TWAT...THE WAR AGAINST TYRANNY...1-800-225-5324...I'M LE-JIT IN BELLEVUE 15202...Text 412-313-3080...A JITNEY FOR LIFE... GET MARTY...WHY HUSSAINI KILLS YINZ...D.A. IS DA MOB...HOW HUSSAINI KILLED YINZ...D.A. HID SCAM...GET BACK...FIGHT TWAT... Stephen Zappala From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Stephen Zappala, Jr. 18th District Attorney of Allegheny County Incumbent Assumed office January 2, 1998 Preceded by Robert Colville Personal details Political party Democratic Spouse(s) Mary Children Four Residence Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania Alma mater University of Pittsburgh Duquesne University School of Law Profession Attorney, politician Stephen A. Zappala Jr. is a Democratic politician and attorney who is the District Attorney of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Zappala is the son of Phyllis Zappala (née Koleno) and Stephen Zappala Sr., a former Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, and grandson of Frank J. Zappala, a now-deceased Pennsylvania attorney, magistrate and legislator.[1] After graduating from Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh, Zappala Jr. began his undergraduate studies at the University of Delaware, where he played linebacker. After a back injury sidelined him, he transferred to the University of Pittsburgh, where he graduated with a degree in political science. He earned his J.D. from the Duquesne University School of Law. Upon graduation from law school, he joined the Pittsburgh law firms of Grogan, Graffam, McGinley & Lucchino and Dattilo, Barry, Fasulo & Cambest as an associate. In 1990, he became a partner at Brucker, Zappala, Schneider & Porter, another Pittsburgh law firm. In 1995, he was named Chairman of the Allegheny County Board of Viewers.[2] In December 1997, then-District Attorney Robert Colville announced he was leaving the position to become judge on the Court of Common Pleas. Zappala was appointed by the Allegheny County's Common Pleas judges with 22 votes. His primary rival for the position, W. Christopher Conrad, received 6 votes.[3] Shortly after his 1998 swearing-in as District Attorney, Zappala fired Conrad, who had been working in the District Attorney's office as lead homicide prosecutor.[4] Zappala defeated Conrad again in the 1999 Democratic primary election for the district attorney position, with 63% of the vote.[5] However, Conrad successfully pursued write-in votes on the Republican ballot, which led to Zappala facing Conrad again in the general election in November 1999. Zappala won handily.[6] In 2004, he became embroiled in a war of words with County Coroner Dr. Cyril Wecht, stemming from an open inquest Wecht pursued. Wecht accused Zappala of "impudence, arrogance, gall of an unmitigated nature, hubris and unsurpassed chutzpah that absolutely defies explanation," and musing, "Who does the district attorney think he is?" [7] When Wecht was later indicted on a variety of charges, a defense attorney blamed Zappala for the probe, saying it was politically motivated. Zappala is currently in a dispute with Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Stephen A. Bucar over whether the city police bureau should change its eyewitness identification procedures. Zappala is urging the police bureau to discontinue its use of simultaneous photo arrays, in which witnesses are typically shown photos of six to eight suspects on one sheet of paper, in favor of sequential photo arrays, in which they are shown photos individually.[8] Zappala lives in suburban Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania with his wife, Mary. They have four sons.[9] By The Tribune-Review Saturday, April 5, 2014, 9:00 p.m. Who: Stephen A. Zappala Jr. Age: 56 Residence: Fox Chapel Occupation: Allegheny County district attorney Influential because: As the county's chief law enforcement officer since 1998, Zappala oversees more than 200 employees — including more than 100 attorneys, detectives, crime scene analysts and support staff. If the District Attorney's Office were a law firm, it would rank among the top 10 in the area in size. Influential initiative: Zappala recently announced plans to establish an “integrity unit” in his office to ensure the accountability of county law enforcement agencies. The unit will advise municipal police departments, offering resources for training, best practices for collecting evidence and using technology. Influential squabble: Zappala has clashed with Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto's administration over leaks by the police bureau during the recent investigation into a double homicide in East Liberty. Influential education: Zappala is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh and the Duquesne University School of Law. Influential experience: Before becoming district attorney, Zappala worked as an associate at the law firms of Grogan, Graffam, McGinley & Lucchino and Dattilo, Barry, Fasulo & Cambest. He also was