WON HOF 2013

[andrew8798]

It's time for the 2013 Hall of Fame elections.

The criteria for the Hall of Fame is a combination of drawing power, being a great in-ring performer or excelling in ones field in pro wrestling, as well as having historical significance in a positive manner. A candidate should either have something to offer in all three categories, or be someone so outstanding in one or two of those categories that they deserve inclusion.

The names listed below are those under consideration for this year. To be eligible, a performer must have reached their 35th birthday and completed ten years since their debut as a full-time performer, or be someone who has been a full-time pro wrestler for at least 15 years.

Longevity should be a prime consideration rather than a hot two or three year run, unless someone is so significant as a trend-setter or a historical figure in the business, or valuable to the industry, that they need to be included. However, just longevity without being either a long-term main eventer, a top draw and/or a top caliber in-ring performer should be seen as relatively meaningless.

The maximum number of wrestlers that you can vote for all the categories is ten. You can pick as few as zero if you don't believe anyone on this list deserves inclusion.

For wrestling executives, managers, announcers and other outside the ring performers, you can vote for them and they are not counted against the ten. You can vote for as many as five of them.
---

I FOLLOWED THE HISTORICAL PERFORMERS ERA CANDIDATES
Gene & Ole Anderson
The Assassins (Joe Hamilton & Tom Renesto)
Red Bastien
June Byers
Pepper Gomez
Rip Hawk
Dick Hutton
Ciclon Negro
Dutch Savage
Kinji Shibuya
Wilbur Snyder
John Tolos
Enrique Torres
Count Billy Varga
Von Brauners & Saul Weingeroff
Tim "Mr. Wrestling" Woods

I FOLLOWED THE MODERN PERFORMERS IN U.S/CANADA CANDIDATES
Bob Armstrong
Batista
Edge
Owen Hart
Curt Hennig
Ivan Koloff
Brock Lesnar
Fabulous Moolah
Pedro Morales
Dick Murdoch
Ken Patera
Rock & Roll Express (Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson)
Sgt. Slaughter
Jimmy Snuka
Sting
A.J. Styles
Johnny "Mr. Wrestling II" Walker

I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN JAPAN CANDIDATES
George Gordienko
Gran Hamada
Volk Han
Masahiko Kimura
Yuji Nagata
Seiji Sakaguchi
Kensuke Sasaki
Mike & Ben Sharpe
Kiyoshi Tamura
Hiroshi Tanahashi

I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN MEXICO CANDIDATES
Atlantis
Cien Caras
Hector Garza
Karloff Lagarde
Blue Panther
L.A. Park
Huracan Ramirez
Vampiro
Villano III
Dr. Wagner Jr.
Dr. Wagner Sr.

I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN EUROPE CANDIDATES
Jim Breaks
Big Daddy
Giant Haystacks
Horst Hoffman
Billy Joyce
Kendo Nagasaki
Jackie Pallo
Rollerball Mark Rocco
Johnny Saint

I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN AUSTRALIA/PACIFIC ISLANDS/PUERTO RICO CANDIDATES
Spyros Arion
Johnny Barend
Carlos Colon
Domenic DeNucci
Killer Karl Kox
Mark Lewin
Mario Milano

NON-WRESTLERS
Bill Apter
Dave Brown
Jim Crockett Jr.
Jim Crockett Sr.
Gary Hart
Jimmy Hart
Howard Finkel
Jerry Jarrett
Takashi Matsunaga
Gorilla Monsoon
Gene Okerluind
Don Owen
Jesse Ventura
Stanley Weston

Johnny Barend was moved from historical to Australiasia/East Asia/Puerto Rico.
- New to the ballot are June Byers, Rip Hawk, Ciclon Negro, and Dutch Savage (Historical), Bob Armstrong, Ken Patera, and A.J. Styles (Modern), Yuji Nagata (Japan), Hector Garza (Mexico), Jim Breaks & Billy Joyce (Europe), Killer Karl Kox (Australiasia/East Asia/Puerto Rico), Dave Brown, Jim Crockett Sr., Howard Finkel, Jimmy Hart, Takashi Matsunaga, Gene Okerlund, & Stanley Weston (Non-wrestlers).

[Manute Bol]

The Fabulous Moolah, Gorilla Monsoon, and Superfly Jimmy Snuka really should have all been inducted already.

[andrew8798]

If Jimmy Hart doesn't get in I will be shocked.

[RedSmile]

Why is Puerto Rico lumped in with the Australia/Pacific Islands? That seems random

[Square]

Big Daddy not being in is a travesty.

[kidglov3s]

I imagine Tanahashi is a lock.

[Deleted]

I would think Ciclon Negro's death earlier this year may get him a few extra votes from those who will use that to look at the overall body of his work. Had a heck of a career.

["Playboy" Don Douglas]

Another year for Dave to say the Andersons don't belong because "they didn't travel."

[Kash Flagg]

Odd the MX are in but not their main rivals.

[Apricots And A Pear Tree]

Sept 7, 2013 19:07:22 GMT -5 "Playboy" Don Douglas said:

Another year for Dave to say the Andersons don't belong because "they didn't travel."

They can drown there sorrows with Sting.

["Playboy" Don Douglas]

Sept 8, 2013 15:00:18 GMT -5 Apricots And A Pear Tree said:

Sept 7, 2013 19:07:22 GMT -5 "Playboy" Don Douglas said:

Another year for Dave to say the Andersons don't belong because "they didn't travel."

They can drown there sorrows with Sting.

Eh, Gene's dead and Ole doesn't give a shit. I think it's just a bizarre bit of reasoning.

