Introducing
Rumble participants via entry order:
1)The man who won`t stay down and
will beat every problem to get back in the ring, The "British Bulldog"
Davey Smith.
2)The man who set a record of 43
minutes and 55 seconds in the 1990 Rumble, one of the greatest heels in
the history of this business, "The Million Dollar Man" the great Ted DiBiase.
3)The 23 times former Wrestling
Heavyweight champion of the world, the proudest carrier of the World Wrestling
title name as champion, and without any doubt the greatest combined inring
and outside of it wrestler of all times! "Da Man", "The Kiss stealing,
wheeling, dealing, jet flying, limousine and recently bus riding son of
a gun" . The "Nature Boy" Whoo by god, Ric Flair.
4)"Nasty Boy" Jerry Saggs, who
had his career ended in a messed spot executed by Scott Hall.
5)Haku, the man we know today as
Meng, also appeared as King Tonga, one of the legitimately toughest guys
in the business today.
6)The innovator of high flying
flamboyant style to perfection with inring performance and mic skill,
one of the greatest wrestlers influencing
both in his inring style and both with his out of ring attitude, the one
and the only, a proud father today, "The Heart Break Kid" Shawn Michaels.
7)One of the hardest working stars
in the late 70s,early 80s before he got killed with the Matador gimmick,one
of the biggest influences at his prime as a Tag Team champion and the WWF
IC champion. Tito"Chicko"Santana.
8)Poor Barbarian, who even though
a good Bollea friend was recently released by WCW. His gimmick ran it`s
course, although with a right gimmick, Bischoff could`ve had repackaged
him
as a "security guard", a shame
to release a guy who`s been through it all.
9)The late Kerry Von Erich, whose
life was so tragic due his family deaths, and without an ankle, he was
able to remain on top as one of the most popular WWF stars, let along the
most popular star in Texas, jam packing the Texas Stadium in Irving, TX
infront of 32,123 in the memory of his brother David to win the NWA World
title from Da Man, Ric Flair.
10)Former Smash of Demolition,
repackaged as the Repo Man. The man who almost got his
so much deserved push in WCW last
year, but it just went away, Barry Darsow, one of the most talented performers
in the 80s. Who with the right gimmick could`ve gotten over with the crowd
in a minute if gotten a minute and a mic.
11)One of the best performers in
the early 80s, faced almost every top champion in the business
and done it all. A legend in his
own right, even though his style doesn`t match today, his persona still
being used his mark remains legendary for this business, Greg"The Hammer"Valentine.
Valentine also broke DiBiase`s
record from the year before as he lasted 44 minutes and 19 seconds in the
91 Rumble.
12)Nikolai Volkof was used at best
as partner of the Sheik as the hated anti americans from Russia and Iran,
however the gimmick was dead quickly and in 94 being brought for a final
run didn`t do much as McMahon turned him heel instead give a last run push
as deserved.
13)The man who came as a top dog
and until this day he is a secured top dog in this business,
from battling Hulk Hogan for the
WWF world title in 89 to battling the Big Show for the WWF
World title 10 years later, in
99, remains the Big Bossman in great shape, and even better one as came
back to WWF after the 5 or so years stint in WCW. A true inspiration to
see how he can adjust with the new style, he is Ray Traylor.
14)Hercules Fernandez, a classic
big power house for the early-mid 80s who did a great job
for his gimmick and persona, however
soon his gimmick was out of the window, even though he was
used in Japan in the early 90s,
he was unable to work others` style.
15)A true Icon in this business,
main evented the big NWA when it was on top under Flair-Race at Starrcade
83 against Greg Valentine, every match was built for the huge interest
of the crowd. Involved at the first big boom of 85 at WrestleMania I, and
then the boom of that boom at WrestleMania III against one of the greatest
workers and inring performers for his size, the late Adrian Adonis, and
then at the second big boom of the nWo as he main evented and drew fans
from all over the world with his feud against Hollywood Hogan and the nWo.
A true Icon,
"The Hot Rod" 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper.
16)A guy who contributed to wrestling
with his persona and gimmick,worked well in his early WWF run, however
in his personal life he`s nothing but a drunken SOB, Jake"The Snake"Roberts.
