Richard Ellinger (born September 27, 1970), better known by his ring name Meatball, is an American professional wrestler who is signed to Micro Championship Wrestling.
| Meatball | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Richard Ellinger |
| Born | September 27, 1970[1][2][3] River Grove, Cook County, Illinois, United States |
| Website | www |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | The Giant Midget[1] The World's Monster Midget[1] Meatball |
| Billed height | 4 ft 6 in (1.37 m)[4][5][6] |
| Billed weight | 292 lb (132 kg)[4][5] |
| Billed from | Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, United States[1][2][3] |
| Trained by | Nate Webb[1][2][3] Pat Tanaka[4] |
| Debut | 2001[1][2][3] |
Early life
editEllinger was born in River Grove, Illinois, United States.[2] His father, Richard Ellinger (1938-2020),[7] was of German descent, and his mother, Frances Schmidt (1942–2009), was of German-Italian descent. He has an elder sister, Valerie Caso (née Ellinger; born 1966), and two elder step-brothers, Thomas and Bill Morton, from his mother's second marriage to Earl Morton.[8]
Ellinger's mother and sister worked in the administrative side of a food chain, while his father worked in a lumber yard. Both his father and sister are two inches shorter than he is.[9]
Ellinger attended River Grove Rhodes Elementary School until 1985 and East Leyden High School until 1989.[10] After he left school, he traveled through the United States, Europe and Japan, which led to him taking a job as a cargo handler for a local airline from 1990 until 2009.[9]
Professional wrestling career
editEllinger is 4 feet 6 inches tall, billed at weighing 292 lbs[4][5] and adopts a brawler wrestling style.[2]
In 2001, Ellinger received basic wrestling training from Nate Webb, made his ring debut[1][3] and thereafter wrestled part-time on federations including National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), Independent Wrestling Revolution (IWR) and World Wrestling All-Stars (WWA).[11] In August 2009, he joined Micro Championship Wrestling (MCW) and subsequently received training from Pat Tanaka.[4][5]
In May 2013, Ellinger returned full-time to his previous job as a cargo handler in between doing wrestling shows for MCW.[12][13]
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | NWA: Total Nonstop Action | Meatball | 1 episode: "#1.5" |
| 2004 | MWF: Midgets Invade Sturgis | Himself | |
| 2011 | Hulk Hogan's Micro Championship Wrestling | 2 episodes: "Johnny on the Spot", "Half the Size Twice the Violence" | |
| Full Throttle Saloon | 1 episode: "#3.4" |
Championships and accomplishments
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f g "Meatball". Wrestlingdata.com. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Meatball". Cagematch. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ a b c d e "Meatball". Obsessed With Wrestling. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ a b c d e Fields, Eugene W. (November 27, 2010). "Midget wrestlers prove size doesn't matter". California: Orange County Register. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ a b c d Moye, David (September 20, 2011). "Dwarf Wrestling Troupe 'Half-Pint Brawlers' Criticizes 'Hulk Hogan's Micro Wrestling Championship Wrestling' (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ a b "Superstars". Micro Championship Wrestling. Retrieved June 30, 2014. Meatball
- ^ "Richard Ellinger Obituary (2020) | Chicago, IL".
- ^ "Life Legacy". Springer Funeral Home. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ a b "Meatball (MCW)". Pop Tower. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ "Rich Ellinger Class of 1989". Classmates.com. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ "Meatball". Wrestlingdata.com. Retrieved June 30, 2014. Matches
- ^ Jones, Jack E. (September 20, 2011). "Interview Recap: Meatball From Micro Championship Wrestling". AgryMarks.com. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
- ^ "In Your Head Wrestling Radio - Hulk Hogan's MCW's Meatball". gpodder.net. September 15, 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
