10 Gimmick Changes That Saved A Wrestler's Career
1. The Ringmaster To Stone Cold
Having debuted in the USWA in 1989, Steve Austin went on to make a big splash in WCW as a member of Paul Heyman's Dangerous Alliance and one half of The Hollywood Blondes with Brian Pillman. A triceps injury saw his run in Atlanta come to a premature end, however, and he was fired while nursing his wounds.
A brief spell in ECW saw Austin really develop as a performer and the world got its first glimpse of the 'Stone Cold' persona we would come to know and love. Sadly, the WWF paid little attention to his stellar work in Philadelphia and he was brought into the New York territory as The Ringmaster.
Given Ted DiBiase as his mouthpiece, Austin was seldom given the chance to show his personality and was used primarily as a mechanic simply to produce good mid-card matches. While he was given the Million Dollar Championship as part of the gimmick, the character had very little depth to it and DiBiase's presence was more of a hindrance than a blessing.
After watching a documentary on Mafia hitman, 'The Iceman' Richard Kuklinski, Austin was inspired and saw himself as a ruthless, cold character in the WWF. A few weeks later, 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin emerged from DiBiase's shadow, and that's the bottom line.