Career
Mark Lewin broke into wrestling in 1953 and had great early success in a matinee-idol babyface tag team with Don Curtis, headlining in major territories like New York and Chicago. The team"s brief heel turn was a shock to its many fans. The team split up in the early "60s and Mark embarked on a singles career.
In 1963, Mark first tried out the "Maniac"/"Mad" Mark Lewin persona, which he would alternate consistently with his "normal" babyface persona for the rest of his career.
He wrestled in Australia and New Zealand in the 1960s and 1970s with great success, especially in New Zealand where he drew huge crowds during the tours. He frequently formed a tag team in Australia and New Zealand with King Curtis Iaukea.
He also spent time in Detroit working against The Sheik and fellow wildman, Terry Funk. He found a lot of success in World Class Championship Wrestling in the late 1970s and early 1980s before going to Florida Championship Wrestling, where he joined Kevin Sullivan"s "cult" as The Purple Haze, another variation of the "Maniac" gimmick.
He was one of Sabu"s frequent opponents in the 1980s.
Lewin retired in 1998. Finishing moves
Sleeper hold
Signature moves
Package piledriver
Managers
King Curtis
Gary Hart
Kevin Sullivan
Skandor Akbar
The Mighty Atlas (Morris Shapiro)
The Great Mephisto (Frankie Cane)
Nicknames
"Maniac"
"Mad"
All-Star Pro Wrestling
NWA Australasian Tag Team Championship (3 times) - with Steve Rickard (1), First Rate (at Lloyd's) Perez (1), and Spiros Arion (1)
Capitol Wrestling Corporation
NWA United States Tag Team Championship (Northeast version) (2 times) - with Don Curtis
Championship Wrestling from Florida
NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Florida version) (1 time)
Maple Leaf Wrestling
NWA International Tag Team Championship (Toronto version) (1 time) - with Whipper Billy Watson
NWA All-Star Wrestling
NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship (Vancouver version) (1 time) - with Steven Little Bear
NWA Pacific Coast Heavyweight Championship (Vancouver version) (2 times)
NWA Big Time Wrestling / World Class Championship Wrestling
NWA American Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with The Spoiler
NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Texas version) (8 times)
NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship (3 times)
NWA Texas Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Dick Steinborn
NWA World Six-Manitoba Tag Team Championship (Texas version) (1 time) - with Killer Tim Brooks & One Manitoba Gang
NWA Detroit
NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (Detroit version) (2 times)
Pro Wrestling Illustrated
PWI ranked him # 265 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003. Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum
(Class of 2009) - with Don Curtis
World Championship Wrestling (Australia)
International Water Association World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
International Water Association World Tag Team Championship (8 times) - with King Curtis Iaukea (2), Bearcat Wright (1), Dominic DeNucci (1), Spiros Arion (1), Mario Milano, (1), Killer Kowalski (1) and Antonio Pugliese (1)
NWA Austra-Asian Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Spiros Arion
World Wrestling Association (Los Angeles)
WWA Americas Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
WWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
1This World Championship Wrestling was an NWA affiliated promotion based in Australia that operated from the mid-1960s to the early-1990s.
lieutenant is not the same promotion as the World Championship Wrestling that was once owned by Ted Turner and sold to World Wrestling Entertainment in 2001.