Fred Thomas Koury Sr. (May 2, 1913 – March 8, 1985), best known under his ring name ”Wild Bull” Curry, was an American professional wrestler of Lebanese descent. He is recognized as the originator of the hardcore style, predating legends such as The Sheik, Abdullah the Butcher, and Bruiser Brody.[5]
| Bull Curry | |
|---|---|
 Curry in 1967 | |
| Birth name | Fred Thomas Koury Sr.[1] |
| Born | May 2, 1913[1] Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.[2] |
| Died | March 8, 1985 (aged 71)[3] Columbus, Ohio, U.S.[2] |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Bull Curry |
| Billed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[4] |
| Billed weight | 220 lb (100 kg)[4] |
| Billed from | Hartford, Connecticut[3] |
| Trained by | Adam Weissmuller[2] |
| Debut | 1932 |
| Retired | 1979[2] |
Professional wrestling career
At the age of sixteen, Curry left high school and joined the circus in order to help provide for his four brothers and sisters.[2] His job at the circus was that of the “tough man” who took on all comers from the audience in a fight. He had 65 straight wins without anyone going past one 5-minute round.[1] In 1939, Curry joined the Hartford Police Department, where he put his “tough man” background to good use in the streets, quickly earning him a reputation for toughness.[2] It has been claimed that on one occasion, a wild steer bull broke out of the Hartford stockyard and ran wild in the streets. Curry grabbed the bull by the horns and managed to wrestle it to the ground, however, it is likely this was in fact nothing more than a fictional story created by wrestling promoters to give a reason for his nickname of “Wild Bull” that stuck with him for the rest of his life.[1][6]
In the 1940s, Curry began wrestling in Detroit under promoter Adam Weissmuller.[2] While there, Curry developed his brutal, hardcore style of wrestling that made him a top name in the territory. In July 1940, Curry faced professional boxer Jack Dempsey in an exhibition match.[7] Years later, Curry would often claim that he knocked Dempsey out in the match, but he was actually stopped in the second round.[8]
In the early part of the 1950s, Bull Curry relocated to Texas, where his combination of unpredictable violence, unique look and intensity made him a star more or less immediately upon arrival.[1][6] Curry's brawling style made him a success but it also kept the promoters from giving him the “main” title of the territory despite being the biggest draw in the territory.[9] Instead of letting Curry win the top title of the Texas territory, the bookers created a brand new title to match his hardcore style of wrestling: the NWA Texas Brass Knuckles Championship, which he won on March 6, 1953, in a tournament final over Danny McShain.[10] From that year onwards until 1967, Curry personified the Texas Brass Knuckles Championship as he held it 20 times, defeating such names including Fritz Von Erich, Tony Borne, Waldo Von Erich, Louie Tillet, Killer Karl Kox and Brute Bernard for the title.[10] Also in 1953, Curry would briefly hold the Texas version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship with Lucas Pertano, as well as the NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship for three weeks.[10]
Bull Curry's son Fred Thomas Koury, Jr. would later start wrestling as "Flying" Fred Curry. Unlike his father, Fred was a clean cut, high flying face, but the two Currys teamed up on a regular basis. The two won the NWA International Tag Team Championship in 1964 and held it until 1966,[10] as well as beating Nikolai and Boris Volkoff for the Ohio version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship.[3] Fred's eventual attempts to get out of his father's shadow never caused any problems between the two Currys.[11] Bull retired from wrestling in 1979 and worked as a corrections officer.[2][12]
His grandson, Fred Curry Jr. also is a wrestler.
Professional wrestling persona
Bull Curry's trademark was his “wildman” look with bushy eyebrows, maniacal facial expressions and insane eyes that could scare the crowd just by looking at them. In one case, he scared a girl at ringside so badly she had to be carried from the ring in terror.[13] This wild look, coupled with his wild brawling style, made Curry one of the most disliked heels in wrestling. Other wrestlers also refused to work with Curry as they felt he seldom showed the effects of their offense.[6] He was so hated in places that riots broke out more than once as irate fans attacked Curry in the ring.[14]
- 1955: A match between Curry and Ray McIntyre resulted in more than a 140 fans being taken to the hospital after a riot broke out.[15]
- 1956: Curry was jumped by a fan who was displeased with Curry's brutal treatment of local star George Becker. Curry broke the fan's jaw with a single punch.[15]
- 1958: During a match with Pepper Gomez in Galveston, Texas, a fan struck Bull Curry with an iron pipe. Curry chased the fan out of the ring, catching up with him in the balcony where he beat him up.[15]
- 1968: While wrestling Emile Dupreé in Worcester, Massachusetts, a fan jumped in the ring and jumped on Curry's back. Curry punched the fan so hard that he was reportedly unconscious for two days.[15]
- Year unknown: During a match in Texas, Curry got a bucket of yellow paint dumped over his head by a fan.[3]
Death
Koury died from liver disease at a hospital on March 8, 1985, at the age of 71.[2]
Championships and accomplishments
- Big Time Wrestling
- BTW United States Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[16]
- Cauliflower Alley Club
- Maple Leaf Wrestling
- Mid-South Sports
- New England Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Class of 2013[17]
- Southwest Sports, Inc. / NWA Big Time Wrestling
References
Further reading
- Wild Bull Curry Official Website Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine – including The Walking Riot book written by Flying Fred Curry
- Wrestling Revue (October 1963). "Blood and Broken Bones: Bull Curry vs. Louis Tillet...A Horror in Scarlet".
- Wrestling Illustrated (March 1965). "We Done It!".