Why Goldust was Wrestling's Weirdest Gimmick (wrestling documentary)

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10 ай бұрын

Goldust is one of the most bizarre gimmicks WWE has ever produced. When Goldust debuted in 1995, the wrestling world had never seen anything like it. In this wrestling documentary, we see how for Dustin Runnels, son of Dusty Rhodes, the character was an opportunity to step outside his father's shadow in the WWF.
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Пікірлер: 211

@StunnedByWrestling 10 ай бұрын

Hi guys, as always this video is available as a podcast over on Podbean and Spotify: stunnedbywrestling.podbean.com/ and open.spotify.com/show/7a841T1CbmaVVwhnrAsZV7

@DarthRaider520 8 ай бұрын

I'm reminded of the Gold Dust Trio back in the day. He was an embodiment of them.

@craighoward6243 3 ай бұрын

I don't think so. This man was at the bottom of his profession and probably pissed off a few people. He was made to wear the wig, dress & like a woman. That's called punishment! 😢

@constablekennedy7705 10 ай бұрын

Goldust was actually an Awesome Gimmick 😂

@angelaholmes8888 10 ай бұрын

Yep💯

@FunkSwaggMusiK 10 ай бұрын

How is your comment 9 days old but the video is 4 days old 🤨

@scottmiller4859 10 ай бұрын

@@FunkSwaggMusiKholy shit bro😮 he's a time traveler

@scottmiller4859 10 ай бұрын

@@FunkSwaggMusiKbut seriously that's a very good question, but a dangerous one. I fear you have pointed out an illuminati

@shardstraws1 9 ай бұрын

@@FunkSwaggMusiKnaw no bullshit 😂😂😂

@user-fq9vk2bz8v 10 ай бұрын

I actually believe that golddust kinda started the attitude era he was doin off the wall shit before Austin an the rock

@bbqfetus-the_don_grilluminati 8 ай бұрын

i agree, debatable on whether he started the attitude era, but he def ushered it in! LEGEND!

@user-fq9vk2bz8v 8 ай бұрын

@@bbqfetus-the_don_grilluminati sit by the way you have the most badass name to go by I love it...hail the grilliminati

@ReloadTH 7 ай бұрын

His character was meant to test the audience but I wouldn’t say he started it because Goldust didn’t generate enough fan reaction. Some of the prudes didn’t like it but that was it. He’s similar to someone like HBK that was also testing the audience’s limitations and reactions but not quite pushing the boundaries yet. Austin and Rock were the primary characters recreated to lead the charge into the Attitude era. Austin defied everything that defined a typical face yet the fans loved him. He owned that loud mouth redneck persona. In a way, he was the first anti-hero character in an industry that was always clear cut black and white/good vs bad only. The Rock redefined how to cut promos and changed the standards for heels because he was both simultaneously loved and hated. He proved that even the most hated heel can still make the audience laugh. Pretty much from here on out, WWE heels were expected to be just as great as the top faces whereas in the old days, the industry was all about pushing the favorite baby face and the heels were just expendable.

@AntwanFuzznips 2 ай бұрын

100%. No Goldust? Austin isn't chugging beers and flipping the bird in 98.

@kp1flush 9 ай бұрын

They used to say, "when life gives you lemons". This guy took a load of Llama turds and somehow made liquid GOLD!

@ShadowAngel1860 9 ай бұрын

Except that what he took was Adrian Streets gimmick, which already was a worldwide success in the 70's and early 80's and just copy it.

@dylanpennington6105 10 ай бұрын

Scott Hall gave a shoot interview where he said that he didnt really have a problem with working with Golddust. Vince wanted him to be completely disgusted and a homophobe, but Scott said "but thats not who I am. If you want my character to be uncomfortable with it, thats fine, but it's not who I am."

@joemamr710 5 ай бұрын

He’s just saying that to save face in today’s world. He wouldn’t have begged everyone else to switch the storyline if that were the case, he genuinely didn’t want to work with that character.

@Colonel_RamRod 4 ай бұрын

Year of the interview? That’s what would influence my opinion on whether he said it to save face or not

@JulioVonGhoulio 2 ай бұрын

@@joemamr710 Sounds like he didn't want to be portrayal as a homophobe. So if that's what Vince wanted, and he didn't want to do it, then he'd try to get some else to do it.

