76-426: Louis Vincent Albano (July 29, 1933 – October 14, 2009) was an Italian-American professional wrestler, manager and actor, who performed under the ring/stage name " Captain " Lou Albano . He was active as a professional wrestler from 1953 until 1969, before becoming a manager until 1996. Over the course of his 42-year career, Albano guided 15 different tag teams and three singles competitors to championship gold. Albano
152-451: A fez , Farouk took great pains in trying to control his madman protégé. But he also carved a niche for himself as a deceitful, underhanded character who insulted US fans whenever he had a chance. Farouk was a pioneer of "manager interference", as he physically would attempt to alter a match's outcome in the Sheik's favor. This sort of interference was rare at the time. Roth began a stint with
228-651: A "family man" and supported their persona by appearing with their family members before and after matches. Steamboat famously carried his 8-month-old son Richard Jr. into the ring with him at WrestleMania IV before his match with Greg "The Hammer" Valentine , then handing him to his wife Bonnie before the match started, and was accompanied to the ring by his family during his rivalry with Ric Flair in Jim Crockett Promotions to contrast with Flair's party animal "Nature Boy" persona. These actions often relate to wrestlers promoting charity work or other actions outside
304-641: A babyface, the U.S. Express and the British Bulldogs. It was during his stewardship of the Valiant Brothers that Albano picked up his "Captain" nickname, as the act was promoted as "Captain Lou and the Valiants too." By the end of his career, Albano had managed over 50 different wrestlers who won two dozen championships. Albano could also help elevate wrestlers by splitting from them. In 1982, despite being managed by
380-418: A bill for damages totaling $ 27,000 ($ 182,378 in 2021 dollars), cementing Albano's unparalleled ability to "draw heat" (arouse anger in the audience). Another protege of Albano was "Iron Mike" McCord . In a memorable match in 1974 Chief Jay Strongbow applied his famous sleeper hold on McCord but Albano interfered in the match by smashing an arm cast over Strongbow's forehead, causing him to bleed badly. McCord
456-704: A boxing promoter who later became the first titular president of the WWWF. Gilzenberg, noting Albano's relatively short stature, instead encouraged him to enter wrestling. Albano's father had himself been an amateur wrestler, and Albano himself had been introduced to professional wrestling at an event held at Fort Dix during his tenure in the Army, where he had seen the likes of Gorgeous George , Arnold Skaaland , Soldier Barry, and Lenny Montana —all of whom Albano later worked with. Gilzenberg asked Soldier Barry to help train Albano, and in 1952,
532-496: A change in character for the wrestler in question. For example, Batista's run as a face upon his return to the WWE in 2014 was met with overwhelmingly negative reactions from the fans. Because of this unexpected reaction, Batista turned heel within just a few months of his return. The reaction of the fans can also influence a wrestler's booking and position on the card. Faces that get more support than expected sometimes move closer towards
608-636: A face manager. More importantly, the involvement of Lauper, a celebrity completely unrelated to wrestling, in the pro wrestling world was unprecedented. MTV's decision to broadcast the Brawl to End it All tremendously increased the WWF's public profile, especially in the coveted young adult demographic. This led directly to the 1980s professional wrestling boom . Wrestling Observer ' s Dave Meltzer wrote, "Without Albano, wrestling history would have been monumentally different because if you take Lauper's involvement out of
684-505: A face wrestler does must be heroic: faces need only to be clapped or cheered by the audience to be effective characters. When the magazine Pro Wrestling Illustrated went into circulation in the late 1970s, the magazine referred to face wrestlers as "fan favorites" or "scientific wrestlers", while heels were referred to as simply "rulebreakers". The vast majority of wrestling storylines involve pitting faces against heels, although more elaborate set-ups (such as two faces being manipulated by
760-413: A face wrestler, Angle's character was arrogant and constantly reminded people of his Olympic glory, behaving as if he thought he was better than the fans. Angle's character served as a meta-reference to how wrestling had changed. Although his character was intended to be a heel and behaved accordingly, some commentators speculated that if Angle attempted to get over as a face using a more heroic version of
836-479: A heel, to turn face. He therefore arranged for Lauper to receive an in-ring award for her contributions to both wrestling and the fight against MS, for which he also came out and congratulated her. In the course of the ceremony, Roddy Piper and "Cowboy" Bob Orton came into the ring to sarcastically praise Albano before breaking Lauper's award, a gold record plaque, over his head. Lauper and her boyfriend-manager David Wolff were also attacked by Piper and Orton. The melee
