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This article is about the pro wrestler. For Terry Taylor, songwriter, see
Terry Scott Taylor.
Paul W. Taylor III  |
| Statistics |
| Ring name(s) |
Dr. Feelgood
The Red Rooster
Terrance Taylor
Terry Taylor
Taylor Made Man
|
| Billed height |
6 ft 1 in (185 cm) |
| Billed weight |
239 lb (108 kg) |
| Born |
August 12 1955 (1955--) (age 52)
Greenville, South Carolina  |
| Billed from |
Vero Beach, Florida  |
| Trained by |
Self Taught |
| Debut |
1979 |
| Retired |
2006 |
Terry Taylor (born Paul W. Taylor III on August 12, 1955 in Greenville, South Carolina), is an American retired professional wrestler best known for his
time in the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and The World
Wrestling Federation. Taylor is currently the Director of Talent Relations in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.
Career
Terry Taylor was a popular fan favorite for much of his early career in
the Mid-South region and other Southern professional wrestling territories in the 1980s. Taylor
was originally selected to be part of The Fabulous Ones tag team with Stan Lane. Taylor was then bypassed by Florida wrestler, Steve Keirn, for
the position.
He made his way to the NWA in 1985 and
feuded with "Nature Boy" Buddy Landel over the NWA National Heavyweight Championship. Moving on to the Mid South Region in
1986, Taylor became one of that league's biggest stars and eventually defeated Freebird
Buddy Roberts for the Mid South Television Championship in September. This title was
represented by a gold medal hung around the neck. It was later replaced by a conventional championship belt after the medal was
thrown into a river. Later that year, he defeated Ted DiBiase for the North American
Heavyweight Championship, the Mid South region's top title at the time. He vacated the Television Title upon winning the NAHC. He
also won the UWF Tag Team Championship with "Gentleman" Chris Adams in early 1987 before breaking up their "Dream Team" to
begin a heated rivalry. After Jim Crockett Promotions took over the
Universal Wrestling Federation (née Mid-South Wrestling) later that year, Taylor (then the UWF Television
Champion) initiated a dispute with Nikita Koloff over the NWA World Television Championship by stealing Koloff's belt, which led to a
unification match of the two titles at Starrcade 1987 which Taylor would lose before abruptly
leaving the promotion.
In early-1988, Taylor debuted in World Class Championship
Wrestling, where he and Adams continued their feud, which lasted until early-June. Taylor did win the Texas heavyweight
championship from Matt Borne and defended the belt against Adams, Kevin Von Erich, and others. Terry also held the tag team titles with Iceman King Parsons for a short time. Taylor eventually departed WCCW when his feud with Von Erich was
about to kick into high gear.
In 1988, Taylor signed with the World Wrestling
Federation. Debuting as a babyface, he tag teamed with Sam Houston against The Conquistadors in his television debut. The
Conquistadors pinned Sam Houston in the match and afterwards Taylor got on the mic and berated Houston for losing the match,
beating him down turning heel. Taylor got Bobby Heenan as his manager and Heenan renamed him "the Red Rooster", a
gimmick which saw him don red tights and ring coat, and style his
hair like a rooster's comb). Early in his Red Rooster stint,
the heel Taylor was portrayed as a novice
wrestler who could not navigate his way through matches without constant instructions from Bobby Heenan. Eventually, Taylor (who
was actually a very talented wrestler) grew tired of Heenan's constant coaching and turned against him, defeating Heenan in a thirty second squash match at WrestleMania V. Taylor became a
face as a result, though he retained the Red Rooster gimmick, and even
began referring to his fans as "Rooster Boosters." He remained in the WWF until 1990. Warren Mickle
did a gimmick similar in the independent league PHWF, just going by "Rooster" donning a rooster suit and sunglasses.
Taylor received a lesser push in World Championship Wrestling in 1991, when he became
Terrence Taylor of The York Foundation. He feuded with Dustin Rhodes and Bobby Eaton, and won the WCW World Six-Man Tag
Team Championships with Richard Morton and Thomas
Rich. Taylor was the senior member of the York Foundation throughout its existence. After the York Foundation disbanded,
Taylor formed a tag team with Greg Valentine in
1992 and held the WCW United States Tag
Team Championship for three months.
In 1993, Taylor returned to the WWF as "Terrific Terry Taylor." He continued wrestling as a
heel, coming to the ring to his old Red Rooster theme, minus the rooster crowing. He later did interviews before leaving for WCW
again.
Taylor turned up in WCW again, wrestling as a face. He was featured in mid-card feuds for awhile. He left the business for a
while before becoming an announcer for the American Wrestling Federation
(AWF) in 1994. A huge fan of legendary wrestlin announcer Gordon
Solie, Taylor would often use Solie's famous phrases, pronouncing a suplex as a soo-play and a clothesline as a
lariat.
Taylor returned to the WWF in 1998, doing interviews backstage. He lasted in this capacity for about a year, before leaving
for WCW yet again.
During this stint in WCW, Taylor co-hosted WCW Saturday Night with
Larry Zbyszko. He remained with the company until WWF bought it out in 2001, and left the
business again for about a year.
Taylor later became a road agent for World Wrestling Entertainment after his wrestling career was cut short by injury. Before
his injury, he was often a regional title holder and became a major contender for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship before leaving for WWE.
After leaving WWE due to friction with other employees, namely Johnny Ace
[citation needed], Taylor began working for
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling in 2003. He
is the current head of talent relations, and has worked as a road agent, trainer, and interviewer.
Wrestling facts
- Finishing and signature moves
- As Terry Taylor
-
-
- Rooster Wing (Elevated belly to back hammerlock)
- Cock of the Walk (Cloverleaf leg-laced Boston
crab)
-
-
- Scary
- Terrible
- Terrific
- The Mecca of Manhood
- The Taylor Made Man
- The Computerized Man of the 1990s
Championships and accomplishments
-
- BCW Can-Am Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Cyrus
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- Continental Wrestling Association
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-
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- NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Rick Steiner
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- Mid-South North American Heavyweight Championship
(1 time)
- Mid-South Television Championship (2 times)
- UWF Tag Team Championship (2
times) – with Chris Adams (1) and Jim
Duggan (1)
- UWF Television Championship (2 times)
-
- NWA North American Heavyweight Championship
(1 time)
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- Southeastern Championship Wrestling
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-
- World Class Wrestling Association
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- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
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- PWI Rookie of the Year award in 1980
- PWI ranked him # 197 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.
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- Most Underrated Wrestler award in 1991.
- Most Underrated Wrestler award in 1992.
1The Mid-Atlantic promotion in which Taylor and Steiner won the NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship is
not the same promotion that was once owned by Jim Crcckett, Jr. and sold to Ted Turner in 1988. That promotion went on to be
renamed World Championship Wrestling and was sold to World Wrestling Entertainment in 2001. This current promotion, however, operates within
the same region as the original and uses some of the same regional championships, primarily the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight and
Tag Team Championships.[1]
Personal life
On April 12, 2004, Taylor had three vertebrae in his neck fused together. Two years later, on April 3,
2006, Taylor underwent a three hour cervical fusion surgery
in which his sixth and seventh vertebrae were joined. Following the second operation, Taylor announced his retirement from
professional wrestling.
Terry is a born-again Christian and has appeared on some of the wrestling and
religion shows that Ted DiBiase produces.
Terry and his family can now be seen advertising Splenda on a late-night infomercial,
entitled "A Sweet Taste For
Glory".
References
External links
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