#38: John Cena

Real Name: John Felix Anthony Cena
Biggest Fan: John Rohner "Says 'you can't see me'. He has won so many matches. He can pick up the Big Show. He's an icon."

John Cena burst upon the scene in the WWE less than nine years ago, battling Kurt Angle in his first match and taking the former champion to the limit, even kicking up from the Angle Slam. This impressive debut, and the popularity of the white rapper gimmick he would soon adopt, made Cena an incredibly popular superstar early on in his career. So, it's no wonder that he's already done enough in only one decade of action to be ranked so highly on this list.

The timing worked out perfectly for John Cena to become a megastar in wrestling. John Bradshaw Layfield was the reigning WWE Champion for most of 2004 and the beginning of 2005. Nothing against JBL, but not one of our experts placed him anywhere on their lists, so to say that the opportunity was there for an exciting young talent to take over would probably be an accurate statement. So, at WrestleMania 21 (while Edge was winning the Money in the Bank briefcase that would ultimately result in the end of Cena's reign), JBL found himself on the business end of an F-U (the fireman's carry-esque finisher Cena employs) and dropped the title to John Cena.

Cena's first reign lasted for 280 days (tied for the 12th-longest in history with the JBL reign immediately preceding it and Yokozuna's lengthy post-Hulkamania run), but would be overshadowed in length by his third reign which lasted 380 days, the sixth-longest in the storied history of the WWF/WWE. Cena is currently the WWE Champion, his eighth time, and has been the top dog in the WWE for 994 days over those eight title runs. If he can retain the title for another five weeks, he will pass Pedro Morales and whittle down the list of men who have held the championship longer than him to three. At age 34, this superstar and 2008 Royal Rumble winner still has plenty of productive years ahead of him. But he's already done more than enough to secure a spot here at #38 on our list, and he may be the #1 active superstar in the world today.

#39: Ricky Steamboat

Real Name: Richard Henry Blood

Biggest Fan: John Rohner "He was one of the high flyers. He knows karate."

Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat was a revolutionary in-ring performer: he participated in the Match of the Year (according to both Pro Wrestling Illustrated and Wrestling Observer Newsletter) in 1987 and three of his matches with Ric Flair in 1989 were Five Star Matches.

Ricky Steamboat, in his pre-"Dragon" days, was immensely successful over an eight-year period in Jim Crockett Promotions of the National Wrestling Alliance. The newcomer was almost immediately matched up against "Nature Boy" Ric Flair, and this exposure helped catapult him up the ranks in the NWA. Between 1977 and 1985, Steamboat embarked on three NWA United States Heavyweight Championship reigns and six NWA World Heavyweight Tag Team Championship reigns (five of them with Jack Youngblood).

Steamboat jumped ship to the World Wrestling Federation, due to backstage tensions and creative differences with booker Dusty Rhodes, just in time for the first WrestleMania. At the event, he was victorious over Matt Borne (see #64 Doink the Clown below). Feuds with Don Muraco, Mr. Fuji and Jake "The Snake" Roberts were to follow. The feud with Roberts was particularly chock full of memorable moments, including Steamboat scaring Jake away with a komodo dragon and Jake performing a DDT on Steamboat on the arena floor that knocked "The Dragon" unconscious for real. Steamboat sustained a concussion.

Shortly after dealing with Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Steamboat was tabbed to become the new WWF Intercontinental Champion. After an intense buildup in the weeks leading up to their battle, at WrestleMania III, Ricky Steamboat and the "Macho Man" Randy Savage put on a showstopping match that was considered the best match of 1987, and is to this day considered to be perhaps the best match in WrestleMania history! Ricky Steamboat left the ring with the Intercontinental Championship, but he would only hold the title for a scant two months.

Steamboat returned to compete in WCW in 1989, and although he was only there for a year before announcing his retirement (for the second of several times), this stretch in the promotion was incredibly fruitful. He would capture the NWA World Heavyweight Championship from Ric Flair in one of the aforementioned Five Star Matches, and he held onto the strap for 76 days until losing it back to Flair at the inaugural WrestleWar in Nashville, Tennessee.

Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat would reemerge in the WWF breathing fire in 1991 and had another successful run in WCW from 1992 to 1994, but wrestling fans will certainly remember this high-flying superstar most for his exciting, industry-changing matches of the 1980s.

#40: Edge

Real Name: Adam Joseph Copeland

Biggest Fan: John Rohner "Was in a tag team with Hulk Hogan. He's beaten so much people. His favorite move is called the spear."

Adam Copeland grew up in Ontario a huge fan of wrestling; he was even in the crowd at WrestleMania VI to witness Ultimate Warrior battling Hulk Hogan. After high school, he won an essay contest whereby he was granted free professional wrestling training. In the mid-1990s, Copeland and his childhood friend, Christian Cage, formed a tag team, The Suicide Blondes, on the independent wrestling circuit. Copeland was spotted by Bret "Hitman" Hart, and this eventually led to Copeland securing a developmental contract with the World Wrestling Federation.

Edge, as Copeland would now be called, made his television debut on the June 22, 1998 episode of Raw is War. All the building blocks were in place for Edge to have a solid career. He had cool music, he'd make his way to the ring through the crowd rather than down the aisle, he was tall and formidable-looking, he had an array of high impact moves and great mic skills. Soon, Edge was joined by Christian in the WWF and they formed a vampire-themed wrestling stable called The Brood.

After being dumped by Gangrel, Edge and Christian together formed a very memorable and successful tag team. They captured the WWF Tag Team Championships at WrestleMania 2000 for the first time in the celebrated Tables, Ladders and Chairs match that also featured The Dudley Boyz and The Hardys. The following year, at WrestleMania X-Seven, the three teams would participate in a TLC match again, with Edge and Christian winning again, capturing the title for their seventh time. Both of these matches were designated by Pro Wrestling Illustrated as Match of the Year, perfect bookends to the period when Edge and Christian dominated the tag team ranks together.

Edge would go on to become the 2001 King of the Ring tournament winner, cementing his place on the WWF roster as a major singles competitor. Edge soon turned heel, though, and further fueled the flames of hatred the fans had for him by becoming involved with Lita, Matt Hardy's ex-girlfriend. The newly-dubbed "Rated-R Superstar" went on to win the first of many "Money in the Bank" ladder matches, and he cashed this in nine months later at the perfect opportunity. After John Cena successfully defended his title at New Year's Revolution in 2006, he was stunned by the announcement that he would immediately be defending the belt against Edge. Edge's opportunism was rewarded, as he became WWE Champion for the first time after spearing Cena twice and scoring the pinfall.

Edge's other accolades include a 2010 Royal Rumble win, seven World Heavyweight Championships, four total WWE Championships, fourteen tag team championships, a reign as United States Champion and five times holding the Intercontinental Championship. Shockingly, during his seventh World Heavyweight title reign, Edge was diagnosed with spinal stenosis and forced to retire from professional wrestling two months ago. Seemingly in his wrestling prime, it's almost unbelievable that this superstar's career (it seems like only yesterday that it'd begun) has come to a close. Either way, though, Edge did enough during the last dozen years to secure his spot as one of the Top 100 Superstars of Wrestling.

#41: Lex Luger

Real Name: Lawrence Wendell Pfohl

Biggest Fan: Jamie Andrews "He did have an illegal weapon in his forearm at all times."

A two-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, Lex Luger was PWI's Most Popular Wrestler for 1993. And whether you prefer him to be clad in red, white and blue, or as The Total Package, or even as The Narcissist, there's little doubt that Lex Luger left an impact on the wrestling business during his 21-year career.

Although it seems like I've typed this before, Luger took up wrestling after his career with the Green Bay Packers failed to pan out. After training with Japanese legend Hiro Matsuda, the man who trained Hulk Hogan, Luger began wrestling in NWA Florida alongside Rick Rude and Percy Pringle. While working for the promotion, Luger (who chose his ring name because he loved the comic character Lex Luthor) battled such industry legends as Wahoo McDaniel and Bruiser Brody. He also fought NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair to a 60-minute time limit draw.

