Curtis Michael “Curt” Hennig, also known by the ring pseudonym “Mr. Perfect”, was a professional wrestler, manager, and “color” commentator of American birth who, during the course of a long and storied kayfabe career worked for many professional wrestling promotions including, but not limited to, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Hennig was the son of wrestler Larry Hennig, and father to a wrestling superstar of current WWE affiliation, Michael McGillicutty. 

     Hennig became a four-time world champion, having at various (non-consecutive) times held the AWA World Heavyweight Championship (over a year), the WWC Universal Heavy Weight Championship (once), and the i-Generation World Heavy Weight Championship (twice). Hennig also became the WWF Intercontinental Champion on two occasions.

     Long since considered one of the “greatest” Intercontinental Champions of all time, Hennig was the longest-running server in that capacity during the 1990s. Indeed, Hennig was soon credited with helping to bring the importance of the Intercontinental Championship closer in status to that of the WWF Championship during the decade. 

Despite being repeatedly hampered in his efforts by recurring back problems which prevented Hennig from being considered as a WWF Championship contender, he nonetheless challenged for said title and managed to enjoy some success in managerial and “color” commentary roles during sporadic leaves of absence from active competition. In addition to circa-1990s WCW championship success, Hennig also managed to become a member of the infamous New World Order and later the West Texas Rednecks, a combination wrestling stable/country music group who recorded the infamous West Texas anthem, “Rap Is Crap”. Afterwards, Hennig returned to the WWF for a brief period in 2002, ultimately managing to become one of the last three men “standing” at the Royal Rumble. He then wrestled sporadically for TNA, challenging for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. 

During the course of the buildup for Hennig’s final Royal Rumble, it was announced that he would be one of the 30 combatants. Billing himself as Kurt “Mr. Perfect” Hennig, he managed to enter the event at #25, ultimately being eliminated by “Triple H”. “Mr. Perfect” made a stronger than expected showing at the Rumble, hitting the “Perfect-Plex” on Kurt Angle, as well as holding his own with the WWF’s best at the time. However, he was released by the WWF, following an alleged physical confrontation with Brock Lesnar. 

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     Hennig’s dead wrestler cred was sealed on February 10, 2003, when he was found deceased in a Florida hotel room at the premature age of 44. The Hillsborough County Medical Examiner’s Office declared acute cocaine intoxication to be the direct cause of his death, although others, among them Hennig’s own father, declared that steroids and painkillers also contributed to Hennig’s untimely demise. However, Hennig was indeed survived by his parents, Larry and Irene, two brothers, Randolph “Randy” and Jesse, and two sisters, Sandra and Susan, as well as his wife Leonice and four children, Joe, Amy, Kate, and “Hank”.