Friend Encounters: Jim Brunzell, B Brian Blair and Ty Wasilk

Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends meeting celebrities.

This is a sad one. Today, I feature my recently deceased convention pal Ty Wasilk.

I met Ty many years ago at some comic con or wrestling event. Over the years, we ran into each other many times at such events. It was always great to see Ty. He always seemed to be in a good mood. I could always count on a smile or laugh from Ty.

Last week, I received news Ty had passed. Way too young at 50, Ty suffered from pancreatic cancer, ultimately succumbing to a stroke. The only bright spot is he didn't suffer too long with the cancer. Even with it, he battled like a true warrior and remained positive. It's a small relief in a tragic tale.

Below is a picture from Ty meeting the legendary Killer Bees (aka B Brian Blair and Jumping Jim Brunzell. It's fitting this picture shows Ty with legends. I know how excited Ty was to meet them or any wrestler. He was just as excited to meet independent wrestlers at VFW Halls. That was just who Ty was.

I don't claim to have known Ty too well. We only chatted when we crossed paths at events. Still, he was part of my convention circle.

RIP Ty. You are missed, but won't be forgotten.

B Brain Blair, Ty and Jim Brunzell in Waterloo, IA-June 2024.

Friendly Encounters: The Killer Bees and John Crowther

Friendly Encounters is a weekly series featuring my friends who have met celebrities.

When we last featured John Crowther, he was with with Nicolai Volkoff.  John was promoting Nicolai Volkoff: The Comic Series.  John was kind enough to give us a little scoop on his next project, too.  That project would feature the Killer Bees (Jumpin' Jim Brunzell and B Brian Blair).  The Killer Bees project is now officially on Kickstarter at Killer Bees: Issue 1.
The Killer Bees: Issue 1 is the biography of The Killer Bees in comic book form, based on interviews with Blair and Brunzell.  Highly successful and extremely popular, The Killer Bees were among the top tag teams from the mid-1980's through the mid-1990's.  They remain popular to this day.
The Killer Bees: Issue 1 promises the same kind of in-depth and behind-the-scenes stories that were featured in the Nicolai Volkoff comic.  There will be stories about the AWA, WWF, UWF and more.  All of this will be accompanied by awesome artistry.
The Killer Bees: Issue 1 is your chance to relive some of the greatest moments in wrestling or to learn more about those times.  It is a championship combination of wrestling history in comic book form.  I love the concept and I look forward to more from John.
Once again, on the Kickstarter page for The Killer Bees, there are several levels of pledges, each coming with a set of rewards.  This is a chance to get a cool comic and to get some other fun stuff, like Killer Bees decals, autographs, trading cards, other similar comic releases and more.  The Kickstarter campaign ends on July 11.
I appreciate John sharing his comics and campaigns here.  They are great quality and I am sure wrestling fans or even plain comic fans will love these comics.

Brian Blair, John Crowther and Jim Brunzell in Orlando, FL-April 2017.