RIP DEAN RASMUSSEN

[dogwelder]

RIP Dean. I'll always remember how enthusiastic he was about those hated Dallas Cowboys and DAK-!

[SirFozzie]

 

The DVDVR issues were my introduction to a wrestling universe outside of the Big Two. Southern Indies? Survival Tobita? (Other) obscure Japanese Indies? He had a outsized affect on wrestling fandom. and specifically MY wrestling fandom. There was a lot of backbiting, overly serious Inside Baseball (TM) writing at the time, it was exhausting, and he was a mark for the business in the best possible way. He thought that professional wrestling was one of the greatest thing in the universe, and he wanted you to feel the same way. It's quite possible without DVDVR and its affect on wrestling fans, we wouldn't have had AEW.

I'm going to miss him greatly, and not just when I try to make a horrendous wrestling pun just get a reaction out of him. In the tradition of Eddie Guerrero, I'm going to steal something he used to finish every AEW review where he would gush about some of the stuff we just saw.

 

Dean Rasmussen rules the Motherfucking universe~!

 

 

[Andy Stowell]

Incredibly sad news. Always felt a kinship (we shared the exact same birthday) and absolutely gut punch on the news. I loved how he was always posting Indy wrestling matches that showcased wrestling from around the world. Condolences to his family on their great loss.

[elizium]

Terrible. Much too soon, I am gutted for his family. A lot of you were so close with him, I’m so sorry you lost your friend

RIP DEAN 

and 

NANIWA~!

[Clayton Jones]

RIP Dean

[w. josh]

Terrible news. DEAN opened up an entire world of professional wrestling for me long ago, and I will always be grateful to him for that. Gutted for his family, close friends, and all of us on the periphery who just got to share his love of wrestling. 

[AaronMLuke]

RIP DEAN. Condolences to his family.  Horrible news. 

[Custos]

RIP DEAN, so sad to read this news, even sadder thinking of those here and in his family who were so much closer to him. 
Scoping out DVDVR in 2006ish cemented my ‘hardcore’ and undying love for wrestling, simply wouldn’t have fully unlocked this source of joy in my life without DEAN (and of course RIPPA and the other fine folks here), like countless others no doubt. 

[Pete]

21 minutes ago, dogwelder said:

RIP Dean. I'll always remember how enthusiastic he was about those hated Dallas Cowboys and DAK-!

I'll never forgive the Cowboys for denying the world of a Dean Rasmussen playoff beard that would've rolled over into the following season if they won the Super Bowl.

I have so many memories of Dean's friendship to share, including getting hopelessly, hilariously lost somewhere in the wilds of Ontario as we tried to drive home from Ottawa. Maybe tomorrow, when it hurts a bit less.

[Kevin Wilson]

"______ was one of the good ones" is a common cliché when someone passes away but with Dean it is absolutely true. I've been posting on DVDVR for almost 20 years now and while I only had a handful of one on one conversations with Dean, I've always loved his posts and reviews. His enthusiasm was always appreciated and his writing style was infectious. I've NEVER heard anyone say a cross word about Dean, which says so much about his character and how he carried himself. 

RIP DEAN, you will be sorely missed but never forgotten.

[Infinit]

9 hours ago, TimWresPowr said:

I will have much longer form thoughts at some point as I’ve known DEAN since 1996.  Had the privilege of giving his personality an outlet on public access and later podcasts.  I wish I had been in touch with him more over the past 3 years.  Anyway, all the love and support for his family.

For those asking earlier about the old podcasts we used to do that became a free-for-all, here’s a google drive link to them.  Maybe I’ll search the PC for the liner notes on who/what were on each show, but any show with DEAN you can’t go wrong with.

Burning Hammer archive

Thank you for sharing the link!

[glfpunk]

What an awesome community this is.  Reading through this thread and seeing all the stories of how Dean has impacted so many people has really been great.  We're all lucky to have had Dean in our lives.  Dean was one of a kind and there will never be another like him.  Dean took me to my first wrestling match.  Dean was super late to a show he was playing to come help me buy my first guitar.  I remember being a kid and every Christmas Dean, Uncle Randy, and my dad would get matching Cowboys gear and I would always get whatever cool kid gift at the time but I always wanted to be just like them.  As I got older I started to get the Cowboys gear like them and I remember thinking at the time when that happened "man, I've grown up finally."  Now I just wish I could go back to being that kid.  RIP Uncle Dean.  

[The Natural]

Words fail me. RIP DEAN. Love you, my friend. YOU RULED THE MOTHER FUCKING WORLD!!! Love to DEAN's family and friends at this awful time. Love, Paul xxx.

[Nick]

I haven't been on this board in ages, and I'm honestly a little surprised I even remembered my login info, but I wanted to stop by and pay some respects. Such sad news. Found this board back when it was still green when I had just started college twenty years ago. It was an introduction to a whole other world of wrestling beyond what I could watch on TV, and DEAN was such a great influence and teacher for that. He had such a gift for writing and his obvious enthusiasm made you want to track down the matches and wrestlers he'd talk about. And outside of wrestling, I discovered all sorts of bands like The Gun Club and The Birthday Party because of DEAN. Also was a big fan of his old SOUTHERN ALCOHOL COMIX back in the day. Just such an all around cool guy. He had a real measurable impact on my life and I'm very grateful for that. Wish I had let him know it. Dusting off some old Schneider Comps tonight. RIP DEAN. My condolences to his family and his friends.

