The Life and Times of Classy Freddie Blassie Quiz

Answer: St. Louis, MO

His entry on the webpage for the WWE Hall of Fame describes him growing up in a working-class neighborhood in southern St. Louis. Frederick Kenneth Blassie was born on February 08, 1918 to Jacob and Anna Blassie. He was an only child. Jacob and Anna had emigrated from Germany to the United States before World War One.

His parents had a troubled marriage largely because of his father's alcoholism and abusive nature. Because of witnessing his father's abuse of alcohol, Freddie himself never drank. Friends would later claim that though Freddie wasn't particularly good at saving money, not drinking was one way he was able to save, in comparison to his colleagues.

Answer: Meatpacking Plant

After attending McKinley High School in St. Louis, Freddie got a job at a meatpacking plant. Family members hoped he would eventually get a good paying job as a meat cutter through the union. However, Freddie had another path. Although he first trained as a boxer, Freddie soon became more interested in wrestling. Going to Harry Gold's gym to watch the wrestlers, he became known to the regulars who began showing him wrestling moves.

His wrestling career began in 1935 in his native Missouri although it would eventually go nationwide.

Answer: Navy

Freddie enlisted in the Navy in 1942 and was assigned to the Pacific Theater. He reached the rank of Petty Officer, Second Class before being honorably discharged in 1946. He married his first wife Nettie Needles while on shore leave during the war. For a brief period of time after World War Two, he was billed as "Sailor" Freddie Blassie in matches, a gimmick that did not prove successful.

Answer: World Wrestling Association

Freddie particularly working in California. His WWA championship match took place on June 12, 1961. It was best-of-three falls match against the "Flying Frenchman", Edouard Carpenter. He was able to successfully defend his title before losing it in 1962 to Japanese wrestler Rikidozan. Freddie's presence in the ring as a "heel" (wrestling bad guy) actually caused him to be attacked several times for real by over enthusiastic fans.

In one case, a fan threw acid on Freddie's back during a match. Freddie had to immediately go back stage to have the acid washed off of his back. Freddie Blassie's listed height and weight during much of his career was five feet, 10 inches, and 220-230 pounds.

Answer: Billy McDaniel

Freddie Blassie began working with Billy McDaniel in California in the 1950s.
Billy McDaniel and Freddie Blassie would win the National Wrestling Alliance's (Georgia) Tag-Team Title in 1955. Interestingly, when the wrestled on the West Coast they were known as the McDaniel Brothers, but when they traveled east, they were known as the Blassie Brothers.

Answer: He was a manager

Freddie Blassie retired as an active wrestler in 1974 in part because of the difficulty of securing a wrestling license in California after the age of 55. Knee problems may have also influenced his decision. He spent the next decade plus as an on-air manager for many wrestlers. Wrestlers for which he served as manager included High Chief Peter Maivia (grandfather of the Rock), Jesse "The Body" Ventura, and George "The Animal" Steele.

In 1983, The Iron Sheik, another Freddie Blassie client, would claim the WWE championship.

In 1986, he sold out his remaining interest in the wrestlers he was managing and officially retired.

Answer: True

Freddie Blassie received the Lifetime Achievement Slammy Award in 1996. Two years previously, he was inducted into the World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame, with Shane McMahon giving the induction speech. Shane and his sister Stephanie represented the fourth generation of the McMahon family that Freddie had worked with in his wrestling career (including father Vincent K. McMahon, grandfather Vincent J. McMahon, and great-grandfather Jess McMahon).

Answer: Andy Kaufman

Taking place in a restaurant in the now-largely defunct Sambo's chain, the film is a largely unscripted conversation between Freddie Blassie and Andy Kaufman. The film is considered a parody of the 1981 film "My Dinner with Andre". Andy Kaufman himself was involved with professional wrestling for several years, most commonly in conjunction with Jerry "The King" Lawler".

While a main focus of the Blassie-Kaufman conversation is wrestling, their talks also cover several additional topics.

Answer: Pencil-Neck Geek

Freddie Blassie's memoir of wrestling memories "Listen, You Pencil Neck Geeks" was published in 2003, shortly before his death. Previously, in 1975, he recorded spoken-word vocals for a single "Pencil Neck Geek" which became a surprise hit. The song would later be featured on several albums and was a regular request on the Dr. Demento radio show. Freddie said the term "pencil-neck geek" was based on a carnival performer he worked alongside very early in his career called "the Geek", who he said had a neck like a stack of dimes.

Answer: D-Von Dudley

The wheelchair-bound Freddie Blassie was present at a tag-team match between the Dudley Boys and 3 Minute Warning. (3 Minute Warning had been threatening to attack Freddie earlier.) When the Dudleys took control of the match, Freddie can be clearly heard on the microphone saying "D-Von, Get the Table" to enormous applause. (The Dudley Boys were known for slamming their defeated opponents through folding tables.) Clips of this sequence can readily be found on-line.

Interestingly, Freddie was there that day to promote his memoirs, mentioned in the previous question. Freddie Blassie would die of heart and kidney failure on June 02, 2003.