George Steele

At 79 years old, George Steele has this physical status:

William James Myers (April 16, 1937 – February 16, 2017), better known by his ring name George "The Animal" Steele, was an American professional wrestler, school instructor, and actor.

He appeared on wrestling competitions from 1967 to 1988, but he made occasional appearances into the 1990s and 2000s. In Tim Burton's film Ed Wood, Steele portrayed Swedish wrestler and actress Tor Johnson.

Early life

Myers was born in Detroit on April 16, 1937, and was raised in Madison Heights, Michigan. He found success in track, baseball, basketball, and football during high school. Myers came to Michigan State University as a football player for the Michigan State Spartans in 1956, but his career as a football player was stifled as a result of knee injuries. He appeared with the Grand Rapids Blazers in 1961 (UFL).

Myers worked as a tutor, amateur wrestling coach, and football coach at Madison High School in Madison Heights, Michigan, Michigan, after receiving a bachelor of Science degree and a master's degree from Central Michigan University. He would then join the Michigan Coaches Hall of Fame.

Personal life and death

Myers had dyslexia and were diagnosed with Crohn's disease, an inflammatory bowel disease that has no cure, but they can be brought back to remission. Doctors told Myers that his Crohn's Disease had come back to remission and that he no longer suffered from any of the disease's signs. Myers' colon was removed in 2002 to prevent the symptoms from returning.

Myers was a devout Christian. He attended the First Baptist Church Merritt Island and spent time with his wife Pat, whom he married before coming to Michigan State in 1956. Pat and Jim's daughter, Felicia, was followed by two sons, Dennis and Randy.

Myers died in hospitalization due to kidney disease at the age of 79 on February 16, 2017.

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Professional wrestling career

He jumped into pro wrestling in the Detroit area, but he wrestled with a mask and the term "the Student" to shield his identity. Gary Hart was the student's boss and was required to inform the announcers that his client did not have any valid holds or maneuvers instead relying on his brute force. Myers was soon scouted by World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWF) champion Bruno Sammartino and began working in Pittsburgh in 1967 on the popular Studio Wrestling TV show on WIIC-TV (later WPXI-TV) Channel 11. Sammartino adored Myers' creation of a wild man with a toning physique. However, he had him remove the mask as well as the Student's name. Myers, who wanted to mask his real name, went for the alias "George Steele." Although both were early in their careers, Michigan High School Hall of Fame coach George Steele of Warren said he and Myers were coaching against each other in a high school JV match-up. Myers, at halftime, approached Steele and told him about his wrestling debut and that he was looking for a name. Myers reportedly asked Steele if he should use his name, that he liked it a lot, and that the future Hall of Fame coach told him no problem. In an interview on YouTube, Steele states that he was in Pittsburgh when he was looking for a stage name. Since he was in the "Steel City," local wrestler "Jumpin" John DeFazio suggested Jim Steele. He did not like Jim, but he suggested George, which is what he ended up with.

He was selected for a full run in the WWF after spending his time with Sammartino. He told WWWF TV commentator Ray Morgan that he was Ray Steele's nephew (kayfabe) and had a long amateur history. He sold the tale by using a slew of armlocks on opponents, weakening them for his finisher, the flying hammerlock (Steele would bring his opponents off the mat by a hammerlock arm). He also revealed his teaching experience to interviewers, which made his in-ring Neanderthal appearance all the more shocking. Sammartino was held to an hour-long draw at Madison Square Garden but lost the match. With the flying hammerlock entry at a huge Fenway Park outdoor show, he was able to defeat Sammartino for a long period of time in the city. He was later relegated to a rivalry with Chief Jay Strongbow and lost to Edouard Carpentier at the Garden before taking a short break to reimagine his wildman appearance.

Steele became a true mad man in the ring, tearing up the turnbuckle with his teeth and deploying the stuffing as a weapon as well as sticking out his green tongue (a feature achieved by eating green Clots breath mints). The Animal had a stooped appearance and a hairless head, but a thick layer of fur on his back; wrestling commentators had often argued that The Animal was in fact "the missing link." The Animal could occasionally manage to utter a word or two in a interview, one of which being called "Duh-dahh" or "You."

