In 1997, deep in the hunt of the ratings game during the most pivotal time in the history of modern wrestling, one of the founding fathers of the legendary Four Horsemen was forced to retire. The Enforcer Arn Anderson, the most physical member of the deadliest foursome in wrestling history. Eric Bischoff decided to exploit the plight of Anderson as a pawn for ratings, allowing him to give his farewell speech to the millions watching at home around the world and make his peace with what had happened. The Four Horsemen were rich in wrestling history. They were consistently powerful throughout an entire decade, unlike the carnival sideshow that the modern interpretation the nWo quickly became. Anderson was a huge part of that, playing the strong arm of the group to Flairs charisma. The Horsemen were no joke, and a force to be reckoned with when it came to beat-downs and winning championships. Unfortunately, the rough bumps Anderson took to the head, neck, and back forced him to lose feeling in his left arm. After surgeries and attempted comebacks, the Enforcer retired. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8f_mjKBJH0 An emotional speech graced TV screens on WCW Monday Nitro, with Anderson going over the logistics of why he was retiring. Many tears were shed by those in attendance, including Ric Flair, though the nWo would soon parody Arns real-life tragedy and strike too close to home for many in the wrestling industry. Kevin Nash portrayed Anderson as a bumbling, overweight drunk, and with no real way for Anderson to get his comeuppance (as well as the nWos knack for rarely getting what was coming to them), many saw it as kicking dirt into the wound of a respected veteran who didnt deserve it. Nash would go on to say that he took a few lumps from Anderson when brawls would ensue between the two, and Anderson is still reluctant to speak of the incident. A beautiful celebration of a wonderful career was sullied, typical of the mark the nWo left on WCW in general.
David McCutcheon is an American freelance journalist and writing consultant. Over the course of sixteen years, he has written for the likes of IGN, Future US, GamesRadar, PlayStation Magazine, Shout! Factory, and many others in the fields of video games, movies, and more. He lives in St. Louis, Missouri with his wife. You can find him on Twitter @ZoopSoul.
