Boxing has always been my favorite sport...well, actually it's the only sport I watch. However professional wrestling has always held a very special place in my heart. I mean, you have a ring, physical combat and cool championship belts on the line plus villains ("heels"), heroes ("babyfaces" or "faces") and comic book-style storylines. Sure, it's theater-in-the-round but what's not to love?
And anyone who knows me knows my favorite athletes in this genre will always be Hawk and Animal, the Legion of Doom themselves, the Road Warriors. But if I had to choose an all-time favorite singles wrestler, it would be the "Enforcer," once a member of the dreaded Four Horsemen, Arn Anderson.
Yes, Anderson was clearly recognized for his association with Tully Blanchard, with whom he held the NWA World Tag Team Championships twice and the WWF (now WWE) Tag Team Championships once but Arn might be best known as (as least, in my opinion) the greatest NWA World Television Champion ever.
Now although the belt itself did not read "world" in its inscription, it was coined thusly during Dusty Rhodes' first reign, However Anderson made it a world title by his own insistence and tenacity, defenses and possession (four times and the record for the most combined days - 870) itself. With that came prestige fewer "mid-card" championships could boast. It was a championship belt I desperately wanted as a pup (among many others we wrestling fans coveted but couldn't buy because 1) they were unavailable to the public and 2) even if they were, they'd be far too expensive to buy. That would late change with the emergence of really neat replicas. At the very least, I wanted one because Arn Anderson simply made that championship so damn cool.
So as a way to honor Anderson for inspiring the "evil, mean and nasty" (also a very cool statement featured on shirts Arn's kayfabe uncle Ole wore) side of a young World Television Champion hopeful, I sketched Arn in my trusty Daler-Rowney sketchbook (5.5" X 8.5") in Micron pen (.05), Pentel Pocket Brush Pen, Sharpie roller pen (.05) and Copic markers. I considered rendering a graphic design element in the background but decided to go in the opposite direction and integrate the number "four" in a rough, red-on-black, scratch-type design. It conveys the rough and rugged nature of my favorite Horseman. No airs. No graces. All Enforcer.
And I even finally got my own World Television Championship replica, red strap, cool old-school network logo plates and all for Father's Day from Tracy and Makayla. What an absolutely wonderful gift befitting a champion.
You know, I'm not a gun enthusiast but I always figured Arn Anderson as a revolver kind of guy. 😉
Questions? Comments? Complaints? Commissions? Hit me up at artofthepaw@gmail.com. You can also follow me on Twitter @CoyoteDuran, on Instagram @CoyoteDuran and on Facebook @CDCreationNation.
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