Corrigan's Corner: Why Hasn't WWE Paid the Piper?

It’s been two months since Roddy Piper passed away from cardiac arrest, and I’m still waiting for WWE to pay the proper respect to “HotRod.”

He deserves more than a tribute video and a roster wearing his t-shirt for a week.

Now if Piper’s passing had occurred five, ten years ago, then you’d say I’m asking for too much. Because prior to the Warrior Award and the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, wrestling deaths were acknowledged by a pre-show graphic, a new tally on the media’s untimely death chart, and a 10-bell salute at your local indy show.

Nowadays, in this age of strategic philanthropy, WWE celebrates the legacies of its deceased stars in a grander fashion. Which is fantastic, don’t get me wrong, but it’s unfair to be so choosy when selecting who to praise.

No disrespect to Dusty Rhodes, whom WWE has appropriately honored since his passing in June, but Piper contributed much more to the company. While Dusty’s efforts in developing the future generation are certainly important, Roddy Piper laid the foundation for what both WWE and NXT are today.

In case you and Vince McMahon, or Triple H, have forgotten, the “Rowdy One” launched the Rock N’ Wrestling Connection, the genre of sports-entertainment, and perhaps most importantly, WrestleMania.

Dusty got a live panel discussion on the WWE Network with his contemporaries sharing memories and laughs about their on-screen rival and off-screen buddy. Well, where is Piper’s special? “Table for 3” was great, but that was filmed before he died. Whoever runs the Network used his death as an excuse to premiere the show.

No excuses when discussing HotRod.

Yes, WWE doesn’t want to involve Hulk Hogan due to the racist controversy, and that definitely mums a large part of Piper’s career, but you can still gather “Cowboy” Bob Orton, “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff, Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Don Muraco , and “Mean” Gene. Give them the same amount of time and timeslot as the Rhodes special, and let fans enjoy a stroll down “Rowdy” lane as told by Piper’s peers.

And then there’s all this talk about statues…Bruno Sammartino, Andre the Giant, and Ultimate Warrior get bronzed, what about Piper? He’s certainly on the same iconic level as those men. He’s been inducted into the same Hall of Fame.

It’s not like he was some blacklisted figure like Macho Man or Rick Rude. He’s had a great relationship with WWE as evidenced by his countless returns since retiring all the way back in 1987.

Madison Square Garden, Hollywood, and Ronda Rousey have all paid proper tribute to Piper. It’s a shame that WWE is late to the party, but hey, showing up late is better than not coming at all.

Piper was left out in the cold after the inaugural WrestleMania, let’s hope his legacy doesn’t get the same treatment.

Wrestledelphia.com assistant editor John Corrigan can be reached at . Follow him on Twitter at .