RKMBs Forums .::Robegories::. Sports and Wrestling 2007 Hall of Fame inductees

I don't give a damn about WrestleMania. . .


but I'm always interested in the Hall of Fame.

from the E.com

2007 WWE Hall of Fame Inductors
March 28, 2007


The following have been announced as inductors for the upcoming 2007 Hall of Fame ceremony:

-Sabu will induct his uncle, The Sheik


For nearly four decades, The Original Sheik brought an unmatched and previously unseen brand of aggression to the world of sports-entertainment. With his trademark steel spike and ball of fire, the bloodthirsty wildman paved the way for the hardcore style of wrestling that would eventually change the face of the industry. On Saturday night, The Sheik will be honored for his contributions to the sport when his nephew Sabu inducts his late uncle into the WWE Hall of Fame.

Following his in-ring career, The Sheik’s contributions to wrestling continued. The former 12-time NWA United States Champion also played a role in training the Superstars of the future, including his nephew and Rob Van Dam.


-Don Muraco will induct former manager Mr. Fuji

WWE Hall of Famer Don “Magnificent” Muraco will be on hand in Detroit this Saturday, on the eve of WrestleMania 23, to pay tribute to Mr. Fuji by inducting him into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2007. Muraco’s involvement carries a significantly more personal meaning, as Mr. Fuji’s managerial services were instrumental in the career of Muraco – also a WWE Hall of Famer.

When Muraco enlisted Mr. Fuji as his manager, his in ring career skyrocketed as did the managing star of Mr. Fuji. The two men simultaneously made the others’ career better, and Muraco is happy to be part of any ceremony that would bestow this honor on Fuji.

“To be called on to induct Mr. Fuji is an honor in itself for me, and I am happy to do anything for Fuji,” said Muraco.

The partnership between manager and wrestler is often times limited to in-ring action, but Fuji and Muraco broke that mold when they ventured into the land of Hollywood. The unforgettable segments of Fuji Vice, Fuji General and others, will forever be remembered by WWE fans as some of the most-entertaining segments to ever air on WWE programming.

This Saturday, that partnership will be reformed, and Muraco’s excitement for the event is second only to his praise of Mr. Fuji. “I am happy to be part of this ceremony, but I am even happier that Mr. Fuji is finally getting the recognition he deserves.” Muraco continued, “Mr. Fuji did so much not just for me, but for the entire business, and this honor means it will not ever be forgotten.”

As far as the in-ring and managing career of Mr. Fuji, Don Muraco does not hesitate when he says that this honor is befitting of the manager of champions. “His career merits this accomplishment,” said Muraco, “and it is an honor to be connected to WWE, and even more so to Mr. Fuji.”


-Cody & Dustin Runnels will induct their father, "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes

Dustin and Cody Runnels, the sons of the “American Dream” Dusty Rhodes, will induct their legendary father into the WWE Hall of Fame this Saturday, the night before WrestleMania 23.

Cody, who is wrestling in WWE’s developmental promotion Ohio Valley Wrestling, says the opportunity to have his sons induct him into the Hall of Fame will make a proud moment that much more poignant.

“To him, it [the Hall of Fame] is a bigger deal than he’s letting anybody know,” Cody told WWE.com. “He and I, we’re like best friends, we’re really close. But he and Dustin, they’ve had their rifts here and there. So for us to be together – if ultimately he were to say, ‘I don’t want anything further to do with pro wrestling,’ this would be a wonderful way to cap it off.”

As documented by WWE programming in the past, Dustin – who wrestled for WWE as Goldust – and Rhodes have had a rocky relationship and were estranged for a time. But they have mended their fences over the years. Cody expects their father’s induction to be an emotional moment for both men.

“We’re a highly emotional family. I’d expect some waterworks” he said. “It’ll be interesting to see if we can just get through it [without crying]. I’m just so happy Dustin is getting to do this.”

Cody is honored that his father asked him to induct him into the Hall of Fame but also sees this as an opportunity to introduce himself to WWE fans.

“There’s no better way to establish everything that’s been done, everything that Dustin did as Goldust, everything that the American Dream did, than to be on the stage together,” he said. “There’s no better way [for me] to be brushed into the spotlight. Someday, I want to be on one of the three shows [Raw, SmackDown, ECW] and there’s no better way to say, ‘Hi, he had another kid and that’s me.’”


