Mid 20th Century
128-477: Roy Wayne Farris (born January 25, 1953) is an American retired professional wrestler . He is best known for his tenure in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) from 1986 to 1991, where he performed under the ring name The Honky Tonk Man . He also performed for World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1994, and for Stampede Wrestling between 1982 and 1986. He was inducted into
256-435: A bona fide athletic contest or competition. Professional wrestling is not a combative sport. Wrestling constituting bona fide athletic contests and competitions, which may be professional or amateur combative sport, shall not be deemed professional wrestling under this Part. Professional wrestling as used in this Part shall not depend on whether the individual wrestlers are paid or have been paid for their performance in
384-415: A performing art evolved from the common practice of match-fixing among American wrestlers in the 19th century, who later sought to make matches shorter, more entertaining, and less physically taxing. As the public gradually realized and accepted that matches were predetermined, wrestlers responded by increasingly adding melodrama, gimmickry, and outlandish stunt work to their performances to further enhance
512-415: A professional wrestling exhibition. All engagements of professional wrestling shall be referred to as exhibitions, and not as matches. In the industry's slang, a fixed match is referred to as a worked match, derived from the slang word for manipulation, as in "working the crowd". A shoot match is a genuine contest where both wrestlers fight to win and are therefore "straight shooters", which comes from
640-604: A 50s-styled, themed entrance song performed by Farris (included on Piledriver: The Wrestling Album II , the WWF's second album of wrestling themes ). By September 1987, "Macho Man" Randy Savage was in the midst of a fan favorite turn and began challenging Honky for the title (after Honky had made comments about himself being "the greatest Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion of all time" and making disparaging comments about former champions, particularly Savage). Although they had several matches beforehand – they had also met in 1986, when
768-657: A World Pro Wrestling event in Colusa, California , teaming with Doink The Clown (a new masked version) to face WPW World Tag Team Champions The First Class Express, Jerry Grey and Mighty Henrich. The match ended in a no contest as Doink turned on Honky and the three triple-teamed him. On May 7, 2009, Honky and Bushwacker Luke defeated "Kowboy" Mike Hughes and "Wildman" Gary Williams for the UCW Tag Team Championship. On January 31, 2011, Honky made his Dynamic Wrestling Alliance debut defeating Col. Jonathan James at
896-413: A background in authentic wrestling no longer mattered. After this time, matches became more outlandish and gimmicky and any semblance professional wrestling had to catch wrestling faded. The personas of the wrestlers likewise grew more outlandish. Gorgeous George , who performed throughout the 1940s and 1950s, was the first wrestler whose entrance into the arena was accompanied by a theme song played over
1024-571: A burgeoning roster which also included recent signings Andre the Giant, Greg Valentine, and Rick Rude. He (as well as Rude and Valentine) made their debuts on the January 9, 1991 tapings of UWF Fury Hour . Appearing as The Honkytonk Man, Ferris did an in-ring segment with Captain Lou Albano where he was prevented from singing for the fans in attendance. The WWF filed a lawsuit claiming trademark to
1152-532: A carny term for a shooting gallery gun whose sights were not deliberately misaligned. Wrestling in the United States blossomed in popularity after the Civil War , with catch wrestling eventually becoming the most popular style. At first, professional wrestlers were genuine competitive fighters, but they struggled to draw audiences because Americans did not find real wrestling to be very entertaining, so
1280-519: A central authority. Nor could any of them stomach the idea of leaving the NWA themselves to compete directly with McMahon, for that would mean their territories would become fair game for the other NWA members. McMahon also had a creative flair for TV that his rivals lacked. For instance, the AWA's TV productions during the 1980s were amateurish, low-budget, and out-of-touch with contemporary culture, which lead to
1408-585: A champion that Curley put forth: Dick Shikat . The National Wrestling Association shut down in 1980. In 1948, a number of promoters from across the country came together to form the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). The NWA recognized one "world champion", voted on by its members, but allowed member promoters to crown their own local champions in their territories. If a member poached wrestlers from another member, or held matches in another member's territory, they risked being ejected from
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#17327871374171536-402: A degree. Vince Russo, the boss of WCW in 2000, completely disregarded kayfabe by routinely discussing business matters and office politics in public, which alienated fans. I watch championship wrestling from Florida with wrestling commentator Gordon Solie . Is this all "fake"? If so, they deserve an Oscar . Mid-Hudson Civic Center Majed J. Nesheiwat Convention Center (formerly
1664-404: A distinct vernacular . It has achieved mainstream success and influence within popular culture , with many terms, tropes , and concepts being referenced in everyday language as well as in film , music , television , and video games . Likewise, numerous professional wrestlers have become national or international icons with recognition by the broader public. In the United States, wrestling
1792-679: A double disqualification for United Wrestling Alliance on February 19, 1991. He faced USWA Heavyweight Champion Jerry Lawler at the TWA Spring Spectacular 2 on May 18, 1991, losing via disqualification. Ferris next appeared for the TWA ( Tri-State Wrestling Alliance ), where he faced Paul Orndorff. He lost to Don Muraco at Century Toyota on June 28, 1992. Then he made a one night appearance on November 11, 1993, for United States Wrestling Association as he lost to Jeff Jarrett by disqualification. On August 5, 1994, Ferris resurfaced in
1920-480: A fan favorite turn. The feud intensified when Honky attacked Roberts on his talk show set, The Snake Pit . According to Roberts, Honky was supposed to hit him with a gimmicked balsa wood guitar; he believes Farris accidentally grabbed a real, non-gimmicked guitar (made of fiberglass) and smashed it across Roberts' back, legitimately injuring him. According to Roberts, this started his dependence on prescription pain medication (in an interview, Roberts alleges that he
2048-410: A fee, a visitor could challenge the wrestler to a quick match. If the challenger defeated the champion in a short time frame, usually 15 minutes, he won a prize. To encourage challenges, the carnival operators staged rigged matches in which an accomplice posing as a visitor challenged the champion and won, giving the audience the impression that the champion was easy to beat. This practice taught wrestlers
