Hanukkah Heroes: Day 1

Barry Horowitz (from WWE)

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart on Twitter

With the holiday season upon us, most of our readers are probably building ginger bread houses, hanging lights, singing carols and waiting on the jolly fat guy to come down the chimney. I'm talking about Santa Claus, not Bastion Booger.

While Christmas celebration preparations are in full effect, there's another holiday going on that we here at My123Cents would like to celebrate in our own way. Over the next eight days, in celebration of Hanukkah, we're going to celebrate the top eight Jewish wrestlers. I will let you know right off the bat, nowhere during the next eight days will you see the name Goldberg. Well, I guess you just saw it. But that's it. Goldberg is not in the list of top Jewish stars.

Without further ado, coming in at number 8 on the list is the master of the self pat on the back, Barry Horowitz.

Barry Hororwitz started his career in the Florida territory as Jack Hart. While wrestling for Florida Championship Wrestling, "Jack" was managed by legendary managers Percy Pringle and Oliver Humperdink. Not at the same time of course.

Skip vs. Barry

After wrestling in Florida and a brief stint in Memphis, Barry Horowitz joined the Global Wrestling Federation for two years until the promotion folded. In Global, Horowitz won the Light Heavyweight title twice. Once by beating Jerry Lynn. After Global Wrestling folded, Barry moved on to the WWF.

Barry was a perennial jobber in the WWF until the summer of 1995 when he scored an upset victory over Bodydonna Skip. With the surprise victory, Barry and Skip feuded for a couple months leading to a match at SummerSlam.

White and nerdy

During this time, Barry developed a personality outside of the ring and became a taped up glasses and pocket protector wearing nerd. Michael Cole would have had a field day ripping into Mr. Horowitz for his lack of social popularity. Shortly after the feud with Skip ended, Barry formed a friendship with Hakushi who had recently turned face. Other than getting an official t-shirt and being in the 1996 Royal Rumble, there was no long term major gains from Barry's surprise win over Skip.

While he may never make the WWE Hall of Fame (unless they take my suggestion and add a Jobber wing), we here at my123cents celebrate the career of Barry Horowitz and give him a pat on the back.

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