The Oldest Wrestlers Depicted By Mattel Discussion

***Hey guys! I got the thread unlocked and wanted to keep it going. I was wondering if anyone wanted to talk about figures of people who debuted before 1980 to round out the list. I’m working on it, but college has been really rough so I’m a little out of the loop and this list hasn’t been updated in a Good while.****


As many of you know, I am a die hard old school wrestling fan who enjoys reading about the stars of the 50s and 60s more than I enjoy watching many of today's wrestlers. No disrespect, you all do you. With that being said, I was wondering if anyone had considered who were the earliest wrestlers depicted by Mattel's WWE figure lines.


So the question is, who else fills out the list of the oldest wrestlers depicted by Mattel? Keep in mind this is based on when they debuted in Wrestling in general, not just .

To further elaborate on what I mean by "oldest depicted" is that I like knowing who in the line has witnessed the most wrestling history in conjunction with making their fair share of it.

UPDATED LIST

#1: "Classy" Freddie Blassie (Debuted in 1935 or 1942) I recently found contradicting sources

2:Mae Young: (Her earliest known match happened in 1941 making her the oldest woman wrestler in the line)


#3: Pat Patterson(Proud to say I own this one) (Debuted in 1958)

#4: Gorilla Monsoon & Bruno Sammartino(Debuted in 1959)

#5: Harley Race (Debuted in 1960)

#6: Bobby "The Brain" Heenan (1961)

#7: Bushwhacker Luke(1962)

#8: Rocky “Soulman” Johnson and Bushwhacker Butch(1964)

#9: Terry Funk: (Debuted in 1965)

#10: Andre The Giant (Debuted in 1966)

Tied for #11: Dusty Rhodes & George "The Animal Steele (Debuted in 1967)

Tied for #12: Nikolai Volkoff, Jimmy “Superfly Snuka”, James J. Dillon (Even though he's only depicted for his time as a manager, he did start as a wrestler and debuted in 1968)

Tied for #13 "Superstar" Billy Graham, Roddy Piper, and Gerald Brisco: Both Debuted in 1969

Stars by year:

1970-71: Jerry "The King" Lawler, "Mean" Gene Okerlund, Afa The Wild Samoan, Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, "Magnificent" Don Muraco.

1972: Big John Studd, Bob Orton Jr., Ric Flair, Rick Martel, Sgt. Slaughter, Larry Zybysko

1973: Bob Backlund, Sika the Wild Samoan, Dutch Mantel(Later portrayed as Zeb Colter),"Macho Man" Randy Savage. Bill Eadie(Ax From Demolition) The Iron Sheik

1974: Fit Finlay(Crazy, right?!) Ted Dibiase, Kamala, Jim Ross first broke into the wrestling business as a referee.

1975: Jake Roberts, Tully Blanchard, Hillbilly Jim, Howard Finkel

1976: Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, Bret Hart, Kevin Von Erich

Due to the sheer volume, I have decided to include debuts from 1977.

1977: Brutus Beefcake, George Gray(Akeem), Hulk Hogan, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Junkyard Dog, Michael P.S. Hayes, Magnum T.A., Tito Santana, Wayne Farris(Honky Tonk Man), Precious Paul Ellering debuted on Christmas Day 1977

Newly added!
1978: “British Bulldog” Davey Boy Smith,

1979: Paul Bearer began managing as Percy Pringle in 1979

This list is probably inaccurate, so I was hoping some other members would like to discuss it/research it as well.


ANY ADDITIONS ARE WELCOME! And please keep the old jokes tastefully offensive.