Sgt. Slaughter

Robert Remus
Robert Remus
	File:Sgtslaughter.jpg
Born	August 27, 1948
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Sgt. Slaughter; Super Destroyer Mark II; Matt Burns; Bob Remus; Bob Slaughter
Billed height	6 ft 3.5 in (192 cm)
Billed weight	310 lb (141 kg)
Trained by	Verne Gagne
Debut	1972

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

Robert Remus (born on August 27, 1948) is an American WWE employee, and semi-retired professional wrestler better known by the ring name Sgt. Slaughter. From the late 1970s to the early 1990s, Slaughter enjoyed success in the National Wrestling Alliance, American Wrestling Association, and World Wrestling Federation. He is currently working for WWE as a road agent on its RAW brand.

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.

WWF: The First Stint (1980-1984)

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. On Vince McMahon's DVD, Slaughter said he was fired by Vince McMahon in Toronto after no-showing an event in protest of McMahon's refusal to give him six weeks of paid vacation.

AWA: The First Stint (1985-1986)

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 Sheik 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.

AWA: The Second Stint (1988-1990)

In 1988, Slaughter returned to wrestling in the AWA, resuming some of his past feuds with the likes of Sheik 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.

WWF: The Second Stint (1990-2001)

However, in the summer of 1990, after leaving the AWA for the 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 captured his only WWF Championship at the 1991 Royal Rumble, defeating The Ultimate Warrior when "Macho Man" Randy Savage interfered, and thus became the thirteenth WWF Champion, but lost the belt in a bloody match against Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania VII. Slaughter would go on to feud with Hogan for months, including having a three-on-two handicap match at SummerSlam 1991. Which saw the team of Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior victorious over Slaughter's Corps. (Slaughter, Gen. Adnan & Col. Mustafa).

After finishing the Hogan feud, Slaughter became a face again, appearing in vignettes next to American landmarks, saying "I want my country back." During an episode of WWF Superstars, "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan was under attack from The Nasty Boys, and Slaughter made the save. Duggan and Slaughter teamed up to defeat the Nastys, and were such a popular team, that they continued to team over the next several months.

After a hiatus, he returned to WWF television circa 1997 to assume the role of on air commissioner. Initially popular, he eventually became the target of D-Generation X, who called him "Sgt. Slobber". Slaughter would challenge, and lose, a Boot Camp Match against Triple H. Shortly after this, Slaughter would disappear from television without an explanation. The position of commissioner would be passed on much later to Mick Foley and Shawn Michaels.

Slaughter would still appear time to time in the ring, mostly at house shows. However, he would appear on Raw to put over young wrestlers, such as Kurt Angle.

Sarge made an appearance at WrestleMania X-Seven, in the Gimmick Battle Royal. He was the last man eliminated by the winner, The Iron Sheik. Slaughter got his revenge after the match by locking the Sheik in the Cobra Clutch.

WWE Hall of Fame

Sgt. Slaughter was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on March 13, 2004, the night before WrestleMania XX by long-time friend Pat Patterson.

Part-time WWE (2005-present)

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 recently appeared on the July 14, 2006 episode of Smackdown! for a "Diva Boot Camp" segment, as a part of the 2006 Diva Search Competition. [1]

He also appeared on the October 2 edition of RAW, defeating Nicky from the Spirit Squad with a roll-up when D-Generation X distracted him from up on the Titantron.

Slaughter appeared on the October 23 Monday Night Raw. He was in the corner of Ric Flair as he faced Kenny of the Spirit Squad. After Kenny cheated to gain the victory, Slaughter, Dusty Rhodes, and Roddy Piper cleared the tag champions from the ring. Slaughter was one of three options between himself, Roddy Piper and Dusty Rhodes that fans could vote for as a tag partner for Ric Flair at Cyber Sunday. This was a match Piper and Flair won claiming the World Tag Team Titles from the Spirit Squad.

At Survivor Series 2006, on November 26, Sgt. Slaughter teamed with Ric Flair, Ron Simmons, and Dusty Rhodes to take on 4 members of the Spirit Squad in a Survivor Series Match. Slaughter as eliminated in the match, however, his team won with the sole survivor, Ric Flair. On December 18, 2006, Sgt. Slaughter participated in a 30-Man Battle Royal for a chance to face John Cena in the main-event for the WWE Championship. Sgt Slaughter was eliminated from the Battle Royal and did not get the WWE Championship match.

Commercial Success

Sgt. Slaughter was also part of the G.I. Joe cartoon and comic book, as a member of the G.I. Joe team and first appeared in the TV episode entitled "Arise, Serpentor, Arise!" 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 G.I. Joe: 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 "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 puke-hole and listen up!!"
"...and that's an order!"
"Atten-HUT!"
"Yo Joe!"
"At ease..."
"The price of freedom is eternal vigilance." (Attributed to Thomas Jefferson [2])
"MAGGOTS!"

Personal life

Remus was first married to Ann Miller since October 29, 1970 and later had three children together. They divorced on March 15, 1996. Remus would later get married to Jamie Braxton on February 17, 1999, but later filed for divorce.

Previous Managers

Trivia

At the December 7, 1997 Pay Per View, DeGeneration X he came to the ring using the theme music made popular by Kurt Angle a year and a half before Angle was signed with the Federation (This music had previously been used by The Patriot).
Slaughter has appeared in celebrity golf tournaments.
Slaughter is often confused with former NFL head coach Bill Cowher.