Forgotten Superstars: MIZZ Georgia Hase!

     Last week when I wrote about the MLB draft, I mentioned the Guardians first-round selection Ralphie Velasquez and how the name reminded me of the diminutive gentleman to the left, Ralphie Valladares of the "World Famous Los Angeles T-Birds" of the now defunct Roller Derby and its failed 1989-1990 comeback as RollerGames.

However, that reference reminded me of the greatest personality of Roller Derby and just how good she was at getting heat from the fans.

Georgia Hase managed the Detroit Devils of the original Roller Derby league and "Bad Attitude" of the revamped RollerGames as the main heel manager during the lifespan of the two leagues.

I think so highly of "Mizz" Hase's (That's how the television broadcasts always spelled) ability to infuriate the fans and add to the product that I would rank her just under Bobby "The Brain" Heenan and Jim Cornette as "managers" in the realm of  "pre-determined" athletic competition.

Hase played the feminist villain that played to the phobias of the roller derby fan by insinuating that she was a lesbian (I honestly don't know if she was or wasn't in her private life), insisting on being called "Mizz" to play off the women's movement's adaptation of the term "Ms" when spoken to by an interviewer, and generally pulling various tactics that pushed the rulebook to its limits in an effort to defeat those popular T-Birds.  

When you have some experience watching pro wrestling from the time that managers were used, it's easy to pick up on Hase's similarity to Bobby Heenan, especially with the black jumpsuit with the embroidery on the back as seen in the Hase photo above.

Heenan used the same trick to stir up the fans with one version that stated "Bobby Heenan #1" and a lesser-used version "California", which was certain to make Heenan loved as he referenced himself often as hailing from California, Beverly Hills, and Hollywood to place himself above the "Ham and Eggers" as Heenan often referred to wrestling fans.

Hase's use of "Rose" to appear ladylike and classy to an audience that viewed her as neither worked equally well in raising the ire of the skating fans that saw her as neither of those adjectives!

Hase apparently was a skater in the sport before transitioning to the heel manager spot which made her the memorable performer that she was.

I have no doubt that had a wrestling promotion decided to use Hase as their top heel mouthpiece (which would have been way too forward-thinking for the wrestling business) that she could have been a star for that business as well.

The only thing that I would wonder about with Hase in pro wrestling would be her ability to take the big bumps that a wrestling manager needs to take and I'd think that would be unlikely to be an issue with Hase's past taking similar bumps in roller derby.

Georgia Hase passed away in 2015 and unless you remember her from the prime access days of roller derby, it's unlikely that you'll remember her today but she's worth remembering or even checking out on YouTube if you are unfamiliar with her.

If you watch and immediately find yourself thinking "What an obnoxious woman!", "Mizz" Georgia Hase did her job and did it very well.