Attitude Era Big Boss Man was a Menace

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This time we look at The Big Boss Man during the Attitude Era. Ray Traylor went through a career revival when he came back to the WWF in 1998; he joined Vince McMahon's corporation stable, he was instrumental in helping The Rock win his first WWF Championship, but what many people remember most fondly was his feuds with Al Snow and The Big Show. While these feuds were voted as "worst of the year" by the Observer Newsletter, these rivalries have stood the test of time for how delightfully evil they were.

[@denniswilliams6519]

Boss Man is one of those 80s gimmicked guys who was actually able to update his gimmick with the times as he fit into the Attitude Era like a glove. Gotta respect that.

[@DasNordlicht91]

Late 80s era cop/corrections officer who returned in the Attitude Era as a corporate security guard is kind of a nice update, all things considered.

[@brettmajors69karaoke]

Bingo

[@fergalstackstreams]

I like how it was implied that he kept getting promoted. From prison guard/cop in his first run, to SWAT Team in the Attitude Era, and then when he came back in 2001 he was wearing a suit like the police chief.

[@hector-sauvage]

For sure, I feel like they could have done the same with John Tenta in 1998. Bring him back in as a killer heel for Austin, maybe as a bodyguard/enforcer for Vince. Tenta was a legit badass and could have pulled it off if booked the right way, he wouldn't even have had to wrestle that often. They wasted him with that stupid Golga gimmick.

[@19Marksman79]

Ray Traylor was great in the WWF where his talents were better utilized. WWF booked him better than WCW by a mile. All of his WWF Big Boss Man heel or face personas were over with the fans. His WCW gimmicks were all forgettable. I was happy he came back to the WWF in 1998.

[@PaidProgramming-th6tp]

Big Bossman crashing Big Show's father's funeral remains one of the most memorable Attitude era moments for me. Always enjoyed Bossman

[@frankez1975]

It was also one of the lowest points for Ray Traylor. There was a line crossed with his cancer poem, work and all.

[@rmcdudmk212]

Calling Show a Big Nasty Bastard still makes me laugh so hard.

[@WalsallGooner]

@@frankez1975that poem was pure savage

[@gi79304]

This was a savage feud 😂

[@BlitzkriegBryce]

​@@frankez1975 meh, no line crossed. He was the evilist of heels during AE and it was great.

[@zachsmith1634]

Bossman: Feeding you your dog and stealing your dad’s body at his funeral. Savage af 🤣

[@michaelreich4827]

I had a sign at the 11/1/99 Raw that said "There's Pepper in my hot dog".

[@WhitefolksT]

Did you eat it the long way?

[@throbbingpenguin]

@@WhitefolksTyou’re asking the real questions.

[@karlschlenzig6884]

😂😂 That's good

[@mattjames2699]

During the Pepper storyline, Snow went on RAW and displayed a sign saying "if you've seen Pepper call this number", but the number belonged to Val Venis, who ended up having to change his number. (Saw this in a shoot interview a while back so exact detail may be fuzzy)

[@PrayingToTheAlien]

True story

[@TheFailedmessiah]

What a rib lol

[@BrandanTheBroker]

This should have been a "Building A Character" episode because while he was essentially playing an extension of himself, he took his character into such a dark and sadistic place that you absolutely hated him and you couldn't tell where Ray Taylor ended and Big Boss Man began. THAT'S GREAT CHARACTER WORK!

[@brianfisher5525]

I agree, I absolutely ❤love❤ the Building A Gimmick format, and would love to see more. Speaking of which, Bob Remus / Sgt. Slaughter is still with us, and I'm sure a disproportionately significant number of subscribers would appreciate a deep dive into the history, controversy, and legacy of the Sgt Slaughter character.

[@tommyfraz.]

They could have evolved his gimmick so much. He could have went from prison guard, to swat/cert team, to a warden (authority heel). When the McMahon Helmsley era started, Bossman could have been the Commissioner. Which would have added another layer of heat and depth to that time period.