a partner at Brucker, Zappala, Schneider & Porter. Influential ascension: Zappala initially was appointed district attorney by 22 county judges to succeed former DA Robert Colville, who stepped down when he became a judge. Influential adversary: Former Allegheny County Coroner Dr. Cyril Wecht has accused Zappala of prosecuting his family's political enemies, a charge Zappala has denied. Wecht blames Zappala for federal prosecutors once charging him for mixing his county duties and his private practice. Wecht was never convicted of any charges in the case. Influential lineage: Zappala is the son of former Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Stephen A. Zappala and grandson of the late Frank J. Zappala, an attorney, magistrate and legislator. Influential family: Zappala has a wife, Mary, and four sons. Influential quote: “We think we should, or we can be, doing better than we're doing now.” — Zappala in announcing plans for the integrity unit. — compiled by Trib Total Media staff Ruth Bower Stephen Zappala left out the, whole history, of his family coming to America. The first Generation of Zappala's to immigrate to America were Joseph and Carmelle Zappala and they brought with them all of their children Including Frank Zappala who would eventually become a lawyer. The entire family was born in Italy, Calabria. They entered America via a New York Port. Their year of immigration was 1909. The Zappola/Zappala's settled in the Bronx on 308 Mott Street. Back then they spelled their Name Zappola, with an "o". Joseph, the father, was a barber, his one son Andrew was a Fruit Merchant, another son Michael worked in a box factory., Joseph Jr was also a barber. Frank was the youngest in the family. There new arrival to America and their economic background raises the question, how did Frank afford to go to College. We suspect it was through the Catholic School Systems and that he was pushed ahead by them. Frank Zappala did not get a Job in the Legislature on his merit, he was hired as you will see in the below history as a lure to garner the Italian vote. The Zappola/Zappala's need to become transparent about their family histories. Can you imagine a politician in the National Election getting away with the kind of family history as is pointed out in all the comments below.. Italian Americans and the New Deal Coalition. Stefano Luconi The reason for slating Italian‑American candidates was to lure their fellow‑ethnic voters into casting their ballots for the Democratic party out of ethnic solidarity. Such a strategy usually proved successful. In South Philadelphia’s « Little Italy, » it was Roosevelt who ran on Di Silvestro’s coattails in 1936. The President received 65.1 percent of the Italian‑American vote, as opposed to Di Silvestro’s 69.9 percent (Manual of the City Council 288). So did Democratic senatorial candidate Joseph F. Guffey with Zappala in Pittsburgh’s Italian‑American districts in 1934. Actually, while Guffey won 69.9 percent of the Italian‑American vote, Zappala carried his own ethnic community by 83.4 percent (Allegheny County). 20Many Italian Americans benefited from the labor legislation of the New Deal. Section 7a of the 1933 National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) enabled radio workers and bricklayers of Italian descent to establish their own unions in Philadelphia (Jarrell 43‑45 ; Scranton and Licht 237). It also spurred a significant growth in the membership of the United Mine Workers of America in the coal towns of western Pennsylvania from which the union had been previously barred and, as Italian‑American labor organizer John Ghizzoni put it, let his fellow ethnics « feel that they are once more free men » (as quoted in Johnson 123). In addition, the NIRA made possible a significant increase in the minimum wage of jewelry workers in Providence from fifteen or twenty cents an hour to thirty‑five cents and shortened their workweek to forty hours (DeCredico 33 ; Frank Santopietro as quoted in Weisberg 138). Italian Americans also swelled the ranks of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America in Philadelphia and joined the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC) in western Pennsylvania in the wake of the passing of the 1935 Wagner Act—a key piece of legislation in the construction of the New Deal’s political order (Plotke)—that reintroduced workers’ right to organize and to bargain collectively after the Supreme Court had declared the NIRA unconstitutional (Passero 301‑2, 313, 337 ; Bodnar 122, 127‑28, 182). At the same time, the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) began to make inroads into Providence’s Italian‑American workforce in textile mills (Al Sisti as quoted in Buhle 36). In Pittsburgh, too, as Italian Americans have recalled, « when the union came [...], Roosevelt was the one who started all that » (Borgna). Yet the 1930s also witnessed a significant extension of the award of political recognition