Keith David
David in June 2010
Born	Keith David Williams (1956-06-04) June 4, 1956 (age 56) Harlem, New York, U.S.
Education	Juilliard (BFA 1979)
Occupation	actor, singer
Years active	1979–present
Spouse	Dionne Lea Williams (actress/singer)

Keith David Williams (born June 4, 1956), better known as Keith David, is an American film, television, voice actor, and singer. He is perhaps most known for his live-action roles in such films as Crash, There's Something About Mary, Barbershop and Men at Work. He has also had memorable roles in numerous cult favorites, including John Carpenter's films The Thing (as Childs) and They Live (as Armitage), the Riddick films Pitch Black and The Chronicles of Riddick (as the Imam), the General in Armageddon, King in Oliver Stone's Platoon, and Big Tim in Darren Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream.

David is also well known for his voice-over career, primarily his Emmy winning work as the narrator of numerous Ken Burns films. Characters that he has voiced include Goliath on the Disney series Gargoyles, Spawn/Al Simmons on Todd McFarlane's "Spawn: The Animated Series" which aired on HBO, the Arbiter in Halo 2 and Halo 3, David Anderson in the Mass Effect series, the Decepticon Barricade in Transformers: The Game, Julius Little in Saints Row and Saints Row 2, Sgt. Foley in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Dr. Facilier in The Princess and the Frog, the Flame King in Adventure Time, and Chaos in Dissidia Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy.

Early life and education[link]

David was born in Harlem, New York City, and raised in Corona, Queens, New York, the son of Delores (née Dickenson) and Lester Williams.^[1] He first knew he was going to become an actor after playing the Cowardly Lion in a school production of The Wizard of Oz and went on to study at Manhattan's School of Performing Arts. He attended the Juilliard School's Drama Division (1975-1979, Group 8)^[2] where he graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in 1979.^[3]

Film and television acting[link]

In 1980–81, David honed his craft touring the country with John Houseman's The Acting Company in productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream and Samuel Beckett's Waiting For Godot. Less than two years later he went on to star as Childs, opposite Kurt Russell in John Carpenter's The Thing, and his lengthy on-screen career had begun. In the '80s run of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, he portrayed Keith the Southwood Carpenter in the Neighborhood of Make-Believe segments. He also played Keith, the game coin collector in an episode where Rogers and a small child learn to play the arcade game Donkey Kong.

He went on to appear in films such as Oliver Stone's Platoon, They Live (reuniting with The Thing director, John Carpenter), Road House, Men at Work, Marked for Death, and Stars and Bars. He played the character of Kirby, the one legged war veteran, in the acclaimed 1995 Hughes Brothers film Dead Presidents, and he appeared in the 1995 Spike Lee's film Clockers, and followed this up with roles in big films such as Volcano, Armageddon, There's Something About Mary, Pitch Black, Barbershop, Agent Cody Banks, The Chronicles of Riddick, Crash, ATL, Delta Farce, and First Sunday. He also portrayed "Father" in the movie Mr. and Mrs. Smith. At the same time he has appeared in numerous independent films including the critically acclaimed Requiem for a Dream, playing the role of Big Tim. He has also appeared extensively in TV productions since the 1980s and as a regular character Lieutenant Williams on the short-lived TV series The Job. He was a regular on another shoot made for ABC entitled The Big House in 2004. David played the male lead role in Deon Taylor's slasher flick Chain Letter.^[4]

Recently, he played Max Malini on the NBC TV Show The Cape. On April 18, 2011, Keith appeared in the 21st episode of season one of Hawaii Five-0 as criminal tycoon Jimmy Cannon.

Voice acting[link]

Although recognized for his roles in film and television, he remains in great demand for vocal work because of his deep, resonant voice. He is known most notably as the voice behind Goliath from Gargoyles and the title character in the Spawn animated series. In the English dub of Princess Mononoke, David played the narrator and Okkoto. He also played the small roll of Mama in the English dub of 3x3 Eyes. Additionally, he provided the voice for the character Decker in the role-playing video game Fallout and the voice for the character Vhailor in Planescape: Torment. David provided the voice of the Arbiter for the video game Halo 2, released in 2004; later, he reprised that role in the Xbox 360 follow-up, Halo 3. He played the role of Captain David Anderson in BioWare's Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2, and Mass Effect 3. David also did voice work in the Xbox 360 title Saint's Row playing gang leader Julius, who also appeared at the end of Saints Row 2. David can be heard on the intro of several Ice Cube projects, including Westside Connection's 2003 release, Terrorist Threats, Cube's 2008 solo album Raw Footage, Cube's 2010 solo album I Am The West, and he narrated the documentary Beef II, which also featured Ice Cube. The two have worked together in live action films like Barbershop and First Sunday.

Keith David also provides the voice for the UPS "What Can Brown Do for You" commercials. His voice can be heard in the Justice League cartoons. He has also done voice work for early "Adult Swim" commercials for "Inuyasha".^[5]

He has worked with documentary filmmaker Ken Burns several times, narrating Burns's Jazz, Mark Twain, The War, and Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson. David won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance for his work in the latter two films. He performs the narration duties in the BBC documentary, World War II: Behind Closed Doors.^[6] The 2005 History Channel documentary Crusades: Crescent & the Cross focusing on the medieval Crusades was also narrated by him. David parodied his documentary work by narrating the 2012 episode of the NBC sitcom Community "Pillows and Blankets", a mockumentary revolving around a pillow fight between rival blanket forts.

David is popular in advertising, particularly in United States Navy recruitment commercials. He has done voice-over work for many other documentaries including several for National Geographic and the documentary Comic Book Superheroes Unmasked for the History Channel. He replaced Paul Winfield as narrator for the popular A&E show City Confidential. taking over after Winfield's death in 2004. He voiced the trailer for the movie Primeval, which was released in the U.S. on January 12, 2007.

Additionally, David provided the voice of police detective Alex Cross for the audiobook versions of three novels by James Patterson: Cat and Mouse (1997), Pop Goes the Weasel (1999), and Roses are Red (2000).

Other voice roles include Bebe Proud Clone from The Proud Family Movie, Atlas from the Teen Titans animated series, the lone renegade male gorilla "Tublat" in The Legend of Tarzan, and the Decepticon Barricade in Transformers: The Game,

He recorded a public service announcement for Deejay Ra's "Hip-Hop Literacy" campaign. David has done voiceovers for promos on the Versus Network, particularly for college football. He also recorded the narration for the opening of the World Wrestling Federation's (now Entertainment) WrestleMania 2000 pay-per-view.

Recently, David did the voices of the Black Cat in Coraline, Sgt. Foley in Modern Warfare 2, and Dr. Facilier in The Princess and the Frog. David voiced Tombstone for only one episode from The Spectacular Spider-Man, "Survival of the Fittest".

On Sunday, May 25, 2008, David narrated Kansas City's Celebration at the Station, a Memorial Day service held annually at the World War I Memorial across from Union Station. During the ceremony, he announced the attendance of Frank W. Buckles, the last living veteran of World War I.

He was also the voice of Frederick Douglass in the third episode of the PBS documentary "God in America: How Religious Liberty Shaped America" in 2010.

On April 1, 2012, David performed the voiceover for the intro to WWE Wrestlemania XXVIII.

Stage acting[link]

In 1992, David received a Tony Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical for his performance in Jelly's Last Jam. David received raves for his Shakespeare work on stage in Central Park, New York City.

In 1995, David played the lead as Floyd "Schoolboy" Barton in August Wilson's Seven Guitars on Broadway.

In May 2006, he appeared in the musical Hot Feet on Broadway in New York.

Filmography[link]

Films and Television[link]

• Disco Godfather (1979) (uncredited)
• The Thing (1982)
• Terror in the Aisles (1984)
• Platoon (1986)
• Hot Pursuit (1987)
• Braddock: Missing in Action III (1988)
• Off Limits (1988)
• Stars and Bars (1988)
• Bird (1988)
• They Live (1988)
• Road House (1989)
• Always (1989)
• Men at Work (1990)
• Marked for Death (1990)
• Final Analysis (1992)
• Article 99 (1992)
• Nails (1992)
• The Last Outlaw (1993)
• There Are No Children Here (1993)
• Reality Bites (1994)
• The Puppet Masters (1994)
• Clockers (1995)
• Dead Presidents (1995)
• The Quick and the Dead (1995)
• Blue in the Face (1995)
• Loose Women (1996) (cameo)
• The Grave (1996)
• Eye for an Eye (1996)
• Larger Than Life (1996)
• Never Met Picasso (1996)
• Johns (1996)
• Vanishing Point (1997)
• Flipping (1997)
• Volcano (1997)
• Executive Target (1997)
• Murder, She Wrote: South by Southwest (1997)
• Don King: Only in America (1997)
• The Tiger Woods Story (1998)
• Armageddon (1998)
• There's Something About Mary (1998)
• A.T.F. (1999)
• Dark Summer (a.k.a. Innocents) (2000)
• Pitch Black (2000)
• Requiem for a Dream (2000)
• Where the Heart Is (2000)
• The Replacements (2000)
• Semper Fi (2001)
• Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001)
• Novocaine (2001)
• Pretty When You Cry (2001)
• 29 Palms (2002)
• Barbershop (2002)
• Agent Cody Banks (2003)
• Head of State (2003)
• CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2003)
• Hollywood Homicide (2003)
• Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London (2004)
• The Chronicles of Riddick (2004)
• Crash (2004)
• Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)
• Transporter 2 (2005)
• Dirty (2005)
• The Oh in Ohio (2006)
• Behind Enemy Lines II: Axis of Evil (2006)
• ATL (2006)
• If I Had Known I Was a Genius (2007)
• Delta Farce (2007)
• The Last Sentinel (2007)
• Beautiful Loser (2008)
• First Sunday (2008)
• Superhero Movie (2008)
• Chasing 3000 (2008)
• My Mom's New Boyfriend (2008)
• The Fifth Commandment (2008)
• No Bad Days (2008)
• The Sensei (2008)
• Behind Enemy Lines: Colombia (2009)
• Against the Dark (2009)
• Charlie Valentine (2009)
• Don McKay (2009)
• Coraline (2009)
• The Butcher (2009)
• The Princess and the Frog (2009)
• Gamer (2009)
• All About Steve (2009)
• Pastor Brown (2010)
• Death at a Funeral (2010)
• Lottery Ticket (2010)
• Stomp the Yard 2: Homecoming (2010)
• Chain Letter (2010)
• The Cape (2010)
• Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
• Meet Monica Velour (2010)
• Spork (2010)
• The Book of Matthew (2011)
• The Inheritance (2011)
• Cloud Atlas (2012)
• Smiley (2012)

