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81-495: Martin Anthony Lunde (born September 20, 1958), better known by his ring name Arn Anderson , is an American professional wrestling road agent , author, and retired professional wrestler. Although he is widely regarded as one of the greatest tag team wrestlers in history, he also had a successful singles career and became a four-time NWA/WCW World Television Champion , which he often called his "world title". Anderson's career

162-421: A backstage role as a producer. On May 28, 2024, Anderson announced on his podcast The ARN Show that he would not be renewing his AEW contract upon its expiration on May 31, 2024. On August 3, 2024, Anderson made an appearance at WWE's SummerSlam event in a backstage segment during Cody Rhodes' entrance as a part of the main event, promising Cody that he would not be facing The Bloodline alone. Although he

243-701: A career in professional wrestling. Martin Anthony Lunde was born in Rome, Georgia , on September 20, 1958. Lunde began his career on December 16, 1981, in Georgia Championship Wrestling going by the ring name Jim Vertaroso, having been trained by Ted Lipscomb (Allen). He spent much of the year wrestling in various independent wrestling companies across the United States, including a minor run in Mid South Wrestling for Bill Watts from 1982 to 1983. By

324-691: A commentator in WWE. He made an appearance on Raw in 2002 delivering a video to Triple H before he was supposed to renew his wedding vows to then-heel, Stephanie McMahon . Anderson was assaulted by The Undertaker on February 25, 2002, in an episode of Raw leading up the Undertaker vs. Ric Flair match at WrestleMania X8 . During that bout, Anderson made an in-ring appearance, delivering his signature spinebuster to The Undertaker. He would later turn heel by helping Ric Flair in his feud with Stone Cold Steve Austin , leading to Austin urinating on him. Anderson became

405-631: A contract with the company as Cody's personal advisor and head coach. He would make his Dynamite debut on the January 1, 2020, episode, assisting Cody to win his match against Darby Allin . On June 3, 2020, Anderson announced that he had signed a new multi-year contract with AEW. On the June 11, 2021 episode of Dynamite , in an interview with Tony Schiavone , Anderson, alongside his son Brock and Cody (now going under his original ring name Cody Rhodes), announced that Brock would be wrestling with AEW and would join

486-582: A face once again on June 10, 2002, and attempted to help a then-babyface Flair gain sole ownership of WWE during a match with Mr. McMahon , but backed down from a confrontation with Brock Lesnar , who entered the ring to assist McMahon. Anderson made a special appearance at the October 2006 Raw Family Reunion special, in which he was in Ric Flair's corner for his match against Mitch of the Spirit Squad . Anderson

567-611: A feud with Superstar Billy Graham . Along with Johnny Valentine , Superstar Billy Graham was regarded as one of McDaniel's earliest and bitter rivals. Between 1973 and 1974, McDaniel and Superstar would engage in numerous wrestling bouts in what was considered one of the AWA's top-drawing feuds of the 1970s. Some of these bouts included Indian Strap Matches and also tag team matches which pitted McDaniel and The Crusher against Superstar and Ivan Koloff . In 1974, McDaniel came to Mid-Atlantic to wrestle for Jim Crockett Promotions and help build up

648-462: A few others, their real name. One notable exception was made for David Otunga because of his real marriage to singer Jennifer Hudson at the time, which gave WWE some mainstream exposure. Low Ki used the alias "Senshi" during his second TNA stint to reserve his primary ring name for other use. A similar example is the team known as The Dudley Boyz in ECW and WWE and Team 3D elsewhere. WWE trademarked

729-486: A heated feud with the group, with Ric Flair especially. In early 1988, Luger formed a tag team with Barry Windham and began challenging Anderson and Blanchard for the NWA World Tag Team Championship. The bigger, stronger team of Windham and Luger were eventually successful, winning the titles on March 27, 1988. The reign would be short lived, however, as Anderson and Blanchard regained the titles less than

810-608: A linebacker for the New York Jets in 1964, McDaniel started wearing a custom jersey which had the name "Wahoo" sewn on the back above jersey 54, and whenever he made a tackle as a Jet, the public address announcer would ask the crowd WHO made that tackle, in which the crowd would shout, "Wahoo! Wahoo! Wahoo!" After two seasons with the Jets, McDaniel went to the Miami Dolphins in 1966, and played with this team until his retirement after