2176-434: A feud with "Outlaw" Ron Bass after Bass committed a sneak attack on Beefcake; the incident was aired the weekend before SummerSlam. At the event, it was announced that a "mystery opponent" would face Honky for the title. When it came time for the match, Honky grabbed the microphone and proclaimed that he did not care who his opponent was. The Ultimate Warrior then ran out and pinned his stunned opponent in just 31 seconds for
2304-570: A guitar. He also appeared at PDX Wrestling (the new-age Portland Wrestling , run by Sandy Barr 's son Josh) teaming with a local fan favorite against two villains. On April 26, 2008, Honky was inducted into the XWF Hall of Fame by its creator Jack Blaze at their 2008 XWF Superbrawl event. XWF was later renamed LPW (Legends Pro Wrestling) where Honky is still honored in their Hall of Fame. On June 28, 2008, in Chicago Ridge, Illinois , he made
2432-516: A highly interactive message board community, extensive photo gallery, audio updates, and more. Notable online feuds began between The Honky Tonk Man and Jerry Lawler , Roddy Piper, and others. These often intense online rivalries became a major drawing point for fans. The website unexpectedly closed without much explanation in December 2006. The site now forwards to various new ventures of former website manager Ryan Smith, who remains tight-lipped about
2560-629: A jobber to the stars. He wrestled frequently in Birmingham, Dothan, Mobile, and Pensacola as "Dynamite" Wayne Farris. He achieved greater success when he teamed with Larry Latham to form The Blond Bombers when they were put together by Jerry Brisco in Florida Championship Wrestling. The Bombers were later put with Sgt. Danny Davis as their manager when they came back to Memphis. The Blond Bombers were involved in heated feuds with several fan favorite teams across
2688-405: A legitimate sport. Firstly, wrestling was more entertaining when it was faked, whereas fakery did not make boxing any more entertaining. Secondly, in a rigged boxing match, the designated loser must take a real beating for his "defeat" to be convincing, but wrestling holds can be faked convincingly without inflicting injury. This meant that boxers were less willing to "take dives"; they wanted to have
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#17327871374172816-573: A losing effort for SSOW. After a brief stint in the American Wrestling Federation, Honky resurfaced in the WWF on December 17, 1996, at a Monday Night Raw taping in Tampa, FL. In a show that aired on December 29, Honky Tonk told the fans that he could not sing for the fans and instead provided color commentary. This would expand to commentary work on Raw Is War , WWF Superstars , and Shotgun Saturday Night , and then as
2944-744: A match against Gus Sonnenberg in January 1929. Bowser then broke away from the trust to form his own cartel, the American Wrestling Association (AWA), in September 1930, and he declared Sonnenberg to be the AWA champion. This AWA should not be confused with Wally Kadbo's AWA founded in 1960. Curley reacted to this move by convincing the National Boxing Association to form the National Wrestling Association , which in turn crowned
3072-512: A match that went to a time limit draw. Honky Tonk suffered his first WCW defeat on October 28, 1994, losing to Johnny B Badd at a house show in Tampa, FL. This presaged several further defeats to Badd on the house show circuit; in the meantime it was announced he would face the WCW World Television Champion in a rematch at Starrcade . Honky Tonk continued to remained undefeated on television, with his final match before
3200-424: A more literal meaning in those places. A notable example is India's Pro Wrestling League . In numerous American states, professional wrestling is legally defined as a non-sport. For instance, New York defines professional wrestling as: Professional wrestling means an activity in which participants struggle hand-in-hand primarily for the purpose of providing entertainment to spectators and which does not comprise
3328-440: A new city, attendance was high because there was a waiting fanbase cultivated in advance by the cable TV shows. The NWA's traditional anti-competitive tricks were no match for this. The NWA attempted to centralize and create their own national cable television shows to counter McMahon's rogue promotion, but it failed in part because the members of the NWA, ever protective of their territories, could not stomach submitting themselves to
3456-404: A pair of scissors from his pocket which Studd used to cut The Giants long hair, with Vince McMahon claiming in commentary that they were raping André of his dignity. While it shocked the audience, in reality André had agreed to the haircut prior to the match as part of his ongoing feud with the 6'10" (208 cm) Studd over who was the true giant in professional wrestling. The only title change at
3584-499: A prison warden returning Dario Cueto's things upon his release. In 2008, Santino Marella announced his intention to break Honky's record for longest Intercontinental Championship reign, usually displaying a special "Honk-a-meter" comparing Honky's 64-week record with the length of his own reign at the time. On the October 6 episode of Raw , Honky (now a fan favorite for the first time since 1986), along with Goldust and Roddy Piper,
3712-441: A promo aired from Honky where he declared that he would tap dance on the head of Paul Orndorff . Similar promos aired on following episodes of Superstars that month, as well as the new Wrestling Challenge syndicated program. Honky made his televised WWF debut on the September 28, 1986, episode of Wrestling Challenge , defeating Terry Gibbs . Originally pushed as a fan favorite wrestler with an Elvis impersonator gimmick , he
3840-586: A public appearance in Canada before an Ultimate Championship Wrestling show in Charlottetown , Prince Edward Island . He was making an appearance at Boston Pizza in Charlottetown several hours before the show when someone wanted to take a photo with him with both men clashing guitars. When the guitars collided, the neck of Honky's guitar turned and sliced into Honky's finger, almost severing it. Honky
3968-547: A re-design of the original hotel plans, construction of the hotel resumed. The MJN Nesheiwat Convention Center, a private, not-for-profit community organization dedicated to providing cultural, recreational and educational opportunities to the Hudson Valley is a dual venue comprising Mair Hall and McCann Ice Arena. Mair Hall is a 15,475-square-foot (1,437.7 m ) space with the capacity to host 3,050 seated spectators and large expos and trade shows. On December 3, 2018
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4096-411: A special guest appearance for Ring of Honor with the storyline that "Sweet N' Sour" Larry Sweeney had brought him on board with his Sweet N' Sour, Inc. faction. He praised the crowd and was about to sing and dance for them until Sweeney stepped in and told him he would not be doing either until their demands were met. On July 27, 2008, Honky almost had the index finger of his right hand severed during
4224-503: A typical American household only received four national channels by antenna, and ten to twelve local channels via UHF broadcasting . But cable television could carry a much larger selection of channels and therefore had room for niche interests. The WWF started with a show called All-American Wrestling airing on the USA Network in September 1983. McMahon's TV shows made his wrestlers national celebrities, so when he held matches in
