A SENSATIONAL DESTROYER

In the late 1950's, my family owned a weekend cabin in the hills above Honeoye Lake, New York. It wasn't a "second home", as we lived in a rented house in Rochester, N.Y. I guess my parents had different priorities than most people might when it came to housing.

We had so much enjoyment of out of our "weekend place" -- which we did not use in the Winter time because of the snow & cold -- we sold "The Cabin", as we called it -- & moved year round to Honeoye.

When we had ... "The Cabin" ... it was a bit isolated. While we were not really "roughing it", there were some limitations initially as to household items. We had an Ice Box, rather than a refrigerator, which means we had to stop at the Red & White Grocery on Friday nights & get a block of ice. [Hauling those big blocks of ice, spurred my folks to soon get a refrigerator for "The Cabin".]

The first year or two, we did not have a television. We listened to the radio at night. It was one of those big table model radios which seemed to find stations from far away. I still remember listening each weekend to the Grand Old Opery, from -- "W.C.K.Y. ... Cincinnati, One ... Ohio".

About the third year, things changed for the better when we got a television. It was a small, black & white set with limited reception. No 250-plus-channel-cable back then. Because of our location in the hills, we could not get the TV stations from Rochester, but instead, we had the Buffalo, N.Y. channels to watch.

My life was never to be the same.

On Saturday nights, from 6 to 6:45 P.M., I was glued to the TV ... watching Pro Wrestling !! I was hooked immediately & each weekend we were there, I was watching each Saturday night. [And in the Winter, suffered from with drawl symptoms, not being able to get my weekly wrestling fix.]

The matches shown on TV were filmed at the Buffalo War Memorial Auditorium & were described by an announcer named Chuck Healey. He did an excellent job of conveying the action & soon had me rooting for the "good guys" & hating the "bad guys". I developed favorites like Illio DiPaolo, BoBo Brazil, Billy "Red" Lyons & Yukon Eric. Truth be told, I also enjoyed bad guy Fritz Von Erich, a dastardly, post-war, German Nazi. [Little did I know then.]

My favorite wrestler was Dick Beyer, a local "good guy" from Buffalo, who was a former star football player & amateur wrestler at Syracuse University. He wore white trunks & white wrestling shoes, which made him look good on that old B&W television.

I remember one night, during the introductions before a match Dick had on TV, Chuck Healey commenting that Dick's wife had just had a baby. Dick then proceeded to get the snot kicked out of him by Duke Keomuka, a post war, Japanese bad guy. [Do we see a recurring theme of former World War II foes, still battling us ??] Dick ended up beaten & bloody. [Good way to get prepared for parenthood !!]

My own Father made the effort to point out I was wasting my time being inside, watching ... "that fake stuff". This was a repeated presence by him, which seemed to occur each Saturday. I don't think I ever pointed it out to him he was wasting his time inside each week.

Note: None of the wrestling holds on the TV seemed to help me gain any advantage when my Father & me wrestled. He must have been the "bad guy" & I was the "good guy", since he had to cheat to beat me !!

The first "live" wrestling show I went to was in Rochester. My best friend -- Dale -- went with me to see Dick Beyer in the main event against the Nazi bad guy, Fritz Von Erich. Again, Dick was bloody & beaten, which just led to a "re-match", which Dale & I laid down our money again to see the next month.

Life changed & I was growing up. College came calling, as did moving to the South. New wrestlers & new "territories" came into my world. For years, one of the biggest cities for Pro Wrestling was Memphis, Tennessee, where I lived. How convenient for me.

Just as life changed for me, so to did it change for Dick Beyer. In his travels around the world to wrestle, he made the decision to become a "bad guy", or as it is known in wrestling -- the "Heel". [The good guy" in the match is called "The Baby Face".] He started wrestling in Southern California wearing a mask & calling himself ... THE DESTROYER.

Note: The first mask he used was given to him by a fellow wrestler. It fit poorly, affected Dick's vision & he tossed it away after the one match wearing it. Another mask was given to him, which to paraphrase Goldilocks ... "fit just right". The mask was made from a woman's girdle.

As Dick tells the story, the next day he & his wife were at Woolworth's, putting on women's girdles over his head, to find the correct size. Dick's wife then used her sewing skills to make the original Destroyer masks. [FYI -- Dick wears a size "Small-Tall".]

Becoming The Destroyer changed Dick's career. More money, main events & recognition as one of the best wrestlers in the world. He lived for over six years in Japan, wrestling, as well as hosting a Japanese variety show on TV. A long way from those "Baby Face" years in Buffalo, N.Y.

Although my interest in wrestling diminished as pro wrestling became "sports entertainment" thanks to Vince McMahon, I always tried to keep up with Dick Beyer, or, as he was known in Japan -- "The Intelligent, Sensational, Destroyer". [Well, he does have a masters degree from Syracuse University.]

Dick returned to the United States & settled in Akron, N.Y. Between wrestling tours, he was a teacher & coach at the local school in Akron. Even after he retired, Dick continued to coach swimming & wrestling.

Dick has been enshrined in the Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame. As he points out, he can be an old man walking down the street -- difficult ... after 8,500 matches & two hip operations -- but when he puts on the mask of The Destroyer, he's 35 years old again.

I have corresponded with Dick many times & exchange Christmas cards/letters each year. He has been more than kind to provide me with pictures & posters of his career, including the Destroyer mask which is framed & hanging in my hallway. I can even be found on his web site -- www.thedestroyer.com .

It may be a bit unique that I still have an attachment to memories from my childhood & the "hero" of that time is still an important part of who I am today. As I have grown & lived my life, I have also followed Dick Beyer/The Destroyer on his journeys as well.

I know neither Dick or I have any complaints on where life has taken us. I'd say both our lives have been ... "sensational".