Les Thornton
Encyclopedia
Les Thornton is a retired British professional wrestler who competed in European and North American regional promotions throughout the 1970s and 1980s including Stampede Wrestling
, the World Wrestling Federation
and the National Wrestling Alliance
. During his career, he was considered one of the best junior heavyweights in the world at one time simultaneously holding both the WWF and NWA World Junior Heavyweight titles, and would later hold NWA title five times. In the "Hogan Era" of the WWF, Thornton was used as a jobber.
Thornton is slated to appear in a documentary about the life of fellow Briton Chris Adams in The Gentleman's Choice, where he is famous for mentioning that some of his friends who left England to compete in the United States came home in a box (Adams and Davey Boy Smith), in a wheelchair (Tom Billington, aka The Dynamite Kid) or as drug addicts (all three aforementioned wrestlers).
1Records are unclear as to where Thorton was when he received the title for the first time nor is it known as to which NWA affiliated promotion he was wrestling for at the time.
Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling is a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta and was for nearly 50 years one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies...
, the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
and the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
. During his career, he was considered one of the best junior heavyweights in the world at one time simultaneously holding both the WWF and NWA World Junior Heavyweight titles, and would later hold NWA title five times. In the "Hogan Era" of the WWF, Thornton was used as a jobber.
Thornton is slated to appear in a documentary about the life of fellow Briton Chris Adams in The Gentleman's Choice, where he is famous for mentioning that some of his friends who left England to compete in the United States came home in a box (Adams and Davey Boy Smith), in a wheelchair (Tom Billington, aka The Dynamite Kid) or as drug addicts (all three aforementioned wrestlers).
Championships and accomplishments
- Championship Wrestling from Florida
- NWA Florida Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA Florida Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA Florida Junior Heavyweight Championship was a the top title for lighter wrestlers in the National Wrestling Alliance's Florida territory, Championship Wrestling from Florida. The title itself began in 1942, seven years before CWF was founded...
(1 time)
- Georgia Championship WrestlingGeorgia Championship WrestlingGeorgia Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion whose self-titled TV program aired in the 1970s and 1980s on Atlanta, U.S., superstation WTBS. Though based in Atlanta, the company also ran live wrestling shows throughout its geographic "territory" of Georgia Georgia...
- NWA Georgia Tag Team ChampionshipNWA Georgia Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship was the top tag team championship in Georgia Championship Wrestling from 1968 to 1980, when it was replaced with the NWA National Tag Team Championship....
(1 time) - with Tony Charles
- Mid-Atlantic Championship WrestlingJim Crockett PromotionsJim Crockett Promotions was a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett, Jr. until the late 1980s. It was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and was the forerunner to World Championship Wrestling .-Early history:...
- NWA World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world championship and secondary title in the National Wrestling Alliance that was for the lighter wrestlers. It started in 1945 and still exists today. The title was unified with the National Boxing/Wrestling Association's...
(1 time)
- Middle Atlantic States Wrestling
- MASW National Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- National Wrestling AllianceNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world championship and secondary title in the National Wrestling Alliance that was for the lighter wrestlers. It started in 1945 and still exists today. The title was unified with the National Boxing/Wrestling Association's...
(1 time)1
- NWA Big Time WrestlingWorld Class Championship WrestlingWorld Class Championship Wrestling ' was a regional professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich...
- NWA Texas Tag Team ChampionshipWCWA Texas Tag Team ChampionshipThe WCWA Texas Tag Team Championship was the secondary tag team championship in World Class Championship Wrestling, originally known as the NWA Texas Tag-Team title until 1981 where they were abandoned. The titles were brought back in 1987 as the WCWA Texas Tag-Team titles but once the WCWA joined...
(1 time) - with Tony Charles
- NWA Hollywood WrestlingNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA Americas Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA Americas Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship was the top singles championship in the National Wrestling Alliance's Los Angeles territory, known officially as NWA Hollywood Wrestling, from 1968 until the promotion closed in 1982. The title was first established in 1967 as a secondary championship in...
(1 time)
- NWA Mid-AmericaNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world championship and secondary title in the National Wrestling Alliance that was for the lighter wrestlers. It started in 1945 and still exists today. The title was unified with the National Boxing/Wrestling Association's...