Voice work[link]

• Ringing Bell (1978-1983) - Narrator (English version)
• Christmas in Tattertown (1988) - Saxophone / Additional Voices
• 3x3 Eyes (1991)
• Aladdin (1994) Minos (ep. Seems Like Old Crimes)
• Fantastic Four (1995) - Black Panther
• Gargoyles (1994–1997) - Goliath, Thailog, Officer Morgan
• Hercules (1997) - Apollo
• Todd McFarlane's Spawn (1997) - Spawn/Al Simmons
• Fallout (1997) - Decker
• Hercules: The Animated Series (1998) - Apollo
• Planescape: Torment (1999) - Vhailor
• Princess Mononoke (1999) - Okkoto/Okkotonushi
• WrestleMania 2000 (2000) - Opening Video Voiceover
• The Legend of Tarzan (2001) - Tublat
• Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) - Council Member #1
• Jazz (2001) - Narrator
• House of Mouse (2001–2002) - Mufasa
• Lords of EverQuest (2003) - Lord Vekk
• Justice League (2003) - Despero
• Spider-Man: The New Animated Series (2003) - Agent Mosely
• Kaena: The Prophecy (2003) - Voxem
• Westside Connection:Terrorist Threats (intro) (2003) - feat. in "A Threat to the World", "Potential Victims", "Gangsta Nation"
• Kingdom of David: The Saga of the Israelites (2003)
• Beef II (2004) - Narrator
• The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury (2004) - Imam
• Teen Titans (2004) - Atlas (ep. "Only Human")
• Halo 2 (2004) - the Arbiter
• City Confidential (2004) - Narrator
• The Proud Family Movie (2005) - Bebe Proud Clone
• Saints Row (2006) - Julius
• Transformers: The Game (2007) - Barricade
• Halo 3 (2007) - the Arbiter
• Mass Effect (2007) - David Anderson
• The War (2007) - Narrator
• Justice League: The New Frontier (2008) - The Centre
• The Spectacular Spider-Man (2008) - Tombstone (1st Time)
• Ice Cube: Raw Footage (intro) (2008) - feat. in "What Is a Pyroclastic Flow?", "Hood Mentality", "Jack N the Box", "Get Use to It", "Take Me Away"
• Saints Row 2 (2008) - Julius
• Coraline (2009) - The cat
• World War II: Behind Closed Doors (2009) - Narrator
• The Princess and the Frog (2009) - Dr. Facilier
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009) - Sergeant Foley
• Dissidia Final Fantasy (2009) - Chaos
• Mass Effect 2 (2010) - David Anderson
• Ken Burns' Baseball: The Tenth Inning (2010) - Narrator
• Ice Cube: I Am the West (2010) - feat. in "Too West Coast"
• Episode 3 (2010) - Frederick Douglass
• Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy (2011) - Chaos
• WWE The True Story of WrestleMania (2011) - Narrator
• Allen Gregory (2011) - Carl Trent
• Adventure Time (2012) - Flame King
• Mass Effect 3 (2012) - David Anderson
• Young Justice (2012) - Despero
• WWE WrestleMania XXVIII (2012) - Narrator^[7]
• Community (2012) - Narrator

Further reading[link]

• Voisin, Scott. Character Kings: Hollywood's Familiar Faces Discuss the Art & Business of Acting. BearManor Media, 2009. ISBN 978-1-59393-342-5

References[link]

External links[link]

• Keith David at the Internet Movie Database
• Keith David at the Internet Broadway Database

Marina Sirtis
Sirtis in 2008
Born	(1955-03-29) 29 March 1955 (age 57) London, England, U.K.
Years active	1977–present
Spouse	Michael Lamper (1992–present)
Website
http://www.marinasirtis.tv

Marina Sirtis (born 29 March 1955) is a British-American actress. She played the role of the human/Betazoid Commander Deanna Troi, ship's counselor, on the television and film series Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Life[link]

Sirtis was born in the East End of London, the daughter of working class Greek parents Despina, a tailor's assistant, and John Sirtis.^[1][2] She was brought up in North London and emigrated to the U.S. in 1986,^[1][3] later becoming a naturalised U.S. citizen. She is married to rock guitarist Michael Lamper (21 June 1992 – present).^[4][5] Her younger brother, Steve, played football in Greece^[4] and played for Columbia University in the early 1980s. She auditioned for drama school against her parents' wishes, ultimately being accepted to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

Career[link]

Sirtis started her career as a member of the repertory company at the Connaught Theatre, Worthing, West Sussex in 1976. Directed by Nic Young, she appeared in Joe Orton's What the Butler Saw and as Ophelia in Hamlet.^[6]

Before her role in Star Trek, Sirtis was featured in supporting roles in several films. In the 1983 Faye Dunaway film The Wicked Lady, she engaged in a whip fight with Dunaway. In the Charles Bronson sequel Death Wish 3, Sirtis's character is a rape victim. In the film Blind Date, she appears as a prostitute who is murdered by a madman.

She has an established record of British television work, appearing in Minder, Raffles, The Return of Sherlock Holmes, Casualty and Holby City among other things. She played the stewardess in the famous Cinzano Bianco television commercial starring Leonard Rossiter and Joan Collins, in which Collins was splattered with drink.

[edit] Star Trek: The Next Generation

Gene Roddenberry was inspired to ask the exotic-looking Sirtis to audition for a role after seeing the film Aliens with Bob Justman, which featured the prominent Latina character Vasquez, played by Jenette Goldstein.^[7] Sirtis and Denise Crosby initially tried out for each other's eventual role on The Next Generation. Sirtis's character was going to be named Lt. Macha Hernandez, the Security Chief. Gene Roddenberry decided to switch them, and Macha Hernandez became Natasha Yar. Sirtis recalls that on the day she received a call offering her the role of Deanna Troi, she was actually packing to return to Britain, because her six-month visa had expired.

Deanna Troi was a half-human, half-Betazoid. Her Betazoid abilities allowed her to read the emotions of others. Her position on the Enterprise-D was ship's counsellor, looking after the crew's well-being and a trusted advisor to Captain Picard with a position seated next to him on the bridge.

Initially, the writers found it difficult to write for Troi and even left her out of four of the first season episodes. Sirtis felt her job was in jeopardy after the first season but was overjoyed when Gene Roddenberry took her aside at Jonathan Frakes's wedding and told her that the season two premiere episode, "The Child", would center on Troi.^[8]

Sirtis appeared in all seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and her character was developed from a more passive therapist to tougher Starfleet officer, much to Sirtis's approval.^{[citation needed]}

She has stated her favourite episode is season six's "Face of the Enemy", in which Troi is kidnapped and surgically altered to pose as a Romulan. Troi's switching to a standard Starfleet uniform in the same season in "Chain of Command" elevated the character's dignity in Sirtis' eyes, and her enthusiasm in playing her, with Sirtis commenting, "It covered up my cleavage and, consequently, I got all my brains back, because when you have a cleavage you can't have brains in Hollywood. So I got all my brains back and I was allowed to do things that I hadn't been allowed to do for five or six years. I went on away teams, I was in charge of staff, I had my pips back, I had phasers, I had all the equipment again, and it was fabulous. I was absolutely thrilled."^[9]

During her time on the show, she became close friends with her co-stars Jonathan Frakes (who played her on-again/off-again lover Commander Riker), Michael Dorn (Lieutenant Worf, also an on-screen love interest) and Brent Spiner (who played Lieutenant Commander Data). Cast members Spiner and Dorn were groomsmen at her wedding.^[10]

She usually wore hair-pieces for her role as Deanna Troi in Star Trek: The Next Generation. Sirtis' real hair was slightly shorter, and although curly, was not as bouffant as her character's. However, Sirtis' real hair was used in the pilot episode, and also in the first six episodes of season six, in which Troi sported a more natural looking pony-tailed style. She was also asked to create an accent (described as a mixture of Eastern European and Hebrew) for her character, although her natural accent is English. Over time, the accent was adjusted and became more Americanised.^{[citation needed]}

Sirtis has also reprised her character of Deanna Troi in the feature films, Star Trek: Generations (1994), Star Trek: First Contact (1996), Star Trek: Insurrection (1998) and Star Trek: Nemesis (2002). She also appeared in Star Trek: Voyager for three episodes toward the end of the series (1999 and 2000) and also in the series finale of Star Trek: Enterprise (2005).

