TheOriginOf.com

WWE

April 27, 2009 – 7:33 pm

Wrestling can be traced back to cave drawings in France, but the pro wrestling that we see today is thought to have originated in the late 1800′s. It is thought that the first pro wrestling shows were held at carnivals. WWE was first established in 1952 by Vince McMahon’s grandfather, Jess McMahon and Raymond “Toots” Mondt, as the Capitol Wrestling Corporation and later joined the National Wrestling Alliance in 1953. It would later be named the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF). It was shortened to WWF in 1979. The first “Wrestlemania” was held in 1985 and was a resounding success.

Coming back to WWE, its origin saw a new entry way to professionalism. These famous lines started it all, “Our new name puts the emphasis on the “E” for entertainment, what our company does best. WWE provides us with a global identity that is distinct and unencumbered, which is critical to our U.S. and international growth plans.” said Linda McMahon, CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, on May 6, 2002, giving birth to WWE of today.  It was an attempt to capture a greater market share and to represent the growing diversity of its entertainment properties; World Wrestling Federation Entertainment today announced a change in its name to World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc (WWE).The change of it name has its own controversial history, the World Wildlife Fund sued the WWE (then known as the WWF) stating that they (WWE) had violated an agreement concerning use of the acronym WWF outside of North America. The World Wildlife Fund’s suit was upheld in a British court. In 2002, the WWF changed its name to World Wrestling Entertainment. This name change provided a distinct and unburdened global identity to the World Wrestling Entertainment as an integrated entertainment and media company.

Vince McMahon is the majority owner and chairman of the company and his wife Linda McMahon holds the position of Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Together with their children, Executive Vice President of Global Media, Shane McMahon and Executive Vice President of Talent and Creative Writing, Stephanie McMahon-Levesque, the McMahons hold approximately 70% of WWE’s economic interest and 96% of the voting power in the company.

McMahon represents the third generation of a professional wrestling dynasty: his grandfather, Jess McMahon, worked as a boxing and wrestling promoter, while his father, Vince McMahon, Sr., founded the Capitol Wrestling Corporation. Capitol dominated professional wrestling in the Northeastern United States during the mid-20th century, when the sport was divided into strictly regional enterprises.

The growth sees a host of eclectic marketing and business strategies. McMahon recruited new talent and bought out competition across the country, forming a corporation he called the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and a parent company called Titan Sports, Inc.
WWF wrestling was technically not a real sport, as the outcome of each match was known in advance. Thus Mac Mohan hyped up its entertainment aspect, introducing wrestlers with theatrical personae and flashy costumes and staging elaborate displays for the benefit of the arena crowds and the cable audience. It worked–in 1987; the WWF sold $80 million in tickets to live events, according to Forbes magazine.

On October 25, 2000 WWE Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:WWE) announced that its common stock will begin trading on The New York Stock Exchange under the ticker WWE effective today, positioning WWE  as one of the premier businesses of the world.
The company’s global headquarters are located in Stamford, Connecticut with offices in Los Angeles, New York City, London, and Toronto.

Tags: ECW, Inc., Jess McMahon, Linda McMahon, Monday Night RAW, RAW, Raymond "Toots" Mondt, Shane McMahon, Smack Down, Stephanie McMahon-Levesque, Vince McMahon, World Wrestling Entertainment, Wrestlemania, WWE, WWE Entertainment