Early career (1974–1980) Trained by Herb Welch, Schultz began wrestling in NWA Mid-America during the mid-1970s eventually teaming with Roger Kirby to defeat
Bill Dundee and Big Bad John for the
NWA Mid-America Tag Team Championship in May 1976. He would also team with Bill Ash to win the NWA Mid-America Tag Team Championship before losing the titles to
George Gulas and Gorgeous George Jr. later that year. While in the
Maritimes, Schultz defeated Terry Sawyer for the Canadian Heavyweight Championship in
Halifax, Nova Scotia on August 9, 1977. Feuding with Sawyer over the title, he would briefly lose the title back to Sawyer before regaining it on August 13 and remained champion until the title became inactive before the end of the year. From September to October 1978, Schultz toured Japan with
International Wrestling Enterprise as part of its "Dynamite Series". His matches on this tour included a
cage match against Katsuzo Oiyama in
Isehara, Kanagawa and a handful of matches against
Animal Hamaguchi that ended in double count-outs or disqualifications. During the tour, he teamed on several occasions with
Ox Baker. In October 1980, Schultz moved on to
Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling. feuding with Leo Burke and
Mr. Hito over the Stampede Wrestling North American Heavyweight Championship during 1981 and also faced
AWA World champion Nick Bockwinkel in a non-title interpromotional match. He also briefly teamed with
Honky Tonk Wayne as the Memphis Mafia before Wayne turned on him in a storyline in which he had been "bought" by manager J.R. Foley. Schultz subsequently returned to the United States to join the
American Wrestling Association. and later teamed with Piper and Orndorff to defeat
S. D. Jones,
Rocky Johnson and
Bobo Brazil in a 6-man tag team match at the
Capital Centre in
Landover, Maryland. On June 17, he would also face
WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan in
Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Battery on John Stossel (pictured here in 2018) that severely damaged Schultz' career in the United States. Schultz had a notorious encounter on December 28, 1984, with
20/20 reporter
John Stossel while Stossel was backstage at
MSG doing a story about professional wrestling's secrets. The attack, which attracted a large amount of media coverage, was later aired on national television including
ABC News which reported that the network had received more than 1,000 calls from viewers inquiring about Stossel's health. Stossel later claimed he was unaware of Schultz's apology and would pursue his action in court although commented he would be "less likely to sue" if the after-effects of his injury disappeared. Although Schultz has consistently maintained that WWF officials told him to hit Stossel (specifically, he insists that Vince McMahon himself said, "Blast him (Stossel), tear his ass up, stay in character -- 'Doctor D'..."), Schultz ultimately was fired. Many industry insiders believe that it was not because of his actions against Stossel, but rather because of the alleged, but never proven, claim that he challenged
Mr. T to a fight backstage at a WWF event at
MSG.
Late career (1985–1989) After leaving the WWF at the end of February 1985, Schultz immediately embarked on another tour of Japan with New Japan Pro-Wrestling as part of its "Big Fight" series. His opponents during the tour included
Antonio Inoki,
Kantaro Hoshino, and
Kengo Kimura. After returning from Japan, he divided his time between the CWA and the
Northeastern United States–based
International World Class Championship Wrestling for the remainder of the year. In 1992, Schultz was accused by the WWF of conspiring with former WWF referee
Rita Chatterton to extort $5 million from the company.
Vince and
Linda McMahon filed a lawsuit against journalist and TV personality
Geraldo Rivera after Chatterton aired a rape allegation against Vince McMahon during Rivera's programs. The lawsuit was abandoned after McMahon was indicted for allegedly illegally distributing
anabolic steroids. Schultz briefly reappeared in the spotlight in the early 1990s when he testified at
McMahon's trial. During the early 2000s, Schultz was under consideration for induction into the
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in November 2003, and the following month, attended the Fan Slam Convention in
Totowa, New Jersey on December 6, 2003 where he talked about his history with
Hulk Hogan. During the event, he participated in a Q&A panel which included
Ted DiBiase,
Virgil,
Gary Michael Cappetta,
Chief Jay Strongbow and
The Missing Link. In October 2006, Schultz was honored along with
J. J. Dillon and
Missy Hyatt at a dinner banquet hosted by the
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and attended by former WWF wrestlers from the 1970s and 80s. During the event, he participated on a Q&A panel discussing the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and taking questions from audience members as well as conducted a "shoot interview" with RF Video. As part of their agreement, RF Video donated $500 in his name to the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame Building Fund and later presenting a check to Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame President Tony Vellano. Schultz released his book, ''Don't Call Me Fake'', on January 23, 2018. On April 28, 2020,
Dark Side of the Ring aired a second season episode that focuses on Schultz's wrestling career, his on-air assault of John Stossel—which effectively ended his time in the industry—and his subsequent transition into a career as a bounty hunter. == Championships and accomplishments ==