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#1732855326881912-634: A lake house in Connecticut . Eleanor was a music teacher for preschool students in Connecticut. Albano's son, Carl Albano, has been a member of the Putnam County Legislature since 2011. During the 1990s, Albano shed 150 pounds (68.0389 kg) following a health scare. In May 2005, Albano suffered a heart attack , but later recovered. Albano was sent home from the hospital and again began watching his health. The song "Captain Lou" by Kimya Dawson
988-427: A limited command of English, and Albano was assigned to be his mouthpiece. Albano emphasized Verdu's physique and insisted that he had never been taken off his feet during a match. To rile up audiences, he also engaged in ethnic slurs, which were then a more common part of WWWF banter; Albano promised that Verdu would stomp on "that Italian" (Sammartino); the fact that Albano was known to be Italian himself only heightened
1064-478: A limited lifespan in the ring, and still dealing with his old football injury, agreed. Although it was his decision to split up his ten-year tag team partnership with Altomare, the two remained very close until the latter's death in 2003. At this time, managers were relatively rare in the pro wrestling world—WWWF had only two others. However, a promising new wrestler, Oscar "Crusher" Verdu, had just recently emigrated from Spain. His in-ring capabilities were hampered by
1140-538: A mainstream audience. Capitalizing on his success, he later ventured into Hollywood with various television, film, and music projects. He became well known to a younger generation of fans as the actor and voice of Mario in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! Albano was born on July 29, 1933, in Rome . His parents, Carmen Louis Albano (1905–1962) and Eleanor Albano née Morrone, were of Italian heritage but both born in
1216-579: A manager. He later retired from managing wrestlers in 1996. The events leading up to Albano's face turn proved to be pivotal in the history of the WWF. Hogan, Piper, and Orton began a feud at Lauper's award ceremony that culminated in The War to Settle the Score . The outcome of the War—Hogan winning by disqualification—was the impetus for the primary match at the first WrestleMania , in which Albano also participated, as
1292-453: A mediocre wrestler who was nonetheless an entertaining speaker, might be better utilized as a manager . In professional wrestling, a manager might be tasked with behind-the-scenes efforts to help push forward a charge's career or handle his booking, but plays an equal or even greater role in the ring, speaking for his charge and helping rile up the crowd for or against him. Sammartino recalled: "One day I said to Vince Sr., this guy [Albano] isn't
1368-644: A nefarious outside party into fighting, or simply having a clean sportsmanly contest) often happen as well. In the world of lucha libre wrestling, most técnicos are generally known for using moves requiring technical skill, particularly aerial maneuvers and wearing outfits using bright colors with positive associations (such as solid white ). This is contrasted with most villainous rudos who are generally known for being brawlers, using physical moves that emphasize brute strength or size while often having outfits akin to demons or other nasty characters. Traditional faces are classic "good guy" characters who rarely break
1444-529: A plane flight from Puerto Rico . Her manager, David Wolff, suggested that the two collaborate on a project at some point in the future. In 1984, the opportunity came when Lauper's video for " Girls Just Want to Have Fun " needed an actor to play the singer's father, and Albano was suggested. Initially reluctant, he was convinced by his wife to agree, and Lauper and Albano thereafter formed a lifelong friendship. He appeared in several of her music videos and she appeared on Roddy Piper 's "Piper's Pit" program to discuss
1520-501: A rare characteristic in the on-the-road world of 1970s and 1980s professional wrestling. Albano released his autobiography, Often Imitated, Never Duplicated , on July 20, 2008, through his website. The book includes a foreword by Cyndi Lauper . The other Albano siblings are Vincent, George, Eleanor, and Carl, all of whom became teachers. Albano's brother, Carl, taught health for 32 years at Ridgewood High School in Ridgewood, New Jersey , and
1596-535: A rematch brought in over $ 85,000 in ticket receipts. After losing that match, Verdu cycled out of the WWWF rotation, but Albano remained as the top heel manager for the next 15 years. Thus began his transition into the brash, bombastic manager "Captain" Lou Albano. With a quick wit and a grating personality, Albano delivered memorable promos and earned the scorn of the wrestling audience as he attempted to dethrone World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) superstar and Heavyweight Champion Bruno Sammartino. Albano described
