When Mark Henry debuted in 1996, he signed an impressive 10-year contract. Clearly, WWE had high hopes for him, and were under the impression that the Olympic powerlifter could bring in a lot of attention to WWE. Unfortunately, they were wrong, and so Henry was saddled with one of the worst gimmicks imaginable: Sexual Chocolate, a complete nymphomaniac who, among other things, had sex with Mae Young, a transvestite, and even his own sister, who was the person that had allegedly taken his virginity. How this wasnt voted the worst gimmick of 1999 is an astounding mystery. It was an incredibly embarrassing situation that virtually destroyed Henrys reputation. However, Henry was, and still is, a company man whos willing to do what the higher ups asked him to. Thats why he went through with the gimmick and did his best to make it work. Furthermore, despite his low-card status and often disappointing storylines, Henry stuck with the company, regardless of what direction he was in. This shows just how loyal he was to WWE, and how much he was willing to do what the company wanted him to do, even if it was something he didnt like personally. Even as his career winds down, Henry should look back at his career and be proud that he was loyal to WWE and did whatever they asked him to do, even at the cost of his own pride. Thats what a company man does, and thats what Henry does too.
Alexander Podgorski is a writer for WhatCulture that has been a fan of professional wrestling since he was 8 years old. He loves all kinds of wrestling, from WWE and sports entertainment, to puroresu in Japan.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Queen's University in Political Studies and French, and a Master's Degree in Public Administration. He speaks English, French, Polish, a bit of German, and knows some odd words and phrases in half a dozen other languages.
