Top 10 Celebrity Appearances at WrestleMania!
Our resident philosopher, Jay Shannon, looks at the top celebrity appearances at Wrestlemania.
This year’s Wrestlemania has celebrities all over the place. Rock stars, TV celebrities, and boxers will invade Wreslemania 24. These “invasions” aren’t that unusual at Wrestlemania. SInce it’s creation, there have been close to 100 celebrities (if you count band members individually) that have come to The Grand-Daddy of Them All. I thought I’d roll out my list of the most influential and/or interesting celebs to grace a Wrestlemania stage.
10. Robin Leach (Wrestlemania IV)
Wrestlemania IV was centered around a tournament to crown a new WWE champ. Andre the Giant had beaten Hulk Hogan for the title. Andre immediately “sold” the belt to Ted DiBiase. Jack Tunney, the on-air WWE President, declared the title vacant. A tournament was then set to find a new champ.
Robin Leach, host of the snooty TV series Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, walked to the ring before the first round matches. He carried the championship belt on a velvet pillow, trying to avoid being touched by the crowd. He then got in the ring and did a little speech about “Champagne Wishes and Caviar Dreams” to a crowd that was more into beer and Chee-tos. His remarks were so laughable that I just had to include him in my top 10.
9. Morton Downey, Jr. (Wrestlemania V)
Downey was the “Jerry Springer of the 80s”. His crowds were just as rabid as Springer’s. While Jerry is a fun-loving guy, Downey was a certified jerk. He was obnoxious, arrogant and hated by just about everyone. His annoying catchphrase “Zip It!” made people just want to hurt him. He was like the off-spring of Springer and Howard Stern.
Roddy Piper was both loved and hated for similar reasons. Piper wouldn’t hesitate to insult a guest on his talk show, Piper’s Pit. Piper was in the middle of a face push, so the bookers wanted to find the most obnoxious, hated person on the planet for Piper to spar with. Enter Morton Downey, Jr.
Downey started by making fun of Piper’s kilt. He tried to lift it up, which had Piper threatening to rip his face off. Downey then starting blowing cigarette smoke into Piper’s face. Piper got fed up and retreived a fire extinguisher that was hidden in the ring under one of the stools. Piper then sprayed Downey with the fire extinguisher as the crowd roared its approval. This was one of the funniest skits in Wrestlemania history. Love him or hate him, Morton Downey Jr. was memorable.
8. Alice Cooper (Wrestlemania III)
Alice was at the side of Jake “The Snake” Roberts for Jake’s battle against The Honky Tonk Man. Jake was the third rock star to accompany wrestlers to the ring. Cyndi Lauper has aided Wendi Richter at the first Wrestlemania. Ozzy Osbourne was in charge of the British Bulldogs’ mascot, Mathilda, at Wrestlemania II. Alice was at Jake’s side to counter-act the Honky Tonk Man’s manager, Jimmy Hart.
Alice threatened Jimmy, off and on, during the match. In a pre-match interview, Alice talked about the spurs that he was wearing. He was willing to dig them into the hide of anyone who got out of line. The match ended when Jimmy pulled some under-handed shenanigans. Jake went after Jimmy, but it was Alice that got the biggest pop when he draped Damien, the snake, on Jimmy. Alice played up to the crowd. He was a great manager and a fun oddity to watch.
7. Aretha Franklin (Wrestlemanias III and 23)
The “Queen of Soul” rocked the house during Wrestlemania III with her rendition of America the Beautiful. 20 years later, a grossly over-weight Aretha assaulted our ears with the same tune.
Aretha has been the biggest music star (no pun intended) to open the show. Aretha is always shown during highlight reels of past Wrestlemanias. For her status as a musical legend, she just had to go on my list.
6. “Mr. Baseball” Bob Uecker (Wrestlemanias III and IV)
Bob was the first star to repeat on a Wrestlemania. The multi-level star was hilarious to watch as he tried his best to interview stars and chase starlets all over the arenas. His pseudo-lustful comments about the Fabulous Moolah were classic.
Bob shared a lot of fun banter with Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura. Monsoon mentioned, before his passing, that Uecker was his favorite celebrity to work with. Uecker’s comic timing meshed well with the straight-edge wit of Monsoon and the over-the-top rantings of Ventura. Bob was also admired by the majority of the stars. There were no insider stories about Uecker rubbing someone the wrong way. He was just a fun guy who brought fun to two back-to-back Wrestlemanias.
5. Lawrence Taylor (Wrestlemania XI)
“L.T.” was brought in to battle Bam Bam Bigelow, much like Mayweather and Big Show are scheduled to battle, this year. Taylor brought numerous sports stars with him to the ring, including future Four Horsemen, Steve “Mongo” McMichael. Introducing “Mongo” to wrestling almost got Taylor permanently banned from any positive list that I could ever write.
