Brutus Beefcake

At 67 years old, Brutus Beefcake has this physical status:

Edward Harrison Leslie (born April 21, 1957) is an American retired professional wrestler best known for his service in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) under the ring name Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake.

Leslie retired from World Championship Wrestling (WCW) under a variety of guises and titles throughout his career. He was a former WWF World Tag Team champion with Greg Valentine.

He also competed for major singles titles on pay-per-view and television, lining the Starrcade 1994 in a match against then-WCW World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan as well as the defending then-Intercontinental Champion The Honky Tonk Man at WrestleMania IV. Hulk Hogan inducted Leslie into the 2019 WWE Hall of Fame class.

Personal life

Leslie married Kirsten Georgi on July 1, 1987. In 1991, the couple divorced. Alana McGondel, his wife, has a daughter, Gino, who is a huge fan of All Elite Wrestling star Jungle Boy.

Leslie caused an anthrax outbreak at one of Boston's MBTA stations, Downtown Crossing, where he was stationed at the time. In his booth, he had left a bag of cocaine, which a subway rider discovered and assumed to be anthrax. As a precaution, the building was evacuated as a precaution. After admitting to the fact that the cocaine was his, Leslie was admitted to a drug rehabilitation center.

Leslie, along with a pair of shears and a submarine sandwich, appeared at Toronto City Hall on November 7, 2013 demanding that mayor Rob Ford "needed an intervention" in the aftermath of a high-profile crack cocaine fiasco. Leslie said he was going to be Ford's "angel of compassion," meaning "Maybe if his body is right, he'll be able to get his mind right." When it became apparent that Leslie was attempting to sell a brand of submarine sandwiches, security escorted him from the premises. The Iron Sheik, a fellow wrestler, had been planning to visit Ford and challenge him to an arm wrestling match the day before.

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Professional wrestling career

Leslie began his career with Terry Bollea in 1977. Both of the two brothers were billed as brothers at the time. Leslie Boulder was Ed Boulder when Bollea defeated him as "Terry Boulder" and Dizzy Hogan, when Bollea was referred to as "Hulk Hogan." Fans became confused in later years, many of whom wrongfully believed that Leslie and Bollea were real life brothers. In 1980, Leslie briefly wrestled in Bill Watts' Mid-South territory and in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). In a 2000 shoot interview, Ron Slinker recalled that his first match was a tag match against Ox Baker and Eric the Red.

In late 1984, Leslie rejoined the WWF as a heel named Brutus Beefcake, which was supervised by "Luscious" Johnny Valiant. Beefcake, a vain character who wore outlandish outfits, was introduced in a vignette that depicted him as a male stripper. He fought against David Sammartino, who defeated him to a double DQ at the inaugural WrestleMania in Madison Square Garden, as a singles wrestler. After Hogan and Valiant injured Hillbilly Jim (who appeared in San Diego in February 1985), Hillbilly had been in Hogan's corner for a match between Hogan and Beefcake. Beefcake first started working with Greg "The Hammer" Valentine in the summer of 1985. They were known as The Dream Team before they became known as The Dream Team. They soon began battling The United States Express (Mike Rotundo and Barry Windham) for the WWF Tag Team Championship. Initially, the Washington Express met these challenges, but the Dream Team took the top honors at the Philadelphia Spectrum on August 24, after Beefcake rubbed Valiant's lit cigar into Windham's eye. They defended the belts for eight months, mainly from a reformed United States Express (Dan Spencey replaced the departed Windham) and The British Bulldogs. The Dream Team lost the title to the British Bulldogs at WrestleMania 2, in Rosemont, Illinois. They were unsuccessful in rematches for the title and then dropped to mid-card status, and soon fell to mid-card status.

At WrestleMania III, the Dream Team broke up. The team had an argument and Beefcake was left in the ring until Valentine and Valiant were left with Dino Bravo after defeating The Rougeau Brothers at the pay-per-view. Beefcake had to turn face because of this. Beefcake helped Roddy Piper beat Adrian Adonis, reviving Piper after Adonis had rendered him unconscious in the immediate next match on the show. Adonis will have his head shaved in accordance with match stipulations. Beefcake tackled this challenge and earned the nickname "The Barber" in honor. Beefcake's garden shears (with the handles taped to match barber poles) were carried to the ring and used as a sleeper hold (hitherto a speciality of both Piper and Adonis used heavily in their WrestleMania III match) as his finishing move. He would strut around the ring, "snipping" his fingers like scissors to indicate that he was going to cut his defeated adversary's hair after a match. He'd toss handfuls of hair into the air for the amusement of his followers as he did (using either his shears or an electric razor).

