Oh Captain, Bye Captain

“Captain” Lou Albano, star of the comedy classic Wiseguys, has died at the age of 76. The WWF (as in World Wrestling Federation - yeah, suck it panda lovers) Hall of Famer was known for managing such evil-doers as The Iron Shiek, Nikolai Volkoff, Andre the Giant and the British Bulldogs, to 15 tag team and 4 individual championship titles in a “sport” far more organized, and only slightly more orchestrated, than the alphabet soup of professional boxing, all the while taunting audiences and opponents alike. All, only slightly homoerotic. With a long unruly beard, loud outfits and rubber bands dangling from his face, Albano was like a living cartoon, making him the perfect actor to take on the role of a lifetime – Mario in the Super Mario Brothers Super Show! He was adopted by another cartoon-like figure from the 1980s, appearing in videos for Cyndi Lauper’s Girls Just Want to Have Fun, She Bop, Time After Time and The Goonies theme song.