Monday, October 6, 2014
Vince the Daredevil
The first section of Sex, Lies, and Headlocks has really opened my eyes to how impressive Vince McMahon's life has been. Given his background, I feel he deserves more credit for his accomplishments than I have been giving him. Also in the brief examples of his promotional work with Evel Knievel and Muhammad Ali, a risk-taking side of Vince is delineated that I think may have had a lot to do with his eventual success. While the jump over Snake River Canyon was a bust and hurt Vince financially, it demonstrated his ability to successfully promote something. The fight with Muhammad Ali and Antonio Inoki (interestingly enough, seen as a precursor to mixed martial arts) went similarly poorly, but again showed Vince would go all in on an idea and do everything in his power to make it work. I think this attitude is what led to his embracing national broadcasting in a period when no other regional promoters were interested. In hindsight it seems like an obvious success, but I'm sure at the time it was less than a sure thing, and Vince really took a chance on it. His attention to the concerts being put on at the Cape Cod Coliseum also show a lot of ingenuity and business savvy. Given how immediately popular the mélange of rock 'n roll and wrestling became, it seems like a match made in heaven, but must have taken a unique mind to combine the sensory barrage offered at a rock concert with the physical aspects and emotional content of professional wrestling. Not only could it just as easily have not worked, but he had his father, his business, and his family riding on all of these schemes of his. Being willing to put everything on the line to achieve is something few people are willing to do, and it sets Vince apart as an entrepreneur and a businessman, and I look forward to continuing to delve into the background of this man's life and how the modern WWE came about, because it is already a rich and interesting story.
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2 comments:
I too had a greater appreciation for Vince Jr. from the readings. He certainly was not handed the company by dad, nor was he ever a full-time wrestler that booked himself or his family as the main attraction (although he arguably came close to this a few times in the 2000s). In fact, I would assume that if dad had been more accommodating, Vince Jr. may not have felt the need to think outside the box. Rather, he probably would have been no different that other promoter's sons, either as a wrestler himself (think Gagne, Von Erich, or Gulas) or at least sharing the territory mentality.
I am sure most of the other promoters had no idea of Vinnie's story. They thought of him as "Vince Jr." But, as the book lines out, "Vince Jr." isn't really true in terms of how he was raised nor particularly of his relationship with his father. Vince came across wrestling after his formative years; he fell in love with it when he came into it, and particularly its larger-than-life characters. His dad didn't necessarily trust him close to the business. He supported him, but not in the way Verne Gagne would support Greg, or that Jim Crockett Sr. would support Jim Jr. We've seen Vince Jr. spend his life on crazy attempts. From the ones you've outlined to national expansion, the XFL, boxing, PPV, the WBF, the movie business, the WWE Network...you name it. Some have panned out. Some certainly haven't. But he's certainly never stood still...
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