Raymond Louis Heenan (November 1, 1944 - September 17, 2017), better known as Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, was an American professional wrestling manager, color commentator, and wrestler. Heenan, famously nicknamed “The Brain,” was frequently described as the greatest professional wrestling manager of all time.
He was known for his skill in elevating villainous on-screen talent by drawing negative reactions for himself and his wrestlers from the crowd. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2004. Among other honors, he has been inducted into the Professional Wrestling, WWE, and Wrestling Observer halls of fame.
Bobby Heenan at the Blizzard Brawl event in 2009. Image: Wikipedia
Early Life and Career Beginnings
Heenan was born in Chicago, Illinois, on November 1, 1944. His father Robert Heenan was a railroad worker, and his mother Mildred Bernadette Kambrz was a hotel manager. Heenan dropped out of school in the eighth grade to support his mother and grandmother. He grew up a fan of pro wrestling and baseball.
In 1965, Heenan became a regular in William Afflis' (known by his in-ring persona Dick the Bruiser) Indianapolis-based WWA promotion under the moniker "Pretty Boy" Bobby Heenan. In 1966, he wrestled his first match against Calvin "Prince" Pullins. Heenan said he was never trained as a wrestler and it came naturally.
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He was booked - both as a manager and wrestler - after the promoters saw how well he handled the physical aspects of his managerial duties. During his time in WWA, he managed Angelo Poffo and Chris Markoff, the Assassins (Guy Mitchell and Joe Tomasso), The Valiant Brothers and The Blackjacks. In particular, Heenan was credited with making Blackjack Lanza one of the top wrestling villains in the country.
American Wrestling Association (AWA)
This impressed promoter Sam Muchnick, who typically hated wrestling managers, and Heenan is believed to be the only heel manager to work in Muchnick's St. Louis Wrestling Club. He also occasionally wrestled with a storyline "brother" Guy Heenan, portrayed by Guy Mitchell, from the Assassins. In 1974, he left the WWA.
After leaving WWA, Heenan announced he was now to be known as "The Brain" at his AWA debut in 1969. On January 25, 1975, an angry fan fired a gun at Heenan in Chicago's International Amphitheatre after Heenan interfered in one of Bockwinkel's matches. Heenan was unharmed, but five people sitting ringside were injured, one of them critically.
Later in 1975, Bockwinkel captured his first of several AWA World Heavyweight Championships, ending the seven-year reign of perennial champion and AWA promoter Verne Gagne. In early 1979, Heenan left the AWA (suspended one year, in storyline) to work in Georgia Championship Wrestling (GCW).
During his short tenure in GCW, Heenan managed a stable of wrestlers that included the likes of Killer Karl Kox, Masked Superstar, Ernie Ladd and Blackjack Lanza. Heenan met a young Hulk Hogan while in Georgia and later told AWA promoter Verne Gagne that he should hire him. According to Heenan, he moved his family to Atlanta after being told by GCW promoter Ole Anderson that he could work for the promotion as long as he wanted, only to release him less than a year later.
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World Wrestling Federation (WWF)
In 1984, Heenan left AWA to join the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). While most of the AWA talent left for the WWF during this time without giving proper notice (the AWA required departing talent to work a six-week notice for booking and syndication-based reasons, with most talent claiming that WWF promoter Vince McMahon paid them extra not to work out their notices with the AWA), only Heenan worked out his notice in good faith to the Gagne family.
He was written out of AWA television when Wally Karbo announced on the September 28 broadcast of AWA All-Star Wrestling that Heenan had been suspended indefinitely by AWA President Stanley Blackburn for initiating an attack on The Fabulous Ones by Heenan Family members Nick Bockwinkel and Mr. Saito.
Heenan was signed by the WWF in 1984 with the intention of him managing Jesse Ventura, however Ventura's retirement due to blood clots in his lungs prevented this from happening. Instead, Heenan managed Big John Studd (whom Heenan was best friends with in the AWA) in his feud against André the Giant. Studd challenged André to a US$15,000 bodyslam match at the first WrestleMania, with the stipulation being that André would have to retire had he lost.
The Heenan Family
Heenan reformed the Heenan Family, which over the years in the WWF would include Studd, "Olympic Strong Man" Ken Patera, "Playboy" Buddy Rose, "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff, King Kong Bundy, André the Giant, High Chief Sivi Afi, the Brain Busters (former Four Horsemen members Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard), "Ravishing" Rick Rude, "King" Harley Race, the Islanders (Haku and Tama), Hercules, The Barbarian, Mr. Perfect, The Red Rooster, and The Brooklyn Brawler.
