Love, Greg & Barbie Barnett, Youve been my hero my entire career. Over his career, LeBell was bludgeoned, shot, run over, karate-chopped (he became friends with Bruce Lee) and drowned for $2,000 per week earning more than most lawyers during those days. The fun motorcycle rides we used to go on out at the Pig Farm and at your mountain house. LeBell turned 80-years-old on October 9, 2012. But following an overtime loss to the Florida Panthers on Sunday night, the Bruins will be watching the rest of the playoffs from homelike so many previous Presidents Trophy winners. According to a 2014 interview in Black Belt, LeBell had no idea the fight would be as significant as later developments in the sport of MMA have made it. I have grown up idolizing many of the SU members over the yearsGenes massive career and list of credits is insane. People called him the Toughest Man Alive. He taught me how to fight, taught me how to ride. All my love and respect Matt Taylor, Aloha Uncle Gene, Mahalo for sharing your secret Hawaiian Hug mahalo for all your knowledge & advice that youve given. (Brian To/FilmMagic) ST, LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. WebL egendary stunt worker and mixed martial artist Gene LeBell died on August 9. This is very much deserved. After his mother remarried, LeBell was raised near L.A.s old Olympic Auditorium. Anil Rai, Congratulations Mr. I have ridden on the back of his bike for one of his marathon wheelies.Pine Mtn Club so much fun. Watch out! All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! Can Phoenix generate enough easy offense to keep up with Denver? Ivan Gene LeBell was born on Oct. 9, 1932, in Los Angeles. His mother, Aileen (Goldstein) LeBell, promoted boxing and wrestling matches at the Olympic Auditorium in downtown Los Angeles; his father, Maurice, was an osteopath and diet doctor who died after being paralyzed in a swimming accident in 1941. Prison Camps for Grannies: Breaking Down Episode 6 of Succession. This file is auto-generated */!function(c,l){"use strict";var e=!1,o=!1;if(l.querySelector)if(c.addEventListener)e=!0;if(c.wp=c.wp||{},c.wp.receiveEmbedMessage);else if(c.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if(!t);else if(! (James C. Udel, Variety, 2018), The remarkable Judo Gene LeBell was still teaching grappling and doing stunts well into his 80s. Bob Debbie Hennessey, Congrats Gene. I thought I was the only one. Seems like yesterday, lifes crazy like that, huh? Proud to be your friend! The pictures above are from the TV show Fall Guy and I told Gene I didnt want to hit him on the bike and he said I dont want you to hit me eitheryou may hurt yourself. Congratulations Gene, you earned this award and no one in this world is taking it away from the Toughest man Alive. Jack Gill. He is loved by so many and admired by countless others. Im proud to be a friend of yours for over 50 years. LeBell transitioned from amateur to AAU national judo champ in 1954 and catapulted to national attention but as a pro wrestler, playing Hank the Hangman; he made a living by losing every match. Little Mo and Lou, Uncle Gene has been a trusted mentor, ardent Sensei and dear friend to me and countless other stunt people throughout the years. As described in Jonathan Snowdens Shooters, the match was a gripping affair, with the gripping part complicated by the fact that instead of wearing a loose judo gi, as he had promised, Savage instead showed up in a tighter-fitting karate gi intended to make it difficult for LeBell to grab and hold him (below-the-waist takedowns of the sort that LeBell believed to be most effective against boxers were barred). Do you want to do freestyle? What are you doing? LeBell remembers the helmer lamenting. LeBell famously wore a pink gi and would invite anybody to take a turn on the mat with him if they had anything to say about it. The newspaper the following day had a story saying the American radish wins. Mickey Gilbert, Ill never forget working with Gene in Minneapolis for David Ellis. According to this telling, when the then 58-year-old LeBell heard about the claim, he gave Seagal the opportunity to test it. He had a big heart. When I first came to town in 1987, I remember trying to get my hands on one those Stunt Rate breakdown cards you used to make. He is there to help you any time any where. You too? You always tried to get me to go dirt biking with you but I never gave in. Dear Abby: I have a great life, so why have I fallen into this shameful behavior? You have given so much to our community and film business! It was in her promotion that a Texas-born grappler named George Wagner first donned an elaborate robe, dyed his hair blond, walked to the ring with a valet, and became the 1950s television sensation Gorgeous George, the toast of the coast.. Ill toast you from Texas! whose residence contained hours of phone recordings, was acquitted on a murder charge but convicted and sentenced to probation as an accessory, WWE Draft Night 1 Recap, Plus Trinity Fatu Debuts in Impact Wrestling, The Cheap Heat Friday Something: Career Advice for Roman Reigns, the NBA Version of CM Punk, and the Global Superstar Debate, Diggin in the Crates: Litas Next Chapter Takes Her Through WWEs Legendary Past. Midge and Gene were married twice. of LeBell's, used to bring martial arts stars Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee to train in karate and judo with LeBell. Shes gonna annihilate you. You are an inspiration!! 