• Look Back In History
• Pmessages
• Quiz
• Stump The Staff
• Top Fifty
• Close

Family, friends, WWE stars talk Hall of Fame

Posted: Mar 29th 2008 By: mikeiles

ORLANDO -- The WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony is 7 p.m. EST Saturday, March 29 at The Amway Arena, 600 W Amelia St.

In his home state Florida, the late, great Gordon Solie, the pinnacle of wrestling announcers, will be inducted by legendary announcer and WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross.

Pam Allyn, the daughter of Solie, said via e-mail: ``We are very grateful to Vince McMahon and WWE for this honor. For the family, this will be an experience full of memories to behold for many years. I only wish that dad were here to accept the accolades.

'Dad never saw his profession as `just a job.' It was his life. In the midst of complete mayhem, he never lost focus or control. He truly enjoyed every moment from his cherished seat behind the microphone. My dad was and will always be the greatest teacher I have ever known. Congratulations dad.''

There are the top tier of wrestling announcers like Gorilla Monsoon, Lance Russell, Miguel Alonso and Ross, and then there is Solie in a class by himself.

Solie was a staple calling the action for Championship Wrestling from Florida. He had an excellent working relationship with each combatant including Dusty Rhodes.

When the villainous Rhodes made a dramatic career move in Florida, going good over Pak Song, it put him over the top. Rhodes became the American Dream as Solie mouthed the historic turn, and the rest is history.

What Muhammed Ali and Howard Cosell were to boxing, Dusty Rhodes and Gordon Solie were to pro wrestling.

Pam's husband, Bob Allyn, added: ``The WWE 2008 Hall of Fame induction of Gordon Solie will be a great tribute to his monumental contributions in the world of professional wrestling. It is special indeed, as Gordon would have phrased it, that he will be inducted with many performers with which he crossed paths during his career.

``Gordon described countless televised bouts as well as house matches for 2008 inductees such as Eddie Graham, Jack Brisco, Jerry Brisco, Ric Flair and Rocky Johnson. If you care to go back further in time, Gordon was the ring announcer when another 2008 inductee, Prince Maivia, wrestled in Tampa around the beginning of 1960. I am particularly happy for my wife because her dad is being honored this way.''

Solie worked with many wrestlers, during a lengthy career, including Flair, the greatest overall all-time. The Nature Boy will also take the spotlight Saturday, being inducted by future Hall of Famer Triple H.

WWE star Matt Hardy said: ``You look back at Ric's career. I think Ric Flair is the best in-ring performer that has ever been in our sport. You look at guys like Hogan who's extremely popular and a money making machine and Steve Austin, but no one had that span that Ric Flair did. For 30 years, this guy has been in a top spot and a top money maker.

``On top of that, too, for me being a small guy, 6-0, 6-1, I can relate to Ric Flair. He's not a giant. He's not 6-8. He would go in the ring night in and night out, and regardless of who he was in the ring with, you would get the best match of the night, and you would get hard work.

``Ric is growing old as we all do, and you hate to see him leave. You want to think Ric would be here forever. With that being said, Ric wants to go out being the best Ric Flair he can be. When the times right, the times right. It's sad knowing that it's coming to a close. You never know when it's going to be specifically, but if this was his last tour of the Carolinas, because the Carolinas are his home, I'm proud being a North Carolinian, two hours down the road from the Charlotte Coliseum. God Bless the man.

``He's done so much for the business. Without Ric Flair and the other guys who blazed the trail, I wouldn't be here, and others wouldn't either.

``It's really cool to get to work with him. It's going to be great to see him wrestle Shawn Michaels in one of the highlights of WrestleMania.''

WWE star Cody Rhodes said: ``Any question about Ric Flair is the easiest question to answer because Ric Flair is the greatest of all-time.

'I asked Ric one night in Tokyo, Japan, `When you were the world heavyweight champion, how often were you working?' He said, 'Eight days a week.' I said, 'There are seven days in a week.' He said, `Twice on Sunday.'

``He had the unbelievable task of going from territory to territory and making their star look like somebody but always managing to get out of there with the world title.

``No matter what happens at WrestleMania on Sunday, to me, Ric Flair is the greatest. I modeled everything I do after my father [Dusty] and Ric Flair. I don't know if you've ever seen what I wear to the ring, but it's just what Ric Flair wore to the ring with different initials.''

