Bob Orton Jr.

Robert Keith Orton Jr.(born November 10, 1950),known by thering name"Cowboy"Bob Orton,is an American semi-retired professional wrestler. He is a son of professional wrestlerBob Orton Sr.,the brother of professional wrestlerBarry Orton,and the father of professional wrestlerRandy Orton.He is best known for his time in theWorld Wrestling Federation,(WWF, now WWE), including his involvement in the main event of the inauguralWrestleMania.He has also wrestled for several promotions in the United States, Japan, and other countries.

Bob Orton Jr.
Orton in 2018
Birth name	Robert Keith Orton Jr.
Born	(1950-11-10)November 10, 1950 Kansas City, Missouri,U.S.
Spouse(s)	Elaine Orton ​ (m.1968)​
Children	3, includingRandy
Family	Bob Orton(father) Barry Orton(brother)
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Bob Orton Jr. Bob Orton The Invader Billy Gaspar
Billed height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Billed weight	242 lb (110 kg)
Billed from	Kansas City, Missouri
Trained by	Hiro Matsuda Eddie Graham Jack Brisco
Debut	August 23, 1972

Early life

Robert Keith "Bob" Orton Jr. was born inKansas City, Missouri,and is a son of professional wrestlerBob Orton Sr.

Professional wrestling career

Championship Wrestling from Florida (1972–1980)

Orton trained withHiro Matsuda,after dropping out of college, and at the age of 22, Orton made his debut in the promotionChampionship Wrestling from Floridain 1972 with the ring name ofYoung Mr. Wrestlingwrestling in instances with his father Bob Orton Sr. They won the tag team title from the promotion. Orton was one of the first wrestlers to use theSuperplexas his finishing maneuver. Orton, in his early days in wrestling, used agimmickof a masked wrestler known asThe Invader.He often used this gimmick, until 1976.

American Wrestling Association (1976, 1978, 1988)

Orton spent time in Verne Gagne's American Wrestling Association in 1976 and 1978, a large portion of it under the tutelage of AWA MVP ManagerBobby Heenan.Orton feuded withGreg Gagneamong others. A match featuring Orton vs Gagne was a featured match on the AWA undercard for the Muhammad Ali-Antonio Inoki mixed martial arts match.

Orton had a brief stint back in the AWA in early 1988 following his November 1987 dismissal from the WWF, during which he renewed his alliance withAdrian Adonisfrom the WWF.

National Wrestling Alliance (1980–1982)

Following experiencing success in the Florida, Central States, and Mid-South regions, Orton competed in theNational Wrestling Alliancein 1980-1981 using a cowboy'sgimmick.While he competed in the NWA, he won several matches and earned a reputation as a hard worker and legit tough wrestler. In 1982, he left the NWA to sign a contract with theWorld Wrestling Federation.

World Wrestling Federation (1982)

In 1982, Orton competed in theWorld Wrestling Federation.He challengedBob Backlundfor the WWF Heavyweight Championship in Philadelphia, winning by count-out (the title cannot change of hands by disqualification or count-out). They had a lumberjack match a month later again in Philadelphia, but Orton was again unsuccessful. Their matches ran in some of the largest cities on the WWF circuit.

Return to NWA (1982–1984)

He returned to the NWA again in 1982 and captured the tag team title withDon Kernodle.The duo held the title for two months before succumbing toWahoo McDanielandMark Youngblood.

Together withDick Slater,he had a feud withRic Flair.Orton and Slater interfered in Flair's return match against NWA World ChampionHarley Race,who had beaten Flair for the title. They attacked Flair with anaided piledriver,which caused Flair a severe injury in the neck and put Flair out of wrestling for several months, thus collecting a bounty placed on Flair's head by Race, who was reluctant to wrestle Flair in return matches for the title. In the run-up to this incident, Orton had been portrayed as a babyface and a longtime friend of Flair - his participation in the attack was thus portrayed as the betrayal of that friendship. Flair would eventually return in late 1983, attacking both Orton and Slater with a baseball bat (before going on to win back the title from Race atStarrcade '83).

