In professional wrestling, Kayfabe (pronounced kuh-fay-bee) refers to the portrayal that events within the industry are real, that is, that professional wrestling is not staged.
Kayfabe....Professional Wrestling's "Top Secret". I started watching wrestling (for the most part) in the mid-80's. Hulk Hogan's Hulkamania was running wild...he was an unstoppable force....or was he the immoveable object....whatever.
Also, during the mid-80's, we had the "Nature Boy" Ric Flair dominating the NWA (Crockett's Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling). Sting was a top draw. The 4 Horsemen were the top group in wrestling. Luger had the "look"...Barry Windham was one of the best wrestlers around....Big Dust...Dusty Rhodes, was THE man....if you blinked during a Road Warriors match on Saturday Night, you missed their match.
The promos....man, some of the best stuff ever. When Flair and the Horsemen broke Barry Windham's hand in the limo door so he couldn't use the Claw Hold in his match vs. Flair. When Dusty Rhodes would start talking, and end the interview....and you wouldn't have a clue as to what he jsut said....but you just knew he meant exactly what he said, and Flair and the Horsemen better head for the hills. "We snack on danger, dine on death.....tell 'em Animal" (incoherent shouting from Animal, followed up with a "Tell 'em Hawk!!" Hawk of course, would end it with his patented "WWWWWHHHHHHAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRUUUUUUUUSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Man, those were the days. I ask myself...what happened? What happened to the wrestlers (ie workers) living their gimmick? Whose fault was it that wrestling came to what it is today?
I have often blamed Mr. Vincent McMahon for the downfall, and the total elimination of "kayfabe". Why? He had much to do with it, thats why. Hell, take a look at just what he did do to it:
(crickets chirping)
That's right....he only did what any good business man would do. He went to where the money was. Many ppl blame McMahon for destroying wrestling. The fact of the matter is this: McMahon only had a strong part in dismantling the "territorial system" of doing wrestling business. And, to be honest, if he didn't do it, Jim Crockett, Jr. was sure gunning for it. No, I think McMahon, thought he did have a strong hand in the matter, he wasn't the major contributer to the downfall of wrestling as I knew it.
The internet? With the internet, came much power to the "insiders". They leaked everything from strategy plans, to common matches, to even future world champions. kayfabe was on it's last leg then. But, before the internet came around, kayfabe, and wrestling that I loved, was already on its deathbed. The internet just injected the final poison.
What really destroyed kayfabe wrestling.....the casual fan. The days of a Hulk Hogan dominating a World Title for 2, 3, 5 years was over. The Ric Flair vs. Sting 45 minute time-limit draw would be no more. The casual fan wasn't interested in what happened in the ring....they were not interested in what happened out of the ring. All they were interested in was being entertained. Nothing wrong with being entertained....that is what wrestling is all about. Look back at Gorgeous George Wagner. That guy could entertain a crowd....the fans were so pissed at him, they nearly rioted (and sometimes did), but he did his job well....he entertained. The casual fan, though....wasn't interested in that "type" of entertainment. They wanted to see 90 second matches, so that they can see the next 90 second match. The endless cycle. They wanted the current World Champion to hurry up and lose, so they can see the next World Champion...the "Next Big Thing". Who cares about two guys that can put on a great match for 45 minutes...with the Champion retaining the Title. We want to see a NEW Champion, and we want to see him win in less than 5 minutes....dammit!!!
The casual fan didn't care about the industry. They only cared about the next 90 seconds....and if they would have to endure another headlock (a breather hold) for more than 10 seconds. They never really cared about the quest for the title (think of Sting's quest for the World Title back then). They only wanted to see the new champion crowned...and a new champion to be crowned every other week.
The casual fan is who I blame for the downfall of wrestling. They were always there, demanding that they be entertained, at the expense of what kayfabe wrestling was all about....the angles. The storylines. Why did Sting hate Flair so much? Why did Dusty and Ric have such a heated feud? Why the hell was the original Sheik so damn terrorfying????? Kayfabe made all that so memorable.
It is sad, really, to me, to think that wrestling will never be able to return to what made it so great in my mind. Wrestling has changed....McMahon doesn't want to go back to the way it was....the casual fans won't let him (and the money that the casual fans bring with them). The internet won't let wrestling return to the kayfabe era from yesterday....the casual fans won't let it (they need to know who is going to win, how they are going to win, and when they are going to lose next). The Casual Fans won't let wrestling go back to the way it was when I loved Saturday Nights on TBS....
Looking back on many of the things I remember....I think one of the thing I remember most, was when Sting won his first major singles title. He beat Mike Rotundo (of the Varsity Club) for the NWA World TV Title. I remember that from so long ago....but I haven't gotten a clue as to who won last year's Royal Rumble.....or even really know who won the WWF World Title. Oh wait....they aren't even the WWF anymore.....haha....
All this talk about the destruction of kayfabe.....but you know who really let wrestling die? A fan that for a brief while turned into a "casual fan"....me. And now that it is dead, and long gone....I wish and want those days back.....but it will never come back.....
NOTE: I know that there are some great guys still in wrestling. Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerroro, Chris Jericho....even Ric Flair still out there. I know these guys can go the 45 minute time-limit draw.....this is in no way a bash on these guys, or any other wrestler that is out there. This is just my opinion as to the what caused the downfall of what is known as "kayfabe".