Freddie Blassie, Wrestling Fans Loved Hating Him

Freddie Blassie was a major figure in the wrestling industry for more than 40 years, beginning in 1935 when he was only seventeen. He was an impact player in the wrestling business who wasn't reluctant to push wrestling fans to the limit.

He was born Frederick Blassman in 1918 in St. Louis, Missouri. Growing up with an abusive father, Blassie had a tough childhood. He escaped his family life by hanging out at the local community center gym where he learned to box well enough to win a local boxing title. He was good at boxing, but it was wrestling that really captured his imagination, and he was soon hanging out with the wrestlers at the gym and wrestling cards.

In those days one needed connections and recommendations to get into the wrestling business, and wrestling prospects had to prove that they had "what it takes" before they would be told the "secrets" of the business. While working out at the gym he met respected veterans Billy Hanson and George Tragos, among others - this, along with his determination, was his ticket to the wrestling business.

Blassie worked as a butcher during the day, and at night he worked opening matches and last minute substitutes. He also did some carnival wrestling, taking on all comers.

It was while working the carnival circuit that Blassie first heard the phrase "pencil-necked geek," a description of a side show freak attraction "with a stack of dimes for a neck" who bit off the heads of live chickens. Later when Blassie turned villain, it became his trademark put down of both his opponents and their fans.

Blassie joined the Navy at the outbreak of World War II. While stationed at California, he wrestled part-time as Sailor Freddie Blassie. In 1946, he was discharged form the Navy, and he returned to the more familiar Midwest, taking the "Sailor" gimmick with him. He worked his way up the cards, eventually gaining enough credibility to take on Lou Thesz in a 1950 title match in Louisville.

In 1952, Blassie decided to drop the Sailor gimmick and relocate to the Los Angeles area.

Blassie came into LA as Fred McDaniels, a worked brother of Billy McDaniels. The McDaniels Brothers worked mostly mid-card as a babyface team. Blassie learned a lot from McDaniels and the relationship was solid enough that they worked in other parts of the country together. Where Fred was better established they worked under the Blassie name (Billy McDaniel's became Billy Blassie). They had a short run in Louisville and an even a shorter run in Texas as "Blassies." Fred and Billy remained friends and stayed in touch until Blassie's death in 1985.

In 1953, Blassie left LA for the South. The fans took to the good looking, clean wrestling Blassie. He soon won the NWA Georgia Southern Heavyweight Championship, but more notable he dropped his babyface persona, bleached his hair and became a villain. Blassie found his calling. He became the major wrestling draw in the South, winning the Southern Title fourteen times. It was during this time that he latched on the "Vampire" tag and cemented his role as a villain of the worst sort. He was so good in his role as a bad guy that he needed police escorts to leave town, and he was knifed several times; one particularly bad knifing in Atlanta in 1960 took 35 stitches to close the wound.

Blassie was good enough at this point to work anywhere he chose. He returned to Los Angeles, where he won the WWA (LA version) from Eduoard Carpentier. In LA he became a mainstream media star and began referring to himself as the "Hollywood Fashion Plate" in interviews. He name was familiar enough with the general public that he he was able to do a cameo on the Dick Van Dyke Show under his real name.

In Southern California as a wrestler probably his greatest accomplishment during his first run as a villain was being awarded clean wins over Lou Thesz and Antonino Rocca. Throughout his career, he would periodically return to Los Angeles and never failed to draw fans who loved hating him. During his career, he won the California based WWA title four times and the Americas Championship three times.

Freddie Blassie toured Japan several times. Wrestling magazines of the time documented Blassie's success in Japan and it was not fiction. The Japanese fans loved Freddie Blassie, and he loved the Japanese culture. In 1965 he met and eventually married a Japanese actress Miyako Morozumi. The marriage lasted until Blassie's death. (This was Blassie's third marriage. Blassie was an unashamedly flagrant womanizer who cheated on his first two wives, and as a result was estranged from two of his three children).

Just before his first trip to Japan, Blassie dropped the title to Japanese icon Rikidozen in a hugely successful series of matches that took place in both Los Angeles and Japan.

After regaining the WWA title from Rikidozen in the last of their matches, Blassie then dropped the title to the Destroyer (Dick Beyer) on his way out of town to Georgia. Blassie later returned to LA, and retook the title and then lost it to the Bearcat Wright. Freddie Blassie was programmed to regain the title, but in their return match Wright refused to relinquish it. This was a legit double cross, unusual for pro wrestling where wrestlers are blacklisted if they refuse to cooperate.

In 1964, Blassie hit the WWWF for the first time and, as usual, made a big impression. His matches with Bruno Sammartino, Bobo Brazil and Pedro Morales were huge moneymakers. He made frequent forays back to LA and occasionally Georgia, drawing huge gates. He hit Japan again in 1965, but came down with hepatitis that cost him a kidney. Forced from the ring, he became a car salesman in Georgia where he had beat and bloodied hundreds of babyfaces over more than two decades. After a year of selling cars, he was back in the business, albeit at good bit slower pace, but not missing a beat in his ability to get the fans worked up. He was still main-eventing, beating up babyfaces, and winning titles.

He finally settle in New York, working for the McMahon family. He became one of the most successful heel managers in the history the business. Blassie was assigned to manage Hulk Hogan during his first WWF run as a villain.

Killer Khan, Spiros Arion, Mr Saito, Mr. Fuji, Nikolai Volkoff, the Iron Shiek, Stan Hansen, and George Steele were just a few of the big names he managed. Blassie even did pure comedy around this time, as exemplified by his "Advice of the Lovelorn" segments on WWF's TNT.

Because of WWF merchandising and the WWE's propensity to preserve and remarket occasionally everything it has ever produced, future generations are going to know Blassie from his last years in the industry. That's not as good as it should be, but a lot better than it is for most of wrestling's colorful personalities whot have been lost to time.

Freddie Blassie died of heart failure on June 2, 2003. He was 85.

A Freddie Blassie autograph belongs in every old school wrestling collection and could cross-over into other collecting genres. An autograph on that Dick Van Dyke Show photo, especially if it was also signed by Van Dyke, would be unique. (Dick Van Dyke is an easy autograph to get.) Likewise an Andy Kaufman and Blassie signed "Breakfast with Blassie" video box would fit nicely in many collections.

Even though Blassie was a heel for most of his career, he signed tens of thousands of autographs throughout his forty years in the business. No doubt when he was an Atlanta car salesman he signed his name to a bunch of business cards. I have seen his cards, but I've never seen a one with an autograph. In old age he did signings at hobby shops and conventions so there is a lot of things in the marketplace, and a lot more in collections.

Dealers usually lists signed Freddie Blassie photos from his years as a WWF manager at about $50. One from his early days signed during that time might bring more, especially if it was on a rare, original photo.

Fred Blassie on eBay



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