| Road Warrior Animal | |
|---|---|
 Road Warrior Animal in 2012 | |
| Birth name | Joseph Michael Laurinaitis |
| Born | September 12, 1960[1] Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | September 22, 2020 (aged 60) Osage Beach, Missouri, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) | Julie Laurinaitis (divorced) Kim Laurinaitis |
| Children | 3; including James Laurinaitis |
| Family | John Laurinaitis (brother) The Terminator (brother) |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Animal Animal Warrior Road Warrior Animal[2] The Road Warrior |
| Billed height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 285 lb (129 kg)[1] |
| Billed from | Chicago, Illinois, U.S.[2] |
| Trained by | Eddie Sharkey |
| Debut | November 1982 |
| Retired | July 23, 2012 |
Joseph Michael "Joe" Laurinaitis (September 12, 1960 – September 22, 2020), better known by his ring name Road Warrior Animal (or simply Animal), was an American professional wrestler. Along with Road Warrior Hawk, he was one-half of the tag team the Road Warriors (also known as the Legion of Doom).[2]
Over the course of his career, Animal appeared with professional wrestling promotions including Georgia Championship Wrestling, Jim Crockett Promotions / World Championship Wrestling, the American Wrestling Association (AWA), All Japan Pro Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) / World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). He held multiple championships, including the AWA World Tag Team Championship, NWA National Tag Team Championship, NWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship, NWA World Tag Team Championship, WWE Tag Team Championship, and WWF Tag Team Championship, and headlined multiple pay-per-view events, including competing for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship at WCW Sin.
Animal was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 1996, the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in 2011, the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011, and the NWA Hall of Fame in 2012. The Road Warriors were named Tag Team of the Year by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter in 1984, and the number one tag team of the "PWI years" by Pro Wrestling Illustrated in 2003.