4352-586: A victory for all the pain to which they subjected themselves. In the 1910s, promotional cartels for professional wrestling emerged in the East Coast (outside its traditional heartland in the Midwest ). These promoters sought to make long-term plans with their wrestlers, and to ensure their more charismatic and crowd-pleasing wrestlers received championships, further entrenching the desire for worked matches. The primary rationale for shoot matches at this point
4480-493: Is a first cousin of Jerry Lawler and a first cousin once-removed of the late Brian Christopher . He is an avid golfer in his spare time. Farris's first marriage to Judy Lynn Nuckolls was brief, but he has been married to his current wife Tammy since 1984. He has lived in Gilbert, Arizona since June 1993. Although a kayfabe rival of Randy Savage , Farris had a professionally friendly relationship with him. Both men held
4608-436: Is a form of athletic theater that combines mock combat with drama , with the premise that the performers are competitive wrestlers. Professional wrestling is distinguished by its scripted outcomes and emphasis on entertainment and showmanship . The staged nature of matches is an open secret , with both wrestlers and spectators nonetheless maintaining the pretense that performances are bona fide competitions, which
4736-410: Is a true sport. Wrestlers would at all times flatly deny allegations that they fixed their matches, and they often remained in-character in public even when not performing. When in public, wrestlers would sometimes say the word kayfabe to each other as a coded signal that there were fans present and they needed to be in character. Professional wrestlers in the past strongly believed that if they admitted
4864-542: Is a well-known and highly regarded real estate developer; he has diversified experience in all facets of the real estate industry. Nesheiwat made his mark in real estate through commercial development, specifically with retail plazas and residential sub-divisions. The McCann Ice Arena serves youth organizations, leagues and individuals for both recreational and competitive figure skating and ice hockey and offers open ice slots, group and private lessons, public skating sessions and private parties. McCann Ice Arena had briefly been
4992-427: Is generally practiced in an amateur context. No professional league for competitive wrestling exists due to a lack of popularity. For example, Real Pro Wrestling , an American professional freestyle wrestling league, dissolved in 2007 after just two seasons. In other countries, such as Iran and India , wrestling enjoys widespread popularity as a genuine sport, and the phrase "professional wrestling" therefore has
5120-470: Is likened to the suspension of disbelief employed when engaging with fiction . Professional wrestlers perform as characters and usually maintain a " gimmick " consisting of a specific persona , stage name , entrance theme , and other distinguishing traits. Matches are the primary vehicle for advancing storylines, which typically center on interpersonal conflicts, or feuds , between heroic " faces " and villainous " heels ". A wrestling ring , akin to
5248-668: The Mid-Hudson Civic Center ) is a venue located in Poughkeepsie, New York , consisting of Mair Hall (a concert and convention hall) and the McCann Ice Arena (an ice skating venue). It was built in the 1970s as part of the general attempt at rehabilitation of the central district of the City of Poughkeepsie. It is located at 14 Civic Center Plaza, on a segment of what was formerly known as Market Street near
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5376-624: The New Jersey State Athletic Control Board that professional wrestling is not a real sport because its matches have predetermined outcomes. Shortly thereafter, New Jersey deregulated professional wrestling. The WWF then rebranded itself as a " sports entertainment " company. In the early years of the 20th century, the style of wrestling used in professional wrestling matches was catch wrestling . Promoters wanted their matches to look realistic and so preferred to recruit wrestlers with real grappling skills. In
5504-736: The WWE Hall of Fame as part of the 2019 induction ceremony . A heel for the majority of his active professional wrestling career, he has been described by Bleacher Report as "one of the greatest villains to ever grace a professional wrestling ring". His 454-day reign as WWE Intercontinental Champion was the longest reign in the history of the title until it was broken by Gunther in 2023. Farris began his career in 1977 working in Malden, Missouri and wrestled alongside his training partner Koko B. Ware for promoter Henry Rogers. Farris then moved on to Memphis Wrestling in 1978, originally working as
5632-512: The WWE Hall of Fame on April 4, 2009. In 2010, WWE offered him a place in the WWE Hall of Fame, but he rejected it. Honky made a brief appearance on Old School Raw on March 4, 2013. Following a match between the team of Brodus Clay and Tensai and 3MB, he smashed 3MB member Heath Slater over the head with a guitar. He then danced with Clay and Tensai to his signature "Cool, Cocky, Bad" theme song. On February 26, 2019, WWE confirmed that
5760-578: The WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship for over one year, with Farris beating Savage by a few weeks. Farris considers Harley Race to be the greatest professional wrestler of all time. Farris has stated that he donates his hair to Locks of Love once a year. Professional wrestling 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Professional wrestling (often referred to as pro wrestling , or simply, wrestling )
5888-557: The independent circuit , to internationally broadcast events at major arenas. The largest and most influential promotions are in the United States , Mexico , Japan , and northwest Europe (the United Kingdom , Germany/Austria and France ), which have each developed distinct styles, traditions, and subgenres within professional wrestling. Professional wrestling has developed its own culture and community , including
6016-458: The referee with his megaphone while Beefcake had Honky in a sleeper hold , and this saw Honky retain the title, but Hart got a haircut from Beefcake himself) and continued during the spring and summer of 1988 – Honky vowed not to let Beefcake cut his ducktail hair, something Beefcake often said he would do in promos. In their matches, Honky was often seconded by a mysterious woman named Peggy Sue; while WWF Women's Champion Sherri Martel played
6144-431: The spectacle . By at least the early 20th century, professional wrestling had diverged from the competitive sport to become an artform and genre of sports entertainment . Professional wrestling is performed around the world through various " promotions ", which are roughly analogous to production companies or sports leagues . Promotions vary considerably in size, scope, and creative approach, ranging from local shows on
6272-847: The "Golden Opportunity II" event in Middletown, Ohio. On June 5, 2016, Honky wrestled in Impact Pro Wrestling in New Zealand , at the Armageddon Expo in Wellington . He teamed up with Brook Duncan and Britenay to defeat the team of the IPW New Zealand Heavyweight Champion Curt Chaos, Taylor Adams and Mr. Burns. Honky made a cameo appearance in the first episode of season 3 of Lucha Underground , appearing as
