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Bios

Sputnik Monroe

Nickname: The Sweet Man; The Cadillac Man

Weight: 235 lbs.

From: Dodge City, KS

Birthday: Dec 18th

Pro Debut: 1945

Aliases: Elvis Rock Monroe, Rock Monroe, Pretty Boy Roque

Feds Worked For: TSW, Florida, Gulf Coast Wrestling (AL), Memphis, Texas NWA Mid-America (TN)

Career Highlights: -NWA (Alabama/Tennessee) World Tag Team Champion (w/ Robert Fuller)
-NWA (Amarillo) North American Champion
-NWA (Amarillo) North American Tag Team Champion (w/ Ken Lucas)
-NWA Florida Tag Team Champion (w/ Norvell Austin)
-NWA (Florida) Southern Tag Team Champion (w/ Rocket Monroe)
-NWA (Florida) World Tag Team Champion (2x, w/ Rocket Monroe)
-NWA Georgia Champion (2x)
-NWA (Gulf Coast) Louisiana Champion
-NWA (Mid-America) Southern Tag Team Champion (2x, w/ Norvell Austin)
-NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Champion
-NWA Southwest Tag Team Champion (w/ Ken Lucas)
-NWA Tennessee Champion (3x)
-NWA Tennessee Tag Team Champion (2x, w/ Tommy Gilbert)
-NWA Texas Champion
-NWA Texas Tag Team Champion (2x, 1 each w/ Danny McShain & Rocket Monroe)
-NWA Western Tag Team Champion (w/ Baby Blimp)
-NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion
-TSW Brass Knucks Champion

Affiliates: Rocket Monroe, Jet Monroe, Norvell Austin, Robert Fuller, Ken Lucas, Tommy Gilbert, Danny McShain, Baby Blimp

Notable Feuds: Bobby Fields, Dick Dunn, Cowboy Bob Kelly, Danny Hodge, Billy Wicks, Paul Boesch Kozak Brothers

Other Facts: -Born Roscoe Monroe Merrick. His father died in an aeroplane accident. His mother remarried and his stepfather adopted him at age 17, making him Roscoe Monroe Brumbaugh.
-Husband of pro wrestling personality The Cajun Queen
-Father of pro wrestler Bubba Monroe
-Brother of pro wrestling manager Jet Monroe
-Uncle of pro wrestler Treach Phillips, Jr.
-Billed as the brother of pro wrestlers Rocket Monroe & Flash Monroe
-Began wrestling at age 17 in carnivals around Kansas.
-Huge pioneer of civil rights. He would refuse to wrestle in arenas unless black fans were allowed to sit amongst the white fans. He also was one of the first white wrestlers to compete against black wrestlers.
-In 1957, Rocky Monroe was given the name "Sputnik" at a TV taping at WKRG Channel 5 in Mobile, Alabama. A female fan that had been heckling him compared him to a communist and said that he was just a "damned sputnik".
-Set an attendance record with Billy Wicks in Memphis that stood until the era of the Monday Night Wars.
-He and Norvell Austin were the first integrated heel team in the south.
-Trained by Jack Nazworthy
-Was Terry Funk's first opponent.
-Wrestled his last match at the age of 70
-Passed away November 3, 2006 in his sleep in Florida. He'd been battling gangrene, the loss of half of a lung and intestinal problems. He'd also been recovering from gall bladder surgery.
-In 2007, HBO announced they were planning a movie based on his life.
-A Los Angeles rock band is named for him.
-Posthumously inducted into the NWA Hall of Fame in 2012
-Posthumously inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in 2017
-Posthumously inducted into the Legacy Wing of the WWE Hall of Fame in 2018