Greetings. I had a great time at the Lou Thesz/George Tragos – United States National Wrestling Hall of Fame induction ceremonies last weekend in Waterloo, Iowa during which my late, great brother Owen joined my father Stu and my brother Bret in the hallowed hall.
The Thesz/Tragos hall, I might add, is reserved for individuals who not only had outstanding pro careers but also distinguished themselves in amateur or Olympic style wrestling. Owen certainly qualifies, as he was not only a bona fide superstar in the pro ranks but was also a champion during his stellar amateur career at the University of Calgary.
Several other members of the Hart family also made the trip down to Iowa, including my brothers Keith and Ross, my sister Diana and her son, Harry (aka David Hart Smith). Other notables from the wrestling world in attendance were Booker T, Tony Garea, J. J. Dillon, Larry Hennig, Gerry Brisco, Nikita Koloff, Bob Roop, Stan Hansen, Dan Severn, Herb Simmons, Austin Aries, Eddie Sharkey, Charlie Thesz and Barbara Goodish (wife of the legendary Bruiser Brody).
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Hall of Fame director Kyle Klingman and his staff for their hospitality and for having done an awesome job the whole weekend. To my readers, if you’re ever in Iowa, I encourage you to visit the Hall of Fame – it’s a marvelous monument to many of wrestling’s true immortals.
On a more sombre note, the wrestling fraternity was decimated this past week with the deaths of several family members, including: Taiesha “Tai” Watkins, Nikolai Volkoff, Brian Christopher, Fred Seewright and Masa Saito.
Tai Watkins – the granddaughter of my friend and Texas wrestling legend Tiger Conway Jr., was tragically killed by an apparent stray bullet during a shooting in a New Orleans night club. Our thoughts and prayers to Tiger and family – so sorry to hear of your loss.
Nikolai Volkoff (Joe Peruzovic) began his storied career in my dad’s iconic Stampede Wrestling promotion. Like many others, he initially paid his dues in the legendary dungeon and then proceeded to New York, where he would adopt the name Nikolai Volkoff and hook up with another Stampede Wrestling alumnus – Kosrow Vaziri (aka the Iron Sheik). Volkoff and the Sheik would go on to become one of the top heel teams in the WWF during the Hulkamania days. In addition his success in the ring, Nikolai was considered one of wrestling’s genuine nice guys.
Brickhouse Brown (Fred Seewright), was a star in several of the so-called territories during the 80’s and 90’s and, by all accounts, a terrific worker. I had Brickhouse on my Hart Beat Radio podcast back in May and even though he was battling cancer, he had an amazingly positive, up beat attitude, which made a great impression on me and my listeners.
Brian Christopher (Brian Lawler), the son of WWE Hall of Famer, Jerry Lawler. I had the opportunity to meet and interact with Brian a few times back in the day and was not only impressed with his work in the ring, but with his attitude, dedication and great personality. It’s extremely unfortunate that he was beset with decimating personal problems in recent years that he was apparently unable to overcome. Our thoughts and prayers are with Jerry and family during this difficult time.
Masa Saito – Masa had a long and successful career, both in his native Japan and the United States – in particular, the WWF and the AWA, where he was a multiple time tag team champion and one of the most respected workers of his era.
I’d like to offer my heartfelt condolences to the friends and families of Taiesha, Nikolai, Brickhouse, Brian and Masa. To each of them, thanks for the memories and may you rest in peace.
On that note, I’ll call this a wrap but will look forward to catching up with you all next time.