Real Name: George Raymond Wagner
Was Born: March 24, 1915 - December 26, 1963. Seward, Nebraska United States
Bio: George Raymond Wagner, or Gorgeous George was an American professional wrestler. His flamboyant theatrics blazed the trail for sports entertainment and are credited as the defining reason for establishing television as the industry’s main entertainment vehicle. At 5’9” 215 pounds, Wagner was neither physically imposing nor an exceptionally gifted athlete, but he soon developed a reputation as a solid in-ring worker. In the late 1930’s, he met Betty Hanson, whom he would eventually marry in an in-ring ceremony. When the wedding proved a good drawing card, the couple re-enacted it in arenas across the country (which thus enlightened Wagner to the potential entertainment value that was left untapped within the industry). Around this same time, Vanity magazine published a feature article about a pro wrestler named Lord Patrick Lansdowne, who entered the ring accompanied by two valets while wearing a velvet robe and doublet. Wagner was impressed with the bravado of such a character, but he believed that he could take it to a much greater extreme. As a result, he debuted his new “glamour boy” persona on a 1941 card in Eugene, Oregon; and he quickly antagonized the fans with his exaggerated effeminate behavior, which prompted the ring announcer to introduce him as “Gorgeous George.”...