RIP “Michael Virgil JOnes”

US wrestling star Michael Jones – known by ring names including Virgil and Vincent – has died at the age of 61. “Virgil passed peacefully at the hospital this morning [Wednesday],” wrestling referee Mark Charles III – known professionally as The Count – announced on X, formerly Twitter. His death was also confirmed in posts on his social media accounts. Jones was best known for his work in the World Wresting Federation (WWF) during the 1980s and 1990s.

Jones, who was born in the US state of Pennsylvania,  attended Virginia Union University, and played as a defensive back for the college football team. Jones later worked at his uncle’s loading and moving company and began entering bodybuilding competitions. After a chance meeting with Tony Atlas in a Pittsburgh gym; Atlas recommended Jones to Pro Wrestling in 1985. In the same year, he began training with Afa of the Wild Samoans. He wrestled as an amateur and started wrestling professionally in the mid-1980s under the name Soul Train Jones. He debuted with the WWF, now known as World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), in 1986 and rebranded himself as Lucius Brown, which was later changed to Virgil. This persona as the bodyguard for Ted DiBiase, known as The Million Dollar Man, launched him into fame and lasted several years.

Jones left the WWE in 1994 and worked for two years on the smaller independent circuit before joining the now defunct World Championship Wrestling (WCW) under the persona Vincent. He briefly reinvented himself as Curly Bill for the wrestling outfit the West Texas Rednecks before leaving the WCW in 2000 when he retired due to injury. Jones continued to make independent appearances as his various personas before his health began to deteriorate. In 2022, he revealed that he had dementia and colon cancer. He also suffered a number of strokes. Fundraising pages had been set up online to help pay for Jones’s medical bills and, later, to pay for expenses including clothes and toiletries.

Among those to pay tribute to him following news of his death on Wednesday were WWE Hall of Fame inductee Jake “The Snake” Roberts. From 2018, Jones resided in Marianna, Pennsylvania. On April 16, 2022, he revealed that he had previously suffered two strokes and had been diagnosed with dementia. A month later, he said he was diagnosed with stage-two colon cancer. Jones died on February 28, 2024, at the age of 61. His cause of death hasn’t been made public.

Famous People Born On February 29th

Attention, leaplings! Your special day that only arrives every four years is finally here. “Leaplings” or “leap day babies” denote the small percentage of the population born on Feb. 29, or leap day.

Henri Richard :

Richard didn’t quite have the career of his brother, the legendary Maurice “Rocket” Richard. That being said, he had a 20-year NHL career and won 11 Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens. Richard, known as “The Pocket Rocket” went on to have a Hall of Fame career and was named one of the NHL’s 100 best players in 2017.

Dennis Farina :

Before he was an actor, Farina was a cop in Chicago. It makes sense, as for his entire career he looked, and sounded, like a Chicago cop and often played authority roles. His extensive, impressive career included roles in movies like “Midnight Run” and “Get Shorty.”

Antonio Sabato Jr :

Sabato first gained notoriety as an underwear model before becoming a mildly successful actor. You’ve also seen him on reality shows like “Dancing with the Stars.” However, if you’ve heard of him, it may be because of Sabato’s outspoken political views. He’s made some baffling comments, including a weird preoccupation with asserting Barack Obama is secretly a Muslim.

Simon Gagne :

We now have two NHL players born on this day. Gagne isn’t going to make the Hall of Fame like Henri Richard, but he’s no slouch. He twice had 40-goal seasons with the Flyers and finished his career with a total of 291. His 601 career points helped him make two All-Star Games as well.

Cam Ward :

And we have a 3rd hockey player! Ward took over as the starting goalie for the Carolina Hurricanes during the 2005-06 season. That team happened to win the Stanley Cup, and Ward actually took home the Conn Smythe as playoffs MVP. Alas, that would be the peak of his career. While he played in the NHL for over a decade, Ward finished his career with a 2.74 GAA and .908 save percentage.

Morarji Desai :

Morarji Desai was an Indian independence activist and politician who served as the 4th Prime Minister of India between 1977 and 1979 leading the government formed by the Janata Party. During his long career in politics, he held many important posts in government such as Chief Minister of Bombay State, Home Minister, Finance Minister and 2nd Deputy Prime Minister of India.

Khaled:

Khaled Hadj Ibrahim better known by his mononym Khaled, is an Algerian raï singer, musician and songwriter. To date, Khaled has sold over 80.5 million albums (10 diamond, platinum, and gold) worldwide, making him one of the bestselling Arabic-language singers in history. Among his most famous songs are “Aïcha” & “Didi”.

Ferran Torres :

Ferran Torres is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a forward or winger for La Liga club Barcelona and the Spain national team. Torres began his career at Valencia, where he made his senior debut in 2017. He moved to Manchester City in 2020 and won the Premier League and the EFL Cup in the 2020–21 season. He departed for Barcelona in January 2022. He has represented Spain internationally at various youth levels, and made his debut for the senior team in 2020.