Jim Ross has revealed a gift he received from the late, great, ‘Superstar’ Billy Graham.
While Graham is best known as one of the most influential wrestlers of his generation, he was also a talented fine artist. In an interview with Slam Wrestling back in 2013, he showed some of his pieces, indicating that one of a cactus was his favourite at the time.
Now, JR has revealed that the star gifted one of his works to him and his late wife, Jan. The painting, which you can see below, is a detailed still life of a vase and some fruit. Ross described the gift as “priceless.”
“An original art painting that was a gift from Superstar Billy Graham to wife Jan and me.
“One of a kind…priceless.”
Superstar Billy Graham is regarded as one of the most influential wrestlers of all time
Graham, who passed away on May 18th, began his wrestling career in 1970 after having previously been a bodybuilder, training with Arnold Schwarzenegger at the legendary Gold’s Gym.
After transitioning into life as a professional wrestler, Graham found success in numerous NWA territories as well as the WWWF, which would later become WWE. The star shared the ring with some of the biggest stars in the history of the industry, such as Dusty Rhodes, Bob Backlund, Bruno Sammartino, Harley Race, and Antonio Inoki.
While his relationship with the business and WWE later soured, Graham was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004. His influence can also be seen in a number of other greats with Steve Austin, Triple H, and Hulk Hogan also taking parts of Graham’s character and presentation to add to their own.
Hogan’s famous use of “brother” in promos also came from Graham.