[@RebelliousEra]

The Shield were Little Bossmen

[@jackcarraway4707]

And each "promotion" he gets even more evil.

[@lordeowstheking]

I always wonder why pro wrestling companies don't listen to " fans" but reading stuff like this I understand why.

[@henrygvidonas9573]

@@lordeowstheking How are those ideas any worse than 90% of Scatman Lupton's garbage?

[@fergalstackstreams]

He was wearing a suit at first when he came back in late 2001. I thought "police chief" was where they were going with that look.

[@eabcool]

repackaging Bossman in black tactical gear worked really well. The stuff he did with Big Show was unintentionally darkly hilarious. You left out when Bossman went to Big Show's mothers house and got her to admit he was illigetimate

[@liquidgeorge]

He even pointed out the hidden camera to the mother and she started crying. The man had no chill 😂😂

[@Bl913]

Lmao. Still funny to this day.

[@leonarddillon256]

Boss Man needs his own Wrestling Bios theme song like Alex Wright, 2 Cold Scorpio, Disco Inferno, Norman Smiley, and Steve Blackman for his under-appreciated contribution to the Attitude Era

[@chikish]

It's amazing how great of a heel Boss Man was during the Attitude Era considering that by all accounts he was one of the funniest and most beloved guys backstage. Whenever he's brought up in interviews everyone always speaks very warmly about him. His feud with the Big Show is still to this day one of my favorite memories of those days. May he R.I.P. 👮🏻

[@PoeticProphetic]

This man survived being hanged, fed someone their dog, and stole a corpse 😂

[@TheSpanishAnnounceTable]

Tremendous

[@PeacenMind-v8p]

The second half of Bossman career was phenomenal. His character grew more vicious and sinister.

[@Chuck_EL]

I loved both his early heel and attitude era heel runs

[@doyouevendab77]

You really going to act tough like that you little bratty punk

[@GleeChan]

When you put it all together like this, the Big Boss Man should be considered as one of the best heels in attitude era.

[@savage751]

I never noticed the tiny muzzle boss man put on little pepper 😂

[@tomclark362]

Could you imagine a boss man vs CM punk feud? Punk: Hey boss man, have you seen Larry? Bossman: No punk but while you're here wanna taste this recipe I learned?

[@bluethunder250]

To me, this was the definitive version of the Big Boss Man. I was first introduced to this version on the Smackdown PS1 game and got to see him live on TV for the first time in 2002. When I think of BBM, I think of the black swat gear, the nightstick, the black and white titantron, and that hardcore music. Looking back on old episodes of RAW and Smackdown, seeing the things he did, really cements that fact.

[@burritoboy2751]

"What's the matter, Al? You don't like the way Pepper tastes?" 😂🤣💀

[@metallicbigtoe3949]

"Hey ! Big Freak Show !" Bossman 2000 😂

[@fangjokerLS]

"MAH DAAAAAADY! MAH DADDY! WAAAAAAHHH!"

[@metallicbigtoe3949]

@fangjokerLS 🤣🤣🤣 honestly, I give full credit to this era for my pitch black sense of humour haha

[@vciotoli2126]

His 1999 will never be rivaled. Dude was the most heinous heel.

[@kristopherbrown146]

The Big Boss Man was one of the first instances of me cheering for the heel in wrestling and I actually wanted him to defeat the big show at Armageddon 1999

[@pwx13]

You are my friend now. Screw the big show

[@rmcdudmk212]

"Ya Big Nasty Bastard" makes me laugh uncontrollably to this day. 😂😂😂

[@TheOriginalSupreme]

When watching the product in real time it’s sometimes hard to truly appreciate certain players but retrospect is a wonderful thing. Ray was such a great player and his enjoyment of his work was beautifully summed up during his daughter’s speech when he inducted into the HOF. RIP.

