We are incredibly sad to report that our hero, dear friend and Stunts Unlimited brother passed away yesterday, August 9th, 2022 at the age of 89. Gene taught my three sons how to take every day life in the training under Gene. (Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer), Martial Arts Legend Gene LeBell spends some time feeding his bird friends outside of his Sherman Oaks home in 2006. How much can Joel Embiid give the Sixers against the Celtics? You tell me which is better., Gene LeBell, 89, Judo Champion, Wrestler and Star Stuntman, Dies, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/19/movies/gene-lebell-dead.html. He successfully defended his title the next year at the Olympic Auditorium, in front of his mother. ; The Apprentice: To Ed "Strangler" Lewis, Karl Gotch and Lou Thesz, among other guys. He will always be my Stunt Senei. LeBell, who had been in declining health for the past eight months, died in his sleep at home in Sherman Oaks, with his loving wife of years, Midge, by his side on Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2022. "He was larger than life, and he was so kind. If you said you liked his shirt, he would take it off and give it to you," Midge LeBell said. "I am devastated. (Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer), Gene LeBell teaches grappling to students Roman Mitichyan and Dana Charvet at the Hayastan MMA Academy. For most of Eatons time in the business, she was the only major female fight promoter in the United States, possibly even the world. Mr. Lee, it seems, was hurting the other stuntmen. Ian Avabe, You Rock a Master of all well deserved Si PJ Hooper Kelly, Congratulations Gene. He went on to win the both the Heavyweight and overall champion title 1955 as well. the Toughest Man Alive. Over a legendary career as a judoka, pro wrestler, and Hollywood stuntman, LeBell was a pioneer in mixed martial arts and choreographed violenceand one of the toughest guys in the business. My first match, the official time, and his time differed by two seconds, and I was like (expletive) the official time, Genes time is what matters, so I tattooed his time. Rousey and mother De Mars gifted LeBell a new stopwatch for his 80th birthday in 2012. I got a tattoo of how many seconds it took me to win all my (MMA) matches. Still, he continued to get regular stunt work on TV. Born Ivan Gene LeBell on Oct. 9, 1932, in Los Angeles, LeBell grew up at the famed Olympic Auditorium, where his mother, Aileen Eaton, was a boxing and wrestling promoter from 1942 to 1980. If I could get my arms around you I would hug you. GENE LEBELL OBITUARY Gene LeBell was a legendary stuntman and martial artist known for pioneering mixed martial arts who trained Bruce Lee. WebL egendary stunt worker and mixed martial artist Gene LeBell died on August 9. He believed in me which made me believe in myself. Although LeBell would remain undefeated in the sport for eight years, even traveling to Japan in 1955 to further his judo skillsand, following a laundry mishap, adopt the pink gi that became a signature piece of his in-ring lookhis interests were too varied to allow him to focus exclusively on one sport. What, Exactly, Is the Detroit Lions Plan. Gene LeBell remained a towering figure in the history and expansion of mixed martial arts and sports entertainment. Uncle Gene let him (Browne) know all about me before we met. All my love and respect Pat Romano, Ya ya Uncle Gene , to one of the Gilberts favorite people . Eager to claim the $1,000 purseId fight my grandmother for $1,000, but shed have beaten me, LeBell saidthe judoka found himself facing not Beck but Savage, who not only was an accomplished professional boxer but a man with a solid knowledge of wrestling fundamentals. In 1963, in Salt Lake City, LeBell took on boxer Milo Savage the fifth-ranked light heavyweight boxer in the world. Gene Oliver Lee Bateman is a journalist and sports historian who lives in Pittsburgh. Cheers! He totally supported me, he was telling my mom to let me do it, and he was telling me, Ive won every R-E-A-L fight and never made a penny and lost every R-E-E-L fight and I am comfortably retired, think about that kid. He said he would help me out with this MMA stuff, but he was always trying to get me stunt jobs and to meet the right people in the stunt works so I would have somewhere to go after fighting. Mr. LeBell never became as famous as Mr. Lee, who died in 1973, but into his early 80s when he played, among other roles, a corpse falling from a coffin in an episode of the TV series Castle he remained busy as one of Hollywoods most sought-after stuntmen. Proud to be your friend! Ronda Rousey. He won the Amateur Athletic Union National Judo Championships in 1954 Well deserved.