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10-14-2009, 03:21 PM
He was 76 years old.
He had been really sick these past couple of months...
One of the greatest managers in pro wrestling history.
He had been really sick these past couple of months...
One of the greatest managers in pro wrestling history.
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10-14-2009, 04:16 PM
Captain Lou, he of the rubber band pierecings in his face, will be missed by all the old-timers. He was defintely one of the most fun Manager interviews in the business. Went from beging one of the most hated managers in the business to being the most loved when he took over the British Bulldogs. RIP from SD
10-14-2009, 04:20 PM
[nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0IFXq7iFCE&feature=related"]YouTube - Capt. Lou Albano Promo[/nomedia]
10-14-2009, 06:50 PM
He's gone to that great Squared Circle in the Sky! Anchors Away Captain Lou!
http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/TV/10/14...index.html
[ame]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Albano[/ame]
http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/TV/10/14...index.html
[ame]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Albano[/ame]
10-14-2009, 07:53 PM
Captain Lou wrestled during the real glory days of wrestling. Like many sports and entertainment mediums, wrestling has lost its luster and become cartoon in nature. Where are the **** the Bruisers, Johnny Valentines, Harley Races, Bobo Brazils, etc. Sadly, gone forever.
10-15-2009, 03:43 AM
One of the greatest managers of all-time.
Often Imitated. Never Duplicated.
R.I.P
Often Imitated. Never Duplicated.
R.I.P
10-16-2009, 05:19 PM
Going to merge
10-16-2009, 05:27 PM
Was there ever a performer who embodied the feel, ethic and spririt of pro wrestling more than Captain Lou Albano?
Maybe other guys won more prestigious titles, headlined many more cards, or were stronger athletes while in the ring.
http://tv.msn.com/superfans/wrestling/bl...ou-albano/
But Captain Lou, loved even when he was hated, brought an indomitable presence to pro wrestling. He proved that you didn't have to be the prettiest, the most muscular, or the largest to be the best.
He carved a niche in the business that has yet to be successfully duplicated.
Born in Rome in 1933, his family moved to Mount Vernon, N.Y., right outside of the Bronx, when he was a small child.
He went to Catholic schools throughout his childhood and briefly attended The University of Tennessee on a football scholarship before dropping out to serve in the U.S. Army.
Later, while he was working as a bar bouncer, Albano became interested in pro wrestling after mingling with performers who'd frequent the establishments he defended.
Being a legitimate tough guy, Albano took to his new career quickly and started wrestling in the 1950s. His first match was in Montreal against Bob Lazaro in 1953.
He found steady work with Vince McMahon Sr.'s World Wide Wrestling Federation (which eventually became WWE) as was packaged as a tag team with Tony Altimore called The Sicilians.
Their gimmick, Sicilian mafiosos like those later popularized by the Mario Puzo novel and Francis Ford Coppola film The Godfather.
The two won Albano's only title, the WWWF United States Tag Team Championship in 1967 from Arnold Skaaland & Spiros Arion.
He wasn't all that great in the ring, but he possessed incredible mic skills, far ahead of his time for pro wrestling. In the 1970s, he transitioned into a managerial role and became the mouthpiece for a number of WWWF's top heels.
He was cast as foil to the promotion's top face at the time, Bruno Sammartino with the goal of finally resting the WWWF Championship from him.
That plan succeeded in 1971 when the Albano-manged "Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff ended Bruno's seven-year reign as champ.
As the 1970s wore on, Captain Lou would be the boisterous voice for a number of top stars in the territory. His quick-witted style added energy to any show and raised the hatred of fans throughout the northeast.
Albano would manage The Blackjacks, "The Magnificent" Don Muraco, The Executioners, Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka, Pat Patterson, and The Wild Samoans.
As WWWF transitioned into the World Wrestling Federation in the 1980s, and Vince McMahon Jr. went forward with ambitious plans to take his company nationwide, Captain Lou was front and center.
Albano appeared in Cyndi Lauper's music video for "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun," and that led to a crossover promotion with MTV that took pro wrestling (and the WWF in particular) to new heights of popularity and mainstream awareness.
Cyndi Lauper would appear on Piper's Pit with Albano that started a feud when the captain erroneously claimed he was responsible for Lauper's success. That, and other pop culture crossovers, led to two wrestling programs on MTV and kept Lauper's involvement with WWF through the original WrestleMania in 1985.
As the Hulkamania era would roll on, Captain Lou became part of an entire division of heel managers that included The Grand Wizard, "Classy" Freddie Blassie, Mr. Fuji and later Jimmy Hart and Slick.
Albano left WWF in 1986 to pursue a Hollywood career. He became a brand of sorts, appearing on a number of television shows, game shows and movies throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s. Most notably, he played the role of video game icon Mario for the syndicated show The Super Mario Bros. Super Show in the early 90s.
Soon after he'd make a return to wrestling in the revived Universal Wresting Federation and began appeared on their show which would air from California on ESPN 2.
