Dallas Page (born Page Joseph Falkinburg Jr., April 5, 1956), is an American fitness instructor, actor, and retired professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE under a Legends contract, under the ring name Diamond Dallas Page (often shortened to DDP). In the course of his wrestling career Page has wrestled for mainstream wrestling promotions World Championship Wrestling (WCW), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE), Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), and All Elite Wrestling (AEW).
Page first broke into the wrestling business in 1979, in which he wrestled three matches. He retired after a knee injury but he returned to wrestling as a manager in the American Wrestling Association in 1988, where he worked for nine months. He served as a manager with WCW starting in 1991 but became a wrestler late in that same year. Over a decade in WCW, Page became a three-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, two-time WCW United States Heavyweight Champion, four-time WCW World Tag Team Champion and one-time WCW World Television Champion. He is the fourth WCW Triple Crown Champion, and the only United States Heavyweight Champion to defend the title in a pay-per-view main event, defeating Bret Hart at the 1998 World War 3.
After WCW was sold in 2001, Page signed with the WWF where he made his pay-per-view debut in the main event of July's Invasion show, and went on to become a one-time WWF European Champion and one-time WWF World Tag Team Champion. Due to a series of injuries, he allowed his contract with the company to expire in 2002. He worked for TNA from 2004 to 2005, challenging for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in the main event of Destination X 2005. On March 31, 2017, he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by Eric Bischoff. He is considered "one of the finest WCW legends in history."
Since 2012, Page has run a mail order and online fitness video business called DDP Yoga, based on yoga and dynamic self-resistance.
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Early life
Page Joseph Falkinburg Jr., the eldest of three children, was born in Point Pleasant, New Jersey, the son of Sylvia (née Seigel) and Page Falkinburg Sr. He was raised by his father during his early years after his parents divorced. He stated that he is of German, Irish, and Dutch origin. Falkinburg/Falkenburg is also the name of multiple German villages and at least three German castles. The name "Dallas" came from his love of the Dallas Cowboys.
His brother Rory and sister Sally were raised by their maternal grandmother. Falkinburg lived with his father from age three to eight. His father took him, at eight years old, to live with his grandmother, who raised him. Falkinburg admitted in his autobiography he is dyslexic. He had many challenges hit him throughout his childhood and educational years.
He attended St. Joseph's High School (now Donovan Catholic High School) in Toms River, New Jersey, for his freshman and second years, spending his first season on the JV basketball team and making the varsity squad as a sophomore. He transferred to Point Pleasant Borough High School in Point Pleasant, New Jersey, where he was a star basketball player with the Panthers. He attended Coastal Carolina University in Conway, South Carolina briefly before leaving school to work full-time.
Professional wrestling career
Early career (1979)
In 1979, Page wrestled in three matches. He retired after a knee injury.
American Wrestling Association (1988)
Page ran a nightclub in Fort Myers, Florida called Norma Jeans (known for its pink Cadillac) while he was working as a wrestling manager in the American Wrestling Association (AWA). He started managing in 1988, where he handled Badd Company (Paul Diamond and Pat Tanaka), a team he led to the AWA World Tag Team Championship on March 19. Badd Company was often accompanied by female valets known as the "Diamond Dolls" (Tonya, Jennifer and Torri). During his time in the AWA, Page also managed Colonel DeBeers, Curt Hennig and Madusa Miceli as the leader of the Diamond Exchange stable. He worked for the AWA at 12 dates over a period of nine months, where they filmed all the television shows in one day.
Professional Wrestling Federation (1989–1991)
Page also worked as a color commentator in Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), soon renamed Professional Wrestling Federation (PWF), where he worked alongside Gordon Solie, before finally debuting as a professional wrestler. Page's first pro match occurred in May 1989 against Dick Slater.
In 1990, Page received a tryout with the WWF as an announcer, but wasn't offered a job. At WrestleMania VI, he drove Rhythm and Blues (The Honky Tonk Man and Greg Valentine) to the ring in his pink Cadillac. At this time, he was virtually unknown in the World Wrestling Federation. When FCW went out of business, Page was still involved in the club business until Dusty Rhodes returned to World Championship Wrestling. Rhodes started booking and brought him in on a small contract in early 1991.
