Blackjack Mulligan passes away

[Guardian17]

http://www.wwe.com/article/blackjack-mulligan-passes-away

Click to read more...

 

[Ozz]

RIP - still have some of the family in the business.

 

[Account Terminated]

----N/A----

 

[BostonBob]

Saw him wrestle Andre once in Montreal and they spent more time brawling in the stands then they did in the ring. RIP Blackjack.


from pwinsider.com:

WWE.com is reporting that Robert "Blackjack Mulligan" Windham has passed away after a lengthy illness.

Windham, 73, had been hospitalized in Florida, where he lived, with several health issues, including blood clots. Mulligan suffered a heart attack last year (which he downplayed publicly) and had been in ill-health for years, which he attributed in an interview with PWInsider.com several years ago to suffering from the ill effects of The Bends from a diving incident.

Mulligan broke into the business in the late 1960s after being trained by Verne Gagne. With great brawling skills and an incredible gift for storytelling via interviews, Mulligan became a huge star in the AWA, Florida, Mid-Atlantic and many other areas, including the WWWF.

As a top villain in the WWWF, he challenged then-champion Pedro Morales and received such incredible heat that he was once stabbed on the way to a ring by a fan in the old Boston Garden, requiring hundreds of stitches. Even worse, it turned out the fan was a butcher and stabbed Mulligan with a dirty knife, causing a really bad infection after he had been stitched up that required additional medical attention.

Mulligan also had a run in the late 1980s WWF as himself and under a mask as "The Big Machine", teaming with Andre the Giant, who was under a mask as "The Giant Machine", a persona created when Andre was "suspended." He appeared at the very first WCW Slamboree PPV in 1993, wrestling in a Legends six man tag team bout.

Mulligan and his long-time partner Blackjack Lanza were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2006 by their long-time manager Bobby Heenan. Although he was announced for several conventions after that induction, the WWE Hall of Fame was his last major public appearance.

While Mulligan made very rare public appearances in recent years due to his health issues, there are many stories of Mulligan greeting fans who knocked on his door, inviting them into his home and giving them free copies of his book after spending time with them telling old stories from his career.

Mulligan also had his hands in a number of territories as an owner and booker, released a self-published autobiography in 2008.

Mulligan's sons, Barry and Kendall, each broke into the wrestling business and at one point, Barry was one of the best in-ring performers in the world. The Windham family wrestling legacy continues today with Mulligan's grandsons, who perform as Bo Dallas and Bray Wyatt for WWE.

PWInsider.com sends along condolences to Blackjack Mulligan's friends and family.

 

[Loosie]

He's been sick for a while now so it's not too surprising news. Still sad though. I know Bray and Bo missed a RAW a few weeks back when he first went back to the hospital.

Somewhat surprised that WWE acknowledge him being Bray and Bo's grandfather though.

 

[Behn Wilson]

Grew up watching the Blackjacks as a kid managed by Bobby Heenan on Bob Luce Wrestling in Chicago. Blackjack Mulligan was huge and he was always one of my favorites.

R.I.P.

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

R.i.p.

 

[GarbageGoal]

The very first pro wrestling related thing I ever saw when I was nine was "Blackjack's BBQ" on All Star Wrestling, a Piper's Pit type segment.

RIP

 

[S A W F T*]

I'm sure JBL will have quite the tribute on Monday.