In a 2016 interview with Slam!, Lance Russell put things into perspective regarding how big wrestling was in Memphis: “…we used to sell out 11,000 every single week in the Memphis Mid-South Coliseum and I’d ride all the guys in the East who would talk about Madison Square Garden. [1] They had three children: William, Valerie, and Shane. Lance also benefited from the national exposure Memphis enjoyed during Jerry Lawler’s feud with entertainer Andy Kaufman. Lance Russell was born on March 18, 1926 and grew up in the small town of Jackson, Tennessee. Lance Russell retired to Pensacola, Florida where he lived with his wife Audrey, who passed away in 2014. Russell is preceded in death by his parents, his sister, Virginia, and his son, Dennis John Lance. Get the occasional email with the latest wrestling tributes and memorials, Search by ring name, real name, cause of death, organization, time period (2000s, etc) or specific year, WWE Hall of Famer “Ravishing” Rick Rude was an amazing individual in and out of the ring. "[4][1], Russell's work in Memphis Wrestling is shown in the 1989 documentary, I'm from Hollywood. Completing the CAPTCHA proves you are a human and gives you temporary access to the web property. Russell d… [3] He also called the match where Jerry Lawler won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship from Curt Hennig. [6] He also called the 1981 "Empty Arena match" between Lawler and Terry Funk. Russell called some of the promotion’s biggest matches including the Tupelo Concession Brawl and the “Empty Arena Match” involving Terry Funk and Jerry Lawler. Do you think Lance Russell was the best wrestling commentator of all time? When he said he would do something, he did it. Russell's career began at a television station in Jackson, Tennessee. Russell reminded fans of a laid-back uncle who put up with his nephews’ shenanigans – but only for so long. Eventually, World Championship Wrestling (WCW) took notice of his many talents, bringing Russell into the promotion in 1989 to serve as an announcer. Lance Russell’s Death . “The Voice of Memphis Wrestling” – Lance Russell, dies at age 91. Russell’s move paid off with Saturday morning wrestling becoming a fixture in Memphis, achieving unheard of ratings and leading to other promotions following his programming lead. He is survived by his sons Lance Jr. and Shane, as well as their respective families. Lance Russell’s Wife. Russell decided to air wrestling at 11am, against Gulas’ wishes. He had a great personality and a great sense of humor.”. This led to a revolution in wrestling programming. The proliferation of VCR’s in the 1980’s expanded the practice of tape trading, allowing wrestling fans to see action from all over the country. [3] He returned to Memphis Wrestling, paired once again with Brown and/or Corey Maclin. The news … [1], His style and delivery has been described as earnest and smooth. He called matches primarily for NWA Mid-America and its descendant promotion, the Continental Wrestling Association. Although Lance Russell spent the majority of his career calling matches in Memphis, his remarkable announce style led to national fame during the 1980’s. This led to a revolution in wrestling programming. [4][3] They gave a young Jerry Lawler some of his first exposure by showing his wrestling cartoons on their Saturday morning broadcast. Lance Russell with WWE chairman Vince McMahon. [3] He left WCW in 1993, but still occasionally called matches for the company. [6] Steve Bowden, a professional wrestling manager, said of Russell, "In my heart, he's the announcer equivalent of [former world champ] Lou Thesz. That attracted me to him. At the time, Memphis wrestling aired on Saturday afternoons, but was often preempted by shows such as Wide World of Sports. However, there were times when even Russell was legitimately taken aback by what he saw. [10], Russell was married for 67 years to his wife Audrey until her death in 2014. Lance’s son asked for prayers for his dad, who he said had been suffering from health issues. In a 2015 interview with the Post and Courier, Russell discussed how he recruited Brown: “I needed a guy to work with me because the guy that I had was dropping out of it. Lance Russell, the longtime Memphis wrestling announcer credited with launching the career of Jerry Lawler, died early Tuesday in Memphis at … That Lance Russell’s name is spoken in the same breath as Jim Ross and Gordon Solie is a testament to his work, and like these two announcers, he was equally gifted as a stick man, capable of getting a good interview out of even the most marble-mouthed of wrestlers. [6], He also worked as an announcer for Smoky Mountain Wrestling toward the end of their existence. Round 18 [8] Russell appears in the 1999 Kaufman biographical film Man on the Moon as the Memphis ring announcer. He had broken his hip after falling on Friday. [1], An episode from 1981 found Russell being physically attacked by the Dream Machine and footage of the angle was included in the 2011 documentary Memphis Heat. Tragedy brought him back to Memphis when his sick daughter Valerie succumbed to cancer just days before Lance’s death. On October 3, 2017, Russell died in Memphis of complications from a broken hip sustained after a fall, at the age of 91, just days after his daughter Valerie died from cancer on September 29. I got to know Dave around the station and was really impressed. Your IP: 77.245.149.46 [3], Russell made his debut in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) on the March 11, 1989 edition of NWA World Wide Wrestling alongside Jim Ross. [2][11], Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame, "Lance Russell, legendary 'voice of Memphis wrestling,' finding his way back home", "Lance Russell Q&A Part 1: Happy 90th birthday! Russell was born July 17, 1938 in Flint Michigan, to Charles and Vivian (nee Huntley) Lance. He went into semi-retirement in 1997. • Mr. Russell is survived by his two sons, William Lance Russell and his wife Debbie, Shane Russell and his wife Debra, eight grandchildren, eight great grandchildren, and his faithful dog and best friend Buddy.”. Lance Russell was well-respected in his community, both by his co-workers, his family, and the members of his church. Russell fell and broke his hip while in Memphis.