2. Extreme Championship Wrestling
WWE.comPerhaps the most interesting, unique, and fondly remembered promotion that the WWE chewed up and spit out, ECW carved out their place in history during their nearly eight year run. As the case with many promotions on this list, ECW was originally a part of the NWA, before breaking a way in a new, Extreme direction in 1994. Armed with syndication, word of mouth, and a little support from the WWF, Extreme Championship Wrestling was the precursor to the uber-successful Attitude era. ECW ushered in a style of wrestling and promo in which mainstream American wrestling wasn't accustomed to, and the regional, niche promotion was taken to a new level when it landed a national TV deal, as well as a spot on pay-per-view. Despite several controversial violent moments in which nearly killed the company, it was eventually owner Paul Heyman's financial mismanagement that put ECW six feet under. Even though ECW was still selling tickets, moving merchandise, and doing well on pay-per-view, their inability to secure another national TV deal is blamed for the death of the promotion. The WWE had taken ECW's spot on TNN just a few months prior. WWE would go on to pick through and select the talent it wanted from ECW's roster, and would actually get some life out of the brand in the highly anticipated "Invasion" angle in 2001. In 2005 and 2006, WWE hosted ECW pay-per-views, entitled "One Night Stand", before bringing back ECW entirely as a third television brand. However, the ECW that fans knew and loved was nowhere to be found, as it fell victim to WWE's new PG-era. The WWE continues to bank off of ECW, releasing upwards of a half-dozen DVD's dedicated to "the land of the extreme" in the past ten years.