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A 21 Face-Rubber Band Salute
You actually have to pull the face-rubber bands while they’re on your face to properly (and respectfully) launch them.
A lot of you are too young to remember Captain Lou Albano, but to us children of the late 70’s and early 80’s he was a pop-culture fixture. The 1980’s stood in such stark contrast to the 2000’s in that a big, fat, hairy, sweaty dude with rubber bands stuck to his face could be a pop icon. It’s not like Captain Lou has constantly been on my mind for the last 25 years, but his recent passing unlocked a flood of memories of being 8 years old and him being EVERYWHERE. He was freakin’ MARIO for Toad’s sake. The Super Mario Super Show seemed less like a scripted children’s show and more like a late night public access affair (but with a MUCH lower budget). Captain Lou portrayed what seemed to be a pre or post mushroom kingdom Mario that lived and worked as a plumber in a big city (presumably New York) with his brother-in-overalls Luigi. I lean towards “pre “because he wasn’t constantly waking from night terrors shivering and screaming about carnivorous fungi and flame belching, man-sized lizard people. In between Mario’s Earthbound hijinks, they would show Super Mario Bros. cartoons that seemed to be set in the universe of Super Mario Bros. 2. It was never clear how the cartoons and the live-action show were supposed to be related but 8 year olds typically don’t ask those sort of questions. We just watched the show, ate our Ninja Turtles cereal and occasionally did “The Mario” for hours on end.
In remembering how Captain Lou affected my childhood, I would be remiss to leave out Hulk Hogan’s Rock N’ Wrestling cartoon. Captain Lou didn’t actually voice himself in this short-lived animated ridiculousness (neither did any of the other WWF wrestlers for that matter) but I absolutely LOVED this show. The idea that all of my favorite wrestlers were driving around in giant Cadillacs and monster trucks and having adventures and doing good deeds appealed to my… gullibility.
So, rest easy Captain Lou. I don’t know if you were a great man, or even a good one but you entertained me as a child and for that I am grateful.
- Farewell, Captain Lou Albano
- Wrestler, personality Captain Lou Albano dies at 76
- Flashback: Albano and Lauper Engage in Father-Daughter Smackdown in “Piper’s Pit”
- 6-year-old boy floats away in homemade helium balloon (at this moment, the scary live video shows him flying through the Colorado skies; update: he wasn’t inside)
- Top Ten Celebrity Balloon Boy Tweets
- Balloon Boy Gets Fresh Prince Treatment on Facebook
- Balloon Boy: “…We did this for the show.”
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October 16th, 2009 at 11:31 pm
hahaha "extra life in the sky"
awesome!
October 16th, 2009 at 11:46 pm
I giggled at the kid in the balloon. Nice touch.
October 16th, 2009 at 11:46 pm
Ah.. the Mario, an often misunderstood and overlooked dance. Fair well paisano.
P.S. – what the hell is on Joshes face?
October 17th, 2009 at 12:56 am
sniff… why couldn't it have been John Leguizamo or Bob Hoskins?…
October 17th, 2009 at 1:04 am
GO FALCON GO!
Or should that be… FALCON PUNCH!?
October 17th, 2009 at 1:07 am
Hello? Face rubber bands.
October 17th, 2009 at 1:07 am
With a name like Falcon he belongs in the sky.
October 16th, 2009 at 8:29 pm
Okay, I always get a good chuckle out of these things, but I am on the floor in (good) tears over this one. Very well played, sir.
October 16th, 2009 at 11:50 pm
Ah.. the Mario, an often misunderstood and overlooked dance. Fair well paisano.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65uNCLBTje0&fe...
P.S. – what the hell is on Joshes face?
October 17th, 2009 at 6:48 am
Anyone else loving the sad expression on everyones face as they break out in dance?
Excellent!
October 17th, 2009 at 7:29 am
Yes! I was just about to comment on that myself
October 17th, 2009 at 2:51 pm
This comic was so funny, it made me spit water all over.
I will be over here too, doing the Mario as mournfully as possible.
You know though, those cartoons were all released on DVD a while back. I wonder if Captain Lou's segments are in there with them?
October 17th, 2009 at 6:39 pm
I distinctly remember getting a little too excited every time SMB came on television. I never knew when it was on (I found out later that's because it was in syndication after only having one season), but I always enjoyed it, despite supporting the losing side in the console wars (Sega).
My last year in college I dressed up as Lou for a 70s/80s themed party. Everyone thought I was Ron Jeremy.
October 17th, 2009 at 6:40 pm
Are we really adding another one to the pile of celebrity deaths this year? It's too bad. I distinctly remember getting a little too excited every time SMB came on television. I never knew when it was on (I found out later that's because it was in syndication after only having one season), but I always enjoyed it, despite supporting the losing side in the console wars (Sega).
My last year in college I dressed up as Lou for a 70s/80s themed party. Everyone thought I was Ron Jeremy.
October 17th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
*facepalm* of course
October 18th, 2009 at 4:54 am
i figured Id get a jump on all the "balloon boy" comics that will be out on Monday.
October 18th, 2009 at 4:55 am
you take that back! Bob Hoskins is a Saint!
(my god that movie was a head rape)
October 18th, 2009 at 4:56 am
your tears fuel my massive LOLengine.
October 18th, 2009 at 4:57 am
if they released those DVD's minus the nonsensical live action scenes its a fucking travesty.
October 18th, 2009 at 4:57 am
They are essentially the same dude except for the porn.
October 19th, 2009 at 1:03 am
Balloon boy could also be a reference to someone who loves or smuggles heroin.
October 19th, 2009 at 1:05 am
I actually liked the Super Mario Brothers movie. Leguizamo is awesome in everything he does.
October 19th, 2009 at 1:06 am
tears and kitty blood…
October 19th, 2009 at 1:23 am
Mario and Luigi double up on the Princess they must have made that porn already…
October 19th, 2009 at 3:17 am
I'd do the google search, but I value my sanity.
October 19th, 2009 at 4:46 am
Drives a giant gun that launches chezburgers at a frightening velocity…
October 19th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
Ok I gotta ask… What's the deal with Josh's face hoop? Is this something Capt. Albano had at some point or is this to mirror Josh's current appearance?
Love the viking beard though, Josh. [Insert gay plunder reference]
October 19th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
Google image search Captain Lou Albano. He used to put rubberbands in his face. Some say it was in piercings but I think they were tied into his beard hair. Hence the title of the comic.
October 25th, 2009 at 12:16 am
[...] HijiNKS Ensue – Geek Webcomic – Updates Monday, Wednesday and Friday » Archive » A 21 Face-Rub…. [...]
October 27th, 2009 at 3:55 am
[...] HijiNKS Ensue – Geek Webcomic – Updates Monday, Wednesday and … [...]
December 19th, 2009 at 2:22 am
Actually I have the DVDs. The have the live-action, the cartoon, the commercial for the next Legend of Zelda episode in some, and of course, the credits featuring Lou doing the Mario.