman in St. Louis, Blassie played baseball and football in high school. Blassies father was a heavy alcoholic and was abusive towards his beloved mother. This benefactor was later revealed to be Slick. Blassie wrestled as a dark-haired good guy until he found out that the "heels" (bad guys) got better pay. This is in reference . Fred Blassie had a shocking heel turn during his stint in Georgia, which led to him becoming an extremely hated wrestler! For a brief period of time after World War Two, he was billed as "Sailor" Freddie Blassie in matches, a gimmick that did not prove successful. 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? Hear Keith Elliot Greenbergs share stories about "Classy" Freddie Blassie on The Genius Cast below: Over his 22-year wrestling career, Freddie Blassie had many notable feuds. [8] His final wrestling appearance was May 12, 2003 in Philadelphia on Raw, three weeks before his death. Deiveson Figueiredo Tattoo Wallpaper. He achieved the rank of Petty Officer (Second Class) before he was discharged. Freddie never held a true world title but he was still one of the greatest of the 50s through the 60s". On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Hed also regularly tag with Gorilla Monsoon, another wrestler better known for his non-wrestling roles. A child of two German immigrants, Freddie Blassie was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1918. [9], In 1968, Blassie returned to Japan and was reunited with Miyako. In the segment he is interviewed by "Mean" Gene Okerlund when the two are interrupted by a little old lady in a housekeeper outfit that Blassie claims to be his own mother. We've received your submission. He was 85. It made Japanese wrestling a commodity on the West Coast and had given Rikidozan the credibility of conquering America. Blassie was more than willing to let the talented Bearcat Wright take the gold and make history. . The rematches were held at Madison Square Garden in New York, with Sammartino winning out. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Sportswriter Jim Murray called him the worst villain since Hitler in a 1961 column in The Times. [3] Blassie also publicly represented Ali for media events and interviews for a period in the mid-1970s. Had some great matches with Rikidozan & even back in the late 60s he was over bigtime as a heel. "Classy" Freddie Blassie WWE Hall of Fame Induction Speech [1994] 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." Vince McMahon interviews "Classy" Freddie Blassie & Nikolai Volkoff | WWE News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. He felt this was his chance to tell his life story before moving on. (1965 - 1968)( divorced), Nettie Needles (September 1942 - 1964)( divorced)( 3 children). A gifted gabber and a splashy dresser, Blassie guided The Iron Shiek to the WWF World Heavyweight title in 1983, Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff to the WWF World Tag Team titles, as well as managing such clients as Adrian Adonis, Jesse The Body Ventura, Kamala, Hercules Hernandez, and even Hulk Hogan during his first stint in the WWF. [4] He is regarded as one of the greatest wrestling heels, or villains, of all time. After a 39-year in-ring career in the sport, Blassie retired as a wrestler as a 4x WWA World Heavyweight Champion, a 17x NWA Georgia Southern Heavyweight Champion, NWA Junior Heavyweight Champion, as well as dozens more regional titles in multiple NWA territories. first tried to make his mark as a boxer, despite warnings that his arms His matches with Freddie Blassie were legendary. One poll ranked him as the most hated wrestler in the United "That's why he was 'Classy' Freddie Blassie." "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. Freddie Blassie was one of the most hated heels of his time. Death [5], Blassie was born Frederick Kenneth Blassman in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1918.