Recognizing The Forgotten Stars

[The Brain]

The point of this thread is to simply give a shout out to some of wrestling’s forgotten stars. We always talk about the legends like Hogan, Austin, Rock, Savage, Hart, etc. When discussing mid card guys the names Dibiase, Hennig, Steamboat, and Roberts inevitably pop up. Here I want to remember some mid card guys who were great in their day but seem to have been forgotten by today’s fans. I’m going to start with Don Muraco.

Now I’m sure most people have heard of Don Muraco. I’m sure a lot remember seeing him wrestle. I bet a lot have forgotten how good Don Muraco was. A lot of younger fans know him best as the guy Jimmy Snuka landed on when he jumped off the cage. He had plenty of highlights besides that match, a match Muraco won by the way.

Muraco was an awesome heel in the early/mid 80s. He was kind of a combination of the big muscle monster heel and the cocky arrogant heel. This is a guy who wrestled a jobber while eating a sandwich. How awesome is that? Muraco was a two time Intercontinental champion and his second reign lasted over a year. Remember this was when the IC title was a much more important part of the show than it is today. It’s too bad he was on a short hiatus (not sure why, maybe an injury) around the time of the first WrestleMania. He would have been an excellent addition to the card and a much better opponent for Tito Santana than The Executioner. Although it was untelevised Muraco is credited for winning the first ever King of the Ring tournament in 1985. He even showed a comedic side that was a bit ahead of its time with his pursuit of an acting career. Along with Mr. Fuji he parodied Miami Vice, General Hospital, westerns, mysteries, and even did Johnny Carson like monologues. If you watch these you’ll see that they’re just terrible, but that was the intention. During his time as a heel Muraco had notable feuds with Snuka, Santana, Ricky Steamboat, Paul Orndorff, and world champion Hulk Hogan among others.

In 1987 he turned face when he came to the rescue of Superstar Billy Graham who was being attacked by Butch Reed and One Man Gang. This marked the end of Graham’s in ring career but he took on a role as Muraco’s manager and Muraco was looked at as a replacement of Superstar. He took on the nickname the Rock nine years before the debut of Dwayne Johnson. Muraco’s face run didn’t produce many highlights and he left the WWF at the end of 1988.

I think simply due to age those that remember Muraco remember him as a face as The Rock. If that’s the case you probably never thought much of Muraco. That’s a shame because he did his best work as a heel. He truly was magnificent.

Now it’s your turn. Who are some other guys that seem to have been forgotten with time? They can be from any era and from any promotion. Someone you never see talked about on the forums. Feel free to add anything I may have left out about Muraco too.

 

[Ferbian]

Very very interesting thread Brain.

There's certainly quite a bunch of wrestlers that doesn't get nearly enough discussion on this forum. Even guys who are direct legends and still hardly ever mentioned. A guy like Harley Race is a rare case as of late, a guy like Giant Baba, Lou Thesz, Antonio Inoki etc. All rare cases.

Yet, there's one guy that I've grown to really like, especially since I had him backed in the Debater's League. And this guy is Stan Hansen. Lariat has done great at keeping him remembered of some sort. Yet that's one guy discussing him, hardly enough compared to what he did for the business.

Stan Hansen has a long list of accomplishments. From being AWA world heavyweight champion, to being a multiple tag team champion in AJPW. He has been in all the big promotions of the world: WWWF, NWA, AWA, WCW and AJPW, and wrestled many of the who's who of the business.

Stan Hansen is one of the few guys known for sticking to Japan without being Japanese himself. He made it popular for American wrestlers to go to Japan and work their skills. Followed by guys like Ted DiBiase Sr. Hulk Hogan, Vader etc.

While he might have somewhat of a bad rep in America in terms of doing "bad business" with AWA because he didn't want to job his belt away, or for breaking Bruno Sammartino's neck. This guy is still fairly known for putting over talent in AJPW, taking the place of Terry Gordy to fight Hulk Hogan at the Tokyo Dome super show.

