10 Precise Moments Wrestling Bookers Lost Their Minds
6. Vince McMahon (2)
Vince McMahon actually evolved from pop culture powerhouse to deft pro wrestling booker in the early 1990s.
He lost the ability to reach the casual fan - when they actually existed - and instead set about telling fabulous, twisting long-term stories, the very best of which unfolded across the first quarter of 1994 as Bret Hart and brother Owen told a beautifully nuanced and emotionally intense tale of familial conflict. Of course, as a very strange and detached individual, he had to be convinced that sometimes, siblings don't get along.
What's especially absolutely f*cked about this is that Vince without any urging pitched - after first pitching himself in the role - that Shane be the father of Stephanie's shoot baby. Ergo: Vince thinks family members are more likely to f*ck than fight.
Regardless, 1995 was piss-poor, 1996 an improvement, 1997 allowed fans a longer look at the shift towards a more compelling, edgy product, 1998 saw Vince McMahon re-enter the American home with his piss-funny freak show, 1999 was too over to be perceived as the sh*t it was, 2000 was the zenith of quality and popularity intersecting, and, at WrestleMania X-Seven, Vince f*cked everything by pulling off the most Vince Russo swerve of the lot.
He shook hands with Austin as Rock departed for Hollywood, killed two megastar babyfaces with one stone, had Kane headline the next PPV, and continued to use Vince Russo's format for the next 21 years of tedious domination.
On the subject of whom...