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Stone Cold Steve Austin Recalls the Time When WWE Didn’t Approve of Billy Graham’s Unique Idea

Published 05/20/2023, 10:00 AM EDT

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The WWE Universe has recently dealt with the heart-wrenching demise of one of its influential pro wrestlers. Billy Graham, the legendary pro wrestler, died on May 17, aged 79. Since then, renowned personalities from the business are revisiting their memories of him. Similarly, Stone Cold Steve Austin talked about an incident when WWE didn’t support Graham’s idea.

It wouldn’t be incorrect to say that “Superstar” Billy Graham was way ahead of his time, with a magnificent physique and a presentation that would catch everyone’s attention. Not only this, but his ideas were also quite futuristic. However, it seems like WWE or Vince McMahon Sr. weren’t ready at the time for Graham’s creative approach. 

Steve Austin spoke about Billy Graham’s unique idea that didn’t go well with Vince McMahon Sr.

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Speaking on Busted Open Radio on a variety of topics related to WWE, Austin discussed at length the life and legacy of Billy Graham. A few moments into the conversation, the host mentioned how Graham once pitched an idea of a t-shirt to Vince McMahon Sr. for wrestlers. He even brought the prototypes, but WWE passed on them. 

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To this, The Texas Rattlesnake couldn’t say much but highlight how things were at that time. He said, “Not many people had their t-shirts…” but also named the rock band KISS, who were the innovators of Rock ‘n’ Roll merchandise. 

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Following this, he reflected on the evolution of the wrestling business, as now merchandise is one of the crucial elements of the industry. 

Austin said, “Being in the business and you know how much money can be made from merchandise, you go pitch the idea and the company is like, we are doing wrestling, we’re not thinking about selling T-shirts.”

And now as we all know, WWE and all the companies, make tons of money from merch and stuffs like that,” The Hall of Famer added.

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After going through what Austin said about the production of merchandise in WWE, one can agree with the legend. He spoke the facts and no one can actually deny the craze fans have currently for merch related to their beloved wrestlers.

But things could have been much different if Graham’s idea was considered at that time, as the future was all about it. 

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So, what do you make of this unheard story of the late “Superstar” Billy Graham and the thoughts of Austin on it? Share your views below.

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Written by:

Aditi Malhotra

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Aditi Malhotra is a WWE writer at EssentiallySports. A dedicated fan of John Cena, Aditi finds great pleasure in watching the matches of Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar. With her specialization in off-court coverage, she keeps a close eye on the lesser-known aspects of WWE stars, believing that fans love to know the human elements behind their favorite wrestlers.
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Edited by:

Sherjeel Malik