RELATED: The 10 Greatest Pipers Pit Segments Of All Time. Anyone else loving the sad expression on everyones face as they break out in dance? All rights reserved.Click here for our privacy policy. Hence the title of the comic. Spouse/Ex-: Geraldine Albano (m. 19532009), siblings: Carl Albano, Eleanor Albano, George Albano, Vincent Albano, place of death: Carmel Hamlet, New York, United States, See the events in life of Lou Albano in Chronological Order. Louis Vincent Albano was born in Rome, Lazio, Kingdom of Italy on July 29, 1933. Blackjack Mulligan and Blackjack Lanza won their first WWE tag team titles in 1975 from Dominic DeNucci and Pat Barrett. Nice touch. Under Albanos management, Fatu and Samu beat The Quebecers for the Tag Team Championship on the 5/2/1994 episode of Monday Night Raw and held the belt for 124 days. Patterson was involved in a big angle with Captain Lou Albano in 1980 when he was the Intercontinental Champion. Okay, I always get a good chuckle out of these things, but I am on the floor in (good) tears over this one. The first was the U.S. Express, which Albano managed at the original WrestleMania. But WWE Champion and top star Bruno Sammartino took notice of his exceptional ability to talk, and encouraged boss Vince McMahon Sr. to take advantage of Albanos talent by making him a manager to wrestlers who need people to talk for them. Even though Captain Lou Albanos health had been rocky for years, the wrestling community was shocked by his passing. We can thank Lou Albano and Cyndi Lauper hitting it off creatively and bringing media attention WWF's way. He was freakin MARIO for Toads sake. RELATED:10 Legends Who Never Won A Title In WWE. Hell, Afa and Sika got Title matches in Madison Square Garden against Bob Backlund because Albano was that over as a heel. Captain Lou Albano also managed the very successful Valiant Brothers in WWE. I distinctly remember getting a little too excited every time SMB came on television. This was due to the mounting injuries to Dynamite Kid, whose back started to give out on him just as the tag team was hitting the highest of highs. in 1989, holding the distinction of being the first actor for Mario to achieve widespread popularitynoteMario had been played in both live-action and voiceover roles by a number of actors in both the US and Japan since 1983, but none of them became as iconic as Captain Lou did and consequently setting a precedent for the role that would remain in place until 1996, when Super Mario 64 popularized Charles Martinet's rendition of the characternoteMartinet was cast in 1990 and had been officially voicing Mario since 1992, but had only made niche appearances in the role prior to Super Mario 64. At the time, he was living in hospice care. One of the greatest wrestling managers ever, there are a lot of things fans should know about "Captain" Lou Albano. He eventually picked the University of Tennessee for their excellent football program. As a youth, he was athletically gifted, competing in track and field events as well as leading his school football team to numerous victories. In remembering how Captain Lou affected my childhood, I would be remiss to leave out Hulk Hogans Rock N Wrestling cartoon. While awarding a framed gold record to former enemy Cyndi Albanos success in high school football led to him playing college ball for the University of Tennessee on a scholarship. Users who reposted Why Did Captain Lou Albano Have The Rubberbands In His Face? Albano led them to only one tag team title reign before Dynamite had to retire. He adopted a new name, Mount Vernon Mauler, garnering a reputation in the New Yorks professional wrestling scene. Be sure to visit PWInsider.com and PWInsiderXtra.com. The MTV masses ate up the Captains critically acclaimed turn in Laupers video, just like her manager and boyfriend David Wolff predicted. Lou Albanos success as an in-ring performer was fairly minor, as he was never considered a particularly great wrestler, especially when it came to singles competition. The program was unique for having a live action element, with Lou Albano playing a live action version of Mario getting into shenanigans, and then voicing Mario in his animated adventures later on the show. The World's Most Entertaining Car Website. Web On the latest edition of VOC Nations Wrestling With History, Bill Apter and Ken Resnick discussed the career of WWE Hall of Famer Captain Lou Albano, the story behind In 1989, he was cast as the voice of Mario in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! He would later reprise the character in The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990). In 1986, Andre took time off from WWE to makePrincess Bride, and a storyline was created that had WWE suspend Andre for no-showing an event. The most piercings on the face is 280, achieved on this day in 2012 by Axel Rosales from Villa Maria, Argentina. Albano was arguably the best of the three. Third Party Advertising: We use third-party advertising companies to serve ads when you visit our Web site. The grand Wizard managed Patterson, and he sold the contract to Albano for $100,000. With a convincing gimmick as mafia-esque gangsters, Albano and Altomare