Jerry Lawler Jerry O ' Neil Lawler ( November 29 , 1949 ) is an American professional wrestler and wrestling commentator , known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry " The King " Lawler . He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE ) , working and wrestling on its flag ship program Raw and PPV events as the color commentator . He also wrestles and occasionally commentates for the Memphis Wrestling promotion . Lawler has won more than 140 championships throughout his career , including one reign as American Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Champion and more than 50 reigns as American Wrestling Association Southern Heavyweight Champion . Lawler held the latter championship another 17 times when the National Wrestling Alliance controlled it . He is also a three - time World Class Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Champion ( United States Wrestling Association Unified World Heavyweight Champion in the third case ) . He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007 . Overall , Lawler has held more championships than any other current WWE employee , though he has never won any WWE singles and / or tag team championships since joining the company . During a live September 12 , 2012 , broadcast of " Raw " from Montreal , Quebec , Lawler suffered a real - life heart attack and fell unconscious while doing color commentary duties alongside Michael Cole . Paramedics , who were stationed at ringside for a match that was taking place in the ring , immediately tended to Lawler before taking him backstage on a stretcher , where CPR was administered . Lawler was taken to a Montreal hospital , where he is recovering . Lawler had been involved in a wrestling match earlier in the evening and showed no apparent signs of illness prior to falling ill . Professional wrestling career . 1960s – 1990s . As a young adult , Lawler was a disc jockey , and attracted the attention of local wrestling promoter Aubrey Griffith . The two made an agreement in which Lawler would give Griffith free publicity in exchange for free wrestling training . Lawler debuted as a wrestler in 1970 and won his first championship in September 1971 by winning a battle royal . He soon won the NWA Southern Tag Team Championship under the managerial service of Sam Bass with partner Jim White . In 1974 , Lawler began feuding with Jackie Fargo , who had been his trainer and mentor . This led to a match for the AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship . On July 24 , 1974 , Lawler was booked to win the belt and the title of " King of Wrestling . " While Lawler began his career as a heel , he became a face after splitting from Bass at the end of 1974 . On November 12 , 1979 , while working in the Continental Wrestling Association ( CWA ) , Lawler defeated Billy Graham to become the CWA World Champion . In 1980 , his career was put on hold due to a broken leg , but he returned to the ring after several months . In 1982 , Lawler began a notorious feud with comedian Andy Kaufman . At the time , Kaufman wrestled women as part of his skits and had declared himself the Intergender Heavyweight Champion . On April 5 , Lawler , who had taken exception to the skits , wrestled Kaufman in Memphis . During the course of the match , Lawler delivered two piledriver s to his opponent , sending him to the hospital . On July 29 , Lawler slapped Kaufman in the face on an episode of " Late Night with David Letterman " . Kaufman responded by throwing his coffee on Lawler . Years later , Lawler appeared as himself in the Kaufman biopic " Man on the Moon " ; the movie revealed that Lawler ' s feud with Kaufman had been kayfabe ( staged ) . Lawler later revealed that not only was his entire feud with Kaufman staged , but the two were actually very good friends . On March 7 , 1983 , Lawler won the AWA International Championship by defeating Austin Idol . He also defeated Ken Patera on July 25 to begin his second reign as the International Champion . Lawler became the NWA Mid America Champion on April 12 , 1984 when he was booked to defeat Randy Savage for the title . In 1985 , Lawler traveled to Japan , where he won the Polynesian Pacific title on January 25 , 1986 . He later returned to the United States , where he defeated Bill Dundee on July 29 , 1986 to begin a new reign as the AWA International Champion . Lawler feuded with Tommy Rich , Austin Idol , and Paul E . Dangerously throughout early 1987 . The animosity began after controversy over an AWA World Championship title shot involving Nick Bockwinkel . During the feud , the trio defeated Lawler in a steel cage match and cut his hair , which caused a riot in the Mid - South Coliseum . Lawler