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Greatest comedy characters in wrestling history?

With so many attempts at comedy week after week from the WWE (and a lot of them failing), the one constant performer who hits the mark most of the time is Santino Marella, who for my money, has been the funniest guy they've had since The Rock in his prime. From his tea party for Sheamus ("Let's see, we have green tea, we have ginger tea--oh.") to getting laughs even when encountering Kane ("Where's Punk?!" "Did you try the Pepsi machine?"), Santino seems to get the job done every time. So I was wondering about who Scott Keith had in his pantheon of comedy-act wrestlers, as well as the Commenters of Doom.

First up, if you're reading this, I've managed to figure out a fix to the e-mail posting situation, so HUZZAH!

Second, I laughed heartily at Billy Gunn's entire career, so that might count.  If not, Mick Foley used to hit it out of the park when called upon to be the comedy guy, especially the classic stuff with E&C.  He had the timing down and he was a likeable enough guy that people would laugh with him as opposed to at him.  Big Show also has really good comic timing, even if the material hasn't always been the best.  Kurt Angle, of course.  Honky Tonk Man made a career out of comedy matches, although he was never really part of the era that did comedy outside of the ring.  

Comments

  1. Kurt Angle's comedic timing during the angle with heel Austin was awesome. He was really, really funny then and added to Edge and Christian's bits, too.

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  2. I was going to answer this before I realized this was my own e-mail that I sent Scott awhile ago. I guess going back farther than Santino, Paul Bearer's over-the-top promos always slayed me, pun intended. Legend has it he was aiming to get Taker to corpse, but god bless the Deadman, he kept it together no matter how much scenery Paul was nom-noming.

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  3. Booker T has given me a lot of my favourite funny moments. The supermarket fight with Austin, the skits with Goldust, singing "I'm just a Booker T" to the nwo, all great stuff. But the funniest was his complete personality change when he became King Booker. The faux-British accent, raising his pinky, calling Finlay "Squire", etc. But anytime he got really upset/flustered he would revert back to "Hood T" (like when Cryme Time stole his wallet).

    And I'm a complete, unabashed mark for his commentary, there I said it.

    Shucky ducky quack quack!

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  4. My absolute favourite has to be Scott Steiner. No one in wrestling history has given more genuine belly laughs than that guy (Booker, Rock, Austin included). The 10 minute or so mashup on YouTube of his "best" moments is gold, Jerry, gold!

    My favourite is when he starts ranting about Samoa Joe while the Main Event Mafia are having a sit down interview in the ring. He's going off and the others have to calm him down. There's that pause at the end before Steiner lets loose one last exasperated "He's FAT!" to the guys in protest.

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  5. Worst comic character in wrestling history: 2008-present John Cena

    As far as the best go, can't believe nobody has mentioned Regal yet.  He is the definition of dry wit and hilarious facial expressions in pro wrestling.  This thread can, and should, lead to the creation of a Great William Regal Faces tumblr page.

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  6. Just because he also does more than comedy doesn't mean that The Rock still isn't the most hilarious sports entertainer of all time.

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  7. The Fuj appreciates this.

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  8. Steiner is the greatest.

    I could watch his TNA promos all day.

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  9. "No big deal"

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAWpmJGQxBA

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  10. Funniest person was Bobby Heenan but only in his WWF days. His commentary which always aggravated Gorilla always cracked me up. His commentary during the 92 Royal Rumble always makes me laugh.

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  11. "Hey, my chicken suit"

    Best pay off line ever

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  12.  Booker T and Goldust were so damn funny every week. So many things to choose from but my fav was this one.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oe1XMuiSBu8

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  13. Sunny was involved in several hilarious angles and was pretty convinced to me.

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  14. Sting corpses in the background when he says "HE'S FAT"

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  15.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fe92m7nF7s

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  16. BINGO.. Glad to see I'm not the only one.. I clicked on this thread only to say THIS.. I will take Fuji & Muraco in 85/86 over anything/everything..

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  17. "Booker that really sounds...delicious."
    "...you damn right it sound delicious!"

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  18. Oh yeah, BookDust was awesome, WWE really dropped the ball with them not getting a long tag team title run despite being INSANELY over. Goldust tricking Booker into dressing up like a lumberjack for a lumberjack match was great.

