When Was WWE Started?

When Was WWE Started? The WWE (formerly the WWWF) was founded by Jess McMahon and Toots Mondt in 1952.

WWE’s Beginnings

WWE, formerly known as World Wrestling Entertainment, is an American entertainment company that deals primarily in professional wrestling. WWE was founded by Jess McMahon and Toots Mondt in 1952 as Capitol Wrestling Corporation. As of 2020, it is the largest wrestling promotion in the world, holding over 500 events a year.

Vince McMahon Sr. and the WWWF

In the early 1960s, Vince McMahon Sr. was the dominant promoter of live professional wrestling shows in the Northeastern United States, eventually formalizing his operation as the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF). He established a territory system that kept other promoters out of his territory, which bordered other territories such as the American Wrestling Association (AWA) to the north and Georgia Championship Wrestling to the south.

Vince McMahon Jr. and the WWF

In 1982, Vince McMahon Jr. staged the first WrestleMania event, which featured some of the biggest names in wrestling at the time, including Hulk Hogan and André the Giant. The success of this event prompted McMahon to leave his father’s company and start his own promotion, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), which quickly became one of the most successful wrestling companies in the country. The two companies would eventually merge in 2002, with McMahon’s company being renamed World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).

The Attitude Era

WWE was started in 1980 by Vince McMahon. The company went through a lot of changes in the 1990s, including the introduction of the “Attitude Era.” This was a time when WWE was more focused on entertainment and less on wrestling. The Attitude Era was a huge success and helped WWE become the company it is today.

The Monday Night Wars

Often cited as the most profitable and popular era in WWE’s history, the Attitude Era is generally considered to occur from 1997 until 2002 and is marked by an increase in mature content within WWE programming.

At the heart of the Attitude Era was the so-called “Monday Night Wars”, a television ratings battle between WWE’s flagship show Monday Night Raw and Ted Turner’s World Championship Wrestling (WCW) on Monday Nitro. The ratings war saw a dramatic increase in the popularity of professional wrestling as both companies fought for supremacy.

In 2001, Vince McMahon bought out WCW, effectively ending the Monday Night Wars and securing WWE’s position as the only major wrestling promotion in the United States. The Attitude Era came to an end shortly thereafter, with WWE adopting a more family-friendly approach to its programming.

The New Generation

In 1993, WWE (then known as the World Wrestling Federation, or WWF) hit a slump; their programming was getting stale, their audience was aging, and turnover backstage was high. In order to try and combat this, WWE owner Vince McMahon brought in new blood, both in front of and behind the camera. The goal was to rejuvenate the company with a more youthful image and appeal to a wider demographic. This era is commonly referred to as the “New Generation” era.

The New Generation Era is generally considered to have started in late 1993 and lasted until mid-1996. This is when many of WWE’s current biggest stars made their debut, including “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, The Rock, Bret “The Hitman” Hart, Shawn Michaels, and Triple H. This was also an era marked by significant changes backstage; Vince McMahon Jr. took over as head booker from his father Vince McMahon Sr., while Bruce Pritchard and Jim Cornette became important figures in the company’s creative direction.

The New Generation Era is often considered to be one of WWE’s most important and influential periods; it helped increase WWE’s popularity worldwide and solidified them as the dominant wrestling promotion in North America.

The Ruthless Aggression Era

The Ruthless Aggression Era was a time period in WWE that began on March 18, 2002 and ended on May 11, 2005. This was a time when WWE was trying to be more edgy and appeal to a more adult audience. The era got its name from the slogan that WWE began using during this time, “Ruthless Aggression.”

The Brand Extension

In May 2002, the WWF split itself into two separate companies. The entity known as WWE was created to focus on the SmackDown! brand while the original WWF continued its focus on the Raw brand. The WWF also ceased doing business as a wrestling promotion and became instead a publicly traded company focusing on entertainment venues, product licensing, and television programming. The World Wrestling Federation became World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) on May 6, 2002.

The Invasion

After the World Wrestling Federation’s purchase of World Championship Wrestling in early 2001, the McMahon-helmed company held a two-night “invasion” storyline on its flagship television programs Raw is War and SmackDown!, in which WWF wrestlers invaded and took over WCW’s programming, while also establishing a “war” between the WWF and WCW.

The PG Era

Vince McMahon changed the face of professional wrestling when he took over the WWE in the early 1980s. He introduced the “rock and wrestling connection” which emphasized the entertainment aspect of wrestling and helped the WWE become a worldwide phenomenon. The WWE has undergone several changes since then, including the “Attitude Era” and the “PG Era.” Let’s take a closer look at the WWE’s history.

The Reality Era

In 2002, the WWE launched their “brand extension”, where the roster was split in two and wrestlers were drafted to either the Raw or SmackDown! brands. This Era saw the rise of many wrestler such as Brock Lesnar, Batista and John Cena who would go on to be some of the biggest names in WWE history. In 2005, due to the immense popularity of Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mysterio and Christopher Daniels, WWE decided to start a cruiserweight division which was exclusive to SmackDown!. The division saw great success with Guerrero winning the first ever Cruiserweight Open at The Great American Bash.

The New WWE

The PG era is generally considered to have begun on WWE’s switch to a TV-PG rating on August 1, 2008. This coincided with the start of the Superstar Era, as WWE began to move away from edgier storylines and more towards family-friendly entertainment.

The PG era has been marked by an increased focus on wrestlers’ in-ring abilities, as opposed to their mic skills or promos. There has also been a greater emphasis on tag team wrestling and multi-man matches, as well as an increase in the number of women’s matches on WWE programming.

The PG era has been controversial among some fans, who argue that it has led to a decline in the quality of WWE’s product. Others argue that the PG rating has allowed WWE to reach a wider audience, and that the company is still able to produce entertaining and enjoyable programming.