That being said, Taylor did his best to battle Bigelow. Bigelow “sold” the match as well as possible. The match was sloppy and weak, but it was a high-profile match that brought main stream media to the WWE during one of it’s weakest points. His assistance in making the show a hit earned him this Top 5 spot.
4. Mike Tyson (Wrestlemania XIV)
Tyson, one of the most infamous boxers in history, was tapped to serve as a Special Guest Enforcer Referee in the battle between “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels for the WWE World title.
Tyson came out dressed in a D-Generation X T-Shirt. The crowd expected Tyson to be biased towards Shawn Michaels.
Tyson surprised everyone when he cost Michaels the match. Tyson got physical with both Michaels and Austin. Tyson was originally scheduled to do several shows with the WWE, but personal issues got in the way.
3. Cyndi Lauper (Wrestlemania I)
Ok, I’ll admit it. I’ve always had a thing for Cyndi Lauper. I remember watching her on MTV, the year I graduated high school (Good Grief, I’m getting old).
Cyndi was one of the key players in the explosion of the Rock and Wrestling Connection. She used “Captain” Lou Albano to play her dad in several videos, including her biggest hit: “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun”. She worked with Vince McMahon to promote the then-WWF. When it came time for the very first Wrestlemania, Vince’s people approached Cyndi’s people about having her make an appearance on the super-card.
The original plan was to have her escort Hulk Hogan to the ring. With Mr. T set as the celebrity for the main event, a new plan was concocted. Cyndi was teamed with Wendi Richter in her war against the Fabulous Moolah and her girl, Leilani Kai. Moolah served as a managerette for the defending champion, Leilani Kai.
During the match, Moolah tried to interfere. Lauper attacked Moolah. Moolah sold the attack, well. Lauper came out looking like a tough street kid. Richter won back the Women’s title. The fans got to party with Lauper before, during and after the match. Everyone had a really good time, except Leilani Kai.
2. Pete Rose (Wrestlemanias XIV, XV, 2000, and XX)
Pete was the first “celebrity entrant” into the WWE Hall of Fame. Pete is a former baseball player who got into some serious hot water with the league for gambling.
Vince, never one to pass on a hot property, brought the defamed baseballer into the WWE. Pete got into a running angle with Kane. Kane Tombstoned Pete at Wrestlemania XIV. The next year, Pete showed up dressed as The San Diego Chicken to try and interfere with Kane’s match. Pete ended up on the wrong end of another Tombstone. Pete made a third appearance, with similar results, at Wrestlemania 2000.
Pete’s only other appearance was at Wrestlemania XX, when he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. Creative dropped the ball on that appearance. The crowd waited for Kane to show up and drop Pete on his head, but The Big Red Machine never came out.
Pete was the most active of all celebrities to work at Wrestlemania. Some say his induction into the WWE Hall of Fame was wrong, but he did make a lasting impression in the WWE.
1. Donald Trump (Wrestlemanias IV, V, VII, XX and 23)
He is one of the most well-known celebrities in the world. The multi-billionaire has had a long association with Vince McMahon (20 years). Trump first became associated with the WWE at Wrestlemania IV. Trump hosted both Wrestlemania IV and Wrestlemania V. Trump was spotlighted by the announce team. He waved to the crowd and shook hands with a few of the wrestlers, but didn’t get too involved. When Wrestlemania VII went to Los Angeles, Trump was brought in as one of numerous celebrities at ringside. Again, Trump didn’t get involved other than a wave and a few handshakes.
That changed, last year, as Vince McMahon used Ace Steel as a double for Trump in some skits leading into Wrestlemania 23. Trump, himself, showed up on Raw and embarrassed Vince, more than once. At Wrestlemania 23, Trump faced off against Vince, by use of proxies. Trump chose Bobby Lashley as his champion. Vince took Umaga. When Lashley won, Trump was one of the people who shaved Vince’s head. Trump then took a Stone Cold Stunner from Special Guest Ref, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.
Donald Trump has made more Wrestlemania appearances than any other celebrity. There are rumors that Trump may make a surprise appearance at this year’s event. Trump and Vince have a good working relationship, so it’s very likely that they will work together in the near future. There’s even a passing rumor that Vince might show up on the next season of Celebrity Apprentice, but that has not been verified.
In Conclusion:
While I’m not the biggest fan of celebrity interaction with wrestling, I understand the importance of it. Wrestling wants and needs to stretch out beyond it’s normal barriers. Bringing in hillbilly singers, NASCAR drivers, boxers, rap and rock stars, etc… helps to tap new fans. While we have to endure Butterbean, Akebono, Toby Keith, and Regis Philbin, we also get Pete Rose dropped on his head and Motorhead playing Triple H to the ring.
–Jay Shannon
JayofPWD@SBCGlobal.net
(3/11/08)
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