[stevenash]

According to World Wrestling Entertainment's official website, Buddy Roberts has passed away at the age of 65.

Roberts (real name: Dale Hey) was a member of the legendary trio The Fabulous Freebirds, with Michael "P.S." Hayes and Terry "Bam Bam" Gordy. The group achieved its greatest notoriety and success during the early 1980's in Fritz Von Erich's World Class Championship Wrestling promotion.

As the top rivals of Von Erich's sons Kevin, David, and Kerry, the Freebirds were the main villains in a promotion that revolutionized the sport of professional wrestling. Fans would pack the world famous Sportatorium in Dallas to see what would go down between the Von Erich boys and the rebels that were the Freebirds.

Buddy Roberts was an invaluable member of the team. While Hayes was the flamboyant leader and Gordy was the bruiser/enforcer, Roberts was the traditionally tough guy wrestler that could stand toe-to-toe with any other competitor put in front of him.

His most famous match, at the height of his career in Dallas, came in 1983 against "Iceman" King Parsons. It was a hair versus hair match that would see Roberts lose and have his hair taken clean off with a special Nair-like cream. The fans ate it up as one of the top villains in the territory finally got a little of what was coming to him.

Robert's knack for wearing wrestling head gear to keep a wig on his head would be recreated 20 years later, when Kurt Angle lost his hair and covered his baldness the same way.

The rivalry between Roberts, the Freebirds and the Von Erich boys is widely considered one of the greatest in wrestling history and one that fueled the WCCW promotion to its greatest success. In 1990, with the closing of the promotion, Roberts retired from professional wrestling.

Roberts was a throat cancer survivor, having overcome the illness. He blamed the disease on smoking.

[stevenash]

[mcaulay777]

What a great time in wrestling.I remember watching WCCW On USA back in the early 80s.It was a troubled group 3 von erichs died and gino Hernandez died as well.Missy Hyatt i remember how hot she was Percy Pringle was there two he went on to wwf with the undertaker who wrestled under his real name.Loved wrestling back then and all the different groups and reagins

[PhillyFlyers]

Wow that fukkin sucks.

The Fabulous Freebirds were awesome.

Brings me back to the glory days of pro wrestling.

The Freebirds, The 4 Horsemen, Magnum TA, Tully Blanchard, Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes, Ole and Arn Andersen, Nikita Koloff, Ron Garvin, Rock n Roll Express, Wahoo McDaniel just to name a few.

There will never be another time like that in pro wrestling again.

[stevenash]

The Fabulous Freebirds were awesome.

You got that right, they 'got' the tag team concept, they were indeed awesome.
Tag teams are a dying breed now, besides Edge and Christian, and DX, possibly Beer Money Inc, there hasn't been a great tag team in a decade.

When you think great tag teams, you think Free Birds, you think Flair and Valentine, you think Hart Foundation, Hardy's, Dudley's, Bull Dogs, and LoD, that's about it.

[plankton43]

Damn, it's hard to believe that Michael Hayes is the only one left. They are long over-due for HoF.