Big Bossman passes away.

[I-Hate-You]

Bossman Traylor passes away



by Dave Meltzer

Dave@wrestlingobserver.com

Ray "Big Bossman" Traylor passed away suddenly at his home tonight. Traylor, who was 42, got his start as Jim Cornette's bodyguard Big Bubba Rogers in 1986 after he left his job as a prison guard in Marietta, GA.

After leaving Crockett promotions over pay, his real life job became is gimmick as the Big Bossman, the evil prison guard, who had a big run with Hulk Hogan.

He was also a major star with All Japan Pro Wrestling as Big Bubba in the 90s, before returning to the WWF in recent years.

At this point his death is a mystery. He had not been complaining of feeling bad, other than a bad knee. His wife found him in a room tonight and he wasn't breathing. Paramedica were unable to revive him.

http://www.liveaudiowrestling.com/wo/news/headlines/default.asp?aID=11399

[Kapoutman]

This caught me off guard. :(

RIP Ray Traylor. You were one hell of an entertainer and you will be missed.

[Mayo]

This is a very sad story to say the least. Although not remembered for his wrestling ability, he definitely made me afraid of going to jail when I was a kid. RIP Ray Traylor.

[DaveWadding]

NO! I used to love Bossmang :'(

[Gouda]

R.I.P :'(

I remember meeting him once at this thing... got his autograph and everything. Seemed like a nice guy.

[V]

wow, i remember his semi-feud with rock/austin in 2001, can't say i liked him much, but it sucks that he died that early :(

[Bad Company]

OH MY GOD.
So Sad to hear this.

RIP Ray

[John la Rock]

HOLY SHIT

I loved the Big Boss Man

Ray Taylor RIP :(

[Boondock Saint]

Holy crap. Unexpected. I remember his days in the Corporation, always fit right in with the group. :-\

R.I.P. Bossman

[Lara Emily]

:( :( :(. This is shocking. So young too. I loved the guy back in the lates 80s early 90s. RIP

His feud with Hogan was actually pretty good especially the cage match.

[Mister Sinister]

This is a Sad Day Indeed

[Funky Fly]

Whoa, what the hell?

RIP

[Aussie Skier]

Holy SHIT!!!
MY god, that is not right. :'(

I was never a huge fan of the Big Boss Man (during his stint with the corporation), but he was a great entertainer, who got the very most out of what talent he had.

I guess for me, ray traylor will be remembered as being part of old and middle school wrestling, and then coming back and being the heavy in the corporation.


RIP Big Boss Man :(

[asphyXy]

His Hell in a Cell match was legendary. RIP :wavesad:

[KayfabeMan]

Ouch.

Definitely didn't expect this at all.

Was more of a worker than a lot of people gave him credit for. Made a lot of people look like a million bucks and had some great great matches during his entire career..

Hope this won't be found out to be drug related, but R.I.P.

[Innovator]

Holy Fucking Shit To All Hell....

This caught me way too offguard. I grew up with the Bossman, always loved him. I never turned the TV off when he was on, he was awesome back in the day. Even when he came back he was still more entertaining than most of the roster.

Sad day for wreslting, RIP Ray Traylor, The Big Bossman

[Gerard]

Jesus christ, ANOTHER one :(. This friggin blows, what is it with the last 2-3 years so many wrestlers suddenly dieing :(

I seriously hope on raw they have some kind of video rememberence for him and not one of their "give it a quick mention" routines.

[Drakul]

:'(
Its a shame.I think this is the first death of a wrestler I am shocked at.

http://www.gerweck.net/bigbossman.jpg
May 2, 1962 - September 22nd 2004
:'( R.I.P :'(



I'm assuming it is 22nd of Sept as he was in America at the time.Feel free to correct me.

[LK]

Wow that caught me completly off guard

RIP Bossman

[Evolution]

Sweet Jesus Of Nazareth!

It's 8:00 am here, that's a Hell of a wake up call. Bossman was great, he could make anybody look good, even Al Snow.

