“Superstar” Billy Graham, a WWE Hall of Famer and the wrestling promotion’s world heavyweight champion during the late 1970s, is on life support, his wife said.
Graham, 79, a former bodybuilder and heavily muscled wrestler whose real name is Eldridge Wayne Coleman, is suffering from a major infection in his ears and skull, his wife, Valerie, wrote on Twitter, comments that were also reported on TMZ Sports.
“Please urgent prayers (are) needed for my husband. The doctors wanted to remove him from life support tonight. I refused,” Valerie said. “He’s a fighter and his will is strong even if his body isn’t. God is our hope.”
Continued prayers for Superstar Billy Graham. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/qHhiLTMRjQ
— WrestleBooks (@WrestleBooksLSC) May 15, 2023
Graham is also suffering from congestive heart failure, diabetes and hearing loss, his wife said.
The latest update to A GoFundMe page set up for Graham said the former wrestler “coded.” According to SBNation, the term is used in hospitals when a patient goes into cardiopulmonary arrest and requires immediate resuscitation efforts.
The page noted that Graham had also lost 45 pounds over the past month. Previously, Graham had hip replacement surgery and a liver transplant in 2002, according to the WWE Encyclopedia.
The news on Superstar Billy Graham is not good. The doctors wanted to remove him from life support. Valerie (his wife) didn't agree to it. I've been bracing myself. You have no idea how many people in the 70s became wrestling fans because of him and how many emulated him.
— Dave Meltzer (@davemeltzerWON) May 15, 2023
Known for his flamboyant boas, tie-dye shirts and bombastic interviewing style that was inspired by Muhammad Ali, Graham was a significant “heel” in the WWWF (later called WWF and now known as WWE) when Vince McMahon Sr. ran the wrestling promotion.
He was the promotion’s heavyweight champion from April 30, 1977, to Feb. 20, 1978, according to the WWE Encyclopedia. Managed by the Grand Wizard (Ernie Roth), Graham defeated the legendary Bruno Sammartino for the title in Baltimore and held the belt for 296 days before dropping it to Bob Backlund at Madison Square Garden in New York.
According to WWE, Graham’s reign was the longest for any ring villain in WWE history.
Graham also had significant runs in the NWA and AWA wrestling promotions.
Graham got his start in bodybuilding, training with Arnold Schwarzenegger, according to the WWE Encyclopedia.
1978 Superstar Billy Graham talking about all the anabolic steroids he plans to ingest to prepare for Bob Backlund. Times sure have changed. @WWE pic.twitter.com/Ttqv2m80ko
— Louis Albano (@LouisAlbano2) May 11, 2023
His interviews were legendary, as he bragged that “I am the reflection of perfection.”
“I am the sensation of the nation. The No. 1 creation,” Graham would tell jeering audiences.
Graham was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004. His autobiography, “Tangled Ropes,” was released in 2006.
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