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Eddie Sharkey
Eddie Sharkey (born Edward Shyman; February 4, 1936) is an American professional wrestler, referee, promoter, and trainer. Nicknamed the "Trainer of Champions," he is best known for discovering and mentoring some of the biggest stars of professional wrestling's 1980s boom, including Jesse Ventura, The Road Warriors, Ravishing Rick Rude, Bob Backlund, Lightning Kid, Nord the Barbarian, and Barry Darsow. Sharkey's legacy is defined by his work as a trainer and promoter, particularly through his Minneapolis-based independent promotion, Pro Wrestling America (PWA), which also represented Mad Dog Vachon, Bruiser Brody, Austin Aries, and Larry Cameron. By recruiting and promoting muscular bouncers and bodybuilders at a time when smaller, technical wrestlers were favored, Sharkey ushered in the trend of the power-based style that dominated the 1980s and still leads the sport today.
Sharkey began his in-ring career in the 1950s before joining the American Wrestling Association (AWA) under Verne Gagne as a baby face in the early 1960s. As an independent promoter, Sharkey's PWA became a feeder organization for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), now World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Sharkey also acted as a talent scout and referee for the WWE.
In 2006, Sharkey received the Art Abrams Lifetime Achievement Award from the Wrestling's most respected organization, the Cauliflower Alley Club. Sharkey has been featured in multiple articles, books, television specials, and documentaries. He continues to make appearances at special events.
Sharkey was born and raised in Minneapolis, the son of Thomas Shyman, a Polish immigrant who worked in the liquor-display business and had a brief stint as a tap dancer in his youth, and Margaret Junkin, a homemaker. His brother, James Shyman, became a writer, director, and actor.
Introduced to professional wrestling as a child by his father, Sharkey developed a lifelong passion for sports entertainment. As a teenager, he was a promising athlete dedicated to weightlifting, but he left high school in the tenth grade. He was later sent to the Red Wing Reformatory School, where he gained early leadership experience by organizing fellow reform school boys into teams to complete chores more efficiently, work together, and resolve conflict—skills he would later apply as a performer, trainer, and promoter.
After leaving school, Sharkey took up boxing at the Mill City Gym in Minneapolis under the guidance of professional boxer Del Flanagan. He later moved to Los Angeles, where he continued boxing and training at Gold's Gym in Venice.
He eventually joined the traveling carnival circuit as a professional wrestler, performing at county fairs across the United States. These experiences, which included novelty matches such as wrestling a baboon named "Congo the Ape," gave Sharkey his first exposure to the theatrical and choreographed aspects of professional wrestling.
American Wrestling Association (AWA)
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Eddie Sharkey
Eddie Sharkey (born Edward Shyman; February 4, 1936) is an American professional wrestler, referee, promoter, and trainer. Nicknamed the "Trainer of Champions," he is best known for discovering and mentoring some of the biggest stars of professional wrestling's 1980s boom, including Jesse Ventura, The Road Warriors, Ravishing Rick Rude, Bob Backlund, Lightning Kid, Nord the Barbarian, and Barry Darsow. Sharkey's legacy is defined by his work as a trainer and promoter, particularly through his Minneapolis-based independent promotion, Pro Wrestling America (PWA), which also represented Mad Dog Vachon, Bruiser Brody, Austin Aries, and Larry Cameron. By recruiting and promoting muscular bouncers and bodybuilders at a time when smaller, technical wrestlers were favored, Sharkey ushered in the trend of the power-based style that dominated the 1980s and still leads the sport today.
Sharkey began his in-ring career in the 1950s before joining the American Wrestling Association (AWA) under Verne Gagne as a baby face in the early 1960s. As an independent promoter, Sharkey's PWA became a feeder organization for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), now World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Sharkey also acted as a talent scout and referee for the WWE.
In 2006, Sharkey received the Art Abrams Lifetime Achievement Award from the Wrestling's most respected organization, the Cauliflower Alley Club. Sharkey has been featured in multiple articles, books, television specials, and documentaries. He continues to make appearances at special events.
Sharkey was born and raised in Minneapolis, the son of Thomas Shyman, a Polish immigrant who worked in the liquor-display business and had a brief stint as a tap dancer in his youth, and Margaret Junkin, a homemaker. His brother, James Shyman, became a writer, director, and actor.
Introduced to professional wrestling as a child by his father, Sharkey developed a lifelong passion for sports entertainment. As a teenager, he was a promising athlete dedicated to weightlifting, but he left high school in the tenth grade. He was later sent to the Red Wing Reformatory School, where he gained early leadership experience by organizing fellow reform school boys into teams to complete chores more efficiently, work together, and resolve conflict—skills he would later apply as a performer, trainer, and promoter.
After leaving school, Sharkey took up boxing at the Mill City Gym in Minneapolis under the guidance of professional boxer Del Flanagan. He later moved to Los Angeles, where he continued boxing and training at Gold's Gym in Venice.
He eventually joined the traveling carnival circuit as a professional wrestler, performing at county fairs across the United States. These experiences, which included novelty matches such as wrestling a baboon named "Congo the Ape," gave Sharkey his first exposure to the theatrical and choreographed aspects of professional wrestling.
American Wrestling Association (AWA)