Lord Humongous is a

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

character also known as a "

gimmick A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand ou ...

" that was originally introduced in Memphis'

Continental Wrestling Association Continental Wrestling Association (later the Championship Wrestling Association) was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually ref ...

(CWA) in 1984. The character was based on a gang leader called "the Humungus" or at times "Lord Humungus" from the 1981 movie '' Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior''. The original Lord Humongous was portrayed by Mike Stark, who was tall and physically impressive like the character in the movie. Since Lord Humongous always wears a

Hockey mask A goaltender mask, commonly referred to as a goalie mask, is a mask worn by goaltenders in a variety of sports to protect the head and face from injury from the ball or puck, as they constantly face incoming shots on goal. Some sports requiring th ...

it allowed promoters to replace the man under the mask without having to publicly acknowledge that it was someone else playing the part. The character became a recurring gimmick on the CWA but was also used in other promotions after the CWA closed. The character has been played by a number of wrestlers including

Jeff Van Camp Sr. Jeff Van Camp Sr. (born April 3, 1962) is an American police officer and retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Association and Southeast Championship Wrestling in the mid-1980s under his real ...

Sid Vicious John Simon Ritchie (10 May 1957 – 2 February 1979), better known by his stage name Sid Vicious, was an English musician, best known as the bassist for the punk rock band Sex Pistols. Despite dying in 1979 at age 21, he remains an icon of the ...

and

Barry Buchanan Barry Buchanan (born January 15, 1968) is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Entertainment (WWF/WWE) under the ring names Recon, Bull Buchanan and B² and ...

and Sid's son Gunnar Eudy. Scott Hall wrestled as Lord Humongous in PWF out of Florida in 1989. John King wrestled as Lord Humongous in 1985 Texas All Star Wrestling along with Mad Maxx John Richmond aka Eli the Eliminator managed by Slick.

Character history

The character was introduced as

Manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

Jimmy Hart James Ray Hart (born January 1, 1944) is an American professional wrestling manager, executive, composer, and musician currently signed with WWE in a Legends deal. He is best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World ...

's latest "Monster

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower Human leg, leg. Structure To distribute the compressive for ...

" (wrestling term for someone who portrays the "bad guys" in the ring) to challenge

(CWA) dominant

face The face is the front of an animal's head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may aff ...

(someone who plays the "good guy" in the ring)

Jerry "the King" Lawler Jerry O'Neil Lawler (born November 29, 1949), better known as Jerry "The King" Lawler, is an American color commentator and professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, although he has not performed as a full-time commentator since Ap ...

. The original Lord Humongous was portrayed by Mike Stark, chosen for his impressive physique. Based on the character "the Humungus" from '' Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior'' movie Lord Humongous would always wear a

that would cover his entire face as well as ring gear that resembled the post-apocalyptic world of Mad Max 2. Stark only played Lord Humongous for the first couple of months of 1984 before he was replaced by

Jeff Van Camp Jeff Van Camp (born September 9, 1987) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at Florida Atlantic University, under head coach Howard Schnellenberger, as well as high school football at Navarre High School in Navarre ...

under the mask without the CWA revealing that it was a different man playing the part. Lord Humongous (Jeff Van Camp Sr.) was introduced to the public with an official music video “War Machine” by

KISS A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

and became a theme song when entering the ring. Later on CWA would reuse the Lord Humongous ring character some young wrestlers who had a very muscular physique. One such wrestler was

Sid Eudy Sidney Raymond Eudy (born December 16, 1960) is an American former professional wrestler. He is best known for his various Sid gimmicks, each distinguished by the ring names Sid Justice, Sid Vicious, and Sycho Sid in World Championship Wrestlin ...

who played Lord Humongous in 1987. He would later move on to work for both

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nation ...

(WCW) and the

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

(WWF) under various names including "Sid Vicious" "Sid Justice" and "Sycho Sid." Sid would go on to win the

WWF Championship The WWE Championship is a world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, representing the Raw brand division. It is one of two world titles on WWE's main roster, alongside SmackDown's ...

and WCW World Heavyweight championship belts. In the 1990s rookie

would play the part of Lord Humongous before moving on to working for the WWF as Bull Buchanan. In 2009 Sid's son Gunnar Eudy, a rookie with an impressive physique, played the same part his father did 22 years earlier as he competed as Lord Humongous. John Gavin has played the role of Lord Humongous off and on since 1984 while John Bass also played the part from 1999 to 2010.

List of wrestlers who portrayed Lord Humongous

References

{{Reflist

External links

University of Memphis Webpage of Mike Stark (the original Lord Humongous)
Professional wrestling gimmicks Masked wrestlers