Which Old School wrestler will you miss the most when they pass away?

[It's...Baylariat!]

Morbid question, but I keep late hours and am coming down off my medication...so here we go.

DISCLAIMER: WHEN I SAY 'OLD SCHOOL', I'M TALKING ANYTIME FROM THE 1900'S TO THE ATTITUDE ERA. DEBUTS PRIOR TO THE ATTITUDE ERA COUNT, TOO. IE. NO JOHN CENA, BUT CHRIS JERICHO IS FINE, BECAUSE JERICHO DEBUTED IN THE EARLY 90'S.

My question is which old school wrestler will you miss the most when they pass away and why?

I believe I'll miss Hulk Hogan the most when he goes. He was a major part of my childhood, along with Sting. I shed tears when Ultimate Warrior passed, and I assume sobbing will commence one the Hulkster ascends to that Red and Yellow mansion in the sky, brother!

So who will you miss the most and why?

 

[Merkin353]

To be honest with you, I've been in mourning over the Attitude era for 13 years. Plus I've come to terms with people I don't know dying. I simply don't care. But for the sake of the argument I'll say Vince McMahon. Which I think is the most logical answer. Without him, none of this would be possible. Wrestling (Sports Entertainment) would be Roller Derby without Vince. Hogan would be just another creepy old guy tweeting about his daughters legs. Austin would be a drunk wife beater. & The Rock would have never made it to Hollywood. Vince McMahon has made thousands of dreams come true & when he is gone, out of respect for the man. I will possibly shed a tear.

 

[Trance Metaphor]

I'll miss Bret Hart because he's my favourite all-time wrestler and I followed his work since his early Hart Foundation days in the WWF. He was awesome in the ring. The only other old school wrestlers I would miss are Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, Shawn Michaels and Undertaker. The rest that I miss already passed on a while back (ex. Mr. Perfect, Davey Boy Smith, Owen Hart, Brian Pillman, etc). I was a big Hulk Hogan fan as a kid, but I never stuck with him throughout my teenage years like I did with the other aforementioned names. I'll miss him when he's no longer around, but not to the level that I'll miss the others I've named.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Bruno Sammartino..... more for what's been lost by his choosing to remain in exile from the sport he led as the #1 attraction in the 60's and 70's.

Yes, lots of people today seem to figure anything that happened before their ability to remember it is of no importance, but Bruno's contributions were incredible when one considers that he made them when wrestling was wrestling, not sports entertainment.

The transition to Vince McMahon's new world was necessary, imo. Without it, I believe pro wrestling would today be restricted to high school gyms and state armories. In Bruno's era, there was no cable TV, video games, or 10,000 ways to entertain yourself by looking at your phone. A lot of people went to wrestling matches that wouldn't do so today, being diverted by these modern forms of entertainment.

Back then, Bruno was the undisputed leader of pro wrestling. His impact was amazing by yesterday's standards, which folks today can't even comprehend.

For those reasons, Bruno should have been wrestling's foremost ambassador, working for the company that WWWF became, imparting wisdom, pushing the modern stars.....and most of all, transitioning old school into new school, ensuring that his old fans stuck around while bringing new people into the fold with his status as elder statesman.

Bruno is whom I'll miss most.....but mostly because of what could have been.....especially since he finally came in from the cold after all the lost years. I keep thinking of what might have been had he decided to "forgive" Vince McMahon years earlier.

Can you miss someone when they're gone for what they didn't do? That's the case here.

 

[That N Word]

Well techinically Cena is an old school wrestler as much as i would say him.... I am going Austin. I just had a random thought in my head the other day about what would do then would be pissed....'NO STONE COLD!!!!' Also Taker,Mr.McMahon,Rock,Cena. Also Cena debuted at the end of the Attitude Era. The Ruthless Agression Era didn't start into SS 2002 techinically.

 

[Pedigree1]

There is so many to name.. I will say I will miss Bret Hart the Most.. After HH left,wrestling needed a new star and Bret hart provided it.. I loved the Hart Foundation,and how bret wrestled he made everything look smooth,and really it never looked like he was trying in the ring..

Bret was about as real as anyone could get.. He was just simply the best and a mega superstar.. He was the fighting champion ducked no one. I loved the Hitman

 

[Cena Is A Punk Rocker]

For me it's going to be Mick Foley. Just to think about a world with Mrs. Foleys baby boy makes me sad. I can't for the life of me recall ever hearing anyone say a bad word about the man. The amount of joy he has brought, and is still bringing, to peoples lives is inspiring. So yeah, I will cry when he dies.

 

[The Boss]

HOLLYWOOD HULK HOGAN. Although he is immortal and therefore can never die, one day the mortal body of Terry Bollea in which he is incased must go the way of all humans and a a sad day it will be indeed. HOLLYWOOD HULK HOGAN will then require to take on a new form. Maybe not human or even animal. Maybe it will just be in our memories but, whatever form he takes Hulkamania will live forever!

 

[Wolf Pac]

I can't go with just one when it comes to this question, so I'll say everyone who was a big part of the Attitude Era - Stone Cold, Rock, Mr. McMahon, Undertaker, Mick Foley, Triple H, Kurt Angle, NAO, E&C, Hardyz, Dudleyz etc. etc. I would miss them all equally and would weep like a baby for days. These guys were a huge part of my childhood, it would be like losing a lot of best friends. The AE was the most fun I've ever had watching wrestling, it turned me into a big fan of wrestling. I'm also counting 1997 here, so this includes guys like Bret and Shawn. Even if the Attitude Era didn't officially start until 1998 and these guys weren't around for it or in Shawn's case, a whole lot of it, these guys played a big role in helping create it and I loved watching the WWF in 1997 just as much as I did the AE's later years.

