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Viscera (wrestler)

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Viscera
Viscera in August 2005
Birth nameNelson Lee Frazier, Jr.
BornFebruary 14, 1971
Goldsboro, North Carolina, United States
DiedFebruary 18, 2014(2014-02-18) (aged 43)
Memphis, Tennessee,
United States
Cause of deathMyocardial infarction
Spouse(s)Cassandra Frazier
(m. ?–2014; his death)
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Big Daddy
Big Daddy V[1]
Big Daddy Voodoo
King Mabel[1]
King V
Mabel[1]
Nelson Knight
Viscera[1]
Billed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)[1]
Billed weight485 lb (220 kg)[1]
Billed fromHarlem, New York[1]
Debut1993
Retired2013

Nelson Lee Frazier Jr. (February 14, 1971 – February 18, 2014) was an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment (WWF/WWE) in the 1990s and 2000s under the ring names Mabel, Viscera, Brother Vis and Big Daddy V. A former WWF World Tag Team Champion and WWF Hardcore Champion, he won the 1995 King of the Ring tournament and wrestled in the main event of that year's SummerSlam. Nelson Frazier Jr. was the second son of sport and basketball player, Nelson Frazier Sr. (1940 - 2007) and Michel Lee Frazier (1945 - 2015).

Professional wrestling career

Early career (1993)

Frazier began his professional wrestling career under the ring name Nelson Knight, one half of the team "The Harlem Knights" with his partner and storyline brother, Bobby.[2] They wrestled in the United States Wrestling Association (USWA) and the Pro Wrestling Federation (PWF), twice winning the PWF Tag Team Championship[3] before signing with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in July 1993.[2][1]

World Wrestling Federation (1993–1996)

Main article: Men on a Mission

Upon coming to the WWF, The Harlem Knights were given a new gimmick: Nelson became Mabel, Bobby became Mo, and they were given a rapping manager named Oscar.[4] The new team, dubbed Men on a Mission, was introduced to the WWF audience through vignettes portraying them as three African American men trying to make a positive change in inner city neighborhoods. Clad in purple and yellow, they debuted as solid faces.[5]

At WrestleMania X, Men on a Mission defeated the WWF Tag Team champions, The Quebecers, by countout, but did not win the belts. On April 29, 1994, they won the title at a house show in London, England. The Quebecers regained the title two days later in Sheffield, England.[6]

In mid-1994, Mabel began wrestling more singles matches; he was seen as the spectacle of Men on a Mission due to his size, the “special attraction” that got used to make rising stars look good. He competed in the 1994 King of the Ring tournament, defeating Pierre of the Quebecers in the qualifying round before losing to IRS in the quarterfinals.[7] He then had a match that pit "Rap vs. Country" against Jeff Jarrett at Summerslam, which Jarrett won.[8]

Frazier as Mabel (center) with Mo (left) and Oscar (right) as Men on a Mission.

In 1995, after losing a match against the reigning tag team champion-Smoking Gunns, Mabel and Mo brutally attacked them. Shortly thereafter they did it again and followed that attack up by turning on Oscar and beating him up, turning them both heel.[5] Mabel dropped his fun-loving, positive personality in favor of adopting a more thuggish image and received push as a singles wrestler, winning the King of the Ring tournament in June,[9] After that, Mabel became known as King Mabel, with Mo becoming "Sir Mo", his manager.[5] Mabel was awarded a championship belt, designed and created by belt maker Reggie Parks. The belt, engraved with "King of the Ring", is one of a kind, as the World Wrestling Federation had not before or since created a belt for the King of the Ring. This belt was never seen on WWF TV.[10]

After his victory King Mabel became the top heel in the company and challenged WWF Champion Diesel at August's SummerSlam.[11] However, just before SummerSlam the WWF made a decision to turn Davey Boy Smith, one of the company's more popular wrestlers, against the fans and replace Mabel as the company's top villain. The turn occurred on the August 21, 1995 edition of Monday Night Raw, where Men on a Mission were to wrestle Smith and Lex Luger, who were then known as The Allied Powers. Luger was not at the event, however, and Smith convinced Diesel to be his partner. Smith then attacked Diesel during the match and joined King Mabel and Sir Mo in assaulting him. The attack was called the "Royal Plan" and at least for a period it appeared that Smith, Mabel, Mo, and Jim Cornette were going to be aligned in the future. This never came to pass.

