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Big John Studd

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Big John Studd
Studd, c. 1982
Birth nameJohn William Minton[1]
Born(1948-02-19)February 19, 1948
Butler, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedMarch 20, 1995(1995-03-20) (aged 47)
Burke, Virginia, U.S.
Spouse
Donna Conklin
​
(m. 1978)​
Children3
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Big John Studd[2]
Captain USA
Chuck O'Connor[3]
Executioner #2
The Mighty Minton[3]
Billed height6 ft 10 in (208 cm)[2][4]
Billed weight365 lb (166 kg)[4]
Billed fromLos Angeles, California[2]
Trained byKiller Kowalski[3]
Debut1972
Retired1993

John William Minton (February 19, 1948 – March 20, 1995) was an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name Big John Studd. Studd is best known for his appearances with the World Wide Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Federation in the 1970s and 1980s.

Studd held a number of championships over his career, including the NWA American Heavyweight Championship, NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship, NWA Canadian heavyweight title and was the winner of the 1989 Royal Rumble. He was posthumously inducted into the WCW Hall of Fame in 1995 and the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2004.

Early life

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John William Minton was born and raised in a farm in Butler, Pennsylvania.[5] He attended Butler High School, where he played basketball.[3] He then joined the United States Army and served as a military police officer in Vietnam.[5]

Professional wrestling career

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Early career (1972–1973)

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Minton was trained for a career in professional wrestling by Killer Kowalski and Charlie Moto in Los Angeles.[1] He debuted in 1972 under the ring name "The Mighty Minton" for NWA Hollywood Wrestling.[6] He formed a tag team with "Superstar" Billy Graham, facing the Tolos Brothers (Chris and John) in a series of matches.[2][1]

World Wide Wrestling Federation (1972–1973)

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In mid-1972, Studd joined the World Wide Wrestling Federation under the ring name "Chuck O'Connor".[6] His most notable match of this run took place on September 12, when he unsuccessfully challenged Pedro Morales for the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship.[6] He left the WWWF in February 1973.[7]

Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling (1974–1983)

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Studd (left) with Gary Hart, c. 1977

As Chuck O'Connor, Minton joined Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling in January 1974.[8] In 1977, he got the ring name Big John Studd from promoter Paul Boesch, who said "My God, you look like a stud."[3] In 1978, Studd teamed up with Ken Patera to win the Mid-Atlantic Tag Team titles.[2] He also competed as Masked Superstar #2, but unmasked after losing to Blackjack Mulligan.[2] In early 1981, Studd gained several unsuccessful title shots at the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, which was held by Dusty Rhodes at the time.

World Wide Wrestling Federation (1976–1977)

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In 1976, Studd returned to the World Wide Wrestling Federation, where he donned a mask and performed as "Executioner #2", teaming with Executioner #1 as The Executioners.[2] On May 11, 1976, The Executioners defeated Louis Cerdan and Tony Parisi to win the WWF World Tag Team Championship, but they were stripped of them on October 26, after a third Executioner (Nikolai Volkoff) interfered in a title defense against Chief Jay Strongbow and Billy White Wolf.[9] Studd left the WWWF once more in early 1977.

American Wrestling Association (1975–1976, 1980–1981)

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From 1975 to 1976, Studd performed for the American Wrestling Association. He returned in 1980 and feuded with Mad Dog Vachon and The Crusher before leaving in 1981.[10]

World Wrestling Federation (1982–1986, 1988–1989)

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Feud with André the Giant (1982–1986)

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Studd jumped to the World Wrestling Federation in late 1982, managed by Freddie Blassie.[2] Studd quickly became a monster heel, adopting a gimmick of bringing a stretcher to the ring and beating his opponents so badly they would be taken out on the stretcher.[11]

