Benoit Suffered 'Striking' Levels of Brain Damage

Manager's celebrity helped wrestling crossover to the mainstream

(NEWSER) - “Captain” Lou Albano, a professional wrestler who also enjoyed success as a mainstream entertainer, died today at 76. Starting in the late '50s as one-half of tag team “the Sicilians,” Albano’s wrestling career spanned four decades. With his signature look—Hawaiian shirt, rubber-band goatee—and a landmark decision to mix music and wrestling, Albano’s celebrity helped push the WWE itself into the mainstream. More»

McMahon has money to burn, but may not be able to unseat Dodd

(NEWSER) - With Linda McMahon eying him as the ultimate takedown of her takedown-filled career, Sen. Chris Dodd has reason to be nervous. The former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment has sharp business acumen, star power—and, perhaps most significantly, $30 million she’s willing to spend to wrest his Connecticut Senate seat from him. But McMahon makes Connecticut Republicans nervous, too. If she becomes the candidate, her past with the WWE could prove a political liability. More»

(NEWSER) - The WWE isn’t the only pro-wrestling battleground: Outside the mainstream are several indie wrestling leagues where lesser-known fighters can duke it out, the Wall Street Journal reports. There’s little pay—sometimes only $25 a night—and crowds can range from 20 to 18,000, says one contender. But there’s plenty of violence, cheering, and blood. More»

'Hillrod,' Obama, McCain play to the WWE audience

(NEWSER) - The three presidential candidates have each recorded a stilted video for tonight's episode of Raw, the WWE show that attracts 5 million viewers a week. In the segments, intended to promote voter participation, the candidates do some grandstanding with goofball quotes, including Clinton referring to herself as "Hillrod," the AP reports. More»

10 suspended after they're named in doping investigation

(NEWSER) - Some top stars of World Wrestling Entertainment are being taken to the mat after a New York district attorney uncovered steroid use by over a dozen wrestlers. The list of athletes, obtained by the New York Daily News, includes big names like Randy Orton, Robert “Booker T” Huffman and Adam “Edge” Copeland. The league is suspending ten of those implicated. More»