Junkyard Dog is often considered the first Black superstar in wrestling. Even so, as
with many wrestlers, there was a lot of tragedy behind his smile. Here are tragic details
about Junkyard Dog's life.
Football is one of the most common athletic backgrounds for wrestlers. Many of wrestling's
biggest stars played college ball and spent some time at the pro level. Back when Junkyard
Dog was just Sylvester Ritter, he was among this fraternity. He was a star offensive lineman
at Anson County High School in North Carolina and continued his success at Fayetteville
State. He then tried to continue his career in the pros.
Junkyard Dog is often listed as a Green Bay Packers draft pick, but that's false on two
counts. First, he was never drafted. The name "Sylvester Ritter" doesn't show up in any
draft, especially not from 1975. Second, the Packers were the second team he was attached
to; he started his pro career with a tryout for the Houston Oilers in the summer of '75.
After not making the Oilers, he returned home and played for the Ohio Valley Panthers of
the Carolina Professional Football League. In April 1976, Ritter was signed as a free
agent by the Green Bay Packers. During an off-season camp, Ritter suffered an injury,
and he was cut before the season started. That injury spelled the end of his football
career. Luckily, he had another career waiting for him that brought him greater renown than
being a lineman ever would.
"I played a little pro football, and one thing led to another."
Junkyard Dog is remembered by most pro wrestling fans as the sport's first Black superstar
- unless they're old enough to remember Bobo Brazil. As is always the case when someone
is the first Black anything in America, this came with a lot of racism pointed his way.
Junkyard Dog's feud with the Fabulous Freebirds may well have gone beyond the normal scope
of feigned wrestling narratives. Wrestling historian David Shoemaker says the lily-white
Michael "P.S." Hayes believed that Black wrestlers didn't need gimmicks because Black was their
gimmick, and was known to freely use the N-word. He often called Junkyard Dog "boy." Heel color
commentator Jesse "The Body" Ventura was particularly vicious. Yes, he was playing a bad guy, but
he also said that Junkyard spoke like he had "a mouthful of grits" and referred to aspects
of his in-ring performance as, quote, "a lot of shuckin' and jivin'."
Kayfabe was still a key part of the business during Junkyard Dog's heyday, which meant
getting involved in some scary situations. Many heels of the era have stories about being
threatened, chased, and attacked by fans — stories they often wear with pride, since having them
means they were doing their job. Since Junkyard largely played a face, little ire was directed
his way, but on at least one occasion, he had to deal with a fervent fan with a weapon.
One of Junkyard's hottest angles was his rivalry with the Fabulous Freebirds. In the most infamous
moment, the Freebirds blinded Junkyard with hair cream, with Junkyard claiming that he'd
never be able to wrestle again or see the face of his newborn daughter. Some fans expressed
sympathy by sending money to the promotion addressed to Junkyard Dog. Others took more
direct action. At some point during this feud, a fan jumped the barricade during a show,
pointed a gun at the Freebirds, and threatened to shoot them. Thankfully, arena security
broke this up before anyone got hurt.
Many wrestlers, especially wrestlers who peaked in the '80s, were heavy drug users. Junkyard
Dog was no different, and his drug of choice was cocaine. Junkyard's drug habits were known
by both his fellow wrestlers and promoter Bill Watts. Even so, few could sell out an
arena like Junkyard Dog.
While WWF/WWE fans likely didn't know about Junkyard Dog's predilections until years later,
the man's drug habits weren't much of a secret among fans in New Orleans. It was a much smaller
community of fans and wrestlers, many of whom were aware of Junkyard Dog's regular visits
to drug dealers.
It's often said that wrestlers who win championships have "reached the mountaintop." It's an apt
metaphor, not just because it's an accomplishment but because there's not much room at the top.
In any given era in any given company, only a handful of people are in the title picture
at any given time. This is especially true in the WWF/WWE, where booking has more to
do with how Vince McMahon is feeling that day than anything else. This was a ceiling
Junkyard Dog faced in New York. He may have drawn crowds to the Superdome in NOLA, but
he was just another guy up north.
