Bill Dundee
Bill Dundee | |
---|---|
Birth name | William Cruickshanks |
Born | [1] Angus, Scotland[1] | 24 October 1943
Children | Donna Dundee Jamie Dundee |
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Bill Dundee[1] William Dundee[1] Sir William Dundee[1] Squire William[1] |
Billed height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[1] |
Billed weight | 214 lb (97 kg; 15.3 st)[1] |
Billed from | Australia |
Debut | 1962 |
William "Bill" Cruickshanks (born 24 October 1943 in Angus, Scotland)[1] is a Scottish born-Australian professional wrestler and author better known by his stage name Bill Dundee.[1] Cruickshanks is the father of Jamie Dundee and the father-in-law of wrestler Bobby Eaton.[2]
Career
Dundee was born in Angus, Scotland, and raised in Melbourne. At the age of 16, he joined the circus as a trapeze artist.[1] He started wrestling in Australia in 1962 and finally arrived in the United States as "Superstar" Bill Dundee in 1974 with his tag team partner George Barnes.
Dundee made a name for himself in the Memphis Territory where he regularly teamed and feuded with Jerry Lawler and Jimmy Valiant for years. Dundee and Lawler ventured to the American Wrestling Association together in 1987 and captured the AWA World Tag Team Titles twice.[3]
As a singles wrestler, he held the Southern Heavyweight Championship belt several times from roughly 1975 to 1985 and also had a successful team with "Nature Boy" Buddy Landel that wreaked havoc in Tennessee.
Dundee had a brief run in the NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions, Central States Wrestling and Florida Championship Wrestling in 1986 where he teamed with Jimmy Garvin and feuded with Sam Houston for the NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship. He also briefly managed The Barbarian and The MOD Squad while in those territories.
He also had a run in World Championship Wrestling in the early 1990s as Sir William, the manager for Lord Steven Regal.
Dundee worked as a booker for Memphis, Louisiana and Georgia.
Dundee is still active as of 2014 in Memphis Wrestling where he has been a heel and a baby-face. He frequently appears on Jackson, Tennessee talk radio station WNWS 101.5 with Dan Reeves and on a talk show on Public-access television cable TV channels in West Tennessee. He still promotes indy cards across Tennessee.
Dundee is involved in promoting wrestling and MMA fighting and working as a Marketing Director for Cole Brothers Circus.
Books
If You Don't Want The Answer, Don't Ask The Question: Bill Dundee's Life Story createspace
Personal life
Dundee's son Jamie Dundee, also became a wrestler, whereas his daughter Donna, married wrestler Bobby Eaton. His grandson, Dylan Eaton, wrestles as well.
In the early 1990s he partnered with Doug Hurt, brother of Jerry Lawler's manager, in the opening of a furniture store in Evansville, Indiana called "Superstar Dundee Furniture". The store collapsed about a year after opening.
In 1998, he was a sales manager for American Cable and promoted satellite sales in the West Tennessee area.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Signature moves
- Managers
- Jimmy Hart
- Ronald Gosset
- Tessa
- Rick Joyner
- Wrestlers managed
- Nicknames
- "Superstar"[1]
Championships and accomplishments
- American Wrestling Federation
- AWF Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[5]
- Central States Wrestling
- Mid-South Wrestling Association
- NWA Mid-America / Continental Wrestling Association / Championship Wrestling Association
- AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (9 times)[8]
- AWA Southern Tag Team Championship (14 times) – with Norvell Austin (1), Robert Gibson (1), Jerry Lawler (4), Robert Fuller (1), Tommy Rich (2), Dream Machine (2), Steve Keirn (2) and Dutch Mantel (1)[9]
- AWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Jerry Lawler[10]1
- CWA International Heavyweight Championship (4 times)[11]
- CWA International Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Rocky Johnson[12]
- CWA Southwestern Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- CWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[13]
- CWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Tommy Rich
- NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[14]
- NWA Mid-America Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ricky Gibson[15]
- NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Memphis version) (1 time)[8]
- NWA Southern Tag Team Championship (Mid-America version) (3 times) – with Big Bad John (2) and Tommy Rich (1)[9]
- NWA United States Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times)[16]
- Ohio Valley Wrestling
- Power Pro Wrestling
- PPW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jerry Lawler
- Pro Wrestling This Week
- Wrestler of the Week (June 21–27, 1987)[18]
- Southeastern Championship Wrestling
- United States Wrestling Association
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- PWI ranked him #56 of the 100 best tag teams of the "PWI Years" with Jerry Lawler in 2003
- World Class Wrestling Association
1Dundee's and Lawler's reigns with the AWA World Tag Team Championship began on cards hosted by the CWA through the interpromotional relationship between the AWA and CWA that also allowed the defense of the AWA Southern Heavyweight and Southern Tag Team Championships primarily within the CWA.
2The CWA Southwestern Heavyweight Championship was promoted in both the CWA and WCWA while the promotions had a working relationship in 1989 and 1990.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "Bill Dundee profile". Online World of Wrestling. Archived from the original on 29 November 2009. Retrieved 28 November 2009.
{{cite web}}
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ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ "An Exclusive Interview with Bobby Eaton". DDT Digest. May 1999. Archived from the original on 7 April 2007. Retrieved 5 April 2007.
{{cite web}}
: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=
(help); Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ AWA World Tag Team Championship
- ^ "Finishing Moves List". Other Arena. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
- ^ Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2000). Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ^ NWA Central States Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ Mid-South Television Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ a b NWA/AWA Southern Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ a b NWA Mid-America/AWA Southern Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ AWA World Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ CWA International Heavyweight Title (Memphis) history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ CWA International Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ CWA World Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA Mid-America Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA United States Junior Heavyweight Title (Mid-America) history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ OVW Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ Pedicino, Joe; Solie, Gordon (hosts) (27 June 1987). "Pro Wrestling This Week". Superstars of Wrestling. Syndicated. WATL.
{{cite episode}}
: Unknown parameter|city=
ignored (|location=
suggested) (help) - ^ NWA Southeastern Tag Team Title (Northern Division) history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA United States Junior Heavyweight Title (Southeastern/Continental) history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ a b USWA Southern Heavyweight/Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ USWA Junior Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ Texas Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ USWA World Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
External links