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It is often said that art imitates life, and although it would be a stretch to call wrestling art, the WWE promotion has still found a way of basing some of its wrestlers, storylines and even stables on real-life people and organisations.
It's strange to think, in a universe that includes zombie morticians and their demonic half-brothers, caricature foreign villains, an anthropomorphised turkey, a gang of vampires, and whatever the Boogeyman was supposed to be. That list only covers the WWF and doesn't include the variety of bizarre and strange gimmicks that cropped up in WCW or the independent scene over the years.
While individual wrestlers with gimmicks are common, wrestling groups known as stables are less likely to be gimmicked themselves. Stables have been a part of wrestling for decades, from the Fabulous Freebirds and the 4 Horsemen to the Shield and New Day of today.
Many of these stables are based around a main-event talent and then surrounded by other mid-card or lower card talents that attach themselves to the main-event talent. The 4 Horsemen had Ric Flair, the Fabulous Freebirds had Michael PS Hayes, Straight Edge Society had CM Punk are all examples of stables that rallied around a single popular talent.
At the same time, most stables, even gimmick riddled stables are based on wrestling alliances or pop culture references. The Brood was notorious for taking their inspiration from vampire fiction, they would join the occult-based Ministry faction, which in turn would join the McMahon and Rock led corporate faction.
While stables in WWE are less popular today than they once were, the stables of today are more likely to be an assortment of superstars bound together by a vague sense of "brotherhood", such as the Shield, the Wyatt Family or even the New Day.
However, this wasn't always the case. There was a time in the WWE where stables were both common and used to lampoon both things in pop culture and the public eye, as well as to satirize and mock critics of the company. This article contains four stables that were based on real-life groups or societal fads.
#4. The Bodydonnas
The Bodydonnas was the name given to the real-life couple of Chris Candido, wrestling as Skip, and Tammy Sytch, given the name Sunny, when the pair joined the WWF. The two had crossed from Smoky Mountain Wrestling, run at the time by Jim Cornette.
The two were later joined by Tom Prichard, billed as their cousin Zip. Together, Skip and Zip would win the Tag Team titles in March 1995 but would drop them to the Godwinns in later that year in May.
The team was based on the TV fitness and aerobic instructors that had become popular on tv at the time. While TV fitness and aerobic instructors were experiencing a growth in popularity, they were also seen as incessant and annoying, which played towards the Body Donna's arrogance and heat as a heel stable.
The pair would berate the audience and home viewers by fat shaming them. Once they made their in-ring debut, Skip would often do push-ups in the ring mid-match as a way to emphasize his physical prowess.
The stable would fall apart after Sunny turned on the team, leaving them to join the Godwinns. Though Skip and Zip continued to pair together, they too eventually disbanded when Candido left the WWF to return to ECW.
#3. Too Cool
The Too Cool stable was made up of Grandmaster Sexay, Scotty 2 Hotty and Rikishi and the trio was based on the cultural appropriation of African American and Hip-Hop Culture by Caucasian people. Grandmaster Sexay, also known as "Too Sexy" or Brian Christopher was the real-life son of wrestling legend, Jerry Lawler.
Scotty Taylor was better known as Scotty 2 Hotty or "Too Hot". The two joined together to form Too Much. Within a year, the Too Much stable would be joined by Rikishi Fatu, a member of the infamous Anoa'i wrestling family. Together they would win the Tag Team titles as both a duo between Scotty and Grandmaster Sexay as well as Scotty and Rikishi.
While the team was originally villainous, they would become fan favourites due to their growing popularity. The group was known for their mid-match dance breaks and light-hearted nature. Scotty 2 Hotty's finisher, the Worm, would be adopted into the group's mannerisms.
The team had two runs in the WWF, with their original run coming from 1998 to 1999, before they reunited at the turn of the millennium. The trio would reunite a further two times in the subsequent years, the first time defeating 3MB, and the second time when they challenged NXT Tag Team Champions 'The Ascension' in a losing bout.
#2. National of Domination
One of the best stables during the Attitude Era WWF, the Nation of Domination was made up of several highly talented African American wrestlers. The stable was based around its first leader, Faarooq, before his position was usurped by up and coming wrestler Rocky Maivia who would later become The Rock, who was young but quickly becoming one of the promotions fastest rising star.
Other members of the Nation of Domination included D'Lo Brown, Mark Henry, Kama Mustafa, JC Ice, Wolfie D, Crush, Savio Vega, Ahmed Johnson, and Owen Hart at various points of the stable's history. The group would last until 1998. During their run, D'Lo Brown would hold the European title and The Rock would hold the Intercontinental title.
The stable would be loosely based upon the Nation of Islam, a subsect of the Islamic faith adopted by members of African-American descent. The Nation of Islam is known for its famous members including activist Malcolm X and boxing legend Muhammad Ali.
The group was also based upon the Black Panther Party, a paramilitary and political organization based on the principles of Black Power. The Nation of Domination would use a raised fist salute similar to the Black Power hand gesture used by members of the Black Panther Party and other Black Power advocates.
#1. Right to Censor
Growing up watching WWE, the Right to Censor was the most annoying stable in the WWF/E in the Attitude Era. From their entrance video to their views, Right to Censor was the worst in the eyes of fans.
Courting Steven Richards, Bull Buchanan, Ivory, The Kat, The Godfather, and Val Venis among its members, Right to Censor would take the gimmicks of the Attitude Era and turn them to be more family friendly, waging war on hardcore matches and violence as well as sexual content on WWF television. The team would have limited success, with Ivory winning the women's title and the team of Bull Buchanan and the Godfather winning the tag team titles.
Right to Censor was based off a conservative censorship advocacy group called Parents Television Council. The conservative group took issue with the WWF's gratuitous violence and sexuality during the program.
The group also used footage and claimed that WWF's portrayal of violence had resulted in deaths of children, as they copied the moves they had seen performed by professional wrestlers. The WWF sued the organization, settling out of court for $3.5 Million and the head of the organization apologized for the comments.