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#17328553268811672-450: A tag team performer with partner Tony Altomare . Dubbed The Sicilians, Altomare and Albano competed as a stereotypical Italian gangster combo in the mode of the then-popular television series The Untouchables . The pair won the Midwest tag team championship on the undercard of June 30, 1961 Comiskey Park event starring Pat O'Connor and Buddy Rogers that set the all-time record gate in
1748-400: A typical heel run against Sammartino in 1969, but Albano spent months claiming that his previous manager Tony Angelo had trained him incorrectly, and that Koloff would beat Sammartino under Albano's expert tutelage. The shock of Koloff's victory was such that the crowd fell totally silent, and Sammartino momentarily feared that he had lost his hearing. Koloff and Albano were quickly rushed out of
1824-578: Is dedicated to him (not to be confused with the 1981 NRBQ song of the same name). Albano died on October 14, 2009, in Westchester County, New York , of a heart attack while residing in hospice care . He was 76 years old. Albano was buried at Rose Hill Memorial Park in Carmel, New York . Ernie Roth Irwin " Ernie " Jacob Roth (August 30, 1926 – October 12, 1983), known by the ring names The Grand Wizard of Wrestling and Abdullah Farouk ,
1900-543: The Atlantic City market. But several photographs of the pair with their title belts were taken, which elevated Albano's reputation in the wrestling magazines of the time, and provided good publicity fodder later in his career. By 1969, The Sicilians disbanded and went their separate ways. Albano went on as a singles competitor before retiring from active in-ring wrestling to focus on work as a manager. In 1970, fellow wrestler Bruno Sammartino mentioned to McMahon that Albano,
1976-481: The WWE World Heavyweight Championship , to a triple threat match with Daniel Bryan which he would go on to win. Some face wrestlers often give high fives or give out merchandise to fans while entering the ring before their match, such as T-shirts, sunglasses, hats and masks. Bret Hart was one of the first superstars to make this popular, as he would drape his signature sunglasses on a child in
2052-880: The WWWF World Tag Team Championship . A year later, the Wizard led Stan Stasiak to victory over Pedro Morales for the WWF Championship in Philadelphia on December 1, 1973. The Wizard guided a second protégé, Superstar Billy Graham , to the very same championship on April 30, 1977, when Graham overcame Bruno Sammartino in Baltimore. On February 20, 1978, Bob Backlund dethroned Graham at Madison Square Garden . The Wizard made it his duty to gain revenge on Backlund, sending charges such as Don Muraco , Ken Patera and Greg Valentine after him. The Wizard managed
2128-630: The World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) in the 1970s, where he became known as The Grand Wizard. Roth, who was Jewish , reportedly took the name "The Grand Wizard" as a snub to the white supremacy organization the Ku Klux Klan , whose leaders were called Grand Wizard . He also replaced his fez with a turban . Almost immediately after arrival in 1971, the Wizard managed Black Jack Mulligan and "Beautiful Bobby" Harmon. He later led Mr. Fuji and Prof. Toru Tanaka to two reigns with
2204-715: The 1970s and into the mid-1980s, Albano's cadre of loyal henchmen were unable to re-secure the heavyweight championship, held by either Sammartino, Pedro Morales , Bob Backlund or Hulk Hogan . However, Albano guided singles wrestlers Don Muraco and Greg Valentine to the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship . Furthermore, Albano guided thirteen teams to the WWF World Tag Team Championships , including The Valiant Brothers, The Wild Samoans , The Yukon Lumberjacks, The Blackjacks, The Moondogs, The Masked Executioners, and after becoming
2280-486: The Attitude Era of the WWF. During this time, wrestlers like Stone Cold Steve Austin and Sting used tactics traditionally associated with heels, but remained popular with the fans. Professional wrestling had just come off a huge steroid scandal and was facing poor ratings compared to the 1980s, and as a result, professional wrestling transformed into an edgier, more mature product. In this new era of professional wrestling,
2356-570: The Giant to reconsider his recent alignment with Bobby Heenan . Albano briefly worked in Herb Abrams' UWF promotion in 1991, where he hosted an interview segment. Albano returned to the WWF in 1994 to manage the newly face-turned Headshrinkers , helping lead them to the WWF Tag Team Championship. He left in early 1995, making sporadic appearances as a guest from then on, but never again as
Lou Albano - Misplaced Pages Continue
2432-577: The New York professional wrestling community. At this point, Gilzenberg introduced Albano to Vince McMahon Sr. , promoter of the new Capitol Wrestling Corporation in Washington, D.C. —the first predecessor to what is today WWE. Albano worked for Capitol Wrestling and its successors, under Vince McMahon and his son, for most of the rest of his career. Albano made little impact as a solo wrestler, working prelims in various circuits, but he achieved moderate success as
