Dick Murdoch (August 16, 1946 – June 15, 1996) was an American professional wrestler.
Contents
Career
A second-generation wrestler, the son of 1950s Texas wrestler Frankie Hill Murdoch, Dick Murdoch grew up with fellow second-generation wrestlers Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk, watching their fathers fight all around Texas
Dick Murdoch started wrestling in 1965 as Ron Carson in a tag team with Don Carson. He soon started wrestling under his real name.
In 1968, he formed a tag team that would continue throughout the early 1970s with Dusty Rhodes called "The Texas Outlaws". After splitting with Rhodes, he wrestled for Florida Championship Wrestling, the National Wrestling Alliance and Mid-South Wrestling.
In 1984, he went to the World Wrestling Federation and formed a tag team with Adrian Adonis that captured the World Tag Team Titles. He left the WWF in 1985 after dropping the tag-team titles to the US Express and wrestled in Mid-South Wrestling briefly before turning up in the NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions in 1986. He feuded with Ric Flair and attempted to win Flair's NWA World Title.
In early 1987, Murdoch joined Ivan Koloff and Vladimir Petrov in their attempt to get Nikita Koloff and Dusty Rhodes. Murdoch, who at the time held the NWA U.S. Tag Team Championship with Ivan, injured Nikita's neck after a brain-buster suplex on the floor that summer, resulting in Murdoch being (kayfabe) suspended for 30 days and the team being stripped of the tag team titles.
Afterwards Murdoch became a lone mercenary in WCW. He advertised being "for hire" and would attempt to injure other wrestlers for money. After Jim Cornette's mother put a $50,000 reward to anyone who could injure Dusty Rhodes, Murdoch briefly accepted Cornette as a manager to try to collect on the bounty.
Murdoch left the NWA and wrestled in the World Wrestling Council before appearing in World Championship Wrestling as one half of the "Hardliners," or "Hardline Collection Agency," with Dick Slater in 1991. They feuded with Rick and Scott Steiner but could not win their titles.
Murdoch was one of the entrants in the WWF Royal Rumble 1995.
Murdoch was wrestling in the independents when he died of a heart attack on June 15, 1996 at the age of 49.
In wrestling
Finishing and signature moves
Managers
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Championships and accomplishments
- Mid-South North American Championship (2 times)
- Mid-South Tag Team Championship (3 times) - with Junkyard Dog
- National Wrestling Alliance
- National
- NWA North American Heavyweight Championship (Tri-State version) (3 times)
- NWA United National Championship (1 time)
- NWA United States Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Ivan Koloff
- Regional
- NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
- NWA Central States Tag Team Championship (4 times) - with Dusty Rhodes (1), Bob Sweetan (2), and Bob Brown (1)
- NWA Florida Southern Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- NWA Florida Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Dusty Rhodes (1) and Bobby Duncum (1)
- NWA Missouri Heavyweight Championship(2 times)
- NWA Western States Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Bobby Duncum
- NWA World Tag Team Chamionship (Detroit Version) (1 time) - with Dusty Rhodes
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (Mid-America Version) (1 time) - with Don Carson
- PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year award in 1974.
- PWI ranked him # 96 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003. He was also ranked twice in the best tag teams of the "PWI Years".
- PWI ranked him # 35 of the best 100 tag teams of the "PWI Years" with Adrian Adonis.
- PWI ranked him # 45 of the best 100 tag teams of the "PWI Years" with Masked Superstar.
- WWC Television Championship (1 time)
- WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- WWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Adrian Adonis
