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Post by Caliber on Nov 25, 2012 14:07:07 GMT -5
Did everyone show up because Hulk Hogan was so loved, or because Roddy Piper was so hated?
I think it was a perfect storm. Piper was the perfect heel, and Hogan was the perfect good guy. They both had charisma through the roof, and WM probably wouldn't have done as well if they both hadn't played their parts so well.
How say you guys?
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Post by robertd on Nov 25, 2012 14:20:31 GMT -5
I think it was all that plus the draw of a big time event that was being set up to stand out. MSG had been home to several supercards in the past, and putting the two biggest stars in the company in the main event, plus you throw in some of the biggest celebrities at the time, and it just screams "Pay attention to this". I still wonder to this day what might have happened if they built up Piper's record of never really being pinned, always finding a way out, then have the belt on the line, and have Hogan get the 3 count in the middle of the ring.
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Post by scottyflamingo on Nov 25, 2012 14:38:24 GMT -5
Don't discount the value of Mr. T. That man was HUGE at the time.
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Post by yj2310 on Nov 25, 2012 17:14:39 GMT -5
I think it was a combination of Hulk and the celebs like Lauper and Mr T. Piper did his job to draw heat but I think if you plugged someone else in there, it still wouldve been a success.
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Post by shlocko on Nov 25, 2012 23:26:31 GMT -5
Wrestling was so huge in early 1985. Hogan was on top of the world, every celebrity was going to the events, if you ever see the backstage stuff from "The War to Settle the Score" it was this strange amalgamation of famous people, like Danny DeVito, Andy Warhol, Cyndi Lauper, Joe Piscopo, Mr. T, and Bob Costas (who looks exactly the same now as he did 28 years ago).
People went to it to see and be seen. Wrestlemania was a very non-wrestling crowd, as the trendy New Yorkers were going to see what the fuss was all about. Hogan and Mr. T were on SNL right before the event, and they were all over MTV. I was only eight, but I remember it well.
As far as the wrestling goes, Piper was the perfect villain for Hogan's superhero persona. Orndorff was a pure athlete, and Mr T was a similar character to Hogan. The combination of personalities and the event being an event itself was what really drew all the attention for Wrestlemania.
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