2508-486: The United States to that point. Their realistic depiction of gangster characters caught the attention of actual mafiosi in 1961. In Chicago, Tony Accardo and two associates "requested" that Albano and Altomare cease using the word "mafia". During their run as Midwest tag team champions, personal differences with bookers and other wrestlers resulted in the pair abandoning the territory quickly enough that they did not lose
2584-452: The United States. Eleanor was a classical concert pianist who had performed at Carnegie Hall and later became a registered nurse. Her brother, a physician, introduced her to Carmen in the 1930s, who was training to be an obstetrician. After marrying, they temporarily relocated to Italy while Carmen pursued his medical degree at the University of Bari . Lou was born around the time his father
2660-450: The aim of being cheered by fans. They are portrayed as heroes relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains . Traditionally, face characters wrestle within the rules and avoid cheating while behaving positively towards the referee and the audience. Such characters are also referred to as blue-eyes in British wrestling and técnicos in lucha libre . Not everything
2736-594: The attention garnered by the Rock & Wrestling Connection, stemming from that chance meeting on an airplane between Lauper and Albano less than two years earlier, led NBC to make the decision to air Saturday Night's Main Event several times per year in the Saturday Night Live time slot." Albano appeared in the 1986 film Wise Guys , starring Danny DeVito . He played the role of Mario , Nintendo 's mascot , in both
2812-452: The audience's reaction. Sammartino later said, "They wanted to see me beat the hell out of Verdu to make Albano a liar. He could get the kind of heat that nobody else could." The result was a Madison Square Garden sellout when Verdu faced Sammartino in June 1970, the first for the company in five years and a then-record gate for a wrestling event in that arena. The record lasted only a month, when
2888-448: The audience. Rey Mysterio , who has been a face in WWE since his debut, would go to any fan (frequently a child) wearing a replica of his mask and touch their head with his head for good luck before wrestling. Other examples include John Cena throwing his shirts and caps in the crowd before entering a match and Big Show giving his hat to a fan when he was a face. Some faces, such as Bret Hart and Ricky Steamboat , promoted an image as
2964-405: The audience. Traditional faces similar to Hulk Hogan tend to draw on support from the crowd when it's time for them to make their big comeback. In addition to wrestlers, commentators also portray face and heel dynamics. It is the job of the face commentator to criticize the tactics and behavior of the heel wrestler and gather support for the face wrestler. The face commentator gathers support for
3040-417: The autobiography of former WWE referee and wrestler Dangerous Danny Davis , Roth was also in charge of helping get the ring to all shows. The position was eventually taken over by Davis himself after Roth's death. On October 12, 1983, Roth died of a heart attack at his Fort Lauderdale, Florida home at the age of 57. Later WWF manager The Wizard claimed to be in communion with Roth's spirit. In 1995, Roth
3116-419: The best wrestler, as a team, they [Albano & Altomare] can only go so far. But he'd be a great mouthpiece for some guy. Lou has such a gift of gab that he can help out some people. As a wrestler, he just seemed limited. He was always the same. He was never looked upon by promoters as someone who could be anyone special. But as a manager, he shined. That was his calling." Albano, realizing that wrestlers had only
Lou Albano - Misplaced Pages Continue
3192-482: The collaboration. Albano, in character, began denigrating Lauper and women in general and claimed to have written all her songs and been the only reason for her success. Lauper, in turn, assaulted Albano with her purse, and the two agreed to settle their differences in the ring. Albano and Lauper agreed to compete by proxy, each choosing a female wrestler to contend. Lauper chose Wendi Richter , while Albano chose The Fabulous Moolah . The match, scheduled for July 23, 1984,
3268-542: The dean due to poor behavior and was expelled after attempting to cheat on a final exam. He then joined the United States Army , but due to a childhood injury exacerbated by his football days, Albano was honorably discharged after only eight months. Although Albano's father, retired from medicine, wanted to open an insurance agency with his son, Lou instead began training as a boxer . A distant cousin and family friend, Lou Duva , introduced Albano to Willie Gilzenberg ,
3344-519: The equation, the early losses on expanding nationally and buying so much television time were on the verge of putting the company under... Without her, there would have been no MTV special, no national media publicity, and it's highly unlikely without it that the first WrestleMania would have been a success. If you take Albano's participation out of the equation, there is a good chance the McMahon expansion would have hit an iceberg and died in early 1985 ...
