The McMahon Who Built a Different Career
Roderick James McMahon III founded North American Metals with his wife, Jamice, in 1987. While his brother Vince became associated with professional wrestling around the world, Rod built a family business in Texas. That distinction is central to understanding him.
Born on October 12, 1943, on Long Island, New York, he was the older son of wrestling promoter Vincent James McMahon and Victoria Hanner. He died on January 20, 2021, aged 77, after a life centered on family, business relationships, military service, and community interests.
I find his story interesting precisely because the familiar surname can obscure his own choices. Rod was not a wrestling executive or commentator. His working life followed another route.
Education and Service Abroad
Rod attended high school in North Carolina and earned a business degree from Memphis State University, now the University of Memphis. The exact graduation years are not established.
He served in the United States Air Force. During a posting at Ramstein in Germany, he met Jamice Gaygan. They married on November 11, 1967, beginning a partnership that lasted 53 years.
I would avoid adding a military rank or specialty because those details are not confirmed. The established service history is already meaningful: it brought him abroad and introduced him to the person with whom he would build both a family and a company.
Their later business was described as a metals distributor working with steel, custom forgings, and special metals. Its foundation was relationship building, extending to employees, customers, suppliers, and even competitors.
North American Metals and an Open Door
North American Metals began in 1987 as a family venture. Rod’s approach emphasized personal contact and an open door. He was remembered as someone willing to advise, listen, and help.
Those qualities can sound abstract until placed in a business setting. A distributor depends on reliability across several relationships at once. I see his emphasis on people as a practical working philosophy, not merely a warm description attached after his death.
The company’s revenues, employee count, and precise ownership structure are not publicly established. Neither is Rod’s personal net worth. The size of the wrestling business built by his brother should not be used to calculate Rod’s finances.
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1943 | Born on October 12 |
| 1945 | Younger brother Vince was born |
| 1967 | Married Jamice Gaygan on November 11 |
| 1984 | Father Vincent James McMahon died |
| 1987 | Founded North American Metals with Jamice |
| 2021 | Died on January 20 at 77 |
| 2022 | Mother Victoria died on January 20 at 101 |
Jamice Their Sons and Six Grandchildren
Rod and Jamice had two sons, Rome and Troy. Rome’s wife was identified as Kate, and Troy’s partner as Ashley. Their family extended through six grandchildren.
Rome and Kate’s children were Law and Blake. Troy and Ashley’s children were Ty, Trace, Tatum, and TJ.
Rod’s interests outside work included shooting sports, dogs, and support for local law enforcement. Animal rescue was important enough to be included among suggested memorial causes after his death.
The picture is of a man with a substantial family circle and interests rooted in ordinary community life. It differs from the television driven image often attached to the McMahon name.
His Parents and the Earlier Wrestling Generations
Rod’s father, Vincent James McMahon, was born in 1914. He developed the wrestling enterprise that became the World Wide Wrestling Federation and later the World Wrestling Federation. He sold the business to his younger son Vince and Titan Sports in 1982.
Rod’s paternal grandfather was promoter Roderick James Jess McMahon. His grandmother was Rose Davis. Repeated use of the name Roderick can make the generations confusing: Jess was the grandfather, another Roderick was Rod’s uncle, and Rod III was Vincent James’s son.
His mother, Victoria Hanner, later known as Vicki Askew, was born on July 11, 1920. She had two sons, Rod and Vince. Her later life included tennis and church singing. She outlived Rod by exactly one year, dying on January 20, 2022.
I find that shared date particularly striking, although it needs no invented symbolism. It is simply a poignant fact in the family chronology.
Vince and the Public Branch of the Family
Rod’s younger brother, Vincent Kennedy McMahon, was born on August 24, 1945. Vince married Linda Edwards in 1966. Their children, Shane and Stephanie, became well known in wrestling and entertainment.
That makes Rod the paternal uncle of Shane and Stephanie. Stephanie married Paul Levesque, known in wrestling as Triple H. Shane married Marissa Mazzola.
I would distinguish these relationships from shared employment. Being a brother or uncle within a wrestling family did not mean Rod participated in its company. His own public history remained much quieter, and his death brought many wrestling followers their first substantial account of his separate life.
FAQ
Who was Roderick James McMahon III?
He was Vince McMahon’s older brother, a United States Air Force veteran, and the co founder of North American Metals.
Did Rod work for WWE?
He was not involved in the professional wrestling business. His career centered on military service and a private metals company.
Who was his wife?
He married Jamice Gaygan on November 11, 1967. They had met while he was stationed in Germany.
How many children did he have?
He and Jamice had two sons, Rome and Troy, and six grandchildren were named in the family account.
When did he die?
He died on January 20, 2021, aged 77. A cause of death was not publicly established.