Studd (left) facing André the Giant at WrestleMania in March 1985

While Studd became a top challenger for Bob Backlund's WWF World Championship, it was his feud with 7 ft 4 in (224 cm), 520 pounds (240 kg) André the Giant over who was professional wrestling's 'true giant' that earned him main event status. Studd and Blassie had issued a "Bodyslam Challenge," offering $10,000 (and later, $15,000) to any wrestler who could slam Studd before boasting that he could not be slammed. After several wrestlers were unsuccessful in answering Studd's challenge, Andre accepted and was about to slam Studd before Blassie attacked Andre from behind (as Studd grabbed the ring ropes to prevent himself from being slammed). The Andre–Studd feud raged throughout 1983, and Andre got the upper hand and slammed Studd several times, once with enough force to collapse the entire ring. Several times, the two met inside a steel cage, where André not only slammed Studd, but used a sitdown splash from the top rope onto his chest to knock him out. Despite this, Studd began declaring himself the "True Giant of Wrestling," all while continuing to insist he could not (and had never been) slammed.[12] By 1984, with his feud with Andre still raging, Studd was challenging then-new champion Hulk Hogan, who was also successful in slamming Studd, for the title.[12]

In December, Studd was paired with Bobby "The Brain" Heenan during a televised tag team match on WWF Championship Wrestling featuring Studd and fellow Heenan Family member Ken Patera against André the Giant and S. D. Jones. The match ended by disqualification after persistent rulebreaking by Studd and Patera, who attacked André afterwards and cut his hair.[2][10] André set out for revenge and accepted Studd's challenge to a "$15,000 Bodyslam Challenge" match at the first WrestleMania, whereby if Andre failed to slam Studd before the time limit (or Studd managed to slam Andre), André would be forced to retire from wrestling.[12] At WrestleMania on March 31, 1985, André won by slamming Studd.[13]

Studd then formed an alliance with fellow Heenan Family member King Kong Bundy, injuring André's sternum in August.[14] Their feud continued for the rest of that year and into 1986, with André recruiting faces such as Hulk Hogan, Tony Atlas, Junkyard Dog and Hillbilly Jim to team with him.[2] At WrestleMania 2 on April 7, 1986, Studd participated in the WWF vs. NFL battle royal, targeting Atlanta Falcons player Bill Fralic after a pre-match confrontation during an interview with "Mean" Gene Okerlund. He eliminated William "The Refrigerator" Perry, who in turn eliminated Studd; André went on to win the battle royal.[2][15]

Andre the Giant and Hillbilly Jim facing King Kong Bundy and Big John Studd in an October 1985 tag team match at Madison Square Garden

The Andre–Studd feud took on a new dimension in 1986, when, in the wake of Andre's increasing health problems related to gigantism and acromegaly, his role as Fezzik in the movie The Princess Bride, and his planned tour of Japan, a storyline was developed to have André compete in a tag team called The Machines. The "Machines" angle began when André failed to show up for a number of tag team matches against Bundy and Studd. Heenan successfully campaigned to get André suspended, only for André to reappear shortly thereafter in a mask and billing himself as a Japanese wrestler called the Giant Machine. Studd, along with Bundy and Heenan, insisted that Andre and the Giant Machine were one and the same, and set out to prove their point by vowing to unmask the Giant Machine during a series of tag team matches; the Giant Machine's partners included Blackjack Mulligan (as "Big Machine") and Bill Eadie (as "Super Machine"), with Studd and Bundy saying in interviews that they knew who The Machines were and that they had never heard of Japanese wrestlers with a South-Texas accent (Mulligan/Big Machine) or a South-Florida accent (Eadie/Super Machine), while Heenan repeatedly claimed that no Japanese wrestler or person was 7'4" and over 500 lbs and spoke with a French accent. However, neither Studd, nor Bundy or Heenan, were able to unmask The Machines, and their true identities remained a secret.[16]

Bundy and Studd feuded with other established tag teams in 1986 and contended for the WWF Tag Team Championship, held by The British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith and the Dynamite Kid). During a televised match later that year, Studd and Bundy began arguing after they lost a match to the Bulldogs, teasing a feud between the two which never materialized. Studd's last match during his original 1980s WWF run came on the November 15, 1986 episode of WWF Superstars of Wrestling, where he teamed with Bundy to defeat The Machines (a match that did not involve the Giant Machine).[16] Despite leaving the WWF, Studd's presence was still made known in a WWF Magazine article published shortly before WrestleMania III, where he supported André in his upcoming match against Hogan (contending that Hogan's friendship with André was a ruse, to duck him as a potential challenger to the title). Studd retired from wrestling to focus on his acting career.[5][10]

