Norman Smiley
Encyclopedia
Norman Anthony Smiley is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 professional wrestler
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...

 best known for his appearances in 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 is currently signed to WWE as a trainer and an on–air authority figure for Florida Championship Wrestling
Florida Championship Wrestling
Championship Wrestling from Florida 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 Florida Championship Wrestling...

.

Career

Norman Smiley trained under Rusty Brooks
Rusty Brooks
Kurt Koski is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Rusty Brooks. He has competed in several North American independent promotions, including International World Class Championship Wrestling, Florida Championship Wrestling and the National Wrestling Alliance...

 and Boris
Boris Malenko
Lawrence J. Simon better known by his ring name Boris Malenko, was an American professional wrestler who wrestled for the American Wrestling Association and National Wrestling Alliance in the 1960s and 1970s...

 and Dean Malenko
Dean Malenko
Dean Simon is a retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Dean Malenko. He is currently signed to WWE working as a road agent. He is best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling , New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling...

 before making his debut in 1985 on the Floridian
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 independent circuit
Independent circuit
In professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indy circuit refers to the many independent promotions which are much smaller than major televised promotions. They are roughly analagous to a minor league for pro wrestling, or community or regional theatre.Specific promotions on the...

, originally known as Black Magic, then as the hated Lord Henry Norman. Smiley wrestled in the Japanese shootstyle group UWF International (UWFi) in 1988 and 1989. In 1990 Smiley competed at the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...

/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...

 Starrcade 1990
Starrcade (1990)
Starrcade '90 was the eighth annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced under the National Wrestling Alliance banner. It was the third Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling, and the last pay-per-view event held by the NWA. It took place on December 16,...

 event teaming with Chris Adams against the team of Konnan
Konnan
Carlos Santiago Espada Moises , also known as Charles Ashenoff and better known by his ring name, Konnan, is a Cuban professional wrestler and rapper of Puerto Rican descent...

 and Rey Misterio, Sr.
Rey Misterio, Sr.
Miguel Ángel López Díaz, better known as his ring name Rey Misterio, Sr. is a Mexican professional wrestler, trainer and actor. He is the uncle of well-known luchador Rey Mysterio, Jr. His name directly translates to "Mystery King" in English...

 In 1992, he began wrestling for CMLL
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre is a Lucha Libre-style professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City while running cards in Guadalajara, Puebla and elsewhere in central and southern Mexico...

 in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

 as Black Magic, winning the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship and holding it until losing to Silver King in 1994. In 1995 and 1996, he briefly competed in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

 based Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...

 promotion
Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. Promotion also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event...

.

World Championship Wrestling

Smiley joined 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...

 in 1997, wrestling primarily on WCW Saturday Night
WCW Saturday Night
WCW Saturday Night was a weekly Saturday night TV show on TBS produced by World Championship Wrestling. The program existed through various incarnations under different names before becoming WCW Saturday Night in 1992...

. After being removed from television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...

, he returned several months later with a new gimmick. His new character saw him add the "Big Wiggle" to his repertoire of moves; prior to this, his signature taunt was a mimed bow-and-arrow motion, informally dubbed "The Sacajaweah". After knocking an opponent down, Smiley would perform a dance that he called the "Big Wiggle". He later added the "Smiley Spank", which saw him double an opponent over, straddle him, and perform a slapping motion with his hands.

During his tenure in WCW, Smiley often teamed with Chris Adams. The duo had previously teamed together as the British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

 participants in the 1990 NWA
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...

 Pat O'Connor
Pat O'Connor (wrestler)
Patrick John "Pat" O'Connor , was a professional wrestler from New Zealand. O'Connor was regarded as one of the premier workers of his era...

 tag team tournament, and were close friends.

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...

 turn began in a backstage interview on an episode of WCW Saturday Night when he told fans that he was Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an and that, as such, his name should be pronounced phonetically
Phonetics
Phonetics is a branch of linguistics that comprises the study of the sounds of human speech, or—in the case of sign languages—the equivalent aspects of sign. It is concerned with the physical properties of speech sounds or signs : their physiological production, acoustic properties, auditory...

 as "Nor-MAHN Smi-LAY." He would insult the fans who mispronounced his name at establishments such as Waffle House
Waffle House
Waffle House is a restaurant chain with over 1600 locations found in 25 states in the United States. Most of the locations are in the Southern United States, where the chain remains a regional cultural icon...

 and Piggly Wiggly
Piggly Wiggly
Piggly Wiggly is a supermarket chain operating in the Midwestern and Southern regions of the United States, run by Piggly Wiggly, LLC, an affiliate of C&S Wholesale Grocers. The current company headquarters is in Keene, New Hampshire....

. He then feuded
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...

 with Chavo Guerrero, Jr.
Chavo Guerrero, Jr.
Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling...