6400-584: The 1920s, a group of wrestlers and promoters known as the Gold Dust Trio introduced moves which have since become staples of the mock combat of professional wrestling, such as body slams, suplexes , punches, finishing moves, and out-of-ring count-outs. By the early 1930s, most wrestlers had adopted personas to generate public interest. These personas could broadly be characterized as either faces (likeable) or heels (villainous). Native Americans, cowboys, and English aristocrats were staple characters in
6528-400: The 1930s and 1940s. Before the age of television, some wrestlers played different personas depending on the region they were performing in. This eventually came to an end in the age of national television wrestling shows, which forced wrestlers to stick to one persona. Wrestlers also often used some sort of gimmick, such as a finishing move, eccentric mannerisms, or out-of-control behavior (in
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#17327871374176656-460: The 1990s, WCW became a credible rival to the WWF, but by end it suffered from a series of creative missteps that led to its failure and purchase by the WWF. One of its mistakes was that it diminished the glamor of its World Heavyweight Championship . Between January 2000 and March 2001, the title changed hands eighteen times, which sapped fan enthusiasm, particularly for the climactic pay-per-view matches. In professional wrestling, two factors decide
6784-653: The Atlantic Athletic Corporation (AAC). The AAC shut down in 1960. In 1958, Omaha promoter and NWA member Joe Dusek recognized Verne Gagne as the world champion without the approval of the NWA. Gagne asked for a match against the recognized NWA champion Pat O'Connor. The NWA refused to honor the request, so Gagne and Minneapolis promoter Wally Karbo established the American Wrestling Association in 1960. This AWA should not be confused with Paul Bowser's AWA, which ceased operations just two months prior. Gagne's AWA operated out of Minnesota . Unlike
6912-761: The Big Two, joining World Championship Wrestling and defeating Terry Taylor on WCW Worldwide . Promotional vignettes began airing for the former WWF star, and he next appeared on August 15, 1994, on WCW Pro with a win over Brad Armstrong . The Clash of The Champions special on August 24, 1994, featured the debut of his new song "Honky Dog Baby". Honky Tonk Man remained undefeated on WCW television, defeating Mike Winner and Sam Houston. He began appearing on WCW's renewed house show circuit in October, defeating Brian Pillman in multiple encounters. On October 24, 1994, he appeared on his first WCW PPV, wrestling WCW World Television Champion Johnny B. Badd on Halloween Havoc in
7040-563: The Civic Center during WWF Championship Wrestling tapings was on June 17, 1985 when The U.S. Express ( Mike Rotundo and Barry Windham ) defeated "The Foreign Legion" ( The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff ), regaining the WWF Tag Team Championship they had lost to the pair at Wrestlemania on March 31, 1985. The Mid Hudson Civic Center has also host a handful of episodes of Monday Night Raw between 1993 and 1995;
7168-533: The Honky Tonk Man would join the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2019 . He was inducted on April 7, 2019, by his former manager Jimmy Hart. Honky appeared in the coin operated arcade game WWF Superstars which debuted in 1989. Honky appeared in an episode of the court based show Judge Jeanine Pirro as a witness to the defendant; the episode, which aired on October 11, 2010, was also the highest rated show for Judge Jeanine Pirro of all time. Honky appeared in
7296-512: The Honkytonk Man character, with the segment subsequently not airing. This would also extend to Rick Rude and Greg Valentine, who would never actually appear on UWF television. Ferris left the promotion following a pay dispute with Abrams, and the latter refused to pay him or Valentine. After leaving the UWF, Honky went the independent circuit . He wrestled his former partner Greg Valentine to
7424-577: The Intercontinental Championship, ending his reign at 454 days. Honky had been the champion for one year, two months, and 27 days (454 days total), which stood as the longest Intercontinental Championship reign until September 2023, when he was surpassed by Gunther . In 1989, Honky entered the Royal Rumble , where he was eliminated by Tito Santana and Bushwhacker Butch . In late 1989 and 1990, he and Greg Valentine , who
7552-774: The International Tag Team Championship. On June 20, 1986, he defeated Bad News Allen for the Stampede North American Heavyweight Championship ; the title was vacated when Honky left for WWF in 1986. Farris entered the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in July 1986 under the ring name The Honky Tonk Man. Honky made his televised debut on the August 30, 1986 episode of The Body Shop (the last Body Shop interview segment conducted by Don Muraco ), held on
7680-453: The June 13, 1987, episode of Superstars , Honky defeated Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat for the WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship ; Honky reversed Steamboat's inside cradle and grabbed onto the bottom ropes for extra leverage to get the pinfall win. Butch Reed was originally scheduled to win the title. Honky was originally meant to be a transitional champion to only hold on to
7808-586: The March 13, 1993 episode was the first to be taped outside New York City's Manhattan Center . At the final taping of Championship Wrestling on August 5, 1986 (aired August 30), Harley Race was crowned the "King of Wrestling" after winning the 1986 King of the Ring tournament. Total Nonstop Action Wrestling taped their pay-per view event TNA One Night Only: #OldSchool at the venue on December 30, 2013. Impact Wrestling held their Rebellion pay-per view event at
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#17327871374177936-705: The Mid-Hudson Civic Center issued a press release announcing the name change of the Poughkeepsie building to the Majed J. Nesheiwat Convention Center. Majed "Mitch" Nesheiwat is a long time resident and business man of Dutchess County New York. Nesheiwat is the Founder and CEO of Gas Land Petroleum, which distributes petroleum products for companies such as Exxon Mobil, Shell, Sunoco, Gulf, Citgo, Phillips 66, and Conoco. Aside from distribution, Nesheiwat
8064-408: The NWA, at which point his territory became fair game for everyone. The NWA would blacklist wrestlers who worked for independent promoters or who publicly criticized an NWA promoter or who did not throw a match on command. If an independent promoter tried to establish himself in a certain area, the NWA would send their star performers to perform for the local NWA promoter to draw the customers away from
8192-488: The NWA, which only allowed faces to be champions, Gagne occasionally allowed heels to win the AWA championship so that they could serve as foils for him. In August 1983, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), a promotion in the north-east , withdrew from the NWA. Vince K. McMahon then took over as its boss. No longer bound by the territorial pact of the NWA, McMahon began expanding his promotion into
8320-507: The November 22, 1986 episode of Superstars , the results predictably came back negative, and it was not long before Honky turned into a cocky villain and took on "Mouth of the South" Jimmy Hart (later billed "Colonel" as a reference to Elvis Presley 's manager Colonel Tom Parker ) as his manager. Honky's first major feud came against Jake "The Snake" Roberts , who was in the midst of