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Heenan and the Heenan Family had a feud with Hulk Hogan in the 1980s, and Heenan managed two WrestleMania challengers to Hogan's title. In 1986, Heenan managed King Kong Bundy in his main event bout at WrestleMania 2. During the André the Giant-Hulk Hogan rivalry preceding WrestleMania III, André sided with Heenan and challenged Hogan at the event.
After being derided by announcers for his first five years in the WWF (mostly by Gorilla Monsoon) for never managing a champion, WrestleMania V was promoted (mostly by Jesse Ventura and later Gorilla Monsoon) as Heenan's quest, and best chance since WrestleMania III to manage a champion. Heenan finally managed his first champion in the WWF when "Ravishing" Rick Rude upset The Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Intercontinental Championship, a match Heenan ensured Rude would win by holding Warrior's leg down so he could not break the pin.
Shortly thereafter, he led the Brain Busters to win the WWF World Tag Team Championship. After the Busters had lost the titles back to Demolition a few months later, he led the Colossal Connection (André and Haku) to win the Tag Team Championship when they defeated Demolition. Demolition would win the titles back at WrestleMania VI.
Immediately after the loss, Heenan began blaming the loss on André the Giant going as far as slapping him. A few months after that, he led Mr. Perfect to the first of two the Intercontinental Championships. Heenan also wrestled sporadically in his WWF run.
In his in-ring debut at Madison Square Garden in November 1984, he cleanly pinned Salvatore Bellomo. Most of the matches he was in were tag team matches. At WrestleMania IV, he teamed with The Islanders to defeat The British Bulldogs and Koko B. Ware. The following year, he was defeated in 30 seconds by former client The Red Rooster at WrestleMania V.
Heenan also wrestled a series of "Weasel Suit matches" against The Ultimate Warrior, who defeated Heenan by forcing him into a weasel costume. His final in ring match came on August 2, 1991, at a house show in Long Island, New York, where he defeated Mr. Perfect.
Gene Okerlund - What Bobby Heenan was Like in Real Life
Heenan retired from managing in 1991 to become a full-time commentator. Nonetheless, Heenan crossed the line to managing sporadically. When the WWF signed Ric Flair, Heenan spent several weeks talking Flair up as "The Real World's Heavyweight Champion", appearing onscreen with Flair's Big Gold Belt.
He continued to act as an adviser to Flair during his WWF run from 1991 to 1993. Though he nominally managed Flair, Heenan's former protégé Mr. Perfect, who temporarily retired due to injury, would regularly accompany Flair to ringside as his "Executive Consultant". At the 1993 Royal Rumble, he introduced "The Narcissist" Lex Luger to the WWF to exact revenge on his former protégé, Mr. Perfect.
Commentary Career
In 1984, WWF owner Vince McMahon took full advantage of his microphone and comedic skills and Heenan became a color commentator in addition to his managing duties. He replaced Jesse Ventura on Prime Time Wrestling and All American Wrestling, aired on the USA Network, teaming up with Gorilla Monsoon. He also replaced Ventura to team up with Monsoon on the syndicated All-Star Wrestling, which was replaced in the fall of 1986 with Wrestling Challenge.
Heenan, calling himself a "broadcast journalist", bashed fan favorites and cheered for their opponents while they cheated or did something under-handed. For instance, Heenan claimed that Marty Jannetty was trying to escape Shawn Michaels' attack on the Barber Shop after Michaels threw him through a glass window.
Heenan, still suffering from the broken neck he received ten years earlier and unable to cope with the long working hours, decided to leave the WWF at the end of 1993. He was given an on-air farewell by Gorilla Monsoon on the December 6, 1993 edition of Monday Night Raw, broadcast from the Westchester County Center in White Plains, New York.
Fed up with Heenan's constant insults, Monsoon threw him and his belongings out of the arena and onto the street. Heenan's original plan was to retire, spend time with his family, and relax, but he was contacted by WCW soon after he left the WWF. He was unsure at first, but accepted their offer once he found out that WCW provided lighter work schedules and health insurance.
World Championship Wrestling (WCW)
On January 27, 1994, Heenan made his debut in World Championship Wrestling (WCW). He was originally brought in to replace Jesse Ventura, his former client, as the color commentator for WCW Saturday Night and eventually took over Ventura's position as the company's lead commentator, replacing him for pay-per-view events and on the syndicated WCW Worldwide and Clash of the Champions events produced for TBS.