[@cpol4391]

That poem was absolutely beautiful and came from the heart

[@thecollector75]

Boss man was one of my fav wrestlers when he turned baby face back in 1990...and then I stopped watching the wwf in 92..... so I'm so glad he got the push he deserved in 99 ..... 90s were the glory days of wrestling for sure

[@nakamaswarrior292]

The cemetery scene with Big Show is still my favorite Big Boss Man moment during the attitude era.

[@AllieRX]

Big Boss Man was mocking people with dead dads long before Christian Cage in AEW.

[@AmazingGuy13]

Dressed as the father of The Shield

[@turkN9NE]

lol. Shield Father

[@Speedyreedy1218]

The lame bossmen.

[@UCUSmusic]

My grandpas favorite character... and he was a life long criminal

[@sherrix6881]

He sounds like a jabroni mate tbh

[@3NC3PH4L0N]

We really need an Al Snow video. One of the most entertaining guy i have ever seen and his in-ring work is almost flawless.

[@joypadlad]

100% Grade A Pepper is the best thing to come out of the Attitude Era.

[@LarsOfTheMohicans]

You set your standards oddly low.

[@pipepicasso8112]

I think now Boss Man has made it on to my Heel Mount Rushmore. Also, Ray was a great big man wrestler. After all, he has a move named after him “ The Boss Man Slam”. Not too many wrestlers can say that.

[@terrynighman4465]

His poem to the big show after the "death" is great

[@RetroJR3379]

Big Bossman actually got lost in the shuffle seeing how loaded the WWE roster were during the Attitude Era but Ray Traylor made the most of it.

[@KrisBryant99]

He was actually my favorite during that time.

[@lanceyvalentino]

My favorite moment is his match @ Summerslam 1999 with Al Snow when they brawled into the poolhall/bar and went into the bathroom, Snow grabbed the urinal patty and squeezed it and rubbed it in Bossman’s eyes 😂😂😂 and Bossman let out a disgusted yell

[@criminalmindsgirl2936]

"The Big Freakshow!" 😂😂😂 "My daddy!" 😂😂😂

[@JBryisTheGuy]

The fact that Wrestling Bios and The Solomonster use "Menace" to describe The Bossman means that he succeeded in his job. In basically 2 feuds he embodied the "disturbing" category of the Attitude era as opposed to the offensive depending on taste for lack of better words.

[@krischaney9034]

The vignette with Show's mom was my favorite. "Hey Paul Wight! You're a nasty bastard! And your mana said so!"

[@blcad2596]

Big Bossman and Shane McMahon don't get enough credit for their roles in the Attitude Era.

[@shaneramey]

I loved in early 1999 when he very briefly teased a baby face turn by coming out to his old theme song to confront the Corporate Ministry only to hug it out with them.

[@TheSBleeder]

I was hoping that he was going to have that babyface run.

[@savage751]

20:36 JR saying "oh come on" 😂

[@seankilduff7652]

The whole angle with Al Snow and Pepper, was hilarious

[@r.j.stanford7435]

It’s so crazy how a few decades ago wrestlers were totally dismissed as being chewed up by the business at the age of 36. Compare this to Cody Rhodes or Roman Reigns who are 39 and in the prime of their careers.

[@sherrix6881]

Roman is not in his prime lol

[@r.j.stanford7435]

@@sherrix6881 Roman spent three years selling the most merchandise in the biggest pro wrestling company in the world. I think that’s a fine metric to point to. He is selling less now, so I think it’s also fine to say he is now leaving his prime. But, my point is that wrestlers were just told that their time was up at a certain point in the past. This obviously isn’t the case anymore.

