Nowadays The Rock is one of the most famous people on the planet, but his wrestling career got off to a humble start when he was competing as Flex Kavana in Memphis. Not only did The Rock manage to become a major star, but his daughter is now following in his footsteps wrestling as Ava Raine in NXT.
During a recent appearance on The Pivot, The Great One was asked who made more money when they first started wrestling, him or his daughter, and he explained that he wasn’t earning very much during his early days.
“I would say her. My first paycheck, in wrestling, my first paycheck was $40. That’s what our guarantee was. This was before WWE. As you’re starting out, I wasn’t ready for WWE. I made my bones down in Tennessee. I wrestled down there, USWA, everybody came through there, Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler, everybody who became somebody went through there, and that’s where you made your bones and cut your teeth. The guarantee, every night, was $40. Didn’t matter where you were at on the card, that was your guarantee.
Additional money, there was the intermission and we’d go to the gimmick table. We’d have our polaroids. Anyone who wanted to take a Polaroid, you’d sign it, $5. Take [the photo], $5. Sign it, $10. That’s how we made additional money. On a good night, I could make maybe $80.“
Obviously things are going quite well for The Rock nowadays as he’s gone on to become one of the highest paid actors on the planet. Only time will tell if his daughter is able to reach the same level of fame with her career.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJ5SB7zrxm8
H/T Fightful