And of course, who can forget the fact that he became very over as a heel. Practically marking himself of one of the innovators of playing the heel role to a T.

There's a lot. And I mean a lot that can be said about Stan Hansen. And I probably didn't even fill half of his career properly, or for that sake does him any honor. But if there's one thing there's certain, that is that he does NOT get the discussion he deserves on this forum.

 

[TUFFY54]

Great Thread. I've always been a fan of guys who for some reason never really became huge stars. Here's my pick:

Bam Bam Bigelow
Bigelow was simply amazing in the ring. He was 6'4'' and weighed 350 pounds, and could do a top rope moonsault was good as Rey Mysterio. With his awsome flaming head and missing tooth, he probley had the best monster heal look in the buisness. Bigelow was the first guy I ever saw that used the ring itself as a weapon. He was using the ropes to catapult himself on to opponents back in 92 when that stuff was unheard of in America. I could of definatly seen him as a heel champion during those pre Attitude Era dark days of the WWE. A lot of people dont remember this but it was Bigelow vs. Bret Hart in the finales of the first king of the ring. They main evented the show with a great 20 minute match that was better than what 90% of the roster could do today. Keep in mind that no matter how bad you thought the match was, he carried a wrestlemania main event. Thats something very few people can claim. He also did some memorable roles as tough guys in major movies.

Aside from Japan, Bigelow's best work might have been in ECW. His feud with Taz was intense and he made for a very credible champion. Bigelow was also very respected among other wrestlers. Raven was quoted in an interview saying, "Vader was good, but if he wanted to be great he should of studied Bam Bam Bigelow a lot more". So yeah, I think every wrestling fan should remember the Beast From the East.

 

[UnBEARaBULLfan]

My picks are a team that does not get mentioned enough at all, the fabulous free birds they wrestled in every major promotion from wccw,awa,wwf,nwa, uwf, and japan also ecw and they held plenty of world titles plenty of good fueds with the Von Erics, Road Warriors w/ Inoki two teams that mastered the six man tag match, they even fueded with hogan, they brought alot to wrestling I think p.s hayes was one of the first wrestlers to sing thier own theam music they were also a big part of the rock&wrestling era. they really packed the house back in the early 80's the crowds were always on tier feet when thier music would hit. my other pick would be the mulky twins wrestling jobbers 4 life baby.

 

[Aotearoa (Bushwacker)]

My shout out is to THE BUSHWACKERS (or the Sheepherders as they were known down here). Luke and Butch. Truly great tag team in the 90's. They really were the original Santino Marella but there was two of them and they were funnier. Awesome feuds with the Bolsheviks, the Rogeau Brothers, Rythm & Blues and The Orient Express. My favourite tag team as a kid. Not heard of much anymore, well except down here cause they still legends here.

 

[mulkeymania]

i wish to give a nod to the iron sheik and nikolai volkoff--just an amazing heel team back in the day and could draw some major heat and the sheiks feud with sgt slaughter i still think was a good feud to watch and throw in freddie blassie to manage and it was great and i just dont see a lot on them anymore it seems

 

[wrestling fan 666]

My pick is Greg "the Hammer" Valentine. This guy is one of the most underrated wrestlers in WWF history. The guy was like a juggernaut; he just kept coming and coming. His matches with Backlund, Morales, and Santana were classics (not to mention the dog-collar matches with Piper). He was a multi-time Intercontinental Champ, Tag team champ, US champ; he was a star.
I give you kudos for mentioning my favorite underrated wrestlers in Muraco.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

The funny thing is most know who this is. He makes special appearances quite often, and usually to shout his signature catchphrase "Damn!". Ron Simmons is recognized as the first African American to ever hold a World Championship, yet they don't mention this on television at all if only now and then. As someone who made such a historic precedent in the world let alone in wrestling, very few even look at this man's career as anything more than a tag-team midcarder.

