Gino Hernandez

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Gino Hernandez (born Charles Wolfe) was a professional wrestler. His in-ring nickname was "The Handsome Half-Breed" (a reference to his Italian/Mexican-American ring name)

Contents

[edit] Career

"The Handsome Halfbreed" started wrestling in 1975 in Southwest Championship Wrestling (SCW) after being trained by Jose Lothario. He formed a team with Lothario and eventually turned on him, starting a feud that saw Hernandez lose his hair to Lothario as the result of a hair vs. hair match.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Gino went to World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW) where he feuded with David Von Erich over the Texas Heavyweight Title.

He returned to SCW and formed a tag team called "The Dynamic Duo" with Tully Blanchard that was quite successful.

He returned to WCCW in 1984 and feuded with the Von Erichs, David, Kevin and Kerry Von Erich. He also formed a team with Chris Adams, also called the "Dynamic Duo". That version proved to be the most famous, as Adams and Hernandez drew in high revenues and television ratings for World Class in their feud with the Von Erichs.

He soon turned on Adams in December 1985 (two months after losing their hair at the Cotton Bowl) and started a feud, which was to have been the top storyline of 1986 for World Class. On January 27, 1986, during a grudge match in Fort Worth, Hernandez threw "freebird hair cream" (a "hair-removal product" previously established in WCCW storyline continuity in 1983 by Freebird Buddy Roberts) into the face of Adams, who was to sell his blinding injury so he could spend time in England with his new wife Toni and his family. Hernandez was scheduled to compete on a house show the following Thursday and a non-televised wrestling card at the Sportatorium in Dallas the following Friday (both of which took place despite the nation going through the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, which occurred a day after Hernandez' match with Adams). Gino did not show for either of those matches, and phone calls made to him were never returned.

On February 4, concerned with Hernandez's well-being, two World Class officials, David Manning and Rick Hazzard, and several local law enforcement officers broke into his Highland Park apartment and found Hernandez dead (he had been dead for approximately three days). Initially Hernandez's death was ruled a homicide case, but following autopsy reports, his death was ruled as a result of an overdose of cocaine, however, many (even today) still believe Gino was murdered, because amounts of cocaine was also in his stomach. Chris Adams was at one time a suspect in Gino's death primarily due to the blinding angle that happened at the same time, but the FBI and Scotland Yard later ruled out Adams as a suspect.

The syndicated World Class broadcast (scheduled for a February 15 airing) was scheduled to have aired a match involving Gino Hernandez, originally taped on January 24 at the Sportatorium. That match never aired; instead, announcer Bill Mercer made the announcement of Gino's death, and a different match would air instead.

Hernandez seemed destined for greatness but his cocaine addiction and lifestyle caught up with him. It was rumored that he owed Mafia connected people some money from gambling debts at the time of his death.

Chris Adams, who went through drug and alcohol problems of his own, was murdered in 2001 during a drunken brawl with a former roommate.

[edit] Profile

[edit] Championships and accomplishments

[edit] National Wrestling Alliance

[edit] Pro Wrestling Illustrated

  • Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) ranked him # 162 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003. PWI also ranked him # 65 of the best tag teams of the "PWI Years" with Chris Adams.

[edit] Southwest Championship Wrestling

[edit] World Class Championship Wrestling

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