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Who was Fanene Leifi Pita Maivia? Dwayne Johnson's late wrestler grandfather was known as the flying Hawaiian

Maivia sported traditional Samoan tattoos on his abdomen and legs with reports revealing that it was a symbol of his status as High Chief

Dwayne Johnson aka "The Rock" is now a mega superstar as he's built an empire acting throughout the years. Many fans have followed him since his football days at the University of Miami and of course his wrestling career. Johnson is the first third-generation star in WWE history. The sport is in his blood.

From his father to his uncles to cousin and now even his oldest daughter Simone, wrestling seems to always be part of Johnson's family tree. While many know that Johnson's father, Rocky "Soul Man" Johnson, was a wrestler himself, many forget that The Rock's maternal grandfather was also one.

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Who was Fanene Leifi Pita Maivia?

Born on April 6, 1937, Biography reveals that the dynasty started with Johnson's grandfather Fanene Leifi Pita Maivia, who was an American Samoa-born man who began wrestling in the 1960s with the stage name Prince Peter Maivia. He was later called the "High Chief". The publication revealed that Maivia ended up becoming a huge name in New Zealand, Hawaii, and the mainland United States before cancer took his life when he was just 45.

According to reports, even though Maivia was not part of the Anoa'i lineage that brought on many wrestling stars in the family, he was considered to be a "blood brother" of its patriarch, Reverend Amituana'i Anoa'i. In addition to being a talented wrestler, Maivia was also a promoter for the National Wrestling Alliance in Hawaii. 

WWE revealed that Maivia had trained under the South Pacific legend Steve Rickard. when he began his career in the ring, and then went on to win championships in the South Pacific and Hawaii — he had only gone to the US in 1970. Maivia was also known as the Flying Hawaiian sported traditional Samoan tattoos on his abdomen and legs, with reports revealing that it was a symbol of his status as High Chief.

Maivia's wife, Ofelia Fuataga aka Lia Maivia was the first female wrestling promoter, and her daughter Ata (Dwayne Johnson's mother) was adopted by Maivia. The franchise further reported that Late Maivia had helped many future big names outside of the ring such as Graham, Wild Samoan Afa, and Rocky Johnson (Dwayne Johnsons' father), the last of which ended up marrying his daughter Ata, a marriage the High Cheif didn't agree to.

In 1981, Maivia was diagnosed with cancer, which caused his death on June 12 the following year. He was then inducted in the WWE Hall of Fame posthumously by his grandson The Rock and his daughter Ata Maivia-Johnson accepted the award on her father's behalf. 

An interesting fact in recent times is that while many know that character Maui, in Disney's 'Moana' was voiced by The Rock himself, the design of the character was actually based on his maternal grandfather Maivia.

In an interview in 2016, Johnson who shed tears during the movie, said, "He looked like that. He was a Samoan high chief who had high chief tattoos all over his body." The late legend also played the part of a car driver in the fifth 1967 James Bond film titled 'You Only Live Twice'.