(1 time)
- NWA New ZealandNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA British Empire Commonwealth Heavyweight Championship (New Zealand version)NWA British Empire/Commonwealth Championship (New Zealand version)The New Zealand version of the NWA British Empire/Commonwealth Championship was a professional wrestling heavyweight championship defended in the National Wrestling Alliance-affiliated Dominion Wrestling Union from 1929 to 1953 and in All Star Pro Wrestling from 1968 to 1990...
(1 time)
- Pacific Northwest WrestlingPacific Northwest WrestlingPacific Northwest Wrestling is the common name used to refer to several different professional wrestling companies, both past and present, based in Portland, Oregon, United States. The first such company was founded by Herb Owen in 1925...
- NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team ChampionshipNWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S...
(1 time) - with Moondog Mayne
- Southeastern Championship WrestlingContinental Championship WrestlingContinental Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion based out of Knoxville, Tennessee from 1974 until 1988 and Dothan, Alabama from 1978 to 1990, managed by Ron Fuller. When Fuller sold the promotion to David Woods, it changed name to the Continental Wrestling Federation...
- NWA World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world championship and secondary title in the National Wrestling Alliance that was for the lighter wrestlers. It started in 1945 and still exists today. The title was unified with the National Boxing/Wrestling Association's...
(1 time)
- Stampede WrestlingStampede WrestlingStampede Wrestling is a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta and was for nearly 50 years one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies...
- Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight ChampionshipStampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight ChampionshipThe Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title for lighter wrestlers in the Canadian promotion, Stampede Wrestling. It has existed since 1978.-Title history:...
(1 time) - Stampede North American Heavyweight ChampionshipStampede North American Heavyweight ChampionshipThe Stampede North American Heavyweight Championship is the major title in the Canadian professional wrestling promotion Stampede Wrestling. From its establishment in 1968 until 1972, it was Stampede's secondary singles championship, becoming the top title in 1972 after the previous top...
(2 times) - Stampede Wrestling Hall of Fame
- World Wrestling CouncilWorld Wrestling CouncilThe World Wrestling Council is one of Puerto Rico's two main professional wrestling promotions, the other one being the International Wrestling Association....
- WWC World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipWWC World Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipThe WWC World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a secondary championship contested for in the Puerto Rican professional wrestling promotion, the World Wrestling Council. For a time, the title was defended in the Wrestling International New Generations promotion in Japan as the W*ING/WWC World...
(2 time)
- Pro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...
- PWI ranked him # 320 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2003
1Records are unclear as to where Thorton was when he received the title for the first time nor is it known as to which NWA affiliated promotion he was wrestling for at the time.
Further reading
- Foley, MickMick FoleyMichael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
. Have A Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1999. ISBN 0-06-103101-1 - Funk, TerryTerry FunkTerrence "Terry" Funk is an American professional wrestler and actor known chiefly for the hardcore wrestling style he adopted in the latter part of his career that inspired many younger wrestlers, including Mick Foley...
and Scott E. Williams. Terry Funk: The Hardcore Legend. Champaigne, Illinois: Sports Publishing LLC, 2005. ISBN 1-58261-991-3 - Johnson, Weldon T. and Jim WilsonJim Wilson (wrestling)James Milligan Wilson was a former professional American football offensive lineman and a professional wrestler who is most noted for his attempts at starting a labor union for wrestlers...
. Chokehold: Pro Wrestling's Real Mayhem Outside the Ring. Philadelphia: Xlibris Corporation, 2003. ISBN 1-4010-7217-8 - McCoy, Heath. Pain and Passion: The History of Stampede Wrestling. Toronto: CanWest Books, 2005. ISBN 0-9736719-8-X
External links
- SLAM! Wrestling - Les Thornton: A life on the road by Greg Oliver
- SLAM! Wrestling: Les Thornton - What you DIDN'T know! by Terry TaylorTerry TaylorTerry Taylor , is an American retired professional wrestler best known for his time in the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation...
- The Way It Was - Les Thornton by Percival A. Friend
- Championship Wrestling from Florida: Les Thornton
- Profile at OWW