World Wrestling Entertainment Invades Los Angeles Starting Tuesday, Ma

    Business Editors/Entertainment Editors

    STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 23, 2005--In keeping with the theme of "WrestleMania Goes Hollywood", World Wrestling Entertainment(R) will invade the Los Angeles area from Tuesday, March 29, through Monday, April 4, with a series of autograph signings, school programs, a wrestling exhibition on Hollywood Boulevard, and a 2005 WWE(R) Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, all leading up to the presentation of its annual live event and Pay-Per-View pop culture extravaganza WrestleMania(R) 21.
    On Sunday, April 3, WWE will present WrestleMania 21 at STAPLES Center before a capacity crowd of up to 20,000 WWE fans from 14 countries and 48 states. All available seats for the WrestleMania 21 September 2004 on-sale were sold in less than one minute, setting records for the fastest ticket sell-out in STAPLES Center and WWE history. WrestleMania 21 can be purchased on Pay-Per-View through local cable affiliates or satellite providers, and will be seen in more than 90 countries.
    The activities begin on Tuesday, March 29, when WWE Superstars hold the first of several "WWE Fan Frenzy(TM)" autograph signings. The signings will be held each day leading up to WrestleMania 21 at major retailers such as Toys R' Us, Tower Records and Blockbuster Video.
    Starting Wednesday, March 30, WWE Superstars will visit eight middle schools in the Los Angeles area as part of WWE's national Get R.E.A.L. program. The WWE Superstars will talk to thousands of students about the importance of respect, education, achievement and leadership.
    On Thursday, March 31, at noon, WWE Superstars will invade Hollywood and Highland with a special WrestleMania 21 wrestling exhibition free to the public. Westbound lanes of Hollywood Boulevard in front of Hollywood and Highland Center will be closed to traffic to accommodate the event. On Thursday, from 7:30 p.m. (doors open at 6:30 p.m.) until 11 p.m., the House of Blues on Sunset will host the THQ Superstar Challenge, which features the WWE Superstars competing against one another in a WrestleMania21 Xbox Tournament. Tickets for this event can be obtained from House of Blues or through Ticketmaster.
    On Friday, April 1, and Saturday, April 2, the WWE's "Road to WrestleManiaTour", completes its journey across the United States since kicking off in mid-January. The "retail-tainment" tour's final destination is Westfield Shoppingtown Fox Hills, 294 Fox Hills Mall in Culver City. WWE Superstars and Legends will be on hand to greet fans and sign autographs. For more information, please call (310) 390-5073. Sponsors of the "Road to WrestleMania Tour" are Army National Guard, Mattel, and the Esuvee Safety Campaign.
    On Saturday night, April 2, WWE will induct seven WWE Legends into its Hall of Fame, including the immortal Hulk Hogan. Inducting Hulk Hogan will be movie superstar Sylvester Stallone, currently the co-host of the NBC hit reality series, The Contender (Sunday, 8 p.m. (ET)). Also to be inducted are: "Rowdy" Roddy Piper by Stone Cold Steve Austin; "Cowboy" Bob Orton by his son Randy Orton; "Mouth of the South" Jimmy Hart by Jerry "The King" Lawler; "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff by Bobby "The Brain" Heenan; The Iron Sheik by Sgt. Slaughter; and Nikolai Volkoff by Jim "J.R." Ross. The Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles will be the site of the induction ceremony. Seats for the WWE Hall of Fame Induction are available at Ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster at 213-480-3232. Portions of the WWE Hall of Fame Induction can be seen on Spike TV on Saturday, April 2, at 11 p.m. (ET).
    From Monday, March 28, to Saturday, April 2, team stores at Universal Studios and STAPLES Center will be selling exclusive WrestleMania 21 merchandise and WWE Superstar items. The Universal Studios store is open from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. The STAPLES Center store is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
    On Sunday morning, April 3, at its annual Bacon, Bagels and Biceps Brunch, WWE will honor its Circle of Champions, a dozen children and teens from around the United States and Canada who have shown courage in dealing with serious illnesses or disabilities. The organizations participating in the event are Make-A-Wish Foundation, Pediatric Center of New York Foundling Hospital, Sunshine Foundation, and Children's Wish of Canada.
    Then, at 4 p.m. (PT), it's the Main Event, WrestleMania 21 at the sold-out STAPLES Center.
    Due to the overwhelming demand, WWE will invade STAPLES Center for one more night, as Monday Night RAW(R) will be broadcast live from Los Angeles on Monday, April 4, on Spike TV.
    More information on World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For a complete list of WrestleMania Week activities, please visit www.wrestlemania.com.

    Trademarks: The names of all World Wrestling Entertainment televised and live programming, talent names, images, likenesses, slogans and wrestling moves and all World Wrestling Entertainment logos are trademarks which are the exclusive property of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
    Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include the conditions of the markets for live events, broadcast television, cable television, pay-per-view, Internet, entertainment, professional sports, and licensed merchandise; acceptance of the Company's brands, media and merchandise within those markets; uncertainties relating to litigation; risks associated with producing live events both domestically and internationally; uncertainties associated with international markets; risks relating to maintaining and renewing key agreement, including television distribution agreement; and other risks and factors set forth from time to time in Company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results could differ materially from those currently expected or anticipated. In addition to these risks and uncertainties, our dividend is based on a number of factors, including our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow, strategic plan, our financial results and condition, contractual and legal restrictions on the payment of dividends and such other factors as our board of directors may consider relevant.

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CONTACT: World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. Media: Gary Davis, 203-353-5066 Neil Lawi, 203-352-1010

KEYWORD: CONNECTICUT CALIFORNIA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION/RADIO CABLE SOURCE: World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc.

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