, on one occasion destroying Guerrero's hobby horse
Hobby horse (toy)
A hobby horse is a child's toy horse, particularly popular during the days before cars. Children played at riding a wooden hobby horse made of a straight stick with a small horse's head , and perhaps reins, attached to one end. The bottom end of the stick sometimes had a small wheel or wheels...

 mascot, Pepè, by feeding it into a wood chipper on the January 11, 1999 episode of WCW Monday Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro was a weekly professional wrestling telecast produced by World Championship Wrestling, created by Ted Turner and Eric Bischoff. The show aired Monday nights on TNT, going head-to-head with the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw from September 4, 1995 to March 26, 2001...

.

In 1999, Smiley entered the hardcore
Hardcore wrestling
Hardcore wrestling is a form of professional wrestling that eschews traditional concepts of match rules in favor of matches that take place in unusual environments, using foreign objects that are not normally permitted...

 division. Smiley's character was nicknamed "Screamin'" Norman Smiley due to his fear of being hit by weapons. Smiley would also come to the ring wearing a jersey
Jersey
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and...

, often the jersey of a local professional sports team, along with padding and a football helmet
Football helmet
A football helmet is a protective device used primarily in American football and Canadian football. It consists of a hard plastic top with thick padding on the inside, a face mask made of one or more plastic bars, and a chinstrap. Some players add polycarbonate visors to their helmets, which are...

 to cushion blows. This comedic gimmick caused Smiley's popularity to soar, and he eventually became the first WCW Hardcore Champion by defeating Brian Knobbs
Brian Knobbs
Brian Yandrisovitz , better known as Brian Knobbs, is an American professional wrestler, best known as one half of the tag team The Nasty Boys along with Jerry Sags.-The Nasty Boys:...

 in a tournament final. During his 2 reigns, Smiley was a reluctant champion, even attempting to purposely lose matches (although he invariably retained the title inadvertently, much to his chagrin). Smiley holds the 2 longest WCW Hardcore Championship reigns, at 51 and 42 days, respectively.

Smiley feuded with Brian Knobbs
Brian Knobbs
Brian Yandrisovitz , better known as Brian Knobbs, is an American professional wrestler, best known as one half of the tag team The Nasty Boys along with Jerry Sags.-The Nasty Boys:...

, Meng
Uliuli Fifita
Tonga 'Uli'uli Fifita is a retired professional wrestler and actor, known for his appearances in both World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...

 and Terry Funk
Terry Funk
Terrence "Terry" Funk is an American professional wrestler and actor known chiefly for the hardcore wrestling style he adopted in the latter part of his career that inspired many younger wrestlers, including Mick Foley...

 during his tenures as WCW Hardcore Champion, recruiting Chris Jericho's
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...

 former associate Ralphus to be his manager
Manager (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...

. With the assistance of Ralphus, he stole a backyard wrestling
Backyard wrestling
Backyard wrestling , and also referred to as yarding or backyarding is a controversial underground recreation based on the usually untrained practice of professional-style wrestling in a typically low budget environment between predominantly 12 to 30 year old males. Some practitioners have attended...

 championship
Championship (professional wrestling)
A Championship or "title" in professional wrestling is a recognition promoted by professional wrestling organizations.Championship reigns are determined by professional wrestling matches, in which competitors are involved in scripted rivalries...

 from a group of children during a vignette.

Smiley remained in WCW until the company was sold to 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...

 in March 2001. He was not hired by the WWF following the sale.

TNA, AAA, and the independent circuit

Smiley wrestled for the short-lived X Wrestling Federation
X Wrestling Federation
Xtreme Wrestling Federation was an American professional wrestling promotion. The organization's heyday was from early November of 2001 to late February of 2002. Its birth coincided with the World Wrestling Federation's acquisition of AOL Time Warner's World Championship Wrestling. XWF's slogan...

 and the World Wrestling All-Stars
World Wrestling All-Stars
The World Wrestling All-Stars was a professional wrestling promotion founded by Australian concert promoter Andrew McManus in 2001. The promotion was operated by McManus' International Touring Company. WWA was one of several promotions to come into existence shortly after the closings of Extreme...

 before returning to the Florida independent circuit. He wrestled briefly for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is a privately held professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and Jerry Jarrett. The company broadcasts its events on television and the Internet fifty two weeks a year with over a million weekly viewers on its primary television program, Impact...

 in 2002 and then had several tryout matches with 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...

 in 2003 and 2004. In February 2006, he was backstage during the TNA pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...

 Against All Odds 2006, and he wrestled in an eight-man opening match on an episode of TNA Impact!
TNA iMPACT!
Impact Wrestling is a professional wrestling television program for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling that currently airs in the United States and Canada on Spike...

 shortly thereafter, doing the Big Wiggle on Jeff Jarrett
Jeff Jarrett
Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett is an American professional wrestler and wrestling promoter. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , an organization he co-founded along with his father and in which he holds some stock but not total control...

