Terry Gordy

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Terry Gordy
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Birth name Terry Ray Gordy
Born (1961-04-23)April 23, 1961
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Died Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist.
Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee
Children Terry Ray Gordy, Jr.
(born March 23, 1979)
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Terry Mecca
Terry Gordy
The Executioner
Billed height 6 ft 6 in (195 cm)
Billed weight 298 lb (135 kg)
Billed from Badstreet U.S.A., Atlanta, Georgia
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Trained by The Mongolian Stomper
Debut 1975

Terry Ray Gordy Sr. (April 23, 1961 – July 16, 2001) was a professional wrestler who was best known in North America for being a member of the Fabulous Freebirds.

Career

Gordy started wrestling in 1975 at the age of 14 as Terry Mecca for the International Wrestling Association. In early 1979, he began wrestling under his real name and formed the Fabulous Freebirds with Michael Hayes.[1] Buddy Roberts was later added to the group. In 1982, the Freebirds went to World Class Championship Wrestling and had a heated and memorable feud with the Von Erichs (David, Kevin, Kerry and Mike) where they traded the six man title back and forth a few times over the years.[1] Gordy was also at one time one half of the WCCW American Tag Team champions.

The Freebirds spent some time in the National Wrestling Alliance's Jim Crockett Promotions where they split to feud briefly, but later reunited.[2] They also spent a very brief time in the World Wrestling Federation, but left after management suggested splitting them up.[3]

In 1986, when the Freebirds were in the Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF), Gordy won the UWF Heavyweight title and held it for six months, before losing it via forfeit to The One Man Gang, after an angle the same night in which Gordy was injured by "Dr. Death" Steve Williams.[1] During this time, Gordy and the Freebirds had an ongoing feud with the UWF fan favorite Hacksaw Jim Duggan, in which Duggan and Gordy frequently squared off, usually ending in a disqualification because of outside interference.[1]

In 1989, Gordy helped Hayes to reform the Freebirds, with Jimmy Garvin, in Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP), which became World Championship Wrestling in 1991.[1][4] Later he alongside of Dr. Death Steve Williams defeated the Steiners to become World Tag Team Champions.[5]

After leaving JCP, Gordy teamed with Steve Williams as The Miracle Violence Connection in All Japan Pro Wrestling.[6] During his time there, he also held the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship on two occasions.[6]

Gordy and Williams moved to World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1992 and won the WCW World Tag Team titles.[5][6] They also won the NWA World Tag Team titles in a tournament at the Great American Bash card in Albany, Georgia, one week later, and unified the titles.[6] Their feud with Rick and Scott Steiner; in Japan, this was hyped as a feud between the best foreign teams of the two top Japanese promotions (the Steiners were competing for rival New Japan Pro Wrestling at the time).[6] Despite advances by New Japan, Gordy and Williams, out of loyalty to the AJPW founder and promoter, Giant Baba, refused to compete for the promotion (which had business ties with WCW at the time), leading to Gordy's departure from WCW before Halloween Havoc and Williams' departure after Starrcade.[6]

In 1993 Gordy, while traveling from the United States to Japan for a tour, took an overdose of pain medication and slipped into a coma, ultimately suffering permanent brain damage.[7] He returned to action later that year, but never received a shot at the Triple Crown again. In 1994, Gordy had a small reunion with Hayes and Garvin as the Freebirds in the Global Wrestling Federation where he and Garvin won the GWF Tag Team titles.

In 1996, Gordy showed up in Extreme Championship Wrestling to challenge Raven for the ECW World Heavyweight title, as the "internationally recognized #1 contender". He had been working for the International Wrestling Association of Japan promotion in Japan, wrestling deathmatches. He lost, but went on to team up with Tommy Dreamer and later to reunite with "Dr. Death" Steve Williams to wrestle The Eliminators. He also wrestled Bam Bam Bigelow in what was billed as the first ever "Battle Of The Bam Bams". Gordy lost the match because of outside interference from The Eliminators.

He had a brief run in the WWF as "The Executioner" in 1996. He teamed up with Mankind, both managed by Paul Bearer, and feuded with The Undertaker. The Executioner came to the ring under a mask and carrying a plastic axe.[8] He made his TV debut at the In Your House pay-per-view, Buried Alive, where he interfered in The Undertaker's Buried Alive match with Mankind, hitting him with a shovel and burying him with the help of several other wrestlers.[8] However, at In Your House 12: It's Time, The Undertaker made short work of The Executioner in an Armageddon Rules match, and Gordy left the promotion shortly afterwards.[9]

Gordy died of a heart attack caused by a blood clot on July 16, 2001. He was 40.

His son, Ray Gordy, wrestled for WWE on the SmackDown! brand as "Jesse" and "Slam Master J" before being released in 2010. His nephew is Richard Acelinger, who competed for All Japan Pro Wrestling as Richard Slinger.

In wrestling

Championships and accomplishments

1Won while WCW was still affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance and prior to the NWA and WCW World Tag Team Championships being briefly unified.
2The Freebirds' 5th reign carried over after the title's name was changed to the WCWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship since they were the champions at the time the title was renamed.

References

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External links

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Solie's Title Histories: WCW
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Foley, Mick (1999). Have a Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks. ReganBooks. ISBN 0-06-039299-1.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Solie's Title Histories: AJPW - ALL JAPAN PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING
  11. ↑ Solie's Title Histories: AJPW - ALL JAPAN PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING
  12. ↑ Solie's Title Histories: GEORGIA CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING (NWA)
  13. ↑ Solie's Title Histories: GWF - GLOBAL WRESTLING FEDERATION
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  17. ↑ Solie's Title Histories: NATIONAL WRESTLING ALLIANCE
  18. ↑ Solie's Title Histories: NATIONAL WRESTLING ALLIANCE
  19. ↑ Solie's Title Histories: SMW
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