@joemamr710 Ай бұрын

@@JulioVonGhoulio He had no issues with being portrayed as a homophobe, that's why he did it. He's just making up the fact he didn't want to do it many years later because the tone of society has shifted and it didn't age well.

@JulioVonGhoulio Ай бұрын

@@joemamr710 Well we don't know that for sure. Not everyone was homophobic in the 90s. Plenty of people in that business did things they weren't necessarily comfortable with, because ultimately it's just a show, and they are just acting the part. That and those higher up the ladder that run things tend to get their way more often than not.

@Figures.Horror.Music. 10 ай бұрын

Goldust, Mankind, Taker, and Vader is why 1996 is my 2nd favorite year of the WWE. Right behind 1992.

@mattysquizzato7094 2 ай бұрын

Yeah, but a babyface HBK as champion pretty much overrode all the good stuff u named.

@Figures.Horror.Music. 2 ай бұрын

@@mattysquizzato7094 😂 not even close

@ScumDog420 10 ай бұрын

He creeped me out as a kid but now I love Goldust

@arvindtulapathy1990 7 ай бұрын

i remember feeling scared and weirded out as a child everytime he came on screen...but that proves their gimmick worked

@cliffbeavers6158 10 ай бұрын

Goldust was comedy gold with both Booker and R Truth

@iPartyHardcore 8 ай бұрын

Comedy gold was Goldust on WWF Warzone for N64.

@JacobStevens13 9 ай бұрын

One of the greatest characters of all time. Endlessly hilarious, just his mannerisms when talking to someone would instantly put my friends and i in stitches laughing.

@strxwbxrry_420 4 ай бұрын

Goldust is an androgynous icon, he’s so outrageous and I love it Edit: I know it was a different time, but I want to add that being androgynous doesn’t make you gay. You can not-conform to your gender and still be attracted to the opposite gender. Attraction and personal aesthetic aren’t tied together. It is saddening that he still experienced homophobia though, no one should have to deal with prejudices like that

@angelaholmes8888 10 ай бұрын

I absolutely enjoyed Booker t and goldust as a tag team they were comedic gold 💚🤣😂

@d.n.adatniccalexxx 10 ай бұрын

The funniest tag team ever 😂😂😂😂😂

@angelaholmes8888 10 ай бұрын

@@d.n.adatniccalexxx yeah 😊

@problematic0608 5 ай бұрын

Didn't know he had to go through so much, what a legend

@biggiefitz6275 3 ай бұрын

Goldust needs inducted into the HOF. Nobody but Dustin could've made it work and it worked. Legend!

@rleonekc07 8 ай бұрын

Golddust is a legendary gimmick that Dustin should be proud of

@elleni-41 10 ай бұрын

Goldust was one of my favorites..his gimmick was so unique..ive been waiting on this video..

@ShadowAngel1860 9 ай бұрын

How was it unique, when it was done several times before, most famously with Adrian Street? And WWF already even parodied that with Adrian Adonis.

@KarmasAbutch 4 ай бұрын

@@ShadowAngel1860 ☔️

@cliffbeavers6158 10 ай бұрын

Goldust will hopefully be inducted into the Hall of Fame by Cody. He deserves it.

@draxcir 4 ай бұрын

Damn can’t believe he hasn’t. That’s crazy.

@angelaholmes8888 10 ай бұрын

I love goldust since I was a kid glad Dustin got his life together and is still wrestling 💛💛💛

@Gwynncore 10 ай бұрын

I loved his later matches in the 00s and early 2010's. Even then he still stood out as unique among the roster.

@JackQSmith 10 ай бұрын

I know he didn't write it himself but his entrance music was amazing. Very under-rated.

@alanguages 10 ай бұрын

One of my faves during the New Generation Era. It was so dramatic and appropriate for a Hollywood actor.

@KarmasAbutch 4 ай бұрын

Was just thinking that when I saw this - amazing how that still in my head for instant recall 30 years later. It stood out among the millions of Hard Rock guitar intros - just like Golddust stood out as “differently edgy” 😂

@thevoid99 10 ай бұрын

dustin's career is probably underrated as it went through many phases as he had a longevity that many 2nd/3rd generation wrestlers would kill for. plus, his powerslam is a thing of beauty that only he could do. his most recent run in AEW has been solid as he is always treated with respect and i know he's finishing his career up yet it is a career worth celebrating. he is a bonafide hall of famer.

