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John Minton
Statistics
Ring name(s)	Big John Studd Captain U.S.A Chuck O'Connor Executioner #2 Masked Superstar #2
Billed height	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Billed weight	364 lb (165 kg)
Born	February 19, 1948(1948-02-19) Butler, Pennsylvania
Died	March 20, 1995 (aged 47) Burke, Virginia
Trained by	Killer Kowalski
Debut	1976

John William Minton (February 19, 1948 â€"- March 20, 1995) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Big John Studd. He was born and raised in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Big John Studd was trained by wrestling legend Killer Kowalski Together Studd and Kowalski, as the masked Executioners, would win the WWWF Tag Team titles in 1976.

After leaving the WWWF, Studd would become known as Chuck O'Connor, Captain USA, and The Masked Superstar II at certain points in the Mid-Atlantic. In 1978, Studd teamed with Ken Patera to win the Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Titles.

Studd would also make the occasional trips to Canada to wrestle in Emile Duprée's Atlantic Grand Prix Wrestling.

On May 25, 1980, Masked Superstar II was unmasked after a match with Blackjack Mulligan in Toronto. After this, Studd was brought into Florida by J.J. Dillon and feuded with Dusty Rhodes, Barry Windham, (the son of Blackjack Mulligan), and Sweet Brown Sugar.

Studd, who was a heel at this point, had a gimmick of bringing a stretcher to the ring as he would beat his opponents so badly that they'd be taken out on the stretcher.

Early on in 1982, Studd gained several unsuccessful title shots at the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, which was held by "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair at the time. This was Studd's most legendary feud until the mid-1980s, when he rejoined the WWF and feuded with André the Giant. The feud would reach its high point at the first WrestleMania, when Studd and André had a $15,000 bodyslam challenge match, which André won. Because of Studd's enormous stature, he was one of the few wrestlers that could compare to the size of André in the ring, which was one of the reasons why their feud was so successful.

After the André feud died down, Studd would feud with WWF Champion Hulk Hogan, unsuccessfully challenging him for the championship on numerous occasions. After retiring for several years, he returned to the WWF in the late 1980s, this time as a face challenging the now heel Andre. He won the 1989 Royal Rumble, which many consider to be the crowning achievement in his WWF career but retired later that year due to sickness brought on by taking growth hormones.

Studd died from liver cancer and Hodgkin's disease on March 20, 1995. He is survived by his son John Minton, Jr., who accepted his plaque upon his posthumous induction to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004. Minton, Jr. also participated in the fourth series of WWE Tough Enough.

Wrestling facts

• Finishing and signature moves
  • Backbreaker
  • Reverse bearhug
  • Double arm suplex
  • Heart punch
  • Low-angle chokeslam

• Managers
  • Freddie Blassie
  • Bobby Heenan

Championships and accomplishments

• Big Time Wrestling

• NWA American Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• NWA Texas Tag Team Championship (1 time) â€" with Bull Ramos

• Championship Wrestling from Florida

• NWA Florida Global Tag Team Championship (1 time) â€" with Jimmy Garvin

• European Wrestling Union

• EWU World Super Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

• Georgia Championship Wrestling

• NWA National Tag Team Championship (1 time) â€" with Super Destroyer

• Maple Leaf Wrestling

• NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship (Toronto version) (1 time)

• Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling

• NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship (3 times) with Ric Flair (1), Ken Patera (1), and Masked Superstar #1 (1)

• Mid-Pacific Promotions

• NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship (1 time) â€" with Buddy Rose
• NWA North American Heavyweight Championship (Hawaii version) (1 time)

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated

• PWI ranked him # 60 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.

• Southern Championship Wrestling

• NWA Tennessee Southern Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

• World Championship Wrestling

• WCW Hall of Fame (Class of 1995)

• World Wrestling Association

• WWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) â€" with Ox Baker

• World Wide Wrestling Federation | World Wrestling Entertainment | World Wrestling Federation

• WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2004)
• WWWF World Tag Team Championship (1 time) â€" with Killer Kowalski
• Royal Rumble (1989)

• Wrestling Observer Newsletter

• Most Overrated Wrestler award in 1984

Acting career

Filmography

• Micki + Maude (1984) as himself
• The Protector (1985) as "Huge Hood"
• Double Agent (1987) as "Igor"
• Hyper Space (1989) as "Psycho"
• Caged in Paradiso (1990) as "Big Man"
• Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991) as "Jack Daniels"
• Shock 'Em Dead (1991) as "Officer Meak"
• The Marrying Man (1991) as "Dante"

Television series appearances

• The A-Team (November 12, 1985) in episode "Body Slam" as himself
• Hunter (January 10, 1987) in episode "Bad Company" as "Randy"
• Beauty and the Beast (March 18, 1988) in episode "To Reign in Hell" as "Erlick"

References

• Solie's title histories

External links

• Big John Studd at the WWE Hall of Fame
• Big John Studd at the Internet Movie Database