3420-415: The experience led Albano to lend his time to raising awareness and funds to combat the disease, occasionally alongside Lauper. His increasingly public benevolence clashed with his in-ring persona, which violated the principles of kayfabe —maintaining the appearance of reality within professional wrestling—which were still strictly adhered to at the time. In 1984, Albano decided it was time, after 32 years as
3496-439: The fans. While clearly not championing rule following, nor submission to authority, Austin was still regarded as the face in many of his duels such as his rivalry with World Wrestling Federation (WWF, later WWE) owner Mr. McMahon . The portrayal of face wrestlers changed in the 1990s with the birth of Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), the start of World Championship Wrestling 's (WCW) New World Order (nWo) storyline, and
3572-550: The first Intercontinental Champion Pat Patterson , and later Patera (who defeated Patterson for the title in April 1980 after the Wizard and Patterson parted ways) and Muraco to the same championship. Other protégés of the Wizard included "Beautiful Bobby" Harmon, Killer Kowalski , "Crazy Luke" Graham , Sgt. Slaughter , "Big Cat" Ernie Ladd , Ox Baker , "Cowboy" Bob Orton and The Masked Superstar. Roth on many occasions (when out of character and greasepaint mustache) co-hosted
3648-566: The first tag teams to win the WWF Tag Team Championships with Albano as a "face" manager. Albano left the WWF in late 1986 with one final match on an episode of Wrestling Challenge that aired on November 16, 1986, teaming with The British Bulldogs to defeat The Dream Team and Luscious Johnny Vailant. Albano would then make a one-time appearance on a "Piper's Pit" on an episode of Superstars of Wrestling in February 1987 to ask André
3724-415: The image of a wild man. He developed a later trademark, applying rubber bands to his beard, after having seen a homeless man do the same. He also often wore a rubber band hanging from a safety pin pushed through his cheek. In January 1971, Albano was the manager when Ivan Koloff ended Sammartino's seven-year reign as champion. Koloff's title reign was a transitional one, lasting just three weeks. Koloff had
3800-450: The lead announcers for the WWF, Gorilla Monsoon , continued to refer to Albano as "The Fountain of Misinformation"—Albano was now leading fan favorites such as The U.S. Express , George Steele (a former wildman heel whom Albano aided after he was abandoned by his partners after losing a six man tag match against Albano's men), The British Bulldogs , Hulk Hogan and André the Giant into battle. The U.S. Express and British Bulldogs became
3876-746: The live-action and animated segments of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! , a TV series based on the Super Mario Bros. game series. He also had roles in the TV series 227 , Hey Dude , and Miami Vice , the 1992 film Stay Tuned , and was a recurring guest on the game show Hollywood Squares . Albano played a villainous caricature of himself named "Captain Lou Morano" in the 1987 movie Body Slam , starring Dirk Benedict and Roddy Piper . The film also included cameo appearances by wrestlers Ric Flair , Freddie Blassie , and Bruno Sammartino . Albano played
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#17328553268813952-415: The main event scene, while those getting less of a reaction than hoped might move down on the card. While Batista was getting bad reactions in 2014, another face Daniel Bryan , was getting incredibly positive support. Loud "Yes!" chants that had become synonymous with Bryan were present at any show he was on, and eventually the main event of WrestleMania XXX would be changed from Batista vs Randy Orton for
4028-457: The position of captain of the football team. It was this rank that later inspired his wrestling moniker, "Captain" Lou Albano. His skills were such that he received 32 offers of full scholarship from universities around the country, and he chose the University of Tennessee on the strength of their football team. Here, Albano was teammates with the likes of Darris McCord , Doug Atkins , and his roommate, Sam Rutigliano . Albano had conflicts with
4104-482: The ring by security without the championship belt as the crowd began to riot. Albano, his wife, and a family friend, who were both in attendance, escaped to a taxi outside the Garden. The mob surrounded the cab and began breaking windows, so the trio ran to a nearby bar, followed by the crowd who were pelting them with mud and objects. The mob was beginning to destroy the bar as the police finally arrived. Vince McMahon received
4180-466: The ring, blurring the lines between scripted wrestling and their personal lives. In the ring, traditional faces are expected to abide by the rules and win matches by their own skill rather than by cheating, outside interference etc. Because heel wrestlers take little issues with using such tactics, the face enters many matches already at a disadvantage to the heel. By putting the face in a difficult situation, it can help to draw out sympathy and support from
