RIP Ultimate Warrior

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/04/09/the-ultimate-warrior-dead-at-54/?tid=hp_mm

Just got inducted into the wrestling hall of fame too.

I still have an Ultimate Warrior/Hulk Hogan trash can from when I was a kid that now lives in my garage. That guy was awesome. RIP indeed.

Very sad to hear. I was a HUGE wrestling fan from about '83 to '90 so he came in right during that time.

Honestly, I thought he had died several years ago... So many of these guys die at an early age. What's keeping Hogan alive? Viagra???

My two boys really like wrestling now. My oldest just bought a WWE video game and he came down and asked me "Dad, who is Andre the Giant??" Sigh...

Yeah, I don't generally admit it- but I still watch wrestling. It was really cool to see him on Monday- and he's dead Tuesday. I'm quite curious as to the final cause of death- methinks there's heart issues there. Probably steroids, sadly.

I can't post it from a phone, but you owe it to yourself to youtube "Ultimate Warrior Arsinio Hall." Hall is generally afraid of him. Funny stuff.

TMZ reported that Hellwig — who officially changed his name to Warrior in 1993 — "collapsed outside an Arizona hotel at 5:50 PM on April 8th ... while walking to his car with his wife. Warrior was transported to a nearby hospital ... where he was pronounced dead."

How absolutely sad. I watched his induction into the Hall of Fame on Saturday night. He had a touching moment with his wife and children, and gave a great speech. I was really looking forward to seeing how they were going to use him going forward, but now that day will never come. Just incredibly sad. Rest in peace, Warrior.

Here you go: Simply awesome.

Klayfish wrote: So many of these guys die at an early age. What's keeping Hogan alive? Viagra???

He lives in the Tampa, FL area and frequents Clearwater beach. It's always funny to be sitting in traffic and look over and see Hulk next to you at a light. He's got some classic Mopars and some bikes. It's always loud and usually bright, so as a car guy it tends to grab your attention and then you see the bleach blonde hair of the driver.

This is sad, but I bet The Penultimate Warrior is pretty pleased about it.

Seriously, top tier wrestlers live a hard, hard life, even if they manage to avoid some of the more destructive excesses of fame. With the physical toll it takes on their bodies, I'm surprised so many of them can have the length of careers they've had.

And while people still insist it's "fake," that's only in regards to the possible outcome of the event. Fine, maybe it's athletic display instead of athletic competition, but the physical feats are just as real, as are the injuries.

Pro wrestling is basically the equivalent of doing improv while getting hit with a 2 x 4 repeatedly.

Yup, Hulk Hogan picking up Andre the Giant and body slamming him was totally fake.

Appleseed wrote: Yup, Hulk Hogan picking up Andre the Giant and body slamming him was totally fake.

it was also fake when i saw that one Japanese sumo looking guy (forget his name, Yokozuna or something like that?...) break his leg on Monday Night Raw live on the USA network about 20 years ago. the guy he was wrestling got an "oh E36 M3!!" look on his face and went for the quick pin, then the camera cut away to Gorilla Monsoon or Piper's Pit or something really quick...

I was a fan of the ultimate warrior, after watching the move the "wrestler" it is hard for me to imagine that his life was any different, then what was portrayed in the movie.

JG Pasterjak wrote: This is sad, but I bet The Penultimate Warrior is pretty pleased about it. Seriously, top tier wrestlers live a hard, hard life, even if they manage to avoid some of the more destructive excesses of fame. With the physical toll it takes on their bodies, I'm surprised so many of them can have the length of careers they've had. And while people still insist it's "fake," that's only in regards to the possible outcome of the event. Fine, maybe it's athletic display instead of athletic competition, but the physical feats are just as real, as are the injuries. Pro wrestling is basically the equivalent of doing improv while getting hit with a 2 x 4 repeatedly.

Completely agree. Yes, it's all scripted like a soap opera, so that part is all fake. But those guys are definitely amazing atheletes, and the punishment they take is probably worse than any football player or any other true sport.

My 10 year old spent most of last night watching YouTube of the Ultimate Warrior. He said "Dad, he was AWESOME!!" I also tried to explain to him why so many of them die young.

I do admit that I tell my boys to call me into the room when they have the female wrestlers. Holy E36 M3!!! Lots different than it was years ago...

Klayfish wrote:

JG Pasterjak wrote: This is sad, but I bet The Penultimate Warrior is pretty pleased about it. Seriously, top tier wrestlers live a hard, hard life, even if they manage to avoid some of the more destructive excesses of fame. With the physical toll it takes on their bodies, I'm surprised so many of them can have the length of careers they've had. And while people still insist it's "fake," that's only in regards to the possible outcome of the event. Fine, maybe it's athletic display instead of athletic competition, but the physical feats are just as real, as are the injuries. Pro wrestling is basically the equivalent of doing improv while getting hit with a 2 x 4 repeatedly.

Completely agree. Yes, it's all scripted like a soap opera, so that part is all fake. But those guys are definitely amazing atheletes, and the punishment they take is probably worse than any football player or any other true sport. My 10 year old spent most of last night watching YouTube of the Ultimate Warrior. He said "Dad, he was AWESOME!!" I also tried to explain to him why so many of them die young. I do admit that I tell my boys to call me into the room when they have the female wrestlers. Holy E36 M3!!! Lots different than it was years ago...

a lot of them die from drug overdoses- cocaine and things like that, usually... there is a website that lists thousands of dead professional wrestlers and how they died, with drugs being seen on the list a lot...

or did you just say that they didn't say their prayers and take their vitamins?