Reggie Parks

Reggie Parks (born Reginald David Parko; August 27, 1934 – October 7, 2021) was a Canadian professional wrestler and engraver, known for his work designing championship belts for wrestling, mixed martial arts, and boxing promotions. He began his wrestling career under the tutelage of trainer Stu Hart, and wrestled throughout the United States, becoming known for his physique and his "Quiet Superman" demeanour. Parks branched out into belt design after first creating a championship for wrestling promoter Joe Dusek while working in Nebraska.

As a designer, Parks earned the nickname "the King of Belts" for his work. He is known for the "Winged Eagle" belt he created for the then-WWF in the 1980s; he also contributed work to other wrestling promotions, as well as to the UFC and for an album cover by Madonna.

Early life Reggie Parks was born in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, on August 27, 1934. While working in Joe Blanchard's Texas territory in 1968, Parks was the opponent for the debut match of future NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion Dusty Rhodes. After a stint working as a referee due to a back injury, he wrestled his last match in 1999, facing off with Jose Lothario in New Mexico. His design work earned him the nickname "the King of Belts".

Parks began to create belts in 1962 while working in Omaha, Nebraska, after noticing that promoter Joe Dusek had been using a large trophy to represent a championship, which was beginning to fall apart.

Parks was married once, and divorced; he lived with his partner Trish for 22 years before her death in 2006. He had no children. Speaking on his legacy, fellow belt-maker Dave Millican said "[we] all owe Reggie a huge debt of gratitude because nobody did this this way before he did. Were there belts before Reggie? Absolutely. Were there good belts before Reggie? There weren't".

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