R.I.P. James "Ultimate Warrior" Hellwig

[MikeandRaph87]

I am shocked and sad to announce to wrestling fans that the entertainer best known as The Ultimate Warrior died this afternoon.No cause of his death has been anniunced at this time. The stunning part is he JUST appeared at Wrestlemania 30 and Monday Night RAW to follow up his HoF induction and then he is gone. He closed his life at only 54. He got a last hurrah and made peace with the industry only to be called home once it was done. My heart is with his wife and kids at this time.
http://m.tmz.com/#Article/2014/04/08...-dead-dies-wwe

[Wingnut]

Childhood wouldn't have been the same without him

[TheCanadiandrome]

this is so f*ckin creepy weird! i know it's real, but jesus, i wish this was another celeb death hoax! i can't even come to words, i feel like bawling my eyes out!

RIP! Warrior! We will always Love and Forever remeber you

[MikeandRaph87]

When I was a kid I perferred Hogan and Savage of the little wrestling I watched but Ultimate Warrior has a Ninja turtles connection of all the wrestlers for me. He apeared in ads o. The back of TMNT Adventures that I got as a kid and learned of him early on.

I don't understand the timing of this. It would seem like a hoax and Warrior would disprove the internet hijinx but...

[TheCanadiandrome]

Update...here

Heart attack. DOA at hospital in Arizona

“Officials tell TMZ … Warrior collapsed outside an Arizona hotel at 5:50 PM on April 8th … while walking to his car with his wife. Warrior was transported to a nearby hospital … where he was pronounced dead.”

http://wrestlechat.net/breaking-jim-...-54-years-old/

[Iroh]

Dang! This is totally new to me! It was just the other day when I was doing research on him to find out how all the old wrestlers are doing. I searched Sgt. Slaughter and him. Then, this happens!

[Ramboraph4life aka Matt]

This absolutely sucks...Rest in Peace Ultimate Warrior.

[The Stryker]

The wrestling industry really sucks.

[TheCanadiandrome]

[MikeandRaph87]

Originally Posted by Iroh

Dang! This is totally new to me! It was just the other day when I was doing research on him to find out how all the old wrestlers are doing. I searched Sgt. Slaughter and him. Then, this happens!

I understand that creepy irony better than anyone. As said above I always liked Savage so I looked him up not hearing anything of him in years and learned he got married to his first love and only promoted wrestling merchandise but had aged overnight. Then I kid you not 12 hours later the man's heart gave out.

Thanks for the update Candiandrome!

[Leo656]

I've posted this in a few places...

This is 100% true, no bullsh*t, absolutely serious. I haven't been online all day until just now. A little while ago, I sat down to play WWE 2K14 and decided to play "Defend The Streak" with Undertaker. After he enters, the first opponent comes out: The Ultimate Warrior. As soon as Warrior's entrance finishes, the game locks up and freezes. I reset the console, and the game refuses to load. Frustrated, I decide to hop online for a minute, since the game simply refuses to play. For some reason, before doing anything else, I decide to check lordsofpain.net. The very first thing that catches my eye in a wall of text:

"The Ultimate Warrior Passes Away At Age 54."

That isn't just horrible news, that is one of the eeriest things that has ever happened to me in my entire life. Furthermore, I read it at exactly 3:33, a time which has its own creepy recurring mystical thing going on in my life for many years on its own. The combination of events actually spooked me just a little bit.

Beyond that, what else can I say that everyone hasn't already said? It's unbelievable, and so unexpected given everything that's happened recently. Simply unbelievable. There really aren't enough words. It's hard to really understand unless you were there. I was there from the very beginning and vividly remember watching every single moment of the legacy of The Ultimate Warrior being created. Every squash on Superstars and Wrestling Challenge, and All-American Wrestling on USA, snapping the chain of The Mighty Hercules, pinning Andre in 30 seconds, winning the Intercontinental Championship at SummerSlam '88, the cage match with Rude at SummerSlam '90, and arguably, the greatest match of his career, his match with Savage at WrestleMania VII. And, of course, all the the furniture that was smashed in my living room upon seeing Warrior beat Hogan for the WWF Title at WrestleMania VI.

Believe me, if you didn't grow up with it, you can't completely "get it." It's like how people who are younger nowadays can look at Hogan or even Andre and say, "what was the big deal?" And especially with how Warrior has been presented in the recent past, highlighting so much of the negative or nonsensical things about the performer and his character, storylines, promos, etc. But there was a lot more to it than all that. It's easy to simply explain it away with, "Well, it was a different time, a simpler time," and to some degree that's true. But it doesn't change the fact that, for a time, The Warrior was a legitimate phenomenon. Irregardless of how brief that time may have been, or how "good" he was at this, that, or the other, the fact stands that, just like with Hulkamania, unless you truly lived it, experienced it at its peak, you simply cannot "get it." There is a huge difference between guys who are really popular, and guys who become "Icons" to one degree or another. And whether he was a personal favorite of anyone's or not, - and I've been honest, he was never a particular one of mine - it simply cannot be stated enough, The Warrior was a legitimate Phenomenon, without a doubt. No other character with such a comparatively brief time at the very peak was ever able to leave such a huge impression on professional wrestling, and forge such powerful memories for so many millions of people, memories that lasted decades longer than the actual lifespan of the character. That's a fact. In less than 5 years (just counting his peak WWF years), he was able to create a legacy that will outlast all of us. When you really think about it, that's amazing.

One of the things I say to people most often - and in fact, just said to my niece earlier tonight - is that you need to try and be the very best person you can be every single day, because you are in absolutely no way guaranteed a tomorrow. This reinforces that belief. One day, you can literally have the whole world in your hands, and all of a sudden, it's over. Just like that. Unbelievable.

R.I.P. Warrior.
"Always Believe."

[Gin Rummy]

RIP. Along with Jake Roberts. He was my childhood hero. This one stings bad.

[BubblyShell22]

Just saw this on Yahoo, and I can't believe it. I didn't start watching wrestling until 1997, but I do remember Ultimate Warrior coming into WCW for his feud with Hogan who was in the NWO at the time. I really liked that feud and thought Warrior was awesome. I knew he had wrestled before, but I had never seen it until then, and I really admired him. He will definitely be missed. On Yahoo they said it was almost like he foreshadowed his death with his speech, but I don't think even he knew what was going to happen after that. R.I.P., Warrior. You will be missed. My condolences go out to his wife and his two daughters.

[ZariusTwo]

It's a real bummer. The man divided opinion, but was a unique character, and sometimes that's all you need to be in this buisness to produce quality memories that last a lifetime. Warrior's spirit will outlive all his critics.

[Candy Kappa]

This is sad news, rest in peace Hellwig. The Ultimate Warrior was an amazing character.

[Hamato Yoshi]

I remember reading half a sentence 3 yrs ago :

"Macho Man is....." and before I'd even read the other half of that sentence I knew right then that he was dead. Sadly wrestlers dieing prematurely has become fairly common , RIP UW

[Vicky82]

RIP Ultimate Warrior

[Hamato Yoshi]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a02v-UFOGNM

Listen at 6:00 , kinda spooky

[snake]

It's sad, and I'm still in shock after seeing him at the HOF and at Raw.

RIP James

[TheCanadiandrome]

I rewatched what he said on RAW on YouTube and damn near cried! I'm still shocked