Hack Meyers

Hack Meyers

Hack Meyers in 2005
Birth name Donald Haviland
Born (1973-12-07)December 7, 1973
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Died December 5, 2015(2015-12-05) (aged 41)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Hack Meyers
Admiral H. Oscar Meyers
Bronco Billy
Billed height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[1]
Billed weight 225 lb (102 kg)[1]
Billed from The Last House on the Left[1]
Trained by Oscar Meyers[2]
Debut October 19, 1990[3]

Donald Haviland (December 7, 1973 – December 5, 2015) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Hack Meyers.[1] A mainstay in Florida independent promotions during the 1990s, he was best known for his time in Extreme Championship Wrestling from 1993 to 1996.

Professional wrestling career

Early career

Haviland made his wrestling debut as Bronco Billy,[4] forming a tag team with Colt Starr known as The Texas Longhorns.[5] He wrestled in independent promotions for the next three years before signing with Extreme Championship Wrestling.

ECW (1993–1996)

Following his ECW debut in 1993 as Hack Meyers, he wrestled mainly on the undercard. He had several matches against ECW's biggest superstars at ECW supercards, but he was never able to defeat ECW's top talent. Haviland's gimmick in ECW was "The Shah of ECW", a fan favorite. During any exchange of blows, fans would chant "Shah!" every time he landed a punch or kick, and "Shit!" when his opponent retaliated.[6]

Meyers' first major appearance was at Ultimate Jeopardy 1994, an ECW supercard. He teamed with Don E. Allen and Blue Max in a handicap match against 911, which 911 won.[7] He wrestled Tommy Dreamer at Hostile City Showdown 1994, but was defeated.[1] At Heat Wave 1994, he teamed with Rockin' Rebel in a loss to The Bad Breed (Ian and Axl Rotten).[1] This led to a series of matches between Meyers and Rebel, culminating in a showdown at Hardcore Heaven 1994, which Meyers won.[1] He faced Chris Benoit at Holiday Hell 1994, but was again unsuccessful in his attempt to defeat a high-profile star.[1]

Meyers found some success in mid-1995, winning at back-to-back supercards. He defeated Big Malley at Hardcore Heaven 1995 and Val Puccio at Heat Wave 1995.[1] He lost to JT Smith at Wrestlepalooza 1995 but followed this up with an evenly split series of rematches.[1] Meyers faced Sabu at November To Remember 1995 but lost to Sabu in one of the longest matches on the card.[8] He followed this up with a victory over Stevie Richards as well as supercard wins over Bruiser Mastino (at December to Dismember 1995) and JT Smith (at Holiday Hell 1995).[1]

Holiday Hell 1995 saw Meyers' final supercard victory, as he lost to Taz at House Party 1996 and Smith at Big Ass Extreme Bash 1996.[9][10] Meyers' final appearance in ECW for some time was a loss to 2 Cold Scorpio in a Loser Leaves Town match at November To Remember 1996.[8]

Later career

In May 1997, Meyers worked at least two matches for World Championship Wrestling (WCW), losing to The Giant and The Barbarian.[11]

Meyers did return briefly to ECW, teaming with Balls Mahoney and Axl Rotten in a six man tag team match versus The Dudley Boyz at Born to Be Wired on August 9, 1997. Meyers would take the pinfall, losing after receiving a 3D.

After leaving ECW he remained in the wrestling industry, working for various promotions, including WWF, IWA Mid-South, FOW, MLW, and MCW, among others.[11] He also trained wrestlers, such as Scoot Andrews and Travis Tomko.[1][12] He wrestled predominantly in the Florida independent circuit in the latter days of his career.

Death

On November 15, 2015, fellow ECW alumnus Axl Rotten tweeted that Haviland would undergo brain surgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital.[13] On December 5, 2015, Haviland died from complications of that surgery. He was two days away from his 42nd birthday.[14]

In wrestling

Championships and accomplishments

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 "Wrestler Profiles: Hack Meyers". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-09-24.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Hack Meyers". Bodyslammin' 4Ever. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  3. ↑ "Wrestling Debuts - Part #2". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  4. ↑ "Hack Meyers Interview". Maximum Xtreme Pro Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  5. ↑ "Biography". Welcome to the Last House on the Left. Archived from the original on 2007-12-09. Retrieved 2007-09-24.
  6. ↑ Powell, John (December 5, 2015). "Hack Meyers dead at age 41". prowrestling.net. Retrieved March 4, 2017.
  7. ↑ "ECW Ultimate Jeopardy". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2007-09-24.
  8. 1 2 "November to Remember". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2007-09-24.
  9. ↑ "ECW House Party". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  10. ↑ "Other ECW PPV Cards and Supercards". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  11. 1 2 "Match Archive of Hack Meyers". Cagematch Database. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  12. ↑ "Wrestler Profiles: Tyson Tomko". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-09-24.
  13. ↑ Carrier, Steve. "ECW Original Hack Meyers Having Brain Surgery". Ringside News. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
  14. ↑ Scherer, Dave (December 5, 2015). "Hack Meyers passes away". PWInsider.com. Retrieved December 6, 2015.
  15. ↑ ""The Snakemaster" Abudadein". HCW Incredible8.com. Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  16. ↑ "HCW Title Histories". HCW Incredible8.com. Retrieved 2007-09-25.

Further reading

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