Big Daddy(1930-1997)
Shirley Crabtree was one of the biggest Icons in British Pro-Wrestling from the 1950s to the 1980s. He was a heel in his early days in wrestling, playing characters like "The Blonde Adonis" and "Mr. Universe" for the British Wrestling Federation (BWF). Between the 1960s & mid-'70s he didn't wrestle often, but in 1976 he made a comeback with his biggest gimmick as "Big Daddy". The British wrestling fans gave him respect, and on TV he drew huge audiences when wrestling people like Giant Haystacks. The crowd would chant "Easy!, Easy!" to give him full support as the good guy.
When American Wrestling (WWF) started getting popular on British TV, ITV dropped the British wrestling from Saturday afternoon TV and showed WWF during late nights instead. Big Daddy continued to wrestle off TV for a few more years, but in August 1987 a tragedy occurred. His opponent Mal "King Kong" Kirk died in the ring when Big Daddy put his finishing move on him called "The Daddy Splash". Mal Kirk had a bad heart condition and Big Daddy was so devastated that he decided to retire from pro wrestling. In 1993 he suffered from a stroke and passed away in 1997.
When American Wrestling (WWF) started getting popular on British TV, ITV dropped the British wrestling from Saturday afternoon TV and showed WWF during late nights instead. Big Daddy continued to wrestle off TV for a few more years, but in August 1987 a tragedy occurred. His opponent Mal "King Kong" Kirk died in the ring when Big Daddy put his finishing move on him called "The Daddy Splash". Mal Kirk had a bad heart condition and Big Daddy was so devastated that he decided to retire from pro wrestling. In 1993 he suffered from a stroke and passed away in 1997.
