Bruiser Brody
Bruiser Brody | |
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West Texas State University[1] | |
Spouse(s) |
|
Children | 1 |
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) |
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Billed height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)[1] |
Billed weight | 300 lb (136 kg)[1] |
Billed from | Santa Fe, New Mexico[2] |
Trained by | Fritz Von Erich |
Debut | 1973[2] |
Frank Donald Goodish (June 18, 1946 – July 17, 1988) was an American professional wrestler who earned his greatest fame under the ring name Bruiser Brody. He also worked as King Kong Brody, the Masked Marauder, and Red River Jack. Over the years Brody became synonymous with the hardcore wrestling brawling style that often saw one or more of the participants bleeding by the time the match was over. In his prime he worked as a "special attraction" wrestler in North America, making select appearances for various promotions such as World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF), Central States Wrestling (CSW), Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF), and the American Wrestling Association (AWA) among other events. He worked regularly in Japan for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW).
Behind the scenes Brody was very protective of his "in-ring" image, hardly ever agreeing to lose matches and building a reputation of being volatile; he would on occasion intentionally hit or hurt opponents during a match contrary to the pre-determined nature of professional wrestling. His in-ring work and wrestling persona earned him an induction in the professional wrestling hall of fame, St. Louis Wrestling Hall of Fame, Southern Wrestling Hall of Fame, Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame and the WWE Hall of Fame.
Brody died in 1988 from stab wounds suffered backstage in a shower during a wrestling event in Puerto Rico. The killer was José González, better known as Invader 1. A jury acquitted González of murder, ruling that González killed Brody in self-defense. Key witnesses to the killing did not give testimony at González' trial due to their summonses only being received after the trial had concluded.[3]
Early life
Goodish was an All-State football and basketball player at Warren High School, Michigan, and played football at West Texas A&M University (then known as West Texas State) and with four teams over three seasons in the Texas Football League and Continental Football League.[4] He stood 6 feet 4 inches tall and weighed 251 lbs.[4]
Professional wrestling career
In 1985, he had a very short stint with
In Florida he beat
Personal life
Prior to his wrestling career, Goodish worked as a sportswriter in San Antonio, Texas. Goodish was married on June 4, 1968, to Nola Marie Neece;[6] the marriage ended in divorce on October 12, 1970.[7] Goodish's second wife, New Zealander Barbara Smith, remained with him until his death in 1988. She has stated that while his wrestling persona was known for brutality and being uncontrollable, Brody was the complete opposite with his family. Brody and Smith lived in Texas. Together they had a son named Geoffrey Dean, born November 7, 1980.[8]
Death
On July 16, 1988, Brody was in the locker room before his scheduled match with
Due to the heavy traffic outdoors and large crowd in the stadium it took paramedics almost an hour to reach Brody. When the paramedics arrived, Atlas helped carry Brody downstairs to the waiting ambulance as, due to Brody's size, paramedics were unable to lift him. He later died from his stab wounds. González claimed self-defense and testified in his own defense at trial in 1989. The prosecution witnesses living outside of Puerto Rico claimed they had not received their summons until after the trial had ended. The case was not dismissed for their absence, nor were they charged with contempt of the Puerto Rico court. González was acquitted of murder. The prosecution did not appeal.
Fellow wrestlers Dutch Mantel and Tony Atlas have said in a lengthy interview featured in Vice documentary series Dark Side of the Ring season 1 episode 3 entitled "The killing of Bruiser Brody" that in the 1970s, when Brody and González had wrestled each other, Brody had wrestled very roughly and beat up González. S. D. Jones claims after one such match González said to him "one day I am gonna kill that man".[3] Tony Atlas also said the local police were uninformed, and thought the killer was an angry wrestling fan gone berserk. Atlas also claims that he was the only witness to point out González to the authorities, so they could arrest him. In the same documentary, according to Atlas, Bruiser Brody was about to gain ownership in the wrestling company, even promising him "you are going to see a lot of changes", implying that González might eventually be fired. Atlas recalls González, Víctor Quiñones, and Carlos Colón were having an urgent meeting in the locker room only moments prior to the tragic events, while Mantel said the meeting seemed "strange". Shortly after, González called out Brody in the shower — "can I talk to you for a minute please" — then the stabbing ensued. Ultimately, the murder weapon has never been found, González aka Invader was acquitted in Puerto Rico for acting under self-defense, and Bruiser Brody's widow Barbara Goodish told the reporters "I know the attacker did it, from what I hear about it the whole court case was a sham". Vice producers for Dark Side of the Ring say they contacted González and Colón, but that both "declined to be interviewed".[11]
Championships and accomplishments
- All Japan Pro Wrestling
- NWA International Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[12]
- PWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Stan Hansen
