Professional Wrestler. Born James Wiley Smith (later changed to James Reiher Snuka), he was well known to wrestling fans for his high-flying style of wrestling that he brought to the World Wrestling Federation in the early to mid 1980s. He trained to go into professional wrestling in the late 1960s and started his career first in Hawaii and then in the Pacific Northwest. He later wrestled in various National Wrestling Alliance territories where he won several single and tag-team titles. He entered the World Wrestling Federation in 1982 under the guidance of the villainous Captain Lou Albano. He received several title shots in his early WWF days and his high-flying skills made the "bad guy" turn into a fan favorite. He turned against Albano and stayed as a fan favorite for the rest of his tenure in the WWF. He had various memorable matches against some of the top villains in the organization until he left in 1985. He then went first to Japan and then to the American Wrestling Association before returning to the WWF in 1989. During his second stay with the organization, he was put into the role of helping put over other rising stars like "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig and The Undertaker. After leaving the WWF in the early 1990s, he wrestled for several other wrestling promotions like Eastern Championship Wrestling, which later became Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). He made a short-lived return to the WWF in 1993, but later went into semi-retirement. He remained in semi-retirement for most of the rest of his life, but still made appearances for the now World Wrestling Entertainment and other promotions. He was inducted into the World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame in 1996. On September 1, 2015, he was charged with third degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of his then girlfriend Nancy Argentino in 1983. The charges were dismissed on January 3, 2017 when the court found him unfit to stand trial. His daughter Tamina currently wrestles for the WWE. He passed away after a battle with stomach cancer.
Professional Wrestler. Born James Wiley Smith (later changed to James Reiher Snuka), he was well known to wrestling fans for his high-flying style of wrestling that he brought to the World Wrestling Federation in the early to mid 1980s. He trained to go into professional wrestling in the late 1960s and started his career first in Hawaii and then in the Pacific Northwest. He later wrestled in various National Wrestling Alliance territories where he won several single and tag-team titles. He entered the World Wrestling Federation in 1982 under the guidance of the villainous Captain Lou Albano. He received several title shots in his early WWF days and his high-flying skills made the "bad guy" turn into a fan favorite. He turned against Albano and stayed as a fan favorite for the rest of his tenure in the WWF. He had various memorable matches against some of the top villains in the organization until he left in 1985. He then went first to Japan and then to the American Wrestling Association before returning to the WWF in 1989. During his second stay with the organization, he was put into the role of helping put over other rising stars like "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig and The Undertaker. After leaving the WWF in the early 1990s, he wrestled for several other wrestling promotions like Eastern Championship Wrestling, which later became Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). He made a short-lived return to the WWF in 1993, but later went into semi-retirement. He remained in semi-retirement for most of the rest of his life, but still made appearances for the now World Wrestling Entertainment and other promotions. He was inducted into the World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame in 1996. On September 1, 2015, he was charged with third degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of his then girlfriend Nancy Argentino in 1983. The charges were dismissed on January 3, 2017 when the court found him unfit to stand trial. His daughter Tamina currently wrestles for the WWE. He passed away after a battle with stomach cancer.
Bio by: Mr. Badger Hawkeye
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