Photo: Triple H & Linda McMahon at the WWE Performance Center

Just got this great pic of 2 of my favorite people!!! @TripleH and @Linda_McMahon at the @WWEPerformCtr! pic.twitter.com/jDD3aWJrFJ

— Stephanie McMahon (@StephMcMahon) August 12, 2015

The WWE is red hot again. Here's why.

The WWE has cut ties with Hulk Hogan after racist comments came to light -- a rant that took place in the middle of recording a sex tape no less.

But this scandal hasn't hurt WWE one bit. The company is flying high with fans ... and investors.

Shares of WWE (WWE) (yes, it's actually a public company) are up 75% so far this year. The company reported sales for the second quarter that topped forecasts and a healthy profit.

The main reason? WWE is in the process of transforming itself into a streaming media outfit. That's right. WWE has a little Netflix (NFLX, Tech30) in it.

WWE unveiled a streaming WWE Network last year. The goal was to get more of its fans to pay $9.99 a month to watch big events like WrestleMania and Summer Slam as well as gain access to the company's extensive library of older matches.

It was a rocky transition. WWE shares plunged nearly 25% last year -- the equivalent of a wrestler getting smacked in the head with a steel chair -- as the early subscriber figures did not live up to expectations.

Investors were also disappointed by the terms of a new TV deal WWE signed last year with long-time partner NBCUniversal, the media arm of Comcast (CMCSA). WWE airs weekly shows on NBCUniversal's USA and Syfy cable networks.

But it now looks like the move to streaming is paying off. WWE said last week that it ended the second quarter with nearly 1.2 million subscribers for WWE Network -- an 83% increase from last year and a 31% jump from the first quarter.

People who have bet against the WWE (and there a lot of them) may be forgetting that the company remains popular because of newer stars.

It's not just about 80s legends like Hulk Hogan, the late Rowdy Roddy Piper (sigh) and Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka -- who is now battling stomach cancer. (Double sigh.)

John Cena is in the Amy Schumer comedy "Trainwreck." WWE also has a show called "Tough Enough" on USA that features people training and competing for a WWE contract.

The WWE's reality programming is particularly appealing. In fact, a reality TV mogul recently bought a sizable stake in WWE, leading to questions about what's next from the company.

John de Mol, the Dutch media executive responsible for creating "Big Brother" and "The Voice" acquired nearly 2 million shares in WWE in the second quarter -- 6% of the company's total shares.

It seems unlikely that de Mol is looking to take over the WWE -- even though one of de Mol's media firms has ties to the highly acquisitive John Malone of Liberty Media (LMCA).

WWE CEO Vince McMahon and his family -- wife Linda and daughter Stephanie -- have a controlling stake in the company through Class B shares that are not publicly traded. So any purchase of WWE would have to be friendly.

But de Mol's investment is intriguing.

BTIG analyst Brandon Ross, who has a "buy" rating on WWE, wrote in a report Tuesday that "WWE content fits perfectly with de Mol's expertise."

source: money.cnn.com

Chris Jericho - Stephanie McMahon Podcast Recap: Ronda Rousey, Shane McMahon, Her Parents, AJ, More

Chris Jericho's live WWE Network interview with Stephanie McMahon kicks off from WWE TV studios in Stamford, CT. Jericho welcomes us to the second edition of "Live! with Chris Jericho." He welcomes his old rival Stephanie and says people want the hard-hitting questions so he's going right to that. Stephanie just came from the annual WWE staff party and Jericho says he never knew that party existed. Stephanie says it's just a way of saying thanks to their employees. Jericho imagines Vince McMahon walking around with a tray of h'orderves and Stephanie says he doesn't do that. Jericho says he's been at the studios all day and it's "insane." Stephanie says WWE currently has 800 employees.