Return to WWF (1984–1987, 1989, 1990)

Orton re-joined the WWF in March 1984 for what would be the most famous run of his career. He was often addressed as"Ace" OrtonbyRoddy Piper,and was Piper's bodyguard. His othergimmick,wearing acastduring his matches, stemmed from legitimately having his left forearm broken in a match withJimmy Snukaat the 1985 eventThe War to Settle the Scorein Madison Square Garden. Although the injury healed in real life, the "cast" gimmick involved Orton—on "doctor's orders" —continuing to wear the cast, claiming the injury had not healed; Orton instead would use the cast to his advantage, striking his opponents behind the referee's back. He won several matches, with the cast and without the cast.

In 1984, Orton was the #1 contender to theWWF Intercontinental Championship,eventually wrestling then-current championTito Santana.Orton was successful in winninguntelevised matches and eventsagainst Santana, but Orton mostly won by either count-out or disqualification. Orton would also be successful in defeating Santana in non-title bouts, but Santana ultimately remained as the champ, and Santana eventually got the upper hand in the feud.

Bob Orton Jr., circa 1985

Orton would also engage in a bitter feud with Jimmy Snuka through 1985 and 1986. Orton, just like with Santana, managed to achieve victories over Snuka but mainly in untelevised shows. Just like his feud with Santana, Snuka would get the upper hand in the feud.

Orton was involved in the main event of the firstWrestleManiaatMadison Square Gardenin 1985, being in the corner of Piper and 'Mr. Wonderful'Paul Orndorffin their match againstHulk HoganandMr. T.Orton accidentally cost his team the match after an attempted cheat backfired, resulting in him hitting Orndorff with the cast. Orton also competed in the main event against WWF Champion Hulk Hogan onSaturday Night's Main Event Ion NBC broadcast May 11, 1985, which he lost bydisqualificationdue to the interference of Piper. Orton took part in the 1985King of the Ringtournament on July 8 he foughtPaul Orndorffto a double disqualification

Orton Jr. (back) assisting Roddy Piper (front), circa 1986

Orton remained with Piper for the remainder of 1985, feuding with Orndorff and a variety of partners, such as Hogan,André the Giant,andBruno Sammartino.In early 1986, Orndorff began wearing a cast as a neutralizer, and the WWF ordered both men to remove their casts. Also, in late 1985 and early 1986, Orton challenged Hogan for the WWF Heavyweight Championship; like his matches four years earlier against Backlund, Orton was not successful. On June 30, at a house show held onBloomington, Minnesota,Orton and Piper surprisingly scored an upset victory over Orndorff and Hogan, albeit by DQ; this event also would be the first time Orton got a victory over Hogan as previous matches between them typically saw Hogan winning.

Orton was dubbed "Boxing" Bob and "Battling" Bob in early 1986 after the cast came off and foughtMr. TatSaturday Night's Main Event V,which served as a setup for the Piper-Mr. T match atWrestleMania 2.Prior to WrestleMania 2, "Boxing" Bob Orton defeated Jose Luis Rivera in a boxing match. At WrestleMania 2, Orton was introduced as "Ace in Comedy and Funnyman" by guest ring announcerJoan Rivers,who misread the card.

Piper and Orton went their separate ways after WrestleMania, with Piper taking a hiatus and Orton in the meantime becoming the bodyguard for Piper's talk-segment successor"Adorable" Adrian Adonis;Adonis had Orton wear a pink cowboy hat. When Piper returned later in 1986 to reclaim his talk show segment (turning face in the process), Orton betrayed his long-time friend, sparking a violent feud between Piper and Orton and his new partners, which typically saw Piper winning. During this time, Orton formed a tag team withThe Magnificent Muraco,with the duomanagedbyMr. Fuji,and sometimesJimmy Hart.During their first years as a team, the team of Muraco and Orton was given a fairly decentpush,and both were able to easily defeat preliminary wrestlers when not teaming. They appeared at the opening match atWrestleMania III,losing to theCan-Am Connection(Rick MartelandTom Zenk).

