Biography - Jim Duggan

Who is Jim Duggan?

Jim Duggan is a wrestler by profession and American by nationality. He is signed to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and is one of the best-known characters on the show. His trademark is the battle cry "Hooo!", the U-S-A! cheer and use a 2x4 length of wood as a weapon.

Jim Duggan – Age, Parents, Siblings

Jim Duggan’s birth took place on January 14, 1954, in Glens Falls, New York, USA. He was born James Edward Duggan Jr. to his father James Edward Duggan Sr., the Chief of police for the City of Glens Falls, and his mother Celia Duggan. 

He might be the only child of his parents as he has not shared any details of his brothers and sisters.

Education, Ethnicity

He was educated at New York State High School and later enrolled at Ohio State University. But he chose to play football at Southern Methodist University (SMU), where he was later named team captain.

His ethnicity includes English and Scottish.

Jim Duggan – Girlfriend, Wife, Children, Divorce

Jim Duggan married his girlfriend of five years, Debra Haynes on 8 April 1989. He and his wife have welcomed two children together, daughters Celia Duggan and Rebecca Duggan. There have been sources claiming that he actually has three children.

The couple has been married for over thirty years and is still happy together. There have been no rumors of extramarital affairs or divorce between the two.

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Jim Duggan – Career

Before fame

Duggan was an athlete since he was young and was a star athlete in high school. In fact, he was a letterman in football, track, wrestling, and basketball. He also had a brief career in American football. 

After finishing college, he was signed by the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League. But unfortunately, due to knee injuries, he was released from the team.

He then began a career in professional wrestling in the year 1979 with the help of wrestler Fritz Von Erich. His first match was against  Gino Hernandez and soon gained the attention of Vince McMahon, Sr., and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF).

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Jim Duggan over the years

Jim Duggan also worked for Georgia Championship Wrestling. Between 1982 and 1986, he wrestled in Mid-South Wrestling and Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF). He then left UWF for World Wrestling Federation (WWF).

Then for the next six years, Duggan fought for the WWF (1987-1993). In 1994, Jim Duggan signed a contract with World Championship Wrestling and worked there until 2001, leaving when WCW was purchased by the WWF.

So for the next few years, he wrestled in the independent circuit till 2005.

In 2005, he returned to WWE before leaving the show once again in 2009 to resume wrestling on the independent circuit. After a few years, Duggan made his way back to WWE and on April 2, 2011, Duggan was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

Worked with

Over the course of his wrestling career, he has fought with/against Ax, Smash, André the Giant, Akeem, and The Big Bossman.

Jim Duggan – Awards, Titles

Duggan has won many titles in the game including Mid-South/UWF World Tag Team Championship, Royal Rumble, Slammy Award, and WCW United States Heavyweight Championship, among many others.

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Jim Duggan – Health, Legal issues

On September 7, 1998, Duggan announced that he was diagnosed with kidney cancer. He underwent successful surgery and no chemotherapy was needed because the cancer was detected in an early stage. 

In November 2013 he started an IndieGoGo campaign to raise money to repair his torn rotator cuff with a goal of $6,500. Within a month, $10,396 had been raised.

In November 2018, Jim Duggan was hospitalized in ICU and saved from death. On November 30 of the same year, he shared via Facebook that his heart went into atrial fibrillation.

Years ago in 1987, he was arrested along with Iron Sheik (Khosrow Vaziri) after discovering that he was driving under the influence of marijuana and alcohol, while Vaziri was high on cocaine. He received a conditional release.

Jim Duggan – Net Worth, Salary

The net worth of Duggan is estimated at around $2 million while the figure on his annual salary is under review.

Jim Duggan – Instagram, Twitter, Facebook

On social media sites Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, Jim Duggan is followed by thousands of followers.

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