It's sad. Other people are praised for far less, and then we have this legendary superstar being used in nothing more than a giggle in Raw segments. Yes, lots of people here know who Ron Simmons is via on-screen affiliation, but the truth is he is underrated to such a degree that I consider what he did pretty much forgotten.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

The funny thing is most know who this is. He makes special appearances quite often, and usually to shout his signature catchphrase "Damn!". Ron Simmons is recognized as the first African American to ever hold a World Championship, yet they don't mention this on television at all if only now and then. As someone who made such a historic precedent in the world let alone in wrestling, very few even look at this man's career as anything more than a tag-team midcarder.

It's sad. Other people are praised for far less, and then we have this legendary superstar being used in nothing more than a giggle in Raw segments. Yes, lots of people here know who Ron Simmons is via on-screen affiliation, but the truth is he is underrated to such a degree that I consider what he did pretty much forgotten.

I was also going to go with Simmons aka Faarooq. When I first started getting into wrestling, I knew Faarooq as the leader of the racially motivated faction, the Nation of Domination, and then later as one half of the firstly dark-side team, then protection agency "The Acolytes/APA". I had no idea that this guy was a former world heavyweight champion, and even less that he was the first African-American to do so, therefore breaking down a lot of barriers.

While other wrestlers are generally recognised as World Champions when they make returns to the WWE, even for just one off short clips (aka Iron Sheik, Slaughter etc) but nothing is ever mentioned about Simmons having held the big belt. And he was good in the ring, with an awesome powerslam and spinebuster. It is disappointing that he retired in such a shitty way, being sacked from the APA and being retired on TV, and that we dont hear more of his accomplishments.

I do like hearing the occasional "DAMMM!" though

 

[harrythem]

Rick "The Model" Martel. Slightly biased as he was in the first match I watched when BSkyB came over here but, he could work, his gimmick was quirky but over, and I enjoyed his stuff. Hell, Rumble 91, for me, was all about The Model. My nan watched that Rumble with me and, after seeing how long he lasted and just his all-round game, she still, to the day she died, always asked me what The Model was doing in wrestling now.

His tag team with chico Santana was rather good too but, to me, The Model never quite got the props I wish he had. Hell, he could still cut it at a top level until he retired (see his matches with Booker T in WCW, they helped establish Booker as a serious mid-card talent).

 

[Calderownz]

Great thread.

Some of my favorites are guys that hardly get mentioned on boards like these. I love guys like Dean Malenko, Brian Pillman, "Sugar" Shane Helms. Vertibreacker is a great move. Lol.

Guys like Malenko and Pillman get their nods here and there, but are often over looked in the scheme of things. Much like Vader and Bam Bam. Big guys that could work a match. Main eventers. Never got the true praise they deserved from the fans.

 

[realoldskoolfan]

Rick "The Model" Martel. Slightly biased as he was in the first match I watched when BSkyB came over here but, he could work, his gimmick was quirky but over, and I enjoyed his stuff. Hell, Rumble 91, for me, was all about The Model. My nan watched that Rumble with me and, after seeing how long he lasted and just his all-round game, she still, to the day she died, always asked me what The Model was doing in wrestling now.

His tag team with chico Santana was rather good too but, to me, The Model never quite got the props I wish he had. Hell, he could still cut it at a top level until he retired (see his matches with Booker T in WCW, they helped establish Booker as a serious mid-card talent).

your not even scratching the surface of Rick Martel. this man is the former AWA World Champion who held the belt for almost 2 years. he had legendary fueds with Nick Bockwinkel, Jimmy Garvin, and Stan Hansen. he was a tag team with Tito Santana long before the WWF days, as well as a WWF tag team champion with Tony Garea in the late 70s. this man was a technical genius who should have been given a run with a World title long before he won the AWA belt in 1984. Vinces WWF is not the begining and end of peoples career, and its sad that alot of guys are only remembered for whatever gimmick he gave them in the 80s instead of the greatness they achieved before they ever got to his WWF.