Stephanie talks about being in Singapore, Beijing and Shanghai recently on behalf of WWE and as an Eisenhower Fellow. Stephanie talks about what the program is. She notes that she will be going on another trip for the program later this year. Stephanie mentioned having to defend WWE while on tour and Jericho can't believe that they still have to defend WWE but they do. Stephanie says that's part of her job. She touts some WWE talking points and says they're a pioneer. Jericho asks about working for dad and she says it's very challenging. She says Vince is exceptionally driven and passionate. Jericho says Vince is off to the side right now giving them the middle finger. Stephanie says there's a lot of pressure on Vince's kids to do better. She says Vince didn't grow up with a silver spoon in his mouth and while he's given her all of her opportunities, he still wants her to fight for it every day and that's what she does. She talks about messing up before and says disappointing Vince is the worst. As a performer, Vince has made her re-shoot certain angles. Jericho says he has had to do that before and it makes you feel like a loser. Jericho says Stephanie is just like Vince on TV. Stephanie says her brother Shane McMahon calls her the "Vincess." Stephanie says she's unaware that she emulates him but she's watched him all her life and there's no one better.

Jericho says Vince has left the set and jokes that he scared him off. Jericho asks if people get the Chief Brand Officer mixed up with the on-screen Stephanie when she's out working. She talks about how she tells kids at the "be a STAR" anti-bullying rallies that she plays a bully on TV but that's not who she is in real life. They talk about her childhood and she says she did understand what her dad did. One of her earliest memories was between 3-6 years old, walking backstage and running into George "The Animal" Steele in full character. She says she was scared to death and ran back to Vince but George just started laughing. She says George was laughing as if he didn't take her fear seriously and that confused her at the time. She says Vince also thought it was hilarious and that's when she started putting it together. She would watch Vince announce on WWF and she had her favorites - The Killer Bees and Tito Santana. She says she gravitated more towards the heels as a kid and did not root for Hulk Hogan.

More?

Linda McMahon still looms large over GOP politics

Linda McMahon had about 97 million reasons to be done with politics.

The financial hit of back-to-back defeats for the U.S. Senate hasn't suppressed the professional wrestling matriarch's appetite for the Republican brand, however.

In fact, it appears to have strengthened it, with McMahon commanding VIP invites to GOP conclaves from Wyoming to New Hampshire with other rainmakers to be wooed by the party's crop of presidential hopefuls.

Federal filings show McMahon has given more than $3 million to Republican candidates and organizations since her last run in 2012, including $700,000 to Karl Rove's American Crossroads super PAC and $100,000 to an Iowa political fund that helped combat veteran and proud pig castrater Joni Ernst get elected to the Senate.

McMahon, 66, is still behaving in many ways like a candidate, Tweeting photos from her regular speaking engagements at women's entrepreneurial events and charity appearances.

All of this begs the question: What's in it for McMahon?

"Some of the rest of these activities hint at someone who might not be ready to give up on the idea of electoral politics," said Vincent Moscardelli, an assistant political science professor at the University of Connecticut.

More?

Photo: Stephanie & Linda McMahon at the 2015 WWE HOF

Linda McMahon To Host NBC Exec Bonnie Hammer

Linda McMahon will host Bonnie Hammer, Chairman of NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment Group, to the Sacred Heart University series on "Women Can Have It All" on March 25th at 2pm in the Schine Auditorium at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, CT. Hammer has a long relationship with WWE, and she was instrumental in bringing WWF programming to the USA Network in the 80s.

"She just came in and rolled up her sleeves," Vince McMahon said of Hammer to The New York Times in 2011. "She taught us a lot about network quality writing, story arcs, character development. She really helped the overall brand."

Wall Street management firm believes McMahons want to sell WWE

Lemelson Capital founder Emmanuel Lemelson, who manages one of the most successful hedge funds in the world, told Benzinga.com that he believes the McMahon family intends to sell WWE. Calling the company, "clearly an acquisition target," Lemelson said that although he doesn't expect WWE to have great numbers when the third-quarter subscriber count is announced on Thursday, he also doesn't expect share price to fall as the McMahons will protect shares to keep the sale price up.

McMahon-Levesque Art Work

credit: robschamberger.com

Linda McMahon Gives $1 Million to CT Hospital

The Stamford Daily Voice reports that Linda McMahon recently gave a $1 million gift to The Greenwich Hospital in Connecticut through the Vince & Linda McMahon Family Foundation to purchase 3-D mammography machines to help with early breast cancer detection. The machines are located at the Greenwich Hospital Breast Center, within the Smilow Cancer Hospital at Greenwich, as well as the Hospital’s Diagnostic Imaging Center in Stamford.

Vince and Linda McMahon Named As Republican Mega-Donors

WWE Chairman Vince McMahon and his wife Linda McMahon have been named as Republican mega-donors according public finance records acquired by The Washington Times.

