Gorgeous George

I stated earlier that Vince McMahon created wrestling as we know it today, but that isn't quite true. Before the mid 1940s I don't think there was such a thing as a wrestling gimmick, but generic wrestler George Wagner changed all that when he decided he needed to revamp his character and became Gorgeous George, a vain, cocky bleached blonde character the likes of which are now scattered throughout wrestling history, but he was the first. George was not only the biggest star in wrestling but arguably the biggest star in all of television; TV was new at this time and wrestling was one of the biggest attractions on it.

Gorgeous George has inspired many wrestlers over the past 60 years but his influence doesn't stop there; Muhammad Ali has claimed that his entire persona was inspired by George. James Brown and Bob Dylan are also amongst the people who claim to have been inspired by him.

Again might not have been towards the top of people's boards but I have GG as one of, if not the, most important people in the history of professional wrestling. I've decided I'm gonna put him at the top of my list as I probably should have taken him ahead of Inoki.

teejayC's Hall of Fame:
Gorgeous George
Antonio Inoki

I probably can't do a proper Bruno writeup justice (just bring up the tributes after his recent death, they'll do it better than I can), but I think we all know his dominant position in wrestling in the 1970s, including being the longest running champion in the history of the promotion. Back when wrestling was real to everyone, Bruno was the consummate babyface and the hero every fan both deserved and needed right now.

I have no idea who would be the proper person to induct Bruno -- the best ones are probably all dead by now.

Inductees:
Andre the Giant
Bruno Sammartino

Randy Savage is another larger-than-life figure who had a legendary career and was well ahead of his time in terms of what he brought to WWF ringwork. His WrestleMania III match, which still holds up as a five-star match today even in the absence of era-adjusted context, ran so many laps around everything else going on in the WWF at the time that it was really revolutionary.

One of the most memorable workers and promos in the history of the business, I'm happy to have Savage in my Hall of Fame. I only wish that the rules of the draft allowed for a scenario where he was alive to attend his own induction.

The Rock
"Macho Man" Randy Savage

Inducted by Ric Flair

Ric Flair
Buddy Rogers

“The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes

Inducted by: Dustin and Cody Rhodes (as in real life)

In his prime, Dusty was considered the most popular man in wrestling, aside from Andre the Giant. He sold out arenas and drew huge crowds wherever he went. He pretty much made the Florida territory one of the most successful in the territory era. He engaged in long, bitter, and usually bloody feuds (all of which invariably drew record attendance) with some of the biggest names ever, including Ric Flair and many undrafteds, drawing them in with his amazing, uniquely styled promos that had the crowds ready to follow him to the ends of the earth. His “Hard Times” promo remains one of the greatest ever, go see it if you haven’t already.

Vincent K. McMahon
Dusty Rhodes

Harley Race

I was considering three people with this pick, but I think Race is the most important to the history of wrestling of them. He is certainly the most accomplished wrestler still on the board with his 7 NWA World Heavyweight Championship reigns and tons of regional championships and he would have a pretty good argument at being the best wrestler in the generation just before the Golden Era.

He was a consummate "wrestler's wrestler" who truly spent his life in the ring, going to training and promoting when his competitive career was over.

Hall of Fame:
Hulk Hogan
Harley Race

The Undertaker

The Undertaker was in the WWF when I started watching over 25 years ago and is still around today. One of the most iconic wrestlers of all time, he has been at the top of card throughout many eras in the WWF/E and although he didn't need to be in a title match to be the main event he still racked up an impressive 7 world titles, 7 tag titles and a royal rumble win. His biggest achievement however is probably his incredible 21 match undefeated streak at Wrestlemania. While he was a bit stiff in his early days, he developed into one of the most agile big men ever and put on some great matches later in his career.

(I feel I didn't really do him justice in this writeup but I'm really tired so that'll have to do)

Gorgeous George
Antonio Inoki
The Undertaker

I think that for any wrestling fan with a knowledge of history, The Four Horsemen are THE wrestling stable of all time. Flair. Arn. Tully. Ole. And yes, sure, even JJ Dillon. But none of those other people afterwards, they don't count.

Together, they were the straw that stirs the drink, the men that you had to beat to be the men, who men wanted to be and women wanted to be with. It was an all night ride, baby. Woo. Tell me you're not getting chills.







It was good to be a Horseman. They can induct their own damn selves, as far as I'm concerned.

Roster:
Andre the Giant
Bruno Sammartino
The Four Horsemen