10 Hidden Masterminds Behind Wrestling's Biggest Ever Stars
6. Larry Sharpe
Considered by many to be the first wrestling school open and available to the general public in an era where kayfabe was still king, Larry Sharpe's Monster Factory boasts an enviable list of legends amongst its alumni, and wears the name well as a place producing giants by the truckload.
Welcoming rookies as early as 1983, Sharpe (assisted at first by Buddy Rogers) boasted Bam Bam Bigelow as its first breakout student, and the collection of major names grew along with the stature of the stars. Tony Atlas, King Kong Bundy, Giant Silva all emerged, Raven, The Godfather, The Headbangers, Chris Candido, D'Lo Brown, Tatanka, Cliff Compton, Sonjay Dutt, Virgil and Balls Mahoney bumped and fed under the Paulsboro, New Jersey lights, and nobody from the place made as enormous a splash in the business as The Big Show himself.
Paul Wight worked under Sharpe before and during his earliest WCW efforts, and a host of other modern megastars have developed through the the school. Sheamus, Matt Riddle, Damian Priest were all put through their paces there, as was a current AEW power player who's starting to develop a reputation of his own...