Feud with The Heenan Family (1988–1989)

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After retiring for two years, Studd announced his return to the WWF on the Brother Love Show in December 1988. An elated Bobby Heenan appeared on the set to welcome Studd back to the Heenan family. However, with Heenan now also managing his old adversary André the Giant, Studd rejected the offer and ran Heenan off the Brother Love set, thus turning face.[17] Studd went on to feud with several members of the Heenan family, including André, who had turned heel during Studd's absence, and Haku.[10]

At Royal Rumble on January 15, 1989, Studd won the Royal Rumble match by last eliminating Ted DiBiase.[18] He then served as a special guest referee in the match between Jake "The Snake" Roberts and André at WrestleMania V on April 2, which Roberts won when he disqualified André, who attacked Studd from behind.[19] Studd's last match with the WWF took place on June 4, with Hillbilly Jim wrestling in Studd's place later that month.[20] Studd quit the WWF over a financial dispute with Vince McMahon.[10][3]

Independent circuit and retirement (1989–1993)

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In the following years, Studd wrestled sporadically on the independent circuit, including for North American Wrestling Association (NAWA), where he was the first NAWA Champion.[21] He also came out with his own line of workout and vitamin supplements.[5] Studd was responsible for training Ron Reis, who he had tagged with as the "Giants of Wrestling".[10] In tribute, Reis would make his WCW debut as Big Ron Studd.[2]

Studd wrestled his last match in October 1993 at a show promoted by Killer Kowalski against The Honky Tonk Man, filling in for Jimmy Snuka, who could not make the event. After the match, Studd collapsed due to low stamina.[1][10] In 1994, he was called as a prosecution witness at the Vince McMahon steroid distribution trial in Long Island, New York, but due to his declining health, Studd, under oath, admitted to using steroids via telephone from his home.[10]

Personal life

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Minton met his wife Donna Conklin, a former competitive swimmer, at the Le Pichet restaurant in Montreal, which was co-owned by his WWF rival Andre.[10] They had three children: Robert, Jannelle, and Sean, the latter of whom is also a professional wrestler going by the ring name Big Sean Studd.[5][22] In 1989, Minton said that his left knee, shoulder and lower back were all damaged from wrestling.[3]

Death

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In the fall of 1993, Minton noticed a lump in his armpit, and a doctor found a large tumor in his chest. It remitted after chemotherapy, and he was told he might wrestle again in six months, but it returned in 1994. When no suitable bone marrow donor was found, and he was given around a month to live, Minton underwent an autotransplantation procedure with a 7% success rate. Again, the tumor remitted and he went home. Around September 1994, Minton's lungs collapsed and he went back to the hospital.[1] In February 1995, Minton returned for another round of chemotherapy, and it was found that the tumor had spread widely. He died after a battle with liver cancer and Hodgkin's disease on March 20, 1995.[2][10]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1984 Micki & Maude Himself
1985 The Protector Huge Hood
1987 Double Agent Igor
1989 Hyper Space Psycho
1990 Caged in Paradiso Big Man
1991 Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man Jack Daniels
1991 The Marrying Man Dante

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
1985 The A-Team Himself Episode: "Body Slam"
1987 Hunter Randy Episode: "Bad Company" or "Bad Companions"
1988 Beauty and the Beast Erlick Episode: "To Reign in Hell"

Championships and accomplishments

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Studd as the NWA National Tag Team Champion, c. 1982