In 1987, Luger joined the roster of Jim Crockett Promotions (soon-to-become WCW), eventually earning himself a spot in Flair's Four Horsemen stable of wrestlers. That July, Luger defeated Nikita Koloff to capture the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship for the first of his record five times. This first stint would last only four-and-a-half months; Luger dropped the title to Dusty Rhodes at the 1987 Starrcade, JCP's first pay-per-view. Soon, Luger had a falling out with the Four Horsemen and embarked on an award-winning feud with Ric Flair.

In February of 1989, Lex Luger bested Barry Windham to capture the U.S. Heavyweight Championship again. Luger would hold this title for 809 of the next 874 days, only briefly losing the title for 15 and 50 days to Michael "P.S." Hayes and Stan Hansen, respectively. This stretch would include the longest title reign (over 17 months) in the history of the U.S. Heavyweight Championship, and ultimately the only reason Luger relinquished the belt for the last time was because he captured the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. After losing the WCW World Heavyweight belt to Sting, Luger left WCW and joined the World Bodybuilding Federation.

The WBF was about as successful as Vince McMahon's other non-wrestling venture, the XFL. Soon, Luger was employed by McMahon but there was no longer a WBF to compete in. So, Luger joined the WWF after recovering from a motorcycle accident (the reason he had the metal plate in his arm that our expert refers to above), first as The Narcissist and then as "Made in the USA" Lex Luger, traveling the country in his custom bus, the Lex Express. This was a time of huge popularity for Luger, as he would feud with Yokozuna and Ludvig Borga over national pride and stuff. After an unsuccessful bid to capture the WWF Title from Yokozuna, Luger embarked on a pretty hilarious feud with Tatanka over whether or not he had "sold out" to Ted DiBiase.

After a short time as one half of The Allied Powers (with partner Davey Boy Smith), Luger returned to WCW in a shocking surprise on the first episode of WCW Monday Nitro. Luger and his pal, Sting, were two of the main foes of the nWo during that exciting era in WCW. Luger ended up spending time in the nWo Wolfpac, bringing in Miss Elizabeth to be his manager, and winning tag team gold with Buff Bagwell before the WWF purchased WCW, effectively ending his time there.

Luger is arguably the greatest United States Heavyweight Champion of all time, altogether holding that belt for 948 days over five different reigns (nobody else is within 300 days of that total). He's been one of the more popular wrestlers in the industry and, although his recent life has been marred with tragedy and scandal, his superstar status is unquestionable. Yeah.

#42: Big Show

Real Name: Paul Donald Wight, Jr.

Other Aliases: The Giant

Biggest Fan: John Rohner "He's a big monster. He's wild. He was in a tag team with the Undertaker. And he's a legend."

When you make your wrestling debut touted as the son of André the Giant, it would be an understatement to say that you have big shoes to fill. But, Paul Wight, who WCW called The Giant when he arrived in 1995, comes about as close as you can with his size 22s. The Giant battled Hulk Hogan right off the bat, in some kind of monster truck showdown initially, then in a wrestling match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. The Giant defeated Hogan and was awarded the title, becoming the youngest person to ever hold the title at only 23 years old.

The Giant would be a major player in WCW for the next four years, winning the World Heavyweight a second time from Ric Flair, feuding with the enormous Kevin Nash, joining the nWo and capturing tag team gold on three occasions. Unfortunately, like many of the younger wrestlers on the WCW roster, Paul Wight felt that the old guard of aging superstars were limiting his opportunities and causing him to be underutilized. In February of 1999, WCW's loss was the World Wrestling Federation's gain, and at their St. Valentine's Day Massacre pay-per-view, Paul Wight appeared to assist Mr. McMahon in his steel cage match against Steve Austin.

The Big Show's WWF career is still going strong after more than a decade. He has held both the ECW World Heavyweight Championship and the WWF Championship (on two occasions). He has been Hardcore Champion, United States Champion and WWF Tag Team Champion with four different partners. Big Show has competed in some memorable WrestleMania matches, as well. He took part in the exciting fatal four-way at WrestleMania 2000 for the WWF Championship, battled Akebono in a sumo match at WrestleMania 21, and took on Floyd Mayweather, Jr. in a No Disqualification Match at WrestleMania XXIV.

One of the biggest superstars of all time, the funny and personable Big Show has put together a solid career worthy of a place on our Top 100 list.

#43: Marty Jannetty

Real Name: Frederick Marty Jannetty

Biggest Fan: Jane Picard "Now this will be controversial. Marty vs. Shawn... without the Rockers there would be no Shawn Michaels, who is a true Superstar by definition. The Rockers were tag team gold so I had to saddle him up next to Shawn on my list."

"Ladies and gentlemen, The Rockers!" yelled Brutus Beefcake on his interview program, The Barber Shop. Audiences everywhere breathed a sigh of relief; The Rockers, sports entertainment's most exciting tag team, weren't breaking up. Everything was fine. But mere moments later, in perhaps the most shocking event ever to take place in the history of the galaxy, Shawn Michaels was flooring Marty Jannetty with his Sweet Chin Music and heaving him face-first through a plate glass window. It's one of a half-dozen moments that made me fall in love with wrestling, and although this event probably did more for the career of the kicker than the kickee, the spectacle of that segment is more closely linked to Jannetty than Shawn, in my mind.

Marty Jannetty and Shawn Michaels formed The Midnight Rockers in 1985. The high-flying duo was exceptionally talented and quickly captured several tag team championships, in the NWA, the AWA and the Continental Wrestling Association. Then, the tag team specialists joined the World Wrestling Federation in 1988. Their time in the WWF together featured no tag team title reigns, but they nearly won the belts on numerous occasions. In 1991, the aforementioned Barber Shop interview ended their union, and the fortunes of each half of this exciting tag team would be drastically different.

Originally, Jannetty's return to the ring after being attacked was supposed to happen much sooner, but Jannetty found himself unable to compete, as he was under house arrest for attacking a police officer. Instead, the WWF released him and the wrestling world slowly forgot about Shawn Michaels' scorned former partner.

Then, in October 1992, nine months after the attack, Marty Jannetty emerged from the crowd to attack Shawn Michaels and challenge him to a match at the Royal Rumble. Their match at the Rumble was considered a highlight of an otherwise underwhelming pay-per-view. Unfortunately, Jannetty again vanished from WWF programming for four months after the match.

In May of 1993, Jannetty reemerged from the crowd during Monday Night Raw and demanded a shot at Shawn Michaels' Intercontinental Championship. What ensued was PWI's Match of the Year for 1993, as Marty Jannetty captured gold in the WWF for the first time in his career. Marty would go on to capture the tag team titles later on as well, with his partner, the 1-2-3 Kid.

Marty Jannetty was a top notch in-ring performer who excited fans and gave audiences several thrilling memories. Although his personal problems away from the ring probably hampered his career, he was still a very colorful and successful superstar.

#44: Yokozuna

Real Name: Rodney Agatupu Anoa'i

Biggest Fan: Joe Reardon "Took over the WWF in a flash, winning the Rumble in his first try and the title shortly after in 1993. The Banzai drop is one of the most devastating finishers of all time. People likely have forgotten about his tag team success."

Our expert says it best: Yokozuna's meteoric rise to the top of the World Wrestling Federation was almost unprecedented. Within six months of debuting in the promotion, he had defeated Bret "The Hitman" Hart to become the WWF Heavyweight Champion and his perceived invulnerability during that time period was on par with many of the greatest champions of all time.

