wrestling. The promoter was Dory Funk. Unlike in past moves, this time we took everything with us back to Amarillo. Dad made it unequivocally clear that he wasnât moving the family again until I graduated high school.
Since I had three years of high school left, Dad only wanted to wrestle up until I graduated from high school. He would then retire from the sport and relocate the family back to Willcox. There he would begin his second career, running his own pizza restaurant.
We arrived in May and settled into an apartment. It was the same complex that we lived in years ago. Mom wasnât too impressed with the property this time around and wanted a more desirable place to live. We eventually moved into another apartment complex at the end of June. We planned on staying there for the next three years.
It now seemed that our life was finally stable. I was working out harder than ever before. My parents were getting along very well. John was enjoying his new friends. Now that the DiBiase family was all together, we were living
la dolce vita
âthe sweet life. Then everything went downhill.
Wednesday, July 2, 1969, was the worst day of my life. My best friend, my dad, Mike DiBiase, died. Dad was wrestling Man Mountain Mike in Lubbock. Mike was a big man, about six-four, and weighed more than four hundred pounds. During the course of the match, Mike threw Dad out of the ring. As Dad proceeded to get back in the ring by grabbing the second rope, he collapsed and fell facedown on the floor.
The fans thought nothing was out of the ordinary and the referee began his count. As the referee was counting, things werenât going as planned. Harley Race, a wrestler who would later become one of the greatest in the history of the sport, was standing in the back, watching the match. He sensedsomething was wrong and rushed to the ring. He performed CPR and did the best to breathe life into my dad. An ambulance was called and Dad, with Harley by his side, was rushed to the hospital. He was pronounced dead on the emergency room table.
HARLEY RACE:
Earlier in the evening, Mike DiBiase told me that he moved all his belongings and his entire family from one apartment to another that same day. He looked very tired, but didnât complain about a thing. I think half of the reason he didnât complain was because he was wrestling Man Mountain Mike. MMM weighed more than four hundred pounds, so Mike knew he wasnât going to be moving at any high speed.
As the match started, there was some pushing and shoving. Mike then took a back bump. All of a sudden, Mike folded his arms over his chest, backed up into the ropes, and went right out onto the floor.
I was watching the match from the back and immediately knew something was wrong. I ran to ringside and tended to Mike. He had a pulse but wasnât breathing. I administered CPR and did my best to keep him alive until the ambulance arrived. He was alive when they left in the ambulance.
TERRY FUNK:
A lot of people donât know this, but I didnât go to Lubbock the night Teddyâs father died. In fact, that was the reason why Mike went. Teddyâs father took my place that night to wrestle Man Mountain Mike. He was very tired, but being the person that he was, he took my place anyway. I wish I would have gone.
At the news of Dadâs death, I immediately started to cry. I was dazed and in disbelief. Mom went hysterical. I never saw her in such distress. She was out of control and I remember her screaming at the top of her lungs, âThis canât be true!â
Though he didnât actually know what was wrong, John was equally shaken by the events. With Mom unable to gather her faculties, I had to tell John. I remembered what Dad had told me when his mother passed away. I told my concerned brother, âJohn, Dad died tonight.â We cried and embraced each other as tight as we could. Suddenly, in a divine moment, John pulled back and said to me
Since I had three years of high school left, Dad only wanted to wrestle up until I graduated from high school. He would then retire from the sport and relocate the family back to Willcox. There he would begin his second career, running his own pizza restaurant.
We arrived in May and settled into an apartment. It was the same complex that we lived in years ago. Mom wasnât too impressed with the property this time around and wanted a more desirable place to live. We eventually moved into another apartment complex at the end of June. We planned on staying there for the next three years.
It now seemed that our life was finally stable. I was working out harder than ever before. My parents were getting along very well. John was enjoying his new friends. Now that the DiBiase family was all together, we were living
la dolce vita
âthe sweet life. Then everything went downhill.
Wednesday, July 2, 1969, was the worst day of my life. My best friend, my dad, Mike DiBiase, died. Dad was wrestling Man Mountain Mike in Lubbock. Mike was a big man, about six-four, and weighed more than four hundred pounds. During the course of the match, Mike threw Dad out of the ring. As Dad proceeded to get back in the ring by grabbing the second rope, he collapsed and fell facedown on the floor.
The fans thought nothing was out of the ordinary and the referee began his count. As the referee was counting, things werenât going as planned. Harley Race, a wrestler who would later become one of the greatest in the history of the sport, was standing in the back, watching the match. He sensedsomething was wrong and rushed to the ring. He performed CPR and did the best to breathe life into my dad. An ambulance was called and Dad, with Harley by his side, was rushed to the hospital. He was pronounced dead on the emergency room table.
HARLEY RACE:
Earlier in the evening, Mike DiBiase told me that he moved all his belongings and his entire family from one apartment to another that same day. He looked very tired, but didnât complain about a thing. I think half of the reason he didnât complain was because he was wrestling Man Mountain Mike. MMM weighed more than four hundred pounds, so Mike knew he wasnât going to be moving at any high speed.
As the match started, there was some pushing and shoving. Mike then took a back bump. All of a sudden, Mike folded his arms over his chest, backed up into the ropes, and went right out onto the floor.
I was watching the match from the back and immediately knew something was wrong. I ran to ringside and tended to Mike. He had a pulse but wasnât breathing. I administered CPR and did my best to keep him alive until the ambulance arrived. He was alive when they left in the ambulance.
TERRY FUNK:
A lot of people donât know this, but I didnât go to Lubbock the night Teddyâs father died. In fact, that was the reason why Mike went. Teddyâs father took my place that night to wrestle Man Mountain Mike. He was very tired, but being the person that he was, he took my place anyway. I wish I would have gone.
At the news of Dadâs death, I immediately started to cry. I was dazed and in disbelief. Mom went hysterical. I never saw her in such distress. She was out of control and I remember her screaming at the top of her lungs, âThis canât be true!â
Though he didnât actually know what was wrong, John was equally shaken by the events. With Mom unable to gather her faculties, I had to tell John. I remembered what Dad had told me when his mother passed away. I told my concerned brother, âJohn, Dad died tonight.â We cried and embraced each other as tight as we could. Suddenly, in a divine moment, John pulled back and said to me
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