PRO WRESTLING

An Introduction into the World of…

What Is Pro Wrestling?

“Sports Entertainment”; basically it is a highly athletic performance art.

Two or more wrestlers have “matches” Predetermined outcomes Storylines drive the action of the show. Lots of Drama and Action

Some terms to know!

“Babyface” or just “Face” is a good guy (Hulk Hogan, John Cena)

“Heel” is a bad guy (The Iron Sheik, Triple H)

Wrestlers participate in “feuds”, or rivalries

Vincent K. McMahon

• Owner of the WWE since early 1980’s

• Has a net worth of over $1.5 Billion

• Created the pop culture phenomenon “WrestleMania”

• Became notorious for his role as the evil “Mr. McMahon” character

Monday Night Wars

Ratings battle between WWE & WCW WCW was owned by CNN’s Ted Turner WCW (World Championship Wrestling)

had a show called “Monday Nitro” WWE’s “Raw” program was beaten in

the ratings for 84 straight weeks

Chart of TV Ratings battle between “Raw” and “Nitro”

Pros and Cons of being a Fan!Pros Cons

Its super fun! There are moments of

absolute hilarity! These athletes will

amaze you. They give you a show

EVERY single week They are Larger-Than-

Life characters

The storylines can be quite atrocious

It can be too silly sometimes for an adult to watch

Often times, the show becomes repetitive

Decisions that are made question the integrity of the product

WrestleMania!

WrestleMania’s Economic Value

The event has generated over $400 million in the last 6 years

In 2013, $101.2 million was made for the NJ/NY metropolitan area where it was hosted

People from all 50 states & 34 countries came to see it, spurring economic activity

Source: http://corporate.wwe.com/news/2013/2013_11_20.jsp

My Top Five Favorite Wrestlers

Shawn Michaels

Eddie Guerrero

Chris Jericho

The Undertaker

Edge