Blond Bombers
Encyclopedia
The Blond Bombers is a name used by several tag team
s in professional wrestling
. The first team to use the name was the combination of Rip Hawk
and Swede Hanson
. It was later used by Pat Patterson and Ray Stevens
, who began teaming in 1965. Larry Latham
and Wayne Farris
used the name in the late 1970s in the Continental Wrestling Association
and, from 1979 to 1980, Stanley Lane
and Bryan St. John competed as the Blonde Bombers while wrestling in Championship Wrestling from Florida. In the early 2000s, the team of Tank
and Chad Toland appeared as the Blond Bombers in Ohio Valley Wrestling
before changing their team name upon entering World Wrestling Entertainment
. Each incarnation held title belts together at least once. Patterson and Stevens were inducted as a team into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2006.
in the early 1960s, Rip Hawk met Swede Hanson, who was competing as a singles wrestler. Hawk approached Jim Crockett, Sr.
about forming a tag team with Hanson, and Crockett agreed. Both had blond hair and were powerful wrestlers, so they called themselves the Blond Bombers. They were managed
by Gary Hart
and later by Homer O'Dell. Hawk spoke for the team during interviews while Hanson stood silently beside him.
After teaming for several years, Hawk and Hanson won the Florida version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship
by defeating Hiro Matsuda
and Duke Keomuka
on August 3, 1965. They also competed in Australia's World Championship Wrestling, where they won the IWA World Tag Team Championship
in 1970.
Much of their success, however, came in Jim Crockett Promotions, where they were hated heel
(villain) wrestlers. They won the NWA Atlantic Coast Tag Team Championship
four times between 1968 and 1971. They feuded with several teams, including Johnny Weaver
and George Becker as well as the pairing of Paul Jones
and Nelson Royal. Jim Crockett Promotions also held matches in which heel teams faced other heel teams. The Blond Bombers faced such teams as the Anderson Brothers
(Gene
and Ole
) or Brute Bernard
and Skull Murphy
These matches, known as "Battles of the Bullies", were unusual because heels almost always compete against faces
(fan favorites).
Hanson had a heart attack
in 1971, and Hawk was teamed with rookie wrestler Ric Flair
. Hanson became a face upon his return to the ring, and he feuded with Hawk and faced him in a series of matches. They began wrestling in Texas, where they won the NWA Western States Tag Team Championship
three times from 1976 to 1977. Hanson left the territory after their final reign, which ended the tag team combination. They were inducted as a team into the NWA Legends Hall of Heroes in 2007 by former manager Gary Hart.
and Billy Red Lyons
to win the San Francisco version of the AWA World Tag Team Championship on April 17, 1965. They held the belts for over a year and a half before dropping them to the Mongolian Stomper
and Ciclon Negro in December 1966. They won the title back in a rematch the following month and held it for another three months. On April 8, 1967, they lost the belts to longtime rival Pepper Gomez and future World Wide Wrestling Federation Champion
Pedro Morales
. They continued to team together, however, until the end of the year, when Patterson left the area to compete in Japan.
When Patterson returned to the San Francisco area, he feuded with Stevens, who had become a face. This feud included Stevens and Peter Maivia
defeating Patterson and Billy Graham to win the San Francisco version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship
on January 23, 1971 and Patterson and Graham regaining the belts in a rematch the following month. Patterson and Stevens also competed in singles matches; Stevens defeated Patterson in a Texas Death match on July 11, 1970 to win the San Francisco version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship.
The pair were later reunited in the American Wrestling Association
, where they won the AWA World Tag Team Championship
on September 23, 1978. The following year, Patterson began competing primarily in the World Wrestling Federation, although he and Stevens continued to team occasionally in the AWA until late 1982. They were inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame as a team in 2006 and have been described as the "single greatest tag team" of all time.
