Stephen Paul Keirn (born September 10, 1951) 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 ...

. He is best known for his appearances in multiple

National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA ...

territories A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

as Steve Keirn as one-half of the

tag team Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establish ...

The Fabulous Ones, as well as his appearances with the

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

under 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 ...

Skinner.

Early life

Keirn graduated from Robinson High School in

Port Tampa Port Tampa is a neighborhood in the southwestern most portion within the city limits of Tampa, Florida, on the western end of the Interbay Peninsula where the main port used to be. Within this neighborhood is Picnic Island Park as well as West Sh ...

. His father, Richard Keirn, was a B-17 pilot who was shot down over Germany in September 1944 and became a

POW A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war ...

. In July 1965, when Stephen was 13, Richard was shot down over Vietnam and again taken prisoner. He was held in the Hanoi Hilton for seven and half years. While his father was imprisoned he hung out with his school friend Mike Graham whose father

Eddie Graham Edward F. Gossett (January 15, 1930 – January 21, 1985), better known as Eddie Graham, was an American professional wrestler. He was also the promoter and booker for Championship Wrestling from Florida and President of the NWA in the 1970s. ...

is in the WWE Hall of Fame.

Professional wrestling career

Championship Wrestling from Florida (1972–1982)

Much of Keirn's early career was spent wrestling as part of a

. While wrestling in

Championship Wrestling from Florida Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF) was the corporate and brand name of the Tampa, Florida wrestling office existing from 1961, when Eddie Graham first bought into the promotion, until 1987, when it closed down. It is also referred to as ...

(CWF), he held the NWA Florida Tag Team Championship twelve times; once each with

Bob Backlund Robert Louis Backlund (born August 14, 1949) is an American retired amateur and professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in the World Wide Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Federation from 1976 to 1984 and in the 1990s, wher ...

, Jimmy Garvin, and

Brian Blair Brian Leslie Blair (born January 12, 1957) is an American retired professional wrestler and politician. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) under the ring name B. Brian Blair as one half of the tag tea ...

, and nine times with Mike Graham. In addition, the team of Keirn and Graham won the NWA Florida United States Tag Team Championship three times. In 1980 and 1981, Keirn focused on his career as a singles wrestler. He won many titles in Florida and Georgia, including the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title by defeating

Chavo Guerrero Sr. Salvador Guerrero Llanes (January 7, 1949 – February 11, 2017), better known as Chavo Guerrero or Chavo Guerrero Sr., and also known during the 21st century as "Chavo Classic", was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for ...

This title reign was recognized by

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV Asahi and Amuse, Inc. own minority shares ...

, as well as the Los Angeles and Florida NWA territories, but not by the NWA as a whole, which considered the title vacant and held a tournament to crown a new champion. The title Keirn held was later renamed the NWA International Junior Heavyweight Title. Keirn also won the NWA National Television Championship twice, defeating

Terry Funk Terrence Funk (born June 30, 1944) is an American retired professional wrestler, rapper, disc jockey and actor. Funk is known for the longevity of his career – which spanned more than 50 years and included multiple short-lived retirements – a ...

and Kevin Sullivan.

Various Promotions (1981–1991)

In 1981, Keirn began wrestling with 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 ...

-based

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 ...

(CWA). He was successful as a singles wrestler, winning a tournament to claim the

AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship The AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship was a major professional wrestling title in the Continental Wrestling Association during the 1970s and 1980s. The title is part of a long lineage that was started when the NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight ...

. He also held the NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Championship on two occasions. As in CWF, Keirn found his greatest success in the tag team division. He held the

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 ...

17 times, including 14 reigns as one half of The Fabulous Ones with Stan Lane. Keirn and Lane also teamed to win the CWA World Tag Team Championship twice. The Fabulous Ones competed in various promotions over the next decade. In 1984, the team won the Southwest Championship Wrestling World Tag Team Championship while wrestling in Australia. In the United States, they won the NWA Florida United States Tag Team Championship twice. In 1991, the pair wrestled 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 ...

, defeating

Tony Anthony Darrell W. Anthony (born April 12, 1960) is a retired American professional wrestler, also known by his ring name Dirty White Boy. He wrestled primarily for independent promotions in the Southeastern United States. He was most active throughout t ...

and Doug Gilbert to win the USWA Tag Team Championship.

World Wrestling Federation (1991–1993)

In the summer of 1991, Keirn debuted in the WWF as Skinner, an

alligator An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additiona ...

hunter Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

from the

Florida Everglades The Everglades is a natural region of tropical climate, tropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin within the Neotropical realm. The system begins near Orland ...

. He was portrayed as a generally nasty individual, always chewing on

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

and sometimes spitting it on his opponent. He carried an alligator claw to the ring with him, which he would often use as a weapon against his opponents. He competed in the 1991 King of the Ring tournament, defeating

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: t ...

in the first round but losing to

Bret Hart Bret Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legend's contract. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling backgr ...

in the second round. While still being billed as undefeated, he challenged Hart for the WWF Intercontinental Championship at

This Tuesday in Texas This Tuesday in Texas was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It took place on December 3, 1991, at the Freeman Coliseum in San Antonio, Texas. The event was an attempt by th ...

on December 3, 1991, but lost by submission. Skinner competed in the 1992 Royal Rumble, lasting 2:13 before being eliminated by Rick Martel. At WrestleMania VIII, he was defeated in one minute and eleven seconds by Owen Hart. Keirn also unsuccessfully challenged Randy Savage for the WWF Championship on the June 29, episode of Prime Time Wrestling. He also competed in the 1993 Royal Rumble, but was eliminated by Mr. Perfect at the 3:05 mark. While in the WWF, Keirn also portrayed Doink the Clown on occasion. At WrestleMania IX, Keirn helped the original Doink defeat Crush by attacking Crush dressed as Doink during the match.

