Marvez: NWA Legends honoree John 'Mr. Wrestling II' Walker looks back

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Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Barack Obama are pals. The late Ed "Wahoo" McDaniel was coached by George H.W. Bush in youth baseball.

But neither grappler shared as tight a bond with a U.S. president as John "Mr. Wrestling II" Walker and Jimmy Carter.

Walker had no bigger fan than the mother of the nation's leader. Lillian Carter even arranged for a private visit with the masked baby-faced grappler who ruled Championship Wrestling from Georgia in the 1970s.

"The Secret Service picked me up and drove me to her home (in Plains, Ga.)," Walker recalled Wednesday during a telephone interview. "We sat and talked for three hours. It was about personal things and life in general.

"She was such a lovely person. She never, ever asked me to remove my mask. I respect that big-time."

Walker became so close to the Carters that he was invited to the inauguration. But it was the very thing that helped make him a superstar that kept Walker from making the trip.

Government security said Walker would have to remove his mask because of security concerns, prompting him to decline a seat with the Carter family. Walker believed that exposing his visage would ruin Mr. Wrestling II's mysterious aura and derail his career.

"I kind of wished I would have taken it off," a laughing Walker said. "But by the same token, I created such an image. Everyone in the world was going to know who I was. I just felt like if I was going to continue wrestling, I would have to keep the mask on."

Walker went to such extremes to keep his identity secret that not even his neighbors knew he wrestled. (He told them he was a writer with a busy travel schedule.) Walker would leave the arena wearing his mask and usually drive for about an hour before removing it. This led to some interesting encounters with police who thought he might be a bank robber, including once when Walker was met with a barricade after exiting the highway.

"The officers had rifles out and all that kind of stuff," Walker said. "A fellow with a shotgun came to my door and asked me to get out of the car. He looked at me and said, 'Oh, my God, you're Mr. Wrestling II! We got notice there was some guy running down the road at a fairly good speed wearing a mask.' They let me go, but it was very scary."

Walker couldn't have enjoyed such privacy in today's world. Photographs of every top star without a mask or face paint are easily found on the Internet. There are even images of Walker available from the days he performed under his real name.

But in a prior generation, Walker's covert actions were understandable. Seeing a masked grappler's face was a big deal for fans and often part of feuds and storylines. He also didn't want to advertise that Mr. Wrestling II was once a journeyman who had spent 16 years working primarily as the flexible Johnny "Rubberman" Walker.

It wasn't until Walker first donned a mask in 1971 that he began achieving superstar status. Walker was renamed The Grappler after being placed under a hood by Florida promoter Eddie Graham.

Ironically, The Grappler's first match in Miami Beach was almost Walker's last with a mask.

"It's not an easy thing to wear," Walker said. "You can't open your mouth wide enough to get air. I didn't realize that. When I had my first match, I won but I ran back to the dressing room afterward and ripped the mask off. I was gasping."

Walker stuck with it and adopted the Mr. Wrestling II persona in January 1973 when he began competing in Georgia. He was introduced as the tag-team partner of the original Mr. Wrestling (Tim Woods), but would enjoy far more success than his talented predecessor. Sporting his trademark white mask with black piping, Walker was a staple in Georgia for almost a decade. He also had national appeal from appearing regularly in matches on WTBS when cable television was still in its infancy.

But when World Wrestling Entertainment owner Vince McMahon took control of the Georgia territory in 1984, Walker was nearing 50 and had grown tired of the business. He worked briefly for WWF before retiring and moving to Hawaii with his wife, Olivia, a talented seamstress who designed the trademark ring robes of such stars as Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes. She has since died.

Walker wanted such a clean break from wrestling that he has sold almost all of his masks and other ring attire. He doesn't watch today's product, but Walker has dabbled as a trainer with a local Hawaiian promotion and even worked one last match in 2007.

"I want to be remembered as I was -- Mr. Wrestling II," said Walker, 76. "I worked so hard to build an image. The fans went overboard with me. They're the ones who make or break you. I've had a great life."

Walker is returning stateside to get honored at the NWA Wrestling Legends Fanfest Aug. 5-8 in Charlotte, N.C. Other confirmed stars from the 1970s and 1980s in attendance for meet-and-greets, autograph signings, question-and-answer sessions and a legends dinner include Ted DiBiase, Greg "The Hammer" Valentine and Tully Blanchard. For more information, visit www.nwalegends.com.

(Alex Marvez writes a syndicated pro-wrestling column for Scripps Howard News Service. Contact him at alex1marv(at)aol.com or follow him via Twitter at http://twitter.com/alexmarvez.)