Dusty Rhodes dies at age 69

[Rhettmatic]

Stunned by this.

http://www.wwe.com/inside/dusty-rhodes-passes-away-27496030

WWE is deeply saddened that Virgil Runnels, aka “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes — WWE Hall of Famer, three-time NWA Champion and one of the most captivating and charismatic figures in sports entertainment history — passed away today at the age of 69.

Runnels became a hero to fans around the world thanks to his work ethic, his impassioned interviews and his indomitable spirit. Moreover, Runnels was a dedicated father to WWE Superstars Goldust (Dustin Runnels) and Stardust (Cody Runnels), a caring husband and a creative visionary who helped shape the landscape of WWE long after his in-ring career had ended.

WWE extends its sincerest condolences to Runnels’ family, friends and colleagues.

[studcrackers]

Woah

[Cammo101]

Bummer. He was one of the true giants of the industry.

[Shaazzam]

Sad. Part of my childhood.

[skbucks1985]

Wow! Unfortunately I was a touch too young to live through Dusty as an active performer, but I've seen plenty of his stuff through youtube and various DVD's and whenever you would see him come by and do a one-off, he was so charismatic and captivating.

RIP Dream

[LLJ]

69 is actually a pretty good run for a pro wrestler.

[TaiLs21]

RIP Dadeh

[Ruzious]

RIP to maybe the most charismatic person the industry ever had - if you weeeil.

Hopefully, they'll have a tribute on Smackdown tonight. He's one of the most important players in the industry's history - in the tv era.

[Stanford]

Dusty is mentioned in podcasts at a crazy rate. More than anyone. He's had a direct influence on practically every notable wrestler of the past 4 decades. What a loss.

[AirCanadaMouse]

"He's got a bicycle!"

RIP. Came out of no where, especially since he was working down in NXT and doing a great job too. Hopefully all is well with Cody + Dustin.

[iMoreland]

He was the most charismatic performer of all time. His amazing unique verbal styling will never be duplicated or exceeded. He was exactly what he portrayed on TV: A blue-collar, common man, who rose from being son of a farmer to being a part of American pop culture, whose memory will live forever. Therefore, for many he was truly the American Dream.

R.I.P.

[whysoserious]

Just saw the Rocks post on Instagram and completely shocked. So sad. Gonna miss that voice.

[WRau1]

Just about every top star pro wrestling has had over the past 25+ years has credited Dusty for helping them with something. What a huge loss for this business. RIP.

[studcrackers]

this is awesome

[tweet]https://twitter.com/FightOwensFight/status/609167481471676417[/tweet]

[dr3am]

r.i.p. to the american dream, so saddened by this man, wow

[dr3am]

so epic

https://instagram.com/p/3zt4Y_Ihwh/

[Ruzious]

The flip flop and fly bionic elbow - often copied - never duplicated. Regards to Cody and Dustin - hope to see them on Raw just to see they're ok.

[Scott Hall]

I just saw him tweeting about the Tampa Bay Lightning the other day last time I saw him was at WM 31 on
a network special panel and I noticed how much weight he had lost and how old looking he was compared
to a few years ago.

I wish he had a longer WWE run as an active wrestler...

What a massive loss for the industry

[TaxiDriver]

Steve Corino talking about Dusty: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJRnxt-_2b0

[TheKingofSting]

He was one of my favorites that helped me get into watching Wrestling as a kid. Its still hard to believe that he is really gone.

R.I.P. American Dream!