Rod McMahon, brother of Vince McMahon, passes away at 77
Sportskeeda informs you with a heavy heart that Rod McMahon, brother of Vince McMahon, has passed away at the age of 77.
Rod McMahon's obituary states that he departed the world on Wednesday, January 20. As Paul Davis of WrestlingNews.Co pointed out, this would explain why the WWE Chairman wasn't present backstage on SmackDown last Friday.
You can check out Rod McMahon's obituary HERE.
Rod McMahon was the older brother of Vince McMahon
Rod McMahon was older than Vince McMahon by two years. Born in Long Island, NY on October 12, 1943, he graduated from Havlock High School, NC. He was an Air Force veteran, and was the founder of North American Metals. He formed the company with his wife Jamice Gaygan McMahon in 1987, in Texas.
Rod McMahon never got involved in Vince McMahon's corporation, but came close to being a part of a major WWE storyline in 2007, soon after Vince McMahon 'died' in a limo blast on RAW.
The original plan for Rod McMahon's introduction to the WWE Universe was to have him first appear at Vince McMahon's on-screen funeral. Things took a disturbing turn in a sudden manner, as Chris Benoit murdered his family and committed suicide immediately after, leading to Vince McMahon canceling the entire storyline.
The Chris Benoit tragedy made sure that Vince McMahon couldn't continue with the originally planned storyline on WWE TV, as it would have been in incredibly bad taste to present an angle involving death, immediately after the disturbing events that had occurred in real life.
One wonders what was WWE planning in regards to Rod McMahon in the immediate future following Vince McMahon's 'passing' in the limo blast. It would certainly have been an interesting turn of events on WWE TV, and would have made for an intriguing storyline with the arrival of a new McMahon family member on WWE's shows.
The Sportskeeda community extends its heartfelt condolences to the McMahon family at this hour of grief.