Sorry, I know this is no time for jokes, but his feud with Al is forever going to be in my mind. RIP Ray Traylor. Our thoughts and prayers are with your family.

[The Ravishing One]

RIP Ray Traylor.

The Big Bossman ruled :y:

[Tornado]

Holy SHIT thats unexpected. Wow, just...wow.

RIP Big Bossman.... :(

[Azriel]

Damn that's a shocker. RIP Big Bossman. I remember his feuds with Nailz and the Mountie. Good times.

[Cool King]

http://www.gerweck.net/bigbossman.jpg
May 2, 1962 - September 22nd 2004
:'( R.I.P :'(

[Paranoid Rattlesnake]

Man, seriously unexpected and I really don't know what to say.

R.I.P BOSS MAN

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>HOLY SHIT NO! :(

RIP Big Boss Man</font> :wavesad:

[PoisonIvy]

Fuck. Didn't see that coming. RIP, dude.

[Dark Kane]

This sucks, he was one of my favorites. RIP and God Bless.

[Volchok]

here i wake up and come on the boards and hear this... wow, like everyone else said im in shock.. but RIP...

[SuperSlim]

man that totally sucks.

RIP man.

[Savio]

This was a shocker :(

[targo_the_sho_stopa]

Didn't see that coming, caught me well off guard.
R.I.P Ray
I still say he had one of the best entrance themes in the 80's/early 90's "Hard Times"
Poor guy, best wishes to his family

[Mike the Metal Ed]

I'm in shock...

R.I.P Bossman

[Danny Electric]

R.I.P Bossman

One of my favourite wrestlers when I was a kid :'(

[Doink]

completely shocked by this news.

the boss man for me was one of the original 'bad guys' when i started watching in the 80's and just like mayo said he also made me scared of ever going to prison. he was lethal with the baton of his!

R.I.P Boss Man thanks for memories.

[Cruiserweight 3:16]

Fucking hell, that sucks big style. This is a huge shock. The guy was a decent character in the WWE and he'll definately be missed

R.I.P Bossman

[Xero]

Wow, this one caught me off guard... Then again, all young deaths catch me off guard...

RIP :(

[The Destroyer]

Another sad bolt from the blue.

RIP.

[FourFifty]

<font color=cyan>Rest In Peace, Bossman. We'll miss you.... :wavesad:

[Gone Mad]

Damn.. just like everyone, I am shocked. Hell, just yesterday I made a caption involving him on the WM 21 press conference but I decided out of respect to change it since it didn't sound right.

He was a great talent and a heel at that. It just really sucks all these talents pass away at a young age nowadays and Bossman is another.

R.I.P Bossman.

[Hired Hitman]

What the hell, I thought he was in his late 30's

That sucks when people die before you think they should. (you know what I mean, most people die about 80 or so)

[Loose Cannon]

holy crap. WTF, this sucks. He's one of the guys I grew up with on Saturday Morning WWF. Dam. R.I.P.

[loopydate]

Thia is a huge tragedy. No matter what he was doing, the Boss Man was a great performer. My first memory of him is his Wrestlemania VII match with Mr. Perfect for the Intercontinental Title. I was so enraged that Perfect lost by disqualification (or count-out? That part of the memory's a little shady), but looking back I now realize it was because Ray Traylor made me care so much about him. I can't believe that both he and Hennig are gone.

In addition to playing the babyface, his heel turns (his alliance with Slick in the late '80s and being the heavy for the Corporation) were also very good. I was half hoping that, if WWE was going to continue in their trend of bringing back old Corporate Ministry members, they'd bring Ray in.

Unfortunately, now we'll never get another Boss Man comeback.

I am so saddened by this. This sucks. Rest in peace, Ray.

[sensai86]

RIP Ray Taylor aka Big Boss Man :'(

Everybody has said it ,but I grew up watching him. Best of luck to his family.

[HankScorpio]

R.I.P Ray Taylor.

Only the other day I was chatting about them bringing him back for another run.

[What Would Kevin Do?]

Bloody Fuck..... R.I.P.

It's hard to believe... This has been a horrible two years for this.