@RAS_Squints 10 ай бұрын

The funniest story Dusty told in the Inside the Ropes interview is how he finally got nuclear heat with the help of Savio Vega

@tattoodude8946 6 ай бұрын

I loved that he didn't even know what androgenous meant when Vince was pitching the character. I can't imagine what he was thinking when he found out what he had agreed to! 🤣 Vince could have at least softened the blow and told him David Bowie-esque or something! 🤣

@ReloadTH 7 ай бұрын

One of the best and most unique characters. He was creepy yet funny at the same time. His mannerism was unsettling but also entertaining. His technical skills were also super underrated. I would say he was one of the best technical wrestlers ever.

@theprogressingdrummer1631 4 ай бұрын

That first run was so unique. Using his opponent’s insecurities and homophobia against them…like others have said, this was one of the earliest hints of the attitude era.

@Cropsykills 8 ай бұрын

Goldust is hands down the greatest character of the 90s.

@piguelmonce9937 10 ай бұрын

artist formerly known as goldust made goldust look normal

@Kommander696 10 ай бұрын

Goldust was incredible!

@randyfleetwood9713 10 ай бұрын

One of my favorites ever in wrestling. Goldust just made even not so great matchups interesting every time

@harlemshakur 6 ай бұрын

The fact that this dustin actually offered to get breast implants to put his character over 😂😂😂

@brenthatcher5748 10 ай бұрын

Goldust was great a progression of Exotic Adrian Street

@vaudevillian7 4 сағат бұрын

Absolutely, not quite ‘unlike anything seen before in the wrestling world’ as the commentary says

@TiltBrook 10 ай бұрын

Prior to Goldust, was Adorable Adrian Adonis. Prior to them both, was Exotic Adrian Street!!!

@hendo338 7 ай бұрын

Street was the innovator. Everybody else was a knock off.

@becausegang7266 10 ай бұрын

Would have made a good wwf champion

@LionHeartZell 4 ай бұрын

From trolling your legend of a dad to accidentally being an iconic character

@wnbrknisezlyfxd2951 5 ай бұрын

Also how cool is savio vega for not only making those suggestions but being 1000% cool with it???

@dasiareed2708 10 ай бұрын

Bizarre for that time period and era yes

@iamcasihart 10 ай бұрын

I’m so excited! Goldust is one of my favorite characters ever! 💛

@locks69 10 ай бұрын

I hope this doesn't sound stupid, but why did he keep dyeing his hair blonde if he wanted to escape comparisons to his father?

@bawii111 3 ай бұрын

Dusty was actually proud

@citi360 10 ай бұрын

When I was 5, Gold Dust scared the life out of me.

@mbalisithole1984 10 ай бұрын

Honestly? Same

@troy8613 10 ай бұрын

😂😂 “he offered to get breast implants, but McMahon vetoed it”. Brilliant stuff as always. And Dustin has amazing hairline genetics.

@iwritechecksatthegrocerystore 10 ай бұрын

(I’m not knocking with this comment) But yea he does. Like if you do the number of steroids required to be a top level wrestler/bodybuilder and your hairline not only survives but looks that fucking good? God damn those are some strong ass hair genes. 😂

@elleni-41 9 ай бұрын

I've said the same thing..the hairline is perfection, like Cody, thick hair too..🤣🤣

@medicineman6982 8 ай бұрын

My hairline was great until I started combining beans,sour cream, and jalapeños,I damn near farted myself into some hair plugs #dollars #doll #hairs

@iPartyHardcore 8 ай бұрын

@@iwritechecksatthegrocerystore I’d say it’s more shocking they all kept their hairlines even with the hair bleaching. That will kill anyone’s hair faster than steroids.

@joepage6734 8 ай бұрын

@@iwritechecksatthegrocerystore Dustin used steroids? He looked natty to me, he never had a decent physique except when he was just starting, probably because he was young. Goldust looked like he'd never even lifted.

