PAUL CHRISTY & MISS BUNNY LOVE
March, 2005
by Bill Kociaba

Paul Christerson was born in the Chicago area on March 20, 1939. He attended Mt. Carmel Catholic High School for boys on a swimming scholarship. The all-boy school just wasn't for him and he transferred to Harper High, where he continued swimming as well as playing football and wrestling. Upon his graduation he went to work for the American Health Studio chain. It was there that he first got the pro wrestling bug. Paul recalls,

"My manager was a fellow named Jack Thornton and he wrestled. He thought I was a good looking guy with a decent body and felt I could do okay in the ring. I wanted to give it a try just to say I had done it. Just one time, no more. I had my first match at the Marigold Arena against an old-timer who was getting ready to retire. He put me over in that match and made me really look good. I was just hanging around watching the rest of the matches and someone asked me for my autograph and I was hooked.”

Not long after Paul Christerson became Paul Christy. He worked for Fred Kohler in the Chicago area starting in late 1959. The fans voted him rookie of the year in 1960. After a few years he got a call from his old friend Jack Thornton (now calling himself Jack Cain). Dory Funk, Sr. was booking in Amarillo, TX and invited Paul to come check things out Upon his arrival Dory Sr. changed his name to Billy Graham. Paul stayed in Amarillo and worked near the bottom of the card until Mike DiBiase offered him a chance to work for him in Arizona, where he was put on top just as the promotion was closing its doors.

Soon Paul found his way to Alabama, where he started tagging with local favorite Ken Lucas. Now he was Ken's “brother,” Chris Lucas. Paul had at last found a place where he could shine. He worked for the Field's Gulf Coast promotion for over four years, holding both the Southern and Gulf Coast tag titles with his "brother" several times.

Christy returned to his home in Chicago and was hired by Dick the Bruiser and held the WWA World Tag Team titles on three different occasions with three different partners: Wilbur Snyder, Moose Cholak and Roger Kirby. It was during this second WWA run that he met his future love, Bunny Burmeister.

Bunny remembers, "Growing up I always loved wrestling. I went to the matches every week and knew everything about all the wrestlers. I wanted to be in wrestling. I didn't know how I was gonna do it, but I knew from as far back as I can remember that it was what I wanted. I used to hang around the dressing room door and, since I was always there, some of the other kids thought I was one of the wrestlers kid. I was like 13 and telling kids I was Dick the Bruiser's daughter and signing autographs," Bunny Laughs.

"I remember seeing Paul on TV and around the arena, then I didn't see him again for several years,” recalls Bunny. “I was around 18 when I met Chris (Paul's nickname) for the very first time. I saw him just hanging around and thought he was gorgeous. We started talking and I gave him my number. It took him a few months to call, but once he did we became inseparable."

Bunny continues, "When (Paul and I) started dating, I told him my dream to be in wrestling and to manage a guy wrestler. We went to Bruiser with the idea and he gave me a chance. I first stepped into the ring as Miss Bunny Love from Hollywood, California on July 4, 1979."

Paul and Bunny headed to Kentucky to work for the Poffo family’s ICW in the early 1980s. "The Poffos were very good to me," Christy recalls. "I became their world champion and I stood as Randy's best man when he married Liz. Angelo and I still are very close."

"I worked with Christy quite a few times in Chicago," Recalls Angelo Poffo. "He was a fantastic worker. Easy to have a good match with."

In 1985, amidst the great WWF expansion, Paul got his chance to go north. Due to family health problems, his WWF career only lasted a few months. After that he went into semi-retirement, still taking indy bookings in the Chicago area on a regular basis.

"Paul was my champion on and off from 1986 through 1989," remembers Juan Hernandez, promoter of Championship International Wrestling. "He was huge here in the Chicago area and a great heel. He could really work the crowd. I was lucky to have him as my champion." Paul & Bunny still do autograph signings for Hernandez to this day at cards he promotes in the area. They are also active supporters of Alicia’s House, a local charity.

Paul and Bunny officially retired from the ring in 1990. Since the mid-1980s Paul has been a practicing hypnotist specializing in weight loss and how to quit smoking. Like many of his peers Paul has written a book sharing his adventures both in and out of the ring. The book, The Many Faces of Paul Christy is set for release this winter and Paul and Bunny will have a few copies with them in Vegas.

"We have been coming to Cauliflower Alley for the last few years and wish we had started attending a long time ago," says Paul. "I am very proud to be recognized like this. It’s an honor and a humbling thing. I have had a lot of great experiences in my life and this is one of the best. I am in awe of the whole thing."

Bunny said, “To be in the ring with Crusher & Bruiser and Bobby "the Brain" Heenan, the guys I idolized growing up, it was unbelievable. And now to receive this award from the Cauliflower Alley Club is like the cherry on top of the sundae. I am so thrilled about it"

All materials are © Kayfabe-Wrestling.com 2005