George Steele
| George Steele | |
|---|---|
George Steele in 2009
|
|
| Birth name | William James Myers |
| Born |
April 16, 1937 Detroit, Michigan, US |
| Died | February 16, 2017 (aged 79) Cocoa Beach, Florida, US |
| Cause of death | Kidney failure |
| Alma mater |
Michigan State University Central Michigan University |
| Spouse(s) | Pat Myers (m. 1956–2017; his death) |
| Children | 3 |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) |
The Animal Machine George Steele The Student |
| Billed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Billed weight | 288 lb (131 kg) |
| Billed from | Detroit, Michigan |
| Trained by | Bert Rubi |
| Debut | 1967 |
| Retired | 1988 |
William James "Jim" Myers (April 16, 1937 – February 16, 2017), better known by his ring name George "The Animal" Steele, was an American professional wrestler, school teacher, author and actor. His career lasted from 1967 until 1988, though he made occasional wrestling appearances into the 1990s and 2000s.
Steele portrayed Swedish wrestler and actor Tor Johnson in Tim Burton's film Ed Wood.
Myers was born in Detroit on April 16, 1937, and was raised in Madison Heights, Michigan. During high school, he found success in track, baseball, basketball and football. In 1956, Myers entered Michigan State University as a football player for the Michigan State Spartans, but his career as a football player was immediately cut short as a result of knee problems. In 1961, he was with the Grand Rapids Blazers (UFL).
After earning a bachelor of science degree from Michigan State University and a master's degree from Central Michigan University, Myers became a teacher, amateur wrestling coach, and football coach at Madison High School in Madison Heights, Michigan. There he would eventually become a member of the Michigan Coaches Hall of Fame.
Looking to supplement his income, he got into the world of Detroit-area professional wrestling, but in order to protect his privacy, he wrestled using a mask and the name The Student.Gary Hart served as The Student's manager and had to explain to the announcers why his client could not apply any legitimate holds or maneuvers instead relying on only his undisciplined brute strength. Myers was soon scouted by World Wide Wrestling Federation champion Bruno Sammartino and began working in Pittsburgh in 1967 on the popular Studio Wrestling TV show broadcast on WIIC-TV (later WPXI-TV) Channel 11. Sammartino had liked the character Myers developed of a wild man with incredible strength. However, he had him drop the mask, as well as title of The Student. Looking to hide his real name, Myers opted for the alias "George Steele". According to Michigan High School Hall of Fame Coach George Steele of Warren, he and Myers were coaching against each other in a high school JV match-up while both were early into their careers. At halftime, Myers approached Steele and told him about his venture into wrestling and that he was looking for a name. Myers allegedly asked Steele if he could use his name, that he liked it a lot and the future Hall of Fame coach told him no problem. Steele states in an interview available on YouTube that he was in Pittsburgh when he was looking for a stage name. Local wrestler "Jumpin'" John DeFazio suggested Jim Steele since he was in the "Steel City". He didn't like the first name Jim and he suggested George which is what he eventually went with.
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