[@michaelhauser6440]

That’s not true at all. The top guys always tended to be older like mid to late 30’s. It was generally thought to take 10-15 years to really understand the business and learn how to work a crowd. Compared to other athletics, wrestlers in their prime were “old”

[@r.j.stanford7435]

@@michaelhauser6440 By the time Boss Man was through with WCW, he was 36 and considered old news. He had been wrestling early enough to be on NWA PPVs, so his time in the business was considered long and relatively successful for a midcarder, but by the time he was in the nWo he was considered washed up. The time frame mentioned (NWA PPVs to nWo recruitment) was 13 years which is now considered enough time to carve out a prime for yourself--not become washed up which was my intended point. Also, compared to other athletics, pro wrestling isn't exactly "on the level."

[@michaelreich4827]

No one expected BBM to win the title at the December '99 PPV, but he definitely earned the spot for the month. Cool updates on his music and look.

[@TheAutistWhisperer]

The Big Bossman/Big Show feud was a work of art.

[@Pablo-312]

It's crazy that during the Golden era, The Bossman was a Babyface. Now, he showed his dark side of the badge...

[@jaystreet46]

Maybe for a minute but for the majority of his first run in the Fed he was a heel. My memory of him from that time is just of him being heel.

[@rubenarriaga3029]

@@jaystreet46he was a heel mid 88 all of 89 face from 90-93

[@jaystreet46]

@@rubenarriaga3029 huh. I guess his heel work just stuck in my memory better. Thanks for calling out my bs

[@gezeo750]

When he dropped the I pulled your dad's life support line I was like dude totally just murdered Show's dad?!

[@LarsOfTheMohicans]

A rumor's been going around that Bossman was being considered for membership in the Ministry of Darkness (his ritual hanging at Mania was supposed to be the precursor) but the bookers never went through with it). Late-1999 Bossman seems to be the remnants of that angle. The man had the most inexplicably radical shift in morality from Lawful Neutral to Chaotic Evil, whereby he'd commit acts of pure malice and hatred seemingly just for the hell of it. There was no real in-storyline explanation to this morbid shift in personality, except perhaps theorizing that he had fallen victim to demonic possession (the life-threatening trauma suffered at Mania leaving him open for some truly foul presence to take up residence).

[@TheSBleeder]

He was part of the Corporate Ministry.

[@brianstancato3945]

A new wrestling bios wrestling bio!!! hell yeah brotha I am here for it!!! Comparning this to you old stuff is a great way to see how far you have come in production and quality of videos

[@YoungGodOG]

I’m so glad u made this video. RIP BOSSMAN

[@markfrank3307]

Wrestling Bios. The channel that keeps on giving.

[@ryanholladaymusic8514]

Wait.. I seem to remember one more part to this feud. Didn't Boss Man go to Big Show's mom's house and secretly filmed her admitting that Big Show was illegitimate and that his dad wasn't actually his dad? I think that's where the "Big Nasty Bastard" originated.. I'm not making this up right?

[@nal101]

It definitely happened.

[@TheLandofObscusion]

Yeah, this part was missed. Bios made this video a little too soon, unfortunately, because this happened during the build to Armageddon 1999.

[@brianmcdonald7017]

You are correct

[@shaneramey]

He made it very hard to remember that he was a huge baby face for years.

[@hotchoclateguy]

he looked like that uncle who lives in your neighbourhood

[@lordeowstheking]

" he looked like that uncle who lives in your neighborhood " 🤔 Ok... so your own uncle that happens to live in your neighborhood. Or a guy that happens to be a uncle that lives in the neighborhood? Mad confused with this one.

[@henry7696]

@@lordeowstheking sigh...let me explain. he means he looks like the uncle that we all had who asked you to sit on his lap while he played "bouncing game" over and over. and then that one time when he invited his other friends from work and they ask you to play "cant-see-wowsers". and the other secret games that he said to never ever tell anyone. thats the kind of uncle who lived in the neighbourhood he is talking about. we all had that uncle.

[@FlatLine8412]

Ray was top tier, loved me some Big Boss Man. Very under appreciated. I stopped watching wrestling around the time he passed away. I was very sad to hear that he did. RIP Mr. Traylor, you are very missed.

