ironworks
11-21-2013, 06:31 PM
CTV Montreal
Published Thursday, November 21, 2013 11:16AM EST
The renowned Quebec wrestler Maurice 'Mad Dog' Vachon has died in his sleep at age 84.
His brother and long-time tag-team partner, Paul 'The Butcher', confirmed that Vachon died around 4 a.m. in his Omaha, Nebraska home.
The second of 13 children born to a police officer, Vachon was born Sept. 14, 1929 in Montreal and raised in the west end neighbourhood of Ville Emard.
The Vachon brothers began wrestling as teenagers, and Vachon proved to be a formidable athlete, competing in the 1948 Olympic Games in London where he placed seventh in the 79 kg weight class.
Two years later he won a gold medal in New Zealand at the Games of the British Empire, the precursor to today's Commonwealth Games.
Vachon became a popular figure when he moved into 'entertainment' wrestling, quickly realizing that personality and faux savagery were key to getting viewers on television and fans in arenas.
He picked up the moniker 'Mad Dog' after a match in the early 1960s when he was wrestling in Oregon, after a wild bout that saw him attack a referee and a police officer.
He continued wrestling into the 1980s, spending his last few years in the ring fighting World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment) notables such as Hulk Hogan.
His final bout took place at the Paul Sauvé arena in Montreal on Oct. 13, 1986.
The following year Vachon lost a leg in a car crash in Iowa, but he continued to make public appearances for the next two and a half decades.
He and his brother were inducted into the Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2004, and into the Pantheon of Quebec Sports in 2009.
His wife Kathie told SLAM Wrestling news that Vachon's funeral will likely take place early next week in Nebraska.
Read more: hxdp://montreal.ctvnews.ca/maurice-mad-dog-vachon-dies-in-his-sleep-age-84-1.1553742#ixzz2lJ392nAg
Published Thursday, November 21, 2013 11:16AM EST
The renowned Quebec wrestler Maurice 'Mad Dog' Vachon has died in his sleep at age 84.
His brother and long-time tag-team partner, Paul 'The Butcher', confirmed that Vachon died around 4 a.m. in his Omaha, Nebraska home.
The second of 13 children born to a police officer, Vachon was born Sept. 14, 1929 in Montreal and raised in the west end neighbourhood of Ville Emard.
The Vachon brothers began wrestling as teenagers, and Vachon proved to be a formidable athlete, competing in the 1948 Olympic Games in London where he placed seventh in the 79 kg weight class.
Two years later he won a gold medal in New Zealand at the Games of the British Empire, the precursor to today's Commonwealth Games.
Vachon became a popular figure when he moved into 'entertainment' wrestling, quickly realizing that personality and faux savagery were key to getting viewers on television and fans in arenas.
He picked up the moniker 'Mad Dog' after a match in the early 1960s when he was wrestling in Oregon, after a wild bout that saw him attack a referee and a police officer.
He continued wrestling into the 1980s, spending his last few years in the ring fighting World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment) notables such as Hulk Hogan.
His final bout took place at the Paul Sauvé arena in Montreal on Oct. 13, 1986.
The following year Vachon lost a leg in a car crash in Iowa, but he continued to make public appearances for the next two and a half decades.
He and his brother were inducted into the Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2004, and into the Pantheon of Quebec Sports in 2009.
His wife Kathie told SLAM Wrestling news that Vachon's funeral will likely take place early next week in Nebraska.
Read more: hxdp://montreal.ctvnews.ca/maurice-mad-dog-vachon-dies-in-his-sleep-age-84-1.1553742#ixzz2lJ392nAg