People usually turn up their noses when I tell them I enjoy pro wrestling. Yes, the burly behemoths in gawdy tights. The sometimes homophobic, sometimes misogynistic, often controversial entertainment of people throwing each other around in a well-choreographed and scripted “fight.” Yes, I follow it and most of the time I have fun with it. I even trained, casually, in pro wrestling for about a year, again just for fun.
Now, trust me, I view with an entirely critical eye. I find it astonishing that some people don’t. The wrestling term for maintaining the illusion of reality is kayfabe and far too many people still believe these stories are real. But for many long-time fans, kayfabe died in the early 90s with two major scandals: steroids and gay sex.
Steroids continue to be a significant issue for the industry, but I’m going to concentrate on the the massive sex scandal involving alleged sexual harrassment and unlawful termination of both adults and children and molestation of children. Far more serious business than who will win the title.
Today I am listening to a wrestling podcast, Review-A-Wai, wherein the hosts review older wrestling DVDs and shows. In this particular episode, hosts John Pollock and Wai Ting have to swerve from their usually entertaining selves to this very serious topic as they look back episodes of The Phil Donahue Show and Geraldo that featured the issue. Take a listen to the show for a great recap of the whole issue.
Personally, I’ve long been fascinated by the queer history of pro wrestling. So much so that I had started planning a book on the subject, and even gad lunch with a documentary director about it. The project got waylaid by personal issues, but I think I need to get back to it.
The industry often uses gay or gayish themes in its storylines, with the portrayal almost invariably being derogatory—to this day. Well, lesbians are sometimes treated well. Why is this? What do the gay wrestlers and staffers think about this? One of the men central to the scandal, Pat Patterson, was well-known and fairly openly gay. He’s been an integral part of the WWF/E machine for decades, resigning during the scandal, but returning just months later.
And what affect did the 90s gay sex scandal have on the locker room? Did it make wrestlers even more reluctant to come out? You can hear about all of the legal ramifications in the podcast, but I remain intensely curious about the repercussions within the wrestling community—then and now.