reportedly had actual gangsters urge them to cool it with the mafia gimmick. In between Marios Earthbound hijinks, they would show Super Mario Bros. cartoons that seemed to be set in the universe of Super Mario Bros. 2. When the 1980s rolled around, Albano was a pivotal part of the decade's wrestling boom, and even contributed to pop culture in non-wrestling ways. He worked alongside Danny Wells, who portrayed Luigi.In addition to While awarding a framed gold record to former enemy Cyndi Lauper, Roddy Piper and Bob Orton interrupted, smashing the frame over Albanos head. He also managed a lot of tag team champions. In his later years, Albino became a successful actor, playing numerous memorable roles in both films and television shows. These companies may use information (not including your name, address, email address or telephone number) about your visits to this and other Web sites in order to provide advertisements on this site and other sites about goods and services that may be of interest to you. The Valiant Brothers, unprincely. Lou Albano managed Andre the Giant for a short time. On that fateful plane ride, Lauper and Wolff met Captain Lou Albano. Considered to be the forefather of the 1980s Rock 'n' Wrestling Connection for his elongated beard, rubber band facial piercings, and loud outfits, he played a pivotal role in mainstream audiences embracing professional wrestling. On the day of the official adjudication the final count was in fact 271. Actually I have the DVDs. Love the viking beard though, Josh. 1987 The Vintage Wrestling Despite finding a character perfect for pro wrestling, Lou Albano didnt start out wanting to enter the business. After spending several decades as a heel, Captain Lou Albano turned face in 1984 in a memorable segment. Thats right, Im a method writer. Through collaborations with pop star Cyndi Lauper, he helpedbring mainstream attention towrestling during the 1980s. He had eight siblings, four of whom survived childhood. But the injuries that he had sustained during his football days forced him to accept an honourable discharge after just eight months. He said that he would wear these things in his cheeks until (MS) was cured.. He ended up becoming captain of his high school football team, a position that would be immortalized as his iconic nickname, Captain., RELATED: 10 Best Football Players To Ever Wrestle In WWE, Ranked. Amazingly, he received scholarship offers from 32 colleges as a senior. Albano was so convincing on the microphone that in January 1971, after his client Ivan Koloff defeated Sammartino, ending his seven-year reign as the WWWF Heavyweight Champion, a riot broke out in Madison Square Garden. He also received the Editors Award from the magazine in 1994. One wouldnt have guessed this looking at Captain Lou Albano the manager, but as a young wrestler, Leaping Lou Albano was presented as a handsome babyface character as he competed in the New York wrestling scene. Ah.. the Mario, an often misunderstood and overlooked dance. Wolff had grown up a lifelong pro wrestling fan, following the WWWF where Albano was part of a triumvirate who terrorized the New York territory for a decade. As a professional wrestler, Albano won the WWWF United States Tag Team Championship with Tony Altomare on July 10, 1967. WebLouis Vincent Albano (July 29, 1933 October 14, 2009), often referred by his ring name, "Captain" Lou Albano, was an Italian-American professional wrestler, manager and actor who portrayed Mario in both the live action and cartoon segments of the The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! Roman Reigns often talks about his family's history in wrestling, and that includes his father, Sika Anoa'i, who was one-half of The Wild Samoans with his brother Afa. He had managed 15 different tag team championship winning teams and four singles gold winners. In honor of such, the NRBQ lads penned this miraculous number about Lou, who intros and outros the song in maniacal fits of self-proclamations and percentages while referring to himself as the guiding light and a bitch on ball bearings, brother, a motherf***er on wheels. Im just glad I found this one early on in my writing, so as to provide the perfect soundtrack for such an important list. Danny Djeljosevic is a writer based in San Diego, CA. WebRightfully so, because the legendary Captain Lou Albano will always be one of a kind. No BS. By 1986, Lou Albano was gone from WWE, save for one-off appearances here and there. Pat Patterson was the first-ever WWE Intercontinental Champion, and he went on to enjoy a WWE Hall of Fame career before taking a role backstage as one of the top producers. In 1971, The Blackjacks joined forces under Bobby Heenan's management, but they reached their biggest success when they arrived in WWE, and Captain Lou Albano managed the pair. Even though the Captain Lou Albano death story occurred years ago, he is still fondly remembered to this day by wrestling fans. Axel wanted a more rounded number for his record and so invited his piercer friend to add nine more to reach 280. In 1986, Captain Lou Albano left the World Wrestling Federation to pursue other interests, but he still occasionally made appearances at ringside. Muraco went on to feud with former Albano wrestler Superfly Jimmy Snuka. A second Intercontinental Champion that Captain Lou Albano managed was Greg "The Hammer" Valentine. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65uNCLBTje0&fe. This comic was so funny, it made me spit water all over. WebWrestler, personality Captain Lou Albano dies at 76 Flashback: Albano and Lauper Engage in Father-Daughter Smackdown in Pipers Pit 6-year-old boy floats away in homemade Bob Hoskins is a Saint! Hed put [safety] pins on his face and on his nose the rubber bands. Capt. While Verdu couldnt get the job done, one of Albanos clients finally did in 1971 - Ivan Koloff, who shocked fans in Madison Square Garden when he ended Sammartinos seven-and-a-half-year run with the belt. In 1983, Albano was the manager for Don "Magnificent" Muraco when the strongman beat Pedro Morales for the WWE Intercontinental Championship. photo: wwe.com. Bruno Sammartino mentioned to Vince McMahon that Albano wasn't a great wrestler, but he was a great talker and could become a top manager. you take that back! The Grand Wizard would manage up-and-comers, guys who could talk and finish the promo after he set it up. 44,624 likes. I will be over here too, doing the Mario as mournfully as possible. As the day progressed and Lou would pop in and out of the interview room, Lou would have a habit of somehow losing those sweatpants in front of somebody in the middle of an interview There were so many times when those sweatpants were down around his ankles and he was basically (naked)., Apter on Albanos career aspirations and becoming Bruno Sammartinos rival: He wanted to be like Bruno (early in his career) but he wound up being one of Brunos most hated rivals Albano, the (Grand) Wizard, and Fred Blassie were constantly feeding guys to try and beat either Bruno or Pedro Morales back then, and Albano was involved in one of the greatest moments in pro wrestling history the night that Ivan Koloff beat Bruno Sammartino in front of 21,000 fans at Madison Square Garden. We just watched the show, ate our Ninja Turtles cereal and occasionally did The Mario for hours on end. The have the live-action, the cartoon, the commercial for the next Legend of Zelda episode in some, and of course, the credits featuring Lou doing the Mario. He not only participated in the track and field events, but was also picked as the captain of his schools football team. As Captain Lou Albano, his brash, bombastic promos earned him much recognition as well as helped his clients leave memorable impressions on the spectators. Instead, he initially pursued a career in boxing, but his size wasnt right for a successful boxer. WebCaptain Lou Albano was one of the dirtiest managers in WWE for a decade, but then something changed. He soon moved with his parents back to the U.S. A buccaneer before he changed his gimmick, Albano wasn't a great wrestler, but had a couple of high visibility runs in the northeast. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. Fanscontinue to watch Captain Lou in the movies that he appeared in during his lifetime, includingBody Slam and in reruns of Miami Vice and The Super Mario Bros Super Show. Albano made his screen debut in 1952 in CBS The Jackie Gleason Show. Very well played, sir. He rattles off his list of accolades, including 14 tag team champions, two intercontinental, and one world wide federation champion. Captain Lou managed no less than four singles champs, and 15 different duos to WWE World Tag Team belts. Lou pretty much wore his Hawaiian shirt and sweatpants; that was Lous attire 99% of the time. Lou Albano manageda world heavyweight champion. if they released those DVD's minus the nonsensical live action scenes its a fucking travesty. He also appeared as Lauper's fictional father in the "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" video. Captain Lou Albano dead at 76. photo: wwe.com. Albanomanaged numerous top name competitors. His health again took a sharp decline in 2009. He is also remembered for his appearances in Cyndi Laupers music videos, particularly Girls Just Want to Have Fun. After the entire Rock N Wrestling Connection launched, Albano It was Bruno Sammartino who suggested to McMahon that Albano, a mediocre wrestler at best, would better serve the promotion if he was attached to a wrestler as a spokesperson. Sadly, his ability to continue his career in entertainment wasgreatly limited during the 1990s. Awesome pins and charms to express your authentic self! The Wise Men of the East (sometimes billed as the "Triumvirate of Terror") managed the heels in Vince McMahon Sr.'s WWF. Today, people dont just remember Captain Lou Albano for his work in professional wrestling. Captain Lou Albano was one of WWE's most iconic managers of the '70s & '80s. Captain Lou Albano guests on a 1984 segment of Pipers Pit. WebBorn Louis Vincent Albano on July 29, 1933 in Rome, Italy, Lou Albano began his professional wrestling career in 1953 and first rose to national prominence in the late He played her screen father in the music videos for Girls Just Want to Have Fun, The Goonies 'R' Good Enough and She Bop. You know though, those cartoons were all released on DVD a while back. Louis Vincent "Lou" Albano was born on July 29, 1933, in Rome, Lazio, in what was then the Kingdom of Italy. He studied at Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, New York where he first demonstrated his athletic abilities. The match established professional wrestling as a mainstream entertainment mode, and heralded its 1980s boom. