Capitol Wrestling Corporation

Last updated
Capitol Wrestling Corporation Ltd.
Capitol Wrestling Corporation
Company type Private
Industry Professional wrestling
Professional boxing
FoundedJanuary 7, 1953;71 years ago (1953-01-07) [1]
Founders Jess McMahon or Vincent J. McMahon
Defunct1982;42 years ago (1982)
FateAcquired
Successor Titan Sports, Inc.
Headquarters
Holland Hotel
351 West 42nd Street
New York City, New York 10036
,
United States
Area served
 Northeastern United States
OwnerVincent J. McMahon

Capitol Wrestling Corporation (CWC) was an American sports promotion company. Run by Vincent J. McMahon from the 1950s until the 1980s, the company was originally a professional wrestling and boxing promotion and later became the holding company for the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF), later the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). In 1982, the CWC was acquired by Titan Sports, Inc., owned by Vincent J.'s son Vincent K. McMahon. The CWC was the precursor to today's WWE, currently run by Nick Khan as president and owned by TKO Group Holdings.

Contents

History

Early history (1953–1963)

Jess McMahon was a successful professional boxing promoter who began working with Tex Rickard in 1926. With the help of Rickard, he began promoting boxing at the third Madison Square Garden. McMahon would later take over the wrestling side of Rickard's promotional business; Rickard was noted for disliking wrestling and prevented wrestling events from being held at Madison Square Garden. A few years prior to 1926, professional wrestler Toots Mondt had created a new style of professional wrestling that he called “Slam Bang Western Style Wrestling”. The advent of Slam Bang Western Style Wrestling ultimately transformed professional wrestling from a legitimate combat sport into a series of predetermined pseudo-competitive exhibitions. Mondt convinced wrestler Ed Lewis, who then held the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship, and his manager Billy Sandow to embrace this new predetermined style of wrestling, with the three men forming a business partnership dubbed the "Gold Dust Trio". The Gold Dust Trio formed what is considered the first modern promotion in professional wrestling history and were successful in getting many wrestlers of the time to sign contracts with their promotion. After much success, a power struggle amongst its members caused the trio to dissolve and, with it, their promotion. Mondt later formed partnerships with several other promoters, including Jack Curley in New York City. Curley's ill health led to Mondt, aided by Jess McMahon and others, taking over the New York City wrestling scene. Mondt's control over wrestling in New York City ended after promoter Jack Pfefer revealed the predetermined nature of wrestling to the area's sports writers, harming wrestling's popularity in the city. Mondt additionally had major disagreements with his top star Antonino Rocca, which led to Mondt's partner Ray Fabiani aligning with other promoters to appease Rocca.

On January 7, 1953, the first show under the Capitol Wrestling Corporation (CWC) banner was produced. It is not certain who the founder of the CWC was. Some sources state that it was Jess' son Vincent J. McMahon [1] [2] [3] while other sources (including the website of the CWC's successor, WWE) credit Jess himself as the founder of the CWC. [4] [5] [6] Shortly after its founding, the CWC joined the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and Mondt soon after joined the CWC. Together, Vincent J. McMahon and Toots Mondt were very successful and controlled approximately 70% of the NWA board's booking decisions, largely due to their dominance in the heavily populated northeastern United States.

World Wide Wrestling Federation (1963–1979)

In early 1963, the CWC pulled out of the NWA and transformed into the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF), the precursor to current-day WWE, following a dispute over CWC wrestler Buddy Rogers being booked to lose the NWA World Heavyweight Championship to Lou Thesz. [7] McMahon and Mondt continued to promote Rogers as the NWA World Heavyweight Champion, despite his loss to Thesz, until April 11 when they awarded him the inaugural WWWF World Heavyweight Championship. Rogers lost the WWWF title to Bruno Sammartino on May 17. Despite the change in the promotion's trade name, the company was still known legally as Capitol Wrestling Corporation Ltd., which served as the holding company for the WWWF and later the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) until 1982.