World Championship Wrestling/WCW (1991–2001)
Page made his way to World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in January 1991, becoming the manager of The Fabulous Freebirds (Jimmy Garvin and Michael P.S. Hayes). He made his debut on the February 3, 1991 edition of The Main Event, where Paul E. Dangerously introduced Page to the audience in an interview on the show's wrestling news segment The Danger Zone. Page managed the Freebirds to a shot at the NWA World Tag Team Championship where they defeated Doom (Butch Reed and Ron Simmons) on February 24. Before that match took place, Page unveiled the stable's new road manager, Big Daddy Dink, formerly known as Oliver Humperdink, who interfered in the match. During this match, Page introduced the Diamond Dolls. In April 1991 he added Scott Hall to the stable under the name of Diamond Studd. Page also worked as a color commentator for WCW with Eric Bischoff. With rumors that the WCW wanted to take the Diamond Studd away from Page, he decided to take the advice of Magnum T. A. and begin to wrestle himself. He headed to the WCW Power Plant where Buddy Lee Parker, The Assassin, and Dusty Rhodes trained the 35-year-old rookie. The advice was fruitful, as on the August 31, 1991 episode it was announced by commentators that the Studd and Page had indeed parted ways.
Dallas Page would make his debut as a wrestler on August 22, 1991, at a house show in Jacksonville, FL, losing to Tom Zenk in 90 seconds. As he continued his training, Page became a commentator for WCW programming. He also resumed managing Scott Hall; however, he would not return to the ring until November 25, 1991, when he teamed with The Diamond Studd to defeat Chris Sullivan and Brian Lee on WCW World Championship Wrestling (the future WCW Saturday Night). At the same taping, but in a match that aired on the December 21 WCW Pro, Studd and Page would gain their first significant victory when they defeated PN News and Johnny B. Badd. On the house show circuit, Page and Studd suffered their first defeat when they fell to the WCW Patriots in Baltimore, Maryland on November 27. On the December 21 edition of "World Championship Wrestling", Dallas accomplished his first single victory, defeating Johnny Rich. Later that month he faced former clients Michael Hayes and Jim Garvin in house show matches, losing each encounter.
He made his wrestling pay-per-view debut at the 1991 Starrcade on December 29, teaming with Mike Graham in a losing effort to Jushin Thunder Liger and Bill Kazmaier. In regards to this period, he stated:
World Wrestling Federation (2001–2002)
When WCW was purchased by WWF owner Vince McMahon in 2001, Page was one of the few major WCW stars (along with Booker T and Buff Bagwell) who accepted buyouts of their AOL Time Warner contracts in order to immediately sign with McMahon. He debuted in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) on the June 18, 2001, episode of Raw when he unveiled himself as the stalker of The Undertaker's wife, Sara, thus establishing himself as a heel. Page revealed he didn't care about Sara; he only did it to make an impact and wanted to take on the "biggest dog in the yard". At King of the Ring on June 24, he fought The Undertaker in an unsanctioned brawl that was never announced as an official match. On the July 5 episode of SmackDown!, Page competed against WCW Champion Booker T, but failed to win the title after a distraction from The Undertaker. On the July 9 episode of Raw, WCW owner Shane McMahon and ECW owner Paul Heyman joined to create The Alliance, with former WCW and ECW alumni joining forces in an attempt to take control of the WWF. At the Invasion pay-per-view on July 22, Page formed part of Team Alliance alongside Booker T, Rhyno and The Dudley Boyz, defeating Team WWF, after Team WWF member Stone Cold Steve Austin turned on his team members mid-match.
Page and Chris Kanyon reunited on the August 6 episode of Raw when Kanyon helped Page attack The Undertaker backstage. Three days later on the August 9 episode of SmackDown!, Page and Kanyon defeated the APA to win the WWF Tag Team Championship.
His feud with The Undertaker culminated when The Undertaker and Kane defeated Page and Kanyon at SummerSlam on August 19 in a Steel cage match for the WWF Tag Team Championship and WCW Tag Team Championship. During the match, Page was injured, keeping him out of action until late October. While Page was injured, he developed a new gimmick in which he became a motivational speaker. The character involved Page constantly smiling and acting optimistic, with his trademark phrase "That's not a bad thing... that's... a good thing".
