Captain Lou Albano, a wrestler and music video star known for his large beard held together with a rubber band and face piercings, passed away at the age of 76 Wednesday. Lou Albano was a pro wrestler since 1953, but he made a name for himself in a number of other venues, including music videos.

The cause of death for the wrestler with 42 years of experience under his belt is unknown as of this writing, but World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) released a statement calling Albano “one of the company’s most popular and charismatic legends.”

Capt. Lou Albano became primarily known to as a music video star, most prominently working with Cyndi Lauper. He plays her father in the classic 80s video ”Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” Albano was also in videos for “She Bop”, “Time After Time” and “The Goonies ‘R’ Good Enough” music videos.

Lauper and Albano had a tiff when Capt. Lou said he was her manager and orchestrated her career, but they came together on the MTV/WWF special “The War to Settle the Score.” Capt. Lou was instrumental in “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Connection” and is credited with being a big force in the popularization of professional wrestling in the 80s.

Albano was a respected wrestler on his own, winning numerous single and tag-team matches. By the end of his career, Albano managed over 50 different wrestlers who had won two dozen championships. Capt. Albano was a good interviewer and hype-man as well. Check out this clip of him being interviewed about his rubber piercings on his face.  In 1996, Albano was enshrined into the WWE Hall of Fame.

Our Take

Capt. Lou wasn’t just a great wrestler and manager, the man did public service announcements dressed as Mario! Capt. Lou did not want Cyndi Lauper to have fun, and he was against the kind of fun drugs provide. RIP Capt. Lou.