World Championship Wrestling (1994)

Along with Bobby Eaton, Keirn wrestled in

World Championship Wrestling 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 Nation ...

(WCW) in 1994 in a tag team known as "Bad Attitude". Despite the tag team success both Keirn and Eaton enjoyed in the past (with The Fabulous Ones and the Midnight Express respectively), the team made little impact, losing

dark matches Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence o ...

to Brian and Brad Armstrong at Bash at the Beach 1994 and

Fall Brawl 1994 Fall Brawl '94: War Games was the second Fall Brawl professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Championship Wrestling (WCW). It took place on September 18, 1994 from the Roanoke Civic Center in Roanoke, Virginia. As of 2014, ...

. While in WCW, Keirn was also involved in an

angle In Euclidean geometry, an angle is the figure formed by two Ray (geometry), rays, called the ''Side (plane geometry), sides'' of the angle, sharing a common endpoint, called the ''vertex (geometry), vertex'' of the angle. Angles formed by two ...

in which masked men attacked

Hulk Hogan Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...

. Several times in October 1994, Keirn wore a black mask to attack Hogan during and after Hogan's matches.

Retirement and post-career (2001–present)

Since the late 1980s, Keirn has run a school to train wrestlers. Originally located in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

, Keirn's "Professional Wrestling School of Hard Knocks" is now located in Brandon, Florida. Keirn helped train many wrestlers, including Mike Awesome, Dennis Knight, Diamond Dallas Page, Dustin Rhodes, Tracy Smothers, and Roman Reigns. The school was incorporated into the

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

's developmental territory,

Florida Championship Wrestling Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) was a professional wrestling promotion based on the former National Wrestling Alliance member promotion, Championship Wrestling from Florida, which operated from 1961 until 1987. From October 2007 to August ...

, which opened on June 26, 2007, and Keirn was named President of the FCW and made regular appearances on FCW television. His last match was on December 10, 2007, at the 15th Anniversary Raw participating in a Battle Royal where he was eliminated from the match by

Sgt. Slaughter Robert Rudolph Remus (born August 27, 1948), best known by his ring name Sgt. Slaughter, is a voice actor and retired American professional wrestler who is currently signed to WWE in the ambassador program. From the late 1970s to the early 198 ...

. On August 14, 2012, FCW was discontinued and the

WWE Performance Center The WWE Performance Center is the official professional wrestling school system of the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. The promotion currently operates two Performance Center locations, which serve as training facilities for WWE wre ...

opened on July 11, 2013.

Championships and accomplishments

* Century Wrestling Alliance **

CWA Television Championship The Century Wrestling Alliance Television Championship is a secondary wrestling title in the Century Wrestling Alliance. It was first known by that name when the title was first established in 1994, and was renamed as the NWA New England Televisi ...

( 1 time) *

** NWA Brass Knuckles Championship ''(Florida version)'' ( 1 time) ** NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship ( 5 times) ** NWA Florida Tag Team Championship ( 12 times) – with Mike Graham (9), Jimmy Garvin (1),

(1), and

(1) **

NWA Florida Television Championship The NWA Florida Television Championship was a secondary title in Championship Wrestling from Florida Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF) was the corporate and brand name of the Tampa, Florida wrestling office existing from 1961, when ...

( 1 time) ** NWA North America Tag Team Championship ''(Florida version)'' (1 time) – with Mike Graham ** NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship ''(Florida version)'' (

2 times "2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...

) ** NWA United States Tag Team Championship ''(Florida version)'' ( 5 times) – with Mike Graham (3) and Stan Lane (2) * Georgia Championship Wrestling ** NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) ** NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with Mr. Wrestling ** NWA National Television Championship (

) * Gulf Coast Championship Wrestling ** NWA United States Tag Team Championship ''(Gulf Coast version)'' (1 time) – with Ricky Gibson *

NWA Hollywood Wrestling NWA Hollywood Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Los Angeles) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Los Angeles, California in the United States that promoted professional wrestling matches throughout Southern California. It ...

** NWA International Junior Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) * NWA Mid-America / Continental Wrestling Association **

( 1 time) **

( 17 times) – with Stan Lane (14), Bill Dundee (2), and Terry Taylor (1) ** CWA International Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with Mark Starr ** CWA World Tag Team Championship (

) – with Stan Lane ** NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Championship (

) *'' Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' **PWI ranked him #132 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the "

PWI Years ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishi ...

" in 2003 * Southwest Championship Wrestling **

SCW World Tag Team Championship The SCW World Tag Team Championship was the top tag team championship in Southwest Championship Wrestling Southwest Championship Wrestling (SCW) was a professional wrestling promotion that was owned by Joe Blanchard and based in San Antonio, ...

( 1 time) – with Stan Lane *

** USWA World Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with Stan Lane

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Keirn, Steve 1951 births 20th-century professional wrestlers 21st-century professional wrestlers American male professional wrestlers Living people Professional wrestlers from Florida Professional wrestling promoters Professional wrestling trainers Sportspeople from Tampa, Florida USWA World Tag Team Champions NWA International Junior Heavyweight Champions NWA Florida Heavyweight Champions NWA Florida Tag Team Champions NWA Florida Television Champions NWA North American Tag Team Champions (Florida version) NWA Southern Heavyweight Champions (Florida version) NWA Brass Knuckles Champions (Florida version) NWA United States Tag Team Champions (Florida version) NWA Georgia Heavyweight Champions NWA Georgia Tag Team Champions NWA National Television Champions