Robert Carson (born Robert Beier, July 4, 1940 – February 10, 2017), better known by his ring name Bob Sweetan, 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 or ...

and convicted

sex offender A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convictions for crime ...

. Sweetan was nicknamed "Bruiser" and "Mr. Piledriver", the latter in reference to his finishing maneuver.

Early years

Beier was born on a farm near Goodsoil,

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, about four hours north of

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

. He played briefly with the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

, and, after a period of traveling, settled in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

, the home of

Stu Hart Stewart Edward Hart (May 3, 1915 – October 16, 2003) was a Canadian amateur and professional wrestler, wrestling booker, promoter, coach, trainer, football player and sailor. He is best known for founding and handling Stampede Wrestling, a ...

and his

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 ...

promotion. Beier was introduced to pro wrestling by Gerd Topsnik, a door-to-door

cookware Cookware and bakeware is food preparation equipment, such as cooking pots, pans, baking sheets etc. used in kitchens. Cookware is used on a stove or range cooktop, while bakeware is used in an oven. Some utensils are considered both cookware ...

salesman who wrestled part-time for Hart. Beier recalled: "I told opsnik 'All right, I'll buy your pots and pans if you get me started in wrestling.' He started taking me to Stu's." It is unclear when Beier changed his legal surname to Carson.

Professional wrestling career

Sweetan held numerous titles over his career. He enjoyed some success with the

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 ...

and wrestled with Freddie Prosser who went under the name Freddie Sweetan in Canada for

. Sweetan and Terry Gibbs defeated

Fabulous Freebirds The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team who attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed ...

for the

NWA Central States Tag Team Championship The NWA Central States Tag Team Championship was the primary tag team championship for the Heart of America Sports Attractions / Central States Wrestling promotion from 1979 until the promotion ceased to exist in 1988. The Central States Tag Team ...

. He also wrestled for the

World Wrestling Council The World Wrestling Council (WWC) (Spanish: "Consejo Mundial de Lucha"), is a Puerto-Rican professional wrestling promotion based in Puerto Rico. It was originally established as Capitol Sports Promotions in 1973 by Carlos Colón Sr., Victor J ...

in Puerto Rico. In the WWC he defeated

King Tonga Tonga 'Uli'uli Fifita (born 10 February 1959) is a Tongan professional wrestler, best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as Haku. He is also known for his time in World Champions ...

for the

WWC Puerto Rico Heavyweight Championship The WWC Puerto Rico Championship is the secondary professional wrestling championship that is defended in the World Wrestling Council based in Puerto Rico. The title was created in January 1974 and, as its name suggests, is defended exclusively wi ...

. Sweetan was in the first ever WWC Aniversario. He played himself in the movie ''The Wrestling Queen'' in 1975. Sweetan wrestled many notable wrestlers during his career such as Rufus R. Jones,

Buzz Tyler Buzz Tyler (November 4, 1948 – November 11, 2021) was an American professional wrestler who competed in North American regional promotions during the 1970s and 1980s including the National Wrestling Alliance, most notably teaming with J. J. Dill ...

Randy Rose Randall Alls (born July 19, 1956) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Randy Rose. Professional wrestling career Randy Rose began his career in 1974 in Tennessee. In 1980, Rose formed a tag team with Denn ...

Ted DiBiase Theodore Marvin DiBiase Sr. (born January 18, 1954) is an American retired professional wrestler, manager, ordained minister and color commentator. He is currently signed to WWE working in their Legends program. DiBiase achieved championship ...

Bill Watts William F. Watts Jr. (born May 5, 1939) is a retired American professional wrestler, promoter and former American football player. Watts garnered fame under his "Cowboy" gimmick in his wrestling career, and then as a promoter in the Mid-South Un ...

Frank Hoy Francis Patrick Hoy (19 October 1934 – 21 April 2005) was a Scottish professional wrestler, better known by the ring names Black Angus Campbell, Wild Angus, and Rasputin (whilst wearing a wrestling mask). Early life Hoy was born in Enniskil ...

Butch Reed Bruce Franklin Reed (July 11, 1954 – February 5, 2021) was an American professional wrestler and football player, better known by the ring name Butch Reed. He played college football at the University of Central Missouri, was a star in Mid-So ...

Adrian Adonis Keith Adonis Franke (September 15, 1953 – July 4, 1988) was an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Adrian Adonis. He was best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association and World Wrestling Federati ...

