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RICKY MORTON, BOBBY FULTON & MORE PAY TRIBUTE TO SUPERSTAR BILL DUNDEE

Ricky Morton took to his Facebook page to pen the following tribute to the late, great Bill Dundee:

"Losing Bill Dundee hurts in a way that’s hard to explain. Bill wasn’t just somebody I wrestled with. He was somebody I spent countless miles with, countless nights in the car with, and somebody who helped shape me into the professional wrestler I became.

We spent lots of time on the road together. Those long drives, the conversations, the wrestling, the laughs, and even the hard times are memories I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life. I was young, hungry, and trying to figure out this business, and Bill taught me things you couldn’t learn from a book. He taught me how to work, how to think, how to conduct myself, and most importantly, how to become a professional.

Bill had a way of teaching you without always realizing he was teaching you. You watched him. You listened to him. You learned from him. I took so much from those years together, and a piece of the wrestler I became will always belong to Bill Dundee.

Wrestling has given me some of the greatest memories of my life, but it has also taken away a lot of people I loved along the way. Today, I’m thinking about the miles we traveled, the stories we shared, and the brotherhood that came from being in this crazy business together.

Thank you, Bill. Thank you for believing in me. Thank you for teaching me. Thank you for all those miles and all those memories.

Rest easy, Superstar."

***

Bill Behrens wrote, "Just saw a post from Jamie Dundee that his dad, "Superstar" Bill Dundee passed away. I first got to work with Bill in USWA in the mid 1990s and then in Music City Wrestling/NWA Worldwide where in the late 1990s he was in the Main Event on a show that broke a gate record at the Nashville Fairgrounds. Thereafter I would see him now a then and he was always a pleasure to be around. He had a great wrestling mind and was a great booker in addition to a top wrestling star. The picture of him & I was taken several years ago at a WrestleCade in Winston-Salem, NC, and was the last time I saw him. He will be missed."

***

Leilani Kai wrote:

"I woke up this morning to the news that my longtime friend “Superstar” Bill Dundee passed away at 3:30 a.m.

Bill and I knew each other for a very long time. The wrestling world knew the Superstar—the great talker, the great wrestler and one of the men who helped make Memphis wrestling so special. I was blessed to know the man behind all of that, too.

When I was traveling through the territory, there were times when Bill and his wife opened their home to me and gave me a place to stay. That may sound like a small thing to some people, but when you spend your life traveling from town to town and living out of a suitcase, you never forget the people who welcomed you into their home and treated you like family.

Through all those years, I also became very close with Bill’s daughter Donna and his son-in-law, Bobby Eaton. Donna and Bobby both meant so much to me. Bobby was one of the sweetest and kindest people our business has ever known, and losing him was incredibly difficult. Hearing about Bill this morning brings so many memories of that family rushing back.

Bill was a true Superstar long before that word was used for everyone. He was tough, colorful, talented and larger than life. He could make a building come alive, but away from the ring, I will remember the friend who opened his door to me during those long years on the road.

My heart is with Jamie, Donna and the entire Dundee family this morning. I know there are no words that can take away the pain of losing a father and someone who was such a major part of your family.

Please keep all of them in your thoughts and prayers.

Rest in peace, Bill. Thank you for your friendship, your kindness and all the memories.

Bobby Fulton wrote:

"Today I was woken up to the heartbreaking news that a man I looked at as a second father, “Superstar” Bill Dundee passed away. He was a man I loved and admired, he was an inspiration. He had one of the strongest work ethics in the business, one of the best that put on a pair of boots and trunks. He was a great babyface and heel. He could run the top rope, even if they weren’t tight. He and Billy Watts put Tommy & I together to form The Fantastics. Bill helped me so much, giving me one of my first breaks in the business. It’s a very sad day. What a great footprint he leaves in our hearts and minds, with all the great memories we are left with.  I will never forget you."

 

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