Having been taken over by Vince McMahon in 2001, WCW is definitely long gone. But just because it has gone the way of many failed competitors of Vince McMahon, it doesn’t mean that it’s very far from our collective hearts—especially for those of us who were fans of their broadcasts and roster. Yes, World Championship Wrestling sure ended on a sour note, especially when looking at their last few years as an existing company and the episodes of Nitro and Thunder that they produced, but there were great memories too. Memories that many fans will still cherish for a long time to come, we’re sure.

And just like these great memories, there were many wrestlers, personas and other employees that only added to all the fun. But along with those memorable characters we saw week in and week out, there were indeed a few who have slipped our minds in recent years, and for a good reason. When looking at quite a few names on this list, you will see what we mean.

But, you’d be surprised at who made the cut. We’ve gotten 14 people and one very furry creature who worked in all facets of the WCW brand whom you may or may not have forgotten all about.

15 Rebecca Curci Hickenbottom

Yup, for all you hard-core HBK fans out there, Hickenbottom is truly his real last name. And that surely means that Rebecca pictured here is none other than Mrs. WrestleMania, herself. But, her claim to fame is much more significant than her being married to one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. In actual fact, she too was employed by a huge wrestling corporation, and no, not WWE. As it turns out, she was one of the beautiful Nitro Girls you enjoyed watching dance during The Monday Night Wars.

The Nitro girls were Eric Bischoff’s idea, and it was a great idea at that.

He figured why have women wrestlers, when you could have women dancers and have them draw and entertain an audience the same way the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders did. It likely set back women's wrestling for years.

14 Sharmell

Most fans of the WWE will recognize her as Queen Sharmell, valet and real life wife of the sensational legend, Booker-T, but her start in the business comes quite a few years before she walked to the ring with King Booker.

She started back in WCW as a Nitro Girl and then went on even to valet for a few wrestlers including The Artist and Kwee Wee. She also had some in-ring action, most notably against Tammy Lynn Sytch (Sunny). Only, to fans of WCW, Sharmell was known as Paisley back then. When her husband made the move to WWE, she came right along with him intending to wrestle full-time. But when she was training at Ohio Valley Wrestling, she was injured, cutting her time in the ring very short. In 2005, she started to valet for her husband, ultimately following him even to TNA and back to WWE.

13 The Maestro

Well, what can we say about The Maestro? He was definitely one of WCW’s more gimmicky wrestlers and not a very successful one at that. His gimmick is in his name and if you remember him, you’ll remember that he actually did personify a real life maestro and conductor of music, and yes you guessed it, he did it all with a real baton in hand.

To say the gimmick didn’t catch on would be an understaement, but there, we said it anyway. He only ever wrestled in WCW, as far as major companies are concerned and was released by them before they went down in a blaze of glory. He has since wrestled independently and has appeared in a few TV appearances, including One Tree Hill.  We collectively wonder, however, why he hasn’t been taken on by any orchestra… response pending.

12 Mark Madden

The voices of WCW, and by that we mean the commentators were some of the best in the business. Tony Schiavone was a professional and he still works in broadcasting to this day. His voice was distinctive, and when heard in any collection of old WCW matches, fans of the era recognize him instantly. He can also arguably be considered one of the best, placing him beside, if not further up than even Jim Ross himself.

Mike Tenay was also a great announcer and after working for TNA, the multiple winner of 5 Wrestling Observer Newsletter Awards for Best TV Announcer, he retired in 2015. But WCW had a few towards the end that didn’t really catch on with fans. Mark Madden being one of them, but not because he wasn’t good at it. He now works in radio.

11 Midajah

Big Poppa Pump really didn’t need a valet, now did he? His physique was enough for the whole audience in attendance to stop and have all eyes on him. He sure was a sight, but at a certain point in his WCW career, it was decided that he needed his very own valet (2 of them at first, but he ultimately ended up only being left with Midajah), and when she showed up, nobody complained. Trust us.

She started out as a fitness model, posing for all the top magazines, including Iron Man and MusclemMag.

She finally returned to that line of work when the WCW’s time in the sun was over. As a valet, she was steady and consistent, as she was present for a lot of Steiner’s antics at that time.

10 Disco Inferno

Like a lot of the wrestlers on this list, Disco falls under the “didn’t quite make it very far” category. He sure had a lot of matches with the company, but for a company that sure liked to say that they weren’t as gimmicky as the WWE at the time, they sure had a lot of over the top characters like this one.

And yes, his gimmick is all in the name as well. He danced a lot, and he as he swayed and did his thing, the audiences in attendance were treated to cheesy disco music coming from the PA system. He did, however, have a few legitimate matches every now and again, having had matches with Booker-T and Perry Saturn. He has since worked in TNA as a wrestler and road agent and manages a dance club.

9 Gorgeous George

Macho Man had one of the greatest valets in history in Miss Elizabeth, his real life wife. They made headlines in WWE in the company’s heyday with their wedding and the numerous story lines they were involved in. But when Randy moved to WCW, he did it pretty much on his own, and by that time, his character was so strong, powerful and iconic, it was arguable if he needed a valet at all, although he did work with Elizabeth every now and again.

After a significant break he returned to Nitro and with a few inches of muscle added to his already thick frame, and with that a whole new style. And with that style came the beautiful Gorgeous George. She gave him the edge he needed at the time and she will be remembered for her time with him mostly, if for nothing else.