for Italian Americans on the part of Democratic officials on both the local and national levels. As for this latter arena, for instance, President Roosevelt appointed Matthew Abruzzo to a federal judgeship in 1936 and made him the first Italian American to hold such a position (Bayor 36). Likewise, in local politics, an increasing number of candidates of Italian ancestry began to secure unprecedented nominations for elective offices for the Democratic party. Rhode Island’s gubernatorial hopeful Theodore Francis Green personally handpicked Louis Cappelli, a lawyer of Italian descent, as his running mate for secretary of state in 1930 (Levine 119). Four years later, Democratic officials in Pittsburgh slated Frank Zappala for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (Unione 22 June 1934). In 1936, Philadelphia’s Democratic City Committee even persuaded William Hagen, who had won the nomination for the State Senate in the city’s largely Italian‑American first district in the primary elections, to withdraw in order to replace him with Anthony Di Silvestro, the editor of the local Italian‑language weekly La Libera Parola (12 Sept. 1936). 19The reason for slating Italian‑American candidates was to lure their fellow‑ethnic voters into casting their ballots for the Democratic party out of ethnic solidarity. Such a strategy usually proved successful. In South Philadelphia’s « Little Italy, » it was Roosevelt who ran on Di Silvestro’s coattails in 1936. The President received 65.1 percent of the Italian‑American vote, as opposed to Di Silvestro’s 69.9 percent (Manual of the City Council 288). So did Democratic senatorial candidate Joseph F. Guffey with Zappala in Pittsburgh’s Italian‑American districts in 1934. Actually, while Guffey won 69.9 percent of the Italian‑American vote, Zappala carried his own ethnic community by 83.4 percent (Allegheny County). 20Many Italian Americans benefited from the labor legislation of the New Deal. Section 7a of the 1933 National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) enabled radio workers and bricklayers of Italian descent to establish their own unions in Philadelphia (Jarrell 43‑45 ; Scranton and Licht 237). It also spurred a significant growth in the membership of the United Mine Workers of America in the coal towns of western Pennsylvania from which the union had been previously barred and, as Italian‑American labor organizer John Ghizzoni put it, let his fellow ethnics « feel that they are once more free men » (as quoted in Johnson 123). In addition, the NIRA made possible a significant increase in the minimum wage of jewelry workers in Providence from fifteen or twenty cents an hour to thirty‑five cents and shortened their workweek to forty hours (DeCredico 33 ; Frank Santopietro as quoted in Weisberg 138). Italian Americans also swelled the ranks of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America in Philadelphia and joined the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC) in western Pennsylvania in the wake of the passing of the 1935 Wagner Act—a key piece of legislation in the construction of the New Deal’s political order (Plotke)—that reintroduced workers’ right to organize and to bargain collectively after the Supreme Court had declared the NIRA unconstitutional (Passero 301‑2, 313, 337 ; Bodnar 122, 127‑28, 182). At the same time, the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) began to make inroads into Providence’s Italian‑American workforce in textile mills (Al Sisti as quoted in Buhle 36). In Pittsburgh, too, as Italian Americans have recalled, « when the union came [...], Roosevelt was the one who started all that » (Borgna). Ruth Bower I thought I would add an editorial from 1932 regarding the murders. Editorial from 1932 it says it all. It has not changed one bit since then. It is as true today as it was then. Those Low Number Plates A Belle Vernon man was fortunate enough the other day to see the funeral procession of John Bazzano, slain Pittsburgh racketeer, pass thru New Kensington. What do you suppose his reactions were? His chief comment was upon the fact that there were so many high-priced automobiles in the procession. That is one side of an interesting study of a new political picture. A Pittsburgh editorial writer views the automobile of the gangsters from a different angle. He called to the attention of his readers the fact that when the Volpes went out in their expensive roadster it was adorned with the license plate JV8. Bazzano, one time part owner of a city theater, had plates which bore the letters BZ and the numeral "6." In other words, the two racketeers and the gangsters had influence. Without it they could not have obtained low-number license plates. Let some decent citizen, who has no other recommendation than his good name and the fact that he obeys the law, try to get a plate with low numbers. Yes, just let him make the attempt. The plates, as the writer says, explains conclusively