What was the story behind the murder of Bruiser Brody?
Thanks to Emerson Murray’s excellent biography of Brody, we now know that World Wrestling Council co-owner/booker Jose Gonzales’ horrific act was, from all appearances, the result of a twelve-year grudge that, for unknown reasons, ultimately came to a head in a Bayamon, Puerto Rico locker room. Gonzales’ anger toward Brody, according to Tony Atlas, stemmed from a match that took place when both men worked for the World Wide Wrestling Federation (now WWE). In this bout at Long Island’s Nassau Coliseum (Graham Cawthon’s History of WWE site lists the date as July 24, 1976), Atlas says Brody gave then-midcard worker Gonzales a furious and relentless beating, allowing him no offense whatsoever, and “almost tore his lip off.” Atlas and S.D. “Special Delivery” Jones, upon finding a battered, bloody and enraged Gonzales yelling out his open car window and driving in circles around the Coliseum parking lot later that night, urged him to get medical attention. In the book, Atlas chillingly recal
