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As a child, Roderick
Tooms played the bagpipes as a member of a marching band, a
talent unlikely to help one in the sport of professional
wrestling but one that nonetheless would help define him as a
wrestler. Piper left home at an early age and lived in
youth hostels. His brushes with the law made for a
dismal future until young Toomes began training as a
professional wrestler. Piper began wrestling at the age
of 15. His first match was against the legendary Larry "The
Ax" Hennig who beat him in ten seconds.
Early
on in his career, promoters learned that Piper was a fantastic
talker, capable of inciting crowds with his quick wit.
Piper acted as a manager as well as wrestler as he learned the
ins and outs of the business.
The first
few years of Piper's career was spent on the West Coast where
he worked in Los Angeles and the Pacific Northwest
territory When he wrestled
in Los Angeles, Piper began playing the bagpipes before his
matches, helping to draw the wrath of fans. Piper
had an opportunity to wrestle in Madison Square Garden and
jumped at the chance to work for the World Wide Wrestling
Federation. Unfortunately his tryout match did not go
well and he was not invited back for many years.
Piper
achieved incredible success on the West Coast when he was
offered a chance to work in the Carolinas. Piper began
working in Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling where he worked
as a heel, teaming with "Big" John
Studd. Piper often pulled
double duty, working in MACW as well as Georgia Championship
Wrestling (GCW). Somehow, Piper even found time to
provide color commentary when he worked in GCW.
As a color
commentator, Piper provided a heel's perspective on
things. Piper worked with legendary broadcaster Gordon
Solie and the two formed a dynamic announce team. When
the Magnificent Muraco went to attack Solie, Piper stopped
him, winning the fans' cheers in the process. One of
Piper's most notorious feuds in GCW was with "Mad Dog" Buzz
Sawyer who Piper met in a Dog Collar Match.
Despite his duties as
commentator, Piper's goal was to win championship gold,
something he found he was very good at (although it was
usually by questionable means). On January 27, 1981, Piper stunned fans when he
defeated Ric Flair for the United
States Heavyweight Championship. A giddy Piper appeared
on Mid-Atlantic television and told announcers Bob Caudle and
David Crockett that he had a present for Ric Flair.
Flair came out and learned that the present was Piper's MACW
Television Title. Piper was giving up the belt because
he had just won the U.S. strap but Flair refused, telling
Piper that he didn't want anything unless he had earned
it. Piper's celebration turned sour when Flair showed
the fans how Piper had won the belt- by using a foreign object
to knock Flair out when the referee Stu Schwartz' attention
was elsewhere.
Over
the next seven months, Piper defended the title against
Flair and other challengers. One of his toughest
challengers was Wahoo McDaniel who eventually defeated Piper
for the title. Piper was furious at McDaniel and swore
revenge. Finally, his moment came during a television
taping when Piper knew that all of the top babyfaces were out
of the area. During a match against a preliminary
wrestler, Wahoo was jumped by Abdullah the Butcher who
proceeded to destroy McDaniel using a foreign object.
McDaniel's injuries were so severe that he was forced to
forfeit the U.S. Title.
Although he had lost the U.S. title to McDaniel, Piper's title
reigns were far from over. On November 1, 1981, Piper
defeated Ricky Steamboat for the Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight
Championship. Piper then began feuding with former NWA
Heavyweight Champion Jack Brisco. The two battled over
the MACW title but things became personal when Piper injured
Brisco's brother Jerry during a match against a preliminary
wrestler. While Jerry had his opponent in the Indian
Deathlock, Piper jumped off the top rope onto Jerry's leg,
injuring him.
After the attack on his
brother, Jack Brisco sought a match with Piper but Piper
refused to wrestle him. Finally, Brisco put up ten thousand dollars in cash
to obtain a title shot with Piper. If Piper lost, the
money and the belt would go to Brisco. Brisco's friends
Wahoo McDaniel and Ricky Steamboat
helped him raise some of the funds. As a result, Piper
demanded that McDaniel and Steamboat be barred from ringside
since he didn't want them interfering to help get their money
back. The match took place in the MACW tv studio and was
a classic encounter with both men beating each other
down. In the end though, Piper prevailed thanks to some
help from a roll of coins he used to knock out Brisco.
Piper grabbed the money and his title belt and ran out of the
studio.
Despite
his diabolical ways, Piper earned the fans' respect for his
toughness and his sense of humor. Eventually Piper found
himself being cheered by the fans and his babyface status in
MACW was cemented when he turned down manager Oliver
Humperdink's offer to join the House of Humperdink. As a
babyface, Piper began battling some of MACW's top heels.
