Roddy Piper on How Theatrics Ruined Wrestling (2002)

[@aguilar883000]

Love the part where Howard tells him about his wrist and that he read his book, the look on Roddy’s face, you can tell that meant a lot to him, RIP Hot Rod!!

[@billyshead1339]

Oh yea. Wata great personality Roddy had. RIP PIPER

[@birdred4706]

Yuh! Wholesome af

[@jedinxf7]

that really was sweet. you can tell he was a genuine person

[@brucelee9941]

❤️❤️We Love you Roddy Piper❤️❤️ Man I miss this National Treasure!

[@johns3491]

"They Live" was one of the greatest movies ever made. Roddy made the right choice doing it.

[@thedragonzord_]

The greatest? No sir. The best John Carpenter movie? Yes.

[@samuelstalcup]

Oh you know it's true there wouldn't have been a movie for him. Or there would have been a shit movie

[@bustercherry8734]

One of the greatest documentaries ever made

[@ZBR_ProXP]

thedragonzord not even the third best carpenter movie

[@111highgh]

@@ZBR_ProXP Halloween, The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China.

[@d.k.7471]

He seemed so touched that Howard read his book and even cited a fact from it.

[@cawsnallthis]

I loved how he really wanted his opinion about it.

[@kamuelalee]

That's cool

[@voodooking9056]

Such genuine appreciation

[@geoffreycurrie9582]

huge props to Stern for that.

[@ThereIsNoLord]

He didn't read the book. He read someone's notes on the book from his staff. It was not a great book, if we're being honest.

[@ryanthomas8955]

Wow and this was in 2002 and he thought wrestling was bad then?? He should see the garbage now

[@TheAJUniverse]

RIP PIPER

[@pearljam619]

RIP Mr. Piper. An absolute legend. So, so many fond memories of him in WWF. One of the greatest talents on the microphone and in the ring. Greatly missed.

[@cloneskiller]

Roddy had a point. Wrestling is dead when the improv is taken away.

[@kingrobthegreat7446]

yep. If they just got back to the improv and took it seriously from start to finsh it would 10000000x better than it is now

[@c.t.7289]

Its so spotty now, there's just a lot of waiting for the other guy to come at you and it takes away from the fact THEY ARE FIGHTING.. 🤷‍♂️

[@_Johnny.B.Goode_]

Bingo. Its very hard to stomach these days.

[@cjlive5182]

Yet “They Live” is a cult classic that is referred to this very day, up there with 1984.

[@brandonw6139]

Don't know if it's that popular but definitely a cult classic

[@ModernDayRenaissanceMan]

when I was a kid Piper was my favorite. everyone at school loved Hulk Hogan or Ric Flair or the Ultimate Warrior or Macho man. for whatever reason I always rooted for Roddy Piper

[@ghostspectre1861]

Roddy Piper is a Canadian treasure. Miss him.

[@currychips]

You just dont get wrestlers like this anymore. RIP.

[@tim6454]

They dont allow wrestlers to be like this anymore

[@ravenstrahd5234]

No shit, wrestlers were made in the 80's. WWE beczme a clown show in the 90's when they introduced Doink the clown. It went downhill from there.

[@gtaylor2455]

@@tim6454 They do but guys like Moxley had to leave the WWE.

[@Ronaldrr27]

@@ravenstrahd5234 evil doink was actually a good wrestler. But I do see your point

[@powerful-knowledge77]

Vince: my ass does tricks!🤨 Piper: I've been knowning that for years🤯😂

[@TheHannibalTV]

He didn't get it back on track unfortunately it's worse than ever now.

[@Ravensfan842]

Cody Rhodes is afraid of you

[@Bale4Bond]

While I do agree with you, your general bitterness on your own lack of achieved stardome in wrestling kind of takes some weight of a lot of your arguments. Not to put you down: you can be proud of what you have achieved, but it is crystal clear that you harbour a lot of ill feelings towards (especially) the WWE for never bringing you in. If you had "made it" with them, you wouldn't feel the need to constantly shit on them and the people who actually had or are having a good tenure in WWE, like Kevin Owens for example.

[@na2898]

dbag0584 Lmaoo

[@Jay-sy5yf]

@Timemaster f jesus christ hannibal has hiv?! Terribly sorry to hear. How'd he contract it exactly?

