These days, many fans of old time wrestling will insist that kayfabe is dead. That’s not entirely true, but today’s modern form of kayfabe, involving the internet, social media, and many other platforms that do as much to expose kayfabe as protect it, has certainly evolved from the more rigid form it existed under back in wrestling’s early days. For one, wrestlers were required to be tough, and not just in the ring. While it was important to be convincing as a “tough guy” while in the squared circle, in many instances it was just as important for wrestlers to be that outside the ring; winning the match in the ring was crucial, but winning the bar fight against someone that challenged you and your reputation was as essential.
But that was just one important aspect of protecting kayfabe; another was making people believe you really did despise your opponent. With fans more aware than ever these days that most of these wrestlers don’t have true hostility towards each other, the idea of protecting the business in that regard is long gone. But even as late as the 90s, wrestlers were almost required to maintain their distance in public from those they were feuding with, even if the two wrestlers were the best of friends. And if they didn’t acquiesce to that and got caught, the consequences would be dire. It was a lesson learned by all wrestlers in June 1987, after an incident involving future WWE Hall of Famers The Iron Sheik and Hacksaw Jim Duggan.
Iron Sheik And Duggan Were Arrested While They Were Onscreen Rivals
At that time, Duggan and Sheik were involved in a rather heated feud, one that was rather important to Duggan given he had only debuted for WWE in January, following a successful run in Bill Watts’ Mid-South Wrestling. As such, the decision for the two to drive together from Newark, New Jersey to Asbury Park was rather curious. In hindsight, it was among the least of their problems that evening, as Duggan and Sheik also decided to buy a six pack of beer and smoke some marijuana during their drive down the Garden State Parkway. It wasn’t long after that the two were pulled over by a police officer, who searched the car after noticing the smell of marijuana. It was during that search he discovered that Sheik had cocaine on him, leading to both him and Duggan being arrested.
Ultimately, the two served no jail time, but that didn’t mean there weren’t any consequences. On a personal level, the incident proved to be rather embarrassing for Duggan, who, according to Bret Hart’s autobiography, was set to be honored in his hometown of Glen Falls, New York, a town where his father happened to be the police chief. Professionally it was even worse; the arrest of Duggan and Sheik wasn’t just a blight on WWE, but it also exposed the business, given these two rivals had been arrested while driving together. Whether it was the drugs or the breaking of kayfabe that was the issue, both Duggan and Sheik found themselves released by Vince McMahon soon after. Fortunately for both, it wasn’t a long-time in the dog house; Duggan was back working house shows for WWE by August, and won the first ever Royal Rumble in early 1988. Meanwhile, Sheik himself returned in early 1988, though he was out the door again come July.