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. Albanos final film Hot Ice, No-one Is Safe was posthumously released in 2010. Apter on the story behind the rubber band rings on Albanos face: He was very strong into the fight against multiple sclerosis with Cyndi Lauper. You must be logged in to post a comment Albano was the manager when Superfly dived from the top of the cage onto Muraco in one of WWE's most celebrated moments. For anybody that knew and spent any time around Lou, you generally had to do his interviews early before he was able to get time with whatever flask he had in his bag. Sadly, this was not the best moment, as they lost their titles to the foreign heel tag team of Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff. However, there was , Weve profiled 40 wrestlers who sadly, didnt make it to see age 40, including many enhancement talent names of the , Heart Attack / Heart Failure / Heart Disease, Comprehensive Deceased Wrestlers List (text-only), Comprehensive Deceased Managers List (text-only), 8 Things You May Not Have Known About Rick Rude. RELATED: 13 Best Wrestlers Managed By Lou Albano, Ranked. He wrangled a multi-year storyline that found Captain Lou doing cameos in two more videos Time After Time and She Bop. It also found Lauper working in Captain Lous medium. He turned increasingly towards the bad guy side, particularly as a member of the tag-team duo The Sicilians, and on his own, even against the great Bruno Sammartino. which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, After the entire Rock N Wrestling Connection launched, Albano turned into a babyface. Captain Lou portrayed what seemed to be a pre or post mushroom kingdom Mario that lived and worked as a plumber in a big city (presumably New York) with his brother-in-overalls Luigi. Playlists containing Why Did Captain Lou Albano Have The Rubberbands In His Face? Lou Albano married Geraldine, his high school sweetheart, in 1953. Google image search Captain Lou Albano. Drives a giant gun that launches chezburgers at a frightening velocity, Ah.. the Mario, an often misunderstood and overlooked dance. Balloon boy could also be a reference to someone who loves or smuggles heroin. With a name like Falcon he belongs in the sky. He said that he would wear these WebA unique showman, with an elongated beard, rubber band, facial piercings, and loud outfits, Albano was the forefather of the 1980s Rock 'n' Wrestling Connection. In some fun trivia, Albano came out of retirement in 1994 to manage The Headshrinkers to the tag titles, which was Afa's son Samu and nephew Fatu (Rikishi). He was left on hospice care. WebLouis Vincent Albano (July 29, 1933 October 14, 2009) was an Italian-American pro wrestler and dance choreographer best known for his appearances as "Captain" Lou WebPaul E Dangerously and Captain Lou Albano face to face. Wolff orchestrated a legit wrestling feud, which could only be settled by Laupers charge, Wendi Richter, wrestling Captain Lous girl, the Fabulous Moolah. Login. Lou Albanos first success in wrestling would be as a tag team specialist, as he teamed with Tony Altomare as a duo called The Sicilians throughout the 1960s. One of his first clients was Crusher Verdu, a wrestler from Spain whose English abilities werent all that great. This was the tag team of Johnny Valiant and Jerry Valiant. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 1996. i figured Id get a jump on all the "balloon boy" comics that will be out on Monday. Over the course of the decade, he would lose more than 150 pounds and by 2000 he did seem to have considerably improved his health. He was also featured in the video for Time After Time. I dont know if you were a great man, or even a good one but you entertained me as a child and for that I am grateful. Captain Lou Albano was known for his wrestling moves and outsized personality. Lou and Wolff both deserve a huge amount of credit for the popularity of professional wrestling, but what did they get for their effort? Albano managed Verdu against Sammartino in several challenges for the WWE Championship in the 1970s, and the result was a financial success. Is your network connection unstable or browser outdated? He trained with Soldier Barry, one of his childhood idols, and they started doing house shows together in New York in 1952. All Rights Reserved. Sometimes we would be doing an interview and he would be trying to tell someone a story and you could hear him laughing and wed have to do it over again., Ken Resnick on how Lou Albano would drink and drop his pants during TV tapings: (He was) gregarious, welcoming, fun loving Lou was a great storyteller; (he) was great on the interviews (with) whoever he was managing. Shortly after Albanos baptism, which was performed in the Vatican itself, Albanos parents returned to the US and began living