. At TNA Destination X 2006 on March 12, 2006, Smiley and Shark Boy
Shark Boy
Dean Mathew Roll is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Shark Boy and his experience in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .-Early career:...

 lost to David Young and Elix Skipper
Elix Skipper
Elix Skipper is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling, where he was a one-time Cruiserweight Champion and a one-time Cruiserweight Tag Team Champion, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a four-time NWA World Tag Team...

. Smiley and Shark Boy upset Homicide and Machete of the LAX on the March 18 edition of Impact! Smiley was inactive for several weeks following an attack at the hands of Scott Steiner
Scott Steiner
Scott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order...

, but returned on the June 29, 2006 episode of Impact!, losing to Monty Brown
Monty Brown
Monty Brown is an American professional wrestler and former National Football League linebacker, also known as Marcus Cor Von. He is best known for his time with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment, where he wrestled on its ECW brand under the ring name Marcus Cor Von...

. On the February 16, 2007 edition of Impact! Smiley made his return, teaming with Shark Boy in a loss to LAX.

Smiley returned to Mexico's Asistencia Asesoría y Administración
Asistencia Asesoría y Administración
Asistencia Asesoría y Administración is a lucha libre professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico...

 as a member of La Legión Extranjera
Foreign Legion (wrestling)
La Legión Extranjera is the main Asistencia, Asesoría y Administración heel group, though loosely affiliated. It's a catch all for one time and irregularly scheduled foreign heels, working as Konnan's hired guns as well as a number of AAA regular Rudós...

 (Foreign Legion) as a sidekick of El Mesías
Ricky Banderas
Gilbert Cosme better known by his ring names El Mesías and Ricky Banderas, is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler. He began his career in the International Wrestling Association based on Puerto Rico...

. In an online interview, Smiley indicated that he one day intended to return to TNA wrestling to become the "greatest champion" in the company's brief history.

WWE and FCW

Smiley wrestled in a WWE dark match prior to the November 19, 2007 episode of Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...

, losing to Vladimir Kozlov.

Norman Smiley has now relocated to Tampa to work as a trainer for WWE's development territory, Florida Championship Wrestling
Florida Championship Wrestling
Championship Wrestling from Florida 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 Florida Championship Wrestling...

. In early 2010, he started making on-camera appearances as the lieutenant general manager of FCW but since August 2010, he's been known on FCW TV as the liaison for the FCW president, Steve Keirn
Steve Keirn
Stephen "Steve" Paul Keirn is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for being part of the tag team The Fabulous Ones, with Stan Lane, and later for a run in the World Wrestling Federation as Skinner, a gimmick that portrayed him as a tobacco spitting alligator hunter from...

.

In wrestling

  • Finishing moves
    • Norman Conquest (Crossface chickenwing)

  • Signature moves
    • Armbar
    • Belly to back suplex
    • SMBU/Big Wiggle/ Hardcore Wiggle (From behind a bent forward opponent, Smiley licks his hands, rubs his chest, and makes a slapping motion on the hips of the opponent)
    • Bodyscissors
    • Diving crossbody
    • European uppercut
    • Jumping headbutt
    • Overhand slap
    • Sunset flip out of the corner
    • Upside Down Frown (Twisting delayed scoop slam)
    • Victory roll

  • Nickname
    Nickname
    A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....

    s
    • "Screamin" Norman Smiley

Championships and accomplishments

  • Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
    Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
    Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre is a Lucha Libre-style professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City while running cards in Guadalajara, Puebla and elsewhere in central and southern Mexico...

  • CMLL World Heavyweight Championship
    CMLL World Heavyweight Championship
    The CMLL World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship promoted by Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre and has been in existence since 1991...

     (1 time)

  • Four Star Championship Wrestling
  • FSCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

  • Xtreme Wrestling Alliance
  • XWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

  • Future of Wrestling
    Future of Wrestling
    Future of Wrestling is an American independent wrestling promotion based in southern Florida starting during the late 1990s. Founded by Bobby Rogers, the promotion was a predecessor of Full Impact Pro, Independent Pro Wrestling and NWA Florida and featured several top independent wrestlers...

  • FOW Heavyweight Championship
    FOW Heavyweight Championship
    The FOW Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title in American independent promotion Future of Wrestling. The title was created when "Ram Man" Johnny Evans won the title in Miami, Florida on May 1, 1998. It was defended throughout southern Florida, most often in Davie, Oakland Park,...

     (1 time)

  • Global Wrestling Alliance
  • GWA Global Television Championship (1 time)

  • Independent Pro Wrestling Association
  • IPWA Southern Championship (1 time)
  • IPWA Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Joe DeFuria

  • Maximum Pro Wrestling
  • MXPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

  • 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...

  • WCW Hardcore Championship
    WCW Hardcore Championship
    The World Championship Wrestling Hardcore Championship was a title in World Championship Wrestling. The title was defended in Hardcore matches, in which there were few rules and restrictions and weapons were allowed. Eventually, the rules were changed so that matches began in the backstage area...

     (2 times)

  • Pro Wrestling Illustrated
    Pro Wrestling Illustrated
    Pro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...

  • PWI ranked him # 375 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2003

External links

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