-Bobby "The Brain" Heenan will induct Nick Bockwinkel

Nick Bockwinkel was arguably the AWA’s most successful Superstar not named Verne Gagne. In the 1970s and 80s, Bockwinkel had a stranglehold on the AWA World Championship that was nearly unbreakable. But as dominant as he was, there was always brains behind his brawn. Actually, in Bockwinkel’s case, it was “The Brain,” as Bobby Heenan, his manager and the man who will induct him into the Hall of Fame.

“What can I say that hasn’t already been said?” Heenan quizzed WWE.com. “He was a great guy and he was great in the ring. He was a great second-generation star and he’s deserving of being in the Hall. Plus, he never did drugs or went to jail, so he couldn’t be a star in the NBA or NFL, could he?” he added with a laugh.

Heenan, a WWE Hall of Famer himself, managed several fellow Hall of Famers during his career, and Bockwinkel will just be the latest name added to that list. This will be Heenan’s fourth consecutive year of involvement with the Hall of Fame ceremony, as after his own 2004 induction, he sent former protégés Paul Orndorff (2005) and the Blackjacks (2006) into the Hall.

“This is my third time inducting someone, and I told them to keep me here until I do it right,” Heenan joked. “Third time’s the charm, right?”


-Matt "Rosey" Anoa'i and Sam "Samu" Anoa'i will induct their fathers, The Wild Samoans

In sports-entertainment, there are names that are synonymous with multi-generational success, such as Hart, Guerrero and Orton. Included in that list are the descendants of the Anoa’i family, including Afa & Sika, the Wild Samoans. Afa & Sika will be inducted into the Hall of Fame by their sons, Sam and Afa Jr. (Afa) and Matt (Sika), both of whom are former WWE Superstars and proof in their own right of how fruitful the Anoa’i family tree truly has been.

Sam, better known to WWE fans as Headshrinker Samu, is a former World Tag Team Champion with cousin Fatu (Rikishi) and has been involved in sports-entertainment for over two decades. Matt, who WWE fans will remember as Rosey, is also a former World Tag Team Champion and one of the most agile “big men” to step foot in a WWE ring. Both have had success all throughout the United States and in Japan, where Matt currently competes. In fact, when Matt won the World Tag Team Championship in 2005 with Gregory Helms, he became the eighth different member of the Anoa’i family tree to claim that gold.

“Our family is very excited about this,” Samu told WWE.com. “They’re flying in from all around the country. I’m going to get together with Matt and see what we can come up with to properly honor them.”


-MLB Hall of Famer Wade Boggs will induct "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig


Prior to “Mr. Perfect” Curt Hennig’s entrance into WWE, a series of videos were seen on WWE television proving that he was the “perfect athlete.” One of the videos featured Mr. Perfect taking batting practice, hitting nothing but home runs every time. Wade Boggs, then the third baseman for the Boston Red Sox and one of the greatest hitters in Major League Baseball history, was seen at his side marveling at just how perfect Hennig was.

"I met Curt in 1983 in Rochester, N.Y., and we became good friends, hunting and fishing buddies," Boggs told WWE.com. "In fact, he once saved my life while were were hunting in 2001; I got entangled into a barbed wire fence and was cut pretty badly. It took all the strength Curt had to free me and carry me about a mile back to the truck. He saved my life and has a special place in my heart; we spent as much time as we could together, and it's a shame he was taken from us so early."

Boggs, who won five American League Batting crowns (including an impressive four in a row from 1985-88) and collected 3,010 hits in his career, was certainly no stranger to great hitting. He’s also no stranger to the Hall of Fame, having been inducted in 2005 to baseball’s Hall in his first year of eligibility; he’s also a member of the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame as well. So, it’s no surprise that the “perfect hitter” will induct Mr. Perfect into WWE’s Hall on March 31.

"It's special for me to induct Curt," Boggs beamed. "I know the weekend I had in Cooperstown (when Boggs was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame), and I wish he was around to see his induction. He was so passionate towards sports-entertainment and was a tremendous showman. It's so fitting."


-William Shatner will induct Jerry "The King" Lawler

Back in 1993, legendary actor William Shatner appeared on Jerry “The King” Lawler’s King’s Court to promote his TV show TekWar. After Lawler threatened to boldly send the megastar where no man had gone before, Shatner shocked WWE fans by laying “The King” out flat! Now, over a decade later, the two men have patched things up just in time for the two-time Emmy Award winner to step back into action and induct Lawler into the WWE Hall of Fame.

“My great claim to fame with WWE is throwing Jerry “The King” Lawler in the ring,” laughed Shatner when WWE.com reached him for comments on this year’s WWE Hall of Fame. “I threw him back then, and now I’ll throw him right into the WWE Hall of Fame!”


