Richard David Bassman (born November 20, 1961) is an American entrepreneur, producer,
talent agent
A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds jobs for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, and other professionals in various entertainment or s ...
, and author.
Early life
Rick Bassman was born in
Northridge, California
Northridge is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles. The community is home to California State University, Northridge, and the Northridge Fashion Center.
Originally named Zelzah by settlers in 1908, the ...
to Jewish parents. Bassman's mother, Felice, died when he was 13 years old. He attended
Chaminade College Preparatory School, in
Chatsworth, California
Chatsworth is a suburban neighborhood in the City of Los Angeles, California, in the San Fernando Valley.
The area was home to Native Americans, some of whom left caves containing rock art. Chatsworth was explored and colonized by the Spanis ...
. At age 16, Bassman was diagnosed with Stage 4 testicular cancer, which metastasized to both lungs, undergoing chemotherapy and surgeries from ages 16–19. He attended the
University of California at Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the Un ...
for one quarter, prior to dropping out to start his first business.
Career
Bassman began his career in
Santa Barbara, CA, forming Bassman Productions, which contained verticals within the music including ownership of The Library Restaurant & Nightclub in the Santa Barbara college town of
Isla Vista
Isla Vista is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Barbara County, California in the United States. As of 2020 census, the community had a population of 15,500. The majority of residents are college students at t ...
, Bassman Event Security, which provided security guard services on an exclusive basis for UCSB and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and Bassman Productions Events, which presented concerts with
The Go-Go's
The Go-Go's are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1978. Except for short periods when other musicians joined briefly, the band has had a relatively stable lineup consisting of Charlotte Caffey on lead guitar and keyboards, Beli ...
,
The Clash
The Clash were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave music, new wave moveme ...
,
The B-52s
The B-52's, also styled as The B-52s, are an American new wave band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1976. The original lineup consisted of Fred Schneider (vocals, percussion), Kate Pierson (vocals, keyboards, synth bass), Cindy Wilson (vocals, ...
,
The Talking Heads
Talking Heads were an American rock band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991.[Talkin ...](_blank)
and many others.
In 1985, Bassman moved to Denver, Colorado, where he went to work for the Vannoy Talent Agency, then the state's leading talent agency. Shortly thereafter, Vannoy closed its doors and Bassman formed Celebrity Services, to provide representation to the region's leading professional and Olympics athletes. Representing many players on the Denver Broncos, Denver Nuggets, Arizona Cardinals and Phoenix Suns franchises, Bassman created and managed NFL/Denver Broncos' marketing sensation "The Three Amigos," consisting of wide receivers Vance Johnson, Mark Jackson and Ricky Nattiel.
A Former
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
executive, Bassman won an
Emmy while at
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
for his work writing and producing Disney's the CBS Special, Flash Back. Bassman also formed and was Division Head of the "Larger Than Life" Division of industry-leader
CESD Talent Agency, representing
Lou Ferrigno
Louis Jude Ferrigno Sr. (; born November 9, 1951) is an American actor and retired professional bodybuilder. As a bodybuilder, Ferrigno won an IFBB Mr. America title and two consecutive IFBB Mr. Universe titles; and appeared in the documentar ...
,
Tito Ortiz
Jacob Christopher "Tito" Ortiz (; born January 23, 1975) is an American mixed martial artist and politician. He is currently signed to the Combate Americas promotion. Ortiz is best known for his stints with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (U ...
, and
Roddy Piper
Roderick George Toombs (April 17, 1954 – July 31, 2015), better known as "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, was a Canadian professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and actor.
In professional wrestling, Piper was best known to international audiences for his ...
, among many others. He is probably best known for his work in
Mixed Martial Arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on strike (attack), striking, grappling and ground f ...
,
in which he owned and operated Valor Fighting, managed many of the world's top Heavyweights, including Mark Coleman, Mark Kerr, Oleg Taktarov, Butterbean and Tank Abbott and consulted for industry leader
K-1
K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993, well known worldwide mainly for its heavyweight division fights and Grand Prix tournaments. In January 2012, K-1 Global Holdings Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong, acquired ...
, and in Professional Wrestling,
[http://www.fandango.com/rickbassman/filmography/p286301 ] where he founded, owned and operated
Ultimate Pro Wrestling
Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW) was a California-based independent pro wrestling company owned and operated by Rick Bassman, that operated from 1999 to 2007.