(CWA). CWA owners Jerry Jarrett
and Jerry Lawler
paired Latham and Farris as a new incarnation of the Blond Bombers. Managed by Sergeant Danny Davis, the Bombers were the promotion's top heel tag team, Their first championship came on June 15, 1979, when they won an infamous match against Jerry Lawler
and Bill Dundee
in Tupelo, Mississippi
. After the Blond Bombers controversially won the title, Lawler and Dundee attacked the new champions and fought with them in the concession stands. They soon dropped the belts to Robert Gibson and his real-life brother Ricky, but they regained them in a rematch later that summer. Meanwhile, the Fabulous Freebirds
, who had been the region's number two heel tag team became faces and challenged the Bombers for the belts. They won the title from the Latham and Farris in September 1979, but the Bombers won a rematch to reclaim the championship.
After dropping the AWA Southern Tag Team Championship for a third and final time, the Blond Bombers began to challenge for the NWA Mid-America Tag Team Championship
. They defeated George Gulas and Ken Lucas to win the belts on December 15, 1979. While holding the title, they continued to feud with Gulas. When they attacked him one day, his estranged partner Bobby Eaton
rescued him; Gulas and Eaton reunited as The Jet Set and defeated the Bombers to win the championship. Latham and Farris regained the belts in a rematch against The Jet Set but later dropped them to Rocky Brewer and Pat Rose. The Blond Bombers had one last reign with the Mid-America belts, as they defeated Eaton and Great Togo in July 1980. They held the title until September 3, when they lost a match to Robert Gibson and Don Fargo. After losing the belts, Farris left to compete in Puerto Rico's World Wrestling Council
. Upon returning to Tennessee, he found other partners and had two more reigns as an AWA Southern Tag Team Champion. Latham soon left Tennessee to compete in the World Wrestling Federation, where he held the WWF Tag Team Championship as Spot, a member of the Moondogs
.
, debuted for Championship Wrestling from Florida in December 1978. He was soon paired with Bryan St. John, and the team dubbed themselves the Blonde Bombers. St. John had been feuding with Ray Stevens, and the Bombers continued this rivalry. Together, they challenged NWA Florida Tag Team Champions
Stevens and Mike Graham for the title belts. On October 30, 1979, the heel duo of Lane and St. John defeated the champions to win the title. As a result, St. John claimed victory in his rivalry with Stevens. The following week, they defended the belts against Mr. Hito and Mr. Sakurada
. Because of a controversial finish, the championship was vacated, and a tournament was held. St. John sustained a wrist injury, however, and the Bombers were unable to participate. Graham teamed with Steve Keirn
to win the tournament on November 13 by defeating Hito and Sakurada.
When St. John recovered, he and Lane faced the new champions and defeated them for the title on November 25. They defended the title against several team and entered into a feud with the Brisco Brothers (Jack
and Jerry
), who had held the belts together on seven previous occasions. This rivalry also included a singles match between St. John and Jack Brisco, in which their partners were handcuffed together outside of the ring to prevent interference. In March 1980, Jack Brisco teamed with Jim Garvin
to win the belts from the Bombers. Lane and St. John had one final reign with the championship after defeating Garvin and Keirn, who was substituting for Brisco, on June 7, 1980. That summer, the Brisco Brothers regained the belts, after which the Blonde Bombers parted ways. St. John soon retired, and Lane focused on building a career as a singles wrestler in Georgia before forming several other tag teams. Later in his career, he teamed with former rival Steve Keirn to form The Fabulous Ones
; he was also a member of The Midnight Express and The Heavenly Bodies
.
(OVW), a developmental territory of World Wrestling Entertainment
(WWE). They won the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
on April 6, 2005 by defeating The Thrillseekers (Matt Cappotelli
and Johnny Jeter
). They held the belts for six months before dropping them to Seth Skyfire and Chet Jablonski. The Tolands later competed for WWE as The Dicks (James and Chad Dick), a team dressed as Chippendales dancers. They debuted in October 2005 and were released five months later.
