Love That Danhausen

[WolfofWords]

Since I have been getting back into the world of pro-wrestling, I have been once again scouring YouTube for my beloved weirdos. I love good technical skill but I am a sucker for a strange gimmick. These are the performers who are often polarizing like Orange Cassidy, Abadon, Alexa Bliss, and more. One of the names that has gained a cult following online is Danhausen and for good reason. The performer (named Donovan Danhausen) has created a compelling little weirdo and the gimmick is really going places.



Not much is known about Danhausen because he is shrouded in mystery and his answers in interviews are either evasive or made up on the spot. What we do know is that he comes to the ring with his face painted like a death metal musician, spooky leather pants, and extensive tattoos. He does not have the best physique but he is definitely pretty fit. He comes off as nerdy and awkward through his movements but is definitely capable of technical wrestling. Like other comedy wrestlers, if he was not good at wrestling, he would not be as popular. People buy into the weirdness but at the end of the day, he gets things done.



Danhausen speaks in the third person and often adds 'hausen' at the end of words in his sentences. He speaks with an odd, high-pitched voice that his performer describes as "a mix between Conan O'Brien and Mark Hammill's Joker". Danhausen is entirely focused on wrestling supremacy as a means to dominate the world and get sacks of cash. Everything he does is focused on that goal. As part of that, he does not care much for other pro-wrestlers. He often gets their name wrong either through apathy or as a psychological tactic. Either way, it definitely throws people off of their game. The only wrestlers that he manages to befriend are ones that he feels will get him closer to his goals.



For example, he has recently teamed up with the French-Canadian Frankenstein PCO. The two work well together. PCO is not the brightest barbarian but he can take a lot of damage and deal just as much to opponents. Danhausen is more wily and quick and the combination is really starting to turn some heads in the Ring of Honor tag division. Teaming these two popular misfits together seems odd at first but makes a lot of sense. PCO is not much of a talker, Danhausen cannot stop talking even during matches. Danhausen sees himself as an evil mastermind and PCO does not care as long as he gets to hurt people.

Let's run through some other parts of Danhausen's gimmick.

NO SWEARING!



Danhausen hates it when anybody on camera with him swears. It is not that he objects to swear words but he objects to what swear words do. If somebody swears in a YouTube video or on Ring of Honor episodes, that segment might be censored or cut. That means less money for Danhausen. Danhausen may be very evil but he is also very practical. He recognizes that demonetization has become a big thing on YouTube and other platforms and he wants to prevent it from interfering with him receiving huge sacks of cash (which he strangely calls "human money").

Teeth



Danhausen carries a jar of human teeth to the ring. Nobody is sure where Danhausen obtains these teeth but he promises that they are ethically sourced. He has claimed that some were sent to him by actor/wrestler David Arquette. He may have stolen some from other people. The teeth understandably confuse his opponents who are not expecting people to bring teeth down to the ring. When he has his opponent down, he will often pour the teeth into their mouth and then hit them so that he has effectively knocked their teeth out.

Tequila!



Danhausen admires Pee Wee Herman. Herman is a great warrior in Danhausen's eyes because he faced down a whole bar full of bikers once by performing a dance to the song Tequila by The Champs. Danhausen has adopted this warrior song for his own use. In the middle of a match, the music may start up which prompts Danhausen to dance like Pee Wee did. However, he adds in a few kicks to his opponent as he dances.

Adaptation to Weirdness

Danhausen is able to mesh with other strange wrestlers. He has fought the eternally lazy Orange Cassidy in the past. He has the aforementioned tag team with PCO. However, on the indy scene, he had two tag teams that really showed off his strangeness. The first was with WARHORSE whose name is capitalized for good reason because he is loud and forceful. The other tag team was with queer wrestler Effy who formed the tag team Gaytanic Panic with Danhausen. Danhausen adapts really well to the gimmick of whoever he is facing and alters his gimmicks to work with the match. Here are some examples:

[WolfofWords]

My boy's hit the big time now!



He's also apparently living under the ring now.

[WolfofWords]

His brand new entrance music now that his leg has healed up and he is back in the ring.

[scooter]

I am so into this song. There is a seriously heavy B-52s/Aquabats/Reel Big Fish/Big D and the Kids Table vibe and that means lots of fun. Any man who comes out into the ring with this gimmick is no man to be trifled with.

[WolfofWords]

I am so into this song. There is a seriously heavy B-52s/Aquabats/Reel Big Fish/Big D and the Kids Table vibe and that means lots of fun. Any man who comes out into the ring with this gimmick is no man to be trifled with.

He is very nice and very evil.

[WolfofWords]

Danhausen's Wife - Lou Lou la Duchesse de Rière



https://easterndoor.com/2022/06/13/lou- ... tic-world/

[scooter]

Danhausen's Wife - Lou Lou la Duchesse de Rière



https://easterndoor.com/2022/06/13/lou- ... tic-world/

Have I mentioned that I love this guy?

And his wife?

[WolfofWords]

A feud that appeared only on Twitter last year finally made it onto live television at AEW Forbidden Door. Danhausen has a habit of not knowing, remembering, or caring about people's names. For example, he calls Tony Khan "Tony Elite" because Tony is the owner of All Elite Wrestling. When Danhausen's leg was broken and he was sitting at home recovering, he was watching AEW television. He greatly respected Billy Gunn from his current career and his time in the WWF/WWE. He must have half-remembered Billy's name because Billy used to be called "Bad Ass" Billy Gunn. Danhausen referred to him as Billy Ass. Now, Billy has formed a trio with his two sons Colton and Austin Gunn which they call The Gunn Club. Danhausen naturally started to call the two brothers "the Ass Boys" because their dad was Mr. Ass. Colton and Austin have been going crazy over it ever since Danhausen brought it up because it filtered into AEW programming. Recently, Danhausen came out live and had his version of their theme song played which enraged the brothers so much that they abandoned their spot in a four-on-four tag match.

Here is the Ass Boys theme:



And here is the inspiration from their father's theme back in the day: