Weight: 260 lbs.
Finishing Move: The Curtain Call
Titles Held: 3x WWE Intercontinental Champ, 2x WCW United States Champ, 2x WCW Tag Team Champ, 1x WWE World Tag Team Champ, 8x WWE Hardcore Champ
Manager/valet(s): Marlena
Nicknames: The Natural
Other Aliases: Dustin Runnels, Dustin Rhodes
Real Name: Virgil Runnels III
Goldust first came to the WWF in 1995, the original concept being a "creature of Hollywood" who would use movie quotes to get in his opponents' heads. In his first couple of months, he scored impressive wins over Marty Jannetty, Savio Vega and Bam Bam Bigelow. As winter approached, Goldust took on more of a homoerotic persona, having an usher send weird love letters to Intercontinental Champ Razor Ramon. He won the belt from Ramon at the 1996 Royal Rumble, thanks to help from the 1-2-3 Kid and his new valet, Marlena, whom he called his Director. Goldust made a mistake by getting in the face of Acting WWF President "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, which led to a confrontation at WrestleMania XII, where Piper beat the holy hell out of Goldust in and out of the arena. Goldust lost by count-out to the returning Ultimate Warrior at In Your House: Good Friends, Better Enemies, and beat The Undertaker in a casket match at IYH: Beware of Dog 2, after help from Undertaker's nemesis Mankind. Goldust seemed to lose the title to Savio Vega on an episode of Raw, but it was discovered that Goldust's foot was on the rope during the three count. The title was held up and Goldust won the title back from Savio in a rematch soon after that. He finally lost the title to Ahmed Johnson at King of the Ring, and then lost to The Undertaker at IYH: International Incident by DQ. When Marlena started to play mind games with Marc Mero's valet Sable, the two started a feud and Mero beat Goldust at SummerSlam. The Undertaker finally beat Goldust at IYH: Mind Games in a Final Curtain Match. Goldust went for the IC Title again at IYH: Buried Alive, but lost to champion Marc Mero. At Survivor Series, he hung on in his match until he was the last member of his team left. However, he was pinned by newcomer Rocky Maivia. The fans got behind Goldust after Jerry Lawler said he thought was a queer, and Goldust denying it and attacking Lawler. Hunter Hearst Helmsley made a pass at Marlena, prompting Goldust to cost him the IC title at IYH: It's Time.
Goldust lost to Helmsley at the Royal Rumble, and then teamed with Bart Gunn and Flash Funk against The Nation of Domination at IYH: Final Four, but lost again. Later in the night, Goldust attempted revenge on Helmsley only to have a muscular woman attack Marlena. This woman alligned herself with HHH and called herself Chyna. Goldust again lost to Helmsley at WrestleMania XIII, and Chyna injured Marlena's ribs. During the Spring, Goldust and Marlena cut an interview about his pre-Goldust legacy, on being the son of wrestling legend Dusty Rhodes. Goldust revealed that Marlena was indeed his wife Terri, and started bringing their daughter Dakota to the ring with him. He defeated Crush at King of the Ring. He teamed with Steve Austin, Ken Shamrock and the Legion of Doom at IYH: Canadian Stampede to take on Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Brian Pillman, Davey Boy Smith and Jim Neidhart, but Goldust's team lost. He beat Pillman at SummerSlam, but Pillman won the rematch at IYH: Ground Zero. Due to the pre-match stipulation, Pillman got Marlena for thirty days and nights. A rematch was set for IYH: Badd Blood, but the storyline was abandoned due to the untimely death of Pillman on the day of the event. A couple of weeks later, Goldust dumped Marlena in an interview and went on an insecure tirade. His outfits grew more elaborate and he grew to be more of a coward. He teamed with Vader, Steve Blackman and Marc Mero at Survivor Series to lose to Davey Boy Smith, Jim Neidhart and Doug Furnas and Phillip LaFon. He took Luna Vachon as his new valet, and drew the wrath of Vader for abandoning his team at Survivor Series.
