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JERRY "THE KING" LAWLER
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Jerry Lawler is to sports-entertainment what Elvis Presley is to rock ‘n’
roll. They’re both kings, and they’re both legends from the great state of
Tennessee.
For over 30 years, he has been a cult hero in the Bible Belt, headlining hundreds of matches at the Mid-South Coliseum against legends such as Hulk Hogan, Terry Funk, Randy Savage, and countless others. Perhaps his biggest claim to fame was his rivalry with the late comedian, Andy Kaufman. In one of their more classic encounters, Lawler delivered a devastating piledriver to Kaufman that broke his neck, and a few months later, the two appeared on “Late Night with David Letterman,” where they had another violent confrontation that led to Kaufman being slapped out of his chair. A few years ago, Lawler even played himself in Andy’s biopic, “Man in the Moon,” starring Jim Carrey In 1993, Jerry made his way to WWE, as both a Superstar and an announcer. He also immediately took a disliking to Bret “Hit Man” Hart. The two engaged in a series of matches that each had bizarre stipulations. In one instance, the two fought in a “Kiss My Foot” match, where the King wound up on the short end of the stick. The unofficial mayor of Memphis eventually decided to concentrate on being one of the voices of Monday Night RAW. With his high-pitched voice, and insatiable appetite for “puppies,” Lawler amuses fans, while giving a unique views on the word of sports-entertainment. Yet despite his semi-retirement, Lawler always travels with his gear, in the event that an unruly WWE Superstars calls him out, or attempts to get physical with his broadcast colleague, Jim Ross. On several occasions, Lawler has had to pull down the strap, and drop a stiff elbow off the second-rope, in order to teach someone a fast lesson in respect. Throughout his 10-plus years as an announcer, the King has remained extremely popular. He wrote an autobiography, “It’s Good to be the King… Sometimes,” which is still one of the best-selling publications in the WWE autobiography series, and he still receives a loud ovation each and every week. |
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