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
s in professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
. The first team to use the name was the combination of Rip Hawk
Rip Hawk
Harvey Maurice Evers is a retired American professional wrestler best known by his ring name, Rip Hawk. He began his wrestling career in the Mid-Western United States before joining Jim Crockett Promotions in the early 1960s. In the company, he teamed with fellow wrestler Swede Hanson as the...
and Swede Hanson
Swede Hanson (wrestler)
Robert Fort Hanson was an American professional wrestler best known by his ring name Swede Hanson. He spent much of his career wrestling as part of a tag team with Rip Hawk...
. It was later used by Pat Patterson and Ray Stevens
Ray Stevens (wrestler)
Carl Ray Stevens , better known as Ray "The Crippler" Stevens or Ray "Blond Bomber" Stevens, was an American professional wrestler. Stevens was a wrestling superstar since the early years of the television era until he retired during the early 1990s...
, who began teaming in 1965. Larry Latham
Larry Latham (wrestler)
Larry Booker was a professional wrestler best known as Larry Latham, Iss Spot and Moondog Spot.-Career:...
and Wayne Farris
The Honky Tonk Man
Roy Wayne Farris , better known by his ring name The Honky Tonk Man, is an American professional wrestler. A 1975 graduate from University of Memphis with a B.S. degree in Education. Coached high school football 2 seasons at Munford High School in Munford, Tennessee...
used the name in the late 1970s in the Continental Wrestling Association
Continental Wrestling Association
The Continental Wrestling Association was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually referred to as Mid-Southern Wrestling...
and, from 1979 to 1980, Stanley Lane
Stan Lane
Wallace Stanfield "Stan" Lane is an American professional wrestler, trained by Ric Flair, who started wrestling in 1974 in Championship Wrestling from Florida. For a brief time in Florida, he was nicknamed Nature Boy...
and Bryan St. John competed as the Blonde Bombers while wrestling in Championship Wrestling from Florida. In the early 2000s, the team of Tank
John Toland (wrestler)
John Michael Toland is an American professional wrestler best known for his work in independent promotion Ring of Honor, under the name Tank Toland...
and Chad Toland appeared as the Blond Bombers in Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
before changing their team name upon entering World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
. Each incarnation held title belts together at least once. Patterson and Stevens were inducted as a team into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2006.
Rip Hawk and Swede Hanson
After joining Jim Crockett PromotionsJim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions was a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett, Jr. until the late 1980s. It was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and was the forerunner to World Championship Wrestling .-Early history:...
in the early 1960s, Rip Hawk met Swede Hanson, who was competing as a singles wrestler. Hawk approached Jim Crockett, Sr.
Jim Crockett
James Allen Crockett was a professional wrestling promoter sometimes known as Jim Crockett, Sr. or to people within the business simply as "Big Jim".-Early life:...
about forming a tag team with Hanson, and Crockett agreed. Both had blond hair and were powerful wrestlers, so they called themselves the Blond Bombers. They were managed
Manager (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
by Gary Hart
Gary Hart (wrestler)
Gary Richard Williams, was a former professional wrestling manager, as well as a professional wrestler in his early career, best known by his ring name Gary Hart...
and later by Homer O'Dell. Hawk spoke for the team during interviews while Hanson stood silently beside him.
After teaming for several years, Hawk and Hanson won the Florida version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship
NWA World Tag Team Championship (Florida version)
The Florida version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship existed from 1961 until 1969.-Title history:-See also:*National Wrestling Alliance*NWA World Tag Team Championship*Florida Championship Wrestling...
by defeating Hiro Matsuda
Yasuhiro Kojima
was a professional wrestler and the trainer of Hulk Hogan, "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff, Lex Luger, Ron Simmons, Keiji Mutoh, and many other professional wrestlers. He was better known as Hiro Matsuda, an identity he adopted while competing in the southern U.S., inspired by earlier wrestlers...
