The Missouri Mauler

The Missouri Mauler
Birth name Larry Hamilton
Born (1931-03-11)March 11, 1931
St. Joseph, Missouri, United States
Died July 20, 1996(1996-07-20) (aged 65)
St. Joseph, Missouri
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) The Missouri Mauler
Rocky Hamilton
Thunderbolt
Assassin #2
The Black Secret
Billed height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Billed weight 325 lb (147 kg)
Debut c. 1950
Retired 1981

Larry "Rocky" Hamilton (April 1, 1931 – July 20, 1996), better known by his ring name The Missouri Mauler, was an American professional wrestler who competed in the National Wrestling Alliance as well as Florida Championship Wrestling and Jim Crockett Promotions, becoming a mainstay of the latter promotion throughout the 1960s.

One of the earliest professional wrestlers to appear on televised wrestling events, he feuded with many popular wrestlers of the era including Jack Brisco,[1] "Plowboy" Stan Frazier, Steve Keirn, Tim Woods, Tarzan Tyler and Fritz Von Erich during his 31-year career.

He is also the older brother of wrestler Jody Hamilton who competed as the masked wrestler The Assassin as well as the uncle of former World Championship Wrestling official Nick Patrick.

Career

Early life and career

Making his debut in the Missouri area during the early 1950s, he began wrestling for promoter Ed Don George in Buffalo, New York where he and his brother began teaming together as the Hamilton Brothers in 1957 headlining an event at Madison Square Garden against Antonino Rocca and Miguel Perez the following year.[2]

Splitting up shortly thereafter, Hamilton and his brother went their separate ways leaving New York in October 1958 with Joseph Hamilton leaving for San Francisco while Larry Hamilton began working for promoter Jim Crockett, Sr. in the Carolinas.

Crockett Promotions

It was during his time in what would later become Jim Crockett Promotions that Larry Hamilton would find his greatest success becoming a major star in the promotion in only a few years. Appearing in the earliest televised matches for the promotion, Hamilton teamed with The Great Bolo to win the regional tag team title from Mr. Moto & Duke Keomuka in 1959.

The two would remain the top "heel" tag team in the promotion until the early 1960s when Joseph Hamilton was brought into the promotion and began teaming with the Great Bolo in 1961 (the two would continue teaming together as The Assassins for the next 15 years).

Hamilton and The Masked Bolos (Jody Hamilton & Tom Renesto) would face Haystacks Calhoun and The Kentuckyians (John Quinn & Grizzly Smith) in a series of six-man tag team matches during the next year setting several attendance records in the Carolina-Virginia area including an event held the Greenville Memorial Auditorium in Greenville, South Carolina.

During the early 1970s, Hamilton would form a successful tag team with Jim "Brute" Bernard winning the Texas-based NWA America and NWA Atlantic Coast tag team titles between 1971 and 1972.

Later years

Following his retirement in 1981, Hamilton entered the bail bonding and was involved in the St. James Catholic Church in his hometown St. Joseph, Missouri. Although undergoing a hip replacement in his later years, Hamilton remained in relatively good health until his death from a heart attack on July 20, 1996.

Championships and accomplishments

  • L&G Promotions

Notes

1Note: This promotion, though named World Championship Wrestling, was an NWA affiliated promotion based out of Australia and operated from the 60's to the 90's. This promotion should not be confused with the U.S.-based World Championship Wrestling once owned by Ted Turner and sold to World Wrestling Entertainment in 2001.

References

  1. ↑ Slagle, Steve (2000). "The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame: Jack Brisco". Professional Wrestling Online Museum. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  2. ↑ "Official Website for Jody Hamilton, the Assassin - Biography". Georgia Wrestling History, Inc. 2004. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  3. ↑ Royal Duncan and Gary Will (2006). "(Kansas and Western Missouri) West Missouri: North American Tag Team Title". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 253. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  4. ↑ "NWA North American Tag Team Title (Central States version)". wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  5. ↑ "N.W.A. United States Heavyweight Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  6. ↑ "N.W.A. Florida Brass Knuckles Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  7. ↑ "N.W.A. Florida Heavyweight Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  8. ↑ "N.W.A. Florida Television Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  9. ↑ "N.W.A. Southern Heavyweight Title (Florida)". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  10. ↑ "N.W.A. Eastern States Heavyweight Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  11. ↑ "N.W.A. Atlantic Coast Tag Team Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  12. ↑ "N.W.A. Southern Tag Team Title (Mid-Atlantic)". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  13. ↑ "N.W.A. American Heavyweight Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  14. ↑ "N.W.A. American Tag Team Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  15. ↑ "N.W.A. Austra-Asian Tag Team Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  16. ↑ "N.W.A. United States Junior Heavyweight Title". Puroresu Dojo. 2003. Retrieved 2007-06-13.

Further reading

  • Flair, Ric. Ric Flair: To Be the Man. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004. ISBN 0-7434-5691-2
  • Johnson, Weldon T. and Jim Wilson. Chokehold: Pro Wrestling's Real Mayhem Outside the Ring. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. ISBN 1-4010-7217-8
  • Meltzer, Dave. Tributes II: Remembering More of the World's Greatest Wrestlers. Champaigne, Illinois: Sports Publishing LLC, 2004. ISBN 1-58261-817-8
  • "Interviews: Jody Hamilton, Memories of his brother The Missouri Mauler." Whatever Happened To ... ? Oct. 1996.
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