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[Krejlooc]

I never watched wrestling growing up, nor did any of my friends. I never followed any of it, other than this brief period where Hulk Hogan apparently became a bad guy in the mid 90's and suddenly he was the most popular wrestler on the planet.

How does it all work? Is there a season? Playoffs and championships? The thing is fake, right? Do they acknowledge that? Is the crowd supposed to be in on it? For that matter, wrestling is a real olympic sport - how can the professional version be staged? How did such a thing ever come about? Isn't wrestling a world-wide phenomenon? Is japanese and mexican wrestling fake? Is it all one big league? How do characters decide if they are good guys are bad guys?

Basically, I'm morbidly curious about how the entire thing came to be. Someone drop some interesting wrestling history knowledge on me.

Oh, another question - what ever happened to Goldberg? I remember him too, he was like the good guy fighting Hulk Hogan, and his schtick was he never lost ever. Did he eventually lose?

 

[sappyday]

I was under the knowledge that storylines and the results of the matches are all staged. It's all for entertainment and that's probably the primary reason for people watching it.


I could be wrong. I haven't watched it since Wrestlemania 21.

 

[TemplaerDude]

Vince McMahon watches spongebob square pants, comes up with some good ideas and then tells everyone to job to Cena.

 

[webkatt]

It's all fake

 

[Bare Grills]

Wrestling is like totally real bro.

 

[Discotheque]

something like this

 

[Bernbaum]

Wrestling isn't Wrestling is worth a watch.

 

[wenis]

It's all year round, very little breaks, terrible writers have been writing it forever and it's sometimes awesome for the lamest reasons.

#wrestling

 

[Krejlooc]

I was under the knowledge that storylines and the results of the matches are all staged. It's all for entertainment and that's probably the primary reason for people watching it.

That's my understanding of it as well, but it seems like a huge, enormous organization. Seeing as the sport itself has legitimate roots, how could such an organized network form? It seems like it would take a lot of collusion to make something like this work. Was Pro Wrestling ever real?

 

[Krejlooc]

something like this

stuff like this - I see gifs of wrestling on the internet. What is happening in that gif? How is this supposed to be a real sport?

 

[Lulubop]

Cena wins

 

[BigJonsson]

stuff like this - I see gifs of wrestling on the internet. What is happening in that gif? How is this supposed to be a real sport?

It's not a real sport

It's entertainment with athleticism

 

[Krejlooc]

Wrestling isn't Wrestling is worth a watch.

watching

there are leprechauns in pro wrestling?

 

[Striker]

I never watched wrestling growing up, nor did any of my friends. I never followed any of it, other than this brief period where Hulk Hogan apparently became a bad guy in the mid 90's and suddenly he was the most popular wrestler on the planet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dXOrRuKttc

 

[>:)]

Wrestling's totally real

 

[GavinGT]

- There are different belts and the wrestlers challenge one another for them. Championship fights basically happen whenever the writers feel like it.
- The crowd is supposed to suspend their disbelief.
- Real wrestling is paradoxically called "amateur wrestling".
- Professional wrestling basically arose from traveling carnivals.
- Japanese and Mexican wrestling are also staged.They're different leagues.
- The writers decide if the wrestlers will be good or bad.

All of these may be wrong, BTW.

 

[Krejlooc]

It's not a real sport

It's entertainment with athleticism

What I mean is it's supposed to be based off of a real sport, right? How did they wind up at that?

I watch football and baseball and basketball, is comparing WWF to wrestling like comparing the globetrotters to the NBA?

 

[Dante316]

It's a 24/7 live tv show with writers and storyboards set up months in advance that can change in any second. Their is creative thay decides which direction they want to go in. For example who to make a "bad guy" who to make "good" and who sells most merchandise always helps pick whose who.

The wrestling moves are real and very dangerous and if you notice closely the wrestlers talk to each other during a match to to figure out whats gnna happen and next and how to not get too injured.

They usually have practice matches in private and go dark matches in public to see reactions.

So basically, script is written, wrestlers work together to follow it and If high enough you make your own script.

 

[Man God]

That's my understanding of it as well, but it seems like a huge, enormous organization. Seeing as the sport itself has legitimate roots, how could such an organized network form? It seems like it would take a lot of collusion to make something like this work. Was Pro Wrestling ever real?