Check back with WWE.com Thursday to find out who will induct Jim Ross.

(I'm guessing most likely Steve Austin, although Dr. Death or Bill Watts are other possible choices.-Grimm)

The WWE Hall of Fame ceremony will be held at the Fox Theatre in Detroit on Saturday night. Find out how you can watch the ceremony on WWE.com and the USA Network.

Luckily, you won't have to miss a single minute of the action, as the first two hours of the ceremony will be broadcast live on WWE.com starting at 7/6 CT. Later in the night, you can catch the huge conclusion of the ceremony at Midnight/11 CT on the USA Network.

Shatner should kick Lawler's ass and then plug "Boston Legal".

Austin is apparently a lock for Ross's induction into the hall of fame, but I don't remember where I heard that, so I may be wrong.

JR & Lawler in together!
There is no justice in this world!

They as much as confirmed Austin doing JR's induction on the HoF ads they ran towards the end of RAW and during ECW this week.

People I think they SHOULD induct into the Hall of Fame within the next two years:

Owen Hart (R.I.P.)
Tazz
Bam Bam Bigelow (R.I.P.)
"Macho Man" Randy Savage
Ultimate Warrior
Ric Flair ( )

Taz IS a Hall of Famer. but not for his commentary work. . .

Y'know who needs to be inducted sooner rather than later? Koko B. Ware. Or Iron Mike Sharpe.

The Mountie in 2008!

I think Rex should introduce Mr Socko.

NWA World Jr. Heavyweight Champion Denny Brown.

There are a few ECW (and WCW) guys who should be inducted, but it's highly unlikely that they will be- guys like Shane Douglas, Sting, Raven, the Dudleys, The Steiner Brothers, and the late Mike Awesome, for starters.

actually I imagine a lot of them would be in time. but considering most of them are still active, and the HoF is for inactive people (with a few exceptions), it's gonna be a while.

Douglas and Raven are on bad terms with the E, but that can be overcome. The Dudleys will probably go back at some point. The Steiners also held the E's tag title in the 90's so it's not inconceivable.

I look at it like this: If they can induct Rhodes, Verne Gagne, Race, etc. then anyone who had a major career at one time is a candidate.

Still, Sting is the one who strikes me as getting the shaft, as far as HoF honors go. He's repeatedly turned down the "opportunity" to work for Vince, and let's be honest- for all his genius in the sports-entertainment field, Vince can be a vindictive, vengeful prick.

I can understand The Wild Samoans being inducted.

Signed,

Not really.

Yes, but Verne and Nick weren't huge draws for the company that was kicking WWF's ass for a time, nor did they turn Vince down to work for the rival upstart TNA.

dude, Dusty Rhodes is in this year's HoF inductees. do you realize the history they have with him? good and bad? if Dusty fucking Rhodes can be in the E's HoF, then anyone can.

Yes, but Vince already made him look foolish in the 80's.

which time? when he named Mike Jones "Virgil" and made him Ted Dibiase's bodyguard? when he turned One Man Gang into "The African Dream"? when he turned Big Bubba into "Big Boss Man"? these characters were all ribs on Dusty by Vince. do you see what I'm getting at here, Snarf?

irregardless, the history between them was much more acrimonious than anything to do with Sting ever was. and Dusty's still going into the HoF. so that leaves the field pretty wide open.

What I'm saying is that Vince already "got even" with Dusty many times over, so OF COURSE he'll be magnanimous and allow Dusty in. He has yet to exact any kind of retribution on Sting. In fact, on Sting's TNA DVD, Sting himself says that part of the reason he didn't sign with WWE is because he was afraid they'd make him look foolish or weak, much like they did with Booker T and DDP. Granted, it'd be hard to make Sting look weaker or more foolish than Hogan did at that one Starcade, but Vince would find a way.

Snarf, if he let Bret Hart in, then there is still a chance Sting will get in at some point, but while he is still active & working for TNA, its not even worth talking about!

And Spamm, I think we already had a discussion here that Bam Bam was not a midcarder.

Rosey is a great wrestler, and part of quite possibly my favourite tag team of all time (yes, I mean The Super Heroes. deal with it).

As for the Wild Samoans, they deserve the hall of fame as one of the great tag teams of the 1970's.

Lilian Garcia.

PixieP for Sports Mod...

Benoit's another example. He comes over from WCW as the World Champion, and he's promptly left to flounder in the mid-card for years.