Sirtis was delighted to get the chance to do some comedy in Star Trek: First Contact and Star Trek: Insurrection. Her biggest role was in Star Trek: Nemesis and she stated "I sort of had an inkling that I was going to have a good part in this film because John Logan was such a big fan of the character. So I knew that he would do her some justice."^[11] Troi and Riker finally get married but Troi has to endure being telepathically violated. She gets her revenge by using her Betazoid senses to target the cloaked enemy ship.

Other work[link]

After the end of Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1994, Sirtis continued to work regularly. She provided the voice of Demona in the Disney animated television series Gargoyles, (1994–96 and two one off specials). Her Next Generation co-stars, Frakes, Spiner and Dorn, also lent their voices to the acclaimed show. She voiced the character again for an episode of the unmade animated series Team Atlantis.

At 2005 Convention.

Sirtis popularly appeared in episodes of other science fiction television series; The Outer Limits, Stargate SG-1 and Earth: Final Conflict. Sirtis was interviewed in the October 2000 SFX magazine in the UK, the cover stated "Marina Sirtis is Everywhere" referring to her numerous sci-fi appearances airing close together, Stargate SG-1, Earth Final Conflict and Star Trek: Voyager. Her other guest starring roles include Heaven Help Us, Diagnosis: Murder, Threat Matrix (playing a Bio-weapons scientist from Iraq), The Closer, a three episode recurring role on Girlfriends and Without a Trace.

She has also starred in many independent, made-for-television films and theatrical films including Gadgetman, Paradise Lost, Terminal Error, Net Games, Spectres, Grendel, Inalienable, Oranges, Fist of the Warrior, The Grudge 3 and Green Street 2.

In the United Kingdom, she made a highly publicised guest appearance on the BBC hospital drama series Casualty in 2001. In 2008, she made a guest appearance in an episode of Casualty's spin-off show, Holby City.

Sirtis has expanded her career branching out into production, she was associate producer for Spectres and The Deep Below.

In 2004, Sirtis had a minor role in the Academy Award-winning ensemble film Crash as the wife of the Persian shopkeeper.

She also has done voice work for video games, as the character Matriarch Benezia for the critically acclaimed RPG Mass Effect, as well as Deanna Troi in Star Trek: The Next Generation – A Final Unity and Star Trek Generations PC games.

Sirtis has read a few audio books including Powers That Be, by Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Anne Scarborough.

In 1999 she co-starred in the Radio Reparatory Company of America radio play "Flight of the Bumble Bee".

2009 saw Sirtis continuing to regularly attend Star Trek conventions as well as a Gargoyles themed one. Sirtis appeared as a guest on the show Family Guy playing herself along with the rest of the cast of Star Trek: TNG. She has provided her voice for an episode of The Cleveland Show airing at some point in the 2009-10 season. Green Street 2, The Grudge 3 and InAlienable, all featuring Sirtis were released onto DVD. Independent film 31 North 62 East was released in limited cinemas in the UK in September in which she had a starring role as the Prime Minister's aide who is kidnapped. Sirtis guest starred in the pilot episode of new medical drama Three Rivers playing an Iranian, which aired on 4 October 2009. The made-for-TV film Annihilation Earth (previously known as Doomsday) aired on Syfy in December 2009.

February 2010 saw Sirtis guest star as a Swiss doctor in two episodes of ABC Family's Make It or Break It. Sirtis is scheduled to commence filming for two more productions, Shadows in the Sky and P415 (sequel to 31 North 62 East) with Fact Not Fiction Films, based in West Sussex, UK.^[12] A vampire film entitled Immortal Cycle, which Sirtis reported she was filming last June in Louisiana, will be released at some point.

In May 2010, Sirtis announced that she would be providing the voice for comic book villainess Queen Bee in the upcoming Young Justice animated series.^[13]

In March 2011, Sirtis guest-starred on an episode of Grey's Anatomy. She played an Iranian mother who was at the hospital to participate in a medical trial for Alzheimer's disease.^[14]

In September 2011, fans started a group to get Marina to appear on Doctor Who. A few weeks later, she acknowledged the group and her desire to be on the show at the Montreal Comiccon.^[15]

Filmography[link]

Movies[link]

• InAlienable A 2008 film with a number of other TV science fiction actors of note.

[edit] Television^[16]

Voice acting[link]

• Gargoyles (1994–1997) ... Demona
• Mass Effect (Video game) (2008) ... Matriarch Benezia
• Young Justice (2010) ... Queen Bee

References[link]

Notes

Further reading

• Dillard, JM (1994). Star Trek: A History in Pictures. New York: Pocket Books. ISBN 978-0-671-51149-4 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Marina Sirtis

• Official website
• Marina Sirtis at the Internet Movie Database
• Marina Sirtis at AllRovi
• Marina Sirtis at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
• Marina Sirtis:UK

Summer Glau
Glau at WonderCon 2008
Born	Summer Lyn Glau (1981-07-24) July 24, 1981 (age 30) San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2002–present

Summer Lyn Glau ( /ˈɡlaʊ/; born July 24, 1981) is an American actress, known for playing River Tam in the science fiction series Firefly and follow-up film Serenity, and for playing Cameron in the series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.

Early life[link]

Glau was born in San Antonio, Texas, where she grew up with her two younger sisters (Kaitlin and Christie). She is of Scots-Irish and German descent.^[1] Her mother is a school teacher and her father a general contractor.^[2]

Glau received a scholarship to a ballet company and was home-schooled from grades 3 to 12 to accommodate her ballet training.^[3] Glau was classically trained as a ballet dancer^[4] and also studied tango and flamenco. After a broken toe^[3] ended her dancing career,^[4] Glau later moved to Los Angeles in 2002 to pursue a more active acting career.

Career[link]

Glau's first television credit was a guest role as a ballerina on the 2002 episode "Waiting in the Wings" of the television series Angel. There she caught the eye of director Joss Whedon, who later cast her in his critically acclaimed but short-lived TV series Firefly as River Tam, a role she reprised for the show's feature film sequel, Serenity. Glau previously auditioned for the role as a Pink Ranger on one of the Power Rangers series before meeting Joss Whedon.^[5]

Glau appeared on the episode "Love Conquers Al" of the TV series Cold Case. She had a small role in the film Sleepover, in which she played a high school senior named Shelly. She also appeared in the CSI episode "What's Eating Gilbert Grissom?", and the second season of The Unit; portraying Crystal Burns, the girlfriend of Jeremy Erhart. In 2006, Glau played Tess Doerner, a paranoid schizophrenic returnee in the second season premiere of The 4400 (episode "Wake-Up Call"), and became a recurring character from season 3 onwards. She also starred in the science fiction film Mammoth. Glau was cast in the ABC Family TV movie The Initiation of Sarah.

Glau at CollectorMania 2007

In Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, a series that debuted January 13, 2008, Glau played the role of Cameron Phillips, a Terminator infiltration unit sent back to protect John Connor and Sarah Connor from Skynet.^[6] The seventh episode of the series, "The Demon Hand", included several scenes in which Glau (in character as Cameron) dances ballet. Glau also guest starred as herself in the 2009 episode "The Terminator Decoupling" from the second season of the CBS situation comedy The Big Bang Theory.^[7]

On August 26, 2009, it was confirmed after much speculation that Glau would be joining the cast of Joss Whedon's Dollhouse for at least two episodes in the early part of the show's second season. She portrayed Bennett, the programmer for a rival Dollhouse.^[8]

On March 12, 2010, it was announced that she would be joining the cast of NBC's The Cape in a leading role.^[9] In June 2010 she was confirmed as the female lead in the horror comedy film Knights of Badassdom.^[10]

Glau voiced Kara Zor-El in the DC Comics original animated movie Superman/Batman: Apocalypse.^[11]

Awards[link]

Glau was voted Best Actress of 2005 by readers of SFX magazine and received a 2005 Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Serenity.^[12] She was also runner up for Best Actress/Movie in the SyFy Genre Awards for 2006.^[13]

In 2008, she received the Best Supporting Television Actress award at the 34th Saturn Awards for her performance as Cameron Phillips in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles,^[14] and was nominated for the Spike TV Scream Awards in the category Best Actress in a Science Fiction Movie or TV Show for the same role.^[15]

Personal life[link]

Summer Glau has been involved in a number of charities, such as B.C. Women's Hospital & Health Centre^[16] Glau is an animal lover and has shown support to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles,^[17] where she hand-painted a decorative pet bowl that was later sold on eBay to raise funds. She became a vegetarian in 1995, but, in 2005 she stated that "[...] by the end of shooting [the same year film Serenity] I was eating steaks."^[18] Glau has trained in multiple forms of martial arts, including kung fu and kickboxing.^{[18][19][20][21]}

Filmography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Summer Glau

• Summer Glau at the Internet Movie Database

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (February 2010)

Jenifer Lewis
Born	Jenifer Jeanette Lewis (1957-01-25) January 25, 1957 (age 55) Kinloch, Missouri, U.S.
Occupation	Actress, singer
Years active	1979–present

Jenifer Jeanette Lewis (born January 25, 1957) is an American film and television actress and singer.

