Dewey Robertson
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| Dewey Robertson | |
|---|---|
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| Statistics | |
| Ring name(s) | The Missing Link The Masked Crusader Troy Steel Dewey Crusader Robertson |
| Billed height | 6 ft. 2 in.[1] |
| Billed weight | 255 lb.[1] |
| Born | February 28, 1939 Kitchener, Ontario[1] |
| Died | August 16, 2007 (aged 68) Hamilton, Ontario |
| Trained by | Whipper Billy Watson[2] |
| Debut | 1960s |
Byron James John "Dewey" Robertson (February 28, 1939 - August 16, 2007) was a professional wrestler, known best for his ring name The Missing Link.
As the Missing Link, Robertson wore blue and green face paint and shaved portions of his head while letting the hair grow in other areas. His gimmick was similar to that of George Steele and Kamala, a crazy out-of-control wild man that needed a trainer or manager to lead him to the ring. During his matches, Robertson would often run his own head repeatedly into the turnbuckle, headbutt and dive head first onto an opponent.
He achieved his greatest fame late in his career, wrestling in WCCW, managed by Skandor Akbar and in the WWF, managed by Bobby Heenan in the mid 1980's.
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[edit] Career
Robertson started wrestling in his native Canada in the 1960s under the name of Dewey Robertson. He was a very popular babyface in the Toronto area. He left to wrestle in the United States in 1973, but returned a year later as The Masked Crusader with manager John St. John. He was on a crusade to keep wrestling scientific but was soon unmasked by The Sheik. After that, Robertson formed a tag team called "The Crusaders" with Billy Red Lyons.[1]
He owned a gym in the 1970s and had a television spot where he tore up a phone book to promote his gym.[1]
Robertson's first title victory came in May 1973 when he teamed with Dennis Stamp to win the Tri-State version of the NWA United States Tag Team Championship.[3] They help the belts until July, when they dropped them to Alex Perez and El Gran Tapio.[3] Robertson found more success in tag team wrestling the following year while competing in Toronto, Ontario. He teamed with Billy Red Lyons to win the Toronto version of the NWA International Tag Team Championship from The Love Brothers, Hartford and Reginald, on June 23, 1974.[4] The Love Brothers regained the belts on September 8, but Robertson and Lyons won them back on December 29.[4] They then held the belts for over six months before dropping the title to Mike and Pat Kelly in June 1975.[4] Robertson and Lyons had one final reign as champions, however, when they won a rematch on August 24.[4]
In 1979, Robertson wrestled in the NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions as a heel with "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers as his manager. He used Rogers' figure-four leg lock as his finisher.[1] That year, he also won a tournament for the vacant NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship in Toronto by defeating Greg Valentine in the final round.[2][5]
Robertson's next stop was Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling, where he continued to wrestle as a tag team competitor. He won the NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship by teaming with George Wells to defeat The Sheepherders on December 12, 1980.[6] The pair held the belts for almost two months before dropping it to Genichiro Tenryu and Mr. Fuji in February 1981.[6] Robertson regained the championship later that year, however, by teaming with Johnny Weaver to take the belts from Tenryu and Fuji.[6]
From there, Robertson moved to Central States Wrestling, where he won the majority of his titles. On October 22, 1981, he won the NWA Central States Television Championship with a victory over Gene Lewis.[7] He lost the belt to Oliver Humperdink later that year but soon regained it in a rematch.[7] On February 18, 1982, however, he dropped the belt back to Lewis.[7] This allowed Robertson to focus on the NWA Central States Tag Team Championship, which he won a total of five times. His first reign came in October 1981 when he teamed with Rufus R. Jones to defeat Buzz Tyler and James J. Dillon.[8] His next reign came in March 1982 when he teamed with Steve Regal to win the belts from Roger Kirby and Jerry Valiant.[8] The title changed hands twice more that month, as Kirby and Valiant quickly regained the title only to drop it back to Robertson and Regal.[8] Two months later, Kirby and Valiant won the belts back again.[8] Robertson found a new partner, however, and won the championship by teaming with Hercules Hernandez in August.[8] The reign lasterd less than a month, but Robertson and Hernandez held the belts one final time after another victory in September 1982.[8]
The following year, Robertson's main success came as a singles wrestler. On February 10, 1983, he won the NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship with a victory over Manny Fernandez.[9] He lost the belt to Bob Brown two months later but regained it in a rematch the following week.[9] Robertson's final title reign ended when he dropped the title to Harley Race on June 2, 1983.[9]
He changed his look and became The Missing Link in 1983 in Mid-South Wrestling with a gimmick of looking and acting bizarre. He got over and was signed by the World Wrestling Federation in 1985. He was managed by both Jimmy Hart and Bobby Heenan, who often would make a show of stopping him from attempting a flying headbutt onto a chair after a match. At this time, he was featured in a Sports Illustrated article.[1]
He left for World Class Championship Wrestling in 1986 and was managed by Sunshine. In late 1986, he left for the Universal Wrestling Federation where he was managed by Dark Journey.
