Mark Lewin
| Mark Lewin | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Mark Lewin |
| Born |
March 16, 1937 Buffalo, New York, United States |
| Family |
Donn Lewin (brother) Danny McShain (brother-in-law) |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Mark Lewin The Purple Haze Skippy Jackson |
| Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Billed weight | 220 lb (100 kg)-275 lb (125 kg) |
| Trained by | John Horton Danny McShain |
| Debut | 1953 |
| Retired | 1998 |
Mark Lewin (born March 16, 1937) is an American retired professional wrestler.
Lewin was born in Buffalo, New York. He had two elder brothers, Donn and Ted, both of whom also became professional wrestlers. He attended Lafayette High School.
Lewin was trained to wrestle by his brother-in-law, Danny McShain. He debuted in 1953 at the age of 16.
Lewin had great early success in a matinee-idol babyface tag team with Don Curtis, headlining in major territories like New York and Chicago. The team's brief heel turn was a shock to its many fans. The team split up in the early '60s and Mark embarked on a singles career.
In 1963, Mark first tried out the "Maniac"/"Mad" Mark Lewin persona, which he would alternate consistently with his 'normal' babyface persona for the rest of his career. He wrestled in Australia and New Zealand in the 1960s and 1970s with great success, especially in New Zealand where he drew huge crowds during the tours. He frequently formed a tag team in Australia and New Zealand with King Curtis Iaukea. He also spent time in Detroit working against The Sheik and fellow wildman, Terry Funk. Lewin also wrestled in Vancouver with NWA All Star Wrestling, where he feuded with the likes of Gene Kiniski and "Bulldog" Bob Brown and twice won the Pacific Coast Heavyweight title.
He found a lot of success in World Class Championship Wrestling in the late 1970s and early 1980s before going to Florida Championship Wrestling, where he joined Kevin Sullivan's "cult" as The Purple Haze, another variation of the 'Maniac' gimmick.
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