The Anonymous Raw General Manager was a

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

authority figure In the fields of sociology and political science, authority is the legitimate power of a person or group over other people. In a civil state, ''authority'' is practiced in ways such a judicial branch or an executive branch of government.''The Ne ...

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

, who anonymously controlled the Raw brand from June 21, 2010 to July 18, 2011. The Anonymous General Manager controlled the show by sending emails to a laptop, the emails were usually read on-screen by its spokesperson, Michael Cole. Hornswoggle was revealed to be the Anonymous Raw General Manager after the character returned for one night on July 9, 2012. In November 2014, the Anonymous General Manager made a brief return to television, but was, for a second time, removed from power.

First run

Mr. McMahon first unveiled the Anonymous Raw General Manager on the June 21, 2010 episode of ''Raw'', after firing the previous general manager,

Bret Hart Bret Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legend's contract. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling back ...

. While Michael Cole often acted as the spokesperson, the Anonymous Raw General Manager once used a computerized voice when it was interviewed by

Edge Edge or EDGE may refer to: Technology Computing * Edge computing, a network load-balancing system * Edge device, an entry point to a computer network * Adobe Edge, a graphical development application * Microsoft Edge, a web browser developed ...

on ''The Cutting Edge''. The interview ended with Edge destroying the General Manager's laptop. Occasionally the Anonymous General Manager left hints at its true identity, such as dropping catchphrases from popular superstars, however these were red herrings. The Anonymous General Manager controlled Raw until July 2011, when it was phased out in favor of COO

Triple H Paul Michael Levesque (born July 27, 1969), better known by the ring name Triple H, is an American business executive, actor, and retired professional wrestler currently serving as the chief content officer for WWE. He is widely regarded as ...

and Vice President of Talent Relations

John Laurinaitis John Hodger Laurinaitis (born July 31, 1962), also known by his former ringname Johnny Ace, is an American retired professional wrestler and business executive. He has wrestled for such promotions as World Championship Wrestling (WCW), All Japan ...

without its identity ever being revealed. As buildup towards '' Raw 1000'', previous Raw general managers returned for one night only to control the show. The Anonymous Raw General Manager returned on July 9, 2012. There, it was revealed that Hornswoggle had been the Anonymous General Manager throughout its first run. According to former WWE writer Kevin Eck, WWE had no plans regarding an identity for the Anonymous Raw General Manager before it was initially fizzled out. Hornswoggle was suggested by a writer during a creative team meeting as a joke which played off the poor reception to an earlier storyline where Hornswoggle had been revealed to be Mr. McMahon's illegitimate child. Hornswoggle has stated that the original plan for his general manager character was " mob-boss style character with this

Napoleon complex The "Napoleon complex", known informally as small man syndrome, is a syndrome normally attributed to people of small stature. It is characterized by overly-aggressive or domineering social behavior, such as lying about earnings, and carries th ...

, throwing his power around", but these plans never came to fruition.

2014 return

Survivor Series Survivor Series is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving, it is the se ...

, The Authority, who had previously held power in WWE, were deposed. The following night, ''Raw'' closed with the Anonymous General Manager's familiar e-mail noise, followed by Michael Cole's reading of an e-mail in which the Anonymous General Manager promised to bring "order" back to WWE. The identity of this general manager remains unknown, an article on WWE.com questioned its gender and the possibility of it being Hornswoggle again. Heading into 2015, the laptop disappeared again with The Authority taking over again.

References

External links

* {{wwe superstar, hornswoggle, Hornswoggle Professional wrestling gimmicks Professional wrestling authority figures WWE Raw