It is another sad day in the wrestling word as Dick Beyer AKA “The Destroyer” passed away today.  He was 88 years old.  Beyer had been in hospice care for the last few weeks and he was surrounded by his loved ones.

Beginning his career in the mid-1950’s Beyer first rose to prominence in Los Angeles where he defeated Freddie Blassie for the WWA Heavyweight Championship but it was shortly after where he wrestled Rikidozan in Japan and would become one of the first non-Japanese stars in the country.

While Beyer would become a bona fide legend in Japan he was still an attraction in the United States.  He would wrestle throughout the nation winning multiple championships, most notably the AWA World Heavyweight Title where he performed as Dr. X.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to extend our condolences to the friends, family and fans of Dick Beyer at this time.  

A significant retirement has taken place in Professional Football as John Kuhn has announced his retirement.  

Undrafted in 2005, Kuhn was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers where he was on their practice roster and he was in a reserve role on the Steelers team that would win Super Bowl XL.  The Fullback would then sign with the Green Bay Packers where he would see more playing time and he would go to three Pro Bowls (2011, 2014 & 2015) while being named a First Team All Pro in 2014.  Kuhn would assist the Packers in winning Super Bowl XLV.  He would finish his last two years in football with the New Orleans Saints and signed a one day contract with Green Bay so that he could retire as a Packer.

Kuhn is likely not going to receive any serious consideration for the Pro Football Hall of Fame (he is eligible in 2023) but any player with two Super Bowls and three Pro Bowls clearly had a good career.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to wish the best for John Kuhn on his post playing career.

The San Francisco 49ers have announced that Terrell Owens will be the 28^thmember of their franchise Hall of Fame.

Owens was a third round pick in 1996 from Tennessee-Chattanooga and as a rookie he would catch 35 passes for 520 Yards.  Over the next three seasons, T.O. would move up the ranks and would become the primary receiver with seasons of 936, 1,097 and 754 Yards respectively but in 2000 he would prove himself as an elite wideout with a 1,451 Yard campaign that earned him his first Pro Bowl and First Team All Pro Selection.  He would repeat those honors in 2001 and 2002 but would add another accolade he was the NFL leader in Touchdown Receptions. In his final season with the Niners, Owens would again be named a Pro Bowler.

While Owens was certainly a great receiver, he was a controversial player.  He was outspoken and could be divisive in locker rooms.  Still, T.O. was a phenomenal player who is second all time in franchise history in Receptions (592), Receiving Yards (8,572) and Receiving Touchdowns (81).  Owens would later play for Philadelphia, Dallas, Buffalo and Cincinnati and he would be chosen for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2018.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Terrell Owens for this latest accomplishment!

It has been reported that former WWE Superstar, King Kong Bundy has passed away today at the age of 61.  The cause of death at this time is unknown.

Born Christopher Pallies, Bundy got his start as Chris Canyon in 1981 in the Northeast where he did mostly enhancement work but at his size it was only a matter time before he would catch the eye of a major promotion who would look to book him in a greater role.  Pallies went to Dallas where he would take on the name of “Big Daddy Bundy” a happy go lucky babyface but that would be short lived as he would join Gary Hart’s stable and would take on the name of King Kong Bundy and would feud with the Von Erichs. It was during this stint that he developed the black singlet and the shaved head (which was the result of a stipulation when he lost a match) and he was the chosen opponent for Fritz Von Erich’s retirement match.  

Bundy would compete in other promotions most notably the AWA, NWA and Mid-South and in early 1985 he would work some shows for New Japan prior to joining the World Wrestling Federation.  With Jimmy Hart as his manager, Bundy would squash S.D. Jones at the inaugural Wrestlemania in 9 seconds (it was actually 24) and shortly after he was traded to Bobby “The Brain” Heenan where he would join Big John Studd and feud with Andre the Giant.  

Bundy would be tagged for the Wrestlemania 2 main event and he would set that up by attacking Hulk Hogan after his defense on Saturday Night’s Event against The Magnificent Muraco. In kayfabe, he would break the champions ribs and Bundy would unsuccessfully challenge Hogan for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship in a steel cage.  

The big man would slide down the card predominantly feuding with the Machines and at Wrestlemania III he was in a throwaway match where he team with two midget wrestlers but he would be disqualified when he body slammed and dropped the elbow on Little Beaver, one of the opposing little persons.  He would remain in the WWF and the Heenan Family for the rest of the year where he would again challenge Hogan on two straight Saturday Night Main Events.

For the next six years he was in semi-retirement and he would do the occasional acting and endorsement work, the most notable of which would be when he appeared in a series of ads for IBM.  Bundy would return to the WWF in 1994 as a member of the Million Dollar Corporation and his most notable match was a Wrestelmania XI loss to the Undertaker. He would again leave the WWF in October of 1995.  He would be active in the independent scene for years after.

Bundy was involved in the concussion class action lawsuit against the WWE and had been very critical against the product for the past 20 years, which might be why he was never chosen for the WWE Hall of Fame.  We had him ranked at 36on our latest Notinhalloffame.com list of those to consider for the WWE HOF.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to extend our condolences to the friends, family and fans of King Kong Bundy.