Mike Rotunda was a prep wrestling champ, a varsity competitor at Syracuse and a professional for more than 20 years, but today’s the day where one of his short-lived personas lives on.
It’s Tax Day — the day that Irwin R. Schyster, or IRS, might be remembered most. (April 15 was a federal holiday so today’s the day to get those taxes in.)
Rotunda wrestled in all of the major promotions in the 1980s and 1990s — the WWF (now WWE), AWA, NWA, WCW and more — before heading to Japan to finish his career. The IRS character was only used for a few years as WWE exited the “kids years” and moved toward more reality-based programming, but it’s made a mark.
The man also previously known as Mike Rotundo, Mr. Wallstreet and several other minute (small-letter) name changes has just one certified autograph — as Schyster — from 2012 Topps Heritage WWE (top). Overall he has fewer than 50 total wrestling cards despite a long career, but that lone auto is the main card to land.
His Rookie Card would be found in the landmark 1985 Topps WWF set — the first WWF/WWE release found in packs — on a card alongside his tag team partner and brother in law, Barry Windham (above).
Today, Rotunda works behind the scenes in the WWE, though his legacy can be seen regularly with his sons, Bray Wyatt and Bo Dallas, mixing things up in very different ways — Wyatt as an enigmatic talker, a mysterious persona and main-event player, while Dallas is an annoying comic-relief character waiting to break out. Both are relative newcomers but already have more ink than their father, who’s eventual last stop in wrestling just might be the WWE Hall of Fame.
Could we see IRS tonight on Raw? Buzz thinks you can count on it.
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