Maybe it's the bright lights that bring them out. For decades, celebrities have for better or worse been a prominent part of WWE. The relationship between celebrities and modern-day WWE dates back to WrestleMania I, with musicians, pro athletes and other famous figures helping to turn the first WM into a pop culture spectacle. Since then, celebrities have continued to play a role: they have served as guest referees, shown up on Raw to shill their latest movie or have been sitting ringside to wave to the camera while the announcers fawn over them. And sometimes, they have stepped between the ropes into the squared circle. With Mr. T. being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this year and his participation in the first two WrestleManias the question has to be asked: How do his matches stack up against the other celebrity-infused matches that have graced a WrestleMania ring? Sadly, we can't count Piper's Pit with Morton Downey Jr., Donald Trump putting his hair on the line or even The Rock returning from Hollywood after an eight-year absence. But in 29 WrestleManias, there have been a handful of matches that have involved celebrities. Some have been passable. Some have been downright awful. Some have to be seen to be believed... and then hopefully quickly forgotten.
Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.