The team of Muraco and Orton also got into a series of matches withThe Killer Bees(a team composed of B.Brian Blairand Jumpin' Jim Brunzell). Both teams exchanged victories at televised events, but ultimately the Bees got the upper hand at untelevised events. RefereeDanny Daviswould usually disqualify the Bees as a part of hisheelgimmick. They (along Tiger Chung Lee) were notable for being the first team to lose toThe Young Stallions(a team composed byJim PowersandPaul Roma) alongsideTito Santana.

By 1987, the team of Muraco and Orton was clearly stepping down the card. While they were still able to defeat preliminary teams, Orton and Muraco would usually find themselves on the losing end to upper-card teams. Orton and Muraco then eventually started arguing during their matches, which also caused them to lose credibility as a team. This finally led to a match onWWF Superstars of Wrestlingwhere Orton caused him and Muraco to lose a match when Orton kept Muraco from performing a Superplex, which was Orton's finishing move. Orton felt offended that Muraco was trying to steal his hold. This led to a brawl between both wrestlers that took place inside and outside the ring.On September 7, 1987, Orton and Muraco finally faced off at a WWF house show. This match ended in a double disqualification. Orton and Muraco faced off during the late months of 1987. By this point, the team was essentially disbanded, with the now turnedface"The Rock" Magnificent Muraco getting the upper hand in the feud. During Orton's feud with Muraco, Mr. Fuji would return to manage Orton (Muraco dumped Mr. Fuji as his manager following his face turn). Orton's last televised match and victory as a whole in the WWF came on October 10, 1987, in a heated victory against preliminary wrestlerSiva Afi.Orton's last match with the WWF came on November 7, 1987, where Orton fought preliminary wrestler Sam Houston to a draw in his home state of Missouri. Orton was fired after this for getting arrested for causing a disturbance at a Calgary airport.

In 1989, Orton attempted to make a comeback to the WWF, losing toTed DiBiasein a WWF house show at Springfield, MI on October 11. However, no contract was ever offered to him.

By 1990, Orton was wrestling for the Arena Wrestling Alliance promotion. As the AWA had an agreement with the WWF to exchange talent, Orton made appearances for the WWF, at three house show-matches. All took place inNew Zealand.Orton was also scheduled to make an appearance for a WWF show in Madison Square Garden in January 1990 againstBret Hart,but that was cancelled. Then Orton would depart from the company for 15 years before returning in 2005.

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1988–1989)

Orton in a match againstJimmy Snukain 2009

After leaving the WWF, Orton took a short hiatus from wrestling, inactive until February 1988, when Orton travelled to Japan. During this time, he wrestled forNew Japan Pro-Wrestling,initially working withTyler Manewhere they formed the team of the Gaspar Brothers, two hockey-masked pirates, with Bob using the ring name ofBilly Gasparwhile Tyler usedGully Gaspar.However, Tyler left NJPW in May of that year, so Bob got a new partner inKarl Moffat,who called himselfBarry Gaspar,and who in the future, would inherit the Gaspar Pirate mask to play his "Jason The Terrible" gimmick. They won several matches together, beating the teams ofNobuhiko TakadaandAntonio Inoki,Kuniaki KobayashiandRiki Choshu,Osamu KidoandYoshiaki Fujiwara,Hiro SaitoandSuper Strong Machineand many others. After the team of the Gaspar Brothers ended, Orton briefly teamed withDick MurdochandScott Hallin NJPW for the Japan Cup Elimination League. After wrestling a few more matches in 1989 with a low number of victories, Orton left New Japan.

World Championship Wrestling (1989)

On March 30, 1989, Orton made his debut with thenNational Wrestling Alliancemember,World Championship Wrestling.Wrestling at aWCW Saturday Nighttaping in Atlanta, Georgia and managed byGary Hart,Orton defeatedShane Douglas.On the April 1 episode ofSaturday Night,it was announced that Orton would be facing his former partnerDick Murdochat the upcomingClash of Champions VI.The following day at the Clash, Orton defeated Murdoch after Gary Hart interfered. He then went on a house show tour facing mostly preliminary opposition. On April 14 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin Orton suffered his first defeat, falling toMike Justice.Murdoch challenged Orton to a bullrope match after he had interfered in one of Orton's matches, in which Orton defeated Trent Knight. He lost to Murdoch at the 1989Wrestlewarin the bullrope match. Shortly after the match, Orton's manager "Playboy" Gary Hart started brawling with Murdoch, and then Orton attacked Murdoch with thecowbellof the bullrope, and threw him out of the ring, choking him, and attacking the referees that were trying to stop him in the process.After his release, Orton made a one-time appearance at a WCW house show in Kiel, Missouri, defeatingDutch Mantell.