Early life[link]

Lewis was born in Kinloch, Missouri, to a nurse's aide mother and a factory worker father.^[1] She attended Kinloch High School and then college at Webster University in Webster Groves, Missouri. Soon after she arrived in New York City, Lewis debuted on Broadway in a small role in Eubie (1979), the musical based on the work of Eubie Blake. She next landed the role of Effie White in the workshop of the Michael Bennett-directed musical Dreamgirls, but when the show moved to Broadway, Bennett chose Jennifer Holliday for the role.

Lewis accepted a position as a Harlette, a back-up singer for Bette Midler which led to Lewis' first TV appearances on Midler's HBO specials. She also landed her first screen role as a result, appearing as one of the buxom chorines in the 'Otto Titsling' production number in the Midler vehicle Beaches (1988). At the same time, Lewis was developing her nightclub act, The Diva Is Dismissed, an autobiographical comedy and music show in New York City cabarets. She performed the show off-Broadway at the Public Theater.

Career[link]

In 1987, Lewis was hired as the Pre-Show announcer on the Star Tours ride at Disneyland. In 1988, Lewis relocated to Los Angeles. In 1992, she was cast as one of the back-up singers to Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act. Goldberg sponsored several performances of The Diva Is Dismissed as a possible HBO series. In 1992 to 1993, she played Dean Davenport in the sixth and final season of A Different World. She also had a recurring role as Will Smith's Aunt Helen on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, as well as stints on a few episodes of In Living Color, reprising several of her characters from her nightclub act. Also in 1993, she played the mother of Tupac Shakur's character in Poetic Justice.

Although she auditioned for role of Tina Turner in the biopic What's Love Got to Do with It she landed the role of Turner’s mother. In 1994, she followed with other supporting roles, including Mrs. Coleman the Unemployment Office lady in Renaissance Man and as Whoopi Goldberg's sister in Corrina, Corrina. In 1995, she was cast in maternal roles to Kadeem Hardison in Panther and to Larenz Tate in Dead Presidents before she accepted the role of a lesbian judge on the short-lived CBS series Courthouse. Lewis returned to the big screen as Theresa Randle's telephone sex line boss in Spike Lee's Girl 6. She then played Whitney Houston's character's mother in Penny Marshall's The Preacher's Wife.^[2]

In 1999, she starred in the made-for-TV film Jackie's Back, a mockumentary about the struggling comeback of a diva in turmoil. She recently appeared in The Cookout, Nora's Hair Salon, Shark Tale and Cars. She was in a few episodes of Friends as Monica Gellar's co-worker. Since 2000, she has played Lana Hawkins on the Lifetime television medical drama Strong Medicine, the show ended February 2006. She also had a recurring role as Veretta Childs (Toni's mother) in the sitcom Girlfriends. In 2006, she had a featured role as the wedding planner in Tyler Perry's Madea's Family Reunion, and also appeared in the film Meet the Browns.

In one episode of That's So Raven she played the titular character's maternal grandmother, who has psychic powers. She recently starred as a judge in Boston Legal and appeared in the 2008 film Meet the Browns. On April 22, 2008, Lewis replaced Darlene Love as Motormouth Maybelle in Broadway's Hairspray, a role that was originally written for her.^{[citation needed]}

In June 2010, Lewis' distinctive voice was in fine form as she told The Jazz Joy and Roy syndicated radio show, "I just did a production of 'Hello Dolly' at the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle and it had to be one of the greatest productions that I have ever done, because I got to just do a character, Dolly Levi, and it was just great."^{[cite this quote]}

Singing[link]

Lewis has performed for many years on Broadway and has lent her vocals to many of the television and film projects that she has been a part of including the theme song for her most recognizable role, Strong Medicine.^[3]

Lewis' most recent singing role came with her role in the movie musical The Princess and the Frog.

Filmography[link]

Television work[link]

• Murphy Brown (1990–1991)
• A Different World (1990–1993)
• Stat (1991)
• The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1991–1996)
• Dream On (1992)
• Roc (1993)
• Moon Over Miami (1993)
• Hangin' With Mr. Cooper (1993–1994)
• Friends (1994)
• Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1994)
• New York Undercover (1995)
• Courthouse (1995)
• Cosby (1996)
• Touched by an Angel (1997)
• Promised Land (1997)
• Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child (1997–1999)
• For Your Love (1998–2000)
• Moesha (1999)
• Grown Ups (1999)
• The PJs (1999–2008)
• The Jamie Foxx Show (1999)
• Bette (unknown year)
• Family Affair (2002)
• Strong Medicine (2000–2006)
• Girlfriends (2002–2006)
• The Proud Family (2003)
• That's So Raven (2004)
• Day Break (2007)
• Shark (2007)
• Meet the Browns (2009–2010) – 4 episodes
• The Cleveland Show (2011) – 1 episode
• State of Georgia (2011) - 1 episode
• The Playboy Club (2011) - 7 episodes (series regular)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Jenifer Lewis at the Internet Movie Database
• Jenifer Lewis at the Internet Broadway Database
• Jenifer Lewis at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• Jenifer Lewis at AllRovi
• May 05 A&U interview: Jenifer discusses AIDS Affecting Her and her psychotherapy since being diagnosed as bipolar in 1997

It has been suggested that Piper's Pit be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) Proposed since June 2011.

This article describes a work or element of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. Please help rewrite it to explain the fiction more clearly and provide non-fictional perspective. (August 2010)

Roddy Piper
Ring name(s)	"Rowdy" Roddy Piper[1] The Canadian The Masked Canadian[2][3]
Billed height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[1]
Born	(1954-04-17) April 17, 1954 (age 58)[2] Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada[2]
Resides	Hillsboro, Oregon[2]
Billed from	Glasgow, Scotland[1]
Trained by	Tony Condello[2] Stu Hart Alfred "The French Mad Dog" Peloquin
Debut	1973

Roderick "Roddy" George Toombs (born April 17, 1954),^[2] better known by his ring name "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, is a Canadian semi-retired professional wrestler and film actor who is currently signed to WWE. In professional wrestling, he is best known for his work with WWE. Although he is Canadian, due to his Scottish heritage, he was billed as coming from Glasgow in Scotland and was known for his signature kilt and bagpipe entrance music. He earned the nickname "Rowdy" by displaying his trademark "Scottish" rage, spontaneity and quick wit. Despite being a crowd favorite for his rockstar-like persona, he often played the villain. He was also nicknamed "Hot Rod". Never a world champion, he accumulated 34 championships in various promotions during his career. Piper was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005.

Early life[link]

Toombs was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He attended Windsor Park Collegiate. His father was an officer with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police while they lived in The Pas, Manitoba.^[4] After being expelled from junior high^{[citation needed]} and having a falling out with his father, Piper hit the road and stayed in youth hostels wherever he could find them.

Professional wrestling career[link]

By the age of 19, he made his pro debut in Winnipeg, against Larry Hennig. Piper lost the match in ten seconds. He was a boxer and an amateur wrestler before he started to become a pro wrestler. He won the Golden Gloves boxing championship. He was awarded a Black Belt in Judo from Gene LeBell, American Judo champion, instructor, stuntman, and professional wrestler.^{[citation needed]}

American Wrestling Association (1973–1975)[link]

From 1973 to 1975, Piper was a jobber in the AWA, Kansas City, the Maritimes, and Texas working for Paul Boesch's NWA Houston Wrestling promotion and in Dallas working for Fritz Von Erich's Big Time Rasslin. What was supposed to be a brief run in California, however, turned out to be a long term stint as booker Leo Garibaldi and publicist Jeff Walton were impressed with Piper and saw the money making possibilities he had as a villain.

National Wrestling Alliance (1975–1980)[link]

By late 1975 and early 1976, Piper was a top villain for Mike and Gene LeBell's NWA Hollywood Wrestling. In 1977–78, he also started to work for Roy Shire's NWA San Francisco Wrestling in addition to remaining with the L.A. office. Los Angeles was where Piper developed his Rowdy character and became one of the most hated villains in Los Angeles since the days of Classy Freddy Blassie. During this time, he made continuous insults directed at the area's Mexican community; he later promised to amend by playing the Mexican national anthem on his bagpipes only to anger the fans further by playing "La Cucaracha" instead.^[5] Piper also served as manager for several villains in Los Angeles and worked as a referee from time to time. Piper feuded with all the fan favorites in the area and had a long feud with Chavo Guerrero, Sr..

As part of the L.A. storyline, Roddy Piper feuded with Chavo and the whole Guerrero family for about three years in the L.A. territory going so far as to routinely wear a T-Shirt to the ring reading "Conqueror of the Guerreros". The feud started during a TV bout in early 1976 where Chavo was defending the Jules Strongbow Memorial Scientific Trophy against Piper. Late in this match, Gory Guerrero (who had been in Chavo's corner giving him advice throughout the match) was slapped by Piper. Chavo "lost his cool" and starting punching Piper, getting DQ'ed and losing the Scientific Trophy for "breaking the rules". A short time later, Piper then defeated Chavo for the Americas Heavyweight Title; the two competed in the top feud in Los Angeles for the better part of three years. They main evented against each other often during this era (1976 through 1978). The hair match gimmick was one of the top stipulations between these two, resulting in Piper getting his head shaved. Another top stipulation was when Chavo beat Piper in a loser leave town match and Piper immediately reappeared as The Masked Canadian. In his first televised match as The Masked Canadian, Piper actually teamed with Chavo to battle the Americas Tag Team Champions (Gordman and Goliath) and Piper turned on Chavo late in the match, causing Chavo to get pinned. Piper wrestled as The Masked Canadian for several months until he was unmasked by Hector Guerrero.