69.163.152.136 LeBell, preferring to let others do the talking for him, told MMA journalist Ariel Helwani in 2012 that if thirty people are watching, let them talk about it.. Click to reveal It was the long-running Lassie series that first tested LeBells mettle. His mother, Aileen Eaton, was a promoter at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles, where she promoted boxing and wrestling events and raised Gene and his brother Mike all by her lonesome. (James C. Udel, Variety, 2018), A fight scene on the sitcom The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet earned LeBell his SAG card. Congratulations brother Gene!!! It was a tough night, but Judo Gene had defended the honor of his sport against the boxer, Jonathan Snowden wrote in Shooters: The Toughest Men in Professional Wrestling (2012). James Allcott is joined by Nubaid Haroon, host of No Ratings Pod, to discuss the past, present, and future of the Ballon dOr. You deserve every bit of it! Mr. LeBell also worked over the years with many wrestlers, including Rowdy Roddy Piper and Ronda Rousey, and trained with Chuck Norris, the martial artist and actor. Sandra Brumfield Avo, Gene is as it has been said amongst the fight world..is the Toughest Man. So they said I could make good money in professional wrestling, which I did. Love ya, Bax Craig Baxley, Sr. Gene LeBell: Bruce Lee in the UFC, Ronda Rousey, if anybody can beat her, Judo in MMA, Jimmy Kimmel, Congratulations Gene..its about time!!! You were a better reference than SAG! The simplest version of the tale has Seagal boasting that he couldnt be choked out, and LeBell, then in his 50s and significantly smaller than the 6-foot-4 actor, going behind the star, then taking him to the ground and choking him out. Shes gonna mutilate you. (Gene LeBell Biography), Born in Los Angeles in 1932, LeBell was shipped off to a military school at age 6 by his full-time working mom after his father died in a surfing accident. The Hollywood stuntman Gene LeBell in the 1950s, when he was a professional wrestler. Will the Ravens Be Contending for the AFC Crown? LeBells students included AnnMaria De Mars, the first American to ever win a gold medal at the World Judo Championships in 1984, and De Mars daughter, Ronda Rousey, who became the first American woman to earn an Olympic medal in judo by winning bronze at the 2008 Beijing Olympics before embarking on her illustrious MMA career. Seventeen years before the UFC debuted, though, LeBell refereed arguably the most notable mixed martial arts clash of the era, serving as the third man in the ring for the Muhammad AliAntonio Inoki superfight in Tokyo. Ian Avabe, You Rock a Master of all well deserved Si PJ Hooper Kelly, Congratulations Gene. Mr. LeBell died on Aug. 9 at his home in the Sherman Oaks neighborhood of Los Angeles. Although Mr. Calhoun said that in any situation, with Bruce Lee or anyone else, Gene was the toughest guy in the room, Mr. LeBell offered a pragmatic view of his reputation. LeBells top student, Gokor Chivichyan, started training with him at the age of 16 and now runs the Hayastan MMA Academy in North Hollywood. If I have seen further it has been by standing on the shoulders of giants like you!! An incredible life being rightfully recognized. Long overdue! Logan Holladay, Congratulations to Uncle Gene for a lifetime of stunts and terrorizing the stunt people; either riding dirt bikes or putting them to sleep. WebGene LeBell was born on October 9, 1932 and is 90 years old now. Even more appreciated by those of us choked out by you !!! Gene LeBell - Age, Bio, Faces and she was the only major female fight promoter in the United States, who was said to be terrorizing the stuntman for a particular scene, background in the Japanese martial art of aikido. Craig Hosking, Congratulations Gene you are a legend! (Hans Gutknecht/LA Daily News), Gene LeBell teaches grappling at Hayastan MMA Academy. Youve not only accomplished a great name in our industry but many,many brothers and sister stunt people that admire and love you very much. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. Big hug and a kiss! Seagal, a towering man who had a background in the Japanese martial art of aikido, has long battled with stunt choreographers and fight trainers on setin Shooters, Jonathan Snowden quotes Pride announcer Stephen Quadross story of engaging in an uncomfortable series of wristlock exchanges with Seagal on the set of the 2001 film Exit Woundsbut by most accounts (and there are many), his encounter with LeBell went poorly. LeBell is survived by his wife, children, and grandchildren. Despite this long legacy in the worlds of pro wrestling and MMA, LeBell, always chasing the smart money, never hung around too long on the mat in either sport: Theres only 1 in 1,000 MMA fighters who make money, he told Black Belt magazine in 2014. Your IP: "Is he still At 20, he was walloped by John Wayne in Big Jim McLain (1952). Rick Seaman, Well Geno, they said it couldnt be done but youve done it again. (Gene LeBell Biography). LeBell also helped Rousey secure her nickname Rowdy from his former black belt student Rowdy Roddy Piper. You truly are a one-off, a living legend. He started learning judo at 12 (although his mother told The Los Angeles Times in 1955 that he had been inspired a little later, in high school, when he was beaten up by a smaller teenager who knew judo), and by 1954 his proficiency had grown to an elite level: He won both the heavyweight class and the overall title in that years national American Amateur Union championships. Chuck & Charlotte Waters, Special man and amazing human being, so deserving of this recognition. The remarkable Judo Gene LeBell was still teaching grappling Tim Gilbert, This