Line #21 Wrestling/CaptainLouAlbano


1	[[quoteright:276:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/b9060b61dfd6898cf94e446b3aa1d2c9.JPG]]
2	[[caption-width-right:275:He's Captain Lou,\
3	and he's talkin' to you.]]
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5	->''[[Series/TheSuperMarioBrosSuperShow "Hey, Paisanos!"]]''
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7	Louis Vincent Albano (July 29, 1933 -- October 14, 2009) was an Italian-American [[ProfessionalWrestling pro wrestler]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65uNCLBTje0 dance choreographer]] best known for his appearances as "Captain" Lou Albano.
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9	The Wise Men of the East (sometimes billed as the "Triumvirate of Terror") [[WrestlingManagersAreHeels managed the heels]] in Vince [=McMahon=] Sr.'s [[Wrestling/{{WWE}} WWF]]. Wrestling/TheGrandWizard would manage up-and-comers, guys who could talk and finish the promo after he set it up. [[Wrestling/FreddieBlassie "Classy" Freddie Blassie]] got more heat than the Wizard because he managed turncoats and categorically-evil [[ForeignWrestlingHeel foreigners]], like the [[Wrestling/NikolaiVolkoff Bolsheviks]] and [[Wrestling/TheIronSheik Iron Sheik]]. He would cut most if not all of the promos for them. Albano was arguably the best of the three. He managed a lot of [[WildSamoan Islanders]], so he would cut 100% of every promo. He also managed a lot of tag team champions. Hell, [[Wrestling/TheWildSamoans Afa and Sika]] got Title matches in Madison Square Garden against Wrestling/BobBacklund because Albano was ''that'' over as a heel.
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11	Basically, ''{{Wrestling/WrestleMania}}'' would never have happened were it not for ''Rock n' Wrestling Connection''. We can thank Lou Albano and Music/CyndiLauper hitting it off creatively and bringing media attention WWF's way.
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13	Outside of the wrestling world, he is best-known for playing [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]] (both in live-action and animated segments) on ''Series/TheSuperMarioBrosSuperShow'' in 1989, holding the distinction of being the first actor for Mario to achieve widespread popularity[[note]]Mario had been played in both live-action and voiceover roles by a number of actors in both the US and Japan since 1983, but none of them became as iconic as Captain Lou did[[/note]] and consequently setting a precedent for the role that would remain in place until 1996, when ''VideoGame/SuperMario64'' popularized Creator/CharlesMartinet's rendition of the character[[note]]Martinet was cast in 1990 and had been officially voicing Mario since 1992, but had only made niche appearances in the role prior to ''Super Mario 64''[[/note]]. He also appeared as Lauper's fictional father in the "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" video.
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15	He was inducted into the Wrestling/WWEHallOfFame in 1996.
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17	!! "These tropes are often imitated, never duplicated":
18	* AwesomeMomentOfCrowning: Inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 1996.
19	%%* BeardOfEvil: He initially declined the offer to star in the ''Super Mario Super Show'', citing a reluctance to shave his famous beard, but was eventually convinced.
20	* BigFun: As a face. Averted when, after he left the WWF in 1986, came back in 1994 to co-manage the face-turned Wrestling/TheHeadshrinkers with Afa in 1994, and had dropped a lot of weight during those 8 years.
21	* {{Biography}}: His 2008 autobiography ''Often Imitated, Never Duplicated''
22	* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: "Dr. Papoofnick said I could be helped!"
23	* DrugsAreBad: He once did an anti-drug PSA that is infamously known for its ''[[WhamLine incredibly]]'' [[MoodWhiplash dark and shocking closing sentence.]]
24	-->"And remember, if you do drugs, '''[[ScareEmStraight you'll go to Hell before you die.]]'''"[[note]]"Please..."[[/note]]
25	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: He started as a PrettyBoy babyface named "Leapin' Lou Albano."
26	* FatBastard: As a heel.
27	* GameShowAppearance: On ''Series/TheHollywoodSquares''.
28	* HeelFaceTurn: Thanks to Wrestling/RoddyPiper during an in-ring ceremony where Albano was being congratulated for his charity work. That charity work, by the way, was becoming publicized in the mainstream media, and because Wrestling/VinceMcMahon wanted only the faces to be recognized for their work, he – along with Piper and Cyndi Lauper – devised a storyline that sparked not only a legendary face turn, but Piper's legendary feud with Wrestling/HulkHogan and the coming of Wrestling/WrestleMania. Albano kept his MotorMouth persona, and at times Wrestling/GorillaMonsoon still called him a "Fountain Of Misinformation," but it was clear that Albano was a good guy to stay.
29	* IconicItem: The hardcore-looking rubber band piercings he used to wear all the time.