WWE.com: Hall of Fame

For those who missed the HoF show on USA Network, you can check out the induction speeches.

and again, I point you to the non WWF/WWE related HoF members. . .

The following is from Stevie J at AngryMarks.com...

The Fox Theatre is jam-packed and ready to rock'n'roll. Lilian introduces us to the 2007 WWE Hall of Fame. It's 15 minutes to showtime and we're told that the WWE wrestlers are coming out so please give them a big round of applause, although for at least the first five minutes of standing not a single WWE star is to be seen. It isn't until the tail end right before the HOF that the superstars like John Cena and Shawn Michaels come out, the former getting a huge boo and the latter getting a long H-B-K pop. Triple H got a huge chant and standing ovation when he came out too.


Nick Bockwinkle is the first inductee when the main show starts. He's introduced by Bobby 'The Brain' Heenan, who is his usual charismatic self. Heenan cracks a few jokes, and then introduces Bockwinkel. Bockwinkel receives a standing ovation from the crowd, and speaks for just about the right amount of time.

Afa & Sika (The Wild Samoans) are the next to be inducted, represented by their respective sons, one of which is Young Roosevelt a.k.a. the Super Hero In Training. They speak for a while about the legacy of Samoans in the business and how grateful they are to be a part of that legacy. Wild Samoans come out and Sika speaks in his native language to start, then when Afa gets to the podium he tells us what he said was more or less "thanks to God for our blessings." Afa seems a little gunshy at first but once he starts telling stories he can't shut up, to the point he even admits himself that he's getting longwinded. He repeatedly thanks High Chief Peter Maivia and Rocky Johnson for all they did to bring them in the business, and tells a story of how Sika got them into the business by throwing a chair during a match at the Cow Palace featuring Pat Patterson that nearly started a riot, at which point their Uncle Maivia said "we need to get you two in the wrestling business to keep you out of trouble." It was good but really went way too long.

Next out are Rob Van Dam and Sabu, to introduce The Sheik (Ed Farhat). Rob Van Dam gives a long speech about how he was trained by Sheik, how they practiced headlocks over and over again until Sheik would get so mad that he would get in the ring, bite Rob's nose, gouge his eyes and say NOW show me a headlock and he'd be so mad he'd finally do it to Sheik's satisfaction. Rob goes on to say how did I become Rob Van Dam that way practicing headlocks? The Sheik would get a phone call and leave his chair at ringside and then Rob would turn to Sheik's nephew and say "Come over here when I climb up the ropes, I got this move I want to try!" After Rob finishes speaking Sabu briefly introduces the video package and then we watch the same video of Sheik highlights shown on ECW. Joyce Farhat comes out to accept the award after the video package and has to stop several times as she's almost crying. She says nobody knew the real Sheik, who was a family man and a generous man, but he loved the fans and he enjoyed making them hate him because he knew he was giving them such a cathartic release.

Next up to be inducted is Mr. Fuji. Don Muraco comes out and speaks about how great Mr. Fuji was, how he made so many opportunities for people in the wrestling business, and how much fun they had together. He tells us that Fuji was a classic ribber, that he loved to do thinks like put firecrackers in the engine of a wrestler's car and when it exploded "Mr. Fuji will investigate." Any time a rib blew up in somebody's face and someone complained "Mr. Fuji will investigate." Fuji came out and had to be helped up on stage by two people, he seems really hobbled these days, dropping his cane on his way to the podium. Once he got there though he was in rare form, telling all of the people in attendance that Muraco was not exaggerating and regailing us with a classic rib where it was snowing in Manhattan and he got a tow truck to lift up a wrestler's car so he could put it on cinder blocks, then covering up the wheel wells with snow so he couldn't tell it was on blocks. Fuji accelerated matters by telling him they had to get to the bar before it closed, and of course he tried to start it and put it in gear but it went nowhere. Fuji seemed really grateful to be honored and thanked the fans for watching him for all these years.

