August 24, 1944
Rocky Johnson
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Born in Amherst, Nova Scotia.
Rocky Johnson was born Wayde Douglas Bowles. He is a retired Canadian professional wrestler. He is the father of American actor and professional wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
He left Amherst, Nova Scotia where he was born and raised, at the age of 16. Johnson moved to Toronto, Ontario, where he began wrestling and worked as a truck driver. Initially, he trained to be a boxer and eventually sparred with greats such as Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, but he was always fascinated by wrestling.
Johnson began his career as a professional wrestler in 1964, in Southern Ontario. Soon after his debut, he legally changed his name to his "Rocky Johnson". He was a top contender in the National Wrestling Alliance in the 1970s, receiving title matches against then-World Champions Terry Funk and Harley Race. He was well-suited to tag team wrestling, winning several regional tag team championships in the NWA. Johnson wrestled off and on in the Memphis promotion, often feuding with Jerry Lawler, winning Lawler's crown at one point. He also wrestled under a mask as "Sweet Ebony Diamond" in the Mid-Atlantic area.
In 1983, he was recruited by the World Wrestling Federation where he feuded with Don Muraco, Greg Valentine, Mike Sharpe, Buddy Rose, and Adrian Adonis. He was then paired with Tony Atlas as a tag team. They defeated the Wild Samoans for the Tag Team Championship on November 15, 1983. They were the first black tag team to hold the tag title. Together, Johnson and Atlas were known as "The Soul Patrol".
Johnson married into a prolific Samoan wrestling family, which included the Anoa'i family, by marrying "High Chief" Peter Maivia's daughter Ata Maivia. Ata met Rocky after Maivia and Johnson were tag team partners in a match on the independent scene. Maivia disapproved of the relationship, not because of anything personal against Johnson, but because of Johnson's chosen profession, as he knew first hand how hard it was for the wrestlers' families who were at home while they were constantly on the road. The couple had a son, Dwayne, on May 2, 1972. He and Ata divorced in 2003. Johnson is honoured as being the first non-Samoan to be named High Chief. His title is High Chief Tafiaiafi.
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Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson with his dad Rocky Johnson and mom Ata Maivia.
After retiring in 1991, Johnson along with Pat Patterson, trained his son Dwayne to wrestle. While he initially resisted his son's entry into the business because he knew it was extremely difficult, he agreed to train his son on the condition that he would not go easy on him. Johnson was instrumental in getting Dwayne (later dubbed "Rocky Maivia" after both Rocky Johnson's and Peter Maivia's ring names) signed to a WWF developmental deal. Initially, Johnson had an on-camera presence at his son's matches, jumping into the ring on his son's behalf after he was attacked by The Sultan and The Iron Sheik at WrestleMania 13. Johnson was not seen on-camera again after the Rocky Maivia character flopped, but this was actually a blessing, as his son achieved crossover popularity as a cocky heel, The Rock.
On February 25, 2008, Johnson was announced as an inductee for the 2008 class of the WWE Hall of Fame along with his father-in-law "High Chief" Peter Maivia. Both he and his father-in-law were inducted into the Hall of Fame on March 29, 2008 by his son, The Rock.
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Rocky Johnson, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and High Chief Peter Maivia.
In his first television acting job, Dwayne Johnson would portray his father in a season 1 (1999) episode of That '70s Show called "That Wrestling Show".
Johnson currently lives in Davie, Florida. He also has two other children, a son Curtis, and a daughter Wanda from his first marriage in 1967.
Championships and accomplishments;
Championship Wrestling from Florida.
NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Florida version).
NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (3 times).
NWA Florida Tag Team Championship with Pedro Morales.
NWA Florida Television Championship.
AWA Southern Tag Team Championship (2 times), with Jimmy Valiant and Soul Train Jones.
NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship.
NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship with Jerry Brisco.
NWA Macon Tag Team Championship with Danny Little Bear.
NWA Television Championship (2 times).
NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship with Don Leo Jonathan.
NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Texas version).
NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship (2 times).
NWA Texas Tag Team Championship with Jose Lothario.
NWA World Tag Team Championship with Ben Justice (Detroit version).
NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship.
NWA Americas Tag Team Championship with Earl Maynard.
NWA "Beat the Champ" Television Championship (2 times).
CWA/AWA International Tag Team Championship with Bill Dundee.
NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Memphis version).
NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (San Francisco version).
NWA World Tag Team Championship, 3 times with Pat Patterson and once with Pepper Gomez (San Francisco version).
NWA Polynesian Pacific Tag Team Championship, 2 times with Ricky Johnson.
NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship.
NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship, 2 times with Brett Sawyer and Iceman Parsons.
Pro Wrestling Illustrated ranked him #211 of the 500 best singles wrestlers in 2003.
St. Louis Wrestling Hall of Fame (Class of 2008).
World Wrestling Federation Tag Team Championship with Tony Atlas.
World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame (Class of 2008).
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Dwayne Johnson Surprises His Dad With a Car for Christmas.
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