Favorite Managers

1. Bobby Heenan

The Brain was almost the easiest manager to hate. That’s what made him such a wonderful heel manager. The Heenan Family, in all its forms, was always the stable to watch. Heenan has managed roughly forty wrestlers throughout the years he was ringside. He was even better as a TV commentator. My favorite Bobby Heenan commentator moment was when Hogan came out to join the nWo. Tony Schiavone and Dusty Rhodes were cheering, “Here’s Hogan!” Heenan came back with, “But whose side is he on?” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTOElx4nT6w)

2. Skandar Akbar

The head man of Devestation Inc. was the most despicable man he could be. One of the few wrestlers or managers to actually receive death threats for his character. Akbar always had the biggest and the baddest wrestlers. He was a thorn in everyone’s side in Dallas until the day that Eric Embry beat P.Y. Chu-Hi in the USWA vs WCCW cage match in 1989.

3. Missy Hyatt

What can you say about Missy Hyatt? Even in the early days with Hollywood John Tatum, she was the role model for what a female valet was supposed to be. She was distractingly gorgeous and fiesty when she got the chance. Unfortunately, most wrestling fans under the age of 30 probably only know her from finding her arm wrestling match against Paul E. Dangerously from Clash of the Champions XIV or her many shoot interviews talking about her sexual escapades on YouTube.

4. Sunshine

Sunshine, named after the Sunshine State of Florida, was Jimmy Garvin’s first valet in World Class Championship Wrestling. She was as conniving as Missy Hyatt, but she had an adorable, angelic face.

5. Paul Ellering

When you have two powerful dudes like the Road Warriors, you need someone with the brains. I couldn’t see the Road Warriors aligning themselves with Bobby Heenan, but Ellering was a very good fit for them. I still remember Ellering carrying around that antique cordless phone. Even in the 80s it was ridiculous. But he was a very effective manager.

6. Paul E. Dangerously

I’m not necessarily thrilled with the Paul Heyman character. I’d rather go back to the pre-ECW Paul E. Dangerously. Dangerously meddled in most everything that involved the tag team world in the 80s and early 90s. His feud with Jim Cornette is legendary. His feud with Paul Ellering was also very good. Dangerously had a way of running his mouth and ticking you off, but his guys could back up everything he said.

7. Precious

Precious wasn’t quite as well suited for being Jimmy Garvin’s valet than Sunshine, even though Precious is Garvin’s wife. Precious followed Garvin from WCCW to AWA to JCP. While being supportive of her husband’s work, her heart just didn’t seem to be in it most of the time.

8. J.J. Dillon

The Four Horsemen were the greatest stable in the history of wrestling. The brains that operated the Horsemen was J.J. Dillon. He represented the business interests of his clients. He didn’t necessarily involve himself physically in the matches, but his interference was always well-calculated.

9. Brother Love

I LOOOOOOVE YOOOOOOU!! The WWF’s only television preacher was one of the great gimmicks of the “Golden Age”. I was glad to see him in the Gimmick Battle Royal at WrestleMania X-Seven. He was a great personality, but the Undertaker was the greatest wrestler he managed.

10. Percy Pringle

William Moody shows up on both manager lists. I enjoyed him much more as Percy Pringle. While he still had the creepy screech of a laugh, he was typically a jovial manager as a heel or babyface. His best wrestlers to manage as Percy Pringle were Rick Rude, Eric Embry and a young Steve Austin.