Jim Brunzell
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- August 14, 1949 (age 77)
- Birthplace
- White Bear Lake, Minnesota, USA
Biography
James Brunzell is a retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name "Jumping" Jim Brunzell. Known for his successful tag teams, Brunzell performed for various wrestling promotions over the course of approximately two decades. National Wrestling Alliance: During the later half of the 1970s, he signed to wrestle for the Mid-Atlantic region and won the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship twice, a significant singles title at the time. Return to AWA: Upon returning to AWA, Brunzell reformed his tag team with Greg Gagne, known as the "High Flyers", and was elevated to main event status. The tandem of Brunzell and Gagne held the AWA World Tag Team Championship on two separate occasions, feuding with teams like Jesse Ventura and Adrian Adonis and Jerry Blackwell and Ken Patera. Brunzell remained with the AWA in both tag team and singles competition until 1985. WWE: Brunzell then signed to wrestle with WWE as they continued their national expansion. Here, he formed the popular tag team, The Killer Bees, with another WWE newcomer, B. Brian Blair. Apparently, Verne and Greg Gagne felt somewhat betrayed by the move. Gagne even expressed his displeasure during an AWA broadcast, making subtle references to Brunzell's departure and his new gimmick. Brunzell and Blair experienced moderate success while with WWE. The two feuded with the likes of The Hart Foundation as well as the Funks, Jimmy Jack Funk and Hoss Funk, who they faced in front of over 74,000 fans at The Big Event. Their stay was also highlighted by a match against Nikolai Volkoff and the Iron Sheik as part of WrestleMania III and a win at the inaugural Survivor Series on Thanksgiving Day 1987. The Killer Bees teamed together until Blair left the promotion in 1988. Brunzell continued in singles competition for a time, being used to put over newer talent like Curt Hennig and Damien Demento as late as a Raw episode in April 1993. Independent circuit: He left WWE in 1991 and competed on the independent circuit, primarily in the Chicago area. Brunzell also wrestled for Herb Abrams' Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF) in 1991. While there, he reunited with B. Brian Blair under the name Masked Confusion, winning the tag team title twice. After the UWF closed, Brunzell returned to the independent circuit and continued to wrestle until late 1999, when Brunzell faced fellow wrestler, The Hater. Currently, Brunzell works as a financial planner for Focus Financial in the Minneapolis area, he is also active in his church and does charity work for children with diabetes.
Known For
Highlander
Raw
WWE WrestleMania III
WWE Saturday Night's Main Event
WrestleMania II
WWE WrestleMania IV
WWE Royal Rumble 1988
WWE Survivor Series 1987
WWE Survivor Series 1988
WWE SummerSlam 2026: Sunday
WWE: Bret 'Hitman' Hart - The Best There Is, The Best There Was, The Best There Ever Will Be
WWF Superstars
Filmography
WWE SummerSlam 2026: Sunday
Movie · as Self
WWE: Allied Powers - The World's Greatest Tag Teams
Movie · as Himself
WWE: Bret 'Hitman' Hart - The Best There Is, The Best There Was, The Best There Ever Will Be
Movie · as Jim Brunzell
AWF Warriors of Wrestling
TV · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell · 3 eps
UWF Blackjack Brawl
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Bashed in the USA
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WCW Slamboree 1993
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
Raw
TV · as Jim Brunzell · 1 ep
WWE March to WrestleMania VIII
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WrestleMania: The Greatest Hits
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
UWF Beach Brawl
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
The Best of the WWF: volume 16 Around the World
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Los Angeles Wrestling: October '88
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Maple Leaf Wrestling: April '88
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Maple Leaf Wrestling: September '88
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Wrestling at The Meadowlands: September '88
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Royal Rumble 1988
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE WrestleMania IV
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE WrestleFest
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Survivor Series 1988
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE WrestleMania III
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE The Hart Foundation
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Houston Wrestling: October '87
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Maple Leaf Wrestling: June '87
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Maple Leaf Wrestling: March '87
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Wrestling at The Meadowlands: January '87
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
The WWF's Even More Unusual Matches
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Survivor Series 1987
Movie · as Brunzell
WrestleMania II
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
The Best of the WWF: volume 5
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
The Best of the WWF: volume 8
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Detroit Wrestling '86
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Houston Wrestling: October '86
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Maple Leaf Wrestling: March '86
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Maple Leaf Wrestling: May '86
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
Highlander
Movie · as Himself (uncredited)
WWE The Big Event
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWF Wrestling Challenge
TV · as Jim Brunzell, Jim Brunzell, "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell · 5 eps
WWF Superstars
TV · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell · 26 eps
PWUSA Star Wars
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
PWUSA Mayhem at The Meadowlands
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Maple Leaf Wrestling: September '85
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
AWA StarCage
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
The WWF's Amazing Managers
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
WWE Saturday Night's Main Event
TV · as Jim Brunzell · 1 ep
AWA Christmas Show 1984
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
Tuesday Night Titans
TV · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell · 1 ep
AWA Christmas Night 1983
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
AWA Super Sunday
Movie · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell
AWA Arena Shows
TV · as "Jumpin" Jim Brunzell · 2 eps
The Wrestler
Movie · as James Brunzell
WWE Old School
TV · as "Jumping" Jim Brunzell · 2 eps