When I learned of the passing of Kevin Sullivan on Friday morning, I immediately thought of his ex-wife Nancy Benoit aka Nancy Sullivan aka Nancy Daus aka Nancy Toffoloni aka Fallen Angel aka Robin Green aka Woman.
Throughout the day and weekend, tributes went out to honor the man who was a part of many memorable storylines in the 80s and 90s and the man who was responsible for shaping the careers and managing the personalities of many during the Monday Night Wars, but only a handful of wrestling personalities (i.e., Paul Heyman and X-Pac) mentioned Nancy as they paid tribute to Kevin Sullivan.
Yes, they were divorced, but it runs deeper than that. Intentionally or unintentionally, the powers that be in the wrestling world appear to want to bury the legacy left behind by Nancy Benoit because of the unfortunate and devastating circumstances surrounding her untimely death.
I became a fan of pro wrestling the summer of 1987. I would attend events at the Richmond Coliseum to see my favorite wrestler ‘The Total Package’ Lex Luger. They would come monthly, and the tickets were often between $15 – $25 for ringside seats. I wanted to learn more about this great sport so I would purchase wrestling magazines.
In those magazines is when I first came across a photo of Nancy, who was in the Florida territory as the Fallen Angel. She had dark hair, scary face paint, and appeared demonic, but there was something about her.
A couple of years later, Rick Steiner had an overzealous fan, who we later learned was Robin Green. She wore large glasses, Steiner Bros. t-shirts, and appeared to be your average girl next door. That is until a video package was put together that revealed Robin Green to be who many considered the most beautiful woman in wrestling at the time, complete with a bustier, biker leggings, high heels, big hair, and Hollywood makeup.
Wrestling fans knew that a repackaged Fallen Angel had come to WCW. It didn’t take long for her true colors to come out in the form of Woman, who aligned herself with Kevin Sullivan, the Four Horsemen, and let’s not forget her first team, who she ‘introduced’ at Halloween Havoc 1989, Ron Simmons and Butch Reed aka Doom.
She originally entered the arena to Jerry Lee Lewis’ Great Balls of Fire and brought it home with Bob Seger’s Her Strut. Woman worked in ECW, alongside The Sandman for a few years, only to re-emerge in WCW where she became a part of a ‘managerial’ stable with Debra McMichael and Miss Elizabeth.
Woman and Miss Elizabeth would accompany the 16x World Heavyweight Champion, Ric Flair to the ring. How many times did we hear Flair say, ‘Woman, oh Woman, won’t you marry me now? WOOOOO!” During her final appearances, she would accompany her future husband to the ring, only to disappear without explanation, though it was suspected that there was ‘drama’ between she, Kevin Sullivan, and Chris Benoit.
I had the pleasure of meeting Nancy on more than one occasion. She was appreciative of her fans, and she was one of a few women who I ever met, who was just as beautiful with their makeup as they were without it. She was truly a beauty both inside and out, and believe it or not, didn’t mind your mentioning it, but wasn’t a fan of beating her over the head with it.
When I learned of her passing and the circumstances, I was stunned. It didn’t seem that long before her passing that I saw Chris Benoit in a restaurant parking lot, asking him to tell Nancy that I said “Hi.” We weren’t friends, but she knew who I was. One of my regrets is not attending she and her son’s memorial service on July 14, 2007. It was thoughtful that her service was open to the public, but I wanted to remember her as the beautiful, sexy, intelligent managerial powerhouse that she was.
It’s wonderful that more documentaries are being made that mention and even feature Nancy. Last year, she won the PWI Stanley Weston Award for Lifetime Achievement, but what really needs to happen is an honorary nod into the WWE Hall of Fame.
Though she never officially worked for WWE, she started in the wrestling business at a time when women were considered secondary, and she was a major building block to the importance of the roles of women in pro wrestling today. She called herself Woman and she truly roared.
Thank you, Nancy! I will always love you and I refuse to let the wrestling world forget about you. BTW, I still have the photo of you, Miss Elizabeth, Deborah, and I from my 25th birthday!