8448-439: The October 27 episode of Raw , Honky appeared as a special guest commentator. After an impersonation of Marella's on-screen girlfriend, Beth Phoenix , Charlie Haas was knocked into the announcer table, and Marella attacked Honky, prompting Piper and Goldust to block Marella's escape from the ring. Upon Goldust's entry to the ring, Marella turned around to be smashed over the head by Honky's guitar. Honky inducted Koko B. Ware into
8576-548: The PPV coming on December 17 in a win over Steve Collins on WCW Worldwide . At Starrcade 94 he left the company due to a dispute with management. In his book Controversy Creates Cash , Eric Bischoff stated that his favorite firing was that of Honky. Honky has responded by saying that it was an honor, as Bischoff had fired a number of people while in WCW until he got himself fired. After an unsuccessful stint with WCW, Honky returned to
8704-415: The South" Jimmy Hart had been "bidding" for his services in the previous months and had gathered in the ring to hear who Savage had chosen. The venue was also where Heenan Family members Big John Studd and Ken Patera faced André the Giant and S. D. Jones in a tag team match. After knocking Jones out of the ring, Studd and Patera then double teamed André, knocking him unconscious. Bobby Heenan then pulled
8832-409: The WWF for a one-time appearance at the 2001 Royal Rumble , but was quickly eliminated by Kane after being hit on the head with his guitar. Since 2000, Honky has worked independent wrestling shows all over the world. Honky, along with Ryan Smith and a host of others, ran a series of controversial wrestling websites from 2000 to 2006. TheHonkyTonkMan.com featured frequent updates from Honky himself,
8960-460: The ages, spectacular banked track action. System of a Down , Mr. Bungle , Incubus , and Puya performed on February 18, 2000 as part of the SnoCore Tour . Kiss performed at the venue on November 28, 1984, as part of their Animalize World Tour . This was the first show with lead guitarist, Mark St. John , playing the entire show. St. John only performed three shows (two in full) with
9088-403: The alleged non-gimmicked guitar shot. During their feud, which culminated at WrestleMania III , Honky grabbed the ring ropes to score a tainted win; afterward, Roberts cleared the ring of Honky before he and Alice Cooper attacked Hart with Damien, Roberts' python . Following WrestleMania his feud with Jake Roberts was temporarily sidelined, with the newly returned Ken Patera substituting for
9216-401: The arena's loudspeakers, his being Pomp and Circumstance . He also wore a costume: a robe and hairnet, which he removed after getting in the ring. He also had a pre-match ritual where his "butler" would spray the ring with perfume. In the 1980s, Vince McMahon made entrance songs, costumes, and rituals standard for his star wrestlers. For instance, McMahon's top star Hulk Hogan would delight
9344-418: The art of staging rigged matches and fostered a mentality that spectators were marks to be duped. The term kayfabe comes from carny slang. By the turn of the 20th century, most professional wrestling matches were "worked" and some journalists exposed the practice: American wrestlers are notorious for the amount of faking they do. It is because of this fact that suspicion attaches to so many bouts that
9472-561: The audience by tearing his shirt off before each match. The first major promoter cartel emerged on the East Coast, although up to that point, wrestling's heartland had been in the Midwest. Notable members of this cartel included Jack Curley , Lou Daro, Paul Bowser and Tom and Tony Packs. The promoters colluded to solve a number of problems that hurt their profits. Firstly, they could force their wrestlers to perform for less money. As
9600-424: The cartel grew, there were fewer independent promoters where independent wrestlers could find work, and many were forced to sign a contract with the cartel to receive steady work. The contracts forbade them from performing at independent venues. A wrestler who refused to play by the cartel's rules was barred from performing at its venues. A second goal of the wrestling cartels was to establish an authority to decide who
9728-418: The case of heels). The matches could also be gimmicky sometimes, with wrestlers fighting in mud and piles of tomatoes and so forth. The most successful and enduring gimmick to emerge from the 1930s were tag-team matches. Promoters noticed that matches slowed down as the wrestlers in the ring tired, so they gave them partners to relieve them. It also gave heels another way to misbehave by double-teaming. Towards
9856-423: The character in shows must be considered fictional, wholly separate from the life of the performer. This is similar to other entertainers who perform with a persona that shares their own name. Some wrestlers also incorporate elements of their real-life personalities into their characters, even if they and their in-ring persona have different names. Kayfabe is the practice of pretending that professional wrestling
9984-700: The closing. Honky has wrestled for Southern Championship Wrestling in Castroville, Texas, and MSW in eastern Canada. On April 23, 2008, Honky was seen wrestling in Presque Isle, Maine for the North Atlantic American Wrestling Association promotion. He appeared on Heavy on Wrestling on June 14, 2008, in Superior, Wisconsin . He wrestled as a fan favorite, defeating Big Brody Hoofer and hitting Cameron Steele with
10112-461: The commission. The Commission did on very rare occasions hand out such authorizations, such as for a championship match between Jim Londos and Jim Browning in June 1934. This decree did not apply to amateur wrestling, which the commission had no authority over. Wrestling fans widely suspected that professional wrestling was fake, but they did not care as long as it entertained. In 1933, a wrestling promoter named Jack Pfefer started talking about
10240-540: The current fashion of wrestling is the universal discussion as to the honesty of the matches. And certainly the most interesting phrase of this discussion is the unanimous agreement: "Who cares if they're fixed or not—the show is good." Newspapers tended to shun professional wrestling, as journalists saw its theatrical pretense to being a legitimate sport as untruthful. Eventually promoters resorted to publishing their own magazines in order to get press coverage and communicate with fans. The first professional wrestling magazine
10368-474: The debuting Undertaker , against Rhodes' Dream Team of The Hart Foundation and Koko B. Ware at the 1990 Survivor Series , where they emerged victorious. Honky wrapped up his WWF career with a stint as a pro-villains color commentator alongside Vince McMahon and Roddy Piper on Superstars before leaving in January 1991. Universal Wrestling Federation promoter Herb Abrams immediately set about signing Ferris to his growing roster of former WWF stars, adding to
10496-685: The early 1980s, winning multiple singles and tag team championships in each. Farris made his debut for Stampede Wrestling in Calgary in 1982 where the Honky Tonk Wayne gimmick was born. A spinoff of rock star Elvis Presley , he sported slicked-back hair, sideburns, and carried a guitar. Honky and Ron Starr won the Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship in 1985 and 1986. He later teamed with Cuban Assassin to win
