"Rowdy" Roddy Piper Dies at 61

Piper lived in Hillsboro with his wife and family up until his death.

By Lizzy Acker

TMZ is reporting that Portland's own "Rowdy" Roddy Piper has died of cardiac arrest. He was 61.

Piper was born Roderick George Toombs in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, but lived in Hillsboro with his wife and family up until his death. Piper began his wrestling career in the '70s and never really stepped out of the spotlight though his star waxed and waned; even at the time of his death he was set to begin his own podcast on Earwolf called Piper's Pit Podcast.

Piper was a professional wrestler's professional wrestler. Inside and outside of the ring, he was not your average spray-tanned, muscle-bound villain. He had a surprising, down-to-Earth quality that made him seem more human than the other guys in the WWE, even later on shows like Celebrity Wife Swap and Legends' House.

Take a minute to appreciate Rowdy. Or Hot Rod. Or Roddy. Whoever he was to you, he will be missed.

Thanks to Mike Acker and Martin McLemore, formerly of the Corvallis High School Pro Wrestling Club, for their help on this piece.

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