Second return to WWE (2005–2006)

On February 3, 2005, Bob Orton was announced as a 2005 inductee into theWWE Hall of Fame.In the weeks precedingWrestleMania 21,Orton became entangled in his sonRandy'sfeudwithThe Undertaker.During an episode ofSmackDown!,Orton begged The Undertaker to show mercy on his son in order to distract The Undertaker long enough for his son to sneak into the ring and hit theRKO.At WrestleMania, he (unsuccessfully) interfered in the match between Orton and The Undertaker, striking The Undertaker with his cast.On August 21, 2005, atSummerSlam,Orton interfered in a rematch between Randy and The Undertaker, this time enabling his son to defeat The Undertaker. Orton then began accompanying Randy to ringside during his matches, and teamed with his son atNo Mercyon October 9, 2005, defeating The Undertaker in a handicapcasket match.The Ortons teamed together once again on the October 28, 2005 episode ofSmackDown!,joining forces withKen Kennedyto face Roddy Piper,Batista,andEddie Guerreroin a six-man tag team match. The match ended in defeat for the Ortons when Orton succumbed to Piper'ssleeper hold.On the December 16, 2005 episode of SmackDown!, Orton disguised himself as one of the Undertaker'sdruidsand carried The Undertaker's signatureurnto ringside as The Undertaker came to the ring to confront Randy. Orton remained at ringside after the other druids had left, distracting The Undertaker and enabling Randy to attack him. Orton then handed Randy the urn, which Randy used to knock The Undertaker unconscious. AtArmageddon,Orton (still holding the urn) accompanied Randy to ringside for hisHell in a Cellmatch with The Undertaker. He interfered in the match several times, but was ultimately unable to prevent The Undertaker from delivering aTombstone Piledriverto both Ortons and then covering Randy for the win. On February 13, 2006, Orton was released from WWE.

Independent circuit (1990–2020)

In 1990 he appeared in the Five Star Wrestling Federation inBaton Rougewhich was headed byGrizzly Smith,and that same year, Orton appeared inInternational World Class Championship Wrestling.In 1991 he wrestled forHerb Abrams'Universal Wrestling Federationat their lone pay-per-viewBeach Brawl,as well as their live wrestling specialBlackjack Brawl.In the UWF, Orton was awarded theUWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championshipas well as winning theUWF Southern States Championshipfrom former rival and tag-team partnerRon Garvin.Orton lost the UWF Southern States Championship toPaul Orndorff,although, Orton was awarded the title back in 1994 when Orndorff left the promotion, vacating the title in the process.

In 1994, Orton made a few appearances forJim Cornette'sSmoky Mountain Wrestling.That same year, Orton wrestled for theAmerican Wrestling Federation,and during his time in the AWF, he was managed byOliver Humperdink.Orton challengedTito Santanafor the AWF Championship, with AWF commissionerJim Brunzellas the special referee for the match, but Orton lost the match. During 1995 and 1996 he feuded with Santana. During Orton's time in the AWF, Orton received a bigpush,and he was the number one contender for Santana's AWF Championship in 1996. He won the AWF Championship in his second attempt, before losing the championship to Santana that same night in the last round. He had a brief feud in 1997 against "Sexy"Ace Steelein MVWA in St. Louis. In 1999, he appeared at theHeroes of WrestlingPPV, in which Orton was defeated by former rivalJimmy Snuka,after an interference of Snuka's managerLou Albano.He retired from full-time active competition in that same year, but has continued to wrestle on a semi-regular basis.

Orton returned to the ring at Millennium Wrestling Federation Soul Survivor II in 2004,teaming with Todd Hanson and Beau Douglas to defeat "The Ugandan Giant"Kamala,Gino Marktino, andOx Baker's Executioner.