won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship from Curt Hennig . During his reign , Lawler feuded with World Class Championship Wrestling ' s Champion Kerry Von Erich . He defeated Von Erich on December 15 , 1988 at Superclash III to unify the two titles . Soon after , Lawler ' s issues with Verne Gagne led to his departure from the AWA . In 1991 and 1992 , while working in the United States Wrestling Association ( USWA ) , Lawler teamed with Jeff Jarrett in a match against The Moondogs over the USWA World Tag Team Championship . World Wrestling Federation ( 1992 – 2001 ) . Lawler began his WWF career in December 1992 as an announcer on " WWF Superstars of Wrestling " . From 1993 to 1995 , he feuded with Bret Hart and the rest of the Hart family . The feud began at King of the Ring when Lawler interrupted Hart ' s victory ceremony and attacked Bret . Lawler claimed that he was the only true king in the World Wrestling Federation ( WWF ) , and the two were scheduled to wrestle at SummerSlam to settle the dispute . At the event , however , Lawler came to the ring on crutches and claimed that he could not wrestle because of injuries suffered in a car accident . Hart faced Lawler ' s " court jester " , Doink the Clown instead , and beat him by submission . Lawler then attacked Hart , revealing that he was not injured . Hart defeated Lawler by submission but refused to release the Sharpshooter . As a result , the referee reversed the decision and awarded the title of " Undisputed King of the World Wrestling Federation " to Lawler . Simultaneously , in a form of cross - promotion , Lawler engaged in a bitter feud with Vince McMahon ( who at the time was never acknowledged as the actual owner of the World Wrestling Federation ) back in the USWA . There Lawler played the babyface to his hometown Memphis audience , whereas McMahon ( who had always played face in the WWF ) was being portrayed as a smug heel intent on dethroning Lawler as the king of professional wrestling . As part of the cross - promotion , McMahon , Bret and Owen Hart , Giant González , Tatanka , and " Macho Man " Randy Savage would begin appearing on USWA television to further the feud . While the program continued in the USWA , the feud between Lawler and McMahon would not be acknowledged on WWF television . The Hart Family ( Bret , Owen , Bruce , and Keith ) were scheduled to face a team captained by Lawler in an elimination match at Survivor Series . However Shawn Michaels had to take Lawler ' s place because Lawler was facing legal troubles . As a result , the feud between Lawler and Vince McMahon back in the USWA was also abruptly discontinued . Lawler did not face Bret Hart at another pay - per - view until the first In Your House , when he beat Hart after Hakushi and his manager Shinja interfered . This set up a " Kiss My Foot " match at King of the Ring 1995 , which Bret won . As a result , Lawler was forced to kiss Bret ' s feet . The feud took one final turn when Lawler introduced his " dentist " Isaac Yankem , D . D . S . . After Hart defeated Yankem by disqualification , however , the feud quickly disappeared . Following the end of his legal troubles which kept him out of Survivor Series 1993 , Lawler eventually returned to the WWF at WrestleMania X , which was also the first WWF pay - per - view he ever commentated at . During the main event of the night , " Rowdy " Roddy Piper served as special guest referee for the second WWF championship match . During this Lawler began making disparaging remarks about him . Lawler would continue to berate Piper on later episodes of " Monday Night Raw " , including bringing a skinny kid into the ring dressed as Piper and forcing him to kiss his feet . This ultimately led to a match between the two at King of the Ring 1994 which Lawler lost . In the fall of 1994 , Lawler initiated a feud with Doink the Clown . Lawler popped the balloons carried by Doink ' s midget sidekick , Dink . After Doink and Dink retaliated , Lawler introduced a midget sidekick of his own , who he named Queasy . In the following weeks , Doink added two more sidekicks , Wink and Pink , while Lawler introduced Sleazy and Cheesy . This led to an elimination match at Survivor Series 1994 , which Lawler ' s team won . After the match , however , Lawler ' s team turned on him , joining with Doink ' s team to attack Lawler . In late 1994 and early 1995 , Lawler wrestled briefly in Smoky Mountain Wrestling while still continuing to commentate sporadically for the WWF . During his absences , Shawn Michaels filled in for him as color commentator on " Monday Night Raw " . He defeated Tony Anthony for the promotion ' s top title in January 1995 . By 1996 , Lawler wrestled occasionally on " WWF