I was shocked to hear that professional wrestling legend “Playboy” Buddy Rose passed away unexpectedly on April 28. Rose, whose real name was Paul Pershmann, was a mainstay in the old Pacific Northwest and AWA wrestling territories. He also had a run in the WWF (WWE) where he would do some funny skits promoting the fictional “Blow Away Diet.”
In the late 1980s, when I lived in Boulder City, Nevada, my wife and I would go down to the Showboat Hotel & Casino to watch the AWA matches that were taped for ESPN. In fact, I worked a few of those shows in various capacities and can be seen on some of the videos. At any rate, it was always great to see Rose and his tag team partner, “Pretty Boy” Doug Somers defend the AWA World Tag Team Championships against the Midnight Rockers (Shawn Michaels and Marty Janetty). Those were the days.
From the information I received, Rose passed away at home and was discovered by his wife, Tammy, when she returned home from work. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family, friends and fans.
For more information, please visit www.PlayboyBuddyRose.com.
About Tim Hicks
