3. Voices In His Head
Randy Orton has gone public with his emotional instability and anger management issues. These sorts of issues plague lots of people, and I don't judge Randy for not being born with the coping mechanisms necessary for being a pro wrestler. I do judge the company for positioning him as a role model, over and over again. In the spring of 2006, WWE paid for Orton to attend a high-end anger management course - $15,000 for him to stay on a campus in Atlanta for 4 weeks. Orton shared this story with WWE Magazine, which makes me wonder what their motivation was. Did they want to position Randy as a reformed bad boy? To make him look sympathetic? He came back from the hiatus as a heel, feuding with Kurt Angle and facing the uber-babyface Hulk Hogan. THAT will show Orton what happens to people who can't control their anger. In May 2007, he was sent home from a WWE European tour, after trashing a hotel room and causing $50,000 damage. The company released a
statement, saying they'd be taking action against him for unprofessional conduct. That action was requiring him to pay for the damage... and no additional punishment was given. Stories from other wrestlers indicate that Randy has softened in his demeanor since the birth of his daughter in 2008. He and his wife have since divorced, with his ex-wife getting full custody of their daughter and Randy having visitation rights. I sincerely hope that he can find solace in his relationship with his daughter, but his employment past 2007 is a bit stupefying.