How come so many wrestlers change names so quickly?
Wrestlers change name, appearance and style quite frequently, and often it is a challenge just to keep up with who is currently wrestling under what name. While many times, name changes stem from attempts to get a better reaction from the audience, there are times when a name change has it’s roots in a legal matter. For instance: • Big Van Vader – When Leon White left New Japan Pro Wrestling in 1993, New Japan claimed that it owned the rights to the Big Van Vader gimmick, as well as the name. New Japan won a minor victory, causing WCW to simply bill White as Vader from then on. The courts ruled that due to the popularity of George Lucas’ Star Wars movies, New Japan couldn’t claim rights on the name Vader alone. • Demolition – When Demolition first appeared in the WWF in early 1987, the team consisted of Axe (Bill Eadie) and Smash (Randy Culley). Within a month, Culley was replaced by Barry Darsow. A brief legal battle ensued, with Culley claiming that he created the Demolition team and
