Lord James "Tally-Ho" Blears (born James Ranicar Blears, 13 August 1923 – 3 March 2016) was a British-American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...

, ring announcer, promoter,

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

mariner A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. While the term ''sailor' ...

, and

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suita ...

personality.

Early life

Blears was born in

Tyldesley Tyldesley () is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan in Greater Manchester, England. Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county of Lancashire, it is north of Chat Moss near the foothills of the Wes ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, England in the United Kingdom on 13 August 1923. An accomplished swimmer in school, he was selected for the British swimming team for the 1940 Summer Olympics but was unable to compete due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Merchant navy career

Blears enlisted in the Merchant Navy in 1940 during

at the age of 17. With his knowledge of

Morse code Morse code is a telecommunications method which Character encoding, encodes Written language, text characters as standardized sequences of two different signal durations, called ''dots'' and ''dashes'', or ''dits'' and ''dahs''. Morse code i ...

he became a radio officer. Whilst serving as second wireless operator on board the , a Dutch merchant ship, his ship was

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

ed by the on 26 March 1944 during a voyage from

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Australia to

Colombo Colombo, ( ; , ; , ), is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. The Colombo metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 within the municipal limits. It is the ...

Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

(now

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

). The survivors were taken prisoner by the Japanese and the majority were summarily executed by beheading. Blears managed to escape by leaping into the water and found his way into a lifeboat, where he and four other survivors began attempting to sail to Ceylon until the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

liberty ship Liberty ships were a ship class, class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Although British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost cons ...

SS ''James O. Wilder'' retrieved them three days later. Blears was given a can of

peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and Agriculture, cultivated in China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and the glossy-skinned, non-fuzzy varieties called necta ...

es by his rescuers and celebrated every year thereafter on March 29 by eating a can of peaches.

Professional wrestling career

Blears learned to wrestle at the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...

, debuting in 1940 at the age of 17. He wrestled sporadically around the world during his wartime service in the merchant navy. In 1946, he relocated to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

in the United States, where he shared an apartment on Amsterdam Avenue with fellow wrestlers

Stu Hart Stewart Edward Hart (May 3, 1915 – October 16, 2003) was a Canadian sport wrestling, amateur and professional wrestling, professional wrestler, wrestling Booker (professional wrestling), booker, professional wrestling promotion, promoter, and ...

and Sandor Kovacs. Early in his United States career, Blears wrestled as "Jan Blears". In the early 1950s, Blears developed the villainous character of "Lord Blears", a snooty British aristocrat who wore a cape and

monocle A monocle is a type of corrective lens used to correct or enhance the visual perception in only one eye. It consists of a circular lens placed in front of the eye and held in place by the eye socket itself. Often, to avoid losing the monoc ...

and carried a cane. He was managed by the

tuxedo Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and North American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal ...

-wearing Captain Leslie Holmes, a friend of Blears' from his schooldays who had also traveled to the United States. In the early 1950s, Blears relocated to California. In 1952, he formed a tag team with Lord Athol Layton. Managed by Holmes, in 1953, they won the NWA World Tag Team Championship (Chicago version) in the Chicago-based Fred Kohler Enterprises. Blears also wrestled for Worldwide Wrestling Associates, where he held the WWA International Television Tag Team Championship eight times between 1954 and 1957, and for NWA San Francisco, where he held the NWA Pacific Coast Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) on two occasions in 1953 and 1954 with Layton and the NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) four times between 1955 and 1957. In 1957, Blears wrestled in Australia, unsuccessfully challenging

Lou Thesz Aloysius Martin Thesz (April 24, 1916 – April 28, 2002), known by the ring name Lou Thesz, was an American professional wrestler and wrestling coach. Considered to be one of the last true shooters (legitimate wrestlers) in professional w ...

for the

NWA World Heavyweight Championship The NWA World's Heavyweight Championship is a men's professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship#World championships, world heavyweight championship owned and promoted by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), an American professiona ...

on several occasions. In the late 1950s, Blears relocated to Hawaii after developing a fondness for the state during a tour, where he built his career in the

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

-based promotion

50th State Big Time Wrestling 50th State Big Time Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Hawaii or Mid-Pacific Promotions) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii in the United States that promoted professional wrestling matches throughout Haw ...

. Blears had a single reign as NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Champion, defeating King Curtis Iaukea on 25 October 1961. He lost the

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

to the Masked Executioner on 13 December 1961. Blears also held the NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship numerous times between 1955 and 1964. At the invitation of

Rikidōzan (born Kim Sin-rak; ; November 14, 1924 – December 15, 1963), better known as Rikidōzan (), was a Korean-born Japanese wrestler who competed in sumo and professional wrestling. He was known as The Father of Puroresu (professional wrestling ...

, Blears began wrestling in Japan in the 1950s. After the death of Rikidōzan in 1963, Giant Baba – the owner of

All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW/AJP) or simply All Japan is a Puroresu, Japanese professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion founded on October 21, 1972, by Giant Baba after he left the Japanese Wrestling Association to create his own promotion. Ma ...