why racketeers can do as they please in the city of Pittsburgh and often in seems, in Allegheny county. The plates explain why they have raised themselves above the law, why they make thousands from their "illegal" "business," why they live in fine homes, why they have costly automobiles and why the police do not seem to get anywhere when they try to find the slayers of a racketeer. These rats have pull and lots of it. The preferential license plates are significant of other favors and considerations they receive from men and who are supposed to be upholding the law. It is no secret that the Volpes mingled with persons of prominence. Politicians curried favor with them. Judges and officers of the law visited the Volpe home. Cases filed in court against them simply ended and no one knew why. If they got into jail, some unseen power saw to it that they got out again. Volpes and Bazzano controlled votes. And politicians can overlook a lot and perform all sorts of magic in exchange for a few votes. It isn't any wonder that the massacre of the Volpes has not been solved and probably will forever remain a "mystery." If officers of the law have connived with the Volpes, they have probably had relations with other racketeers. Doubtless some of them are aware of the stuffed ballot boxes played in their election. These officials are in a delicate position. They are hardly able to go to deeply into the Volpe massacre. Something might be uncovered that they would rather remain concealed. Corrupt political machines are to blame for such outrages as the Volpe massacre. It was the outgrowth of crooked politics, a natural sequence. Ruth Bower Here is one more connection with influence. Charles "Chuckie" Porter, was the father of Charles Porter from the law-firm, Brucker, Zappala, Schneider & Porter. Charles Porter was DA Stephen Zappala's law Partner. Our Public Officials have an obligation to be transported. Can you imagine a Politician in a national race trying to hide all of this. Charles "Chucky" Porter (date of birth unknown) was an American mobster and Underboss of the Pittsburgh crime family before turning Government Witness. Biography Edit Porter was allegedly made a member of the Pittsburgh family in 1986, he was a former mailman and was promoted to Underboss after the death of "Jo Jo" Joseph Pecora in 1987, serving under then boss Michael James Genovese. Despite only being a member of the Pittsburgh family for a year, Porter was thought to have been given the position because of his youth, he was in his 40's, while other family members were all in their Seventies. In 1990, Porter and other mobsters were indicted on RICO charges including narcotics trafficking, illegal gambling and loansharking. Porter was sentenced to almost thirty years in prison and decided to defect. Porter not only testified against his own family but against the Bonanno crime family and a large scale loanshark book they were operating in New York and against the DeCavalcante crime family of New Jersey and their involvement in an illegal landfill. He also informed on the Pittsburgh family's infiltration of the Native American Rincon tribal Casino near San Diego. Porter was not released from prison as a result of his cooperation with the government, but placed in a low security prison and allowed many freedoms. On December 18, 2000, after serving 9 years in jail, Porter was released from prison. Ruth Bower Here is part of DA Stephen Zappala's Influential Lineage that was left out. DA Zappala needs to become transparent about his family history. No more excuses. His integrity board it way too little way too late. It is more than likely a shallow public relations stunt. Antonio Ripepi Antonio RipepiAntonio Ripepi. Antonio Ripepi (born 1902 - died 2000) was a powerful and influential capo in the Pittsburgh crime family. Ripepi was a top figure in the LaRocca family of Pittsburgh. He served the organization for many years as a capo and as chief overseer of gambling rackets in Washington and Fayette counties. He was the father-in-law of John Bazzano, Jr., the son of Pittsburgh's original godfather, and Rochester boss Costenze Valenti. Ripepi proved himself worthy under the leadership of Frank Amato and had his own crew, one of it's members was Frank Valenti, Costenze's brother. When Constenze Valenti began to do business in Rochester, New York, Ripepi advised Frank Valenti to help him out. Together with the backing of the LaRocca Family, the Valenti brothers formed the Rochester crime family. However, Rochester was a part of Stefano Magaddino's territory and they had to answer to the powerful Buffalo boss for everything they did. In the late 1960s Ripepi helped the Valenti's to become independent from the Buffalo crime family, in which they succeeded (they still had to pay tributes to Magaddino though). By this time Ripepi was a well known figure inside the vending machine rackets. His other son-in-law John Bazzano, Jr. ran numbers in the Monongahela