Daniel Briley (born June 30, 1952), better known by the
ring name
A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...
"Nightmare" Danny Davis, is an American retired
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
and
referee
A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...
. He is the founder and former owner of
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former developmental promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is currently run by Al Snow and Matt Jones and Louisville mayor elect, Craig Greenberg.
O ...
.
Career
Briley started wrestling in 1977 in the
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
territory, where he made a name for himself as "Nightmare" Danny Davis. He would also wrestle as one half of the masked Masters of Terror in the
United States Wrestling Association
The United States Wrestling Association (USWA) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. The company was founded when the Memphis-based Continental Wrestling Association merged with the Dallas-based World Class Wrestling ...
. Davis had a frequent tag team with
Ken Wayne
Ken Wayne (1925–1993) was an Australian actor of radio, theatre, film and television. He made his film debut in '' Sons of Matthew'' (1949) and appeared in a number of movies including ''Dust in the Sun'' (1958). He was also well known for hi ...
in the 1980s.
At one time, they wrestled under masks as
The Nightmares.
[ The duo also worked under masks as The Galaxians for ]WCW
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nationa ...
in the 1990s.
Davis also had a brief stint during the latter days of the Central States/Kansas City territory as Tiger Mask
is a Japanese manga series written by Ikki Kajiwara and illustrated by Naoki Tsuji. The series was first published in Kodansha's ''Bokura Magazine'' from 1968 to 1970 and was later published in ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' from 1970 to ...
, which occurred a few years after Satoru Sayama
(born November 27, 1957) is a Japanese professional wrestling, Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist, MMA and wrestling promoter and writer, best known as the original Tiger Mask (professional wrestling), Tige ...
's tour of the WWF introduced American audiences to the gimmick. He also wrestled in Smoky Mountain Wrestling
Smoky Mountain Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that held events in the Appalachian area of the United States from October 1991 to December 1995, when it was run by Jim Cornette. The promotion was based in Knoxville, Tennessee, wit ...
in 1992. He retired in 1997 and opened Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former developmental promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is currently run by Al Snow and Matt Jones and Louisville mayor elect, Craig Greenberg.
O ...
. In 2009, Davis opened Vyper Fight League, an MMA
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on strike (attack), striking, grappling and ground f ...
promotion, alongside John "Bradshaw" Layfield
John Charles Layfield (born November 29, 1966), better known by the ring name John "Bradshaw" Layfield (abbreviated to JBL), is an American retired professional wrestler and football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on ...
. The promotion ceased operations in 2010.
On December 13, 2012, he appeared on a segment of ''Impact Wrestling
Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment.
Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promot ...
'' where he was training Joseph Park to improve Park's skills. On March 7, 2013, he was named as a judge for TNA Gut Check
In professional wrestling, the TNA Gut Check (also known as Impact Wrestling Gut Check) was a tryout program turned Indy wrestling rookies reality series by the American professional wrestling promotion Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), no ...
. He returned to in-ring action in the ''December 2014 Saturday Night Special'', teaming with Trailer Park Trash and losing to War Machine (Shiloh Jonze and Eric Locker).
On April 6, 2018, Davis sold OVW to Al Snow
Allen Ray Sarven (born July 18, 1963) is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Al Snow. He is best known as a wrestler for Smoky Mountain Wrestling, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Wrestling Entertainment. Sn ...
.
Personal life
Briley has two sons, Stewart Davis and Simon Davis-Millis. He is the uncle of wrestler Doug Basham
Lyle Douglas Basham Jr. (born May 12, 1971) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with World Wrestling Entertainment between 2002 and 2007, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Basham ...
.
Championships and accomplishments
* Continental Championship Wrestling / Continental Wrestling Federation
:* NWA Southeastern Continental Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with Ken Wayne[
:* NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship ''(Northern Division)'' ( 1 time)
:*]NWA Southeastern Tag Team Championship
The NWA Southeastern Tag Team Championship was the major tag team title in the National Wrestling Alliance's Alabama territory known as Continental Championship Wrestling, Southeastern Championship Wrestling. It existed from 1974 until November 19 ...
( 3 times) - with Ken Wayne[
:* ( 5 times)
*]Continental Wrestling Association
Continental Wrestling Association (later the Championship Wrestling Association) was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually ref ...
:*AWA Southern Tag Team Championship
The AWA Southern Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team title in the Tennessee area from the 1940s through the late 1980s. It was originally named the NWA Southern Tag Team Championship ''(Mid-America version)'' from its ince ...
( 1 time) - with Ken Wayne[
*]Deep South Wrestling
Deep South Wrestling (DSW) is a professional wrestling promotion in the state of Georgia. Deep South worked in tandem with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as a developmental territory from September 1, 2005, until April 18, 2007. Deep South w ...
:*DSW Tag Team Championship
The DSW Tag Team Championship was the tag team championship in Deep South Wrestling, a former developmental territory of World Wrestling Entertainment between 2005 and 2007. The title was last held by Caleb Konley and Sal Rinauro
Salvatore Rinau ...
( 3 times, inaugural) - with Ken Wayne[
*]Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Dallas, Texas. It started in June 1991 and folded in September 1994. At one time its shows were presented on the ESPN television network. Often the promotion pr ...
:* GWF Light Heavyweight Championship ( 3 times)
*Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta. For nearly 50 years, it was one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies. Originally established by Stu Hart in 1948, the prom ...
:* NWA International Tag Team Championship ''(Calgary version)'' ( 1 time) - with Hubert Gallant
Hubert Gallant (born November 12, 1955) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler and trainer who competed in North American regional promotions during the 1970s and early 1980s including Stampede Wrestling and Emile Dupree's Grand Prix Wrestli ...
:*Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship
The Stampede Wrestling British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling title for lighter wrestlers in the Canadian promotion Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion ba ...
( 1 time)
*United States Wrestling Association
The United States Wrestling Association (USWA) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. The company was founded when the Memphis-based Continental Wrestling Association merged with the Dallas-based World Class Wrestling ...
:*USWA Junior Heavyweight Championship
The USWA Junior Heavyweight Championship was a short-lived title in the United States Wrestling Association
The United States Wrestling Association (USWA) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. The company was foun ...
( 7 times)
:* USWA Middleweight Championship ( 1 time)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Nightmare Danny
American male professional wrestlers
Living people
Professional wrestling executives
1952 births
Professional wrestling trainers
Professional wrestling promoters
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling alumni
Professional wrestling referees
20th-century professional wrestlers
GWF Light Heavyweight Champions
Stampede Wrestling British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Champions
Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Champions