891-546: A month later after Barry Windham turned on Luger during their match and joined the Horsemen. Though Anderson and Blanchard were two of the biggest stars in Crockett's company, they were frequently in dispute with Crockett over their pay. Despite the fact that the two, along with the Horsemen, were helping to generate millions of dollars in revenue for the company, they considered themselves to be underpaid. Their last contracted match with

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972-680: A no-contest. At Slamboree on May 23, 1995, he defeated Murdoch. He also worked in independent shows until retiring in 1996. McDaniel was married four times to three different women. With his first wife, Monta Rae, he had two daughters, Nikki, born in June 1963 and living in Houston and Cindi, born in October 1965 and living in Azle, Texas . He also has four grand grandchildren, from Nikki Rowe (Dustin and Brittany)and from Cindi Blank (twins Morgan and Taylor as well as four great-grandchildren. Dustin has(Vayda and Bo Wayne), Morgan (Monroe) and Taylor (Rory). He

1053-568: A partner to be named later (who ended up being Chris Benoit ). By the end of 1996, Anderson rarely competed in the ring as years of wear and tear on his body finally started to catch up with him. On the November 25 edition of Nitro , Anderson fought Luger to a double count-out in a quarter-final tournament match for the vacant WCW United States Championship. On the August 25, 1997, episode of Monday Nitro , Anderson formally announced his retirement from

1134-718: A result of a "no-compete" clause he was initially unable to wrestle, so he hosted a short-lived talk show segment called "A Flair for the Gold". Anderson usually appeared at the bar on the show's set. While still under WCW contract, Anderson wrestled a handful of matches for Smoky Mountain Wrestling in March and April 1993, teaming with the Rock 'n' Roll Express . At Slamboree '93: A Legends' Reunion in May 1993, Anderson unsuccessfully challenged Barry Windham for

1215-561: A series of matches. In February 1994, he formed a short-lived tag team with Ricky Steamboat. In May 1994, Anderson wrestled at the Eastern Championship Wrestling event When Worlds Collide as part of a talent exchange between WCW and ECW. At the event, Anderson teamed with Terry Funk in an unsuccessful challenge to Sabu and Bobby Eaton. In May 1994, Anderson formed another new tag team, this one with Dustin Rhodes . At Bash at

1296-521: A tremendous ability to do interviews to further the storylines he participated in. His ability to improvise in interviews allowed him to coin the "Four Horsemen" moniker for the stable, as he likened their coming to wrestle at an event and the aftermath of their wrath as being akin to the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse , and the name stuck. Anderson continued his reign as NWA Television Champion for most of

1377-751: A variation of it, sometimes modifying the spelling to better fit their gimmick , such as Dave Bautista becoming Batista (later reverting to his real name for his Hollywood acting career), Patricia Stratigeas becoming Trish Stratus , Jonathan Good becoming Jon Moxley , Bryan Danielson becoming Daniel Bryan (when he wrestled in WWE), Richard Fliehr becoming Ric Flair and Randall Poffo becoming Randy Savage . Others simply use part of their name, such as Bill Goldberg using Goldberg , Nicole Garcia-Colace using Nikki Bella , Mike Mizanin using The Miz , Cody Runnels using Cody Rhodes , and Michael Wardlow using Wardlow . Many female wrestlers go solely by their first name such as. It

1458-486: A victory or, at least, to prevent each other from losing their titles. The alliance quickly became a force within the territory, working in feuds against some of the biggest stars in the company like Dusty Rhodes , Magnum T. A. , the Road Warriors and the Rock 'n' Roll Express . Anderson also saw success as a singles wrestler on January 4, 1986, by winning the vacant NWA Television Championship . Simultaneously, Anderson

1539-523: A week later teamed with Ric Flair to defeat David Flair and Crowbar . WCW was purchased by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in early 2001, ending Anderson's tenure there. He later made his return to the WWF. Not long after the closing of WCW, Anderson became a road agent for WWF, renamed World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in May 2002. He occasionally appeared on WWE television trying to, with

