Scott Hall, a former professional wrestler who rose to fame in the early 1990s as the arrogant “bad boy” Razor Ramon, known for wearing gold chains and flicking toothpicks at opponents, has died.
In Monday’s announcement of his death, World Wrestling Entertainment called Mr. Hall an “extremely powerful superstar”. Several news outlets reported that he was 63 years old, although this could not be immediately confirmed.
Mr. Hall was part of a cohort of wrestlers who rose to fame in the 1990s and early 2000s under the watchful eye of Vince McMahon, Chairman of WWE. The era produced stars such as Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, “Cold Stone” Steve Austin, and The Undertaker, among others.
Mr. Hall had complications from his hip replacement surgery this month. The site said he was on life support in Georgia after suffering three heart attacks over the weekend.
Kevin Nash, another former professional wrestler, said in an Instagram post Sunday that Mr Hall’s family intended to take him off life support.
“I will lose the only person on this planet with whom I have lived more of my life than with anyone else,” Mr. Nash wrote. “I love Scott with all my heart, but now I need to prepare my life without him in the present.”
According to WWE, Mr. Hall began his wrestling career in 1984 and joined World Championship Wrestling in 1991 as Diamond Studd. The following year, he joined WWE, then known as the World Wrestling Federation, as Razor Ramon, a character influenced by Tony Montana’s portrayal of Al Pacino in Scarface.
Mr. Hall became a four-time Intercontinental Champion during his time with WWE. Two of his most famous performances were ladder matches – competing for the championship belt, hovering over the ring using a ladder – against Shawn Michaels for this title at WrestleMania X and SummerSlam 1995.
Mr. Hall returned to World Championship Wrestling in 1996 as a heel or as a villain under his own name and co-founded the New World Order along with Mr. Nash and Hulk Hogan.
According to a 2017 interview, outside of the ring, Mr. Hall has struggled with drug and alcohol abuse and has been in rehab at least a dozen times. He said that WWE was partially supportive of his treatment and also thanked another wrestler, Diamond Dallas Page, for helping him recover.
“He wasn’t perfect,” Mr. Nash said Sunday of Mr. Hall. “But as he always said, ‘The last perfect man to walk the planet was nailed to a cross.’
Mr. Hall was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as Razor Ramon in 2014 and again in 2020 as a member of the New World Order.
“I realized that when I stepped behind that curtain, I could have a relationship as a performer with the public,” Mr. Hall said during his 2014 introductory speech. “And that was powerful for me, whether I was a hated villain or a beloved hero. It was something I have always cherished.”
He ended the speech: “In my life, I’ve learned that hard work pays off, dreams come true, bad times don’t last, and bad guys stay.”