National Wrestling Alliance (1964–1982) Johnson began his career as a professional wrestler in 1964 in
Southern Ontario; soon after his debut, he legally changed his name to his moniker. He chose the name Rocky Johnson as a tribute to two of his favorite boxing greats:
Rocky Marciano and
Jack Johnson, the latter being the first black heavyweight boxing champion. In the late 1960s to mid 1970s, he was a major star in California. In Los Angeles he took on
Freddie Blassie,
The Destroyer and
John Tolos. He was a top contender in the
National Wrestling Alliance in the 1970s, receiving title matches against then-
World Champions Terry Funk and
Harley Race. .
World Wrestling Federation (1982–1985) In 1982, Johnson feuded with
Don Muraco,
Greg Valentine,
Mike Sharpe,
Buddy Rose, and
Adrian Adonis. He was then paired with
Tony Atlas as a tag team.
Later career (1985–1991) After leaving WWF in June 1985, Johnson went to Central States, Tennessee, Hawaii, Portland, Puerto Rico and the independent circuit. In Hawaii, he teamed with his brother Ricky Johnson.
Retirement After retiring in 1991, Johnson, along with
Pat Patterson, trained his son Dwayne to wrestle. While he initially resisted his son's entry into what he knew to be an extremely difficult business, Johnson agreed to train him on the condition that he would not go easy on him. Johnson was instrumental in getting Dwayne (later dubbed "Rocky Maivia" after both Rocky Johnson's and
Peter Maivia's ring names) signed to a WWF developmental deal. Initially, Johnson had an on-camera presence at his son's matches, and jumped into the ring on his behalf after he was attacked by
The Sultan and
The Iron Sheik at
WrestleMania 13. Johnson was not seen on-camera again after the Rocky Maivia character flopped, and soon Dwayne achieved crossover popularity as a cocky
heel,
The Rock. On June 14, 2001, Johnson came out of retirement teaming with
Jimmy Valiant, defeating
Buddy Landel and
Billy Joe Travis at Clash Of The Legends in Memphis. In early 2003, Johnson was hired as a trainer for the WWE developmental territory,
Ohio Valley Wrestling, but was fired in May. He made a return to the ring, and defeated
Mabel in a boxing match at
Memphis Wrestling on November 29, 2003. His last match was on March 27, 2004 against
Bill Dundee in a draw in Memphis. On February 25, 2008, Johnson was announced as an inductee into the
WWE Hall of Fame along with his father-in-law, "
High Chief" Peter Maivia. Both Johnson and his father-in-law were inducted into the Hall of Fame on March 29, 2008, by his son, The Rock. On December 20, 2019, Johnson joined the board of directors of the International Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame. ==Personal life==