WWE has a lot of ideas floating around and some of them even get to the planning phases before they are nixed. This is thankfully one of those examples.
During a recent episode of Something To Wrestle With, Bruce Prichard discussed a 1991 angle that almost saw Sgt. Slaughter burn an American Flag on NBC’s The Main Event V. Prichard said that rumor is false, but they did consider burning Old Glory at the Royal Rumble.
“To do it on this NBC special is 100% false. There was discussion to do it at Royal Rumble, there was never discussion or there was no plan at all to do it on NBC in any way shape or form. That’s just made up horse sh*t that people reading the dirt rags and the made up bullsh*t.
“There was a lot of discussion about doing it because it was legal and it was Jesse Ventura who came to us with the idea. It had made the news of people burning the flag in protest, this is something that Slaughter could do to get heat. Obviously, better judgment prevailed and it was decided not the kind of heat we want regardless of whether it’s legal or not, regardless whether it’s accepted. The one time we considered doing it was at the Royal Rumble.”
NBC’s deal with WWE was a one-off situation with each show. WWE simply got a better offer so they stopped running those specials.
“It wasn’t good ratings and it just ran its course. Nobody burnt the flag. That had nothing to do with it. The relationship came to an end because again it was a one by one relationship, it wasn’t a long term commitment. Another offer came along, FOX came along. That’s why the relationship ended.”
There is no truth to WWE wanting to burn an American Flag on NBC, but they wanted to do it on pay-per-view. Either way, it didn’t happen, but it’s interesting to know the lengths they were willing to go in order to generate heat.
Thanks to Wrestling Inc for the quote