During the early part of his WWF career, Yokozuna was remarkably agile for a man tipping the scales at 500 pounds, routinely stinging his opponents with crescent kicks to the chin. Additionally, Yokozuna benefited from the wisdom of his legendary manager, Mr. Fuji. Of course, sometimes Mr. Fuji's contributions were greater than mere wisdom, like during the aforementioned WrestleMania IX match against Bret Hart when Fuji blinded the champion with a handful of salt.

Although his first reign as WWF Champion lasted only a few minutes, his second stint with the championship (which would begin at King of the Ring 1993) lasted 280 days (12th-longest in history). Yokozuna decimated the immortal Hulk Hogan that night, beating the Hulkster so thoroughly that he wouldn't be seen again in the WWF for nine years. Quite rightly, Fuji and Yokozuna declared that they had ended Hulkamania, a task that many before had tried to do and failed.

The summer of 1993 belonged to Yokozuna. His weight was creeping up to nearly 600 pounds, which led to Yokozuna issuing a "Bodyslam Competition" aboard the USS Intrepid on the Fourth of July. This event was monumental. Not only did the long string of wrestlers and athletes unable to slam Yokozuna make him seem all the more dominant, but Yokozuna was also able to do what seemed like an impossible task: make the fans care about Lex Luger. The red, white and blue-covered Luger would feud with Yokozuna through the summer and up until Thanksgiving Eve. At the Survivor Series, Yokozuna embarked on a feud with The Undertaker that would result in one of the most chilling WWF Championship contests in history at the 1994 Royal Rumble.

Yokozuna ended up losing his title to Bret Hart at WrestleMania X, but only after successfully defending his title earlier in the evening against Lex Luger. All said, between WrestleManias IX & X, Yokozuna took part in four matches for the WWF Heavyweight Championship!

Yokozuna's career from that point on consisted of more tag team action than anything else. His weight had increased to 700 pounds, and sharing ring time with a more, ahem, fit partner would be a huge benefit. (Although, Yokozuna did have a rematch with The Undertaker at the Survivor Series in 1994, featuring special enforcer Chuck Norris.) Yokozuna made a surprise return to action as Owen Hart's tag team partner at WrestleMania XI, and the new duo defeated the Smoking Gunns to win tag team gold. This unlikely team would hold onto the belts all the way until late September 1995.

Yokozuna was one of the greatest champions of the 1990s. During a time when the WWF didn't know which direction it was headed, Yokozuna emerged to give them stability. It's possible that only "Superstar" Billy Graham held the WWF Championship for a longer stretch of time as a heel than Yokozuna did in his second title reign. Sadly, this superstar's career and life were cut short when he passed away in October of 2000.

#45: King Kong Bundy

Real Name: Chris Pallies

Biggest Fan: Lucas Keyes "Cartoonishness"

Haters: Barry M. Reardon & Jesse Reardon

We're really getting into the exciting part of this list now, as superstars from here on up were pretty close to consensus picks for the Top 50. The entrant here, King Kong Bundy, is certainly deserving of such unity among our expert voters. The headliner of WrestleMania 2, all 468 pounds of him, was both charismatic and terrifying. Bundy was also famous for demanding that referees count all the way to five on his pinfalls.

King Kong Bundy wrestled in the WWF very early in his career. He was in the main event at WrestleMania 2, a steel cage match against Hulk Hogan, at only 28 years of age. He'd also squashed Special Delivery Jones in 23 seconds the year prior at the first WrestleMania. Then, at the third WrestleMania, Bundy bodyslammed and dropped an elbow on Little Beaver, getting his team disqualified in the process. That result makes more sense when you realize that Bundy was almost eight times the size of Little Beaver, who was a midget wrestler.

After a six-year absence from the WWF, Bundy returned as a member of Ted DiBiase's Million Dollar Corporation in 1994. This stint in the federation was rather brief, although it did feature another WrestleMania match for "The Walking Condominium" against The Undertaker. The last several years have been spent wrestling in various independent promotions, acting and doing stand-up comedy. I'm sure wrestlers everywhere are grateful that this superstar spends his evenings slaying audiences in night clubs now rather than slaying his opponents in the ring.

#46: Kane

Real Name: Glenn Jacobs

Other Aliases: Isaac Yankem, Fake Diesel

Biggest Fan: John Rohner "Everyone feared Kane. He is the Undertaker's brother. He took the Undertaker's manager for a while."

If you skim down the list, you will find, at #84, Isaac Yankem the wrestling dentist. Consider this article on Kane to be a continuation of that tale, the next chapter, if you will, in the wrestling career of Glenn Jacobs.

In the fall of 1996, the WWF was still reeling from the loss of scores of its talent to World Championship Wrestling. Two individuals, in particular, left a particularly deep void in the active roster, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall. To fill this void, and simultaneously put Jim Ross over as a heel, the WWF recycled the aforementioned defectors' gimmicks, Diesel and Razor Ramon. A man named Rick Bognar became "The Bad Guy" Razor Ramon, while Jacobs was tabbed as the new Big Daddy Cool, Diesel. This gimmick lasted for about five months and was tremendously unpopular.

In 1997, Jacobs was gift-wrapped a "can't miss" gimmick: the long-lost, half-brother of The Undertaker. With the new persona of Kane, a severely burned, masked wrestler hellbent on revenge against his brother, Jacobs finally found a character that he could hold on to for the rest of his career. What ensued was a classic feud that raged on for the better part of three years. Afterwards, there would be occasional alliances between the two brothers, but Kane was mostly left to his own storylines and angles from that point forward.

With 16 consecutive years in the World Wrestling Federation, Kane has managed to capture numerous championships in his career. A former WWF Champion, a former ECW Champion, a former World Heavyweight Champion, and a 2-time Intercontinental Champion, Kane has also held tag team gold on eleven different occasions (frequently teaming with X-Pac, Mankind, the Big Show and his brother). If that's not an impressive enough résumé for you, listen to these Royal Rumble records: most Rumble appearances (15), most eliminations in a single Rumble (11), most appearances in the final six (7), and quickest elimination of a competitor (tossing out Santino Marella a mere 1.8 seconds after he entered the ring). Those statistics and his amazing longevity make it no surprise that he's such a highly-ranked superstar on our list.

#47: Typhoon

Real Name: Fred Ottman

Other Aliases: Tugboat, The Shockmaster

Biggest Fan: Barry M. Reardon

Fred Ottman debuted in the WWF as Tugboat in 1990. An enormous super-heavyweight, Tugboat was quickly recruited into an alliance with the immortal Hulk Hogan in his ongoing battle with the 451-pound Canadian Earthquake and Dino Bravo. Tugboat enjoyed a stretch of remarkable successes in the ring during this period, but he soon developed a bad attitude and ultimately ended up aligning himself with Earthquake. This tag team, known as the Natural Disasters and managed by Jimmy Hart, tipped the scales at 852 pounds!

Typhoon, as he was now called, enjoyed great success again during this tag team period. The duo was quite fearsome, and they eventually defeated the legendary tag team, Money Inc., for the WWF Tag Team Titles. Unfortunately, the team disbanded in 1993 and Typhoon departed the World Wrestling Federation.

On August 18, 1993, at WCW's Clash of the Champions event, Sting, Dustin Rhodes and Davey Boy Smith were trying to solve a conundrum. They were supposed to engage in an eight-man tag team match against Sid Vicious, Big Van Vader and the Harlem Heat at the upcoming Fall Brawl pay-per-view, but Road Warrior Hawk was unable to participate as the fourth member of their team. Cue The Shockmaster! In the most ridiculous moment in an industry known for ridiculous moments, Fred Ottman burst upon the scene during an interview segment, donning a silver, sparkly Stormtrooper helmet and possessing some kind of weird powers to manipulate electricity, or something? I doubt we'll ever really know what amazing heights The Shockmaster might have reached, but I like to think that if not for a single misstep on A Flair For The Gold, this superstar might have been #1 instead of #47.

