February 3rd, 1941, Dory Funk Jr. - Born Hammond Indiana

Sometime in 1945 My father returned home to Hammond, Indiana after serving three years in the US Navy as a Bosun's Mate aboard LSM 182. His tour of duty took him to the South Pacific where they made landings at Mindanao and Iwo Jima in the Philippines. When he entered our home, I did not recognize him.

1946 - At the age of 6 and 3, Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk visited Silver Springs in Ocala, Florida with their mother and father, Dory Funk and Dorothy Funk.

Dory Funk Sr. with his son Dory Funk Jr. at Ross Allen's Silver Springs in Ocala, Florida

1948 - At Texas Boy’s Ranch near Amarillo, Texas my father, Dory Funk Sr. a professional wrestler becomes Superintendent and creates an amateur wrestling program as a sport to be participated in by all kids on the ranch. This is my first experience in wrestling at the age of 7.

1950 - Texas Boy’s Ranch winner of the annual Boy’s Ranch Rodeo Junior Calf Riding Event. The prize money, $9.00 would go a long way in 1950.

Roy Rogers in attendance at the Texas Boy's Ranch Rodeo

1952 & 53 - Canyon Texas Junior High Football and Basketball. My mother drives 12 miles each day to bring me home from after school practice.

1954 - 1957 - Canyon , Texas High School Football, Basketball and Track - Football Regional Champions.

1955 - My Father Dory Funk Sr. a local hero in professional wrestling enters partnership in the promotion of wrestling in the Amarillo Territory as a partner of Doc Sarplois.

1959 - 1963 - West Texas State University Football and AAU Wrestling, Regional Wrestling Heavyweight Champion and 1963 Sun Bowl Champions with a 15 to 14 victory over Ohio University. (9 - 2 overall with wins over Arizona State, Texas Tech and Bowling Green. We considered ourselves the Un Crowned Mid American Conference Champions)

1963 I received a BS in Speech, Radio Television Commercial Writing and Physical Education from West Texas State University.

1963 - Amarillo, Texas - began a career in professional wrestling in January with a victory over Don Fargo with Football team and Amateur Wrestling Team in my corner. Continued wrestling virtually every night of the year.

Dory Funk Jr. - Caricature by Don Fargo

1965 and 1967 traveled to Australia to wrestle for American Promoter, Jim Barnett and Network Nine Television of Australia.

1967 - Death of My father’s partner in the Amarillo Territory wrestling business, Karl (Doc) Sarpolis. My brother Terry and I purchased Sarpolis' interest in the wrestling business from his widow and became partners in the business of promoting wrestling in the Amarillo Territory along with our father, Dory Funk Sr. The Amarillo Territory included major cities of Amarillo, Lubbock, El Paso, Odessa, Albuquerque, Colorado Springs and all points in between.

1969 - February 11 Tampa, Florida won the NWA World Championship from Gene Kiniski. (Gasparilla Day in Tampa) For the next 4 and ½ years I traveled to different cities every day defending the NWA World Championship against all of the very best wrestlers in the business.

1968 - Eddie Graham came to Texas and got me interested in flying. I earned my private pilot’s license with instrument rating and on many occasions in the Amarillo, Territory and Florida shared expenses flying wrestlers to the towns.

1969 - 1970 - 1971 wrestled two consecutive one hour draws with Japan’s Antonio Inoki. A third match was scheduled in 1971 but Antonio Inoki No Showed the match with only hours warning. In his place was Seiji Sakaguchi who I defeated for the NWA World Championship. Seiji Sakaguchi went on to become president of New Japan Pro Wrestling many years later. With his “no-show,“ Antonio Inoki split from the old Japan Pro Wrestling Company and formed his new company, New Japan Pro Wrestling which was only recently bought out by Yukes Co. of Japan.

Dory Funk Jr. vs Antonio Inoki Japan

1972 - The old company, Japan Pro-wrestling folded and the other superstar, Giant Baba started a New wrestling company in Japan, All Japan Pro Wrestling. Mr. Baba’s partner in America operating as the booking office was Dory Funk Sr. of the Amarillo Territory.

