I just saw the news when cruising the Firepro board over at Gamefaqs, and want to share here what I wrote there:
Wow.
Just decided to pop in and saw this news.
I have not been following Wrestling for a long time now, and here is another piece of what I always enjoyed about wrestling now gone. It was his inclusion in most of the Japanese titles that helped bridge the gap for me on importing games such as the Firepro games, the King Of Collesseum games, etc.
I was not as big of fan of Dr. Death as old time poster RoadWarriorAce, but he was always a favorite for use in this series of games, and a favorite to watch in real action when possible.
I always enjoyed his work in the ring, from his early days as a singles wrestler in the NWA/WCW, to his awesome team with Terry Gordy (The Miracle Violence Connection) that dominated both Japan and the U.S. for a time.
R.I.P. Dr. Death. You will be missed, but there is one hell of a reunion tag match possible now on the cards in heaven.
OMG Dr. Death died. This is so sad. He was my favorite wrestler of all time. God it's hard to take right now. I still don't want it to be true. SAD New Year.
I was always in awe of Dr. Death's strength & toughness. Alot of it truly legit (and not kayfaybe). He one of the old school wrestlers.
I remember the first time i saw Dr. Death Steve Williams he was military pressing 300+ pounds plus Terry Bam Bam Gordy against the top of a steel cage in War Games Match with a big smile on his face like the feat was nothing. I was amazed.
God it's truly a very sad New Years. I will always remember you Doc. You're in a better place now. I love you Doc! RIP Dr. Death Steve Williams May 14, 1960 – December 29, 2009
I just finished watching that War Games match a few weeks ago while I was going through some of my old DVDs. 92 I think it was, though it could have been 91.
We lost two wrestlers I greatly admired in 2009. Misawa and Dr. Death. And that is not counting one of the all time great managers, Captain Lou.
I have resolved to try to start watching wrestling again this year, before I read the news about Dr. Death. It's going to make it just that much harder to get back into it, but I am going to give it a try, starting Monday night.
My first exposure to Dr. Death came when Crockett Productions bought out Bill Watts' UWF and merged them. I had read about the UWF, but didn't get the shows in California. So the Apter mags clued me in on some of the happenings in the UWF. I had heard of Dr. Death's title win against Big Bubba Rogers. I knew the back story behind the first family breakup (Missy Hyatt, Eddie Gilbert, Rick Steiner and Sting)
So the first actual match I saw from Steve Williams was against some jobber, likely George South or Italian Stallion, on a Saturday afternoon on TBS. I recall his being wooed by Kevin Sullivan for the Varsity Club. First his battles against them, then his battles as a member.
No real notable fueds until he came back from Japan with Terry Gordy and put the challenge to the dominant Steiner Brothers in WCW around the early 90's...93-94 I think. Man the matches those 4 had. Really blew the roof of the house, and cemented Williams as someone I enjoyed watching work.