5 former WWE announcers who went on to more success

WWE announcers Byron Saxton and Samoa Joe

#1. Jesse "The Body" Ventura (with WWE from 1986-1990)

Who else was it going to be other than this WWE Hall of Famer?

In 1975, after years as a Navy SEAL and a bodyguard for the Rolling Stones, Jesse "The Body" Ventura entered the professional wrestling business. His in-ring career would find its way to the AWA and eventually WWE (then, obviously, the WWF) where he would work until 1985, when a blood clot in his lungs would force him to retire from the ring for good.

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Of course, Ventura would transition into commentary, frequently playing the heel to Vince McMahon's white bread babyface persona on the mic (note to younger readers: Vince McMahon was once an announcer. I know, right?).

He was involved in a number of memorable moments in the company at the time, including the run up to the Hulk Hogan/Andre the Giant main event at WrestleMania III. He also formed an iconic announcer duo with Gorilla Monsoon at the time.

Ventura left WWE in 1990, following being released for - and I'm not making this up - making a video game with Sega. That year, WWE had a contract with Nintendo, and one of their performers working for Nintendo's rivals simply would not stand.

A year later, Ventura would sign with WCW, where he would work until 1994, when he was released for falling asleep during a PPV or because he didn't want to work with Hulk Hogan, depending on who you ask.