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RIP Mean Gene Okerlund


The Reverend

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Very sad news circulating on the internet, including WWE.COM that Mean Gene has passed away. So sad - such a huge part of my wrestling childhood gone. He was arguably the greatest interviewer ever and could make or break someone just by his facial expressions. His amping up the hype for matches was out of this world. It was old Mean Gene that actually made you believe it was real! 

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Gutted.

What a voice he had. Like many here, I'd consider Mean Gene as well as Heenan,Ventura, Monsoon and a few others as the voice of my childhood.

He held a certain gravitas and was vital in helping to legitimise the product and bring in a sporting element to the overall presentation.

With Heenan, when they jumped to WCW, they were as instrumental as any wrestler in getting the company over as a big deal. Even the shite they had him doing with Mancow in 1999/2000 couldn't reduce his stock and was a welcome face every time he showed up in WWE over more recent years.

Might have to watch a few PPV event centres now.  "Well you know something Mean Gene..."

 

 

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Don't know about "gutted", etc as he was 76 and pretty much inactive. A sad loss though. One of the truly great voices of pro-wrestling and did a fantastic job as the interview guy getting stories across while staying, sort of, impartial.

A great racketeer too. That hotline was a swizz. I've always wished a load of hotline recording would become available. I'd love to hear it.

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Sad to hear this. It shouldn’t be a massive shock given his age but he was one of those guys who seemed almost timeless. He looked the same my whole life. With Heenan the last few years, sadly you always expected the bad news. With Gene, he always looked and sounded sharp even in later years. 

Loved this story Nash told on one of his shoots about drinking with Gene;

 

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