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If you're of a certain age as a native Portlander — 40s or older — you remember there was a time when Saturday night TV in town meant "Portland Wrestling" on KPTV — a wonderfully shlocky, incredibly entertaining cast of pro wrestling characters (including Jesse "The Body" Ventura) who plied their trade at the Sports Arena.
What sets me down this path of nostalgia this morning are news reports that one of the main characters from that era in the 70s and 80s, "Playboy" Buddy Rose, was found dead in Vancouver.more
Rose, whose real name was Paul Perschmann, went on to the national stage as pro wrestling blew up on network TV in the mid-1980s.
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But my recollections of Rose in the national venue as a medium fish in a big pond are always trumped by his days in Portland as the star heel in town. He — and his blonde locks, big belly and mastery of the sneaky moves — will be missed.
WWeek 2015