5 Crossover stars that helped legitimize WWE in the mainstream 

#2 Mr. T

Mr. T was instrumental to WWE and WrestleMania's early success

Remember that time Mr. T saved the main event of WrestleMania 1?

While that might sound absolutely nutty and out of touch with reality, it is actually what happened in the hours leading up to WrestleMania 1. In fact, Hulk Hogan detailed in one of his books that Mr. T was about to no show the main event match event match due to his entourage not being allowed in at first.

Of course Hulk Hogan stepped in and convinced Mr T to go through with the match against Rowdy Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorf, but one of the biggest main events in WrestleMania history almost didn't happen. Furthermore, Mr. T almost never got a chance to leave his indelible mark on pro wrestling.

In the end, Mr. T and Hulk Hogan would go on to win the main event match that night and Mr. T continued to be a fixture on WWE television for months to come. With that being said, Mr. T's involvement in that year's WrestleMania was instrumental to getting that year's show mainstream attention and even helped cement into pop culture.