Cormier wrestling family
Encyclopedia
The Cormier wrestling family is a group of Canadian
brothers who competed in professional wrestling
. They were born in New Brunswick
and wrestled primarily in Canada. They also competed in the United States and had stints in several other countries. On many occasions, the Cormiers wrestled together as tag team
partners. Two of the brothers were also involved in promoting
wrestling. The family has been honored by the Cauliflower Alley Club
, a social organization composed of people in the wrestling business, for their contributions to the sport. Jean-Louis died in 2008, and Yvon died in 2009; Leonce and Romeo still wrestle occasionally.
. Four of the brothers had long careers as professional wrestlers, while a fifth, Malcolm Cormier, competed briefly before becoming a referee
. None of the brothers wrestled under the family surname, however, as they all adopted ring name
s. One of the brothers explained that the brothers' real names were too hard to pronounce, so they adopted other names that were easier for international fans. Yvon Cormier was given the name The Beast, Jean-Louis was known as Rudy Kay, Leonce took the name Leo Burke, and Romeo competed as Bobby Kay. Malcolm, the oldest of the brothers involved in wrestling, used the name Mel Turnbow while working as a referee.
The brothers often competed together in various promotions; in the Eastern Sports Association
(ESA), which Jean-Louis (Rudy) owned, they scripted the feuds
so that the four brothers often faced a common opponent. A heel
(villain) wrestler would face Rudy and emerge victorious from a series of matches; they would then do the same with Bobby and then Leo before facing The Beast. They also held numerous tag team titles together.
. He held the ESA International Tag Team Championship
eight times, including at least one reign with each of his three brothers. He also competed internationally, including stints in the United States, Japan, and Australia. He was known for his strength and demonstrations of his power. During his career, he wrestled against seven world champions. Yvon Cormier died of bone marrow cancer
on March 4, 2009.
on May 25, 2008.
and eight with the Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship
. He also held major titles in New Zealand and Puerto Rico. After retiring from wrestling, he began training aspiring wrestlers for both the World Wrestling Federation
and World Championship Wrestling
. He has moved to Calgary
, Alberta
and had several other jobs since retiring, but he continues to wrestle occasionally while visiting the Maritimes.
in 1974. Late in his career, he became co-owner of the ESA, but the promotion closed due to conflicts between the owners and the rival Atlantic Grand Prix Wrestling's ability to secure an important television contract. Cormier now works for Loblaw Companies
but continues to wrestle on occasional shows.
, who went on to win the American Wrestling Association World Championship
. After retiring from full-time competition, Leonce trained many professional wrestlers, including Ken Shamrock
, Mark Henry
, Edge, Christian, and Test, all of whom have worked for World Wrestling Entertainment
.
All five of the Cormier brothers involved in wrestling were honored during a celebration in their home town of Memramcook in 2006. They also received an award from the Cauliflower Alley Club in 2009. Canadian wrestling promoter Emile Dupré
has said that the Cormiers "were to New Brunswick what the Hart family
was to Calgary".
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
brothers who competed in professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
. They were born in New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
and wrestled primarily in Canada. They also competed in the United States and had stints in several other countries. On many occasions, the Cormiers wrestled together as tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
partners. Two of the brothers were also involved in promoting
Promoter (entertainment)
An entertainment promoter i.e. music, wrestling, boxing etc is a person or company in the business of marketing and promoting live events such as concerts/gigs, boxing matches, sports entertainment , festivals, raves, and nightclubs.- Business model :Promoters are typically hired as independent...
wrestling. The family has been honored by the Cauliflower Alley Club
Cauliflower Alley Club
The Cauliflower Alley Club is a non-profit fraternal organization, which includes a newsletter and website, comprising both retired and active professional wrestlers and boxers in North America....
, a social organization composed of people in the wrestling business, for their contributions to the sport. Jean-Louis died in 2008, and Yvon died in 2009; Leonce and Romeo still wrestle occasionally.
Family
The Cormier brothers were the sons of Edmond Cormier and Bernadette Doucette. They grew up on a farm in what is now Memramcook, New BrunswickMemramcook, New Brunswick
Memramcook is a Canadian village in Westmorland County, New Brunswick. Located in south-eastern New Brunswick, the community is predominantly people of Acadian descent who speak the Chiac derivative of the French language....
. Four of the brothers had long careers as professional wrestlers, while a fifth, Malcolm Cormier, competed briefly before becoming a referee
Referee (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling referee is the official figure that makes sure that wrestling matches move smoothly in an attempt to maintain kayfabe. The referee also has the ultimate power in the ring...
. None of the brothers wrestled under the family surname, however, as they all adopted ring name
Ring name
A ring name is a stage name used by a professional wrestler, martial artist, or boxer. While some ring names may have a fictitious first name and surname, others may simply be a nickname, such as The Undertaker.-Wrestling:...
s. One of the brothers explained that the brothers' real names were too hard to pronounce, so they adopted other names that were easier for international fans. Yvon Cormier was given the name The Beast, Jean-Louis was known as Rudy Kay, Leonce took the name Leo Burke, and Romeo competed as Bobby Kay. Malcolm, the oldest of the brothers involved in wrestling, used the name Mel Turnbow while working as a referee.
The brothers often competed together in various promotions; in the Eastern Sports Association
Eastern Sports Association
The Eastern Sports Association, often referred to in the business simply as "the Maritimes," was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Halifax, Nova Scotia...
