WWE Hall of Famer Bobby "The Brain" Heenan dies

wwetvsports21
Sep 18, 2017
2 min read

On Sunday night the WWE lost what many consider to be the greatest pro wrestling / sports entertainment manager of all-time in Bobby "The Brain" Heenan. When Vince Mcmahon took over his father's company in 1984 one of the first signed performers he took away from the AWA along with Hulk Hogan was Bobby Heenan.

Affectionately known by fans and peers as "The Weasel" for his sneaky ways in and outside the ring as an iconic heel he was apart of the big national expansion of the then WWF. His managerial skills (which has now become a lost art in the genre) and his outstanding personality that made him become the "Johhny Carson of Sports Entertainment" helped Vince Mcmahon become the czar of sports entertainment headlining events with Andre "The Giant" for monumental events such as the historic WrestleMania 3 that saw his client face off against a prime Hulk Hogan in front of 93,000 plus fans which was the record until last year for WrestleMania attendance. In Toronto, at WrestleMania VI, Bobby Heenan made a classic promo after dumping the legendary Andre The Giant in front of 67,000 plus fans at the Skydome.

Heenan is arguably the greatest manager in wrestling history. His list of clients is a who's who of legends: Andre the Giant, Rick Rude, Harley Race, Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard, Mr. Perfect and Nick Bockwinkel.

Heenan joined WCW in January 1994, but did not really manage anyone as in his WWE hey day. He was on the commentary team as a color commentator giving his wit and analysis of matches and angles of the day. At the 1996 Great American Bash, he "coached" the team of Flair and Anderson in a victory over former NFL players Kevin Greene and Steve McMichael. Otherwise, Heenan remained at the broadcast table.

His most famous moment came when Bobby "The Brain" Heenan called out Hulk Hogan turning on WCW and joining the NWO. Some believe it telegraphed the most historic heel turn ever, but it actually helped to cement the move as Heenan for years always had questioned Hogan's sincerity and actions. For this one time in history he was actually correct. It tied in beautifully the whole turn when Hogan's speech included his run up north in the WWE and siding with the then new generation of Scott Hall and Kevin Nash who were invading the Atlanta based WCW.

The icon of WWE's passing has also touched the sports world as Sports Center did a retrospective piece on "The Brain" that you can see below.