[@karlkani4458]

Your the man hannibal love your channel

[@Jayy_Miller]

Roddy Piper & Ric Flair are 2 of the best heels in the last 40 years.

[@tarantino0151]

The sad irony here is Hot Rod predicted the future of WWE and was spot on.

[@RocketPunchHero1]

I respect any man that stands up for what is right even if it costs him his fame and fortune. God bless you Roddy. You are sorely missed by this fan.

[@JasonJoestar]

If Roddy was alive now... The absolute state of WWE these days.. It's more theatrics than wrestling.

[@nrood3821]

so honest about everyone and everything. and thats why vince didnt like having him in all the time

[@DPK365]

Damn I am so sad this man is dead.....such a good dude.

[@sublime88sublime]

Everyone should learn from how everyone speaks about Vince. He got drunk on his own power and turned into a bad person who people only respect because they have to, not because they want to. That’s never how you want to be viewed.

[@geneanthony3421]

He didn't turn into bad person he always was that person.

[@travelingman5146]

When was he a good person?

[@ShogunX11]

@@geneanthony3421 the power made him more of what he is

[@DoppelgangerShockwave]

Roddy Piper was absolutely right. Making stories for wrestlers to follow ruined wrestling.

[@1983jblack]

I don't mind storylines as long as the matches are still the main attraction. When promos became longer than the match itself, it was over for me

[@buddyravage1634]

Well, "ruined" in a certain way... But the attitude era (with lots of storylines) was the most mainstream/profitable time for wwf ever. So it kinda has two sides to it. Old school tough guy wrestling took a hard hit from kayfabe not being a thing anymore and was replaced by soap like stories.

[@Epic_ZQ9]

Storytelling is the biggest part of wrestling. What's the point of a match if there's no story to tell?

[@aarongomes7135]

They Live was based on a book written in 1963...dude knew what was up.

[@charleswinokoor6023]

I’ve never been a wrestling fan, but I appreciate the fact that Roddy was intelligent and articulate. And not boring.

[@petersilva1689]

I cried my eyes out when Roddy left this earth...NO FEAR

[@mangotango2909]

I came hear to kick ass and chew bubble gum. And I’m all out of bubblegum

[@makaveli89cm77]

this was 20 years ago and his words ring truer then ever

[@MrToddles12]

Always liked hot Rod. His raw emotion in Piper's pit was second to none.

[@Ironwind1972]

Fun fact, when Roddy did They Live, he was in such good shape, Carpenter said he was accused of photoshopping Piper's head on someone else's body in some scenes.

[@GatCat]

Theatrics did ruin wrestling. I was never a fan, but as a kid it was fun to watch time and again.

[@george1654]

Piper is so underated. When you talk about the greats in wrestling, you have to include Roddy Rowdy Piper. 🙏🙏🙏

[@robertsole9970]

Piper's Pit where he smacked Jimmy Snuka in the head with a coconut.....thats entertainment.

[@Nammm37]

Starting at 5:10, this was the meat of this great interview! From explaining the steroids side effects, to Roddy asking Howard what he truly thinks of the book. Amazing stuff!!

[@MerkinMuffly]

Roddy quoting Bob Dylan, liking this guy more and more.

[@TheAJUniverse]

Must be wrestling week for Howard TV. Love it!

[@TheNumberonecenafan]

every interview i see Roddy do there was always "I love you, thank you" to anything the man was so pure I wish he was still with us today

[@kwmusic4560]

There are several things that ruined wrestling. One was no longer presenting it as a legit sport. Even though everyone knew it was fake, when they presented it as if it were real it was much better. Two, comedy. For quite some time, wrestling has been a comedy show, but sadly, it's rarely funny. Three, when they stopped caring about how real moves looked and focused on how 'cool' they looked. Moves like the Canadian Destroyer, which could never happen in a million years in a real fight, or all of these ridiculous dives, they take all the legitimacy away from what you're watching. And finally, when you have the same people writing lines for everybody, everybody sounds the same. There is no individuality in wrestling anymore. Everything and everyone is so cookie cutter and by the numbers. There's more reasons, but you get the idea.