1620-637: Is a highly respected tradition in Mexican lucha libre for performers to hide their true identities, usually wrestling under masks, and revealing a luchador's identity without their permission is considered a serious offence with real-life consequences. Professional wrestlers are often referred to by their contemporaries by their ring name. In interviews, Bret Hart regularly referred to Mark Calaway, Curt Hennig, and Kevin Nash by their ring names ( The Undertaker , Mr. Perfect , and Diesel ). Ring names are often trademarked by

1701-448: Is also common for wrestlers of all genders to use a nickname in addition to their real name for marketability and other reasons. Ricky Steamboat is an atypical instance of a wrestler adopting a ring name to sound less intimidating, as his legal name of Richard Blood was considered unfitting for his babyface persona. Some (mostly independent ) wrestlers still go to great lengths to ensure that their real names are not publicly known. It

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1782-550: Is often compared to his contemporary, Chief Jay Strongbow , due to both portraying similar Native American gimmicks. McDaniel was born in the small town of Bernice, Louisiana , in 1938. His family was Choctaw - Chickasaw , and he was a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma . His father Hugh, worked in the oil industry and moved to several towns before settling down in Midland, Texas . He attended Midland High School , where he

1863-552: The NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship by defeating Valentine. In 1977, Johnny Valentine's son Greg Valentine attacked McDaniel and broke his leg in an angle to establish Greg as Johnny's successor. Valentine originally won the title on June 11, 1977, with McDaniel regaining it two months later. On September 7, 1977, Valentine regained the title at the WRAL-TV studio tapings, breaking McDaniel's leg in

1944-697: The NWA World Heavyweight Champion , losing it to Ron Garvin in September, only to regain it at Starrcade 1987 on Thanksgiving night. Anderson and Tully continued to feud throughout the rest of the year and first few months of 1988 with the Road Warriors, the Rock 'n' Roll Express and the Midnight Express being their most frequent rivals. By December 1987, Luger had defected from the Horsemen and began

2025-666: The NWA World Heavyweight Championship . In May 1993, Anderson joined Ole Anderson and Ric Flair to once more reform the Four Horsemen. The Horsemen introduced Paul Roma as their newest member. Although athletic and a skilled in-ring competitor, Roma had spent much of his career as a jobber in the WWF. As part of an interview segment for the Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen DVD, Triple H stated that he thought

2106-479: The Nightmare Family . The interview was interrupted by Q. T. Marshall and a fight ensued. On the June 18 episode of Dynamite , Anderson accompanied Brock to the ring for his debut match. Brock, teaming with Rhodes defeated Marshall and Aaron Solow . After the match, Anderson hugged Brock and raised his hand. On the September 29 episode of Dynamite , Anderson dumped Rhodes, who was on a losing streak, and left

2187-513: The WCW World Heavyweight Championship at Uncensored 1999 and turn heel in the process. Anderson remained Flair's right-hand man during this time as he attempted to keep Flair's delusional hunger for power at bay. In 2000, Anderson was a member of the short-lived Old Age Outlaws. Led by Terry Funk , the group of veteran wrestlers battled the revived New World Order . On May 9, Anderson wrestled and lost to David Flair and

2268-668: The WWF Tag Team Championship . On July 18, 1989, the Brain Busters won the titles, ending Demolition's historic reign of 478 days; the match would air on the July 29 edition of Saturday Night's Main Event XXII . Although they would lose the titles back to Demolition on an episode of WWF Superstars just over three months later, the Brain Busters continued to be a force in the WWF's tag team division. In December 1989, Anderson left

2349-482: The promotion that creates a character or gimmick for a performer. It is common to see one performer use a variety of ring names throughout their career, even if their overall persona remains similar. This is especially true in WWE , which has largely forced most wrestlers that have debuted since 2006 to use a WWE-owned ring name instead of a ring name that they used on the independent circuit or, such as with Daniel Bryan and

2430-728: The "Dudley Boyz" name, leading them to have to change their name when they went to TNA. The members' individual names were also trademarked by WWE, forcing them to have to change their names. WWE partially repealed the policy in 2015, allowing wrestlers who were well known in other promotions such as Samoa Joe , A.J. Styles , Shinsuke Nakamura , Austin Aries , Bobby Roode , and Eric Young to use their long-standing ring names (or, in Nakamura's and Roode's cases, their real names) as well as wrestlers who sign "Tier 2" NXT brand contracts such as Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa , who wrestle both on NXT and

