This was one of the first wrestling events of its kind to come to central Pennsylvania. By 1998, wrestling events ranked third on the center's top 10 list, bringing in 36,000 spectators in five shows by last July. The only acts that out-grossed wrestling were Garth Brooks and the U.S. Hot Rod Monster Jam. Nowadays, wrestling has been likened to melodrama because much of it doesn't actually occur in the ring. The truth of the matter is without the story lines, the wrestling matches would be over before they began.
Producers entertain viewers with dramatic additives and sexual content.
An analysis of eight hours of WWF's Raw is War shows Raw depends even more on the soap opera approach to get viewers, with only about 27 percent of each two-hour program devoted to actual wrestling. It's important to explain exactly why the matches are occurring. Holmes said federations create other ways to hook their viewers. In the Monday night wars, the ratings have gone to the federation who has created the better scenario. I think that without the sex and extra violence I would still watch.