By late 1978-early 1979, Buddy Rose talked Piper into leaving the California promotions for even more fame in Don Owen’s Pacific Northwest Territory where he teamed with Killer Tim Brooks, Rick Martel, and Mike Popovich to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship. Piper also won the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship with victories over both Lord Jonathan Boyd and "Playboy" Buddy Rose.

Mid-Atlantic (1980–1983)[link]

In late 1970s, Piper ventured to the Mid-Atlantic territory. He beat Jack Brisco for the Mid-Atlantic title and Ric Flair for the US belt which turned into a huge feud. In 1981, Piper started with the Georgia territory as an antagonistic villainous commentator. In 1982, due to showing up late for a match, he was fired and reportedly blackballed. Piper maintains this in his book, but others dispute this.^{[citation needed]} He did receive an offer from Gary Hart to go to World Class Championship Wrestling but the money was not good enough. Instead, he went to Puerto Rico for a month or so and was able to get booked by Jim Barnett shortly thereafter. It was in Barnett's promotion Georgia Championship Wrestling that Piper became a fan favorite to save broadcast partner Gordon Solie from an attack. In Wrestling to Rasslin', Gerald W. Morton and George M. O'Brien described the transformation: "the drama finally played itself out on television when one of his [Piper's] hired assassins, Don Muraco, suddenly attacked the commentator Gordon Solie. Seeing Solie hurt, Piper unleashed his Scottish fury on Muraco. In the week that followed, like Achilles avenging Patroklas, he slaughtered villain after villain.... In the arenas fans chanted his name throughout his matches."^[6] Eventually, Piper moved back to Jim Crockett Promotions. As a fan favorite, Piper feuded with Sgt. Slaughter, Ric Flair, and Greg Valentine. Piper's feud with Valentine culminated in a dog collar match at the first Starrcade. Valentine broke Piper's left eardrum during the match with the collar's chain, causing Piper to permanently lose fifty percent of his hearing.^[7][8]

World Wrestling Federation[link]

Piper told Arda Ocal of The Score Television Network in an interview that before entering the World Wrestling Federation full time in 1984, Piper had a match with the WWWF under Vince McMahon Sr in the mid 70s at Madison Square Garden. As a rib to Piper, Freddie Blassie stuffed his bagpipes with toilet paper, so they wouldn't play in front of the Garden crowd. Piper was not invited back for several years.^[9]

1984–1987[link]

Heel run[link]

Around this time World Wrestling Federation (WWF) owner Vince McMahon contacted Piper, who insisted on serving out his contract with Jim Crockett. Piper started in the WWF in late 1983 and at the same time fulfilled dates with Crockett. On his way out of Crockett's promotion he became a heel, which set the stage for his WWF run in 1984. He started as a manager at first, due to the injuries he sustained during his dog collar match with Greg Valentine, but soon started wrestling full-time. Piper came in as the manager for "Dr. D" David Schultz and "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff, and soon began to wrestle with Orndorff as well.

Later that year, he was given his own interview segment called Piper's Pit, in which he talked to other superstars and which frequently ended in a fight between Piper and his guest. The Piper's Pit segments helped create the feuds Piper had with other wrestlers. According to Piper's autobiography, Piper's Pit was completely unscripted and was in fact so popular that it was taken on the road. In addition to pleasing many of his fans who wanted to see the Pit in person, it accomplished other things: it gave Piper the opportunity to heal some nagging injuries while still retaining his heat with the fans. An early guest on Piper's Pit was his Mid-Atlantic nemesis Valentine, who also arrived to the WWF. In a rare occurrence for WWF programming at the time, the two made reference to their history in the rival organization and hinted at rekindling it, but as the two were now top villains, they both agreed that they had mutual respect for each other, and it was left at that. In one Piper's Pit, Piper had an interview with Jimmy Snuka. Piper started insulting Snuka's Polynesian heritage by bringing out pineapples, bananas, and dropping coconuts onto the table; this was to make Snuka "feel at home" in an act of "remorse" after Snuka was not given much time to speak the previous times he was on Piper's Pit. Snuka took offense to this and Piper then attacked Snuka by smashing him over the head with a coconut and shoving a banana in his face. He followed this up by whipping Snuka with his belt. Snuka was legitimately knocked woozy allowing Piper to leave before Snuka, now seriously enraged, could fight back. This incident led to a long feud between the two. Piper also insulted Bruno Sammartino during a Piper's Pit which led to a feud between the two, ending in a steel cage match which Piper lost.

Another feud, this time between Piper and Hulk Hogan erupted soon after and became what was at the time the highest-profile feud in wrestling history, thanks to the involvement of pop singer Cyndi Lauper, where Piper kicked Lauper in the head—and even attacked Captain Lou Albano—with Hogan seeking revenge as a result. In 1985, MTV broadcast The War to Settle the Score, featuring a main-event matchup between Piper and Hogan, who was accompanied to the ring by Albano, Lauper, and Mr. T. This event set up the very first WrestleMania, which pitted Piper and Paul Orndorff against Hogan and Mr. T. Orndorff was pinned by Hogan when Piper's bodyguard "Cowboy" Bob Orton interfered and mistakenly struck Orndorff instead of Hogan with his trademark "injured" arm covered in a plaster cast. In Born to Controversy, Piper recalled how he had to keep Mr. T busy with tie-ups and other shoot wrestling moves to keep Mr. T's lack of wrestling ability from being seen by the fans, thus ruining the match. From this situation, Piper and Mr. T's real-life relationship became hostile, leading to the inevitable conclusion that they be put into a feud with one another. It was on Right After Wrestling in March 2011, hosted by Arda Ocal and Jimmy Korderas, that Piper explained why WrestleMania didn't feature a 1-on-1 main event. He said it was because that match happened at the War to Settle the Score, before the WrestleMania event actually happened.^[10] Piper once again faced Mr. T, this time alone, in a boxing match at WrestleMania 2 in 1986. Piper lost the match by disqualification after bodyslamming Mr. T.

Face run[link]

Following a leave of absence from the WWF, Piper returned during a TV taping on WWF Superstars in 1986 against jobber A.J. Petrucci and received a thunderous ovation from the audience, turning him face. After being slapped in the face by Petrucci twice, Piper placed one hand behind his back and beat his opponent to a pulp.

During Piper's 1986 face run, Piper's Pit played key roles in two storylines memorable to fans: Piper's feud with Adrian Adonis, and the set-up of the Hulk Hogan-André The Giant match at WrestleMania III.

In the Piper-Adonis feud, the returning Piper was distressed to find his Piper's Pit segment replaced by The Flower Shop, a segment hosted by Adonis, who was using an effeminate-wrestler gimmick. Piper spent weeks crashing Adonis' show and trading insults, leading to a "showdown" between the two segments that ended with Piper being assaulted and humiliated by Adonis, Piper's former bodyguard Orton (now in Adonis' employ), and Don Muraco. The trio left Piper with his face covered in red lipstick lying in the middle of the remnants of the Piper's Pit set, which had been destroyed. In response, Piper stormed the set of Adonis' show and destroyed it with a baseball bat. This led to their Hair vs Hair match at WrestleMania III, which was billed as Piper's retirement match from wrestling before he left to become an actor full-time. Piper won the match with the assistance of Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake, who had been sheared by Adonis shortly before the match.

The first Piper's Pit used to build up the Hogan-André feud came when Hogan was invited on the show to receive a trophy for being the WWF Champion for three years. Shortly after presenting Hogan with the trophy, André – Hogan's "long-time friend" – came out to congratulate Hogan, but closed the segment by simply stating: "Three years to be world champion....it's a long time." After saying this, Andre went to shake Hogan's hand, apparently placing a little too much pressure causing Hogan to wince in pain. The following week, Hogan attempted to return the favor by presenting Andre with a trophy for being undefeated for 15 years, and unwittingly took over the interview. Although the attempt was sincere, Andre couldn't help but notice that the trophy was noticeably smaller than the one Hogan received the week before, and grew irritated when Hogan became the focal point of the spotlight once again. As Hogan was attempting to congratulate Andre, the Frenchman abruptly stormed off the Pit set. The following week, Piper attempted to get some answers and Jesse "The Body" Ventura interrupted the segment, agreeing with Piper that something was amiss in the Hogan/Andre situation; both Ventura and Piper held true to promises to bring Andre and Hogan, respectively, onto the show the following week. On that subsequent program, Hogan was stunned when André appeared with his long-time nemesis, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, at his side; Hogan pleaded with André to explain why Heenan was at his side, and André replied simply, "I'm here for one reason, to challenge you to a championship match at Wrestlemania." Hogan attempted to keep the peace, only to have Heenan order André to attack Hogan to show how serious he was in his challenge; André responded by ripping off Hogan's shirt and gold crucifix necklace, leaving Hogan in hurt and shock and with Piper of all people trying to console his former enemy. In the process of tearing off Hogan's shirt, André's fingernail accidentally scratched Hogan's skin, causing Hogan to bleed, leading Piper to tell Hogan, "You're bleeding." Piper then brought Hogan back the following week to get Hogan to respond to André's challenge. When Hogan sidestepped the issue for several minutes, Piper put it to him bluntly: "Yes or no? Are you or are you not going to face Andre the Giant for the WWF championship at Wrestlemania? YES OR NO?!!" Hogan paused for a brief second only to respond with a thunderous "YES!"

