10 Things You Didn't Know About Superstar Billy Graham

5. €˜The Reflection Of Perfection€™ Was The First Long Term Heel Champion In The WWE...

Today, it is more common to have a heel champion on top for an extended period than a babyface. Whilst €˜Wild Bill€™ Longson should probably go down in history as the industry pioneer for this approach, it was The Superstar who introduced the concept of a true heel champion to (what was then) the WWWF in the late 1970€™s... The era of the great Bruno Sammartino was coming to a close and Vince McMahon Sr. was looking for a new babyface crowd-pleaser to headline in and around the New York area. McMahon had settled on Bob Backlund, who was an affable personality, amateur wrestling champion and extremely gifted worker, but he felt that Backlund was still a little green to fill Bruno€™s massive boots. So, with the complicity of The Superstar, the older McMahon hatched a clever plan. Traditionally, heels were used only as €˜transitional€™ champions. The idea being that, if the old hero and the new hero met face-to-face, the outgoing star would eclipse the upcoming star and the loyalist fans would never accept the newcomer in the role of champion. Wrestling logic dictated that a transition was needed. A heel would triumph over the tired veteran hero, only to be vanquished a few weeks (or less) later by the fresh-faced young hero. It is a plot used extensively in mythology, folk tales, novels and movies from around the globe, recycled since time immemorial and it had worked in wrestling for over half a century at that point. This time, however, the plan was a little different. McMahon wanted Graham to buck the trend and remain on top for the better part of a year. This, he gambled, would infuriate the fans, but, crucially, would keep them coming to the shows. Graham€™s innate charisma had proven him to be a major draw by this point, so €˜The Tower of Power€™ was probably the one wrestler he had who could be relied upon to draw Sammrtino-type money. During this time, the company would commit themselves to developing Backlund and allow him to improve at his own rate, whilst keeping the title strong in the eyes of the fans. McMahon€™s master plan worked well, if anything, it worked too well. Billy Graham was so unique, so different and so thrilling to watch as Champion that he was actually getting over as a babyface. The Superstar was shining so brightly and drawing so well, that it seems mad in hindsight that they ever took the belt from him. Every promoter dreams of a run like the one that Graham was having and sadly, it was over before it had reached its zenith, cut short just before it had a chance to truly explode.... However, McMahon was adamant in his decision, and an embittered and frustrated Graham dropped the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship to Backlund in February of 1978. It would take him years to come to terms with the loss and he was never the same again. Nevertheless, during that one trailblazing title run (possibly the most important in WWE history), everything changed forever.