Ricky Steamboat is one of wrestling’s most notable names of the past 50 years, but not everyone knows how he got the name.
While speaking on Hey! (EW) with RJ City, Steamboat went into detail.
“Richard Blood, that is a name. I, believe it or not. I went to Verne Gagne’s wrestling school. Minnesota. So first three months I used my real name, and then they went a little too violent well. After there, Verne sent me to Florida. Eddie Graham. He said, ‘You know I like the blood name. It’s a great name, but you know that’s for the bad guy.’ I was a young black hair had a good look and he said we had a guy here a few years ago named Sammy Steamboat from Hawaii. ‘I’d like to name you Ricky Steamboat. Not his son but i’d like to start advertising as a nephew of Sam’ and Sam was the main event guy in Florida. My first match at West Palme Beach was when they announced me as the nephew of Sam, Ricky Steamboat. The fans jumped out of their seat, and here I’ve only been in the business three months.”
H/T to Fightful for the transcription. Thanks for checking out this article. Make sure to follow Jeff Jarrett and all things GFE on Facebook.