He made a brief return to WWF in 1994 to manage The Headshrinkers, and essentially settled into a comfortable retirement.
WWE recognized Albano in 1996 when they inducted him into their hall of fame. His health started to fail in the early part of this decade.
In 2005, Albano suffered a heart attack, but recovered. Last week, the great captain was admitted to hospice care near his home in Carmel, N.Y.
He died of natural causes Wednesday at age 76.
The shadow of Captain Lou Albano will always loom large over the pro wrestling, and I'm sure for fans of all generations.
Here's another of the captain's great moments.
Captain Lou Albano v. Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka from Madison Square Garden in New York. It was Jimmy Snuka's revenge in 1982 for Albano's betrayal.
Maybe other guys won more prestigious titles, headlined many more cards, or were stronger athletes while in the ring.
http://tv.msn.com/superfans/wrestling/bl...ou-albano/
But Captain Lou, loved even when he was hated, brought an indomitable presence to pro wrestling. He proved that you didn't have to be the prettiest, the most muscular, or the largest to be the best.
He carved a niche in the business that has yet to be successfully duplicated.
Born in Rome in 1933, his family moved to Mount Vernon, N.Y., right outside of the Bronx, when he was a small child.
He went to Catholic schools throughout his childhood and briefly attended The University of Tennessee on a football scholarship before dropping out to serve in the U.S. Army.
Later, while he was working as a bar bouncer, Albano became interested in pro wrestling after mingling with performers who'd frequent the establishments he defended.
Being a legitimate tough guy, Albano took to his new career quickly and started wrestling in the 1950s. His first match was in Montreal against Bob Lazaro in 1953.
He found steady work with Vince McMahon Sr.'s World Wide Wrestling Federation (which eventually became WWE) as was packaged as a tag team with Tony Altimore called The Sicilians.
Their gimmick, Sicilian mafiosos like those later popularized by the Mario Puzo novel and Francis Ford Coppola film The Godfather.
The two won Albano's only title, the WWWF United States Tag Team Championship in 1967 from Arnold Skaaland & Spiros Arion.
He wasn't all that great in the ring, but he possessed incredible mic skills, far ahead of his time for pro wrestling. In the 1970s, he transitioned into a managerial role and became the mouthpiece for a number of WWWF's top heels.
He was cast as foil to the promotion's top face at the time, Bruno Sammartino with the goal of finally resting the WWWF Championship from him.
That plan succeeded in 1971 when the Albano-manged "Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff ended Bruno's seven-year reign as champ.
As the 1970s wore on, Captain Lou would be the boisterous voice for a number of top stars in the territory. His quick-witted style added energy to any show and raised the hatred of fans throughout the northeast.
Albano would manage The Blackjacks, "The Magnificent" Don Muraco, The Executioners, Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka, Pat Patterson, and The Wild Samoans.
As WWWF transitioned into the World Wrestling Federation in the 1980s, and Vince McMahon Jr. went forward with ambitious plans to take his company nationwide, Captain Lou was front and center.
Albano appeared in Cyndi Lauper's music video for "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun," and that led to a crossover promotion with MTV that took pro wrestling (and the WWF in particular) to new heights of popularity and mainstream awareness.
Cyndi Lauper would appear on Piper's Pit with Albano that started a feud when the captain erroneously claimed he was responsible for Lauper's success. That, and other pop culture crossovers, led to two wrestling programs on MTV and kept Lauper's involvement with WWF through the original WrestleMania in 1985.
As the Hulkamania era would roll on, Captain Lou became part of an entire division of heel managers that included The Grand Wizard, "Classy" Freddie Blassie, Mr. Fuji and later Jimmy Hart and Slick.
Albano left WWF in 1986 to pursue a Hollywood career. He became a brand of sorts, appearing on a number of television shows, game shows and movies throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s. Most notably, he played the role of video game icon Mario for the syndicated show The Super Mario Bros. Super Show in the early 90s.
Soon after he'd make a return to wrestling in the revived Universal Wresting Federation and began appeared on their show which would air from California on ESPN 2.
He made a brief return to WWF in 1994 to manage The Headshrinkers, and essentially settled into a comfortable retirement.
WWE recognized Albano in 1996 when they inducted him into their hall of fame. His health started to fail in the early part of this decade.
In 2005, Albano suffered a heart attack, but recovered. Last week, the great captain was admitted to hospice care near his home in Carmel, N.Y.
He died of natural causes Wednesday at age 76.
The shadow of Captain Lou Albano will always loom large over the pro wrestling, and I'm sure for fans of all generations.
Here's another of the captain's great moments.
Captain Lou Albano v. Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka from Madison Square Garden in New York. It was Jimmy Snuka's revenge in 1982 for Albano's betrayal.
10-16-2009, 05:39 PM
R.I.P. Gotta show my respect for one of the greats in the buisness.
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