You go!"

His legendary "Duh-dah" interview style was accidental, as Steele recalls it in a post-gun shoot interview. Steele renowned himself for his ability to cut eloquent and strong promos throughout his career, and ranked his microphone skills with the best in the industry. Vince McMahon snared one of these promos and told Steele that his gimmick was "Animal," but he was "making too much sense" for an animal. Steele took a second shot at nothing but garbled and incoherent syllables ("Duhh-dahh"). Steele did this intentionally and out of pure annoyance, hoping that McMahon would acquiesce and allow Steele to cut his usual, eloquent promos. McMahon replied, "That's just what I want!" Much to Steele's apprehension. "This will be Steele's interview style for the remainder of his WWF career," Steele says. Steele began to develop his gimmick of a menacing imbecile.

During the bulk of the 1980s professional wrestling boom, Steele became one of the more popular and recognizable wrestlers. He competed with his colleagues in a six-man match, Nikolai Volkoff and The American Express, resulting in Steele's manager, Capt. Lou Albano, who consoled him after the death. After Steele introduced a crush on Savage's valet, Miss Elizabeth, in 1986, his most famous feud was against "Macho Man" Randy Savage. The feud was supposed to last a few months (and ended with Steele's dissatisfaction), but fans were so involved that it lasted far into 1987. Steele later recalled Savage's cynical concern over Elizabeth, his true-life mother, and told Savage that he had a daughter older than Elizabeth and that his obsession was purely for the show. Twice intervened in the match during Savage's Intercontinental Championship match against Steamboat at WrestleMania III, Steele, who was in Steamboat's corner, to be sure. He first took the warning from Savage as he attempted to use it off the top rope. Steele pushed Savage off the top rope after he was kicked and called back by Savage, allowing Steamboat to roll up Savage for the pin to win the championship.

Steele introduced "Mine" a stuffed animal to the ring in 1988. He was involved in the Wrestlemania IV Battle Royal but was outside the match the whole time. He sustained a knee injury at a house show before the show, which was the reason he didn't participate in the contest. After being diagnosed with Crohn's disease in 1988, Steele resigned. Steele was then a road agent for the WWF until he was forced to be released in October 1990 due to budget cuts. Steele was recalled by the WWF shortly after and continued to work as an agent into the late 1990s. Steele rose to become one of WWF's most well-known and popular figures in WWF history, despite the fact that he left the WWF without a single WWF championship behind him. He was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame class of 1995.

He returned to wrestling in 1997 after being a member of the Independent Circuit. He joined Taka Michinoku on Monday Night Raw, losing by disqualification to Taka's Brian Christopher and Jerry Lawler later this year. Steele returned to The Oddities in 1998, during the WWF's "Attitude Era." On October 10, 1999, he lost to Greg Valentine at Heroes of Wrestling. Jeff Jarrett had to face the nin on January 10, 2000, he appeared on WCW Monday Nitro as one of three legends. He continued wrestling in the indies until defeating Sgt in his final match. On September 30, 2000, the medallion at ACW Maximum Detention in Green Bay, Wisconsin, was awarded.

Steele performed in the wedding for "Black Machismo" Jay Lethal and SoCal Val, as a groomsman, as well as Koko B. Ware, Kamala, and Jake "The Snake" Roberts, eight years later.

On Monday Night Raw, Kofi Kingston and David Otunga met for the first time.

Acting career

Tor Johnson, a Swedish wrestler-turned-actor who appeared in Tim Burton's Ed Wood in 1994, made his professional debut as a Swedish wrestler-turned-actor. Steele was often mistaken for Johnson early in his career, which is ironic. According to Steele, a New York novelty store once sold a Tor Johnson mask as a George Steele mask to raise sales due to Steele's renown at the time.

In 2008, Steele co-starred with Greg Valentine in a short film titled Somethin Fishy, in which the two former wrestlers buy a fishing camp. The film served as the pilot for a comedy series that was not fully developed.

Steele has appeared in a Minolta commercial with actor Tony Randall.

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