17)A legend, inspiration to every
american and to every wrestling fan in the world. Recovered from lung cancer,
over where ever he goes, no promoter can stop him, as every fan will yell
Hoooooo
and USA..USA when he sees this
guy. The one and only, "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, I`d`ve used him as a member
in the M Club, hell if Luger is there, he can`t wrestler neither, yet Duggan
gets a better reaction than he is. Now also a judge on TV.
18)One of the greatest pure inring
wrestlers, Mike"IRS"Rotundo.
19)The the legend himself, the
one that inspired Mick Foley to kill himself and enjoy it, for his size
innovating ability of high flying leaps at his time, the "Superfly" Jimmy
Snuka.
20)The phenome, the man who remains
on top through out his whole run in the WWF.
Made a mark for innovating moves
for a man of his size and inspired other 7 footers to follow his steps,
the one and only, "The Undertaker".
21)A tremendous wrestler, who main
evented and sold out cards alongside Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair, in the same
great status as both above, a man who played his persona to the height
of a Hulk Hogan and wrestled inside the ring to the height of Ric Flair,
a legend on his own right.
Was able to work great matches
with both Hulk Hogan and Ricky Steamboat, he is the one
and only, the legendary, "Macho
Man" Randy Savage.
22)"Berzerker", as John Nord was
the one who contributed the great Hass to the wrestling world.
23)"Virgil" Mike Jones, who remains
in great shape, and can also be part of WCW security or some sort of role,
as he`s been through it all in this business, and it`ll be a shame to remove
him from this
thing he loves so dearly.
24)The Iron Sheik, the man McMahon
used for the Backlund era to transform into the Hulkamania
era, must I say, he was perfect
for the job and did his job the very best as it should`ve been and was.
25)The one and only, a man who
was the hottest talent when he tagged with Tony Garea and won the WWWF
Tag belts in late 70s and later formed one of the hottest and best inring
tag teams with Tito Santana, and later in his Model gimmick was as great
and as good as any, as he could battle it out in any given style, with
the best and worst of "them". A former AWA World champ, a true legend in
this business, an inspiration and an innovator, both in persona and inring
ability.
A last run in WCW unfortunately
caused a torn ACL and later a neck injury forcing him to retire,
he is the legendary, "Model" Rick
Martel.
The man who held the Rumble record
for that year made in the 91 Rumble at 53 minutes and 25 seconds.
26)The man for whom I dedicated
this web site, the man who made me interested in this cartoon world, later
to be discovered a great art world, the man that executed McMahon`s bookings
and appealed the fans to watch
him perform and jam pack the Pontiac Silverdome.
Like it or not, he is the reason
you`re a wrestling fan today, he was the foundation for the big wrestling
boom, something neither Sammartino nor Graham where able to do under McMahon,
when AWA maniacs and Rocky behind
he was the man who lead wrestling to main stream
and is responsible for the popularity
wrestling received! The one and only, the legendary,
the man who`s on top of this business
from the moment he made it and will remain on top as long as he wants,
"The Immortal" Hulk Hogan, Terry Bollea!
27)One of the greatest inring old
style wrestlers and a teacher to many current up and coming stars
he is the great Steve Kairn, under
the McMahon "genuine" Skinner gimmick, a man who later appeared at WM 9
as Doink #2.
28)A great traditional style wrestler,
he was no late Adrian Adonis, but he always knew how to take bumps and
for his size it was always amazing the wrestling world should be grateful
to him for accepting the WM 7 US vs Iraq gimmick, a man who still remains
active in the WWF offices. Srg.Slaughter.
29)The man who was supposed to
be the successor of Hulk Hogan, but neither Lex Luger, nor he could fill
that huge space left by the Hulkster when he wasn`t active, today neither
come even close to the Hulkster, though this guy had great runs and main
events and has potential for great future in this business, due limited
abilities, he`ll need to work hard like he did this year to do it, this
guy was at the time Sid Justice, now he returned to his NWA Sid Vicious
name, the Psyched Sid Eudy.
30)The steroid M&M popping
Warlord.
Hulk Hogan enters the rumble, number 26, at 51
minutes, 11 seconds into the Rumble.
