A man who truly loved the wrestling business, when his ring career ended, Strongbow displayed his professionalism in another important, but far less glamorous role - that of a WWF road agent. His Tomahawk Chop was a weapon to be feared and led to many victories, as did his Sleeper hold and several variations of the suplex. [Photo courtesy of @allan_cheapshot on Twitter]"Oh, Flair was great," Valentine said. When he was ready to fly on his own, Valentine went to Florida and changed his ring name to Johnny Valentine, Jr., but soon scrapped the name. For over 30 years, Strongbow has been a role model for his fans, a teacher and friend to his co-workers, and a fair and respected boss to the wrestlers on the road. As both a main event and mid-card performer, Strongbow was one of the most reliable, professional wrestlers of his, or any, day. passed away in Georgia on April 3, 2012. coach Carmen LoRe who resides in Nutley and was a member of the original Links are subject He eventually challenged WWWF champion Bob Backlund in Madison Square Garden, going to a one-hour draw. Vince Russo mentioned him recently on Austin's show. (vitag.Init = window.vitag.Init || []).push(function(){viAPItag.display("vi_937032466")}). Without question, Chief Jay Strongbow was a consistent box office draw and, arguably, the most famous and beloved Native American wrestler of all time. He feuded with the likes of "The Golden Greek" Spiros Arion, "Handsome" Jimmy Valiant, and "Superstar" Billy Graham, nearly winning the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship. Then, on June 28, 1982, Strongbow again brought home the gold, teaming with his "nephew" Jules Strongbow to defeat the Japanese tandem of Fuji & Saito. The Nature Boy had already been part of a successful team with Rip Hawk, but the young team of Greg Valentine and Ric Flair was soon over with the crowd as well, winning the NWA Mid-Atlantic tag titles, as well as the world tag team championship twice. A While it didn't translate into all that many championships at that point, he was still considered one of the greatest stars of that decade. Apparently, the former professional wrestler fell sometime at the end of 2011 and had to be hospitalized. Greg Valentine is one of several veteran superstars who appears in the 350 Days documentary, which details what it was really like to live life on the road as a professional wrestler in the 1980s. His larger than life persona as a Native American wrestler ran from 1947 to 1985. Sound off in the comments section below. Much like his contemporary Wahoo McDaniel, he portrayed a Native American wrestler, who wore a war bonnet to the ring and would "go on the warpath" when the fans started cheering him against an opponent. A The team won the title in a three-team tournament, defeating The Executioners and Nikolai Volkoff and Tor Kamata. October 4, 1932, [9] Their reign was cut short in August 1977 when the belts were vacated due to White Wolf suffering a neck injury at the hands of Ken Patera's Swinging Neckbreaker. Late in his career, he took on a tag team partner who had adopted the persona of Jules Strongbow. Historical Society is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to serve On this weeks Stick To Wrestling podcast we continue our Summer Series as we take a look at the Summer of 1979 in the WWF as John McAdam and Sean Goodwin are joined by fellow old school WWF fanatic Randy Barrier. Then he feuded with Baron Von Raschke in Georgia. Swede Hanson gets a main event in Madison Square Garden, Pat Patterson gets an unprecedented four match series against Bob Backlund, and Roddy Piper gets the shaft. He eventually challenged WWWF champion Bob Backlund in Madison Square Garden, going to a one-hour draw. "Vigilante" who wrestled his first match on April 13, 2013, in his Although his Native American persona was fictional, as a role model for people of all races, there were none better and The Chief proudly wrestled his entire career as a beloved fan favorite. wrestler. 65 Church John shares his theory of how Hanson got that spot. Strongbow wrestled in the NWA territories before joining the WWE in 1970, where he was a big draw for two decades. Even if fans didn't have the pleasure of seeing him wrestle, they can come to appreciate his immense accomplishments. As both a main event and mid-card performer, Strongbow was one of the most reliable, professional wrestlers of his, or any, day. The Native American duo of Strongbow & White Wolf held the title for over 8 months before being forced to vacate the championship when White Wolf's neck was "broken" by Ken Patera's devastating finisher, the Swinging Neckbreaker. Jimmy Fallon. Strongbow could also brawl with the best of them, especially once his fiery temper had been ignited. "Chief" Jay Strongbow was arguably the most famous, beloved Native American wrestler of all time, and a consistent box office draw. "And one day when I saw him a few years ago, I asked whatever became of that belt, because Tito kept it after that angle. Jay retired in 1985, but took a job in the WWWFs front office. 