My Facebook memories told me recently that I had spent some time during Covid quarantine showing my children old videos on YouTube of professional wrestling. Apparently, they laughed so hard they cried at times, based on the sheer incredulity of it all.
I also have seen a lot of ads online lately for Wrestlemania, which took place earlier this month. Apparently, this was the 40th year of Wrestlemania! Holy cow, I’m old since I remember vividly the very first time the (then) World Wrestling Federation had this event.
Professional wrestling was an important part of my youth. It was a way that my dad and I bonded, watching both the WWF and the American Wrestling Association (AWA). But the WWF had all the biggest stars, and I started watching when Hulk Hogan was really becoming popular. Hulkamania ran wild! I was always so impressed when he would rip his shirt off to show his well-sculpted upper torso. Whether it was steroid-aided or not, these wrestlers were really built.
It was a special time when “Saturday Night’s Main Event” would air, late on a Saturday night. Each time, it was guaranteed to have some big matches with all the biggest names in the “sport.” And each time, I would have to beg my mother to let me stay up and watch, usually with the caveat that I had to go to bed early and then could set my alarm to wake up for the show. Yeah, I got a lot of sleep those nights…
Dad told me stories of his own grandmother being infatuated with professional wrestling. When it would arrive at the New Ulm Armory on its circuit, she and other older ladies would attend and sit in the front row. Their purpose in doing that was so that they could hit the wrestlers who had been thrown out of the ring with their purses.
So when wrestling arrived at the school gym when I was in high school, Dad got tickets. I was so excited that I made signs to hold up, just like I had seen on television. I recall the Iron Sheik being in town, among others. I remember how cool it was to go up and feel the springiness of the mat and also just how soft the turnbuckles were, the same ones guys would get their faces smashed into on a regular basis. Rumor has it that after the show, all the performers went out to the bars together.
Dad didn’t tell me at first, but I don’t think it took long to figure out that professional wrestling was a scripted endeavor. But there was still a lot to be impressed by. These were athletes for sure, and they had to work hard to be as strong and physical as they were. Not just anybody can climb up on the top rope and execute a maneuver without hurting themselves.
And the storytelling was fun as well. There were some pretty creative people drawing up the storylines and putting together who would turn on whom and how the managers of these wrestlers could get involved and even love interests of the stars.
When you think about it, if you were a WWF fan, the whole thing was held together by announcer and interviewer “Mean” Gene Okerlund. He was quite the good actor and really brought a tremendous personality to the screen whenever a wrestling show was on.
I think about all of the wrestlers I enjoyed watching back then and wonder when I stopped watching. I suppose it was when I headed off to college; other things took the place of that time, and Dad wasn’t there with me.
Hulk Hogan, as mentioned, was the biggest name in the 80s. There were plenty of foes for him, antagonists who included Big John Studd and King Kong Bundy. My very favorite wrestler of the time, though, was Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka. He would climb to the top rope, give the surfer vibe hand signal, and leap down to land directly on his supine foe.
At times (okay, lots of times), things got a bit ludicrous. Jake “The Snake” Roberts would actually bring a giant snake with him and let it slither over a fallen opponent. “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan would have a two by four with him as he marched to the squared circle. (Why was it called that? Where was the circular part of it? Was it because it’s called a ring, which is normally a circular device?)
I think I started to drift away around the time the Undertaker was coming on the scene. He would actually put people in coffins after beating them. That was a little iffy.
The so-called managers were always entertaining. Bobby “The Brain” Heenan was usually outsmarted. Miss Elizabeth was basically eye candy for Randy “Macho Man” Savage. Jimmy Hart was a little weasel. Captain Lou Albano had rubber bands hanging from various body parts.
All in all, watching pro wrestling always seemed like harmless fun. We tried to cause harm by all the neighborhood boys attempting moves on each other. Somehow, the sleeper hold never knocked anybody out. The figure-four leglock never brought pain to someone. And none of us were strong enough to bodyslam anyone, thankfully.
I’m sure if I turned on a wrestling show again, it would be a lot like watching a soap opera after many years away. Some of the same people are still around. There are people mad at each other. And there’s plenty of “good” acting!
Word of the Week: This week’s word is neophilia, which means a love of anything that is new, as in, “His neophilia led him to try watching pro wrestling, though he quickly realized not much was new from week to week.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!