In 52 minutes, 18 seconds, the Hulkster eliminated
the Undertaker via careful Clothesline drag over the top rope.
In 52 minutes, 24 seconds, the Hulkster eliminates
the Berzerker via Side Back Body Drop to the outside.
In 1 hour, 1 minute and 32 seconds, Hulkster
and Sid together eliminate the Warlord via each per leg pick up throw over
the top rope.
In 1 hour, 2 minutes and 51 seconds, after standing
for a while and watching Hulk stomp a hole in Flair, Sid decided to eliminate
the Hulkster and does exactly that via hair&tights throw over the top
rope.
In 1 hour, 3 minutes, 21 seconds, Hulkster can`t
believe Sid eliminated him and Hulk grabs Sid`s hand while on the outside,
while Flair comes with a Jumping High Knee to Sid`s back, and a leg pick
up throw out, while Hogan helped Flair from the outside pulling Sid as
well, eliminating him.
This sets a record as the Nature Boy both wins
the WWF World title for his first time, and sets a record for the longest
lasting competitor in the Rumble, entering 3rd and surving against all
odds to win after being 1 hour, 1 minute and 21 seconds in the Rumble.
Then Hogan and Justice argue as officials break
them in the ring, where should`ve been the celebration of Flair`s victory,
unlike it was done backstage.
Hulk Hogan assaults talk show host:
Actually, it was the mid 80s, right at the inception
of "Rock 'n' Wrestling" and Hulk
Hogan's rise to superstardom... and assault may be too strong a word for
it.... but
yeah, it happened, and the consensus is that it was very real.
In the hype surrounding WrestleMania (the original one, no roman numeral
necessary) in 1985, Hogan appeared on a talk show called "Hot Properties"
with
host Richard Belzer. The interview was non-confrontational, and Hogan was
just
trying to demonstrate a headlock (or a front facelock, maybe... my memory
is hazy)
on Belzer for show (with Belzer playing along). But either Hogan applied
too much
pressure or Belzer has a really weak carotid artery or something, because
Belzer
passed out and whacked his head on a table. Not an assault by any definition
I'd
accept, but definitely an "incident" of some kind.
Belzer needed stitches, and soon thereafter, he began legal proceedings.
After a
few years, the case was settled out of court, but the suit really was filed
and was
pending for a long time. Since it's not nice to work the legal system,
this is one of
the these incidents that everybody believes was genuine.
For whatever it's worth, Belzer still plays it up... as recently as his
1999 book
"UFOs, JFK, and Elvis" (which is funny, thought-provoking, and dubious
in about
equal quantities), he uses his injury at the hands of Hogan as a punchline.
Article on Bollea:
Research by Justin Sulting ; source: http://www.twc-online.com/herb/TidBits/1990/ti900404.html
To millions of screaming wrestlemaniacs
he's the Hulkster, the one and only Hulk Hogan.
But to the folks back home in Tampa,
Fla. he'll always be Terry Gene Bollea, the quiet kid who was more interested
in
rock'n'roll than sports.
In fact the folks back at Robinson
Senior High School in Interbay remember his last day at school all to well.
"He streaked the
graduation ceremony," chuckles
on Wolf, the school's activities director.
That was in 1971 when Bollea scooted
through the stadium packed with up to 4000 students, teachers and parents.
"We knew
someone was going to do it, too,"
says Wolf. "We had guards everywhere but he did it."
The high school prank was a glimpse
into the showman who would later become the Hulk.
In Tampa, Bollea is also remembered
as a top Little League ball player
a pitcher who threw "gas" and a
batter who hit the long ball. "They had a deal at Burger King that whenever
a player hit a home
run, the team would get free Whoppers.
Man, we were there every Saturday because of Terry," said Jim pitisci,
whose dad,
Vince, coached Bollea on the Lil'
General's team from 1965-67.
Bollea was about 12 years old then,
recalls Pitisci, and grew up much like everybody else in Interbay, a peninsula
between St.
Petersburg and Tampa.
It was an idyllic existence, with
quiet tree-lined streets, parks and the ever-present Florida sun.
Bollea's family still lives in the
same modest wood-frame house he grew up in and the Hulk himself has a condo
in St.
