10 Things You Didn't Know About Wendi Richter
5. Never Received Royalties
With WWE becoming a mainstream hit in the 1980's, many people were set to make a lot of money. T-shirts, action figures, and even a cartoon were branded by many popular wrestlers who saw hefty royalty paychecks. Not Wendi Richter.
She was one of the more recognizable wrestlers thanks to being personally managed by Cyndi Lauper. Her likeness was depicted in merchandising and on the popular Saturday morning cartoon, 'Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling.'
Wendi would complain to Vince McMahon, Jr. about her lack of royalty compensation and other slights in pay. She claimed that he assured her that she had a "legitimate gripe," but then would never do anything about it.
Despite being a household name at the time she would average no more than $2,500 in a week, before paying for her own travel expenses. "The Brawl To End It All" match against The Fabulous Moolah only earned her a $1,500 payout. Her largest payday was the $5,000 she earned for the first WrestleMania.
Ultimately she would attribute her persistence for better pay to have contributed to her ousting.