(ESA), which Jean-Louis (Rudy) owned, they scripted the feuds
Feud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
so that the four brothers often faced a common opponent. A heel
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
(villain) wrestler would face Rudy and emerge victorious from a series of matches; they would then do the same with Bobby and then Leo before facing The Beast. They also held numerous tag team titles together.
The Beast
Yvon Cormier, competing mainly as The Beast, made his professional wrestling debut in 1963. He has been described as "probably the most-travelled" of the brothers, but most of his title victories came in the MaritimesMaritimes
The Maritime provinces, also called the Maritimes or the Canadian Maritimes, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. On the Atlantic coast, the Maritimes are a subregion of Atlantic Canada, which also includes the...
. He held the ESA International Tag Team Championship
ESA International Tag Team Championship
Eastern Sports Association's International Tag Team Title was represented by a Trophy, and was defended in the Maritimes from 1969-75.- International Tag Team Champions :...
eight times, including at least one reign with each of his three brothers. He also competed internationally, including stints in the United States, Japan, and Australia. He was known for his strength and demonstrations of his power. During his career, he wrestled against seven world champions. Yvon Cormier died of bone marrow cancer
Multiple myeloma
Multiple myeloma , also known as plasma cell myeloma or Kahler's disease , is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell normally responsible for the production of antibodies...
on March 4, 2009.
Rudy Kay
Jean-Louis Cormier, who was given the ring name Rudy Kay because he resembled a retired wrestler who had used the same name, spent much of his career balancing his roles as promoter and wrestler. He helped found the ESA in 1969 and operated shows under the title International Wrestling (IW). He won five tag team championships while teaming with The Beast and held two titles as a singles wrestler. He retired from active competition in 1982 and died of septicemiaSepsis
Sepsis is a potentially deadly medical condition that is characterized by a whole-body inflammatory state and the presence of a known or suspected infection. The body may develop this inflammatory response by the immune system to microbes in the blood, urine, lungs, skin, or other tissues...
on May 25, 2008.
Leo Burke
Making his debut in 1966, Leonce Cormier took the ring name Leo Burke because he wanted to prove that he could succeed on his own rather than because of his brothers' fame. He held forty championships, including six reigns with the IW North American Heavyweight ChampionshipIW North American Heavyweight Championship
This is a list of people who held the "North American Heavyweight Title" under the banner of International Wrestling from 1969 to 1984. The promotion was owned by the Eastern Sports Association from 1969 until 1976...
and eight with the Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship
Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship
The Stampede International Tag Team Championship is the main tag-team title in the Canadian professional wrestling promotion Stampede Wrestling. It was created in 1958 as the NWA International Tag-Team Championship...
. He also held major titles in New Zealand and Puerto Rico. After retiring from wrestling, he began training aspiring wrestlers for both the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
and World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
. He has moved to Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
and had several other jobs since retiring, but he continues to wrestle occasionally while visiting the Maritimes.
Bobby Kay
Romeo Cormier, the youngest of the brothers to wrestle professionally, made his debut in 1967. Although he used the name Bobby Kay for the majority of his career, he also used different ring names while teaming with his brother Leonce. While Leonce was competing as Tommy Martin, Romeo took the name Terry Martin; in 1977, when Leonce had returned to the ring name Leo Burke, Romeo competed as Bobby Burke to win the Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship with his brother. The majority of his championships came as part of a tag team, but he also won the NWA Central States Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA Central States Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship a professional wrestling championship that currently serves as the main title for the National Wrestling Alliance promotion, NWA Midwest. For most of its existence, however, the title was defended in the NWA affiliate Central States Wrestling from...
in 1974. Late in his career, he became co-owner of the ESA, but the promotion closed due to conflicts between the owners and the rival Atlantic Grand Prix Wrestling's ability to secure an important television contract. Cormier now works for Loblaw Companies
Loblaw Companies
Loblaw Companies Limited is the largest food retailer in Canada, with over 1,400 supermarkets operating under a variety of regional banners, including the namesake Loblaws. LCL is headquartered in Brampton, Ontario...
but continues to wrestle on occasional shows.
Legacy
Jean-Louis's ESA promotion helped launch the careers of several wrestlers, including Rick MartelRick Martel
Richard Vigneault is a retired Canadian professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation between 1980 and 1995 under the ring name Rick Martel...
, who went on to win the American Wrestling Association World Championship
AWA World Heavyweight Championship
The American Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and the highest ranked championship in the defunct American Wrestling Association. All AWA trademarks, including the AWA World Heavyweight Championship, are now owned by WWE...
. After retiring from full-time competition, Leonce trained many professional wrestlers, including Ken Shamrock
Ken Shamrock
Kenneth Wayne Shamrock is an American mixed martial arts fighter, UFC Hall of Famer and professional wrestler...
, Mark Henry
Mark Henry
Mark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler signed with WWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. He is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic...
, Edge, Christian, and Test, all of whom have worked for World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
.
All five of the Cormier brothers involved in wrestling were honored during a celebration in their home town of Memramcook in 2006. They also received an award from the Cauliflower Alley Club in 2009. Canadian wrestling promoter Emile Dupré
Emile Duprée
Emile Duprée is a former professional wrestler and promoter. He is also the father of former WWE professional wrestler, René Duprée and currently lives in Pointe-du-Chene, New Brunswick.-Professional wrestling career:...
has said that the Cormiers "were to New Brunswick what the Hart family
Hart wrestling family
The Hart wrestling family is a Canadian family with a significant history within professional wrestling. The patriarch of the family is wrestling legend and WWE Hall of Famer Stu Hart, amateur and professional wrestler, promoter and trainer, who not only owned and operated his own wrestling...
was to Calgary".