When I heard the news two days ago that Bruno Sammartino, wrestling legend, had died after being hospitalized for two months, I was saddened. I think everyone who is a wrestling fan of a certain age would be, but I also felt that there was something wrong. I don’t think anyone under 25 even knows who he is outside of his Hall Of Fame induction and a few appearances in some video games, or the stat that he is the longest reigning world champion in the business. Even I, who has always had wrestling in my life, didn’t really have the context to just how important he was to professional wrestling. By the time I was really cognizant of wrestling people and how the business worked in 1991 (when I was four), Bruno had been retired for years and wasn’t even a color commentator, and his personal issues with the business had put him on the outs with the McMahons, so he was never really mentioned unless it was a brief mention on a home video or his late induction into the HOF in 2013. So when I did research for this article, I was surprised at what an interesting and even inspiring man he turned out to be.

Bruno Sammartino was born in Pizzoferatto, Italy in 1935, the youngest of seven children. His father left Mussolini’s Italy just after the invasion of Poland to emigrate to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, leaving his family to take refuge from the occupying Nazi’s on a mountain called Valla Rocca. His mother Emilia, a true hero, would sneak into Pizzoferatto to steal food and supplies from the Germans to keep her kids alive at the risk of her own life. The pickings were meager and Bruno grew through this time sickly and emaciated. When he finally did reunite with his dad in Pittsburgh and got settled into a school, he found himself an easy target for bullies. He turned to lifting weights and wrestling to get himself through this tough time, and became so good at the weightlifting that he was considered for the 1956 Olympic Weightlifting Team, losing out to the man who would go on to win the gold. He did however set the world bench press record at 565 pounds.

He started in Roderick McMahon’s Capitol Wrestling in 1959, but left for Frank Tunney’s Canadian promotion after he felt that McMahon preferred “Nature Boy” Buddy Rogers (and he couldn’t compete in the U.S. because of some predictable McMahon revenge tactics). In 1963, Sammartino returned to Capitol, now renamed the World Wide Wrestling Federation with the promise that he would get a title match against Buddy Rogers. Buddy Rogers ended up having a heart attack a week before their match and Sammartino was booked to win the Championship. It turned out Bruno was an amazingly popular champion who would sell out Madison Square Garden on a regular basis, and Sammartino put on classics with many other legends of the time. Sadly Heavyweight Champions, the WWWF’s first televised show, is mostly lost to history and so are most of his first run as a result. After a record setting reign of eight years (specifically 2,208 days) he dropped the title to Kayfabe Russian heel Ivan Koloff in 1971. Sammartino later said that when the fall was counted people were so silent that he thought he’d gone deaf, and Koloff had to be escorted quickly from the building as a cascade of garbage pelted the ring.

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After his loss Bruno was moved down to the mid-card for a while, taking part in a high profile tag-team with another former champion and legend Pedro Morales. Pretty soon he was called on again to hold the WWF Championship, adding another four years to have a cumulative reign of 12 years. After losing the title once again, this time to Superstar Billy Graham, he semi retired to the announce desk as a color commentator, even calling the television debut of Hulk Hogan.

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However he did sometimes get back in the ring, like the storyline when his successful protégé Larry Zbysko turned on him leading to a classic match, which outdrew Hulk Hogan’s first meeting with Andre the Giant. He was part of the first WrestleMania when he was in his son’s corner for his match against Brutus Beefcake, and later had a tag match with his son against Beefcake and his manager. He was a major part of the storyline that led to the greatest match ever between Ricky Steamboat and Randy Savage when he feuded with Randy Savage for kayfabe injuring Steamboat. After a few more years Sammartino decided to retire in full.

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Bruno Sammartino had a growing disconnect with the wrestling business, feeling that the dangers of steroid use were not being addressed and that the storylines had become obscene. This led to a falling out between him and the McMahons that saw him refuse to be inducted into the WWF/E Hall Of Fame until they addressed the steroid issue, and his growing concerns about the effects of concussions, to his satisfaction. This finally happened in 2013, where he was reintroduced to a new generation of fan.

Bruno Sammartino leaves behind his wife of sixty years Carol and three sons, David, Danny and Daryl. We give our sympathies to them in this difficult time. RIP Bruno Sammartino.