John's Icons of Wrestling: Adrian Adonis Quiz

Answer: Franke

Keith Adonis Franke was born in Buffalo, New York. His birthdate was September 15, 1953. Keith's parents were Kenneth and Hortense Franke; he also had two sisters. Keith would start his wrestling career in 1974. He would adopt the persona of Adrian Adonis toward the start of his career. Adrian would often wear a leather jacket and gloves to the ring.

He also would wear a leather collar that was spiked around his neck. Adonis was never a thin wrestler always on the stocky side. He was though incredibly agile for a larger man.

He would usually be the one flying off the ropes to attack his opponents.

Answer: Ron Starr

Adrian and Ron Starr would hold the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship on one occasion. They would defeat a team with a man on it who would in the future be one of Adrian's greatest rivals. Adonis and Starr would defeat Roddy Piper and Killer Brooks on April 3, 1979. The duo would hold the titles for over three months before losing to The Kiwi Sheepherders.

Ron Starr was an accomplished single and tag team wrestlers. Over the span of his career, he held several regional titles. Starr would hold the NWA San Francisco United States Championship on three separate occasions. Starr passed away at the age of 66 in 2017.

Answer: AWA World Tag Team Championship

Adonis and Ventura formed the team in 1979. They were awarded the AWA World Tag Team Championship when then-champions Verne Gagne and Mad Dog Vachon were unable to defend. The four men feuded over the titles, but Gagne and Vachon failed to defeat The East-West Connection. On June 14th, 1981 in Greenbay, Wisconsin their reign as world champions would come to an end.

They were defeated by The High Flyers. This was the second reign for The High Flyers. The team consisted of Jim Brunzell and Greg Gagne.

The High Flyers would hold the title for 742 days the longest reign in the history of the title. The AWA World Tag Team Championship was vacated in 1991 when the operation closed.

Answer: Hair vs Hair

Piper and Adonis met at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan, on March 29th, 1987, for their bout. Adrian was accompanied to the ring by his manager, Jimmy Hart. Both Adonis and Piper put up a good fight, but Piper won in the end. Piper had knocked Adonis out with a sleeper hold for the win. Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake would do the honors of shaving Adrian's bleached blonde locks off. Piper, who had Jimmy Hart immobilized, would look on as the haircut occurred. Roddy would hold a mirror up to the now awake Adrian. Adrian would be so furious at his new hair he punched the mirror Roddy was holding.

Answer: Bob Sweetan

Adrian was a one-time SCW Southwest Heavyweight Champion having defeated Sweetan. His title win would come on April 15, 1983, in Austin, TX. Bob Sweetan would win the title back from Adrian on May 20, 1983, in Weslaco, Texas. This would be Sweetan's second and final reign as the SWCW Southwest Heavyweight Championship. Adrian would also win the SCW World Heavyweight Championship in a tournament final. Adrian would defeat his future bodyguard, Bob "Acey" Orton, for the tournament win.

Bob Sweetan was an accomplished wrestler. He held the NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship on five different occasions. Bob would work for Joe Blanchard while in the SWCW territory. Joe was the father of Tully Blanchard. Bob would pass away in 2017.

Answer: Dick Murdoch

Adonis and Ventura had both signed with Vince McMahon and the WWF. The two men would wrestle singles as well as a tag team together. Jesse was plagued with injuries and could not fight anymore. He would become the color commentator on WWF programs. Adrian meanwhile would team with "Dirty" Dick Murdoch as The North-South Connection. The pair would defeat the team of Rocky Johnson and Tony Atlas on April 17, 1984. The team would successfully defend until January 21, 1985. They would lose to Barry Windham and Mike Rotunda, who were managed by Lou Albano.

Dick Murdoch was a member of another great tag team, The Texas Outlaws. He, along with his partner, Dusty Rhodes, held several regional tag team championships. Murdoch is the father of Trevor Murdoch. Trevor, like his dad, has held the new WWE Tag Team Titles.

Answer: The Flower Shop

Adrian had adopted the gimmick of the Adorable One. He died his hair platinum blonde. He would present himself in a very effeminate way. Adrian would often be seen in scarves and large hats. His wrestling gear went from black to light pink and purple pastels.

The Flower Shop debuted in 1986. Adrian would have a host of different wrestlers on as guests. He would favor the heels or rule breakers over the babyfaces. Jimmy Hart and Bob Orton were also part of the talk show. A returning Roddy Piper would destroy the set of The Flower Shop in the course of their feud. Adrian met Roddy at a match at "Wrestlemania III" and lost.

Answer: Paul E Dangerously

Adrian returned to the American Wrestling Association in 1987. He was still using his effeminate gimmick though his head was now bald. He would acquire the services of Paul E Dangerously. Paul was also the manager of The Original Midnight Express; Dennis Condrey and Randy Rose. Adrian would begin a feud with Tommy Rich. In one match, he would knock Tommy unconscious and place him in a dress. He would also smear red lipstick all over Tommy's face. After the feud with Rich ended and an unsuccessful run at the AWA International Television Championship, Adrian would leave the AWA again.

Paul E Dangerously was a very successful manager while in the AWA. He would lead Condrey and Rose to the tag team titles there. In 1988, Dangerously and his team left for Jim Crockett Promotions. There they met with Jim Cornette and his Midnight Express.

Answer: NWA Americas Tag Team Championship

Adrian, at this time in NWA Hollywood Wrestling, was known as Keith Franks. Piper and Franks would defeat Tom Jones and Mando Guerrero for the NWA Americas Tag Team Championship. This was Franks's second tag team title reign. The first being with partner, Black Gordman. The duo would hold the title for seven days before losing it back to Guerrero and Jones.

Franks would also hold the NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship. NWA Hollywood was also known as NWA Los Angeles. This territory operated mainly out of California. It closed in 1983. The region boasted such talent as Greg Valentine, The Guerreros, as well as the future Adrian Adonis.

Answer: Car accident

On July 4th, 1988, while traveling to his next show, Adrian was involved in an auto accident. He would die from his injuries a few hours later. Adrian would leave behind a wife, Bea Franke, and two young daughters. Adrian was starting to lose weight and get back into shape. At the height of his weight gain, he was about 350 plus. Though always heavy, he was very agile in the ring. He would never shy away from jumping off the top rope during a match

Adrian was a genuinely talented wrestler holding many regional titles in his short 14-year career. He was a gifted talker as well. His promos were often entertaining and funny. Adrian was a well-rounded performer.