One of the most often heard and misused words in a professional wrestling locker room is the word “mark”   It is usually used in a derogatory fashion to describe a particular fan believed to be unintelligent  or a wrestler that is caught up in their own hype.     I think it is lost on most people using the word, what it really means to be a mark for professional wrestling.   It means you are a believer.  It means you actually think the outcome of what you are seeing matters in some meaningful way.   

     The origin of the word mark as it used in professional wrestling circles today, dates by back to the early 20^th century traveling carnivals and sideshows.   When a vendor or game runner came across a patron that was easy to separate from his/her money, that vendor would literally mark them in some way.    Often times it was a dirty hand pat on the back as he was sending the patron on his way.   As the patron would stroll the carnival grounds , the carnival workers would concentrate on him/her and continue the separation of money from wallet process.   

       In the last 20 years or so, since every wrestling fan with an internet connection discovered the word “mark”, it was used to place yourself above the more casual fans that didn’t have “inside” knowledge.    It somehow became bad to be a mark.   I think it is great.   I loved being a mark.  It was when wrestling really held something magical for me.   It was when I felt that if the wrestler I rooted for won, he would move up the ladder to bigger things.   The same way I am a mark for the Iowa State Cyclones.   I get so much joy from their victories and so much agony from their defeats.    It makes every game they play a can’t-miss event.  

      The last time I really marked out for professional wrestling was at an Extreme Championship Wrestling show in La Crosse, Wisconsin.   I was in my late 20’s.    There was a blizzard and it took me 7 hours to get to the arena.     I remember having a beer beforehand with Mike Ingebretson, Tim Larson, and Tracy Thom.    It was my first ECW show and I had a front row ticket.   I remember the beginning of the show, they came out and announced a lot of the top names couldn’t make it due to the weather.   It was a bummer.   Right after the announcement, Tommy Dreamer came out to the ring.    He said something along the lines of “If you want to go to the front door and get your money back for your ticket, you are more than welcome to do so.   Or, you can stay and watch the hardest working F’N wrestlers put on the best F’N wrestling show you have ever F’N seen!”   It could have been the beer, but Tommy Dreamer made me believe what he was saying.   He made me a mark that night and I had the time of my life.    We were cheering good guys and booing bad guys and the atmosphere was great.   Fans were invested in getting the outcome they wanted.   It was what professional wrestling was meant to be.   

      I still seek out things in professional wrestling that will bring back the feeling of being a mark.   Now I get the joy of entertaining fans with my own brand of professional wrestling.    When I see a fan at my show that is a mark, I envy them.   I wish I still had that awestruck look towards this crazy thing called professional wrestling that I love so much.   I miss it.

I wish I was still a mark.

Troy Peterson founded Impact Pro Wrestling in 2002. IPW runs about 25 shows a year primarily in Iowa and Minnesota. Troy helps organize the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame weekend in Waterloo, Iowa each summer. The weekend features an awards banquet and a talent evaluation for young wrestlers scouted by Gerry Brisco and Jim Ross. IPW also presents a live pro wrestling show in conjunction with the weekend. Troy lives in Des Moines, Iowa with his wife Caroline and 5 year old son Truman.