Harry Fujiwara

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Harry Fujiwara
Statistics
Ring name(s) Mr. Fuji
Billed height 5'10
Born May 4, 1937 (1937-05-04) (age 71)
Honolulu, Hawaii
Resides Jefferson city, Tennessee

Harry Fujiwara is a former professional wrestler and manager, best known by his ring name, Mr. Fuji. As a manager, he would often throw salt in the eyes of face wrestlers. Although he was billed as Japanese, he is a Japanese-American born in Hawaii.

Contents

[edit] Wrestling career

As a wrestler, Mr. Fuji held the World Wrestling Federation's WWF Tag Team Championship on five separate occasions with a number of different partners including Professor Toru Tanaka (3 times when the company was known as the WWWF), with one of their reigns being the third longest tag team title reign in the WWE/F/WF, and also Mr. Saito (twice when it was known as the WWF). Fuji is one of the most respected tag team wrestlers in World Wrestling Federation history, having held one half of the World Tag Team titles longer than any other wrestler.

Before joining the WWF, he had a career in Hawaii with Peter Maivia's Wrestling Hawaii. He often was associated with one of Hawaii's biggest heels, Tor Kamata.

[edit] Managerial Career

Fuji would "blind" his opponents by throwing salt in their eyes. He would carry a little bag of salt in his tights. The throwing of the salt was a take-off on what sumo wrestlers do as they enter the ring. The meaning is said to be a way to invite good luck before the match. Among the wrestlers who were victimized by the blinding salt were Rick Martel, Pat Patterson, Chief Jay Strongbow, Jules Strongbow, Bret Hart and Ricky Steamboat. The salt assault was particularly emphasized during Fuji's managerial career. Current WWE Superstars The Miz and John Morrison pay homage to Mr. Fuji in weekly episodes of their WWE.com Webcast, The Dirt Sheet by throwing salt in the eyes of guests they term "losers." Archival of Mr. Fuji laughing is usually shown immediately following the salt assault. Although Fuji wore a traditional Japanese Kimono while managing Yokozuna, he is best known for wearing a tuxedo and bowler hat. This was done to be reminiscent of the James Bond villain Oddjob played by fellow wrestler Harold Sakata in the 1964 Bond film Goldfinger.

During the mid-1980s Fuji starred in a segment on the WWF's Tuesday Night Titans (AKA TNT) variety show called Fuji Vice, a knockoff of the hit television show Miami Vice

[edit] Retirement

After leaving wrestling, Fujiwara retired to the city of Knoxville, Tennessee. In 1997, he sued the makers of the video game WCW vs. nWo World Tour claiming that the character Master Fuji was based on him. The outcome of the lawsuit is unknown.

Fujiwara operated a training dojo out of Jefferson City, Tennessee, and Dandridge, Tennessee, until 2001.

Mr. Fuji was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on March 31, 2007 by his former charge and Fuji Vice co-star Don Muraco. Mr. Fuji was in a wheelchair at the time of the induction, due to nine knee operations.

[edit] In wrestling

[edit] Finishing and signature moves

[edit] Wrestlers managed

[edit] Managers

[edit] Championships and accomplishments

  • International Wrestling Alliance
  • IWA Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Tiger Jeet Singh
  • NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Karl Von Steiger
  • PWI ranked him # 445 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.

[edit] Notes and references

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