WWE star Santino Marella said: ``Ric Flair's passion and love and respect for the industry are infectious. When you get a chance to meet him and be close to him, you really realize where you are.

``When I won the [Intercontinental] title in Milan, Ric gave me a speech that night, and it changed my attitude toward the business forever. It made me really, really appreciate what I am a part of.''

WWE star Tommy Dreamer said: ``The only reason why I'm in this business is because of the American Dream Dusty Rhodes and Ric Flair. I love those two guys like they're my own dad. It's probably going to be the most emotional night for all the wrestlers watching it.

``I would have loved to seen Dusty Rhodes versus Ric Flair one more time in Florida because they put Florida wrestling on the map. Without them paving the way, I don't even know if we'd even be here in Orlando.

``Shawn Michaels is probably the luckiest guy in the world. He's wrestling his boyhood idol. You can not put into words the magnitude of that. It's going to be an amazing, amazing, emotional night.''

Pioneers Rocky Johnson and the late, great High Chief Peter Maivia will be enshrined by Johnson's son and Maivia's grandson, former WWE standout and current movie star The Rock.

WWE star Elijah Burke, who hails from Jacksonville, Fla., said: ``Rocky Johnson being inducted into the Hall of Fame means a lot. Rocky Johnson was to the African community and a lot of people in general a trendsetter.

``He was one of the guys, far and few between at that time, that we had to look onto and gave us hope that, hey, I too, one day, can be a WWE superstar. There wasn't many that we had. We had Rocky Johnson and Tony Atlas and then we had the American Dream Dusty Rhodes, daddy.''

Championship Wrestling from Florida promoter and former wrestler Eddie Graham will be inducted by WWE Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes. Jack and Jerry Brisco, one of the business's top tag teams, and Mae Young, a stellar women's wrestler, will also be part of the Class of 2008.

A former amateur wrestling talent Jack Brisco, an NWA champ, is also one of the top singles' wrestlers all-time. Like Flair, he could work with anyone -- any size, any style.

Jerry made his mark on the tag team scene and also won several lightweight singles' titles. He works behind the scenes for WWE. The Briscos have spent many, many years in the profession.

WWE star Finlay said: ``I think it's awesome. I really do. You can only get so many prominent stars each time, but there are a lot of roots in this business. Maybe a lot of people don't know some of them, but what I think is awesome is The Rock inducting his father and his grandfather. Of course, Mae and Moolah.

``I think it's more emotional for people in the business, especially those who have been in it a long time and gone through the hardships -- not have birthdays and anniversaries and Christmas and Easter and Thanksgiving, missing all that with our families.

'We sacrifice. You watch those guys who have been in this business longer than 20 years. Our families sacrificed. I've been it 34 years. My family sacrificed for something I liked. We get paid well but not always. When I first started wrestling, my first money for wrestling was the equivalent of $6. After about 10 years, it went up to $20, but I loved it. Some would go, `Twenty bucks? I'm not doing that,' and they don't last.

``We celebrated birthdays whenever we were home together. We would celebrate anniversaries and birthdays, two birthdays, on the same day. We'd call each other. I'd been in countries and phone home, sat on the edge of a bed with tears ripping down my face because it was a special day, and we weren't together, but that's the sacrifice that we all make.

``If my kids could verbalize that, they would tell you the same thing. My kids are 5, 7 and 14, and they're all my kids and my wife's kids. My wife had cancer when my first child was 3-years-old. We stayed together, and we sacrificed for each other. My wife sacrificed for me, I for her and for my kids, and my kids for us. From the others who had been in the business a long time, you'd hear the same thing -- sacrifice.

``We're depriving each other of something, but we're making the most of it when we're together.''

? Tickets ($55) are on sale at the Amway Arena Box Office, all Florida Ticketmaster locations (including FYE stores) and on Ticketmaster's website. Also charge by phone at 407-839-3900. Business attire is requested.

? Segments from the WWE Hall of Fame Ceremony will air taped delay at 11 p.m. Saturday, March 29 on the USA Network.

Tags: WWE, Jim Ross, Dusty Rhodes, Jack Brisco, Jerry Brisco, Ric Flair, Tony Atlas, Mae Young