Peter Conrad wrote about the new megastars of the World Wrestling Federation for the Observer Magazine of 29 March 1992 (‘Back with a bang’), one of those curious inversions where the ‘professionals’ are amateurs and the amateurs are professionals.
Conrad argued these tournaments were best understood not as sport but as a species of pop art. ‘The characters are caricatures, and have stepped out of comic strips. The WWF’s most celebrated performer, Hulk Hogan, is trademarked as the property of Marvel Comics Inc.’ Hard to imagine Giant Haystacks getting the same treatment.