One such opponent was Greg "The Hammer"
Valentine who Piper defeated for the U.S. title. The
two had some of the toughest bouts ever seen in MACW history
and they began a brutal feud after Valentine used the U.S.
title to bludgeon Piper's ear into a bloody mess. Piper
refused to quite despite the fact that his equilibrium was
gone and he could barely stand. Concerned for Piper's
safety, and feeling that Piper couldn't continue the match,
the referee ended the match which meant that Valentine won the
U.S. Title on a decision. The feud was far from
over and Valentine and Piper's feud met at the first Starcade in a Dog Collar
Match. Prior to the match, Piper cut a series of
unforgettable promos (much like he had before his dog
collar match with Buzz Sawyer). The Dog Collar Match was
brutal but in the end, Piper defeated Valentine.
Like many of
the top stars of the NWA, Piper caught the attention of
promoter Vince McMahon who signed him to his World Wrestling
Federation (WWF). Piper soon returned to his heelish
ways and began managing wrestlers Paul "Mr. Wonderful"
Orndorff and "Doctor D" David Schultz. Piper put his
gift of gab to use by hosting his own interview segment known
as "Piper's Pit". "Piper's Pit" revolutionized the
business. While there were talk segments before such as
"Buddy Rogers' Corner" but nothing like "Piper's Pit".
Piper interviewed the biggest names in the sport (and even
sometimes no-names such as Frankie
Williams). "Piper's Pit" often was the highlight of
WWF television as Piper's loquaciousness usually made for
entertaining television.
"Piper's Pit" sometimes
became the scene for violence as well. One such incident
was when Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka
appeared on Piper's Pit. During the interview, Piper
unleashed a barrage of insults on the soft spoken Snuka.
Finally, when Snuka asked Piper if he was insulting him, Piper
responded by smashing a coconut
over Snuka's head. Piper brutally beat the
dazed Snuka, whipping him a belt before running to
safety. The two began a memorable feud with matches
across the nation. During one of their matches, Piper
Piper broke Snuka's neck, sidelining the Superfly for a
spell.
Although Piper had
thought his battle with Snuka was over, he was soon surprised
when Snuka's cousin the Tonga Kid
arrived on the scene and challenged Piper to a
match. Snuka and the Tonga Kid feuded with Roddy
Piper and "Cowboy"
Bob Orton (After many a hairy situation
on Piper's Pit, Orton had been hired as Piper's
bodyguard).
Always eager
to be the center of attention, Piper's jealousy led to him
becoming involved in the biggest event in WWF history.
After helping to raise for charity, Captain Louis Albano was
presented with an award by pop music star Cyndi Lauper.
Piper decided to crash the event at Madison Square Garden as
only he could do. After smashing the award over Albano's
head, Piper powerslammed Lauper's business manager David Wolf
and beat up Lauper as well. Only the arrival of Hulk Hogan kept Piper from causing any
further damage.
Piper's attack on Albano and Lauper infuriated Hogan to the
point where he challenged Piper to a match at Madison Square
Garden. The heavily publicized match became known as
"The War to Settle the Score" and aired live on MTV.
During the match, the referee was knocked out which gave Piper
the opportunity he was looking for. Soon, Paul Orndorff and Piper's "Ace" Bob
Orton were in the ring ready to end Hogan's career.
Things took a turn for the worse when Cyndi Lauper jumped on
the mat apron. Like a shark smelling blood, Piper and
his allies turned their attention to Lauper. However
former bodyguard and Hollywood star Mr. T talked Lauper down
and he proceeded to take matters into his own hands. The
crafty Piper soon lured T into a trap where the numbers game
caught up with him and he soon found himself being assaulted
by Piper and company. However T's efforts had given
Hogan time to recover and he cleared the ring.
Things
were far from over though. After the match, Hogan and T
challenged Piper and Orndorff to a tag team match. The
match became the main event for the first ever Wrestlemania. The hype for
Wrestlemania was incredible and Piper was eager to make a name
for himself. At one point he even came to the set of Mr.
T's television series "The A-Team" and egged T into a
confrontation. However when it came time to train, Piper
was all business. When WWF announcer "Mean" Gene
Okerlund visited Piper and Orndorff's workout, he barely
escaped unharmed after Piper warned him "We told you not to
come here". Okerlund was chased out of the gym and when
a bystander tried to help, the bystander was beat down for his
trouble.
