Edward John White (May 18, 1949 – August 26, 2005) was a Canadian

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

, best known as Sailor White and as Moondog King of The Moondogs when he joined the

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and va ...

(now

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...

) in the early 1980s. White won championships in Canada and around the globe. He also wrestled in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

as Big John Strongbo.

Professional wrestling career

After doing work on Great Lakes boats, White made his professional wrestling debut in

Pembroke, Ontario Pembroke is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario at the confluence of the Muskrat River and the Ottawa River in the Ottawa Valley. Pembroke is the location of the administrative headquarters of Renfrew County, though the city itself is pol ...

on May 22, 1972 against Michael Gango for promoter Larry Kasaboski. While in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Government of Canada, Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is ...

he was the Grand Prix tag team champion in 1976, International Heavyweight champion in 1982, International tag team champion twice in 1982–1984 and won the Canadian Television Championship in 1984. He was most known for his time in the WWF as Moondog King where he teamed with

Moondog Rex Randy Colley (May 2, 1950 – December 14, 2019) was an American professional wrestler better known as Moondog Rex. He was best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation as a part of The Moondogs, and as the original Smash of De ...

and won the

WWF Tag Team Championship The World Tag Team Championship was the original professional wrestling world tag team championship in the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) promotion, and the promotion's third tag team championship overall. Originally established by the then ...

(then WWWF) from

Tony Garea Anthony Gareljich (born 20 September 1946) is a New Zealand retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Tony Garea. He is best known for his appearances in the United States with the World Wide Wrestling Federation/World Wrestl ...

and

Rick Martel Richard Vigneault (born March 18, 1956) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler, trainer, and television presenter, better known by his ring name, Rick Martel. He is best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association, th ...

in Allentown, Pennsylvania in March 1981. After he was denied re-entry to the United States at the

Canada–United States border The border between Canada and the United States is the longest international border in the world. The terrestrial boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Can ...

, the WWWF replaced him with substitutes including

Stan Hansen John Stanley Hansen II (born August 29, 1949) is an American retired professional wrestler. Hansen is known for his stiff wrestling style, which he attributes to his poor eyesight. He is also known for his gimmick as a loud, violent cowboy who ...

Hulk Hogan Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 1 ...

Lou Albano Louis Vincent Albano (July 29, 1933 – October 14, 2009) was an Italian-American professional wrestler, manager and actor, who performed under the ring/stage name "Captain" Lou Albano. He was active as a professional wrestler from 1953 until 1 ...

and Sgt. Slaughter before selecting Moondog Spot as a permanent replacement. Gorilla Monsoon explained his absence stating King had been hit by a car. White claims the border dispute involved a rival wrestling promoter alerting the authorities to his criminal past whereas some say it was drug related. After the WWF, he worked in Montreal for

Lutte Internationale Lutte Internationale (; "International Wrestling") was a professional wrestling promotion based in Montreal from 1980 until 1987. The promotion was founded by Frank Valois, André the Giant and Gino Brito as Promotions Varoussac (VAlois, ROUSSim ...

teaming with

Gilles Poisson Gilles Poisson is a Canadian retired professional wrestler, known by his ring name Pierre or Gilles "The Fish" Poisson, who competed in North American regional promotions including the American Wrestling Association, International Wrestling, Gra ...

. He retired from wrestling in 1986. Then on October 22, 1990, he returned to a WWF house show as "Sailor Moondog White" where he lost to The British Bulldog at the Ottawa

Civic Center A civic center or civic centre is a prominent land area within a community that is constructed to be its focal point or center. It usually contains one or more dominant public buildings, which may also include a government building. Recently, th ...

. In 1991, he appeared a few appearances for

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Natio ...

in house shows where he fought against Brad Armstrong. His last match was a victory over Mike Winter. White ran twice for Canada's House of Commons. In April 2000, White in a St. John's West by-election for the Canadian Extreme Wrestling Party. His motto was "Parliament Needs a Moondog". On July 28, 2004, White ran for the House of Commons of Canada, representing the

Green Party of Canada The Green Party of Canada (french: Parti vert du Canada) is a federal political party in Canada, founded in 1983 with a focus on green politics. The Green Party is currently the fifth largest party in the House of Commons by seat count. It ...

in Bonavista—Exploits, but lost to

Scott Simms Scott Simms (born August 12, 1969) is a Canadian politician. He was the Liberal Member of Parliament for the Newfoundland and Labrador riding of Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame from 2004 until 2021. Early life Scott Simms was born on Aug ...

of the

Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada (french: Parti libéral du Canada, region=CA) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia' ...

. White received 367 votes to Simms's 15,970.

Illness and death

He suffered from

Bell's palsy Bell's palsy is a type of facial paralysis that results in a temporary inability to control the facial muscles on the affected side of the face. In most cases, the weakness is temporary and significantly improves over weeks. Symptoms can vary f ...

in 1999 and had two

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...

s by then. In 2002, he underwent triple bypass surgery and on December 2, 2004, his taxi crashed, breaking two bones in his neck and pinching a nerve in his spinal cord. He remained hospitalized on life support until his death on August 26, 2005. White was survived by his daughter, Rozlynn Mbarki, and grandchildren, Keygan Hewitt, Hudson, Owen, Ethan and Quinton. His biography ''Sailor White'' was written by Dave Elliott.

Championships and accomplishments

Eastern Sports Association The Eastern Sports Association, often referred to in the business simply as "the Maritimes," was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It ran during the spring and summer months from 1969 to 1976. History The ...

:* NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship ''(Halifax version)'' ( 1 time) *

Canadian International Heavyweight Championship The Canadian International Heavyweight Championship was the top singles title in the Montreal-based wrestling promotion Lutte Internationale Lutte Internationale (; "International Wrestling") was a professional wrestling promotion based in Mon ...

( 1 time) :*

Canadian International Tag Team Championship The Canadian International Tag Team Championship was the tag team title in the Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded ...

( 3 times) – with Serge Dumont (1),

(1), and Rick Valentine (1) *

( 1 time) – with

References

External links

Redemption of Sailor White
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moondog King 1949 births 2005 deaths 20th-century professional wrestlers Canadian male professional wrestlers Canadian sportsperson-politicians Green Party of Canada candidates in the 2004 Canadian federal election Independent candidates in the 2000 Canadian federal election Newfoundland and Labrador candidates for Member of Parliament Professional wrestlers from Newfoundland and Labrador Sportspeople from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador