Dusty Rhodes Statue Unveiled at WrestleMania Axxess
The American Dream lives on as a life-size bronze statue of Dusty Rhodes was erected at [...]
The American Dream lives on as a life-size bronze statue of Dusty Rhodes was erected at WrestleMania Axxess.
Rhodes' statue joins both the Ultimate Warrior and Andre the Giant who have been immortalized by WWE in recent years and debuting the week of WrestleMania. The reveal of the statue garnered a "Dusty" chant from the crowd.The Rhodes family was in attendance, as were most of the WWE roster, and spoke about their much beloved, and missed, patriarch and mentor.
"[He's] already a Hall of Famer in every way possible," said Triple H, who emceed the unveiling. "This is just another step to immortality."
Dustin, who assisted his brother with unveiling the statue remarked at the likeness of his late father. "That's pretty jarring right there."
"It's been a tough year for our family," continued Dustin. "Dad was an amazing man, but to us he was just 'Pops.' And he was a common man who became 'The American Dream' because he had a dream and he captured his dream. I want to say thank you to the fans who supported our father one hundred and ten percent over the years and continue to support Cody and myself."
Brandi Rhodes, wife of Cody, who portrays WWE ring announcer Eden was thankful to be included in the ceremony and what Dusty meant to her outside of the ring, even for a short period of time.
"I only had the opportunity to be one of Dusty's daughters for about two years," she said, before thanking the rest of the family for allowing her to share in their moment. "It's an awesome thing that he was able to be shared with all of us collectively."
Lastly, Cody closed out the proceedings with a pair of stories. One was about Rhodes' WWE Hall of Fame induction. (Question: "Who'd you ever beat?" Answer: "Everyone on that stage, baby.") The second was on a more personal level. He talked about how his father was running this promotion and called up to offer condolences to a performer whose father had passed and made time to ask about what kind of man he'd been.
"Dusty Rhodes was famous for talking but he was a hell of a listener," said Cody. "If you come to this statue, take a picture. Don't be shy. Talk to him. Tell him how your day is going. Tell him who you think is going to win at WrestleMania. Tell him everything, because I have to believe that this special group of people that comes to WrestleMania, comes to Axxess, comes to NXT, people that love sports-entertainment, that echoes in heaven and earth."
Dusty Rhodes was truly a legend in his own time and even though his actual WWE career was short-lived, the impact he left on the sport of professional wrestling is immeasurable.
(Via WWE)
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