Why do some many pro-wrestlers live in Tampa, FL?

[Delinquent]

I know there are a couple wrestlers that live in a town called Apopka where I grew up. (just outside of Orlando) I know for a fact Billy Gunn lives there and I'm not sure of the other names. I do know a few of them opened a little bar there.

 

[from zero]

King Kong Bundy has a wrestling school 20 minutes away from me.
Jimmy Snuka used to live around here.
Bam Bam Bigelow is up in Asbury Park, I think.

NJ is the place to be for 80s has-beens.

Back in the Powers Of Pain days... man he was a monster. Remember when they challenged the Road Warriors to a benchpress competition and were blowing up 500 lbs like it was nothing.

I remember they did something like that on Prime Time Wrestling. The Warlord was a monster.

 

[avenirup]

Cheap land/property...No state income tax...Beautiful weather...Great golf courses...Many of them travel 300+ days of the year so they're really never at home, anyway

I agree...last I heard, Hulk Hogan lives there as well.

 

[AAP]

I agree...last I heard, Hulk Hogan lives there as well.

Yeah, Brutus Beefcake, Jimmy Hart has residences there too. A couple more that died recently were from the area. I want to say Rude and Henning, but not 100% sure.

 

[avenirup]

Yeah, Brutus Beefcake, Jimmy Hart has residences there too. A couple more that died recently were from the area. I want to say Rude and Henning, but not 100% sure.

Hening yes, Rude no....About the Warlord (real name is Terry Szopinski) he was in a car accident in the mid 90's (1996 I believe) and stopped being active in the pro wrestling. A few years later he returned and still does a few dates per year, mostly in Florida. I saw him in 1999 when I first started writing and he is not as jacked as he was 10 years ago but still looks decent.

 

[saint808]

warlord was strong as fuck... but kinda blew in the ring. animal also was one the strongest guys to ever wrestle.

 

[AAP]

Hening yes, Rude no....About the Warlord (real name is Terry Szopinski) he was in a car accident in the mid 90's (1996 I believe) and stopped being active in the pro wrestling. A few years later he returned and still does a few dates per year, mostly in Florida. I saw him in 1999 when I first started writing and he is not as jacked as he was 10 years ago but still looks decent.

I read a newspaper article (non wrestling publication) last year or so that the Warlord was forbidden to EVER go on tv again. Apparently he had some kind of legal troubles as he committed a no-no (they didn't say what) and he is only allowed to wrestle in non-televised events. That is why the WWE has shown no interest in him. He still has good mobility in the ring and such, even going back to using his old shoulder block from the top rope move. He wrestles against/with Kevin Sullivan and a few other 80 stars down here at the War Museum.

He said in the interview when he was with NWA/WCW he enjoyed that the most as his health was much better then. It was only after he went to the WWF that Vince split up the Powers of Pain which was one of the most popular tag teams then (they debuted as baby faces) that he saw there were some politics involved much worse than in NWA/WCW. He said the team was split up as not to threaten the veterans of the tag team scene. He said that he was also encouraged to add as much bulk as he possibly could. Which made him much blockier and slower. He said that initially, he had been promised the role in that Hogan movie if he could bulk up larger. He went on to state that he felt this was a sham because it filming and casting was continously delayed and delayed until the black guy was cast in the role of Zeus. He alluded to being disappointed with being promised this and then frozen out with no explanation as the reason why he fell upon the path that lead up to the unfortunate circumstances he deals with now.

He now mostly earns a living as a bouncer here in FTL and sometimes (on call) in South Beach. He said that all the wrestling training and continuous pounding he took in the ring becomes a useless asset when encountering a Cuban with a rusty knife. (his exact words)

 

[FISHTALES]

bubba love sponge was always talking and hanging out with wrestlers there, I think hogan lives there too.

 

[avenirup]

I read a newspaper article (non wrestling publication) last year or so that the Warlord was forbidden to EVER go on tv again. Apparently he had some kind of legal troubles as he committed a no-no (they didn't say what) and he is only allowed to wrestle in non-televised events. That is why the WWE has shown no interest in him. He still has good mobility in the ring and such, even going back to using his old shoulder block from the top rope move. He wrestles against/with Kevin Sullivan and a few other 80 stars down here at the War Museum.

He said in the interview when he was with NWA/WCW he enjoyed that the most as his health was much better then. It was only after he went to the WWF that Vince split up the Powers of Pain which was one of the most popular tag teams then (they debuted as baby faces) that he saw there were some politics involved much worse than in NWA/WCW. He said the team was split up as not to threaten the veterans of the tag team scene.

He cannot be forbiden to ever go on TV. That is either made up or totally false. WWE has no interest because he is too old and really never got over as a singles wrestler. When he was in the Powers of Pain he was slightly over but never as a singles wrestler. Today, he could not keep up with the guys who are in the WWE like Benoit, Angle, Michaels, etc, etc...Like with all business - there are politics. In the late 80's it was more so in the WWE (then WWF) and in the 90's it was more so in WCW. But there have and always will be politics in wrestling. The Powers of Pain were split up because there was simply nothing left for them to do and Vince wanted to see what they could do own there own. Out of the two, The Barbarian was the more successful. Warlord was impressive looking and had a slightly successful run with the Powers of Pain in the late 80's, very early 90's but really that was about it.

 

[hamstershaver]

yes hogan and macho man both live in clearwater