| Ray Stevens | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:RayStevens.jpg) | |
| Birth name | Carl Ray Stevens |
| Born | September 5, 1935 Point Pleasant, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | May 3, 1996 (aged 60) Fremont, California, U.S. |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Ray Shire Ray Stevens |
| Billed height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[1] |
| Billed weight | 235 lb (107 kg)[1] |
| Billed from | New York City San Francisco[1] |
| Trained by | Jim Henry Roy Shire Theresa Theis |
| Debut | 1950[1] |
| Retired | 1992[1] |
Carl Raymond Stevens[2] (September 5, 1935 – May 3, 1996), better known as Ray "the Crippler" Stevens or Ray "Blond Bomber" Stevens, was an American professional wrestler. Stevens was a wrestling superstar since the early years of the television era until his retirement during the early 1990s.
His performances and hard bumping style inspired generations of villain wrestlers who attempted to emulate his ability to provide high quality and heat-generating matches that continuously brought crowds of fans. He was also known for using two different finishing moves in his many victories: the "Bombs Away" knee drop (a diving knee drop from the top rope to the throat) and the piledriver. Stevens wrestled as both a singles performer and in tag team matches with a variety of partners.
In 2006, he was inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame.
- ^ a b c d e Shields, Brian; Sullivan, Kevin (2009). WWE Encyclopedia. Dorling Kindersley. p. 244. ISBN 978-0-7566-4190-0.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:0was invoked but never defined (see the help page).