Larry Barnhizer captured thousands of photos in his career. This battle between Pat Patterson, left, and Don Muraco saw them wrestle each other in front of a sold out crowd at Modesto’s Uptown Arena in 1974.
From the pages of the September 1982 issue of The Wrestler magazine, Larry Barnhizer captured this iconic image of Hulk Hogan, left, and Nick Bockwinkel during their bloody encounter in Oakland.
Oakland. In the main event for the Heavyweight title, champion Nick Bockwinkel took on a young Hulk Hogan in front of a sold out crowd. “He asked if I would cover this event because they knew I lived not too far from the arena. They were interested in Hogan because he had shown promise and the AWA was making a big push with him. So I went to cover it,” Barnhizer said. Standing in his usual spot, ringside by the turnbuckle posts, Barnhizer spent the evening shooting from different angles. When the action went outside of the ring, he moved out of the way but continued to shoot. The image he got moments later is one of the most recognizable in The Wrestler
PHOTOS COURTESY OF LARRY BARNHIZER
REMEMBER, THIS WAS A TIME BEFORE THE INTERNET. WRESTLING FANS USED TO GET THEIR NEWS FROM THESE MAGAZINES AND RELIED HEAVILY ON THE CONTENT INSIDE, INCLUDING THE PHOTOS. “
magazine history. The photo, in the September 1982 edition of the magazine, shows a bloodied Hogan grabbing Bockwinkel by the hair and ramming him into the apron. The image was used as part of a two page spread in the magazine. “When the magazine came out, I was blown away. I knew I had something special on my hands, but when it came out in the publication I was speechless and I am very proud of that picture,” Barnhizer said of his iconic shot. “Less than two years later Hogan became larger than life. I am so fortunate that I was a part of the action that night. Can you imagine if I did not go that night? I would not have met Hogan and would not have gotten that shot.”
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In 2016, the book “When It Was Big Time” by Rock Rims was released. This book captures the early years of Northern California wrestling history and in the thick of it was Barnhizer. Rims includes an entire chapter on Barnhizer’s contribution to the business and features his photography throughout the book. The 300-plus page book includes wrestling greats from Pat Patterson to Rowdy Roddy Piper. “It is an amazing book. And when he (Rims) told me that I was featured in it, it was a big accomplishment in my lifetime,” said Barnhizer. “It made me feel that my life’s work is being immortalized in a way. I had the time of my life doing it and I have zero regrets about it.” ■
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