Valley at the behest of Ripepi for many years and later became the boss of the Pittsburgh mob. Ripepi lived to become 98 years old, when he passed away in 2000 of natural. causes Ruth Bower Let me comment by providing a link to a serious of articles which cover the Zappala's early years in Pittsburgh. You will see Frank Zappala's picture if you scroll down toward the end. You will see Frank with Gangster John Bazzano who is his brother in law. Zappala's brother in law, had just had three of the Volpe bothers murdered, on in the Hill District at the Rome Cafe and Pastry Shop. If you scroll down a little further you will see Rose Zappala, Frank's sister , who was married to Mob Boss John Bazzano. She is coming out of her Mount Lebanon home after John Bazzano was called to New York by Charles "Luckie" Luciano's underboss Genovese. John Bazzano was murdered there, they say, in order to stop a gang war. The autopsy report stated that Bazzano had been stabbed 28 times in the heart with an icepick, strangled, and his skull smashed in with a hammer. He was folded in two, his ankles bound around his neck, but in a burlap sack and dumped in the street. Frank Zappala provided legal services for these relatives of his. There is so much more. After John Bazzano was murdered, John Bazzano Jr. took up the business and eventually married mafia boss Anthony Ripepi's Daughter Frances. That means the Zappala's, and the Mafia Crime Bosses Bazzano and Ripepi are related by both Blood and Marriage. Young Steven Zappala, he went into Law Practice with Charles Porter, the son of Mafia big shot Charles "Chuckie" Porter. One of the biggest cocaine dealers in the area among other things. There is no end to this horrible matter. Paste and Follow the link below and begin to read for yourself. It's amazing... http://newsinteractive.post-gazette.com/prohibition/ Ruth Bower I thought I would add an editorial from 1932 regarding the murders. Editorial from 1932 it says it all. It has not changed one bit since then. It is as true today as it was then. Zappala's new Integrity Squad is too little too late. And who is to say how effective such a board will really be, Those Low Number Plates A Belle Vernon man was fortunate enough the other day to see the funeral procession of John Bazzano, slain Pittsburgh racketeer, pass thru New Kensington. What do you suppose his reactions were? His chief comment was upon the fact that there were so many high-priced automobiles in the procession. That is one side of an interesting study of a new political picture. A Pittsburgh editorial writer views the automobile of the gangsters from a different angle. He called to the attention of his readers the fact that when the Volpes went out in their expensive roadster it was adorned with the license plate JV8. Bazzano, one time part owner of a city theater, had plates which bore the letters BZ and the numeral "6." In other words, the two racketeers and the gangsters had influence. Without it they could not have obtained low-number license plates. Let some decent citizen, who has no other recommendation than his good name and the fact that he obeys the law, try to get a plate with low numbers. Yes, just let him make the attempt. The plates, as the writer says, explains conclusively why racketeers can do as they please in the city of Pittsburgh and often in seems, in Allegheny county. The plates explain why they have raised themselves above the law, why they make thousands from their "illegal" "business," why they live in fine homes, why they have costly automobiles and why the police do not seem to get anywhere when they try to find the slayers of a racketeer. These rats have pull and lots of it. The preferential license plates are significant of other favors and considerations they receive from men and who are supposed to be upholding the law. It is no secret that the Volpes mingled with persons of prominence. Politicians curried favor with them. Judges and officers of the law visited the Volpe home. Cases filed in court against them simply ended and no one knew why. If they got into jail, some unseen power saw to it that they got out again. Volpes and Bazzano controlled votes. And politicians can overlook a lot and perform all sorts of magic in exchange for a few votes. It isn't any wonder that the massacre of the Volpes has not been solved and probably will forever remain a "mystery." If officers of the law have connived with the Volpes, they have probably had relations with other racketeers. Doubtless some of them are aware of the stuffed ballot boxes played in their election. These officials are in a delicate position. They are hardly able to go to deeply into the Volpe massacre. Something might be uncovered that they would rather remain concealed. Corrupt political machines are to blame for such outrages as the Volpe massacre. It was the outgrowth of crooked politics, a natural sequence. <p>___________________________________________________________________</p> <p>James George Janos[3] (born July 15, 1951[1][2]), better known by his stage name, Jesse Ventura, is an American former professional wrestler, color commentator, actor, author, TV host, podcaster, naval veteran, and politician. He served as the 38th Governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2003. Born James George Janos, Ventura served as a U.S. Navy Underwater Demolition Team member during the period of the Vietnam War.