[@PrayingToTheAlien]

I was late to the party and started watching Raw in late '98. The Big Bossman was / still is my favorite wrestler to this day. Just loved that character for some reason. Also - Ray Traylor was one of the nicest people in this sport. We lost a good one.

[@aegaeon117]

My ex told me how she lived next to Boss Man, she said he was the sweetest man alive and I was like "seriously?" 😄

[@TheMadTitanM5]

Big Boss Man’s 80s-early 90s theme song is GOAT’d. RIP Ray Traylor.

[@dougeaton7600]

R.I.P. Big Boss Man. One of my sentimental favorites.

[@DOYLETWAT]

I have vivid memories of absolutely pissing myself at the funeral segment.😂 RIP Bossman. Absolute legend.

[@deandredukes95]

I wouldn’t have mind if he became WWF champion

[@michaelhauser6440]

Can’t wrestling fans just really like a guy without him being the champion when he’s not main event material?

[@dyrr836]

The casual mention of "the heels got revenge by spraying Big Show with tear gas" is crazy, but with everything else in this video it just feels appropriate lmao.

[@advukat]

Big Boss Man was completely underrated during the hardcore time. Thank you Wrestling Bios for pulling out the night stick here. It's cool looking back and seeing things as an adult verses being a kid.

[@freddiejohnson6137]

Most people at the time probably didn't appreciate how good he was at pulling this character off at the time and probably because he was seen as one of the old guys from Hogan's generation and his time in WCW didn't help matters as he was seemingly just doing what he did in the WWF under various names at first before going back to his pre WWF gimmick. I would say this final run was a great reinvention of his Bossman gimmick and kind of lends into the fact people like Nailz claimed he was actually corrupt and abused the prisoners because you can tell this version definitely did that. His work with Al Snow and then Big Show probably made him the easiest to hate heel on any wrestling show because they were genuinely terrible things he was doing.

[@everyonelovesmajima]

I’ve heard wrestlers say that Boss Man would get legitimately upset because he thought Al Snow’s dog hated him.

[@Edsecondstocomply]

Can we just imagine that Bossman (the character) died when Taker hung him, and then he was buried the same pet cemetery where pepper was later buried. And this then resurrected him from the dead. But as we all know, you come back evil. So that's why he was so evil during the rest of his run. Please, can we just imagine that?

[@lordeowstheking]

HE'S A ANIMAL!!!

[@hermanthetosser4219]

9:27 ahh it's cheeky Tekken 3 music of the old man

[@TheStevieHWWE]

Great vid. Only 1 thing I would have added is in his final year or so, he was renamed "Boss Man" as Vince thought he wasn't "Big" any more.

[@AcolyteofNightbreed]

Big Boss Man was a favorite of mine as a kid in the early 90's. I feel like he was on his way to finally getting a championship in wwf if he hadn't left in 93. He was pretty popular then. I was so happy when he came back in 98. He evolved with the times and gave us some of the most memorable heel work of the attitude era. The man deserves more credit and praise. RIP Ray Traylor!

[@Elfo_Scuro]

I still remember when Big Boss died, Eddie Guerrero paid tribute to him in his match against Luther Reigns where he used a nightstick to cleverly win the match at No Mercy 2004

[@IBelieveinJoehendryTNA]

big boss man is underrated in wresting

[@graemeross9580]

Always buzzing when your videos drop man. Can't wait to watch this when I'm home 🤘

[@oceancycloneblue5356]

Much respect for bossman, his character enjoyed kicking the hornets nest. Not many are tough enough to piss off big show and still take the licks that come with it but bossman had me convinced he wasnt worried about pissing off a giant.

[@kurtomac2386]

When Big Show fell off the casket and that bump he took.. epic

[@JerDCBear]

I was about 20 or 21 years old during this run of Bossman, so naturally my friends and I loved all of this. Lol. There was a ton more. There is a segment where Bossman is explaining to Steph how the nightstick is the greatest weapon known to man, and it's hysterical!