The WWWF operated in a conservative manner compared to other wrestling promotions of its time; [8] it ran its major arenas monthly rather than weekly or bi-weekly, usually featuring a babyface champion wrestling various heels in programs that consisted of one to three matches. [9] After gaining a television deal and turning the well-known tag team wrestler Lou Albano into a manager for Sammartino's heel opponents, the WWWF began doing sell out business and, by 1970, became one of the largest promotions of wrestling's territorial era.

After disagreements over television deals which were compounded by issues caused by his gambling addiction, Mondt was "muscled out" of the leadership of the WWWF and ultimately sold off his shares to McMahon in the mid-1960s. McMahon later made Mondt a salaried employee of the WWWF, an arrangement that continued until Mondt's death on June 11, 1976. The WWWF rejoined the NWA in 1971.

Rebranding and sale to Titan Sports (1979–1982)

By March 1979, for marketing purposes, the World Wide Wrestling Federation was renamed the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). [10] The following year, Vincent J. McMahon's son, Vincent K. McMahon, founded Titan Sports, Inc., which incorporated on February 21, 1980, originally in Massachusetts. [11] [12] Vincent K. McMahon had served as a ring announcer and commentator for WWWF television programs since 1969. Beginning in 1971, he began promoting events for his father in isolated regions of the WWWF territory, primarily in Maine.

In 1982, Titan Sports, Inc. acquired Capitol Wrestling Corporation Ltd., effectively relocating its headquarters from New York City to Greenwich, Connecticut. At the annual meeting of the NWA in 1983, the McMahons and WWF employee Jim Barnett all withdrew from the organization. [7] In 1984, in an attempt to make the WWF the premier wrestling promotion in the world, McMahon began a national (and later international) expansion that fundamentally changed the wrestling industry and brought an end to its territorial era. [13] By 1985, Titan Sports moved its headquarters to Titan Towers in Stamford, Connecticut and, in 1987, reincorporated itself under Delaware General Corporation Law. Titan Sports later changed its name to World Wrestling Federation Entertainment, Inc. in 1999, and World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE) in 2002. [14] Vincent J. McMahon would not live to see his company transform from a territorial Northeast-based wrestling promotion into a worldwide entertainment organization. He died from pancreatic cancer at 69 years old on May 24, 1984. [15]

Legacy

In October 2020, WWE's NXT brand introduced the "Capitol Wrestling Center", a new home studio in Orlando, Florida within the WWE Performance Center training facility, which was named as a tribute to the CWC. [16]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WWE</span> American professional wrestling and entertainment company

World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into fields outside of wrestling, including film, football, and various other business ventures. The company is additionally involved in licensing its intellectual property to companies to produce video games and action figures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Wrestling Alliance</span> American professional wrestling promotion and governing body

The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling promotion and governing body owned by Billy Corgan and operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bruno Sammartino</span> American professional wrestler (1935–2018)

Bruno Leopoldo Francesco Sammartino was an Italian-American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with the World Wide Wrestling Federation. Widely recognized as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, Sammartino's 2,803-day reign as WWWF World Heavyweight Champion is the longest in the championship's history as well as the longest world title reign in WWE history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pro Wrestling USA</span> American professional wrestling promotion

Pro Wrestling USA was a professional wrestling promotion in the United States of America in the mid-1980s. It was an attempt to unify various federations, including the American Wrestling Association (AWA), Jim Crockett Promotions and other members of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), against the national expansion of the World Wrestling Federation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buddy Rogers (wrestler)</span> American professional wrestler (1921–1992)

Buddy Rogers, better known by the ring name "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers, was an American professional wrestler who was one of the biggest professional wrestling stars in the beginning of the television era. His performances influenced future professional wrestlers, including "Nature Boy" Ric Flair, who used Rogers's nickname, as well as his look, attitude and finishing hold, the figure-four leglock. He was also known for his rivalry with Lou Thesz, both in and out of the ring.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vincent J. McMahon</span> American professional wrestling promoter (1914–1984)

