Troy T. Thompson Jr., known in the wrestling world as Troy Graham, made a significant impact under various ring names. Discovered by Jimmy Hart, Thompson initially entered wrestling as Troy 'The Hippie' Graham.
Early Career and Championships
Wrestling as the masked Dream Machine, Thompson captured the AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship in 1981 after defeating Steve Keirn in a one-night tournament. Promoter Eddie Marlin awarded the belt to Dream Machine and his manager Jimmy Hart on an episode of Championship Wrestling.
Also in 1981, Thompson held the AWA Southern Tag Team Championship title while teamed with "Superstar" Bill Dundee.
Tag Team Success and the Bruise Brothers
From 1982 to 1983, Thompson teamed with Porkchop Cash as The Bruise Brothers, as part of Hart's First Family stable. They defeated Dutch Mantell and Koko B. Ware for their first AWA Southern Tag Team Championship titles.
The New York Dolls and Later Appearances
As the Dream Machine, Thompson (sans mask) was one-half of the tag team known as "The New York Dolls".
Read also: Steve Keirn: Wrestling Icon
Graham reappeared in the Memphis territory, in a wheelchair, as the manager of the Interns. The Interns feuded with the Dirty White Boys and Rock n Roll RPMs.
In 1994, Graham returned to the Memphis territory, where he won a battle royal by eliminating Brian Christopher.
The Graham Family Legacy
Troy "The Dream Machine/Warrior" Graham was also considered part of the Graham family, a stable of wrestlers billed as kayfabe brothers. Other Family members include: Tommy "T.G." Graham (William Pawlak), Eddie Graham's son Mike Graham (Mike Gosset), and Luke Graham's son, "Crazy" Luke Graham Jr. (Donald J. Jolly), and nephew, Gerry "Chubby" Graham (M. Gerald Sadler).
All Graham Family members are reported as retired. Dr Jerry, Eddie, Luke Sr, Billy and Mike are among the family members that are reported deceased.
The Rise and Fall of Electric Dream Machine.wmv
Luke Graham: A Notable Figure in Wrestling
James Grady Johnson (February 5, 1940 - June 23, 2006) was an American professional wrestler, best known by his ring name, "Crazy" Luke Graham. As Luke Graham, Johnson was part of the Graham family, a stable of wrestlers. All members were billed as kayfabe brothers.
Read also: "Pretty Boy" Larry Sharpe's impact on wrestling
Early Career and Success
Johnson made his debut in 1961 in National Wrestling Alliance's Mid-America territory. He began his career as the Kayfabe brother of Dr. Jerry Graham after fellow wrestler Frankie Cain (The Great Mephisto) suggested that they resembled each other. They began wrestling together in 1963 in Stampede Wrestling. Graham enjoyed most of his success for the Los Angeles territory in the mid to late 1960s.
During this period he held the WWA World Title once in 1965 which he won by defeating future WWE champion Pedro Morales at a house show on July 23.
Tag Team Championships and Later Career
After leaving the AWA, Luke returned to WWWF and had a brief run with Tarzan Tyler as the inaugural WWWF Tag Team Champions in 1971. One story was that the team allegedly defeated Dick the Bruiser and The Sheik for the belts, however, no record of any match between the two teams has ever been documented. The other story is that they won it from Bepo and Geeto Mongol. Once champions, the team held the belts for six months while feuding with Chief Jay Strongbow, Gorilla Monsoon, and Pedro Morales.
He and Tyler also went on to win the WWF International Tagteam Championship in November 1971 from Bepo and Geeto Mongol. They lost it back to the Mongols after a month. He fought in Florida as El Lobo in 1970. In 1974, he was the United States Champion in the Pacific Northeast.
After that he left for Georgia Championship Wrestling where he won the NWA Georgia Heavyweight championship in a tournament on April 20.
Read also: The Story of Chris Melendez
Return to WWWF and Retirement
In 1978, Graham return to the WWWF this time being managed by The Grand Wizard. He had epic feuds with Andre the Giant, Dino Bravo, Haystacks Calhoun, Ivan Putski and then WWWF champion Bob Backlund. He even teamed with his "brother" Superstar Billy Graham.