[@masamune28954]

I agree, man. Most of the wrestlers are marks for themselves too. They take their social media more seriously than their wrestling. I must admit I like the canadian destroyer though even if it is stupid lol

[@Cre8Lounge]

Roddy helped destroy it

[@murray9807]

If you want moves that can happen watch UFC, the only difference between a CD and a traditional piledriver is a flip, they are both as unlikely to happen. Wrestling is alive and well, all over the world, WWE is too stupid to capitalize on it.

[@amoney5820]

No one wants to be a real heel either and do some bad shit. Like if I saw Kevin Owens in a bar I wouldnt give 2 fucks I'll take his beer if anything

[@elmalifico3708]

Eterno Del Sur Bro you need to watch some World Star Hiphop Fight Compilations. Moves like the Piledriver, Powerbomb, and the Rock Bottom/Chokeslam get used successfully from time to time

[@TheTroyallen23]

Roddy was my favorite wrestler of all time. His spontaneity made it a joy to watch his performances. RIP, Roddy.

[@philaman1972]

I miss Roddy. The man always spoke his mind!

[@robinstevens9189]

Rowdy Roddy doing Canada proud! 🇨🇦Good 'Ol Saskatoon boy. RIP man.

[@glennw9927]

Robin Stevens My dad lives there. Didn’t know that’s where he was from.

[@Danimal77]

Roudy? It's Rowdy****

[@reginalddunlop5749]

@Varmando Varuso Born in Saskatoon but raised mainly in Manitoba (Winnipeg & The Pas)

[@robinstevens9189]

@@Danimal77 Ha thanks!

[@evolution031680]

@@abstractheory1 Hey, who said we don’t have national pride, eh?

[@PipenFalzy]

Wow, about to say what he wrote to Vince and Howard had to open his mouth and go to a completely different topic.

[@bX-rk2oo]

I met Roddy right before he passed. We talked quite a bit. He was my favorite heel, and my favorite wrestler. It seemed to me that it was exciting for him to meet some regular dude that grew up watching him. Maybe he could tell that I was a legit fan, maybe he just liked to talk to the guy willing to take the time to be first in line. I ended up having to talk him into letting me move along so that he could talk to other fans. Anyway, he was a great guy from what I could tell, very gracious of the fans that helped him get where he was. He seemed so genuine. I'm so sorry for his families loss. RIP

[@jamesbyersmusic]

I still miss Roddy! I never met him, never even got to see him wrestle live, yet I loved him so much all the same! To lose both him and Dusty in such a short space of time was just heartbreaking!

[@joshschneider9766]

Rest in peace Roderick Toombs. Always and forever our rowdiest of pipers

[@TuleeMaster]

Hated him while he worked, but loved how he handled himself outside the ring. Great guy, rip.

[@davidkos74]

I have tried to watch wrestling again after growing up with it in early 80s-90s. All I saw was flips, choreographed dives, high spot after high spot, super kicks and then more flips. Turned it off and now watch the classics on KZbin.

[@prwhite1000]

Roddy was right about Vince and wrestling.

[@officespace7777]

I met Piper. He took a picture with me, and signed a picture for me. He was really down to earth. I miss him😢 So he said WWE wrestling was dead back then? It's definitely dead now. Untill WWE stops micromanaging, and scripting everything word by word, it will continue to be dead ⚰️

[@HilarityBribo]

Rod Piper's best work was still "They Live"

[@kitgautier1658]

18 years later, this is still the biggest problem in pro-wrestling (i.e., being overly-scripted).

[@TheDriveByGuys]

His real name is Maniac, he used to have kids, he loves chesnuts and he's a top earner for Invigaron

[@ScottParisi]

The greatest of all-time. Miss Hot Rod!

[@ryangrant804]

Hello miss hot rod

[@scottwhite2757]

Me Too he was great !!

[@kenterminateddq5311]

Not a great worker bu Roddy is definitely one of the best talkers and villains in sports ent. RIP Hot Rod. Can't wait to see another match between you and Adrian Adonis (RIP)

[@michaelmarkosky7264]

True ICON still can not belive he is gone, but he will never ever be forgotten!!!

[@Margie75]

He was one of a kind. Grew up watching him on tv. Saw Wrestlemania 3 and he made the smart choice to do "They Live". I read Piper's book. It's really great. He's so funny ,honest and a sweet, humble guy. God bless him.