4256-453: The role of the father in Cyndi Lauper 's music videos for " Girls Just Want to Have Fun ", " The Goonies 'R' Good Enough " and " She Bop ", as well as a cook in the video for her song " Time After Time ". In 1953, Albano married his high school sweetheart, Geraldine Tango. The marriage lasted 56 years, until his death. Albano has been noted by several others for his faithfulness to his wife,
4332-498: The rules, follow instructions of those in authority such as the referee, are polite and well-mannered towards the fans and often overcome the rule-breaking actions of their heel opponents to cleanly win matches. While many modern faces still fit this model, other versions of the face character are now also common. A good example would be Stone Cold Steve Austin , who despite playing a heel early on in his career would start to be seen more of an antihero because of his popularity with
4408-434: The same character, he would have failed. Unusually, Angle did not use any of these heroic mannerisms when playing a face character, instead acting as somewhat of an antihero with a few elements of the " lovable loser " character archetype. The majority of the time, faces who are low-carders, or lesser known, are used as jobbers . These wrestlers usually lose matches against established wrestlers, often heels that then lose to
4484-409: The standard face was more profane, violent, and uncontrollable. In contrast to the emerging new breed of faces, Kurt Angle was introduced to the then-WWF with an American hero gimmick based on his gold medal win at the 1996 Summer Olympics . Angle presented himself as a role model and stressed the need to work hard to realize one's dreams. Although such a personality appears appropriate for
4560-458: The strategy behind his overblown, ranting interview style: "I just remember the point I wanna bring across, and then I just babble before, during, and after. Somehow, in the middle, I said the two or three sentences that sold tickets. Mostly, I just tried to make people want to see me get my ass kicked, and along the way, hopefully the guy I was managing would catch a beating too!" Growing out his hair and beard, and packing on extra pounds, Albano gave
4636-407: The syndicated Big Time Wrestling show with fellow announcer Bob Finnegan until 1969 when the hosting duties went to Lord Athol Layton . Roth was revealed posthumously to be homosexual, although some claim they were aware of his sexual orientation during his lifetime. He was the godfather of protégé Don Muraco 's daughter. His parents were Evrum (Edward) Roth and Rizel (Rose) Stern. According to
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#17328553268814712-576: The time, it was considered "offensive" so it was broadcast only once in the Boston area. Audience members were taken aback when Albano was formally introduced into the music business by NRBQ at The Ritz in January 1981. NRBQ compiled all the recordings they'd done with Albano on their album Lou and the Q , which includes their 1981 single "Captain Lou" b/w "Boardin' House Pie"— on which Albano himself sings and rants. In 1984, Albano met pop singer Cyndi Lauper on
4788-533: The title before leaving. In 1964, Albano wrestled for the World Wide Wrestling Federation as a singles competitor. Albano returned in 1967 and again partnered with Tony Altomare as "The Sicilians". In July, they won the WWWF United States Tag Team Championship from Arnold Skaaland and Spiros Arion . Albano and Altomare only held the championship for two weeks, a title change which was not even acknowledged on WWWF television outside
4864-410: The top faces. Fans sometimes dislike face wrestlers despite the way they are promoted. Some reasons for this include repetitive in-ring antics, a limited moveset, a lengthy title reign, lack of selling their opponents' moves, or an uninteresting character. This often results in wrestlers who are supposed to be cheered receiving a negative or no reaction from the fans. When this happens, it can prompt
4940-417: The two began doing house shows in the New York area. Albano was originally seen as a "pretty boy," and wrestled as the babyface "Leaping Lou Albano". After a non-wrestling injury caused a gash on his forehead, he purposefully did not allow the scar to heal, and the minor disfigurement allowed him to turn heel . Now billed as the "Mount Vernon Mauler," and occasionally a pirate, he began establishing himself in
