The Fabulous Moolah 1923 - 2007

I am saddened to announce that WWE Hall of Famer Lillian Ellison, better known to generations of wrestling fans as the Fabulous Moolah, passed way on Friday night in Columbia, S.C. Without question, she is the most important figure in the history of women's wrestling.

Her career dates back to the 1940's when she was one of the first valets in wrestling history. Dubbed "Slave Girl Moolah", she stood in the corner of the wrestling's original "Nature Boy", Buddy Rogers (the first WWE Champion).

In the '50s, she changed her name to "The Fabulous Moolah". Due to poor record keeping, multiple promoters going in and out of business, and the way the business operated in that era, it is not known for certain who she beat and exactly what the name of the title was that she won that made her recognized as the Women's Champion. What is without question though is that she was the dominant force in women's wrestling and for over 30 years, the belt that was recognized as the real Women's Championship was hardly ever away from her waist.

In 1984, she lost the WWE Women's Championship to Wendi Richter in the first wrestling match ever televised on MTV. That feud, which involved Cyndi Lauper, was responsible for creating the Rock-n-Wrestling Connection which made pro wrestling a part of American pop culture. It is not a stretch to say that the Moolah vs. Richter feud was just as responsible as the Hulk Hogan vs. Roddy Piper feud for making wrestling what it is today.

After a hiatus of almost a decade, in 1999, Moolah and her friend Mae Young returned to the WWE where Moolah briefly held the Women's Championship. Over the past few years, Moolah and Mae would randomly appear in comedy sketches usually involving Moolah trying to stop her drunk and sexually promiscuous elderly friend from embarrassing herself.