Summary
Donald Trump’s political success cannot be fully understood without understanding his decades-long relationship with professional wrestling and Vince McMahon, and this episode explores how WWE’s culture of spectacle, audience manipulation, mythology, and “perception is reality” shaped Trump’s public and political career.
In part one of this two-parter, James is joined by Jayne Friend to discuss the striking parallels between Donald Trump and Vince McMahon, from their shared love of wealth, spectacle, celebrity, masculinity, and aggressive business tactics to their ability to survive scandals and maintain powerful public personas. It traces McMahon’s rise from an abusive childhood and the wrestling territories of North America to the creation of WrestleMania and WWE’s transformation into a global entertainment empire. It then connects McMahon’s wrestling philosophy to Trump’s emergence as a television-driven political figure, arguing that both men understand the power of manipulating audiences into accepting constructed realities as authentic.
Covered in this episode
- Donald Trump, Vince McMahon and the central thesis: The episode introduces Trump, the 45th and 47th president of the United States, and Vince McMahon, the longtime head of WWE, examining their roughly 40-year friendship and business relationship and arguing that professional wrestling is essential to understanding Trump’s political success.
- Why professional wrestling matters: WWE is presented not as a niche sporting curiosity but as a hugely profitable global entertainment company, with discussion of its valuation, TKO Holdings, UFC, international events, Saudi Arabia, Netflix, and its enormous cultural influence.
- The wrestling-to-Hollywood pipeline: The episode discusses Hulk Hogan, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, John Cena, and Dave Bautista to demonstrate how WWE became a major force in popular entertainment and celebrity culture.
- Trump as a wrestling-style performer: Trump’s political career is examined as a form of television and entertainment in which scandals, wars, tariffs, political conflicts, personalities, ratings, and controversy become episodes in the ongoing “Trump show.”
- Suspension of disbelief and political spectacle: The episode explores the similarity between accepting a scripted professional wrestling match as emotionally real and accepting Trump’s constructed political persona, emphasizing the wrestling principle that perception can become reality.
- Vince McMahon’s childhood and personality: The episode traces McMahon’s birth in 1945, his childhood in North Carolina, his relationship with his mother and stepfather, allegations of abuse, and his lifelong projection of toughness, extreme masculinity, physical strength, and invulnerability.
- The McMahon wrestling dynasty: Vince McMahon’s reunion with his father, Vince McMahon Sr., and his grandfather Jess McMahon’s boxing background are explored alongside the family’s ownership of the Worldwide Wrestling Federation, later shortened to the World Wrestling Federation.
- McMahon’s destruction of the wrestling territories: After purchasing the company from his father in 1982, McMahon aggressively raids rival territories for their biggest stars, including Hulk Hogan, abandoning traditional handshake agreements and transforming the fragmented North American wrestling business into an increasingly centralized monopoly.
- Hulk Hogan and the birth of WrestleMania: The episode follows McMahon’s recruitment of Hulk Hogan and the creation of WrestleMania in 1985 at Madison Square Garden, where professional wrestling was deliberately combined with mainstream celebrities including Mr. T, Muhammad Ali, and Cyndi Lauper.
- WrestleMania III and the power of mythology: Hulk Hogan versus André the Giant at the Pontiac Silverdome in 1987 becomes a key example of McMahon’s ability to manufacture larger-than-life mythology, including the disputed claim of a 93,000-person attendance despite an estimated crowd closer to 75,000.
- Wrestling becomes mass entertainment: The episode examines the 1988 Hulk Hogan–André the Giant rematch on NBC, reportedly watched by 33 million people, and explains how McMahon transformed wrestling from a collection of regional territories into a global entertainment phenomenon.
- McMahon’s scandals and his connection to Trump: The episode surveys allegations and controversies involving Jimmy Snuka, Rita Chatterton, the ring-boy allegations involving Tom Cole and Mel Phillips, Pat Patterson, and the 1990s steroid scandal, before turning to Trump’s emergence in the same New York business and celebrity circles and the beginning of their close relationship.
Mentioned in this episode
Donald John Trump, Donald Trump, Vince Kennedy McMahon Jr., Vince McMahon, Vince McMahon Sr., Jess McMahon, Hulk Hogan, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, John Cena, Dave Bautista, Mr. T, Muhammad Ali, Cyndi Lauper, André the Giant, Jimmy Snuka, Rita Chatterton, Tom Cole, Mel Phillips, Pat Patterson, Rudy Giuliani, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK), Francis Tumblety, Jack the Ripper, WrestleMania, WrestleMania 2, WrestleMania 3, World Wrestling Entertainment, WWE, World Wrestling Federation, WWF, Worldwide Wrestling Federation, UFC, TKO Holdings, American Wrestling Association, Madison Square Garden, Pontiac Silverdome, North Carolina, New York, Connecticut, Minnesota, Memphis, Portland, Oregon, Saudi Arabia, Washington DC, White House, NBC, Netflix, MTV, A-Team, Marvel, Drax, COVID-19 pandemic, Trump presidency, 2016 presidential election, 2024 presidential election, January 6 insurrection, MAGA movement, American politics, professional wrestling, wrestling territories, wrestling monopoly, WrestleMania, Hulkamania, Trump’s political career, television politics, political spectacle, suspension of disbelief, perception is reality, audience manipulation, celebrity culture, ratings, showbiz, masculinity, masculinity issues, aggressive business tactics, corporate monopoly, sexual assault allegations, sexual harassment lawsuits, defamation lawsuit, ring-boy allegations, steroid scandal, steroids in professional wrestling, Vince McMahon scandals, Trump scandals, Trump lawsuits, sexual harassment allegations, 1980s New York business culture, greed-is-good culture, Gordon Gekko, Wall Street, glitz, glamour, tackiness, celebrity politics, political performance, media manipulation, public perception
Chapters
00:00 — Donald Trump, Vince McMahon and the Wrestling Connection
02:00 — Why Wrestling Matters to American Politics
04:45 — WWE, Hollywood and the Power of Celebrity
07:30 — Trump’s Political Career as a Television Show
09:40 — Meet Vince McMahon
11:00 — Vince McMahon’s Childhood and Masculinity
13:30 — The McMahon Wrestling Dynasty
14:30 — How Vince McMahon Destroyed the Wrestling Territories
16:30 — Hulk Hogan and the Creation of WrestleMania
18:00 — WrestleMania III, André the Giant and “93,000” Fans
20:00 — The 33 Million Viewer Wrestling Phenomenon
21:15 — Vince McMahon’s Scandals and the Trump Connection
Further Reading
- Ringmaster: Vince McMahon and the Unmaking of America
- Things to Know About Donald Trump's Relationship with Vince McMahon
Thanks to SOULFULJAMTRACKS for their tune "Dark Halloween"
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History's Devils is a history podcast exploring the lives of murderers, charlatans, psychopaths, dictators, war criminals, tyrants, demagogues, revolutionaries, cult leaders, conquerors, fraudsters, and other controversial figures.
History's Devils is hosted by James Crossland, professor of international history and author of:
Rogue Agent: From Secret Plots to Psychological Warfare, the Untold Story of Robert Bruce Lockhart
The Rise of Devils: Fear and the Origins of Modern Terrorism...