[4] After leaving the military, he embarked on a professional wrestling career from 1975 to 1986, taking the ring name Jesse "The Body" Ventura. He had a long tenure in the World Wrestling Federation as a performer and color commentator, and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004.[3] Apart from wrestling, Ventura also pursued a film career, appearing in films such as Predator and The Running Man (1987). Ventura first entered politics as Mayor of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, from 1991 to 1995. Four years after his mayoral term ended, Ventura was the Reform Party candidate in the Minnesota gubernatorial election of 1998, running a low-budget campaign centered on grassroots events and unusual ads that urged citizens not to "vote for politics as usual". Ventura's campaign was unexpectedly successful, with him narrowly defeating both the Democratic and Republican candidates. The highest elected official to ever win an election on a Reform Party ticket, Ventura left the Reform Party a year after taking office amid internal fights for control over the party.[5] As governor, Ventura oversaw reforms of Minnesota's property tax as well as the state's first sales tax rebate. Other initiatives taken under Ventura included construction of the METRO Blue Line light rail in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, and cuts in income taxes.[6][7] Ventura left office in 2003, deciding not to run for re-election. After leaving office, Ventura became a visiting fellow at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government in 2004. He has since also hosted a number of television shows and has written several political books. Ventura remains politically active and currently hosts a show on Ora TV called Off the Grid.[8] He has publicly contemplated a run for President of the United States in 2016. ________________________ Ventura was born James George Janos on July 15, 1951[1][2] in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a son of George William Janos and his wife, Bernice Martha (née Lenz). Both of his parents were World War II veterans. Ventura has an older brother who served in the Vietnam War. Ventura has described himself as Slovak, since his father's parents were from what is now Slovakia; his mother was of German descent.[9][10] Ventura was raised as a Lutheran. He attended the Cooper Elementary School and graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1969. Ventura served in the United States Navy from December 1, 1969, to September 10, 1975, during the Vietnam War era. He graduated in BUD/S class 58 in December 1970[11] and was part of Underwater Demolition Team 12[4][12] Ventura has frequently referred to his military career in public statements and debates.[13][14][15] He was criticized by hunters and conservationists for stating in an interview with the Minneapolis Star Tribune in April 2001, "Until you have hunted men, you haven't hunted yet."[15][16]Near the end of his service in the Navy, Ventura began to spend time with the "Dago" chapter of the Mongols motorcycle club in San Diego. He would ride onto Naval Base Coronado on his Harley-Davidson wearing his Mongol colors. According to Ventura, he was a full-patch member of the club and even third-in-command of his chapter, but he never had any problems with the authorities.[17][18][19] In the fall of 1974, Ventura left the bike club to return to the Twin Cities. Shortly after that, the Mongols entered into open warfare with their biker rivals, the Hells Angels.[17] Ventura attended North Hennepin Community College in suburban Minneapolis in the mid-1970s.[17] At the same time, he began weightlifting and wrestling. He was a bodyguard for The Rolling Stones for a time, before he entered professional wrestling and changed his name to Jesse Ventura.[20] Professional wrestling career A 1987 education campaign poster aimed at teenagers featuring then-professional wrestler Jesse Ventura James George Janos Born July 15, 1951 (age 63)[3][21] Minneapolis, Minnesota Brooklyn Park, Minnesota[22] He created the stage name Jesse "The Body" Ventura to go with the persona of a bully-ish beach bodybuilder, picking the name "Ventura" from a map as part of his "bleach blond from California" gimmick.[3] As a wrestler, Ventura performed as a heel and often used the motto: "Win if you can, lose if you must, but always cheat!", even going so far as having himself a T-shirt made with the words printed on the front. Much of his flamboyant persona was adapted from "Superstar" Billy Graham, a charismatic and popular performer during the 1970s–1980s.