WWE gave 24-hour security to legend's family due to real-life threats, Bruce Prichard says
Bruce Prichard played an important role behind the scenes in WWE during the first few years of WrestleMania. In a recent podcast episode, the creative team member recalled how the Hulk Hogan vs. Sgt. Slaughter storyline led to security concerns outside the ring.
Slaughter, real name Rob Remus, portrayed an American hero for several years before being repackaged as an Iraqi sympathizer in a controversial storyline in 1990. The Hall of Famer joined forces with another pro-Iraq character, General Adnan, and feuded with Hogan over the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 7.
Bruce Prichard said on Something to Wrestle that WWE gave Slaughter's family security, round the clock, due to the number of threats they received at the time.
"Think of his family. Look, his family, we had to have 24-hour security at his home for his family, for his wife and daughter, because there were people that were making threats against his family and against his home. That was real life and those were things that were actually happening. We had security with him 24 hours a day, for him and Adnan," he said. [1:21:36 – 1:21:57]
Slaughter's on-screen persona supported Iraq at a time when the country's leader Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, leading to the Gulf War. The WWE star praised Hussein for "conquering" Kuwait and claimed to have received a pair of boots from the controversial leader as a gift.
Bruce Prichard on how Sgt. Slaughter's father reacted to the threats
Something to Wrestle host Conrad Thompson read a quote from Sgt. Slaughter's father, Rudy Remus, aged 74 at the time of the pro-Iraq storyline. Remus said his son was not a bad guy and feared someone could shoot him if the character remained on television.
Reacting to the quote, Bruce Prichard highlighted how serious the situation became:
"What you just read there was a father who was worried about his son. That's just real life, that he's like, 'Oh, God, man, you've gone too far. I don't want my son to be hated. I don't want my son to be hated to the point where the people that don't get it want to harm him.'" [1:22:01 – 1:22:22]
Sgt. Slaughter held the WWE Championship for 64 days in 1991 before losing the title to Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania 7. His character later turned babyface and became a proud American once again.
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If you use Bruce Prichard's quotes from this article, please credit Something to Wrestle and embed the YouTube video, with an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.