John Elmo Harris (September 12, 1952 – April 19, 2005) was an American professional wrestler and actor who became known under his ring name Silo Sam under 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 ...

and for a brief stint with the

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

he was known as Trapper Jon.

Life and career

Professional wrestling

Harris played basketball before his wrestling career. In 1984, he started wrestling professionally and first appeared under the ring name ''"Big John Harris"'' in

Jerry Jarrett Jerry Winston Jarrett (September 4, 1942 – February 14, 2023) was an American businessman, professional wrestling promoter, and professional wrestler. Along with his long-term business partner Jerry Lawler, he was a key figure in the history ...

's Memphis-based ''CWA''. In 1985, he worked as ''"Little John"'' for

Fritz Von Erich Jack Barton Adkisson Sr. (August 16, 1929 – September 10, 1997), better known by his ring name Fritz Von Erich, was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, wrestling promoter, and the patriarch of the Von Erich family. He was ...

World Class Championship Wrestling World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), later known as the World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA), was an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by ...

and acted as the bodyguard for

The Fantastics The Fantastics were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers who worked together extensively between 1984 and 2007. At times, Bobby Fulton would team up with his brother Jackie Fulton under the same name. ...

(

Bobby Fulton James Hines (born October 4, 1960) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Bobby Fulton. He was one-half of the tag team the Fantastics with Tommy Rogers. Professional wrestling career James Hines started wr ...

and Tommy Rogers). He would guide ''The Fantastics'' to winning the tag team titles in March 1987. In 1986, he had a short appearance for the

as Silo Sam. Because of his large size, he primarily wrestled in handicap matches. He was interviewed by AWA's Ken Rensick and replied to his questions with "Yup" every time. At one point in June 1987, he made an appearance in

as ''Trapper John'' and wrestled in a dark match, but was never used again. He remained under the WWF's payroll for about a year, unused and never brought into television tapings. He retired from professional wrestling by 1990.

Acting

During the midst of his wrestling career, Harris played minor roles in several films, including ''

Tell Me a Riddle Tell Me a Riddle is a collection of short fiction by Tillie Olsen first published by J. B. Lippincott & Co. in 1961. The volume is composed of three short stories and a novella, the title piece “Tell Me a Riddle.” “Tell Me a Riddle” w ...

'' (1980), '' Blood Circus'' (1985) and ''

Pee-wee's Big Adventure ''Pee-wee's Big Adventure'' is a 1985 American adventure comedy film directed by Tim Burton in his feature-film directing debut. The film stars Paul Reubens as Pee-wee Herman, along with Elizabeth Daily, Mark Holton, Diane Salinger and Judd O ...

'' (1985), appearing in the latter as Andy, a jealous boyfriend who chases Pee-wee.

Later life

After leaving the wrestling life in 1990, he went back to every day life, he worked as a welder at some point in Calvert County Maryland. He was also said to have mainly been a truck driver, and was an owner of several small businesses in his post wrestling and acting life.

Personal life

Harris married Rayola Johnson in the mid-'80s, and divorced a few years later in Calvert County, Maryland.

Death

Harris died at the age of 52 in Manatee County, Florida on April 19, 2005.

Filmography

References

External links

Online World of Wrestling entryCagematch.net entrywrestlingdata.com entry
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Silo Sam 1952 births 2005 deaths American male professional wrestlers