[3][23] Years later, as a broadcaster, Ventura made a running joke out of it claiming that Graham stole all of his ring attire ideas from him. In 1975, Ventura made his debut in the Central States territory, before moving to the Pacific Northwest, where he wrestled for promoter Don Owen as Jesse "The Great" Ventura.[3][23] During his stay in Portland, Oregon, he had notable feuds with Dutch Savage and Jimmy Snuka and won the Pacific Northwest Wrestling title twice (once from each wrestler) and the tag team title five times (twice each with Bull Ramos and "Playboy" Buddy Rose, and once with Jerry Oates). He later moved to his hometown promotion, the American Wrestling Association in Minnesota, and began teaming with Adrian Adonis as the "East-West Connection" in 1979. In his RF Video shoot in 2012, he revealed that shortly after he arrived in the AWA he was given the nickname "the Body" by Verne Gagne.[22][23] The duo won the promotion's World Tag Team Championship on July 20, 1980, on a forfeit when Verne Gagne, one-half of the tag team champions along with Mad Dog Vachon, failed to show up for a title defense in Denver, Colorado.[3] The duo held the belts for nearly a year, losing to "The High Flyers" (Greg Gagne and Jim Brunzell).[3] Shortly after losing the belts, the duo moved on to the World Wrestling Federation where they were managed by "Classy" Freddie Blassie.[3] Although the duo was unable to capture the World Tag Team Championship, both Adonis and Ventura became singles title contenders, each earning several title shots at World Heavyweight Champion Bob Backlund.[3] Ventura continued to wrestle until September 1984 when blood clots in his lungs ended his in-ring career. He claimed that the blood clots were a result of his exposure to Agent Orange during his time in Vietnam.[3][24] Ventura returned to the ring in 1985, forming a tag-team with "Macho Man" Randy Savage & Savage's manager (and real-life wife) Miss Elizabeth. Often after their televised matches Ventura would taunt and challenge fellow commentator Bruno Sammartino, but nothing ever came of this. Ventura also participated in a six-man tag team match in December 1985 when he, Roddy Piper, and "Cowboy" Bob Orton defeated Hillbilly Jim, Uncle Elmer, and Cousin Luke in a match which was broadcast on Saturday Night's Main Event. The tag match against the Hillbillies came about after Piper and Orton interrupted Elmer's wedding ceremony on the previous edition of the show; Ventura, who later claimed that he was under instruction from fellow commentator and owner of the WWF Vince McMahon to "bury them", insulted Elmer and his wife during commentary of what was a real wedding ceremony at the Meadowlands Arena, by proclaiming when they kissed: "OMG they look like two Carp in the middle of the Mississippi River going after the same piece of corn." According to Ventura the wedding was real, for at that time the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board would not allow the WWF to stage a fake wedding in the state of New Jersey, so Stan Frazier (Uncle Elmer) and his fiance had agreed to have a real in-ring wedding.[3] After a failed comeback bid, he began to do color commentary on television for All-Star Wrestling, replacing Angelo Mosca, and later Superstars of Wrestling, initially alongside Vince McMahon and the semi-retired Sammartino, and then just with McMahon after Sammartino's departure from the WWF in 1988. Ventura hosted his own talk segment on the WWF's Superstars of Wrestling called "The Body Shop", in much the same heel style as "Piper's Pit", though the setting was a mock gym. He also did color commentary on radio for a few National Football League teams, among them the Minnesota Vikings and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[3] Ventura most notably co-hosted Saturday Night's Main Event with McMahon, the first six WrestleManias (five of which were alongside Gorilla Monsoon), and most of the WWF's pay-per-views at the time with Monsoon, with the lone exception for Ventura being the first SummerSlam, in which Ventura served as the guest referee during the main event. Following a dispute with McMahon over the use of his image for promoting a Sega product, McMahon—who had a contract with rival company Nintendo at the time—released Ventura from the company in August 1990.[25] In February 1992 at SuperBrawl II, Ventura joined World Championship Wrestling as a commentator. His professional wrestling commentary style was an extension of his wrestling persona, i.e. a "heel", as he was partial to the villains, which was something new and different at the time. McMahon, who was always looking for ways of jazzing things up, came up with the idea of Ventura doing heel commentary at a time when most commentators, including McMahon himself, openly favored the fan favorites.