and Duke Keomuka
Hisao Tanaka
Hisao "Martin" Tanaka was a professional wrestler. He is the father of wrestler Pat Tanaka and referee Jimmy Tanaka.-Career:In the 1950s, Duke Keomuka formed a very successful tag team with Hiro Matsuda...
on August 3, 1965. They also competed in Australia's World Championship Wrestling, where they won the IWA World Tag Team Championship
IWA World Tag Team Championship (WCW Australia)
The IWA World Tag Team Championship was the top tag team professional wrestling title in the Australian World Championship Wrestling promotion from 1966 through 1971....
in 1970.
Much of their success, however, came in Jim Crockett Promotions, where they were hated heel
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
(villain) wrestlers. They won the NWA Atlantic Coast Tag Team Championship
NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship
The NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship is the tag team title currently defended in the National Wrestling Alliance's NWA Mid-Atlantic territory. The championship was originally created in the summer of 1968 and was originally named the NWA Atlantic Coast Tag Team Championship...
four times between 1968 and 1971. They feuded with several teams, including Johnny Weaver
Johnny Weaver
Kenneth Eugene Weaver was a professional wrestler and wrestling commentator in the National Wrestling Alliance, better known by his ring name, Johnny Weaver...
and George Becker as well as the pairing of Paul Jones
Paul Jones (wrestler)
Paul Jones is a retired professional wrestler and manager. He had success in the National Wrestling Alliance 's Mid-Atlantic region, including an NWA World Tag Team title reign with Ricky Steamboat.-Career:...
and Nelson Royal. Jim Crockett Promotions also held matches in which heel teams faced other heel teams. The Blond Bombers faced such teams as the Anderson Brothers
Anderson family
The Anderson family is a group of professional wrestlers, a fictitious extended family largely consisting of brothers and cousins. It started in the Minnesota area in the late 1960s with a tag team called The Minnesota Wrecking Crew, consisting of "brothers" Lars Anderson and Gene Anderson...
(Gene
Gene Anderson
Gene Anderson was an American professional wrestler best known for his days of teaming with his brother Ole Anderson.-Career:...
and Ole
Ole Anderson
Alan Robert Rogowski , better known by his ring name of Ole Anderson, is a retired professional wrestler and a promoter. He held numerous NWA World Tag Team Championships with Gene Anderson, who was portrayed as his brother...
) or Brute Bernard
Brute Bernard
Jim Bernard was a Canadian professional wrestler. He is best known by his ring name, Brute Bernard, and spent much of his career wrestling as part of a tag team with Skull Murphy. He competed for several wrestling promotions associated with the National Wrestling Alliance...
and Skull Murphy
Skull Murphy
John Joseph Murphy was a Canadian professional wrestler better known by his ring name Skull Murphy. He began his career wrestling in Canada and later worked at Jim Crockett Promotions and Georgia Championship Wrestling in the United States...
These matches, known as "Battles of the Bullies", were unusual because heels almost always compete against faces
Face (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a babyface or face or in simple words, a fan favorite is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains...
(fan favorites).
Hanson had a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in 1971, and Hawk was teamed with rookie wrestler Ric Flair
Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
. Hanson became a face upon his return to the ring, and he feuded with Hawk and faced him in a series of matches. They began wrestling in Texas, where they won the NWA Western States Tag Team Championship
NWA Western States Tag Team Championship
The NWA Western States Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling title in the National Wrestling Alliance's Amarillo, Texas territory, NWA Western States Sports....
three times from 1976 to 1977. Hanson left the territory after their final reign, which ended the tag team combination. They were inducted as a team into the NWA Legends Hall of Heroes in 2007 by former manager Gary Hart.
