Early career (1974–1980) Gordy was a standout high school football and baseball player at Rossville High School, but dropped out of high school following his freshman year. as "Terry Mecca" for the
International Wrestling Association. Gordy and Hayes had met while training in
Mississippi the year prior. The Fabulous Freebirds had many feuds while there, including feuds against
Tommy Rich,
Junkyard Dog,
Kevin Sullivan,
Austin Idol, and
Ted DiBiase, and they became one of the first acts to use entrance music.
World Class Championship Wrestling (1982–1989) In late-1982, the Freebirds went to the
Dallas, Texas-based
World Class Championship Wrestling promotion and feuded with the
Von Erichs (
David,
Kevin,
Kerry and
Mike). The feud ignited when Gordy slammed the cage door on Kerry during his cage match on March 15 at
WCCW Star Wars against
Ric Flair, during which
Michael Hayes served as the special guest referee. Gordy's action incited a riot among the fans in attendance.
All Japan Pro Wrestling (1982, 1983–1994) Gordy's connection with
All Japan Pro Wrestling began in March 1982, when he challenged
Giant Baba for the
PWF Heavyweight Championship at a Georgia Championship Wrestling show at the Omni in Atlanta. The match would air in Japan. Seventeen months later, Gordy made his debut for AJPW in August 1983. He was immediately paired with Stan Hansen and took part in
Terry Funk's first retirement match on August 31, 1983. The pairing was an immediate success. A month later, they won the World Tag Team Championship, defeating Gordy's former partner Stan Hansen and Genichiro Tenryu. Three months later, Gordy became a double champion with five belts, as Gordy defeated Jumbo Tsuruta for the
Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship. As a result, he had to relearn how to talk, walk, and wrestle,
Universal Wrestling Federation (1986) In 1986, when the Freebirds were in
Universal Wrestling Federation, the former Mid South Wrestling, Gordy became the first person to win the
UWF Heavyweight Championship before losing it via forfeit to the
One Man Gang, In 1989, Gordy helped Hayes reform the Freebirds, with
Jimmy Garvin, in the NWA, which became
World Championship Wrestling in 1991. Later, he and Steve Williams defeated the Steiners to become World Tag Team Champions. The Executioner made his television debut at
In Your House 11: Buried Alive on October 20, 1996, enabling Mankind to defeat
The Undertaker in a
Buried Alive match by hitting The Undertaker with a shovel and helping "bury" him. On an episode of
Something to Wrestle With,
Bruce Prichard claimed that the gimmick of The Executioner was given to Gordy because McMahon had doubts that Gordy could still compete effectively, and the use of a mask was intended to protect Gordy so that if that were the case, Gordy's legacy would not be tainted. Had Gordy been able to compete at a high level, there would have been an opportunity for Gordy to unmask. It was mentioned that the hiring was mostly done as a favor for Michael Hayes.
Later career (1997–2001) After leaving the WWF and Japan, Gordy worked in the
independent circuit. On February 21, 1998, Gordy teamed with
Dan Severn in a losing effort to
Doug Gilbert and
Dutch Mantel at the
Eddie Gilbert Memorial Show for
IWA Mid-South. Gordy would reunite with Hayes as they fought
Glen Kulka and
JR Smooth to a no contest for
Power Pro Wrestling on May 28, 1999. He wrestled his last match, returning to
IWA Japan on February 4, 2001, with Shoichi Ichimiya,
Tomohiro Ishii, Yukihide Ueno, and Yuji Kito, defeating
Doug Gilbert, TJ Shinjuku, Ultra Sebun,
Takashi Uwano and Keizo Mastuda. == Personal life ==