James Brunzell
| Birth name | James Brunzell |
|---|---|
| Born | August 13, 1949 |
| Residence | White Bear Lake, Minnesota, United States |
| Alma mater | University of Minnesota |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Iten (m. 1975) |
| Children | 2 |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Jim Brunzell |
| Billed height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
| Billed weight | 235 lb (107 kg) |
| Billed from | White Bear Lake, MN |
| Trained by | Verne Gagne |
| Debut | 1972 |
| Retired | 1994 |
James "Jim" Brunzell (born August 13, 1949) is an American retired professional wrestler. Best known for his successful tag teams, Brunzell performed for various wrestling promotions during his 21-year career.
The son of a navy pilot, Brunzell lived in Memphis for a time as a child. Brunzell attended high school in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, where he participated in multiple sports including American football, scholastic wrestling, and athletics. He was a state champion in the high jump while in high school. He attended the University of Minnesota, where he continued to play football and high jump. During college, he had a tryout with the Washington Redskins as a tight end. He then returned to college to finish his degree.
Following his unsuccessful tryout with the Redskins, Brunzell was approached by former college football teammate Greg Gagne, who convinced him to train as a professional wrestler. He trained with Gagne's father Verne, alongside wrestlers including Ric Flair, Ken Patera, and The Iron Sheik.
He began wrestling in various territories in the early 1970s, most notably in the NWA Central States promotion. There, he teamed with Mike George to win the NWA Central States Tag Team Championship on October 25, 1973. Following this, he returned to Minnesota and joined Gagne's promotion, the American Wrestling Association (AWA). He formed a tag team with Greg Gagne known as The High Flyers. The duo won the AWA World Tag Team Championship on July 7, 1977, by defeating Blackjack Lanza and Bobby Duncum. They held the championship for more than a year, until September 23, 1978, when they were stripped of the championship as Brunzell had suffered an injury. In 1979, Brunzell transferred to the Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling (MACW) promotion, where he twice won the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship. He returned to the AWA in 1981, and on June 14, The High Flyers regained the championship by defeating The East-West Connection (Jesse Ventura and Adrian Adonis). In the mid-1980s, Brunzell wrestled in Montreal for International Wrestling.
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