History Wrestling / GorillaMonsoon

* ForeignWrestlingHeel: Billed from UsefulNotes/{{Manchuria}}.

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorilla_Monsoon The Other Wiki]] has a good writeup on Monsoon's life and career.

* YouKeepUsingThatWord: Loved (mis)using the word "literally."

* AwesomeMcCoolname: Say it aloud: '''Gorilla. Monsoon.''' Two things you don't want to stand in the way of.

* BadassInANiceSuit
** BadassGrandpa: Once faced down Wrestling/{{Vader}} as WWF Commissioner, and got the MonsterHeel to back down! Twice!

* EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys: Gorilla and [[Wrestling/{{Raven}} Johnny Polo (Raven)]] called the Wrestling/ShawnMichaels-Marty Jannetty cage match from the August 17, 1993 ''WWF Superstars'' taping that was later included on the 2003 ''Bloodbath: Wrestling's Most Incredible Cage Matches'' [=DVD=]. During the match, Gorilla said, "Gorilla don't like cages," and Polo remarked on how many of Monsoon's brethren live in them.

Robert James "Gino" Marella (1937-1999) was an American amateur and {{professional wrestl|ing}}er, announcer and executive from UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity best known for his work for [[Wrestling/{{WWE}} the WWWF/WWF]] from the 1960s to the 1990s as Gorilla Monsoon. He competed primarily for the then-[=WWF=], but also for the World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico, for the WWA promotion in Los Angeles, for [[http://mapleleafwrestling.4t.com Maple Leaf Wrestling]] in UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}}, for the Wrestling/NationalWrestlingAlliance territories in UsefulNotes/{{Hawaii}}, UsefulNotes/{{Montreal}} and [[UsefulNotes/StLouis St. Louis]], and for the [[http://www.worldchampionshipwrestling.com.au/index.html World Championship Wrestling promotion in Australia]] (not to be confused with Wrestling/{{WCW}}). He was a 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-us-t.html WWWF United States Tag Team Champion]], holding the belt the first time with Killer Kowalski and the second time with "Cowboy" Bill Watts, a former [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/australia/wcw/au-iwa-h.html IWA (Australia) World Heavyweight Champion]], a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/pr/wwc/wwc-na-h.html WWC (Puerto Rico) North American Heavyweight Champion]] and a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ca/s/wwa/wwa-t.html WWA (Los Angeles) World Tag Team Champion]]. After retiring from in-ring competition, he spent many years as a broadcaster on [=WWF=] TV and [=PPV=]s, often with Wrestling/JesseVentura or Wrestling/BobbyHeenan on commentary, and worked in the office and as the [[{{Kayfabe}} President]] of the [=WWF=] after Wrestling/VinceMcMahon had cut ties with the Tunneys, who were the main promoters in the UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}} area for decades. Monsoon was inducted into the Wrestling/WWEHallOfFame in 1994. His last public appearance was as a judge for the "Brawl for All" fight between Butterbean and Bart Gunn at ''[[Wrestling/WrestleMania WrestleMania XV]]'' , which Butterbean won in 35 seconds. He passed away from heart failure on October 6th, 1999.

!!! "These tropes are literally hanging from the rafters here at the Garden":

[[caption-width-right:209: [[Main/OncePerEpisode WILL YOU STOP?"]]]]