Vincent James McMahon, sometimes referred to as Vince McMahon Sr., was an American professional wrestling promoter. He is best known for running the Capitol Wrestling Corporation, which was later renamed WWWF and WWF during his tenure from 1953 to 1982, and is currently called WWE, as well as for being the father of his successor, Vincent K. McMahon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toots Mondt</span> American professional wrestler and promoter

Joseph Raymond "Toots" Mondt was an American professional wrestler and promoter who revolutionized the wrestling industry in the early to mid-1920s and co-promoted the World Wide Wrestling Federation. Some of the stars Mondt helped create from the 1920s through the 1960s included Wayne Munn, Jim Londos, Antonino Rocca, Bruno Sammartino, Stu Hart and Cowboy Bill Watts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antonino Rocca</span> Italian professional wrestler

Antonino Rocca was an Italian naturalized Argentinian professional wrestler. He tag teamed with partner Miguel Pérez. He was posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 1995 and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WWWF United States Heavyweight Championship</span> Professional wrestling championship

The WWWF United States Heavyweight Championship was a singles title used sporadically in the World Wide Wrestling Federation between 1960 and 1976. During the variable periods in which it was used, the title served as the promotion's secondary singles championship to the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship. Three years after the title was retired for good, it was replaced by the WWF North American Heavyweight Championship as the promotion's secondary title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blackjack Lanza</span> American professional wrestler (1935–2021)

John Mortl Lanzo was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Blackjack Lanza. Along with his long-term tag team partner, Blackjack Mulligan, Lanza was one-half of The Blackjacks: "black cowboy hat-wearing, cowboy boot-stomping, rugged hombres who drew money wherever they went".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jess McMahon</span> The father of Vincent J. McMahon, and grandfather of Vince McMahon (1882-1954)

Roderick James "Jess" McMahon Sr. was an American professional wrestling and professional boxing promoter, and the patriarch of the McMahon family. It is not certain if either he or his son Vincent J. McMahon was the founder of Capitol Wrestling Corporation. While some sources state that it was his son, other sources mention him as the founder of the company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Tunney</span> Canadian wrestling promoter (1934–2004)

John "Jack" Tunney Jr. was a Canadian professional wrestling promoter. He was known worldwide for his appearances on World Wrestling Federation television as the promotion's figurehead president. Tunney's tenure was during the company's initial worldwide popularity boom in the 1980s, the peak days of "Hulkamania".

The McMahon family is an American family of Irish descent, primarily known for their involvement in the professional wrestling business. They were the founders, owners and promoters of the world's largest wrestling company, WWE. Vince McMahon, a third-generation wrestling promoter, was the chairman and chief executive officer of the company until he sold it to Endeavor. His son-in-law, Paul "Triple H" Levesque, serves as the chief content officer and head of creative for WWE. Vince's son Shane also occasionally performs as a wrestler in WWE, while his wife Linda and daughter Stephanie have also had various roles in the company but are currently not involved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of WWE</span> History of American professional wrestling company WWE

The history of American professional wrestling promotion WWE dates back to the early 1950s when it was founded in 1953 as the Capitol Wrestling Corporation (CWC). The public branding of the company has undergone several name changes throughout the years, from the CWC to the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) in 1963, then the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in 1979, and to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in 2002. Since 2011, it has branded itself solely as WWE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tag team championships in WWE</span> Listing of professional wrestling tag team championships

The American professional wrestling promotion WWE has maintained several men's and women's tag team championships since Capitol Wrestling Corporation (CWC) seceded from the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) in 1963 to become the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF), which was later subjected to various name changes, including World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)—in April 2011, the company ceased using its full name and has since just been referred to as WWE. The first men's tag team title, the Northeast version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship, preceded the company's creation, as it was established in 1957 for CWC as a version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship, while the first women's tag team title, the WWF Women's Tag Team Championship, was established in 1983. Whenever the WWE brand extension has been implemented, separate tag team championships have been created or allocated for each brand.

