Dusty Rhodes's 10 Greatest Legacies

“I’ve wined and dined with kings and queens, and I’ve slept in alleys and dined on pork and beans!”

Think about it…..what is the American dream? That anyone from any background could one day become President, the most powerful man in the world, through hard work and dedication. The nickname fitted Dusty Rhodes perfectly. He was the everyman, the son of a plumber, a man with a physique more likely to be seen in a supermarket than a gym. When Jimmy Hart wrote his WWF entrance music, it’s no coincidence that the first line of the song was “He’s just a common man”. Dusty Rhodes identified with the everyday people at wrestling shows, and they identified with him. This legendary promo, ‘Hard Times’ sums this up perfectly. The passion behind his promos, the unique delivery (almost everyone in wrestling can do a Dusty Rhodes impersonation if asked) and the choice of his words all combined to make Dusty one of the greatest promo men ever.

The common man character is timeless, and was a major factor in the success of his feud in the NWA with the jet-flying, limousine-riding World Champion Ric Flair, as well as his feud in the WWF with ‘The Million Dollar Man’ Ted DiBiase. Both characters were the absolute opposites of Dusty’s hard working ‘common man’ character. While Dusty wore jeans and cowboy boots, they were always immaculately turned out in suits. In the same way that DiBiase’s character could go on forever without needing any major changes, because people could identify with a concept as simple and all-pervasive as money, so could Dusty.