Robert James "Gino" Marella (1937-1999) was an American amateur and {{professional wrestl|ing}}er, announcer and executive from UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity best known for his work for [[Wrestling/{{WWE}} the WWWF/WWF]] from the 1960s to the 1990s as Gorilla Monsoon. He competed primarily for the then-[=WWF=], but also for the World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico, for the WWA promotion in Los Angeles, for [[http://mapleleafwrestling.4t.com Maple Leaf Wrestling]] in UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}}, for the Wrestling/NationalWrestlingAlliance territories in UsefulNotes/{{Hawaii}}, UsefulNotes/{{Montreal}} and [[UsefulNotes/StLouis St. Louis]], and for the [[http://www.worldchampionshipwrestling.com.au/index.html World Championship Wrestling promotion in Australia]] (not to be confused with Wrestling/{{WCW}}). He was a 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-us-t.html WWWF United States Tag Team Champion]], holding the belt the first time with Killer Kowalski and the second time with "Cowboy" Bill Watts, a former [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/australia/wcw/au-iwa-h.html IWA (Australia) World Heavyweight Champion]], a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/pr/wwc/wwc-na-h.html WWC (Puerto Rico) North American Heavyweight Champion]] and a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ca/s/wwa/wwa-t.html WWA (Los Angeles) World Tag Team Champion]]. After retiring from in-ring competition, he spent many years as a broadcaster on [=WWF=] TV and [=PPV=]s, often with Wrestling/JesseVentura or Wrestling/BobbyHeenan on commentary, and worked in the office and as the [[{{Kayfabe}} President]] of the [=WWF=] after Wrestling/VinceMcMahon had cut ties with the Tunneys, who were the main promoters in the UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}} area for decades. Monsoon was inducted into the Wrestling/WWEHallOfFame in 1994. His last public appearance was as a judge for the "Brawl for All" fight between Butterbean and Bart Gunn at ''[[Wrestling/WrestleMania WrestleMania XV]]'' , which Butterbean won in 35 seconds.

Robert James "Gino" Marella (1937-1999) was an American amateur and {{professional wrestl|ing}}er, announcer and executive from UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity best known for his work for [[Wrestling/{{WWE}} the WWWF/WWF]] from the 1960s to the 1990s as Gorilla Monsoon. He competed primarily for the then-[=WWF=], but also for the World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico, for the WWA promotion in Los Angeles, for [[http://mapleleafwrestling.4t.com Maple Leaf Wrestling]] in UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}}, for the Wrestling/NationalWrestlingAlliance territories in UsefulNotes/{{Hawaii}}, UsefulNotes/{{Montreal}} and [[UsefulNotes/StLouis St. Louis]], and for the [[http://www.worldchampionshipwrestling.com.au/index.html World Championship Wrestling promotion in Australia]] (not to be confused with Wrestling/{{WCW}}). He was a 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-us-t.html WWWF United States Tag Team Champion]], holding the belt the first time with Killer Kowalski and the second time with "Cowboy" Bill Watts, a former [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/australia/wcw/au-iwa-h.html IWA (Australia) World Heavyweight Champion]], a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/pr/wwc/wwc-na-h.html WWC (Puerto Rico) North American Heavyweight Champion]] and a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ca/s/wwa/wwa-t.html WWA (Los Angeles) World Tag Team Champion]]. After retiring from in-ring competition, he spent many years as a broadcaster on [=WWF=] TV and [=PPV=]s, often with Wrestling/JesseVentura or Wrestling/BobbyHeenan on commentary, and worked in the office and as the [[{{Kayfabe}} President]] of the [=WWF=] after Wrestling/VinceMcMahon had cut ties with the Tunneys, who were the main promoters in the UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}} area for decades. Monsoon was inducted into the [=WWF=] Hall of Fame in 1994. His last public appearance was as a judge for the "Brawl for All" fight between Butterbean and Bart Gunn at ''[[Wrestling/WrestleMania WrestleMania XV]]'' , which Butterbean won in 35 seconds.

[[caption-width-right:209: [[Main/CatchPhrase WILL YOU STOP?"]]]]

[[caption-width-right:209: "WILL YOU STOP?"]]