2511-647: The 1968 season. While with the Houston Oilers, McDaniel also trained with NWA Amarillo wrestling promoter Dory Funk Sr. and became a professional wrestler as a way to supplement his income by the time he was traded to the Denver Broncos in 1961. After he was traded to the New York Jets in 1964, McDaniel began wrestling for Vincent J. McMahon 's World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF). The promoter wanted him to play off his Native American heritage, thus he

Arn Anderson - Misplaced Pages Continue

2592-527: The Beach 1994 , Anderson and Rhodes faced Col. Rob Parker 's Stud Stable ; during the match, Anderson betrayed Rhodes and cost him them match, subsequently joining the Stud Stable alongside Terry Funk , Bunkhouse Buck , "Stunning" Steve Austin and Meng . The Stud Stable feuded with Dusty and Dustin Rhodes until late 1994 when Funk left. Anderson's last championship run began on January 8, 1995, after winning

2673-517: The Curtain . Kayfabe Pub Group, 1998 Ring name Ring names are much more common in professional wrestling than any other sport; famous examples include Terry Bollea becoming Hulk Hogan , Michael Shawn Hickenbottom becoming Shawn Michaels , Roderick Toombs becoming Roddy Piper , Dwayne Johnson becoming The Rock , Christopher Irvine becoming Chris Jericho , and Phillip Jack Brooks becoming CM Punk . A number of wrestlers adopted their real name or

2754-501: The English town of Blackburn on October 27, 1993. Anderson threatened Eudy with a broken bottle; after being sent to their rooms by security chief Doug Dillinger, Eudy later came to Lunde's room and attacked him with a chair leg, and Lunde retaliated with pair of scissors. Eudy received four stab wounds while Lunde received twenty, losing a pint and a half of blood in the process. The fight was broken up by fellow wrestler 2 Cold Scorpio , who

2835-569: The Virginias and the Carolinas . By this time, the company extended its range into Georgia after rival promoter Vince McMahon purchased Georgia Championship Wrestling . There was a strong physical resemblance between Lunde and Ole Anderson , who had achieved legendary status in the Georgia and Mid-Atlantic territories as a tag team wrestler. Ole noticed that Lunde's style was a no nonsense approach in

2916-545: The WWF and Barry Windham having turned face, Anderson entered the tag team ranks of WCW. In the summer of 1991, Anderson formed a tag team with Larry Zbyszko and they called themselves the Enforcers . After competing for several months and moving up in the tag team ranks, they successfully captured the WCW World Tag Team Championship on September 2, 1991. The reign would be short lived, however, as they lost

2997-494: The WWF and went back to WCW. Blanchard was slated to return as well but WWF accused him of testing positive for cocaine. Crockett's company was now called World Championship Wrestling and was under the ownership of billionaire mogul Ted Turner . Anderson helped to reform the Horsemen and he quickly found success in the company, winning the NWA World Television Championship on January 2, 1990. Anderson remained

3078-477: The World Television Championship from Johnny B. Badd . Anderson helped restore the prestige of the title, which he held for just over six months before dropping it to The Renegade at Great American Bash 1995 . He briefly feuded with long-time friend Flair, and was assisted by Brian Pillman in his efforts. In 1995, Anderson reformed the Four Horsemen yet again with Flair, Anderson, Pillman, and

3159-588: The addition of Roma made the membership the weakest in the history of the group, and Arn himself referred to Roma as "a glorified gym rat". Although Anderson and Roma won the WCW World Tag Team Championship in August, the group was seen as a failure by WCW. The stable disbanded in October 1993 after Anderson was legitimately injured in an altercation with Sid Vicious. Anderson returned to the ring in December 1993, facing his former stablemate Paul Roma in

3240-552: The champion almost the entire year before dropping it to Tom Zenk . Zenk's reign would be short lived, however, as Anderson regained the title, having been renamed the WCW World Television Championship on January 14, 1991. His third reign with the title was also considered successful as he held the title a little more than five months before dropping it to "Beautiful" Bobby Eaton on May 19, 1991. Afterwards, with Horsemen members Ric Flair and Sid Vicious gone to

3321-623: The company took place on September 10, 1988, when they dropped the NWA World Tag Team Championship to the Midnight Express before leaving for the WWF. Anderson and Blanchard left Crockett's company to join Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation . Upon being named the Brain Busters , the team took Bobby "The Brain" Heenan as their manager and quickly began rising through the tag team ranks, eventually coming to challenge Demolition for

