WWE Hall Of Famer Arn Anderson Recalls First Time Meeting Hacksaw Jim Duggan

"Hacksaw" Jim Duggan is a WWE Hall of Famer who made his career traveling through various promotions over the years, from Mid-South Wrestling to Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation and eventually WCW. Asked about Duggan on his podcast, "Arn," Arn Anderson shared his thoughts on the wrestler from the early days up through his time in WWF and WCW.

"[I met Jim Duggan] when I was working for [Bill] Watts, when I very first started," Anderson said. "He was a big, rugged guy. Double tough."

Though Anderson thought highly of Duggan in Mid-South Wrestling, the performer's transition into the "Hacksaw" character for the WWF wasn't as impressive. It seems to have been a lack of meaningful character development or change that Anderson found missing in Duggan's WWF character.

"If you go back and watch his matches from when he was a heel for Bill Watts and a babyface for WWF, he did all the same moves," Anderson continued. "Nothing changed. He just did it to the bad guys."

Anderson also feels that Duggan joined WCW because of his friendliness with Hulk Hogan, who had made the jump from the WWF to the Georgia-based promotion shortly before Duggan. However, Anderson doesn't consider it a big deal, as more and more wrestlers were moving back and forth between the major companies at the time.

Duggan's in-ring career stretched from 1979 to 2019, with the veteran wrestling seven matches in his final calendar year. In addition to remaining active on the convention circuit, he made headlines in December 2022 when Duggan detained a home invader who had broken into his house.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Arn" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.