Zoneboy
07-31-2015, 06:34 PM
Link (http://variety.com/2015/biz/obituaries-people-news/roddy-piper-dies-dead-wwe-wrestler-1201554513/#comment-list-wrapper)
WWE legend “Rowdy” Roddy Piper died after suffering a heart attack in his Hollywood home. He was 61.
Born Roderick George Toombs, Piper joined the WWE in 1984 after getting his start with the NWA in the late 1970s. He and Hulk Hogan met in landmark matchups including MTV’s “The War to Settle the Score” and the first WrestleMania, where Piper and “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff took on Hogan and Mr. T.
Piper’s agent Jay Schacter confirmed the news, first reported by TMZ, to Variety.
“Rod passed peacefully in his sleep last night,” Schacter said in an email. “I am shocked and beyond devastated.”
Piper had suffered a bout of Hodgkins Lymphoma in 2006 but was reportedly deemed cancer-free last November.
The wrestler had also made a foray into film acting, starring in John Carpenter’s sci-fi pic “They Live,”
“Devastated to hear the news of my friend Roddy Piper’s passing today. He was a great wrestler, a masterful entertainer and a good friend,” Carpenter wrote on Facebook.
Other WWE stars quickly shared their condolences on Twitter.
The wrestling icon was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005. He was named one of the WWE’s top 50 villains, as well.
Piper is survived by his wife, Kitty, and their four children.
WWE legend “Rowdy” Roddy Piper died after suffering a heart attack in his Hollywood home. He was 61.
Born Roderick George Toombs, Piper joined the WWE in 1984 after getting his start with the NWA in the late 1970s. He and Hulk Hogan met in landmark matchups including MTV’s “The War to Settle the Score” and the first WrestleMania, where Piper and “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff took on Hogan and Mr. T.
Piper’s agent Jay Schacter confirmed the news, first reported by TMZ, to Variety.
“Rod passed peacefully in his sleep last night,” Schacter said in an email. “I am shocked and beyond devastated.”
Piper had suffered a bout of Hodgkins Lymphoma in 2006 but was reportedly deemed cancer-free last November.
The wrestler had also made a foray into film acting, starring in John Carpenter’s sci-fi pic “They Live,”
“Devastated to hear the news of my friend Roddy Piper’s passing today. He was a great wrestler, a masterful entertainer and a good friend,” Carpenter wrote on Facebook.
Other WWE stars quickly shared their condolences on Twitter.
The wrestling icon was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005. He was named one of the WWE’s top 50 villains, as well.
Piper is survived by his wife, Kitty, and their four children.