Superstars " where he would take on jobbers while holding a microphone in the ring to , essentially , " do the commentary on ( his ) very own matches " while occasionally serving as the official cornerman for Isaac Yankem D . D . S . After a brief feud with the Ultimate Warrior , Lawler began feuding with Jake Roberts after making fun of Roberts ' drug and alcohol problems . The two met in a match at SummerSlam 1996 , which Lawler won . After the match , Lawler poured Jim Beam whiskey down Roberts ' throat . In 1997 , Lawler became heavily involved in the working relationship between the WWF and Extreme Championship Wrestling ( ECW ) . In interviews and commentary , he referred to the promotion as " Extremely Crappy Wrestling " . His frequent insults toward ECW eventually led to the promotion " invading " " Monday Night Raw " in February 1997 and ultimately to a match with ECW wrestler Tommy Dreamer at ECW ' s event Hardcore Heaven , which Dreamer won . In mid - 1997 , Lawler entered the King of the Ring tournament for the first time and advanced to the semi - final round where he was defeated by Mankind . By the fall , the WWF introduced a new " light - heavyweight division " to compete with World Championship Wrestling ' s cruiserweight division . Lawler ' s son , Brian Christopher , was one of the major light - heavyweight superstars in the division , although , the WWF played up an angle where both Lawler and Christopher would deny their family relationship , even though the two would aide each other in matches and so on . By 1998 , Lawler rarely wrestled in the WWF and focused on commentary . Despite their feud in the USWA in 1993 , by 1998 , Vince McMahon had turned heel in the WWF for the first time and left the announce position , to which Lawler began praising McMahon ' s name on commentary as part of his own heel persona , much to the chagrin of Jim Ross . It was McMahon ' s departure from the commentary team which led to the strong on - screen chemistry between Lawler and Ross in subsequent years . This played a key role in a change of Lawler ' s character ; although he still supported the heels , he showed a sense of right and wrong , and would condemn actions of heels when they went too far . This began when Lawler surprisingly attacked Tazz when he started bullying Ross . At SummerSlam , The King wrestled Tazz in defense of Ross . With the creation of the XFL in 2001 , Lawler was given the job as an announcer for the new football league . Lawler claims that he never wanted to announce for the XFL , but that he agreed to it after McMahon and Kevin Dunn asked him . Post – WWF and the independent circuit ( 2001 ) . In February 2001 , Lawler ' s then - wife Stacy " The Kat " Carter was released by the WWF , and Lawler quit the company in protest . In his account , there was no clear notice as to why she was fired ; when Jim Ross broke the news to him , he stated that the Creative Team simply said that Stacy had " an attitude problem . " Vince McMahon told Lawler that he did not know exactly what the attitude problem was , and failed to straighten the issue to the Lawlers . Considering that McMahon was Head of the Talent Creative Team , Lawler found it highly suspicious that McMahon then allowed him simply to quit , as if McMahon knew it would happen . Lawler has stated several theories as to why he was allowed to leave . His first involves the ascent of Carter ' s career alongside the downfall of Chyna ' s . In his contention , Chyna was jealous of his wife ' s push inside the company , in part due to the Right to Censor storyline , and in part because of his wife ' s offer to pose for Playboy magazine . Until that time , Chyna had been the second major wrestling star from the World Wrestling Federation to have done a piece in " Playboy " ( after Sable ) ; during Chyna ' s debut on the adult magazine , she had suddenly broken her friendship with Carter . In interviews , he has also stated that there may have been an alternate reason , namely , that the company wanted to fire him . He also criticizes McMahon for the cavalier attitude he had given him on the day he quit . In his recollection , Jim Ross was fired by McMahon with exactly the same demeanor while struck with a bout of Bell ' s palsy in 1994 , a time when Ross ' " usefulness " had run out . Lawler felt that Carter ' s release was an attempt to remove him as well , stating that the company was well - aware that he would walk - out alongside his wife . Lawler ' s replacement with Paul Heyman launched a theory in which Heyman was promoted at Lawler ' s expense . Internet rumors circulated that the company was in better terms with Heyman than Lawler , and used remarks Lawler had made in criticism