Pat Patterson and Ray Stevens
While wrestling in Oregon, Pat Patterson heard many wrestlers tell him that he would be a natural fit as a tag team partner of Ray Stevens, who competed in San Francisco. Patterson moved to San Francisco and dyed his hair blond to match Stevens, who had used the nickname "The Blond Bomber" as a singles wrestler. They defeated the team of The DestroyerDick Beyer
Dick Beyer is a retired professional wrestler who is best known by his ring names, The Destroyer or Doctor X.-Early life:...
and Billy Red Lyons
Billy Red Lyons
William Snip was a Canadian professional wrestler, who used the stage name Billy Red Lyons. He was an active wrestler between 1956 and 1984, and won numerous championship throughout his career. He worked for promotions in both Canada and the United States, particularly in Ontario, California,...
to win the San Francisco version of the AWA World Tag Team Championship on April 17, 1965. They held the belts for over a year and a half before dropping them to the Mongolian Stomper
Mongolian Stomper
Archie Gouldie is a Canadian professional wrestler better known by his ring name The Mongolian Stomper.-Stampede Wrestling:Gouldie held the North American heavyweight title a record ten times between 1968 and 1984, quite a streak of longevity for that time frame...
and Ciclon Negro in December 1966. They won the title back in a rematch the following month and held it for another three months. On April 8, 1967, they lost the belts to longtime rival Pepper Gomez and future World Wide Wrestling Federation Champion
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
Pedro Morales
Pedro Morales
Pedro Morales is a retired Puerto Rican professional wrestler. He began his wrestling career as a teenager in 1959 and continued through to the late 1980s...
. They continued to team together, however, until the end of the year, when Patterson left the area to compete in Japan.
When Patterson returned to the San Francisco area, he feuded with Stevens, who had become a face. This feud included Stevens and Peter Maivia
Peter Maivia
Fanene Leifi Pita Maivia was a American Samoan professional wrestler better known as "High Chief" Peter Maivia. He was head of the famous Samoan wrestling family...
defeating Patterson and Billy Graham to win the San Francisco version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship
NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version)
The San Francisco, California version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship existed from 1950 until 1961, and then from 1968 until 1979.-Title history:...
on January 23, 1971 and Patterson and Graham regaining the belts in a rematch the following month. Patterson and Stevens also competed in singles matches; Stevens defeated Patterson in a Texas Death match on July 11, 1970 to win the San Francisco version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship.
The pair were later reunited in the American Wrestling Association
American Wrestling Association
The American Wrestling Association was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 to 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo...
, where they won the AWA World Tag Team Championship
AWA World Tag Team Championship
The American Wrestling Association World Tag Team Championship was professional wrestling world tag team championship in the American Wrestling Association from 1960 until the promotion folded in 1991.-History :...
on September 23, 1978. The following year, Patterson began competing primarily in the World Wrestling Federation, although he and Stevens continued to team occasionally in the AWA until late 1982. They were inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame as a team in 2006 and have been described as the "single greatest tag team" of all time.
Larry Latham and Wayne Farris
Latham and Farris both made their wrestling debuts in 1976 and later signed with the Continental Wrestling AssociationContinental Wrestling Association
The Continental Wrestling Association was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually referred to as Mid-Southern Wrestling...
(CWA). CWA owners Jerry Jarrett
Jerry Jarrett
Jerry W. Jarrett is an American promoter and former professional wrestler, and the father of wrestler Jeff Jarrett. He is the co-founder and former part-owner of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
and Jerry Lawler
Jerry Lawler
Jerry O'Neil Lawler is an American professional wrestler, wrestling commentator, musician, businessman, commercial artist and film actor, known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry "The King" Lawler. He is currently signed to WWE, working on its Raw brand as the color commentator and occasional...
paired Latham and Farris as a new incarnation of the Blond Bombers. Managed by Sergeant Danny Davis, the Bombers were the promotion's top heel tag team, Their first championship came on June 15, 1979, when they won an infamous match against Jerry Lawler
Jerry Lawler
Jerry O'Neil Lawler is an American professional wrestler, wrestling commentator, musician, businessman, commercial artist and film actor, known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry "The King" Lawler. He is currently signed to WWE, working on its Raw brand as the color commentator and occasional...
