Art Barr
Soon afterward, Barr left EMLL to join Konnan's Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) promotion. As "Love Machine" Art Barr, he turned heel, and formed the tag team La Pareja del Terror (The Pair of Terror) with Eddie Guerrero. The pair were highly successful, becoming arguably the most hated tag team in lucha libre history. Barr and Guerrero also formed a heel stable with Konnan and Madonna's Boyfriend, known as Los Gringos Locos (The Crazy Americans).
Despite both the acclaim and the financial success, Barr's time in Mexico took a toll on him, as he was reportedly homesick (his wife and son remained in Oregon while he was working in Mexico). Eventually, he turned to alcohol and drugs for solace, despite the concern of his friends in the business.
On November 6, 1994, AAA held the When Worlds Collide pay-per-view card (with some help from WCW) at the L.A. Sports Arena. La Pareja del Terror faced off against El Hijo del Santo and Octagón in a double hair vs. mask match, which was acclaimed as one of the greatest PPV matches ever. Around this time, Barr and Guerrero were also in talks with Extreme Championship Wrestling.
ECW was very interested in Art Barr & Eddie Guerrero coming into the company to feud with their top tag team Public Enemy. At the same time, WWF, WCW and New Japan also showed interest in the tag team of Guerrero & Barr.
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Death
On November 23, 1994, Art Barr was found dead lying with his child at his home in Springfield, Oregon. Preliminary reports said that he died of an aneurysm, but later reports said that he died under unknown circumstances. Barr did not have heart problems, no aneurysm or internal bleeding, and no ring injuries. He had a mixture of alcohol and drugs in his blood stream.[3] Eddie Guerrero was his best friend around this time period.
According to Eddie Guerrero, Barr first used the Frog Splash as the "Jackknife". Barr took a liking to the move and began using it regularly. 2 Cold Scorpio commented to Barr that he "Looked like a Frog", thus leading Barr to name his move the Frog Splash. As a tribute to his friend, Eddie Guerrero adopted Barr's trademark Frog Splash as his finishing maneuver. It has since become a trademark move of several wrestlers in Mexico and the United States. Chris Jericho, who was also close to Barr at the time of his death, would, when performing in WCW in the late nineties, occasionally accuse performer Lenny Lane of stealing Jericho's Loverboy tapes in reference to a personal joke between himself and Barr.
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Finishing and signature moves
- Frog Splash - Innovated
- Superkick
- Camel clutch
- Lou Thesz press
- Top-rope Lou Thesz press
- Double leg slam
- With Jeff Warner in PNW: Slingshot Hart Attack
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Championships and accomplishments
- International Wrestling All-Stars
- IWAS Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Eddie Guerrero
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- PWI ranked him # 18 of the 100 best tag teams during the PWI Years with Eddie Guerrero in 2003.
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
- 5 Star Match: with Eddy Guerrero vs El Hijo del Santo and Octagón (AAA When Worlds Collide, November 6, 1994: Hair v. Masks Match)
- Best Heel (1994)
- Feud of the Year (1994) - with Eddie Guerrero vs El Hijo Del Santo and Octagon
- Tag Team of the Year (1994) - with Eddie Guerrero
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References
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