Orton (right) drivingJimmy Snukainto a turnbuckle in 2009

On December 5, 2005, Orton participated in a match against wrestler Dingo. Orton was defeated.

On October 17, 2009, Orton (accompanied by his youngest son Nathan) performed at Independent Hardcore Wrestling against "Bloody" Harker Dirge, in a match for the Pro Wrestling Entertainment championship, losing by disqualification after Nathan attacked Dirge. This occasion marked Nathan Orton's first appearance in a professional wrestling event. In 2009, Orton appeared at the IWC "Night of Legends" event, performing against former rival Jimmy Snuka. Orton was defeated. In 2009, Orton faced Vance Desmond in the 2009 Winter Wrestlefest event, promoted by Canadian PromotionAll Star Wrestling(ASW) Orton lost to Desmond.

In 2010, Orton faced "Bullet"Bob Armstrongfor the Juggalo Championship Wrestling "Wrestling Legend & Loonies 2010" event. Orton was defeated by Armstrong despite Orton dominating him most of the match. On November 19, 2011, Orton appeared in the main event of a Holy Havoc Championship Wrestling card in Springfield, Illinois, teaming with HHCW Heavyweight Champion Pretty Boy Floyd and Mr. Allstar Rex Gill to defeat The Irish Revolution (Mickey Thomas and Seamus Farnam) and Beast. On August 25, 2012, Orton appeared at a Wrestling Past Present Future (WPPF) event in East Moline, IL. The match was billed as "Cowboy versus Cowboy" due to Orton's opponent, "Cowboy" Troy Hansen also using the moniker "Cowboy". Orton won by pinfall.

On February 9, 2013, Orton appeared at a Traditional Championship Wrestling (TCW) event in Jonesboro, Ark., where he managed and mentored International Heavyweight Champion "Mr. Saturday Night" Michael Barry in a feud with his cousin "All That" Alan Steel. He also participated in a non-televised dark match at the event when he turned on Barry and aligned himself with "The Empire" consisting of Matt Riviera and "Golden Boy" Greg Anthony. This team took on Michael Barry, Barrett Brown and John Saxon. The Empire along with Orton lost to Barry, Brown, and Saxon. On June 13, 2013, Orton faced Barrett Brown in a losing effort.

On August 16, 2013, Orton and George South facedTim HornerandTom Prichardat the Brad Armstrong Memorial event. Orton and South lost to Horner and Prichard. On November 16, 2013, Orton teamed up with former rival Harker Dirge to take on the team of Attitude, Inc., Guy Smith and Spencer Powers, in tag team action at the monthlyPro Wrestling Gloryshow inMaroa, Illinois.Orton and Dirge won the match. On October 25, 2014, Orton wrestled rival "Spotlight" Spencer Powers for the Pinfall Wrestling Association P.W.A. Heavyweight title at the Jaycee's Center in Springfield, Illinois. Orton was defeated.

On March 21, 2015, Orton participated in a 6-man tag team match teaming with Ricky Cruz and Red River Jack withNikolai Volkoffas their manager to take on Chris Hargas, Bull Bronson and Attila Khan. Orton's team came victorious. In April 2015, Orton participated in a 2-on-1 handicap match taking on "Iron Man" Ken Kasa & Travis Cook for the St. Louis Wrestling promotion. Orton defeated Kasa and Cook after applying an RKO to Kasa. On May 30, 2015, Orton was the Special Guest of Pinfall Wrestling Association in Springfield, Illinois at their biggest show of the year, The Grand Wrestling Spectacle V. Orton defeated Bradley Stephens III (who was looking for a "Legend" to challenge).

As of 2022, Orton makes occasional appearances at age 72.

