
Robert William Howard is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his 15-year stint with the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring names Thurman "Sparky" Plugg, Bob Holly, Bombastic Bob and Hardcore Holly. After debuting in 1990, Holly worked for Smoky Mountain Wrestling and other independent promotions, before joining WWE full-time in 1994. Initially portraying the character of a NASCAR driver, Thurman "Sparky" Plugg, his name was soon changed to Bob "Spark Plug" Holly, before forming a team with Bodacious Bart, known as The New Midnight Express in 1998. After becoming known simply as "Hardcore Holly" in 1999, he was joined by on-screen cousins, Crash and Molly. In 2002, he suffered a broken neck, which sidelined him for over a year. Upon his return, he engaged in minor feuds with wrestlers such as Mr. Kennedy and Rob Van Dam, before forming a tag team with Cody Rhodes in 2007. Holly was released from WWE in 2009. During his career, Holly has held the WWF/E Hardcore Championship six times, the WWF/E Tag Team Championship three times (with 1–2–3 Kid, Crash Holly and Cody Rhodes), and the NWA World Tag Team Championship once with Bart Gunn. Howard's autobiography, titled The Hardcore Truth: The Bob Holly Story was released in the United States on April 1, 2013. Co-authored by former British wrestler Ross Owen Williams, an actor and writer[63] who wrestled Holly in June 2010, it was published by ECW Press. Reviews of the book were positive, with Nolan Howell of Canoe.com describing it as a "straightforward look into the life of a man that has dedicated himself to the sport of professional wrestling" and has "an endearing, personal style that gives an apt representation of the author...For fans such as myself who appreciated the blunt style of the man known as Hardcore Holly, this ECW Press product will be an entertaining, worthwhile look into one of the unique personalities of professional wrestling." Joe Babinsack, writing for the Wrestling Observer, described the book as "brutal, boisterous and definitely worth reading". Bruce Mitchell, writing for the Pro Wrestling Torch, described the book as "hard-hitting, straightforward, and not very fancy", rating it "one of the strongest professional wrestling books in a long while". Dave Meltzer, editor of the Wrestling Observer wrote, "in a lot of books, you think you're reading what the person writing feels is the right thing to say for their career... With Holly, whether you agree or not (and I agreed with some of his stuff, not others), I had no doubt he was giving his true opinions on things. In that sense, it was a very honest look at a period of WWF history from a guy who had ups and downs... but survived a long time."

WWE Backlash: In Your House

The History of The WWE Hardcore Championship

WWF Action!

WWE: WrestleMania Monday

WWE: The Best of SmackDown - 10th Anniversary, 1999-2009

WWE: Satan's Prison - The Anthology of the Elimination Chamber

WWE Hall Of Fame 1995

WWE Unforgiven: In Your House

ECW December to Dismember

WWE: Attitude Era: Vol. 2

ECW on TNN

WWE Survivor Series 1999

WWE No Way Out 2001

WWE King of the Ring 1998

WWE Survivor Series 1995

WWE King of the Ring 1999

WWE WrestleMania 21

WWE WrestleMania 22

WWE Insurrextion 2001

WWE Survivor Series 2007

WWE Wrestlemania X8

WWE Survivor Series 2003

WWE Royal Rumble 2007

WWE WrestleMania XXIV

WWE Royal Rumble 2005

WWE No Mercy 1999

WWE Survivor Series 2000

WWE: OMG! The Top 50 Incidents in WWE History

TNA One Night Only: Hardcore Justice 2

WWE WrestleMania XIV

WWE WrestleMania XV

WWE Rock Bottom: In Your House

WWE Armageddon 2000

WWE No Mercy 2005

WWE Night of Champions 2008

Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows

WWE Backlash 2000

WWE Judgment Day 2004

WWEフライデー・ナイト・スマックダウン

WWE Royal Rumble 2008

WWE Royal Rumble 2001

WWE St. Valentine's Day Massacre: In Your House

WWE Global Warning

WWE Tough Enough

ECW Hardcore TV

WWE Armageddon 2004

WWE The Great American Bash 2004

WWE Survivor Series 1996

WWE SummerSlam 1999

WWE WrestleMania 2000

WWE Royal Rumble 2004

WWE Over the Edge

WWE Judgment Day 2005

WWF: Hardcore

WWE Royal Rumble 1995

WWE Royal Rumble 1994

WWE No Way Out 2004

WWE・ロウ

WWF Wrestling Challenge

WWE ECW

WWE Royal Rumble 2000

WWE SummerSlam 1995

WWE King of the Ring 1995

WWE Velocity

WWE Rebellion 1999

ネバー・サレンダー 肉弾突撃

WWE Royal Rumble 1999

WWE Royal Rumble 1996

WWE Armageddon 1999

Operation Sandman

Ring Roasts III: The Roast of Jim Cornette

WWE WrestleFest '95

Chris Benoit: The Aftermath

YouShoot: Bob Holly

WWF SummerSlam Spectacular 1994: Sunday Night Slam

Hard Knocks

WWE Sunday Night Slam