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For as long as professional wrestling has been on television, one of the best ways for a fan to get involved is to bring a sign to the arena and hope it gets shown on television. The signs that a fan brings can range from rooting for their favorite wrestler, trashing a dastardly heel, promoting a website, making a joke, or just something completely random.
While signs were pretty basic in the 70's and 80's, they really evolved during the Attitude Era when wrestling was at its peak. There would be times where it appeared that everyone in the arena had a sign. That's how many people would bring one to Raw, Smackdown, Nitro, or a pay per view.
Being creative with your sign can also gain you infamy within the world of professional wrestling. One person in particular, Rick the WWE Sign Guy, was made famous for coming up with some of the most clever signs ever to be shown on television. You can still see Rick quite a bit on television as he attends 40 to 50 shows per year. A few of Rick's great creations will be on display in this article.
If you have a clever enough sign or have the privilege to be sitting in just the right spot in the arena, your creativity can be displayed for millions of people to see. The signs in this list range from pop culture references to personal feelings regarding certain wrestlers.
How many of these signs do you remember? Let's take a look at 15 great WWE fan signs you need to see.
15. Pondering The Hairstyle Choices Of Pro Wrestlers
via WWE.com
This fan asked a legitamite question via this sign shown above. There are a lot of wrestlers that come out to the ring with wet hair. Sometimes they look like they were just bobbing for apples in a tank of water before they came to the ring. So the question of why is your hair so wet definitely needs to be asked.
A while back on the Steve Austin Show, he was interviewing a wrestler that gave some clarity. Basically there are two main reasons as to why wrestlers with longer hair wet it down before a match. One is to make them look more intimidating and ready for a fight, and the other reason is that otherwise with dry hair, it'd just be all poofed out and look ridiculous.
14. Taking A Shot At Vince's Commentary Words Of Choice
via WWE.com
Before Vince McMahon became the evil owner of WWE known as Mr. McMahon, he was an interviewer and commentator in the WWWF and WWF days that covered the 70's, 80's, and 90's. Throughout the years, he would be paired with Jessie Ventura, Bobby Heenan, Jerry Lawler, and Jim Ross.
If you ever see a sign in the crowd that says "WHAT A MANEUVER" and wonder what it means exactly, it comes directly from the man himself. Vince would use this phrase a lot instead of actually calling what move was being executed in the ring. With the dawn of the WWE Network, more and more people are seeing older footage and get a kick out of it.
13. Begging For More CM Punk Memorabilia
via cewishreviews.com
One of the most famous moments in recent WWE history took place in June 2011 when CM Punk dropped the acclaimed "pipebomb promo." Basically CM Punk took legitimate real-life grievances against the WWE and was allowed to speak his mind live on Monday Night Raw trashing John Cena, Triple H, and Vince McMahon among others.
During Punk's pipebomb, he mentioned that he's not featured on various merchandise. The two items that struck a cord with the WWE Universe were the ice cream bars and the special commemorative cup that superstars such as John Cena and Randy Orton were on, but not Punk. This fan definitely wants Punk on his cup!
12. Comparing Edge To Charlie Sheen
via WWE.com
In the fall of 2010, Charlie Sheen famously and publicly went off his rocker. One of Sheen's famous quotes during this time of craziness was that he's got tiger blood in his veins. Having tiger blood is defined as being invulnerable to anything including great amounts of drugs and alcohol that would kill a normal person.
According to Rick The Sign Guy, Edge has this trait as well, and as you can see, he got a good laugh on it because Charlie Sheen was at the top of the pop culture world at this point.
11. Insinuating That Orton Likes Tanning Booths
via WWE Network
Unless you're Sheamus and Paige whose skin is impervious to getting darker, most wrestlers like to have a tanned body. The tan muscular look can definitely enhance a wrestler's look and appearance; which is why you see a lot of wrestlers with a tan complexion going all the way back to the Hulk Hogan days.
One fan took it upon himself to come up with a "scientifically" accurate scale to rate either the time that Randy Orton spent inside a tanning booth or the amount of self tanner he applied to himself before he took on his opponent that night.
10. An Advertisement (Or Two) For The WWE Network
via WWE Network
While it is not known if these two fans came together, but if they didn't this is a great coincidence. The first sign is referencing the fact that they could be watching the old Monday Night Raw competitor WCW Monday Nitro; while the other sign is talking about the price point of the WWE Network that everyone in that company drilled in our heads for months on end.
The motive of the person holding the Nitro sign is unknown, but they could have been unhappy with the current state of the creative team. Over a year ago, the WWE Network added the first 100 episodes of Monday Nitro to the network so you could relive the beginning of the Monday Night Wars. There are definitely many must-see episodes on the Network including the birth of the nWo.
9. It's No Secret That Jericho Likes To Drink
via rantsports.com
If you have read any of Chris Jericho's books or listen to his podcast Talk Is Jericho, then you'll know the man loves to drink. Jericho's drink of choice is a Yeah Boy! So if you hear Chris belt out this phrase, it is a homage to the vodka (usually Grey Goose) on ice. He states that this is a drink that avoids him from getting a hangover, and plus you get your water intake with the ice!