10624-405: The end of the 1930s, faced with declining revenues, promoters chose to focus on grooming charismatic wrestlers with no regard for their skill because it was charisma that drew the crowds, and wrestlers who were both skilled at grappling and charismatic were hard to come by. Since most of the public by this time knew and accepted that professional wrestling was fake, realism was no longer paramount and
10752-603: The facade of kayfabe as best as they could. In 1989, Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey government that professional wrestling was not a true sport and therefore should be exempted from sports-related taxes. Many wrestlers and fans resented McMahon for this, but Lou Thesz accepted it as the smart move as it gave the industry more freedom to do as it pleased, and because by that point professional wrestling no longer attempted to appear real. The demise of WCW in 2001 provided some evidence that kayfabe still mattered to
10880-422: The final taping of All Star Wrestling . Taped several days later, he was introduced to fans at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center by Junkyard Dog in the final episode of WWF Championship Wrestling , which also aired on August 30. The WWF's introduction of the new character continued apace on their new clutch of syndicated programs that debuted that fall. On September 6, 1986, on the first episode of WWF Superstars ,
11008-470: The first place. "Double-crosses", where a wrestler agreed to lose a match but nevertheless fought to win, remained a problem in the early cartel days. At times a promoter would even award a victorious double-crosser the title of champion to preserve the facade of sport. But promoters punished such wrestlers by blacklisting them, making it quite challenging to find work. Double-crossers could also be sued for breach of contract, such as Dick Shikat in 1936. In
11136-457: The former Main Mall . The Poughkeepsie Grand Hotel, at 40 Civic Center Plaza, is adjacent on the same block and was originally designed to be constructed concurrently with the civic center and financed by Hilton , but the hotel construction was abandoned after the foundation was laid. Four years after the completion of the Mid-Hudson Civic Center, Radisson Hotels bought the hotel property and after
11264-610: The game is not popular here. Nine out of ten bouts, it has been said, are pre-arranged affairs, and it would be no surprise if the ratio of fixed matches to honest ones was really so high. The wrestler Lou Thesz recalled that between 1915 and 1920, a series of exposés in the newspapers about the integrity of professional wrestling alienated a lot of fans, sending the industry "into a tailspin". But rather than perform more shoot matches, professional wrestlers instead committed themselves wholesale to fakery. Several reasons explain why professional wrestling became fake whereas boxing endured as
11392-460: The government. They pledged to stop allocating exclusive territories to its promoters, to stop blacklisting wrestlers who worked for outsider promoters, and to admit any promoter into the Alliance. The NWA would flout many of these promises, but its power was nonetheless weakened by the lawsuit. Paul Bowser's AWA joined the NWA in 1949. The AWA withdrew from the Alliance in 1957 and renamed itself
11520-506: The heels (leading to the formation of The Mega Powers ). Honky continued his bitter feud against Savage, as Honky would frequently make advances toward Miss Elizabeth – including one such incident at the 1987 Slammy Awards – to agitate his challenger. The last high-profile Savage-Honky match, aired as part of the undercard to Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant on the 1988 The Main Event I , saw Honky lose by countout after Savage rammed him into
11648-668: The home of the Hudson Valley Bears professional hockey team and the Poughkeepsie Panthers semi-professional hockey team. McCann Ice Arena also serves as the home of Marist College Hockey. Mair Hall opened with a sold-out performance by Pete Seeger . ECW hosted their Hardcore Heaven pay-per-view event at the venue on May 16, 1999. Between July 1984 and August 1986, the World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment ) taped their internationally televised WWF Championship Wrestling at
11776-526: The independent. By 1956, the NWA controlled 38 promotions within the United States, with more in Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand. The NWA's monopolistic practices became so stifling that the independents appealed to the government for help. In October 1956 the US Attorney General's office filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NWA in an Iowa federal district court. The NWA settled with
11904-584: The indies. In 1995 he wrestled for the National Wrestling Conference having matches against former WWF stars Virgil , Ultimate Warrior , and Jake Roberts . He worked with them until 1998. In 1996 he worked for American Wrestling Federation where he feuded with Koko B. Ware . In 1998 he worked for Elite Canadian Championship Wrestling (ECCW) in British Columbia, Canada. On May 5, 1999, he wrestled Michael Hayes in
12032-480: The industry was anything but a competitive sport. The first wrestling promoter to publicly admit to routinely fixing matches was Jack Pfefer . In 1933, he started talking about the industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , resulting in a huge exposé. The exposé neither surprised nor alienated most wrestling fans, although some promoters like Jack Curley were furious and tried to restore
12160-496: The industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , maintaining no pretense that wrestling was real and passing on planned results just before the matches took place. While fans were neither surprised nor alienated, traditionalists like Jack Curley were furious, and most promoters tried to maintain the facade of kayfabe as best they could. Not the least interesting of all the minor phenomena produced by
12288-473: The injured Roberts in multiple house show matches. For the first time since his WWF debut he was on the losing end of a feud, being pinned numerous times. On the May 18, 1987 episode of Prime Time Wrestling he suffered his first televised pinfall, losing again to Patera. On the June 8th episode of Prime Time he again loss by pinfall, this time to Billy Jack Haynes . On May 30 he again lost to Patera on Prime Time. On
12416-538: The manager of Billy Gunn , who had started a singles run. Under Honky's tutelage, Gunn became known as "Rockabilly" in April 1997, which was a short-lived and unsuccessful gimmick and was also disliked by Honky himself. When Gunn formed the New Age Outlaws with Road Dogg in October 1997, Honky was taken off TV. He then made an appearance in the 1998 Royal Rumble event eliminated by Vader . Honky returned to
12544-408: The match), ran into the ring and attacked Savage, getting Honky disqualified. Savage's manager, Miss Elizabeth , attempted to stop the attack on Savage, but Honky shoved her down and she fled to the locker room; meanwhile, Honky completed his attempt to break his guitar over Savage's head. Shortly thereafter, Miss Elizabeth returned with Savage's former rival, Hulk Hogan, who aided Savage in running off