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The July 1985
issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated made it
clear that it was time to see if Wrestlemania's main
event lived up to its hype. Not only would it live
up to the hype but it led to Wrestlemania becoming
wrestling's equivalent of the Super Bowl.
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At Wrestlemania, the
Hulkster and Mr. T defeated the team of Piper and Orndorff
after outside interference by "Cowboy" Bob Orton
backfired. After Bob Orton accidentally hit Orndorff
with his cast during the match, Mr. Wonderful was easy
pickings and quickly pinned, costing Piper a defeat.
Piper was not happy and appeared on Saturday Night's Main
Event during his "Piper's Pit" show to criticize his former
tag team partner. After Piper brought up Orndorff's
family, Orndorff lost his temper shouting "You leave my family
out of this!" Orndorff attacked Piper but Orton's
bodyguard laid into Orndorff with his cast and the two heels
began beating up Orndorff before Mr. T made the save. As
a result of the events on "Piper's Pit", Orndorff earned the
cheers of the fans and soon found himself allied with his
former foe Hulk Hogan.
When he
returned from filming "They Live, Piper was shocked to see the
set of Piper's Pit had been replaced by "Adorable" Adrian
Adonis' "Flower Shop". To make matters worse, his former
bodyguard "Cowboy" Bob Orton Jr. was now managed by Adonis'
manager Jimmy Hart. When Piper went to confront Adonis,
he was attacked by Orton, Don Muraco, and Adonis. The
three wrestlers laid Piper out and injured his leg with
a steel chair. By challenging Adonis, Piper earned the
fans' cheers and once again, Piper had transformed from the
most hated man in wrestling to the most popular
Although his leg was
injured, Piper returned to host "Piper's Pit". When
Jimmy Hart appeared on the interview show, he verbally abused
Piper and slapped him in the face until Piper could stand no
more. He went to attack Hart only to fall victim to a
sneak attack by Adrian Adonis. Adonis knocked Piper out
with his powerful sleeperhold.
The feud
with Adonis was just getting started but first "Hot Rod"
wanted to deal with his former friend Bob Orton Jr.
Piper met Orton in the ring and beat him, earning a
measure of payback for his betrayal. Piper then focused
on Adonis and met him on "Saturday Night's Main Event".
During the match, Piper was blindsided by Adrian Adonis who
sprayed an atomizer full of perfume into his eyes, temporarily
blinding him. As a result, Piper was counted out giving
Adonis the countout win.
Wrestlemania III was coming
soon and Piper was planning on retiring after Wrestlemania
III. However he was determined not to have his last
match be a loss to Adonis. Piper challenged Adonis to a
haircut match with the loser having his head shaved in the
ring. The match was intense with both men fighting for
the advantage. Jimmy Hart helped Adonis gain the
advantage, interfering in the match whenever possible.
After Hart sprayed perfume in Piper's face, Adonis seized
control and applied a sleeperhold. Piper faded fast but
Adonis had counted his chickens too soon. Thinking he
had won the match, Adonis and his manager jumped around in
ther ring, giving Piper time to recover from the
sleeperhold. Piper then applied his own sleeperhold and
won the match. Brutus Beefcake jumped in the ring and
cut Adonis' hair while Piper kept Jimmy Hart under
wraps. Piper waved goodbye to his fans as he left the
WWF for Hollywood.
Like many
wrestlers, Piper found it difficult to leave the business for
good. At Wrestlemania V, Piper hosted a special edition
of Piper's Pit with the host of another popular talk show at
the time, Morton Downey Jr. and rival wrestling talk show host
Brother Love. Brother Love tried to taunt Piper by
wearing a skirt (Love called it a kilt) but Piper made short
work of Brother Love before turning his attention to Downey
who proceeded to insult Piper and blow cigarette smoke in his
face. After repeated warnings to Downey, Piper unloaded
on Downey with a fire extinguisher, leaving the talk show host
face down in the ring.
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The success of
Roddy Piper in the John Carpenter film They Live made
fans wonder if Roddy Piper saw any future in
professional wrestling. The December 1988 issue of
Inside Wrestling (left)contained an interview
with Piper discussing that very
subject! | The following year, Piper returned to
the WWF as both a wrestler and a color commentator. At
Wrestlemania VI, Piper squared off against Bad News
Brown. Playing mind games with Brown, Piper painted half
of his body black and he battled Brown to a double
count-out.
