Jim Brunzell
| Jim Brunzell | |
|---|---|
| Ring name(s) | Jim Brunzell[1] |
| Billed height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1] |
| Billed weight | 235 lb (107 kg)[1] |
| Born | August 13, 1949 [2][3] |
| Resides | White Bear Lake, Minnesota[1] |
| Trained by | Verne Gagne[1] |
| Debut | 1972[1][3] |
| Retired | 1994 |
James "Jumping Jim" Brunzell (born August 13, 1949) is a retired professional wrestler. Best known for his successful tag teams, Brunzell performed for various wrestling promotions during his 21 year career.
Contents |
[edit] Career
[edit] American Wrestling Association
Jim Brunzell wrestled for the American Wrestling Association (AWA) throughout the 1970s, primarily as a mid-card talent. In 1973, he made a cameo appearance sparring with Billy Robinson in the film The Wrestler. On July 7, 1977, Brunzell and Greg Gagne defeated 'Black Jack' Lanza and 'Big Bad' Bobby Duncum, who were managed by Bobby Heenan, to win their first AWA World Tag Team Championship. They held the title until September 1978, when they were stripped of the belts due to an injury Brunzell incurred while playing in a charity softball game. The title was awarded to the team of Pat Patterson and Ray Stevens.
[edit] National Wrestling Alliance
During the latter half of the 1970s, Brunzell wrestled in the Mid-Atlantic region and won the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship, a significant singles title at the time, twice.
[edit] Return to the AWA
Upon returning to the AWA, Brunzell reformed his tag team with Greg Gagne, known as the "High Flyers", and was elevated to main event status. The High Flyers held the AWA World Tag Team Championship on two separate occasions, feuding with such teams as Jesse Ventura and Adrian Adonis, and Jerry Blackwell and Ken Patera. Brunzell remained with the AWA in both tag team and singles competition until 1985.
[edit] World Wrestling Federation
Brunzell signed to wrestle with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) as they continued their national expansion, and was paired with another WWF newcomer, Brian Blair, as The Killer Bees. Apparently, Verne and Greg Gagne felt somewhat betrayed by the move. Gagne even expressed his displeasure during an AWA broadcast, making subtle references to Brunzell's departure and his new gimmick[citation needed].
Brunzell and Blair had moderate success in the WWF. They feuded with such teams as The Hart Foundation as well as the Funks, Jimmy Jack Funk and Hoss Funk, who they faced in front of over 74,000 fans at The Big Event. Their stay was also highlighted with a match against Nikolai Volkoff and the Iron Sheik as part of WrestleMania III, and a win at the inaugural Survivor Series on Thanksgiving Day 1987. The Killer Bees teamed together until Blair left the WWF in 1988. Brunzell continued in singles competition for a time, being used to put over newer wrestlers like Curt Hennig and Damien Demento as late as April 1993.
[edit] Independent circuit
Brunzell left WWF in 1989 and competed on the independent circuit, primarily in the Chicago area. He also wrestled for Herb Abrams' Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF) in 1991. While there, he reunited with B. Brian Blair under the name Masked Confusion, winning the tag team title twice. After UWF closed, Brunzell returned to the independent circuit and continued to wrestle until the mid 1990s, also making occasional appearances in the WWF as a jobber.
On May 23, 1993, Brunzell wrestled at World Championship Wrestling's inaugural Slamboree pay-per-view in a six-man tag match alongside fellow "legends" Wahoo McDaniel and Blackjack Mulligan against Dick Murdoch, Don Muraco, and "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka.
In 1994, he appeared in the American Wrestling Federation as a guest referee in a bout for the AWF Heavyweight Championship, in which Tito Santana beat Bob Orton, Jr. to win the title.
In 2006, Brunzell became involved in a highly-publicized "interview feud" after his former tag team partner, Brian Blair, was insulted by the Iron Sheik in a series of shoot interviews that received heavy circulation on the internet. Brunzell received high praise from the Sheik for his athletic and high-jumping prowess.[citation needed]
Currently, Brunzell works as a financial planner for Focus Financial in the Minneapolis area.[citation needed]
[edit] In wrestling
[edit] Championships and accomplishments
-
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (Central States version) (2 times) - with Mike George
- Nu-Age Wrestling
- NAW Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[4]
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- PWI ranked him # 180 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.
- PWI ranked him # 49 of the 100 best tag teams during the "PWI Years" with Greg Gagne.
- PWI Tag Team of the Year award with Greg Gagne in 1982.
- West Four Wrestling Alliance
-
- WFWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Online World of Wrestling. "Jim Brunzell Profile". http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/profiles/j/jim-brunzell.html. Retrieved 2010-12-12.
- ^ a b c d CageMatch. "Jim Brunzell Profile". http://www.cagematch.de/?id=2&nr=851&gimmick=Jim+Brunzell. Retrieved 2010-12-12.
- ^ a b c d Accelerator3359. "Jim Brunzell Profile". http://www.accelerator3359.com/Wrestling/bios/brunzell.html. Retrieved 2010-12-12.
- ^ Royal Duncan & Gary Will (4th Edition 2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
