Fans Sock it to Mick
By Phil Speer
"I believe that is true though. Jim Cornette pointed that out to me in an autograph signing--that I didn't have the most fans in the WWF, but that mine certainly were the most loyal."
-Mick Foley, during a chat on America Online, March 25, 1999
How does Mick Foley (Mankind) know that his fans are so faithful? Consider the evidence:
A few weeks ago, just after Foley underwent knee surgery, WWF.com asked fans to send the two-time Federation Champion a "get well sock."
Quite often, the staff at WWF.com will ask fans to send in e-mails--of which we will get thousands--but a sock is an entirely different matter. Finding a suitable sock, designing it especially for Mick and sending it in requires a lot more effort that simply clicking a few buttons and sending an e-mail. Socks present an especially difficult problem when it comes to mailing--you can't just stick them in an envelope like you could with a standard get well card.
When we originally uploaded the story calling for get well socks, some of the staffers at WWF.com predicted that we'd probably get 10 or 20 socks. Perhaps Mick could wear a few of them on TV.
But the socks started trickling in. One day later, the trickling became something like a torrential downpour. Once everything had been sorted out, about 1,000 socks had been sent in!
Our intern, who was placed in charge of unwrapping all the socks, has washed his hands in the last few weeks more than every doctor and chef in the entire city of Stamford, Conn., combined. The folks in the mailroom now officially hate every member of WWF.com with a passion.
But the fans have spoken. That about 1,000 of them would take the time and effort to make Mick a get well sock shows how dedicated his fans are. We received socks from all 50 states, several from Canada, and a least a few from every continent except Africa and Antarctica. Among the countries represented are England, Scotland, France, Germany, South Korea, Ireland, Russia and New Zealand!
Many fans sent get well cards and letters in addition to their socks, and a few included other special treats, like Mick Foley action figures. Our intern points out that many fans also didn't wash their socks before sending them in.
Some socks were elaborately decorated, and many had Mankind's mask drawn on.
"The first question I ask somebody that says they met me three, four or five years ago or whatever is, 'Was I nice?'"
-another quote from Mick's AOL chat
Perhaps part of the reason Mick is so beloved by fans is that he is indeed such a nice man. Check out any Internet newsboard and you're bound to find a story about a fan who ran into Mick at an airport or at a restaurant and Mick went out of his way to be nice to the fan.
"The WWF has no better ambassador than Mrs. Foley's baby boy," said Jim Ross in the June 25 edition of the Ross Report.
In the next few weeks, Mick will be a busy ambassador. On July 5, the Wrestle Vessel commences, and Mick is among the superstars that is taking part. Once he returns, he'll jet over to Los Angeles (after a stop in Cape May, N.J.) to sign autographs on behalf of the Federation at a huge home video conference. A few days later, from July 14-21, he'll be in Australia for a publicity tour.
Undoubtedly the fans he meets along the way will adore him. They are the ones that are sending in the socks.
Mick is reportedly healing up well. Dr. James Andrews, a physician that's recognized as the best in the business, conducted his surgery. And he's reportedly undergoing cutting-edge treatment known as hydrotherapy. Mick should be back in the ring, entertaining the fans the way only he can, in no time.
The socks can only help matters.
This post comes from WWF.com
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