10 Moments Legendary WWE Careers Almost Died
4. Goldust's Shine Fades
Multiple hirings and firings blighted the career of tag team supremo Marty Jannetty in the post-Rockers period of his troubled tenure, but Dustin 'Goldust' Runnels has caused just as much paperwork for the WWE HR office as the former tag team champion.
Runnels' latest (and presumably last) run has been his most prosperous - returning in 2013 to partner brother Cody against The Authority revealed a performer in the best physical and mental shape of his life in spite of a reputation damaged by numerous battles with drug and alcohol addictions and inconsistent spells between the ropes.
Goldust's 2003 disappearing act appeared to mark his final end with the company. Despite enjoyable work alongside Booker T following a Royal Rumble 2002 return, his gimmick and workrate didn't match up to an rapidly-improving norm, and he'd been on thin ice since being one of the many to cause some of the ugly scenes on 2002's infamous 'Plane Ride From Hell'. That he made a permanent return yet again a decade later after so many false starts speaks to both the resilience of the man and the willingness of the organisation to continue to take a chance on him.