and Bill Dundee
Bill Dundee
William "Bill" Cruickshanks is a Scottish born-Australian professional wrestler better known by his stage name Bill Dundee. Cruickshanks is the father of Jamie Dundee and the father-in-law of wrestler Bobby Eaton....
in Tupelo, Mississippi
Tupelo, Mississippi
Tupelo is the largest city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. It is the seventh largest city in the state of Mississippi, smaller than Meridian, and larger than Greenville. As of the 2000 United States Census, the city's population was 34,211...
. After the Blond Bombers controversially won the title, Lawler and Dundee attacked the new champions and fought with them in the concession stands. They soon dropped the belts to Robert Gibson and his real-life brother Ricky, but they regained them in a rematch later that summer. Meanwhile, the Fabulous Freebirds
Fabulous Freebirds
The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team that attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed under the Freebirds name.-History:The Fabulous...
, who had been the region's number two heel tag team became faces and challenged the Bombers for the belts. They won the title from the Latham and Farris in September 1979, but the Bombers won a rematch to reclaim the championship.
After dropping the AWA Southern Tag Team Championship for a third and final time, the Blond Bombers began to challenge for the NWA Mid-America Tag Team Championship
NWA Mid-America Tag Team Championship
The NWA Mid-America tag-team championship was a tag-team title promoted by the NWA Mid America promotion that ran more or less exclusively in Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky from the 1940ties until 1980...
. They defeated George Gulas and Ken Lucas to win the belts on December 15, 1979. While holding the title, they continued to feud with Gulas. When they attacked him one day, his estranged partner Bobby Eaton
Bobby Eaton
Robert Lee "Bobby" Eaton is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, who made his debut in 1976. Eaton is most famous for his work in tag teams, especially his days as one-half of the team the Midnight Express. Under the management of Jim Cornette, Eaton originally teamed with Dennis...
rescued him; Gulas and Eaton reunited as The Jet Set and defeated the Bombers to win the championship. Latham and Farris regained the belts in a rematch against The Jet Set but later dropped them to Rocky Brewer and Pat Rose. The Blond Bombers had one last reign with the Mid-America belts, as they defeated Eaton and Great Togo in July 1980. They held the title until September 3, when they lost a match to Robert Gibson and Don Fargo. After losing the belts, Farris left to compete in Puerto Rico's World Wrestling Council
World Wrestling Council
The World Wrestling Council is one of Puerto Rico's two main professional wrestling promotions, the other one being the International Wrestling Association....
. Upon returning to Tennessee, he found other partners and had two more reigns as an AWA Southern Tag Team Champion. Latham soon left Tennessee to compete in the World Wrestling Federation, where he held the WWF Tag Team Championship as Spot, a member of the Moondogs
Moondogs
The Moondogs were a professional wrestling stable in the World Wrestling Federation and in two Memphis promotions: the Continental Wrestling Association and the United States Wrestling Association...
.
Stanley Lane and Bryan St. John
Stanley Lane, who had dubbed himself the "Nature Boy" in honor of his trainer, "Nature Boy" Ric FlairRic Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
, debuted for Championship Wrestling from Florida in December 1978. He was soon paired with Bryan St. John, and the team dubbed themselves the Blonde Bombers. St. John had been feuding with Ray Stevens, and the Bombers continued this rivalry. Together, they challenged NWA Florida Tag Team Champions
NWA Florida Tag Team Championship
The NWA Florida Tag Team Championship is the primary tag team title in Pro Wrestling Fusion. It started out in 1968 as the main tag team title in Championship Wrestling from Florida and lasted until 1990 when it was abandoned. It was picked back up in 1997 by NWA Florida, where it was the primary...