Robert James "Gino" Marella (1937-1999) was an American amateur and {{professional wrestl|ing}}ler, announcer and executive from UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity best known for his work for [[Wrestling/{{WWE}} the WWWF/WWF]] from the 1960s to the 1990s as Gorilla Monsoon. He competed primarily for the then-[=WWF=], but also for the World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico, for the WWA promotion in Los Angeles, for [[http://mapleleafwrestling.4t.com Maple Leaf Wrestling]] in UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}}, for the Wrestling/NationalWrestlingAlliance territories in UsefulNotes/{{Hawaii}}, UsefulNotes/{{Montreal}} and [[UsefulNotes/StLouis St. Louis]], and for the [[http://www.worldchampionshipwrestling.com.au/index.html World Championship Wrestling promotion in Australia]] (not to be confused with Wrestling/{{WCW}}). He was a 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-us-t.html WWWF United States Tag Team Champion]], holding the belt the first time with Killer Kowalski and the second time with "Cowboy" Bill Watts, a former [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/australia/wcw/au-iwa-h.html IWA (Australia) World Heavyweight Champion]], a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/pr/wwc/wwc-na-h.html WWC (Puerto Rico) North American Heavyweight Champion]] and a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ca/s/wwa/wwa-t.html WWA (Los Angeles) World Tag Team Champion]]. After retiring from in-ring competition, he spent many years as a broadcaster on [=WWF=] TV and [=PPV=]s, often with Wrestling/JesseVentura or Wrestling/BobbyHeenan on commentary, and worked in the office and as the [[{{Kayfabe}} President]] of the [=WWF=] after Wrestling/VinceMcMahon had cut ties with the Tunneys, who were the main promoters in the UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}} area for decades. Monsoon was inducted into the [=WWF=] Hall of Fame in 1994. His last public appearance was as a judge for the "Brawl for All" fight between Butterbean and Bart Gunn at ''[[Wrestling/WrestleMania WrestleMania XV]]'' , which Butterbean won in 35 seconds.

'''Robert James "Gino" Marella''' (1937-1999) was an American amateur and {{professional wrestl|ing}}ler, announcer and executive from UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity best known for his work for [[Wrestling/{{WWE}} the WWWF/WWF]] from the 1960s to the 1990s as '''Gorilla Monsoon'''. He competed primarily for the then-[=WWF=], but also for the World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico, for the WWA promotion in Los Angeles, for [[http://mapleleafwrestling.4t.com Maple Leaf Wrestling]] in UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}}, for the Wrestling/NationalWrestlingAlliance territories in UsefulNotes/{{Hawaii}}, UsefulNotes/{{Montreal}} and [[UsefulNotes/StLouis St. Louis]], and for the [[http://www.worldchampionshipwrestling.com.au/index.html World Championship Wrestling promotion in Australia]] (not to be confused with Wrestling/{{WCW}}). He was a 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-us-t.html WWWF United States Tag Team Champion]], holding the belt the first time with Killer Kowalski and the second time with "Cowboy" Bill Watts, a former [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/australia/wcw/au-iwa-h.html IWA (Australia) World Heavyweight Champion]], a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/pr/wwc/wwc-na-h.html WWC (Puerto Rico) North American Heavyweight Champion]] and a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ca/s/wwa/wwa-t.html WWA (Los Angeles) World Tag Team Champion]]. After retiring from in-ring competition, he spent many years as a broadcaster on [=WWF=] TV and [=PPV=]s, often with Wrestling/JesseVentura or Wrestling/BobbyHeenan on commentary, and worked in the office and as the [[{{Kayfabe}} President]] of the [=WWF=] after Wrestling/VinceMcMahon had cut ties with the Tunneys, who were the main promoters in the UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}} area for decades. Monsoon was inducted into the [=WWF=] Hall of Fame in 1994. His last public appearance was as a judge for the "Brawl for All" fight between Butterbean and Bart Gunn at ''[[Wrestling/WrestleMania WrestleMania XV]]'' , which Butterbean won in 35 seconds.

-->'''Wrestling/BobbyHeenan''': "And you know the Pearly Gates in Heaven? It's now gonna be called 'The Gorilla Position.' Goodbye, my friend."
-->--'''''Wrestling/WCWMondayNitro''''', [[http://www.cagematch.net/?id=93&nr=828 October 11, 1999]]

