that introduced the Purple Haze.Mark Lewin (born March 16, 1937 in Buffalo, NY) is a retired American Professional Wrestler who competed from the 1950s all the way into the 1990s. He started as a matinee idol Face and was very successful in that role. In fact, Vince McMahon Sr. called Lewin "the best babyface I ever had." In 1963, he started calling himself "Maniac" Mark Lewin, creating the persona that would carry him through much of his career. He competed all over the world, including for the WWWF, various National Wrestling Alliance territories, Stampede Wrestling, All Japan Pro Wrestling, Australia, Canada and more. In the 1980s, he arrived in Florida and was reintroduced as the Purple Haze, a member of Kevin Sullivan's Army of Darkness. Among his in-ring achievements, he is a former 2x WWWF United States Tag Team Champion with Don Curtis, a 2x NWA (Florida) World Tag Team Champion and a former WWA (Los Angeles) World Heavyweight Champion.
"Stand for the Haze's tropes!":
- Finishing Move: Sleeperhold
- Parts Unknown: Billed from there as the Purple Haze.
- Power Stable:
- (in Australia and Vancouver): The People's Army
- (in Florida): The Army of Darkness
- (in Tony Rumble's ICW/IWCCW): The Family of Darkness
- Purple Is Powerful: Wore a purple robe as the Haze.
- Ring Oldies: Competed for some 40 years. Was still in solid wrestling shape during his Florida run in the mid-1980s when he was pushing 50.
- Screw the Rules, I Make Them!: He was the booker in Australia who came up with the "War" feud listed above under Arch-Enemy.
- Spell My Name with a "The": The Purple Haze.
- Verbal Tic: "Yute! Yute!"
- Wrestling Family: His brothers Donn and Ted, and his brother-in-law Danny McShain.
"YUTE! YUTE!"
