Title History
- WWA (Los Angeles) world heavyweight title defeating Freddie Blassie (July 27, 1962);
- WWA (Los Angeles) International TV Tag Team titles w/ Dan Manoukian defeating Abe Jacobs and Haystacks Calhoun (Dec 19, 1962);
- NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team titles w/ Art Michalik defeating Danny Hodge and Shag Thomas (September 9, 1963);
- NWA Pacific Norhwest heavyweight title defeating Mad Dog Vachon (January 3, 1964);
- NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team titles w/ Art Michalik defeating Luther Lindsey and Shag Thomas (January 22, 1964);
- NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team titles w/ Art Michalik defeating Nick Bockwinkel and Nick Kozak (April 3, 1964);
- NWA Pacific Northwest heavyweight title defeating Tony Borne (April 21, 1964);
- WWA (Los Angeles) world heavyweight title defeating Dick the Bruiser (July 22, 1964);
- WWA (Los Angeles) world tag team titles w/ Hard Boiled Haggerty defeating Ramon and Alberto Torres (July 30, 1964);
- WWA (Los Angeles) world tag team titles w/ Hard Boiled Haggerty defeating Mr. Moto and Freddie Blassie (November 3, 1964);
- AWA (San Francisco) world tag team titles w/ Billy Red Lyons defeating Dan Manoukian and Ray Stevens (March 27, 1965);
- AJPW (All Japan) All Asia tag team titles w/ Billy Red Lyons defeating Toyonbori and Giant Baba (June 3, 1965);
- NWA (Texas) world tag team titles w/ Golden Terror defeating Kanji Inoki and Duke Keomuka (Febuary 8, 1966);
- AWA world heavyweight title defeating Vern Gagne (August 17, 1968);
- NWA (Hawaii) North American heavyweight title defeating Pedro Morales (September 31, 1970);
- NWA (Hawaii) United States heavyweight title defeating Peter Maivia (December 1970);
- PWF (Japan) United States heavyweight title defeating Abdullah the Butcher (December 3, 1975);
- PWF (Japan) United States heavyweight title defeating Abdullah the Butcher (October 28, 1976);
- PWF (Japan) United States heavyweight title defeating Mil Mascaras (September 11, 1978);
- (Montreal) International heavyweight title defeating Billy Robinson (January 10, 1983);
Career History
In The Beginning:
- Dick Beyer played varsity football at Syracuse University during the 1950, 1951 and 1952 seasons.
- ~~~He was a member of the squad that played in the 1953 Orange Bowl.
- ~~~He also was on the Syracuse University wrestling team.
Getting into the Business:
- Dick Beyer began his career unmasked and later donned two separate masks.
- Dick Beyer began as a “babyface” wrestler in the mid-1950s.
The Destroyer: Mr. X:
- July 1962 – The Destroyer defeated Freddie Blassie to win the World Wrestling Association (WWA) championship.
- The Destroyer defended the WWA title for 10 months including some great matches against Giant Baba at the sold-out Olympic Auditorium in LA.
- The Destroyer continued to wrestle legends during his run with the WWA – Dick the Bruiser, “Cowboy” Bob Ellis, and Pedro Morales to name a few.
- In June 1964, Beyer returned to Los Angeles and beat Dick “The Bruiser” for another WWA title. Beyer lost the title to Bob Ellis in September, won it back in November, and then lost it for the last time in March 1965 to Pedro Morales.
- Between 1966 and 1972, Dick Beyer wrestled as masked man Doctor X while in Minneapolis working for the AWA, although you were still known as “The Destroyer” elsewhere.
- The Destroyer wrestled as “Dr. X’ in the Midwest because Verne Gagne wanted to keep the top spot in the territory.
- August 17, 1968 – AWA: Dick Beyer (wrestling as Dr.X) defeated Verne Gagne for the AWA world heavyweight title.
- August 14, 1970 – AWA Comiskey Park: Paul Diamond defeated Dr. X (Dick Beyer).
- January 12, 1983 – International Wrestling: Billy Robinson defeated The Destroyer by count-out to win the heavyweight title.
- January 23, 1983 – MLW: Bobby Bass & The Destroyer defeated Rudy Kay & Terry Kay.
- February 14, 1983 – International Wrestling: Edouard Carpentier, The Destroyer & Tony Parisi defeated Gilles Poisson, Mr. Hito & The Hangman.