@Wesley-rn7oc 5 ай бұрын

The Attitude era was WILD.. can't believe I was watching that as a kid 🤣😂

@TheArizonaAssasin 6 ай бұрын

Dustin Rhodes is one of the true greats. A great worker and good lord- once he found his direction with Goldust, he seriously got into people’s heads. Nobody else could have pulled off that character. The awkward audacity that could make people as perplexed as they were pissed.

@inhop2443 10 ай бұрын

Gold Dust is a trans icon. Dont know if thats what Dustin was really going for, but he made it 😂😂

@wraithstrongopark 4 ай бұрын

ay, great job! i enjoyed this very much.

@StunnedByWrestling 4 ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed this one!

@boredtrucker 8 ай бұрын

Gold Dust was one of the best gimmicks in wrestling. He was a likable heel you could cheer or jeer and both were right.

@HellCow420 10 ай бұрын

Hell of a character

@crazyralph6386 10 ай бұрын

Dude is a legend

@JAV619 5 ай бұрын

l loved Goldust, especially with Booker T. His promo with The Rock was hilarious

@popo-yq5je 5 ай бұрын

Goldust and Booker T..they are perfect underrated duo...

@jackdorseysdisappointedfather Күн бұрын

Say what you will but for me? I smiled EVERY time goldust appeared on screen. You juat knew things were gonna get wacky.🤣👍

@user-wk4ec5fn6w 4 ай бұрын

I may be an old timer, but where is the Exotic Adarain Street and Miss Linda? I recall from the Mid Atlantic wrestling? 16:01

@anthonybird546 29 күн бұрын

Goldust was the God of Promos. The one he cut for Roddy Piper with the bagpipe. Holy shit it was hilarious and weird

@leftyjoburg4094 4 ай бұрын

Wayyy ahead of its time

@user-ds1vq3mi2r Ай бұрын

Golddust, was a complete knock off of Fabulous Adrian Street (with gold makeup) who wrestled in the Florida territory, the homebase of Dusty Rhodes

@TheLfamily24 5 ай бұрын

2002 years as when I started watching him and I remember those times being magical. I couldn’t imagine being around for the 80s era

@lilrisdley 10 ай бұрын

I just recently watched a lot of attitude era wrestling and I noticed that Dustin was a really good wrestler. Everything he did looked impactful. Some wrestlers you can easily tell its fake but Dustin sold both offense and defense extremely well and the Golddust character was funny as hell.

@JungleJuice559 8 ай бұрын

Goldie the Goat

@atcera8714 6 ай бұрын

If it's a household name it's a good gimmick. All time great along with names like Hulk Hogan, Undertaker, Rikishi, John Cena, Hardy Boys, Kane and many more. It's like when people say Mike Tyson without even knowing his face they know he's a boxer

@KarmasAbutch 4 ай бұрын

Good Point!

@Andy_Babb 7 ай бұрын

Gotta give some credit to the guy for making Goldust as memorable a character as he did

@crappymeal 8 ай бұрын

One of my favourites

@wnbrknisezlyfxd2951 5 ай бұрын

I loved the goldust character. And I appreciate him even more now. He was weird. He was odd... he was.... *slow inhale*... Gooooooooldust

@MadC-pu5or 10 ай бұрын

I liked gold dust, I didn’t care that it had a splash of homo in his character. That shit was cool af to me, and I hate to shock people but this wasn’t the first homosexual based character. He was just the first to make more blatant than the others is all. You should look up a Japanese wrestler known as “gay hard”

@JohnnyD5 5 ай бұрын

Goldust was f’n awesome!!!! The Attitude Era needed Goldust and was all the better for it.

@Yourmomgoestocolledge 10 ай бұрын

Thanks, ive wondered who that Cody Rhodes guy was to them for awhile.

@rmrbush 3 ай бұрын

you will never forget the name of .... gold dust, for real though.

@Bubba-Fudd-bulletsmith 10 ай бұрын

I like the music at 12:33

@FrownyMascot 7 ай бұрын

10:01 hahahaha he was like nah, make Hunter gay not me 😂

@WanderingMendicant-qd7mv 9 ай бұрын

The first match I saw of wrestling as a kid was Goldust, Vader and Mankind fighting each other.