- Bonnie Happy, Well deserved. The remarkable Judo Gene LeBell was still teaching grappling Hey Gene which way to the Beach? We are all so proud of you, youre a legend. The news was confirmed by actor and former MMA fighter Bas Rutten on Facebook. Read full article. LeBells years of stunt work and fight choreography also introduced grappling to the world of action movies, where it is now commonplace to see fighters turned actors such as Randy Couture and Gina Carano using submission holds in their action sequences. I have ridden on the back of his bike for one of his marathon wheelies.Pine Mtn Club so much fun. ago Ill always remember the special times we shared together. Gene LeBell talks about Bruce Lee. Hans Gutknecht has been a photojournalist at the Los Angeles Daily News since 1992. Remembering Gene LeBell - The Ringer He has fought, trained and performed with a dizzying array of some of the most prolific athletes and actors in the world. LeBell also gained notoriety for the way he dealt with the notoriously eccentric and aggressive Steven Seagal on the set of the 1991 film Out for Justice. Gene LeBell, iconic martial arts pioneer, dies at the age of 89 A tough guy who got beaten up by the likes of John Wayne, he had a bottom-line view of his job: The more you get hit in the nose, the richer you are.. Gene LeBell It goes to a great man of strength, integrity and honor. Hamstrung by rules barring takedowns, strikes on the ground, and submission holds, the fight devolved into a tedious 15-round affair in which Ali taunted and showboated while Inoki crab-walked along the mat, kicking Alis legs. Subscribe to Variety Newsletters and Email Alerts! In addition to Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris, LeBell also tutored the likes of Roddy Piper (who claimed in his autobiography to have received a black belt in judo from LeBell, though this is likely as spurious as the impossible-to-verify Golden Gloves championship he was sometimes reported as having won), Olympic bronze medalist judoka and future UFC and WWE star Ronda Rousey (who always cited him as an important mentor), American judo champion and instructor Gokor Chivichyan, and Chivichyans Armenian American judo student Karo Parisyan, one of the first notable judo practitioners in the UFC. Mr. LeBell, right, wrestling Vic Christy, whom he considered a mentor, in Southern California in the mid-1950s. Love ya, Buddy Joe Hooker, My dear friend Gene. As the story goes, LeBell set the choke up, Seagal said "Go" and Seagal promptly went. He taught me how to fight, taught me how to ride. The promoters were looking for karate and judo bumsvery distinct striking and grappling specialties, though LeBell knew the basics of karateto fight a boxer, whom LeBell assumed would be Jim Beck, a highly regarded amateur who had called out the practitioners of those sports. Sugar Ray Robinson. Just Ask the Bruins. Judo Gene LeBell passes away at 89 years old https://t.co/v6pieyfChp via @@br26 Rest In Peace Master, TitusWelliver (@welliver_titus) August 10, 2022, With the heaviest of hearts I say goodbye to one of my favorite men in the world. This is very much deserved. There is nothing bad you can really say about him. A lot of fighters are broke. Combat Sports Pioneer Judo Gene Lebell has passed at 89 Years Old. He is, and always has been, a perfect example of what a professional stuntman should be and continues to teach and hand down his vast knowledge to all young and old who want to learn. He not only tried to help me get into fighting, but he also helped me think about life afterward before anybody would even entertain the thought. I have grown up idolizing many of the SU members over the yearsGenes massive career and list of credits is insane. It has been said that Brad Pitts character of stuntman Cliff Booth in the 2019 Quentin Tarantino film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, which included a memorable sequence with Lee, was an homage to LeBell. Born in Los Angeles in 1932, LeBell was shipped off to a military school at age 6 by his full-time working mom after his father died in a surfing accident. Extant fight footage shows a stocky LeBell, probably 60 to 70 pounds heavier than he was when he debuted in judo, cautiously circling and then struggling to throw the much smaller man, who exhibited sound wrestling defense. And Thank You for all those Decals and Patches you sent Charlotte and I each Christmas. By the time he transitioned to judo in the early 1950s, LeBell had already spent untold hours in submission holds and on the receiving