CausionsCreations Black Wrestling Hall of Fame
Back in 2015 I rolled my selections for the CausionsCreations Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame. It was a fun exercise for me to unveil the wrestlers I feel are worthy of being recognized as one of the greats that changed the history of pro wrestling. For me, a Hall of Famer is someone who has had such an impact on the business that without them, the industry would not be the same. If you need a reminder, here are links to the articles I wrote which revealed the criteria and my selections.
CausionsCreations Hall of Fame articles: Class 1, Class 2, Class 3, Class 4, Class 5, Class 6, and Class 7.
CausionsCreations Hall of Fame articles: Class 1, Class 2, Class 3, Class 4, Class 5, Class 6, and Class 7.
Let's set something straight right now, the WWE Hall of Fame is not a prestigious club only reserved for the best of the best. If you are here expecting a discussion on that HOF you are in the wrong place. Since the beginning, Vince McMahon inducted any and every person he felt like putting in for whatever reason he felt like putting them in, which devalued the entire honor very quickly. So nobody who follows the business closely turns to the WWE HOF as any sort of real honor or induction reserved only for the best of the best.
In addition, there are several different wrestling Halls of Fame that various organizations have created over the years. Many have inducted very much deserving candidates and honor the greatest to ever contribute to pro wrestling. No Hall of Fame is more prestigious than the Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame, created and unveiled by Dave Meltzer in his Wrestling Observer Newsletter. The Observer Hall of Fame has a well established criteria voted on by reporters, historians, former and current wrestlers via secret ballot. I have followed this HOF since the inaugural unveiling in 1996, and it is always a highlight of the year seeing who was inducted into the HOF. To gain entry, a candidate must earn 60% of the votes from the voters. It is not easy to get into the Observer HOF because everyone has different opinion on what constitutes a Hall of Famer.
However, one thing that is consistent for me is the lack of black wrestlers in any Hall of Fame of note. Why is that one may ask. Well, in short, black wrestlers accomplishments in wrestling have largely been either minimized or discredited due to how they were used during their careers. Many black performers are viewed as tokens or mid-carders. The ceiling for black performers, with a few bright exceptions, has been extremely low. But today, we are here to shine a light on the best black performers and the ones who are deserving of more acclaim than they have received in these Hall of Fames. Before you start nitpicking and telling me why these people don't belong in the Observer Hall of Fame, just know, I don't really care. This list is the best of us, period.
In addition, there are several different wrestling Halls of Fame that various organizations have created over the years. Many have inducted very much deserving candidates and honor the greatest to ever contribute to pro wrestling. No Hall of Fame is more prestigious than the Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame, created and unveiled by Dave Meltzer in his Wrestling Observer Newsletter. The Observer Hall of Fame has a well established criteria voted on by reporters, historians, former and current wrestlers via secret ballot. I have followed this HOF since the inaugural unveiling in 1996, and it is always a highlight of the year seeing who was inducted into the HOF. To gain entry, a candidate must earn 60% of the votes from the voters. It is not easy to get into the Observer HOF because everyone has different opinion on what constitutes a Hall of Famer.
However, one thing that is consistent for me is the lack of black wrestlers in any Hall of Fame of note. Why is that one may ask. Well, in short, black wrestlers accomplishments in wrestling have largely been either minimized or discredited due to how they were used during their careers. Many black performers are viewed as tokens or mid-carders. The ceiling for black performers, with a few bright exceptions, has been extremely low. But today, we are here to shine a light on the best black performers and the ones who are deserving of more acclaim than they have received in these Hall of Fames. Before you start nitpicking and telling me why these people don't belong in the Observer Hall of Fame, just know, I don't really care. This list is the best of us, period.
Pro Wrestlers
Bearcat Wright, Bobo Brazil, Rocky Johnson Tony Atlas Ron Simmons Jacqueline Naomi Shelton Benjamin Big E Bobby Lashley Kamala The Junkyard Dog Mark Henry Sasha Banks The Rock Kofi Kingston Booker T Ron Killings Ernie Ladd Luther Lindsay Thunderbolt Patterson Art Thomas Sweet Georgia Brown
Kevin Nash & Scott Hall - Kevin Nash and Scott Hall teamed together as "The Outsiders", who were the founding members of the NWO. The NWO propelled the biggest period in wrestling history, and Hall and Nash joined Hulk Hogan to lead WCW ahead of the WWF. Nash held the WWF and WCW world titles on multiple occasions, and also booked WCW for a stretch of time, (although he is part of the reason it died.) Scott Hall was one of the most charismatic characters of all time. he held the tag titles on multiple occasions with Nash, as well as the IC title in WWF, and the U.S in WCW.
Davey Boy Smith - The British Bulldog was one of the best performers from England to ever perform in the U.S. His team with the Dynamite Kid was the best in the WWF in the 80's. Smith's singles career took off after he defeated Bret Hart in Wembley stadium for the IC title. A great career shortened due to his abuse of narcotics.
Brian Pillman - In his early career, Pillman was an aerial specialist who was one of the first American wrestlers to successfully adopt a high flying style that could match any Japanese performer or Luchadore spot for spot. He teamed with Steve Austin to form the best tag team in wrestling for a few years, the Hollywood Blonds. Later he became a psychotic heel character who blurred the lines between reality and fantasy. Excellent performer whose life was cut short far too soon. Had Pillman not got injured, he could have easily become one of the biggest stars of the WWF Attitude Era and he would have been remembered for what happened instead of what might have been.
Dean Malenko - One of the greatest in ring technicians to ever step inside the ring. Malenko feuded with Eddie Guerrero in ECW and the matches were so good that both men scored high-paying contracts with WCW. He was the leader of the Cruiser-weight division and put on classic matches with a host of different opponents. Dean was also one of the members of the final incarnation of The Four Horsemen. Malenko won 13 Championships, throughout different promotions, all while securing overwhelming critical acclaim. He’ll long be remembered for his contributions to the wrestling business, and it’s all because he could wrestle.
The Steiner Brothers - Rick and Scott Steiner were one of the most innovative and exciting pure tag teams I have ever seen. their ability to perform various suplexes and tag team maneuvers help propel them into the best tag team in the world in the early 90's. They captured tag team gold in every organization they competed in including WWF, WCW, and New Japan Pro Wrestling.
Managers
Jimmy Hart - One of the most recognizable managers in wrestling history, with his signature megaphones and flashy outfits. hart managed some of the best talent to ever perform such as The Hart Foundation, Bret and the Anvil, Hulk Hogan, and the Honky Tonk Man. Jimmy never minded taking bumps in order to entertain the fans.
Jushin Thunder Liger - One of the greatest international stars of all time, who was able to cross over seamlessly to become a U.S cult hero in 1990. Liger paved the way for many cruiserweights, especially in Japan. His style is still among the most unique, even amongst todays innovative high flyers. Held multiple titles everywhere he went.
Konnan - Probably the most charismatic English-speaking wrestler to come out of Mexico (by way of Cuba), and a talented wrestler as well. In 1996, after several appearances for the company in the past several years, he became a full time performer for WCW. He portrayed a charismatic, urban character, often rapping and reciting catchphrase-laden promos. Behind the scenes, he became a liaison between WCW and AAA, again bringing wrestlers like Rey and La Parka to prominence.