2 babyface, Chief Jay Strongbow, where he broke Strongbows leg. . In retirement, Strongbow became a WWF road agent and worked in the company's front office. It's likely that he was best suited as a talent since he was constantly brought back to help the newer stars. Chief Jay Strongbow worked as a road agent in the WWF during the 1990s. Strongbow was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame by Tatanka in 1994. He achieved great success in matches in Georgia and Florida. They defeated the team of Baron Mikel Scicluna and King Curtis Iaukea. born right here in Nutley on Luke Scarpa, Often being portrayed as a hero definitely helps as well. History of Spies As both a main event and mid-card performer, Strongbow was one of the most reliable, professional wrestlers of his, or any, day. Valentine agreed to a deal, and less than a month after Starrcade, Valentine dropped the U.S. title to Dick Slater and left for New York. Great Female Inventors Chief Jay Strongbow is a Wrestler, zodiac sign: Libra. In 1982, they won the WWWF tag team championship title from Mr. Fuji and Mr. Saito in a famous match in Madison Square Garden. Street, Nutley N.J. 07110973-667-1528 Pro Wrestling Stories - Your daily source of nostalgia and a peek behind the curtain wall of wrestlings past! Andre The Giant was the first inductee following his tragic death in 1993, but the first official class came in 1994, of which Strongbow was a part. wrestling team (1962) and head coach for the NHS wrestling team (1994 to Just like with Wahoo, Valentine did an angle with the territorys No. Black Inventors Online Museum Still one of the most popular wrestlers in the WWF, in the eyes of the fans, Strongbow was now the "elder statesman" for WWF wrestlers, having been with the promotion for so long. Despite that and despite the general stereotypes involved with his gimmick, it could be said that Strongbow did bring a more positive perception on Native American culture than most people likely had at that time. Im the heel, and Im the veteran. [5] During his time in Georgia he was also the Inaugural NWA National Television Championship when he won an 8-man tournament by beating Assassin #2 in the finals. After seeking revenge on Patera over the intentional injury of his partner, Strongbow then went on to face the reigning WWWF Heavyweight champion Superstar Billy Graham in a top-drawing feud. After Scarpa had taken on the persona of a Native American, the Chief did venture outside the parameters of the WWWF on occasion, and was, for a time, a high-profile figure in The Sheiks Detroit promotion and on TBSs Georgia Championship Wrestling. "I had to give the belt back to Tito after that angle," Valentine said. However, he remained very much involved with professional wrestling and, over the course of the following decade, Strongbow worked in the WWFs front office and served as road agent, helping to lay out matches, coaching the performers and supervising live events. In Detroit he feuded with Don Kent once again. Although winning titles was never the primary goal for Strongbow, especially during his latter years in the ring, a wrestler as popular as Jay Strongbow couldnt help but pick up a fair share of championship gold. Strongbow and King held the title for a month before losing it to the team of Mr. Fuji and Professor Toru Tanaka on June 27. Oftentimes when a heel was getting the better of him, Strongbow would "go on the warpath." "We had really good chemistry as a tag team. Welch was actually from Pawhuska, Oklahoma. Arion turned on Strongbow, destroying his headdress on Philadelphia television after he had tied Strongbow in the ropes, and rubbed the feathers in his face. Anthony Bowens AKA Bet youve heard of him A memorable match against "Iron" Mike McCord featured Strongbow applying his sleeper hold. After seeking revenge on Patera for the loss of his partner, Strongbow then went on to face the WWWF World Heavyweight champion "Superstar" Billy Graham in a top-drawing feud. Strongbow enjoyed a successful career and even after his retirement, remained connected to professional wrestling. Then dropped the title on December 20 to Danny Condrey. In 1985, Chief Jay Strongbows career was still going well, but Luke Scarpas health was on the decline. Black History Moments (Use code PWS for a nice surprise). -The Greg Valentine vs Chief Jay Strongbow feud, which started with Strongbow writhing in agony with a broken leg at ringside while the matches went on as scheduled with the heels taunting him. Learn How rich is He in this year and how He spends money? One performer he fought with is actually the grandfather of one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. brought lots of memorabilia; Founded 1945 In 2009, Chief Jay Strongbow was inducted into the Pro Wrestling Hall of Famein Texas. [6][7]By the time he went over to WWWF, he was already a 12 Tag-Team and 6 Time singles champion. . Why a home. Valentine and Flair worked a brutal feud with unlikely babyfaces, Ole and Gene Anderson, trading the world tag titles back and forth, until they were stripped of the tag team titles by then-NWA president Eddie Graham for "unprofessional conduct" in an angle that explained Flair breaking off to pursue the world championship. When Luke Scarpa stepped into the wrestling ring, everyone noticed. war paint, and toted a tomahawk. The Native American duo of Strongbow & White Wolf then held the title for over eight months before being forced to vacate the championship when White Wolfs neck was broken by Ken Pateras devastating finisher, the Swinging Neckbreaker. Only sparse details about the death of Chief Jay Strongbow have been made known to the public. A man who truly loved the wrestling business, when his ring career ended, Strongbow . "Really, listening to my dad and watching him was very important to me as I was about to break in," Valentine said during an exclusive interview with ProWrestlingStories.com. The first thing that should be known to just about everyone is that Strongbow wasn't actually Native American. "club" wrestling team at Nutley High School (1961) the first varsity Scarpa got his persona of Jules Strongbow. In case where he was advised to adopt the identity of Chief Jay Strongbow. But his stiff style had earned him the respect of fans and other wrestlers, and the clubbing elbow drop from Valentine was dubbed "the Hammer" for how hard he seemed to be hitting people. Contact Room Rental, via phone, not email, Call When he received the news about his health, he made the decision to permanently separate from the WWF. What are you waiting for? With an assist from fellow fan favorite Mark Lewin, Strongbow was able to escape the shark cage victorious. 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