Junkyard's four-year run in New York lined up almost exactly with Hulk Hogan's historic
four-year stint as WWF Champion. The Intercontinental Championship scene was made up of technically
sound wrestlers like Randy Savage, Tito Santana, and Ricky Steamboat. Without Vince McMahon's
backing for the World Wrestling Federation Championship or the in-ring skills for other
titles, Junkyard spent his four years as a midcarder. That's not to say he was unpopular,
but the company never allowed him to reach the heights he did in Mid-South.
Junkyard Dog's cocaine use had many nasty side effects, but there was one he couldn't
hide: his weight gain. He used to be known for his great physique, but by the mid-1980s,
he ballooned. Commentators would often try to cover for it, saying that Junkyard Dog
was taking on weight because he was facing off against bulkier opponents like the One
Man Gang.
No amount of commentary, gimmick tweaks, or territory changes could cover this one up,
though. Some wrestling magazines and newsletters took to calling him "Junk Food Dog." It's
hard not to think this contributed to his ceiling in the WWF, where McMahon has always
shown a preference for tall, sculpted men over smaller or even slightly pudgier guys.
Most wrestlers are in their prime at age 35. They're at their physical peak, with enough
experience and respect that they can practically book their own space on the card. Not so Junkyard
Dog. When he was axed from WWF in 1988 as a cost-cutting measure, his time anywhere
near the main event scene anywhere in America was done.
Not long after he was cut, he joined the NWA, which soon became WCW, where he was given
a main event run in 1990. This included an extended feud with Ric Flair that was so poorly
received the Wrestling Observer Newsletter dubbed it the Worst Feud of the Year. Junkyard
would spend the next few years getting cut by WCW and rejoining them, largely due to
his conditioning and low drawing power.
He spent the last few years of his life touring the indie circuit, a shell of his former self,
doing gimmick matches with fellow legacy acts during what should have been his best earning
years. Even so, he was clearly enjoying himself, as an International Wrestling Federation promoter
told the Morning Call:
"He enjoyed it all, the big crowds, [the] small. It didn't make any difference as long
as he was around to sign autographs and take Polaroids with the kids."
He also worked as a repo man to make ends meet.
On June 2, 1998, Junkyard Dog was driving home to Magee, Mississippi, from his daughter's
high school graduation in Wadesboro, North Carolina, when he lost control of his vehicle.
The car rolled over three times and he died in the crash, which occurred near Forest,
Mississippi. It's unknown why or how he lost control, though some reports indicate that
he fell asleep at the wheel.
Promoter Guy Walters told the Morning Call that Ritter specifically asked for graduation
weekend off, saying,
"If that's the last thing in the world I do, I'm not going to miss it."
Grimly prescient words, but at least he lived to see it just like he wanted. Junkyard Dog
was 45 years old at the time of his death, and condolences poured in from the sports
world. He was buried in his native North Carolina.
Junkyard Dog's popularity at his peak isn't just inflation of wrestling lore; it's empirical
fact. Around 1981-1982, New Orleans school children were polled about which local athlete
they'd most like to meet. This was at the tail end of Archie Manning's nearly decade-long
run as Saints quarterback, and LSU scoring legend and New Orleans Jazz guard "Pistol"
Pete Maravich had just retired, but Junkyard still overwhelmingly won the poll. He was
also a proven draw, with at least one estimate showing he drew a million fans to the Downtown
Municipal Auditorium over five years.
Recently, however, Junkyard Dog's name doesn't carry the weight it used to around New Orleans.
Writer Greg Klein, author of The King of New Orleans: How the Junkyard Dog Became Professional
Wrestling's First Black Superhero, explained why to Antigravity Magazine:
"It's wrestling, a form of entertainment that is disdained by the traditional media. It
is also a form of entertainment that has never had much in terms of history, in terms of
celebrating its own history. The WWE owns the likeness rights, so you can't just go
market the Junkyard Dog. They don't do much with their rights either, so nothing is out
there."
Klein has gone so far as to push for a statue of Junkyard Dog in Louis Armstrong Park.
Wrestling fans from the territory days are a dying breed. Junkyard Dog was dead when
the Attitude Era kicked into high gear, so at least two generations of fans never even
saw him wrestle live. Most fans who do remember him still think of him as the guy who sang
"Grab Them Cakes" on the Wrestling Album. At the very least, JYD was posthumously inducted
into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004.
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