Petersburg.
But early on there was something
different about Bollea - his size.
At age 12 he was hitting 5-foot-10
and by his teems he was 6-foot-7. The World Wrestling Federation puts his
current height
at 6-foot-9.
It's no surprise, though, that Hulk
Hogan should come from the high school which could be called Wrestling
High USA.
The list of pro-wrestlers who graduated
the school is long: Mike Graham (Gossett), Steve Keirn, Dennis McCord (Austin
Idol), Dick Slater and Ed Leslie
(Brutus Beefcake). Richard Blood (Ricky Steamboat) and Bob Orton, Jr. went
to a rival
school across the street.
Bollea, however, wasn't interested
in wrestling then and shrugged off the coach's attempts to draft him onto
the school team.
At the time he played in the Varsity
Band, blowing trombone. At night his heart belonged to rock'n'roll. "They
were really
successful around here," said Dave
Lawson of the band. Lawson played in other bands around Tampa at the time.
"They
played 1960's material - Stones,
Beatles, Byrds and stuff."
Two years at Junior College was
followed by two more years at South Florida University and in 1975 Bollea
finished school
with a commerce degree - and a
passion for weightlifting.
Instead of settling into a career,
Bollea focused on his newly acquired passion and even opened a successful
gym in Vero
Beach. "He was playing at a bar
called The Other Place and my brother, Jack Brisco, a former world champion
wrestler, told
him: 'With your size, you should
be a wrestler,'" said Jerry Brisco. "Terry said that was what he always
wanted."
But his first introduction to wrestling
under famed trainer Hiro Matsuda was painful - he broke an ankle. "No one
expected him
back," said Brisco. "It was August
in Florida, and the gym had no air conditioning. It was 106 degrees. But
there was Terry,
his ankle taped up and ready to
go."
He worked hard and trimmed his figure
to 220 pounds and by 1977 was on the USWA circuit out of Memphis, playing
to
3000-seat halls. "He couldn't really
wrestle but he looked good and drew crowds," recalls promoter Gerry Jarrett.
Under Jarrett, Bollea used the named
Terry Boulder and Sterling Golden. He played the villain, and worked small
towns
around the south.
In 1979 a video tape of him in action
caught the eye of Vince McMahon Sr., who re-christened Hulk Hogan. About
that time
he started to bulk up, reaching
320 pounds at his peak.
After a couple of runs through the
northern circuit, Hogan was kissed off as expendable. Dejected, he called
American
Wrestling Association president
Verne Gagne. "He said he wasn't making it, could we help," recalls Gagne.
"He was terrible at
first, couldn't walk and chew gum
at the same time."
Under Gagne's expertise, Bollea
developed further and by the early 1980's he was sent on a tour of Japan,
where the Japanese
revered him because of his size.
"Things were really starting to happen for him," says Dave Meltzer, who
writes a national
wrestling column and also publishes
the Wrestling Observer. "He made the Rocky III movie in 1982 but things
were really
happening before that."
On his return, he was "stolen" by
Vince McMahon Jr., who by then had taken over his dad's business.
It was McMahon - a bodybuilder himself
- who started the move to bigger and better bodies, a trend which dominates
wrestling today.
By 1984 Hogan was firmly established
with his own legion of Hulkamaniacs and McMahon picked him to anchor the
WWF
empire because of his drawing capacity.
Since then he's become an icon but
to folks like Dave Dennison, who grew up with Bollea, he hasn't changed.
"He is the nicest
guy, soft spoken, no ego and he
still treats his old friends right," he said. "He'll never be Hulk Hogan
to me - he'll always be
Terry Bollea. |
(The gimmick was the Hulk,
the chest hair ain`t for nothing)
[thanks
Justin for photo research ; source www.tcguide.com/kenpatera]
(see
the patented MSG exit sign behind them)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Beforekicking
out from the Bellt2Belly,Hulking gup
After
a 12/01/97 Nitro promo in Knoxville, Hogan got the snot slapped out of
him by this lady. In real life, the Knoxville promoters always give her
free tickets, she has been a wrestler in the 40s but retired due injury.
According to some people she helped the Hulkster during his days in Knoxville
in 79.
to this page.