“Kayfabe” is a term used in professional wrestling to describe the portrayal of events as real or genuine, even though the outcomes and storylines are scripted and predetermined. It refers to the illusion that wrestlers maintain in public appearances and performances, where they stay in character and maintain the fiction of their roles.

The primary purpose of kayfabe is to maintain the suspension of disbelief for the audience, enhancing their enjoyment and engagement with the storylines and matches. By presenting wrestling as real competition and the characters as genuine personalities, kayfabe helps create drama, excitement and emotional investment among fans.

Historically, maintaining kayfabe was crucial for protecting the business and its secrets, as well as ensuring that wrestlers' characters remained credible and consistent.

With the advent of the Internet wrestling community and the “sports entertainment” movement in pro wrestling, these backstage secrets are more difficult to keep than they were in earlier decades.

And where does the word come from? One theory suggests that it was derived from a manipulation of the pig latin term for "be fake" (e-bay ake-fay). Another theory claims that there actually was a wrestler called "Kay Fabian" who was mute. Yet another theory, suggested by former mixed martial artist Chael Sonnen, claims the term came from carnival employees that did not have enough money to call home to tell their family or friends they made it safe and sound to the next town, so they would have to call collect and they would use the name Kayfabe, and when the operator calls and asks if they accept the collect call from Kayfabe, they would say no to save on costs, and yet the message was received.

The first public acknowledgment by a major insider of the staged nature of professional wrestling came in 1989 when World Wrestling Federation owner Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey State Senate that wrestling was not a competitive sport. The admission on McMahon's part was to avoid interference from state athletic commissions and the various costs associated with legitimate contact sports involving substantial possibility of injury. The era of professional wrestling since then has been described by analysts as "neo-kayfabe", in which storylines can become real life and vice versa, thus blurring the distinction between fact and fiction and giving the audience complicity in creating the spectacle.

Kayfabe, while not referred to as such, has existed in other areas of show business, especially in feuds. For instance, the feuds between comedians Jack Benny and Fred Allen, and comedian/actor Bob Hope and singer/actor Bing Crosby were totally fake. In real life, Benny and Allen were best friends while Hope and Crosby were also close friends. A more recent example is the "feud" between talk show host Jimmy Kimmel and actor Matt Damon which has been a running joke on Jimmy Kimmel Live! for many years and was even referenced when Kimmel hosted the 89th Academy Awards. In reality, the two are friends.

These days kayfabe is somewhat of an open secret. Indeed, in the 2008 film The Wrestler actor Mickey Rourke plays an ageing wrestler with failing health and waning fame planning a re-match with his historic heel. Throughout the film, the fictional nature of the bouts is depicted openly, including a scene where a wrestler intentionally cuts his forehead with a razor to make the hit seem worse than what it was.

Story Idea: Alan Jones
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References

wikipedia.org/wiki/Kayfabe
prowrestling.fandom.com/wiki/Kayfabe

Images

1. Gunther Imperium v. Sheamus, RAW, 6 May 2024
2. Vince McMahon testifying before the New Jersey State Senate, 1989
3. Jimmy Kimmel, Matt Damon and their ongoing "feud". Photo credit: Jerritt Clark for Getty Images.
4. Mickey Rourke in the 2008 film The Wrestler
5. 30 Rock actor Judah Friedlander at the New York Film Festival screening of The Wrestler, 12 Oct 2008
6. Book: Kayfabe: A Mostly True History of Professional Wrestling Paperback, Patrick W. Reed, 2023