SummerSlam

SummerSlam is an annual professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event held in August by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). The event is dubbed as "The Biggest Party of the Summer." [cite web|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/news/archive/summerslam06shoot|title=Let the Party Begin|author=Louie Dee|publisher=WWE.com|accessdate=2008-05-12|date=May 17, 2006] Along with WrestleMania, Royal Rumble and Survivor Series, SummerSlam is one of the "Big Four" pay-per-views and was one of the original four annual WWE pay-per-views.

History

Development

In the late 1980s, Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation (WWF)'s main competition in the professional wrestling industry was from Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP). McMahon countered Jim Crockett's successful Starrcade pay-per-view, which began airing in 1983, by making the WrestleMania franchise. After WrestleMania III, the most successful professional wrestling pay-per-view event in history, McMahon made the Survivor Series franchise, which aired the same day as Starrcade '87 in November 1987. After defeating Crockett in the ratings war, McMahon made the Royal Rumble, an event airing for free on the USA Network in January 1988, which set a ratings record for the network with eight million households tuning in to watch the event. In retaliation, Crockett made the Clash of the Champions event, which aired simultaneously with WrestleMania IV. WrestleMania IV garnered higher ratings, and not long after, Crockett filed for bankruptcy and sold his company to Ted Turner, who renamed it World Championship Wrestling (WCW). [Assael, Shaun. "Sex, Lies, & Headlocks", 74–80.]

As the WWF continued to replace its closed circuit programming with pay-per-view programming, McMahon added more pay-per-views to the lineup to capitalize on the success of his previous events. In addition to WrestleMania in March, the Royal Rumble in January, and Survivor Series in November, McMahon made an event for August, which he named SummerSlam. To keep the WWF from having a pay-per-view market monopoly, Turner began airing monthly WCW pay-per-views, and both companies began bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue.Assael, Shaun. "Sex, Lies, & Headlocks", 94–95.] SummerSlam became one of World Wrestling Federation (and later World Wrestling Entertainment)'s most successful events and one of the "Big Four" pay-per-views, along with WrestleMania, Survivor Series, and the Royal Rumble.cite book|author=Keith, Scott|title=Wrestling's One Ring Circus: The Death of the World Wrestling Federation|isbn=080652619X|publisher=Citadel Press|date=2004|pages=160] [cite book|author=Hamilton, Ian|title=Wrestling's Sinking Ship: What Happens to an Industry Without Competition|isbn=1411612108|publisher=Lulu.com|date=2006|pages=160] Those four events, along with King of the Ring, are known as the "Classic Five". [cite book|author=Shields, Brian|title=Main Event: WWE in the Raging 80s|publisher=Pocket Books|pages=166|year=4th Edition 2006|isbn=9781416532576]

Brand extension

The first SummerSlam was held on August 29 1988 in Madison Square Garden in New York City. In 2002, WWE instituted a brand extension, where the roster was split and wrestlers and pay-per-views were made exclusive to the RAW and SmackDown! brands. As a result, SummerSlam, WrestleMania, the Royal Rumble, and Survivor Series were the only four events featuring wrestlers and matches from both brands. The 2006 event was the first to also feature the newly made ECW brand. [cite web|url=http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Wrestling/PPVReports/2006/08/21/1767711.html|title=Flair & Hogan top average SummerSlam|author=Dale Plummer and Nick Tylwalk|publisher=SLAM! Wrestling|accessdate=2008-05-14|date=August 21, 2006] In 2007, however, all pay-per-views began once again featuring talent from all three brands.cite web|url=http://corporate.wwe.com/news/2007/2007_03_14.jsp|title=WWE Pay-Per-Views To Follow WrestleMania Formula|publisher=WWE Corporate|accessdate=2008-05-14|date=March 14, 2007]

Dates and venues

DVD box set

WWE released a complete DVD box set entitled "SummerSlam: The Complete Anthology", which showcases every SummerSlam event from 1988 to 2007 in its entirety, on August 5 2008. [cite video|title=WWE: SummerSlam: The Complete Anthology|date=2008|medium=DVD|publisher=WWE Home Video]

Footnotes

References

;General
*cite web|url=http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/usa/wwf/wwfindex.html|title=SummerSlam Event History|publisher=Pro Wrestling History|accessdate=2008-05-12

;Specific
*cite book|author=Shaun Assael and Mike Mooneyham|title=Sex, Lies, and Headlocks: The Real Story of Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment|publisher=Crown|date=2002|isbn=1400051436
*cite book|author=Brian Shields|title=Main Event: WWE in the Raging 80s|publisher=Pocket Books|year=4th Edition 2006|isbn=9781416532576
*cite book|author=Ian Hamilton|title=Wrestling's Sinking Ship: What Happens to an Industry Without Competition|isbn=1411612108|publisher=Lulu.com|date=2006

External links

* [http://www.wwe.com/shows/summerslam07 Official SummerSlam site]
* [http://www.pwunleashed.com/WWE/Summerslam/ Archived Results and Trivia]
* [http://www.iwebie.com/wwe-summerslam-results 1988 - 2008 WWE SummerSlam Results]