 

[Tastycles]

I think the Killer Bees' contribution to tag team wrestling is largely overlooked. When people talk about the high flying teams of the late 90s that entertained in their gimmick matches, the influences are always cited as being people like The Bulldogs, but there's far more in what the Hardys and teams like MCMG do in the Killer Bees than there is in teams like that.

I also think that a lot of the solid midcarders over the years get overlooked - people like Tito Santana, Rick Martel, The Mountie these were good stars that time has forgotten. A personal favourite was Ahmed Johnson, but he wasn't really around long enough to make the impact that warrants us looking back fondly.

My major choice though is Marty Jannetty. Because of what Michaels went on to achieve, people assume and buy into the idea that Jannetty was shit and was going nowhere. The truth of the matter is that he was a very good wrestler, who probably could have gone on to achieve more than he did, had it not been for his own issues. Even if you only consider what he actually did, he was a consistent midcarder for a couple of years, he wasn't totally shit as is often implied.

 

[jmt225]

Gino Hernandez​

In my book, this man above in the top 3 of the most charismatic heels from the 80's.

Unfortunately, hardly any of you have heard of him, but that's because he had a very untimely death, well before he could reach the big time in the WWF or WCW, which best believe... he undoubtedly would have once the territories ended.

I had heard of Gino Hernandez before, but it wasn't until I saw the absolutely terrific Heroes of World Class Wrestling documentary when I got a taste of how good this man was. After viewing the movie, I sought out more of Gino's work and he was just awesome. His promos were as good as anyone in the business at the time, and he was so damn charismatic. There's no doubt he would have eventually ended up becoming one of those guys who was always majorly over as a heel, but even more over as a face.

Oh, and not to mention... he was damn good in the ring, too. Trained by Jose Lothario (the man who trained Shawn Michaels), Hernandez was as smooth and crisp as you saw in the eighties when watching him perform. Unfortunately most of his in-ring career revolved around tag matches, but regardless... you could still see just how good this man would have ended up being as a singles wrestler.

So, yeah... go to Youtube and look this guy up if you have the time. You'll see all the potential in the World, and someone who was undoubtedly a legend in the making.

 

[8thwotwATG]

A man who comes to mind that fits this category is Bobby Duncum Sr. In the 70's, he had a great program w/ Bruno Sammartino for Sammartino's WWWF Title. It also bears mentioning that Sammartino himself lauded Duncum as an underrated performer.Duncum was a big, athletic guy who had great timing and skill inside the ring. Even on the mic he was better than expected. "You unnastan?" was a phrase that was heard often.
Duncum also held numerous regional titles in the Florida area, among those being the Florida Southern Heavyweight championship;yet Bobby Duncum Sr. is name that I never hear mentioned anymore. Too bad, because he was a truly talented performer in that ring.

 

[FunKay the Inevitable]

I'm going to have to go ahead and suggest:

Umaga

In the modern era, there are not that many monster heels that can not only wrestle but make people look damn good whilst doing it. Umaga was the exception to this rule. Umaga came into the WWE as an unstoppable behemoth. He was flanked by his manager Armando Alejandro Estrada and he tore through the Raw roster like it was made of cheese. After going on an 8 month undefeated streak, Umaga was finally gifted a championship opportunity at John Cena and his WWE Championship. Umaga lost in the first match via roll-up leading to an unforgettable Last Man Standing outing.

It was in this contest where Umaga finally came into his own. Whilst failing to actually capture the championship, he proved to the fans that he was a damn fine performer by going toe-to-toe with Cena in a brutal and violent affair. Umaga lost, but he served a greater purpose; he helped make John Cena look fantastic. He would perform this feat on several other occasions, including losing his Intercontinental Championship to Santino Marella and doing the same to Jeff Hardy.

Umaga was a quality big man and a tremendous performer.

