Gene LeBell

"Judo" Gene LeBell the "Godfather of Grappling" was both a renowned ex-world champion in both wrestling/judo, and one of Hollywood's busiest stuntmen. He is highly respected by many martial artists all over the world, and considered a groundbreaker in many aspects of the art of grappling. Gene started training in judo at a young age, and at the age of 20 in 1954, he won National AAU Heavyweight Judo Championship and the USA Overall Judo Championship title. He went on to win the both the Heavyweight and overall champion title 1955 as well. After an illustrious judo career, he tried his hand at professional wrestling, and actually won the heavyweight title in Amarillo, Texas. However, in his excitement, Gene swung the title belt around his head, which accidentally hit one of the wrestling commissioners on the head, causing a nasty gash. The belt was immediately seized from the shocked Gene, which in later years would cause him to comment, "Well, at least I was the champ for 12 seconds and I retired as champion." Gene went on to fight numerous opponents over the years including practitioners from other fighting arts that scoffed at his prowess, however they learned the hard way that Gene's superb grappling skills were the real deal. He has trained with numerous other world champion martial artists including Chuck Norris, Bill Wallace, and Benny Urquidez. He acted and contributed stunt work to Hollywood productions for over fifty years. He can be seen in TV shows including Mission: Impossible (1966), I Spy (1965), The Wild Wild West (1965), Baretta (1975), Married... with Children (1987), and Baywatch (1989). His feature film appearances include Raging Bull (1980), Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985), Bad Guys (1986), Ed Wood (1994), and Men in Black II (2002). LeBell was still teaching grappling and doing stunts in his 70s. He was a Nevada and California Athletic Commission judge. He judged UFC 74 (Randy Couture vs. Gabriel Gonzaga) plus he had a highly popular website visited by martial arts and film fans all over the globe. Gene LeBell had three children including stuntman son David LeBell and FBI agent daughter Monica LeBell Pandis. He also had 8 grandchildren.