Asbjørn 'Bear' Riis
Encyclopedia
Asbjørn Riis is a Danish
professional wrestler, actor
and TV personality, who is most famous internationally for portraying the role of the 10th warrior, Halga the Wise, in the movie The 13th Warrior
featuring Antonio Banderas
. He is also known for a Hulk Hogan
look a like in the early 1990s, where he presented WWF and WCW on Danish TV channel name TV3. Riis created his "The Great Dane Bear" in 1991 and has been his image to this day. He has run a professional wrestling
school in Denmark
since 1994, and has produced several local house shows all over the country. He is still does a lot of wrestling shows, mostly for children and still going strong at the age of 51.
Riis originates from the small island of Mors
, and his recognizable accent and local jargon
has made him an instant fan-favorite, and the subject of many parodies by Danish comedians and entertainers. He is doing a lot work to get people not only on the island Mors but all over Denmark, in motivating them to get in better shape.
Recently Riis has appeared as himself in a number of Tuborg Squash
-commercials, where he jovially beats up two squash
-players, while a tune is playing the words "Du' min aller-bedste Squash-Buddy" (You're my very best Squash-Buddy). Here in 2009 Riis is hosting a new Danish TV channel called "6’eren" where he is presenting "Friday Fight Night" a package with all kinds of action, including Wrestling - American Gladiators and action movies.
In the mid-1990s, Riis hosted his own television programme on the Danish TV channel TV3
, showcasing first WWF Superstars
and later on, after the World Wrestling Federation
, showcased World Championship Wrestling
. He was a Danish color commentary for the matches and explaining the jist of the promos that wrestlers would do before matches. Classic phrases uttered during his color commentary of matches are "U-behagelig" (unpleasant, nasty) and "vi må ikke håbe han har fået gule ærter til aftensmad" (Let's hope he hasn't had yellow pea soup
for dinner), usually said after a wrestler has been hit in the gut, as a reference to him perhaps letting out some wind in the middle of the match and many more like a headace no. 135 after a bionic elboe.
Riis is also good friends with fellow Danish actor (and longtime friend of Arnold Schwarzenegger
) Sven-Ole Thorsen
, who also had a small part in The 13th Warrior
and was on the lead cast of the cult sci-fi show Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future
.
In the Danish Wrestling scene, Riis' wrestling school used to be the only place in Denmark
to learn the performing art of professional wrestling
, with the spirit of keeping everyone in the best shape possible and learning weight training - coordination - acrobatics and all styles from the wrestling world.
Riis has 4 sons, and one of them Klaus Myren Riis, whom is also a wrestler, trained by his father, and a bodybuilder. He works as a very successful bodybuilding and fashion model.
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
professional wrestler, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and TV personality, who is most famous internationally for portraying the role of the 10th warrior, Halga the Wise, in the movie The 13th Warrior
The 13th Warrior
The 13th Warrior is a 1999 historical fiction action film starring Antonio Banderas as Ahmad ibn Fadlan and Vladimir Kulich as Buliwyf; it is based on the novel Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton. It was directed by John McTiernan and an uncredited Crichton.The 13th Warrior is regarded as a...
featuring Antonio Banderas
Antonio Banderas
José Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor, film director, film producer and singer...
. He is also known for a Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan
Terrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
look a like in the early 1990s, where he presented WWF and WCW on Danish TV channel name TV3. Riis created his "The Great Dane Bear" in 1991 and has been his image to this day. He has run a professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
school in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
since 1994, and has produced several local house shows all over the country. He is still does a lot of wrestling shows, mostly for children and still going strong at the age of 51.
Riis originates from the small island of Mors
Mors (island)
Mors or Morsø is a 367.7 km2 land locked island in the shallow sound called Limfjorden in Denmark. As of 1 January 2010, it has a population of 21,800. The main town on the island is called Nykøbing Mors. Geologically Mors is unique...
