The Total Package was the past. The Narcissist was a mild success at best. The All-American was here. But was he here to stay? In the summer of 1993 I think most certainly thought so. It was another WWF attempt to create a new Hulk Hogan. You could argue that The Ultimate Warrior was first, but to me that was a different direction entirely. I would classify Sid Justice as the first true inkling of an attempt of a new Hulkster. Did "Made In The USA" Lex Luger fare better? Thirty years later, let's reflect.
No one could've been expecting this. The Narcissist was just unveiled at the Royal Rumble in January and embroiled in a feud with Mr. Perfect. An attack on Bret "The Hitman" Hart during WrestleMania weekend went nowhere. WWF Championship matches between Hogan and Luger definitely could've drawn, but the forgotten and weak '93 Hulkamania title reign ended any chances of that.
Who answered the Bodyslam Challenge on July 4th 1993 with a mission of body slamming Yokozuna? Lex Luger. Any mention of "The Narcissist" was long gone. This man was now an American hero. In fact, he would now be your hero. He'd be meeting you while crossing the country in his Lex Express bus. He may give you a tour button or even an autographed photo or poster. It was the "Call To Action Campaign" and it was coming to your town!
I will admit that even then I noticed it getting a bit more publicity than the normal post-Hulkamania WWF did. I was at the perfect age to notice when wrestling was hot and when it wasn't. It certainly wasn't in 1993, but it did have some people talking. The WWF marketing machine caused a lot of it. Luger certainly had charisma, but it wasn't Hogan level. It was more of a heelish charisma and while he switched to babyface well, I'm not sure that he had anyone completely convinced.
The press materials for the campaign are a fascinating look into how full steam ahead the WWF was going with it. Even the Lex Express itself had an official promotional photo! The press kit that I own actually has an extra photo. A certain former WCW announcer who I acquired it from told that me that the additional photo actually came from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette newspaper archives. It's a shot of Luger riding a go-kart at Pittsburgh's Sandcastle waterpark where the Lex Express had made a stop. You know there's some sort of buzz if the mainstream press is picking up on it.
You can tell that rumors of an originally planned SummerSlam main event of Hogan vs Hart were undeniably true. The promo photos of Luger, and even his shot on the cover of the SummerSlam 1993 program, are from The Narcissist era. Even still, why could both have not happened? You can easily point out two main events for the 1992 and 1994 editions of the show. Why not have Luger vs Yoko, too, and have Luger go over clean? In this scenario the belt doesn't even come into play if they didn't want it on him just yet.
I, personally, would've put the belt on Luger even if for a short time. Nothing too much was working at the moment anywhere in the world of wrestling. While diehards such as myself were still eating it up, you didn't have the mainstream casuals that fill arenas to capacity. I don't think high school gym were even being filled to capacity at this point. There are a lot of fond memories for the time period, but the attention just wasn't there.
Be that as it may, "All American" Lex Luger is looked back at fondly by many. We're still getting new merch for the character to this day and even finally received the Hasbro style figure this year. It's always been alleged to have been part of the fabled unproduced "orange card" series. Many collectors have been suggesting that Mattel's WWE Ultimate Edition figure series include Luger in his "All American" look, complete with the USA street gear he wore during the tour. I'd be all for it.
Was this WWF run for Luger a complete flop? I'm not so sure. We're still talking about it. We're still buying the merch. You're still hearing the "I'll Be Your Hero" song in your head. To me, that's memorable. Me? I still have the "Lex Express Tour" weekly recap production music in my head. Now that's an earworm!
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