Roddy Piper
Roderick George Toombs (April 17, 1954 – July 30, 2015), better known as "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, was a Scottish-Canadian professional wrestler and actor.
| “Rowdy” Roddy Piper | |
|---|---|
Piper in 2009 | |
| Birth name | Roderick George Toombs |
| Born | April 17, 1954 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada |
| Died | July 30, 2015 (aged 61) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Cardiac arrest caused by hypertension |
| Spouse(s) |
Kitty Jo Dittrich (m. 1982) |
| Children | 4, including Teal Piper |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | The Masked Canadian Piper Machine ”Rowdy” Roddy Piper |
| Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) |
| Billed weight | 230 lb (104 kg) |
| Billed from | Glasgow, Scotland |
| Trained by | Gene LeBell Leo Garibaldi Tony Condello Joe Fiorino Stu Hart |
| Debut | 1969 |
| Retired | 2011 |
In professional wrestling, Piper was best known to international audiences for his work with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW) between 1984 and 2000. Although he was Canadian, Piper was billed as coming from Glasgow and was known for his signature kilt and bagpipe entrance music; this was because of his Scottish heritage. Piper earned the nicknames "Rowdy" and "Hot Rod" by displaying his trademark "Scottish" short temper, spontaneity, and quick wit. According to The Daily Telegraph, he is "considered by many to be the greatest 'heel' (or villain) wrestler ever".
One of wrestling's most recognizable stars, Piper headlined multiple PPV events, including the WWF and WCW's respective premier annual events, WrestleMania and Starrcade. He accumulated 34 championships and hosted the popular WWF/WWE interview segment "Piper's Pit", which facilitated numerous kayfabe feuds. In 2005, Piper was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by Ric Flair, who dubbed him "the most gifted entertainer in the history of professional wrestling".
Outside of wrestling, Piper acted in dozens of films and TV shows. Most notably, he took the lead role of John Nada in the 1988 cult classic They Live and a recurring role as a deranged professional wrestler called Da' Maniac on the FX comedy series It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.