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Mooneyham, Mike (March 8, 1995). "Big John Studd's Battle Over". The Wrestling Gospel. Archived from the original on January 6, 2014. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Big John Studd's Hall of Fame profile". WWE. Archived from the original on March 15, 2012. Retrieved January 1, 2012.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Madden, Mark (July 27, 1989). "Big John Studd: How Butler basketball player became a pro wrestling star". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 17.
  4. ^ a b Shields, Brian; Sullivan, Kevin (2009). WWE Encyclopedia. DK. p. 29. ISBN 978-0-7566-4190-0.
  5. ^ a b c d e Brennan, Patricia (June 12, 1988). "Big John Studd". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 13, 2019. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
  6. ^ a b c Kreikenbohm, Philip. "Big John Studd's matches in 1972". Cagematch.net. Archived from the original on July 12, 2025. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  7. ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "Big John Studd's matches in 1973". Cagematch.net. Archived from the original on July 12, 2025. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  8. ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "Big John Studd's matches in 1974". Cagematch.net. Archived from the original on July 12, 2025. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  9. ^ "WWWF Results 1976". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on February 6, 2025. Retrieved July 12, 2025. 11/6/76 – featured the announcement from WWWF President Willie Gilzenberg that WWWF Tag Team Champions the Executioners had been stripped of their championship as a result of a third Executioner appearing during the Executioners title match with Chief Jay Strongbow & Billy White Wolf two weeks earlier, and that a tournament would be held to crown new champions
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Meltzer, Dave (March 27, 1995). "March 27, 1995 Observer Newsletter: Big John Studd passes away, WCW Uncensored, economic crisis hits Mexico and kills AAA corporation, Blacktop Bully and Dustin Runnels fired, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Campbell, California. ISSN 1083-9593.
  11. ^ "WWF Results 1982". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  12. ^ a b c Cawthon, Graham (2013). the History of Professional Wrestling Vol 1: WWF 1963–1989. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1-4928-2597-5.
  13. ^ "WrestleMania I results". WWE. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  14. ^ "WWF Results 1985". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved July 12, 2025. Championship Wrestling – 8/31/85: Andre the Giant defeated Big John Studd (w/ Bobby Heenan) via disqualification at 13:01 when King Kong Bundy interfered after Studd sustained a bodyslam and Andre was about to cut Studd's hair; after the contest, Andre was beaten down by Bundy and Big John Studd, sustaining four splashes from Bundy that were credited with breaking Andre's sternum; as Bundy prepared for a fifth splash, several wrestlers came out to clear the ring
  15. ^ "WrestleMania 2 results". WWE. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  16. ^ a b "WWF Results 1986". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  17. ^ "WWF Results 1988". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  18. ^ a b "Big John Studd (spot No. 27) wins the Royal Rumble Match". WWE. Archived from the original on February 2, 2007. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
  19. ^ "WrestleMania V results". WWE. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
  20. ^ "WWF Results 1989". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved July 12, 2025.
  21. ^ Madden, Mark (March 1, 1990). "Butler's Big John Studd ends wrestling retirement". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 19.
  22. ^ Eck, Kevin (November 9, 2016). "Sean Studd Following In His Father's Huge Footsteps". PressBoxOnline.com. Baltimore, Maryland. Archived from the original on July 19, 2019. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  23. ^ Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2000). "Texas: NWA / World Class American Heavyweight Title [Von Eric]". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. pp. 265–266. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  24. ^ Will, Gary; Duncan, Royal (2000). "Texas: NWA Texas Tag Team Title [Von Erich]". Wrestling Title Histories: professional wrestling champions around the world from the 19th century to the present. Pennsylvania: Archeus Communications. pp. 275–276. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  25. ^ Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). "(Texas) Dallas: NWA Texas Brass Knuckles Title". Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. p. 271. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  26. ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Top 500 Wrestlers of the PWI Years". Wrestling Information Archive. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved September 15, 2010.
  27. ^ Powers, Kevin (May 23, 2013). "The other Hall of Fame: WCW's forgotten honor". WWE. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016. Retrieved July 12, 2025. In addition to Rhodes, Antonio Inoki, "Macho Man" Randy Savage's father, Angelo Poffo, Terry Funk, Wahoo McDaniel and Big John Studd – posthumously – were also inducted.
  28. ^ "W.W.A. World Tag Team Title (Indianapolis)". Puroresu Dojo. 2003.
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Preceded by Royal Rumble winner
1989 		Succeeded by
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