Scott Oliver Hall, also known as Razor Ramon, used to say that two-word phrase. Hall kept a toothpick at the top of his ear and threw it in his opponent's face before a match. Back in the mid 1990s, Hall made viewers of all ages want to watch him.
Hall died after having a series of heart attacks. He was 63 years old.
He was one of the first cool heels on WWF television. After weeks of vignettes, Hall (as Razor Ramon) was an instant hit with his Cuban accent and Scarface imitations. If you haven't seen any of them, check them out. They did exactly what they were supposed to do back then. Razor was one of the most hated heels in the company. Ramon had a lot of heat in wrestling. Hall had finally hit the big time and was on his way after his arrogantly crude attitude was over.
Most fans were introduced to Hall for the first time in the World Wrestling Federation with the Razor Ramon gimmick, but he had been around for almost a decade by the time he stepped foot in a WWF ring. The last era of stars came up through the old territory system. Championship Wrestling from Florida was where Hall got his start. During his brief stint with NWA/WCW, the first time I watched Hall on TV was around 1989. He looked like a star then. He was not seasoned at the time.
When I first saw the Razor character, I thought he looked familiar, but his whole persona, his swagger, was completely different from when I watched him a couple of years prior. The Ramon character was supposed to be a dick, but his style was different and more refined. I knew something was different when I called Ramon refined. Maybe it was his look, which had changed a bit, or maybe it was his in-ring style or his fake Cuban accent. Whatever you want to call it, it's machismo. I became a fan.
He was involved in many legendary moments in pro wrestling history during his long career. One of the things that gets overlooked is the fact that Hall was the person to retire as Razor Ramon. Back then, there was a farewell tour on the way to the match. Ramon was given the rub from Di Biase. If you were in the business at that time, you probably didn't know that the bout would be DiBiase's last. The biggest match in the eyes of many was in 1994 when Hall faced Shawn Michaels for the Intercontinental title. Since then, we've seen a lot of crazy ladder matches, but this one, for its time, was on another level than anything we'd seen in the WWF. The Match of the Year award was won by Hall and Michaels.
In 1996, on his way out of the WWF, Hall, Michaels, Kevin Nash, and Hunter Hearst Helmsley gave fans at Madison Square Garden one last image of the four friends together in the ring. The four men shook hands, threw up the wolfpack sign, and hugged in the middle of the ring, which was still a strict no-no.
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The first big shot was fired in the Monday Night War when that moment happened. It didn't have the impact of Hall walking out through the crowd and jumping in the ring during the debut of Monday Nitro that it did the previous fall. I lost it when I saw that. I couldn't believe my guy Razor, who was just in the WWF a couple of weeks before, had now shown up on the competition's programming. I was not prepared for this move when I read pro wrestling magazines as a kid. I didn't see it coming.
Scott was a great thinker for the wrestling business. He understood the psychology of making fans believe. Hall was supposed to walk down the aisle, jump in the ring, interrupt the match, and cut his promo. Hall came up with the idea of walking in through the stands, hoping the rail and the rest is history, since this was supposed to be an invasion by WWF guys.
The slight change to the angle made it feel real. Vince McMahon had exposed the business, but you didn't know it at the time. Was the WWF really invading WCW? Hall might have just defected to the other side. The New World Order was formed when Hall and Nash joined forces with Hogan. That was the beginning of the next boom period. The fans in attendance at that moment began to throw trash in the ring. This was the first time I can remember fans throwing garbage at wrestlers.
Scott Hall is responsible for many of my wrestling memories. I know he wasn't an angel. Most of his life, Hall had demons. I think most of us have demons that can take shape and manifest themselves in many ways. It doesn't mean that we can't hold ourselves accountable for our actions, but it does mean that we continue to fight to be better and overcome them. Scott Hall fought. He fought for as long as he could. He became one of the best in-ring performers and entertainers of his time. That is something to me.
Goodnight to the bad guy, chico. Scott's in-ring legacy will live on forever, and I will be going back to watch many of his most memorable matches.
My life is like driving down a road. I occasionally glance in the rearview mirror, but I’m not focused on the past or looking back anymore.
– Scott Oliver Hall
Hall's contributions to the wrestling industry will never be forgotten by fans. Rest in peace.
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