Tully Blanchard Tully Arthur Blanchard (born January 22, 1954) is an American-Canadian professional wrestler and manager. He is best known for his appearances with Jim Crockett Promotions and the World Wrestling Federation in the mid-to-late 1980s as a member of ...

, and

Jesse Ventura Jesse Ventura (born James George Janos; July 15, 1951) is an American politician, actor, and retired professional wrestler. After achieving fame in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), he served as the 38th governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2 ...

. "Dr. Death" Steve Williams described him as a "very, very tough man." Sweetan was known for causing riots in arenas due to his

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower Human leg, leg. Structure To distribute the compressive for ...

antics, and was an influence on

Shawn Michaels Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965), better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative. Widely regarded as one of ...

Post-wrestling work

Following his pro wrestling career, Sweetan worked as an

air conditioning Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C or AC, is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior environment (sometimes referred to as 'comfort cooling') and in some cases also strictly controlling ...

maintenance supervisor, particularly in large

apartment An apartment (American English), or flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) that occupies part of a building, generally on a single story. There are ma ...

buildings.

Legal issues

In 1990, Sweetan was convicted of the

sexual assault Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence, which ...

of his daughter, Candace. He also faced a separate charge of non-payment of child support. Sweetan stopped checking in with police in 2000, after which he was located and deported back to his native Canada.

Criticism

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 ''Legends of Wrestling'' in 2009, longtime industry personality

Jim Ross James William Ross (born January 3, 1952) is an American professional wrestling commentator currently signed with All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a commentator, analyst, and senior advisor. Ross is best known for a long and distinguished career as ...

stated that he "didn't like" Sweetan and "didn't want to be around him", describing him as a "miserable human being". Ross later called him a "bully", and told how

Danny Hodge Daniel Allen Hodge (May 13, 1932 – December 24, 2020) was an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and boxer. He is renowned primarily for his wrestling career, where he competed both as an amateur and professional. A three-time NC ...

once physically tortured Sweetan as payback for being out of line. In his 2012 autobiography,

Jim Duggan James Edward Duggan Jr. (born January 14, 1954), better known by his ring name "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE on a Legends contract. His best-known character is that of an American patriot, which ...

also referred to Sweetan as a "bully", and a "real piece of garbage".

Leo Burke Léonce Cormier (born June 29, 1948) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. He was born in Dorchester, New Brunswick. He competed across Canada, in several American promotions, and wrestled internationally for both Puerto Rico's World Wr ...

called him "easy to work with" in the ring but "kind of lazy", while Ed "Colonel DeBeers" Wiskoski said of Sweetan: "I wasn't a fan of his... from being a locker-room thief to just among other things, just an asshole." Sweetan's ex-wife Rebecca commented: "He's a waste of skin as far as I'm concerned... He fried his brain ith drugs deserted his children, abused them emotionally, physically, sexually, mentally."

Personal life

Sweetan met an

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

woman, Rebecca Jane Terhune, at a

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

club in 1969 and the couple were married in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

in 1971. They had four children: Candace (born 1971), Christopher (1974–2013), Cassandre ("Cathy", born 1976) and Carson (born 1978). Sweetan also had one child to another woman. Sweetan deserted his family on October 15, 1985; he had been having an affair with a ring rat who was also a

drug dealer A drug is any chemical substance A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by ...

. Rebecca divorced Sweetan in 1986.

Death

Sweetan died at a

Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. As of the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census, it had a population of 99,863, and it is known as "The Harbour City." The city was previously known as the "H ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

nursing home on February 10, 2017. He had been suffering from

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...

memory problems Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use o ...

and mobility issues.

Championships and accomplishments

* Big Time Wrestling ''(San Francisco)'' **

NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (San Francisco version) The NWA San Francisco United States Championship was a version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship that was defended in NWA San Francisco NWA San Francisco was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in San Francisco, Cal ...

(

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 ...

) * Central States Wrestling **

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, t ...

( 5 times) **

(

) - with Mike George (1) and Terry Gibbs (1) **

NWA Central States Television Championship The NWA Central States Television Championship was the secondary singles championship for the Heart of America Sports Attractions / Central States Wrestling promotion from 1977 until the promotion ceased to exist in 1988. Because the championship ...

