Bruno Sammartino has passed away at age 82

**Evil Vito** · 04-18-2018, 12:14 PM

Bruno survived the Nazis, survived the death of much of his immediate family, and survived scarlet fever - all at the same time.

He and the rest of his family had to delay travelling to join their father in America after the war because Bruno was so small and sickly that they feared he wouldn't survive the journey - yet, after moving to the US in 1950, he almost made the Olympic weightlifting team in '56, and set the world bench press record in '59.

He was the archetype for Vince McMahon Sr's "ethnic babyface" model, and for the babyface champion formula that the WWE have followed more or less ever since. He was an inspirational figure for recent immigrants to America and, with all due respect to Dusty Rhodes, as fine an example of the ideal of the American Dream as I can think of. And a rare class act in a classless industry.

04-18-2018, 12:14 PM	#11
Evil Vito President of Freedonia Posts: 58,329	Bruno survived the Nazis, survived the death of much of his immediate family, and survived scarlet fever - all at the same time. He and the rest of his family had to delay travelling to join their father in America after the war because Bruno was so small and sickly that they feared he wouldn't survive the journey - yet, after moving to the US in 1950, he almost made the Olympic weightlifting team in '56, and set the world bench press record in '59. He was the archetype for Vince McMahon Sr's "ethnic babyface" model, and for the babyface champion formula that the WWE have followed more or less ever since. He was an inspirational figure for recent immigrants to America and, with all due respect to Dusty Rhodes, as fine an example of the ideal of the American Dream as I can think of. And a rare class act in a classless industry.