As a lifelong wrestling fan, my heart broke just a bit to find out about the passing of The American Dream Dusty Rhodes. I could restate his bio, as so many have done the past few days, but anyone that's any kind of fan at all knows it already. It's a difficult thing to cope with, death. We have a basic understanding of the biology of the event, but we always ask "Why him/her? Why now? It's too soon." It's a natural thing, I suppose.
As a child, and not a financially well-off child, wrestling captured my imagination, and my heart. One of the main reasons was, in fact, Dusty Rhodes. He had a special gift, one that many of today's superstars seem to lack: he could connect to the people. His gift for gab, his amazing promos were so entertaining; and his presentation of whatever point he was trying to get across, his latest feud/story line (if you will), kept us glued to our television sets. Living in the "Redneck Riviera", I had the experience of seeing Dream wrestle live (in public, if you will). He always put on a great show, and left us wanting more, every time. His battles with Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen were awesome. Watching him and Magnum T.A. tag together was epic, even as the Midnight Riders.
Personally, as a wrestling nut, the loss of special superstars hits me a bit harder than some. To me, it's a personal thing. Watching guys like Dusty with my kids, sharing my love for the entertainment and watching them experience the same awe I did as a kid, it's an amazing thing. The great thing about a star like Dream is he seemed so real, so reachable. It didn't ever come off as better than the rest of us. He was one of us, a common man, and a wrestling fan himself. Though sometimes in wrestling, you have to "cross lines", his persona always seemed to be in the right, and a just man. I truly believe he was like this both on and off screen.
So many memories of my childhood, great ones, of hanging with my friends in front of the old boob tube, watching Rhodes and Flair, Ron Garvin and Harley Race, Dick Murdoch and Dutch Mantell. The whole "Don't Try This At Home" thing... that was out the window. Couldn't tell you how many bionic elbows I dished out in my day, or how many I sold in our many matches in the living room. What I can tell you, is that it hurts to know that I won't get to see Dusty get "funky like a monkey" one more time. It truly, truly hurts.
I know that the Runnels are mourning their loss, and many of us fans share a small part of their pain. It's always hard to believe that someone is gone, someone so special. As a man, we all have heroes we look up to; not just as a child, but throughout life. The American Dream Dusty Rhodes was, and forever will be, one of mine. Thanks for the great memories, Dream. You are loved, and you will be missed.