30	* {{Irony}}: Although raised in the U.S., he was born in Italy[[note]]His parents were both both in the U.S., but temporarily migrated to Italy where his father went to med school. He soon moved with his parents back to the U.S.[[/note]] and was of Italian descent...just like [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]].
31	* {{Jerkass}}: As a heel.
32	* LargeHam: One of his greatest assets as a manager, since he could bring out a wrestler with little to no charisma or mic skills and Albano could put him over on the mic as an all-time great.
33	* LighterAndSofter: He debuted as a heel in 1953 and competed in Chicago and Los Angeles before making his home in the then-WWF. He moved into the role of manager in 1970 and held that role for over a decade, until [[Wrestling/RoddyPiper "Rowdy" Roddy Piper]] smashed a gold record over Albano's head. From that point on, Lou was a {{Face}} and would remain one for the rest of his career.
34	* TheMafia: This was the original gimmick of his TagTeam the Sicilians with Tony Altimore, until ''the real thing'' got word of it and told them not to do it.
35	* MotorMouth: To {{Cloudcuckoolander}}[=/=]TalkativeLoon levels, as he would make up names of nonexistent people and go off on random tangents.
36	* OddFriendship: With Cyndi Lauper. He was a middle-aged wrestler, she was an up-and-coming pop star twenty years his junior. They remained friends for the rest of Albano's life.
37	* ThePigpen: "PEG Principle -- for Politeness, Etiquette and Grooming!" He says while belching cigar smoke.
38	* {{Pirate}}: He briefly used this gimmick.
39	* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Early in his {{Heel}} manager Days, he promoted a match between Pedro Morales and his man [[RedScare Ivan Koloff]] by railing on both Puerto Ricans and Italians. The whole insanity ended with Koloff winning and a mob of enraged Hispanic wrestling fans literally chasing Lou down the street.
40	* RealLifeWritesThePlot: He suffered a non-wrestling injury and used the scar as a way to turn himself heel.
41	* RedBaron: "The Guiding Light"
42	* RedemptionPromotion: While he was always a very successful manager, his face turn helped raise his profile a lot.
43	* ReligiousBruiser: He was a Catholic and was even baptized at [[UsefulNotes/VaticanCity the Vatican]].
44	* RingOldies:
45	** A buccaneer before he changed his gimmick, Albano wasn't a great wrestler, but had a couple of high visibility runs in the northeast. In the psychedelic era, he switched gears to became a fast-talking huckster, which is what he's most known for.
46	** In doing so, Albano helped popularize what is now a bog standard wrestling trope: the meddling "hypeman" who leaves a slime trail wherever he goes. He managed a great many teams to the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-world-t.html WWE World Tag Team Titles]], including Wrestling/MrFuji's teams with Professor Toru Tanaka and Mr. Saito, the Wild Samoans, Wrestling/TheMoondogs, Wrestling/TheBlackjacks, the U.S. Express (Wrestling/BarryWindham and Wrestling/MikeRotunda), the British Bulldogs (Wrestling/DynamiteKid and Wrestling/DaveyBoySmith) and the Headshrinkers. He retired in 1995. He was inducted into the ''[[Wrestling/TheWrestlingObserverNewsletter Wrestling Observer Newsletter]]'' Hall of Fame in 2012. He was a 1x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-us-t.html WWWF United States Tag Team Champion]] with Tony Altimore as the Sicilians in 1967.
47	* TheRival: Wrestling/BrunoSammartino, the one who suggested the [[WrestlingManagersAreHeels Heel manager gimmick]].
48	-->'''''Deadspin''''': Sammartino was a WWWF mainstay, but his villainous opponents were often imported on short-term contracts to feud and, once dispatched, to disappear into a different territory. This kept the card fresh but it limited the long-term storytelling potential. In his new role, Albano bridged the gap. He became Sammartino's principle foil, despite the fact that he hardly set foot in the ring; Albano sent fearsome heels at Sammartino like an ornery god lobbing thunderbolts at antiquity's heroes.
49	* {{Sitcom}}: AsHimself on the 1990 ''Series/HeyDude'' episode "Killer Ernst" and as "Gus" on ''Series/TwoTwoSeven''.
50	* TalkShowWithFists: "Captain Lou's Corner," in [[Wrestling/HerbAbramsUWF Herb Abrams' UWF]].
51	* TerribleTrio: Along with his fellow managers Wrestling/FreddieBlassie and the Grand Wizard.
52	* WrestlingManagersAreHeels: Played straight throughout much of his career in the WWF until Wrestling/VinceMcMahon enforced a HeelFaceTurn (see above).
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Context Wrestling / CaptainLouAlbano