Business Wars

It’s the early 1980s and there’s peace in the wrestling business. For years regional wrestling companies have maintained order by sticking to their own slices of US and Canadian territory. But that’s all about to change. Vince McMahon has just taken over the World Wrestling Federation, and he wants war. He’s on a mission to crush all opposition and establish the WWF as the only wrestling game in town. But his assault on the wrestling status quo will also make him a powerful enemy: cable TV mogul Ted Turner.

It’s the dawn of the 1990s and Vince McMahon’s WWF is the king of wrestling. But trouble’s brewing: a steroids scandal is about to deal a body blow to the WWF and its family-friendly reputation. The scandal will leave WWF stuck in damage control mode as it fights to stem the losses from falling TV ratings, ticket sales, and pay-per-view buys. Meanwhile, Ted Turner’s trying to get World Championship Wrestling fighting fit with help from a former Pizza Hut regional manager, a self-proclaimed Cowboy, and a back-up announcer who wants to bring wrestling to Disney World.

It’s 1994 and WCW is stepping up its game. To get the jump on WWF, Ted Turner is writing big checks to steal away the WWF’s biggest stars and sponsors. And as WCW’s star power increases, so does its popularity with wrestling fans. But the WWF is in no position to fight back. It’s struggling to keep the lights on, there’s discontent among its roster of wrestlers, and Vince McMahon is preoccupied with staying out of prison. And now Turner wants to deliver a killer blow. A new Monday night wrestling show that will go head to head with the WWF’s flagship TV program Monday Night Raw.

It’s 1995 and the Monday Night Wars are underway. WCW’s new show Monday Nitro is grappling with the WWF’s Monday Night Raw to win TV viewers’ attention. WCW isn’t pulling its punches either. Under the command of Eric Bischoff, WCW is dropping spoiler bombs, luring away WWF’s top wrestlers and trashing the WWF brand. And as WCW gains momentum, Bischoff is plotting a killer blow – a shock role reversal that will force WWF boss Vince McMahon to rethink how his wrestling promotion works.

It’s 1996 and with Monday Nitro topping the TV ratings, WCW is out to end WWF’s time as the biggest player in the wrestling business. It’s plotting to establish two brands: one that WCW boss Eric Bischoff hopes can suck away WWF’s family audience, another that will seek to capture the young males who crave more violent and outrageous entertainment than the WWF offers. But Vince McMahon has a plan of his own. He’s going to push the WWF in a new direction by embracing controversy. But it’s a strategy that will put him on a collision course with the cable network the WWF depends on for its survival.

It’s 1998 and the slugfest between Vince McMahon’s WWF and Ted Turner’s WCW is reaching a critical juncture. McMahon’s on a mission to pull wrestling fans back to his TV shows with a strategy focused on maximum controversy. And to help him in his mission, he’s getting back-up from a high-flying TV executive and a bunch of Wall Street bankers. WCW chief Eric Bischoff is determined to stop WWF’s comeback at all costs. But he’ll soon discover that his most dangerous enemy isn’t McMahon — it’s the executives on his own team.

World Wrestling Entertainment is the dominant name in professional wrestling but new promotions are now challenging the WWE’s dominance. We conclude our series on WWF vs WCW with David Shoemaker, author of The Squared Circle: Life, Death, and Professional Wrestling. Shoemaker joins us to talk about whether or not these new companies can succeed against Vince McMahon's behemoth and what it means to be the best professional wrestler in the world.