- February 20, 1983 – MLW: The Destroyer defeated Terry Kay.
- February 25, 1983 – International Wrestling: The Destroyer defeated Dan Ferris.
- March 7, 1983 – International Wrestling: Gino Brito, Louis Laurence & The Destroyer defeated Mr. Hito, Sailor White & Tito Senza.
- March 27, 1983 – MLW: The Destroyer defeated Nick DeCarlo.
- November 13, 1983 – MLW: Angelo Mosca & Jimmy Valiant defeated Leo Burke & The Destroyer. Kurt von Hess & The Destroyer defeated Billy Red Lyons & Johnny Weaver.
- November 20, 1983 – MLW: Billy Red Lyons defeated The Destroyer.
- December 4, 1983 – MLW: The Destroyer defeated Joe Marcus.
- March 12, 1984 – International Wrestling: Jerry Blackwell & Ken Patera defeated Leo Burke & The Destroyer to retain the tag team titles.
- April 1, 1984 – MLW: The Destroyer defeated Goldie Rogers.
- April 9, 1984 – International Wrestling: Nick Bockwinkel defeated The Destroyer.
- Dick Beyer wrestled many matchs for All Japan Pro Wrestling from 1982-1993 as The Destroyer.
- Marc 7, 2019: Dick Beyer has passed away at the age of 88.
The Destroyer:The Destroyer in Japan:
- The Destroyer was the first North American to “get over” in Japan.
- The Destroyer feuded with Rikidozan in the most significant series of matches in Japanese history.
- The Destroyer holds the distinction of holding the last singles victory over Rikidozan.
The Destroyer in Canada:
- The Destroyer left Japan in 1979 and then wrestled in Toronto and Montreal. His opponents there read like a Hall of Fame membership – Terry and Dory Funk, Andre the Giant, Bob Backlund, Nick Bockwinkel, Mad Dog Vachon, to name a few.
- Dick Beyer paved the way for other American wrestlers to play their trade in Japan.
Cauliflower Alley Club:
- Winner of the Iron Mike Mazurki award in 1996.
- Dick Beyer serves on the Board of Directors of the Cauliflower Alley Club.
- 2010 – Dick Beyer inducted Gorgeous George into the WWE Hall of Fame.
Greg Kelly wrote: I found a bit online about Dick Beyer and Mark Lewin’s bad blood which resulted in The Destroyer’s tour here (Australia) being cancelled by Barnett and Doyle, Lewin’d dislike of Beyer went back to 67 in LA when Beyer wouldn’t job for the WWA champion Lewin, Beyer told Verne Gagne that he was planning a world tour but had a hole in his schedule from Jan to March 71 so Gagne said that Barnett had been bugging him for talent for ages so Gagne rang Barnett in front of Beyer and offered Barnett the choice of either Destroyer or Dr X and that Beyer would work for $650 a week, Barnett said that he’d like the Destroyer but when Beyer was working in Samoa he rang Australia and found out out that it had been cancelled, he found out that Lewin who was a big star here went to Barnett and had it cancelled, he’d told Barnett that it was him or Beyer, Lewin was doing big business here so Beyer was cancelled, Dick went to New Zealand for Steve Rickard instead initially as himself and then as Destroyer and did sell out business there so then Barnett wanted him again but Dick said no he’d had his chance, Beyer did an interview at the office of a New Zealand newspaper as himself and then returned a week later with the mask on and nobody at the newspaper recognised that it was the same guy. (I went looking for that article where I found the info about their heat and it was by Steve Yohe, he’d be better off with the credit than me.)
BottomlessJack wrote: ..One of The Destroyer’s last runs was in April-June of 1984 with Bill Watts’ Mid-South Wrestling. The Destroyer came in to actually groom a man he had trained and converted from collegiate wrestling to the pro’s in Mark Ragin. In order to get Ragin a spot with Mid South and really teach him the ways of the ring, Destroyer came in and worked the horn with Mark for a month or two, usually leading to draws IIRC. The most noteworthy thing about this run was The Destroyer actually wore a yellow “Assassin’s” mask and was called The Shadow! He had televised matches with both Magnum TA and Terry Taylor, both matches were competitive but short with the faces grabbing the wins. Hope this helped.