of ECW to launch a theory whereby Heyman wanted Lawler out . Lawler has stated repeatedly that he has no resentment towards Paul Heyman , accusing the media and internet theorists of spreading false information . During this time , Lawler made appearances on the independent circuit in both Australia and North America , as well as joining the fledgling Xcitement Wrestling Federation promotion alongside WCW veteran Tony Schiavone as a color commentator . Also during the time Lawler divorced Carter . Return to the World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment ( 2001 – present ) . On November 19 , 2001 , Lawler returned to the WWF . He was reintroduced by Vince McMahon on " Raw " as the replacement for color commentator ( and The Alliance member ) Paul Heyman , who had been ( kayfabe ) fired in the aftermath of the Alliance ' s loss at the previous night ' s " Survivor Series " . As he had been before his departure , Lawler once again became color commentator on " Raw " and pay - per - view events alongside Jim Ross and " SmackDown ! " with Michael Cole , until the brands were separated and Lawler became exclusive to " Raw " . Lawler stated that his well - worked chemistry with Jim Ross has been a result of their different styles ; according to Lawler , Jim Ross is a fine storyteller and keeps fans well - versed with current storylines , whereas he provides reaction and emotion to liven the commentary . In addition , he has had sporadic matches with up - and - coming Raw superstars , such as Randy Orton , Muhammad Hassan , Gregory Helms and the team of Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase , Jr . In 2003 , " Raw ' s " announce team of Lawler and Jim Ross feuded with " Sunday Night Heat " ' s team of Jonathan Coachman and Al Snow . At Unforgiven , Lawler and Ross lost a match against Coachman and Snow , thus losing their right to do commentary on " Raw " . In a rematch , however , Ross defeated Coachman , winning Lawler and Ross their position back . In June 2006 , Extreme Championship Wrestling was re - launched and began a small invasion within WWE again . ECW and WWE went head to head for several weeks on " Raw " , which spanned to include the " SmackDown ! " superstars . This created tension between the Raw and SmackDown ! announce teams , as Tazz , an ECW alumnus , insulted and criticized Jim Ross until Lawler came to Ross ' defense , reigniting their feud from 2000 . The feud concluded when Tazz and Lawler faced each other in a match at One Night Stand , which Tazz won in only 30 seconds by making Lawler pass out to the Tazzmission after a distraction from Joey Styles . In July 2006 , Randy Orton began a feud with Hulk Hogan . Lawler attacked Orton in defense of Hogan , which set up a match between them on " Raw " . Orton defeated Lawler after a low blow and an RKO . On March 31 , 2007 , Lawler was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by William Shatner , whom Lawler had a memorable altercation with on a January 1995 episode of " Raw " . In August , King Booker claimed to be the only one entitled to be known as " King " . After being beaten by Booker in the ring , Lawler was supposed to be forced to crown his opponent at an August 13 show in Madison Square Garden . During the ceremony , however , Lawler announced another king as a new opponent for Booker , " The King of Kings " Triple H . This led to a worked brawl between Lawler and Booker . On the July 7 , 2008 edition of " Raw " , Lawler was attacked by Kane after saving Michael Cole from a similar attack , in which Kane repeatedly asked " Is he alive or is he dead ? " Later that summer , he teamed with " Hacksaw " Jim Duggan to face Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes for the World Tag Team Championship but lost . At the 2009 Royal Rumble , while announcing the Rumble Match , Lawler said " Randy Orton needs to be the winner of this Royal Rumble , but Orton ' s almost out at the hands of Triple H " , as Randy Orton was the winner of the Royal Rumble many people are led to believe that Jerry Lawler made a mistake by saying this . However , in previous weeks Randy Orton had abused Vince McMahon and his family thus he was in danger of being fired , so he had to win the Royal Rumble to keep his job . It wasn ' t edited out of the DVD and can also be seen on YouTube . On the March 23 , 2009 edition of " Raw " , Lawler challenged Chris Jericho to a match because of his disrespect and erractic behavior to WWE Hall of Famers , which Jericho accepted . The following week , Lawler lost to Jericho after submitting to the Walls of Jericho . After the match , Jericho outlined how he would remain supreme against WWE Hall of Famers at WrestleMania XXV . On the