[3] However, Ventura would still occasionally give credit where it was due, praising the athleticism of wrestlers such as Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat and Randy Savage, who was championed by Ventura for years, even when he was a face, a point Ventura regularly made on-air to McMahon and Monsoon. Occasionally he would even acknowledge mistakes made by the heels, including those made by his personal favorites such as Savage or wrestlers managed by heels Bobby "The Brain" Heenan and "The Mouth of the South" Jimmy Hart. One notable exception to this rule was the WrestleMania VI Ultimate Challenge title for title match between WWF Champion Hulk Hogan and the WWF Intercontinental Champion, The Ultimate Warrior. Since they were both fan favorites, Ventura took a neutral position in his commentary, even praising Hogan's display of sportsmanship at the end of the match when he handed over the WWF Championship to the Warrior after he lost the title, stating that Hogan was going out like a true champion. During the match, however, which was also the last match at Wrestlemania he called, Ventura did voice his pleasure when both broke the rules, at one point claiming, "This is what I like. Let the two goody two-shoes throw the rule book out and get nasty." Ventura's praise of Hogan's action was unusual for him, because he regularly rooted against Hogan during his matches, usually telling fellow commentator Monsoon after Hogan had won a championship match at a Wrestlemania that he would "come out of retirement and take this dude out". Hogan and Ventura were at one point close friends.[26] However, Ventura abruptly ended the friendship after he discovered, during his lawsuit against McMahon, that Hogan was the one who had told McMahon about Ventura's attempt to form a labour union in 1984.[26] Ventura was released by WCW President Eric Bischoff for allegedly falling asleep during a WCW Worldwide TV taping at Disney MGM Studios in July 1994, although it has been speculated that the move may have had more to do with Hogan's arrival shortly before.[3] Ventura generally worked well with most of his fellow commentators, with the exception of Jim Ross, during his time with WCW. In a radio interview, Ventura stated that working with Ross was hard, as he would often say something controversial in favor of the heel wrestler or manager, only for Ross — who at that time had only worked with those who favored the fan favorites — to ignore the comment and continue with his play-by-play. In 1987, while negotiating his contract as a WWF commentator, Ventura waived his rights to royalties on videotape sales when he was falsely told that only feature performers received such royalties. In 1991, having discovered that other non-feature performers received royalties, Ventura brought an action for fraud, misappropriation of publicity rights, and quantum meruit in Minnesota state court against Titan Sports. Titan removed the case to federal court, and Ventura won an $801,333 jury verdict on the last claim. The judgment was affirmed on appeal, and the case,[27] 65 F.3d 725 (8th Cir.1995), is an important result in the law of restitution. As a result, Ventura's commentary is removed on most releases from WWE Home Video.[28] Return to the WWF/E[edit] In mid-1999, Ventura reappeared on WWF television during his term as Governor of Minnesota, acting as the special guest referee for main event of SummerSlam held in Minneapolis.[3] Ventura would continue his relationship with the WWF by performing commentary for Vince McMahon's short-lived XFL.[3] On the March 20, 2003, episode of SmackDown!, Ventura appeared in a taped interview to talk about the match between McMahon and Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania XIX.[3] Less than a year later, he would be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on March 13, 2004, and the following night at WrestleMania XX, he approached the ring to interview Donald Trump, who had a front row seat at the event.[3] Trump affirmed that Ventura would receive his moral and financial support were he to ever reenter the world of politics. Alluding to the 2008 election, Ventura boldly announced that "In 2008, maybe we oughta put a wrestler in the White House". On the June 11, 2007, episode of Raw, Ventura appeared to give comments about McMahon.[3] Ventura was guest host on the November 23, 2009, episode of Raw during which he retained his heel persona by siding with the number one contender Sheamus over WWE Champion John Cena. This happened while he confronted Cena about how it was unfair that Cena always got a title shot in the WWE while Ventura did not during his WWE career. After that Sheamus attacked Cena and put him through a table. Ventura then made the match a Table match at TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs. During the show, for the first time in nearly 20 years, McMahon joined Ventura at ringside to provide match commentary together. </p>

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