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Tully Blanchard is a semi-retired American professional wrestler from the second generation. He is best known for being one of the founding members of the Four Horsemen.
He worked for the National Wrestling Alliance, American Wrestling Association, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation, among other major professional wrestling organizations in the United States (now known as WWE). TOn March 31, 2012, Tully Blanchard was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as a member of the Four Horsemen.
| Quick Fact | |
|---|---|
| Name | Tully Arthur Blanchard |
| Date of Birth | January 22, 1954 |
| Place of Birth | Calgary, Alberta, Canada |
| Mother's Name | Unknown |
| Parents | Joe Blanchard |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Profession | Wrestler |
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) |
| Weight | 225 lb (102 kg) |
| Marital Status | Married to |
| Children | 4 |
| Net Worth | $3 million. |
| Social Media |
Early Life of Tully Blanchard
Tully Blanchard was born on January 22, 1954, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada to Tully Blanchard was introduced to professional wrestling at a young age as the son of wrestling promoter and former American Wrestling Association star Joe Blanchard. He began selling programs and refreshments at arenas when he was ten years old and later worked as a referee. Blanchard played American football at West Texas State University, first as a quarterback and then as a defensive end, alongside future wrestlers Tito Santana and Ted DiBiase.
Starting Tully Blanchard’s Professional Career
Tully Blanchard was taught to wrestle by his father and José Lothario and made his professional wrestling debut in 1975 with his father’s promotion, Southwest Championship Wrestling. He also worked in backstage production and creative roles. In a feud with Dory Funk, Jr. and Terry Funk, he began his career as a face by tag-teaming with his father.
Blanchard won the SCW Southwest Television Championship and the SCW Southwest Heavyweight Championship seven times between 1978 and 1983. He and Gino Hernandez formed “The Dynamic Duo,” a heel tag team.
In the early 1980s, they won the Texas All-Star USA Tag Team Championship five times and the SCW World Tag Team Championship once. Blanchard left SCW for Jim Crockett Promotions in 1984.
In early 1984, Blanchard joined Jim Crockett, Jr.’s Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling (MACW).
After Steamboat left JCP for the WWF, Blanchard and Dusty Rhodes began a feud for the T.V.
Tully Blanchard faced World Wrestling Council (WWC) Universal Champion Carlos Colon in a series of matches in Puerto Rico and the Continental United States in the mid-1980s.
After Blanchard’s feud with Rhodes ended, he was quickly drawn into another high-profile feud with Magnum T.A. for the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship. Blanchard’s rivalry with Magnum grew into a series of bloody and brutal matches, and it became one of the NWA’s top feuds, similar to his feud with Dusty Rhodes. Blanchard won the U.S. Championship on July 21, 1985, by punching Magnum with a foreign object in his hand given to him by Baby Doll, who arrived at ringside dressed as a security guard.
The feud came to a head at Starrcade ’85, when the title was decided in a brutal and bloody “I quit” match held inside a steel cage. Magnum forced Blanchard to submit by driving a piece of a broken wooden chair into his forehead, which was already profoundly cut and bleeding profusely.
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Blanchard fired Baby Doll as his manager in late 1985 after slapping her during an interview segment, sparking a feud with Dusty Rhodes, who stepped in to help her. Blanchard’s manager was then James J. Dillon.
Blanchard and several high-profile wrestlers in the company had frequently competed together in the latter half of 1985, usually in tag team matches or interfering in one another’s tournaments if they appeared to be losing. The foursome renamed themselves the Four Horsemen in early 1986 when they had solidified into a unified group.
With Arn as the NWA World Television Champion. Simultaneously, Blanchard won the NWA National Heavyweight Championship in March 1986, and Flair was the NWA World Champion; the group quickly established dominance in the territory. The Horsemen feuded with Magnum T.A., Nikita Koloff, Dusty Rhodes, Wahoo McDaniel, The Rock’ n’ Roll Express, and The Road Warriors, among the territory’s top babyfaces.