This particular fan is bragging that he over-served Jericho, but I'm not sure if it is possible. The man is a pro wrestler and a rock star, so it is safe to assume that there is not such a thing as over serving Jericho.
8. A Lady After Dean Ambrose's Heart
via WWE.com
On the surface, it seems like this beautiful young lady is looking to do something naughty with the "Lunatic Fringe" Dean Ambrose, but it is actually a play on words from a segment on the Battleground pay per view last year when Ambrose was feuding with Seth Rollins.
Fresh after turning on his brothers in The Shield about a month prior, Ambrose was attacking Rollins at every turn possible, which led to his ejection from the building at Battleground. Rollins would be escorted by security to his car out back, but once security headed back inside, Ambrose emerged from the trunk of Rollin's car and attacked him.
7. A Fan's Take On A WrestleMania Story Line
via Tumblr
In April 2007, the stage was set at WrestleMania 23 for the "Battle of the Billionaires." When Donald Trump started to meddle in the affairs of the owner of the WWE, Vince McMahon would become outraged to the point where he challenged Trump. Each would choose a wrestler to face off in a match, and the losing billionaire would get their head shaved.
Vince chose the Ugandan Giant Umaga while Trump chose the powerhouse Bobby Lashley. Steve Austin was the special guest referee, and when the McMahons tried to cheat to win, Austin gave Umaga a stunner followed by Lashley's spear for the win.
This photo was taken right before the match, and this fan's take on the whole story line said it all.
6. Triple H Hogging The Ring At The Rumble
via alfa-img.com
Rick The Sign Guy makes another appearance on this article with another great sign. As Jerry Lawler would say, Triple H has a prominent proboscis. For those who need a translation, that means a big nose. Triple H's big nose has been the butt of many jokes over the years that he has been in the wrestling business, and Rick decided to make a sign about it.
This particular sign was almost certainly used at a Royal Rumble where he feels that there should have been a separate entry for Triple H and then another one for his nose just like when Mick Foley had three entries in the 1998 Royal Rumble as Cactus Jack, Mankind, and Dude Love.
5. Two Mega Hollywood Stars Make An Ugly Baby
Via thesportsterimages.com
Rick The Sign Guy strikes again! This sign comes at a time when everyone was making a big deal about the baby that Kim Kardashian and Kanye West produced, and subsequently named North West (really?). Normally the wrestling world would not care about this story, but leave it to Rick to come up with something creative.
I'm not sure if Rick used some technology by submitting pictures of Kim and Kanye to get a result of what their baby would look like, but something went wrong as the result would be a baby with a gigantic head that looks just like Big E. Don't you dare be sour, but that is definitely one ugly looking baby.
4. The Interesting Choice Of Toilets For Randy Orton
via WWE.com
For those who don't know the back story, the phrase "duffel bags fear Orton" would come off as very random and not make any sense. If you haven't been a hardcore wrestling fan for 10 years or more, then you may not know that one of the biggest stars in the WWE today had immaturity and anger issues early in his career.
The duffel bag incident took place in 2005 with former Diva Rochelle Loewen. The diva's name may not sound familiar as she was only with the company for a short time with a limited number of appearances. Rumor had it that Orton took a dump in her duffel bag in the locker room as a prank.
While that disgusting act was just a rumor, he supposedly did pour self-tanning lotion and baby oil in her bag; which ruined the belongings she had in there.
3. Someone Correctly Defines The Internet Wrestling Community
via WWE.com
When anyone references the IWC in any pro wrestling conversation or article, they are talking about the Internet Wrestling Community. It's not a real group, but just a collective name for the smart mark fans who think they know what's best for the company.
While this sign is a take off of another sign later on in this list, this one is just creative because it's pretty much true. John Cena has been pushed to be nearly invincible over the past 10 years to the point where fans have hatred towards him. So every time Cena wins a big match, or any match at all, the IWC will take to their blogs and complain online.
This sign is both ironic and spot on at the same time.
2. Vince And His Love Of Poultry
via dailyonline.ga
We get one last entry from Rick The Sign Guy, and it is a little bit of a departure from his regular signs as it involves some taxidermy. In 2006, Degeneration X founding members Triple H and Shawn Michaels reformed and feuded with the McMahons. Throughout this feud, DX would pull off many pranks at the expense of Vince and Shane.
One particular hilarious moment was when Triple H would impersonate his father-in-law Vince; while HBK would impersonate Shane. Triple H (as Vince) would express his love for Dicks, such as Ebersol, Clark, and Cheney. Then the talk turned from Dick to roosters where the phrase "Vince Loves Cocks" was uttered.
1. Maybe The Best WWE Fan Sign Of All Time
via WWE.com
This sign basically said it all when it came to the second ECW One Night Stand pay per view that the WWE held back in 2006. The main event saw a man who was completely hated by the ECW crowd in WWE Champion John Cena against one of the most popular wrestlers in ECW history in Rob Van Dam.
The sentiment of this sign was that there were no other options for the outcome of this match than a Rob Van Dam victory. This might be one of the best fan signs ever due to the fact that it has been duplicated so many times. You'll even see a version of this sign today, nine years later.
Sources:Wikipedia.org, UrbanDictionary.com
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