With the Hall of Fame around the corner, and the huge glaring name missing from the list is Randy Savage, I thought I'd construct a list of probable names that should "one day" end up in the WWE Hall Fame.
Owen Hart
Let's face it, the only thing keeping Owen out is his widow, Martha Hart. As long as there's a lawsuit existing between the WWE and Martha Hart over the death of Owen Hart (which took place 14 years ago), Owen will never be in the Hall of Fame.....which is sad! Bret Hart has made peace with Vince McMahon, Martha should do the same, if anything, so his kids can see his place in the WWE.
Jake "The Snake" Roberts
Not withstanding the fact that Jake has never carried a major title and that his drug use was documented in Beyond the Mat, Jake Roberts was a solid worker in the WWF back in the mid eighties. Once you got past Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Roddy Piper.....you ran into Jake. For me, the angle he worked with Rick Martel was genius. Back before there were monthly pay per views, Jake chased Martel all over the world for months until they finally met up at Wrestlemania VII. Jim Ross was quoted one time in saying that Jake's mind is boarder line genius when it comes to making matches. Plus, there's no Austin 3:16 without Jake.
The NWO
If you're going to put the 4 Horsemen in the Hall Fame, The NWO (just the original three) belong as well. When Hogan turned heel to help boast the NWO's credibility, it also boasted WCW over the WWF. Plus, while I would never put both Kevin Nash or Scott Hall in the Hall of Fame....on their own, together, along with Hogan, they were marketable, they were impressive, and they dominated WCW.
"Ravishing" Rick Rude
Just this guy's promos should put him in the Hall of Fame. He was such a heat-getter that the crowd loved to boo him out of the building. Here's the real kicker though, Rick Rude was a smart wrestler too. Ask anyone in the locker room back then, he carried The Ultimate Warrior when the Warrior was on top of the world. Rude was a legitimate tough guy and a hell of a hand to have in the ring. As far as titles are concerned, he is a former WCW "North American" Champion, former Intercontinental Champion, and a former United States Champion.
Honky Tonk Man
With the Honky Tonk Man, you get two different people. The Honky Tonk Man is the longest reigning Intercontinental champion. Wayne Ferris (his real name) is all about the dollar bill. The reason he hasn't entered the WWE Hall of Fame yet is because the price isn't right for him. He was a talented midcarder who had a gimmick that worked.
Paul Bearer
With the passing of William Moody, his character of Paul Bearer belongs in the Hall, hands down! He propelled The Undertaker's role in the WWF to astronomical feats. If you want to go a little deeper, he made life hell for the Von Erichs in WCCW in the early 80s. From Undertaker, to Kane, to Mick Foley, Paul Bearer was at the forefront their careers (yes, Mick Foley was well known as Cactus Jack before then, but didn't make it until he became Mankind).
ECW
Not the brand that Vince McMahon attempted to bring back, but the original ECW, helmed by Paul Heyman. Paul Heyman took an organization and changed the landscape of wrestling with his extreme style of wrestling. ECW created superstars like The Sandman, Tommy Dreamer, Rob Van Dam, Raven, and Shane Douglas, just to name a few. Because of ECW, the WWF took their concepts, entered the Attitude era, thus creating Stone Cold Steve Austin, Triple H, and The Rock.
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