#48: Gorilla Monsoon

Real Name: Robert James Marella

Biggest Fan: Jane Picard "Do I have to explain why Gorilla Monsoon is high on my list? He is on there because of his longevity in the sport in one capacity or another. A lovable man who when you hear his name you think wrestling and just smile."

Gorilla Monsoon devoted a huge portion of his life to professional wrestling. Beginning his career immediately after graduating from Ithaca College in 1959, the 6'5", 401-pound monster from Manchuria (Marella actually grew up in upstate New York) terrified wrestling audiences wherever he went. In 1963, Vincent J. McMahon was creating the World Wide Wrestling Federation and Monsoon joined up with him in this endeavor, becoming a 1/6 shareholder and taking on booking responsibilities in several territories.

Gorilla Monsoon remained a major heel in the federation, battling Bruno Sammartino numerous times, often to time limit draws, and teaming up with Killer Kowalski. Monsoon's agility and stamina were impressive for a man of his size, as well. He battered opponents with hard chops, the vicious Manchurian Splash and his signature Airplane Spin, which he once famously used on Muhammad Ali in 1976.

By the time the 1970s arrived, Monsoon was tremendously popular and feuding with the new decade's most famous villains, such as "Superstar" Billy Graham and André the Giant. Then the 1980s arrived and Monsoon's role in the WWF was beginning to change. He lost a match to the newcomer, Hulk Hogan, in a match that lasted less than a minute. Fans were so irate that near-riot conditions ensued; police had to intervene to subdue the mob and rescue the Hulkster. Shortly thereafter, Gorilla lost a career-ending match to Ken Patera.

In 1982, Vincent K. McMahon purchased Gorilla Monsoon's shares in the company and guaranteed him lifetime employment. As the WWF was growing and developing more of an on-air television presence, McMahon needed a commentary team. Gorilla and Jesse "The Body" Ventura were assigned this responsibility. This dynamic announcing team revolutionized the way wrestling events were broadcast. The banter between the two men, and later Gorilla and Bobby Heenan as well, made each WWF broadcast a memorable and enjoyable experience.

Gorilla would eventually add on-screen WWF President to his list of roles, although he relinquished many of his commentary duties with the arrival of Jim Ross in 1993. Gorilla was the WWF President until 1997, when his health began to deteriorate. Sadly, the voice of the WWF passed away in October of 1999.

When you make a list of Superstars of Wrestling, it's important to note that through his booking and his announcing, Gorilla was responsible for creating, cultivating and building the legend of dozens of these superstars. He was called "one of the greatest men I have ever known" by Vince McMahon, and was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame on June 9, 1994. His presence in the world of sports entertainment is sorely missed and it's a virtual certainty that the industry will never have another Gorilla Monsoon. A one-of-a-kind superstar... and a beauty!

#49: George "The Animal" Steele

Real Name: William James Myers

Biggest Fan: Barry M. Reardon "Because he is so hairy."

Of all the wrestlers on this list, perhaps the turnbuckle-eating heavyweight, known as much for his incoherence and furry back as his wrestling ability, is the superstar you'd least expect to hold a master's degree. But William Myers bears little resemblance to George "The Animal" Steele, the crazed villain with the green tongue who battled Bruno Sammartino and Chief Jay Strongbow in the late-1960s and 1970s. Myers is a very eloquent teacher and football coach, a member of the Michigan Coaches Hall of Fame, and he exemplifies the pageantry and showmanship that is really at the heart of sports entertainment, something that non-fans never seem to understand.

George "The Animal" Steele spent over two consecutive decades in the World Wrestling Federation, which is remarkable in an industry where wrestlers routinely shuffle back and forth between promotions. As a result, "The Animal" feuded with competitors across many generations, including a memorable storyline where he developed a crush on "Macho Man" Randy Savage's manager, Miss Elizabeth. Their feud included an Intercontinental Championship match at WrestleMania 2, Savage's WrestleMania debut, that ended only when the Macho Man illegally used the ropes for leverage during a roll-up pin.

William Myers continues to make wrestling appearances when people least expect it. But George "The Animal" Steele has always been about doing the unexpected, and that's one of the reasons this superstar is #49 on our list.

#50: Terry Funk

Real Name: Terrence Funk

Other Aliases: Chainsaw Charlie

Biggest Fan: Joe Timmins

One of the most-influential brawlers in wrestling history, Terry Funk has emerged as the most famous of one of the sport's preeminent families. The son of Dory Funk, Sr. and brother to Dory (Hoss) Funk, Jr., Terry has been competing since 1965 and has stated he "never really truly will retire" from wrestling. It would probably take ten blog entries to adequately explain and describe all that Terry has done in and for sports entertainment. Unfortunately, we'll have to limit ourselves to the highlights (readers eager for more can rent Beyond The Mat, or Road House or Over The Top, for that matter).

During the early stages of Terry's career, he captured the NWA Heavyweight Championship (a title his brother had previously held as well) from the legendary Jack Brisco in 1975. He would not relinquish this title until 1977, dropping it to "Handsome" Harley Race. Success in Japan followed, as Terry and his brother would become the inaugural champions of the "World's Strongest Tag Team League", which was an annual round-robin tournament featuring some of wrestling's most legendary performers. The Funk Brothers won the tournament again in 1979 and again in 1982!

Terry and Dory ended up in the World Wrestling Federation in 1985, wrestling mostly as a tag team, and scoring an impressive win at WrestleMania 2 over the duo of Junkyard Dog (see #51 below) and Tito Santana (below at #65). The Funks, and Terry in particular, didn't spend a long while in the WWF. Terry has admitted to disliking Vince McMahon, and so most of his successes took place away from the world's most famous promotion.

At age 45, you might think that Terry Funk's best years in wrestling were behind him. You would be dead wrong. In 1989, Funk found himself back in the NWA battling Ric Flair for the NWA Heavyweight Championship that he'd lost a dozen years earlier. This rivalry was, according to both of the premiere wrestling publications of the time (Pro Wrestling Illustrated and Wrestling Observer Newsletter), the feud of the year for 1989. Additionally, at Clash of the Champions IX: New York Knockout (held in Troy, NY, the most terrifying city in the nation), an "I Quit" match between the two of them was deemed a "5-Star Match" by Dave Meltzer. Terry, himself, won Wrestling Observer's awards for Best Heel, Best Brawler and Best on Interviews in 1989. Also during this feud, Terry Funk nearly suffocated Ric Flair in the ring with a real plastic shopping bag; that just had to get mentioned.

That still wasn't the end for Terry Funk. In 1994, he legitimized the fledgling Eastern Championship Wrestling promotion by competing there and was one of the key reasons for the explosion of success they would experience in the 1990s. At the first ECW pay-per-view event, Barely Legal, Terry Funk became ECW's World Heavyweight Champion by defeating Raven. It took a match with barbed wire ring ropes for Funk to lose that title on August 9, 1997, but a month later he was awarded a championship belt (bought to him by the ECW roster) and declared Lifetime ECW World Heavyweight Champion.

Funk, inducted into almost every professional wrestling hall of fame there is, revisited the WWF as Chainsaw Charlie in 1997, returned to ECW in 1998, and formed the Old Age Outlaws in WCW to feud with the nWo in 2000. This millennium has seen a WCW U.S. Heavyweight Title reign, a pair of WCW Hardcore Title reigns, and appearances in the WWE, TNA, Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling for the legendary superstar from The Double Cross Ranch. With 45 years of wrestling under his belt, Terry Funk has seen it all, and probably deserves to be a Top 20 superstar. But our experts have spoken and here sits Terry Funk at #50.

