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WHEN it comes to promoting wrestling, Paul Heyman has always been at the top of his game.

Known for his work in the WWE, the businessman features in Netflix’s Mr McMahon documentary about his former boss.

Pau Heyman is a well known face in the wrestling industry
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Pau Heyman is a well known face in the wrestling industryCredit: Getty
Paul has worked for the WWE since the 90s
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Paul has worked for the WWE since the 90sCredit: Alamy

Born in Scarsdale, New York, on September 11, 1965, Paul Heyman is an American professional wrestling manager and former promoter best known for WWE’s SmackDown brand.

He kicked off his career in the wrestling business in 1986.

Heyman was known as the CEO and creative force behind the Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) promotion, a position he held from 1993 until its closure in 2001. 

Paul was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 2005 and the WWE Hall of Fame in 2024.

Managing superstar wrestlers

Before owning ECW, Paul was a manager under the ring name of Paul E. Dangerously.

It was in this role that he managed seven WWE world champions.

These wrestling stars include The Undertaker, , Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar, CM Punk, Rob Van Dam, and Roman Reigns.

Paul also managed several members of the dynastic Anoaʻi family of Samoan professional wrestlers. 

Over the years, he has also competed in matches himself - usually for comedy effect.

Netflix’s Mr McMahon

Paul is one of the many WWE employees - which includes Dwayne Johnson, Triple H, and John Cena - to feature in Netflx’s McMahon documentary.

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Directed by filmmaker Chris Smith, the series documents the rise and fall of former WWE boss Vince McMahon.

In the opening of the fifth episode, called Family Business, Paul said: "The Shakespearean tragedy of this tale is that the great success that has been enjoyed by Vincent Kennedy McMahon was driven by the over-compensatory behavior rebelling against the first miserable 12 years of his life. 

“And escaping that abuse has been his life pursuit in creating an atmosphere in which he is untouchable and invulnerable to outside forces and in control of his own destiny."

Paul managed wrestling megastar The Undertaker
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Paul managed wrestling megastar The UndertakerCredit: YouTube/ WWE

Married life

Paul married his now ex-wife Marla Heyman in 2000.

However, it is understood that the couple split in 2004.

They have two children together, Azalea and Jacob, but both of them choose to keep their lives out of the spotlight,

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