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How a Professional Wrestler Became Governor

Posted on
August 27, 2015
by Agree Staff
In the 1980s, Jesse "The Body" Ventura was a famous professional wrestler, known for his motto, "Win if you can, lose if you must, but always cheat." After returning to his home state of Minnesota, where politics is usually genteel, Ventura shook up the 1998 governor's race, running as the nominee of the Reform Party, created by Ross Perot after his failed 1992 independent presidential run.

Ventura blew the race open with two creative TV spots produced by advertising guru Bill Hillsman and his firm North Woods Advertising. (He earlier made waves with ads for the senatorial campaign of Paul Wellstone and later worked for Ralph Nader.)

The Jesse Ventura Action Figure

One was done in the style of an action figure toy ad. "New from the Reform Party!" the ad announces, "It's the new Jesse Ventura action figure." An makeshift doll was built using the body of Batman and the head of World War II general Omar Bradley.

Two young boys play with it on the fall grass, pretending to battle "special interest groups." "I don't want your stupid money!" one heroically declares, holding the Ventura doll. "We politicians have powers the average man can't comprehend," the other growls, playing the bad guy."

The narrator slyly slips in the candidate's main platform: "you can also make Jesse lower taxes, improve public education and fight for the things Minnesotans really care about." "This bill wastes taxpayer money, re-draft it!" one of the boys makes Jesse say.

Jesse "The Body" Becomes Jesse "The Mind"



The closing ad in the campaign was called "Jesse The Mind." The spot depicted a naked Ventura in the pose of Rodin "The Thinker." As the camera swirls around him, the narrator lays out biography and his campaign pledges, designed to appeal to left, right and center.

"The Body" is shown on the screen as we hear his bio: "Navy Seal. Union member. Volunteer high school football coach." Then "The Mind" cues up the platform: "A man who will fight to return Minnesota's budget surplus to the taxpayers. Who will fight to lower property and income taxes. Who does not accept money from special interest groups. And who will work to improve public schools by reducing class sizes." The screen ends with "Jesse Ventura. Our Next Governor" and close-up of Ventura with a confident wink.

In the three-way race, Ventura eked out a victory with 37 percent, and proclaimed at his victory party to have "shocked the world." He followed through on his pledges from the ads, refusing to deal with lobbyists and cutting taxes.

But his relationships with legislators were poor and that surplus turned into a deficit. Suffering declining poll numbers, Ventura opted against a re-election campaign. Advertising proved easier than governing.
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