[@paulpatane2439]

Piper was spot on. Wrestling/the magic show did die around 2002/2003. Hulk vs Rock at WM. It never recovered, and never will.

[@LoneWolfe_XX]

It made me feel good that piper was touched by Howard reading his book

[@onestepbeyond7240]

This guy is genuine. Someone you could value for a true friend.

[@howardsung108]

Miss Roddy, watched him since the Pacific Northwest days to the WWF. Met him a couple of times and after his death I became friends with his manager. He told me some of the best Roddy stories!

[@EBUNNY2012]

I always LOVED the improv in wrestling! Theatrics is great but to a point. You need the good choreography, too.

[@jesusguerra1093]

"Lock Pipper in a room with a mic and he will give you an A class promo in one take" Bobby Henan's words, arguible Pipper is one of the greatest wrestler this business have seen, so honest and straight up guy. The world of wrestling really needs a character like Rowdy nowadays to bring the emotion back.

[@stevesmith6190]

RIP Hot Rod a legend who was old school and stood his ground

[@michaelcaraccia7819]

"I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass...and I'm all out of bubblegum."

[@michaelcaraccia7819]

just when you think you got the answers i change the question

[@birdy1numnum]

*I love Piper. Straight shooter and funny dude. Vince McMahon, uh, nope.*

[@TheRock-su3qz]

Bruh, Vince is a bigger straight shooter than Piper lol. Have you seen him on TV interviews?

[@byronjuarez656]

@@TheRock-su3qz Vince was evasive on a talk show, regarding knowledge that Pat Patterson was sexually harassing the new male wrestling talent. Several news guys were given the option of "playing ball" or rear-ending their careers prematurely.

[@leroypaulsen4566]

He was right, and it was a damn shame what Stone Cold did to him and his podcast. I firmly believe he lost his will to live at the end and a big part of that was because of that.

[@briangoldsmith8709]

Man, when I was a kid, we scheduled our Saturdays around wrestling. I miss those days & I miss those wrestlers. Tito Santana will always be my favorite!

[@owenweeden6174]

Piper was the best, he was one of the greatest heels ever, when I was a kid, I believed this. That's how good he was. I wish I had a chance to meet him. In these interviews he is so humble. Awesome dude. Favorite quote. a lot of them, but, "Evert time you think you know the answers, I change the questions, also, I was rowdy before rowdy was cool.

[@jack18888]

I have read Roddy's book, he had nothing to hide and until his passing he kept Kayfabe alive as best he could. I.C.O.N.

[@streetsofsouthphilly]

Roddy was right. I watched wrestling when I was a kid, I've got a son now. I'd love to take him to some family-friendly matches where we could cheer the faces and boo the heels. That kind of wrestling is long dead.

[@elland37]

Funny that Piper says Vince wanted nothing to do with him if he did the movie considering that Piper would be a hot commodity after the movie and be More valuable to the WWF. I get it that Vince wanted to protect Hulk and ensure that he was the biggest star in the company but I don't think there was reason for them to feel threatened by Piper, Perhaps there is more to the story.

[@bigbadbatfleck7442]

I had no idea hot rod was on stern! Can you guys upload the whole interview? 🙏

[@jonathan.s993]

Lady:your not as big as you used to Roddy Piper:piss me off and watch me grow. Lolz that's why he was Rwoddy RIP.

[@182zebraheads8]

Odd how this applies to today's wrestling times 10. Roddy was ahead of his time with these comments. Rest easy to a legend

[@evandoyle2385]

Seriously? No love for "Hell Comes to Frog Town?" We miss you, Piper!

[@TheGosslings]

His voice is amazing. He could have a killer career in audiobooks.

[@clintoncodack]

Almost 20 years later and Jon Moxley says almost thing about being scripted

[@MahdiRanger]

And 20 years ago, people were whining amd saying wwe is going downhill... that was 20 years ago..... nothing has changed. 20 years from now, will be the same

[@gobfather1782]

RIP Roddy Piper

[@mosesknows2062]

"They Live", one of my fav movies...

