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"Mr. Kryptonite", Gene LeBell Passes Away at Age 89
Legendary Hollywood stuntman and martial artist Gene LeBell has passed away at the age of 89.
LeBell was well known within the Superman community for his portrayal as "Mr. Kryptonite" during public appearances with "Adventures of Superman" star George Reeves. While Reeves would talk to the crowd, Lebell would appear as "Mr. Kryptonite" and hit Reeves in the head with a balsa wood baseball bat. Reeves would then "subdue" LeBell to the delight of fans.
"It was customary in those days for the production companies to have the stars travel from town to town and put on live performances that were based on the television show the actor was presently starring in," stated LeBell in a prior interview. "I remember while on location in Louisville Kentucky, George and I would hang out together between shows, go to eat or catch a picture show at a local movie house. Sometimes we would play around and wrestle each other for fun. George liked to wrestle with me all the time, just to see if he could beat me. When we were on stage, we would fight and he would win but that was part of the show. George would wear his Superman outfit, the one he wore on television, and I would wear an outfit that was exactly like George's. My outfit had a cape and was all black with a big white letter "K" on the chest. I was called Mr. Kryptonite. On stage we did this gag that was a comedy-wrestling bit. I would come on stage, pick up the damsel in distress, put her over my shoulder and start to run off. George would jump off a riser dressed as Superman, he and I would wrestle around and fight. Of course he would win because he was Superman."
Nicknamed "The Godfather of Grappling", LeBell popularized grappling in professional fighting circles, serving as a precursor to modern mixed martial arts. He took up catch wrestling under Ed "Strangler" Lewis at age 7, and later moved to also train judo. After getting his black belt, he went to Japan to train in judo at the Kodokan and was also taught by famous martial arts trainer Karl Gotch and professional wrestler Lou Thesz.
In 2000, the United States Ju-Jitsu Federation (USJJF) promoted LeBell to 9th dan in jujitsu and taihojutsu. On August 7, 2004, the World Martial Arts Masters Association promoted him to 10th degree. In February 2005, the USJJF made him 9th dan in judo.
LeBell also worked on over 1,000 films & TV shows and was the inspiration for the character of Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt) in Quentin Tarantino's 2019 film, "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood".
LeBell passed away in his sleep on August 9, 2022 and is survived by his wife Midge and children David LeBell, Monica LeBell Pandis and Danny Martindale.
The staff of the Superman Super Site extends our deepest thoughts and prayers to the LeBell family during this difficult time of mourning.
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