WWE Hall Of Fame

This is Wrestlemania weekend and we're finally knee deep in it.  The excitement has build to all WWE fans, including the hard-to-please Internet "mark" fans.  The only event that even comes close to the grandeur and climax of the actual Wrestlemania is the prestigious WWE Hall Of Fame.  There have been some very memorable ones since the genesis of it in 1993, in which Andre The Giant was the inaugural inductee.  Since then, names like Ric Flair, Trish Stratus, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels, and Junkyard Dog have made it to the immortal class of the pro wrestling industry.  This year, we have another very intriguing class.  Headlining the class of 2014 is the ever-energetic and enigmatic Ultimate Warrior.  Don't confuse Warrior the character with Warrior the man, however.  Warrior (he legally changed his name to Warrior, I'm not making this up), the man, has often times been considered controversial with his views on religion, drugs, and homosexuality.  After his career ended, he became an ultra-conservative speaker who would conduct speeches at universities across the country.  However, his in-ring career was one of high-adrenaline, energy-inducing matches.  Although not really known for 5-star matches per se (he's mostly accredited for having great matches with Hogan and "Macho Man" Randy Savage), his matches were at least entertaining.  An 80s original, Warrior was considered one of the most popular figures of his era.
There are other very notable figures in this year's class.  Congrats are especially in order to two guys who have really had devastating years with alcohol and substance abuse for over two decades.  These two guys are Scott Hall and Jake " The Snake" Roberts.  Scott Hall will be inducted under his character Razor Ramon, a 6'8", 280 lb. bully of Cuban descent that was very stylish.  His career included 4 Inter-Continental title reigns, 8 Tag Team Championships, and 2 WCW U.S. Title reigns.  As for Jake Roberts, his career has spanned nearly 40 years and he's widely considered one of the most impactful wrestlers in the sport's history.  Widely billed as the originator the DDT, Roberts was notoriously known for his love of snakes.  Throughout the 80s, he would bring a huge burlap sack down to ringside with his enormous python he named "Damian", to intimidate his opponents.  Both guys, now clean and sober, have refreshed outlooks on life and deserve their spots in the HOF.
Another notable figure going into the HOF this year is legendary wrestler and promoter Carlos Colon.  Widely considered the most successful and most known wrestler of Puerto Rican descent in the sport's history, Carlos Colon was a big star in the old WWWF (Vince McMahon's father's promotion) but ascended to great heights when he founded the WWC (World Wrestling Council).  He amassed 26 World Titles, and also put his sons of Carlito and Primo (Diego of Los Matadores fame) on the map, as well as Epico, who is Colon's nephew (Frenando of Los Matadores).
This year's female induction should serve as no real big surprise.  Being that last year, Trish Stratus was inducted, it's only right that her main rival during the historic "Attitude Era" of the WWE get inducted as well.  Amy Dumas, better known as Lita, was considered a big time trailblazer for the Women's division (before it became the highly watered down Divas division).  Lita was known for her exceptional athleticism and her willingness to fight guys in an era where (besides Chyna), you didn't see stuff like that often.  She won 4 WWE Women's Titles during her tenure, but is also touted as a big influence to a lot of younger female wrestlers, including current Divas Champ AJ Lee.
The celeb inductee this year is famed actor and all around badass, Mr. T.  What's the relevance?  He was a part of the first Wrestlemania in Madison Msquare Garden, where the main event was Hulk Hogan (another Hall Of Famer and the man who will induct him) and Mr. T vs. two other Hall Of Famers, Rowdy Roddy piper and the grossly under-appreciated "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff.  The star of the awesome 80s-TV Show A-Team and star of Rocky III (remember Clubber Lang?!?!) is also a former amateur wrestling champion and former tough man champion.  However, to this day, Piper still has no love lost for "First name-Mr, middle-name period, last-name T".  Their issues went beyond the camera, but I don't expect any fireworks between the two during this event.
Last but certainly not least, the next inductee is a posthumous one.  The late, great William Moody will be inducted this year.  He was known for his on-camera roles as Percy Pringle III down in WCCW out of Texas, but more known the world over as Paul Bearer, the famed and loved manager of The Undertaker (without question, a future first-ballot Hall Of Famer whenever he decides to retire).  Throughout the majority of Mark Callaway's WWE career, which spans 24 years, Bearer has been his partner-at-arms, carrying his urn at ringside for strength and somewhat supernatural powers to the Undertaker.  Moody sadly passed last March from complications of a blood clot at the age of 58.  A true loss for the wrestling family.
This will be a very special Hall Of Fame, but I suppose they're special every year.  One can only imagine, with rumors of Own Hart, the NWO and The Rock headlining the Hall Of Fame next year, the Hall Of Fame classes keep getting better and better.  Catch it fully on the WWE Network.  If you don't already subscribe to it, take it from the word of a devoted, yet critical wrestling (mark) fan, it's worth the $9.99 per month.  Before we go, here's a video look at a few of the inductees.  Have an AWESOME Wrestlemania weekend!  I know I will.