The Cream of the Crop #6 — The Grappler: The Man Behind the Mask

The Cream of the Crop #6 — The Grappler: The Man Behind the MaskSeven-time Northwest Heavyweight Champion. Eleven-time Northwest Tag Team Champion. Main-event wrestler. Masked villain. Booker. Teacher. Troublemaker.The Grappler.For the first time on The Cream of the Crop, one man gets the entire spotlight as host Frank Culbertson tells the story of Len Denton—the wrestler who was repeatedly told he was too small to make it, only to become one of the most important figures in the final era of Portland Wrestling.And this time, The Grappler helps tell the story himself, through archival interview audio recorded with Len Denton.We go back to the beginning: spending nearly everything he had to learn the wrestling business, being given his notice on his very first day in Amarillo, getting advice from Abdullah the Butcher, and eventually finding the identity that changed his career forever—a mask, an orthopedic boot, and the name The Grappler.From there, Denton learned from some of wrestling’s greatest minds, including Bill Watts, Harley Race, Ric Flair and Buck Robley, eventually becoming a booker himself before arriving in Portland in 1987.And Portland Wrestling needed him.The territory was struggling. The old formula was growing stale. The Grappler brought new talent, new ideas and a willingness to push Don Owen in directions Portland Wrestling hadn't traditionally gone.Along the way, he helped develop wrestlers including Art Barr, Brian Adams, Joey Jackson, The Bruise Brothers and Scotty the Body. He helped modernize Portland television alongside Roddy Piper. He helped create angles designed around one fundamental question:What makes people care enough to buy a ticket?Then there are the stories that could only happen in Portland Wrestling.The Grappler bets Don Owen that he can sell out the Portland Sports Arena—and does it, with 600 more fans turned away at the door. Don responds by complaining about the people who couldn't get in.Grappler wants more money. Don refuses. So while Don is paying his telephone bill, Grappler goes to Japan and runs up $1,200 in international collect calls.Don fires him.And replaces him with Roddy Piper.Who promptly asks The Grappler to help him book the territory.And then there’s The Breakfast Club—John Nord, milk, Cheerios, a wrestling ring and an idea Don Owen absolutely did not want happening on his canvas.This is the story of a wrestler who understood the old-school wrestling business while recognizing that Portland had to change. A man who could wrestle, book, teach, create stars, develop angles, sell tickets—and occasionally drive Don Owen completely insane.Because Len Denton's Portland legacy isn't simply about the championships he won.He learned how to become a main-event wrestler.Then he learned something even harder:How to make other people main-event wrestlers.Len Denton — The Grappler.Beat me if you can.The Cream of the Crop is hosted by Frank Culbertson and based on The Encyclopedia of Portland Wrestlers and Excitement in the Air, Volume Three by Portland wrestling historian Mike Rodgers, available on Amazon.New episodes drop every Friday on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.Next week: Two Portland Wrestling stars who eventually climbed all the way to the WWF World Heavyweight Championship—Stan “The Crusher” Stasiak and The Iron Sheik.