5.27.2011

#79: Diamond Dallas Page & Shark Boy (tied)

Real Name (DDP): Page Joseph Falkinberg, Jr.
Biggest Fan: Joe Timmins

Real Name (Shark Boy): Dean Mathew Roll
Biggest Fan: John Rohner "He pretends to drink clam juice. He copies Stone Cold Steve Austin's special move."

Most of us saw Diamond Dallas Page for the first time at WrestleMania VI. Wait a minute, did you not realize that the man driving the pink Cadillac that transported Rhythm & Blues to the ring before debuting their song, Hunka Hunka Hunka Honky Love? Such inconspicuous gigs were the norm for DDP for much of his early career, in fact, he was mainly a manager until age 35 when WCW's Power Plant trained him to become a glorified jobber.

Speaking of glorified jobbers, a lot of you might not be too familiar with the other man slotted at #79 on our list. Shark Boy might not be a household name, but he has enjoyed a long career in the wrestling business and at only 36, he probably has quite a few more years left to go. This masked wrestler, who recently joined North American Pro Wrestling after nine years with TNA, really caught one of our expert's eyes during a period where he parodied Stone Cold Steve Austin. This gimmick proved to be very popular for Shark Boy, although an equally interesting unmasked alter ego, that of Dean Baldwin (a fourth brother to Alec Baldwin), shows that Dean Roll is far more than a one-trick pony, er, shark. Meanwhile, in the ring, Shark Boy has proven himself time and again to be worthy of his immense cult following. His tournament victory at the second annual Brian Pillman Memorial Show won him countless fans in addition to a nice trophy.

Diamond Dallas Page wasn't winning many trophies early in his WCW career, and though his stable, The Diamond Mine, was filled with future megastars in the industry, DDP knew that to fulfill his potential he needed further instruction. Page sought out a legend in the business, Jake "The Snake" Roberts. I can only assume that what ensued was very similar to Luke's training in The Empire Strikes Back, complete with Jake complaining that DDP was too old to start the training and DDP having to explain that he'd already learned so much. Anyway, from that collaboration on, Diamond Dallas Page's career exploded, much like the Death Star, but in a good way. Page went on to superstardom, tagging up with everyone from Karl Malone to Jay Leno and battling the likes of Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart and Bill Goldberg (their 1998 match at Halloween Havoc was WCW's Match of the Year).

Diamond Dallas Page and Shark Boy are two of the more unorthodox entries on our list. Though their paths to #79 are certainly different, these two superstars both prove that charisma, work ethic and desire can trump any perceived lack of in-ring ability or athleticism and still get you a spot on a list of the Top 100 Superstars of Wrestling. Right on.

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