This list of notable bouncers includes celebrities and historical figures who worked as bouncers, often before they became famous in another profession or field.
Shirley Crabtree, better known as Big Daddy, was an English professional wrestler with a record-breaking 64-inch chest. He worked for Joint Promotions and the original British Wrestling Federation. Initially appearing on television as a heel, he teamed with Giant Haystacks. After splitting with Haystacks, he became a fan favourite and the top star of Joint Promotions from the late 1970s to the early 1990s.
Mark Sinclair, known professionally as Vin Diesel, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-grossing actors, he is best known for playing Dominic Toretto in the Fast & Furious franchise.
Hans Lundgren, better known as Dolph Lundgren, is a Swedish actor, filmmaker and martial artist. His breakthrough came in 1985, when he starred in Rocky IV as the imposing Soviet boxer Ivan Drago. Since then, Lundgren has starred in more than 80 films, all of them in the action genre.
William Bellamy is an American actor and stand-up comedian. Bellamy first gained national notoriety on HBO's Russell Simmons' Def Comedy Jam, where he is credited for creating or coining the phrase "booty call", described as a late night call to a potential paramour with the intention of meeting strictly for sex.
Martin Austin Ruane was an English professional wrestler of Irish parentage, best known by the ring name Giant Haystacks. He was one of the best-known wrestlers on the British wrestling scene in the 1970s and 1980s. He also worked in both Canada and the United States under the name Loch Ness Monster or simply Loch Ness.
Tatchakorn Yeerum, better known internationally as Tony Jaa and in Thailand as Jaa Phanom, is a Thai martial artist, actor, action choreographer, stuntman, director, and traceur. His films include Ong-Bak: Muay Thai Warrior (2003), Tom-Yum-Goong (2005), Ong Bak 2: The Beginning (2008), Furious 7 (2015) and SPL II: A Time for Consequences (2015).
A bouncer is a type of security guard, employed at venues such as bars, nightclubs, cabaret clubs, stripclubs, casinos, hotels, billiard halls, restaurants, sporting events, schools, concerts, or movie theaters. A bouncer's duties are to provide security, to check legal age and drinking age, to refuse entry for intoxicated persons, and to deal with aggressive behavior or disobedience with statutory or establishment rules.
Richard Erwin Rood, better known by his ring name "Ravishing" Rick Rude, was an American professional wrestler who performed for many promotions, including World Championship Wrestling (WCW), World Wrestling Federation (WWF), and Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW).
All Star Wrestling (ASW) is a British professional wrestling promotion operated by Brian Dixon and based in Birkenhead, England. Founded as Wrestling Enterprises of Birkenhead in October 1970, it has also been known over the years as All Star Promotions, Big Time Wrestling, and Superslam Wrestling. ASW tours theatres, leisure centres, town halls, holiday camps, and similar venues, many of which are the same locations that were used for televised wrestling in the UK from the 1950s to the 1980s.
The Punisher is a 1989 American action film directed by Mark Goldblatt, written by Boaz Yakin, and starring Dolph Lundgren and Louis Gossett Jr. Based on the Marvel Comics' character of the same name, the film changes many details of the character's comic book origin and the main character does not wear the trademark "skull" shirt. Instead the character uses the knife with the skull. Shot in Sydney, Australia, The Punisher co-stars Jeroen Krabbé, Kim Miyori, Nancy Everhard, and Barry Otto.
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa is a Japanese-born American actor, film producer, and martial artist.
Tunnel was a nightclub located at 220 Twelfth Avenue, in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It operated from 1986 to 2001.
Eddie Sharkey is an American professional wrestling trainer. He is often called "The Trainer of Champions". He has been instrumental in training some of the biggest names in the sport. He was also the owner of Pro Wrestling America.
Minuit, le soir is a character-driven Quebec television show. Set and shot in Montreal, the 30-minute show revolves around the lives of three bouncers, both in private and at work. The show is notable for its portrayal of the daily hardships facing each of the principal characters. Gritty cinematography and fast-paced direction are also key elements of the show's style. All the show's episodes were directed by Daniel Grou.
Michael Stanco was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Maximum Capacity, and is billed in many independent promotions as the "World's Largest Athlete".
Direct Contact is a 2009 American action film written, produced and directed by Danny Lerner, and starring Dolph Lundgren, Michael Paré, Gina May and Bashar Rahal. The film was released on direct-to-DVD in the United States on June 2, 2009.
Skin Trade is a 2014 American action thriller film directed by Ekachai Uekrongtham. It stars Dolph Lundgren, Tony Jaa, Michael Jai White, and Ron Perlman. Lundgren wrote the film with Gabriel Dowrick and Steven Elder, while John Hyams performed uncredited script revisions. The film centers around New Jersey police detective Nick Cassidy, as he travels to Asia intent on killing the man who murdered his family, mobster Viktor Dragovic.
Ambushed is a 2013 American action thriller film directed by Giorgio Serafini, written by Agustin, and starring Dolph Lundgren, Vinnie Jones, Randy Couture, Gianni Capaldi, and Daniel Bonjour. Lundgren, Jones, and Capaldi would go on to work with Serafini in Blood of Redemption and Puncture Wounds.
WWE Hall of Fame (2017) was the event which featured the introduction of the 18th class to the WWE Hall of Fame. The event was produced by WWE on March 31, 2017 from the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. The event took place the same weekend as WrestleMania 33. This was the first time the Hall of Fame ceremony was not held the night before WrestleMania instead NXT TakeOver: Orlando was held the night before WrestleMania. The event aired live on the WWE Network, and was hosted by Jerry Lawler. A condensed one-hour version of the ceremony aired the following Monday after Raw on the USA Network.
Dolph Lundgren is a Swedish actor, filmmaker, and martial artist. Lundgren's breakthrough came in 1985, when he starred in Rocky IV as the imposing Soviet boxer Ivan Drago. Since then, he has starred in more than 69 films, almost all of them in the action genre.