Wrestler loved to be the bad guy. It paid better
OBITUARY John Evans played Rotten Reggie Love — half of the Love Brothers
It’s a lame joke that some pro wrestlers can get fans so riled up during a match that they’ll pull a gun on the performer. But in John Evans’ case, it was no laughing matter.
Evans — who died Jan. 7 at the age of 90 — wrestled under the name of Reggie Love (Rotten Reggie) and was one half of the hated Love Brothers, who entertained wrestling fans in arenas across Ontario and parts of the United States and on TV during the 1960s and 1970s.
Trouble erupted in 1971 in Akron, Ohio, when Evans was making mincemeat of an opponent in the ring, prompting angry fans to throw food and chairs at him in the ring.
His brother Hartford Love — real name Wes Hutchings — tried to warn him off, telling him “the heat’s getting too high,” but before Evans could respond, a fan climbed up the ropes, pulled out a handgun, yelled “I’m going to kill you,” and fired off three shots.
Evans ran for his life, along with everyone else. The bullets hit no one, but one did ping off a pole by the ring. “Later, they let me in the back door,” Evans told The Spectator in 2009. “The cops had him in handcuffs ... he’s just a little man, and the cop says to me, ‘Go ahead, you can give him one.’ Like, hit him. I said, ‘Nah, forget it.’”
Evans loved being a bad guy. Not because it was in his nature, though he was one tough hombre, but the pay was better.
“In the wrestling game it all comes down to agents … and if you can get booked into a place,” said Evans’ son Les, who drives truck for Ready Mix concrete. “One of the things my dad found out was that you make more money when you play a bad guy. Once he became the bad guy, he was always booked and they became a top attraction.”
The Love Brothers were huge, headlining at such places as Maple Leaf Gardens and taking on other legends such as Andre the Giant, Sweet Daddy Siki and Whipper Billy Watson. They were regulars on such shows as “Ringside” on CHCH-TV, and won their share of titles.
Born in Wales, Evans came to Hamilton in 1935 with his parents John and Dorothy Evans, and brothers. They settled on the Hamilton beach and his dad went to work at Stelco. John Evans Sr., however, had been an amateur wrestler back home and he took John Jr. to a wrestling match in the east end in the 1940s.
Evans told The Spectator he was hooked and began to wrestle on neighbourhood lawns, taking on all comers.
He worked odd jobs after being kicked out of high school in Grade 10, and finally got into professional wrestling in the 1960s.
The Love Brothers came about after Evans met wrestler and promoter Johnny Powers.
Evans had already formed a masked tag team with Hutchings called The Hangmen, but Powers believed they could do better if they capitalized on the ’60s love generation, and wear love beads, tie-dyed shirts and bell bottoms.
Powers thought Evans should carry the moniker Reginald because it would come off pompous. They came up with the name of Hartford for Hutchings for the same reason, and the Love Brothers were born. They were introduced as hailing from Boston, but that was showmanship as well. Hutchings was from Newfoundland. They worked with Beautiful Bruce Swayze and had a manager called Kangaroo Al Costello — he carried a boomerang to help the brothers subdue their opponents.
After he left wrestling, Evans did TV work in such shows as John Byner’s old comedy show “Bizarre” and in movies such as 1979’s “Title Shot” with Tony Curtis and 1981’s “Tales of the Haunted” with Jack Palance. He appeared in commercials for Kellogg’s Corn Flakes and had a number of businesses, such as the bar Hubcaps in the east end.
Swayze, who wrestled with the brothers in six-man tag team bouts, called Evans “a dear friend” and “a mentor.”
“Reggie was a tough guy,” said Swayze, 77, who left wrestling the same time as Evans. “He was tough as nails. He was a good wrestler and a great showman.”
He said there are so many stories — some he can’t tell — but he did recall one time in North Bay when the trio were wrestling and the crowd was pumped up. When they left, a guy came at Swayze with a hockey stick. “We kind of took him out real quick,” he said. “We tackled him ... We were lucky to get out of the arenas alive sometimes. It was crazy.”
A celebration of Evans’ life is set for the Waterdown Legion, 70 Hamilton St. N., 2-5 p.m. on Sunday. Jan. 28. Evans is survived by four daughters, three sons, 12 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his wife Carol in 2009 and a son in 1972.