Stevens and Mike Graham for the title belts. On October 30, 1979, the heel duo of Lane and St. John defeated the champions to win the title. As a result, St. John claimed victory in his rivalry with Stevens. The following week, they defended the belts against Mr. Hito and Mr. Sakurada
Kazuo Sakurada
, better known as Mr. Sakurada and as the Japanese version of , is a retired Japanese professional wrestler. He is best known, under various monikers, for his work in Stampede Wrestling, National Wrestling Alliance, and World Championship Wrestling. Sakurada is also highly regarded by Bret Hart as...
. Because of a controversial finish, the championship was vacated, and a tournament was held. St. John sustained a wrist injury, however, and the Bombers were unable to participate. Graham teamed with Steve Keirn
Steve Keirn
Stephen "Steve" Paul Keirn is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for being part of the tag team The Fabulous Ones, with Stan Lane, and later for a run in the World Wrestling Federation as Skinner, a gimmick that portrayed him as a tobacco spitting alligator hunter from...
to win the tournament on November 13 by defeating Hito and Sakurada.
When St. John recovered, he and Lane faced the new champions and defeated them for the title on November 25. They defended the title against several team and entered into a feud with the Brisco Brothers (Jack
Jack Brisco
Freddie Joe Brisco was an American professional wrestler, better known as Jack Brisco or Uvalde Slim. He performed for various territories of the National Wrestling Alliance , becoming a two-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, and multi-time NWA Tag Team Champion with his brother Gerald Brisco...
and Jerry
Gerald Brisco
Floyd Gerald "Jerry" Brisco is a former American professional wrestler, and prior to June, 2009, worked as a road agent for WWE on its Raw brand....
), who had held the belts together on seven previous occasions. This rivalry also included a singles match between St. John and Jack Brisco, in which their partners were handcuffed together outside of the ring to prevent interference. In March 1980, Jack Brisco teamed with Jim Garvin
Jimmy Garvin
James Williams is a retired American professional wrestler. He is best known by his ring name "Gorgeous" Jimmy "Jam" Garvin and as a member of the legendary Fabulous Freebirds....
to win the belts from the Bombers. Lane and St. John had one final reign with the championship after defeating Garvin and Keirn, who was substituting for Brisco, on June 7, 1980. That summer, the Brisco Brothers regained the belts, after which the Blonde Bombers parted ways. St. John soon retired, and Lane focused on building a career as a singles wrestler in Georgia before forming several other tag teams. Later in his career, he teamed with former rival Steve Keirn to form The Fabulous Ones
The Fabulous Ones
The Fabulous Ones was a professional wrestling Tag team consisting of Stan Lane and Steve Keirn that was active between 1982 and 1987 with brief reunions during the 1990s...
; he was also a member of The Midnight Express and The Heavenly Bodies
The Heavenly Bodies
The Heavenly Bodies was a professional wrestling tag team famous for having worked in Smoky Mountain Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation, and various independent promotions...
.
Tank Toland and Chad Toland
The Toland Brothers (Tank and Chad) also used the name in Ohio Valley WrestlingOhio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
(OVW), a developmental territory of World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(WWE). They won the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
The OVW Southern Tag Team Championship is the tag team titles of Ohio Valley Wrestling. Created in 1997, the first champions were Nick Dinsmore and Flash Flanagan. As of 2011, the current champions are Ted McNaler and Adam Revolver, known as The Elite in their fourth reign...
on April 6, 2005 by defeating The Thrillseekers (Matt Cappotelli
Matt Cappotelli
Matthew Lee "Matt" Cappotelli is an American professional wrestler, last working in Ohio Valley Wrestling, which was the primary developmental territory for World Wrestling Entertainment until February 7, 2008...
and Johnny Jeter
Johnny Jeter
John "Johnny" Jeter is an American professional wrestler best known for his appearances in World Wrestling Entertainment as Spirit Squad member Johnny on the Raw brand in 2006....
