When WWE began breaking out from a pure wrestling company to more "sports entertainment" in the 1980s, that changed the presentation of their wrestlers. That included the addition of nicknames, some used as ring names while others were just some fun monikers. A few guys used names they already had, like Randy "Macho Man" Savage and Greg "The Hammer" Valentine. Yet it was fun when WWE added a few nicknames of their own.
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Some were so successful that they became used by wrestlers for almost their entire careers. Others are a bit less known today but were still great for fans to enjoy back in this time period. They set the bar for some of the big nicknames to follow and still shone nicely. These ten nicknames were among the best created by WWE in the Golden Age and made their workers even bigger stars.
10 Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake
It's the alliteration that makes this so good. Brutus Beefcake had already been a tag team champion yet didn't seem that promising for a singles run. That changed when he helped shave Adrian Adonis and hit upon the Barber gimmick.
It seemed dumb, but it got Beefcake over and the way the name worked so well helped him out with fans. It was to pay off by winning the Intercontinental Title in 1990, but a nasty accident marred it. Yet before that, the Barber name was great, making Beefcake into one of the better stars of the time.
9 Bret "The Hitman" Hart
This is a nickname that spanned several eras, but it all got started in the Golden Era of WWE. It's funny how Bret Hart started with a cowboy gimmick in WWE that didn't do well at first. Adding "The Hitman" was good and then turning heel to join Jim Neidhart in the Hart Foundation.
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It was a good aid for Bret when he tried a singles run in 1989 before reuniting the Foundation. It was his later singles run that added further labels like "The Excellence of Execution," but the "Hitman" moniker was the first step toward Bret's super-stardom in WWE.
8 Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat
Another case of a guy already a good star before he came to WWE, Ricky Steamboat just needed something special added. At first, throwing him into a karate outfit seemed off, but thankfully, WWE also gave him the nickname "the Dragon."
Somehow, that clicked beautifully for Steamboat, added by his outfits and at one point even a Komodo dragon pet. He roared with the classic match against Randy Savage and thankfully was able to keep it for his later runs in WCW. The Dragon nickname helped Steamboat soar higher than ever in wrestling.
7 Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart
While Bret Hart had a few nicknames that were great, Jim Neidhart only needed one. "The Anvil" fit Neidhart with his stocky build, the strong man to Bret's expert tactician.
Neidhart carried the load more in the promos with his loud laugh but backed it up in the ring with his power that made the Hart Foundation two-time Tag Team Champions. Neidhart never quite had the same fame as Bret after the Foundation split, yet the Anvil nickname still suited the great worker.
6 "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase
Ted DiBiase had been a great star in the Mid-South area and could have already been a top one in WWE. But Vince McMahon had the genius idea of turning him into an arrogant rich man ready to buy anyone he wanted.
"The Million Dollar Man" rolled off the tongue and aided DiBiase in his rise to the main event. He added to it with the Million Dollar Championship and later the WWE Tag Team Titles. His return to NXT showed DiBiase could still sell the gimmick brilliantly and this nickname transformed him from just a promising talent to a huge star of his time.
5 Zeus: The Human Wrecking Machine
It's a shame Tommy Lister couldn't really work a good match because he had the ingredients to be a monster heel. Having played Zeus in the movie No Holds Barred, Lister showed up in character to attack Hulk Hogan in 1989.
He looked amazing with his build, intensity and sold as a guy who couldn't be hurt. "The Human Wrecking Machine" fit him as this monster ready to crush everyone in his path. Sadly, his lack of ring skills made his run short, but Zeus did get a great nickname that could have made him a bigger deal.
4 "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff
Roddy Piper did a lot of great stuff in wrestling, but one of the most underrated was granting Paul Orndorff the nickname that would follow him through his career. Orndorff was a heel helping Piper, who offhandedly called him "Mr. Wonderful" in an interview.
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It stuck, and it says a lot that it worked for Orndorff whether a heel or a face. He really shone in his epic 1986 feud with Hulk Hogan and would continue to use the name. Thus, Piper's offhand line was a truly wonderful bit for Orndorff's career.
3 "The Mouth Of The South" Jimmy Hart
While Jimmy Hart always had a gift for gab in his days in Memphis, it was in WWE that he truly took off. Hart became famous for his loud promos, louder suits, sunglasses and, of course, that trusty megaphone to yell out stuff. Thus, "The Mouth of the South" fit him perfectly.
Hart was a huge success in WWE, leading several teams like the Hart Foundation to the tag titles and an unlikely face turn later. He'd keep up the "Mouth" name for a while, which always fit him as WWE helped push Hart to monster success, as a guy who could back up the mouth with some fun antics.
2 Mr. Perfect
Curt Hennig was likely always going to be a star in WWE anyway. He was a former AWA World Champion and an amazingly gifted worker who excelled as a heel. But giving him the "Mr. Perfect" name was just…well, perfect.
Vignettes played up Perfect being terrific at almost any sport or other action and boasting of his greatness. That paid off with a great run in WWE, two-time Intercontinental Champion, some terrific feuds and classic matches. Long past his death, the name still fits as Perfect.
1 The Texas Tornado
Kerry Von Erich's run in WWE was never as successful as hoped due to his personal issues. However, he got a good push as the "Texas Tornado," fitting both his native state and his discus punch move.
Before long, this became Kerry's main name in WWE, leading to a brief run as IC Champion. Sadly, he never got major success afterward despite some decent feuds, yet it was a boost to fans to see Kerry getting a shot at the big time, and the Tornado name did push him for a brief time in WWE.
