The Starship, you know what I mean-Superstars Profile#139

Dan Spivey

Real name: Daniel Spivey

Home: Griffin, GA

Membership: American Express, American Starpship, Skyscrapers, the Varsity Club

A.K.A.: Golden Eagle, American Starship Eagle, Dangerous Danny Spivey, Waylon Mercy

Finisher: Sleeperhold

Background: Barry Windham was out. 

This put Michael Rotunda in a bind but he heard through the grapevine about a team in Florida. Seems some masked characters were making themselves the talk of the town. Calls were made and soon Dan was unmasked and unveiled to the public. 

They didn't care. Much for the same reason. You can talk about American pride all you want but compared to guys like Hogan or Andre, well, not much of a draw, is it?

So, when Teddy Long made an offer, Spivey signed up that night and the rest is history. 

Cock-a-doodle-doo!-Superstars#138

Red Rooster

Real name: Paul Taylor

Home: Vero Beach, FL

Membership: Heenan Family, York Foundation, Fantastic Ones, partners with Greg Valentine

A.K.A.: Dr. Feelgood, Scary Terry Taylor, Terrence Taylor, Taylor Made Man

Finisher: Five Arm

Background: Some things can't be overcome. 

Terry had done some hero work around the country but when Titan paired him up with Sam Houston, Taylor's berating Houston after their quarry escaped was caught on camera. The Brain saw this and quickly picked him to be the latest member of the Family. 

Pity that was the highlight. Heenan would make a point to insult and micromanage Taylor during his fights, despite the man's training. He dubbed him a 'red rooster', a phrase that no one seems to understand. Fed up, Taylor turned on the Brain.

While he got some cheers, his joy turned to the bitterest rage when his new persona was unveiled-the RED ROOSTER!

While the Brain simply had him wear red, the Superstars asked him to strut like a bird and have his hair teased up like a rooster. For some reason this failed to endear him to the public and less than a year he fled to the South. 

The Dream-Superstars Profile#137

Akeem the African Dream

Real name: George Gray

Home: Deepest, Darkest Africa 

Membership: House of Humperdink, Twin Towers, Dungeon of Doom, partners with Gary Hart, Slick

Finisher: 747 Splash

History: Lord, where does one begin?

The One Man Gang was an ok bit but Slick felt he needed some 'pizazz'.

Thus, the One Man Gang vanished into the streets that spawned him. In his place roared Akeem-the African Dream!

Which, in hindsight, was a horrible idea. Oh, the outfit was cool. Jets built into the boots, bullet proof cloth, plus his headdress could double as a radio transmitter. They quickly decided to pair him up with the Big Boss Man as the Twin Towers but by 1990 everyone agreed this was a terrible idea and should never be spoken of again. 

Heroes of the People-Superstars Profile#136

The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers 

Real names: Jacques and Raymond Rougeau

Home: Montreal, Quebec but soon to relocate to Memphis, TN

Membership: Jacques Rougeau, Raymond Rougeau, Jimmy "Mouth of the South" Hart

Finisher: Double Dropkick

Background: A legacy is a heck of a thing to uphold. The Brothers Rougeau were the inheritors of a family legacy and it was assumed that both brothers would follow the family business of hero work. 

They did, at first but the fans changed them. It was the indifference then it was seeing how much more money the supposed bad guys earned. By the end of the 80s they figured everyone else was selling out, so why not them? They renounced Quebec before becoming American citizens and hiring Jimmy Hart as their manager. The team quietly dissolved and their story is continued elsewhere. 

Just Another Country Boy-Superstars#135

Cousin Luke 

Real name: Luke G. Petit

Home: Mudlick, KY

Membership: Hillbilly Family, Superstars, Army of Darkness, Mad Mongolians, partners with Swede Hanson

Finisher: Mule Kick

Background: Sometimes blood is thicker than water but it don't get your clothes clean. 

Hillbilly Jim was having some problems with Roddy Piper. He already got his cousin Junior to help him, so why not Luke?

The issue was Luke was no Bob Orton and quite frankly resented being a 'hillbilly hero' even more than his cousin Junior. When his ankle was busted, well, he took that as a sign and left. A fellow called Texas Red was later seen raising hell in Japan but Jim was never able to confirm who he was. 