The reason for Frazier's sudden removal from the top of the card was never explained, but Kevin Nash (Diesel) implied it had something to do with his wrestling style. Nash said in an interview with Kayfabe Commentaries that Frazier's style was very reckless and he had little regard for the safety of his fellow wrestlers. Nash said that entering the match at SummerSlam, Frazier had already injured "six or eight" of his colleagues in the ring. Nash said that one of the injuries was to one of the Samoans on the roster (Fatu), which he implied was not easy to do and should have raised a red flag. Nash pointed to Frazier's use of a frequently utilized move by wrestlers of comparable size, the sitdown splash. Most wrestlers who perform this move, such as the aforementioned Fatu (who adopted the move later in his career) and Earthquake, do so without incident as they perform it in such a manner that very little of their body weight actually comes in contact with the opponent's body. Frazier, as described by Nash, would kick his legs out while performing the move and thus did not allow himself to stop before impact, which caused all of Frazier's 500-plus pound body weight to shift to his rear end and land on the opponent. Further, Frazier did not perform the maneuver on an opponent's chest like usual, instead using the move on the lower back of his opponents. With this in mind Nash told Frazier to leave the move out of the match. Frazier disregarded the request and performed the sitdown splash on Nash's lower back anyway, which caused his spine to compress and his core muscles to stretch out and left Nash with a badly strained abdomen that affected his performance the rest of the match, along with the feeling that he had suffered some sort of permanent damage to his spine. Backstage, Nash recounted that a furious Vince McMahon was ready to fire Frazier immediately after the match and was about to hand him his release papers, but Nash stepped in and convinced McMahon otherwise as he did not feel Frazier should lose his job over the incident. However, it is worth mentioning that no other wrestlers when asked about Frazier have agreed with this sentiment.

Although he was no longer the main villain in the WWF, the company moved Frazier to another high-profile feud involving The Undertaker. The rivalry started after Mabel helped Yokozuna attack a downed Undertaker. During the course of the attack, Mabel was to hit a series of leg drops on the fallen Undertaker. However, he once again found himself in trouble due to his inability to perform the move correctly. Instead of landing his leg across the Undertaker's chest as in a normal leg drop, Mabel repeatedly struck Undertaker in the face ; this resulted in Undertaker suffering a legitimate fracture of his orbital bone, which put him out of action for two months.[12][13] Although King Mabel was to wrestle The Undertaker once he returned, Frazier's days in the WWF were numbered after this incident as the company was not happy with him injuring yet another of its top stars.

The Undertaker returned wearing a Phantom of the Opera-style mask and, a month later, defeated King Mabel in a Casket match at In Your House 5: Seasons Beatings.[14] After this match, Frazier's push came to an end and within several weeks both he and Horne were fired. His last three matches were on the New Year's Day edition of Raw when he was buried in an eight-second loss to Diesel, on the January 6, 1996 edition of WWF Superstars when he lost a rematch to The Undertaker in a casket match, and in the 1996 Royal Rumble match where he was the third wrestler eliminated by his former rival Yokozuna.

Independent circuit (1996–1998)

Frazier then wrestled for the Puerto Rico-based World Wrestling Council (WWC). There, he feuded with Carlos Colón. The Universal Heavyweight Championship was held up after a match between the two. Mabel soon after won the championship and held it for a month.[15]

He also returned to Tennessee to wrestle for the United States Wrestling Association, which went through a number of administration changes during his stay, and was rebranded Memphis Championship Wrestling and Memphis Wrestling. He captured the USWA Heavweight Championship in March 1996 and the North American Heavyweight Championship in February 1998. These were each the top title in the promotion at the time.[16][17]

On November 1, 1998, Mabel made a one-night-only surprise appearance at Extreme Championship Wrestling's November to Remember, as a Full Blooded Italians member with Ulf Herman, attacking Tommy Rogers and Chris Chetti until Spike Dudley made the save.

Return to WWF (1998–2000)

See also: The Ministry of Darkness and The Corporate Ministry

On July 6, 1998, Mabel made a one-night-only surprise return to the WWF to unsuccessfully challenge the new King of the Ring, Ken Shamrock.[18]

On Sunday January 24, 1999, Frazier made his full-time return, first appearing at the pre-show for the Royal Rumble, then on the show itself, where he was kidnapped by The Undertaker, his Acolytes (Bradshaw and Faarooq) and Mideon.[19] The next night on RAW, he was reintroduced as Viscera,[2] he began acting as the Ministry of Darkness' enforcer, adopting a gothic look in the process, including white-out contact lenses, a bleached mohawk and a black bodysuit.[20]

After the July 1999 break up of the Ministry, Viscera floated around the mid-card, frequently teaming with fellow former Ministry member Mideon and becoming part of the burgeoning hardcore division, winning the WWF Hardcore Championship on April 2, 2000 at WrestleMania 2000, and losing it minutes later, in the same Battle Royal-style match.[21] He also feuded with Mark Henry after body splashing Henry's girlfriend, Mae Young, before he was released from his WWF contract in August 2000.