His return televised match was on November 3 at Rebellion losing to Big Show. After the Alliance lost at Survivor Series on November 18, Page, along with the rest of the Alliance members, kayfabe lost their jobs.
Page eventually returned as a face and won his job back by defeating Big Boss Man on the January 17, 2002, episode of SmackDown!. Page competed in the Royal Rumble match at the Royal Rumble on January 20 but did not win.
Return to Wrestling (2004)
In 2004, Page made his in-ring return by wrestling for several independent promotions. His first match was on April 21, 2004, teaming with Satoshi Kojima as they lost to former WCW star Sting and The Great Muta for HCW Battle Hawaii.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2004–2005)
He signed with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). He debuted for the company on the November 12 taping of Impact!, where he attacked Raven, beginning a feud between the two. At Turning Point on December 5, DDP defeated Raven.
and at Final Resolution in January 2005, Page competed in a three-way elimination match to determine the number one contender for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship also involving Monty Brown and Kevin Nash, which was won by Brown. Page and Brown subsequently formed a tag team. The following month at Against All Odds, Page and Brown defeated Team Canada (Bobby Roode and Eric Young). Page received an NWA World Heavyweight Championship title shot on March 13 at Destination X, but was defeated by reigning champion Jeff Jarrett when Brown turned heel and hit Page with the Pounce. At Lockdown, Page teamed with B.G. James and Waltman to defeat Jeff Jarrett, Monty Brown and The Outlaw in a Lethal Lockdown match. At Hard Justice on May 15, Page and Ron Killings faced Monty Brown and The Outlaw where they were defeated in what was Page's final match in TNA. Page left TNA shortly thereafter in order to pursue an acting career.
Independent circuit (2005–2011)
After TNA, Page returned to the independent circuit. He lost to Larry Zbyszko at WrestleReunion. DDP had Bruno Sammartino in his corner during the match. Then Page defeated Buff Bagwell on December 9, 2005, at GLCW Blizzard Brawl. In 2006, Page defeated his former Jersey Triad partner Chris Kanyon twice before retiring once again.
On August 9, 2009, Diamond Dallas Page made a special appearance for Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW) at their Bloodymania III event, aligning himself with the jWo. He hit his trademark Diamond Cutter finisher on Trent Acid.
DDP returned to wrestling on January 2, 2010, teaming with Air Paris to defeat Bobby Hayes and Alexander the Great at PICW event. On October 15, 2011, DDP teamed with Kevin Nash as they defeated The Rock 'n' Roll Express at AWE Night Of The Legends.
Return to WWE (2011–2017, 2024–present)
In late 2010, Page agreed to work on a DVD for WWE, titled The Very Best of WCW Monday Nitro, after being approached on the project due to his ties to WCW. Page hosted the DVD, which was released on June 7, 2011. On the June 27 episode of Raw, Page made an appearance promoting this DVD with Booker T.
In 2012, Page appeared on WWE Classics on Demand in Legends of Wrestling Roundtable: Renegades along with Jim Ross, Michael P.S. Hayes, Roddy Piper, and Gene Okerlund. Page also appeared alongside Kevin Nash and X-Pac at the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony on March 31, 2012. On July 2, 2012, Page made an appearance on Raw, where he hit a Diamond Cutter on Heath Slater. He also appeared at Raw 1000, accompanied by other WWE Legends, during Slater's match with Lita.
On the January 6, 2014, episode of Raw, Page, along with a number of other legends, appeared on the show as part of its "Old School" theme. On April 5, Page inducted his wrestling mentor and noted DDP Yoga practitioner Jake Roberts into the WWE Hall of Fame.
On January 25, 2015, at Royal Rumble, Page was a surprise entrant in the Rumble match, entering at number 14 and hitting his finishing move, the Diamond Cutter, on Stardust, Bray Wyatt and Fandango from the top rope, before being eliminated by Rusev. At WrestleMania 32, Page competed in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, but was eliminated by Konnor.
