Pat Patterson

Big Time Wrestling (Boston) In 1961, Patterson - despite speaking no English - immigrated to the United States to pursue his professional wrestling career. He eventually became a U.S. citizen.

Big Time Wrestling (San Francisco) (1965–1977)

In January 1965, Patterson was hired by Roy Shire for his San Francisco, California-based Big Time Wrestling promotion. The duo won the NWA World Tag Team Championship in 1965 and again in 1967. The Blonde Bombers were described by Bret Hart as "considered by many to be the best tag team of the 1970s". In 1968, Patterson wrestled for NWA Western States Wrestling in Amarillo, Texas as Lord Patrick Patterson, winning the NWA North American Heavyweight Championship and NWA Brass Knuckles Championship. In the same year, he undertook a six-week tour of Japan, facing Antonio Inoki in a series of bouts. The following month, he teamed with Andre the Giant at a pair of house shows in Canada and defeated Ken Patera and Big John Studd.

He took the spot of Mad Dog Vachon on the WWF skit show Le Brunch on WWF Superstars in Canada until late summer in 1987. Several wrestlers like the Rougeau Brothers and Dino Bravo replaced him, and Frenchie Martin hosted Le Studio as a replacement of Le Brunch. Before that he made another appearance, this time in a battle royal in Montreal on February 24, 1987. He also appeared in a battle royal at a house show in Buffalo, New York on December 27. Patterson made a handful of additional appearances in Montreal in 1987, wrestling as a heel (while remaining a face or neutral backstage official in the United States and elsewhere in Canada). His most notable appearance was a win over the up-and-coming Brutus Beefcake on August 10 in Montreal His final match would come three weeks later again in Montreal as he fell in defeat to Beefcake and subsequently received a haircut with Mr. T as the referee.

He began working backstage as a road agent and right-hand man to WWF promoter Vince McMahon, and is credited with inventing and booking the Royal Rumble match. In the late 1990s, he also worked in the talent-relations department. After his retirement, Patterson also worked as a WWF referee. He was selected as the in-ring referee for the main event at the first WrestleMania at Madison Square Garden on March 31, 1985, as well as the main event of WrestleMania XI. In 1992, Patterson, along with Terry Garvin, were accused of sexual harassment of underage ring boys by former announcer Murray Hodgson, and former ring boy Tom Cole, who alleged that Patterson groped him and engaged in sexual harassment when he was 14. Both he and Garvin resigned from the company. After Murray Hodgson rescinded the allegations, he was rehired, while Garvin was fired, later reaching a settlement with WWF. Over the years he made appearances on pay-per-views or TV programming breaking up fights.

"Stooge" (1997–2000)

Crash Holly and Pat Patterson (right) at the WWF King of the Ring at the Fleet Center in Boston, MA in 2000. In 1997, Patterson, along with Gerald Brisco, became comedy heels as the on-screen stooges of Vince McMahon, assisting their boss in his rivalries with Stone Cold Steve Austin, Mankind and The Rock. Patterson and Brisco were among the founding members of The Corporation. In order to mock Hulk Hogan, they used "Real American" as their entrance music and parodied Hogan's flexing routine as they approached the ring. On the May 18, 1998 episode of Raw, Patterson and Brisco competed in a 2 on 1 Street Fight against Austin that ended in a no contest when Vince McMahon and Dude Love attacked Austin.

Later in 1999, the two became entangled with the McMahon-Helmsley Faction. On the December 16, 1999 episode of SmackDown, Patterson and Brisco helped Test, who had been injured by D-Generation X. Triple H and Stephanie McMahon then forced Patterson and Brisco to compete for the WWF Tag Team Championship against The New Age Outlaws or be fired. Patterson and Brisco lost the match. In 2000, Patterson and Brisco joined Triple H and Stephanie McMahon.

