Camille Tourville (December 4, 1927 – December 24, 1985) was a Canadian

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 o ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activitie ...

, better known by his

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 project ...

, Tarzan Tyler. He was one-half of the first WWWF World Tag Team Champions, along with Luke Graham.

Professional wrestling career

Tarzan Tyler began competing in the United States during the 1960s after having spent nearly 10 years wrestling in Canada. Tyler competed for

World Championships 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, ...

against such stars as

Verne Gagne Laverne Clarence Gagne (February 26, 1926 – April 27, 2015) was an American amateur and professional wrestler, football player, wrestling trainer, and wrestling promoter. He was the owner and promoter of the Minneapolis-based American Wrestl ...

, Lou Thesz, and Dory Funk Jr. His greatest success came as a tag team competitor, as he and

Crazy Luke Graham James Grady Johnson (February 5, 1940 to June 23, 2006) was an American professional wrestler, best known by his ring name, "Crazy" Luke Graham. As Luke Graham, Johnson was part of the Graham family, a stable of wrestlers. All members were billed ...

defeated the team of

Dick the Bruiser William Fritz Afflis (June 27, 1929 – November 10, 1991) was an American professional wrestler, promoter, and former NFL player, better known by his ring name, Dick the Bruiser. During his NFL days he played four seasons with the Green Bay Pac ...

and The Shiek in 1971 to become the first WWWF World Tag Team Champions. Tyler also challenged

Bruno Sammartino Bruno Leopoldo Francesco Sammartino (October 6, 1935 – April 18, 2018) was an Italian-born American professional wrestler, best known for his work with the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF, now WWE). There, he held the WWWF World Heavy ...

for the WWWF Championship in 1966. In 1980 he fought Angelo Mosca Sr. for the Canadian Heavyweight title in Toronto. While working as a heel manager for Gino Brito's

Lutte Internationale Lutte Internationale (; "International Wrestling") was a professional wrestling promotion based in Montreal from 1980 until 1987. The promotion was founded by Frank Valois, André the Giant and Gino Brito as Promotions Varoussac (VAlois, ROUSSim ...

, Tarzan Tyler died, along with fellow wrestler Pierre 'Mad Dog' Lefébvre and referee Adrien Desbois, in

Laurentides Wildlife Reserve Réserve faunique des Laurentides (), also known by its former name of parc des Laurentides, is a wildlife reserve in Quebec, Canada, located between Quebec City and the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region. This reserve is part of the network of w ...

upon returning from a wrestling event in Chicoutimi,

Québec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...

on December 24, 1985, in a car crash. He was a three-time heavyweight champion for Grand Prix Wrestling in

Montréal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-p ...

in the 1970s.

Championships and accomplishments

American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo. The territory was originally part ...

AWA Midwest Heavyweight Championship The AWA Midwest Heavyweight Championship was a title in the late 1960s and early 1970s in the American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnes ...

(

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 ...

) * Big Time Wrestling ** NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with The Alaskan *

Central States Wrestling Heart of America Sports Attractions, also known as the Midwest Wrestling Association, Central States Wrestling and the World Wrestling Alliance, was an American professional wrestling promotion that ran shows mainly in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska ...

NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship The NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship that served as the main title for the National Wrestling Alliance promotion, NWA Central-States Championship Wrestling. For most of its existence, however, ...

( 1 time) *

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 ...

** NWA Brass Knuckles Championship ''(Florida version)'' (

) ** NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) ** NWA Florida Television Championship (

, inaugural) ** NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship ''(Florida version)'' (

) ** NWA Southern Tag Team Championship ''(Florida version)'' ( 1 time) - with Louie Tillet ** NWA World Tag Team Championship ''(Florida version)'' (

) - with Tim Tyler (1) and Freddie Blassie (1) * Japan Wrestling Association ** NWA International Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with Bill Watts * Mid-South Sports ** NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) ** NWA World Tag Team Championship ''(Georgia version)'' ( 1 time) - with

Lenny Montana Lenny Montana (born Leonardo Passafaro; March 13, 1926 – May 12, 1992) was an American actor who played the role of feared hitman Luca Brasi in '' The Godfather''. Prior to becoming an actor, he had a successful career as a professional wrestl ...

** NWA International Tag Team Championship ''(Georgia version)'' ( 1 time) - with Lenny Montana * World Wide Wrestling Federation ** WWWF International Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with Luke Graham **

World Tag Team Championship The world tag team championship is the name usually given to the primary tag team championship (professional wrestling), championships in professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotions, promotions. Nomenclature The name of the promo ...

( 1 time, inaugural) - with Luke Graham * International Wrestling Association (1970s) ** IWA North American Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) *

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 pro ...

** Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with Mighty Ursus

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tyler, Tarzan 1927 births 1985 deaths Canadian male professional wrestlers Stampede Wrestling alumni 20th-century professional wrestlers NWF North American Heavyweight Champions NWA Florida Heavyweight Champions NWA Florida Television Champions NWA Southern Heavyweight Champions (Florida version) NWA Brass Knuckles Champions (Florida version) Professional wrestlers from Montreal NWA World Tag Team Champions (Florida version) Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Champions NWA International Tag Team Champions NWA Georgia Heavyweight Champions