). They held the belts for six months before dropping them to Seth Skyfire and Chet Jablonski. The Tolands later competed for WWE as The Dicks (James and Chad Dick), a team dressed as Chippendales dancers. They debuted in October 2005 and were released five months later.
Championships and accomplishments
- Rip Hawk and Swede Hanson
- Championship Wrestling from Florida
-
-
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (Florida version)NWA World Tag Team Championship (Florida version)The Florida version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship existed from 1961 until 1969.-Title history:-See also:*National Wrestling Alliance*NWA World Tag Team Championship*Florida Championship Wrestling...
(1 time)- Mid-Atlantic Championship WrestlingJim Crockett PromotionsJim Crockett Promotions was a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett, Jr. until the late 1980s. It was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and was the forerunner to World Championship Wrestling .-Early history:...
- Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling
- NWA Atlantic Coast Tag Team ChampionshipNWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship is the tag team title currently defended in the National Wrestling Alliance's NWA Mid-Atlantic territory. The championship was originally created in the summer of 1968 and was originally named the NWA Atlantic Coast Tag Team Championship...
(4 times)- NWA Western States SportsNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA Western States Sports
- NWA Western States Tag Team ChampionshipNWA Western States Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA Western States Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling title in the National Wrestling Alliance's Amarillo, Texas territory, NWA Western States Sports....
(3 times)- World Championship Wrestling (Australia)
- IWA World Tag Team ChampionshipIWA World Tag Team Championship (WCW Australia)The IWA World Tag Team Championship was the top tag team professional wrestling title in the Australian World Championship Wrestling promotion from 1966 through 1971....
(1 time)
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (Florida version)
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- Pat Patterson and Ray Stevens
- American Wrestling AssociationAmerican Wrestling AssociationThe American Wrestling Association was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 to 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo...
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- AWA World Tag Team ChampionshipAWA World Tag Team ChampionshipThe American Wrestling Association World Tag Team Championship was professional wrestling world tag team championship in the American Wrestling Association from 1960 until the promotion folded in 1991.-History :...
(1 time) - AWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) (2 times)
- AWA World Tag Team Championship
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- Larry Latham and Wayne Farris
- American Wrestling AssociationAmerican Wrestling AssociationThe American Wrestling Association was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 to 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo...
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- AWA Southern Tag Team ChampionshipAWA Southern Tag Team ChampionshipThe AWA Southern Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team title in the Tennessee area from the 1940s through the late 1980s. It was originally named the NWA Southern Tag Team Championship from its inception through 1977, when it was renamed the AWA Southern...
(3 times)- Continental Wrestling AssociationContinental Wrestling AssociationThe Continental Wrestling Association was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually referred to as Mid-Southern Wrestling...
- Continental Wrestling Association
- NWA Mid-America Tag Team ChampionshipNWA Mid-America Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA Mid-America tag-team championship was a tag-team title promoted by the NWA Mid America promotion that ran more or less exclusively in Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky from the 1940ties until 1980...
(3 times)
- AWA Southern Tag Team Championship
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- Stanley Lane and Bryan St. John
- Championship Wrestling from Florida
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- NWA Florida Tag Team ChampionshipNWA Florida Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA Florida Tag Team Championship is the primary tag team title in Pro Wrestling Fusion. It started out in 1968 as the main tag team title in Championship Wrestling from Florida and lasted until 1990 when it was abandoned. It was picked back up in 1997 by NWA Florida, where it was the primary...
(3 times)
- NWA Florida Tag Team Championship
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- Chad Toland and Tank Toland
- Ohio Valley WrestlingOhio Valley WrestlingOhio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
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- OVW Southern Tag Team ChampionshipOVW Southern Tag Team ChampionshipThe OVW Southern Tag Team Championship is the tag team titles of Ohio Valley Wrestling. Created in 1997, the first champions were Nick Dinsmore and Flash Flanagan. As of 2011, the current champions are Ted McNaler and Adam Revolver, known as The Elite in their fourth reign...
(1 time)
- OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
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