On the May 8 episode of Raw, Patterson, Road Dogg and X-Pac faced Rikishi in a 3 on 1 handicap match and were disqualified after Patterson hit Rikishi with a chair. Afterwards, Patterson lowered his drawers to deliver a Stink Face to Rikishi with brown-stained underwear, which commentator Jim Ross described as a "tractor-sized skidmark". Patterson began to use the soiled underwear as part of his gimmick in the coming weeks, attempting to rub the soiled underwear into the faces of opponents. As a result, WWE commentators began to refer to Patterson as “Poopstain Patterson” during the broadcasts.

On June 12, 2000, when the Faction unmasked Kane, Patterson photographed Kane's "hideously scarred" face, and threatened to "expose him to the world" if he did not comply. Kane was forced to wrestle The Rock (then his ally) in a No Holds Barred match. When Patterson's film did not develop properly, Kane turned on the Faction.

On June 19, 2000, Patterson helped Brisco win the perpetually contested WWF Hardcore Championship from Crash Holly but during the victory celebration turned on his ally, blinding him with champagne and then breaking a second bottle over Brisco's head, and pinning the (kayfabe) unconscious champion. Brisco pursued Patterson into the women's locker room, where Patterson was hiding in drag. Subsequently, Vince McMahon scheduled them to fight over the Hardcore Championship in an Evening Gown match at King of the Ring 2000; in the course of the match, Crash Holly attacked both men and pinned Patterson to become Hardcore Champion.

Backstage roles (2000–2020) Patterson (right) holding the WWE Intercontinental Championship with Rob Van Dam looking on.

The Intercontinental Championship, unified with the World Heavyweight Championship at No Mercy on October 20, 2002, was resurrected on May 18, 2003, at Judgment Day in a battle royal. Patterson, as the first Intercontinental Champion, was at ringside to present the belt to the victor. Booker T eliminated Christian for the win, but the referee was unconscious. As Patterson attempted to give the championship belt to Booker T, Christian attacked him, stole the Intercontinental Championship belt and used it to knock out Booker T. The referee then recovered and awarded the match to Christian. In October 2004, Patterson retired from World Wrestling Entertainment. Patterson returned to WWE in a limited capacity in May 2005. While retired as a producer for WWE, he still acted as a creative consultant. having come out in the early 1970s. It was not acknowledged publicly or in WWE storylines until the finale of WWE Legends' House, which aired June 12, 2014. However, in the May 10, 1999 episode of Raw, commentator Jim Ross comments "and he’s single fellas" in response to a shirtless Patterson celebrating a win over the Mean Street Posse. NBC News described Patterson as "the first openly gay pro wrestling star." People magazine described him as the "First Gay Wrestling Star."

In the 1960s, after the end of the main part of the Lavender scare, the Justice Department's Immigration and Naturalization Service spent several years, from the end of 1964 onwards, looking for evidence of "homosexual activity" in order to have Patterson deported back to Canada. Documents disclosed as a result of Freedom of Information Act requests show that, as a part of a Portland Police Bureau Morals Division investigation into the Portland, Oregon gay community, PPB had reported Patterson's presence at gay' parties" and gay bars in the city and that Patterson was known to pick up male prostitutes in Portland. The documents also describe interviewees' suspicions that Louie Dondero was Patterson's romantic partner, as well as his agent, and that they had an open relationship. The same documents reveal that the United States Air Force Office of Special Investigations were investigating another wrestler suspected of being gay, with a view to discharging him; leading to an interview where he was asked about his effeminacy, dyed hair, about whether he was a homosexual and whether "he molested little boys". In December 1966, Patterson was served with a deportation notice, requiring him to leave the United States on or before January 10, possibly as an attempt to dupe Patterson into leaving with an expectation of an easy green card but with the intention of excluding him through psychological exam; Patterson said on WWE Legends' House he and Dondero were together for 40 years. Dondero died of a heart attack on June 28, 1998, the same night as King of the Ring. In August 2006, Patterson underwent emergency heart surgery to remove a cyst from his coronary artery. He legally changed his name to Pat Patterson in 2008.

Death Patterson died of liver failure caused by a blood clot at a Miami, Florida, hospital on December 2, 2020. He was 79 years old. Many figures in the wrestling world paid their respects to Patterson, as both an in-ring performer and as a behind-the-scenes figure.