Gimmicks are wrestlers' trademarks, their image enhancers that help promoters sell their characters to the audience. Generally speaking, the all-time greats such as Sammartino, Thesz and Gagne needed little more than ability and personal charisma to establish their legendry. In the 21st century we find that mass media has taken wrestling into unheralded markets where gimmickry can either make or break participants in the sports entertainment industry.
These are the ten all-time greatest gimmicks which have earned their creators their special places in wrestling history.
The Undertaker
The most successful gimmick wrestler in the history of the game, Mark Calloway has cornered the market on the macabre in the squared circle since introducing his character to WWF fans in 1985. He may be the only wrestler in history to have successfully changed characters, from the Dead Man to the Biker to a synthesis of both. Unquestionably the WWE's all-time greatest franchise player, he has set the standard for the company's ensemble for over two decades. The pageantry surrounding Calloway's ring entrances at major WWE events never fails to impress, a true spectacle to behold.
Hulk Hogan
After synthesizing his hero Superstar Billy Graham's image to fit his own babyface turn, Terry Bollea let Hulkamania run wild over a new generation of wrestling fans. Saying prayers and taking vitamins, along with the phenomenal success of Rocky III and Wrestlemania, made the Hulkster the biggest hero in wrestling history despite his profound lack of technical ability. He pioneered the WWE's multimillion-dollar souvenir industry, Hulkamania memorabilia generating unprecedented sales during his glory days of the 80's. Signing with Ted Turner's WCW towards the end of the decade, he nearly helped topple the WWE from its position as the sport's most prestigious company.
Steve Austin
After years of toiling on the mid-card level, Steve Williams shaved his long blond locks in taking advantage of the popularity of 1993's Natural Born Killers cult classic, making "Stone Cold" Steve Austin the greatest anti-hero in wrestling history. The "Texas Rattlesnake" turned beer-guzzling, shooting the finger and catch-phrases such as "Hell Yeah" into marketing tactics that made him a pop icon transcending sports entertainmnet itself. Like Hogan, Austin's lack of technical ability did not prevent him from succeeding the Hulkster as the biggest draw in WWE history. Nagging injuries forced him out of competition, but he remains one of the WWE's biggest attractions in featured appearances at major events.
Kane
Riding the coattails of his fictional half-brother, the Undertaker, Glen Jacobs became the greatest masked wrestler in wrestling history. Like 'Taker, he successfully changed his image in shedding the hood and shaving his head in morphing his psychotic persona. Another of the WWE's all-time greatest franchise players, his lack of technical ability is obfuscated by his formidable size (6'10", 300 pounds) and fearsome presence.
Rey Mysterio
Mysterio may well be the last great masked wrestler in ring history. The smallest wrestler to ever hold a world title (at 175 pounds), his image as the "Ultimate Underdog" makes his masked persona parenthetical. He has not only surpassed the standard set by both the legendary Mil Mascaras as Mexico's greatest luchador, but he has succeeded Eddie Guerrero as the greatest Mexican wrestler of all time. His popularity among the WWE's rapidly-growing Latino audience, exceeding athleticism and mystique have ensured his place as one of the all-time greats in the sports entertainment industry.
Sgt. Slaughter
Possibly the first action hero in ring history, Slaughter's stint in the AWA resulted in Hasbro adding his ring character to their line of GI Joe figurines. Returning to the WWF in his villain role, he and Vince Mc Mahon upped the ante in turning Slaughter into an Iraqi sympathizer amidst Operation Desert Storm in 1990. The angle resulted in a resurgence in Hogan's popularity along with that of the WWE, engulfing it in controversy at a time when Hulkamania seemed to have seen its day.
The Sheik
Ed Farhat, the mogul of Detroit wrestling during the 60's, turned his psychotic Bedouin character into one of the most hated wrestlers in mat history. The first true 'hardcore' wrestler, his use of foreign objects combined with excessive blading made the covers of every wrestling fanzine around the planet.
Haystacks Calhoun
Not only did Calhoun create a country boy persona that inspired generations of hickoid farmer characters, but at 601 pounds, he was the first of wrestling's super-heavyweights. The predecessor of superfreaks like Andre the Giant, Calhoun's size earned him international celebrity status.
Mil Mascaras
Following in the footsteps of lucha libre icons El Santo and the Blue Demon, the "Man of a Thousand Masks" transcended the genre in establishing himself as Mexico's first international superstar. Notorious for his prima donna tendencies, Mascaras' status was such that he went virtually undefeated over a twenty-year career.
Gorgeous George
The role model for jive-talkers from Mohammed Ali to Superstar Billy Graham, George Wagner brought wrestling into its Golden Age during the advent of television, during which his outrageous transvestitism and mic ability made him one of its earliest phenomenons. The Gorgeous One's coiffured blond locks, flamboyant ring robes and souvenir "Georgie Pins" alternately enraged and tittilated audiences across America. The great Lou Thesz cited Wagner's gimmickry as the reason for his success, though admitting that George was, indeed, a qualified technical wrestler.