(npr) Professional wrestler and pop culture icon Captain Lou Albano has died in New York. He was 76. Wrestlers Rescue founder Dawn Marie says Albano died Wednesday of natural causes. From The Two-Way Blog Farewell, Captain Lou Albano Oct. 14, 2009 Alongside Hulk Hogan and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, Albano helped bring wrestling to national prominence. But it was a star turn as Cyndi Lauper's father in the singer's 1980s music video for "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" that catapulted him to pop icon status. Wrestlers Rescue helped raise funds for Albano's care after he was placed in hospice care. An outsized personality, Albano had a taste for Hawaiian shirts and rubber bands hung from his cheek. His sports career spanned nearly five decades. He started as a wrestler, but achieved more success as a wrestling manager. According to The New York Daily News, he managed 15 WWE tag team champions and WWE title holder Ivan Koloff. He was inducted into the World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame in 1996.

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