After WWWF, Graham contiued to work in the Southern states. He retired in the late 1987.
Championships Held by Luke Graham
- WWC North American Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Gorgeous George Jr.
- WWWF United States Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Dr. Jerry Graham
Rick McGraw: The "Quickdraw"
Richard Emmett McGraw Jr. (March 19, 1955 - November 1, 1985) was an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) under the ring name "Quickdraw" Rick McGraw from 1980 until his death in 1985. He also wrestled for the World Wrestling Association (WWA), where he won the WWA World Tag Team Championship with The Dream Machine as The New York Dolls, and Southeastern Championship Wrestling (SECW), where he won the NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship.
Early Career and WWF Debut
In May 1980, McGraw made his debut for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) as a face. On August 9, he took part in the Showdown at Shea event, losing to Greg Gagne. He defeated enhancement talent, but mostly lost to heels who were ready to challenge WWF Champion Bob Backlund.
In April 1981, McGraw appeared for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as part of the "NJPW WWF Big Fight Series II" tour, often teaming with Ken Patera, Backlund, Tiger Jeet Singh and Dynamite Kid against the likes of Antonio Inoki, Tatsumi Fujinami, Seiji Sakaguchi and Riki Choshu.
Injuries and Tag Team Partnerships
Two months later, McGraw was involved in an angle where his neck was "broken" by Killer Khan in a match, sidelining him for six to nine weeks. In the interim, he wrestled for Promotions Varoussac, where he and Gino Brito defeated Swede Hanson and Le Bourreau to win the Canadian International Tag Team Championship on November 9. They lost the titles on December 30 to Gilles Poisson and Sailor White.
McGraw returned in January 1982 with Arnold Skaaland as his manager, and formed a tag team with Steve Travis the following month. They were known as the "Carolina Connection" due to both men being from the Carolinas and having similar backgrounds playing football in college. At the same time, he teamed with André the Giant, and both teams unsuccessfully challenged Mr. Fuji and Mr. Saito for the WWF Tag Team Championship.
The New York Dolls and Championship Success
On September 6, McGraw debuted for the World Wrestling Association (WWA), where he and Giant Kimala challenged Spike Huber and Steve Regal for the WWA World Tag Team Championship, but lost the match via disqualification. Shortly after, he formed a heel tag team with The Dream Machine known as The New York Dolls, incorporating tuxedos and bow ties as part of their ring gear and Jimmy Hart as their manager.
On September 25, they defeated Huber and Regal to win the WWA World Tag Team Championship. However, they lost the titles in a rematch in December.
Southeastern Championship Wrestling and Final Appearances
In 1984, he began appearing for Southeastern Championship Wrestling (SECW), winning the NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship from Vic Rain on May 28.
On the October 26, 1985 episode of WWF Championship Wrestling, McGraw was a guest on Roddy Piper's "Piper's Pit" segment and got on his case about always shooting his mouth off and not wrestling on television, prompting Piper to accept a challenge to wrestle him on the following week's show, which would be McGraw's final televised appearance. At the start of the match, Piper threw McGraw out of the ring and twice into the guardrail. After no-selling several punches and kicks in McGraw's comeback, Piper hit him with a swinging neckbreaker and two DDTs, the second prompting the referee to stop the match, declaring McGraw unable to continue.
McGraw appeared on an episode of The A-Team in 1985 alongside Hulk Hogan, Mr. T, and Gene Okerlund.
Death
McGraw died on November 1, 1985, at the age of 30 due to heart failure. An autopsy revealed that he had severe arteriosclerosis.
He was ranked #485 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" by Pro Wrestling Illustrated in 2003.
Championships and Accomplishments
Here's a summary of the championships and accomplishments of Troy Graham, Luke Graham and Rick McGraw:
| Wrestler | Championships |
|---|---|
| Troy "The Dream Machine" Graham |
|
| Luke Graham |
|
| Rick "Quickdraw" McGraw |
|