Monday July 20 , 2009 episode of " Monday Night Raw " , Lawler announced himself as the opponent against The Brian Kendrick . He went on to defeat Kendrick . On the November 16 edition of Raw , after recent acquisition Sheamus attacked the timekeeper in frustration for not receiving an opponent , Lawler left the announce table to confront Sheamus and check on the victim , only to receive a kick to the head for his troubles . On June 7 , 2010 , during a Viewer ' s Choice edition of Raw , Lawler lost his crown to the IRS because he had apparently not paid his taxes , but it was regained by Quinton Jackson later on . At the end of the night , Lawler was one of the many employees at ringside that were brutally attacked by the season 1 NXT rookies . Lawler however , was the only person at ringside that fought back , as he used punches and chops to attack the NXT rookies assaulting him until it was a 3 - on - 1 assault . The following week on Raw Lawler got some payback , being part of the Raw roster to fight off the now - called " The Nexus " when they again came to ambush John Cena . On June 28 , Lawler , Ricky Steamboat , Michael Hayes , Arn Anderson , Mike Rotunda , and Dean Malenko were severely attacked by the Nexus , just as they were celebrating his career . Josh Mathews had to replace Lawler for color commentator for the remainder of the show . On the July 26 , 2010 episode of " Monday Night Raw " , Lawler teamed with Mark Henry , Goldust , Yoshi Tatsu , Evan Bourne and The Hart Dynasty tag team elimination match versus the Nexus . Lawler was eliminated by Heath Slater . Feud with The Miz and Michael Cole ( 2010 – 2011 ) . On the November 29 episode of the King of the Ring special of " Raw " , Lawler , who was celebrating his 61st birthday , would challenge The Miz for his WWE Championship , to which Miz would decline . Miz ' s decision would be reversed by the anonymous " Raw " General Manager , who made the match the main event of the night , making it Lawler ' s first shot at the title , with the match type being a Tables , Ladders and Chairs match . Miz would retain his title from Lawler after interference by Alex Riley and Michael Cole . Cole ' s interference would cause tension between the two . On the December 6 episode of " Raw " , Cole would first apologize to Lawler , only for him to take it back and demand an apology from Lawler to himself . After Lawler threatened to attack Cole , the anonymous " Raw " General Manager would then issue a " cease and desist " order , which barred any physicality between them and that if either of them violated the order , that individual would have their contract terminated immediately . Lawler would then continue his feud with The Miz , where on the December 20 episode of " Raw " , Lawler would team with Randy Orton and John Morrison to take on Miz , Riley and King Sheamus in a 6 - man Tag match with Lawler picking up the win by pinning Miz . This would lead to a rematch between Miz and Lawler the following week , with Lawler once again getting the victory , this time by count - out . Later on that night , Miz would attack Lawler from behind as Lawler was sitting at the announce table . Lawler would once again team with Orton on the January 10 , 2011 episode of " Raw " to take on Miz and Riley . Lawler was once again successful in getting the victory , this time pinning Riley . On the January 31 episode of " Raw " , Lawler was placed in a 7 - man Raw Rumble match , where the winner would receive a WWE Championship match against The Miz at WWE Elimination Chamber . Lawler would win the match by last eliminating King Sheamus . > At the pay - per - view , Lawler was unsuccessful in winning the title , ending the feud . The following night on " Raw " , Lawler , after having enough of Cole ' s attitude , which included the mocking of Lawler ' s mother ' s recent death , would challenge him to a match at WrestleMania XXVII . Cole would respond by throwing water into Lawler ' s face , with Lawler chasing Cole off to the backstage area . The following week on " Raw " , Cole accepted Lawler ' s challenge to a match at WrestleMania . He would then announce that he would be trained in the coming weeks by Jack Swagger for the upcoming match . The following week , Stone Cold Steve Austin was announced as the guest referee for the match . The following week , Lawler was confronted by his son Brian Lawler , who was invited to Raw by Michael Cole , to " expose " his father ' s character . Brian , in storyline , claimed his dad was never there for him , mentioned that Lawler never mentioned that Brian was his son on commentary , boasted that he competed at WrestleMania before his father , and stated that he was ashamed of him . Brian