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http://www.chronicle-tribune.com/news/stories/20040207/localnews/370686.html

The legend lives on

Wrestling greats like Koko B. Ware never die, they just move on to
independent promotions

If you go: 

Extreme Wrestling Federation, 3400 S. Adams St., welcomes former WWF
star Koko B. Ware Saturday on Feb. 21. Showtime is 7 p.m. Doors open
at 6 p.m. Tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for kids in advance; $10
for adults and $8 for kids at the door. For more information, call
677-1227, or go to www.ewfarena.com.
 
He's got a bit of a paunch now, and his beloved mascot, Frankie, is
dead.

But "The Birdman" Koko B. Ware still wrestles every weekend in his
hometown of Memphis. And when he wrestles before a Marion crowd Feb.
21, he'll have either a macaw or a cockatoo on his shoulder.

Extreme Wrestling Federation owner Jayson Maples plans to borrow a
bird from Picture Perfect Pets, 2233 Westwood Square, to make Ware's
visit just like the old days.

For nearly a decade starting in the mid-1980s, Ware strutted into
World Wrestling Federation rings with Frankie on his shoulder, often
flapping his arms to the song, The Bird, by Morris Day and The Time.

Frankie, a 15-year-old macaw, died two years ago in a fire at Ware's
Memphis home. The bird hasn't been replaced.

"It was a disaster," Ware, 46, said in a recent telephone interview.
He was at church with his wife, Joyce, and three children, ages 16, 7
and 7, when the fire started.

"There were some neighbors I never met before. He kicked the back door
in. He said, 'Mr. Koko, I tried to save your child. Your child was
hollering,'" Ware said. "Frankie was locked in his cage. He could say,
'Let me out. Let me out.' This man thought it was one of my biological
children that was in the fire. It was my bird. It was like a child."

No one else was injured in the fire, but Ware's house was destroyed. 

Maples, who brings former WWF stars to Marion a couple times a year,
hopes Ware -- with a substitute Frankie -- will attract an
enthusiastic crowd. More than 300 fans showed up to watch Jake "The
Snake" Roberts perform here 2 1/2 years ago.

"I borrowed an 18-foot python from Picture Perfect Pets for that
show," said Maples, who operated the EWF from a storefront in Raintree
Plaza at the time. "There were people in the aisles."

Other stars who have appeared in EWF matches over the past several
years include Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, the Bushwhackers,
"Bam-Bam"
Bigelow, The Honky Tonk Man, and Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka.

"We've had just about everybody who's anybody," Maples said, adding
that he's tried to bring current WWE stars to town, but can't afford
to pay them. "Macho Man" Randy Savage wanted $10,000 to perform,
Maples said. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin charges closer to $30,000, he
said.

Ware will earn $200 for his performance here, plus airfare and hotel,
Maples said. The owner of a painting business in Memphis, he doesn't
rely upon wrestling to support his family anymore.

"It's kind of like a hobby," said Ware, who has arthritis in his knee,
and is "kind of just a little bit overweight" because he doesn't go to
the gym as much as he used to.

He wrestled his last WWF match in 1994, but continues to wrestle in
the independent circuit, including weekly bouts with Memphis Wrestling
and Blues.

"Maybe, I have a little gut on me," he said. "I'm not the wrestler I
used to be because I don't do it every day. We're getting older, too.
I can't do it like I did back in the '80s. None of us can. You cannot
take a slam, a suplex, out on the floor. You can't let nobody hit you
with a 2-by-4 as hard as they can and not have any effects."

Ware remains a legend of sorts, even though he's past his prime. He
appears in Playstation 2's Legends of Wrestling video game. And, he
remains well-known among die-hard wrestling fans.

"He's a big star," said Karen McBride, 41, Marion, who hasn't missed a
Saturday night EWF show in more than five years. "Oh, he has a bird,
too."

Feb. 21, The Birdman will face current EWF champion Anarchy, a.k.a.
Justin Crader, Van Buren. At 19, Crader is less than half Ware's age.
He practiced being on the receiving end of a birdbuster recently
during training at the south Marion arena. That's The Birdman's
signature finishing move.

"It's kind of like a suplex, but instead of me taking the guy straight
back, I just bring him straight down on his head," said Ware, who
learned the move in the late 1970s from wrestler Dick Murdock. It was
called a brainbuster then. Ware sometimes called it a ghostbuster when
he performed in the WWF because "it's such a scary move."

Ware doesn't think he'll use the birdbuster when he wrestles in
Marion. It's a dangerous stunt better suited for a larger crowd.

He'd give anything to appear one more time on national television,
performing with the WWE.

"I miss all of that," he said. "Most of all, I miss performing in
front of my little birds. That's what I call the little kids.
Hopefully, one day I will be able to be on Monday night Raw one more
time. That's my dream. I would just love to walk down the aisle and
just wave my hand to the fans all across the world -- let them know
I'm still alive."


--- Internet Rex 2.29