WWE, an American professional wrestling promotion based in Stamford, Connecticut in the United States owned by the McMahon family, has been promoting events in Canada since its founding in 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World championships in WWE</span> Listing of mens professional wrestling world championships

The American professional wrestling promotion WWE has maintained several men's world championships since Capitol Wrestling Corporation seceded from the National Wrestling Alliance in 1963 to become the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF), which was later subjected to various name changes, including World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)—in April 2011, the company ceased using its full name and has since just been referred to as WWE. The company's first world championship was the WWE Championship, which was established along with the promotion's creation in 1963 as the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship; it is still active today and is WWE's oldest active title. Whenever the WWE brand extension has been implemented, separate world championships have been created or allocated for each brand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TKO Group Holdings</span> American media conglomerate

TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (TKO) is an American media conglomerate created by Endeavor Group Holdings as part of a merger between World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE) and Zuffa, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Following the completion of the merger on September 12, 2023, both WWE and UFC operate as divisions under the banner of TKO.

References

  1. 1 2 Hornbaker, Tim (2015). Capitol Revolution: The Rise of the McMahon Wrestling Empire. p. 117. ASIN   1770411240. He inaugurated his promotion on January 7, 1952, [...].
  2. ↑ Solomon, Brian (2006). WWE Legends. p. 6. ASIN   0743490339. McMahon formed a company he called the Capitol Wrestling Corporation, and presented his first regular wrestling show under the Capitol banner on January 7, 1953
  3. ↑ Sullivan, Greenberg & Pantaleo, Steve (2016). WWE Encyclopedia of Sports Entertainment. p. 372. ISBN   978-1465453136. On January 7, 1953, he put on the first-ever Capitol Wrestling Corporation event{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ↑ "Vincent J. McMahon". WWE . Retrieved September 23, 2023. From the time Vince, Sr. took over Capitol Wrestling Corporation from his father, the company continued to flourish in the northeastern United States.
  5. ↑ Krugman, Michael (2009). Andre the Giant: A Legendary Life. Simon & Schuster. p. 11. ISBN   978-1439188132.
  6. ↑ Cohen, Daniel (1999). Wrestling Renegades: An in Depth Look at Today's Superstars of Pro Wrestling. Pocket Books. p.  16. ISBN   0671036742.
  7. 1 2 "Wrestling Observer Newsletter (July 20, 2011)". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . July 20, 2011.
  8. ↑ "Wrestling Territories". Freakin' Awesome Network Forums. Retrieved March 25, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Wrestling Observer Newsletter (June 3, 1991)". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . June 3, 1991.
  10. ↑ Hornbaker, Tim (2007). National Wrestling Alliance: The Untold Story of the Monopoly That Strangled Pro Wrestling . ECW Press. p.  193. ISBN   978-1-55022-741-3.
  11. ↑ "Titan Sports, Inc. V. Comics World Corp". Leagle.com. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  12. ↑ Hornbaker, Tim (2007). National Wrestling Alliance: The Untold Story of the Monopoly That Strangled Pro Wrestling . ECW Press. p.  353. ISBN   978-1-55022-741-3.
  13. ↑ Johnson, William (March 25, 1991). "Wrestling With Success". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved April 20, 2014.
  14. ↑ "The New WWE". World Wrestling Entertainment. April 7, 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-04-10. Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  15. ↑ "Vince McMahon Sr". World Wrestling Entertainment . Retrieved March 31, 2011.
  16. ↑ Barrasso, Justin (October 4, 2020). "NXT Unveiling the Capitol Wrestling Center at Sunday's TakeOver 31". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved October 30, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.