After a brief interlude while they got ready for the TV taping, Stone Cold Steve Austin's music hit and he came out to introduce Jim Ross. If you watched the show on USA they cut Austin's introduction speech down to a nub, as he had a lot to say about how he had come up in the business listening to Jim Ross, how much J.R. had done for him personally, and how when he went into the hospital for his colon surgery Austin had to admit to him on the phone "I love you man" because he couldn't let J.R. go without telling him in case something went wrong. Ross came out and got a very long time, regailing us with stories of how he drove around as a referee breaking into the business, how he "sat at the learning tree" with Ernie Ladd when he came to work for Cowboy Bill Watts, and how his biggest break in the business came at 1993 - not working for Vince mind you, but marrying "my beautiful Italian angel" - being employed by McMahon was his SECOND big break. Ross told us that he got fired twice for being too passionate about the business, channeling his passions in the wrong directions at times, and apologized for the mistakes that he had made over the years. He seemed obsessed with his bells palsy, going out of his way to say he had to hold up his cheek the whole time at WrestleMania 15 but he was still honored to call the match. J.R. went on to say that WWE had inducted a lot of wrestlers into the HOF but he was the first "wrestling fan" who never wrestled in his life to make his way into the prestigious institution. Ross was very emotional the whole time and got at least two standing ovations at the start.

William Shatner comes out next to introduce Jerry 'The King' Lawler. He got several loud boos during his speech, mostly because it was obvious he was reading from a prepared statement the whole time, almost never looking up at the camera. Personally I was insulted that he came out instead of Lance Russell and yelled "PRICELINE SUCKS" right when he started speaking. Shatner continued putting himself over for being on "The King's Court" and getting in a fight with Lawler, going on way too long in general. King almost admits as much when he comes out, as he puts over Russell as the first person who showed his drawings on the air, and how because of it he got invited to the studio and met his idol Jackie Fargo, a man he would go on to dethrone on his way to becoming "The King of Memphis." Lawler tells us lots of Viagra jokes, none of which made TV, including how one got into a wrestler's pocket at the dry cleaning and he had a "stiff shirt" and how Lawler got some in his eyes and was told he "looked hard." King was very funny and told great stories, but this got totally lost in translation on USA.

The next inductee was 'Mr. Perfect' Curt Hennig. Even though many people had knocked Wade Boggs beforehand for being the presenter, it was clear that he was speaking from the heart far more than he was reading from his speech, and that he was a genuine close personal friend of Hennig's, even going so far as to tell us that Hennig saved his life when they were on a hunting trip in Iowa and got his leg sliced open on some barbed wire - if Hennig hadn't extricated him and carried him to the car so he could get medical help he would have bled to death. They showed a video package of Hennig highlights and then his entire family came out to accept the award on his behalf, including a son who was the spitting image of him and wore the "Mr. Perfect" jacket and his father Larry 'The Axe' Hennig. Leonice Hennig (Perfect's wife) spoke on behalf of the family, saying how he was a great family man and he lived to entertain the people. Another very well-received induction by the crowd with "thank you" chants.

Last but certainly not least was 'American Dream' Dusty Rhodes, being inducted by his sons Cody and Dustin. Dustin spoke first and he got a big "GOLDDUST" chant, even without the makeup and suit. Cody put over Golddust when he spoke, saying that Dustin helped usher in the attitude era, and doesn't get near the credit for it he deserves, and then told us all how uncommon a 'Common Man' like his father really was. At this point they showed the video package for Dusty putting over his personality and all of his accomplishments. When Dusty came out to accept his awards, his ovations were easily the equal of J.R. Dusty spoke for a long time, and even though his speech is airing right now on USA there's no way it will be near as long as there are only 8 minutes left on USA and he spoke WAY longer than that. Dusty thanked a lot of people who he came up with in the business, and said that everybody had talked a lot tonight about "passion" and how everybody here, past present and future and all the fans had a huge passion for the business. Dusty spoke a lot about "hard times" and how they all wrestled for the factory workers going through hard times, to hopefully give them some good times. He mentioned several names in the business and had them stand up to get ovations, including Triple H (huge pop), Arn Anderson and Harley Race, but when he got to John Cena he got booed and he said "Well alright I can tell where your passion is!" He says he brought a hankie with him in case he started crying, and pulls black and yellow polka dots and wipes his brow to laughter and another ovation. "I loved that time!" Dusty complains about technology, saying people ask him to e-mail them something he just said five minutes ago, and speaks about how his friend Dick Murdoch was reinvented in the form of JBL. The highlight of the speech was Dusty asking Ric Flair and Arn Anderson to stand up, telling them that right then and there he wanted them to induct him and Harley Race into the Four Horsemen, which got a huge ovation, but then Dusty got huge ovations all night. Hopefully the full speech will be included on the WrestleMania 23 DVD set. He ended by telling us "truly tonight I have dined with kings and queens." They thanked us again for attending and handed out commemorative silver medals on the way out of the Fox Theatre.

Credit: Stevie J at AngryMarks.com