Terry Funk facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Terry Funk
Funk as NWA World Heavyweight Champion in 1976
Birth name	Terrence Funk
Born	(1944-06-30)June 30, 1944 Hammond, Indiana, U.S.
Died	August 23, 2023(2023-08-23) (aged 79) Amarillo, Texas, U.S.
Alma mater	West Texas State University
Spouse(s)	Vicki Weaver ​ ​ (m. 1965; her death 2019)​
Children	2
Family	Dory Funk Sr. (father) Dory Funk Jr. (brother)
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Black Baron Chainsaw Charlie Dr Knows-it-All Terry Funk The Texan
Billed height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Billed weight	247 lb (112 kg)
Billed from	Amarillo, Texas
Trained by	Dory Funk
Debut	1965
Retired	2017

Terrence Funk (June 30, 1944 – August 23, 2023) was an American professional wrestler. He was known for the longevity of his career – which spanned more than 50 years and included multiple short-lived retirements – and the influential hardcore wrestling style he pioneered in the latter part of his career. He is considered one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time.

Over the course of his career, Funk has wrestled for numerous major promotions, among them All Japan Pro Wrestling, Extreme Championship Wrestling, the International Wrestling Association of Japan, Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling, the United States Wrestling Association, World Championship Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation and multiple National Wrestling Alliance territories including Big Time Wrestling, Championship Wrestling from Florida, Georgia Championship Wrestling and Stampede Wrestling. He was the promoter of the Amarillo-based Western States Sports promotion.

Championships held by Funk include the ECW World Heavyweight Championship, NWA World Heavyweight Championship, USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship, WWF World Tag Team Championship, and ECW World Television Championship. He headlined ECW's premier annual pay-per-view event, November to Remember, three times. Funk has been inducted into multiple halls of fame, among them WWE, WCW, NWA, and Hardcore.

Early life

Funk was born on June 30, 1944, in Hammond, Indiana. He is the son of Dorothy (Culver) and Dory Funk, a professional wrestler and promoter. Following the end of World War II, the family relocated to Amarillo, Texas, where Terry and his brother, known professionally as Dory Jr., grew up in the professional wrestling business. After graduating from high school, Funk attended West Texas State University (now West Texas A&M University), where he competed in amateur wrestling and football.

Other media

In 1989, Terry Funk appeared as a bouncer in the movie Road House with Patrick Swayze. In 1999, Funk was featured in director Barry Blaustein's wrestling documentary Beyond the Mat. His legendary toughness was attested to when cameramen followed him to a medical appointment, where he was told, by the doctor, that he should not even be able to walk without intense pain. He has also appeared in other movies such as Paradise Alley, The Ringer, and Over the Top. He released an autobiography, Terry Funk: More Than Just Hardcore, in 2005. On May 11, 2010, Funk appeared on "Right After Wrestling" with Arda Ocal on SIRIUS Satellite Radio to discuss his possible retirement, to which he replied "I never really truly will retire". This was also the interview with the infamous quote, "I dislike Vince (McMahon). I'm jealous of Vince."

In 1985, Funk appeared in the short-lived western Wildside. Only six episodes were aired. Behind the scenes, Funk choreographed the street fight between Rocky Balboa and his nemesis Tommy Gunn at the end of Rocky V. Funk's name can be seen in the end credits. Funk also had a short lived career in music. The release of the album "Great Texan" in 1984 which was a soft rock AOR oriented album. The album was met with mixed reviews and is generally considered a "cult classic" by fans. Funk has also appeared in several WWE video games, in WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2008 and WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2011 as himself and in WWE '13 as downloadable content as his Chainsaw Charlie gimmick.

In July 2022, Terry Funk released his self-titled biographical comic book through Squared Circle Comics.

Personal life and death

Funk married his wife Vicky Ann on August 14, 1965. They had two daughters together, Stacy and Brandee. For many years, Terry and Vicky owned a ranch in Canyon, Texas, which they later sold. Vicky died on March 29, 2019, as confirmed by Ted DiBiase on Twitter. In the documentary film Beyond the Mat, Funk is told by a doctor he needs a knee replacement. Years later, he had the operation.

Funk was close friends with NFL player John Ayers. Funk was also close friends with Sylvester Stallone. On September 12, 2016, Funk underwent surgery for an inguinal hernia, and was supposed to be resting and in bed for a couple of weeks, but chose to attend Tommy Dreamer's House of Hardcore shows.

In June 2021, fellow wrestling legend Don Muraco reported Funk was diagnosed as living with dementia and was living in an assisted living facility. On December 29, 2021, Ric Flair announced on his podcast with Mark Madden that Funk had returned home and was doing well.