Beefcake feuded with Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion The Honky Tonk Man after being left on top of a feud with former partner Valentine and ex-manager Valiant. Beefcake promised to not only win the title, but he also gave Honky a break and cut his duck's tail. Beefcake did not keep up the promise since Honky was disqualified from the majority of their matches (wrestling titles do not change hands on a disqualification). Honky often had help from Peggy Sue, the mysterious pig-tailed and sunglassed blonde who appeared on television tapings and PPV shows (but not at home, where she says "she" was Jimmy Hart in drag). Beefcake took on a "woman" of his own: "Georgina" Steele (George "The Animal" Steele in drag). The feud came to an end at WrestleMania IV, where Honky was disqualified for the fourth time due to Hart's interference. Despite Honky's title and his hair, Beefcake caught Hart early in the game and humiliated him with a partial haircut.

Beefcake also feuded with "Outlaw" Ron Bass in 1988, beginning when Bass assaulted him after a match on Superstars of Wrestling, lacerating his head with a spur. As a result, the wounded Beefcake missed his scheduled Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship match against The Honky Tonk Man at the first SummerSlam tournament on August 29. On Saturday Night's Main Event XIX, he eventually defeated Bass in a grudge match. During 1989, he and Randy Savage were involved in a feud. Beefcake called Savage's new boss, Sensational Sherri, "Scary Sherri," and an enraged Savage assaulted him, causing him to be humiliated with a haircut, according to "The Brother Love Show" (an interview segment on WWF Superstars of Wrestling). The feud, which was based on the film No Holds Barred, became intertwined with one between Hulk Hogan and Zeus. Hogan was also embroiled in the WWF World Heavyweight Championship feud with Savage. Beefcake was assaulted by Zeus during his match against Savage. Miss Elizabeth and her boss, SummerSlam, Hogan, and Beefcake, defeated Savage and Zeus. When No Holds Barred was shown on December 27, the rivalry returned to normalcy. "No Holds Barred: The Movie-The Match" was part of a pay-per-view special on No Holds Barred. Hogan and Beefcake defeated Savage and Zeus in a steel cage match in the match portion of the competition (taped two weeks earlier in Nashville, Tennessee).

Beefcake became the first person to pin Mr. at WrestleMania VI. On PPV, it's flawless. Beefcake was in the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship tournament in 1990, and the first round was counted out, along with opponent Dino Bravo. Beefcake had been scheduled for a WrestleMania VI re-match against Mr. Papillon, this time for the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship against Mr. At SummerSlam, everything is on point.

Leslie was forced to cancel after a major sailing crash in July 1990. As the boat's captain mistook a signal and pulled the friend's knees straight into Leslie's face, destroying his facial bone skeleton, he was assisting his paraphrasedoutput. To create a new face, you'll need over 100 feet of wire and 32 screws. Leslie lost his nasal cavity and jaw, and he had no way to breathe on his own. Leslie's wrestling career was on hold for almost two years.

A masked character played by Leslie appeared on television for a brief period of time in early 1991. The character will appear in matches and strike various heels (including Rick Martel, Dino Bravo, and Earthquake). He'll be in on their matches, punch them a few times, throw a headbutt, and immediately withdraw. He never fought in a tournament and was never given a formal name. At this point, Dave Meltzer said that most wrestlers opposed his return to the ring due to safety issues and their ability to have quality matches while avoiding further injury. Leslie returned as Brutus Beefcake in an exclusive appearance on WWF Prime Time Wrestling's April 23, 1991 episode, and later as a full-time regular in 1991, hosting an interview segment titled "The Barber Shop." When Shawn Michaels superstar Marty Jannetty and threw him through a plate glass window, Michael Michaels dropped to earth and began his singles run to fame. In February 1992, the last Barber Shop segment was introduced. Sid Justice, a newly turned heel, assaulted Beefcake and sacked the entire set, bringing the heat on his rivalry with Hulk Hogan. Beefcake disappeared yet again after this.

Beefcake made it to the WWF in early 1993, appearing on Monday Night Raw. Beefcake's facial injury was used in a Money Inc. setting (Ted DiBiase and Irwin R. Schyster). When DiBiase and Schyster double-teamed him in what was billed as Beefcake's "comeback match," he defeated DiBiase on Raw by disqualification. Schyster proceeded to injure Beefcake by pelting him with a steel briefcase. Jimmy Hart, the long-serving heel manager (and president of Money Inc.), put on a face for himself by stopping his troops from hurting Beefcake, and Hulk Hogan returned to the WWF after a one-year absence. The Mega-Maniacs, Hogan and Beefcake, met together for the first time since December 1989, with Hart as their boss. The Mega-Maniacs (with Beefcake sporting a protective facemask) had to pay Money Inc. for the Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania IX. And, although getting some revenge by disqualification, Disqualification ended the game. WrestleMania IX was Leslie's last wrestling appearance on WWF television, but he remained active on the house show circuit. In June 1993, he worked with Hogan in multiple matches against Money Inc., winning by disqualification. On May 3, he defeated Masa Saito in Fukuoka, Japan, defeating him twice. Leslie left the WWF after a final tour of Europe from July 9 to August 6, (defeating Terry Taylor in eight straight matches).

