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Rocky Johnson
Ring name(s)	Sweet Ebony Diamond[1] Drew Glasteau[1] "Soulman" Rocky Johnson[1]
Billed height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Billed weight	247 lb (112 kg; 17.6 st)
Born	August 24, 1944 (1944-08-24) (age 65)[1] Amherst, Nova Scotia, Canada[1]
Resides	Davie, Florida, United States
Billed from	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Trained by	Peter Maivia[1] Rocky Bollie[1] Kurt Von Steiger[1]
Debut	1964[1]
Retired	1991

Rocky Johnson (born Wayde Bowles on August 24, 1944 in Amherst, Nova Scotia)^[1] is a retired Canadian professional wrestler. Quite popular in his own right in the 1970s and '80s, he is also known for being the father of actor and former wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson,^[2] During his wrestling career he became a 1-time NWA Georgia Champion and also became a 1-time NWA Southern Heavyweight Memphis Champion as well as winning many other championships.

[edit] Professional wrestling career

[edit] National Wrestling Alliance

Johnson was a top contender in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) in the 1970s, receiving title matches against then-World Champions Terry Funk and Harley Race. He was well-suited to tag team wrestling, winning several regional tag team championships in the NWA.

[edit] World Wrestling Federation

In 1983, he was recruited by the WWF and paired with Tony Atlas, another popular black wrestler. They defeated the Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika Anoai) for the Tag Team Championship on November 15, 1983.^[2] Together, Rocky Johnson and Tony Atlas were known as "The Soul Patrol".

[edit] Retirement

After retiring in 1991, Johnson along with Pat Patterson, trained his son Dwayne to wrestle. While he initially resisted his son's entry into the business because he knew it was extremely difficult, he agreed to train his son on the condition that he would not go easy on him. Johnson was instrumental in getting Dwayne (later dubbed "Rocky Maivia" after both Rocky Johnson's and Peter Maivia's ring names) signed to a WWF developmental deal. Initially, Johnson had an on-camera presence at his son's matches, jumping into the ring on his son's behalf after he was attacked by several other wrestlers at WrestleMania 13. Johnson was not seen on-camera again after the Rocky Maivia character flopped, but this was actually a blessing, as his son achieved crossover popularity as a cocky heel, The Rock.

Johnson was hired as a trainer for the WWE developmental territory, Ohio Valley Wrestling, in early 2003 but was let go in May of that year. On February 25, 2008, Johnson was announced as an inductee for the 2008 class of the WWE Hall of Fame along with his father-in-law "High Chief" Peter Maivia. They were inducted into the Hall of Fame on March 29, 2008 by his son and former professional wrestler, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. One week earlier on March 22, Rocky Johnson wrestled his retirement match in Toronto, Ontario, Canada for Stranglehold Wrestling.

[edit] Personal life

Rocky Johnson is a Black Nova Scotian, which is an ethnicity of African American descent.^[3] Johnson married into the prolific Samoan wrestling family, which included the Anoa'i family, by marrying "High Chief" Peter Maivia's daughter Ata Maivia. Ata met Rocky after Maivia and Johnson were tag team partners in a match on the independent scene. Maivia disapproved of the relationship—not because of anything personal against Johnson, but because of Johnson's chosen profession.^[4] The couple had a son, Dwayne, in 1972. Dwayne Johnson portrayed his father in an episode of That '70s Show.

He lived in Davie, Florida with his wife, Ata, but they later divorced. Johnson remarried and still resides in Davie.^{[citation needed]} Rocky also has two other children, as he announced in his 2008 HOF induction, a son Curtis, and a daughter Wanda from his first marriage in 1967. Johnson is honored being the first non-Samoan to be named High Chief. His title is High Chief Tafiaiafi.

[edit] In wrestling

• Finishing moves
  • Dropkick
  • Johnson Shuffle (Three left-handed jabs followed by a right-handed knockout punch)

• Signature moves
  • Backbreaker
  • Boston crab

[edit] Championships and accomplishments

• American Wrestling Association
  • AWA Southern Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Jimmy Valiant (1) and Soul Train Jones (1)
• Championship Wrestling from Florida
  • NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Florida version) (1 time)
  • NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
  • NWA Florida Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Pedro Morales
  • NWA Florida Television Championship (1 time)

• Georgia Championship Wrestling
  • NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
  • NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jerry Brisco
  • NWA Macon Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Danny Little Bear

• Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling
  • NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
  • NWA Television Championship (1 time)

• NWA All-Star Wrestling
  • NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship (Vancouver version) (1 time) – with Don Leo Jonathan

• NWA Big Time Wrestling
  • NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Texas version) (1 time)
  • NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
  • NWA Texas Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jose Lothario

• NWA Detroit
  • NWA World Tag Team Championship (Detroit version) (1 time) – with Ben Justice

• NWA Hollywood Wrestling
  • NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
  • NWA Americas Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Earl Maynard
  • NWA Beat the Champ Television Championship (2 times)

• NWA Mid-America / Continental Wrestling Association
  • CWA/AWA International Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Bill Dundee
  • NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Memphis version) (1 time)

• NWA San Francisco
  • NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (San Francisco version) (1 time)
  • NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) (4 times) – with Pat Patterson (3) and Pepper Gomez (1)
  • NWA "Beat the Champ" Television Championship (2 times)

• Pacific Northwest Wrestling
  • NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
  • NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Brett Sawyer (1) and Iceman Parsons (1)

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI ranked him # 211 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.^[5]

• World Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Entertainment
  • WWF Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Tony Atlas
  • WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2008)

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Mick Foley (2000). Have A Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks. HarperCollins. p. 768. ISBN 0061031011. 

[edit] External links

Professional wrestling portal

• Official Site
• WWE Hall of Fame Profile of Rocky Johnson
• Online World of Wrestling Profile
• Memphis Wrestling History
• Rock Johnson Photos at CWF Archives