#51: Junkyard Dog

Real Name: Sylvester Ritter

Biggest Fan: Lucas Keyes "Robustness"

Sylvester Ritter, after his football career with the Green Bay Packers failed to pan out, began wrestling in smaller promotions such as Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling and Mid-South Wrestling (where he was given his Junkyard Dog moniker). While competing there, the JYD became one of MSW's most popular wrestlers, in spite of a less-than-stellar win-loss record. As his population grew, though, Junkyard Dog became more successful in the ring. He ended up being a four-time North American Heavyweight Champion, defeating Ted DiBiase to begin one reign and Butch Reed to begin another. He was also involved in a memorable feud with the Fabulous Freebirds who blinded him with hair cream, preventing a vision-impaired JYD from being able to see his newborn daughter. Like many of his feuds, this rivalry was put to rest only after JYD battled Michael "P.S." Hayes in a dog collar match.

Junkyard Dog departed for the World Wrestling Federation in 1984, where his popularity was put on display at a national level. At the first WrestleMania, JYD defeated the Intercontinental Champion, Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, by countout. Seven months later, at a pay-per-view called The Wrestling Classic, the WWF staged an enormous 16-man tournament. Junkyard Dog ended up winning the event, beating The Iron Sheik (a former WWF Champion), Moondog Spot and Randy Savage (a future WWF Champion) along the way.

Tragically, the Junkyard Dog perished in a single-car automobile accident in 1998 when he fell asleep at the wheel returning home from his daughter's graduation. JYD was posthumously inducted to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004.

#52: Bob Backlund

Real Name: Robert Lee Backlund

Biggest Fan: Barry M. Reardon

Bob Backlund's career in professional wrestling was preceded by a successful amateur wrestling career at North Dakota State University. After training to be a professional wrestler under the tutelage of Eddie Sharkey (called "The Trainer of Champions"), Backlund competed in the AWA and the NWA until 1977 when he signed with Vincent J. McMahon to compete in the WWWF. Backlund scored a controversial pinfall victory over the reigning champion, Superstar Billy Graham, on February 20, 1978, beginning his first title run. Backlund would hold on to the WWF World Heavyweight Championship until the day after Christmas in 1983.

Backlund's time as champion bridged the gap between the Sammartino Era and the Hulk Hogan Era, a time when wrestling was on the threshold of a plethora of changes. By the time Backlund returned to the WWF in 1992, the wrestling landscape was an immensely different place. The clean-cut, technically-sound grappler that fans were so fond of in the late-70s wasn't quite as over with the fans almost a decade later. It wasn't long before Backlund "snapped" during a match with Bret Hart in one of the industry's most shocking heel turns in history. The new, slightly crazed, Mr. Backlund ended up being a very engaging villain during this second WWF stint, and at the 1994 Survivor Series, more than ten years after the end of his original title reign, Backlund became a two-time WWF Heavyweight Champion. As impressively long as his first title run was, his second stint as the champ would be shockingly brief...

In the shortest WWF title match in history, Backlund dropped the title to "Big Daddy Cool" Diesel a mere eight seconds after the opening bell sounded. Backlund only held the championship for three days. This was also the last time the WWF Heavyweight Championship changed hands at a non-televised event. Altogether, November 26, 1994 was an historic night in many ways, although Backlund was certainly on the wrong end of most of those reasons.

In total, Backlund held the WWF Championship for 2,138 days. Only two men have ever been the World Wrestling Federation's top dog longer than that. The master of the crossface chickenwing is a one-of-a-kind superstar whose adaptability made him relevant again, against all odds, years after his late-70s heyday. What a superstar.

#53: Bam Bam Bigelow & Irwin R. Schyster (tied)

Real Name (Bam Bam): Scott Charles Bigelow

Biggest Fan: Joe Reardon "Headlined Wrestlemania 11. Extremely agile for a big man. A great name and a great look. His lack of title history is probably his biggest downfall."

Real Name (I.R.S.): Lawrence Michael Rotunda

Biggest Fan: Jon Baltos

This is the last spot on the list shared by two wrestlers. Finally, no more joint blog entries where the author struggles to find some common theme to associate two superstars who just happen to be tied in total votes from our experts. That said, the common thread between Irwin R. Schyster and Bam Bam Bigelow is pretty easy to find. Both of these superstars were prominent members of Ted DiBiase's Million Dollar Corporation.

Mike Rotunda began his career tagging up with his brother-in-law, Barry Windham. Together they were known as the U.S. Express, and between 1984 and 1986 they would capture the WWF Tag Team Championship on two occasions. There was also a brief period where Windham was replaced by Waylon Mercy (then called Dan Spivey), but that version of the U.S. Express found little success in the WWF.

Bam Bam Bigelow's career started in much the same way. Bigelow joined the WWF very early on, departed for WCW in the late-1980s, only to return to the WWF in the early-1990s. Bigelow didn't hold any titles during that first run in the WWF, but he was chosen to compete in WrestleMania IV's Heavyweight Championship Tournament. He also outlasted his team captain, Hulk Hogan, at the inaugural Survivor Series, impressively eliminating King Kong Bundy and the One Man Gang before Andre the Giant pinned him to win the match.

After the aforementioned stint in WCW, Rotunda came back to the WWF as Irwin R. Schyster, an appropriate name to go along with his tax collector character. Benefiting from the insta-heat that you'd expect anyone associated with the I.R.S. to get, Schyster had no problem getting over as a heel. Clad in suspenders, dress pants and a tie, Schyster would berate fans for cheating on their taxes. Of course, moments later he would be illegally using the ring ropes for extra leverage on an abdominal stretch. Classic wrestling villain tactics. As exciting as I.R.S. was as a singles competitor, he eventually joined forces with The Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase to form an even more exciting tag team duo called Money Inc.

Meanwhile, Bam Bam was returning to the WWF as well. He had a taste of championship gold while he was away, tagging up with Big Van Vader to win the IWGP Tag Team Championship in New Japan Pro Wrestling. Bam Bam feuded with Tatanka and Doink the Clown upon returning, defeating the latter (and Dink the Clown) at WrestleMania X in a mixed tag team match (his partner was Luna Vachon). Bam Bam then spent much of 1994 teaming up with Irwin R. Schyster or Tatanka, as all three were now members of The Million Dollar Corporation and managed by Ted DiBiase (who had retired from the ring).

The 1995 Royal Rumble was monumental for both of these superstars. Irwin R. Schyster battled The Undertaker at the pay-per-view, losing the match but stealing the "dead man's" urn. Bam Bam and his partner, Tatanka, also lost their match that day, but after the bout Bigelow took exception with something NFL Legend Lawrence Taylor said and shoved the former linebacker (who was sitting ringside for the Rumble) to the ground. This act led the two men to a confrontation in the main event of WrestleMania XI. Bam Bam lost to Lawrence Taylor in the match, but the spectacle surrounding the event solidifies that night as the peak of Bigelow's career.

These two superstars had outstanding careers in the WWF and beyond. They were well-decorated (I.R.S. a 5-time WWF Tag Team Champion, with reigns totaling 548 days; Bam Bam a former ECW Heavyweight Champion), both competed in high-profile matches at WrestleManias, they both were talented in-ring performers and they both were awesome enough to be characters in Sega Genesis wrestling games. Indeed, these superstars had stellar careers. Sadly, Bam Bam Bigelow died at the age of 45, yet another superstar gone too soon.

#55: The Mountie & Sting (tied)

Real Name (Mountie): Jacques Rougeau, Jr.

Biggest Fan: Jane Picard "The Mountie made my list based on one match and one match only... we all know which match that is. His cries as he’s being hauled away to jail captivates my attention every time."

Real Name (Sting): Steve Borden

Biggest Fan: Joe Timmins

This spot on our list might expose, or at least illuminate, a slight WWF bias. Few would argue against the fact that Sting is the greatest wrestler of his generation who has never competed in the World Wrestling Federation. He has been selected by Pro Wrestling Illustrated readers as "Most Popular Wrestler of the Year" four times, more than any other wrestler. Any hardcore WCW fan would probably be outraged to see Sting outside of the Top 50, but them's the breaks. Our panel of experts puts the 6-time WCW Heavyweight Champion here, tied with The Mountie, and arguing with a panel of experts would be a futile effort.

