WWE: Vince McMahon Wanted To Name Triple H ‘Reginald DuPont Helmsley’ Originally
In the WWE, ring names typically say something about a character, which makes you wonder what Vince McMahon was thinking about Triple H when he originally wanted him to be called Reginald DuPont Helmsley.
In a related report by The Inquisitr, Vince McMahon was personally sued by a WWE stock holder because it’s claimed he and others in the management knowingly misled stockholders about the WWE Network. The courts have not been kind to the WWE boss lately because Alberto del Rio just won his case against McMahon and the WWE.
Making an appearance on Talk Is Jericho, Paul Levesque explained how, when he was in the WCW, his original character name was Jean-Paul Levesque and he played the role of a French aristocrat. When Paul made the move to the WWF, Vince McMahon did not like the gimmick and decided to change his nationality.
“Vince liked what I was doing and the character, but he wanted me to be American,” Triple H explained. “I didn’t know what the name was at first, so they brought me to Columbus, to TV, just so I could meet everybody and get to know all the guys a little bit. They had asked me to think up a bunch of names to give some input on it and I had a whole bunch of names in mind. J.J. called me in the room and said, ‘We’ve got your name. You’re going to be Reginald DuPont Helmsley.’ And I was like, ‘Holy cow! Here I am in the bad name category again!'”
J.J. Dillon realized Paul was not exactly thrilled with the name, and Levesque convinced him to look at a list of ideas. The biggest standout in this list was that Levesque wanted his ring name to be something that you could turn into initials. Of course, if initials were the goal, then Paul did not want to be known as the Registered Dental Hygienist (RDH) who “drilled” other guys into the ring. Either way, it’s hard to imagine a wrestler named Reginald pulling off this entrance.
After checking out Paul’s list, Dillon sent the name suggestions to WWE creative and Vince McMahon apparently vetted what would eventually become Triple H with the help Shawn Michaels.
“The next thing I heard, J.J. called me up and said, ‘Hey, we went with a little bit of your suggestions and you’re going to be Hunter Hearst Helmsley. Three H’s,'” said Triple H. “And I was like, ‘Okay, I can work with that a little bit.’ So we went with that and then Shawn started calling me ‘Triple H’ from day one.”
What do you think of Vince McMahon’s original idea for Triple H’s name?