1989–1996[link]

Piper returned from a hiatus with a live Piper's Pit at WrestleMania V, where he hosed down a smoking Morton Downey, Jr. with a fire extinguisher. After this, Piper began co-hosting Prime Time Wrestling with Gorilla Monsoon, providing a much needed change of pace from the constant bickering that was caused between Monsoon and Bobby Heenan during Heenan's tenure. Heenan insisted on having his own show opposite Prime Time called "The Bobby Heenan Show". Which was basically used as a catalyst to insult Piper and Monsoon after leaving "Prime Time" on bad terms. Eventually, Heenan's comments began to irritate Piper and Piper finally told Heenan to either "put up or shut up." Shortly after this, Heenan brought "Ravishing" Rick Rude into the mix by inviting him to his show to further insult Piper. The feud reached the physical level when Piper made an appearance on "The Brother Love Show" to address his position on the matter. Brother Love provoked Piper for several minutes by questioning his courage and ring ability. Piper finally had enough and told Love he had bad hygiene. When Love questioned Piper for bringing this up, Piper pulled out a small bag of toiletries and began dousing Love with toothpaste and mouthwash. Rude made his move during this moment and attacked Piper from behind, eventually spewing mouthwash into his eyes rendering him temporarily blind. This eventually brought Piper's return to the ring full-circle as Piper interfered in Rude's Intercontinental Title defense against The Ultimate Warrior at SummerSlam '89, costing Rude the belt. Rude vowed revenge and the two engaged in a very physical and violent feud that lasted the rest of the year. The feud finally came to an end when Piper defeated Rude in a match where the stipulation stated that if Piper won, Heenan would have to dress as Santa Claus for an episode of "Prime Time". Piper was victorious, and Heenan was forced to dress as Claus the following week. Initially, Heenan seemed pleased with portraying Santa and even went so far as to imitate Claus and wish everyone a Merry Christmas. However, as the show progressed, Heenan's true motives were revealed as he began to call Christmas "a sham", and that the children of the world had been "scammed" by their parents. Piper snapped and attacked Heenan, ignoring pleas from Monsoon to stop the attack due to Piper's agreement to abstain from physicality on the "Prime Time" set. Piper refused, and in turn, was fired from "Prime Time." Piper also wrestled Bad News Brown at WrestleMania VI in 1990. The match ended with both men being counted out of the ring, but the real highlight of the match was Piper's choice of ring attire. In true 'Rowdy' fashion, Piper cut a promo and came to the ring with half his body painted black in a strange attempt to play head games with Bad News.

In 1991, he supported Virgil in his feud against "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase and was present at their matches at WrestleMania VII and SummerSlam. He also renewed his feud with Ric Flair and at the 1992 Royal Rumble defeated The Mountie for his first, and only, Intercontinental Championship. He lost it soon after to (his real life cousin) Bret Hart at WrestleMania VIII. After playing the bagpipes at SummerSlam, he disappeared from the WWF.

He reemerged in 1994 at WrestleMania X as guest referee for the WWF Championship match between Bret Hart and Yokozuna. During the match, commentator Jerry "The King" Lawler remarked that he hated Piper and continued to taunt Piper on his King's Court segment on Monday Night Raw, eventually culminating with Lawler bringing out a skinny teenager in a Piper T-shirt and kilt and forcing him to kiss his feet. Enraged, Piper agreed to wrestle Lawler at the King of the Ring, where Piper emerged victorious. Piper wrestled as a fan favorite, saying he had "made a mess of most of his career as a heel", and adding to the face attitude by donating part of his purse from the fight with Lawler to a children's hospital in Ontario.

Leaving the WWF again, he soon returned in 1995 at WrestleMania XI, once again in a referee capacity, for the submission-only match between Hart and Bob Backlund. In 1996, Piper was named as interim WWF President, following Vader's malicious assault on Gorilla Monsoon, following the Royal Rumble. As president, Piper had become the object of affection for Goldust. Enraged, Piper claimed he would "make a man" out of Goldust at WrestleMania XII, in a "Hollywood Backlot Brawl." While the contest began in an alleyway behind the Arrowhead Pond, Goldust jumped into his gold Cadillac and ran Piper over, ultimately escaping (allegedly) onto the highways of Anaheim. Piper pursued in his white Ford Bronco, which when viewed from aerial footage looked similar to the O. J. Simpson "low-speed" chase from two years prior (the WWF had attempted to be humorous and recycle the footage with Vince McMahon quipping on commentary, "This footage looks awfully familiar"). The two eventually returned to the arena, where Piper disrobed Goldust in the ring, effectively ending the confrontation. With Gorilla Monsoon back in control of the WWF by the end of the night, Piper once again left the Federation.

World Championship Wrestling (1996–2000)[link]

Later in 1996, Piper joined World Championship Wrestling (WCW). He appeared at Halloween Havoc to "break Hogan's monotony." In his first appearance, Piper asked Hogan, "Do you think [the fans] would've loved you so much, if they hadn't hated me?" Piper and Hogan wrestled in a non-title match in the main event of Starrcade, WCW's biggest pay-per-view event of the year. Piper defeated Hogan with a sleeper hold. Piper faced Hogan in a title match at SuperBrawl VII. This time, Hogan beat Piper when Randy Savage interfered and joined the New World Order (nWo). Promos showed Piper locking himself in the Alcatraz prison and vigorously exercising in order to prepare for the highly anticipated match. During the spring of 1997, Piper joined forces with Ric Flair and The Four Horsemen in their battle with the nWo. Shortly thereafter, Piper and Flair feuded before Piper disappeared from the scene. Piper briefly returned in October 1997 to face Hogan once again in a steel cage match, which Piper did win.

In early 1998, Piper once again returned to feud with Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, and Bret Hart. In early 1999, Piper had a short run as United States Champion, became WCW Commissioner, and resumed his feud with Flair over control of WCW. Piper also had a short feud with Buff Bagwell in the summer of 1999, where he was defeated by Bagwell, whose mother got involved. In late 1999, Piper was featured on WCW Television, in an angle with Vince Russo, who was now portraying himself as the "Powers That Be" (an unseen power that was controlling WCW). At Starrcade, Piper was the special referee in the WCW title match featuring Goldberg and Bret Hart. This match was otherwise notorious for Goldberg legitimately injuring Bret Hart, giving him the concussion that would eventually lead to his retirement. Forced by Russo, Piper called for the bell when Hart locked in the Sharpshooter on Goldberg, when it was apparent that Goldberg had not submitted. Piper apologized for this incident the next night on Nitro and attempted to make the save for Goldberg when Bret Hart and the nWo beat him down, but the nWo also attacked Piper. Piper's last appearance was at SuperBrawl in 2000 where he was a surprise referee in the title match between Sid Vicious, Jeff Jarrett And Scott Hall. The feud between Piper and the Powers That Be ended shortly after and Piper disappeared, never to be seen on WCW TV again. In the fall of 2000, WCW terminated Piper's contract, and the organization ceased to exist after being sold to WWF several months later.

Before going to the WWE in 2003 Piper was the figurehead and commissioner of the now defunct XWF promotion featured in its earliest live events. (Indiana, Milwaukee, Green Bay)

World Wrestling Entertainment (2003)[link]

In November 2002, Piper's autobiography, In the Pit with Piper: Roddy Gets Rowdy, was released. At WrestleMania XIX in Seattle, Washington, Piper ran in during the Hulk Hogan-Vince McMahon match and made his second WWE run as a villain by attacking Hogan with a steel pipe. He brought back Piper's Pit on the April 10 episode of SmackDown!, and after aligning with Sean O'Haire, Piper smashed a coconut over the head of Rikishi, a relative of Snuka. At Backlash that month, Rikishi returned the favor to Piper. Piper was then put in a program against "Mr. America". The storyline was Hulk Hogan had been bought off WWE television forever by McMahon. Hulk Hogan returned "incognito" although the joke was that everybody knew who he really was, which infuriated McMahon. At this point, Piper and O'Haire were portrayed as McMahon's lackeys attempting to unmask Mr. America. Despite Piper being a heel he still got cheered due to being a legend.

Around the same time on Raw, Chris Jericho started The Highlight Reel—a show similar to 'Piper's Pit'. The two even verbally sparred on TV, with Jericho calling Piper fat and telling him to call him "when he lost some weight"; Piper's retorted, "I have seen Chris Jericho wrestle. I have heard Chris Jericho talk. I have even heard Chris Jericho sing. So I'll make you a deal: I promise you that when I lose some weight, I'll call you. And when you get some talent, you call me." At Judgment Day, the two met again, with Jericho telling Piper he made a wrong turn and missed the senior's home and alluding to the incident where Piper ripped off a fan's (later revealed to be Zach Gowen) leg and used it as a weapon, mentioning there were some midgets and lepers he could thrash, and while patting Piper's stomach, asked if he ate the leg. Piper responded by blasting him for ripping off the Piper's Pit idea and drilling it into the ground and called Jericho's birth an "accident". In June 2003, WWE decided to stop using Piper (who was working without a contract at the time) after a controversial interview with HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel in which Piper discussed the darker side of the wrestling business. On his 2006 DVD, Piper claimed that HBO took parts of his interviews out of context to make wrestling look worse.^[11]

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2003–2005)[link]

In 2003, Piper appeared for the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) promotion, hosting several In the Pit with Piper interview segments. He interviewed former rival Jimmy Snuka at the company's first three-hour pay-per-view, Victory Road, where he dared Snuka to get revenge by hitting him with a coconut. Instead, TNA wrestler Kid Kash eventually used the coconut on Sonjay Dutt. Piper also served as a member of the National Wrestling Alliance Championship Committee, culminating in refereeing a match at Final Resolution between Scott Hall and Jeff Hardy.

