Welcome to the week long special look at "The History of Wrestlemania". Now, I've been a wrestling fan since I was 8 years old. Yes, I know its fake and everything, but its entertainment and thats what matters the most. If you're a fan of WWE I think you'll enjoy this look down memory lane. If you dont like wrestling, well maybe I can win you over. So lets get to it shall we?
Origin of "Wrestlemania"
When the original "Wrestlemania" debut, no one in the wrestling business thought it would become the mega event it is now. WWE Chairman Vince McMahon had wanted to do a "Super Show" so to speak that would help put his upstart World Wrestling Federation on the map as a national entertainment powerhouse. He knew that he wanted it to be a huge event with stars of pro wrestling and main stream stars as well.
First he needed a name for this big event. He threw out names like "Wrestle Palooza" and "Wrestle Fest" before finally settling on "Wrestlemania".
McMahon wanted "Wrestlemania" to be to wrestling what the "Super Bowl" is to the NFL, the "World Series" is to Major League Baseball. In essence, "Wrestlemania" was to be the "Biggest Night in Sports Entertainment". It would be the show to end all shows. No other event in the WWF would be bigger than Wrestlemania. The site for this historic event would be Madison Square Garden in New York City. He felt that this big show should be held in the worlds most famous arena. As far as televising this event, he made the show available to people around the world via Closed Circuit TV.
As far as "star power" was concerned, McMahon lined up such celebrities as Cindy Lauper, Muhammad Ali, Liberace, The Rocketts and New York Yankees' manager Billy Martin. McMahon also signed Mr. T to appear in the main event with WWF superstar Hulk Hogan. The stage was now set for what would become one of the most important nights in wrestling history
Madison Square Garden-New York, NY
March 31, 1985
The spectacle known as "Wrestlemania" was born on March 31, 1985. The very first Wrestlemania match was Tito Santana vs The Executioner.
A largely forgettable match, but one that has historical significance nonetheless.
The crowd was red hot and into every match. When it came time for the first Wrestlemania main event, the crowd was already buzzing. It featured WWF Champion Hulk Hogan and Mr T w/ "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka in their corner vs the team of "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and "Mr.Wonderful" Paul Orndorff w/ "Cowboy" Bob Orton as their corner man. Muhammad Ali served as a special "Outside enforcer" in this match and received a rousing ovation when he was introduced.
The match lived up to all its hype and then some. The action picked up immediately as Piper and Mr. T exchanged slaps across the face From there, the four competitors gave everything they had in an all-out war.
In the end, it was Hogan and Mr. T coming out victorious when Hogan covered Orndorff for the 1-2-3, after Bob Orton accidentally hit "Mr. Wonderful" with his cast.
Afterwards the "good guys" all celebrated in the ring and sent the crowd home happy.
Wrestlemania was a HUGE success for the WWF. Soon, Vince McMahon's wrestling company took off and became a pop culture phenomena. Of course the fans were clamoring for a sequel! But how do you top the "Biggest Night in Sports Entertainment"? Simple. By making its sequel bigger and better.
Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, NY-Rosemont Horizon, Chicago, IL-The Sports Arena, Los Angeles, CA
April 2,1986
No, thats not a mistake. "Wrestlemania 2" would actually emanate from 3 different locations-New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. Each site had its own card and own main event.
The Nassau Coliseum main event featured a special boxing match between Mr T and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper. For weeks, Piper had been taunting Mr. T about his status as a "TV tough guy". Piper challenged Mr. T to a real fight and he finally accepted a match at Wrestlemania to settle their feud.
The two men boxed for a few rounds before Piper became so frustrated with his inability to put Mr T. down that he hit him with a wooden stool. Chaos erupted as each fighters corner stormed the ring and began swinging at one another. The match ended as a DQ victory for Mr. T.
Over in Chicago, the main event featured a special 20-man battle royal featuring stars of the NFL and stars of the WWF.
The NFL stars were out to prove they were just as tough as the wrestlers while the WWF stars wanted to defend their home turf. In the end, the legendary Andre The Giant stood tall as the winner.
Finally itwas show time in L.A. and the main event there was a big one as well. WWF champ Hulk Hogan defended his title in a steel cage match against King Kong Bundy.
Hogan had been injured a few weeks prior by the massive Bundy and this match would settle their score. After a brutal and bloody match, which saw Bundy work over Hogan's battered ribs several times, the "Hulkster" retained the title.
Just like in the orginal Wrestlemania, the second edition featured several celebrities.
Ray Charles (Who opened Wrestlemania 2 with a stirring rendition of "America the Beautiful"), Ozzy Osbourne, Joan Rivers, Elvira, Tommy Lasorda and former boxing champ Joe Frazier among others where on hand. Wrestlemania was starting to become the happening event to participate in and it would continue to evolve. Again, Vince McMahon was faced with the challenge of trying to outdo himself again. How do you top a Wrestlemania that was so big it needed to be held in 3 venues? By making the next one the BIGGEST one yet.
To be continued.....
DQ
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