Big Van Vader
A monstrously agile athlete who brought a terrifying, bull-like physicality to wrestling rings in Japan and America, redefining the super-heavyweight.
1955–2018 (age 63)·American professional wrestler and football player·Birthday: May 14·Baby Boomers
Biography
Leon White's first arena was the football field, an All-American lineman at the University of Colorado. But his true calling was the squared circle, where he transformed into Big Van Vader. In Japan, he found his identity: a masked, steam-venting kaiju of a man who could execute moonsaults, a move unheard of for a 400-pound wrestler. This blend of sheer power and shocking agility made him a three-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion and a legend in New Japan. In WCW, he was the dominant world champion, having brutal, classic wars with Sting and Ric Flair. His later WWF run, though hampered by creative differences, never dimmed his in-ring reputation. Vader's influence is visceral; he proved that immense size didn't preclude athletic spectacle, inspiring a generation of larger performers to expand their movesets.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Big was born in 1955, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Big Was Born
The biggest hits of 1955
#1 Movie
Lady and the Tramp
Best Picture
Marty
#1 TV Show
The $64,000 Question
Big's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1955Born
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1960Started school
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1968Became a teenager
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1971Could drive
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1973Could vote
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1976Turned 21
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1985Turned 30
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1995Turned 40
Oklahoma City bombing; Windows 95 released
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $96,500Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Gangsta's Paradise" — CoolioBest Picture: Braveheart
2005Turned 50
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
2015Turned 60
Paris climate agreement; same-sex marriage legalized in the US
Gas: $2.43/galHome: $171,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Uptown Funk" — Mark Ronson ft. Bruno MarsBest Picture: Spotlight
2018Died at 63
Royal wedding of Harry and Meghan; Parkland shooting
Gas: $2.72/galHome: $211,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"God's Plan" — DrakeBest Picture: Green Book
Key Achievements
- Won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship three times in New Japan Pro-Wrestling during the early 1990s.
- Captured the WCW World Heavyweight Championship on three occasions, establishing himself as a top villain in the United States.
- Held the prestigious Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship in All Japan Pro Wrestling in 1999.
- Was named Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Wrestler of the Year in 1993.
Did You Know?
Before wrestling, he was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the 1978 NFL Draft and also played for the Canadian Football League.
He lost vision in one eye after a wrestling match in Germany where a blood vessel burst, but continued his career.
Vader's son, Jesse White, is also a professional wrestler, competing under the name 'Jake Carter'.
“It's time! It's Vader time!”