Terry Funk died on August 23, 2023, at the age of 79. On August 25, 2023 episode of Friday Night SmackDown was dedicated to both him and Bray Wyatt, who died a day after Funk on August 24th.

Championships and accomplishments

Terry (left) and his brother Dory Funk Jr. were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2009.

Funk's Hardcore Hall of Fame banner in the former ECW Arena

• All Japan Pro Wrestling
  • World's Strongest Tag Determination League (1977, 1979, 1982) – with Dory Funk, Jr.
  • Champion Carnival Distinguished Service Award (1980)
  • World's Strongest Tag Determination League Technical Award (1977) – with Dory Funk Jr.
  • World's Strongest Tag Determination League Teamplay Award (1980) – with Dory Funk Jr.
  • World's Strongest Tag Determination League Distinguished Service Medal Award (1984) – with Dory Funk Jr.
  • World's Strongest Tag Determination League Technique Award (1986) – with Dory Funk Jr.
  • World's Strongest Tag Determination League Technique Award (1987) – with Dory Funk Jr.
  • World's Strongest Tag Determination League Excellent Team Award (1990) – Dory Funk Jr.
• Cauliflower Alley Club
  • Iron Mike Mazurki Award (2005)
• Championship Wrestling from Florida
  • NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
  • NWA Florida Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Dory Funk, Jr.
  • NWA Florida Television Championship (1 time)
  • NWA North American Tag Team Championship (Florida version) (1 time) – with Dory Funk, Jr.
  • NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Florida version) (2 times)
  • NWA Florida Television Championship Tournament (1971)
  • NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship Tournament (1979)
• Extreme Championship Wrestling
  • ECW World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
  • ECW Television Championship (1 time)
• George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
  • Class of 2010
• Georgia Championship Wrestling
  • NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Dory Funk, Jr.
  • NWA Georgia Television Championship (1 time)
  • NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship Tournament (1978) – with Dory Funk Jr.
• Hardcore Hall of Fame
  • Class of 2005
• International Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
  • Class of 2021
• Jim Crockett Promotions / World Championship Wrestling
  • NWA/WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
  • WCW Hardcore Championship (3 times)
  • WCW Hall of Fame (Class of 1995)
  • NWA United States Championship Tournament (1975)
• Juggalo Championship Wrestling
  • JCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• National Wrestling Alliance
  • NWA Hall of Fame (Class of 2009)
  • NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• NWA Big Time Wrestling
  • NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Texas version) (1 time)
• NWA Hollywood Wrestling
  • NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
  • NWA International Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Dory Funk, Jr.
  • NWA World Tag Team Championship (Los Angeles version) (1 time) – with Dory Funk, Jr.
• Pro-Pain Pro Wrestling
  • 3PW World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI Feud of the Year (1989) vs. Ric Flair
  • PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year (1997)
  • PWI Stanley Weston Award (2021)
  • PWI Wrestler of the Year (1976)
  • PWI ranked him No. 22 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 1991 and the "PWI Years" in 2003
  • PWI ranked him No. 9 of the top 100 tag teams of the "PWI Years" with Dory Funk, Jr. in 2003
• Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum
  • Class of 2004
• Southwest Championship Wrestling
  • SCW Southwest Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
  • SCW World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Dory Funk, Jr.
• Squared Circle Wrestling
  • 2CW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• St. Louis Wrestling Hall of Fame
  • Class of 2010
• St. Louis Wrestling Club
  • NWA Missouri Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Stampede Wrestling
  • Stampede Wrestling Hall of Fame (Class of 1995)
• Tokyo Sports
  • Lifetime Achievement Award (1983)
  • Match of the Year Award (1980) with Dory Funk, Jr. vs. Giant Baba and Jumbo Tsuruta on December 11
  • Popularity Award (1979)
• United States Wrestling Association
  • USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Western States Sports
  • NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Texas version) (2 times)
  • NWA International Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Dory Funk, Jr.
  • NWA Western States Heavyweight Championship (12 times)
  • NWA Western States Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Ricky Romero (2 times) and The Lawman (1 time)
  • NWA World Tag Team Championship (Amarillo version) (3 times) – with Dory Funk Jr.
  • NWA World Tag Team Championship (Texas version) (2 times) – with Dory Funk, Jr.
• World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment
  • WWF Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Cactus Jack
  • WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2009)
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter
  • Best Brawler (1989)
  • Best Heel (1989)
  • Best on Interviews (1989)
  • Hardest Worker (1989)
  • Feud of the Year (1989) vs. Ric Flair
  • Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 1996)

Filmography

Film

Television

Discography

• Texas Bronco (1983)
• Great Texan (1984)
• Tougher Than Shoe Leather (2018)

Images for kids

• 

  Funk in September 2013.

• 

  Terry (left) and his brother Dory Funk Jr. were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2009.

See also

In Spanish: Terry Funk para niños