first match against Calvin "Prince" Pullins. Heenan said he was never trained as a wrestler and it came naturally. He was booked – both as a manager and wrestler – after the promoters saw how well he handled the physical aspects of his managerial duties. During his time in WWA, he managed Angelo Poffo and Chris Markoff, the Assassins (Guy Mitchell and Joe Tomasso), The Valiant Brothers and The Blackjacks. In particular, Heenan was credited with making Blackjack Lanza one of the top wrestling villains in the country. This impressed promoter Sam Muchnick, who typically hated wrestling managers, and Heenan is believed to be the only heel manager to work in Muchnick's St. Louis Wrestling Club. He also occasionally wrestled with a storyline "brother" Guy Heenan, portrayed by Guy Mitchell, from the Assassins. In 1974, he left the WWA. He attributed his departure to a dispute with Afflis over pay for his participation in the first-ever wrestling event held at Market Square Arena, emphatically stating that he never returned to the promotion as a result. American Wrestling Association (1969–1979) After leaving WWA, Heenan announced he was now to be known as "The Brain" at his AWA debut in 1969. He took up managing the team of Nick Bockwinkel and Ray "The Crippler" Stevens, a duo which won a third AWA World Tag Team Championship under his leadership. While Bockwinkel and Stevens feuded with The Crusher and Dick the Bruiser, Bruiser famously called Heenan "Weasel"; this led to his rivals calling him "Weasel" throughout the rest of his wrestling career. The AWA was the starting point for the first incarnation of his eponymous heel stable, The Heenan Family, which initially consisted of Bockwinkel, Stevens, Bobby Duncum Sr., and Blackjack Lanza. On January 25, 1975, an angry fan fired a gun at Heenan in Chicago's International Amphitheatre after Heenan interfered in one of Bockwinkel's matches. Heenan was unharmed, but five people sitting ringside were injured, one of them critically. Later in 1975, Bockwinkel captured his first of several AWA World Heavyweight Championships, ending the seven-year reign of perennial champion and AWA promoter Verne Gagne. While Bockwinkel was AWA Champion in 1976, Lanza and Duncum captured the AWA World Tag Team Championship, making Heenan the first manager in history to simultaneously manage both a major promotion's singles and tag team champions. Georgia Championship Wrestling (1979) In early 1979, Heenan left the AWA (suspended