ETI Salutes WWE Hall of Famer Mean Gene Okerland

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In order to be a legend you have to learn from and study the legends.

A legend today is known for their noted celebrity and larger-than-life accomplishments, whose fame is well-known.

Longtime World Wrestling Entertainment personality Gene Okerlund has died at the age of 76, the WWE announced on their website.

Okerlund, who was often referred to as “Mean Gene,” was among the entertainment company’s most recognizable faces for nearly two decades, working as an interviewer, announcer and commentator.

WWE did not specify the cause or manner of Okerlund’s death in its release.

A South Dakota native who later resided in Florida, Okerlund got his start with the American Wrestling Association before moving to WWE in 1984. He became well known for his interviews with WWE personalities during events in the 1980s and ’90s before shifting into other production roles, including announcing, commentating and hosting.

Okerlund was inducted into the entertainment company’s Hall of Fame by Hulk Hogan in 2006 and continued to appear in WWE programming over the past decade, albeit sporadically.

Hogan was among the many prominent WWE personalities to react to Okerlund’s death on social media Wednesday, January 2, 2019, writing “I love you my brother.” Triple H, meanwhile, called him “a voice and sound track to an entire era of our industry.”

“As an interviewer, pitch man, announcer, or host, he was untouchable. Simply the best,” Steve Austin added in another social-media tribute. “Total professional with quick wit, sarcasm, humor, and that golden voice. Condolences to his friends and family.”