The McMahons have given around $1 million to Republican candidates, party committees and super PACs this year, including Karl Rove’s American Crossroads and TD Ameritrade founder Joe Ricketts’ group Ending Spending.

The donations for the most part have been made in Linda’s name. Before Linda’s run for Senate, the McMahons donated only around $30,000 in 2006 and 2008.

Video: Interview with Linda McMahon and Stephanie McMahon

Recap of Last Night’s “Warrior: The Ultimate Legend” Special – Vince McMahon, Sting, Triple H & Others Say Goodbye to the Ultimate Warrior

Thursday night WWE aired part three of their three-part Ultimate Warrior tribute series on the WWE Network, as a part of what they are calling "Warrior Week".

Part one focused on Warrior's greatest matches, while part two was centered completely around his epic confrontation with Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania.

This week's episode started out with footage of Warrior making his debut in the WWE, with commentary from him, Hulk Hogan, Kofi Kingston, John Cena, Batista, Stephanie McMahon and others. They then move forward through his career, including his WWE Championship match with The Hulkster at WrestleMania, to the point where Warrior was the highest merchandise pusher in the company.

The second part of the video followed Warrior and his family in New Orleans during WrestleMania 30 weekend. Sgt. Slaughter paid a visit to Warrior in his hotel room, followed by a discussion about dropping the title to Slaughter, and the iconic retirement match against "Macho Man" Randy Savage.

Also discussed was Warrior holding up Vince McMahon for $500,000, the litigation between both parties regarding the Ultimate Warrior persona, his run in WCW being a failure, and the infamous "Self Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior" DVD. Warrior revealed why he refused to shake Vince's hand, Hogan talked about being called into court during the dispute, and several other personal stories.

The final segment saw Warrior arrive at WWE HQ to talk about his return with Triple H. Then, in an extremely emotional moment, they showed Warrior meeting with Vince McMahon for the first time in years, backstage prior to the 2014 Hall of Fame ceremony. The episode ends with Vince McMahon, Triple H, and Sting giving their teary-eyed thoughts on the tragic passing of Warrior, with a few final thoughts from John Cena, Cesaro, and Hulk Hogan.

The entire episode, as well as parts one and two of the Warrior Week tribute videos, are available on the WWE Network right now.

Linda McMahon to Induct the Ultimate Warrior into the WWE HOF

The Ultimate Warrior posted the following on Twitter this morning:

Fortunetelling pundits lack the integrity it takes to figure me out. I'm honored @Linda_McMahon accepts my request to introduce #wwehof2014. For all the Medicinal Marijuana users & ADD crowd w/ half-ass functioning brains: Introduce=Induct. One more time. Induct=Introduce. Got it?

According to PWInsider.com, while the announcement of Linda McMahon inducting Ultimate Warrior into the Hall of Fame might have come as a surprise to some, it shouldn't, as back in the day Warrior was very close to the McMahon family on a personal level, which is why his falling out with WWE was so difficult.

How Much WWE Is Worth Now, Why WWE Stocks Have Been Rising

According to the Wrestling Observer, WWE is now worth $1.25 billion as their company stock has doubled since the start of 2013. Between Vince, Stephanie and Linda McMahon, the McMahon family is reportedly very close to billionaire status.

Two things are contributing to an increasingly public view of the WWE: the impending WWE Network, and their upcoming television rights negotiations. The company stands to make a lot more money when their deals are up in 2014, and will be able to negotiate new deals for each of their shows, including the flagship Monday Night Raw and Friday Night Smackdown. There has been some talk that Spike TV would like to acquire Smackdown for their Friday night block as a lead-in to Bellator MMA. Spike TV is also the US home of Impact Wrestling, and while they would not be competing for time slots on the same night, it's not likely that WWE would agree to a deal where they would be on the same channel as a TNA product. It's possible that if Spike could get a WWE product they would have no further need for Impact, which has been a big draw for the network for many years, but at this point all rumor and speculation is just that.

Vince Gives Huge Stock Gift to Linda McMahon

Vince McMahon made a gift of 8,500,000 shares of Class B WWE Stock to a Irrevocable Trust account that he created, which Linda McMahon is the beneficiary of. The trust account was created for "estate planning purposes."

