Buzz Tyler (November 4, 1948 – November 11, 2021) was an American professional wrestler who competed in North American regional promotions during the 1970s and 1980s including the
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc.
Founded in 1948, the NWA began as a governing body for a ...
, most notably teaming with
J. J. Dillon
James Morrison (born June 26, 1942) is an American retired professional wrestler and manager, better known by his ring name, J. J. Dillon.
Professional wrestling career
J. J. Dillon had an extensive wrestling career. He broke into wrestling at th ...
and
"Bulldog" Bob Brown in
NWA Central States
Heart of America Sports Attractions, also known as the Midwest Wrestling Association, Central States Wrestling and the World Wrestling Alliance, was an American professional wrestling promotion that ran shows mainly in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska ...
during the early-1980s.
Professional wrestling career
Early career
Tyler began wrestling for
NWA Mid-America
NWA Mid-America was a professional wrestling promotion territory under the umbrella of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) that promoted shows in Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama from the 1940s until 1981. The company was founded in the 1940s by ...
during the late 1970s eventually being chosen by NWA Mid-America Tag Team Champion
Gypsy Joe
Gilberto Meléndez (December 2, 1933 – June 15, 2016) was a Puerto Rican professional wrestler better known under the ring name Gypsy Joe. While attaining much of his United States success in the Tennessee area, Meléndez also gained a followi ...
in February 1978 to replace
Dutch Mantell who had previously forfeited his half of the title. After losing the titles to
George Gulas &
Tojo Yamamoto
Harold Watanabe (January 6, 1927 – February 19, 1992) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Tojo Yamamoto.
Early life
Watanabe was born in Hawaii in 1927 to a Japanese father and an American mother. He serve ...
two months later, he would compete for NWA Central States and later wrestled
Dewey Robertson in tag team matches with
Matt Borne
Matthew Wade Osborne (July 27, 1957 – June 28, 2013), known professionally as Matt Borne, was an American professional wrestler. Osborne was a second generation wrestler, the son of Tony Borne, and is best known as being the first wrestler to ...
as well as several 6-man tag team matches against
Kerry Brown &
Tommy Sharp
Tommy may refer to:
People
* Tommy (given name)
* Tommy Atkins, or just Tommy, a slang term for a common soldier in the British Army
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Tommy'' (1931 film), a Soviet drama film
* ''Tommy'' (1975 f ...
and faced
Dick the Bruiser
William Fritz Afflis (June 27, 1929 – November 10, 1991) was an American professional wrestler, promoter, and former NFL player, better known by his ring name, Dick the Bruiser. During his NFL days he played four seasons with the Green Bay Pac ...
in an interpromotional event between the NWA and the WWF on November 7, 1980.
He later lost to
Terry Taylor in a match for the vacant NWA Central States Television Championship in January 1981 shortly before winning the promotion's heavyweight championship from "Bulldog" Bob Brown on April 1. After three months, Tyler lost the title to
Bob Sweetan
Robert Carson (born Robert Beier, July 4, 1940 – February 10, 2017), better known by his ring name Bob Sweetan, was a Canadian professional wrestler and convicted sex offender. Sweetan was nicknamed "Bruiser" and "Mr. Piledriver", the latter i ...
on July 23, 1981.
Teaming with J. J. Dillon several weeks later, he and Dillon would defeat Bob Sweetan &
Terry Gibbs
Terry Gibbs (born Julius Gubenko; October 13, 1924) is an American jazz vibraphonist and band leader.
He has performed or recorded with Tommy Dorsey, Chubby Jackson,Theroux, Gary"Gibbs, Terry".''Grove Music Online''. Oxford University Press. R ...
for the NWA Central States Tag Team Titles on August 27, although they were forced to vacate within two months. The following month, he faced Terry Gibbs and Bob Sweetan in singles matches and later lost to Sweetan and Bob Brown in a tag team match with
Gene Lewis
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "... Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ...
on September 20, 1981. He also teamed with
Steve Sybert in the NWA North American Tag Team Championship Tournament and was eliminated in the opening rounds by
Dusty Rhodes
Virgil Riley Runnels Jr. (October 11, 1945 – June 11, 2015), better known as "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, was an American professional wrestler, booker, and trainer who most notably worked for the National Wrestling Alliance, Jim Crocke ...
