Moderators PowerButchi Posted November 29, 2012 Moderators Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 Freebird Buddy Roberts passes away   Dale Hey, who wrestled as Buddy Smith, Dale Roberts, Dale Valentine and most notably as Buddy Roberts, has passed away at the age of 65.  Hey, part of the Hall of Fame Fabulous Freebirds trio, had a previous long battle with throat cancer, which he attributed to heavy smoking. He was part of two of the greatests tag teams of the last 40 years, the Freebirds and the Hollywood Blonds.  As Buddy Smith, he was a solid working prelim wrestler in the AWA, where he hooked up with John Sutton, a former building usher and huge wrestling fan, and veteran Jerry Brown.  The trio went to Montreal as The Hollywood Blonds, under the management of Sutton, who came Sir Oliver Humperdink. They were the Grand Prix wrestling tag team champions during a hot period of wrestling in Quebec. At their peak, they were part of a double main event, going against Bruno Sammartino & Edouard Carpentier underneath a Killer Kowalski vs. Mad Dog Vachon grudge match that drew a sellout of 29,127 fans to Jarry Park, still the Quebec attendance record.  The trio worked all over the U.S. during the 70s. After the trio broke up, Hey had a run as Dale Valentine, billed as Johnny Valentine's younger brother, as a way for Johnny to stay in wrestling after a plane crash had ended his career. But that gimmick didn't get a lot of traction.  He seemed at the end of the line by 1980, when Bill Watts put him together with Terry Gordy & Michael Hayes, young heels who were setting Mid South Wrestling on fire. Watts felt Gordy, still a teenager, was one of the greatest wrestlers he had seen, but that Hayes was better served as a manager. He also saw Roberts as a veteran who could keep the two out of trouble, but if anything, the opposite happened. The Freebirds had a sensational run in Mid South, Georgia and later in Texas. Feuds with Junkyard Dog and The Von Erich family set box office records at the time.  Quality wrestler. It's a shame Gordy and Hayes are the ones mentioned most as Roberts was brilliant himself. I absolutely fucking bum his hair feud with Iceman King Parsons.  RIP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PacMan Posted November 29, 2012 Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 Great antagonist, great bumper, great man. He always had a distinct raspy voice which I guess was the result of the heavy smoking. Â I loved him in the Freebirds and was usually the one who took the biggest beatings from the faces. Â RIP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members air_raid Posted November 29, 2012 Paid Members Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 Gordy was physically impressive and Hayes had the mad charisma, but watching those matches it's Roberts I want to see beaten up the most. Great heel, part of a group that was a major contributor to shaping heel group dynamics and behaviour. Sod JR's comments about without the Horsemen there would be no nWo or DX. By that logic, no Freebirds, no Horsemen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PacMan Posted November 29, 2012 Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIDDUM_N_STYLE Posted November 29, 2012 Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 Sad news, the Freebirds were an awesome combo and now only P.S Hayes remains of the three Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members air_raid Posted November 30, 2012 Paid Members Report Share Posted November 30, 2012 Sad news, the Freebirds were an awesome combo and now only P.S Hayes remains of the three  Hayes is the only Freebird left unless you count Garvin. Which you shouldn't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators PowerButchi Posted November 30, 2012 Author Moderators Report Share Posted November 30, 2012 Jimmy Garvin well should be counted! He was the 4th Freebird back in 1983 or something. Â Now, Steve "Do It To It" Cox should never be considered one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members air_raid Posted November 30, 2012 Paid Members Report Share Posted November 30, 2012 The original three might have knocked around with him occasionally, but it was WCW that actually made him a Freebird. For me it's World Class Freebirds or nothing. Unless you want to throw Badstreet in there too. Â Which sadly still would make Hayes and Garvin the only surviving ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators PowerButchi Posted November 30, 2012 Author Moderators Report Share Posted November 30, 2012 If Michael Hayes referred to him as the 4th Freebird in the AWA and WCCW, then the 4th Freebird he was. He was with them quite a bit more than occasionally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PacMan Posted November 30, 2012 Report Share Posted November 30, 2012 Brad 'Fantasia/Badstreet' Armstrong passed this month as well. 5th Freebird? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators PowerButchi Posted November 30, 2012 Author Moderators Report Share Posted November 30, 2012 Road Manager Oliver Humperdink's dead as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PacMan Posted November 30, 2012 Report Share Posted November 30, 2012 Sunshine is still kicking around - she managed Jimmy and P.S for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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