Adrian Adonis

Keith Adonis Franke (September 15, 1953 – July 4, 1988) was an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Adrian Adonis.

Franke was born on September 15, 1953, in Buffalo, New York.

He was the adopted son of Kenneth and Hortense Franke, and had two sisters, Karen and Susan.

A gifted amateur wrestler, he won a section VI title in 1970.

However, he dropped out as he grew bored with school.

For a short time, Adonis played football in the Canadian Football League before focusing on a wrestling career.

In the late 1970s, he adopted the ring name "Adrian Adonis" and the character of a brawling, leather jacket-clad biker.

In Pacific Northwest Wrestling, Adonis formed a tag team with Roddy Piper.

He later split from Piper and became a fan favorite, teaming with Ron Starr to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship from Piper and Killer Brooks before losing the title to the Kiwi Sheepherders.

In the late 1970s, Adonis joined the Minneapolis-based American Wrestling Association.

He went to Kenmore East High School in the class of 1971.

Adonis debuted in 1974 under his real name, until he adopted the Adrian Adonis name in the late 1970s.

He later began working for the American Wrestling Association (AWA), forming a tag team with Jesse Ventura called the “East-West Connection,” winning the AWA World Tag Team Championship.

Franke trained under Fred Atkins and debuted in 1974, wrestling under the name Keith Franks.

In 1979, he formed a tag team with Jesse Ventura.

The team was called The East-West Connection because Adonis was from New York (in the East), while Ventura was billed from California (in the West).

He was best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association and World Wrestling Federation throughout the 1980s.

The East-West Connection was awarded the AWA World Tag Team Championship on July 20, 1980, when Verne Gagne (one half of the tag champions with Mad Dog Vachon) was unable to defend it because he was vacationing in Europe.

They debuted for the World Wrestling Federation in late 1981, but Ventura stopped wrestling regularly due to injuries.

After this, Adonis began teaming with Dick Murdoch as the “North-South Connection,” winning the WWF Tag Team Championship.

They held the belts until June 14, 1981, when they were defeated by Greg Gagne and Jim Brunzell.

Adonis and Ventura debuted in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in October 1981, working both as a team and in singles matches.

Adonis was a frequent challenger of WWF Champion Bob Backlund and Intercontinental Champion Pedro Morales throughout the first half of 1982.

When injuries caused Ventura to stop wrestling regularly, Adonis formed a tag team with the Texan Dick Murdoch, called "The North-South Connection".

The team debuted in late 1983.

Around this time, Adonis (who had previously been a muscular, stocky, and well-conditioned wrestler) gained a considerable amount of weight.

On April 17, 1984, The North-South Connection defeated Tony Atlas and Rocky Johnson to win the WWF World Tag Team Championship.

They held the title until January 21, 1985, when they were defeated by Barry Windham and Mike Rotunda.

The team split shortly after the loss.

In late 1985, after being briefly managed by Bobby "The Brain" Heenan and adopting the DDT as a finisher, Adonis' gimmick began to change.

First, Jimmy Hart became his manager when Hart traded King Kong Bundy to Heenan in exchange for Adonis and The Missing Link.

With Hart in his corner, Adonis defeated Corporal Kirchner to advance in The Wrestling Classic pay-per-view tournament in November, then lost to Dynamite Kid in the quarterfinals.

After taking Heenan as his manager in July 1985, Adonis started carrying a briefcase.

Eventually, the briefcase had the phrase "Relax with Trudi" on it.

In September 1985, Hart would become his manager and he would also eventually carry a spray called Fragrance.

In 1986, Adonis underwent a gimmick change as an effeminate, flamboyant wrestler who wore pink clothing and garish makeup, adopting the “Adorable” Adrian Adonis name.

He would be involved in a feud with Roddy Piper, which culminated in a hair vs. hair match at WrestleMania III.

During an edition of Piper's Pit which aired in January 1986, Adonis gave his signature leather jacket away to host Roddy Piper (who wore it for years afterward).

Adonis then adopted the gimmick of the effeminate "Adorable" Adrian Adonis, bleaching his hair blonde and wearing pink ring attire, as well as scarves, leg warmers, dresses, hats, and clownish amounts of eye shadow and rouge.

After he was fired in mid-1987, he made a brief return to the AWA and would make appearances in small promotions until his death in a car accident in 1988.