Playboy Buddy Rose

Playboy Buddy Rose died a while ago from a heart attack. Always one to have trouble keeping his weight down, this may or may not have contributed to his death. Upon his passing, his remains were cremated and whether they were kept by the family or scattered is anyone's guess.

Rose was a big draw in Portland's NWA, the AWA and the WWF, but never had things timed to work with these promotions when the AWA or WWF came to Phoenix.

In fact, Playboy's big hurray in Arizona came in the early 1990s, when an Independent promulgation booked him for a series of matches. Though commonly seen elsewhere as a villain, he was placed in the canny role of fan favorite here when he squared off with Colonel DeBeers.

Common sense would have had Rose booked against a local Phoenix fan favorite and DeBeers doing the same, but that was not not transpired. Oh well!

The Rose vs. DeBeers combo did not seem like a match up made in heaven, but it worked well enough.

Rest in peace, Buddy Rose.

Curiously enough,  before this ":Buddy Rose" came to fame there was another Buddy Rose active in Arizona from the late 1980s until 1995 or so. That, however, is another topic for another day.