end of punches from boxers like the great Sugar Ray Robinson at L.A.s famous Main Street Gym. It was LeBells first movieland lesson: Always let the star win. Gene LeBell, Hollywood Stuntman and Martial Artist, Dies at 89 He had earlier been an American Amateur Union judo champion. Love ya Gene. Blessed if you know him, crazy fun guy. Mahalo Christopher Chabriel, Congratulations MEAN GENE!!! The Hollywood stuntman Gene LeBell in the 1950s, when he was a professional wrestler. Proud to know you, much love Brent Fletcher, Very proud to have been your student for so many years There is no one prettier than you Sensai You are truly a legend and I can not think of anyone more deserving for this award!!! They also trained together, with Mr. LeBells expertise as a grappler meeting Mr. Lees fist-flashing kung fu brilliance. In the 1960s, LeBell began acting and doing stunts, including in three movies with Elvis Presley. (James C. Udel, Variety, 2018). Lets get working, or Ill burn your houses down.. Gene LeBell You truly are a one-off, a living legend. Way to go Uncle Gene!!! Wear this Award well my friend. Gene LeBell David would look at me glassy eyed and say No you dont! Tim Gilbert, This tribute is well deserved. Justin Timberlake shouldn't get credit for 'It's Gonna Be May' meme. I look at Gene as my second father. pic.twitter.com/IqcuVDIu7O, Chuck Norris (@chucknorris) August 10, 2022. Nick Plantico, Congrats Gene!! Ronnie and Mary Rondell, Congratulations Uncle Gene! Gene LeBell, who died on August 9 at age 89, led a life so expansive that any mere retelling of it would come across like a tall tale, the stuff of Pecos Bill and Paul Bunyanif all of it werent true. He judged UFC 74 (Randy Couture vs. Gabriel Gonzaga) plus he had a highly popular website visited by martial arts and film fans all over the globe. Gene LeBell had three children including stuntman son David LeBell and FBI agent daughter Monica LeBell Pandis. He also had 8 grandchildren. RIP Gene, I love ya pic.twitter.com/thoEZgHA0k, Big John McCarthy (@JohnMcCarthyMMA) August 10, 2022. Mr. LeBell also worked over the years with many wrestlers, including Rowdy Roddy Piper and Ronda Rousey, and trained with Chuck Norris, the martial artist and actor. So, congratulation Gene LeBell from the Winburn families for receiving the Taurus Lifetime Achievement Award. Gene LeBell, center, made his mark on the combat sports scene and in movies for decades. Gene LeBell, regarded as Americas first martial arts sensation before parlaying his athleticism into a career as a professional wrestler, actor and stuntman, has died at the age of 89, his family confirmed. People saying youre the toughest guy is great, he told Sports Illustrated in 1995, but it still doesnt add up to one car payment. Born Ivan Gene LeBell on Oct. 9, 1932, in Los Angeles, LeBell grew up at the famed Olympic Auditorium, where his mother, Aileen Eaton, was a boxing and For LeBell, one martial art naturally flowed into another; they were already mixing together in his curious mind. WebGene LeBell was born on October 9, 1932 and is 90 years old now. Godfather of MMA and Wrestling Gene Lebell passes away at 89 TRIBUTES have poured in for the Godfather of mixed martial arts and wrestling Gene Lebell, who died aged 89. Tributes came from around the world following the announcement of his passing, including on Twitter from Chuck Norris, Triple H, Titus Welliver and others. However, no context is provided for the encounterup until the fight, Booths martial arts credentials, unlike LeBells, are completely unknown, and he defeats Lee on the feet rather than with wrestling techniques. The more you get hit in the nose, the richer you are. Long overdue! Congratulations brother Gene!!! But following an overtime loss to the Florida Panthers on Sunday night, the Bruins will be watching the rest of the playoffs from homelike so many previous Presidents Trophy winners. More recently the director Quentin Tarantino used Mr. LeBells initial encounter with Mr. Lee on the set of The Green Hornet as the basis for a scene in his 2019 film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, in which Brad Pitt, as a stuntman, threw the Lee character into a car. Freddy Bouceigues, No one deserves this more then you uncle Gene. Genes feature film appearances include Blue Hawaii (1965), Planet of the Apes (1968), Raging Bull (1980), Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985), Bad Guys (1986), Hard to Kill (1990), Die Hard 2 (1990), Patriot Games (1992), Ed Wood (1994), L.A. It was the long-running Lassie series that first tested LeBells mettle.
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