Memorable debuts are part of what makes professional wrestling fun, and on this day in wrestling history Kurt Angle debuted on Sunday Night Heat when he confronted Tiger Ali Singh on March 2, 1999.
The WWE used the standard formula to introduce sports and movie stars by having them in the stands and have a heel single them out for their gimmick.
It’s a tried and true practice, and it works perfectly as it incites the fans and gets them energized when a local hero stands up to the bully.
Making a mark
Angle and Singh’s exchange broke the ice and worked, but there were some unintended consequences for Angle in his hometown newspaper the next day.
Special thanks to @awrestlinghistorian for the excerpt.
“They didn’t want me to be seen on TV until they were sure I was ready to make a big impression, but they wanted people to know I had signed with the World Wrestling Federation.
“One night, they had me sitting in the crowd in my hometown with my wife during a televised show. Tiger Ali Singh, one of the Superstars, used to come around with the microphone between matches and offer money to get people to do something stupid or disgusting. So he came over to me and made a big production of introducing me to the crowd. Then we did this bit that was set up during the show.
“’I know you’re a real American hero, Kurt, but I think even you have your price. So I’ll give you five hundred dollars if you’ll blow your nose in this American flag I’m holding.”, he said.
“’No way.’, I said.
“Then he began raising the offer. He went to two thousand and finally, five thousand dollars. I hesitated and pretended like I was torn about the decision, and then finally I said, ‘For ten thousand, I’ll do that.’
“Well, all these people who saw me as a hero started booing the Hell out of me while Tiger danced around and said, ‘See? You Americans will do anything for money.’
“But as he turned around, I put the American flag down and I grabbed the flag that he was holding and I blew my nose in it. When I did that, he came after me with the American flag and hit me with it. I came back, threw him a couple of times, and then he slipped out of the ring. I didn’t think anything of it at the time. I figured it was an innocent gag, but I got slammed in the Pittsburgh media for blowing my nose in the Indian flag.” – Kurt Angle, It’s True! It’s True! Book.
In the grand scheme of things, the negative publicity is mostly forgotten as Angle carved out a Hall of Fame career with multiple companies.
It’s one of the funny stories looking back, but it’s very understandable at the time given many didn’t know or understand he signed with the WWE. It just makes this day in wrestling history all the more entertaining.
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