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When the topic of WWE’s Hall of Fame is discussed a few questions always come up. Questions like where is Bruno Sammartino, Ultimate Warrior, Macho Man and Bob Backlund? Does Koko B. Ware or Nikolai Volkoff really belong in the Hall of Fame? Is James Dudley the father of the Dudley clan from Dudleyville?
Another question that often comes up is what does Bob Uecker, Pete Rose, Willliam “Refrigerator” Perry” and Drew Carey have to do with wrestling? The answer is the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame. Let’s take a look at the celebrity inductees so far.
Pete Rose – Appeared at 3 Wrestlemania events and an episode of Raw in segments involving Kane. Pete Rose never wrestled, but at least he was able to get into one Hall of Fame…
Bob Uecker – Special ring announcer at Wrestlemania III, memorable segment with Andre the Giant at Wrestlemania IV.
William “Refrigerator” Perry – Wrestled in a NFL players vs. wrestlers battle royale at Wrestlemania 2.
Drew Carey - This year’s celebrity inductee I couldn’t remember what he had done to be worthy of being inducted. I had forgotten about his 2001 Royal Rumble appearance eliminating himself when being stuck in the ring with Kane.
Looking at these four celebrities I still don’t see what makes them so special to get inducted. I understand it has a lot ot do with who will bring some attention to WWE and Wrestlemania weekend, someone WWE won’t have to pay a lot to make the appearance and people that are willing to be associated with WWE in this day and age. So lets look at 10 celebrities that legitimately deserve to be in the Celebrity wing of a wrestling Hall of Fame. Since WWE has branched out and included wrestlers who competed outside of WWE I will also include celebrities who appeared for other wrestling groups. This top 10 is in no particular order, but I will make one honorable mention.
Honorable mention – David Arquette
When most people think of David Arquette and wrestling it’s normally a groan, but truth of the matter is he is a former WCW World champion and starred in one of the few main stream movies about pro wrestling in recent history. I would have him inducted by Oliver Platt, but have Platt in character as Jimmy King.
Celebrities who definitely deserve their spot in the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame.
Donald Trump – Trump has been invovled with the WWE for over 2 decades. He hosted Wrestlemania IV and V in Atlantic City, was part of the battle of the billionaires at Wrestlemania 23, and even one time owner of WWE’s Raw Brand. Also it was mentioned on the True Story of Wrestlemania DVD that Trump suggested fan gathering events the weekend of Wrestlemania IV which would later evolve into the week long event now known as Wrestlemania Axxess.
Shaq – I’ll admit Shaq hasn’t done much more than the other so called celebrity hall of famers, but he’s been involved in wrestling for years. He accompanied Hogan to a PPV match in WCW, he hosted Raw and his name would add some celebrity credibility to the wing. Ideally this induction would happen after a Big Show/Shaq match which could be a lot of fun.
Mr. T – Mr. T teamed with Hulk Hogan to headline the first Wrestlemania and face Roddy Pipper in a boxing match at Wrestlemania 2. He was a major celebrity in the mid 80′s giving WWE a lot of publicity during the Rock N Wrestling era.
Mike Tyson – Tyson’s involvement in the lead up to Wrestlemania XIV helped kick off the attitude era and the age of Austin.
Cyndi Lauper - While she never wrestled she played a major part in the Rock n Wrestling era, and WWE’s partnership with MTV in the mid-80′s. I’d have her inducted by Roddy Pipper.
Dennis Rodman – While never competing in WWE he did wrestle numerous matches in WCW as a member of the NWO. He also added to Hulk Hogan’s Hollywood character and bad boy image of Hogan and the NWO is Rodman was known as a celebrity bad boy at the time.
Lawrence Taylor – Taylor is currently dealing with various legal issues stemming form sleeping with an underage prostitute so I doubt he’d go in anytime soon, but the truth remains he did headline Wrestlemania XI and get a win over Bam Bam Bigelow.
Ted Turner – While Ted Turner was rarely seen on camera he was the money behind WCW. He brought wrestling to TBS in the 80′s and was responsible NWA/WCW having a home on cable TV.
Andy Kaufman – Even before the era of Rock N Wrestling in WWF, Kaufman and Jerry Lawler were bringing mainstream attention to the wrestling world. Their appearance on David Letterman is still talked about to this day.
Muhammad Ali – One of the most famous boxers of all time Ali competed in wrestler/boxer matches with Gorilla Monsoon and Antonio Inoki. He was also the special guest ref for the main event of Wrestlemania.
In a time of guest hosts of raw and people like Snooki wrestling at Wrestlemania 27 these celebrities actually added something by their appearances in the wrestling world.
Do you disagree with any of these nominees? Did I leave anyone out? Feel free to discuss in the comments below.
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