“Dirty” Dick Slater Done:Wrestling Legend Gone at age 67

He was one of the dirtiest players ever in the game….The game of professional wrestling and sports entertainment….”Dirty” Dick Slater, he was a cheat, he was a crook, he was his own man and he was one of my all-time favorites, because he didn’t care what the fans said or thought, he just needed to keep his job and keep making a statement in and around the professional wrestling ring and that is what he did….

It may not have been pretty, but it was “Dirty” and Dick Slater got the job done….He was real big and real bad, as in BAD, this guy was tough and that was especially true here in the south, it was his calling card, he was one of the baddest and dirtiest wrestlers to ever lace up the boots…
(Slater’s goal was to beat the snot out of you and go home.)

Slater didn’t care if what he did was politically correct and he was a true trend setter….He went into the Tennessee and Deep South wrestling territories as a white male with a black female valet/manager and she went by the name “Dark Journey”…This went over great with that strong male dominated white audience, that attended most of the key matches at places like the Mid-South Coliseum back in the mid to late 70’s and even up into the early 80’s…Slater knew how to get the fans stirred up….

One story has it that Slater got shot by I think it was Wahoo McDaniel, in a bar scuffle, and Slater made sure he told the authorities he got hit by a stray bullet that came from some car driving down the street and the bullet hit him while he was standing in the parking lot…Just got popped by a ‘drive-by’/sniper…….
The bar story from Wikipedia:
www.wikipedia.com
*****Before coming to Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling, Slater was involved in an incident where Wahoo McDaniel shot him. Slater, McDaniel, Tommy Rich, and André the Giant were at a bar in Atlanta when someone in the bar made a comment about Rich’s wife, which angered Rich and McDaniel. The man who had commented about Rich’s wife got a knife, and seeing that, McDaniel got out a gun. André and Slater went out to the parking lot and watched the altercation; while they were watching McDaniel pistol-whip the man, the gun went off and Slater was hit by the bullet in the leg. Slater told the police that a sniper had shot him; he would return to the ring in just three weeks. Slater was also famous for an altercation in a bar in Tampa, Florida with John Matuszak, which Slater won.*****

Slater from what my memory bank tells me, played college football at Tampa University, back when Tampa U. still had football….

Dick Slater and Dick Murdock, Dick Slater and Ric Flair, Dick Slater and Ricky Steamboat; Slater could be your tag-team partner one day and then be going for your throat in a singles match, the next night…

He was a great one and he did not rub elbows with the establishment, but he established himself as one of the all-time greats in professional wrestling/sports entertainment and he did it his own way, and for that he needs to be in multiple Hall of Fames….

Thank-you Dick Slater for not doing what you were supposed to do and by doing things that way, you gave us something different, and so many great lasting memories…Professional Wrestling in Florida, Professional Wrestling in Georgia, in the NWA, WCW, WWE……

RIP:”Dirty” Dick Slater

from Wrestling Inc.com at www.wrestlinginc.com:
(CLICK HERE for some great Dick Slater video and photos from Wrestling Inc.)

WWE has announced that wrestling legend “Dirty” Dick Slater passed away at the age of 67.

Below is WWE’s statement on Slater’s passing and a few videos from his career:

Dick Slater passes away
WWE is saddened to learn that Dick Slater has passed away at age 67.

Slater was a prolific competitor during the 1970s and 1980s in Georgia Championship Wrestling, Mid-South Wrestling and Mid-Atlantic Wrestling, where he teamed with WWE Hall of Famer Bob Orton and had a memorable rivalry with WWE Hall of Famer Jake “The Snake” Roberts. Slater competed in WWE from 1986 to 1987 before moving to Japan and finishing his in-ring career in WCW.

WWE extends its condolences to Slater’s family, friends and fans.

More on Slater from Wikipedia:
Richard Van Slater (May 19, 1951 – October 18, 2018)[1] better known by his ring name “Dirty” Dick Slater, was an American professional wrestler who wrestled in the 1970s, 1980s, and mid-1990s for various promotions including Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling (WCW).

Slater began wrestling with Mike Graham at Robinson High School, in Tampa, Florida. He attended the University of Tampa with Paul Orndorff. From there he began wrestling in Championship Wrestling from Florida and Georgia Championship Wrestling. He worked as a booker in Knoxville, Tennessee after Ron Fuller sold his promotion to Jim Barnett. He wrestled in Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling (later World Championship Wrestling), where he appeared on the first Starrcade. He also worked in Mid-South Wrestling Association, where he was managed by Dark Journey. Made some trips to the World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico. He wrestled briefly in the World Wrestling Federation as a babyface under a “Rebel” gimmick, but soon returned to WCW. He wrestled there until receiving his back injury that ended his career.

In June 2004, Slater was convicted for the stabbing of his former girlfriend Theresa Halbert. He was sentenced to one year of house arrest and two years of probation. He blamed the incident on influence from painkillers. On October 18, 2018 it was reported by wrestling trainer Les Thatcher that Slater had passed away…..