Pro wrestler best known for dressing in what the promoters thought was African tribal attire, speaking in grunts, and slapping his rather ample stomach a lot (he was 6'7" and weighed 400 pounds). In reality his name was James Harris and he was from Mississippi, but Jerry Lawler didn't think his normal speaking voice was menacing enough so they created the Kamala persona. (I didn't headline this obituary RIP Kamala Harris, which would probably have been misinterpreted). In later years, he had serious health problems and had both legs amputated due to complications from diabetes. He died of the coronavirus.
Needless to say, you wouldn't see Kamala's shtick today, even in the WWE.
Sad to hear the news. At one live show I attended, Kamala was beating up the victim of the week, when a drunk spectator climbed over the railing and jumped on his manager's back. Both Kamala and the victim stopped and looked at the real fight going on outside the ring as security grabbed the guy. Then they went back to their regularly scheduled mayhem.
Re: RIP Kamala the Ugandan Headhunter
Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2020 9:33 am
by T_Bone0806
A very good friend of mine met and got to talk to him for a bit. Said he was the very definition of the cliched "Gentle Giant"..humble, soft-spoken, etc. Not what you'd expect from the character he played.
Re: RIP Kamala the Ugandan Headhunter
Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2020 9:34 am
by mikehardware
Sad to hear the news. At one live show I attended, Kamala was beating up the victim of the week, when a drunk spectator climbed over the railing and jumped on his manager's back. Both Kamala and the victim stopped and looked at the real fight going on outside the ring as security grabbed the guy. Then they went back to their regularly scheduled mayhem.