Beefcake appeared in New Japan Pro-Wrestling after leaving WWF. Beefcake defeated Nailz in the WWWA Heavyweight Championship on April 16, 1994. He defeated Jim Neidhart for IPWA on April 13, 1996. Greg Valentine, his longtime tag partner, died on May 31, 1997 for Wrestling International Pro.

Leslie debuted in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1994. He appeared briefly with Hulk Hogan, who referred to him as Brother Bruti (as he did when they were WWF tag team partners in 1989 and 1993). Leslie was proclaimed as the masked man who had assaulted Hogan just before his championship match against Flair at Clash of the Champions XVIII. Leslie was later known as The Butcher and The Three Faces of Fear with Kevin Sullivan and Avalanche. The Butcher-Hogan feud came to an end in a WCW World Heavyweight title match at Starrcade, which The Butcher lost.

Since The Three Faces of Fear broke up in May 1995, the Butcher continued wrestling for a long time. He later became amnesic as The Man with No Name. Leslie Sullivan, a character wearing black and white face paint and only ever saying, "Yes, no, no, no!" Sullivan referred to him in his latest role as The Dungeon of Doom, a character with black and white face paint and only ever saying, "Yes, no, no, no." For the remainder of 1995, the Dungeon of Doom feuded with Hogan. By naming him as a mole, Hogan effectively turned Zodiac against his colleagues. Leslie became The Booty Man, a man infatuated with his own buttocks, screaming them on the way to the ring and during matches. His signature move was a high knee (a homonym of "hiney")). Kimberly Page (who became known as The Booty Babe) brought him to the ring and feuded with Diamond Dallas Page (which was Kimberly's real-life husband at the time). The Booty Man, like Leslie's other WCW gimmicks, was not long lived. When the nWo began, he tried to participate by wearing a nWo shirt and presenting a birthday cake to Hollywood Hogan after the latter won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship at WCW Hog Wild, but Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, and Hogan followed him. In December 1996, Leslie Jones left WCW for the second time.

Leslie is the bodyguard of Hollywood Hogan in the final segment of Monday's edition, February 23, 1998. With a full beard, sunglasses, and nWo-styled biker attire, he was almost unrecognizable at first. Roddy Piper's true identity was revealed on camera later in his rivalry with Hogan. The Disciple accompanied Hogan to the rings for his matches, and he's often called on to assist in destroying an adversary, often using his latest finishing technique, "The Apocalypse." These beatdowns often included the title belt, which The Disciple would drape over his shoulder before presenting The Apocalypse, transforming the victim's centerplate into the victim's face on the way down.

The Disciple was kidnapped by The Warrior during Warrior's feud with Hogan, and he was later discovered hanging from his feet backstage. After being brainwashed by The Warrior, he took on Hogan and became the second member of the Warrior Nation's One Warrior Nation. The Disciple's appeal was largely reduced after Warrior left WCW, and he spent the remainder of his time in WCW as a jobber. On November 22, 1998, the World War 3 clash royal was his last WCW PPV match. He wore clothes much like he did in his early WWF days as Brutus Beefcake (though still under Disciple ring name) as he lost to Hacksaw Jim Duggan in his final televised match, aired on the November 6, 1999 WCW Worldwide.

Beefcake competed for the Extreme Wrestling Federation in May 2000 in a match against Rex Diamond. He lost in a close match against The Barbarian in June 30, 2000 in a tense match for the i-Generation Superstars of Wrestling in Australia. Leslie was a member of World Impact Wrestling after retiring. He also started a wrestling academy. On June 24, 2007, he appeared at Pro Wrestling Syndicate's debut show in Garfield, New Jersey. He has appeared at several Memphis wrestling festivals, including the 2007 Ultimate Clash of the Legends. Leslie was a mentor for Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling.

Leslie was inducted into the XWF Hall of Fame by Jack Blaze on January 26, 2008. Blaze honored Beefcake once more in Wheeling, West Virginia, on March 26, 2010. Leslie lost in the first round to local competitor eater Bill "El Wingador" Simmons on July 24, 2009 in Philadelphia, losing in the first round to local competitive eater Bill "El Wingador" Simmons. In late 2009, he appeared in the Hulkamania: Let The Battle Begin tour, wrangling all over Australia, including Perth and Sydney.

Beefcake, a Middletown, Ohio, wrestled for the Dynamic Wrestling Alliance, based in Middletown, Ohio, on August 28, 2010. He is involved in a real battle against the AML Title losing on November 28, 2015. He quietly announced his retirement from professional wrestling, in his last match to date.

Beefcake appeared in Montana in June 2016 for the Big Time Wrestling Festival. Hulk Hogan inducted Leslie into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2019 on April 6, 2019.

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