Max Gerald Crabtree (1933 – 2 April 2023) was an English professional wrestler and promoter, known for working alongside his brother Shirley Crabtree, better known as Big Daddy.[1]
| Max Crabtree | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Max Gerald Crabtree |
| Born | 1933 Halifax, West Riding of Yorkshire, England |
| Died | (aged 90) |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Retired | 1994 |
Career
editCrabtree got into wrestling after completing his National Service along with his brothers Shirley and Brian.[2] After an injury in a match to Brian and Shirley retiring, Crabtree moved into booking. Initially he booked independently for 20th Century Promotions. He was due to join Jackie Pallo and Johnny Dale to set up a rival wrestling organisation to Joint Promotions. However, Dale died and Crabtree was headhunted to join Joint Promotions as he was the most experienced booker in the UK at the time.[3]
During the 1970s, Max was appointed Northern area booker with Joint Promotions, where he is credited with bringing Shirley out of retirement and inventing the Big Daddy persona and gimmick for his brother.[4] Crabtree helped to promote a number of wrestlers including Dynamite Kid, Davey Boy Smith (as Young David), William Regal (as Roy Regal) and George Kidd.[5][6][7] He spent forty years as a wrestling promoter.[8] Crabtree worked on bringing in foreign talent to wrestle in the UK, such as Sammy Lee (who later wrestled as Tiger Mask) after a recommendation from Karl Gotch.[2] He was highly regarded in the British wrestling industry for his booking skills.[9]
Crabtree came under criticism for building Joint Promotions around Big Daddy, leading to allegations of nepotism.[10] He offered £30 fight purses for main events with Big Daddy as opposed to £25 for all other bouts.[citation needed] This came to light following the death of King Kong Kirk in the ring after a match with Big Daddy (though the subsequent autopsy found for a death from natural causes and cleared the Crabtrees of any wrongdoing).[11] Former WWF and WCW champion Bret Hart wrote in his autobiography that Max would "wave a few extra quid in a wrestler's face" to entice them to take Daddy's "double elbow" backdrop move.[12] ITV removed wrestling from television in 1988. Crabtree criticised American wrestling such as the World Wrestling Federation calling it "over the top and a load of ballyhoo".[8]
Crabtree continued to promote wrestling under the banner Ring Wrestling Stars from 1991 until his retirement in February 1995. Big Daddy continued to headline his shows until his own retirement in December 1993, thereafter Max Crabtree employed Davey Boy Smith in a similar headline role for several months in 1994.
Personal life and death
editAs well as Shirley Crabtree, Max was also the brother of referee and MC Brian Crabtree. in the 1960s, Max and Brian were themselves wrestlers in the middleweight and lightweight divisions respectively. His nephew Eorl Crabtree is a retired professional rugby league player.[8]
Crabtree died 2 April 2023, at the age of 90.[13]
References
edit- ^ "British Wrestlers Reunion". British Wrestlers Reunion. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- ^ a b Garfield, Simon (2013). "5". The Wrestling. Faber and Faber. ISBN 978-0571265459.
- ^ Lister, John (2005). Slamthology: Collected Wrestling Writings 1991-2004. William Wood & Company. pp. 228–229. ISBN 9781905290109.
- ^ "Big Daddy". Sydney Morning Herald. 6 December 1997. Retrieved 19 December 2020 – via Newspapers.com.(subscription required)
- ^ "WWE Legend Dynamite Kid, Thomas Billington, Dies on His 60th Birthday". Movieweb. 5 December 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- ^ "Calls for iconic Dundee wrestler George Kidd to be immortalised in bronze". Evening Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- ^ WWE (2020). WWE Encyclopedia of Sports Entertainment (4th ed.). Dorling Kindersley. p. 182. ISBN 978-0241488065.
- ^ a b c "Wrestling hits Huddersfield but it's not as we remember it". Yorkshire Live. 12 July 2013. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- ^ Meltzer, Dave. "Wrestling Observer Newsletter" (July 2004 ed.). p. 16. ISSN 1083-9593.
{{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires|magazine=(help) - ^ "The Field and the Stage" (PDF). University of Sussex. p. 186. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- ^ "Northern Powerhouse". Wrestling Heritage. 24 August 1987. Archived from the original on 29 August 2016. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
- ^ Hart, Bret (2009). Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling. Random House. p. 118. ISBN 978-1-4070-2931-3.
- ^ "The Legendary British Promoter Max Crabtree Passes Away". WrestlingNewsSource. 3 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.