tribute is well deserved. Proud to know you, much love Brent Fletcher, Very proud to have been your student for so many years There is no one prettier than you Sensai You are truly a legend and I can not think of anyone more deserving for this award!!! Stoked I get to make it this year. Present-day UFC fans probably best remember him from his time spent wielding a stopwatch in the corner of his protege, Ronda Rousey, while wrestling fans might know his name from when Daniel Bryan used to call his finisher the LeBell Lock. But despite that, the MMA pioneer isnt a household name, which is a shame, because if youre a fan of combat sports, he absolutely should be. Its great having such a role model to look up to. Well done sir! Congratulations Uncle Gene! However, he had one last sports achievement on the horizon: an actual mixed martial arts boutsaid by some to be the first of its kind, though there were boxer-versus-wrestler antecedents in prior decadesin 1963 against middleweight boxing gatekeeper Milo Savage, whose lengthy career was winding down. In any case, LeBell was back to work in the movies almost immediately, adding to the movie residuals and Screen Actors Guildbacked retirement that sustained him in his later years. For 89 years, few did that work better than Judo Gene LeBell. Gene would choke me out for saying wrestling was a performative art, Bob Calhoun, who collaborated with Mr. LeBell on his autobiography, The Godfather of Grappling (2005), said in a phone interview. He was 89. At the time, Bruce Lee worked as Kato who was a main character in the series and LeBell was a stunt and fight coordinator. He had earlier been an American Amateur Union judo champion. Hamstrung by rules barring takedowns, strikes on the ground, and submission holds, the fight devolved into a tedious 15-round affair in which Ali taunted and showboated while Inoki crab-walked along the mat, kicking Alis legs. On the set of The Green Hornet, LeBell struck up a friendship with martial arts icon Bruce Lee, and they began cross-training, with LeBell showing Lee his pain-inflicting holds, locks and throws, and Lee demonstrating his lightning-quick kicks and strikes. Justin Timberlake shouldn't get credit for 'It's Gonna Be May' meme. Thank you for all you have done for those of us blessed to learn from you. He was highly respected by many martial artists all over the world, and has been considered a ground breaker in many aspects of the art of grappling. Wear this Award well my friend. LeBell was a pioneer in the sport of MMA before there was MMA. The stunt coordinator asked Mr. LeBell a former national judo champion and professional wrestler to teach Mr. Lee a lesson, perhaps with a headlock. Freddie Blassie. The more you get hit in the nose, the richer you are. WebGene LeBell Dead: Stuntman and Godfather of Grappling Dies at 89 hollywoodreporter 399 24 24 comments Best Add a Comment BeazyDoesIt 4 mo. Gene LeBell remained a towering figure in the history and expansion of mixed martial arts and sports entertainment. Sugar Ray Robinson. I tried to get your son some work but hes always at the beach. GENE LEBELL OBITUARY Gene LeBell was a legendary stuntman and martial artist known for pioneering mixed martial arts who trained Bruce Lee. In his book Shooters: The Toughest Men in Professional Wrestling, long-time MMA journalist Jonathan Snowden described LeBell as a horrible professional wrestler from a technical perspective, a tough guy who looked soft in the ring and remained stuck on the undercard of his brother Mike LeBells wrestling events, wrestling under his own name or beneath a mask as the Hangman. He did claim to have won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in 1960 from Pat OConnor in a match in Dory Funks Amarillo, Texas, territory, repeating this assertion to both Black Belt and Sports Illustrated, but the victory was almost certainly part of a wrestling story line, with LeBell accidentally striking the Texas wrestling commissioner with the belt and forcing its immediate return to OConnor. Judo Gene LeBell passes away at 89 years old https://t.co/v6pieyfChp via @@br26 Rest In Peace Master, TitusWelliver (@welliver_titus) August 10, 2022, With the heaviest of hearts I say goodbye to one of my favorite men in the world. Find out who should. His roles went from such television series as Mission: Impossible, I Spy, The Wild Wild West, Baretta, Married with Children, and Baywatch to feature films Raging Bull, Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins and Ed Wood. One of his last appearances was in Men In Black II in 2002. LeBells Rolodex is not just one hall of fame roster, but multiple, as hes played integral roles in the worlds of boxing, judo, wrestling, and Hollywood stunt-work. LeBell, known as the Godfather of Nick Plantico, Congrats Gene!! Its about time. The only thing I have against MMA is they dont have a retirement plan. He also trained with wrestlers Lou Thesz, and Karl Gotch while growing up. It was the long-running Lassie series that first tested LeBells mettle. Born Ivan Gene LeBell on Oct. 9, 1932, in Los Angeles, LeBell grew up at the famed Olympic Auditorium, where his mother, Aileen Eaton, was a boxing and wrestling promoter from 1942 to 1980. Outside of his film and television work, in 1963 he took part in a preview of todays mixed martial arts fights when he faced a middleweight boxer, Milo Savage, and defeated him in the fourth round with a choke hold that rendered Savage unconscious. His mother later married Cal Eaton, with whom she promoted fights.
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