Bruce Prichard Reveals His Mount Rushmore Of Creative Minds In Wrestling

It takes a village to put on a wrestling program. In WWE, there is a big creative team that helps produce shows, and helps Vince McMahon out. There are also minds who have worked in and out of the company that have helped shape the business.

On the latest Something To Wrestle With Bruce Prichard, Prichard was asked who are the most creative minds in the business. He named quite a few, with two of the most obvious ones first.

"Vince (McMahon) and Pat (Patterson) are at the top of the list," Prichard stated. "You have to go back to the fundamentals, in many ways, of the business. Eddie Graham was credited with so much. You look at Dusty, you look at Bill Watts, you look at the guys that came out of there, and Eddie Graham. They point to Eddie Graham and Roy Shire as being these creative geniuses that had so much influence over bookers and over owners of territories throughout the years. Eddie would have to be on that."

Dating back from the 70's to today, all of these characters have helped the business in some way. Prichard named a few that he would also include, who didn't make the cut of his top four. One was a real influence in the 90's who continues to work for WWE in various ways.

"I think that Paul (Heyman) is one of the most creative people," Prichard went on to say. "That's where it gets hard because there are so many deserving minds, from Bill Watts, from Roy Shire, Gary Hart, Fritz Von Erich."

Being around the business so long, Prichard has managed to gain knowledge from a variety of people. Before his death, Dusty Rhodes was a key figure for many years. Being a father figure for the folks over at NXT and even before the program, "The American Dream" gave his life to the world. Pritchard commends that dedication.

"F*ck yeah Dusty's in the conversation," Prichard continued. "From a creative point of view, I'll give Dusty that nod. As flamboyant and as crazy as the things that Dusty did, and people look back and poo poo and sh*t on the Dusty Finish and some of the things that Dusty did in later years... When you get to the vision and you get to, 'We're making movies, baby. You got to ride a book here and let's get funky, and here's where we're going,' I think that Dusty would just be up there."

At the end of the day, there could only be four. When it comes to what separated them from everyone else, Prichard didn't hold back on his current and former associates.

"So probably Eddie, Dusty, Vince and Pat," said Prichard. "Vince is as close to genius, he's the Walt Disney of our time. I think that Pat Patterson was one of the most intuitive and innovative people I have ever met in my entire life. Three of those guys I got to work with. That comes with experience. And Eddie Graham on reputation alone, and influence."

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Something To Wrestle With Bruce Prichard with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.