WWE
Compared to the other Halls of Fame that we discuss on our website, this one is hands down the most fun and the hardest to calculate. Keep in mind, that there is no actual WWE Hall of Fame where fans can go and see their heroes. There are no set criteria to get in the WWE Hall of Fame. Wins and losses don’t exactly matter when the matches are predetermined. It does not even seem to matter if you even wrestled for the WWE as some of their inductees never drew a paycheck from Stamford. This is as subjective as they come so with that we made a criterion of our own which did incorporate (in no particular order) impact, ability, innovation championships won, legacy and their use in the WWE. The only two rules we set was that the wrestler in question was not currently an active competitor on a full-time basis unless that wrestler was 46 or over. Once a wrestler becomes 46 that individual moves from the Futures to the Main List at the time of revision.Until Then, Whatcha gonna do when Notinhalloffame.com runs wild on you!
Sincerely,
The Not in Hall of Committee.
With the discussion of the late Brian Pillman it is as if you remember two different wrestlers. The first was the aerial specialist who was one of the first American wrestlers to successfully adopt a high flying style that could match any Japanese performer or Luchadore spot for spot. The second was the psychotic heel character who blurred the lines…
Virtually all followers of wrestling are aware of the 1975 plane crash where Ric Flair’s back was broken and his career was threatened. We know that Flair came back to wrestle again. Johnny Valentine was not as lucky as the injuries he suffered ended his wrestling career permanently.
Many times, wrestling promoters talk of someone who has the “look” of a wrestler. Looking back in the past twenty five years or so, it seems difficult to find anyone who had the designation more than Sid Eudy.
When James Harris adopted the gimmick of a “Ugandan Headhunter”, he stumbled upon one of most bizarre yet memorable personas in wrestling history. With his painted face and stomach, Kamala was a large savage who looked like he could destroy anybody and then eat them for dinner.
Before there was Kurt Angle, there was another legit Olympian who competed in the squared circle. Ken Patera competed for the United States in weightlifting at the 1972 Munich games (he did not medal) and was one of the first to use the moniker as “the world’s strongest man” while competing in wrestling.
In WCW, “The Natural” Dustin Rhodes rose up through the ranks to be a dependable upper card babyface. He may have been the son of WCW booker Dusty Rhodes, but his place on the card was established by skill as evidenced by the fans not turning on him, like they did with Eric Watts later. Despite his position on the…
(“Beautiful” Bobby Eaton, “Sweet” Stan Lane & “Loverboy” Dennis Condrey)Despite the temptation, this entry will focus on the tag team and not the entire package that featured the dynamic Jim Cornette.
When the late Gorilla Monsoon called King Kong Bundy “a condominium with legs” he wasn’t far off. Bundy looked liked he was created on an easel. His 450 pounds were spread over a very wide frame, a hairless body and pale white skin. Bundy looked like a movie monster come to life. Throw in a vicious attitude and better than…
With all due respect to Iron Mike Sharpe (whom we love by the way) when Gene Kiniski was billed as Canada’s Greatest Athlete it seemed far more legitimate. The former NWA World Heavyweight Champion looked every bit the tough guy and far from anyone you would want to pick a fight with.
A graduate of Larry Sharpe’s “Monster Factory”, no other graduate fit the bill of a monster better than “The Beast from the East”, Bam Bam Bigelow. He was a large man (nearly 400 lbs) and though he wasn’t the first of his size in the business, he was the first to debut such incredible agility.
Having the distinction of being the first man to regain the first recognized version of the World Heavyweight Championship, Joe Stecher also was one of the youngest, winning his first of three world titles at the age of 22. Stecher, who was always in the shadow of Frank Gotch, never had the dream match with the retired former champion but…
The man who is probably the greatest American Amateur Wrestler of the 1950’s (and arguably among the greatest five of all-time), Danny Hodge was able to generate a very successful professional career. He would become one of the premier Junior Heavyweights of the National Wrestling Alliance, and would hold that title on eight occasions. On top of winning titles, he…
Don Leo Jonathan may have been born and raised in Utah but it was in Canada that he found his home. Jonathan’s size and wrestling acumen allowed him to become a true international superstar and he traveled the world winning titles and headlining cards. As mentioned he was most comfortable in Canada and it was for the NWA in Vancouver…
Only in Professional Wrestling could the most known German competitor not actually be German. Many wrestlers cashed in on the image of the evil Nazi that still resonated from the Second World War, but only James Raschke drew money with it, which was quite ironic considering his All American background.
When a lot of wrestling fans were first discovering professional wrestling in the 80’s, they saw a Tony Garea at the end of his career whose main job was to put heels over during their first few matches in the WWF.
Say what you want about Sable’s limited wrestling ability, but she is one of the select few who at her peak was more over than 95 percent of the male roster. She was the female face of the Attitude Era, and had the Women’s Championship belt reinstated essentially for her. Rena Mero will never be confused for any great (or…
A legitimate amateur wrestler and all around tough guy, Karl Gotch was one half of the WWWF World Tag Team Champions with Rene Goulet back in 1971. Gotch’s style struggled to make him a star in America, but it translated well in Japan where his mat based style of wrestling made him popular. Gotch was a huge influence on later…
This one was actually our hardest to rank. Mitsuharu Misawa has been called by many to be the best wrestler that Japanese wrestler of his time; which is saying a lot! The problem is that he never set foot in a WWE ring, nor had he real exposure to North America, which has to be considered a factor for a…
Although he would receive mention on WWF and WWE broadcasts through the years for his innovation and popularity, Edouard Carpentier never has seemed to be a serious contender for the WWE Hall of Fame. Carpentier won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in 1957, though the falling out with his promoter and the NWA led to a splintering of the championship.
Like Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi rose up the ranks to become of the top stars of All Japan, and subsequently one of the most respected wrestlers in the world. The tough grappler was credited with the invention of many high impact offensive moves that have been liberally stolen in the States. Despite the high regard he is held in, the…