Orton & Graham

In Tampa and the entire state of Florida, Eddie Graham and "Big O" Bob Orton spilled their blood all over buildings and caused more riots then any twenty guys put together. It started as a rivalry between the two just after Orton and Boris Malenko split apart. Orton had captured the Southern Heavyweight Title in a bitter battle against Graham. Before it was over, it took four wrestlers and two referees to break the two apart from each other.

Prior to the match, Graham made the statement to the press that Orton had beaten him, and he didn't like that. "Orton is a big, mean, rough, tough wrestler that will do anything to win a match. He can get as dirty as he needs to in order to win. Nothing tonight is going to stop me from dishing out whatever it takes to win against him and regain that Southern Heavyweight Belt."

The year was 1964, and Orton had over a decade of wrestling knowledge under his belt and had headlined cards all over the United States. He had met some of the greatest that the wrestling world had to offer. He was not a pushover, nor were his matches a waltz in the park. Orton had trained under some of the toughest men to ever lace up a pair of boots.

His schooling had taken 1 1/2 years to complete before he wrestled before a live crowd. Even then, he was not allowed to compete with the main eventers until he showed them that he could fight and not ask for any help. Bob had grown up in the North of Kansas City and was a bouncer for his parents' bar. It had a lot of salty characters come there to quench their thirsts, and a lot just wanted to get into a fight.

The match started, and, before the bell rang, the two had gotten into a pushing and shouting match inside the ring that emptied onto the floor of the arena. It seemed that the match would have no outcome with the frame of mind these two great athletes were in. Orton was continuing to berate Graham by yelling at him that he had more guts then he had brains, and that, if he did not stop and give the match to him, he would not be responsible for his actions.

The match ended in a 60-minute draw that did not even score a pin fall. It was scheduled for the best two out of three falls. It left fans wondering what the promoter would do with these two men.

Almost a year later, after the two had met in other single and tag team battles elsewhere in the territory, they were booked against each other on a big card in Tampa. The belt was not at risk, as Orton had gone on television and stated that the belt was his, and he intended to keep it forever... and that is a fact of life that Mr. Eddie Graham will have to get used to.

As the two men came to the center of the ring, their eyes came in contact with each other as Eddie looked up at Bob and both men extended their hands to each other in a mutual respect fashion. One fan jumped up from his front row seat and threw his program to the floor and looked to the ring at the men shaking hands with each other and shouted to them, "This is going to be a dance ... not a wrestling match!" Bob turned to say something to the man, and Eddie grabbed him by the beautiful ring jacket he was wearing and threw him to the other side of the ring.

Orton had let his guard down just for a second and was in serious trouble for that now. The fans were on their feet, and the aisles started to choke up with supporters of both men. The fan that had thrown his program down fought for nearly 15 minutes to regain his seat but was met by fans that were into the match as much as Orton and Graham were.

Bodyslams and flying headscissors occurred seconds apart as each man fought for a quick pin. Orton even delivered a devastating piledriver to the unsuspecting Graham and almost had a three count, but Graham was too close to the ropes and stopped the count. Only moments later, in a show of intestinal fortitude, Eddie leaped off the top rope to deliver a knee to Orton's throat. Bob saw it coming and moved out of the way just in time. After 45 minutes, neither man had scored a fall, and the contest, again, had to be declared a draw.

The handshake that started this match had meant only one thing.... Both men knew and respected each other in the ring, but it was just a hairline short of pure hatred for each other that the two had for each other personally. Eddie and Bob continued to be mistrustful of one another long after each had ceased to be what promoters considered being an ideal opponent for the other. They seldom spoke, and when, by chance, they had to be in the same dressing room, they would find lockers at the opposite ends.

About this same time, Mike Graham and Bob Orton Jr. were on the amateur mats trying each other out. They were under the guidance of John Heath, an outstanding professional wrestler and equally outstanding amateur coach. The two young lads were rivals as well and wanted to be the best for their famous fathers.

To be continued...

Percival A. Friend, Retired
The Epitome of Wrestling Managers