8 Doug Dellinger

Now, to remember him, you’ve gotta think back to the popular entrance of one of WCW’s biggest stars. No, he wasn’t a valet, per se, but he did “walk” with one of the company’s mammoth characters. Figure it out?

Here’s a hint… this wrestler’s name rhymes with ice berg. You got it, Goldberg. But what do he and Goldberg have in common, you ask? Well, this is none other than Doug Dellinger, the WCW’s head of security, and it was he 9 times out of 10, that would often pound on Goldberg’s door when it was time to go out to the ring. Didn’t it seem like he had the coolest job?

7 Damian 666

Now here’s a guy that we’ve all forgotten. Even in preparation for this article, we were surprised to see him as we did our research, and that’s saying something … wrestling’s what we do over here at The Sportster. But regardless, he was a part of the company, but only briefly. He made a career for himself in the Mexican circuit and one day found himself where the big boys played. He even joined Eddie Guerrero’s faction, the LWO, but didn’t get very far within the group, and we wonder why?! (Sense the sarcasm, please.)

Eddie Guerrero was a highly Catholic and religious person. Can you imagine how meetings went while they were planning things for TV? We can just picture Eddie stealing glances his way, looking at the unfortunate pattern of numbers strewn across his T-shirt, just wondering where Damian’s poor, unfortunate mother must have gone wrong. Oh, to have been a fly on the wall.

6 Randy Anderson

Any wrestling fan knows just how important the referee is in any match. He actually helps control the pace and is in on all the trickery wrestling is known for. And there have been some epic referees in all companies over the years, only adding to the allure of some great battles the icons have had over the years. Some greats include: Earl Hebner, Jim Korderas, Tim White, Nick Patrick, Mike Chioda and “Little Naitch” himself, Charles Robinson.

Some of you might not remember him, but he was an elite member of that list was none other than Randy Anderson. Still today, the WWE network and the DVD collections the company releases, showcases an incredible amount of matches refereed by that man and he definitely made his work look easy. He was fantastic at what he did and added that much more amusement and excitement to a plethora of matches. Sadly, he passed on in 2002 at the age of 42.

5 Kimberly Page

Yet another illustrious member of the WCW staff that may have slipped your collective minds, Kimberly Page has gone the way of fanny packs and has fallen off the proverbial shelf in recent history.

The one-time valet and personality was the talk of wrestling fans everywhere.

Who can forget that she was at one time married to the coolest cat from the Jersey Shore himself, Diamond Dallas Page. They’ve since been divorced, but they went their separate ways amicably. She was also the fierce leader of the Nitro Girls. She had previously worked as a model and had appeared in Iron Man magazine and acted in movies. She currently works in the fields of interior design and marketing.

4 Wildcat Willie

Hey… a lot can be said about WCW, but having a lot of people on the pay roll was definitely something they were known for. Ted Turner sure had a lot of green saved away and he wasn’t shy with the cheque book, that’s for sure. But as time went on, maybe the roster and list of employees was a little too full.

They had dancers, announcers, commentators, referees and a list of wrestlers that numbered quite high when compared to WWE at the time, but what they also had, and this really gave them an edge over their competitors… was a mascot. Yup, good old Willie The Wildcat. He was even involved in a few story lines, just ask Scott Steiner. There is a story that Lanny Poffo at one point donned the costume, but he understandably denies those stories.

3 Judy Bagwell

How bad does it have to be for you to have to bring your mom to the yard? How awful must it get before you succumb to the peer pressure and have to make a ship to shore call to mom for help when you can’t handle yourself amidst the boys? Well, things must have been really bad for good old Buff Bagwell, because his “mom” made many appearances on the show, and she really didn’t help matters.

Judy Bagwell was actually Buff’s mother, contrary to popular belief and she was involved in quite a few storylines. One in particular that garnered quite a bit of attention was when she participated in a Judy Bagwell on a Forklift match in which she was placed on a forklift and her son faced Kanyon in order to get her down. We know, we know. You don’t have to say anything.

2 Horace Hogan

We were supposed to believe that this guy was Hogan’s nephew. And although they share similar foreheads, we all had a hard time believing it to be true. As it turns out, he and the great Hulk Hogan actually were related. He was son to Allan Bollea, Hulk’s brother. And just as a side note, he was also related to the late Mike Awesome. They were cousins.

Horace’s career was lacklustre to say the least. He was a member of the NWO, probably one of the greatest factions in wrestling history, but his list of accomplishments pretty much ends there. After the WCW was purchased by the WWE, he was placed in a developmental deal and sadly didn’t even make it out of Ohio Valley Wrestling, where most wrestlers of the era went to train, including the likes of Randy Orton, John Cena, Battista, Brock Lesnar and many more.

1 Scott Norton

We know what you're thinking... "This guy was in the NWO?" He must have... he's got the signature shirt, right? But as it turns out, he ranks as being one of the most forgotten members of the illustrious faction that took over the wrestling business for over two years or so.

And yes, he had a decent physique, he was an okay wrestler, and he showed up for work on time. But guys like him and others on this list just go to show and prove that sometimes, it just doesn't work, no matter how you're packaged. In his case, not even membership in such an elite club was enough to push him forward in his career. But he did have a decent career, one that he still continues from time to time in the independent circuit, it just wasn't a memorable one.