Brett Lauderdale of GCW shared the news that former Philadelphia-based independent wrestler Billy Reil has died.
Reil began wrestling as a teenager and grew up as a close friend of Trent Acid (the late Michael Verdi).
Sorry to hear about the passing of Billy Reil. Unfortunately, I can't say Im surprised.
He was a funny guy and as "South Philly" as it gets. He was a childhood friend of Trent Acid & they broke into the biz together. Billy had potential at one time.
A cautionary tale.
RIP Billy pic.twitter.com/wbQ3qLSK5u— brett lauderdale (@Lauderdale11) April 29, 2024
Reil was a big fan of the WWF and attended shows at the Philadelphia Spectrum and started attending shows at the ECW Arena. He was introduced to Reckless Youth and later trained under The Pitbulls and went to Ocala, Florida in 1999 for further training under Dory Funk Jr.
Reil was heavily involved in the Tristate wrestling scene where he wrestled for Jersey All-Pro Wrestling (JAPW) among multiple promotions. Reil won the JAPW light heavyweight title in 1999 but had to give up the title when he suffered an injury. Throughout the next several years, he wrestled for ISPW, Jersey Championship Wrestling, USA Pro Wrestling, Pro Wrestling Unplugged, National Wrestling Superstars, and American Championship Pro Wrestling. His in-ring career essentially ended by 2009 and he came back for one match in 2013 for IWA Vintage.
One of the matches he was most associated with was a three-way match with Sabu and Low Ki in February 2000 for JAPW with Low Ki being a frequent opponent. In the 2000 JCW Jersey J-Cup tournament, Reil lost to Low Ki in the quarterfinals with Judas Young winning that year’s tournament.
After wrestling, he got involved in acting as a non-union worker and participated in small projects.
In 2002, Reil received coverage in the South Philly Review when he spotted a man on rollerblades attempting to mug Reil’s 61-year-old female neighbor. Reil left his house tackled the man and recovered the woman’s purse.
