What Pro Wrestling Can Teach Us About Politics

When Robert Remus changed his name to Sgt. One of the most outstanding, most remarkable characters in expert wrestling history was born out of the image of a psycho Marine drill instructor, Slaughter. GI Joe yet named his toys after him.

But Remus previously served in the military. He lied for centuries that serving in the Marines and supporting his state in the Vietnam War were all just gimmicks.

( I know, I know: It’s like finding out Santa Claus is n’t real all over again. )

Want hear something more? ” The Russian Bear” Ivan Koloff was n’t actually from Russia. ( Gasp! ) Oreal Donald Perras, a French man, was really him. When the gimmick ran away, Perras grew a beard, shaved his head, and eventually became the wicked Communist madman Ivan Koloff, the man who ultimately defeated the famous Bruno Sammartino, pretended to be an British villain named Red McNulty.

Before there was a Kamala Harris the Frisco district attorney, there was a Kamala the Ugandan Giant who was really just a large black guy ( billed as 6 ft. 7, 380 pounds ) from Senatobia, Miss. ( Weirdly, the last name of the original Kamala was also Harris: James Arthur Harris. )

If you hate professional wrestling, this is the component that drives you fletcher: It’s a bunch of lies — mixed with a large helping of absolute nonsense — marketed to the masses. It’s obviously a bait-and-switch: You’re pretending this” game” is one item, when it’s really something else. And YES TIMES A Thousand: IT IS FAKE!

But if you love pro wrestlers, this is exactly what makes it so magical: How the devil did this fictional” game” — featuring made-up figures doing the worst, wackiest antics imaginable — ever make such passionate fans?

Also Jerry Seinfeld was flummoxed. Could you come up with this idea if expert wrestling did not exist? he wondered. Do you ever think big men dressed as fighters in small bathing suit would be popular?

But make no mistake, this fraudulent activity makes real cash. The WWE ( World Wrestling Entertainment ) has 90 million followers in the United States alone.

They also have a market capitalization of$ 8.37 billion. The WWE recently agreed to a$ 5 billion hit agreement with Netflix. It is one of the world’s highest-prized leisure properties. Its superstars include the major draws in Hollywood:” The Rock” Dwayne Johnson, John Cena, and David Batista. Retired superstars like Steve Austin, Ric Flair, and the Funeral are still commanding the light, Hulk Hogan only addressed the Republican National Convention in night. &nbsp,

This is Great Child economy.

Why does it work so well? And did its” tricks of the trade” for provoking emotional responses convert into politics?

It’s definitely worthwhile to point out that a sizable portion of professional wrestlers are fervent Republicans. Kane, who played the brother of the Undertaker, is now the ( Republican ) Knoxville Mayor Glenn Jacobs. JBL ( John Layfield ) portrayed an ornery cowboy on WWE television, but he is a savvy financial planner who’s made hundreds of appearances on FOX News and FOX Business. The Undertaker ( Mark Calaway ), Road Dogg ( Brian James ), and Chris Jericho all donated money to Trump. Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair have publicly backed MAGA. Linda McMahon, the previous president, CEO and co-owner of the WWE, served in President Trump’s case.

And President Trump, of training, is a member of the WWE Hall of Fame.

The skill-set of a successful professional boxer includes the qualities that most politicians would destroy for: Aesthetically, you need to stand-out and attract eyeballs. ( Being handsome is a plus, but at a minimum, you need an aura — a natural presence. ) You may be able to create a fantastic offer instantly. Professionally, you’ve gotta be convincing when you play the part. And meaningfully, you need a sixth sense to anticipate the kind of story that may excite your market, keep’ em entertained — and ( knock on wood ) continue to motivate’ em to spend money on your shirts, your cards, and your displays.

Back in the territory days of wrestling, it was n’t uncommon for a wrestler to spend 300+ days on the road each year. That was your profit-model: You were paid when you performed, and the measuring stay was the crowd wall. During the 1980s, cable tv nationalized the wrestling business, and by the 1990s, organizers were using their biweekly shows to offer monthly Pay-Per-Views. Now with Netflix, it looks like the economy is migrating but again, this moment to streaming.

Another trait that exists between wrestling and politics is that both may be adaptable enough to change market conditions. Neither can be married to the old way — that “where’s my butter”? culture. You almost need the mindset that your audience is comprised of traitorous, disloyal, ADD-addled Karens: If you do n’t give’ em what they want and keep’ em happy, they’ll drop you in a New York minute. Their past commitment means little, they owe you zero affiliation. Otherwise, it’s your job to keep them.

Nice guys versus bad guys are similar plot devices and techniques! The home hero over the rude foreigner! Kamala Harris ‘ failure to get a bigger swing after the Trump-Harris political conversation irked ABC News. Any wrestling enthusiast will understand why ABC and Kamala were doing that double-teaming fad, where hosts David Muir and Linsey Davis kept jumping in and supporting Harris ‘ strike while the “referee” was apparently unaware of the lack of impartiality.

( Silly Democrats! The audience should n’t be sympathetic to the bad guys because that gimmick is meant to generate heat with them.

There’s also a curious tribal element to both” sports”: There’s chanting, role-playing, music, lights, and ( manufactured ) drama. And perhaps most interesting, both depend on visitors interaction. The greater the audience, the better the display. In a peculiar manner, it’s as much about us as it is about them.

There are no regulations, which is the other concept. Over the years, there have been greatly famous athletes of every size, design and incarnation whatsoever. You wo n’t see much in common visually when you move from Andre the Giant to Ric Flair to Booker T to Rey Mysterio to Yokozuna to Mick Foley to Dusty Rhodes to the Road Warriors. They all had significant differences in almost every feature of their display! &nbsp,

Yet they all drew thousands. They were all earth leaders. They were all considerably powerful, money-generating artists.

It’s the same with politicians: They’re outcome-based companies. The single litmus test is success. And you must be able to accomplish it in a special approach. &nbsp,

As the barriers between leisure advertising more dissolve, we’re going to see more boxers taking the plunge into elections. Former wrestler Jesse Ventura was elected governor of Minnesota in 1998 as a member of the Reform Party ( Ventura endorsed Harris in 2024 ). It’s never been easier to monetize your Tournament success into a new job in Washington, DC, with the removal of any discrimination that “wrasslin'” once had.

Wanna a” Hell Yeah”!

So what’s the bottom range for wrestlers and politics? You play a character, sell a story, operate a crowd, get temperature on your foes, and keep your audience panting for more. &nbsp,

Little false about that.

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