The Beast from the East-Superstars Profile#134

Bam Bam Bigelow

Real name: Scott Bigelow

Home: Ashbury Park, NJ

Membership: Superstars, Million Dollar Corporation, Triple Threat, Jersey Triad, the Triad, New Blood, partners with Big Van Vader

Finisher: Diving Headbutt

Background: One of the lord's own mutants. 

The biggest fish in most ponds, Bigelow found himself serving time in a Mexican prison. TLDR-working as a bounty hunter didn't pan out. 

Sir Oliver Humperdink, however, heard tale of this wild man and a few bribes later brought up to New York. Bigelow was at first used as a villain but the man's own charisma plus stories of him performing heroic deeds almost forced him onto the Superstars but he was a bad fit. 

Disgruntled as he could get, Bigelow first went to Japan before wandering a bit. He came back to New York in the 90s but that's recounted elsewhere.

The Outlaw-Superstars Profile#133

"Outlaw" Ron Bass

Real name: Ronald Heard

Home: Houston, TX

Membership: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Long Riders, Bass Brothers, partners with Barry Windham, John Anson

Finisher: Texas Gordbuster

Background: Sometimes a cowboy's a cowboy.

Ron Heard had a pretty average life. He tried going the legit route first but found the challenges and pay lacking. Seeing Hulk Hogan on the tv, he figured "hey, I could knock that boy silly and get money for it!"

And he did. 

Or at least he tried. He had the bluster, a bullwhip and a truly impressive mustache. It wasn't enough and Hogan beat him like everyone else. He later moved to Florida and sold Amway. 

He's an Animal!-Superstars Profile#132

George "the Animal" Steele

Real name: William Myers

Home: Detroit, MI

Membership: The Machines (sort of), the Superstars, the Oddities, managed by the Grand Wizard, Mr. Fuji, Classy Freddie Blassie, Captain Lou Albano

Finisher: Flying Hammerlock Splash

Background: Sometimes science is more an art than a science.

Myers was an educated man, indeed he even fought crime as the masked man known as the Student, but even the most learned men have some point of vanity. 

Myers was bald. 

So ashamed by this, Myers funneled all his work into developing a cure. His funds almost depleted, Myers tried his cure and stepped into his custom built machine. What emerged?

Well, he had hair. Thick, long, and wavy; everywhere below his neck. It was almost indestructible. His IQ was almost dropped to the point where he couldn't quite recall who he was; he vaguely remembered the named George. Steele was added later and attributed to his nigh invulnerability. The Animal should be self-explanatory. 

 A man with almost unstoppable strength and no mind of his own? Yeah, he was taken advantage of; but as the 80s rolled on, Captain Lou managed to rescue George and give the man some level of dignity. George was eventually made a member of the Superstars but budget cuts made him a wanderer for most of the 90s. 

The Real Playboy-Superstars Profile#131

Larry Sharpe

Real name: Larry Weil

Home: Castleisland, Ireland 

Membership: Bodacious Blonds, Hollywood Blondes, partners with Jack Evens 

Finisher: Piledriver

Background: Those that can, do; those that can't teach-and if you said that saying to Larry Sharpe he'd turn you over to some of his students. 

Larry could have been a premier member of the Superstars but when the 80s rolled around he quietly left the team and headed to various points, learning. When he felt he had learned enough he opened his Monster Factory and started churning out students who names will live forever. 

And That's All the People Need to Know!- Superstars Profile#130

the Baron 

Real name: James Donald Raschke (at least that's who the checks were made out too)

Home: Republic of Germany (we think, his accent suggested the Bavarian alps)

Membership: Paul Jones Army, partners with Greg Valentine, Horst Hoffman, Mad Dog Vachon, Paul Jones, the Crusher, managed the Barbarian and the Warlord

A.K.A.: Fritz Von Raschke, Jim Raschke

Finisher: The Brain Claw

Background: To most people in Titan, the Baron was a shadowy figure. He issued orders to the Barbarian and the Warlord but the Powers of Pain quickly broke free from him for reasons unrevealed. 

After that he returned to his old Midwest stamping grounds. Why? That is unknown. His background, unknown. 

Although every so often, someone notices a hooded figure in the background of some old photos or catches glimpse of a twisted old man out of the corner of their eyes. 

The Russian Bear-Superstars Profile#129

Ivan Koloff 

Real name: Ivan Koloff

Home: Moscow, Russia 

Membership: The Russians, Paul Jones Army, House of Humperdink, partners with Superstar Billy Graham, Captain Lou Albano, "Classy" Freddy Blassie

A.K.A.: Oreal Pierce, Jim Parris, Red McNulty

Finisher: Russian Neckbreaker

Background: Russian superagents weren't unusual. They send some of their guys to attack, we send some guys, wash rinse repeat.

