Vince McMahon

Born Vincent James McMahon in Harlem, New York. His father, Jess McMahon, promoted boxing at Madison Square Garden. The family business was putting on fights.

Took control of Capitol Wrestling Corporation from his father. CWC ran the wrestling territory from Washington, D.C., to southern New England. McMahon understood that wrestling was entertainment first, athletics second.

Broke from the National Wrestling Alliance and founded the World Wide Wrestling Federation. Bruno Sammartino became his first champion and held the title for nearly eight years. McMahon built the promotion around Sammartino's drawing power.

Pioneered wrestling on television. His weekly broadcasts from venues around the Northeast brought wrestling into millions of living rooms. He respected territorial boundaries, an unwritten rule his son obliterated.

Sold the WWWF to his son, Vince McMahon Jr. The younger Vince promised not to take the promotion national. He immediately broke that promise and began the expansion that created modern pro wrestling.

Died of pancreatic cancer in North Miami Beach, Florida, at 69. He'd built wrestling from a regional carnival act into a nationally televised industry. His son took it global within a year of his death.