'''Robert James "Gino" Marella''' (1937-1999) was an American amateur and [[ProfessionalWrestling professional wrestler]], announcer and executive from UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity best known for his work for [[Wrestling/{{WWE}} the WWWF/WWF]] from the 1960s to the 1990s as '''Gorilla Monsoon'''. He competed primarily for the then-[=WWF=], but also for the World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico, for the WWA promotion in Los Angeles, for [[http://mapleleafwrestling.4t.com Maple Leaf Wrestling]] in UsefulNotes/{{Toronto}}, for the Wrestling/NationalWrestlingAlliance territories in UsefulNotes/{{Hawaii}}, UsefulNotes/{{Montreal}} and [[UsefulNotes/StLouis St. Louis]], and for the [[http://www.worldchampionshipwrestling.com.au/index.html World Championship Wrestling promotion in Australia]] (not to be confused with Wrestling/{{WCW}}). He was a 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-us-t.html WWWF United States Tag Team Champion]], holding the belt the first time with Killer Kowalski and the second time with "Cowboy" Bill Watts, a former [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/australia/wcw/au-iwa-h.html IWA (Australia) World Heavyweight Champion]], a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/pr/wwc/wwc-na-h.html WWC (Puerto Rico) North American Heavyweight Champion]] and a former 2x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/ca/s/wwa/wwa-t.html WWA (Los Angeles) World Tag Team Champion]]. After retiring from in-ring competition, he spent many years as a broadcaster on [=WWF=] TV and [=PPV=]s, often with Wrestling/JesseVentura or Wrestling/BobbyHeenan on commentary, and worked in the office and as the [[{{Kayfabe}} President]] of the [=WWF=] after [[Wrestling/VinceMcMahon Vince [=McMahon=]]] had cut ties with the Tunneys, who were the main promoters in [[{{UsefulNotes/Toronto}} the Toronto area for decades.]] Monsoon was inducted into the [=WWF=] Hall of Fame in 1994. His last public appearance was as a judge for the [[Horrible/{{WWE}} "Brawl for All" fight]] between Butterbean and Bart Gunn at ''[[Wrestling/WrestleMania WrestleMania XV]]'' , which Butterbean won in 35 seconds.

* ArchEnemy: (as a heel): Wrestling/BrunoSammartino; (as a face) [[Wrestling/GeorgeSteele George "The Animal" Steele]], [[Wrestling/SuperstarBillyGraham "Superstar" Billy Graham]].

* ActorAllusion: Wrestling/JesseVentura, in his role as commentator, would often criticize referee Joey Marella, who was Gorilla's son.

* CrowningMomentOfAwesome: When Monsoon finally gave [[JerkAss gadfly]] Bobby Heenan his comeuppance (kayfabe). He came down to the commentary table, told Bobby he was fired, physically dragged him through the back and then quite literally threw him out of the arena.

* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: After winning a short match against Baron Mikel [=Scicluna=] in Philadelphia, PA, on June 2, 1976, MuhammadAli, the greatest boxer of all time, who was at ringside and was preparing for what would be a disastrous "match" with [[Wrestling/NewJapanProWrestling Antonio Inoki]], ran into the ring and [[{{Kayfabe}} attacked Monsoon]]. Monsoon picked up Ali, gave him an airplane spin and set him back down on the mat. [[Wrestling/VinceMcMahon Vince [=McMahon=]]] interviewed Monsoon, who said, "This guy doesn't know a wristlock from a wristwatch."

* CrowningMomentOfAwesome: When Monsoon finally gave [[Jerkass gadfly]] Bobby Heenan his comeuppance (kayfabe). He came down to the commentary table, told Bobby he was fired, physically dragged him through the back and then quite literally threw him out of the arena.

* VitriolicBestBuds: with [=Heenan=]. After Gorilla Monsoon died, Heenan, then working for WCW Nitro, would say that the Pearly Gates of Heaven would now be "The Gorilla Position" -- an allusion not only in tribute of Monsoon, but also of the position wrestlers take just before they enter the main arena for a match or segment.

* ArchEnemy: (as a heel): Wrestling/BrunoSammartino; (as a face) [[Wrestling/GeorgeSteele George "The Animal" Steele]], "Superstar" Billy Graham.

* RougeAnglesOfSatin: Loved (mis)using the word "literally."

* WrestlingFamily: As mentioned above under ActorAllusion, his adopted son Joey was a WWE referee. He died on July 4, 1994 in a car crash while driving to Newark, NJ after a ''WWF Superstars'' taping in Ocean City, MD.

** On the February 17 (taped January 23), 1996 ''WWF Superstars'', Vince [=McMahon=] interviewed Wrestling/BretHart about his cage match against [[Wrestling/KevinNash Diesel]] the following night at ''in Your House #6.'' In the interview, Bret said in re Diesel, [[Music/TheSmashingPumpkins "despite all his rage, he is still just a rat in a cage"]], and Gorilla recognized the reference.