WWE Hanukkah Celebration: 20 of the Greatest Jewish Wrestlers Ever
On Hershel, on Mose, on Shlomo. It's Hanukkah in the world of professional wrestling.
While we celebrate the eight crazy nights and eat potato pancakes, watch some Raw and SmackDown and think of the holidays, we look at this time of the year as one of reflection.
Some of the best-known wrestlers of the past 30 years are Jewish. Some will surprise you. Some are quite obvious and some, we can't get enough of.
These wrestlers and business leaders have helped to entertain us in and out of the ring.
Albert
1 of 19The A-Train had nominal success in the WWF as a tag team champion with Test and then-manager Trish Stratus.
Albert was huge, big and a brawler who could just beat the hell out of his opponents.
There weren't many in the Federation as strong and tough as him at the time he was relevant.
Steve Blackman
2 of 19An MMA star who crossed over to the WWF.
Blackman's martial arts experience and his physique were impressive.
Known as the "Lethal Weapon," he won the Hardcore title in the WWF six times.
Goldberg
3 of 19He seems so yesterday, but Goldberg is still one of the most talked-about wrestlers around.
He came into the business as fast as he left and along the way, he beat the hell out of wrestlers, had a streak of 180 straight wins and captured the WCW World title.
And when he moved to WWF, he was not as well received as before.
He was a fad that just outgrew himself and was stiff and hard to work with.
Michael Hayes
4 of 19The man from "Badstreet USA" was an interviewer's dream.
He was brash, bold, could wrestle and talk all at once.
He was part of a badass clique named the Freebirds and could have had a successful singles career.
He was certainly an original.
Paul Heyman
5 of 19A true self-made man in the world of professional wrestling.
He invented extreme wrestling and he helped to promote the careers of RVD, Brock Lesnar and others.
He was an amazing voice on the mic. And most of what he has said over the years, although loud and obnoxious, made sense once it was accomplished.
Barry Horowitz
6 of 19Mr. Jobber, himself.
Horowitz made it cool to lose matches.
He was a cult hero in the WWF and actually did well at it.
He also was successful in Florida as the former Florida heavyweight champion.
Missy Hyatt
7 of 19I did not know she was a member of the tribe, but we welcome her with open arms!
There is something to be said about a beauty who is also good at business.
And when she could, she would help her stable-mates break a rule or two.
Kane
8 of 19One of the most recognizable names and faces in wrestling.
Big, strong and powerful, Glenn Jacobs is a beast and is proving that at 44 he is still one bad man.
He still has the gimmick of a lifetime and makes the character sing every time he is in the squared circle.
Billy Kidman
9 of 19A cruiserweight who got lost in the sale of WCW.
Kidman could have been one of the best ever and probably would have done well in TNA.
He is now an agent in the WWE.
'Maniac' Mark Lewin
10 of 19The Purple Haze was a wrestler for five decades, inflicting punishment on wrestlers across the country.
He was a maniac in the ring and seemed to ward off pain.
He was a member of Kevin Sullivan's satanic army and battled in Texas as well.
Dean Malenko
11 of 19The consummate technical wrestler.
There were few as good and solid as Malenko in his prime.
As a Horsemen member, I did not think he was a good fit, but he had a silent style that was so against the grain that it worked.
His father Boris Malenko was one of the best as well.
One of the best ever.
Mark Mero
12 of 19Former boxer and wrestler.
Started in WCW as the Johnny B. Badd and was escorted to the ring by Kimberly Page. He left WCW and said he was not comfortable being escorted to the ring by another man's wife.
He came to the WWF and was managed by real life Sable and even claimed the Intercontinental title.
Was not as successful as his wife (who would be?) and left the federation without a bang.
Kevin Nash
13 of 19He is certainly the biggest Jewish wrestler ever.
Nash is a star, whether it is in the WWF, WCW, TNA or now WWE.
Big, tall, a great story writer and booker.
He has held all the major titles in the different federations.
Nasty Boys
14 of 19Knobbs and Saggs were two of the ugliest wrestlers in the history of the business.
They just made it work.
Real-life friends of Hulk Hogan, the odd pair won the WWF tag titles along the way.
Diamond Dallas Page
15 of 19Page Faulkenberg was an original.
He is a self-made wrestler, starting as a manager, a commentator and then a wrestler.
He won the WCW World title three times and was a fan favorite.
Brian Pillman
16 of 19He left the wrestling world too early in his life.
He was a great tag team champion with Steve Austin in WCW and was a singles success in both the WCW and then WWF.
He showed his "dark" side in a feud with Goldust.
He had great "upside" and could have been a "Jericho-like" competitor.
Raven
17 of 19Scott Levy was a skinny kid who came into his own as "Raven."
The psychotic one had his own flock and featured stars like Perry Saturn and Kidman.
He was a former ECW champion and feuded with the likes of Sandman.
Randy Savage
18 of 19One of the greatest ever.
Savage was one of the five best ever in the ring and 10 best ever on the mic.
He was loved, hated and respected by all.
And when it came to performing in the ring, he was better than Hogan and rivaled Flair and Piper.
The Grand Wizard of Wrestling
19 of 19Ernie Roth was one of the best heel managers of all time.
A manager of Billy Graham and Hulk Hogan, he was known as much for his managing style as he was for the outfits he wore to the ring.
He, Bobby Heenan and Lou Albano formed the trinity of heel managers in the WWF in the 1970s.
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