5016-454: The villainous Albano, Jimmy Snuka was unexpectedly becoming a fan favorite due to his high-flying ring style. An interview segment revealed that Snuka had no legal contract with Albano, and thus was able to leave his manager. Shortly thereafter, a bloody beatdown by Albano, Freddie Blassie and Ray Stevens , helped transform Snuka into a sympathetic figure, and triggered the most successful period of his career. Albano had previously helped turn
5092-433: The villainous Intercontinental Champion Pat Patterson into a fan favorite, by "purchasing" Patterson's contract against his will. He also managed the U.S. Express at WrestleMania . In 1979, Jimmy Valiant introduced Albano to NRBQ on the latter's tour bus. Bandmember Terry Adams invited Albano to play the part of their manager and he agreed. In 1980, Albano taped a TV commercial for the band's album Tiddlywinks. At
5168-575: The wrestling industry. He became involved in professional wrestling as a manager in the 1960s in Detroit-based territories. Roth first worked under the names "Mr. Clean" and "J. Wellington Radcliffe." He also portrayed "Abdullah Farouk", the heel (villainous) manager of The Sheik . He frequently appeared on the Toronto and Detroit wrestling circuit, where local announcer Lord Athol Layton would usually refer to him as "The weasel, Abdullah Farouk". Sporting
5244-495: Was an American professional wrestling manager . Not a wrestler himself due to his small stature, he was noted for his flamboyant outfit of sequined jackets, wraparound sunglasses , and a brightly colored turban decorated with jewels and feathers. He was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame in 1995 . Ernie Roth got his start in the entertainment business as a disc jockey. He was discovered by Jim Barnett who helped Roth get into
5320-498: Was broken up by Hulk Hogan who draped himself across Albano to protect him from further onslaught, signalling to the audience that the once notorious heel manager was suddenly now a fellow babyface. The altercation allowed Albano to now wrestle and manage as a crowd favorite. His last two (heel) singles protégés, Valentine and Ken Patera , were paired with Jimmy Hart and Bobby Heenan , respectively, after Albano's face turn. Although he continued his overblown, rambling interviews—one of
5396-457: Was disqualified due to outside interference. Later Strongbow settled the score by challenging Albano to put on the wrestling tights once again. And the stage was set in front of a sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden, where he defeated Captain Lou Albano quite convincingly. Albano then resumed his role as the mastermind trying to lead his latest bad guy protege to the gold. For the remainder of
5472-578: Was dubbed The Brawl to End it All , and was broadcast live on MTV . During the match, Lauper interfered on Richter's behalf by hitting Moolah in the head with her purse, dubbed "The Loaded Purse of Doom". At the conclusion of the match, Richter had defeated Moolah for the WWF Women's Championship , which the WWF had promoted Moolah as having held for the previous 28 years. In the meantime, Albano had become involved in several charities . His brother's brother-in-law had recently died of multiple sclerosis , and
5548-517: Was head of the Ridgewood High health department from 1974 until 2001. Carl's students have noted that he used his brother Lou as an example of the difference between crazy and unique. George served as the principal of Lincoln Elementary School in Mount Vernon, New York , and often brought Lou in to delight the school's students during their lunch hour. Vincent was an art teacher and lived part-time in
5624-454: Was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 1995 by his friend and protégé Sgt. Slaughter . Face (professional wrestling) Mid 20th Century 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s In professional wrestling , a face ( babyface ) is a heroic, "good guy", "good-doer", or "fan favorite" wrestler, booked (scripted) by the promotion with
5700-519: Was one of the "Triumvirate of Terror", a threesome of nefarious WWF managers which included The Grand Wizard of Wrestling and Freddie Blassie . The trio was a fixture in the company for a decade until The Grand Wizard's death in 1983. A unique showman, with an elongated beard, rubber band, facial piercings, and loud outfits, Albano was the forefather of the 1980s Rock 'n' Wrestling Connection . Working first with NRBQ and later with Cyndi Lauper , Albano helped usher in wrestling's crossover success with
5776-695: Was studying. Carmen later co-patented a forceps instrument to assist in breech birth deliveries. Lou was baptized in the Vatican , and his parents shortly thereafter returned to the New York City area aboard the RMS Majestic . Lou was one of nine children, of whom five lived to adulthood. The family settled in the Mount Vernon area. Lou attended Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, New York , where he competed in track and field , and finally rose to
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