10 Most Chilling Wrestling Gimmicks Ever
8. Mankind
So dedicated to the idea of paying Mankind effectively was Mick Foley that the madman ripped chunks of his own hair out during performances. Somehow, Mankind later became a lovable idiot character fans admired, even though Foley had played the Leatherface-style masked persona perfectly for years.
Screaming like a stuck pig and tormented (at least according to the WWF's announcers) by his own thoughts, Mankind was an amazing character from 1996-97. That first year of Foley's run in particular threw up countless memorable moments that turned Mankind from potential cartoon disaster into one of the promotion's most horrific assets.
A slick backstory involving childhood genius also came into play at points. Walking to the ring as moody music blared over the PA system, Mankind was then soothed post-match by gentle piano lullabies that caused him to rock back and forth. Long before 'Mr. Socko' and babyface brilliance, Mankind was eerie as hell.