Cause of 'Mean' Gene Okerlund's Death Revealed By His Son
Sophia Edwards 'Mean' Gene Okerlund sadly passed away earlier this week and his son Todd has shed some light on how his father was doing in the lead up to his death.
Far too many big names from the wrestling industry passed away in 2018 and unfortunately, that trend has carried on into 2019. Just two days into the new year, WWE broke the news to the world that iconic interviewer and announcer 'Mean' Gene Okerlund passed away at the age of 76.
At the time of his passing, no information regarding what exactly caused Okerlund's death was revealed. A few days on, the Hall Of Famer's son Todd has shed a little light on Mean Gene's last few weeks. Todd revealed to Associated Press that his father actually passed away on December 30, 2018, in the early hours of the morning at a hospital in Sarasota, Florida.
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Okerlund's wife Jeanne was at his side at the time of his passing. What was surprising to hear is the tough time Mean Gene has had in recent weeks and months. His son revealed that the legendary announcer had recently undergone three kidney transplants. That would obviously take its toll on anyone's body. Apparently, a couple of weeks before Christmas, Okerlund became ill and between then and his passing things continued to go from bad to worse.
A few days before his death, Mean Gene fell down at home which resulted in him breaking some ribs. That on top of all the other health issues he was suffering clearly proved to be too much for his body to handle. He was admitted into a nursing home following his fall and when he had trouble breathing, he was then hospitalized. He passed away shortly after that.
Every wrestling death hits fans hard, but this one seems to have really taken its toll. That's because unlike most in the business, Mean Gene's tenure spanned a huge amount of time. He didn't just interview icons from the industry for one period or era, he did it for more than four decades. Mean Gene was the voice of wrestling for so many fans, and none of us will forget that voice any time soon.
