Nick Bockwinkel, American wrestler, sportscaster, and actor (b. 1934)
Nicholas Warren Francis "Nick" Bockwinkel (December 6, 1934 – November 14, 2015) was an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association (AWA) in the 1970s and 1980s.
Bockwinkel had a lengthy professional wrestling career with matches in 34 consecutive years. Debuting in 1954, Bockwinkel spent the first half of his career as a journeyman, playing the babyface (good guy), wrestling primarily in California and Hawaii with stints in Texas, Georgia, and the Pacific Northwest as well as Canada and Australia. In 1970, he joined the Minneapolis, Minnesota-based AWA, where he would be based for the remainder of his career. Swiftly rising to prominence as a main event heel (villain), Bockwinkel held the AWA World Tag Team Championship three times then the AWA World Heavyweight Championship four times before retiring in 1987.
Bockwinkel was recognized for his exceptional technical wrestling ability, mastery of in-ring psychology, and even-toned, articulate promos. Professional wrestling historian Tim Hornbaker described him as "the definitive heavyweight champion heel of the 1970s", while historian Scott Beekman described him as "the most successful heel champion in wrestling history". Bockwinkel was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 1996, the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in 2003, the World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame in 2007, the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2009, and the National Wrestling Alliance Hall of Fame in 2016.
2015Nov, 14
Nick Bockwinkel
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Events on 2015
- 29Apr
2015 Baltimore protests
A baseball game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Chicago White Sox sets the all-time low attendance mark for Major League Baseball. Zero fans were in attendance for the game, as the stadium was officially closed to the public due to the 2015 Baltimore protests. - 3May
Charlie Hebdo shooting
Two gunmen launch an attempted attack on an anti-Islam event in Garland, Texas, which was held in response to the Charlie Hebdo shooting. - 14Jul
New Horizons
NASA's New Horizons probe performs the first flyby of Pluto, and thus completes the initial survey of the Solar System. - 20Jul
Cuba-United States relations
The United States and Cuba resume full diplomatic relations after five decades. - 14Aug
Cuba-United States relations
The US Embassy in Havana, Cuba re-opens after 54 years of being closed when Cuba-United States relations were broken off.