Legendary belt maker Reggie Parks, who was known as the “King of Belts”, passed away on Thursday at the age of 87. According to Bill Apter, Parks had been battling with COVID-19 in recent weeks.
Parks started his wrestling career in Edmonton in Alberta, Canada where he met the legendary Stu Hart. Following Hart training him, Parks was introduced to the territories in the United States. He wound up working for the AWA, several NWA territories, and eventually WWE. He also worked as a WWE referee for a period of time.
Following his in-ring career, Parks went on to designing championship belts. Some of his work includes the “Winged Eagle” WWE Championship. He also created title belts for the UFC, WCW, AWA, SHIMMER, and several boxing promotions.
WWE issued the following statement on Parks’ passing earlier today:
Legendary sports-entertainer and championship title maker Reggie Parks passes away
WWE is saddened to learn that legendary sports-entertainer and championship title maker Reggie Parks passed away at the age of 87.
Parks spent nearly three decades in the ring as a sports-entertainer working for promoters like WWE Hall of Famer Stu Hart and competing for championships in both the NWA and AWA. He even enjoyed a brief stint competing in a WWE ring before transitioning into the second phase of his career: creating championship titles. Parks would go on to handcraft some of the most famous titles in WWE history, including the “winged eagle” WWE Championship used in the 1980s and ’90s, as well as the classic Intercontinental Championship of the same era. His incredible work in both WWE and WCW crossed over into the worlds of UFC and boxing as well, as he continued to create iconic championship titles for decades.
WWE extends its condolences to Parks’ family, friends and fans.
We here at eWn send our sincere condolences to the family, friends, and fans of Reggie Parks.