Danny Spivey

Waylon Mercy

In the fall of 1985, Spivey signed with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Spivey was brought in to team with Mike Rotunda as The U.S. Express after Barry Windham left the federation.

The team had their first match together on November 1, 1985, less than a month after Spivey joined the WWF. The team was sometimes billed as "The American Express", but most people referred to them as the U.S. Express II since the patriotic gimmick of the original U.S. Express was recycled with Spivey taking Barry Windham's place. The team continued the U.S. Express' feud with the Dream Team, but once they were proven unsuccessful, the two did not team from January to May as Rotunda briefly left the WWF. During this time Spivey took part in the WrestleMania 2 battle royal. Spivey was eliminated by The Iron Sheik without much fanfare. Once the American Express reunited, they feuded with The Moondogs, The Hart Foundation, and The Islanders, whom the team faced in their last match together on February 9, 1987.

Not long before Rotunda left the WWF, Spivey began to be billed as **"Golden Boy" Danny Spivey** which continued for his singles run after Rotunda left. His in-ring appearance at the time led to many fans labeling him a Hulk Hogan clone. As the "Golden Boy", Spivey wrestled in yellow trunks and boots, this color choice combined with his height, build and blond hair saw him resemble the then-WWF Champion. Spivey took part in the 1986 King of the Ring tournament, losing to Nikolai Volkoff in the first round. He also tried a new tag team partner; in March 1987, Spivey teamed with Tito Santana to unsuccessfully challenge the Hart Foundation for the WWF Tag Team Championship. Spivey was also part of the 1987 King of the Ring. This time he lost to Rick Martel in the first round. Spivey stayed with the WWF until the spring of 1988, becoming a heel and competing mainly against such low carders as Lanny Poffo and Outback Jack.

In early 1989, Spivey debuted for World Championship Wrestling (WCW). Spivey was made a member of The Varsity Club as a replacement for Rick Steiner, who left the group. While in the Varsity Club, Spivey feuded with Rick Steiner and the Road Warriors, acting more as back-up while former tag team partner Mike Rotunda and Steve Williams were pushed as the stars of the group. When the Varsity Club disbanded, Spivey came under the management of ex-referee Teddy Long and started teaming with newcomer Sid Vicious under the name of The Skyscrapers. The Skyscrapers' first taste of success came at the Great American Bash pay-per-view, where they first co-won a two-ring King of the Hill battle royal with Sid being the survivor in one ring and Spivey surviving in the other. The rules called for the two to fight each other but manager Teddy Long convinced them to shake hands and share the prize money. Later in the night, the Skyscrapers defeated The Dynamic Dudes due to their overwhelming size and power.

The Skyscrapers quickly became involved in a feud with the Road Warriors, sparked by Teddy Long's actions while he was still a referee. The two teams were very evenly matched in power and intensity, creating a series of matches that did not favor one team over the other. Spivey and Vicious were disqualified against the Road Warriors at Halloween Havoc. Shortly after Halloween Havoc, the Skyscrapers faced the Steiner Brothers at *Clash of the Champions IX* in a hard hitting match. Sid Vicious suffered a punctured lung due to a broken rib. With Vicious out of action, Teddy Long brought in another tall newcomer in the same mold as Sid Vicious and Dan Spivey and dubbed him "Mean" Mark Callous. The New Skyscrapers immediately picked up the feud with the Road Warriors and kept on having inconclusive matches with them. At *Clash of the Champions X*, the Skyscrapers finally got the better of the Road Warriors, not in the match, but afterwards when they beat the Road Warriors down. At this point in time, no one had ever been able to physically dominate the Road Warriors, something that pointed that big things had been planned for the Skyscrapers. However, in the days before the scheduled Chicago Street Fight at WrestleWar 1990, Dan Spivey suddenly left WCW.

By the end of 1990, Spivey returned to WCW television. The Skyscrapers briefly reunited at Starrcade as he and Sid Vicious defeated The Big Cat and The Motor City Madman.

With Sid Vicious being part of the Four Horsemen, the Skyscraper reunion was short-lived. Instead, Spivey started to focus on his singles career in WCW, challenging WCW U.S. Champion "The Total Package" Lex Luger at the February 24, 1991 pay-per-view, WrestleWar. Spivey did not win the title, and he did not get another high-profile title opportunity while with the company. In June 1991, Dan Spivey once again left WCW.

Spivey would return to WCW once more during the summer of 1992. His biggest match during this time was his appearance at Starrcade, where he teamed with Van Hammer to defeat Johnny B. Badd and Cactus Jack to advance in the "Lethal Lottery". Spivey was eliminated from the main event battle royal by eventual winner The Great Muta.

Spivey rejoined the WWF in June 1995, adopting the name **Waylon Mercy**. He had jet black hair, wore white attire with a Hawaiian shirt, and sported several strange tattoos, including one of a dagger on his forehead. The character was introduced through a series of vignettes that always had Spivey speaking in a calm yet sinister manner. In the final vignette before premiering the character in-ring, Spivey predicted that soon, "Lives are gonna be in Waylon Mercy's hands," a phrase that would later feature in his entrance music.

Spivey portrayed a heel despite his character acting as a peaceful southern gentleman outside the ring. Waylon would shake the hands of the fans and thank them for coming to see him wrestle, his opponent, and even the referee before his matches. However, once the bell rang, he became vicious, insincerely apologizing for actions such as kicking or choking a downed opponent. Mercy's finishing move saw him apply a sleeper hold as he revealed a wide-eyed, insane expression. Once the bell rang, he would return to his "peaceful southern gentleman" act.

Mercy was pushed upon his debut with victories over numerous enhancement talents (including a young Jeff Hardy), as well as established stars such as Bob Holly, The 1-2-3 Kid, and Doink the Clown. Soon after, he competed in matches with the top faces of the WWF at the time, such as Bret Hart, Razor Ramon, and WWF World Heavyweight Champion Diesel. Spivey's only pay-per-view appearance as Waylon Mercy came at In Your House 3, where he lost to Savio Vega. Spivey defeated Diesel by countout in his last televised match before leaving in 1995.