- World's Strongest Tag Determination League (1981) – with Jimmy Snuka
- World's Strongest Tag Determination League (1983) – with Stan Hansen
- January 3 Korakuen Hall Heavyweight Battle Royal (1979)[13]
- Champion Carnival Fighting Spirit Award (1981)[14]
- World's Strongest Tag Determined League Exciting Award (1982) – with Stan Hansen[15]
- Cauliflower Alley Club
- Posthumous Award (2015)[16]
- Central States Wrestling
- Championship Wrestling from Florida
- George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Frank Gotch Award (2018)[20]
- National Wrestling Federation
- NWF International Championship (1 time)[21]
- NWA Big Time Wrestling/World Class Wrestling Association
- NWA Tri-State
- 2 time) – with Stan Hansen[34]
- Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- Editor's Award (1988) tied with Adrian Adonis[36]
- Ranked No. 14 of the 500 top wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003
- Southwest Championship Wrestling
- St. Louis Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Southern Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Class of 2013
- Tokyo Sports
- Western States Sports
- World Championship Wrestling (Australia)
- World Wrestling Association
- 1 time)[42]
- WWE
- WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2019) Legacy Inductee
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Best Brawler (1980–1984, 1987, 1988)
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 1996)
See also
- List of premature professional wrestling deaths
- "The Killing of Bruiser Brody"
- The Iron Claw (film) (2023 film, in which Brody is depicted by Actor Cazzey Louis Cereghino)
- "The Ballad of Bruiser Brody" (2024 BBC series, part of their Sport's Strangest Crimes series)[43]
References
- ^ a b c "Bruiser Brody". WWE. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7566-4190-0.
- ^ a b Johnson, Paul. "How wrestling icon Bruiser Brody was killed in Puerto Rico by fellow wrestler". news.com.au. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
- ^ a b "Frank Goodish". Retrieved July 11, 2023.
- ^ a b "Bruiser Brody". WWE. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
- ^ "Free Family Tree, Genealogy and Family History - MyHeritage". www.familytreelegends.com.
- ^ "Free Family Tree, Genealogy and Family History - MyHeritage". www.familytreelegends.com.
- ^ "Free Family Tree, Genealogy and Family History - MyHeritage". www.familytreelegends.com.
- ^ Foley, Mick. Have A Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks (p.115)
- ISBN 978-0-9844090-2-0.
- ^ "The Killing of Bruiser Brody". Dark Side of the Ring. Season 1. Episode 3.
- ^ "NWA International Heavyweight Title history". wrestling-titles.com.
- ^ "Misc. All Japan Events". www.prowrestlinghistory.com.
- ^ "Champion Carnival 1981". www.purolove.com. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
- ^ "Real World Tag League 1982". www.purolove.com. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
- ^ Johnson, Steve (April 5, 2015). "Many years of hard work pay off for Dennis Brent with CAC's historian award". Slam Wrestling. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
- ^ "NWA Central States Heavyweight Title history". wrestling-titles.com.
- ^ "NWA Central States Tag Team Title history". wrestling-titles.com.
- ^ "NWA Florida Heavyweight Title history". wrestling-titles.com.
- ^ Keller, Wade (March 26, 2018). "National Wrestling Hall of Fame announced Class of 2018, details on HOF Induction Weekend including Ross, Booker T, Animal". PWTorch.com. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
- ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ^ "NWA United States Heavyweight Title (1967-1968/05) - American Heavyweight Title (1968/05-1986/02)". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
- ISBN 978-0-9698161-5-7.
- ^ "N.W.A. American Tag Team Title". Wrestling-Titles.com. Retrieved January 19, 2020.
- ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ^ "Texas Brass Knucks Title [East Texas]". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
- ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ^ "NWA Texas Heavyweight Title". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
- ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ^ "NWA Texas Tag Team Title [E. Texas]". wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
- ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ^ "World Class Television Title". Wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
- ^ NWA United States Tag Team Title (Tri-State version) history[permanent dead link] At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ Caldwell, James (November 26, 2013). "News: Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame announces 2014 HOF class". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved November 26, 2013.
- ^ "PWI Awards". Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Kappa Publishing Group. Archived from the original on January 21, 2016. Retrieved June 8, 2017.
- ^ SCW Southwest Brass Knuckles Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ SCW World Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ 東京スポーツ プロレス大賞. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). Retrieved January 20, 2014.
- ^ NWA Western States Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ "World Brass Knuckles Title (Australia)". Wrestling-Titles.com.
- ^ WWA World Heavyweight Title (Indianapolis) history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ "Sport's Strangest Crimes returns to BBC Sounds with comedian Adam Hills on The Ballad of Bruiser Brody". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
External links
- Bruiser Brody on WWE.com
- Mid-South Wrestling profile
- Bruiser Brody's profile at Cagematch.net , Wrestlingdata.com , Internet Wrestling Database
- Frank Goodish on Pro Football Archives