Ivan was one of those men. He was given the background a simple farmer from Ottawa but that was simply a cover. Ivan was augmented and gave the Superstars a run for their money, even being the first one to defeat Bruno Sammartino. Ivan was on a rampage until Pedro Morales stepped up and used Ivan as a stepping stone to his becoming the Superstars next leader. 

As the 70's gave way to the 80's Ivan found himself cut off from his handlers. He drifted south and battled across the Southeast for a bit before retiring. 

The Iron Ace-Superstars Profile#128

Antonio Inoki 

Real name: Kanji Inoki

Home: Tokyo, Japan 

Membership: B-I Cannon, partners with Tatsumi Fujinami, Seji Sakaguchi

A.K.A.: Kamikaze, Tokyo Tom, Kinji Onoki, Little Tokyo, Kazimoto

Finisher: Enzuigiri

History: A man's whose legacy could fill a hundred profiles. 

But his relationship with Titan was brief. Bob Backlund was touring Japan on a goodwill tour when Inoki challenged him to a fight. Much to the shock of his Superstars teammates, Inoki won. The victory was never acknowledged but those that saw knew. 

Inoki would mostly stay in Japan where he would move into the realm of politics. 

Hotstuff!-Superstars Profile#127

"Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert

Real name: Thomas Edward Gilbert, Jr. 

Home: Lexington, TN

Membership: Memphis Mafia, Hot Stuff International, Hot Stuff and Hyatt International, First Family, Dangerous Alliance, New Fabulous Ones, partners with Doug Gilbert and Dark Patriot 

A.K.A.: The Bogie Man, Jason the Terrible, Tommy Gilbert, Jr. 

Finisher: Piledriver

Background: Another son, another father. Tommy Gilbert was a legend in Memphis. That might have played a part in his moving North. Finding Bob Backlund, Gilbert was taken under the man's wing and was made a low ranking member of the Superstars, albeit briefly. 

Yeah, briefly being the key phrase as one fight with the Masked Superstar left him utterly broken. Gilbert was dismissed from McMahon's company before his son took over. 

From there he went back to Memphis and from there sailed into legend. 

The Dragon of Tradition-Superstars Profile#126

Tatsumi Fujinami

Real name: Tatsumi Fujinami

Home: Kunisaki, Oita, Japan 

Membership: Dragon Bombers, partners with Antonio Inoki, Kengo Kimura, and Osamu Nishimura

A.K.A.: Ox Fujinami 

Finisher: Dragon Supplex

Background: A man from the East...

Seriously though, the sheer amount of fights this man has been in could fill entire libraries. He started as a rival to Antonio Inoki but when Inoki was fired from the company that he made famous, Fujinami threw in with him. 

His exploits in Japan made him a legend, with his style and moves being studied in places from Canada all the way to Mexico. 

For a brief time, Titan, Inc. did business with this new Japanese company. Fujinami spared with Hulk Hogan but after a brawl with Matt Borne he left for his familiar haunts. 

 

Jive Soul Brother-Superstars Profile#125

Slick

Real name: Kenneth Wayne Johnson

Home: Fort Worth, TX

Membership: Managed One Man Gang, Akeem, Boris Zhuov, Butch Reed, Earthquake Evans, Hercules, the Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff, Paul Roma, Rick Martel, the Warlord 

A.K.A.: Reverend Slick 

Finisher: N/A

Background: Sometimes the acorn falls pretty dang far from the tree. 

Slick was the only son of Rufus R. Jones. When your old man is as tough as he was, the bar is set a little high. Slick took one look at that bar and said the hell with it. He took to the streets, but it wasn't to be a fighter. 

No, Slick got by on his brain. He could put people where they would do the most damage. This got him hired by "Classy" Freddie Blassie. Slick was smart and soon bought out Blassie's stable of fighters. He took a run of the mill biker and turned him into the African Dream.

From there he focused mainly on tag teams. He was doing fine, just fine. Cash was coming in steady, his fighters were making him feared but he wasn't happy. 

Then Davey Boy Smith beat the daylights out of him. From there, Slick decided to take some serious stock of his life. The 90s would see a new Slick emerge.