[@robertglennyoung3905]

Let's not forget Hot Rod was the inspiration for Duke Nukem's best lines😉

[@mike91mdk45]

Thanks for choosing they live, roddy. One of my favorites. R.I.P

[@williamoleary9330]

RIP to Roddy. One of the best and an absolute fan favorite We miss him greatly

[@ChrisMorgan86]

Vince was so bitter when Hogan, Jesse and Piper jump off to Hollywood.

[@bkoz319]

wow i want to see the entire interview

[@sarawashington5485]

Agree 👍👍👍

[@bruceallen9566]

Me too bub

[@americanboy79]

Rowdy Rowdy Piper is a #LEGEND

[@JoseSanchez-zo5tb]

The Attitude Era was awesome but in 2002, wrestling really started to suck. Kane unmasking in 2003, etc.

[@bink]

Agreed, stopped watching around 2004, just before Ruthless Aggression era

[@ajk]

Started downhill with the botched Invasion in 2001 after WCW and ECW closed down. The brand split after that made it worse later.

[@num1Jaysta]

Would still take even those declining days to now

[@jordanbaxley5967]

Couldn’t disagree more. The Ruthless Aggression era was fantastic. Roddie was wrong. The ratings prove that.

[@nathanmccumber2614]

@Sunset music Brett Hart. Jimmy fly snuka.

[@putinscat1208]

What's funny is, most people think wrestling is fake, but they still hated Roddy for all his antics.

[@fbisurveillancevan7479]

Piper was one of the nicest guys.

[@kerpal321]

They Live is one of the greatest movies ever made, and its the real story of whats actually going on in the world

[@Margie75]

So cool to see Roddy on Howard Stern. Miss you Roddy! Love you! Thank you for this!

[@tarrasque419]

Roddy was right about the future of the business (specifically WWE). Look where we are in 2020. Vince goes on the Stone Cold podcast a few years ago and complains that the current roster doesn't have a single person willing to take a blind leap of faith and "grab the brass ring"... in practice, though, they force the guys and girls to stick to the script and not stray too far from the beaten path. It's all complete bullshit. Creative tries to put together interesting and cohesive storylines, but more often than not they just don't connect with the audience. Why in the fuck would you want those guys writing your script? In the rare circumstance that someone does decide to take a big risk, we've seen guys actually get punished for it several times over the last couple years! Roddy really did call it.

[@JK-hu4lu]

Piper is a legend, Vince is a legend, both for very different reasons, but love both as they played a huge part of my best childhood memories.

[@cmolaskeyj]

"i love my kids" Howard: Oh you got kids? "Nahhhhh, not anymore"

[@rm4209]

I got that reference lol great episode of Always Sunny

[@midwestmind691]

@@rm4209 Ummm...You know this interview was years a head of that "reference".

[@estebanperez2557]

Lol right on

[@1alsturgeon]

Huge fan of Roddy & Howard, even met the Hot Rod, never knew he was on the show! Would love to see the full interview.

[@Margie75]

What was it like to meet Hot Rod? You are so lucky.

[@jackdavide5742]

This is an amazing interview. Both Stern and Piper are at their best...great sports journalism.

[@mikehink4062]

His last sentence of this clip couldn’t have been more true.

[@brazeification2]

He was such a great genuine man and it shows even in this short clip.

[@jamesmilford6051]

Roddy piper has a point when the cinematic over takes the in ring action pro wrestling stinks

[@jd.garcia7555]

Miss this guy. Vince fired Hogan for doing Rocky. But piper always said the truth

[@mikeuscila9520]

Definitely one of the best of all time and still missed today.... RIP Roddy piper.....

[@IgnatiusCheese]

Roddy Piper was a real Catch Wrestler, boxer and Judo black belt

[@Tuxy79]

A piece of my childhood.

[@sarawashington5485]

I would love to see the full interview 😆From Sara in London England 💂

[@sixstringb71]

I just watch the A&E special about him yesterday.... wow!!! I forgot how entertaining he really was, Felt like watching wrestling on Sunday morning back in the day..... even as a bad guy he was awesome.... we will miss you...(I came here to kick ass and chew bubblegum, and I’m all out of bubblegum)..😂❤️👍🏻🤟🏻🙏🏻

[@michaelfrazia4569]

anyone who grew up on wrestling in the early to mid 80s knows how big rod was . the best heel