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Paul Bearer Belongs in the WWE Hall of Fame

Posted: Mar 7th 2013 By: mikeiles

The wrestling world is still coming to terms with the loss of William Moody, better known to worldwide audiences as Paul Bearer.

The legendary character is known as the man behind The Undertaker. Early in Taker's career, Bearer did almost all of the speaking for him.

Paul Bearer is one of the most recognizable faces and voices in WWE history, and he earned his spot in the WWE Hall of Fame a long time ago.

Moody was very instrumental to the success of The Undertaker, but that is not the only wrestler Moody lent his talents to.

Mankind, Kane and Vader all received the benefit of being affiliated with Bearer in WWE, and Moody has made independent wrestling appearances over the years as well.

The real-life funeral director was able to make the crowd love him or hate him with ease, using his shrill voice to often go overboard with his promos.

The gimmick of the Undertaker should not have lasted as long as it did. Supernatural gimmicks usually have a short shelf life, and Taker should have been repackaged.

However, the character went over so well with fans that WWE would have been stupid to change course, and much of that success early on can be attributed to Paul Bearer being the voice of the dead man.

Any muscle head can go into the ring and no-sell moves while hitting power moves, but Bearer made it interesting through storytelling.

There were so many iconic moments and matches that involved Paul Bearer being by Undertaker's side, some of them even seeing Taker and Bearer at odds with each other.

Many fans will remember how Paul Bearer was buried in cement, only to appear years later without so much as a mention of the incident.

Few non-wrestlers have earned the respect in the industry that Paul Bearer earned, and his spot in the Hall of Fame should have already been reserved.

Whether WWE decides to induct him this year or if they will wait until next year to do it is yet to be seen, but nobody would fault WWE for wanting to pay respects to a man who was so valuable to them over the years.

If they do posthumously induct him, then the only logical choice for who inducts him is The Undertaker. The two will forever be linked in the history of WWE and there is no better choice.

Whether you knew him as William Moody, Percy Pringle or Paul Bearer, you probably have some great memories of him in the wrestling business.

Rest in peace, William Moody.

What do you think? Should WWE induct Paul Bearer this year or wait until next year?