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"Rowdy" Roddy Piper Back In Town

Posted: Apr 17th 2008 By: CMBurnham

The last time "Rowdy" Roddy Piper had Poughkeepsie as his stomping grounds, he was pummeling an undercard wrestler named A.J. Petruzzi with one hand behind his back at a Superstars of Wrestling taping for the then-World Wrestling Federation at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center.

It was August 5, 1986. Piper says the other wrestlers were complaining that they had to work with all the young guys, so Vince McMahon asked Piper, who usually hosted his Piper's Pit interview segment at the tapings, to step in the ring for a match.

Petruzzi's father, Piper says, was working hard to push his son to the top of the wrestling business and his embarrassing loss to Piper estranged the father and son and Piper found out a few years ago that they had not spoken in 20 years.

"I never thought about it," Piper said, of putting one hand behind his back. "People think I premeditate these things. I'm not that smart."

"Hey, Petruzzi," Piper said. "You need to come down here. I didn't mean no disrespect to you and your father. The other wrestlers were just getting jealous."

On Sunday, Piper, real name Roderick Toombs - he turns 54 today - will return to Poughkeepsie for the first time in almost 22 years for an autograph signing at Collector's Realm on Raymond Ave. On Friday, he will be hosting a live Piper's Pit at a Northeast Wrestling show at Newburgh Free Academy.

"The people of Poughkeepsie - they should be sainted for putting up with us every three weeks," Piper said in an interview from his hotel in Newburgh. "They were always there, They were the greatest of crowds. We're talking three weeks of television we were doing back then. Three Piper's Pits. You're in high gear."

Piper anticipates that this will probably be the last time he will be in Poughkeepsie because he wants to scale back his wrestling appearances.

"This is probably the last time I think I'll put the kilt on," said Piper, who is in remission from Hodgkin's lymphoma. "I like to spend a little time with each one of the fans. It may take a little longer than usual. I want to say hello and goodbye to everybody in Poughkeepsie. There's an old saying in our business when someone passes: They lost their smiles and they couldn't find them. I'm going to be smiling for them. I'm the last of the Mohicans of the territory days. I've played some holes and Poughkeepsie is not one of them. I'm excited to come back to Poughkeepsie."

Piper has lots of memories from his many nights in Poughkeepsie, from Pipers Pit to taping the "Land of 1,000 Dances" video to various altercations within the unique brotherhood of pro wrestling.

"If that building could talk, man, it would scare the dog out of you," Piper said.

"Hot Rod" isn't sure how much more he'll be involved in professional wrestling. He was invited to this year's WrestleMania by WWE, but they only gave him two day's notice and he was filming a movie in Winnipeg, Manitoba entitled "Clear Lake." He also missed the last match of his close friend, Ric Flair.

"That was the saddest time in my career," Piper said. "The greatest wrestler in the world and I wasn't there for him. You've got to give me more than two day's notice. You can't call me every fourth month and expect me to be there."

He said he would consider attending WrestleMania 25 in Houston next year (Piper worked the main event of the first WrestleMania in Madison Square Garden - teaming with Paul Orndorff and facing Hulk Hogan and Mr. T). He also said he enjoyed in competing at MSG at the Royal Rumble in January.

"I killed that cancer and I come down and God bless them, all of a sudden, they jump to their feet," Piper said. "I was number 19, I think, and everyone in the ring stopped wrestling."

For a fleeting moment, everyone in the ring watched Piper and Jimmy Snuka relive their storied rivalry for one night only.

"You can't construct nor buy moments like that," Piper said.

Tags: Roddy Piper, Ric Flair, Paul Orndorff