Bobby Heenan Passes Away

[Liam O'Rourke]

4 hours ago, BomberPat said:

My thoughts went straight to his tribute to Gorilla Monsoon on Nitro. They're gonna have to rename the Pearly Gates the Gorilla Position. Class act.

Agreed. Somebody should return the favour tonight and say that heaven just because the Bobby Heenan Show.

I absolutely loved the Brain. What made him so awesome, besides the obvious great comedy, was that he was just such the perfect character. He was clever and witty, but he was bumbling and incompetent. He could cut the fierce money promo, but he was such a great chicken shit at the same time. He dressed like a millionaire and acted the big shit, but he was cheap and cut corners at every turn. He was cutthroat and diabolical, and could come off totally harmless. It was an amazing persona. Just little great things, like when Mr. Perfect is being introduced on Prime Time, he throws his pencil up and catches it, perfectly. Heenan goes to do the same when he's introduced and fucks it up.

It is amazing how much he got away with, a product of the times, but so much that he'd never get away with now. On a 1989 Prime Time, Monsoon is talking with a Gorilla stuffed doll next to him. Heenan off-handedly points to it and calls it the new Koko B. Ware acton figure. He'd ride Koko and Virgil. Another time Koko has the Jacko one-white glove look, and Heenan says, "He only wears that so people can see him hitchhiking at night." One of the ones that always stuck with me along these lines was Bobby, at Summerslam 91 as Virgil is being battered by DiBiase, coming out with, "I hope Virgil didn't do something stupid like put a down payment on a boom box."

One of my favourite Heenan moments is his farewell to the WWF on the episode of Raw after Survivor Series 1993. After being an asshole to Gorilla for all those years, he finally threw him out. Between his insults, cowardly comments, stolen toilet rolls falling out of his bags and screaming "my belongings!" when Monsoon chucks his stuff out, tripping all over the place, it's great. And right at the end, when it's all over, he looks back, tears up and salutes goodbye. As entertaining as he was and as much as you loved seeing him lose, it was still heartbreaking to see him go.

 

[BigJag]

9 hours ago, tiger_rick said:

Very sad news for his family and friends.

I'm not sure there has ever been anyone as brilliant in wrestling. He was an incredible character actor, a phenomenal talker and an excellent bumper who always got his role and excelled at it. That he was genuinely hilarious but never remotely likable is a skill all of its own. Only Ventura ever had similar ability.

My favourite period of his career will always be 1990-92 when his extraordinary chemistry with Monsoon enhanced every match and show he was on and his particularly brilliant commentary on Boss Man matches was the catalyst for the big man running through the Heenan family.

Royal Rumble 1992 is the very obvious highlight. His desperation for Flair to win countered by Monsoon's genuine delight at Flair's impossible situation made for such a great call. I bought it hook, line and sinker. The prestige this show had, the monumental feeling for Flair to win from number 3 - it's almost baffling now to look back and realise this was only the fifth Rumble ever. Wrestlemania 8 is an under rated call too.

I've often wondered what would have become of him if he hadn't gone to WCW. He could have drifted into oblivion but he could also have greatly inflated that new generation period. I'm still surprised he went. I know the money was great and there were plenty of guys jumping who he knew but I just have him pegged as one of Vince's guys. He was a great signing though. Bischoff gets a lot of credit for taking big names from the WWF and stick for taking their mates but not enough credit for signing and using guys like Heenan who gave the company a credible feel - even if Bobby's performances were often as phoned in as everyone else taking Turner's money. Things like the 2 hour Nitro's where Heenan would come out for the second hour and Larry would rightfully fuck off said the stars are here and the action is about to pick up.

It would have been a crime if the last memories of Heenan had been the dying days of WCW so that battle royal at Wrestlemania 17 gives me as much joy today as it did to hear Heenan and Okerlund back then. I had a frog in my throat and a tear in my eye when I heard it. Just a beautiful moment. As much as Vince McMahon is an oddball and genuinely nasty at times, he'll put everything aside to give people he likes a moment like this. Unless they're Randy Savage.

Sadly, Heenan was robbed his greatest asset. That didn't stop him delivering the greatest hall of fame speech ever written but sadly has stopped him working for the last 15 years. He'd have been all over the 24/7 and Network shows. We'd have even got another Bobby Heenan show, I'm sure. 

RIP Brain. Wrestling's greatest voice.

Just had to quote the above post.

[Snitsky's back acne]

A truly sad day.

Greatest manager and colour commentator is wrestling history.

RIP Brain. 

[Really Big Shoe]

Very sad to hear Bobby has passed. To me he is the number one wrestling announcer and manager. He was genuinely hilarious and his comedic timing and facial expressions meant he could transcended pro wrestling if he wanted too. He was sorely missed as a manager as he got great heat but transitioning to the announce table was a plus for fans because he was a phenomenal announcer. I think Bobby and Gorilla worked excellently together and of course his calling of the Royal Rumble 1992 is fondly remembered. His comedic quips about the babyface wrestlers and the great camaraderie with Gorilla Monsoon is what I'll remember about The Brain most. He was a brilliant entertainer and he always made you laugh with his commentary.

