WWE History Vol. 5: Brothers in Paint
They come from Parts Unknown or the outer reaches of your mind. They're bizarre, dangerous, exotic, or just plain weird. They're the face painted wrestlers of the WWE, and this is their story. When face paint was first utilized in pro wrestling is unclear. When pro wrestling was still a carnival sideshow, some of the wrestlers would compete under masks or with make-up in order to appear like something otherworldly.
What is known is the time period when face paint became popular in pro wrestling, which was during the 1980s. Due to the success of the Mel Gibson film The Road Warrior, AWA and NWA wrestlers The Road Warriors ditched their leather-clad biker gimmick for a pair of face painted post-apocalyptic soldiers.
The Road Warriors were insanely popular, so much so that the WWE decided to create their own face painted wrestlers. We now begin a chronological history of the WWE Brothers in Paint, starting with one of the most celebrated tag teams of all time.
#1 Demolition
Due to the popularity of the Road Warriors, WWE attempted to get Hawk and Animal under contract. When this failed, they decided to create their own version of the team. WWE was just following wrestling tradition. Ric Flair was not the first Nature Boy, Hulk Hogan was basically a clone of Superstar Billy Graham, and don't get us started on how many Tiger Masks there have been.
Despite being a rip off of the Road Warriors, Demolition grew to be quite over in their own right. Ax and Smash were wily veterans, having worked the regional territories for years before joining WWE. Their smashmouth brawling and power style overwhelmed their opponents, even big-name teams like Strike Force and the Hart Foundation.
Demolition had a historic tag team title reign, lasting over four hundred and seventy-eight days. The record lasted until it was broken by the New Day in the modern era.