Edited May 5, 2023 by Nick

[Casey]

RIP to one of the true tastemakers of the internet fandom. I absolutely loved seeing his posts in the AEW threads. I said it on Reddit, but I really would smile when I’d get a notification here that he liked or responded to something I had posted.

DEAN RULES THE FUCKING WORLD.

[Go2Sleep]

Damn, sad news.

Thank you Dean for all your contributions to the best wrestling message board ever. I know it pales in comparison to those who knew him personally, but I've read and posted here for nearly half my life. While I'm sure he had much more value in his life elsewhere, I hope a small part of him knew and derived joy from building a place for others to happily post about wrestling after he has left us.

[DougN]

I haven't been on these forums in forever and this hits hard. DEAN's reviews really opened me up to a different side of wrestling enjoyment... and kind of informed how I consume other media too, specifically music. I saw it floating around social media, but I'll always remember that Taue and Dreamer quote and those SmackDown comix from 2005 with emo Eddy Guerrero.

My deepest condolences for those of you who knew him personally.

On 5/2/2023 at 11:59 PM, odessasteps said:

We need to raise money by putting out a collection of Dean's Smackdown Comix if they still are archived somewhere. 

Yes, we do. Seriously, I would love to binge those right now. I remember looking forward to them each and every week that spring and summer.

[SirFozzie]

Honestly: The Book of DVDVR with all the reviews would be something I would love to purchase, especially if proceeds went to pay Dean's medical bills and expenses.

[HarryArchieGus]

Deepest condolences to his family, his friends and everyone this wonderful soul touched along the way. I feel so incredibly grateful to have known him. And I feel so thankful for the legacy he left us with. Truly Dean was the greatest. 

[Jenalysis]

RIP Dean.   This was the first internet board I was ever on, back in I think 1996 or 1997.

RIP and Thank you.

[hobo joe]

2 hours ago, Death From Above said:

Dean Rasmussen was the closest thing I think wrestling fandom will ever have to a gonzo journalist. His reviews often contained great tangents that revealed things about day to day life.

He was a foul mouthed, strangely insightful, deeply observant, and incredibly funny human.

I never had the privilage of meating the great DEAN in person but his endless enthusiasm for his subject matter has been a constant bright spot over the last quarter of a century. He will be deeply, deeply missed by everyone in the community. A unique, irreplacable human being.

That hits the nail on the head. If Meltzer’s Bob Woodward, Dean’s Hunter S Thompson. Meltzer’s not Woodward, but that’s besides the point. RIP DEAN. I loved the Smackdown comics back in the day and I’m forgoing paragraph breaks in his honor.

[Elsalvajeloco]

Man, it's crazy that on one of my insomniac driven internet searches decades ago now led me down this even bigger rabbit hole. And you know? I don't mind it one bit because I cannot name as big of an influence on a lot of my views on just not only pro wrestling but shaping how interact in my regular day-to-day life. When I saw someone like DEAN had devoted much of his life loving many of the same things I did to the point where he's convinced a bunch of people who clearly are argumentative to a fault (just like me!) on damn near everything to love those things just the same, it gave me the incentive and all the reason in the world to at least try to do the same myself and hopefully inspire people to be optimistic even if the odds seem to be very much against you. There have been many a sucky days where DVDVR and DEAN specifically put a smile on my face when I desperately needed it. Of course, this isn't anything others have missed in their comments and condolences. However, you have to love that one man gave the courage to many to express what they feel because pro wrestling's biggest strength is making people feel: good, bad, or indifferent. It may be bigger than pro wrestling, but just when the chips are down remember you gotta get that shoulder up at 2.9999. We ain't at the finish yet, kid.

RIP DEAN

[Eivion]

Just saw the news now. So damn disappointed to hear. I've been a member of this board for nearly 20 years, but really only active the past decade or so. I enjoyed the Smackdown comix, but never really interacted with Dean until the past two years. The joy and enthusiasm I felt from his post on various shows and promotions really helped open me back up to exploring more than just WWE & Stardom like I had been for much of the last decade. i understand completely that joy people got when he reacted to a post of theirs. I would miss damn near any of you if if you passed, but I must admit Dean definitely hits me harder than most would. Really going to miss him. His family has my condolences. 

RIP Dean

Edited May 5, 2023 by Eivion

[texanspaniard]

I'm so sorry to hear about Dean's passing. Condolences to his family & friends. I was always predominantly a lurker on the various versions of these boards through the years (decades?) but I always loved reading Dean's reviews, writings and thoughts. A huge loss, my condolences again to his family, friends and everyone. RIP Dean. 

[Sammo~!]

Rest in peace DEAN. Thank you for everything.