I'm completely shocked and can't really find the words to express the sadness about the news of the sudden death of "Rowdy" Roddy Piper at the age of 61.
Spending his early years as Roderick George Toombs, Roddy Piper was a fighter for his entire life, as he left home at an early age and lived in youth hostels to avoid the streets. It was during that time that he began boxing at a local gym and met his mentor, "Judo" Gene Lebell, who is regarded as a legend of combat sports. The introduction to competition provided Roddy with stability from his turbulent childhood and soon led to an opportunity to pursue pro wrestling in Winnipeg. At the age of 15, Roddy Piper, who learned to play the bag pipes during his time at the youth hostels, made his pro debut at the Winnipeg Arena with the Toronto bag pipe band playing him to the ring. Piper's opponent was Larry "The Axe" Henning" and it took the wrestling veteran about ten seconds to defeat the scrawny rookie, but the promoters were impressed with Piper's determination, and offered him the chance to go to Kansas City. The young Piper took the opportunity to go to Kansas City and worked various territories around the United States as a preliminary competitors learning his trade until started working in California in 1975.
It was on the west coast that Roddy started to develop his "Rowdy" persona, as he became a top heel using a combination of charisma and great mic skills. Piper could also generate a tremendous amount of heat from the crowd during a time when the audience still thought pro wrestling wasn't just a form of sports entertainment and there was a risk for heel performers. Specifically, his run in Los Angeles and the feud with Chavo Guerrero put Piper on the map as a villain. The primarily Hispanic fan base supported the legendary Guerrero name and Piper would taunt the crowd into a frenzy. Flying cups, ice, and chairs were not uncommon during the Piper/Guerrero feud. After the successful run in LA, Piper began working for Don Owens in Portland and provided a boost for the smaller territory in 1980. Don Owens, who was a well respected promoter, was a father figure for Piper and he spoke about his respect for the Portland promoter during his career. After a memorable feud with Buddy Rose in Portland, Roddy began working the NWA territories, which culminated in a brutal dog collar match with Greg Valentine at Starrcade in 1983. The match resulted in Piper suffering a broken ear drum and blood poured from his ear during the majority of the bout, but the violent performance got him noticed from Vince McMahon, who was planning a national expansion.
Still recovering from the ear injury, Roddy couldn't wrestle for a few months after his WWE debut so he worked as a manager for various competitors and was given his own interview segment, "Piper's Pit" in 1984. Perhaps the most infamous Pit and the segment that is still talked about today is the interview where Piper smashed a cocoanut on Jimmy Snuka's head, which led to a series of matches. It should be noted that the "Rock n Wrestling" era of transforming regional pro wrestling into sports entertainment was possible because of segments such as Piper's Pit because it showed that stars could be entertaining outside of the ring as well. While Hulk Hogan was the star power of Hulkamania, the angle wouldn't have been as successful if he didn't have an opponent that had just as much heat as he had fan support. Piper's ability to connect with the crowd as a heel was on par with the audience support of Hulk during the wrestling boom of the 80s. No disrespect, but if Hulk Hogan vs. Nikolai Volkoff was featured as the main event of Wrestlemania, it wouldn't have been as successful. Roddy Piper's mic skills and intensity made fans want to see if Hogan could finally get revenge for the heel tactics. Piper could generate legitimate heat with the audience, but at the same time, he became one of the heels that some of the audience cheered, which is one of the things that made him such a dynamic performer. The bottom line is, Hogan wouldn't have been as popular as he was without the Piper feud and without the popularity of Hulkamania, the national expansion wouldn't have been as successful. the Following the success of Wrestlemania, Piper was booked in a boxing match against Mr. T at Wrestlemania II and despite being a heel, Piper emerged from the feud getting cheered from the crowd. Eventually, Roddy became a baby face and the following year was scheduled for a "retirement match" with his friend, Adrian Adonis at Wrestlemania III. In reality, Piper was set to film the cult classic, "They Live," which would be the start of several movie and TV roles throughout his career. Even without a formal education, Roddy was a smart businessman and his acting roles allowed him to be apart of the Screen Actors Guild, which offered health insurance. After filming "They Live," Piper returned to the WWE and worked in a variety of roles during the next several years, including a commentator, a guest referee, and sporadic feuds when he returned to the ring. Some of Roddy's classic matches were an Intercontinental title match with Brett Hart at Wrestlemania VIII and the Hollywood back lot brawl with Goldust at Wrestlemania XII.
Roddy Piper signed with WCW in 1996 and remained extremely popular, but the cluster that was the promotion didn't utilize Piper as well as they could have because of the politics that surrounded the company. Piper defeated Hogan on a few occasions in WCW, but Hogan didn't drop the title to him, which would have made more sense because Piper didn't win the world title in his career. Eventually Piper left WCW and after the promotion closed, he made a surprise return to the WWE in 2003. Just a few months later, he was released from the WWE after he did a controversial interview with the HBO Real Sports series, but it might of be a case of the show deciding to only show the negative aspect of the interview in an attempt to take a jab at the pro wrestling industry. A few years later Roddy returned to the company again and he was inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2005. Since the induction, Piper made several appearances of WWE TV, including winning the tag titles with Ric Flair in 2006 and many appearances at Wrestlemania in recent years. He was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2006, but survived and worked to provide awareness for charities.
I usually don't mention anything about myself in this column because you click this to read about wrestling, not me, but there's a Roddy Piper story I would like to share that shows the good person he was during his career. Two years ago, he was scheduled to do a local signing and just a few weeks before it, I was involved in a serious car accident. It was a traffic accident at a yield spot and it was more of a fluke than anything. Nobody was being reckless and it was just an accident when a van hit the car I was in. Thankfully, the people in the van weren't hurt, but since I was in a smaller car, I had several injuries. There were cuts, bruises, and fractures. It took a few weeks before I could get around again and obviously, I missed the Piper signing, which I had been looking forward to for a few months. One of my friends was an extra in one of the movies that Piper did a few months earlier and offered to help Piper at the signing taking photos with the fans. Since I couldn't be at the signing, he asked if Piper would call me during it and he was happy to do it. My phone rang and I was told someone wanted to talk to me. It was Roddy Piper and it was a complete surprise. I was completely shocked and I was thrilled to get to talk to him. We talked for about five minutes and I told him about a DVD I had of some of his earlier matches in San Francisco. I told him that Adrian Adonis is under rated and he said Adrian was great. He said get well soon and I thanked him for taking the time to talk to me on the phone. The injuries from the car accident were a low point and I was extremely sad for weeks, but Roddy Piper cheered me up. He took the time out of a busy schedule to tell me to get well soon and I will never forget his kindness.
"Rowdy" Roddy Piper was an intense and charismatic performer that survived poverty to become a legend in the wrestling business. There's no doubt that Piper was a pioneer in sports entertainment and the industry wouldn't be where it is today without his contributions. While it might seem like he was difficult to work with at various times during his career, he was probably just trying to protect the career that he build, which allowed him to survive poverty. As mentioned earlier, Piper didn't win a world title during his career, but he didn't need a title and he was over with the audience without it, which shows just how great of a performer he was during his prime. Piper wasn't a technical wrestler, but he was a tremendous performer and there was an authenticity to him that allowed the fans to identify with him. Roddy Piper has passed away, but his legacy with always be remembered. So, what was it that made Roddy Piper a legend? Is it charisma, his brawling style, the mic skills, or the legendary interviews? The answer is probably all over the above, but when they have the answers, Roddy Piper changes the questions.
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