10 Things You Didn't Know About 'Mean' Gene Okerlund

7. His Famous SummerSlam '89 Gaff Was Pre-Taped

Mene Gene Summerslam 1989
WWE.com

"F*ck it".

Those were the words of a perplexed Gene Okerlund as a garish SummerSlam 1989 sign fell off the wall and crashed to the floor behind him. Cameras quickly cut away to show the crowd, and an entertained Jesse Ventura couldn't help but poke fun at what he'd just witnessed. Meanwhile, Tony Schiavone tried to keep a lid on things.

At Gorilla, Vince McMahon was beside himself and kept demanding that Tony and Jess fix Okerlund's error. In truth, he should have been roaring at production staff in charge of formatting the show instead. They were the ones who had left a bloody pre-taped gaff in the pay-per-view, rather than replacing it with the correct promo take.

That's right, the legendary promo botch was never supposed to air; it wasn't live. Okerlund told RF Video years after the fact that the WWF braintrust had inserted the wrong tape. He didn't go into detail on exactly how many heads Vinnie Mac had severed out back.

Advertisement
Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.