Speaking of futile efforts, trying to escape from The Mountie is another example of one. As his hilarious theme music proclaims, The Mountie always gets his man (possibly due to the fact that he's handsome, he's brave and he's strong). A former Intercontinental Champion and 3-time WWF Tag Team Champion, Jacques Rougeau's wrestling career (and presumably his law enforcement career) is one of the most successful of all time. Even before he was The Mountie and one half of the Mountie-themed tag team The Quebecers, Jacques was a member of The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers from 1986 to 1990. Probably one of the more underrated tag teams, the Rougeaus were exciting in the ring and also had a pretty amazing entrance theme.

Sting, too, started out as a member of a noteworthy tag team. Originally called Power Team USA, then renamed The Blade Runners, Steve Borden and Jim Hellwig (the future Ultimate Warrior) weren't particularly successful as a tandem, but both men would go on to have amazing singles careers. Sting competed in the main event of both the first and last ever episodes of WCW Monday Nitro, both against "Nature Boy" Ric Flair; the latter match was also the final wrestling bout in WCW history and ended with the two longtime, bitter rivals embracing in the ring.

The Mountie and Sting are both accomplished ring tacticians, charismatic personalities and bonafide superstars.

#57: Jesse "The Body" Ventura

Real Name: James George Janos

Biggest Fan: Lucas Keyes "Acting ability"

If you can parlay your wrestling career into acting roles in Predator, The Running Man and Batman & Robin, a full term in office as governor of Minnesota and a color commentary gig for a professional football league, then you better believe that you qualified as a Superstar of Wrestling! Jesse "The Body" Ventura is one of the most famous wrestlers of all time amongst non-fans of wrestling. His crossover appeal is indisputable, and it just adds to what was already an impressive career in the World Wrestling Federation.

Ventura first came to the WWF with his tag team partner, Adorable Adrian Adonis, after a successful run in the American Wrestling Association. The team was managed by "Classy" Freddie Blassie after arriving in the WWF, but the duo soon split and each grappler entered singles competition. Ventura battled Bob Backlund several times, but was unable to capture the WWF Heavyweight Championship from him.

As much a superstar for his behind-the-microphone duties during the 1980s wrestling boom as his relatively brief in-ring career (blood clots in his lungs forced him into retirement in his early thirties), Ventura added more entertainment value to some matches than the participants in the match themselves. Jesse "The Body" Ventura, the color commentator, exhibited the same heel-like qualities that Ventura had as a wrestler. This was unprecedented; previous commentators had been mostly impartial, but Ventura openly rooted for the "bad guys". He would routinely serve as a foil to Gorilla Monsoon (together they were wrestling's all-time best commentary team) and advocate rule-breaking: "Win if you can, lose if you must, but always cheat."

Jesse Ventura could have been a much bigger star in the ring if it hadn't been for his exposure to Agent Orange during Vietnam (he was part of the Navy's Underwater Demolition Team). We may have missed out on another decade of stardom from "The Body" in the ring, but we were treated to years of quality commentary, movies and political successes, and that catapulted this unique personality to superstardom.

#58: Goldust

Real Name: Dustin Patrick Runnels

Other Aliases: Dustin Rhodes

Biggest Fan: Barry M. Reardon

It must be difficult to grow up and follow in the footsteps of a famous father. Dustin Runnels' father, the incomparable Dusty Rhodes, certainly casts a wide shadow. Dustin, though, made sure to emerge from that shadow in a flash of falling gold confetti and donning a long robe and wig.

Goldust arrived in the World Wrestling Federation in 1995 (after previously having competed as Dustin Rhodes in the WWF and WCW). His arrival was preceded with a series of vignettes portraying Goldust as a flamboyant, movie-referencing Hollywoodite, but these brief glimpses did little to prepare us for "the bizarre one." From the get-go, Goldust made wrestling fans everywhere incredibly uncomfortable with his blatant flirting, aimed at Razor Ramon, and his overall provocativeness.

There are few, perhaps zero, examples of a wrestling gimmick being so perfectly executed as Dustin Runnels' portrayal of Goldust. His entrance music was amazing, his costumes were extravagant, his sexuality was confusing (Who wasn't baffled when Goldust showed up at the 1996 Royal Rumble with Marlena as his valet?), his interviews were unsettling and his success in the ring is unquestionable. Goldust is a three-time Intercontinental Champion and seven-time WWF Hardcore Champion.

Dustin Runnels is a legitimate superstar of wrestling. With the pedigree and talent to achieve unbelievable success in the industry, what's probably most surprising is that he doesn't rank in the Top 20. Then again, perhaps the wrestling world wasn't quite ready for the bizarre entertainer known as Goldust.

#59: Zeus

Real Name: Thomas "Tiny" Lister, Jr.

Other Aliases: Z-Gangsta

Biggest Fan: Jon Baltos

At #59, Zeus is proof positive that you don't need to actually win a wrestling match to be considered a Top 100 Superstar of Wrestling. Despite the unremarkable win-loss record, Zeus's reputation as an unstoppable monster overshadows his lack of pinfall victories. This 6'6", 300-pounder didn't feel the need to waste precious time or energy squashing mediocre opponents. He went right after the WWF Champion, and routinely beat him to within an inch of his life.

Zeus showed up in the World Wrestling Federation demanding a match against his co-star in the movie No Holds Barred, Hulk Hogan. Able to withstand an ungodly amount of physical punishment (clotheslines, chair shots, etc.), Zeus was a force to be reckoned with for the Hulkster. Even worse for Hogan was that Zeus aligned himself with Hulk's former friend, "Macho Man" Randy Savage. This led to a tag team contest (Hulk recruiting Brutus Beefcake as his partner) to headline SummerSlam in 1989.

Even a victory at SummerSlam couldn't rid the Hulkster of his formidable new foe, and Zeus aligned himself with Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase at the Survivor Series that autumn. In all likelihood, Zeus would have won that match had he not been disqualified for shoving the referee. Unfortunately, Zeus felt that his career prospects were greater acting in films than competing in the ring, and sadly, Zeus departed the WWF shortly thereafter.

The good news is that you can still see Tiny Lister in movies like The Dark Knight, Austin Powers in Goldmember, and The Fifth Element. That's the résumé of a superstar if ever there was one.

#60: Rob Van Dam

Real Name: Robert Alexander Szatkowski

Biggest Fan: Joe Timmins

Rob Van Dam is one of the most electrifying in-ring performers to ever step through the ropes and into a wrestling ring. His martial arts and kickboxing background combined with his array of revolutionary aerial attacks made every RVD match an instant classic. RVD was also in the right place at the right time to benefit from Extreme Championship Wrestling's explosion in popularity.

Rob Van Dam and his tag team partner, Sabu, were two-time ECW Tag Team Champions. The combined reigns lasted for 244 days, fifth-most in ECW history. Shortly after the demise of ECW, Rob Van Dam "invaded" the World Wrestling Federation and would end up having enormous success there. Between 2001 and 2007, RVD would hold the Intercontinental Championship six times. He would also capture tag team gold with three different partners, the European Championship, the Hardcore Championship and the ECW World Heavyweight Championship (a belt which had eluded him while in the original ECW).

In 2006, at ECW One Night Stand, Rob Van Dam captured the WWE Championship from John Cena in a match where the "fan favorite" Cena was booed and heckled with chants of "You Can't Wrestle!" Although his reign was brief, the title run made RVD the 15th Triple Crown champion in WWE history and, since he was also the ECW Champion at the time, he looked really cool getting to wear two belts at once.

