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Monday, October 29, 2012

Boo: They're a Bit Odd

The Oddities
By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

The end of the 90's saw a big boom in the world of professional wrestling, due to the Monday Night Wars.  WCW and WWF were pulling out all the stops to get the leg up.  Part of the competition included bringing in talent outside of wrestling to attract crossover appeal.  The WWF (and eventually WCW) went after the Insane Clown Posse.

The rapping clowns become the cornermen for a group of wrestlers known as the Oddities.  Golga (who was played by the late, great John "Earthquake" Tenta), Giant Silva, the late, great Luna Vachon, and Kurrgan were all a part of the group.  It was kinda weird seeing these former monsters embrace the fans and work as faces. ICP performed the entrance tune for the group and even wrestled a few times.

The Oddities, originally booked as heels, were over with the fans and became faces.  They would dance before and after matches, and even though I'm not a big face of the ICP, I must admit the entrance theme is quite catchy.  I still play it in my iPod from time to time.

The Oddities with Sable
Photo courtesy: WWE
Even though the fans did love them, the Oddities weren't much more than a flash in the pan gimmick and mostly used to help get others over.  At one point Sable was involved with the group before feuding with Luna over the women's title.  ICP would eventually turn on the group too and join forces with the Headbangers.  But the clowns didn't stay in the WWF long and headed south to Atlanta and WCW.  Even George "the Animal" Steele briefly worked with the Oddities, proclaiming himself as an original.

The Oddities were odd and scary, but in a good way.  They were like the circus freaks, just as their song implies, but they meant no one any real harm.  I always found them fun to watch and entertaining as well.



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