Lance Russell facts for kids

Lance Russell (born March 18, 1926 – died October 3, 2017) was an American sports announcer. He was best known for being a professional wrestling announcer and commentator. He worked mainly in the Memphis area from 1959 to 1997.

Lance Russell often worked with Dave Brown. He is honored in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA)'s Hall of Fame. He is also in the United States Wrestling Association (USWA)'s Memphis Wrestling Hall of Fame.

Lance Russell's Wrestling Journey

Starting in Memphis (1959–1988)

Lance Russell began his career at a TV station in Jackson, Tennessee. He was asked to announce a wrestling match. He had already announced other sports like basketball and baseball.

Russell made a big change for wrestling shows. At the time, Memphis wrestling was often shown on Saturday afternoons. But other sports shows sometimes took its place. Russell decided to move wrestling to 11 AM on Saturday mornings. This was a very successful move.

He started announcing in Memphis in 1959. He worked for promotions like NWA Mid-America. His long-time announcing partner was Dave Brown. They started working together in 1967. Russell said he was impressed by Dave's hard work and dependability. They became a great team and good friends. Russell even helped Brown become a local weatherman.

Working with Wrestlers

Lance Russell and Dave Brown helped a young Jerry Lawler get noticed. They showed his wrestling cartoons on their Saturday morning show. This helped Lawler become a famous wrestler. Lawler would sometimes jokingly call Russell "banana nose" when he was playing a bad guy. But they were close friends in real life.

Russell was good at making wrestling stories exciting. He would show his dislike for the bad guys. He also helped wrestlers who weren't great talkers sound better. Russell announced matches at the Mid-South Coliseum on Monday nights. He also called matches from Tupelo, Mississippi. He announced famous matches like the "Tupelo Concession Stand Brawl." He also called the 1981 "Empty Arena match" between Lawler and Terry Funk.

Sometimes, Russell was truly surprised by what happened during interviews. In one famous interview, Jos LeDuc used an ax to show how serious he was about defeating his opponent. Russell, who also worked as a TV station executive, was shocked by this intense moment.

Russell was sometimes part of the wrestling stories himself. In 1981, the Dream Machine physically attacked him. He was also involved in stories where Jimmy Hart dumped flour on his head. Even The Road Warriors attacked him once. He also announced when Jerry Lawler won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship.

Russell talked about how popular wrestling was in Memphis. He said they would sell out the 11,000-seat Mid-South Coliseum every week. He compared this to bigger cities. He noted that Memphis, with fewer people, had huge crowds for wrestling.

Russell's unique announcing style became famous across the country. In the 1980s, people started trading videotapes of wrestling shows. This allowed fans everywhere to watch Memphis wrestling. Lance Russell's popularity grew because of this. He also gained fame when Jerry Lawler had a feud with entertainer Andy Kaufman. This was shown in the documentary I’m From Hollywood.

Later Career (1989–1997)

Lance Russell joined World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1989. He worked with Jim Ross on NWA World Wide Wrestling. This was his first national TV show. In WCW, he also worked with announcers Bob Caudle and Gordon Solie. He left WCW in 1993 but still announced for them sometimes.

During the 1990s, he also worked as a director for a TV station owner. He also announced for Smoky Mountain Wrestling. He returned to Memphis Wrestling later. He worked again with Dave Brown. Lance Russell announced his semi-retirement from wrestling in 1997.

Lance Russell's Impact and Style

Many people call Lance Russell "one of the greatest wrestling announcers ever." He was very important to Memphis Wrestling. Professional wrestling manager Steve Bowden said Russell was like a "Lou Thesz" for announcers. Jim Ross put Russell in his top 10 list of favorite announcers. He called him a "class act" and a "southern legend."

Mike Mooneyham, a wrestling journalist, called him "the voice of Memphis wrestling." Russell was highly respected by his co-workers, family, and church. He won many awards, including being inducted into the Pro Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame. He also taught Sunday school for many years.

His announcing style was described as honest and smooth. He was known for using phrases like "Sam Hill" and "Don't start with the smart stuff."

Other Appearances

Lance Russell's work in Memphis Wrestling is shown in the 1989 documentary, I'm from Hollywood. He is also interviewed in the film about Andy Kaufman. Russell appears in the 1999 Kaufman movie Man on the Moon. He plays the Memphis ring announcer in the film. You can hear Russell's original commentary of the Lawler/Kaufman match on the WWE Home Video DVD called Greatest Wrestling Stars of the '80s.

Personal Life

Lance Russell was married to his wife Audrey for 67 years. They met in high school. Audrey passed away in 2014. They had three children: William, Valerie, and Shane.

Lance Russell died on October 3, 2017, in Memphis. He was 91 years old. He passed away from problems after breaking his hip. This happened just days after his daughter Valerie died from cancer on September 29.

Awards and Honors

• Cauliflower Alley Club
  • Announcers Award (2016)
• National Wrestling Alliance
  • NWA Hall of Fame (2006)
  • NWA Wrestling Legends Hall of Heroes (2009)
• United States Wrestling Association
  • Memphis Wrestling Hall of Fame (Class of 1994)
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter
  • Best Television Announcer (1984–1987)
  • Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 1996)