Reggie Parks

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Reggie Parks
Born(1934-08-27)August 27, 1934
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
DiedOctober 7, 2021(2021-10-07) (aged 87)
Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Cause of deathCOVID-19
Professional wrestling career
Trained byStu Hart
DebutDecember 26, 1955
Retired1982

Reggie Parks (born Reginald David Parko; August 27, 1934 – October 7, 2021) was a Canadian

Joe Dusek while working in Nebraska
.

As a designer, Parks earned the nickname "the King of Belts" for his work. He is known for the "Winged Eagle" belt he created for

UFC and for an album cover by Madonna
.

Early life

Reggie Parks was born in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, on August 27, 1934.[1] He was the youngest of four brothers.[2] Parks grew up on a farm outside the city, and played hockey as a youth, abandoning it when his family moved into the city proper. He began weightlifting at age 13, and started working as a ticket usher for professional wrestling shows shortly afterward. As a wrestling fan, he admired the brothers George and Sandy Scott, and Tiny Mills.[3]

Career

Professional wrestling

Parks began his career training at a boxing club in Edmonton, where he met Stampede Wrestling promoter Stu Hart in 1955.[4] Hart trained Parks and introduced him to wrestling territories in the United States, leading to Parks wrestling in Seattle, Los Angeles, and throughout Texas.[1] Early in his career, Parks wrestled with a traveling carnival, competing in legitimate, unscripted matches with audience challengers and relying on his stamina and conditioning to out-wrestle them.[2] Between 1963 and 1973, Parks was based with the American Wrestling Association, also making appearances for territories in Nebraska.[4] Parks became known for his impressive physique and feats of strength, being billed as the "Quiet Superman"; at one point Parks had a Volkswagen Beetle driven over his stomach to prove his strength.[1] According to Greg Oliver, Park at his prime was 6 feet 2 inches (188 cm) tall and weighed 225–230 pounds (102–104 kg), with 17 in (43 cm) biceps and a 50 in (130 cm) chest.[3]

Parks also wrestled under a

babyface, crediting his likability to his Canadian upbringing: "It's just a natural Canadian thing. I was always nice".[3]

Belt designing

Wrestler Owen Hart holds up the "Winged Eagle" championship belt
The "Winged Eagle" design of the WWF Championship, pictured here being held by Owen Hart, was designed by Reggie Parks.

Parks was known for designing and engraving championship belts for WWE, the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, the American Wrestling Association, and Shimmer Women Athletes.[6] His design work earned him the nickname "the King of Belts".[2][7] WWE described his belt designs as some of its most famous.[8] His most well-known were the "Winged Eagle" belt used to represent the WWF Championship in the 1980s and 1990s[6] and the WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship belt from the same era.[8]

Parks began to create belts in 1962 while working in

UFC and on the cover of Madonna's Hard Candy album.[1][6] Parks' belts were typically created by photoengraving onto a zinc base which was then plated in nickel or gold; the finished design was accented with additional gemstones and tooled leather designs.[2]

Personal life

After retiring from professional wrestling, Parks resided in Arizona, running a carpet-cleaning company in addition to his work designing belts;[4] he had been introduced to the carpet-cleaning industry by fellow wrestling personality Gordon Solie.[7]

Parks was married once, and divorced; he lived with his partner Trish for 22 years before her death in 2006. He had no children.[3]

Parks died from COVID-19 in Tucson, Arizona, on October 7, 2021, at age 87.[1][3] Speaking on his legacy, fellow belt-maker Dave Millican said "[we] all owe Reggie a huge debt of gratitude because nobody did this this way before he did. Were there belts before Reggie? Absolutely. Were there good belts before Reggie? There weren't".[7]

Footnotes

  1. ^
    Slam Wrestling. Archived
    from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Mendez, David (May 29, 2014). "King of Belts". Tucson Weekly. Archived from the original on October 31, 2021. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  3. ^
    Slam Wrestling. Archived
    from the original on October 10, 2021. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d Meltzer, Dave (October 8, 2021). "Pro wrestler and legendary belt maker Reggie Parks passes away". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  5. ^ Rhodes & Brody 2005, pp. 2–3.
  6. ^ a b c McGeorge, Alistair (October 8, 2021). "Reggie Parks dead: WWE stars remember iconic belt maker behind Winged Eagle design and Madonna's Hard Candy cover". Metro. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  7. ^
    Slam Wrestling. Archived
    from the original on October 9, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "Legendary sports-entertainer and championship title maker Reggie Parks passes away". WWE. October 8, 2021. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.

References

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