@Yogsoggeth 4 ай бұрын

I think he was just ahead of his time. If it was the 2020's he would have gone all the way and gotten those huge bazzoka's implanted that he wanted

@smashingpumpkin1986 10 ай бұрын

He himself complained about the face painting gimmick, but he went to AEW and painted his face again 🤷🏻‍♂️

@oasisbeyond 5 ай бұрын

Was weird, but worked and popular, it still makes me scratch my head though :) Oh Marlenna... As a teern it was good times :)

@m.sb.1806 7 ай бұрын

His in ring ability was superb

@ghouliethousandtrouser2905 6 ай бұрын

Something I really appreciate about Goldust is his kind of "non-traditional" approach to playing an androgynous character, being both overtly masculine and feminine at the same time, rather than the (slightly) more standard middle ground. There are some wrestlers who I respect as not just athletes and performers, but as artists as well, and Dustin Rhodes is definitely one of them ✊

@Vocu 5 ай бұрын

booker t and goldust was great

@keonferguson8441 8 ай бұрын

One of the best wrestling gimmicks of all time tbh

@HaplessHypnagogic 4 ай бұрын

Knowing what we know about Vince McMahon now I would truly love to get a peek into that unhinged mind of his and try to examine why he was so into the Goldust angle

@chrischar9428 2 ай бұрын

I rank this up there with the Goon, Duke The Dumpster and Red Rooster

@gr4yf0x1983 9 ай бұрын

He was great

@Andy_Babb 7 ай бұрын

Imagine having a wrestling match and your opponent comes over and says “hey, you should try rubbing me up and down out there” 😂😂😂😂😂😂

@leighlowe1069 7 ай бұрын

Never get used to the image of Vince McMahon chewing his water

@bervman 4 күн бұрын

"doosty rhodes"😂😂

@tylerbabcock1376 7 ай бұрын

The shattered dreams still hurts today lol

@charlesmccall6142 5 ай бұрын

I'm glad to see Goldust finally getting his due. His character was hilarious. The world wasn't ready for him then. But looking back, genius. 😅

@magillanz 5 ай бұрын

Goldust and Dusty my top 2 favourite wrestlers

@S408J 2 ай бұрын

Dustin is a G for pulling off the Goldust gimmick!

@2girls1chuck38 8 ай бұрын

Anyone else notice the guy in the crowd at 1:56 fall?

@RudyT2DU 10 ай бұрын

Cody said that Dusty actually liked the character though. "Make no mistake about it, the American Dream was incredibly proud of what Goldust was able to do"

@leeandramurphy5903 6 ай бұрын

Goldust was strange, but an awesome wrestler and was good at freaking people out.

@frankreads8618 4 ай бұрын

Goldust's gimmick was less weird when you see it as an effort to get as far away from his father's as possible.

@erich3784 5 ай бұрын

I loved Goldust so much. He was f-king entertainment. He was so out there, I just loved it so much lol

@sly4293 9 ай бұрын

Golddust was Gold gr8 gimmick funny weird reminded me of voldo from soul blade/soul calibar😅

@Sorrus-B4lyfe Ай бұрын

Only heard about him a couple of years ago = R-truth segments he had, he is GOOFY. So where was he growing up?? I joined late in the attitude era and he was definitely not in the video games. He's definitely a WHACKY character that obviously not many people understood at first. His segments with Booker T is definitely hilarious as well... should've just continued making weird segments.

@KittyKommando 8 ай бұрын

It was creepy when I first saw it. Was funny as heck though.

@jadunbar88 2 ай бұрын

1:56 watch the first step

@RolfWrenWalsh 10 ай бұрын

I was 9 years old when I first started watching wrestling with Nitro on Monday January 1st, 1996 (WCW For Life!), but as a little kid, I hated Goldust because he was "gay" and I just didn't understand it at the time. As I got older, I realized just how awesome and fun the character was/is, and I LOVE the controversy and barriers it pushed as an adult. The ring psychology. The mind games. Thank you Savio Vega!!! Before you judge me, I am going to get a little political here. I may be a proud Liberal/Democrat, but I am NOT "Progressive" in the slightest, and do not believe in Political Correctness at all. Oh and, his stuttering gimmick was a lot of fun, his tag team with Booker T was a blast, and I still quote one of his segments with Lance Storm to this day. "And you pleasured himself to the pornographic pop-up book?!" "That was you!!" "Oh.... Well, nevermind about that." 😂😂😂