During 1999-2000, Frazier was also featured in WWF Wrestlemania 2000 (N64), WWF Smackdown 2: Know Your Role(PS1), and WWF No Mercy (N64) video games.

Return to the independent circuit (2000-2004)

Following his release from the WWF, Frazier returned to the independent circuit.

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2003)

In March 2003, Frazier, as Nelson Knight, made a surprise appearance at a weekly Total Nonstop Action Wrestling pay-per-view, at the side of Ron Killings.[22] He appeared once more the next week.[23]

Second return to WWE (2004–2008)

Frazier, as Viscera, returned to the former WWF – by then renamed World Wrestling Entertainment – as a surprise in September 2004, attacking former Ministry of Darkness leader, The Undertaker, with fellow former Ministry member Gangrel, at the command of former Ministry Acolyte, John "Bradshaw" Layfield.[24] After two weeks on SmackDown!, he was moved to the Raw brand.[25]

In his first three months on the Raw brand, Viscera mainly wrestled on Raw's sister show Heat, only making sporadic appearances on Raw.[2] His first major storyline there started in April 2005, when he aligned with Trish Stratus as part of her feud with Lita and Lita's husband, Kane .[26] While working together, Viscera and Stratus appeared in a segment in which he attempted to seduce her, only to be rebuffed. Stratus implied he would first need to "take care" of Kane.[27] That segment began a gimmick change for Viscera, who transformed into "The World's Largest Love Machine". After losing to Kane at Backlash 2005, he injured Stratus with his Big Splash finishing move, angry about her constant belittling of him, turning face in the process.

Viscera began wrestling in pajamas and making overtly sexual gestures in the ring. He became smitten with Raw ring announcer Lilian Garcia and tried different tactics to seduce her every week.[28][29] At Vengeance in June, Garcia finally reciprocated, proposing to him in the center of the ring, only to be turned down and left crying in the ring when The Godfather arrived with many of his prostitutes to show Viscera what he would be leaving behind if he got married.[30]

Viscera then teamed with Val Venis to form V–Squared. They teamed together for nearly nine months, mainly on Heat. They challenged for the World Tag Team Championship on several occasions, but never held the title.[31] When Venis was sidelined with a legitimate injury in April 2006, Viscera returned to singles wrestling. He attempted to reconcile with Garcia, but was interrupted and attacked by Umaga during his proposal.[32] Two weeks later, when Garcia was legitimately and accidentally knocked from the ring apron by Charlie Haas and sprained her wrist,[33] the incident was worked into a storyline of Haas and Viscera fighting over Garcia.[34] After Lillian declared she wanted to be just friends, Haas seemingly raked Viscera in the eye, with Viscera feigning to accidentally Samoan slam Lillian. After Viscera gave Lillian the Samoan slam, both men laughed about the incident, in the process turning Viscera heel once again.[35] The team split up when Haas reunited with Shelton Benjamin to reform The World's Greatest Tag Team.

On June 17, 2007, Viscera was sent from the Raw brand to ECW in the supplemental section of WWE's draft.[36] Three weeks later, he debuted on ECW on SyFy, repackaged as Big Daddy V, a "hired muscle" character in the employ of Matt Striker, arriving just in time to help Striker in his rivalry with The Boogeyman.[37] After disposing of The Boogeyman, Big Daddy V defeated Tommy Dreamer in the ECW brand's Elimination Chase to become the number one contender for the ECW Championship at No Mercy.[38] There, he lost to CM Punk by disqualification, when Striker interfered in the match.[39] He then feuded with SmackDown's Kane. He participated in the No Way Out Elimination Chamber match, but was eliminated early.

He wrestled his last WWE match on March 11, 2008, for an episode of ECW on SyFy, losing to CM Punk in a Money in the Bank qualifier. In the 2008 WWE Supplemental Draft, he was drafted to the SmackDown brand.[40] Frazier was released from his WWE contract on August 8, 2008, before ever wrestling for SmackDown.[41]

Second return to the independent circuit (2008–2013)

Tiger Ali Singh delivering a bulldog to Frazier in 2012.