(

) **

NWA North American Tag Team Championship The NWA North American Tag Team Championship is an inactive professional wrestling tag team championship that was used and defended in various territories throughout the National Wrestling Alliance., prior to its being purchased in 2017 by Billy ...

''(Central States version)'' ( 3 times) – with

Dick Murdoch Hoyt Richard Murdoch (August 16, 1946 – June 15, 1996) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring names "Dirty" Dick Murdoch and "Captain Redneck". He was best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation and New Jap ...

(2),

Killer Karl Kox Herbert Alan Gerwig (April 26, 1931 – November 10, 2011) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name of Killer Karl Kox, who competed in the National Wrestling Alliance as well as international promotions such as All ...

(1) **

NWA World Tag Team Championship (Central States version) The Central States version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship was the main professional wrestling championship for tag teams in Heart of America Sports Attractions, later known as Central States Wrestling (CSW) from 1951 to 1959, then again fr ...

( 1 time) - with

Bob Brown Robert James Brown (born 27 December 1944) is a former Australian politician, medical doctor and environmentalist. He was a senator and the parliamentary leader of the Australian Greens. Brown was elected to the Australian Senate on the Tasman ...

*Mid-States Championship Wrestling **MSCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) * NWA Gulf Coast ** NWA Gulf Coast Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) * NWA Tri-State - Mid-South Wrestling Association **

NWA Tri-State Tag Team Championship The NWA Tri-State Tag Team Championship was a tag team title created in 1962, and contested in the National Wrestling Alliance's Tri-State territory, which was promoted by Leroy McGuirk (Arkansas and Oklahoma) and Jack Curtis and Aurelian "Gri ...

( 3 times) - with Seigfried Stanke (1),

(1), and Tony Rocco (1) **NWA Brass Knuckles Championship ''(Tri-State version)'' (2 times) **

Mid-South Tag Team Championship The UWF Tag Team Championship was the tag team title in the Universal Wrestling Federation from 1986 until the promotion closed in 1987. It was formerly known as the Mid-South Tag Team Championship from 1979 until 1986 when Mid-South Wrestling b ...

( 1 time) - with Mike George *

Southwest Championship Wrestling Southwest Championship Wrestling (SCW) was a professional wrestling promotion that was owned by Joe Blanchard and based in San Antonio, Texas, from 1978 to 1985, when it was purchased by Texas All-Star Wrestling and absorbed into that company. H ...

SCW Southwest Heavyweight Championship The SCW Southwest Heavyweight Championship was the top singles title of Southwest Championship Wrestling Southwest Championship Wrestling (SCW) was a professional wrestling promotion that was owned by Joe Blanchard and based in San Antonio, Tex ...

(

) ** SCW Southwest Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with

Dick Slater Richard Van Slater (May 19, 1951 – October 18, 2018) better known by his ring name "Dirty" Dick Slater, was an American professional wrestler who wrestled in the 1970s, 1980s, and mid-1990s for various promotions including Mid-Atlantic Champion ...

** NWA International Tag Team Championship ''(Calgary version)'' ( 4 times) - with The Beast (1),

Gil Hayes Gilbert Lee Hayes (October 20, 1939 – July 28, 2022) was a Canadian professional wrestler who competed in North American promotions during the 1960s and 1970s including All-Star Wrestling and Stampede Wrestling where he remained a mainstay fo ...

(1), Fred Sweetan (1) and Paul Peller (1) *

( 1 time)

References

External links

*http://www.wrestlingclassics.com/wrestlingppv/bullies-babes-brawn.htm *https://archive.today/20040502211439/http://www.oldschool-wrestling.com/centralstateswrestling/1977.htm *https://web.archive.org/web/20090531115903/http://kayfabe-wrestling.com/library-texas.html *http://hollywood.premiere.com/celebrity-Bob+Sweetan *http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0163910/ *http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2573760/ *http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xu56g_tully-blanchard-vs-bruiser-bob-swee_sport *http://www.solie.org/titlehistories/csttnwa.html *http://www.cagematch.net/?id=2&nr=6218&gimmick=Bob+Sweetan {{DEFAULTSORT:Sweetan, Bob 1940 births 2017 deaths 20th-century professional wrestlers Canadian male professional wrestlers Canadian people convicted of child sexual abuse People convicted of incest Stampede Wrestling alumni Professional wrestlers from Saskatchewan WWC Puerto Rico Champions Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Champions Stampede Wrestling North American Heavyweight Champions