OT: RIP "Mean" Gene Okerlund
As indelible a contributor to my formative years as Gorilla Monsoon and Jessie The Body, the incomparable MGO has passed:
WWE interviewer 'Mean' Gene Okerlund, 76, dies https://es.pn/2LJBQHH via @ESPN App http://es.pn/app
He would have made a fantastic sideline college football reporter
January 2nd, 2019 at 2:47 PM ^
Sadly so did Bob Einstein. Better known as Super Dave Osborne and the great Marty Funkhouser from Curb Your Enthusiasm.
Sad day.
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:36 PM ^
Truly bummed by this one - I was a huge Super Dave fan.
January 2nd, 2019 at 4:31 PM ^
"Ball hwheel"
Ha! I got way more enjoyment out of that clip than I should have.
January 2nd, 2019 at 5:16 PM ^
I loved seeing Super Dave on Letterman . RIP .
January 3rd, 2019 at 2:05 AM ^
Letterman had SD on a lot in the 80s and 90s back when Letterman was funny, before he got old and grouchy.
January 2nd, 2019 at 5:06 PM ^
Did not hear about that one. Funkhauser is the best side character on that show.
January 2nd, 2019 at 6:13 PM ^
Super Dave died too? WTF?
January 2nd, 2019 at 2:50 PM ^
I will never know how that guy kept a straight face with Macho Man just going legend next to him.
January 2nd, 2019 at 2:53 PM ^
The Funk Man and Mene Gene on the same day?? Damn. Both were incredible entertainers. RIP.
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:08 PM ^
Or Ric Flair going berserk. Somebody posted this somewhere earlier and I got a kick out of it- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uk8oOq30yjk
Sorry don't remember how to embed.
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:21 PM ^
I will never know how Macho Man kept a straight face either.
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:22 PM ^
So true. Cream of the Crop, Nothing But Garbage, Time Distortion. Classic takes to this day, and Mean Gene was a solid straight man never broke once. Great performer.
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:05 PM ^
2019 starting off poorly. Mean Gene Okerlund was a classic announcer. And it's still real to me damnit!!
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:23 PM ^
more real than our 2018 CFP hopes
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:23 PM ^
He's one of the greats, and by all accounts a pretty decent guy behind the scenes as well.
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:38 PM ^
Ravishing Rick Rude!!
What I'd like to have right now is for all you fat, out of shape sweathogs to keep the noise down while I take my robe off and show the ladies what a real man is supossed to look like.
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:31 PM ^
No doubt the best to ever hold the microphone back stage. Iconic voice and a truly defining part of my wrestling fandom growing up. RIP Mean Gene.
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:34 PM ^
He was such a nice dude. The "mean" thing was always lost to me as a lad.
January 2nd, 2019 at 3:48 PM ^
Uuuh, let me tell you something......my childhood is slowly dying.
Sad. Loved wrestling interviews with him!
January 2nd, 2019 at 4:21 PM ^
Hulk Hogan started most of his monologues with,”Well you know Mean Gene...”R.I.P. Mean Gene
January 2nd, 2019 at 4:51 PM ^
Think I watched him in his heyday.
Andre
Superfly
Sgt. Slaughter
Iron Sheik
Macho Man
Junkyard Dog
Hulk
Bobby the Brain
Rowdy Roddy
January 2nd, 2019 at 7:59 PM ^
Is Hulk Hogan the only one still alive on that list? I'm feeling OLD
January 2nd, 2019 at 4:52 PM ^
One of my favorites from my childhood. RIP MEAN GEAN! Just makes me realize how old I am getting ?
January 2nd, 2019 at 5:05 PM ^
I met him in his hey day when he was MC at a MLB Golf Event at Olympic Hills in Eden, Mn.
His remarks made the men laugh but got the event in trouble with a few colorful observations.
He was great friends with the Twins legends in those days...................
January 2nd, 2019 at 5:05 PM ^
I suspect that most MGoBloggers are too young to remember TV in the 1960's, but years before Super Dave Osborne demonstrated his daring acts and decades before Marty Funkhouser arrived on the scene, there was Officer Judy on a groundbreaking, controversial TV show.
January 2nd, 2019 at 5:10 PM ^
Meeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnn woo Gene!
January 2nd, 2019 at 5:34 PM ^
I met him once when I was 8 years old .....honestly one of the nicest guys I've ever met took time to take a picture and actually talk to 8 year old me for about 5 minutes
January 2nd, 2019 at 6:31 PM ^
Mean Gene was the best. Before WWE came to take over regional for cable "national" audience, he was the man here in Minnesota.
Vern Gagne was the owner, Mean Gene was the Barker. Loved the guy. Vern was a big amateur wrestling supporter (paid for my trip to Worlds in 1978, as well as quite a few others) so I got to meet Gene many times.
Gene's son was one hell of a hockey player. Played for the Gophers then the Islanders IIRC.
Great dude. RIP Mean Gene.
January 2nd, 2019 at 7:16 PM ^
For us 1980’s kids, Mean Gene was well known to WWF fans. He was fantastic as his role of the straight-man interviewer. Great voice, great humor. RIP
January 2nd, 2019 at 7:35 PM ^
Super Dave and Mean Gene, a bit of my inner child is laid to rest with them. Happy trails, you two.
January 2nd, 2019 at 7:38 PM ^
Say what you will about the sport of Pro Wrasslin', but Mean Gene was a legitimately great interviewer. I've spent the last 20 minutes or so watching several of his classic interviews of the cream of the crop and many others, Mean Gene played the role of the straight man to perfection, Every. Single. Time.
January 2nd, 2019 at 8:48 PM ^
Ed Corney also died. One of Arnold’s training partners from the golden era of Golds Gym Venice. Appeared in Pumping Iron.
January 2nd, 2019 at 9:38 PM ^
Thanks for posting this! I saw the news earlier today on Arnold's Twitter (he's a great follow, btw).
RIP, Ed.
January 4th, 2019 at 4:05 PM ^
He was there for a peak of the AWA, the WWF and the WCW. Not a coincidence I imagine.