On March 31, 2017, Page was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in Orlando, Florida.
On October 6, 2024, Page announced via his Twitter that he had signed with WWE under a legend contract after his appearance in the crowds at the Bad Blood PPV event. During WrestleMania weekend in April 2025, Dallas inducted long-time friend Lex Luger into the WWE Hall of Fame.
All In (2018)
At All In on September 1, 2018, Page accompanied Cody Rhodes in his match against NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis.
All Elite Wrestling (2019–2020)
On May 25, 2019, during their inaugural pay-per-view Double or Nothing, Page escorted Brandi Rhodes away from the ring after she refused to leave the match between Cody Rhodes and Dustin Rhodes after match referee Earl Hebner ejected her from the match. On the October 23, 2019, episode of AEW Dynamite, Page returned to TNT programming for the first time in over 18 years, and helped Cody attack Chris Jericho and his stable The Inner Circle. On November 27, 2019, Page returned to Dynamite to present MJF with the first ever Dynamite Diamond Ring as a prize for defeating Adam Page. On January 15, 2020, at Bash at the Beach, Page had his last match, teaming with Dustin Rhodes and Q. T. Marshall to take on MJF and The Butcher and The Blade in a losing effort.
Fitness career
Page developed a yoga fitness program initially called Yoga for Regular Guys Workout (YRG), after discovering the health benefits of yoga through his then-wife Kimberly while he recovered from ruptures to his L4/L5 discs in 1998. His favorite kind of yoga (according to his "Yoga for Regular Guys" book published in 2005) is "Power Yoga", an American-style version of "Ashtanga Style" yoga. Page worked with chiropractor Dr. Craig Aaron, and developed the Yoga for Regular Guys Workout.
Page developed the book into a series of workout videos titled DDP Yoga (formerly YRG). DDP Yoga was featured in a video about Arthur Boorman in May 2012. The story was picked up by the mainstream media, including Good Morning America. The video describes the journey of Arthur Boorman, a disabled veteran who was told by doctors he would never walk again. After spending fifteen years on crutches, Boorman followed Page's yoga plan for ten months and documented his progress on home video. He lost 140 pounds and regained the strength and flexibility to walk and run without his crutches, back braces or leg braces.
On February 21, 2014, Page appeared on the ABC series Shark Tank, where he was seeking $200,000 for a 5% share in the DDP Yoga company. He declined to sell a 50% share for that same amount to Kevin O'Leary. Page had hoped to use the money to develop a mobile app. The other investors were impressed by Boorman's improvement but believed the home exercise market was too competitive and also predicted net profits ($800,000 in the previous year) would fall. Page later said he sold more than $1 million worth of products in the first six days after his appearance.
In 2017 Chuck Carroll of CBS wrote on the impact of DDP Yoga stating "The program has extended the careers of fellow wrestlers and improved the quality of life of those who hung up the boots long ago. But some of the biggest success stories are from the average Joes who have used the app to achieve radical body transformations."
Other media
Page released his autobiography, Positively Page: The Diamond Dallas Page Journey, on February 1, 2000. On January 15, 2019, Rodale Books released Page's second book, Positively Unstoppable: The Art of Owning It. The book includes a foreword by Mick Foley.
In 2015, he helped produce The Resurrection of Jake the Snake, a documentary that chronicled the rehabilitation of Jake Roberts.
In 2016, Page was featured on the Nine Legends Expansion Pack to talk about his friend Bill Goldberg.
Page currently hosts a radio show titled DDP Radio. In 2022, Page co-hosted a podcast with Jake Roberts and Conrad Thompson titled DDP Snakepit.
Film career
Page made his acting debut in the 1999 action thriller television film First Daughter, where he played Dirk Lindman. He went on to make cameo appearances in Brak Presents the Brak Show Starring Brak and Ready to Rumble in 2000. In 2005, he had a few minor roles, such as Sleazy Guy in The Nice Guys and Billy Ray Snapper in The Devil's Rejects. He had a starring role as Jersey in the 2006 comedy horror film Hood of Horror and co-starred alongside Raviv Ullman in the 2006 horror film Driftwood. In 2011, Page co-starred with Frankie Muniz in the superhero comedy film Pizza Man. Page had another starring role as Skullbucket in the 2012 horror western film Gallowwalkers.