He retired in the 1990s but came back to do independent shows as The Missing Link starting in 2004. His last match was against Al Jihad in Buffalo, NY on May 5, 2007.
In 2006, his autobiography Bang Your Head: The Real Story of The Missing Link was published by ECW Press.[1] In it, he discussed his addiction to steroids, alcohol, and drugs. [10]
He died on August 16, 2007 after a long battle with cancer.
[edit] In wrestling
- Finishing and signature moves
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- Wildman Headbutt (Diving headbutt)
- Figure four leglock[1]
- Managers
[edit] Championships and accomplishments
-
- NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with George Wells (1) and Johnny Weaver (1)[6]
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- NWA United States Tag Team Championship (Tri-State version) (1 time) - with Dennis Stamp[3]
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- PWI ranked him # 292 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.[16]
[edit] Personal life
Robertson's sons, Jason Stirling and Mark Stirling were also professional wrestlers.
He admitted to taking steroids and abusing alcohol during his career.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wrestler Profiles: The Missing Link. Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved on 2007-12-04.
- ^ a b c d Canadian Hall of Fame: Dewey Robertson. SLAM! Wrestling. Retrieved on 2007-12-04.
- ^ a b c NWA United States Tag Team Title (Tri-State). Wrestling Titles. Retrieved on 2008-01-29.
- ^ a b c d e International Tag Team Title (Toronto). Wrestling Titles. Retrieved on 2008-01-29.
- ^ NWA Canadian Heavyweight Title. Wrestling Titles. Retrieved on 2008-01-29.
- ^ a b c d NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Title. Wrestling Titles. Retrieved on 2008-01-29.
- ^ a b c d NWA Central States Television Title. Wrestling Titles. Retrieved on 2008-01-29.
- ^ a b c d e f g NWA Central States Tag Team Title. Wrestling Titles. Retrieved on 2008-01-29.
- ^ a b c d NWA Central States Heavyweight Title. Wrestling Titles. Retrieved on 2008-01-29.
- ^ Robertson, Dewey "Bang Your Head: The Real Story of The Missing Link" Ecw Press, 2006. page 1
- ^ Robertson, Dewey; Meredith Renwick (2006). Bang Your Head: The Real Story of the Missing Link. ECW Press, 150. ISBN 1550227270.
- ^ Wildest Stars #8: Off the chain. WWE. Retrieved on 2007-12-27.
- ^ Robertson, Dewey; Meredith Renwick (2006). Bang Your Head: The Real Story of the Missing Link. ECW Press, 134. ISBN 1550227270.
- ^ Robertson, Dewey; Meredith Renwick (2006). Bang Your Head: The Real Story of the Missing Link. ECW Press, 126. ISBN 1550227270.
- ^ Robertson, Dewey; Meredith Renwick (2006). Bang Your Head: The Real Story of the Missing Link. ECW Press, 113. ISBN 1550227270.
- ^ Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Top 500 Wrestlers of the PWI Years. Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved on 2007-12-04.