The Vince Russo/TNA Controversy[link]

One of Piper's more controversial TNA moments came during one of its weekly pay-per-view shows. Vince Russo at the time was at the center of a massive power struggle (kayfabe) between the TNA roster and Russo's stable of young wrestlers called Sports Entertainment Xtreme. Piper had requested a segment to plug his new book, but instead, used the time to basically shoot on Russo and his effect on the world of professional wrestling. Piper touched on subjects from the death of Piper's real-life cousin, Owen Hart, for which Piper held Russo to blame, to the downfall of WCW amongst other touchy subjects. Russo came to the ring basically "in character" to confront Piper. But, when Piper got in Russo's face, Russo made the comment that Piper was "a moron". Piper not only took offense to the remark, but delivered a "potato shot" to the side of Russo's head. Russo immediately realized that Piper's heat with him was legitimate, and quickly backed off unsure of what Piper might do next. When The Harris Brothers hit the ring to try and cool the situation down, Russo became visibly upset as Piper continued to vehemently shoot on him. Russo got so upset that at one point in time it took both the Harrises to restrain him. Piper later said in a shoot interview that everything he had to say to Russo was real and that he was willing to get physical if Russo had taken it that far.^{[citation needed]} Russo retaliated later by saying that he and Owen were very close and that Piper wasn't even with the company the night Owen died so he had no way of knowing how upset he was with Owen's death.^{[citation needed]}

World Wrestling Entertainment (2005–present)[link]

Hall of Fame (2005)[link]

Piper in 2006.

On February 21, 2005, it was announced that Piper was to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. Piper held an episode of Piper's Pit at WrestleMania 21 where he interviewed Stone Cold Steve Austin. The interview was interrupted by Carlito, who was promptly beaten up by both Piper and Austin.

In February 2005 at an event called WrestleReunion, Piper teamed with Jimmy Valiant and Snuka against Colonel DeBeers, "Cowboy" Bob Orton, and "Playboy" Buddy Rose.

On the July 11, 2005 episode of Raw, Piper returned as a face to host Piper's Pit with guest Shawn Michaels, who superkicked Piper at the end of the show. This was during Michaels' feud with Hulk Hogan. Piper once again appeared on Raw on October 3, 2005 for Raw Homecoming. He hosted Piper's Pit with guest Mick Foley; later in the segment, Randy Orton and "Cowboy" Bob Orton appeared and attacked both Foley and Piper.

SmackDown!; Feud with The Ortons (2005)[link]

This event sparked a mini-feud between Piper and The Ortons. On the next SmackDown! after Homecoming, Piper took on the Ortons in a handicap match. Piper won with a roll-up on Bob Orton after a distraction by The Undertaker. On October 28, Piper teamed with Batista and Eddie Guerrero to take on Randy Orton, Bob Orton, and Mr. Kennedy. Piper won after applying the sleeper hold to Bob Orton. Piper's feud with The Ortons came to an end on the November 4, 2005 episode of SmackDown! with a DQ victory over Bob Orton.

World Tag Team Champion (2006)[link]

Piper returned to Raw on September 11, 2006 for a six-man tag team match win with The Highlanders against the Spirit Squad. He also appeared on the Raw Family Reunion, along with Money Inc. and Arn Anderson to accompany Ric Flair ringside for a match against Mitch of the Spirit Squad. On November 5, Piper won the World Tag Team Championship with Ric Flair from The Spirit Squad at Cyber Sunday, after being chosen to be Flair's partner by voters at WWE.com over Sgt. Slaughter and Dusty Rhodes. On the November 13, 2006 episode of Raw, Piper and Flair lost the title to Rated-RKO. Piper never made it to the ring, as he was attacked by Edge with a con-chair-to before the match. On November 17, 2006, WWE announced on their website that Piper was flown from the UK to his home state of Oregon and had surgery for what was originally believed to be kidney stones, but was speculated to be a disc problem in his back. It was later determined to be cancer. As a result of the procedure, it was announced that he was withdrawing from the Survivor Series match which would have pitted himself (as a co-captain), along with Flair, Anderson, Sgt. Slaughter, and Dusty Rhodes against the Spirit Squad. He was replaced with Ron Simmons.

Various storylines (2007–present)[link]

He made a return to Raw on an episode taped February 12, 2007, during which he announced that his friend Dusty Rhodes was to be the first person inducted into the 2007 class of the WWE Hall of Fame. During his appearance Umaga, with manager Armando Alejandro Estrada, entered the ring and laid out both men. He then returned on the June 11, 2007 episode of Raw as part of "Mr. McMahon Appreciation Night", where he introduced a video of some of McMahon's most embarrassing moments. In 2008, after finishing his therapy for Hodgkin's lymphoma, he made a brief appearance in the Royal Rumble, primarily focusing on "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka. Both men were eliminated by Kane shortly after they entered the ring.

Piper returned to Raw on April 28, 2008. He was a backstage visitor, and was confronted by Santino Marella. Marella poked fun at Piper's weight, which resulted in Santino getting slapped by Piper. The next week, Piper was a guest on Carlito's Cabana and Carlito and Santino were about to double team Piper when they were chased off by Cody Rhodes and Cryme Tyme. On May 12, Piper's interference stopped Santino and Carlito from beating Rhodes and Hardcore Holly for the World Tag Team Championship. Santino then threatened Piper with retaliation, culminating in a confrontation with Piper during the May 16 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!. He wrestled his presumed last match on April 18, 2008 one day after his 54th birthday at Newburgh Free Academy’s Spring Slam.^[12] On October 26, 2008, however, Piper appeared on WWE's Cyber Sunday as one of the three choices fans could choose to face Marella for the WWE Intercontinental Championship. The other choices were Goldust and The Honky Tonk Man. Honky Tonk Man was chosen and won via a disqualification due to interference by Beth Phoenix and therefore did not win the title. Goldust then entered the ring, followed by Piper. The three candidates then fought Santino, afterwards celebrating together in the ring. Piper appeared on the October 27 episode of Raw as a special guest commentator, along with both Goldust and Honky Tonk Man, for Marella's match against Charlie Haas.

Piper with Ricky Steamboat and Jimmy Snuka before their match with Chris Jericho at WrestleMania XXV in 2009.

On February 16, 2009 Piper returned to Raw to confront Chris Jericho after Jericho continued to act disrespectfully towards the Hall of Famers. After the segment, Jericho attacked Piper. One month later, on the March 16 episode of Raw, Piper would get his revenge when he, along with Ric Flair, Jimmy Snuka, and Ricky Steamboat, attacked Jericho. For the first time since Wrestlemania XII in 1996, Piper wrestled at WrestleMania XXV along with Snuka and Steamboat with Flair in their corner to go against Jericho in a three on one handicap match. Jericho won the match; Piper was the second of the three to be eliminated. Piper later guest hosted WWE Raw on November 16, 2009 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Piper challenged Vince McMahon to a street fight later in the evening only to have Randy Orton come out to fight against, then shortly after Kofi Kingston came out to stop Randy's assault on Piper. He inducted Wendy Richter to the 2010 WWE Hall of Fame on March 27, 2010. He also appeared the next night on Raw as one of the Legend Lumberjacks in a match that involved Christian and Ted Dibiase. Two months later, Piper turned heel for one night only by hiring DiBiase to capture guest host Quinton Jackson so he could "gain revenge on BA", but was unsuccessful.

On the July 12, 2010 episode of Raw, it was hinted that Piper could possibly be the Anonymous General Manager as on an e-mail sent to Michael Cole, the GM said "Just when you think you have all the answers, I change the questions." The idea was abandoned on the July 24 episode of Raw when Cole said " And if you're not down with that I got two words for you" which was Triple H and Shawn Michaels trademark line as D-Generation X, but again this idea was dropped. On the November 15, 2010 episode of Raw, Piper quickly turned face during a return of Piper's Pit telling John Cena to do the right thing by calling the WWE Championship match at Survivor Series between Wade Barrett and Randy Orton down the middle. He went on to point out that legends such as Ricky Steamboat, "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig, Jimmy Snuka, and himself had never won a World Championship in WWE. On January 29, 2011, Piper made his debut for Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG) during the WrestleReunion 5 weekend, defeating nineteen other men, last eliminating Terry Funk, to win the Legends Battle Royal.^[13][14] He appeared in a backstage segment at WrestleMania XXVII where he hit Zack Ryder in the back of the head with a coconut, reminiscing of what he did to Jimmy Snuka. Piper made an appearance on the June 13, 2011 episode of Monday Night Raw, hosting Piper's Pit once again. His guests were The Miz and Alex Riley, which led to a match with The Miz with Riley as the special guest referee. He went on to win the match, and won $5,000 out of The Miz's money per the pre-match stipulation. Roddy Piper noted that he was paid $5,000 for his appearance on the June 13th RAW for Piper's Pit with The Miz and Alex Riley. Piper currently co-host the WWE Vintage show with Gene Okerlund. He recently made a television appearance in WWE and hosted a Piper's Pit segment featuring John Cena on the November 28, 2011 episode of Monday Night Raw.^[15] He also appeared on November 29, 2011 special holiday edition of SmackDown. Piper returned on the April 10, 2012 special edition of Smackdown: Blast from the Past, in which he hosted Piper's Pit featuring Daniel Bryan and AJ Lee.

