All out of chewing gum ... RIP Rowdy Roddy Piper

Wrestling legend "Rowdy" Roddy Piper has died at the age of 61... TMZ Sports has learned.

Piper -- born Roderick George Toombs -- passed away from natural causes at a home in Hollywood.

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A1?

 

Art of the highest order. Such a moment.

 

That was a fast 3: Pierce, Piper, and Anderson.

 

One of my favorites growing up. Dammit.

 

I'd say RIP, but I can't imagine the Rowdy One doing anything "in peace." Godspeed to a great performer who, along with Hogan, got me bitten by the pro wrestling bug.

 

Flair, Arn Anderson and Piper were my favorites growing up. RIP, Hot Rod.

 

Dammit. I will have to wear out the bagpipe button on my RRP collectible in his honor. Great showman.

 

I never got to meet him, but some of my friends did, and they said he was the nicest guy in the world. It's just too bad. That lifestyle, especially in the 80s, was a lot for anyone to handle.

So many incredible memories of him as a kid, from being the guy in the "skirt" that you loved to hate, to being one of the first great tweeners, to being a hugely popular good guy. The fan pop he got after winning the IC title from the Mountie in '92 is just tremendous to see. The fans are excited during the match, Piper puts Mountie in the sleeper, fans think the match will continue, then Mountie's arm drops the third time, and the fans suddenly realize he won and go crazy.

Even before he was in WWF, he was unreal. There's a late 70s clip on Youtube where woman wrestler Vicki Williams talks about wrestling a man. Piper comes out, starts screaming about how she can't handle men, then shoves her out of the way to the floor, and makes her crawl away. Very intense scene, and no way would it have happened today. The interesting thing is, in the clip, violent scene aside, is that Piper had a point, saying that if women wanted to be treated equally, they had to expect men like him to treat them equally, which may even include unpleasant things like getting beaten up. Later on, there was another clip in which another male wrestler beats Piper up for revenge, and Williams gets in a shot too.

The promos. One of my all-time favorite lines is from him: "Ric Flair, you call me a woman because you say my kilt is a skirt. Well, Ric Flair, how did it feel to be beaten up by a woman?" What a way to reverse an insult. His beating up Frankie Williams scene, where he uttered the immortal, "Just when they think they know the answers, I change the questions." His Piper's Pits. The infamous coconut scene with Snuka. And while his 90s run in WCW wasn't all that great, he did some great work with the WWE afterward as well.

Such a talented guy, and from what it sounds like, he was very devoted to his family as well. RIP

 

Not sure if it was an update or the original story was incorrect, but it says he died from cardiac arrest

'Rowdy' Roddy Piper -- Dies at 61 from Cardiac Arrest | TMZ.com

Either way, too young. RIP Hot Rod. Legend Killer.

 

His Rich Eisen appearance on July 24 was awful. Sounded drunk.

 

Roddy beats up Santa Claus