Yes it was! Incredibly popular too, right behind boxing as an event fight. The history of it being fixed goes back over a hundred years, but that was more of a take a fall/go this many rounds sort of thing that still happens to this day in the "legitimate" sport of boxing.

 

[Prompto]

What is happening in that gif?

The Demon Kane is dragging current WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins to Hell, which has been shown to be conveniently located under the ring.

 

[GavinGT]

What I mean is it's supposed to be based off of a real sport, right? How did they wind up at that?

I watch football and baseball and basketball, is comparing WWF to wrestling like comparing the globetrotters to the NBA?

People don't want to watch real wrestling. It's boring. So they added some flare to it.

 

[zychi]

It's a 24/7 live tv show with writers and storyboards set up months in advance that can change in any second. Their is creative thay decides which direction they want to go in. For example who to make a "bad guy" who to make "good" and who sells most merchandise always helps pick whose who.

The wrestling moves are real and very dangerous and if you notice closely the wrestlers talk to each other during a match to to figure out whats gnna happen and next and how to not get too injured.

They usually have practice matches in private and go dark matches in public to see reactions.

So basically, script is written, wrestlers work together to follow it and If high enough you make your own script.

Thats how real wrestling works. Wwe is vince making rash decisions last minute, pushing people he likes and the fans hate, and yelling at his announcers to say stuff while on air.

 

[8BitsAtATime]

Watch The Wrestler. You learn everything that needs to been know about wrestling from that.

 

[Krejlooc]

Yes it was! Incredibly popular too, right behind boxing as an event fight. The history of it being fixed goes back over a hundred years, but that was more of a take a fall/go this many rounds sort of thing that still happens to this day in the "legitimate" sport of boxing.

So basically, it was a real sport that got so corrupt that eventually they just threw out all appearance of legitimacy?

See, this is fascinating. How old is pro wrestling?

 

[pants]

Only explanation you will ever need op

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kc-dH2TemYA

 

[Bubba T]

That's my understanding of it as well, but it seems like a huge, enormous organization. Seeing as the sport itself has legitimate roots, how could such an organized network form? It seems like it would take a lot of collusion to make something like this work. Was Pro Wrestling ever real?

Pro wrestling used to be territory based. Sometimes you would have the talent perform in other promotions but it was generally independent from each other. Vince McMahon changed all that when he took over his father's promotion. He bought out talent/other promotions and squeezed others out to build a national brand, a traveling circus of sorts.

He really changed how the public views pro wrestling.

 

[GRW810]

Are we actually having a conversation between adults about whether wrestling is real?

 

[Krejlooc]

What about shows? I remember back in the 90's there was like a million different wrestling shows. Do you have to watch them all to get the story? Are they all connected? Or are they all separate shows with their own story lines?

What happened to WCW? Weren't they the competitor to the WWF? Do wrestlers leave one show for the other? Is there like one super wrestling organization that supersedes all others?

Are we actually having a conversation between adults about whether wrestling is real?

No, not really. The conversation is more like "how did this farce come to be?" and "how does one take in this farce?"

 

[Piston Hyundai]

no seasons in a statistical sense, but it works on a yearly schedule (same events every year)

those events can include championship/tourney-esque things where winners are awarded a chance at a championship belt, but it differs based on the company

professional wrestling is different from traditional wrestling like greco-roman wrestling in that it's done entirely for entertainment, with the outcomes pretty much always predetermined as a means to build a story with characters

think of it as an athletic stage show: stuff's fake but played straight for the most part (with occasional winks and nudges thrown towards the savvy), and the moves are done in a way to convince you of their impact while simultaneously minimizing the actual damage to a performer

What about shows? I remember back in the 90's there was like a million different wrestling shows. Do you have to watch them all to get the story? Are they all connected? Or are they all separate shows with their own story lines?

What happened to WCW? Weren't they the competitor to the WWF? Do wrestlers leave one show for the other? Is there like one super wrestling organization that supersedes all others?

in the WWE's case, they're all connected, but only smackdown and raw really have any story developments and even then they shove so much of what happens down your throat that you don't need to watch weekly to really know what's going on

WCW were bought by the WWE in the early 2000s, and wrestlers come and go pretty regularly

 

[BigJonsson]

So basically, it was a real sport that got so corrupt that eventually they just threw out all appearance of legitimacy?