&
Bugsy McGraw
Michael Davis (born November 1, 1945), best known as Bugsy McGraw, is a retired American professional wrestler. He also wrestled under the name The Skull. He is not to be confused with the other wrestler named Mike Davis. McGraw is known for hi ...
in late 1981.
Facing NWA World Heavyweight Champion
"Nature Boy" Ric Flair in several matches during 1982, he later began teaming with Bob Brown defeating Dewey Robertson and
Hercules Hernandez
Raymond Constantine Fernandez (May 7, 1956 – March 6, 2004) was an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Hercules Hernandez, or simply Hercules.
Fernandez began his career in 1979, primarily wrestling in Florida and ...
for the Tag Team titles on September 20, 1982. Although losing the titles to
Yasu Fuji &
Kim Duk on March 3, he and Brown would regain the titles in a championship tournament on May 26. He and Brown also won the NWA International Tag Team Championship from
Timothy Flowers &
Terry Adonis in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...
on May 30, 1983.
Eliminated by
Jerry Blackwell during the opening rounds of the NWA Missouri Heavyweight Championship Tournament on July 15, he and Brown would feud with "The Sheiks" (
Roger Kirby & Abdullah the Great) over the tag team titles throughout the year before Brown was injured by 666 during a match in December 1983 and forced to vacate the titles.
Regaining the title from
Super Destroyer on October 20, he would later over the title with
Tully Blanchard,
"Crazy" Luke Graham and
Ted Oates before losing the title to
Hacksaw Higgins on October 6, 1983. During his last year in the promotion, he and Luke Graham especially would face each other in a series of steel cage matches eventually losing to Graham in
Kansas City, Missouri on May 10, 1984.
He would later defeat former tag team partner Gypsy Joe for the NWA Central States Television title on September 22, 1984 before losing the title a month later to
Marty Jannetty.
Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling
Moving on to the Mid-Atlantic territory, Tyler had a brief yet violent feud with
Wahoo McDaniel
Edward Hugh McDaniel (June 19, 1938 – April 18, 2002) was an American Choctaw-Chickasaw professional American football player and professional wrestler better known by his ring name Wahoo McDaniel. He is notable for having held the NWA United ...
before siding with
The Assassin in his feud with
Paul Jones' Army later teaming with The Assassin at
Starrcade '84 to defeat "he Zambuie Express" (
Elijah Akeem and
Kareem Muhammad) with manager
Paul Jones in an Elimination Tag Team match on November 2, 1984.
With The Assassin and
Charlie Brown
Charles "Charlie" Brown is the principal character of the comic strip '' Peanuts'', syndicated in daily and Sunday newspapers in numerous countries all over the world. Depicted as a " lovable loser," Charlie Brown is one of the great America ...
, he would defeat
Superstar Billy Graham
Eldridge Wayne Coleman (born June 7, 1943), better known by his ring name "Superstar" Billy Graham, is an American former professional wrestler. He gained recognition for his tenure as the WWWF Heavyweight Champion in 1977–1978. He is a three ...
, J. J. Dillon and Paul Jones in a 6-man tag team match on January 6 and later faced Graham in both tag team and 6-man tag team matches later that month.
Defeating
Ron Bass Ron is a shortening of the name Ronald.
Ron or RON may also refer to:
Arts and media
* Big Ron (''EastEnders''), a TV character
* Ron (''King of Fighters''), a video game character
*Ron Douglas, the protagonist in '' Lucky Stiff'' played by Joe ...
for the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship on March 16, he was scheduled to defend his title on
Jim Crockett's ''Championship Wrestling from Georgia'' in its first episode since
Black Saturday, however, the main event was canceled after an accident caused the middle ring rope to snap during a match between
Black Bart and
Ron Rossi on April 6, 1985.
Months later, he would team with
"Ragin' Bull" Manny Fernandez and
Sam Houston
Samuel Houston (, ; March 2, 1793 – July 26, 1863) was an American general and statesman who played an important role in the Texas Revolution. He served as the first and third president of the Republic of Texas and was one of the first two i ...
to defeat
Abdullah the Butcher
Lawrence Robert Shreve (born January 11, 1941), better known by the ring name Abdullah the Butcher, is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. He has a reputation for being involved in some of the most violent and bloody hardcore wrestling mat ...