Throughout 1986 and 1987, the Horsemen continued to feud with the NWA’s other top stars, particularly after forcing out Ole Anderson and replacing him with Lex Luger. Championship with the Rock’ n’ Roll Express. After a series of high-profile matches, Blanchard and Anderson won the titles in late September, bringing the feud to a close.
Tully Blanchard’s Late Career
During the 1990s, he infrequently wrestled, with his most notable matches being a double-disqualification match with Terry Funk at Slamboree 1994 and a time-limit draw with then-Extreme Championship Wrestling World Heavyweight Champion Shane Douglas in 1995.
Blanchard and fellow Four Horseman alumnus Barry Windham defeated the Border Patrol to win the NWA World Tag Team Titles on September 12, 1998.
On October 10, 1999, he defeated Stan Lane at the Heroes of Wrestling PPV. Jeff Jarrett defeated Blanchard at WrestleReunion on January 29, 2005.
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Blanchard briefly worked as a producer for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in the mid-2000s. He had a cameo appearance in the 2007 DVD Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen. Blanchard returned with Arn Anderson, J.J. Dillon, and Barry Windham on the March 31, 2008, episode of WWE Raw to pay tribute to the recently retired Ric Flair. He hosted part 2 of the 5-part Essential Starrcade series on WWE 24/7 in November 2008 and competed in one of the matches.
Tully Blanchard was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on March 31, 2012, as a member of the Four Horsemen.
On October 23, 2006, it was reported that Blanchard was working as a Road Agent/Producer for World Wrestling Entertainment. On November 3, Dave Meltzer said that Blanchard disagreed with JBL, which forced him to resign. JBL said Blanchard had mistreated him when he first started wrestling, and he referred to Blanchard in public as a drug user, cheater, liar, and hypocrite who used God to earn money.
Blanchard left his employment, claiming various reasons for his desire to depart, one of which was the incident with JBL. On November 8 (through the Between the Ropes wrestling radio show), Blanchard declared that he wasn’t as passionate about the industry as he once was and couldn’t offer the commitment World Wrestling Entertainment would undoubtedly ask of him.
After analyzing Chris Benoit’s backstage inquiry, “Do you miss it?” he got to this conclusion. Blanchard says that his prison ministry is now his primary passion, although he still has a “Legend” contract with World Wrestling Entertainment.
He had a cameo appearance in the 2007 DVD Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen. Blanchard returned with Arn Anderson, J.J. Dillon, and Barry Windham on the March 31, 2008, episode of WWE Raw to pay tribute to the recently retired Ric Flair. He hosted part 2 of the 5-part Essential Starrcade series on WWE 24/7 in November 2008 and competed in one of the matches.
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Blanchard is the new head booker of the NWA: New Beginnings territory in Charlotte, NC, and has worked as a backstage agent for the wrestling shows at the 2010 and 2011 NWA Legends Conventions in Charlotte, NC, and Atlanta, GA, respectively.
Tully Blanchard’s Net worth
Wrestlers’ earnings vary greatly based on their league, experience, and ranking. The average professional wrestler earns roughly $500,000 per year, according to the WWE. However, some people earn more than a million dollars. Non-professional part-time wrestlers earn no more than $100 per match in the same way Tully Blanchard has amassed a net worth of $3 million.
Tully Blanchard’s Personal Life & Wife
Blanchard married Elizabeth Diane Boyles in Bexar County, Texas, on May 7, 1978. The marriage, however, was short-lived and ended, and they got divorced on June 30, 1980. Blanchard then married Courtney Shattuck later in his life.
Taylor, Tanner, Tessa, and Tally are their four children. Courtney married another former wrestler, Magnum T.A., in March 2005, after they divorced. He claims it took him twenty years to accept his wife’s divorce and his lack of involvement in his children’s lives. One of Blanchard’s daughters, Tessa Blanchard, is a professional wrestler who has followed in her father’s footsteps.
On November 13, 1989, Blanchard became a born-again Christian. He currently works in a prison ministry, preaching to inmates. Tully Blanchard joined the International Network of Prison Ministries in 2010 and now serves on the Board of Advisors.
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