Kurt Angle, a WWE Hall of Famer, recently participated in a conversation on “The Takedown” podcast where he shared his professional experiences, touched upon the payment schemes during the early days of his wrestling journey, and shared insights on various other subjects.
The podcast had several notable moments:
Exclusivity of million-dollar guarantees during Angle’s time:
“Back then, there were only a handful of people — Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Undertaker, Triple H, a couple other guys, besides me — we were the only ones that collected million-dollar guarantees.”
His initiation with WWE and the first contract:
“So, I got in touch with the WWE to check if their contract offer from 1996 was still available. They replied ‘No, but you’re welcome to come up and try out’. They did put forth a contract, but it was only pitched at ,000 a year. Needless to say, it wasn’t quite up to the mark.”
Struggling with merchandise sales and his incapacity to devise innovative ideas:
“I was subpar at it [merchandising], and was in desperate need of ideas. I wish I had that creative spark! You know, Stone Cold Steve Austin had an instinct for it. He immediately understood when he said ‘I’m going to craft a character and will make a heap of money off it.”
Reflections on his approach when he stepped foot into the wrestling sphere:
“My initial approach wasn’t completely business-oriented, and looking back, it should have been. I undoubtedly should have headed in with a more business savvy mind because the returns would have been a lot more sizeable, especially in terms of merchandise sales!”
Below is an embedded video where Kurt Angle discusses his time during the WWE Attitude Era, his collaboration with Vince McMahon, and shares anecdotes about Stone Cold Steve Austin and more.
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