40 Years Ago: Piper’s Pit Debuts in Poughkeepsie, NY

The iconic WWE segment, Pipers Pit, hosted by Roddy Piper, celebrated its 40th anniversary this week.

"Rowdy" Roddy Piper was one of the greatest pro wrestling stars of his era.  Piper was best known for his work with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW) between 1984 and 2000. Although he was Canadian, Piper was billed as coming from Glascow, Scotland and was known for his signature kilt  and bagpipe entrance music; this was because of his Scottish heritage. Piper earned the nicknames "Rowdy" and "Hot Rod" by displaying his trademark "Scottish" short temper, spontaneity, and quick wit. He is considered by many to be the greatest 'heel' (or villain) wrestler ever.

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Back in the days of the WWF television tapings at Mid Hudson Civic Center (see Top 5 Most Memorable Wrestling Matches in Poughkeepsie) in the 1980's, Roddy Piper would be featured in an interview segment on WWF television known as Piper's Pit. The set consisted of a set of five thin walls with a Scottish plaque on the center wall. The two walls on either side had posters of Piper in action and a couple of chairs. Piper's Pit was a mainstay of WWF/WWE television from 1984 to 1987, returning again briefly in 1989. The segment would continue to make occasional appearances over the years up until Piper's death in 2015.

40 Years of Pipers Pit

This week marked the 40th anniversary of the announcement of Piper's Pit (Jan. 28, 1984). In the debut segment, recorded in front of rowdy crowd (no pun intended) at the Mid Hudson Civic Center, Robert Debord introduces the debut of the new interview segment  Piper's Pit with "Rowdy" Roddy Piper. See segment below.

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There were many memoralble Piper's Pit segements over the years, with one of the most memorable being when Roddy Piper smashed a cocunut over "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka's head (that segment however was not recorded in Poughkeepsie, but rather in Hamburg, Pennsylvania at the Hamburg Field House). One memorable Poughkeepsie moment would be when Piper interviewed jobber Frank Williams, tells him that he's wortheless, then proceeds to beat him up. This is where Piper coins one of his famous quotes: "Just when they think they've got the answers, I change the questions."

Roddy Piper was simply one of the very best in the business. Its hard to believe its been nearly 10 years since his passing in 2015, and it was a death that I took particularly hard, having been a big fan of his over the years. Getting to meet Piper back in 2012 was a day I'll always treasure. "Hot Rod" is so very much missed. R.I.P.