then slapped Lawler and left . Michael Cole continued to harass Lawler , who still couldn ' t physically harm him , but was interrupted by a returning Jim Ross . As JR and Cole were about to fight , Swagger attacked Lawler from behind , and then preceded to attack and lock in the ankle lock on JR , while Cole harassed him . Lawler tried to stop the attack , but fell victim to the ankle lock as well . At WrestleMania , Lawler won the match by submission , using the ankle lock submission hold Cole and Swagger attacked Lawler with the last couple of weeks . While celebrating his victory with Stone Cold , the anonymous " Raw " General Manager would reverse the decision , due to Stone Cold physically getting involved in the match by pushing Cole , thus , making Cole the winner by disqualification . On the April 11 episode of " Raw " , after defeating Swagger , Lawler announced that at Extreme Rules , he and Jim Ross will challenge Cole and Swagger in a tag team match . On May 1 at Extreme Rules Lawler alongside Jim Ross lost to Jack Swagger & Michael Cole in a Country Whipping Match . On the May 9 episode of RAW , Jerry Lawler attacked Cole inside the Cole Mine with his tie , forcing Jack Swagger to take Cole backstage . Since Jerry didn ' t physically touch Cole , Jerry was not in violation of the RAW General Manager ' s orders from last November . Then , Swagger , on behalf of Cole , set up a match for Over The Limit Pay - Per - View on May 22 between Cole and Lawler , where if Cole wins , he will get Lawler ' s Hall Of Fame ring , and Lawler must induct Michael Cole into the WWE Hall Of Fame . The following week , while Lawler and Cole were signing contracts for the event , Cole added a stipulation in which the loser must kiss the winner ' s foot . At Over the Limit Lawler defeated Cole and , per the pre - match stipulation , made Cole kiss Lawler ' s foot . Their feud ended after Michael Cole returned to normal commentating . Return to commentating and part - time wrestling ( 2011 – present ) . Lawler competed in the 2012 Royal Rumble match as the number 12 entrant , but was eliminated by Cody Rhodes after 43 seconds . He , along with Booker T , eliminated Michael Cole afterwards . On the April 30 , 2012 episode of " Raw " , Lawler competed in a " Beat the Clock " challenge to determine the number one contender for the WWE Championship match at Over the Limit , but was defeated by Daniel Bryan , who went on to challenge for the title . On the July 9 episode of " Raw " , Lawler went against Michael Cole in a WrestleMania XXVII rematch , which he quickly won , but the anonymous " Raw " General Manager , who returned that night as the guest general manager , reversed the decision and Lawler lost to Cole by disqualification following interference by Booker T . Santino Marella came out to reveal that Hornswoggle was the Anonymous " Raw " General Manager , who was hiding underneath the ring . On the July 23 episode of " WWE Raw 1000 " , after CM Punk attacked The Rock , Lawler would mention on commentary that " CM Punk has turned his back on the WWE Universe " . The following week on " Raw " , Punk would confront Lawler about what he said before being interrupted by Big Show . On the August 20 episode of " Raw " , after John Cena wouldn ' t tell Punk he was the " Best in the World " , Punk would ask for Lawler to get in the ring and say it for the WWE Universe . After Lawler refused to say Punk was the " Best in the World " too , Punk would attack Lawler from behind . The next week on " Raw " , after Lawler demanded an apology from Punk , Punk would challenge Lawler to a match , which Lawler would accept later that night , where Punk would defeat Lawler in a Steel Cage match . Before the September 3 episode of " Raw " , Punk and Lawler brawled backstage , with Punk getting the upper hand before officials stopped them , Lawler was kicked in the throat , which caused Lawler to miss commentary that night , with The Miz filling in for him . On - air Monday Night Raw heart attack . On September 10 , 2012 , Lawler collapsed ( legit ) at the announcers table while Kane and Daniel Bryan competed against The Prime Time Players . Updates were provided during the live broadcast by commentator Michael Cole . At the end of the broadcast at 11 : 15 p . m . EDT , it was announced that he had received CPR , but was breathing independently and reacting to stimulus . It was later confirmed on WWE . com that Lawler had suffered a heart attack . On September 11 , 2012 , he underwent an angioplasty to improve blood flow to his heart . On September 12 , 2012 , Lawler was reported to be slowly being eased off sedation , his ventilator removed . He was able to blink , nod , and squeeze with his hands , and that same day , the results of several CT scans showed no signs of brain damage . By September 17 , Lawler had returned to his home in Memphis . It was announced in the October 29 , 2012 episode of " Raw " that Lawler would return to WWE on November 12 , 2012 , in which he would continue his rivalry with CM Punk , after Punk interrupted his emotional return . Illness . During the September 10 , 2012 , broadcast of " Raw " from the Belle Center in Montreal , Quebec , Lawler was part of a tag - team match , partnering with Randy Orton in a match against heels CM Punk and Dolph Ziggler . Afterward , he began commentary alongside Michael Cole . During the Kane - Daniel Bryan vs . The Prime Time Players match , Lawler was commentating when he suddenly fell ill and collapsed . Emergency personnel immediately gave Lawler emergency medical treatment as the wrestling match continued to its scripted finish and Cole continued on commentary , trying to maintain his composure and attention to the match . ( The only deviation from the planned series of events in the match was Prime Time Player Titus O ' Neil making a hand signal to summon personnel to ringside immediately for an actual emergency , and referee Charles Robinson becoming distressed at the events going on at ringside , after both became aware of what had happened . ) After Lawler was removed from ringside to receive CPR , and a subsequent match , Cole announced to the audience that Lawler had indeed fallen ill and that the events were legitimate . As of the end of the broadcast at 11 : 15 p . m . EDT , it was announced that he had received CPR , but was breathing independently and reacting to stimulus . It was later confirmed on WWE . com that Lawler had suffered a heart attack . It was announced the next day that he had undergone a percutaneous coronary intervention . Lawler ' s son , Brian Christopher , confirmed later on September 11 that his father " does not look good , " but was " responsive to questions " after being removed from sedation . Lawler ' s sudden illness gained mainstream media coverage , with Ric Flair being interviewed on CNN and news stories about what had occurred being covered by the USA Today , Fox Sports , MSNBC , the " Los Angeles Times " and other outlets . Several wrestling newsletters raised questions about Lawler ' s age and decisions by wrestling promoters to book older wrestlers – Lawler was 62 at the time of his illness – in wrestling matches for the sake of ratings . SmackDown ' s color commentary return . Lawler would make his return at the announce table of SmackDown after the hospitalization from diverticulitis on January 15 , 2015 . Lawler had then left SmackDown commentary team after the " SmackDown Live " premiere on USA Network , by joining the pre - show panel since the Royal Rumble . Memphis Wrestling ( 2007 ) . In 2007 it was announced that Lawler would be participating in a ' dream match ' with Hulk Hogan which had been set to take place in the Memphis Wrestling promotion on April 27 . The match had been heavily - hyped by promoter Corey Maclin as Hogan had competed in the Memphis territory early in his career . On April 12 , however , Lawler pulled out of the event citing his contractual obligations to WWE rendering him unable to appear on a show that was due to be filmed by VH1 for the television show Hogan Knows Best . On January 11 , 2008 , Maclin revealed he has recently filed a lawsuit against WWE , claiming that pressure on Lawler ( and others ) to withdraw from the event violated section two of the Sherman Antitrust Act . Jerry Lawler ' s Memphis Wrestling ( 2010 ) . In May 2010 , Jerry announced a new TV wrestling show called , " Jerry Lawler ' s Memphis Wrestling . " The show is set to debut on Ion Network Channel 50 in Memphis on June 5 at the classic 11AM timespot . 3 episodes were taped May 20 , 2010 at the Vine in Memphis . On September 11 , 2010 , Jerry announced that there would no longer be any new shows , but that the talent was still available for fundraisers . Non – wrestling endeavors . Lawler has created some musical recordings . Among these are two late - 70s singles : " Cadillac Man / Memphis " , and " Bad News " . During his feud with manager Jimmy Hart ( Lawler is a factor for " The Mouth of the South " Jimmy Hart entering professional wrestling ; Lawler wanted to record a wrestling album with him singing and , since they had gone to school together , he called Hart and asked him to be a part of it ) in the mid - 80s , Hart became known as " The Wimp " , a nickname given to him by Lawler and chanted by fans . Hart was the subject of the song " Wimpbusters " , which was sung by Lawler to the tune of the popular hit " Ghostbusters " by Ray