Frazier joined the National Wrestling Alliance, as King V. On October 4, 2008, in Robstown, Texas, King V defeated Andy Dalton and Joey Spector in a handicap match.[42][43]

On August 8, 2009, at Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW)'s 10th Annual Gathering of the Juggalos, Viscera defeated 2 Tuff Tony in a "Loser Leaves JCW" match, with WWE Hall of Famer Terry Funk as special guest referee. After the match, Frazier, Funk, and Balls Mahoney (who had interfered earlier in the match) all attacked Tony.

In September 2012, Big Daddy V appeared for the Japanese promotion Inoki Genome Federation at their GENOME 22 event, losing to Atsushi Sawada. Frazier performed at three Family Wrestling Entertainment shows in 2012 as Big Daddy V, first defeating Malta the Damager in a tables match in February.

Frazier's final match, as Big Daddy V, was a win over René Duprée on Qatar Pro Wrestling's inaugural tour, on October 5, 2013.[44]

All Japan Pro Wrestling (2010–2011)

Frazier wrestled for All Japan Pro Wrestling, as Big Daddy Voodoo (later just Big Daddy), and held the All Asia Tag Team Champion with TARU from April 29 to August 29, 2011. He was part of the Voodoo Murders stable. He left AJPW in late 2011, after competing in the World's Strongest Tag Determination League with Joe Doering.

Acting career

Frazier made his film debut in 2009, playing Ginormous in National Lampoon's 301: The Legend of Awesomest Maximus.[45] He also appeared as Animal in Wrong Side of Town.[46]

Death

On February 18, 2014, Frazier died of a heart attack, four days after turning 43.[47][48][49] He was cremated, and his widow divided the ashes into 500 pendants as gifts for his loved ones.[50]

On the one year anniversary of Frazier's death, his widow filed a wrongful death lawsuit against WWE, alleging that the company had concealed information, misrepresented research and misinformed Frazier and other wrestlers on performance risks relating to concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which the suit claimed left him with severe short-term memory loss, migraines and depression, which contributed to his death.[51] WWE attorney Jerry McDevitt responded in an interview with the Boston Herald, explaining that the company was considering pursuing action against Cassandra Frazier's attorney, Konstantine Kyros, who has been involved in other lawsuits against WWE. McDevitt called Frazier's death "tragic", but added: "It’s ridiculous that someone can ... try to blame someone because a gentleman with a weight problem died of a heart attack in the shower eight years after he last performed."[52] The lawsuit was dismissed by US District Judge Vanessa Lynne Bryant, who ruled that they failed to show that his death was linked to CTE.[53]

In wrestling

Viscera performing the Viscagra on Trevor Murdoch.