The 40-year-old Rob Van Dam continues to compete in the squared circle, and just last summer was Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's World Heavyweight Champion. The story isn't over yet, but it's clear that no matter what the last couple of chapters have in store for us, the title of the book will be: Rob Van Dam - Superstar of Wrestling.

#61: Chris Benoit

Real Name: Christopher Michael Benoit

Biggest Fan: Joe Timmins

Chris Benoit is a two-time World Heavyweight Champion, a five-time United States Heavyweight Champion, a four-time Intercontinental Champion, a four-time WWF Tag Team Champion, a three-time WCW Television Champion, a two-time WCW Tag Team Champion and a former Royal Rumble winner.

Sadly, Chris Benoit took the lives of his seven-year-old son and his wife before ending his own life in 2007.

#62: Haystacks Calhoun

Real Name: William Dee Calhoun

Biggest Fan: Barry M. Reardon "...because he used to dress like someone out of Hee Haw."

Haystacks Calhoun's legend could be attributed to many things: his "country boy" character (paving the way for Hillbilly Jim and others), his immense size (setting the stage for future super heavyweights like Andre the Giant), or his unexpected athleticism. But Calhoun also came to prominence thanks to a well-publicized lawsuit that was brought against him for collapsing an opponent's lung during his wrestling training. He was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing, and the national attention drew even more fans to the ring to see his matches.

Not that fans needed anymore reasons to watch this behemoth. At 6'4" and weighing beyond 600 pounds, the man himself was spectacle enough. But unlike other super-sized contemporaries, Haystacks could legitimately wrestle. His special finishing maneuver was a big splash off the top rope, and his mobility was remarkable for a man of his size.

Haystacks also formed a tag team with Mountain Man Mike; at 1,200+ pounds combined, their team is considered the second-largest tag team of all time, trailing only these guys:

Haystacks Calhoun is one of the most gigantic superstars to ever appear in the ring. Although it seems like a difficult task for pre-WrestleMania legends to crack this list, Calhoun is memorable enough to claim his spot here at #62. And just like his opponents in the ring used to quickly learn, the big grappler from Morgan's Corner, Arkansas isn't going to budge from his current spot. A true superstar of wrestling, Calhoun, who passed away more than two decades ago, will not soon be forgotten.

#63: The Fabulous Moolah

Real Name: Mary Lillian Ellison

Biggest Fan: Barry M. Reardon

The Fabulous Moolah was the first female inductee to the WWF Hall of Fame, in 1995. It's no surprise that she makes such a high appearance on our list then. With five NWA Women's Championships and four WWF Women's Championships to her credit, Moolah's total time as world champion exceeds thirty years! It is unlikely that anyone will ever come close to equaling that mark.

The Fabulous Moolah, like so many of the superstars on this list, played an intricate role in the 1980s wrestling boom. She was involved in the feud between Cyndi Lauper and Lou Albano, waging an in-ring battle on behalf of Albano against Wendi Richter, protégé of Lauper. Their feud culminated on MTV at The Brawl to End It All in the summer of 1984 where Moolah's lengthy title reign came to an end in the main event.

Moolah would eventually recapture her title in 1985, disguised as The Spider Lady, pinning Richter with the help of a fast count from the referee. Wendi Richter wasn't aware that she would be losing the title, and continued to fight her opponent after the bell, tearing off her mask and revealing that it was actually Moolah in disguise. Richter would never wrestle in the WWF again.

The Fabulous Moolah won her fourth WWF Women's Championship in 1999, at age 76, which has to be some sort of record. She continued wrestling beyond her eightieth birthday, competing in the ring during seven different decades overall. Sadly, this unequaled career came to an end when The Fabulous Moolah passed away in 2007. It is unlikely that anyone will ever forget, though, the years of excitement she provided to wrestling fans everywhere during her superstar career.

#64: Doink the Clown

Real Names: Matthew Osborne, Barry Darsow, Steve Keirn, Steve Lombardi, etc.

Biggest Fan: Jon Baltos

It's really quite surprising that it wasn't until 1992 that an evil clown wrestler debuted in the World Wrestling Federation. So, when Doink the Clown finally arrived on the scene in 1992, playing pranks on fans and wrestlers alike, the crowd was more than ready to root against this heel in face's clothing.

Doink has been involved in some important matches and memorable feuds over the years. He defeated Crush (with help from a second Doink) at WrestleMania IX, feuded with Randy Savage, Bret Hart, Jerry Lawler and more; a pretty impressive resume for a children's entertainer.

Doink the Clown has been portrayed by many different wrestlers over the years, primarily and originally by Matt Borne (who fought Ricky Steamboat at the first WrestleMania). Later on, Smash, Skinner and the Brooklyn Brawler took turns underneath the clown makeup; more recently, the wrestler known as Eugene put on the costume.

But the person underneath isn't what matters, because nobody cares who you are on the inside. It's your outward appearance that makes you a superstar. Remember that, kids.

#65: Tito Santana

Real Name: Merced Solis

Other Aliases: El Matador

Biggest Fan: Jesse Reardon "I've always considered 'Chico' Santana to be an underrated superstar. He was incredibly popular and put on great in-ring performances. His matches were also special because of the subtly racist hilarity that would come out of the mouths of Bobby Heenan and Jesse Ventura. I consider him a Top 5 Intercontinental Champion."

Merced Solis got into wrestling after the conclusion of his football career. Solis played tight end in the CFL after a solid collegiate career at West Texas A&M University. It was his quarterback in college, Tully Blanchard (one half of the Brain Busters), who recruited Solis to become a pro wrestler. After wrestling in smaller promotions from 1977-79, the newly-named Tito Santana spent the next fourteen years in the World Wrestling Federation, participating in each of the first eight WrestleManias. Only Hulk Hogan can make such a boast. But Hogan can't say that he won the first match in WrestleMania history; Tito (who defeated The Executioner in the first contest) alone can say that.

The career accolades of Tito Santana are almost countless: ECW World Champion, WWE Hall of Famer, 2-time WWF Tag Team Champion, King of the Ring tournament winner and 2-time WWF Intercontinental Champion. In fact, only three men have ever held the Intercontinental Championship for as long as Santana. There is no disputing that Santana is one of the most successful superstars in the history of the sport. The only real debate is how high on this list should Tito be? According to our experts, the answer is #65.

#66: Bushwhacker Butch & Jeff Hardy (tied)

Real Name (Butch): Butch Miller

Biggest Fan: Barry M. Reardon

Real Name (Hardy): Jeffrey Nero Hardy

Biggest Fan: John Rohner "High flyer risking his lives."

Tied at #66, we have two tag team specialists whose partners have already appeared on this list: Butch's partner Luke appears at #69, Jeff's brother Matt appears at #75. There's not much need to rehash the previously-discussed tag team exploits of these two superstars, so I won't.

Jeff Hardy, more than his brother Matt or either of the Bushwhackers, has had a tremendous singles career that deserves mention here, though. Jeff is a two-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion, two-time World Heavyweight Champion and a former WWE Champion. Twice he has been elected by PWI readers as Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (2008 & 2009). Jeff has certainly parlayed his seamstress/tag team specialist gig into an impressive Hall of Fame-caliber career.

Aside from the previously mentioned Bushwhacker exploits, it would be a travesty to avoid mentioning a pair of Butch and Luke's more memorable matches. In 1986, the Sheepherders accomplished a rare feat after their match with a team called The Fantastics. The tag team contest was awarded a 5 Star rating by Dave Meltzer (editor of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter). Only sixty-three matches since 1983 have received this highest rating, and it is considered a great honor. Another great honor? Wrestling Carl Winslow and Steve Urkel in a tag team match on Family Matters. Yup, Butch Miller is the third (at least) superstar on this list to have wrestled on a show from ABC's TGIF lineup.

Jeff Hardy and Bushwhacker Butch: Superstars in every sense of the word.

#68: Greg "The Hammer" Valentine

Real Name: John Wisniski, Jr.

