Rocky Johnson, WWE Hall of Famer and Father of Dwayne Johnson, Has Died at 75

It’s a sad night for wrestling fans, as one of its greatest legends has died. Suggested Reading How Tina Knowles Schooled Folks Hating on BeyoncΓ© For Singing the National Anthem on Tour What’s Happening to Diddy’s Fortune? Here’s What We Know Gary Coleman’s Ex-Wife Finally Takes Lie Detector Test About His Death, and the Results…

It’s a sad night for wrestling fans, as one of its greatest legends has died.

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NBC News reports that legendary wrestler Rocky Johnson has died at age 75. Johnson got his start wrestling in the 1960s with the National Wrestling Alliance, like his father-in-law Peter Maivia before him. He would later join Wrestling Entertainment in 1983. It was there where he would team with Tony Atlas and form the tag-team duo Soul Patrol. During their run they would go on to become the first black tag team champions in WWE history, paving the way for modern stables like The New Day.

Johnson retired in 1991 and five years later his son, Dwayne Johnson, would follow in his footsteps. Dwayne β€œThe Rock” Johnson would go on to be one of the most influential wrestlers of the modern era, becoming one of the key figures during WWE’s much-heralded β€œattitude era.” After leaving the WWE, his son would go on to become one of the most successful actors of all time with his films grossing a combined total of $10.5 billion worldwide. In 2008, Johnson would be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by his son. Those in his Hall of Fame class included names such as Ric Flair and Mae Young.

The wrestling community has shown an outpouring of support as news of Johnson’s passing spread this evening.

https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1217613066952749056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/AEWrestling/status/1217602353890648064?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
https://twitter.com/nwa/status/1217585196675018752?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Rest in Peace, Soul Man.

Correction: 1/16/2020, 3:50 p.m. ET: Peter Maivia is Rocky Johnson’s father-in-law. An earlier version of this story misstated their relationship and has been corrected above.

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