Flatfoot said:
My memory's hazy, but I think I remember him wrestling when I was about 7 or 8 years old, which was way back in 1988-89. The last I remember of that guy doing anything significant was a few cameo spots on Thunder in Paradise (Hulk Hogan's old tv series). Unfortunately, I had no pictures of him. The only wrestling memorabilia I have are two autographs. One is from Tito Santana, and the other is from the late "Texas Tornado" Kerry Von Erik. Don't know where they are, though, unfortunately.
Giant Gonzales was first seen in the World Wrestling Federation at the Royal Rumble of 1993. The previous Survivor Series, The Undertaker had pinned Kamala (managed by Harvey Whippleman) and nailed him into a coffin. This storyline went that this had ruined Kamala for Harvey from then on. Taker was doing his usual cleaning house in the Rumble when this "thing" appeared through the curtains, accompanied by a beaming Whippleman. He wasn't an entrant in the Rumble, just a surprise appearance. What made me gape the most (I was 15 at the time) was that he had to duck to get through the archway. He ambled to the ring and stood in one corner, arms raised. Taker had just chucked the last person in the ring over the rope and turned round, seeing Gonzales. They were in opposite corners, staring each other down. Up till then in his WWF career, Taker had barely even blinked, but he gave a noticable start this time. Gonzales took a step towards the middle, Taker reciprocated. Another step from the giant, another step from taker. One final step each and they were staring at each other in the middle of the ring. Mark Calloway, at a not inconsiderable six foot ten, had to crane his neck back up to gaze into Gonzales eyes.
😱 He drew back his arm for his trademark throat thrust, but the Giant was on him, pasting the shite out of him and knocking over the top rope to the floor. Down on the concrete the beating continued, ending with Taker stretched out on the apron and Gonzales wrapping his right leg round the steel ring post a few times. He then departs, with Harvey grinning like an idiot. This was obviously a big push for the new guy, because the Taker went to sit up a couple of times, only to fall back on the apron. Finally he responds to Paul Bearer's urging and urn-waving and staggers to his feet, before limping off down the aisle, towards the dressing room. Again, up till then the Taker had never shown signs of pain or injury, so just seeing him limping was a bit of a shock. lol
Three months later at Wrestlemania IX (memorable as possibly the worst ever show the WWF put on, although it was the broadcast debut of Jim Ross) the two met in a singles match. Taker came to the ring in style, drawn in a roman chariot, with a vulture perched on the side. It was a gangfuck of a match to be honest, with the interesting note that Gonzales seemed to be weak across the throat and neck. Clotheslines seemed to do him the most damage. It ended in a DQ for the Taker when Gonzales smothered him with a chloroform soaked rag. Taker was wheeled out on a stretcher, while Whippleman and Gonzales danced round the ring, the Giant chokeslamming a couple of the referees for good measure. After about a minute the "dead man's bell" chimed and Taker came lurching through the curtains and back towards the ring. He climbed straight in and went after Gonzales's throat with a series of chops and clotheslines. Reeling out of the ring, Gonzales beat a hasty retreat and Taker made to follow him, but was restrained by Paul Bearer (Bill Moody) grabbing his hair. As the Death March blared across Casesar's Palace Taker and Bearer took the plaudits from the crowd. A win, but not a conclusive one...
5 months later at Summerslam 93 the two were scheduled to meet again. It was billed as the "Rest in Peace match", which was a fancy way of saying there were no DQ's or count-outs. I'd missed the run up to this match, because we didn't ever had Sky TV until I was working and bought it myself. In those days I only caught the PPV's. There had been some backstory in which Harvey Whippleman had stolen the urn and Paul Bearer had gone missing. Without his manager and focus, Taker seemed not the dead man we were used to.
The match was two-thirds Gonzales and one third Taker. Every time he went down (often) he tried to go after the urn, but Whippleman kept grabbing it from the apron and walking off laughing. Then, just as all seemed lost, the Taker's entrance music blared out and Paul Bearer came waddling up the aisle, decked Harvey and grabbed the urn back. Rising seemingly from the dead, Taker got the upper hand on Gonzales, going after his weak throat and neck with a series of thrusts and clotheslines that eventually knocked the Giant clean off his feet. As he tried to haul his 460 body back upright, Taker ascended to the top rope and stood there, arms raising out to his side like a bird of prey preparing to stoop. As Gonzales turned towards him he took off from the top rope and caught him with a monster aerial clothesline, planting him flat on his back like a stunned fish. Folding Gonzales's arms across his chest, Taker registered the three count and left victorious with Paul Bearer, pausing only to stand a black memorial wreath next to the prone monster.
Upon regaining consciousness the Giant seemed a tad un-chuffed with Harvey for losing the urn and, to a monstrous standing ovation from the crowd, siezed him by the throat and chokeslammed him. Piling the remaining fragments of the wreath on his now ex-manager's chest, Gonzales stalked back down the aisle and was gone. And that ladies and gents, was the last show the guy wrestled on. (That I remember anyway.) His tenure in the WWF had lasted a total of 8 months, from Royal Rumble to Summerslam of 1993.
Okay peeps, you can wake up now.
😀