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  19. Steiner's chances of being an all-time comedy classic stands somewhere at 141 2/3s chance of winning. Someone did an amazing typography graphic of Steiner's math promo. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFoC3TR5rzI

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  20. So all times is what you're saying? Roddy Piper, Ric Flair, Bobby Heenan, The Rock and Steve Austin.

    Not far off an overall all-time great Top 5. But as in all theatrics you have to have the drama with the comic relief. It makes a great character.(Santino's all comedy, no drama for instance)

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  21. Yeah, this is pretty damn hard to beat lol

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  22. I know I've mentioned this before, but one of my favorite all-time Heenan/Monsoon exchanges is from the WWF Hottest Matches 1990 tape in the Tito Santana vs Rick Martel match.

    Before the match begins, Heenan stages a bet with Gorilla -- if his man Martel wins, Gorilla has to buy Heenan dinner at the restaurant of The Brain's choice.  If Gorilla wins, the opposite occurs.

    Well when Martel does win the match (by cheating of course) Heenan starts screaming "I win!  I win!", continues gloating and then ends the segment with "Looks I'm getting the LARGE fries tonight!"  Of course Gorilla is exasperated.  I love that Heenan (the prototypical cheapskate with 'long pockets but short arms' as Gorilla would say) lets it slip that his idea of fine dining is McDonalds lol

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  23.  one of the comments mention Scott Steiner being behind Aces and Eights as a possibility... I don't know if that's a horrible or an AWESOME idea

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  24. Anything that get Steiner on my tv screen is full of WIN.

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  25. I agree with everything you just wrote. Spot on. Booker T and Goldust "At the Movies" still gives me a laugh.

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  26. Holy shit, that was great.
    Im still trying to find the promo where he asks the girl if she likes Joe. She says "I think he's kinda cute"

    Steiner then just rambles off this hilarious shit.

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  27. Threadjack, but Orton's suspension is over. Vince is reportedly angry that he failed another test, which probably means he's champion again in the next two months.

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  28. "If you were in this movie, thwey'd call it the Scorpion QUEEN!"
    "Tell me you did not just say that."

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  29. Her Facebook and Twitter are currently a neverending source of comedy, too.  

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  30. I always loved Jericho's ring introductions for the cruiserweight battle royal during Slamboree 98.

    The Fuji Vice were are great, though.

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  31. When he drank Jerichos piss that was pretty funny. "He besmirched me."

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  32. Bobby Heenan. When I had WWE 24-7, my favorite show was PrimeTime and it was 95% due to Bobby & Gorilla in between matches.

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  33. I completely agree with you. King booker fucking ruled. Plus I also like him on commentary. Imo he's the best announcer they have (that doesn't take or mean much though)

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  34. Don muraco was pretty funny. Remember when he wrestled that jobber while eating a sandwich?

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  35. Lawler USED to be funny...

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  36.  I love one of the promos leading up to WM18; one of the interview guys started with he question "You know Booker, there are some who say you're not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer..."

    Booker (who has glasses on for the first/only time), hits his double take and yells "WHAT?  I GOT GLASSES DON'T I?"

    There was another that cracked me up, after he turned face.  I can't remember who was cutting a promo in the back, but Booker interrupts, tells the guy what's up and then hits part of the catchphrase "NOW CAN YOU DIG THAT....."

    He just lets it trail off and walks away.  The wrestler and interviewer get back to the interview, and after maybe 5 words Booker storms back on the screen "SUCKAAAAAA!"

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  37. Christopher HirschJuly 30, 2012 at 8:21 AM

    Santino used to crack me up as a heel, as a face, not so much.

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  38. I agree. Don't get me wrong, he's funny as a face (look on YouTube for his backstage promo after he won the battle royal to get into this year's Smackdown Elimination Chamber) but as a heel, he was just amazing.

    Like when he attacked Ron Simmons and said, "DAMN!" in his thick accent.

    Or his entire time with Beth Phoenix, which was hilarious.

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  39. Or when he stole Jerry Stupid Lawler's sub sandwich.

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  40. Yeah, I always hearing Bobby in WCW really weird. He just wasn't into it as he barely seemed to know who was in the ring and didn't even care enough to insult the faces.