12672-498: The members of wrestling cartels as the champion drew big crowds wherever he performed, and this would occasionally lead to schisms. By 1925, this cartel had divided the country up into territories which were the exclusive domains of specific promoters. This system of territories endured until Vince McMahon drove the fragmented cartels out of the market in the 1980s. This cartel fractured in 1929 after one of its members, Paul Bowser , bribed Ed "Strangler" Lewis to lose his championship in
12800-437: The platform used in boxing , serves as the main stage ; additional scenes may be recorded for television in backstage areas of the venue, in a format similar to reality television . Performers generally integrate authentic wrestling techniques and fighting styles with choreography , stunts , improvisation , and dramatic conventions designed to maximize entertainment value and audience engagement. Professional wrestling as
12928-717: The promotion's closing in 1991. In the spring of 1984, the WWF purchased Georgia Championship Wrestling (GCW), which had been ailing for some time due to financial mismanagement and internal squabbles. In the deal, the WWF acquired the GCW's timeslot on TBS . McMahon agreed to keep showing Georgia wrestling matches in that timeslot, but he was unable to get his staff to Atlanta every Saturday to fulfill this obligation, so he sold GCW and its TBS timeslot to Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP). JCP started informally calling itself World Championship Wrestling (WCW). In 1988, Ted Turner bought JCP and formally renamed it World Championship Wrestling. During
13056-572: The ring post on the outside of the ring. Their feud was blown off in the weeks before WrestleMania IV through a series of tag team-style steel cage matches, involving various allies of both Honky and Savage on their respective sides and Savage usually emerging victorious. Honky retained the title in matches with Savage and Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake , Honky's next major rival. During the Beefcake-Honky feud – which began at WrestleMania IV (where Jimmy Hart got him disqualified by knocking out
13184-407: The role for television tapings, more often than not, "Peggy Sue" was Jimmy Hart dressed in drag. Beefcake countered with a "woman" of his own: "Georgina" (George "The Animal" Steele in drag). Honky and Beefcake were scheduled to square off at the 1988 SummerSlam in what was billed as Beefcake's last shot at the now renamed Intercontinental Championship. In a storyline twist, Beefcake was thrust in
13312-463: The semi-retired Sammartino and challenging him to get in the ring). The venue was also where "Macho Man" Randy Savage (who had been billed as "the top free agent in pro wrestling") first introduced Miss Elizabeth (his then real life wife) as his chosen manager on an episode of Championship Wrestling on August 24, 1985 (taped July 30). Heel managers Bobby "The Brain" Heenan , Mr. Fuji , "Classy" Freddie Blassie , Luscious Johnny V , and "The Mouth of
13440-430: The show). Television commentators were WWF owner Vince McMahon (who at the time was only known outside of wrestling circles as an announcer and not the company owner) and "professional wrestling's only living legend" Bruno Sammartino , with Jesse "The Body" Ventura occasionally joining the duo or filling in for Sammartino (Ventura also wrestled on the show occasionally as Randy Savage's tag-team partner, usually taunting
13568-440: The stamina for an hours-long fight. Audiences also preferred short matches. Worked matches also carried less risk of injury, which meant shorter recovery. Altogether, worked matches proved more profitable than shoots. By the end of the 19th century, nearly all professional wrestling matches were worked. A major influence on professional wrestling was carnival culture. Wrestlers in the late 19th century worked in carnival shows. For
13696-426: The territories of his former NWA peers, now his rivals. By the end of the 1980s, the WWF would become the sole national wrestling promotion in the U.S. This was in part made possible by the rapid spread of cable television in the 1980s. The national broadcast networks generally regarded professional wrestling as too niche an interest, and had not broadcast any national wrestling shows since the 1950s. Before cable TV,
13824-633: The then-villain Savage was champion and challenged by the fan favorite Honky – the first Savage-Honky match to air on national television was on the October 3, 1987 Saturday Night's Main Event XII , which was taped on September 23 in Hershey, Pennsylvania . During that match, Savage nearly defeated Honky until Honky's allies in Jimmy Hart's stable , The Hart Foundation (who had interfered throughout
13952-822: The title for a short period of time, until Roberts failed several drug tests following WrestleMania and Honky was booked to remain champion for what would be a record-setting run. In a later interview, Honky remarked that Hulk Hogan , whom he then had a friendly, collaborative relationship with outside of the ring, had helped give Honky a chance at the title after a coincidental meeting between Hogan, Honky, and Vince McMahon took place. Hogan stuck up for Honky, even though McMahon had someone else in mind. To preserve his title, which could only be taken by pinfall or submission , Honky often got himself deliberately counted out or disqualified against challengers such as Steamboat, Billy Jack Haynes , Bruno Sammartino , and George "The Animal" Steele . Also during this time, Honky began using
14080-519: The trial, witnesses testified that most of the "big matches" and all of the championship bouts were fixed. By the 1930s, with the exception of the occasional double-cross or business dispute, shoot matches were essentially nonexistent. In April 1930, the New York State Athletic Commission decreed that all professional wrestling matches held in the state had to be advertised as exhibitions unless certified as contests by
14208-471: The truth, their audiences would desert them. Today's performers don't "protect" the industry like we did, but that's primarily because they've already exposed it by relying on silly or downright ludicrous characters and gimmicks to gain popularity with the fans. It was different in my day, when our product was presented as an authentic, competitive sport. We protected it because we believed it would collapse if we ever so much as implied publicly that it
14336-599: The two competing Tennessee promotions , appearing in both Nick Gulas 's Nashville based territory, and Jerry Jarrett 's Memphis area. Their signature moment was the now famous "Tupelo Concession Stand Brawl" against Jerry Lawler and Bill Dundee . He then had stints in the American Wrestling Association (AWA), Jim Crockett Promotions , World Wrestling Council (WWC), Southeastern Championship Wrestling , Southwest Championship Wrestling, National Wrestling Alliance and Stampede Wrestling through
14464-472: The venue on April 23, 2022. Anthrax , Exodus and Helloween performed at the venue on May 12, 1989. It was the last show of the Headbangers Ball Tour . IRSL Roller Derby action was skated here in April 1986, featuring the legendary San Francisco Bay Bombers vs. The Southern Stars. Roller Derby legends Ann Calvello & Joan Weston squared off in a no holds barred slugfest. One for