,
The Barbarian and Superstar Billy Graham at
The Great American Bash '85 on July 6 and later teamed with Fernandez and Houston to defeat
Ivan Koloff
Oreal Donald Perras (August 25, 1942 – February 18, 2017) was a Canadian professional wrestler, better known by the ring name "The Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff. He was the third wrestler to hold the WWWF Championship.
Early life
Perras was bo ...
's
The Russian Team for the NWA Mid-Atlantic Six-Man Tag Team Championship in July 1985 and successfully defended the titles against before losing the titles back to Russian Team later that year.
He would later forfeit the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship after leaving the promotion in July 1985, however he refused to return the title claiming then
booker Dusty Rhodes withheld money owed to him, and a third version of the belt was eventually used.
Championships and accomplishments
*
Central States Wrestling
**
NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship that served as the main title for the National Wrestling Alliance promotion, NWA Central-States Championship Wrestling. For most of its existence, however, t ...
(
4 times
"4 Times" (stylized as "4 TIMES") is the 50th single by pop/ R&B singer Koda Kumi. It was released on August 17, 2011 and debuted at No. 6, remaining on the Oricon charts for nine consecutive weeks. In commemoration of it being the fiftieth singl ...
)
**
NWA Central States Tag Team Championship
The NWA Central States Tag Team Championship was the primary tag team championship for the Heart of America Sports Attractions / Central States Wrestling promotion from 1979 until the promotion ceased to exist in 1988. The Central States Tag Team ...
(
4 times
"4 Times" (stylized as "4 TIMES") is the 50th single by pop/ R&B singer Koda Kumi. It was released on August 17, 2011 and debuted at No. 6, remaining on the Oricon charts for nine consecutive weeks. In commemoration of it being the fiftieth singl ...
) with
J. J. Dillon
James Morrison (born June 26, 1942) is an American retired professional wrestler and manager, better known by his ring name, J. J. Dillon.
Professional wrestling career
J. J. Dillon had an extensive wrestling career. He broke into wrestling at th ...
(1 time) and
Bob Brown
Robert James Brown (born 27 December 1944) is a former Australian politician, medical doctor and environmentalist. He was a senator and the parliamentary leader of the Australian Greens. Brown was elected to the Australian Senate on the Tasm ...
(3 times)
**
NWA Central States Television Championship (
1 time)
*Eastern Wrestling Association
**EWA United States International Championship (1 time)
*
Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling
Jim Crockett Promotions Inc. is a family-owned professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, restarted by Jim Crockett's son and Jim Crockett Jr's brother, David Crockett. Founded in 1931, the promo ...
**
NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship promoted in Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP), a territory-promotion governed by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). Title history
On October 13, 1970, the ch ...
(
1 time)
*
NWA All-Star Wrestling
NWA All Star Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Vancouver) is a Canadian professional wrestling promotion, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. All-Star Wrestling folded in 1989 but returned in 2007 no longer affiliated with the National Wr ...
**
NWA International Tag Team Championship ''(Vancouver version)'' (
1 time) - with Bob Brown
*
NWA Mid-America
NWA Mid-America was a professional wrestling promotion territory under the umbrella of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) that promoted shows in Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama from the 1940s until 1981. The company was founded in the 1940s by ...
**
NWA Mid-America Tag Team Championship (
1 time) - with
Gypsy Joe
Gilberto Meléndez (December 2, 1933 – June 15, 2016) was a Puerto Rican professional wrestler better known under the ring name Gypsy Joe. While attaining much of his United States success in the Tennessee area, Meléndez also gained a followi ...
*
International Wrestling Association
**
IWA World Tag Team Championship
IWA World Tag Team Championship is a Tag Team Championship defended in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico ...
(
1 time) - with Rip Tyler
*Southern Championship Wrestling
**SCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tyler, Buzz
1948 births
2021 deaths
American male professional wrestlers
People from Spartanburg, South Carolina
Professional wrestlers from South Carolina
20th-century professional wrestlers
NWF World Tag Team Champions