Robert Bruce (3 November 1943 – 2 March 2009), born John Charles Young, was a Scottish-born

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

talent agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds jobs for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, and other professionals in various entertainment or sport ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Biography

Bruce was born in

Musselburgh Musselburgh (; sco, Musselburrae; gd, Baile nam Feusgan) is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, east of Edinburgh city centre. It has a population of . History The name Musselburgh is Ol ...

, near

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. He was born John Charles Young, but adopted the stage name of Robert the Bruce, later shortened to Robert Bruce, and kept the name when he quit wrestling. In the ring he played the quintessential villain who prefaced every low blow with an evil smirk, once saying ''"Honestly, it's better being a bad guy. I suppose it's the underlying evil you may have. You get a lot more fun."''Obituary in ''Dominion Post'' 5 March 2009 page B3 He began wrestling in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 1967, and toured the United Kingdom, South Africa, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Fiji, eventually settling in New Zealand in the 1970s after wrestling

John da Silva John Walter da Silva (11 June 1934 – 8 April 2021) was a New Zealand wrestler and boxer. Biography Da Silva was born on 11 June 1934. He represented New Zealand in wrestling at the 1956 Olympics and at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwe ...

there for the Commonwealth championship in 1972. He held the Commonwealth Heavyweight Title on and off over a five-year period, and wrestled for the

World Title A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

. In 1972, he had a small role as one of the bouncers in the Korova Milk Bar in the film ''

A Clockwork Orange ''A Clockwork Orange'' may refer to: * ''A Clockwork Orange'' (novel), a 1962 novel by Anthony Burgess ** ''A Clockwork Orange'' (film), a 1971 film directed by Stanley Kubrick based on the novel *** ''A Clockwork Orange'' (soundtrack), the film ...

''. Bruce retired from wrestling due to injuries to his back and elbows, and decided to form a

talent agency Talent has two principal meanings: * Talent (measurement), an ancient unit of mass and value * Talent (skill), a group of aptitudes useful for some activities; talents may refer to aptitudes themselves or to possessors of those talents Talent may ...

in 1978 when he realised that there was no such company in New Zealand. The Robert Bruce Agency was nicknamed the "Ugly Bruce" agency, as Bruce claimed his first clients were his former wrestling friends seeking roles as ugly people, thugs or stuntmen. His later clients included well-known New Zealand actors such as

Cliff Curtis Clifford Vivian Devon Curtis (born 27 July 1968) is a New Zealand actor. His film credits include ''Once Were Warriors'' (1994), ''Three Kings'' (1999), ''Training Day'' (2001), ''Whale Rider'' (2002), ''Collateral Damage'' (2002), ''Sunshine'' ...

, the late

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film ''Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, co ...

Robbie Magasiva Robbie Joseph Magasiva (born 21 May 1972) is a Samoan-New Zealander actor who has starred in several films and as a member of the Naked Samoans comedy troupe. He has also appeared on television and in theatre, and was the co-presenter of New Z ...

Frankie Stevens Frankie Stevens (born Francis Donald McKechnie Stevenson), (born Wellington, 1950), MNZM, is a New Zealand entertainer and singer. He was a judge for all three seasons on the reality series ''New Zealand Idol''. He is the brother of singer Jon S ...

Jackie Clarke Jacqueline Emma Clarke (born 1966) is a New Zealand entertainer, singer and comedian. She was a judge on ''New Zealand Idol'' in 2005. In 2016, she was named Top Female Artist by the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand. In the 2018 Birthday ...

and

Temuera Morrison Temuera Derek Morrison (born 26 December 1960) is a New Zealand actor and Singer who first gained recognition for his role as Dr. Hone Ropata on the soap opera ''Shortland Street''. He gained critical acclaim for his starring role as Jake "The ...

. He operated out of a villa in suburban

Grey Lynn Grey Lynn is an inner suburb of Auckland, New Zealand, located to the west of the city centre. Originally a separate borough, Grey Lynn amalgamated with Auckland City in 1914. Grey Lynn is centred on Grey Lynn Park, which was not part of the ...

, and his word was his bond. The villa was distinguished by the word "Tobermory", in memory of the lighthouse on the Isle of Mull where his maternal grandfather was a lighthouse keeper, and where his ashes are to be spread. In addition to representing several of New Zealand's top actors, Bruce worked as a stuntman and fight co-ordinator on several New Zealand films, television shows and theatrical plays, working on 73 TV series, 39 films and 21 live shows, and as an actor played the role of a former international rugby player in the 1991 film ''

Old Scores ''Old Scores'' is a 1991 television film jointly produced by New Zealand and Wales, about the two countries' mutual national sport of rugby union. It is notable for the appearance of many notable Welsh and New Zealand international rugby players ...

''. He was an animal lover, and was a vice-patron of the

Royal New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals The Royal New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (abbreviated as RNZSPCA or SPCA) is a New Zealand charitable society who work to promote the humane treatment of animals. The society consists of 35 animal shelters around New ...

. Bruce died suddenly and unexpectedly after a short illness on 2 March 2009; his age at the time of his death was reported as unknown by some sources, although other sources say he was 65.

Championships and accomplishments

* NWA New Zealand :*

NWA New Zealand Heavyweight Championship The NWA New Zealand Heavyweight Championship is the primary singles title in the NWA-affiliated wrestling promotion NWA New Zealand. It is the first heavyweight championship in New Zealand and one of the oldest in the world. It was first won b ...

(2 times)

References

External links

The Robert Bruce Agency
* (as Robert Bruce (II)) {{DEFAULTSORT:Bruce, Robert 1943 births 2009 deaths New Zealand male professional wrestlers Talent agents Scottish emigrants to New Zealand Scottish male professional wrestlers Metropolitan Police officers