Marty 'The Boogeyman' Wright must have been feeling down after being released by WWE, until he was rehired with a raise mere hours later.

Wright first appeared on WWE programming during the selection process for 2004's Tough Enough. After making it through the first day of trials, Wright was cut after WWE learned he was 40, five years older than the maximum age for contestants. Wright had claimed he was 30 for the competition but was later hired by the company.

Wright, as The Boogeyman, debuted in WWE in 2005, and would remain with the company on SmackDown and ECW until 2009.

During the latest episode of Cafe de Rene, former WWE Superstar Rene Dupree spoke with ex-WWE alum Joy Giovanni. During the show, Dupree recalled John Laurinaitis releasing Wright, only to be forced to rehire him later that same day.

"Did you ever hear the story about Boogeyman, when he got hired? He got fired in the morning at 9 A.M. and then rehired at 3 O'Clock in the afternoon the same day. You remember Johnny Ace? So, Johnny didn't like [The Boogeyman] and then, I guess he thought he had enough power to be able to fire someone like [The Boogeyman].

"When Vince found out that [The Boogeyman] was fired, he made Johnny Ace call him up and rehire him. I think with a raise, actually."


Ironically, Wright is still with WWE today, after signing a Legends contract in 2022. That same year, Lauirniaitis was himself fired from WWE for his role in the Vince McMahon hush-money scandal.