Arn Anderson - Misplaced Pages Continue

3402-526: The company. By mid-1987, Anderson and fellow Horsemen Tully Blanchard began regularly competing as a tag team and rose quickly through the tag team ranks. The duo faced the Rock 'n' Roll Express for the NWA World Tag Team Championship on September 29, 1987, and were victorious. This win further solidified the group's dominance in the company as Lex Luger was the reigning NWA United States Heavyweight Champion and Ric Flair spent most of 1987 as

3483-655: The concrete and hit his head, neck, and upper back. He never took time off to heal. As time passed, with no down time, the injuries worsened. In his biography, Lunde states that the first sign of problems was his left arm suddenly going numb and unresponsive during a match. Doctors found that a rib, possibly torn away from the spine during the accident, was popping in and out of the joint and causing shoulder discomfort and weakness. Upon seeing his chiropractor in Charlotte, North Carolina , and consulting medical experts in Atlanta, Georgia ,

3564-585: The damage to Lunde's body was found to be much more severe than previously thought and surgery was deemed the only option to keep his left arm functioning at all. Surgery occurred in Atlanta in late 1996 (resulting in a left posterior laminectomy of the 3rd, 4th, and 5th cervical bones and a fusion of the 7th cervical and 1st thoracic bones) and was successful in repairing most of the damage, but Anderson still has some muscle weakness, loss of fine motor control, and loss of muscle mass in his left arm. He spent many weeks in

3645-617: The end of the Nightmare Family, but Anderson would continue to manage Brock and Johnson for the rest of the year. On the April 19, 2023 episode of Dynamite , Anderson assisted Wardlow in his match with Powerhouse Hobbs to win the TNT Championship. Anderson and Wardlow began feuding with Christian Cage and Luchasaurus , and at Double or Nothing , he was involved in a spot where he bit the thumb of Luchasaurus. Wardlow ended up retaining

3726-563: The group was only further weakened after he decided to take two months off after Starrcade. After Ole's return in February 1987, the other Horsemen turned on him and threw him out of the group, resulting in Ole incurring numerous attacks over the next several months. Afterwards, Ole was replaced with Lex Luger and the Horsemen resumed their dominance of the company. As a member of the Horsemen, Anderson continued to be involved in high-profile angles within

3807-485: The help of other WWE management, pull apart backstage brawls. Before the WCW/ECW Invasion storyline, Anderson took up color commentary for a WCW World Heavyweight Championship match between Booker T and Buff Bagwell , WCW Cruiserweight Championship match with Billy Kidman and Gregory Helms as well as another WCW Championship match between Diamond Dallas Page and Booker T, which would be his only appearances as

3888-440: The hospital during that time, crediting his recovery to his wife, his physical therapist, and the fact he did not want his children to be fatherless. He would be readmitted in March 1997 with symptoms akin to cardiac arrest and pulmonary failure , but was released soon afterwards. On March 11, 2023, Lunde announced on Twitter that his son Barrett had died the night before at age 37. Anderson's autobiography, Arn Anderson 4 Ever ,

3969-477: The independent circuit to keep their ring names (or, in Gargano's case, his real name). Gargano and Ciampa have since signed exclusive WWE contracts. "In-house" WWE wrestlers still use WWE-owned ring names. In rare cases, the rights to a wrestler's ring name may be owned by a company with little or no connection to professional wrestling, such as Marvel Comics ' ownership of the name Hulk Hogan until early 2003, which

4050-407: The latter of whom followed in his father's footsteps and became a professional wrestler. Lunde stated on an episode of his podcast The Arn Show that the only reason he had stayed in the business for so long was to make sure Brock was able to get his start in it. During a WCW tour of Europe, Lunde and Sid Eudy (better known as Sid Vicious or Sycho Sid) were involved in an argument at a hotel bar in

4131-521: The middle of 1983, he made his way to Southeastern Championship Wrestling , an NWA affiliated promotion operating out of Tennessee and Alabama . Taking the name of "Super Olympia", Lunde soon became a member of Ron Fuller 's Stud Stable before the year was out. Lunde saw success in the tag team ranks by winning the NWA Southeastern Tag Team Championship three times with Mr. Olympia and once with Pat Rose throughout 1984. It

