10 Wrestlers You Didn't Know Once Wore Face Paint

Face paint in wrestling is generally known for making someone notable. Some guys are true stars with face paint, like Sting, the Road Warriors, and Goldust. True, there are bad workers with pain, like Papa Shango or Abe Knuckleball Schwartz, but the good outweighs the bad in painted wrestlers. There were times when some veterans used it in infamous ways (Barry Windham) or cool recent ones (Chris Jericho).

But there are a few times you might forget a wrestler did use face paint. Often, it was just for one night and a special show, so it slipped through the cracks. Other times, it was used more than once but never a big deal for the workers or early in their careers. Here are 10 stars you may not have known wore face paint at one time and telling how some pulled it off better than others.

10 Bushwhackers

Men on a Mission with The Bushwhackers at Survivor Series

In their tenure as the Sheepherders, the closest Luke and Butch got to coloring their faces was in bright red blood. That changed when they joined WWE as the goofy guys licking the heads of fans and into silly antics, but it served them well.

At Survivor Series 1993, Bam Bam Bigelow and his team expected to face Doink the Clown and his buddies, but out came the Bushwhackers and Men on a Mission in clown makeup. The four won a silly match as the Bushwhackers just fit in perfectly dressed like clowns.

9 Fabulous Freebirds

The Fabulous Freebirds were fantastic heels who could get over anywhere in any combination they wanted. But one bit fans have forgotten may actually be for the best.

There were occasions when Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy, and Buddy Roberts (along with occasionally Jimmy Garvin) would come to the ring with their faces painted like the Confederate flag. They’d do it against the Road Warriors and others, although not in some bigger shows. It’s a bit that obviously wouldn’t fly today, but it showed the mavericks the Freebirds were.

8 Jeff Jarrett

Jeff Jarrett has had an amazing career from World Class to AEW and has proven himself to be a star. So it can be overlooked he’s donned face paint a couple of times.

The first big case was when he feuded with Sting in WCW and wore the old “Surfer Sting” look to mock him. Jarrett actually looked good in it and pulled off some classic Sting moves. Jarrett also wore face paint in TNA to mock Jeff Hardy, although that wasn’t for a full match. It was the early face paint that got more attention, as Double J could be good with it.

7 Dusty Rhodes

The American Dream had scores of feuds over the years but also a longtime partnership with the Road Warriors. That included holding the six-man tag team titles and engaging in scores of fights like War Games.

For some matches, Dusty would also wear face paint like the Warriors, although it didn’t quite look right on him. Other times, he would simply shave his temples and paint his name on the space, such as Starrcade ‘86. The paint was one look the Dream couldn’t quite master, even if it sold his partnership with the Warriors.

6 Jim Duggan

Demolition And Hacksaw Jim Duggan Cropped

Never known as the sanest guy in the ring, Jim Duggan could be wild, always bringing that 2X4 with him. He had a brief stint as “King” in WWE and a couple of odd bits here and there. For SummerSlam 1989, while still “King,” Duggan teamed up with Demolition to face Andre the Giant and the Twin Towers.

Duggan joined Demolition with face paint, his in the style of the American flag. The trio ended up winning the match thanks to Duggan’s trusty 2X4 and Duggan proving he could be a wild patriot in any look.

5 Randy Savage & Lex Luger

With his plethora of wild outfits, Randy Savage hardly needed face paint to get over. Likewise, Lex Luger didn’t require it with his physique. But for Fall Brawl 1995, they joined Hulk Hogan and Sting in a War Games match with all four donning military-style camouflage paint.

They did look good in it as a unit, and Savage pulled it off pretty well while Luger was rougher. It was pretty much the only time either man wore paint, but it sparked this wild fight and added another great look to Savage’s litany of wild appearances.

4 Baron Von Raschke

The Powers of Pain with Baron Von Raschke

One of the best users of the clawhold, Baron Von Raschke, had been a mainstay of the old American Wrestling Association with a couple of title runs over the years. In 1988, with his career winding down, Von Raschke joined WWE as the manager for the Powers of Pain.

While mostly hooded, he did wear some makeup, which could be glimpsed a bit under said hood. The Powers never worked as babyfaces and turned heel with Von Raschke fading into retirement and one of the shorter-lived painted characters ever.

3 Samoa Joe

Samoa Joe snarls in the Impact Wrestling ring in 2009

If you were a veteran TNA fan, you might know of this, but other fans may have missed (or chosen to forget) Samoa Joe’s “Nation of Violence” phase back in 2011. It wasn’t a bad idea, Joe coming back from a long injury/absence with a tougher attitude.

The first problem was having him threaten to stab guys with a machete. The second was the “tribal tattoo” that looked like a bad skid mark and did little to sell Joe as more intimidating. This being TNA, the whole thing was dropped fast and probably for the best, as Joe was better as his own character than in paint.

2 The Nasty Boys

This may be a bit surprising, but look up early stuff by the Nasty Boys when they began in the late 1980s, and they did wear face paint. It was an odd look for Saggs and Knobbs as they already had the wild street clothing to back up their antics.

They didn’t really need the face paint to get over as their style and crazy ring work were more than enough. They seemed to realize this as the Nasty Boys dropped the paint when they started their run in WCW, which led to bigger fame in WWE. The Boys proved face paint was unnecessary when they could be nasty enough on their own.

1 Andre The Giant

Andre the Giant was someone so intimidating he didn’t really need face paint at all. But when he feuded with the Ultimate Warrior in 1988, Andre tried it out to try and psych the Warrior out.

Sadly, it only made Andre look foolish, not helped by how even face paint looked small on him. The Warrior would dominate their feud as Andre faded a bit in his career. The paint look wasn’t a giant success for Andre’s career, so little wonder it’s forgettable.