Pat Patterson born Pierre Clermont ; January 19, β December 2, was a Canadian-American professional wrestler and producer, widely known for his long tenure in the professional wrestling promotion WWE , first as a wrestler, then as a creative consultant and producer, or agent. He is recognized by the company as their first Intercontinental Champion and creator of the Royal Rumble match. Patterson was born into an impoverished French-speaking family in the Ville-Marie borough of Montreal , Quebec , Canada on January 19, He expressed an interest to a priest in becoming one himself, but was advised it would not have worked, because he was "too adventurous".
In , Patterson - despite speaking no English - immigrated to the United States to pursue his professional wrestling career. He eventually became a U. While living and working in Boston, Patterson met his long-term partner, Louie Dondero. At the encouragement of PNW promoter Harry Elliot, who was aware of Patterson's homosexuality, Patterson developed the character of "Pretty Boy" Pat Patterson, an effeminate wrestler who wore lipstick, sunglasses, and a beret and carried a cigarette holder.
He held the championship for six weeks before losing to Martin. Patterson won the championship again in and After Stevens turned face in the late s, he had a feud with the heel Patterson, culminating in a Texas Death match , in which Stevens won the title from Patterson. In , Patterson turned face again, after feuding with Lars Anderson , who was managed by Dr. Ken Ramey. Later that year, he teamed with Rocky Johnson and won the tag team championship.
Patterson performed intermittently for the AWA until Patterson made his professional return to Quebec in , wrestling a number of bouts for the Montreal, Quebec-based Lutte Internationale promotion. Patterson was crowned the company's first Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion after an alleged tournament held in Rio de Janeiro. While Patterson's tournament "victory" is widely listed in wrestling title and match histories, the tournament itself never actually took place. Patterson's apocryphal title victory would later become something of an inside joke during Patterson's on-screen tenure as one of Vince McMahon 's "stooges".
The fictional tournament was also later profiled in-depth on WWE. The match ended in controversial fashion after Patterson placed his right leg on the ropes just before the three count was made. On May 4, , Patterson's feud with Sgt. Slaughter culminated in an alley street fight match in Madison Square Garden. While Patterson was a face commentator when partnered with Gorilla Monsoon and Vince McMahon , he hosted a heel interview segment for French WWF broadcasts known as "Le Brunch de Pat", where he would politely ask questions in English but furtively mock his face guests in French.