, and his recognizable accent and local jargon
Jargon
Jargon is terminology which is especially defined in relationship to a specific activity, profession, group, or event. The philosophe Condillac observed in 1782 that "Every science requires a special language because every science has its own ideas." As a rationalist member of the Enlightenment he...
has made him an instant fan-favorite, and the subject of many parodies by Danish comedians and entertainers. He is doing a lot work to get people not only on the island Mors but all over Denmark, in motivating them to get in better shape.
Recently Riis has appeared as himself in a number of Tuborg Squash
Tuborg Squash
Tuborg Squash is a Danish orange flavoured soft drink, brewed and distributed by Tuborg Brewery. Squash is largely a Danish product, and is not widely available outside of Denmark. According to its producers, it is the oldest Danish soft drink still in existence.In the 1990s, a famous series of...
-commercials, where he jovially beats up two squash
Squash (sport)
Squash is a high-speed racquet sport played by two players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball...
-players, while a tune is playing the words "Du' min aller-bedste Squash-Buddy" (You're my very best Squash-Buddy). Here in 2009 Riis is hosting a new Danish TV channel called "6’eren" where he is presenting "Friday Fight Night" a package with all kinds of action, including Wrestling - American Gladiators and action movies.
In the mid-1990s, Riis hosted his own television programme on the Danish TV channel TV3
TV3 (Denmark)
TV3 Denmark is a Danish television station.TV3 is one of the channels owned by the Viasat Corporation. The sister channel is TV3+. The channels shows a lot of American and British shows, such as: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, NCIS, Las Vegas, Bones, Two And A Half Men, Prison Break, American Idol...
, showcasing first WWF Superstars
WWF Superstars
WWF Superstars is an arcade game manufactured by Technos and released in 1989. It is the first WWF arcade game to be released. A series of unrelated games with the same title were released by LJN for the original Game Boy...
and later on, after the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
, showcased World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
. He was a Danish color commentary for the matches and explaining the jist of the promos that wrestlers would do before matches. Classic phrases uttered during his color commentary of matches are "U-behagelig" (unpleasant, nasty) and "vi må ikke håbe han har fået gule ærter til aftensmad" (Let's hope he hasn't had yellow pea soup
Pea soup
Pea soup or split pea soup is soup made, typically, from dried peas. It is, with variations, a part of the cuisine of many cultures. It is greyish-green or yellow in color depending on the regional variety of peas used; all are cultivars of Pisum sativum.Pea soup has been eaten since antiquity; it...
for dinner), usually said after a wrestler has been hit in the gut, as a reference to him perhaps letting out some wind in the middle of the match and many more like a headace no. 135 after a bionic elboe.
Riis is also good friends with fellow Danish actor (and longtime friend of Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
) Sven-Ole Thorsen
Sven-Ole Thorsen
Sven-Ole Thorsen is a Danish actor, stuntman, bodybuilder and strongman competitor. Sven won Denmark's Strongest Man in 1983....
, who also had a small part in The 13th Warrior
The 13th Warrior
The 13th Warrior is a 1999 historical fiction action film starring Antonio Banderas as Ahmad ibn Fadlan and Vladimir Kulich as Buliwyf; it is based on the novel Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton. It was directed by John McTiernan and an uncredited Crichton.The 13th Warrior is regarded as a...
and was on the lead cast of the cult sci-fi show Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future
Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future
Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future is a 1987–88 science fiction/action television series, merging live action with animation based on computer-generated images, that ran for 22 episodes in Canadian/American syndication...
.
In the Danish Wrestling scene, Riis' wrestling school used to be the only place in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
to learn the performing art of professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
, with the spirit of keeping everyone in the best shape possible and learning weight training - coordination - acrobatics and all styles from the wrestling world.
Riis has 4 sons, and one of them Klaus Myren Riis, whom is also a wrestler, trained by his father, and a bodybuilder. He works as a very successful bodybuilding and fashion model.