10 Wackiest Wrestling Gimmicks That Actually Worked

8. The Honky Tonk Man

Elvis Presley isn't the most obvious inspiration for a wrestling gimmick, but it was one used effectively for years by Roy Wayne Ferris. Coming into his own upon joining the WWF in 1986, Ferris started calling himself The Honky Tonk Man. Using many mannerisms of the infamous rock n' roll singer, the wrestler became an overbearing heel. Fans delighted in seeing Honky lose. That was the beauty of the character, the WWF made the people wait to see that happen. Despite never being a stand out between the ropes, The Honky Tonk Man held the WWF Intercontinental Title for an incredible 454 days, the longest in history. In fact, that's still a record that remains in tact to this day. When The Ultimate Warrior rolled over Honky Tonk at SummerSlam 1988, the crowd popped in huge fashion. This is what folks had been waiting for, to see the smug smile wiped clean off the face of the posturing phony. It's likely that Ferris would have floundered as a straight up wrestler, so it was genius to cast him as The Honky Tonk Man. Few others could have played the character so brilliantly, and that deserves credit.