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Submitted by Shane Defy on Sunday, December 23, 2001 at 1:26 PM EST
 There is something that every wrestler or entertainer needs to become popular, but unfortunately it is harder to find than a hair on Shaq's head.You cannot learn it, you cannot teach it. You cannot buy it or earn it, create it or build it. You can only have it. Yes, you must have it deep down inside, for it is something special. It is charisma. Charisma is something you need to reach the top of the ladder, to become a popular superstar in the wrestling business today, and has been needed to reach the top of the ladder in the past. All past big-name stars have had it in the sports-entertainment era, and still today you can always tell which superstars are going to carry the load for their federation in the future years. But the question is, what exactly is charisma? I began a search for a perfect answer to that very question, and I looked everywhere possible. From wrestling columnist to columnist, from fan to fan, I got several different answers. Sting Forever, a regular on the LOP Message Boards, said that charisma is just being able to get a desired reaction out of the crowd and also not having a deadpan personality on camera. True, very true, but yet there are guys like Test, who get a decent pop, always has something cocky to say backstage, but yet lacks charisma. The former writer of Refusing to Job and a good friend of mine, the artist currently known as Wiggey, described it as "Great mic work with comedy or a great entertainer in the ring that takes high risks." Well, that covers guys like The Rock, Chris Jericho, and Jeff Hardy, but what about one of the most charismatic guys of all time, Hulk Hogan? Another Lords of Pain columnist, Jaymz, defined charisma as "an ability to get the fans going with his or her personality." Yes, that works for me, but how do they do this? How does someone get the fans going with their personality, it is still an open book. I then sought the help of the great Mr. Tito, who also gave me a very good explanation of charisma. Tito said that it is "being noticed and connected with the fans." Ah, we are getting closer yet. True, the superstar must have to have some sort of connection with the fans, the fans must feel his pain, his energy, his excitement, his anger, or whatever it is that he's feeling. But still, how does one go about catching the fans attention and getting them to connect with you? My quest then led me to my final destination and hopefully my real answer. I sought the help of Webster's Dictionary, and after flipping through the pages I found the word charisma, and here's what it said: a. A rare personal quality attributed to leaders who arouse fervent popular devotion and enthusiasm. b. Personal magnetism or charm Well, that damn book failed me yet again. But there are a few words of the definition that might mean something. The word leader is in the first definition, which triggers a new thought. In order to be a leader, you must have something special about you, characteristics that the others do not have, which makes you stand out from the rest. Aha, those with charisma have something others don't and they also stand out from the rest. The word popular is also laying in that first definition. Obviously, those in the wrestling business are popular, as I've never heard of an unpopular charismatic superstar. one other word that stands out is magnetism, which to me hints that the wrestler must be magnetic. This connects to Tito's definition of charisma, when he said that the wrestler has a certain connection with the fans. Hmph, well, we still don't know how a superstar gets his charisma and how he bottles it up and keeps it for as long as he wants. How about we dissect some charismatic superstars of the past and of today, to see what we can come up with. Chris Jericho Y2J has been popular among the fans ever since he exploded onto the wrestling scene years ago. Still, he is a young, blonde, risk taker, and the fans adore him. Jericho has always been entertaining on the mic, saying things that I didn't think the WWF would even allow at times. Inside the ring, he is quick and won't think twice about performing an acrobatic high-flying move. He gets one of the loudest reactions to date, and has always been charismatic. He's a great work and cuts great promos, is that all that it is? The Rock He calls himself "The Most Electrifying Man is Sports Entertainment" which might just tell exactly what he is. He, like Jericho, always cuts wonderful promos and has more catch phrases than Jaymz has sick photos, and has always put on decent matches. Rocky isn't exceptional in the ring, as his style at times gets a bit plain, but then with just a flick of an elbow pad, the crowd is feeding out of his hand. The Rock has this strange electricity that is always with him and is indescribable. The Rock and charisma go side by side, but yet, what is it about The Rock that make him this way? Jeff Hardy Jeff Hardy is the guy who changes the direction of everything. Jericho and The Rock are both awesome on the mic, and most believe that is where a majority of their charisma comes from, but yet we have this guy from North Carolina who stops that trend. This Hardy boy has a great fan following and charisma to fill a tub with, but the odd thing is that he rarely, and I mean rarely, ever gets mic time. Once in a great while we get to hear him speak, and he doesn't deliver with comedy or anything very entertaining, just straight up wrestling talk. He gets his 100% of his charisma from his in ring work, whether it he is jumping 15 feet off of a ladder through a table or just hitting that "unorthodox" leg drop to the groin. Whatever it is, Jeff Hardy has charisma, and a lot of it. Hulk Hogan I like to rip on this guy just as much as the next, but in all honesty, he is probably the most charismatic guys in wrestling history. He started up Hulkamania, and was the biggest name in the industry. He never did cut the most amazing promos you've ever heard, but he drank his milk and he ate his vitamins, and he had a lot of brothers. Inside the ring, he wasn't extreme, high flying, or very technical at all. He had a big boot and a leg drop, but when his opponent put him in a headlock, beware, as he would "Hulk up," as the fans would climax, and then drop down the big leg drop. The crowd was obsessed with this guy, as he was a "model american" and a role model for children. Well, we've gone from Jericho to Hogan, and still, haven't gotten a definite answer. Those four guys are different in many ways, yet they all have something in common: charisma. All in all, I've figured out that charisma is the ability to get the crowd to react the way you want them too and to entertain them. The only problem with that is, I could have told you that before I started. After all of that, we've gotten nowhere. I guess charisma isn't something that can be found, built, created, taught.. or even really described. Those who have it, are the lucky ones who have potential to reach the top. Those who do not have it, either need to develop it, as impossible as it may be, or else they will swim in the pool of midcarders for their careers. But to all of those blessed with charisma, thanks for entertaining me on Monday nights. -Shane Defy  So what if the Gaming Coalition hasn't updated in months? Well, I do. Instead, go to Sports Rants, because sports opinions totally rule!
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