Steve Austin SHOOTS On Managers

The subject of managers or the lack thereof in professional wrestling has been a source of conversation for quite some time. Long gone are the days of Bobby Heenan, Jim Cornette, or Sensational Sherri striding down the aisle alongside their clients and helping to make an outing memorable with suspicious yet enjoyable interaction.

It’s not just us that have noticed the diminished roles of valets and directors in professional wrestling. Debatably the most outspoken person on the industry today, Stone Cold Steve Austin, opened up about the dearth of accomplices on his podcast, The Steve Austin Show. Joined by MLW’s Court Bauer, the ‘Texas Rattlesnake’ had this to say on the subject:

“You just don’t see managers anymore. To me, they were the salt and pepper on a great steak. Such colorful, flamboyant personalities, either that mouthpiece, or that dressing, or whatever it needs to be to enhance that talent further, or be the crutch, or be an addition to, and just make that person a superstar.

The way I grew up watching wrestling when I was seven or eight years old, and going through the territories, and having my share of managers. Whether I liked them or not, or wanted them to be with me, I learned a lot from them. To me, they’re part of the landscape that is pro wrestling.”

His co-host for the episode then made a valid point that the role of a manager could often keep babyfaces or heels from growing stale; a problem all too relevant in current day WWE. This was never more prevalent than when Bobby Heenan led a cavalcade of villains against Hulk Hogan in the late 80s in order to relieve him of the WWF Championship. Would the ‘Immortal One’ and indeed the main event picture have seemed as fresh without Bobby Heenan as the catalyst?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZmVizMolRM

That’s for you to decide, everyone will have their own opinion. What cannot be debated, however, is that some of the best memories long-time fans have come from ringside administrators. Sensational Sherri pretending to faint at SummerSlam 1992; Mr. Fuji blinding Bret Hart at WrestleMania IX; Jim Cornette tumbling from scaffolding at Starrcade 1986; Bobby Heenan in his weasel suit, to name just a few. These moments would not have been as special without those magical men and women on the arena floor.

Granted, in today’s current product there is the odd exception, yet these names are merely additions to their much more famous punters, making no impact on the matches whatsoever. Paul Heyman, arguably the most recognizable of these names, does all of his work on the microphone in the weeks approaching a Brock Lesnar bout. On the nights themselves, he’s hardly noticeable.

WrestleTalk is sure that everyone has their own view of the manager in wrestling. Some will be against it. Those who grew up with a cavalcade of executives on their screens will be for it. However, right now, with the WWE product as stale as it’s become, surely a second coming of personalities couldn’t hurt any more than what is already being done.

 

Tell WrestleTalk your views on managers, their role in the past, whether you think they could aid some stars in the present, and your favorite supervisor of all time. You can come and join the conversation on Twitter and Discord today.

• The Stone Cold Show
• SummerSlam 1992
• Starrcade 1986
• Cort Bauer
• Mr Fuji
• bobby heenan
• RAW
• mlw
• WrestleMania 5
• stone cold steve austin
• Yokozuna
• sensational sherri
• WWF
• wrestlemania 9
• Brock Lesnar
• Jim Cornette
• bret hart
• paul heyman
• wwe

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