Howard Finkel
Howard Finkel | |
---|---|
Born | [1] Newark, New Jersey, U.S. | June 7, 1950
Died | April 16, 2020 Madison, Connecticut, U.S. | (aged 69)
Children | 1 |
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | El Dopo[2] The Fink[2] Finkus Maximus[2] Howard Finkel[2] |
Billed height | 5 ft 8 in (173 cm)[1] |
Debut | 1975[1] |
Howard Finkel (June 7, 1950 – April 16, 2020) was an American
Early life
Finkel was born on June 7, 1950, in the city of Newark, New Jersey, and grew up with a Jewish family.[4][5]
Announcing and backstage career
Finkel, debuted as a ring announcer at
During a 2011 interview, Finkel said his knowledge of history had also played a part in the talent relations and creative departments during the early days of the WWF.
By 2000, Howard Finkel had taken a lighter schedule with the additions of
Finkel did the voiceover in the intro for the WWE.com video show,
On April 13, 2012, Finkel appeared on the "Blast from the Past" episode of SmackDown. On July 23, 2012, Finkel was a special ring announcer on the 1,000th episode of Raw. In 2014, Finkel was a cast member on the
During the final years of his life, Finkel worked in a backstage role for WWE.[12] On June 14, 2020, at the Backlash PPV, a recording of Howard Finkel introducing both Edge and Randy Orton to the 'Greatest Wrestling Match Ever' was played, introducing the pair of combatants.[13]
Storylines
As an announcer, Finkel was generally separate from the scripted
1992 saw the beginning of a feud with manager
Finkel became involved in a feud between X-Pac and Jeff Jarrett, when Jarrett shaved the already near-bald Finkel's head. This feud culminated in a Hair versus Hair Match at SummerSlam 1998, with Finkel in the corner of X-Pac. X-Pac won the match and Finkel assisted him in cutting Jarrett's hair. In August 1999, Finkel became a lackey of the recently debuted Chris Jericho. On August 26, during the network debut episode of WWF SmackDown, Jericho encouraged Finkel to attack SmackDown announcer Tony Chimel and take back his place as lead announcer. Finkel ran down the aisle, shoving Chimel and ordering him to step aside. As Finkel started to announce, Chimel threw Finkel from the ring. While Jericho helped Finkel to the back, they crossed paths with Ken Shamrock, who jostled with Jericho. Jericho convinced Finkel to distract Shamrock during his match.
After Finkel berated Shamrock, Shamrock began twisting Finkel's finger, permitting Jericho to hit Shamrock from behind with a steel chair. Several weeks later, Finkel adopted the role of "El Dopo", a masked referee who unfairly officiated a Shamrock match, awarding the win to Curtis Hughes.[14] On the October 14 episode of SmackDown!, Jericho defeated Hughes with help from Finkel, but gave Finkel to Curtis Hughes after the match.[15] Four days later on Monday Night Raw, Hughes bet and lost Finkel in a game of poker, to The Acolytes.[16] Finkel turned heel on an August 2002 episode of Raw and began a brief feud with Raw ring announcer Lilian Garcia over the lead spot, before both were attacked by 3-Minute Warning.[17] The following week, Garcia defeated Finkel in an evening gown/tuxedo match with help from Trish Stratus and Stacy Keibler, who were insulted by a remark made by Finkel.[18]
Death
Finkel died on April 16, 2020, at the age of 69.[19][3] He had been unwell since a stroke in February 2019.[20] On the podcast Something to Wrestle with Bruce Prichard, Prichard mentioned that Finkel had been a resident of an assisted living facility for some time prior to his death.[21]
Awards and accomplishments
- World Wrestling Entertainment
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 2018)[22]
References
- ^ better source needed]
- ^ a b c d e "Howard Finkel's Profile". Online World of Wrestling. April 7, 2009. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
- ^ a b "Howard Finkel passes away". WWE.com. April 16, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
- ^ "Jewish WWE announcer Howard Finkel dies at age 69". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. April 16, 2020. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- ^ "The ring's memorable Jewish Superstars". WWE. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- ^ "Howard Finkel". WWE. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
- ^ "Howard Finkel's Hall of Fame Profile". WWE. Retrieved March 29, 2011.
- ^ a b "Podcasts | the Score". Archived from the original on July 29, 2012. Retrieved March 29, 2011.
- ^ "Howard Finkel presented with plaque". WWE. April 7, 2009. Archived from the original on March 28, 2009. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
- ^ "WWE.com: WrestleMania IX Facts/Stats". WWE. Archived from the original on May 13, 2012. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
Going along with the Roman motif, ring announcer Howard Finkel's name at WrestleMania IX was changed to "Finkus Maximus."
- ^ "WWE News: Terrible health update on WWE Hall of Famer Howard Finkel". SportsKeeda. July 21, 2018. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
- ^ "WWE Employees Fans May Have Forgotten Still Work for Vince". TheSportster. November 1, 2018. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
- ^ "WWE Honors Howard Finkel During Edge vs. Randy Orton Match at Backlash". comicbook.com. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
- ^ "Howard's Obsessed with wrestling profile and El Dopo". Obsessedwithwrestling.com. April 7, 2009. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
- ^ "Smackdown Results:1999". Onlineworldofwrestling.com. April 7, 2009. Archived from the original on October 12, 2008. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
- ^ "Raw:1999". Onlineworldofwrestling.com. April 7, 2009. Archived from the original on June 7, 2008. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
- ^ "Howard Finkel wants his job back". Onlineworldofwrestling.com. April 7, 2009. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
- ^ "Howard Finkel vs Lillian". Onlineworldofwrestling.com. April 7, 2009. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
- ^ "Newark's Howard 'The Fink' Finkel, Longtime WWE Announcer, Dies of Coronavirus". April 16, 2020.
- ^ "Howard Finkel Passes Away At 69-Years-Old". Ringside News. April 16, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
- ^ Bruce Prichard remembers Howard Finkel, retrieved November 26, 2021
- ^ "Wrestling Observer anuncia los nominados para el Hall of Fame 2018". solowrestling.mundodeportivo.com. December 20, 2018.
External links
- Howard Finkel at IMDb
- Howard Finkel on WWE.com
- Howard Finkel's profile at Cagematch.net , Internet Wrestling Database