Ryder
and Behrens at the Funking Conservatory
A Work of Art
Paintings on this page are original oil by John McKinley.
(Marti's Father)
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Dory Funk Jr
Dory's
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Ryder
and Behrens at the Funking Conservatory
Dory Funk Sr. co-signed the note at the Amarillo
National Bank bank to put Don (The Lawman) Slatton in the
wrestling promotion business in Abilene, Texas.
The bank loan was for $1,500. The money was for the Lawman
to buy the promotion rights of former Abilene
promoter, Benny Wilson. There were no franchises in wrestling,
but in those days promoters laid claim to territories.
(1963)
The Lawman was working hard to make ends meet.
Two things happened to make his promotion a huge success.
1. He got the local TV station, KPLR to pick
up the Amarillo territory wrestling television show. 2. All the towns
in the West Texas area built new coliseums. The
towns located in the KPLR viewing audience with new coliseums
included, Abilene, San Angelo, Sweetwater, Brownwood,
and Snyder. As a promoter the Lawman became
a huge success. He was soon a, "Hundred Thousand-aire"
and
his area was growing rapidly.
Guadalupe Peak, Center of the Amarillo Territory
(Highest Point in Texas)
The Lawman's territory was the original ECW type
promotion featuring JC Dyckes and his Infernos throwing
fire, The original bleeder, Cowboy Bob Ellis,
Russian Chain Matches featuring Terry Funk and Killer Karl Kox,
The original Arabian Death Match with the Sheik
and Dory Funk Sr., and the wrestling combination of myself
and Jack Brisco. I will never forget the night
Brute Bernard went outside of the ring and found a cast iron stove
lid. He brought it into the ring and hit Indian
wrestler Billy Red Cloud on top of his bald head with it. There was
no noise, only a whoosh that left Billy Red
Cloud in the center of the ring holding two sides of his head
together with blood gushing everywhere.
This extreme style of professional wrestling brought
success and fame to the Lawman. He was not only known
for his style of wrestling promotion, but also
as one of the great deer hunters in the wrestling business. He often
brought deer meat to the newly opened Fair Park
Coliseum in Abilene to share with the wrestlers.
West Texas Buck Deer
Another wrestler Dory Funk Sr. helped to get started
into wrestling promotion was Jerry Kozak. Kozak in contrast
to the Lawman built his town, Amarillo on wrestling,
featuring the likes of Gene Kiniski, Don Leo Jonathan, Pat
Oconnor, Terry Funk, Dory Funk Sr, Dan Miller,
Ted Dibiase, Dick Murdoch, Mike Dibiase, and myself and
Jack Brisco. Amarillo became a great wrestling
town.
Dory Sr. often called Jerry Kozak, "Mr. Neat."
Jerry was one of those people who always when dressing tucked
his shirt neatly into his underwear pulling the
tail out through the bottom in front and back, then sliding his pants up
and neatly straightening his shirt and buttoning
his fly. Dory Sr. noted that Jerry Kozak followed this ritual even
out in the middle of the Flying Mare Ranch on
a goose hunting trip when there was nobody to see how neat he
was except prairie dogs, rattle snakes, and Canadian
Honkers. Jerry Kozak loved to hunt, but brought few
trophies to his home in Amarillo.
Canadian Honkers
For several weeks Jerry Kozak had been calling the Lawman asking him to please take him deer hunting.
On one of his hunting excursions the Lawman came
across an old dead doe lying in the field. This animal had been
dead for so long it had rhigamortis. The Lawman
came home and got a set of deer antlers off of his living room wall.
He took the antlers back to the forest.
Then
he tied the old dead doe to a tree in standing position and
attached the antlers to the head of the doe.
The lawman then returned home and called Jerry Kozak and invited
him to go deer hunting with him. Kozak would
have to be there at 5:30am.
It was a three hundred mile drive from Amarillo,
but Jerry Kozak was there early, shirt tail neatly
tucked into his pants.
Out in the hills of West Texas, the Lawman walked
Kozak by the old dead doe several times but Kozak didn't
see it. On the fourth pass, the Lawman said,
"What's that." Kozak froze. He had never killed a deer before in
his life. Kozak brought his gun up to eye level
and fired the first shot. Nothing happened. The Lawman said, I
think you missed him. You had better get closer.
Kozak crawled on his stomach, moving in closer for the kill.
Now he raised up and shot two more shots. Nothing
happened. Three more shots, then the gun just clicked.
Kozak was out of ammunition. He turned and
ordered the Lawman to return to the truck and get
more ammo. The Lawman returned with a new
box of shells and Kozak snatched them away from
him and stuffed them into the rifle.
Kozak was back on the ground crawling toward the
old dead doe. Now Jerry Kozak was within fifty feet
of the deer, a can't miss shot. He jumped up
and fired three more times into the deer. Nothing happened.
He ran toward the deer and fired the last shot
of the day. The deer stayed put. Behind him, the Lawman
was rolling on the ground in laughter. Jerry
Kozak looked at the Deer and looked at the Lawman. Then
he uttered his only words. "Don, please don't
tell the wrestlers about this."
Three fastest modes of communication:
2. Telegraph
3. Tell a wrestler
Back at the Ranch in West Texas
Dory Sr. called Moose Moroski in Japan and it was the topic of dinner in the Far East within hours.
Japan (Land of the Rising Sun)
All paintings are original oil by Marti's father, John E. McKinley
E-Mail
Dory Funk Jr
Dory's
Home Page
Ryder
and Behrens at the Funking Conservatory