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4212-541: The people asked by Heath Slater to be his tag team partner for the tournament to determine the inaugural winners of the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship . Anderson refused to help Slater upon learning that he was not Slater's first choice as a tag team partner. On the August 8, 2017, episode of Smackdown Live , Anderson made a guest appearance on Fashion Police, revealing himself to be the one who destroyed Breezango's toy horse, Tully, and boasting he

4293-607: The prefix "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. Numerous boxers have used ring names or nicknames as their mode of identification during their professional boxing careers, particularly during the late 19th century and the early 20th century. The ring name "Kid" was particularly popular, indicating the boxer's comparative youth. Since the mid 20th century, ring names for boxers have typically been less common, although nicknames have become more popular in recent years. Famous examples of boxers who used ring names include: Wahoo McDaniel Edward Hugh McDaniel (June 19, 1938 – April 18, 2002)

4374-687: The process. This angle is particularly remembered for a follow-up interview weeks later with Flair and Valentine throwing change at McDaniel, and Valentine asking him if he needed a custom-made wheelchair for his fat body. Valentine then infuriated fans (thus building up the demand for a rematch) by parading around in T-shirts which read "I Broke Wahoo's Leg" and "No More Wahoo." McDaniel also worked for World Championship Wrestling 's Slamboree 1993: A Legends' Reunion pay-per-view on May 23, 1993, where he teamed with Blackjack Mulligan and Jim Brunzell and fought Dick Murdoch , Don Muraco and Jimmy Snuka to

4455-400: The quote got Anderson trending on Twitter ; AEW promptly released a T-shirt featuring the quote due to the reaction. Additionally, the promo was sampled by rapper JPEGMafia in the song "End Credits". However, Anderson would afterwards resume coaching Rhodes, who would later go on to have another reign as AEW TNT Champion . Rhodes departed from the promotion in February 2022, which also caused

4536-610: The ring and specialized in working over a part of an opponent's body throughout the match, much like Ole himself. Anderson agreed to work with Lunde, helping to hone his capabilities, and re-formed the Minnesota Wrecking Crew with Lunde replacing Gene Anderson and taking on the name of "Arn Anderson", Ole's kayfabe brother. The team quickly became a force in the territory by capturing the NWA National Tag Team Championship in March 1985. Arn and Ole defended

4617-556: The ring with Lee Johnson , who had just successfully scored a winning pinfall while teaming with Rhodes. During the promo when he dumped Rhodes, Anderson (a real-life gun enthusiast) told him that Rhodes would allow a carjacker to steal his car while Anderson would "pull out the Glock , put it on his forehead, and spill his brains all over the concrete". The promo, which received approval in advance from both Tony Khan and TNT , received universal critical praise from fans and other wrestlers, as

4698-475: The ring. While standing in the ring, surrounded by Ric Flair and newest Horsemen members Steve McMichael and Benoit, Anderson declared that his last official act as the "Enforcer" for the Four Horsemen was to offer his "spot" in the group to Curt Hennig , as he was forced to retire due to extensive neck and upper back injuries. He worked a couple tag matches afterward, including teaming with David Flair on an episode of WCW Thunder , but his physical involvement

4779-583: The tag team division and were soon a threat to Steamboat and Rhodes. Anderson and Eaton quickly won the titles on January 16, 1992, and defended the titles against all comers for the next four and a half months before losing the titles to the Steiner Brothers in May 1992. The Dangerous Alliance disbanded in November 1992 following Clash of the Champions XXI , following which Anderson took a short hiatus from WCW. Ric Flair returned to WCW in February 1993; as

4860-420: The territory as a singles territory in a feud with a rival from Texas , Johnny Valentine . The feud evolved into a tag feud with McDaniel and Paul Jones taking on Valentine and Ric Flair , who McDaniel met in the AWA. McDaniel and Valentine had a historical feud remembered for the sheer force of their punch/chop exchanges, both men widely known for their hard-hitting style. On June 29, 1975, McDaniel won

