6 Ups And 7 Downs From Last Night's WWE Raw (Jan 7)

by Scott Carlson

1. Mean Gene Tribute Video Nails It

Mean Gene The Undertaker
WWE.com

One thing WWE consistently does well is its tribute videos to wrestlers who enter the WWE Hall of Fame or (sadly) pass away. But you had to wonder how they’d handle a video celebrating the life of the guy who held the mic for the wrestlers.

“Mean” Gene Okerlund was a legend, and to anyone who grew up watching wrestling in the 80s and 90s, he was synonymous with in-ring and backstage interviews. You couldn’t have a wrestler cutting a promo without Mean Gene being incensed at the heels and egging on the babyfaces.

But the video was fantastic, not only capturing classic moment, but showing some hilarious outtakes that often end up relegated to blooper reels, such as Gene’s reaction to Wendi Richter’s comment about not lying on her back and letting someone cover her, the SummerSlam sign falling down during a backstage interview with Rick Rude, and his “interview” with the Gobbledy Gooker.

If the video didn’t make you smile, you’re really not human.

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Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.