 

[mulkeymania]

just watching some matches on dvd and another rarely mentioned wrestler that put some good matches on and was heavyweight champion for wwf is bob backlund--i just never hear about him anymore.

 

[The Idiot]

"Ravishing" Rick Rude

Perhaps one of the greatest heels in wrestling history. Rude made his debut in the WWF back in 1987 after spending some time in NWA/WCW. His first notable feud was with Jake "The Snake" Roberts and later became involved with the Ultimate Warrior. Not only was he great on the mic and pissing off the audience..but he was an awesome ring worker who made his opponents look like gold, no matter who bad they actually were.

People talk about the Intercontinental title and how it was so prestigious back in the day when it actually meant something....well one of the main reasons was because of this guy. Although Rude never became the world champ in the WWF...he eventually won the WCW championship after they switched over from NWA. Some of his best matches took place in WCW with classic battles for the United States title...however he will always be best remembered during his golden years in the WWF who made him the star he was.

Rick died in 1999 (or 2000?) in his early 40's. I believe steroids were found in his system along with other meds.

*Interesting note* Rick Rude was actually in a tag team with the Dingo Warrior (Ultimate Warrior) when he first broke into the business with NWA/WCW in the mid 80s until the Warrior turned on him and became a face. Of course that feud was re-ignited a couple years later under the brighter lights of the WWF.

 

[byrnside]

I'm going with something a little bit different.

D'Lo was the epitome of "lost in the shuffle," probably most noted for being one of the most celebrated European champions ever. He also had, I believe, one reign as Intercontinental champ. This guy is a truly talented big man. I say big, but at 6'1 278 lbs, he certainly wasn't a cruiserweight, but could probably move just as quick as most of them. He was the only "orirginal" member of the Nation left after Faarooq dumped Crush, Savio and Clarence Mason. I'll never forget the chest-piece he used to wear after Dan Severn tore his pec muscle. Since the late 90s D'Lo hasn't done much except get a much deserved return to the WWE that was short-lived and not very successful. I think he'd make a great addition to the WWE as a road agent, or even with a role like Goldust has as an in-ring trainer, to build up younger guys.

 

[Maestro48239]

Bruiser Brody all the way!!! he in my opinion was the ultimate wrestling monster! be it in a heel or face role, you couldnt fucking stop this guy! i just watched a 60 minute draw between brody and Ric Flair that was beyond awesome! he showed everyone that he could do more then just kick, punch and stomp in that match!

Brody had the legendary worldwide feud with Abdullah the butcher that spilled more blood then a Cecil B DeMille epic movie. my fave match was him in a cage no-selling Lex Luger! I bet luger was pissed off about that!

R.I.P. Frank Goodish!! you are truly a wrestling Legend!

 

[Disturbed]

One man comes to my mind and that is The Bad Guy Scott Hall. He isn't one of my favorite wrestlers of all time and I think he should have been a World Champion in WWE or WCW. You never hear anything about him from WWE anymore. I know he has some personal issues going on but look at what this guy has done and what he could have became.

Throughout his career Scott Hall as competed in NWA, WCW, WWE, WCCW, ECW, JCW, USWA, and TNA. He is a former USWA World Heavyweight Champion, 4 time WWE IC Champion, Two time United States Champion, WCW Television champion, 7 time WCW World Tag Team Champion, AWA Tag Team Champion, as well as TNA WOrld Tag Team Champion.

He was apart of the biggest Faction in pro wrestling history, the NWO. He teamed with Curt Hennig in the AWA. When he came to WWE he was given the name Razer Ramon and was a 4 time IC Champion and headlined WrestleMania Ten against Shawn Michaels in a ladder match. He left WWE for WCW in the Summer of 96 and formed the NWO. In 2002 he came back to the WWE and reformed the NWO. In 2003 he went to TNA. He worked for TNA throughout 03 and then made rare occasions from 04 untill 2010 when he came back and won the Tag Titles with The Band.

He has done so much in his career and should have done more. Scott Hall should at least be recognized more with WWE.