King Kong Bundy, pro wrestler and New Jersey native, dies at age 61
Bundy, whose real name was Christopher Pallies, was born in Atlantic City.
Professional wrestler King Kong Bundy, a New Jersey native, has died at age 61.
Promoter and longtime friend David Herro said Bundy died on Monday in Glassboro. Herro posted on Facebook: “Today we lost a Legend and a man I consider family.” The cause of death and other details were not disclosed.
Bundy, whose real name was Christopher Pallies, was born in Atlantic City and was a 1974 graduate of Washington Township High School, where he wrestled and won two regional championships.
The 6-foot-4, 458-pound wrestler, known as the “walking condominium," made his World Wrestling Federation debut in 1981.
He was best known for facing Hulk Hogan in 1986 in a steel-cage match at WrestleMania 2, which Hogan won.
On Tuesday, Hogan mourned his former rival’s death, writing on Twitter that he was “Overwhelmed by King Kong Bundy’s passing, only great memories.”
The wrestling legend also had guest appearances on the sitcom Married... with Children and was planning to appear next month at WrestleCon in New York City.
Bundy was a graduate of a wrestling school in Paulsboro known as the Monster Factory, whose other alums include Bam Bam Bigelow, Tony Atlas, The Big Show, D’Lo Brown, The Godfather, and Tatanka.
World Wrestling Entertainment, as the WWF is now known, recalled that after he broke into professional wrestling, Bundy dominated at WrestleMania I, the inaugural pay-per-view WWF event on March 31, 1985.
Bundy left WWE in the late 1980s but returned in 1994 as a member of the Million Dollar Corporation, “once again destroying rivals with the Avalanche Splash and proving that he was one of the greatest and most eye-catching big men to lace up a set of boots,” the WWE said in a statement about Bundy’s death.
“The sight of Bundy stepping between the ropes was intimidating enough, but his crushing offense proved that he was every bit as destructive as advertised,” the WWE said. “In fact, Bundy was so dominant that he demanded referees count to five when he pinned his opponents," instead of the usual three, "to show that there was no way they were getting up.”
But despite his dominance on the mat, he portrayed quite a different personality off-stage.
“For being one of the biggest bad guys in the history of pro wrestling, he did appreciate his fans; he always had fun with them,” Herro, the promoter and friend, told the Press of Atlantic City. “He’d joke and mess around and always with a big smile. He was never the monster heel with the fans.”
Information on services was not immediately available.