Third return to WWE (2010, 2012, 2017)

Orton made an appearance on the November 15, 2010 episode of WWE Raw as the show went old school, with appearances from past WWE wrestlers, announcers and other on-air personalities. He also appeared on the April 10, 2012 episode of WWE SmackDown and was attacked by Kane (offscreen) who had been feuding with his son Randy at the time. Orton appeared once again on June 18, 2017, at the Money in the Bank Pay-per-view, situated in the front row of the crowd along with fellow Hall of FamersRic FlairandSgt. Slaughter.During the match between his son Randy andJinder Mahalhe would be assaulted by the Singh brothers as they were ejected from ringside, this prompted Randy to attack the Singh brothers. However this distraction proved enough for Jinder to hit Randy with the Khallas for the victory.

Personal life

Orton is married to Elaine Orton, anurseatChristian Hospital NEinMissouri,and they have two sons,Randy(also a professional wrestler), Nathan (a stand-up comedian), and a daughter, Becky. His first grandchild was born on July 12, 2008, when son Randy and his now ex-wife Samantha had their first child, a daughter, Alanna.

On an episode ofWWE Confidential,he admitted that his forearm injury in the 1985 match withJimmy Snukawas not aworkand did not heal when he wore the cast. It wouldn't heal fully until he left the WWF in 1987.

Around 1986, Orton was involved in an incident inFresno, California,where the Fresno Police Department were called for an incident involving Orton and Roddy Piper in a hotel. Orton would end up naked and drunk on the roof of the hotel and would be shot three times with policetasers,according to Orton himself.

Health

As a teenager, Orton was diagnosed withhepatitis C,but showed no apparent symptoms and would eventually no longer recall having the disease. Over 30 years later, in the midst of his feud with his son Randy againstThe Undertaker,Orton was retested and it was confirmed that he still carried the disease. The Undertaker was furious that he was uninformed of Orton's illness and learned that former Head of Talent RelationsJohn Laurinaitis(who knew of Orton's disease) allowed him toblade,and at one point in the feud (during a Hell in a Cell match atArmageddon 2005), Orton spilled blood directly onto The Undertaker, which could have caused him to contract the disease. This was the main reason Orton was let go by WWE in February 2006.

Championships and accomplishments

• American Wrestling Federation
  • AWF Heavyweight Championship(1 time)
• Cauliflower Alley Club
  • Family Award (2005) – withBarry OrtonandBob Orton
• Central States Wrestling Alliance
  • CSWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Championship Wrestling from Florida
  • NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship(1 time)
  • NWA Florida Tag Team Championship(3 times) - with Bob Orton (1) andBob Roop(2)
• International Championship Wrestling
  • ICW Southeastern Heavyweight Championship(1 time)
  • ICW Southeastern Tag Team Championship(3 times) - with Barry Orton (1), Bob Roop (1) and Tony Peters (1)
  • ICW Television Championship(1 time)
• Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling
  • NWA World Tag Team Championship(Mid-Atlantic version)(1 time) - withDon Kernodle
• Mid-South Sports/Georgia Championship Wrestling
  • NWA Georgia Junior Heavyweight Championship(1 time)
  • NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship(2 times) - withDick Slater(1) andMr. Wrestling II(1)
  • NWA Macon Tag Team Championship(1 time) - with Dick Slater
• Mid-South Wrestling
  • Mid-South Mississippi Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Midwest Powerhouse Wrestling
  • MPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Powerhouse Championship Wrestling
  • PCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI Rookie of the Year(1973)tied withTony Garea
  • Ranked No. 121 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003.
• Old School Wrestling Alliance
  • OSWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Southern Illinois Championship Wrestling
  • SICW Tag Team Championship (1 time)- withTony Atlas
• Southeastern Championship Wrestling
  • NWA Southeastern Tag Team Championship(4 times) - with Bob Roop (1),Jerry Blackwell(1) andRon Garvin(2)
• St. Louis Wrestling Hall of Fame
  • Class of 2024
• Universal Wrestling Federation
  • UWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship(1 time)
  • UWF Southern States Championship(2 times)
• World Wrestling Entertainment
  • WWE Hall of Fame(Class of 2005)
• Other Titles
  • VWS Television Championship (1 time)
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter
  • Most Unimproved(1986)

External links

• WWE Hall of Fame profile
• Bob Orton at Online World of Wrestling
• Bob Orton Jr.'s profile atCagematch.net,Internet Wrestling Database