Video: Stephanie McMahon receives The Distinguished Alumni Award from BU

Stars Interviewed for Triple H’s New DVD

WrestlingDVDNews.com reports that the following names were interviewed for Triple H’s new DVD that comes out next Tuesday: Triple H, Paul Levesque Sr. (Triple H’s father), Pat Levesque (Triple H’s mother), William Regal, Harley Race, Road Dogg, Diamond Dallas Page, Terry Taylor, Big Show, Vince McMahon, The Undertaker, Kevin Nash, Sean Waltman, Shawn Michaels, Jim Ross, Michael Hayes, Mick Foley, Billy Gunn, The Rock, Pat Patterson, Stephanie McMahon, Linda McMahon, Ric Flair (new and archive footage), Batista, Randy Orton, John Cena and Brock Lesnar.

No Shane?...Interesting....

Linda McMahon Remains Politically Active Despite Senate Loss

She insists she isn't running for anything, but Linda McMahon is once again taking her money, clout and star power onto the campaign trail.

The Republican from Greenwich who poured $100 million into a pair of unsuccessful runs for U.S. Senate has said repeatedly that her days as a candidate are over.

Yet nine months after losing the 2012 Senate race to Democrat Chris Murphy despite an omnipresent television and direct mail marketing blitz, McMahon has quietly begun her third act in politics: as a key benefactor to the state Republican party, and a trusted adviser to its chairman, Jerry Labriola Jr.

"She's had every reason, after the outcome of her two races, to disappear, but she's done just the opposite," Labriola said. "She's been active and helpful and I know she's dedicated to our party making a strong comeback in Connecticut."

McMahon has no formal title or clearly defined position; her new role is largely playing out in private -- and through the pictures and comments that she posts on Twitter.

"She wants to work behind the scenes to make Connecticut a better place," said Labriola, who added that he often turns to her for advice.

The former CEO of WWE, the Stamford-based wrestling entertainment company, declined requests for an interview.

But one measure of McMahon's enduring celebrity -- and her generosity to the state party -- was her prime seat at the annual Prescott Bush fundraising dinner in May: She sat on the dais with other dignitaries, listening to Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, the event's keynote speaker. Next month, she will co-host a $100-per-person fundraiser for Republican First Selectman Timothy M. Herbst of Trumbull.

"Linda is definitely going to be a player within the Republican party," said Gary L. Rose, chairman of the department of government and politics at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield and the author of a soon-to-be published book, "No Holds Barred: The 2012 Connecticut Senate race."

"Somebody with those resources, they don't just disappear into the woodwork," Rose said. "She's tasted politics and, even though things didn't really break her way, she's interested in having a voice."...More?

source: huffingtonpost.com

Linda McMahon's New Positions

Linda McMahon announced on her Facebook account the she will now be the chair of the board's Student Affairs/Athletics Committee at Sacred Heart University. In addtion, the following press release was issued today:

FORMER WWE CEO LINDA MCMAHON JOINS APCO’S INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY COUNCIL

Washington, D.C. (June 27, 2013) - Linda McMahon, former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), joins APCO Worldwide as a member of the firm's International Advisory Council (IAC), founder and CEO Margery Kraus announced today.

"Linda is a savvy business leader who grew a small, regional company into a global brand that is a leader in the entertainment sector," said Kraus. "Her firsthand experience in branding, rapid growth, market entry and transformation will allow our clients to have access to even greater insights as they deal with these issues that confront all successful business leaders. We are truly excited to have Linda join our team."

McMahon brings a strong background in executive leadership within the entertainment industry to APCO, having grown WWE from a 13-person operation to a publicly traded company with global operations delivering its entertainment to 650 million homes worldwide. In 2007, she was named one of Multichannel News' "Wonder Women," which recognized her accomplishments as a leader in the U.S. cable industry.

"I'm excited to work with the strong group of IAC members and contribute to APCO’s industry-leading thinking on corporate positioning, branding and market entry," said McMahon. "Having successfully grown WWE into a global brand, I know firsthand how critical such advice can be when your goal is a true transformation."

More?

Martha Hart/WWE Lawsuit Officially Closed

According to PWInsider.com, the lawsuit between Martha Hart and WWE has been closed, as both sides reached a settlement. The terms of the settlement prohibit Hart from re-opening the case at any point in the future, and both Hart and WWE agreed to pay their own legal fees.