This is a fun example of Bobbys comedy and also he had a smart mind for the wrestling business too.

R.I.P. Bobby Heenan

[garynysmon]

Its very hard to top some of the contributions thus far, but definitely one of the iconic characters from my childhood. Even at a young age, when cheering heels was unthinkable, you couldn't help but laugh at him on commentary. His one liners still live on, and you feel he could have made it in any avenue of entertainment he desired.

I think Bobby Heenan was one of the company's biggest losses when he left in late '93. There was something missing on the broadcasts, that big time feel was gone. I'll have to go back and rewatch the 1992 Rumble at some point this week, arguably his greatest piece of commentary. "To be fair to Flair...." and "Look at those!"

 

The biggest accolade I can give the Brain is that he could even make my Dad laugh, who generally hates wrestling and did nothing but deride it while I was watching on TV.

"Eat your heart out toots."

[IANdrewDiceClay]

WWF seemed to get worse without him. 92 and 93 were arguably his peak years as far as PPV broadcasting went. He was on fire at Rumble 92, SummerSlam 92, Rumble 93 and KOTR 93. He was the best thing on WrestleMania IX as well. WWF's quality had hit a wall when all the stars started disappearing, but Heenan was always great on those shows. Remember how well he sold Giant Gonsalez's debut? Gonsalez was just a big hairy bollock in reality, but Heenan seemed to be able to elevate the stupidity that was early 90s WWF.

Shame he and Perfect were broken down physically in 92, because Flair, Heenan and Perfect were so good as a trio, they could have been the WWF's version of the Horsemen. They could have ran the territory until about 96. So many things you could have done with them. And I bet Lex Luger and Bret Hart would have gotten over as much bigger stars in 93/94 opposite Flair, Hennig and the Brain.

[garynysmon]

Sorry for the poor quality and rush job, but this is one of my favourite Bobby Heenan lines, that I'd forgot about until very recently.

 

[Arch Stanton]

Bobby was the best ever. For so many of us on this forum, he was the voice of wrestling when we first got hooked and because of that his memory will never fail to raise a smile.

I don't think the wrestling business has ever seen a quicker wit than Bobby's, or better comic timing and instinct. Just imagine how much better today's product would be if they had someone with even half of Heenan's ability to entertain. 

[air_raid]

Its taken over 24 hours for me to feel up to posting anything. I've felt like I've described Bobby as not having long left for YEARS to my casual fan mate, yet I still wasn't ready for him actually dying. I'll try and put my thoughts into words later for just what a titan of the world of wrestling he was, but for now I'm still in shock. Probably says all you need to know, actually.

[Kaz Hayashi]

15 hours ago, IANdrewDiceClay said:

Shame he and Perfect were broken down physically in 92, because Flair, Heenan and Perfect were so good as a trio, they could have been the WWF's version of the Horsemen. They could have ran the territory until about 96. So many things you could have done with them. And I bet Lex Luger and Bret Hart would have gotten over as much bigger stars in 93/94 opposite Flair, Hennig and the Brain.

Nailed it, it's a travesty we didn't get this. You could have chucked a young HBK in there too. The landscape heading in to 96 could have been so, so different.

[Statto]

Didn't have a lot of time last night, but made time to watch the Hall of Fame speech, tear in the eye. Seemed appropriate.

Sadly, they've edited out the bit about his son-in-law being a midget on the Network. That was one of my favourite gags. I'll have to dig my DVD out.

[Sheffbag]

Goldberg vs Hogan

92 Rumble might have been his best commentary in WWF but in this match he really gets the whole event over from the get go.

will be greatly missed and never replaced

[ColinBollocks]

His HOF speech really is the best, eh?

The voice battered by cancer, but his wit and timing still razor sharp. I think, at the time, I took for granted how he pulled off that 25 minutes or so. Funny and poignant - typical Brain, he knew exactly when to get the laughs and when to get serious.

[Kaz Hayashi]

I've read his 'bad boy tells all' book a couple of times and I advise that you all do if you haven't already. Unlike his other book, this fully focuses on the business. It's a great read.

[jonnybgoode82]

Some of my favourite Heenan quotes:

"Out here on the parquet floor, where Larry Bird used to dribble a basketball, now we're dribbling the 1-2-3 Kid...I love it."

"A friend in need is a pest"

Gorilla: 'Barbarian doesn't like Flair'
Brain: 'Barbarian doesn't like anyone. When I managed him he barely liked me. Why do you think they call him the Barbarian? He wasn't a hairdresser in his spare time.'

When Hogan was coming out one time to Real American

Brain: "That's my second favorite song."
Gorilla: "I'm almost afraid to ask...what's your favorite?"
Brain: "All the rest are tied."

Brain: "Do you know what Koko B. Ware's mom's name is?"
Gorilla: "What?"
Brain: "Tupper"

Gorilla: "Animal's got to keep his eye on Romeo, he's got to keep his eye on Herc, and he's got to keep his eye on you too, Brain. He knows what you're all about."
Brain: "Then he needs Duggan, a guy with four eyes."

Okerlund: "It's very important, first of all, to address the ball."
Brain: "Hello, ball!"