See, this is fascinating. How old is pro wrestling?

No

Wrestling is an Olympic sport, wrestling is also one of the main styles used in MMA

Professional wrestling is entertainment, most people know it's staged these days but the promotions used to deny it

 

[TemplaerDude]

Are we actually having a conversation between adults about whether wrestling is real?

No. He's asking how it works. Read the OP.

 

[GavinGT]

What about shows? I remember back in the 90's there was like a million different wrestling shows. Do you have to watch them all to get the story? Are they all connected? Or are they all separate shows with their own story lines?

They all tie in to one another. But you can just watch a single show because they always recap the important plot lines before the fights. Or you can just ignore the plot lines because they're all fucking stupid.

 

[Bubba T]

watching

there are leprechauns in pro wrestling?

The Demon Kane is dragging current WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins to Hell, which has been shown to be conveniently located under the ring.

Thats how real wrestling works. Wwe is vince making rash decisions last minute, pushing people he likes and the fans hate, and yelling at his announcers to say stuff while on air.

Man, this thread is hilarious.

 

[Man God]

So basically, it was a real sport that got so corrupt that eventually they just threw out all appearance of legitimacy?

See, this is fascinating. How old is pro wrestling?

It has its roots in the 19th century but most consider the break from completely scripted and amateur style wrestling to have happened for good in the 1920's. Wrestlers at the time largely agree though that the major fix was in starting in the 1880's. It's a fascinating subject.

 

[Lactose_Intolerant]

THe best wrestler wins and then goes on to wrestle the person that they deserve to fight based on skill.

 

[opticalmace]

Are there any other "pro sports" that are fake/scripted like pro wrestling?

 

[phaonaut]

Think of it as theater with extreme physicality involved.

If you want to see behind the scenes stuff check out Beyond the Mat documentary. I would suggest Forever Hardcore also, but I think that would require some knowledge to appreciate the story of ECW.

 

[Krejlooc]

No

Wrestling is an Olympic sport, wrestling is also one of the main styles used in MMA

Professional wrestling is entertainment, most people know it's staged these days but the promotions used to deny it

I guess what I'm asking is how do you go from real sport to faked matches? Going back to my harlem globetrotters reference - they began as a real basketball organization playing real games (and in fact, they still do occasionally). Their "trick" style sort of evolved out of a street game style until they realized it was their defining characteristic and ran with it.

Does Pro Wrestling have any sort of conceptual root like that? Was it ever at one point real? Did it evolve, or did someone one day just think to start making faked wrestling matches out of pure entertainment? If so, why not apply that to, say, boxing or MMA.

Are there any other "pro sports" that are fake/scripted like pro wrestling?

The harlem globetrotters will put on scripted performances from time to time. They also will sometimes play real exhibition games.

 

[Persona7]

I watched wrestling once

it was an episode where someone named cold stone single handedly saves an entire wrestling league from another wrestling league.

 

[MadLaughter]

So basically, it was a real sport that got so corrupt that eventually they just threw out all appearance of legitimacy?

See, this is fascinating. How old is pro wrestling?

This isn't really accurate. Real wrestling is like, Olympic wrestling.

"Pro Wrestling" is a term for a fictional universe of TV/Web/Live shows where the wrestlers are actors playing characters. It's like WMAC masters. Or if there was a live Mortal Kombat TV show.

If you've ever been to the Water World Universal Studios show, it's like that.

Pro wrestling is a scripted live show that is sometimes on TV and uses staged wrestling to tell stories. They're performers, who do dangerous stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDAoSww4IKQ

Watch that match. Pro Wrestling has good guys and bad guys who do sometimes scripted/sometimes improvised stunts to put on an exciting show. It's like if they made a Street Fighter TV show and did it live.

The fans play along, everyone knows that it's scripted.

 

[wenis]

The real answer is that wrestling, rarely, if ever, works.

