Angertainment as a Profession

The path to politics, especially in the post-1950 age of television, benefits celebrities. “Name recognition” is the name of the game.

Bill Bradley parlayed his basketball championships and Rhodes Scholar credentials into a career in the U.S. Senate representing New Jersey. Al Franken represented Minnesota in the Senate after gaining renown as a comedian.

Of the Republican Party, Ronald Reagans story to the California State House and the White House is well known. But there have been numerous similar success stories such as Sonny Bono, Fred Grandy, Bob Mathias, George Murphy, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Fred Thompson.

While a number of celebrities have run unsuccessfully for office as independents or with third parties, none achieved the prominence of Jesse Ventura. Former professional wrestler Jesse “The Body” Ventura. “Win if you can, lose if you must, but always cheat” was the motto printed on his souvenir T-shirts from his wrestling days.

What distinguishes all these celebrity politicians is how, to a large extent, the responsibilities of public office shaped their behavior. The former comedian Al Franken was no comedian in the Senate. He took the job seriously and behaved with complete decorum. Even Ventura, the most flamboyant of this group, became a conventional, though controversial, governor in Minnesota. He appeared on media that other politicians avoided such as the Howard Stern show. As a third-party candidate he warred with both Republicans and Democrats. He had a highly contentious relationship with the news media. Ventura broke new ground in politics—he was a showman and he took pleasure in provoking his critics. He merged politics and entertainment in a new way. Jesse Ventura was the individual who set the stage for the greatest transformation of celebrity into politician—the politician/entertainer.

The Emergence of Donald Trump

The DJT political show didn’t begin with the famous escalator ride.

Jesse Ventura interviewed DJT at WrestleMania 20. He asked Trump if the reality TV star would back a potential political campaign to “get a wrestler in the White House.” Trump said he 100% would do so.

DJT sponsored WrestleMania IV and V at the Trump Plaza, his Atlantic City casino. The events were held at the nearby convention center but were advertised as being at the Trump Hotel. DJT was interviewed by Ventura in 2007 (WrestleMania 23), and later, Trump played a role in the show appearing at WrestleMania 23. Trump and the owner of the wrestling show, Vince McMahon, staged a “Battle of the Billionaires.” Each man backed a wrestler in a match—the loser was to have his head shaved.

Since it was a scripted show, the outcome was pre-ordained. McMahon’s champion, a wrestler called Umaga, lost and Trump, along with Bobby Lashley (the winning wrestler) and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, shaved McMahon’s head.

For DJT, the event was transformative. By the time of WrestleMania 23 he was already a reality TV performer on The Apprentice. But reality TV takes place in a closed environment. The Apprentice, for the most part, was recorded on studio sets constructed in the Trump Tower in New York City.

WrestleMania was a venue where DJT first experienced the thrill of appearing before tens of thousands of cheering fans. The Apprentice may have honed DJTs skills as an angertainer, but WrestleMania provided the initial template he used to build his angertainment profile: the Trump rally. The site and supporting cast changed, but the overall presentation was similar. Loud music. Big crowds of fans. Warm-up acts. And finally, the main event.

The Career Path: Politics to Angertainment

The movement of politicians to private industry (lobbying, mostly) is a well-traveled route. For a media-savvy politician, angertainment offers an attractive target as either a full-time career or as a lucrative side hustle. We are less accustomed to the idea that the careers of angertainers and politicians may become bidirectional.

One political figure has demonstrated the potential for this career path.

Mike Pence served in the House of Representatives from 2001 to 2013, representing Indiana’s 2nd district (2001-2003) and 6th district (2003-2013). After losing two House bids in 1988 and 1990, he turned to the angertainment industry. From 1994 to 1999, Pence hosted The Mike Pence Show, a syndicated conservative talk radio show that reached as many as 18 radio stations throughout Indiana. He called himself “Rush Limbaugh on decaf.” From 1995, he also hosted a weekend public affairs TV show with the same name on Indianapolis TV station WNDY. He ended his radio and television shows in 1999 to focus on his successful 2000 campaign for Congress. Then he served as Governor of Indiana from 2013 to 2017, before becoming DJTs vice president.

The Future: Angertainers as Candidates

The question is not if—the question is when. We’ve already heard speculation about the possibilities. Tucker Carlson’s name has been mentioned, and perhaps Carlson himself has entertained the specter of running for president.

Here’s the reality. Angertainers have through their day jobs amassed two critical elements needed for political campaigns: name recognition and ardent supporters. Successful angertainers also have money. Tucker Carlson has an estimated net worth between $30 million and $50 million according to various reliable sources, with some estimates ranging as high as $380 million when including inheritance and investments. This kind of wealth combined with the fundraising potential of these popular figures means they have the money.

It has already happened. JD Vance parlayed his popular book Hillbilly Elegy (2016) combined with media exposure into a Senate seat in Ohio in 2022. The bestselling memoir brought him national attention through numerous media appearances and interviews. After initially opposing the DJT candidacy in 2016, Vance transformed into a strong Trump supporter during Trump’s first presidency. With Trump’s endorsement, he won the 2022 Republican primary with 32% of the vote and defeated Democratic nominee Tim Ryan in the general election with 53% of the vote.

You can of course speculate about whether the Republican Party would support angertainer candidates. They would be, after all, political novices. They would lack any experience at all in public service and government. The reality is—thanks to the primary system they support—they won’t have a say in the matter. An angertainer candidate will have every advantage in a primary. The so-called Republican establishment will be emasculated—rendered impotent.

Angertainment Superheroes

America has a fascination with superheroes. The Marvel universe spreads from simple comic books across movies, television, video games and permeates broad segments of the public consciousness. The superheroes have displaced cowboys and the Wild West fiction of the 1950s and 60s.

Angertainment is on the verge of becoming a superpower by creating its own cadre of angertainment Superheroes. When Magaman Issue No. 1 comes out, be sure to buy a copy. It will be a collector’s item.

A brief assessment of American popular culture reveals an eternal fascination with the idea that truth and justice are delivered by powerful figures, typically well-armed, who destroy their enemies by any means necessary. The cowboy-culture stories of the 20th century that grossly fantasized the Old West dominated the entertainment landscape through the 1960s. Justice was consistently delivered through the barrel of a gun. Detectives and police officers have maintained a steady presence from the early days of mass media until the present. The stories have gotten deeper in psychology and motivation, generally more complex. Still, at the end of the day, the stories revolve around good guys defeating bad guys. And most recently, the superhero genre has become a massive presence in American culture. The two-dimensional world has evolved into vast, profitable, multimedia franchises.

The stories have evolved and many of them are deep and disturbing. And yet, at their heart, they are about good guys defeating (or trying to defeat) bad guys. All of this operates in the same mode as professional wrestling. There you have heroes and heels. Sometimes the heels are more interesting than the heroes, but the roles are clear.

Into a culture where superheroes occupy so much of the public consciousness, how big is the step from angertainment star to politician/political superhero?

We already have the answer. Not far at all. As the presidency of DJT showed the world. From the exhilaration of WrestleMania, here was a reality TV star riding an escalator to political fame and power.

The stars of the angertainment world are watching. They saw the mistakes that were made. They are, by a large margin, I believe, smarter and more intrigued by the idea of wielding political power. It’s not a question of if. It’s only a matter of who and when.