Brutus 'The Barber' Beefcake Got His Name Partially From Vince McMahon's Wife

Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake, real name Edward Leslie, is a WWE Hall of Famer, a former tag team champion alongside Greg Valentine, and a longtime friend of Hulk Hogan. When he was brought into the WWE (then known as the WWF) in 1984, Leslie needed a new name, and it turns out part of that name came from an unlikely source. During an episode of "Talk Is Jericho" recorded on the most recent Jericho Rock 'N' Wrestling Cruise, Leslie spoke about the origins of his most well-known moniker.

"Vince's wife [Linda McMahon] thought up the name 'Beefcake,'" Leslie said. "So that's how it went. Hulk and Vince sat in the office ... [and] Hulk says, 'What about Brutus? What about Brutus Beefcake?'" Leslie revealed he wasn't thrilled about the name after working incredibly hard to rise up the ranks, calling it the worst day of his life. However, he quickly came around to it, saying it was a name that "nobody could forget."

Leslie also noted that the Barber aspect of his character came a little bit later. Following WWE WrestleMania III, Leslie's tag team with Valentine broke up, and he found himself shaving the head of Adrian Adonis after the performer lost a Hair vs. Hair match. Quickly after that, Leslie would forever be known as Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake.

"I had to get real creative," Leslie continued. "Nobody's ever been a barber in our business, you know? So it's like, okay, what can I do? Alright, well every time I wrestle a guy, I'll put him to sleep. I'm going to cut his hair off. That's definitely never happened in our business before, and hasn't really happened since." Leslie shared that many of his opponents were, understandably, not too happy to have their hair cut during a match.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Talk Is Jericho" with an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.