10 Prodigal Sons That Returned To WWE

Vince McMahon has been called many things since he took over the World Wrestling Federation in the early 1980s. Good and bad, fair or unfair, McMahon's been called almost every name in the book by everyone from his partners to his competition, but by his most successful talents. One word is almost always mentioned - father.

Himself raised by multiple step-fathers, Vince McMahon didn't meet his biological dad until age 12, but has acted like a father figure to many of his young talents over the years. Like many father-son relationships however, there's been plenty of bumps in the road. In some cases, those bumps turned to craters which eventually turned to gaping valleys that required a bridge to cross - a bridge many often burned.

As promoter of the largest wrestling company in the world, Vince McMahon has had many special relationships with his WWE superstars. Unfortunately, some of those bonds were broken over the years and it seemed like there would never be a reconciliation.

But also like many father-son relationships, time has often healed the wounds. Not just time, but effort and growth by both parties to put to bed their differences and look towards a future, a future that both parties shared.

These are the stories of WWE's prodigal sons.

Starting off the list is the most recently-returned prodigal son, Olympic gold medalist and multi-time world champion Kurt Angle.

Angle was first approached to wrestle for WWE after competing in the '96 games, but Kurt turned down a lucrative contract because he refused to lose to anyone on the WWF roster. A couple years later, Angle returned to the negotiating table with a new attitude but WWE had a new, much smaller contract - one Kurt accepted.

But years of a gruelling in-ring career left Angle with a drug problem that impacted his relationship with WWE.

In 2006, Vince McMahon granted Kurt an early release from his contract and wanted Kurt to go to rehab to address his addiction problem. Angle refused. Instead, Kurt signed with rival promotion TNA and spent more time there than he did in WWE Still, that didn't stop fans from hoping for a WWE return someday.

Finally, in 2017, WWE announced Kurt Angle would headline the WWE Hall Of Fame Class, a well deserved and long anticipated honor. A joyous reunion with Vince was caught on camera for the WWE Network and after his induction, Kurt became General Manager of RAW, replacing another of McMahon's prodigal sons...