[JasonTheBrain]

There have been many wild men in the world of pro wrestling but did any give you nightmares. In 1985 I was 7 years old and cable TV had just been introduced to the UK and my grandfather was one of the first in my area to have it installed. I was visiting one day with my parents and he was glued to the TV watching NWA World Wide Wrestling. On the scene was the most terrifying man I had seen, Abdullah The Butcher. He was bleeding from the head and stabbing a fork into the head of The Ragin Bull Manny Fernandez. Well needless to say that was all I needed to see, I was hooked and have been ever since. However when I used to go to bed when I was a kid, dreaming of being a wrestler i would have a recurring dream of the Mad Man From The Sudan chasing me with that dreaded fork and also the Barbarian with the painted face and the tongue sticking out. Fantastic memories which keep me a fan today but I doubt folks are that much invested these days to be scared by it all. A shame really as I count it as a major part of my childhood. Any wrestlers ever terrify you guys?

 

[JustJoel]

Purple/gray and black Undertaker with creepy-ass Paul Bearer. No nightmares though, just was scared as a kid when he came on television, especially after the casket/snake segments with Roberts.

 

[JasonTheBrain]

Actually for a time there good old Papa Shango used to give me the shits when he was doing that slime gimmick thing with the Warrior

 

[Longballplease]

Zeus when he faced Hogan

 

[Sliced Bread no2]

Gangrel wasn't the most pleasant wrestler to watch when you're a child.

 

[ByTor]

Kamala, Killer Khan and Demolition scared the heck out of me when I first started to watch wrestling.

Kamala was an uncontrollable savage who destroyed people. I legitimately thought his top rope splash killed people for real.

Being afraid of Killer Khan seems laughable today. He was a dumpy skinny-fat old guy, but the mist freaked me out as a kid. I thought it HAD to be supernatural. Great Muta freaked me out too. Mist + Creepy Masks + Facepaint= Ultra Creepiness

Demolition were the perfect combination of badassery and creepiness. They'd be the last guys I would have wanted to run into in a dark alley.

I was a little older by the time Taker, Shango and Kane came along, so I was more in awe of those guys than afraid of them. Oh, I suppose Giant Gonzalez freaked me out a little at first just because he was so huge (and he took down the Undertaker!), but that didn't last long.

Heel Jake Roberts was a creep too. Albeit more of a serial killer than a monster.

 

[JasonTheBrain]

I agree, any of the guys who did the mysterious green mist gimmick were scary. Killer Khan was great but you can't beat The Great Kabuki for ring presence, his ring entrance mask was terrifying. Of this course this was carried on fantastically by the great Muta. I love all three gimmicks, all as terrifying but I have to love The Great Muta for japanese mystical terror

 

[SpocksEvilClone]

The only one to scare me was Andre. First house show I ever attended was headlined by Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs. Andre. I went right up to the ring side barrier when they were on the outside & being only 8, damn Andre was a monster.
I knew that wrestling was scripted, but Andre was a scary dude.

 

[Jupiter Jack Daniels]

Abdullah The Butcher was the only guy that truly scared me. Watching him as a kid led to many nightmares.

 

[deepelemblues]

undertaker and kane

when you're 11 years old two dudes almost 7 feet tall and over 300 pounds being unstoppable monsters will scare ya at least a little

 

[JasonTheBrain]

There are classic stories of people having heart attacks and dying watching Freddie Blassie chewing on Rikodozan's head on japanese TV. Probably kayfabe truth but incredible to imagine the terror that existed back then

 

[JasonTheBrain]

What do we get these days? The rock's terrifying people's elbow? lol

 

[Booker T Sucka]

I was scared of Kane when he first came along and I was like 5 at the time. I used to have dreams about him coming after me. He was my favorite wrestler though so it was weird.

 

[BeastBoy]

He didn't scare me but Diesel's theme did spook me as a kid. I hated that looped motor theme of his, ugh. It sounded so demonic.

 

[RyanPelley]

I had nightmares about Taker and Papa Shango as a kid.

I remember hiding behind my mom when Nailz came out at my first show at age 4. Seriously thought he'd walk into the stands to hurt me. And my asshole dad would talk like him when we'd wrestle around at home.

 

[Emotion Blur]

I was 7-9 between 1997 and 1999, so the scariest guys to me at the time were Ministry Taker (oddly I don't recall being scared of him pre-Ministry), Kane, Viscera and Gangrel.

 

[Showstopper]

Papa Shango is the only wrestler who made me somewhat uncomfortable when he was on the screen. I was like 7 when he first debuted. Even his theme music creeped me out. When he made the Ultimate Warrior's head leak black shit I nearly shit myself.

I mean, WTF?

 

[BruiserKC]

Two words...OX BAKER! This mofo gave me nightmares.

 

[Hajduk1911]

you beat me to it BruiserKC....Ox Baker!

 

[Ghost Lantern]

Luna Vachon



Joe LeDuc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4k5Ms1Phck

Never forget him cutting himself with that axe.