Championships and accomplishments

Men on a Mission celebrate their WWF Tag Team championship victory.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Big Daddy V". WWE. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Big Daddy V Profile". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  3. ^ a b Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  4. ^ "Men on a Mission Profile". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  5. ^ a b c Schrader, Bob. "The Irresistible Force". WWE. Retrieved 2007-07-03. Viscera used to be known as Mabel. [...] He started as a friendly rapping giant Then Mabel shocks everyone by winning King of the Ring, loses the rapping and becomes KING Mabel.
  6. ^ a b "WWWF / WWF / WWE World Tag Team Title". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
  7. ^ "King of the Ring PPVs". ProWrestlingHistory.com. Retrieved 2015-02-19.
  8. ^ "SummerSlam PPVs". ProWrestlingHistory.com. Retrieved 2015-02-19.
  9. ^ a b "King of the Ring 1995 results". Pro Wrestling History. Retrieved 2007-07-04.
  10. ^ "WWF "King of the Ring" belt made for "King" Mable (Viscera)". Reggie Parks' Belts. Retrieved 2007-07-11.
  11. ^ Martin, Fin (1995-09-25). "Feel the Heat (Summer Slam 1995)". Power Slam (15). SW Publishing: 18–19.
  12. ^ "The Undertaker biography". SLAM! Sports. Retrieved 2007-07-03. Mabel would further anger 'Taker when he planted a legdrop across the Undertaker's face, forcing "the Phenom" to wear a protective "Phantom of the Opera"-like mask.
  13. ^ "Undertaker FAQ". Wrestle View. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  14. ^ "Wrestling's historical cards". Pro Wrestling Illustrated; 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts. Kappa Publishing Group: 94. 2007.
  15. ^ a b "WWC Universal Heavyweight Title". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
  16. ^ a b c "USWA Heavyweight Title". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
  17. ^ a b "MCW North American Heavyweight Title". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
  18. ^ "WWE RAW Results (1998)". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03. July 6, 1998 [...] Ken Shamrock b Mabel
  19. ^ "WWF Royal Rumble 1999". Online Onslaught. Retrieved 2007-07-03. The lights come back on and Mideon and the Acolytes have taken Mabel out of the ring. Taker meets Mabel in the aisle and tells him something before the Ministry takes him away.
  20. ^ "Viscera biography (with images)". Accelerator. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  21. ^ a b "WWF Hardcore Title". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
  22. ^ "NWA: Total Nonstop Action PPV results - March 26, 2003". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  23. ^ "NWA: Total Nonstop Action PPV results - April 2, 2003". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  24. ^ "SmackDown! results - September 16, 2004". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  25. ^ "RAW results - November 1, 2004". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  26. ^ "RAW results - April 18, 2005". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  27. ^ "RAW results - April 25, 2004". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  28. ^ "RAW results - May 9, 2005". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  29. ^ "RAW results - May 23, 2005". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  30. ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated presents: 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts". "Wrestling’s historical cards". Kappa Publishing. 2007. p. 118.
  31. ^ "Val Venis profile". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  32. ^ "RAW results - May 22, 2006". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  33. ^ "RAW results - June 5, 2006". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  34. ^ "RAW results - June 26, 2006". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  35. ^ "RAW results - July 10, 2006". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  36. ^ "WWE Supplemental Draft". Retrieved 2007-06-17.
  37. ^ "ECW on Sci Fi results - July 10, 2007". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-07-16.
  38. ^ "ECW results - October 2, 2007". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-10-08.
  39. ^ "No Mercy 2007 results". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-10-08.
  40. ^ "Official 2008 WWE Supplemental Draft Results". WWE. Retrieved 2008-06-25.
  41. ^ "WWE releases six Superstars, referee Nick Patrick". WWE. 2008-08-08. Retrieved 2008-08-09.
  42. ^ "10/04/08 NWA SW/ NWA Wrestling Showcase Results". NWA. 2008-09-23. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  43. ^ "NWA Press Release". NWA. 2008-09-23. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  44. ^ "COMPLETE RESULTS OF QATAR PRO WRESTLING’S BREAKTHROUGH TOUR", from 1Wrestling.com
  45. ^ "The Legend of Awesomest Maximus". IMDB. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
  46. ^ "Wrong Side of Town". IMDB. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
  47. ^ "Nelson Frazier Jr. Dead: WWE Star Dies At 43". Huffington Post. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  48. ^ "Nelson Frazier Jr., WWE's Mabel, Viscera and Big Daddy V, dies at 43". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  49. ^ "Nelson Frazier Jr, known as Mabel and Big Daddy V passes away". SLAM! Wrestling. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  50. ^ http://www.tmz.com/2014/02/27/wwe-big-daddy-v-cremated-viscera-wife-giving-away-ashes/
  51. ^ "WWE NEWS: Widow of former WWE star Nelson Frazier files wrongful death suit on one-year anniv., details Frazier's final days, alleges concussion negligence, references Punk comments, more". PWTorch. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  52. ^ "Full Court Press: WWE, Mass. lawyer in legal cage match". Boston Herald. March 15, 2015. Retrieved March 19, 2015.
  53. ^ Hohler, Bob (November 12, 2016). "Former WWE diva joins lawsuit, alleges sexual abuse, brain injuries". The Boston Globe. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  54. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Viscera's profile, from WrestlingData.com
  55. ^ a b "Profile at Puroresu Central". Puroresu Central. Retrieved 2014-05-25.
  56. ^ "All Japan Pro Wrestling - "Anniversary Tour 2010"". Purolove. Retrieved 2014-05-25.
  57. ^ http://www.purolove.com/ajpw/history/allasiatag.php
  58. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on July 6, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  59. ^ Westcott, Brian. "NWA - National Wrestling Alliance OMW - Ozarks Mountain Wrestling/NAASW - North American All-Star Wrestling North American Heavyweight Title History". Solie. Retrieved 2008-07-19.
  60. ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 1995". Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  61. ^ "XWF - Xtreme Wrestling Federation Heavyweight Title History". Solie. Retrieved 2008-07-19.
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