 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | David Everett Ferrier[3] (1962-11-30)November 30, 1962[2] Grove City, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | December 6, 2014(2014-12-06) (aged 52) Tampa, Florida, U.S. |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Jimmy Backlund[1] Jimmy Del Ray[1] Jimmy Richland Jimmy Graffiti Jumo Kenya |
| Billed height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 230 lb (104 kg)[1] |
| Trained by | The Mighty Yankee |
| Debut | 1985[2][1] |
| Retired | 1997 |
David Everett Ferrier (November 30, 1962 – December 6, 2014) was an Americanprofessional wrestler, better known by hisring name,"Gigolo" Jimmy Del Ray. Del Ray was best known for his appearances in theWorld Wrestling Federation (WWF) as one half ofthe Heavenly Bodies with histag team partner,Tom Prichard.[3][2]
Ferrier was trained by the Mighty Yankee and debuted in 1985 as "Jimmy Richland", which most thought was his real name. In the late 1980s, Del Ray joinedChampionship Wrestling from Florida as "Jomo Kenya". He later changed his ring name to "Jimmy Backlund" and formed atag team withBrett Sawyer known as "The Playboys". The Playboys were awarded the vacantFCW Tag Team Championship on July 1, 1989. They held the titles until August 22, when they were defeated bythe Nasty Boys. From 1989 to 1991 he worked in Japan forFrontier Martial-Arts Wrestling. On November 22, 1991, he worked for WWF as Jimmy Richland losing toSkinner on a house show. In 1992, he worked forW*ING.
In January 1993 Del Ray joinedSmoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW), where he replacedStan Lane as one half ofthe Heavenly Bodies withTom Prichard.[1] He was given the name Jimmy Del Ray because Lane was billed during his career as being fromDelray Beach, Florida. The Heavenly Bodies weremanaged byJames E. Cornette and won theSMW Tag Team Championship on three occasions.[1][4] Cornette put the "Gigolo" moniker on his name as a play off his physique. While Del Ray was an agile and able wrestler at the time, he had a slightly pudgy midsection that shook, or "jiggled" when he did ataunting dance. Del Ray would work with SMW until the company shut down in December 1995.
Along with Cornette, the Heavenly Bodies debuted in theWorld Wrestling Federation in 1993. They made their first televised appearance on the August 9, 1993 episode ofMonday Night Raw, defeating Bobby Who andMike Bucci.[5] They made two more appearances onRaw that year; they were defeated byWorld Tag Team ChampionsThe Steiner Brothers in a title match on August 30, and were victorious over Mark Thomas and Scott Taylor on August 4. AtSummerSlam 1993 on August 30, the Heavenly Bodies faced the Steiner Brothers with the World Tag Team Championship on the line, but were defeated.[6]
At the1993 Survivor Series on November 24 in theBoston Garden, the Heavenly Bodies faced theRock 'n' Roll Express for theSMW Tag Team Championship. Though the Rock 'N Roll Express appeared to have the match won, the Heavenly Bodies defeated them after Del Ray struckRobert Gibson with Cornette'stennis racket while the referee was distracted, enabling Prichard to pin Gibson and win the titles.[5]
AtWrestleMania X on March 20, 1994, inMadison Square Garden, the Heavenly Bodies defeatedThe Bushwhackers in adark match.[7] They returned to WWF television on the April 25 episode ofRaw, defeating John Paul and Jason Headings.
At the1994 Survivor Series on November 23, the Heavenly Bodies took part in a ten-man survivor match, teaming withBam Bam Bigelow,Tatanka, andKing Kong Bundy asTed DiBiase's "Million Dollar Team". The Million Dollar Team defeated their opponents, "Guts and Glory" (Lex Luger,Mabel,Adam Bomb, and the Smoking Gunns), although both Prichard and Del Ray were eliminated from the match.[8] Prichard and Del Ray both participated in the 30 man Royal Rumble match on January 22, 1995.[5] He was eliminated byBritish Bulldog. They made sporadic appearances onRaw over the next year, with their final appearance being a loss toThe Smoking Gunns on the March 20, 1995 episode ofRaw.[5] Jimmy Del Ray lost a singles match toBret Hart on Superstars on April 25, 1995. Del Ray's last WWF match was a loss to Intercontinental championShawn Michaels on Raw July 24, 1995.
After WWF, Del Ray and Prichard went toUnited States Wrestling Association where they defeatedPG-13 (J. C. Ice andWolfie D) to capture theUSWA Tag Team Championship. They would feud with PG-13.
The Heavenly Bodies made several appearances inExtreme Championship Wrestling in December 1995 as members ofRaven's Nest. AtDecember To Dismember: Ultimate Jeopardy on December 9, the Heavenly Bodies facedRaven's enemies, thePublic Enemy, in a tag team bout. The match had stipulations applying to the losers - if the Public Enemy lost, they would face one another later that night, while if the Heavenly Bodies lost,the Eliminators (members of Raven's Nest) would be forced to leave ECW, while their manager,Jason, would have his head shaved. Moreover, if the Heavenly Bodies were defeated, then Raven's valet,Beulah McGillicutty, would be forced to spend a week withTommy Dreamer, while Raven's Nest memberStevie Richards would be locked in asteel cage for five minutes with the winners of the Ultimate Jeopardy match later that night. The Heavenly Bodies lost their match, leading to the enforcement of the aforementioned stipulations. Later that evening, Raven, Richards, the Eliminators, and the Heavenly Bodies faced Dreamer,the Pitbulls, and the Public Enemy in anultimate jeopardy match. The match was won by Dreamer, who pinned Richards. Richards was subsequently locked in the cage with Dreamer's team, but Raven and his Nest attacked Dreamer's team before they could hurt him. Raven's Nest then attacked Dreamer's team untilThe Sandman drove them away.
After December to Dismember the Heavenly Bodies disbanded when Tom Prichard went back to WWF. Del Ray lost toBubba Ray Dudley atHouse Party, while he was managed byMr. Hughes.
In October 1996, Del Ray joinedWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW) as Jimmy Graffiti.[9] He was part of the cruiserweight division and competed againstDean Malenko,Chris Jericho,Rey Mysterio, andBilly Kidman. He took part in the three ringbattle royal at the 1996World War 3 event on November 24. Del Ray remained in WCW until a knee injury forced him to retire in 1997.
After retiring, he worked as an instructor inSteve Keirn'sFloridianprofessional wrestling school for several years,[2] training wrestlers such asBuck Quartermain and Steve Madison, and managed a tag team known as The New Heavenly Bodies. Del Ray later retired from training wrestlers and started a hardwood flooring company named Ferrier's Fine Flooring Inc. in Tampa, Florida in March 2006. In September 2013, he registered another Tampa company called Ferrier's Flooring Inc.
Ferrier, who lived inValrico, Florida, died at theTampa General Hospital on December 6, 2014. He was 52 years old. Ferrier had suffered aheart attack at the wheel of his truck on US 301 near the Florida State Fairgrounds. Two days later, WWE.com noted his death and offered condolences to his friends, family and colleagues.[10]
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