14592-536: The venue. Notable wrestlers who performed at the events during this time include then WWF Champion Hulk Hogan , Junkyard Dog , "Macho Man" Randy Savage , André the Giant , Bret Hart , Brutus Beefcake , Greg "The Hammer" Valentine , The British Bulldogs , Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat , King Kong Bundy , Big John Studd , Ken Patera , Tito Santana , Don Muraco , The Iron Sheik , "Mr Wonderful" Paul Orndorff , Hercules Hernandez , Adrian Adonis and Rowdy Roddy Piper (who also hosted his "Piper's Pit" segment on
14720-739: The video game WWE All Stars as a free downloadable character. He also has appeared in WWE 2K15 as part of a downloadable content pack and is in WWE 2K16 as an unlockable character from the special objectives. His most recent video game appearance is in WWE 2K24 as part of the “Post Malone & Friends” DLC He was cast in John Wesley Norton's film Executive Ranks . Honky also appeared in Insane Clown Posse 's music video for "How Many Times" along with The Bushwhackers and his former tag team partner Greg Valentine . Farris
14848-535: The way of proceedings: the "in-show" happenings, presented through the shows; and real-life happenings outside the work that have implications, such as performer contracts, legitimate injuries, etc. Because actual life events are often co-opted by writers for incorporation into storylines of performers, the lines between real life and fictional life are often blurred and become confused. Special discern must be taken with people who perform under their own name (such as Kurt Angle and his fictional persona ). The actions of
14976-420: The wrestlers quietly began faking their matches so that they could give their audiences a satisfying spectacle. Fixing matches was also convenient for scheduling. A real ("shoot") match could sometimes last hours, whereas a fixed ("worked") match can be made short, which was convenient for wrestlers on tour who needed to keep appointments or share venues. It also suited wrestlers who were aging and therefore lacked
15104-425: Was Wrestling As You Like It , which printed its first issue in 1946. These magazines were faithful to kayfabe . Before the advent of television, professional wrestling's fanbase largely consisted of children, the elderly, blue-collar workers and minorities. When television arose in the 1940s, professional wrestling got national exposure on prime-time television and gained widespread popularity. Professional wrestling
15232-421: Was also managed by Jimmy Hart, aligned themselves as the tag team Rhythm and Blues . At WrestleMania VI , they notably rode in a pink Cadillac , with future WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Page as the driver. After competing against such teams as The Hart Foundation at WrestleMania V and The Legion of Doom , Rhythm & Blues were part of Ted DiBiase 's Million Dollar Team along with his "mystery" partner,
15360-488: Was challenges from independent wrestlers. But a cartelized wrestler, if challenged, could credibly use his contractual obligations to his promoter as an excuse to refuse the challenge. Promotions would sometimes respond to challenges with "policemen": powerful wrestlers who lacked the charisma to become stars, but could defeat and often seriously injure any challenger in a shoot match. As the industry trend continued, there were fewer independent wrestlers to make such challenges in
15488-578: Was endorsed via an inset promo by none other than WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan himself. He made his debut on the house show circuit on October 8, 1986, defeating WWF Intercontinental Champion Randy Savage via disqualification in a match in Warren, OH. Wrestling as a fan-favorite, he competed against Randy Savage and Jake Roberts in subsequent matches. Honky received a televised match against Savage on October 18, 1986, in an encounter broadcast from Philadelphia, but lost by countout. Fan support
15616-885: Was immediately taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital where doctors stitched the finger and bandaged it. Honky made his appearance at the Ultimate Championship Wrestling show several hours later. He was unable to wrestle his scheduled match due to the injury and was replaced by Trash Canyon, whom he managed from ringside. Honky, although injured and in obvious pain, sang his theme song twice in the ring. In August 2008, Honky appeared at Wrestling Supershows across Canada. Honky also made appearances in SWCW in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. On October 24, 2008, he wrestled for Big Time Wrestling (his first match in four months), beating L'Empereur. On January 7, 2009, he appeared in
15744-523: Was lukewarm to hostile, and the company pivoted as Honky soon cut a series of promos with Jesse "The Body" Ventura that aired on the WWF's syndicated programming asking fans for a "vote of confidence". When he asked for the vote of confidence, he insulted fans in a way that resembled Andy Kaufman before him. On November 16 he wrestled Mr X ( Danny Davis ) in a match taped in Toronto for Prime Time Wrestling , with those in attendance firmly against him. On
15872-437: Was named as one of the possible opponents for Marella's Intercontinental Championship at Cyber Sunday . He was elected by fans to challenge for the title with 35% of the vote; despite concern that his injured finger might require surgery, he did appear, winning the match by disqualification (thus failing to win the title). After the match had ended, Goldust and Piper came down to the ring and, along with Honky, attacked Marella. On
16000-477: Was picking pieces of the guitar out of his back for weeks after he was hit). This has been disputed as Roberts had been a known drug user years before this incident. In an interview for World Wrestling Insanity , Honky disputed Roberts' assertion saying, "That's not true and, in fact I attribute most of that to Mick Foley , who wrote about it in his book, and Jake, who lied about it". Yet Roberts continued to wrestle regularly following this angle bringing into question
16128-571: Was previously considered a niche interest, but the TV networks at the time were short on content and thus were willing to try some wrestling shows. In the 1960s, however, the networks moved on to more mainstream interests such as baseball, and professional wrestling was dropped. The core audience then shrunk back to a profile similar to that of the 1930s. In 1989, Vince McMahon was looking to exempt his promotion (the World Wrestling Federation ) from sports licensing fees. To achieve this, he testified before
16256-415: Was something other than what it appeared to be. I'm not sure now the fear was ever justified given the fact that the industry is still in existence today, but the point is no one questioned the need then. "Protecting the business" in the face of criticism and skepticism was the first and most important rule a pro wrestler learned. No matter how aggressive or informed the questioner, you never admitted
16384-417: Was the "world champion". Before the cartels, there were multiple wrestlers in the U.S. simultaneously calling themselves the "world champion", and this sapped public enthusiasm for professional wrestling. Likewise, the cartel could agree on a common set of match rules that the fans could keep track of. The issue over who got to be the champion and who controlled said champion was a major point of contention among
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