RIP Dusty Rhodes

Virgil Runnels, which was the real name of one of the most colourful characters in WWE history, has passed away. Dusty Rhodes, who was also referred to as the “American Dream, had a long and glittering career, which began in the late 1960s, earned him a place in the WWE Hall of Fame. “Runnels became a hero to fans around the world thanks to his work ethic, his impassioned interviews and his indomitable spirit,” said WWE. The statement went on to describe him as a “creative visionary who helped shape the landscape of WWE” long after his retirement from the ring.

Runnels became a hero to fans around the world thanks to his work ethic, his impassioned interviews and his indomitable spirit. Moreover, Runnels was a dedicated father to WWE Superstars Goldust (Dustin Runnels) and Stardust (Cody Runnels), a caring husband and a creative visionary who helped shape the landscape of WWE long after his in-ring career had ended. Rhodes rose to fame as a rotund, easy-bleeding, easy talking-workin’ man, a wrestler for the common man. He didn’t have the chiseled body some associate with today’s wrestlers. He was a good-guy wrestler, often battling heels like Superstar Billy Graham, Blackjack Mulligan, Harley Race and The Four Horsemen, who were led by Ric Flair. Rhodes liked to pitch himself as the son of a plumber from Austin, Texas, and an everyman who became the extremely popular champion of the National Wrestling Alliance three times in the 1970s and 1980s.

In his first match he fought Reggie Parks and was paid $15 for a 20-minute match that ended in a draw. He eventually would team with Dick Murdoch in 1968 as the Texas Outlaws, a bad-guy tag team known to cheat their opponents. Back then, there were several wrestling circuits, and Rhodes kept a busy schedule before emerging as a star in Florida for the NWA and eventually World Championship Wrestling. He moved on to the World Wrestling Federation (now the WWE) in the ’80s, and wrestled on several other circuits before coming back to the WWE in the mid-2000s. He will be remembered for the spirited and often hilarious in-studio interviews he would give to wrestling commentators to promote upcoming matches. Rhodes was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007.

RIP Sir Christopher Lee

We’ve lost a true legend! The iconic star of stage and screen Christopher Lee has died at the age of 93. The actor, who is best known for his work in the Hammer horror films as well as villainous turns in the Star Wars and Lord of the Rings movies, was being treated for respiratory problems at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London when he passed away.

Born in Westminster in 1922, Lee found fame playing Count Dracula in a series of films for Hammer Horror, and continued to play bad guys for the rest of his career. He was a great Bond villain when he played Scaramanga in The Man With the Golden Gun, and perhaps his greatest ever performance was as Lord Summerisle in The Wicker Man.Β With a career spanning nearly 70 years, Lee initially portrayed villains and became best known for his role as Count Dracula in a sequence of Hammer Horror films. His other film roles include Saruman in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy (2001–2003) and The Hobbit film trilogy (2012–2014), and Count Dooku in the final two films of the Star Wars prequel trilogy (2002 and 2005) and Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008). He has more than 280 credits to his name on IMDB, making memorable appearances in the likes of To the Devil a Daughter, Death Line, Race to Witch Mountain, Gremlins 2, Sleepy Hollow, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Golden Compass and Hugo.

Lee was knighted for services to drama and charity in 2009, received the BAFTA Fellowship in 2011 and received the BFI Fellowship in 2013. Lee considered his best performance to be that of Pakistan’s founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah in the biopic Jinnah (1998), and his best film to be the British horror film The Wicker Man (1973). Always noted as an actor for his deep strong voice, Lee was also known for his singing ability, recording various opera and musical pieces between 1986 and 1998 and the symphonic metal album Charlemagne: By the Sword and the Cross in 2010 after having worked with several metal bands since 2005. The heavy metal follow-up titled Charlemagne: The Omens of Death was released on 27 May 2013. He was honoured with the “Spirit of Metal” award in the 2010 Metal Hammer Golden God awards ceremony.

Lee died at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital on 7 June 2015 at 8:30 a.m. after being admitted for respiratory problems and heart failure, shortly after celebrating his 93rd birthday there. His wife delayed the public announcement until 11 June, in order to break the news to their family.