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This article is about the wrestler Robert Remus. For the G.I. Joe character (based on Remus), see Sgt. Slaughter (G.I. Joe).

Sgt. Slaughter (real name Robert Remus) (born August 27, 1948) is an American professional wrestler. From the late 1970's to the early 1990's, Slaughter enjoyed success in the NWA, World Wrestling Federation, and AWA.

Wrestling Career

Slaughter held numerous regional titles early in his career and would experience his first major success in the NWA capturing the NWA World Tag Team Champion with Don Kernodle.

Then he would sign with the WWF and originally be pushed as a heel. He was a top contender to Bob Backlund's WWF Championship, and engaged in a classic feud with Pat Patterson, culminating in a famous "Alley Fight" in New York's Madison Square Garden between the two which would go down as one of the most violent and innovative matches of its time. But his career would truly take off after he defended America's honor against the hated Iron Sheik in 1984. As a result, Slaughter would go on to become one of the most popular and recognized stars in wrestling. However, with the emergence of Hulk Hogan as the WWF Champion and lead face within the company, Slaughter would leave for the AWA.

He would receive a considerable push in the AWA throughout 1985 and 1986, becoming the AWA America's Heavyweight Champion, defeating Larry Zbyszko, shortly after his arrival. He would go on to defend the title against wrestlers like Zbyszko, Kamala, Boris Zukhov, and Nick Bockwinkel (before the belt was inactivated) and feud with Shiek Adnan Al-Kaissey and his stable of wrestlers, the Road Warriors, and Col. DeBeers. He would even challenge Stan Hansen for the AWA title.

In 1987, Slaughter was less active in the ring, having signed a contract with Hasbro to do voice overs for his self-titled character in the popular cartoon series G.I. Joe. His character also became a part of the Hasbro product line.

In 1988, Slaughter returned to wrestling in the AWA, resuming some of his past feuds with the likes of Shiek Adnan Al-Kaissey, the Iron Sheik and Col. DeBeers. He would also become a top contender to the AWA World title during Larry Zbyszko's reign in 1989 and was a team captain for the AWA's ill-fated Team Challenge Series during the first half of 1990.

However, in the summer of 1990, after leaving the AWA for the WWE (then WWF), Slaughter's gimmick as that of a patriotic American soldier was turned upside down, when his character temporarily turned against America and became an Iraqi sympathizer. Slaughter's heel persona was one of the most hated in wrestling history, though many people believe the predictability of the storyline heavily contributed to the poor ticket sales of WrestleMania VII.

Slaughter captured the WWF Championship at the 1991 Royal Rumble, defeating The Ultimate Warrior by nefarious means ("Macho King" Randy Savage interfered), but lost the belt in a bloody match against Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania VII. After finishing the Hogan feud, Slaughter became a face again, saying "I want my country back." After a hiatus, he returned to WWF television circa 1997 to assume the role of on air commissioner, this title was handed over to Shawn Michaels near the end of 1998. Slaughter still occasionally wrestles for WWE, but his primary role in the promotion now is that of a road agent.

Sgt. Slaughter was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on March 13, 2004, the night before WrestleMania XX.

He made a special appearance on the October 31, 2005 edition of RAW to challenge Chris Masters in his "Master Lock Challenge". He instead challenged Masters to see if he can break his cobra clutch submission. Before Masters could answer, he took him down and applied the cobra clutch. Masters was able to get to the ropes, but was unable to break the hold. Masters did a low blow which went undetected by the referee. Masters then locked in the Master Lock for the win.

Then he returned again on the December 5, 2005 edition of RAW, where he and Michael Hayes confronted Edge. Edge briefly taunted Slaughter by calling him "Mr. Yo-Joe". Since his retirement Slaughter has put on weight considerably, but has lost quite a few pounds in the last 2 years after gall bladder surgery.

He is expected to appear on the July 14, 2006 episode of Smackdown! for a "Diva Boot Camp" segment, as a part of the 2006 Diva Search Competition. *

Commercial Success

Sgt. Slaughter was also part of the G.I. Joe cartoon, as a member of the G.I. Joe team and first appeared in an episode entitled "Arise, Serpentor, Arise!" and along with the traditional merchandising of WWE superstars, Sgt. Slaughter is one of few real people to be immortalized as a G.I. Joe figure, and even appeared in The Movie. Slaughter also appeared as a special guest on the Super Mario Brothers Super Show.

Recording Career

During the mid-1980s, Sgt. Slaughter released a full length LP, The Cobra Clutch. It featured a number of original songs, including the title song, as well as a cover of Neil Diamond's "Coming to America". Slaughter's friend (presumably the songwriter) did most of the singing; Slaughter's contribution was generally just a few lines in each chorus, as he was not a great singer. The album was not well received, and few copies were sold.

Quotes

  • "Shut your hole puke and listen up!!"
  • "...And that's an order!"
  • "At ease..."
  • "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance." (Attributed to Thomas Jefferson *)
  • "MAGGOTS!"

Previous Managers

Finishing and signature moves

Titles/Accomplishments

Wrestling Observer Newsletter

  • 1981 Match of the Year (vs Pat Patterson)

Extra Links

Preceded by:
The Ultimate Warrior 		WWF Champion Succeeded by:
Hulk Hogan

1948 births | American professional wrestlers | AWA alumni | Living people | People from South Carolina

Robert Remus | Robert Remus

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Sgt. Slaughter".

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