– asked him to identify foreign wrestlers to perform for AJPW. Blears arranged for wrestlers such as

Davey Boy Smith David Smith (27 November 1962 – 18 May 2002) was an English professional wrestler best known for his appearances in the United States with the World Wrestling Federation under the ring names Davey Boy Smith and The British Bulldog. Smith ...

, Don Leo Jonathan and Dynamite Kid to tour Japan. From 1973 to 2001, Blears made appearances with AJPW as an on-screen authority figure under the title of chairman of the Pacific Wrestling Federation. Blears stopped wrestling full-time in 1965, transitioning to a commentator for the ''Hawaiian Championship Wrestling'' broadcast and the booker for the promotion. In the 1980s, Blears provided commentary for the

American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo. The promotion was born out of the Minneapolis ...

's broadcasts on

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

. At the AWA supercard "Super Sunday" on April 24, 1983, Blears served as guest referee for a high-profile title bout between

Hulk Hogan Terry Gene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as a brand ambassador. Known for his flamboyance and massive physiq ...

and

AWA World Heavyweight Champion The AWA World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling professional wrestling championship#World championships, world heavyweight championship and the highest ranked championship in the defunct American Wrestling Association (AWA). A ...

Nick Bockwinkel that saw Bockwinkel retain via a Dusty finish.

Acting career

Blears made his first acting appearance in 1950, playing a dramatized version of himself in an episode of '' The Buster Keaton Show''. In 1966, Blears appeared in the surfing documentary ''

The Endless Summer ''The Endless Summer'' is a 1966 American surf movie, surf documentary film directed, produced, edited and narrated by Bruce Brown (director), Bruce Brown. The film follows surfers Mike Hynson and Robert August on a surfing trip around the wor ...

'', playing himself. He played himself once more in the 1974 professional wrestling movie '' The Wrestler''. In 1987, he appeared in the surfing movie '' North Shore''. Blears appeared in an episode of '' Hawaii Five-O'' in 1977 and in episodes of '' Magnum, P.I.'' filmed in Hawaii in 1982 and 1983.

Personal life

Blears was born in

in the United Kingdom, but moved to the United States in the mid-1940s and ultimately successfully applied for United States citizenship. While living in Chicago, Blears met Leonora "Lee" Adelaina (died 2007), whom he would ultimately marry. The couple had four children: two sons, James Jr. ("Jimmy") (1948–2011) and Clinton, and two daughters, Laura (born 1951) and Carol. All four rose to prominence as professional surfers. Blears legally changed his name to "Lord Blears". Blears was an avid fan of surfing. He served as commentator and master of ceremonies for many surfing events in Hawaii, earning him the title, "the voice of Hawaiian surfing".

Death

Blears declined hip surgery and spent many years bedridden in a private hospital in Honolulu until his death. His friends, including other wrestlers such as Dick Beyer, visited him and encouraged Blears to have his hips operated on but Blears did not want the surgery. Blears's wife Lenora predeceased him in 2007. His eldest child, Jimmy, died in 2011. Blears died on 3 March 2016 in the Kuakini Medical Center in Honolulu at the age of 92.

Filmography

Film

Television

Championships and accomplishments

** NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Championship (1 time) ** NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship (9 times) – with

Gene Kiniski Eugene Nicholas Kiniski (November 23, 1928 – April 14, 2010) was a Canadian athlete who played football for the Edmonton Eskimos and then became a three-time professional wrestling world heavyweight champion. "Canada's Greatest Athlete", as he ...

(1 time), Joe Blanchard (2 times), Jerry Gordet (1 time), Herb Freeman (1 time), and Neff Maiava (4 times) * Fred Kohler Enterprises ** NWA World Tag Team Championship (Chicago version) (1 time) – with Lord Athol Layton * NWA San Francisco **NWA Pacific Coast Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) (2 times) – with Lord Athol Layton ** NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) (4 times) – with Gene Kiniski (3 times) and Ben Sharpe (1 time) * Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame **Class of 2019 * Worldwide Wrestling Associates ** WWA International Television Tag Team Championship (8 times) – with Lord Athol Layton (2 times), Joe Pazandak (1 time), Sandor Kovacs (1 time), Lord Leslie Carlton (2 times), Henry Lenz (1 time), and Nick Bockwinkel (1 time)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Blears, Lord James 1923 births 2016 deaths 20th-century American male actors 20th-century English male actors 20th-century male professional wrestlers 50th State Big Time Wrestling American male professional wrestlers American surfers British Merchant Navy personnel of World War II English surfers English emigrants to the United States English male professional wrestlers English male swimmers Male actors from Lancashire People from Honolulu Sportspeople from Tyldesley Professional wrestlers from Hawaii Professional wrestling announcers Professional wrestling promoters Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum Surfing in Hawaii 20th-century English sportsmen