Paul Orndorff
Paul Parlette Orndorff Jr. (October 29, 1949 – July 12, 2021), nicknamed "Mr. Wonderful", was an American professional wrestler and college football player, best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW).
Paul Orndorff | |
|---|---|
Orndorff in 1981 | |
| Born | Paul Parlette Orndorff Jr. October 29, 1949 Winchester, Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | July 12, 2021 (aged 71) Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Tampa |
| Spouse |
Ronda Maxwell (m. 1971) |
| Children | 2 |
| Family | Terry Orndorff (brother) Travis Orndorff (son) |
| Ring name(s) |
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| Billed height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) |
| Billed weight | 252 lb (114 kg) |
| Billed from | Brandon, Florida |
| Trained by | Bob Backlund Jack Brisco Eddie Graham Hiro Matsuda |
| Debut | 1976 |
| Retired | 2000 |
|
American football career | |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Brandon High (FL) |
| College: | Tampa |
| Position: | Tight end, fullback |
| NFL draft: | 1973 / Round: 12 / Pick: 289 |
| Career history | |
| |
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
After seven years working around the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), Orndorff became a star in the 1980s WWF wrestling boom, and featured with manager Bobby Heenan and champion Hulk Hogan extensively, including in the main events of the first WrestleMania and Survivor Series. With an untreated neck injury, he left the WWF for WCW in early 1990, where he won the WCW World Television Championship and the WCW World Tag Team Championship with Paul Roma (as a team called Pretty Wonderful).
Arm atrophy from a nagging injury led him to retire in 2000 and he was treated for cancer in 2011. After retiring, he trained aspiring wrestlers. Orndorff was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005 and the National Wrestling Alliance Hall of Fame in 2009.