4941-410: The title at the event, but Anderson and Wardlow's partnership ended after he lost the title to Luchasaurus on the June 17 episode of Collision . On the August 12 episode of Collision , held in Greensboro, North Carolina , Anderson was in Brock's corner who unsuccessfully challenged Luchasaurus for the TNT Championship. Brock's contract with the promotion would expire later that month and Anderson took

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5022-401: The titles roughly two and a half months later to Ricky Steamboat and Dustin Rhodes . Anderson and Zbyszko wrestled their final match as a tag team in December 1991 as part of WCW's "Roar Power" tour of Europe. Later in December 1991, Anderson joined Paul E. Dangerously 's new stable the Dangerous Alliance , where he formed a new tag team with "Beautiful" Bobby Eaton . They quickly moved up

5103-648: The titles throughout the year, with their highest profile match being part of the card for Starrcade 1985 on Thanksgiving night. The Crew successfully defended the titles against Wahoo McDaniel and Billy Jack Haynes . "Not since the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse have so few wreaked so much havoc on so many." - Arn Anderson, 1985 In the latter half of 1985, the Andersons formed a loose knit alliance with fellow heels Tully Blanchard and Ric Flair , as they began to have common enemies. The foursome frequently teamed together in six-man, and sometimes, eight-man tag matches or interfered in each other's matches to help score

5184-409: The wrestler's gimmick changes, either subtly or dramatically. After debuting in WWE as the " Connecticut Blueblood " Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Paul Levesque's character later morphed into Triple H . A more drastic change sometimes occurs when a wrestler turns heroic or villainous , such as when Hulk Hogan joined the villainous nWo (New World Order) and became "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan. His new attitude

5265-414: The year, holding the championship for just over 9 months before losing it to Dusty Rhodes on September 9, 1986. The first real setback with the Horsemen occurred at Starrcade 1986 after Anderson and Ole lost a Steel Cage match to the Rock 'n' Roll Express, with Ole getting pinned. The subsequent storyline positioned Ole as the weak link within the team, possibly attributed to his age. Ole's position with

5346-420: Was a track state champion in the shot put and second in the state in the discus. One of his baseball coaches, particularly for his Pony League team, was George H. W. Bush . The name "Wahoo" actually came from his father, who was known as "Big Wahoo". Though he was a problematic teenager, he was accepted to the University of Oklahoma by Bud Wilkinson . He became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity and

5427-416: Was also a part of Wilkinson's Sooners football program, where he holds the record for the longest punt at 91 yards. McDaniel began his career as a professional football player in 1960 in the American Football League (AFL), playing for the Houston Oilers during their inaugural AFL Championship-winning season . He then played for the Denver Broncos between 1961 and 1963. After he started playing as

5508-562: Was also here in this promotion that Lunde met and began what would become a lifelong friendship with Ric Flair. By the end of the year, however, Lunde left the company and joined Mid South Wrestling based out of Shreveport. Lunde's time in Mid South was coming to an end, and during a TV taping the Junkyard Dog mentioned to Bill Watts, the owner of Mid South Wrestling, that Lunde looked like an Anderson. Watts called Jim Crockett and convinced him to book Lunde. Lunde made his way to Jim Crockett, Jr. 's Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling , based in

5589-511: Was an American professional football player and professional wrestler better known by his ring name Wahoo McDaniel . He is notable for having held the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship five times. McDaniel was a major star in the American Wrestling Association and prominent National Wrestling Alliance affiliated promotions such as Championship Wrestling from Florida , Georgia Championship Wrestling , NWA Big Time Wrestling and, most notably, Jim Crockett Promotions . McDaniel

5670-518: Was billed as such, Lunde is not related to the Anderson family . He was given the name "Anderson" and was originally billed as Ole Anderson 's brother, and later billed as Ole's nephew, because of his resemblance to Ole in appearance and wrestling style. He was also billed as Flair's cousin at various times, even though he is not related to Ric Flair , but they are long time friends. Lunde married his wife Erin in 1985. They reside in Charlotte, North Carolina , and have two sons named Barrett and Brock ,

5751-470: Was credited with saving Lunde's life. Neither man pressed charges against the other, and British police declined to do so since both men would soon be leaving the country. Eudy was later fired over the incident. As stated in his biography, Lunde was thrown into the ring ropes during a match in 1994. The top rope broke from the turnbuckle, but he was able to land on his feet. Six months later, the same event happened again, but this time he landed full-force on to