Color
commentary was not new to Piper and he jumped right back into
things, never afraid to throw in his two
cents. When Ric Flair debuted in the WWF
as "The Real World's Champion", Flair antagonized
Piper and the two soon went at it, rekindling their
longtime rivalry. When Hulk Hogan was attacked
on Paul Bearer's Funeral Parlor talk segment, Piper
and his broadcast partner Randy
"Macho Man" Savage rushed to Hogan's aid. In the
confusion, Piper accidentally blasted Vince McMahon with a
steel chair!
At the 1992
Royal Rumble, Roddy Piper won his first (and only)
championship belt in the WWF by defeating The Mountie for the
Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship. Piper
defended the belt against his friend (and cousin) Bret Hart at
Wrestlemania VIII. During the match, Piper had an
opportunity to cheat to retain the belt by using the
timekeeper's bell as a weapon but cooler heads prevailed and
Piper fought Hart in a clean match. In the end, Piper
lost the belt but he saved his friendship with
Hart.
Piper
continued to make movies and wrestled part-time. In
1996, Piper returned to the WWF to act as interim president
afterWWF President Gorilla Monsoon was put out of action by
Vader. While Monsoon recovered, Piper shook things up in
the WWF. After growing tired of the in-ring antics
of WWF superstar Goldust, Piper challenged Goldust to a
match at Wrestlemania XII. The two met in a wild
Hollywood Backlot Brawl Match . This no holds barred
match featured some wild action. At one point, Goldust
tried to run Piper down with a gold painted Cadillac.
Piper then jumped into a White Bronco and chased Goldust to
the arena with Piper winning the match.
In the fall
of 1996, Piper shocked the wrestling world by showing up at
the end of the Halloween Havoc pay-per-view to challenge
"Hollywood" Hulk Hogan. At this time, Hogan and the New
World Order (NWO) were running roughshod over World
Championship Wrestling (WCW) and Piper decided to spoil
Hogan's good time by challenging him to a match. However
WCW Executive Vice President Eric Bischoff seemed to be unable
to secure a match between Piper and Bischoff. After
weeks of waiting, Piper confronted Bischoff on Monday Night
Nitro and it was revealed that Bischoff had been stalling
because he secretly worked for the NWO. Piper's
discovery led to a match being signed at Starcade '96.
Prior to the match, Hogan and the NWO tried to intimidate
Piper into backing out but as always, Piper showed no fear and
he met Hogan on December 29, 1996. After months of Hogan
dominating WCW, Piper scored a win against Hogan, knocking
Hogan out with the sleeperhold. However, the title was
not at stake so Hogan remained WCW champion.
After beating
Hogan, Piper decided to take Hogan's WCW title next. The
two met again at the 1997 SuperBrawl pay-per-view with the
title on the line. As part of his pre-match training,
Piper went to Alcatraz where he cut a memorable promo against
Hulk Hogan. Unfortunately for Piper, Hogan was
able to score a pinfall win (his first pinfall win against
Piper!) with the help of brass knuckles.
Piper
turned his attention to other members of the NWO. Piper
formed his own group to battle the NWO (a rookie wrestler
named Bill Goldberg being one of the members of his
group). At the 1997 Slamboree pay-per-view, Piper teamed
up with Ric Flair and NFL star Kevin Green to defeat Kevin
Nash, Scott Hall, and Syxx from the NWO. At
one point in WCW, Piper was appointed as interim
commissioner. In WCW, Piper scored impressive wins and
he won the U.S. Title from Bret Hart. Piper remained
with WCW until 2000.
While Piper has not
wrestled full-time in some while, he has maintained a presence
in professional wrestling. When the Xtreme Wrestling
Federation debuted in 2001, Piper joined them and helped train
some of their wrestlers. Piper appeared on NWA Total
Nonstop Action (TNA)'s pay-per-views and even acted as a
special referee on one occasion.
In 2003,
Piper showed up at Wrestlemania XIX during the grudge match
between Vince McMahon and Hulk Hogan. Piper entered the
ring and blasted Hogan with a steel pipe. Piper returned
to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) for a brief period
where he teamed up with Sean O'Haire and hosted several
Piper's Pit segments. In June 2004, Piper was let go by
the WWE after appearing on a sports talk show to discuss some
of the negative aspects of professional wrestling. After
being let go, Piper returned to NWA-TNA.
Piper appeared in
Buffalo, NY at the Ballpark Brawl II where he hosted an
edition of Piper's Pit and acted as cornerman for Sean O'Haire
during a match between O'Haire and Abyss.
In 2005, Piper's
many accomplishments in the ring were honored with him being
inducted into the WWE Hall of
Fame. | 