Goldust feigned injury to get out of a match with Vader, but lost to him at the Royal Rumble. Goldust became the Artist Formerly Known As Goldust, and would come out every week as imitations of people like Sable, Marilyn Manson and even his own father Dusty Rhodes. He teamed with Marc Mero to lose to the Headbangers at IYH: No Way Out, but their partnership quickly dissolved. Marc Mero and Sable beat Goldust and Luna at WrestleMania XIV. During the Spring, Goldust came out and denounced his old gimmick, burning his Goldust outfit and saying that from now on he was just plain Dustin Runnels. Dustin went on a personal televangelist-like mission to rid the WWF of its racy content, and generally failed. The last straw came in the Fall, when Val Venis revealed he had been sleeping with Dustin's estranged wife Terri. Dustin lost to Venis at IYH: Breakdown, and in the following weeks walked through the crowds with signs that stated "He is coming back." "He" turned out to be Goldust, and he beat Venis at IYH: Judgment Day after propping him in the corner and kicking him in the nuts, a move he called "Shattered Dreams." He entered the tournament for the vacant WWF Championship at Survivor Series, but lost to Ken Shamrock in the first round. Goldust got into a confrontation with Jeff Jarrett, and a match was signed for IYH: Rock Bottom. If Goldust won, Jarrett's valet Debra would have to strip. Jarrett won through cheating, but Commissioner Shawn Michaels reversed the decision. Debra started to strip, but was stopped by Jarrett and the Blue Blazer.
After participating in the Royal Rumble, the Blue Meanie started to imitate Goldust, calling himself Bluedust. Goldust took exception to this and beat the Meanie at IYH: St. Valentine's Day Massacre. After that, Goldust took Meanie on as a protoge, and went for the IC Title at WrestleMania XV against Road Dogg, Ken Shamrock and Val Venis. He lost, but won the IC belt the next night from Road Dogg. He lost the belt a month later at IYH: Backlash to The Godfather. He was released from the WWF in the Spring and bounced around WCW and the indy circuit for the next couple of years.
He re-debuted at the 2002 Royal Rumble, and was back in the WWF. He then cut a series of promos claiming his performance had been for an audience of one, and no one knew who he was talking about. It turned out that Goldust was jealous of the attention Rob Van Dam was receiving and they had a match at No Way Out, which RVD won. Goldust tried his luck in the Hardcore division, but failed to win the belt from Maven at WrestleMania X-8. He was drafted to Ric Flair's Raw brand when the roster split took place, and started hanging around with Booker T, who couldn't stand him. Booker tried to avoid Goldust, but Goldust found him at every turn. When Flair made Booker the newest member of the nWo, Goldust tried to join too, but nWo leader Kevin Nash wouldn't hear of it. Booker was soon kicked out of the nWo by Shawn Michaels, and Goldust helped him in his quest for revenge. However, Kevin Nash injured himself during a ten man tag match and the nWo disbanded. He and Booker feuded with the UnAmericans, who had just jumped to Raw. They went for Lance Storm and Christian's Tag Team Titles at SummerSlam, but lost after inteference from Test. Goldust teamed with Booker, Kane and Bubba Ray Dudley against the UnAmericans at Unforgiven and won. He and Booker lost anothe tag title match at No Mercy, this time to Christian and Chris Jericho. As Armageddon approached, Goldust tried to convince Booker to find another partner, admitting to being the weak link of the team. Booker told him that wasn't the case at all, and convinced him to team with him in a Fatal Four Way for the titles at the PPV, which they won.
They dropped the belts two weeks later to the team of Lance Storm & William Regal, and Goldust told Booker before the rematch that if they didn't win the belts back, he would stop being Booker's partner so he could go to all new heights. They lost, and Booker and Goldust had a tearful farewell. However, he was confronted backstage by Evolution members Batista and Randy Orton, who attacked him and threw him into a powerbox. Goldust suffered a severe shock, and acted like he had Tourrette's Syndrome upon his return a few weeks later. He fought Triple H on behalf of Booker, but lost.