1973 - Lost NWA world Championship to Harley Race in Kansas City after being forced back into the ring prematurely after a pickup truck accident on my father's ranch southwest of Amarillo, Texas. I returned home to continue as part owner of the Amarillo Territory with Terry and my Father, Dory Funk Sr. My job was producing the weekly TV show, Booking / Writing, and wrestling the territory.

!973 June 3rd, Dory Funk Sr. passes away after at a party for the Amarillo Territory wrestlers. He had a skirmish with wrestlers Gordy Nelson and Les Thornton winning the skirmish, but suffering a heart attack in the process. He died in the ambulance on the way to North West Texas Hospital in Amarillo, Texas. In the ambulance were his sons, Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk.

Ten Bell Ceremony for Dory Funk Sr. in Japan. Giant Baba in Background

Dad was my best friend and business partner. There was not a day went by that we didn't speak.

1973 - Shortly after the passing of my father, Dory Funk Sr., All Japan Pro Wrestling named me as American Booker for their company a position I held for more than twenty years.

1975 - Terry Funk becomes NWA World Champion. We become the only brother combination to hold the NWA World Championship.

1979, Terry and Dory Funk Sell the Amarillo Territory to Dick Murdoch and Blackjack Mulligan.

1980 Dory Funk Jr. leaves Amarillo and becomes booker / writer for Eddie Graham’s Florida Championship Wrestling along with supplying American Talent for All Japan Pro Wrestling

December of 1980 I met the love of my life, Marti Funk at the wrestling matches in Tampa.  Marti is my second wife, I am blessed to have three kids by my first marriage, my son Dory III ( grandkids Dory IV and Jennifer), my son Dirk and daughter Penny( grandkids Sheldon, Bob and CoBy).

1983, I accepted the position of writer / booker and wrestler for Jim Crockett’s Mid Atlantic Wrestling.

1986 - Worked for WWE and Vince McMahon for one year appearing on Wrestlemania II

1987 - 1989, Marti and I moved to Dunnellon, Florida and opened up Dory Funk Mortgages and Investments.

1990 Moved to Ocala, Florida.

1990 Continued to book wrestlers for All Japan Pro Wrestling and travel to Japan working for All Japan Pro Wrestling and work independently shows for Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, Japan and WCW.

1993 - Began studying Japanese through a University of Florida Teacher, Hide Kubota and now can speak, read and write in Japanese. On our website, we maintain a page in Japanese. 日本語 We also have a Japanese History of the Funks page in English on our website.

1996 - With the popularization of the Internet I created the first edition of www.dory-funk.com

1997 Received a call from Jim Ross on behalf of Vince McMahon, owner of WWE asking me to develop a training program for WWE. We traveled to Stamford Connecticut for ten days out of every month training wrestlers for WWE.

!999 Opened the Funking Conservatory Wrestling School.

Between my first trip and the present I have traveled to Japan over 70 times to work for All Japan Pro Wrestling, New Japan Pro Wrestling, K-1 in Japan, Muga and FMW. Last trip to Japan was K-1 in 2005.

Marti and I are currently owners and operators of the Funking Conservatory wrestling school. Some of the name wrestling talent we have trained in the last 10 years include, Kurt Angle, Christian Cage, Edge, Lita, Micki James, Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, Paul London, Rhino, Test, Giant Silva, Chris Sabin, Chris "The Bambi Killer" Raaber, Christopher Daniels, Silvan Granier, John Tenta, Crash Holly

Wrestlers trained in previous years include Terry Funk, Stan Hanson, Ted (Million Dollar Man) Dibiase, Jumbo Tsuruta, Taiyo Kea, Jun Akiyama, Larry Lane, Tendru and at the request of All Japan Pro-Wrestling's Giant Baba, Olympic Judo Gold Medalist Antone Geesink. 

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