[Blue Demon]

:'( this is really unfortunate. Another great talent lost.

[KayfabeMan]

On a side note, since we can share Bossman memories here: I really enjoyed when Curt Hennig made his WWE come back and tagged with Bossman, that was A+ :y:

[JJ Moore]

RIP :(

[Xero]

WWE.com posted an artical on Bossman...

World Wrestling Entertainment is saddened by the loss of Ray Traylor, professionally known as the Big Boss Man. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends.

Inside the wrestling ring, Boss Man was one of the most feared and respected Superstars of his time. Outside the ring, however, Traylor was a kind, gentle, charitable, compassionate family man. While his WWE persona was known for antagonizing others, the real Traylor stopped at nothing to put smiles on the faces of the children he would meet.

Traylor began wrestling in 1984. While serving as a prison guard in Cobb County, Georgia, Traylor caught the attention of a local Atlanta wrestling booker. After months of learning the ropes and paying his dues, Traylor was re-christened Big Bubba Rogers. Not long after, Big Bubba Rogers was in main events all over the country, serving as Jim Cornette’s bodyguard.

A few years later, Traylor traveled to Stamford, Connecticut, to meet with Vince McMahon. Shortly thereafter, the Big Boss Man was created.

As a member of WWE, Big Boss Man rapidly moved up the ranks to main event status. It was as the Boss Man in WWE that Traylor enjoyed his greatest success, facing off against many huge names – Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage and Andre the Giant.

Ray's spirit and warm nature will never be forgotten.

:(

[DaveWadding]

and I couldn't find my fuckin black armband :'(

[Jonster]

R.I.P. Bossman :(

[King Jericho]

RIP Bossman.

One of the first guys I used to watch all those years ago.

:(

[Shaggy]

Holy Crap....I was not expecting this. I didnt expect him to pass away already. Infact I was hoping he would show up on WWE in a few weeks or so. God this sucks. When I was growing up I was a huge fan of his and then when he was in WCW I thought he was really good and I marked out like crazy when he returned to WWE. This is definently a sad day.....:(

[Disturbed316]

Holy shit, thats unexpected. Wow, just...wow :(

RIP Big Bossman.... :(

[Shawn Mega]

RIP

He was one of my first action figures I ever brought. I remember I use to play with him in Attitude to do his finisher.

These last 5 years have been tragic. I hope fans will treat more of our wrestling legends like Hogan,Warrior,Luger,etc. with respect while they still living.

[I-Hate-You]

I remember him breaking up in tears on RAW the night after Owen died.

He was reading what would be on Owen's tombstone.

:(

[Hardkore Kidd J]

When I first read the title of this I sat there with my mouth agape and had to blink twice to make sure I wasn't having a bad dream. Man, there are a lot of people that died this year. I am so sad to hear about Boss Man dying especially at such a young age. My condolenses go out to his family and friends. :'( :'(

[Semetery]

Kick to the bollocks there. I read the title for this thread and just... damn man. :'(

Bossman, may you R.I.P. you were brilliant.

[Head]

His jailhouse match at Summerslam 1991 against the Mountie will always stand out in my mind.

Great performer in his earlier days.

Sad to see him go, and I wish his family the best of luck.

[ilt_undertaker]

:( I was shocked. :(

R.I.P :'(

[PorkSoda]

I was shocked as well. RIP Traylor :( Sad to see him go so soon, didnt really expect it. Dont really know what to say, Seems like theres alot of greats leaving us lately :(

[Corkscrewed]

What the...

I definitely grew up with him. As a kid, I despised him, because he was such an intimidating, dislikeable guy. I didn't like him so much when he came back because he didn't really do anything, though his outfit was a lot better.

Still, no matter how much you flame a wrestler for being good or bad, you never want to see this happen. I've never heard of him being a bad person or anything like that. This is damn near tragic... to die so young.

Rest in Peace, Bossman. Maybe have a cup of tea with Big Show's dad... have some laughs over that angle.

[Champion of Europa]

Gread Odin's Raven! :(

Man, that sucks.

He was a pritty decent wrestler back in the day.