Other media[link]

Piper featured in the wrestling documentary Bloodstained Memoirs.^[16][17] Piper was a guest on a 1985 Saturday Night Live episode, tormenting hosts Hulk Hogan and Mr. T, and has appeared as a special guest on MADtv along with Bret Hart. In 1991, the pilot episode for "Tag Team", a television program about two ex-professional wrestlers turned police officers, starred Piper and Jesse "The Body" Ventura.^[18] Piper appeared as a wrestler loosely based on himself in an episode called "Crusader" from Walker, Texas Ranger where his name was Cody "The Crusader" Conway. Piper appeared as a prison antagonist in an episode of The Outer Limits TV series. Piper was the host of ITV's Celebrity Wrestling in the UK. Piper appeared as a character named Commander Cash on RoboCop: The Series. Piper appeared as a choice in the "Wheel of Destiny" segment of The Man Show. Piper also starred in the 1988 John Carpenter cult classic, They Live. Piper played a drifter turned saviour of the human race after discovering a pair of sunglasses that allow him to see the world's elite for what they truly are, money hungry aliens with a new-world-order-like agenda. That same year, he starred in the cult classic Hell Comes to Frogtown. He also starred in an episode in the second season of the Highlander TV series, and appeared in the It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia episode "The Gang Wrestles For the Troops" as "The Maniac", a parody of Mickey Rourke's role in the film The Wrestler.

In 2007, Piper became the second pro-wrestler, the other being Sgt. Slaughter, to have their likeness crafted in a G.I. Joe figure. According to his filecard, he is a trainer for Destro's Iron Grenadiers.

In April 2005, Piper co-presented Celebrity Wrestling in the United Kingdom on ITV1. This Saturday evening reality show saw celebrities learn wrestling and compete in challenge matches. After a few weeks the program was to be canceled, due to a huge drop in TV ratings but instead was moved to Sunday mornings to finish its final episodes.

In the 1980s, Piper also appeared in singer Cyndi Lauper's music video for the song "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough."^[19] He also appeared as a guest VJ on MTV in 1988.

Wizard's list of the 100 Greatest Villains of All Time ranked Roddy Piper as #35.^[20]

On October 29, 2009, Piper appeared as pro-wrestler named "Da' Maniac" on season 5 episode 7 ("The Gang Wrestles for the Troops") of the sitcom It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, parodying Mickey Rourke's role in The Wrestler.

In UGK'S "International Players Anthem" DJ Paul pokes fun at Andre 3000 asking him why is he dressed as Roddy Piper.

On March 14, 2010, Piper appeared in an episode in CBS's 'Cold Case' playing a wrestler named Sweet Sil. The episode was titled 'One Fall'. The team reopens the case of a dock worker who was moonlighting as an indy-circuit wrestler until he was shot dead in 1986.

In September 2010, Piper appeared in a FunnyorDie.com video, fighting against childhood obesity in a PSA parody. The clip included him using wrestling moves on children eating junk food and the parents who feed junk food to their kids.

In 2010 Piper was expected to appear in a reality series from Red Line Films the producers of Dhani Tackles the Glode and the Ocho de Cinco Reality Series [2]^{[citation needed]}

In December 2011, Piper appeared in several segments of the Air Farce's "Not the New Year's Eve Special", which aired on January 1, 2012, on the CBC Television Network in Canada.

It has been confirmed that Piper will appear on WWE Network's WWE Legends' House which is currently in production.^[21]

Personal life[link]

Piper and his wife Kitty live in Hillsboro, Oregon, and have four children: daughters Anastacia Shea, Ariel Teal, and Falon Danika and son Colton Baird. Anastacia has a child, making Piper a grandfather. His son Colt Toombs is also an aspiring professional mixed martial arts fighter. His daughter Ariel Teal Toombs is following her dad's lead in Hollywood as an actress. Piper was notable for wearing his wedding band during his matches, a rarity among professional wrestlers. Piper is also a cousin of the Hart wrestling family.^[22][23]

On April 4, 2006 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Piper was issued an award by the Mayor, Sam Katz. On July 27, 2006, he had the honor of throwing out the first pitch of a St. Louis Cardinals/Chicago Cubs baseball game at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

On November 27, 2006, it was announced on WWE.com that Piper has Hodgkin's lymphoma, and he finished radiation therapy on January 15, 2007.^[24] This was also confirmed on Piper's official web site where he posted messages of thanks to all his fans and stated that had the fans not chosen him as Ric Flair's partner at Cyber Sunday he would not have been taken to the hospital and diagnosed as having his disease in time.

In November 2008 a video spread around the internet showing Piper smoking pot and taking a hit from a bong in front of a crowd cheering him on, although he later acknowledged his use of medicinal marijuana "to alleviate the symptoms associated with cancer."^[25] This was reiterated on a blog from Jim Ross.^[26]

On July 2, 2009, TMZ.com reported that Piper was arrested on suspicion of DUI in the early morning hours in Hollywood, California. Piper was stopped by police at around 1:00 a.m. and given field sobriety tests. He was then arrested. His bond was set at $5,000.

Legacy[link]

Piper is considered one of the greatest heels in wrestling history. Piper's Pit interview segments were considered innovative, especially in an atmosphere where only the people like the World champion got to talk, and the wrestlers were the interviewees - never the interviewers. Many of the people on Piper's Pit never got to be World champion, but were main eventers. According to Bobby "the Brain" Heenan, he could just leave Piper in a room and return twenty minutes later with Piper having done a class-A promo.^[27]

In wrestling[link]

• Finishing moves
  • Sleeper hold^[1][2]

• Signature moves
  • Belly to back suplex^[28]
  • Bulldog^[29][30]
  • Figure four leglock^[31]
  • Inverted atomic drop^[28]
  • Low blow^[28][32]
  • Multiple jabs^[2]
  • Poking or raking the opponent eyes^[31]
  • Running high knee strike^[28]

• Managers
  • Bob Orton Jr.

• Wrestlers managed
  • Sean O'Haire
  • Virgil
  • Paul Orndorff
  • Dr. D. David Schultz^[28]
  • Big John Studd^{[citation needed]}

• Nicknames
  • "Rowdy"
  • "The Rowdy One"^[3]
  • "Hot Rod"^[3]
  • "Hot Scot"^[3]

• Entrance themes
  • "Green Hills of Tyrol" from the Chappell Production Library (WWE/WCW/TNA)
  • "Hot Rod" by Jim Johnston (WWE)
  • "Bonnie Lass of Fyvie and Scotland the Brave" (WWE/TNA)

Championships and accomplishments[link]

• Cauliflower Alley Club
  • Reel Member Inductee (2001)

• Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling / World Championship Wrestling
  • NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship (3 times)^[33]
  • NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Big John Studd^[34]
  • NWA Television Championship (2 times)^[35]
  • NWA/WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (3 times)^[36]

• NWA All-Star Wrestling
  • NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship (Vancouver version) (1 time) - with Rick Martel^[37]

• NWA Hollywood Wrestling
  • NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship (5 times)^[38]
  • NWA Americas Tag Team Championship (7 times) - with Crusher Verdu (2), Adrian Adonis (1), Chavo Guerrero (1), Kengo Kimura (1), Ron Bass (1), and The Hangman (1)^[39]
  • NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^1[40]

• NWA San Francisco
  • NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (San Francisco version) (1 time)^[41]
  • NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) (1 time) - with Ed Wiskoski^[42]

• Pacific Northwest Wrestling
  • NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship (2 times)^[43]
  • NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship (5 times) - with Killer Tim Brooks (1), Rick Martel (3), and Mike Popovich (1)^[44]

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year (1982)^[45]
  • PWI Most Hated Wrestler of the Year (1984, 1985)
  • PWI Match of the Year (1985) with Paul Orndorff vs. Hulk Hogan & Mr. T at WrestleMania
  • PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (1986)
  • PWI ranked him # 17 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.

• Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum
  • Class of 2007^[46]

• World Class Championship Wrestling
  • NWA American Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Bulldog Brower^[47]

• World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment
  • WWF Intercontinental Championship (1 time)^[48]
  • World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Ric Flair^[49]
  • WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2005)^[50]
  • Slammy Award for Best Personality in Land of a Thousand Dances (1986)

• Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
  • Best Interviews (1981) tied with Lou Albano
  • Best Interviews (1982, 1983)
  • Best Heel (1984, 1985)
  • Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 1996)
  • Worst Worked Match of the Year (1986) vs. Mr. T in a boxing match at WrestleMania
  • Worst Worked Match of the Year (1997) vs. Hulk Hogan at SuperBrawl

¹The NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship is no longer recognized or sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance.

Lucha de Apuesta record[link]

Filmography[link]

Voice acting[link]

In 2006, Roddy Piper ventured into the realm of voice acting, appearing on Cartoon Network's animated series Robot Chicken (as himself), as well as providing the voice of The Pyro Messiah in the Night Traveler multimedia adventure series produced by Lunar Moth Entertainment. He will also be doing voice for Green Lantern: Emerald Knights

References[link]

External links[link]

Professional wrestling portal

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Roddy Piper

• Official website
• [3] Rick Bassman Talent agent
• Roddy Piper at the Internet Movie Database
• WWE Hall of Fame Profile of Roddy Piper
• Roddy Piper in Slam! Canadian Wrestling Hall of Fame
• Roddy Piper Slam! Wrestling Career Archive