Top Five Members of the Heenan Family

Brian Damage

Bobby ‘The Brain’ Heenan managed some of the biggest and brightest names in the history of professional wrestling. Some with great success and others…not so much. Here are the top five members of his stable…the Heenan Family.

Honorable Mentions: Blackjack Lanza, Ric Flair (although more of a spokesperson for Flair and not a true member of the Heenan Family), the Brain Busters, Haku and Harley Race.

Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff

One of my all time favorite pairings was when Paul Orndorff turned heel on Hulk Hogan and aligned with Bobby Heenan. In my honest opinion, Mr Wonderful should have had at least a brief world title run based on the fact that he and Heenan combined to make Orndorff a top, red hot heel. The pairing was hot and then cold with Orndorff firing the Brain, not once , but twice….but still a great tandem.

Ravishing Rick Rude

In real life, Heenan and Rude weren’t exactly the best of friends, but there is no denying the two worked well with each other. Rude went on to capture the Intercontinental title and challenged the Ultimate Warrior for the world title.

Mr. Perfect

Talk about a perfect combination! It certainly seemed that way between Bobby and Curt Hennig aka Mr. Perfect. Great chemistry and it was Hennig that snagged Heenan’s first taste of gold in the WWF.

Nick Bockwinkel

It may surprise some younger fans, but Bobby Heenan actually worked as a manager in other promotions. other than the WWF. In the AWA, Heenan had a stable consisting of Blackjack Lanza, Bobby Duncum and his crown jewel…the AWA world champion Nick Bockwinkel. Heenan and Bockwinkel were impeccable together and were the big stars of the AWA during their better years.

Andre the Giant

While Bobby Heenan never managed Andre to the world title…he definitely helped make Andre a bonafide heel in his mega feud with Hulk Hogan. Andre the Giant also helped elevate Heenan as the top manager in the WWF with his alignment with the Heenan Family.