On the January 23, 1996 episode of Clash of the Champions XXXII, during a match between Eddie Guerrero and Brian Pillman, Pillman left the ring and grabbed Heenan, who had a history of neck problems, by the collar, causing him to blurt out: "What the fuck are you doing?" live on the air. Five months later that year in June 1996, Heenan made a one-off return to ringside at The Great American Bash as the manager of two of his former clients, Ric Flair and Arn Anderson, in a tag team match against his broadcast colleague Steve McMichael and then Carolina Panthers linebacker Kevin Greene.
At the following pay-per-view, Bash at the Beach, Heenan reacted incredulously when his old rival Hulk Hogan walked out during the main event match between The Outsiders (Kevin Nash and Scott Hall) and Sting, Lex Luger and Randy Savage by shouting "Whose side is he on?" Hogan subsequently turned his back on the fans and joined Hall and Nash to form the New World Order (nWo).
Starting in late January 2000, WCW replaced Heenan on Monday Nitro and pay-per-view events with Mark Madden. Heenan continued to commentate on Thunder along with Mike Tenay, and later Schiavone, until he was replaced by Stevie Ray beginning in July 2000. Heenan was then only seen with Scott Hudson on Worldwide until he was released by WCW in November 2000.
Heenan said he was uninspired in WCW due to the negative work environment and due to conflicts with Schiavone.
Return to WWF/WWE and Independent Circuit
On April 1, 2001, Heenan returned to the WWF and provided commentary to the Gimmick Battle Royal match at WrestleMania X-Seven alongside "Mean" Gene Okerlund. Heenan was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2004 (WWF changed its name to WWE in 2002) by Blackjack Lanza.
Bobby Heenan's Hall of Fame Induction
Heenan made several appearances on the independent circuit. In February 2001, Heenan did color commentary for the WOW Unleashed pay-per-view. Also in 2001, Heenan worked briefly as a "sports agent" in the Xcitement Wrestling Federation with Curt Hennig under his tutelage. In 2004, he feuded with fellow manager Jim Cornette in Ring of Honor.
Heenan made a series of appearances for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) in December 2005, culminating at the Turning Point pay-per-view, where he provided commentary for the Six Man Tag Team Basebrawl match between The Diamonds in the Rough and Chris Sabin, Dale Torborg and Sonjay Dutt. His final appearance for TNA was on the September 7, 2006 episode of Impact!, when he appeared to make a bid to manage "free agent" Robert Roode.
Pro Wrestling Report honored Heenan at the annual Blizzard Brawl event on December 5, 2009, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as he was given their Lifetime Achievement Award. In addition to this, the mayor of Milwaukee, Tom Barrett, declared December 5, 2009, to be "Bobby Heenan Day."
Outside of Wrestling
Despite declining health in his final years, Heenan continued to make appearances at fan conventions. Heenan made appearances as a guest on various television shows, including: Family Feud, Live with Regis and Kathie Lee, The Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon, Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, The Arsenio Hall Show, and The Dennis Miller Show.
His first memoir, Bobby The Brain: Wrestling's Bad Boy Tells All, was released by Triumph Books on September 1, 2002, with a foreword from Hulk Hogan. A second memoir, Chair Shots and Other Obstacles: Winning Life's Wrestling Matches, was released by Sports Publishing on February 1, 2004, and has an introduction by Ric Flair. In 2004, he joined former WCW commentators Tony Schiavone and Larry Zbyszko in providing commentary for the video game Showdown: Legends of Wrestling.
Personal Life and Health Issues
After his Hall of Fame induction, Heenan provided comments for use in WWE documentary releases. Heenan was married to Cynthia Jean Perrett (known as Cindy) from June 21, 1978, until his death.
In January 2002, Heenan announced that he had throat cancer. By 2004, the cancer had gone into remission. The treatments caused a great deal of weight loss, dramatically altering his appearance and voice. In December 2007, Heenan had reconstructive surgery on his jaw, after the first surgery was unsuccessful.
He was placed in a medically induced coma and was slowly brought out. In the second half of January 2008, he had come out of his medically induced coma. For a time, Heenan was unable to speak and had to communicate with his eyes. In December 2009, Heenan was hospitalized after an examination of his rebuilt jaw found an infection that needed to be treated. In the last few years of his life, he suffered a series of falls.
On September 17, 2017, Bobby Heenan died in Largo, Florida. His legacy as one of the greatest minds in professional wrestling remains untarnished.
In conclusion, Bobby Heenan's career was marked by his unparalleled ability to generate heat, his comedic timing, and his contributions to wrestling as a manager and commentator. He was a true icon of the sport.