The company had working relationships with Pro Wrestling Zero1 and World Wrestling Entert ...
("UPW"), consulted for industry leader World Wrestling Entertainment, and discovered, trained and managed many top stars, such as
Sting
Sting may refer to:
* Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger
* Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself
Fictional characters and entities
* Sting (Middle-ear ...
,
The Ultimate Warrior
Warrior (born James Brian Hellwig; June 16, 1959 – April 8, 2014) was an American professional wrestler and bodybuilder. Best known by his ring name The Ultimate Warrior, he wrestled for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) from 1 ...
,
John Cena
John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American part-time professional wrestler, actor, and former rapper. He is currently signed to WWE. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is tied ...
,
The Miz
Michael Gregory Mizanin (born October 8, 1980) is an American professional wrestler, actor, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name The Miz.
Mizanin first gained fame ...
,
Chris Masters
Christopher Todd Mordetzky (born January 8, 1983) is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) under the ring name Chris Adonis as a member of Strictly Business. He is a former two-time National ...
,
Luther Reigns
Matthew Robert Wiese (born September 22, 1971) is an American former professional wrestler and actor. He is best known for his tenure in WWE, where he performed on its SmackDown brand under the ring name Luther Reigns.
Professional wrestling ca ...
,
Nathan Jones, and
Jon Heidenreich
Jon Heidenreich (born June 28, 1972) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known simply as Heidenreich. He is best known for his tenure with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) on its SmackDown brand where he was a one time Tag ...
.
Bassman is currently co-founder and partner in the Global Pro Wrestling Mission, which stages pro wrestling events in third world countries for the benefit of non-profits in those countries; and heads North American Business Development for MOOZ Entertainment, India's leading promoter, travelling there frequently and most recently with American rock bands
Korn
Korn (stylized as KoЯn, or occasionally KoRn) is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The band is notable for pioneering the nu metal genre and bringing it into the mainstream.
Originally formed in 1993 b ...
and
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff ...
.
Bassman was scheduled to release his autobiography, "Been There, Done That," in 2013, after turning down a deal with leading publisher Simon & Schuster, and successfully raising funds through Kickstarter to self-publish. In July 2013, Bassman underwent a series of epidural injections to relieve chronic pain resulting from his years of involvement in the Mixed Martial Arts and Professional Wrestling professions. The injections, improperly administered, led to three major back surgeries within a three months' period of time, followed by a series of life-threatening infections.
Personal
With a background in competitive
Tae Kwan Do and
Amateur Wrestling
Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced in collegiate, school, or other amateur level competitions. There are two international wrestling styles performed in the Olympic Games: freestyle and Greco-Roman. Both styles are under the ...
, Bassman occasionally competed as an in-ring performer, including a stint as the
UPW Lightweight champion and a headline match at Tokyo's
Korakuen Hall
is a famous sports arena in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan, which has hosted many notable boxing, professional wrestling, kickboxing, mixed martial arts and Lethwei matches.
History
On April 16, 1962, the Korakuen Hall was officially opened with a ...
against the legendary
Shinya Hashimoto
was a Japanese professional wrestler, promoter and actor. Along with Masahiro Chono and Keiji Mutoh, Hashimoto was dubbed one of the "Three Musketeers" that began competing in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in the mid-1980s and dominated the prom ...
for leading Japanese Pro Wrestling Company, Zero-One.
Bassman headlined UPW's 5th Anniversary Show at The Grove of Anaheim, defeating Pete Doyle for control of the company. Ken Shamrock, Ivory, Superfly Jimmy Snuka, Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash all wrestled on this show.
Bassman had previously worked in professional wrestling as manager Rick Golden for the
Universal Wrestling Federation in 1991.
Bassman is active in advocacy of the
bully breeds and after an 18-month stint in
Big Bear City, California
Big Bear City is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in San Bernardino County, California, United States along the east shore of Big Bear Lake and surrounded by the San Bernardino National Forest. It is northeast of the city of San ...
, where he moved to write his autobiography, now lives in San Clemente, California, with his Staffordshire Terriers, Ramone and GoGo.
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bassman, Rick
Film producers from California
Living people
1961 births
People from Northridge, Los Angeles
People from San Clemente, California
Professional wrestling managers and valets
Jewish American writers
Chaminade College Preparatory School (California) alumni
21st-century American Jews