 

[TheICChampion]

I know I'll be sad when ol' H-B-Shizzle finally goes, as well as Edge and Christian. I'm surprised no one has mentioned 2 of the greatest divas of all time, Lita and Trish Stratus. Long story short, there are gonna be a lot of people I'm gonna be sad to see go.

 

[OYDK]

I miss Eddie...

But as for who I would shed a tear for if they were to pass away, I would have to go with Stone Cold. The guy burrowed himself into the hearts of millions, had many amazing moments, and ultimately was the primary force in helping WWE through it's toughest time in history. The guys who really connect with the audience are the toughest to lose (not saying that any one death is more tragic than another but you get the gist). That's why Eddie's passing was so tough on everyone imo, he was at the height of his career and top 2-3 most over guys on the roster. The ones who are most loved will be most missed.

 

[Thetwentydollarman]

The Best there is, The Best There was, and the best there ever will be

He'll always be my favorite from my generation as a fan.

 

[Creepy Old Man]

Bret Hart gets most votes so far, probably because people feel - as I do - that he doesn't have long. The brain injuries in 1999 and 2002 left him as a pathetic figure and he looks so frail today when you compare him to how he looked 15 years ago. I mean he's literally aged two years for every one since then.

I can't see Bret living far past 60. I'll probably shed a tear when he dies, not just because he was so great, but because his life was just steeped in sadness and tragedy for so many years.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Miss is the wrong phrase, because we already "miss" these guys out of the business...

What you're asking is which wrestler are you gonna be most gutted about when they die and that's different...which one is gonna "get you" like when you heard Eddie or Pillman or Owen died if they die young is the true question?

If someone like Bruno goes, they're old, they had their time and enjoyed their life... it won't be sad or a loss to the business because they lived their lives, influenced many and there is no tragedy in those kind of passings... it's the way...

I think the one that would hit hardest for many is Undertaker... partly cos of the gimmick, partly cos Paul has gone first, and partly cos he just looks a candidate right now... if Fred Durst is dedicating songs like he's seriously ill and current photos are right... wow, could you imagine that on WZ out of the blue? Undertaker passes away? Imagine that in the same unexpected way as Warrior... I think the IWC would go into alternating fits of disbelief, meltdown, tears, anger and trolling...

Ric Flair would also hit people hard... mainly cos of the plane crash and stuff, for all his flaws (and successes) that's the part of Flair that keeps him "mythical" that he literally cheated death and has had this life and career after all that... it's inspiring in some ways and sad in others... for all his good, he is still a tragic figure, he couldn't quite pull it all together, he lost Reid and hasn't really got a lot from a personal standpoint to show for it all.

The one that is relatively imminent and that is gonna have us ALL tearing up is Bobby Heenan... again, Bobby is older, so there isn't as much tragedy there... but we lost him to illness long ago, just think how the last 10 years would have panned out if Bobby hadn't gotten sick... if he could still do what he had... that side is tragic... if Vince doesn't give him more than the traditional video/2 minutes of a 3 hour show then I can see a lot of pissed off fans in the arena when it happens.. Bobby should get the full tribute show works when it comes...

 

[Slash-LN]

I was thinking no one when I entered this thread. Then I read what THTRobtaylor said and I have to agree on Bobby.

I think a lot of the reason is for those of us who grew up watching him it's heart wrenching to see what he looks like now. I know some people have said they don't even like looking at pictures of him n his current state and I can totally understand that. He doesn't look like the same guy.

Undertaker would by a huge one like THTRobtaylor said. It would hit a lot of people hard.

I'm going to add Jake Roberts to the list. For the to have seemingly turned his life around and was getting healthier and then he had his illness and that was a scare. This guy who is driven by his grandchildren and inspired them. I guess what I'm trying to say is that it would be less Jake the wrestler and more Jake the person he's become.

 

[TootsieBear]

The wrestlers I would miss the most would be Mick Foley, Chris Jericho, CM Punk, Stone Cold, The Rock, The Hardy Boyz, Shawn Michaels, Edge & Christian, The Undertaker, triple H, and Kane. There are probably more performers who I can't think of at the moment, but I can say they mean a lot to me too.

I started watching wrestling in the early 90's around Wrestlemania 11. Since that time numerous performers have stood out, and still are my favorite today. Mick Foley was amazing in ECW as Cactus Jack. I remember watching "the cane Dewy" promo about his then 2 year old son. Ever since I've been A Mick Foley fan.

Just seeing the debuts of performers like Edge, the Hardy brothers, and even Kane brings back memories. Back then wrestlers debuted with kicking ass and taking names. I remember the Rock was heavenly booed by the fans, then he soon became one of the most popular wrestler of all time, proving them wrong. The same can be said with Stone Cold.

I'll always have fond memories and enjoy them to this day. I'll hate to see any of them pass away.

 

[Messiah]

None of them. I would be sad sure, but i wouldn't miss them that much since i never see them anymore.

 

[Vintage]

Hogan.. because thats the day I realize I'm not a kid anymore