[@paulwilson2677]

Bossman behaving badly from the attitude era podcast is still one of my favourite things

[@jamesreid2626]

On one night during Raw there was the time when Bossman came out with his old theme and I thought he was turning good again but it was a dastardly game of deception.

[@justinsane5590]

Boss Man putting a muzzle on Pepper......what a heel lmao

[@BlueLighteningGojo]

He was definitely an underrated heel.

[@sharkyuk13]

Watching reliving the war I was only thinking about how great the bossmans run was during the attitude era. He was such a great heel during this time and from someone who came from an 80s/90s gimmick is a testament to him. Great video

[@rodneysmith4682]

I remember watching the part when al snow ate pepper and laughing my ass then turning around seeing my younger siblings sobbing historically and having to comfort them. Man good times

[@WurlyBurger]

Hes who go me in to wrestling as a kid, late 80s/early 90s. God im old.

[@ljaproductions07]

the chuckle at 18:33 and the big show with one of the rock's shirts on made me chuckle. I used to love the attitude era podcast when they used to have a segment called 'Bossman behaving badly' and had his antics play out over the theme to men behaving badly haha. Bruce Prichard has a hilarious story about the funeral segment, real funerals were going on when it was done, but also apparently Show's father had passed away years before. Loved the boss man's gimmick in the wwf during the attitude era, the music, what he did, great heel work and so sad that we lost him too soon, it was a shame that his late 2001-2002 run was so short and not that memorable.

[@lottiemcdaniels1523]

Big Boss Man likes his meals with fresh ground pepper

[@digdugdat2847]

The Attitude Era Podcast did a great job with segments on Big Bossman's antics. New found appreciation for him since.

[@piscinaiv7937]

that Big Show funeral segment lives rent free in my head to this day. RIP Bossman!

[@criminalmindsgirl2936]

Of course Vince Russo came up with the Doggie Bag on the pole match. I mean, look at what he was doing in WCW afterwards

[@thetruej7872]

I forgot how much of a savage Big Boss Man was in the Attitude Era. I manly think about Golden Era "Hard Times" Big Boss Man.

[@ruaanbotha9208]

always liked him. had some nice matches early wwf run. and also in the attitude era. He sould have help more titles, but there's many great wrestlers that never held serious belts. wish we can go back and change some of that. good video! thanks.

[@GlennGriffin]

He was a great heel during the attitude era, definitely one of the forgotten gems of the time.

[@GriffosRetroGaming]

One of my favourite wrestlers right from the early 90’s then his return in 98 was even better. What a guy!

[@Richterdgf]

Attitude Era Big Bossman made cartoon supervillains look subtle by comparison.

[@RandyBandana]

As an 80s kid I liked Big Boss Man WWF, I still play as him on WWF Superstars Arcade Game Sometimes 💯🤘

[@brianstiles1701]

My buddy and I always loved him, going back to his JCP time. We used to tape record ourselves doing Bossman and Brother Love promos.

[@joen8529]

Great to see some Bossman appreciation!!

[@magmatt813]

Attitude era was during my high school years. I had been a fan of Boss Man as a kid, didn’t care much for his WCW run but was laughing hysterically during his attitude era hyjinks. This was just epic level a-hole stuff and I was cracking up so much I could barely talk at times. Thanks for the video and the memories dude.

[@g-dub5272]

As a young’n back then I didn’t recognize his importance and just thinking he’s another mid card jabroni. But now I’m realizing, he probably was the best heel in 99.

[@CyHumphreysWxm]

Attitude Era dropped the babyface 'Hard Time ' theme once when he came down to the ring to face off against the corporation and nothing happened

[@infinite-sadness]

Can't believe South Park ripped off BossMan's dog gimmick

[@michaelhauser6440]

No they didn’t. That’s from an old urban legend

[@blacksuede]

The gimmick speaker on Bossman's patrol car at the funeral was comical