Gene Kiniski was the real deal | Wrestling News

But Eugene Nicholas Kiniski, who died April 14 at the age of 81 following a long battle with cancer, was more than just a professional wrestling champion. He was a man's man who never backed down from anyone â€" inside or outside the ring. ... “Listen, kid, I don't want to catch you staying at the Claridge Hotel or at the Senator Hotel where all the other wrestlers stay,” Kiniski told the youngster. “You stay at a first-class hotel, the Jefferson Hotel over on 12th Street. ...