 

[kidtamagotchi]

That's my understanding of it as well, but it seems like a huge, enormous organization. Seeing as the sport itself has legitimate roots, how could such an organized network form? It seems like it would take a lot of collusion to make something like this work. Was Pro Wrestling ever real?

Pro Wrestling was real at one point. Problem was, the matches were boring and could possibly take all night long. It eventually became staged (to keep a certain wrestler champion, to make a new star wrestler, or even to influence gambling odds). The network that developed to 'control' the wrestling business was the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA).

The wrestlers talk 'carny' ( think Snoop Dogg's way of speaking: Bizzig Mizzac= Big Mac). They also keep kayfabe (acting like pro wrestling is real, no matter what). Fans used to challenge wrestlers back in the day, and to keep kayfabe, the wrestlers would actually fight and injure the challenger.

 

[Krejlooc]

Man, this thread is hilarious.

That's the first thing the dude in that video says. That there are magicians and leprechauns in pro wrestling.

 

[Bubba T]

What about shows? I remember back in the 90's there was like a million different wrestling shows. Do you have to watch them all to get the story? Are they all connected? Or are they all separate shows with their own story lines?

What happened to WCW? Weren't they the competitor to the WWF? Do wrestlers leave one show for the other? Is there like one super wrestling organization that supersedes all others?



No, not really. The conversation is more like "how did this farce come to be?" and "how does one take in this farce?"

WCW was bought by WWE (then WWF) in 2001. This is in part of WCW management making terrible financial and creative decisions for years leading to Time Warner losing interest and canceling the programming. WWE came and and swooped up WCW, buying their assets.

 

[Man God]

I guess what I'm asking is how do you go from real sport to faked matches? Going back to my harlem globetrotters reference - they began as a real basketball organization playing real games (and in fact, they still do occasionally). Their "trick" style sort of evolved out of a street game style until they realized it was their defining characteristic and ran with it.

Does Pro Wrestling have any sort of conceptual root like that? Was it ever at one point real? Did it evolve, or did someone one day just think to start making faked wrestling matches out of pure entertainment? If so, why not apply that to, say, boxing or MMA.



The harlem globetrotters will put on scripted performances from time to time. They also will sometimes play real exhibition games.

Boxing has been fixed to various degrees for it's entire history, MMA isn't quite there yet, but they do tend to book fighters a certain way in which they are basically guaranteed to win while building them up. I wouldn't put it in boxing's league.

 

[Krejlooc]

Fans used to challenge wrestlers back in the day, and to keep kayfabe, the wrestlers would actually fight and injure the challenger.

Thats hilarious. Any examples of a pro wrestler actually getting his ass kicked?

What about blood? The infamous pro wrestling episode of Always Sunny, Frank is convinced it's real because he saw someone "bash their head open." Do people bleed in wrestling?

 

[TemplaerDude]

If so, why not apply that to, say, boxing or MMA.

There are some who might argue that they already have...!

 

[Krejlooc]

Boxing has been fixed to various degrees for it's entire history, MMA isn't quite there yet, but they do tend to book fighters a certain way in which they are basically guaranteed to win while building them up. I wouldn't put it in boxing's league.

But there is a world of difference in Mayweather dropping a clearly unworthy challenger in a fist fight and the dude above being supposedly dragged to hell. One seems like the crowd should be in on the fix, the other seems like the crowd should not be in on the fix.

And it seems to me, from an outsiders perspective, that getting from one to the other would take years of organization.

 

[Man God]

Thats hilarious. Any examples of a pro wrestler actually getting his ass kicked?

What about blood? The infamous pro wrestling episode of Always Sunny, Frank is convinced it's real because he saw someone "bash their head open." Do people bleed in wrestling?

Indeed they do!

Sometimes they use a concealed razor blade to do a blade job. If it is done organically it's called "hard way" which is pretty self explanatory.

 

[GavinGT]

Thats hilarious. Any examples of a pro wrestler actually getting his ass kicked?

What about blood? The infamous pro wrestling episode of Always Sunny, Frank is convinced it's real because he saw someone "bash their head open." Do people bleed in wrestling?

The most infamous WWF match ever:

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2ey9sg_the-undertaker-vs-mankind-hd-hell-in-a-cell_tv

Very little of what happened in that match was as intended.