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  41. I loved his association with Tajiri (who also could be in the running for great comedy characters). Regal's facial expressions when Tajiri had his first match and was bringing out his great kicks was awesome as was one backstage skit where the two made fun of X-Pac and how he sucks.

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  42. Bret Hart's El Dandy promo doesn't make him the greatest comedy character ever (obviously) but it's definitely one of the funniest promos ever.

    That Terry Funk promo about Jackie Fargo that Scott posted a few weeks back STILL makes me laugh when I think about it.

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  43. He's funny...but not "ha-ha" funny.

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  44. Not a career, but this promo by Dr. D David Schultz is an all-time classic. NOW WITH MORE MEAN GENE CORPSING (not really):

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEIzkLr7JzQ

    Careerwise: Yeah, I'm going with Steiner. Silver to Jim Cornette Pre-1990 (Mid-South, WCCW, and JCP), and Bronze to Bobby Heenan.

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  45. WCW Jericho was pulling out the funny every week.  His Spinal Tap tribute may be the greatest thing in wrestling ever.

    "Hello Lexington!"

    And I also got a kick out of Levy's Scotty Flamingo and Johnny Polo stuff.

    NWA Cornette was hilarious every week.

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  46. It's horrible only b/c THERE'S NO WAY Steiner can possibly say "Aces & Eights"

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  47. Cena is anti-comedy, much like Jim Belushi

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  48. "Who are you to doubt El Dandy?" always gets the most attention, but his "What about Hypnosis?" flub a few seconds later kills me as well.

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  49. It's part of the same promo. After that math spiel, he asks her if she'd prefer him or Joe. "SEE YOU'RE DA TYPE OF GURL WHO LIKES RO-MANCE!"

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  50. WERD!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-Rvu-C-RxI

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  51. Wow, I've never seen Mean Gene crack like that. Classic.

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  52. "I'm going to open up a can of the ass whip!"

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  53. Kurt Angle, Steve Austin, Big Show, and Mick Foley always make some great comedy. Even before Stone Cold made it a point to specifically focus on being "loony" and funny, his general insanity from 1996-98 was hilarious.

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  54. One time in college I was stoned on hydro pot and started giggling for about 10 minutes because the stooges were acting "wacky." I also laughed pretty hard when, after not having seen it for 10 years, I saw King King Bundy elbowdrop Little Beaver. (I wasn't stoned for that one) 

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  55. Perry Saturn having a mop for a girlfriend and randomly saying "You're welcome!". 

    Loved Jason Sensation doing his perfect Owen Hart impersonation- complete with big fake nose. 

    Commissioner Foley made me laugh at least once a week, even if it was a corny pun or something.

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  56. Bobby the Brain, first and foremost, followed by Piper and Foley, with Jericho bringing up the rear. Of course, in all fairness, none of these guys were strictly "comedy characters".

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  57.  The only other time I can recall him losing it was this Ken Patera classic.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RVmSHMsAbA

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  58. Since people are mentioning WCW, that leaves Japan open, which makes my choice easy; Kikutaro.

    http://youtu.be/Mp7plD5JeRM

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  59. And something awesome just for Scott... THE JAPANESE SCREW-JOB!

    http://youtu.be/ky_b-RLCWVY

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  60. It's kind of crazy how legitimately good Angle was at the comedy stuff. When he was coming in, I expected a good athlete who could probably adapt to be a good wrestler, but I'm not sure I ever would have expected how good he was at just being hilarious, but in a way where he could act like a goofball in the back and then go out and kill someone in the ring. "I tore my quad this morning! I'm here, I'm jumping around!" is still one of my favorite wrestling lines.

    Edge, Christian, and Foley would be my other three favorites. Santino's really good, and yeah, Big Show is actually really funny, they just don't always have the best stuff for him. Flair could be when he wanted to be, his reactions were always so over the top that they became funny (intentionally most of the time, I believe). Was just watching Royal Rumble 2005, which had some of the best backstage skits of any show ever. That was the one featuring Eddie Guerrero stealing Flair's number (and wallet), Christian having a rap battle with Cena ("Tomko, give me a beat." "No."), and a drunk JBL ranting about how he's a wrestling god to Teddy Long.  

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