This is why I believe that wrestling was MAINSTREAM in 99-02

[braveh]

1. Celebrity deathmatch on MTV featuring Steve Austin was one of MTV's most popular shows.
2. Bowling for soup had a hit song on rock radio about wrestling called "Girl all the bad guys wants"
3. Wrestlers were on Punk'd. I remember the episodes with Triple H breaking a bride's nose and a 18th wheeler running over Goldberg's motorcycle.
4. Both Beyond the mat and Wrestling in shadows were credd-documentaries that were featured on reputable film festivals like Cannes, Venice and Sundance.

 

[DirtyD79]

Like I've said in a previous thread, A lot of it is that at that time pro wrestling was able to tap into the cultural zeitgeist of mainstream pop culture. Promoters took themes and elements visible throughout pop culture and incorporate it into their own show. They were able to create characters and storylines these fans could relate to. Gen-X fans were able to relate to the gritty "Don't Trust Authority" antiheroes like Stone Cold Steve Austin, Taz, Tommy Dreamer, and The Sandman. Fans laughed at the raunchy humor of Degeneration X and The Rock. They loved the scantily clad women and the bloodthirsty hardcore brawls served up by ECW and later XPW. At that time wrestling promotions also used hard rock, heavy metal, and gangsta rap music for their wrestlers instead of crap that sounded like something out of a cheesy aerobics video.

 

[HBsam31]

Like I've said in a previous thread, A lot of it is that at that time pro wrestling was able to tap into the cultural zeitgeist of mainstream pop culture. Promoters took themes and elements visible throughout pop culture and incorporate it into their own show. They were able to create characters and storylines these fans could relate to. Gen-X fans were able to relate to the gritty "Don't Trust Authority" antiheroes like Stone Cold Steve Austin, Taz, Tommy Dreamer, and The Sandman. Fans laughed at the raunchy humor of Degeneration X and The Rock. They loved the scantily clad women and the bloodthirsty hardcore brawls served up by ECW and later XPW. At that time wrestling promotions also used hard rock, heavy metal, and gangsta rap music for their wrestlers instead of crap that sounded like something out of a cheesy aerobics video.

This right here. I was 18-22 during this time and they hit our demographic perfectly. I know guys that knew nothing about wrestling that were enjoying the show back then just because of how raunchy it was. Everything they were doing at that time appealed to us, and really it had little to do with actual wrestling. I was a fan long before then and am still a fan now, but they really sucked in the causal and even non fans during that era due to using things from pop culture as well as appealing to the 18 years old's sense of humor.

 

[ヒュー　G.　レックション]

I honestly do not think any of the four points in the OP were what caused wrestling to go mainstream. They were more a result of wrestling already being mainstream. Celebrity Deathmatch, that sure was a unique show wasn't it? Haha

 

[Ovaltine]

Wrestling became mainstream by the middle of 1996 not 1999. The n.W.o. and Hulk Hogan's heel turn brought wrestling back from what the WWF turned it into in the early 90s. The end of the boom was Vince Mcmahon's own fault. He bought WCW and within a year the boom was over. You want to blame someone for the state that wrestling is in right now-blame him.

 

[Dr. Mantis Toboggan, M.D.]

Wrestling wasn't cool in 2002. It was huge from mid-late 1996-2000. No one I knew cared about it anymore after the year 2000. They all grew up and moved on. It was considered "gay" by a lot of people.

 

[FlairFan2003]

Fact is wrestling has still been MainStream since 2002, Rock's movie career took off, we've seen national advertising campaigns for John Cena, HHH, & Hogan among others, Ric Flair & Mick Foley had books in The Top 5 in sales on The NY Times Best Selling Charts, and every year there is significant attention in newspapers and news shows paid (at least in passing) to WrestleMania, especially this past year with Rock's return. Certainly Jerry Lawler's heart attack made major national headlines. Ive seen Flair profiled on the CBS Evening news prior to WrestleMania 25. Overall interest in the product maybe down, but the wrestling industry and it's biggest stars are still considered main stream celebrities. Ive also seen Foley get national news coverage over his political support, and Flair has been on TV news shows campaigning for Presidential Candidates in 1992 and 2004 that I saw. Stacey Kiebler was on Dancing With The Stars.

Now I think this was more prevalent in 96-99, other than Hogan in 94 before The Bash At The Beach I have very little memory of any wrestlers doing mainstream news or entertainment shows after the very late 80s (Anyone remember Randy Savage as WWE Champion on Arsenio Hall in 88 ?). During that 96-99 time frame I remember a lot of WCW guys like Nash & DDP on MTV, the whole Hogan-Bischoff Tonight Show, the Celebrity Death Match parodies, Steve Austin moving into mainstream acting on network TV shows like Nash Bridges, The Divas were getting much publicity for their Playboy shoots (now it seems their only publicity is for getting fired or going to re hab), and Regis Philbin always had time for wrestlers from both companies including Rock, Hogan, Flair, Sting, and others. The Brett Hart documentary on A&E was a major accomplishment during this time, as was their profile of Hogan for their "A&E Biography" series, although that may have been post 2000.

Fact is wrestling and it's biggest stars have been mainstream for years, right now we are in a downturn in terms of popularity. Still, top stars like Cena are attractive for comercials, kid movies, etc.