Rocky Johnson
Rocky Johnson was born in Amherst, Nova Scotia, Canada on August 24th, 1944 and is the Wrestler. At the age of 75, Rocky Johnson biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 75 years old, Rocky Johnson has this physical status:
Rocky Johnson (born Wayde Douglas Bowles; August 24, 1944) is a retired Canadian professional wrestler.
He was a National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) Georgia champion and a NWA Southern Heavyweight Memphis champion, as well as several other trophies during his wrestling career.
Johnson, along with his partner Tony Atlas, was one of the first black tag team to win the World Tag Team championship in the World Wrestling Federation. (WWF). He is the father of American actor and former professional wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
Early life
Wayde Douglas Bowles was born in Amherst, Nova Scotia, where he was born, the fourth of five sons of Lillian (née Gay; 1919–1957). He was born in Nova Scotia and descended from Black Loyalists who immigrated to Nova Scotia after being rescued from a plantation in the United States after the American Revolutionary War, and had also traces of Irish origins. Johnson, who was 16 years old at the time, migrated to Toronto, where he began wrestling and became a truck driver. Initially, he trained to be a boxer and then sparred with legends like Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, but wrestling has always intrigued him.
Personal life
Johnson related in his autobiography Soulman that he met his first wife, Una Sparks, at a dance when he was preparing to become a boxer. Una was born in Cherrybrook, Nova Scotia, and she was a Jehovah Witness devout. They had two children, Curtis and Wanda, who praised at his 2008 WWE Hall of Fame induction. When married to Una, he became intimate with Ata Fitisemanu Maivia, the niece of wrestling legend "High Chief" Peter Maivia. In a match on the independent circuit, Ata and Johnson were tag team partners. Because Johnson was a wrestler, Peter Maivia disapproved of their union. Dwayne, their son, was born on May 2, 1972.
Johnson said he adopted a frugal lifestyle on the road in order to provide for his two families; he preferred beer, sliced cheese, and bologna, but not a "party" despite his title. Una knew about Ata and Dwayne, but she did not reveal if they knew about him, but she said she gave him an ultimatum to avoid wrestling or they would have to separate as Jehovah's Witnesses "didn't believe in blood sport" if Jehovah's Witnesses "didn't believe in the sport." He and Una parted amicably and remained good friends, and he said they were best friends. He obtained a divorce in Texas and then applied for a marriage license in Florida on December 21, 1978, marrying Ata. He became a member of the renowned Samoan Anoa's family by marrying her. In 2003, the couple separated. During his time as a wrestler, Johnson was known for his extramarital affairs. At the time of his death, Johnson was married to Sheila Northern, a speech pathologist.
Johnson co-wrote an autobiography with Scott Teal, Soulman: The Rocky Johnson Story, which was published on October 15th of that year. The book was recalled by the publisher shortly after publication due to payment disputes between Johnson and the co-author.
Sports Illustrated published an article in 2022 claiming that Johnson had five other known children in separate families, relating to Rocky's brother Ricky: Paula Parsons (b. ). Trevor Edwards (b. 1964) in Lucasville, Nova Scotia, to Thelma Parsons. Dowler, 1969 to Dolen Edwards in Vancouver (b. Oct. 26, 1968 to Vera Pinter in Vancouver); and Aaron Bowles (b. April 24, 1970 to Barbara Fowler in Amherst, Nova Scotia) and Jean Fowler (b. June 17, 1970 to Debbie Fowler in Vancouver). All five were denied in-person contact by Rocky (and haven't been reached by Rocky's three other known children), but they have reunited personally with Ricky Johnson and each other.
Professional wrestling career
Johnson began his career as a professional wrestler in 1964 in Southern Ontario; soon after his debut, he legally changed his name to his moniker. He chose the name Rocky Johnson as a tribute to two of his favorite boxing greats: Rocky Marciano and Jack Johnson, the latter being the first black heavyweight boxing champion. In the late 1960s to mid 1970s, he was a major star in California. In Los Angeles he took on Freddie Blassie, The Destroyer and John Tolos.
He was a top contender in the National Wrestling Alliance in the 1970s, receiving title matches against then-World Champions Terry Funk and Harley Race. He was well-suited for tag team wrestling, winning several regional tag team championships in the NWA. Johnson wrestled off and on in the Memphis promotion, often feuding with Jerry Lawler, winning Lawler's crown at one point. He also wrestled under a mask as "Sweet Ebony Diamond" in the Mid-Atlantic area.
In 1982, Johnson feuded with Don Muraco, Greg Valentine, Mike Sharpe, Buddy Rose, and Adrian Adonis. He was then paired with Tony Atlas as a tag team. They defeated the Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika) for the Tag Team Championship on the December 10, 1983 episode of Championship Wrestling (taped November 15). They were the first black men to hold a WWF championship. Together, they were billed as "The Soul Patrol".
After leaving WWF in June 1985, Johnson went to Central States, Tennessee, Hawaii, Portland, Puerto Rico and the independent circuit. In Hawaii, he teamed with his brother Ricky Johnson.
After retiring in 1991, Johnson, along with Pat Patterson, trained his son Dwayne to wrestle. While he initially resisted his son's entry into what he knew to be an extremely difficult business, Johnson agreed to train him on the condition that he would not go easy on him. Johnson was instrumental in getting Dwayne (later dubbed "Rocky Maivia" after both Rocky Johnson's and Peter Maivia's ring names) signed to a WWF developmental deal. Initially, Johnson had an on-camera presence at his son's matches, and jumped into the ring on his behalf after he was attacked by The Sultan and The Iron Sheik at WrestleMania 13. Johnson was not seen on-camera again after the Rocky Maivia character flopped, and soon Dwayne achieved crossover popularity as a cocky heel, The Rock.
In early 2003, Johnson was hired as a trainer for the WWE developmental territory, Ohio Valley Wrestling, but was let go in May. He made a return to the ring, and defeated Mabel in a boxing match at Memphis Wrestling on November 29, 2003. On February 25, 2008, Johnson was announced as an inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame along with his father-in-law, "High Chief" Peter Maivia. Both Johnson and his father-in-law were inducted into the Hall of Fame on March 29, 2008, by his son, The Rock.
On December 20, 2019, Johnson joined the board of directors of the International Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame.
