Frank “The All-American” Zill

Frank Zill

Born to a family of Austrian Jewish immigrants, Frank Zill- whose real name is Franz Zeiler- spent the majority of his life trying to blend into American society. After the tragic death of his father, the burden of providing for his mother and seven siblings fell on Franz's shoulders. Through countless hours of menial labor, combined with his impressive genetics, puberty hit Zeiler harder than his family's immigrant work ethic. In addition to providing for his siblings financially, as the eldest member of the Zeiler clan, Franz often shielded his family from a slew of antisemitic attacks. To bolster his fighting prowess, Zeiler became a pupil of a retired amateur wrestling legend. As he advanced his grappling acumen, Zeiler's coach began to shop him around to local wrestling promoters for a bevy of handsome paydays. 

During the early stages of his professional wrestling career, several promoters- including Elston Fowler, also known as The Borneo Wildman- attempted to paint Zeiler as a heel due to his foreign heritage. Disgusted by the premise of using his religion as fodder for jeers, Zeiler invented the stage name Frank Zill in an attempt to pass as "real American." In less than a year, the newly christened Frank Zill ascended to unfathomable heights of popularity, becoming one of the most recognizable wrestlers in the country. 

In contrast to Zill's hard-nosed wrestling style and persona, he's riddled with a host of quirks that are just undiagnosed forms of neurodivergence. From OCD to Aspergers, Zill's methodical ring style and trademark stoicism are byproducts of society not understanding the unique nuances of the human brain. Zill's Aspergers is the scaffolding around which we construct his comedic beats, but we must work diligently to ensure they're not stereotypical and demeaning. In short, Zill's neurodivergence is what makes his character comedic; it is never the butt of the joke.