Parker , Jr . . A music video was also made , featuring Lawler , legendary announcer Lance Russell , and wrestlers such as Randy Savage , Jimmy Valiant , Dutch Mantel , Tommy Rich , and Rufus R . Jones , along with footage of " The King " beating Hart and his " First Family . " A very young Brian Christopher also made an appearance as a young child being bullied , and another child is seen wearing a replica of Tully Blanchard ' s West Texas State jersey . He also recorded a CD titled " Memphis ' Other King " . In 1998 , Lawler appeared in the movie " Man on the Moon " , starring Jim Carrey . According to Lawler ' s autobiography , " It ' s Good To Be The King . . . Sometimes " , an incident involving Jim Carrey forgetting a line led to animosity between the two actors during filming . Between scenes Jim Carrey often remained in character as Andy Kaufman and at one point spit on Jerry , just as Kaufman had done in 1982 . A ' stunned ' Lawler reacted by grabbing Carrey by the hair and locked him in a sleeper hold and jerking his neck — supposedly sending Carrey to the hospital . In 1999 , Lawler ran for mayor of Memphis , Tennessee . His platform focused on making the streets safer for residents , beautifying the city , and improving the quality of education . In addition , he vowed to attract businesses to Memphis , improve the flow of traffic , create more parks , and decrease property taxes . Lawler ended up with 11 . 7 % of ballots , beating twelve of the fifteen candidates . Ultimately , however , Mayor Willie Herenton was easily reelected . In 2000 , Lawler made a very brief cameo appearance in the music video of " I Can ' t Lie To Me " By Clay Davidson . In 2002 , he released an autobiography titled " It ' s Good To Be The King . . . Sometimes " . On July 8 , 2009 , Lawler again ran for the position of Mayor of Memphis in a special mayoral election on October 15 , 2009 . He was in 5th with 4 % of the vote . Lawler is also an accomplished commercial artist , designing a lot of graphics for various companies , including WWE . In 2007 , he painted the cover of the wrestling comic book , " Headlocked " . Personal life . Lawler has been married three times . He has two children , Brian and Kevin , from his marriage to his first wife , Kay . His son Brian , who has previously wrestled in WWE as " Brian Christopher " and " Grandmaster Sexay " , is now performing in independent promotions . His other son , Kevin , has dabbled in professional wrestling as both a referee and wrestler under the names " Kevin Christian " and " Freddie Gilbert " , the latter of which was used during a stint as the " brother " of Eddie Gilbert . In his book " It ' s Good To Be The King . . . Sometimes " , Lawler says he believes Kevin ' s short physical stature has prevented him from reaching success similar to Brian . In August 2008 , Kevin was arrested on charges of trespassing and aggravated burglary . After divorcing Kay , Lawler was later married to Paula from February 14 , 1982 to October 2 , 1991 . He met his third wife , Stacy " The Kat " Carter , at a charity softball game in Memphis , Tennessee on July 23 , 1989 . They married in September 2000 . In mid - February 2001 , Carter ( who was a valet and has also made in - ring appearances ) was released by the World Wrestling Federation . Lawler then left the company in protest . Carter decided to leave Lawler in July 2001 , and they separated not long after . Their divorce was finalized on October 15 , 2003 . He soon rejoined the WWF in November 2001 . Lawler is the cousin of professional wrestler The Honky Tonk Man . In 1993 , Lawler was indicted for raping and sodomizing a 15 - year - old girl , who later admitted she had lied about the incident , which caused him to miss Survivor Series 1993 . Lawler was arrested on March 16 , 1999 after throwing a ticket at a police officer and running over the officer ' s foot . Though he has spent most of his life in Memphis , Lawler did spend a part of his childhood in Ohio after his father was transferred to a job in the state . Though this stay was brief , it would have an influence on Lawler throughout his life thereafter . He often cites Cleveland as his second - favorite city behind only Memphis and is a die - hard fan of both the Cleveland Indians and the Cleveland Browns . When WWE comes to Cleveland , Lawler will usually wear a Browns jersey or an Indians jersey , and during baseball season , he will throw out the first pitch at an Indians game . Jerry Lawler is also a collector of Coca - Cola merchandise . It was announced on the February 14 , 2011 edition of Raw that Jerry ' s mother Hazel passed away . Jerry missed that edition of Raw where he was in Memphis dealing with the passing .