The Parents Television Council goes bankrupt

[HarmonicGenerator]

The PTC filed for liquidation this week. 

Obviously they've been irrelevant for some time, but I remember the PTC forming a big part of Mick Foley's second book, and I think they were also the inspiration for the real highlight of 2000 WWF, Right To Censor. 

On some level their crusade against wrestling must have had some influence. And wrestling's never gone back to the same level of smutty naughtiness again. For people watching at the time, did you notice any effect on the on-screen product as a result of groups like this campaigning against the WWF? Did you mind that they started not being as rude? For a long time, lots of fans banged the "bring back the Attitude Era" drum ... now not even the PTC is around to stop them ... would you actually want it back?

Or were they actually a complete non-factor made to sound like one in 'Foley Is Good'?

The lads.

[TheScarlettChad]

They probably were a pain in the arse but sponsors are prob why they dialed it back. 

[BomberPat]

the extent on their impact on WWE was pretty overblown - their lawsuits got thrown out, and the PTC ended up having to pay WWE millions in a defamation suit - but they were a very effective lobbying group, and likely played a part in getting numerous advertisers to pull out of WWE programming, at least in the short-term. They had nothing to do with WWE moving to PG in a more permanent way, though - I'd say that had far more to do with WWE renewing their deal with Mattel in 2008/9, with Linda McMahon entering politics, and general market pressures around that time.

Something that stands out in the dregs of the "Ruthless Aggression Era" is that WWE was at its worst when still trying to be edgy or controversial, and still reaching for Attitude Era content. Even if it was just creatively, they had to give up on that, because it's just not where the culture was any more - Katie Vick, HLA, Playboy Bunny Pillowfight Matches, were all just embarrassing. The "PG Era" produced it's share of dross, but the criticism that it was crap because it was for kids doesn't hold up, partly because there's loads of great children's media, but mostly because WWE is never more childish than when it's trying to be adult - it's a twelve year old boy's idea of what's grown-up. And if that's any indication, then no, I never wanted the Attitude Era back.

 

I loved the Right to Censor, though, which is impressive considering most of them were absolute scrubs. It's just a great bit of business, to make the on-screen changes to your product that you're being pressured to make but, knowing they'll be unpopular, create an on-screen heel act to take the blame for them. Brilliant.

[air_raid]

1 hour ago, HarmonicGenerator said:

For people watching at the time, did you notice any effect on the on-screen product as a result of groups like this campaigning against the WWF?

It was weird when Billy Gunn couldn’t be Mr Ass when he came back from injury, and that Val Venis was “The Big Valbowski” after the RTC folded, but that was about it. I couldn’t even tell you when the peak of the backlash to rudies was, given we were still getting “HLA” into 2002.

The best thing about thinking about this is remembering when the Diva Search contestants weren’t told to keep it PG, and Carmella got called a “cum sucking gutter slut” on live TV. By eventual winner Christy Hemme, IIRC.

[BomberPat]

1 minute ago, air_raid said:

and that Val Venis was “The Big Valbowski” after the RTC folded, but that was about it.

Val Venis was a weird one. I got back into wrestling in mid-2000, off the back of Smackdown on PS1, and by the time I started watching, Val Venis wasn't really doing the porn star gimmick any more anyway. He had short hair, didn't wear the towel, didn't do the promos any more, he was just a bloke.

I had forgotten that period of him just being "The Big Valbowski", but I don't know if that even had anything to do with the PTC or PG or anything like that - he was still called Val Venis the entire time he was in Right to Censor, and I'm pretty sure they still called his finish the Money Shot. He was Val Venis when he returned in the 2002 Rumble, and still went by that name for a few months, just randomly changing to Valbowski later in the year.

[Chili]

Bunch of cunts but they inspired the RTC which was a fun stable and had a good enough run. Best work of Steven Richards career that didn't involve impersonating someone. The Goodfather as a name amused me, Bull Buchanan was a good fit as he had nothing else on, Ivory was fantastic and Val Venis wore white pants which was never really explained and looked aesthetically weird next to the others.

[DCW]

I don't think they made a massive difference to the telly, just made Foley is Good a bore! Things had already toned down a bit by the time WWF switched the TV deal in 2000 and the ratings war with WCW had been won.

Also didn't stop the occasional dross of HLA, H's necrophilia, bra and panties matches, Vince beating up Steph, Brock chucking Gowen down the stairs, Edge & Lita's sex celebration or Austin stunner-ing Kiebler etc. 

I enjoyed the RTC too. Richard's and Ivory's promos were always good and I was a fan of Bull Buchanan because of his cool kick from the top rope finisher. Godfather being a pimp couldn't make that dullard entertaining, but at least the Goodfather moniker was mildly funny. 

[Snitsky's back acne]

7 hours ago, Chili said:

Bunch of cunts but they inspired the RTC which was a fun stable and had a good enough run. Best work of Steven Richards career that didn't involve impersonating someone. The Goodfather as a name amused me, Bull Buchanan was a good fit as he had nothing else on, Ivory was fantastic and Val Venis wore white pants which was never really explained and looked aesthetically weird next to the others.

Ivory and Stevie were the best of the group in my opinion. Ivory was brilliant as the shrewish and puritanical antithesis to everything WWE Diva and Stevie was a revelation as the leader of the group. A completely different gimmick than the goofball he had previously been known as. 

[simonworden]

RTC in my opinion are one of the more underrated groups in wrestling. It's a shame bar the one woman return to the gimmick Ivory had in 2022 they've never done another cameo instead of throwing us the 1000th DX reunion. 

If the PTC did have an impact on reducing the awful attitude era guff from the shows, then good for them. A lot of it was drivel and so many wrestlers shone in 2000 with the tone down Angle, Benoit, Guerrero, Jericho, Hardys etc. Had they been lumbered with Prince Albert shock gimmicks or more faux goth rubbish they might never have been who they ended up as. 

I wouldn't want to see a return to the shock value for shock's values sake of that time period but would happily see more shorter matches and wackiness/ creativity in the angles. 

[Ro_y Disco]

18 hours ago, air_raid said:

Val Venis was “The Big Valbowski”

I never got this change. Was Val Venis some rude play on words? 

[air_raid]

13 minutes ago, simonworden said:

I wouldn't want to see a return to the shock value for shock's values sake of that time period but would happily see more shorter matches and wackiness/ creativity in the angles. 

Absolutely. We need more time dedicated to shots of people arriving to the building, and recaps of what we just saw two minutes earlier.

[simonworden]

On 10/11/2025 at 2:03 PM, air_raid said:

Absolutely. We need more time dedicated to shots of people arriving to the building, and recaps of what we just saw two minutes earlier.

I know you're being sarcastic but I'm surprised you even state that's the two options for filling wrestling time. 

It can certainly be more than recaps/people walking. But I think you know that's not what I meant right?