Biggest Fan: Jane Picard "He made my list because he’s my mom’s favorite. And if an 88 year old lady has an opinion about a wrestler it needs to make the list."

This WWF Hall of Famer's career has been long and distinguished. He debuted in 1970, initially reluctant to wrestle under his eventual Greg Valentine name. His father, Johnny Valentine, had already established the name with his own successful career. But eventually he did brand himself Greg "The Hammer" Valentine and began wrestling as his father's tag team partner (although, he was purported to be Johnny's brother instead of his son).

Between 1970 and 1984, Greg Valentine shuffled between various independent promotions, the NWA and the WWWF. He feuded with Wahoo McDaniel (breaking his leg) over the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship, held the NWA Tag Team Titles (with Ric Flair), feuded with Chief Jay Strongbow (breaking his leg), and battled WWWF Heavyweight Champion Bob Backlund to a one-hour draw.

In 1984, Valentine landed in the WWF once again and quickly became the eighth ever Intercontinental Champion, a title he would put on the line at the very first WrestleMania. Altogether, Valentine's reign as the champ was the fifth-longest in the history of the title and the first to end in a steel cage match.

"The Hammer" soon developed a reputation for being a "slow-starter". He didn't get warmed up until the match had been going for fifteen minutes but he possessed unparalleled stamina, giving him an advantage the longer the match would last. Additionally, Valentine's specialty was going to work on the legs and ankles of his foes, crippling them with his figure four leglock routinely. The combination of these unique skills made Valentine a force to be reckoned with in the WWF for nearly an entire decade.

Greg "The Hammer" Valentine is exactly the type of superstar who deserves to be on this list, probably even a little bit higher than he is. He had success that most wrestlers could only hope for, he had a unique style that made him stand out amongst his peers, he joined the WWF at the perfect time to become a superstar, and that's just what he did.

#69: Bushwhacker Luke

Real Name: Luke Williams

Biggest Fan: Barry M. Reardon

For 25 years The Sheepherders trampled opponents from New Zealand to Calgary and nearly everywhere in between. Then the tag team joined the World Wrestling Federation and began calling themselves The Bushwhackers.

The Bushwhackers were one of the most popular and entertaining tag teams in the WWF during the late eighties and early nineties. While their win-loss record might not be the most impressive, they routinely scored moral victories over their adversaries.

Cousin Luke was the slightly younger member of this duo, and he continues to wrestle, on occasion, to this day. In fact, Luke's singles career has been successful enough to get him ranked #363 on PWI's list of the top singles wrestlers of all time, pretty impressive for a tag team specialist.

Bushwhacker Luke really knew how to put the entertainment into sports entertainment, and it's no surprise that such a memorable character appears so high on this list of top superstars.

#70: Papa Shango

Real Name: Charles Wright
Other Aliases: Kama, Kama Mustafa, The Godfather, The Goodfather
Biggest Fan: Jon Baltos

Charles Wright was working as a bartender with no particular ambitions to become a professional wrestler, but professional wrestling found him. Terry Funk, Scott Norton and other superstars were frequenting his bar while working on the Sylvester Stallone movie, Over The Top. They convinced the 6'6", 330-pounder to embark on a career in sports entertainment. As a result, Wright didn't debut in the ring until he was already 28 years old.

Thankfully, Wright's unique look, athleticism and charisma allowed him to make up for lost time and develop into a wrestling superstar very quickly. By 1991, after just a couple of years in the business, Wright was in the World Wrestling Federation. Papa Shango, as he was now known, was the catalyst for one of the most memorable moments in WrestleMania history. After Hulk Hogan's "final match" against Sid Justice at WrestleMania VIII, Shango stormed the ring and attacked the Immortal One. The only reason the Hulkster survived the evening was because of the electrifying return of the Ultimate Warrior.

The Ultimate Warrior paid dearly for intervening, though, as Shango, a master of the voodoo arts, tormented him with dastardly magic. This feud raged throughout the summer of 1992 until the Ultimate Warrior, possibly out of fear, departed the WWF. Eventually, Papa Shango retired from his career as an evil spellcaster and joined Ted DiBiase's Million Dollar Corporation as "The Supreme Fighting Machine" Kama.

Kama would eventually end up in a pair of other factions, the Nation of Domination and the Right to Center. He also enjoyed a wildly successful career as a pimp, known as The Godfather, and made it to the semifinals of the WWF's Brawl For All, losing to eventual tournament winner, Bart Gunn.

Charles Wright's 14-year career came to a conclusion in 2003, a brief career by most standards. What everyone will no doubt remember about Charles Wright is his ability to portray and really inhabit a character. His time as Papa Shango, one of wrestling's greatest gimmicks ever, will not soon be forgotten, and neither will this superstar of the squared circle.

#71: Chief Jay Strongbow & Kofi Kingston (tied)

Real Name (Strongbow): Joseph Luke Scarpa

Biggest Fan: Jane Picard "Chief Jay Strongbow was the first real wrestling 'character' that I can remember. I think that if I didn’t have an attachment to the wrestlers of the 80’s and 90’s I probably would have ranked him higher. He entered the ring in full Chief fashion dancing around the ring for the entertainment of the audience… would there really be an ULTIMATE WARRIOR without the Chief?"

Real Name (Kingston): Kofi Sarkodie-Mensah

Biggest Fan: John Rohner "A Hawaiian person. He has a sign called SOS which means save our ship."

When deciding on a wrestling gimmick, an always popular tactic is to embrace one's heritage. And these two superstars have both become hugely successful by doing just that.

Kofi Kingston debuted exactly five years ago today, but he has already made enough of an impression on our panel to crack the Top 100 Superstars list. He is the current United States Champion and is a three-time WWF Intercontinental Champion. At only 29 years old, the thoroughly entertaining Kingston no doubt has many years of wrestling ahead of him, which is very exciting considering that this young man has really started to come into his own recently: Pro Wrestling Illustrated ranked him #26 on the PWI 500 for 2010.

That same publication honored Chief Jay Strongbow with an award, as well. In 1973, eight years before Kingston was even born, PWI named Strongbow the most popular wrestler in the industry. A four-time WWWF Tag Team Champion and Hall of Famer, Chief Jay Strongbow paved the way for many of the superstars of the eighties and nineties. Hulk Hogan and The Ultimate Warrior, not to mention Tatanka, probably wouldn't have had their famous adrenaline surges had Strongbow not first "gone on the warpath" whenever the crowd cheered him on. A true innovator and one of the biggest superstars in the pre-WrestleMania era, this Native American had no reservations about laying down a beating on his opponent, whether it was Superstar Billy Graham, Mr. Fuji or Greg "The Hammer" Valentine.

Although the peaks of their careers were separated by nearly six decades, these two superstars are on this list because they've been true to themselves and their heritage, and being true to yourself is cool, boys and girls.

#73: Randy Orton

Real Name: Randal Keith Orton
Biggest Fan: John Rohner "He was called the Legend Killer. He was an icon."

As a third-generation superstar, professional wrestling is quite literally in Randy Orton's blood. The son of "Cowboy" Bob Orton, himself #87 on this list, Randy was destined for great things in World Wrestling Entertainment upon his debut in the year 2000. Randy's ascension to dominance was swift indeed. At age 24, he became the youngest wrestler ever to hold the WWE's World Heavyweight Championship, a title he recaptured just last month and currently holds.

Nicknamed "The Legend Killer" for his proclivity for beating up retired, much older wrestlers, Orton's list of WWE accomplishments is nearly unparalleled. A six-time holder of the WWF/WWE Championship, only nine men have held that title for more total days than Randy Orton.

Clearly, this superstar's story is one that is still being written, and a decade from now the name Randy Orton could rank much higher, perhaps near the top of this list. But even if his career ended today, the latest member of the Orton wrestling dynasty is clearly a superstar in the sport.