[Crappler El 0 M]

I would like to see these figures get in:
Jerry Jarrett
Howard Finkel: If the WON is going to induct ring announcers, then Howard Finkel must be inducted. His voice is linked with WWF from the 1970s to the 1990s and he still makes special appearances.
Rock n' Roll Express
Don Owen

[Todd Pettengill]

No Pepper. No Peace.

[Razor Gives It A 4/10]

I can see Nagata getting in this year for sure.

["Playboy" Don Douglas]

I just paid closer attention to the candidates. I am shocked that some of these people aren't in already.

[SEAN CARLESS]

Sept 6, 2013 15:45:41 GMT -5 Manute Bol said:

The Fabulous Moolah, Gorilla Monsoon, and Superfly Jimmy Snuka really should have all been inducted already.

Moolah often doesn't get voted in by those in the industry or historians because she was a shyster, terrible wrestler and booked her own reign for 25 years. She wasn't a draw either until briefly in '85 with Wendi Richter, who legit was the number 3 (or arguably number 2) draw in the company at the time.


That said, for those who don't know, the HOF is voted upon by tons of legit wrestlers, managers and promoters, and those journalists or historians with actual credibility. It's not just Meltzer's opinion.

[Manute Bol]

Sept 10, 2013 10:30:36 GMT -5 SEAN CARLESS said:

Sept 6, 2013 15:45:41 GMT -5 Manute Bol said:

The Fabulous Moolah, Gorilla Monsoon, and Superfly Jimmy Snuka really should have all been inducted already.

Moolah often doesn't get voted in by those in the industry or historians because she was a shyster, terrible wrestler and booked her own reign for 25 years. She wasn't a draw either until briefly in '85 with Wendi Richter, who legit was the number 3 (or arguably number 2) draw in the company at the time.


That said, for those who don't know, the HOF is voted upon by tons of legit wrestlers, managers and promoters, and those journalists or historians with actual credibility. It's not just Meltzer's opinion.

A shyster like Paul Heyman? A terrible wrestler like Hulk Hogan? Booked her own reign like Fritz Von Erich? All three of them are in the Observer HOF. Moolah's significance in wrestling history simply cannot be debated, character flaws or not. I consider the Observer HOF to be much more legitimate than the WWE's (because there's an actual voting process) and Moolah definitely should have been in there years ago.

[SEAN CARLESS]

Sept 11, 2013 20:35:18 GMT -5 Manute Bol said:

Sept 10, 2013 10:30:36 GMT -5 SEAN CARLESS said:

Moolah often doesn't get voted in by those in the industry or historians because she was a shyster, terrible wrestler and booked her own reign for 25 years. She wasn't a draw either until briefly in '85 with Wendi Richter, who legit was the number 3 (or arguably number 2) draw in the company at the time.


That said, for those who don't know, the HOF is voted upon by tons of legit wrestlers, managers and promoters, and those journalists or historians with actual credibility. It's not just Meltzer's opinion.

A shyster like Paul Heyman? A terrible wrestler like Hulk Hogan? Booked his own reign like Fritz Von Erich? All three of them are in the Observer HOF. Moolah's significance in wrestling history simply cannot be debated, character flaws or not. I consider the Observer HOF to be much more legitimate than the WWE's (because there's an actual voting process) and Moolah definitely should have been in there years ago.

Heyman never pimped out talent to promoters/wrestlers in exchange for card placement. And Hulk Hogan and Fritz drew a lot of money. Moolah is remembered fondly as a legend because of how she has been revisioned in history by WWE. But those voting are taking into consideration the full gamut of her actual contributions to the industry. This is not a contrived Hall of Fame like WWE's where one person (Vince) handpicks who he wants in, or who will get ratings on the broadcast or sell tickets to the event itself. It is actually as close to a legitimate Hall of Fame as you can get. Very stringent criteria, all voted on by actual wrestlers, former promoters and those few journalists with any sense of historical knowledge. And they have felt, based on quantifiable criteria, that she doesn't belong. In kayfabe: absolutely she does. But her fake resume isn't being taken into consideration here (her reign, that she booked, was as real as the Harlem Globetrotters win streak). Just numbers, reputation, and monies drawn.

[Manute Bol]

Sept 11, 2013 20:45:25 GMT -5 SEAN CARLESS said:

Sept 11, 2013 20:35:18 GMT -5 Manute Bol said:

A shyster like Paul Heyman? A terrible wrestler like Hulk Hogan? Booked his own reign like Fritz Von Erich? All three of them are in the Observer HOF. Moolah's significance in wrestling history simply cannot be debated, character flaws or not. I consider the Observer HOF to be much more legitimate than the WWE's (because there's an actual voting process) and Moolah definitely should have been in there years ago.

based on quantifiable criteria

I wasn't arguing about the validity of the Observer HOF. My post was agreeing that I find the Observer HOF to be the most legitimate wrestling HOF there is. So I agree with a lot of what you said, with the exception of the line I quoted. It's contradictory to sarcastically mock the consideration of a "fake resume" but then turn around and say it's all about reputation and numbers. What numbers? The ones on her fake resume? Or the "monies drawn"? Who's to say how much money Moolah did or did not draw? It's totally subjective. There's absolutely no quantifiable criteria in ANY of this whatsoever. How is reputation quantifiable? That just flat out doesn't make sense.

Moolah booked her own reign, fine. But plenty of HOFers have booked their own reigns, or even manipulated promotors in such a way that they basically controlled their reigns (Shawn Michaels?). Moolah's time in particular saw a lot of shady tactics, and she can't be faulted for playing the game and being a product of her environment when so many others get a free pass.

[andrew8798]

Funny thing was that Dave was going to put her in there in 96 but talked out of it by other people