in the Mount Vernon area. Broadcast live on MTV, it gave WWE the opportunity to access the coveted young adult demographic. Albano, ever the heel, decided to feud with Lauper on WWE television by claiming ownership over the song on Pipers Pit. They are essentially the same dude except for the porn. He has worked as a journalist for over 20 years, first in the world of print journalism before moving to online media as the world changed. In WWE, a storyline began to build around the two, with Albano claiming that he had written all of Laupers songs and she owed all her success to him. He suffered a heart attack in 2005, but made recovery. It didn't last long, and Patterson rejected the new manager, turning babyface due to Albano's notoriety. As Hulk Hogan and WWE came into pop culture prominence in 1980s, so did Nintendo's smash hit video game Super Mario Bros. Much like WWE with Hulk Hogans Rock n Wrestling, Mario entered the animated world with the cartoon The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! His parents Eleanor and Carmen were of Italian ancestry but were born and raised in America. Davey Boy went on to even bigger success in later years. Coincidentally, Captain Lou Albano got over as a heel manager by opposing the man who recommended him for the position. Please help us serve you better, fill out our survey. During this period, Gilzenberg introduced him to Vince McMahon Sr, who hired him for his Capitol Wrestling Corporation in Washington, DC, a predecessor of WWF/E. However, Albano would once again leave WWE early in the following year, retiring from being a full-time participant in the wrestling business. More tracks like Why Did Captain Lou Albano Have The Rubberbands In His Face. He died at home in Westchester County, New York. Albano spent the rest of his professional career with the promotion and while as a solo wrestler he was quite unimpressive, his work with tag-team partner Tony Altomare did garner him some success, including the WWF Tag Team Championship in 1967. I was just about to comment on that myself . In 1994, however, Albano made an official return to the company, managing the Headshrinkers tag team in order to help solidify their face turn. TVTropes is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/lou-albano-12451.php. Trying to figure out what to do next, Albano harboured boxing aspirations for a short while. On this page, you find the full wrestling profile of Lou Albano, with his Career History, real name, age, height and weight, the Promotions he worked for, all the Face/Heel turns, the Championship Titles he won, his Finishers, Theme Songs, Tag Teams and Stables, his appearance changes through the years, and more. Copyright 2010-2023 TheSmackDownHotel.com. Many professional wrestlers made tributes to the former wrestling manager, and many major publications and websites, including MTV.com and New York Times, ran his obituary. He managed a great many teams to the. WebApter on why Albano wore the rubber band earrings on his face: He was very strong into the fight against multiple sclerosis with Cyndi Lauper. You actually have to pull the face-rubber bands while theyre on your face to properly (and respectfully) launch them. I wonder if Captain Lou's segments are in there with them? On the latest edition of VOC Nations Wrestling With History, Bill Apter and Ken Resnick discussed the career of WWE Hall of Famer Captain Lou Albano, the story behind Captain Lou Albanos face rings, some Albano drinking stories, and more. His wrestling moniker, Captain Lou Albano, was inspired by his time as the leader of his school football team. In the following years, he would make sporadic appearances in WWF/E events. You need to enable JavaScript to use SoundCloud. It was the only time that Capt. Recognizable in garish outfits and rubber bands affixed to his face, Albano managed countless legends including Andre The Giant, Pat Patterson, and The British Bulldogs. While Captain Lou Albano was able to lose weight and get on the path to a healthier life, he wasnt able to completely avoid health problems. Its not like Captain Lou has constantly been on my mind for the last 25 years, but his recent passing unlocked a flood of memories of being 8 years old and him being EVERYWHERE. http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Wrestling/CaptainLouAlbano. (vitag.Init = window.vitag.Init || []).push(function(){viAPItag.display("vi_937032466")}). Flashback: Albano and Lauper Engage in Father-Daughter Smackdown in Pipers Pit, 6-year-old boy floats away in homemade helium balloon, Balloon Boy Gets Fresh Prince Treatment on Facebook, Balloon Boy: We did this for the show., http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65uNCLBTje0&fe. He was WebOne of the most famous angles in WWWF history. He was a pro himself, who broke into the biz in 1953 as pretty boy, baby face, Leaping Lou Albano. WebReal Name Louis Vincent Albano Ring Names. I actually liked the Super Mario Brothers movie. 1987 The Vintage Wrestling He had a heart attack in May 2005. He is also the man who created the Royal Rumble match, one of WWE's most successful gimmick matches.

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