5832-596: Was due to Hogan being advertised as " The Incredible Hulk Hogan" early in his career, while Marvel owned the trademark for their comic book character. Sometimes, a wrestler will buy the rights to their own ring name; for example, Steve Borden owns the rights to the name Sting and licenses it to the musician of the same name . The wrestler formerly known as Test took this one step further and legally changed his name to "Andrew Test Martin". Jim Hellwig, known as The Ultimate Warrior , had his name legally changed to simply "Warrior". In many cases, ring names evolve over time as

5913-549: Was enhanced by changing his costume color scheme from his famous red and yellow to nWo's black and white. Steve Williams adopted the ring name Steve Austin to avoid confusion with the then-more established performer "Dr. Death" Steve Williams . Austin would wrestle under that name for several years before signing with the WWF and being given the name "the Ringmaster". This gimmick failed to catch on, and Austin reverted to his established name, reaching his greatest level of success with

5994-428: Was extremely limited in those bouts. On the September 14, 1998, edition of Nitro , alongside Steve McMichael, Dean Malenko, and Chris Benoit, Anderson ceremoniously reintroduced Ric Flair to WCW after his 12-month hiatus. In doing so, they reformed the Horsemen who then feuded with WCW President Eric Bischoff . Flair won the presidency of WCW from Bischoff on the December 28, 1998, episode of Nitro followed by winning

6075-718: Was given the moniker "Chief" Wahoo McDaniel. After he was traded to the Miami Dolphins in 1966, McDaniel began wrestling for Eddie Graham 's Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF). When his football career ended in 1969, McDaniel became a full-time wrestler; in his first year, McDaniel became involved in NWA Texas and won the NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship . While wrestling in the American Wrestling Association (AWA), McDaniel engaged in

6156-573: Was highlighted by his alliances with Ric Flair and various members of the wrestling stable The Four Horsemen in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW). After his retirement, he worked as a producer for WWE until 2019, when he joined All Elite Wrestling (AEW). On March 31, 2012, Anderson was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as a member of the Four Horsemen. His son, Brock Anderson also pursued

6237-627: Was in the corner of Flair, Sgt. Slaughter , Dusty Rhodes, and Ron Simmons at Survivor Series 2006 , where the four faced the Spirit Squad, but was ejected from the arena during the match. On the March 31, 2008 Raw , Anderson came out to say his final goodbye to Ric Flair and thank him for his career. At No Mercy , he was backstage congratulating Triple H for retaining the WWE Championship against Jeff Hardy . On an episode of Smackdown Live in August 2016, Anderson made an appearance as one of

6318-539: Was not wanted and the hours had become too much for him. He couldn't say much due to being bound by a non-disclosure agreement. On August 31, 2019, Anderson made a surprise appearance at the All Elite Wrestling (AEW) pay-per-view event, All Out , assisting Cody in his match against Shawn Spears by hitting Spears with a spinebuster. On November 6, 2019, Anderson would be a guest commentator on Dark . On December 30, 2019, AEW announced that Anderson had signed

6399-510: Was released on April 30, 2000. Anderson has appeared in the video games WWE Legends of WrestleMania , WWE '12 , WWE 2K16 (as DLC ), and WWE 2K17 as a member of The Enforcers with Larry Zbyszko . Anderson's podcast, The Arn Show , initially hosted by Conrad Thompson and then by Paul Bromwell, debuted in 2019. Anderson appeared on the reality show Rhodes to the Top . Autobiography: Anderson, Arn. Arn Anderson 4 Ever: A Look Behind

6480-594: Was still one half of the NWA National Tag Team Champions and, even though Crockett promotions abandoned the National Tag titles in March, Anderson's success as a dual champion elevated his status within the territory. It was also during this time (in 1986) that the Andersons, Blanchard, and Flair began calling themselves The Four Horsemen with J. J. Dillon serving as the group's manager. Anderson also had

6561-409: Was the best horse from The Four Horsemen , and that "Tully" should have been named "Arn". On February 22, 2019, it was reported Anderson had been released from the WWE. It was later reported this was due to Anderson allowing an intoxicated Alicia Fox to wrestle a match at a WWE Live Event on February 10. At Starcast II, Anderson spoke briefly about his release saying he didn't want to be somewhere he

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