Paul Heyman

Paul Heyman (born September 11, 1965) is an American professional wrestling manager, former promoter, and executive.

He is currently signed to WWE, where he appears on the SmackDown brand as the "Wise Man" for Roman Reigns.

Heyman was born in New York City's Bronx borough on September 11, 1965, the son of Jewish parents Sulamita (née Szarf; 1928–2009) and Richard S. Heyman (1926–2013).

His father was a prominent personal injury attorney and World War II veteran, while his mother was a Holocaust survivor who suffered through experiences in Auschwitz, Bergen-Belsen, and the Łódź Ghetto.

By age 11, he was running a mail order business selling celebrity and sports memorabilia from his home.

While still a teenager, he fast-talked his way backstage at a World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) event at Madison Square Garden as a photojournalist.

He was paid by the company for several of his photographs.

He graduated from Edgemont High School.

He attended SUNY Purchase and worked on-air as an opinionated, controversial host at SUNY's radio station and the WARY-FM New York radio station for Westchester Community College; in 1985, at the age of 19, he became a photographer, then a producer and promoter for the New York City nightclub Studio 54.

Heyman decided he wanted to work in professional wrestling when he saw Vince McMahon interviewing "Superstar" Billy Graham.

He began as a photographer when he was 13 and bought his own photo lab to take photos of pro wrestlers in New York.

He published his own newsletter, The Wrestling Times Magazine, and wrote for third-party wrestling publications such as Pro Wrestling Illustrated.

At the age of 14, he called Capitol Wrestling Corporation, the parent company of the World Wide Wrestling Federation, and obtained a backstage pass for Madison Square Garden, his first official work in pro wrestling.

Posed photographs from this period of Heyman with the WWF's three dominant heel managers of the period, Lou Albano, Fred Blassie and The Grand Wizard were later published by Pro Wrestling Illustrated as evidence that Heyman had studied heel management under the tutelage of the "Three Wise Men".

Heyman met Dusty Rhodes at a Jim Crockett Promotions taping, when he entered a production meeting.

In 1985, Heyman was hired by New York Studio 54 as a photographer.

The same year, he became producer of Studio 54 and hosted the first Wrestle Party 85 show.

He called Jim Crockett, who sent Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes and Magnum T. A. The show featured Bam Bam Bigelow's debut and an award to Flair.

Heyman debuted in the professional wrestling business in 1986, becoming known as the CEO and creative force behind the Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) promotion from 1993 until its closure in 2001.

Before owning ECW, he was a manager under the ring name Paul E. Dangerously in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and other promotions.

He is the co-owner of New York City's Looking4Larry Agency.

In WWE, Heyman has managed or has served as manager for a record six world champions (Big Show, Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam, CM Punk, Brock Lesnar, and Roman Reigns).

Critics have praised his managing and promo skills.

Heyman is widely regarded as one of the greatest managers in professional wrestling history.

At the urging of Bigelow, Heyman made his managerial debut on January 2, 1987, initially appearing on the Northeast independent circuit before moving to a more high-profile stint with Championship Wrestling from Florida in February 1987.

There, he joined forces with Kevin Sullivan and Oliver Humperdink, and acquired the name Paul E. Dangerously because of his resemblance to Michael Keaton's character in Johnny Dangerously.

After CWF was absorbed by Jim Crockett Promotions, Bigelow brought him to Memphis and the Continental Wrestling Association (CWA) to manage Tommy Rich and Austin Idol in a heated feud with Jerry Lawler, a war which later carried over to the American Wrestling Association (AWA), with the Midnight Express (Dennis Condrey and Randy Rose) taking over for Idol and the face-turned Rich.

The Paul E. Dangerously gimmick was an extension of Heyman's own personality: a brash New Yorker with a yuppie attitude, often seen holding a mobile phone, which was occasionally used as a "foreign object" (according to Heyman, he decided to use the mobile phone as a weapon when he watched Gordon Gekko in Wall Street).

After departing the AWA, Heyman went back to the CWA.

Heyman joined with Eddie Gilbert and his wife and valet Missy Hyatt and together they feuded with Lawler before moving on to the Alabama-based Continental Wrestling Federation.

Behind the scenes, Gilbert was the head booker of the promotion, and Heyman became his assistant.

Heyman was also the head booker for Windy City Wrestling in Chicago and started developing a reputation as being an innovative television writer and producer.

In 1988, Heyman jumped to Jim Crockett Promotions, where Dangerously again managed the Original Midnight Express in a feud with the new Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton and Stan Lane) and their manager, Jim Cornette, as well as managing "Mean" Mark Callous.

He settled into the role of an announcer, joining Jim Ross to call the matches on WTBS' World Championship Wrestling and other programming.

Heyman admitted he learned more working with Ross than from his previous mentors.

While in-between stints in WCW, Heyman went to work for ICW as a writer, but was fired on his first day in the middle of his first TV taping.

In 1991, WCW needed to re-structure its "heels", so Heyman returned to the role of spokesman and ringside manager as the manager of the Dangerous Alliance, with Rick Rude as the centerpiece of the stable.

According to Heyman, he and Stone Cold Steve Austin learned their craft from Rude.

He has also competed sporadically in matches, usually as a comedic foil, including in the main event of the 2002 Rebellion event.

Heyman was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 2005 and will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on April 5, 2024.