Former professional wrestler Paul Orndorff passed away today at the age of 71. A few weeks back, Orndorff was reportedly diagnosed with dementia and one of his sons posted a video of him in his weakened state. My older brother Ezra told me about the video. I did not watch that video as I didn't want to see him in that state. It is my preference to remember him as Mr. Wonderful.
After a professional football career didn't pan out, Orndorff became a professional wrestler in the mid-1970's working in several Southern territories. In 1983, he would come North and join the WWF as it was then known. Orndorff's decision was a fortuitous one. "Rowdy" Roddy Piper would nickname him "Mr. Wonderful". Orndorff would main event the first Wrestlemania tagging with Piper against Hulk Hogan and Mr. T. Not long after, Orndorff went from heel to babyface becoming Hogan's best friend before turning on him and becoming a bigger heel than before culminating in a steel cage match with Hogan on NBC's Saturday Night Main Event.
During the course of his program with Hogan, Orndorff sustained nerve damage to his neck that would eventually severely damage his right arm causing it to atrophy and would fall out of main event status. Orndorff would eventually return South where he had a decent run in WCW as both a TV champion and a World Tag Champion with Paul Roma in the combo Pretty Wonderful. Injuries would catch up with Orndorff and he would eventually become a road agent and a trainer at WCW's Power Plant facility.
Orndorff is probably remembered for his physique and his piledriver, but he could also cut a good promo too. He was the total package before there was a total package. R.I.P.
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