William Afflis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Dick the Bruiser | |
|---|---|
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| Statistics | |
| Ring name(s) | Richard Afflis Dick Afflis Dick the Bruiser |
| Billed height | 6 ft 1 in |
| Billed weight | 261 lb. |
| Born | June 27, 1929 Delphi, Indiana |
| Died | November 10, 1991 |
| Billed from | Reno, Nevada |
| Trained by | Verne Gagne, Joe Pazandak |
William Fritz Afflis (June 27, 1929–November 10, 1991) was an American professional wrestler best known as Dick the Bruiser.
Born in Delphi, Indiana, Afflis grew up in Indianapolis and graduated from Shortridge High School. Afflis played varsity football at Purdue University and played for the Green Bay Packers in the early 1950s, as a lineman, before he became a pro wrestler.
Afflis would later become the boss of an Indiana wrestling territory, the World Wrestling Association and promoted himself as its champion. His WWA territory lasted from 1964 into the mid-late 1980s. He became something of a hero to the area. Indianapolis native, David Letterman, who would later name his television show's band "The World's Most Dangerous Band", a take-off of Dick the Bruiser's nickname, "The World's Most Dangerous Wrestler."
Dick the Bruiser is often remembered as one-half of a legendary tag team with The Crusher.
Afflis died of a heart attack after completing his morning workout in 1991. He was 62 years old.
Contents |
[edit] Championships and accomplishments
[edit] American Wrestling Association
- 1-Time AWA World Heavyweight Champion
- 5-Time AWA World Tag Team Champion (with The Crusher)
[edit] National Wrestling Alliance
- 3-Time NWA Missouri Heavyweight Champion
- 1-Time NWA United States Heavyweight Champion (Chicago version)
- 4-Time NWA United States Heavyweight Champion (Detroit version)
- 1-Time NWA United States Heavyweight Champion (Hawaii version)
- 1-Time NWA World Tag Team Champion (Chicago version) (with Gene Kiniski)
- 1-Time NWA International Tag Team Champion (Japan version) (with The Crusher)
[edit] World Wrestling Association (Los Angeles)
- 1-Time WWA World Heavyweight Champion
[edit] World Wrestling Association (Indianapolis)
- 11-Time WWA World Heavyweight Champion
- 14-Time WWA World Tag Team Champion (with The Crusher six times, Wilbur Snyder three times, and Bruno Sammartino, Bill Miller, Spike Huber, Jeff Van Kamp, and Bobby Colt one time with each}
[edit] World Championship Wrestling
- Member of WCW Hall of Fame (inducted in 1994)