In 2014, Page co-starred in the crime thriller Vengeance with Danny Trejo. Page was one of several professional wrestlers to appear in the 2016 comedy film The Bet. In 2022, Page played Knight Hawk, the main character of the live-action/adult animated mixed media superhero television series The Guardians of Justice. The show premiered on Netflix on March 1, 2022. In 2022, Page also played Dom in the action film High Heat.
YouTube
Since 2011, Page has used his YouTube channel as an outlet to advertise his DDP Yoga program. In 2012, the channel gained significant traction after he shared a story about Arthur Boorman, a disabled 47-year-old veteran, who lost 140 lbs in 10 months using DDP Yoga.
Page invited fellow former professional wrestlers Jake Roberts and Scott Hall to live in his house, which he nicknamed the "accountability crib", while the two rehabilitated their injuries and got sober.
In 2022 Page helped former professional boxer Eric Esch better known as "Butterbean" regain his strength and lose the weight he needed to have hip replacement surgery.
In 2024, Page began documenting his efforts in helping Lex Luger overcome a spinal infarction that left Luger with a pinched nerve in his neck and paralysis. By February 2025, Page had successfully brought Luger back to his feet. On April 18, 2025, Page accompanied Luger during his WWE Hall of Fame induction where Luger was able to walk to the podium.
Personal life
Dallas Page has been married three times. His first marriage began in 1991 to Kimberly Page. The two divorced in 2005. In 2015, Page married his second wife Brenda Nair and they divorced in 2020. Since 2021, Page has been married to Payge McMahon.
Page has two daughters, Brittany Page (born 1987) and Kimberly Page (born 1994), and two stepdaughters, (Alexandra) Lexy Nair (born 1996) and Rachel Nair (born 2001). Lexy currently works with All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a backstage interviewer.
He had his name legally changed to Dallas Page in 2003.
Legal issues
Page is commonly associated with the "Self High Five" as well as the "Diamond Cutter" symbol, a hand gesture made by joining the thumbs and index fingers on each hand to form a diamond shape, then parting the two hands in one swift motion. He created the symbol in 1996 and later trademarked it. In December 2005, Page filed a lawsuit against rapper Jay-Z, who, he claimed, had "illegally adopted his trademark hand gesture". Page accused Jay-Z of trademark infringement and sought a prohibitive injunction and monetary damages. It resulted in Page dropping the lawsuit for an undisclosed amount of money. On August 31, 2010, Page filed a lawsuit against the musical duo 3OH!3 for infringement of his trademarked "Diamond Cutter" hand gesture.
Page's WCW entrance music, "Self High-Five", intentionally contained similarities to the 1991 Nirvana song "Smells Like Teen Spirit", as composer Jimmy Hart and Page felt it exemplified the "sound of the '90s". According to Page, Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl in turn claimed that "WCW owes [Nirvana] money", but before any further actions or lawsuits took place, the track was altered to "sound like it was it, but wasn't".
Filmography
First Daughter (1999) as Dirk Lindman
Brak Presents the Brak Show Starring Brak (2000) as Himself
Ready to Rumble (2000) as Himself
Rat Race (2001) in a deleted scene
Nice Guys (2005) as Sleezy Guy
The Devil's Rejects (2005) as Billy Ray Snapper
The 40-Year-Old Virgin (deleted scene)
Jack's Law (2006) as Spider Benson
Hood of Horror (2006) as Jersey
Splinter (2006) as Detective Stiles
Driftwood (2006) as Captain Kennedy
Knight Fever (2008)
Sensory Perception (2010) as Mr. Harrington
Pizza Man (2011) as John Kryder / The Big Cheese
Gallowwalkers (2012) as Skullbucket
Vengeance (2014) as Spider Benson
The Murders of Brandywine Theater (2014) as Officer Carwin
The Resurrection of Jake the Snake (2015) as Himself
The Bet (2016) as Mr. Baker
Penance Lane (2020) as Hyson
Video games
Page has been depicted in several licensed wrestling video games.