[#1-norm-fan]

I was just thinking how it's been a while since the last shocking young wrestling death. There was a span of a couple years where it was getting rediculous and now this. Bad times.

[TheJShow]

Wow. That's all I can say.
And just a week or 2 ago I was talking to my roommate about the Boss Man, and how I'd like to see him come back.

R.I.P. Ray

[RGWhat316]

Wow, this sucks. I wasn't that big of fan of him, but it's still unfortunate. I was wondering the other day what was going with him. Yet another sad day for wrestling.
R.I.P. Bossman

[Kamchadal.]

Aweful news. I always respected they way he wrestled - very agile for a big man. God Bless!

[DaveBrawl]

Poor Boss Man, I feel so bad for his family. He was one of my favorites, and I wanted the WWE to bring him back to TV. I always enjoyed his matches and his chracters, he will be deeply missed. RIP Mr. Traylor

[Vietnamese Crippler]

:|

[CosaNostra]

I was a BossMan mark. I loved the character of the BossMan. His feud with The Big Show made me laugh my ass off.

"Hey Paul Wight, you're a bastard. And your Mama says so!"

RIP Ray :(

[HeartBreakMan2k]

RIP. My heart and wishes go out to his family.

[Dark Kane]

Boss Man was obviously one of the most hated heels and he was very good at getting the crowds to boo him. Boss Man played one of the best heels in the bussiness.

[Gertner]

damn. R.I.P

[FakeLaser]

Wow, this one is actually a real shock. RIP.

[Azriel]

Update from PWinsider:




Atlanta TV Station WSB-TV reported today that Ray Traylor's cause of death was a "massive heart attack."

[Mr. JL]

omg.. that is the last thing I expected to hear. R.I.P.

[Sephiroth]

holy crap. WTF, this sucks. He's one of the guys I grew up with on Saturday Morning WWF. Dam. R.I.P.

Same overhere...i grew up watchin him...:( RIP BB :wavesad:

[Ska-Wars]

I'm not gonna lie and say I was a Bossman fan because I never really was, but this is a total shock. RIP.

[I-Hate-You]

Kind of sad when you think about this, but one of the Twin Towers is gone.

[Arashi Kage]

http://pulolesu.gamewolf.com.tw/history/hitman/japan/bigbossman2.jpg

Man, unbelievable, unexpected. Big Boss Man was one of my favorites when I was a little kid.

If you ever take a trip down to Cobb County Gerogia, you better read the signs, respect the law and order. You'll serve hard time, hard time. You know the Big Boss Man will make ya walk the line, you better watch out or you'll be serving hard time.

He carries a big stick, a ball and chain too. If you're looking for trouble, he'll be coming after you, hard time, hard time. You know the Big Boss Man will make ya walk the line, you better watch out or you'll be serving hard time.
RIP

[Gerard]

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/gerald.marley/mp3/WWF%20-%20Big%20Boss%20Man%20(Old).mp3

[MVP]

I haven't been on the computer in a few days, I'm here in the computer lab right now, and I just read the article. I couldn't believe it. One of my favorite heels ever. :(

R.I.P. Ray Traylor

[Azriel]

Hopefully, they'll mention something on RAW

[Loose Cannon]

Yeah, they will. He had a great relationship with the WWE.

[Gerard]

http://www.wwe.com/news/commentary/keith/1277855

[Azriel]

Great write up

[Mr. Nerfect]

I know this may sound sick, but I just got back from my holiday and I was thinking in my head that someone close to the WWE had died. I just had a feeling. Shame it had to be right. :'(

Ray Traylor may not have had great ring skills, but his ability to play his character is something missing from the WWE today. The Big Bossman character had an aura around it, something only Ray could provide. My condolences go out to Ra's friends and family through this tough time. Although far too premature, I hope Ray's death was under pleasant circumstances. :wavesad:

[Gerard]

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/gerald.marley/vid/rt.wmv

Some REALLY low res grainy video i had to work from, better than nothing i suppose :(

[freerock1.com]

Tribs to BossMan, and prayers for his family.