Jesse "The Body" Ventura (born James George Janos) is an American politician, actor, and retired professional wrestler. After achieving fame in WWE, he served as the 38th governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2003. He was elected governor with the Reform Party and is the party's only candidate to win a major government office.
Ventura was a member of the United States Navy Underwater Demolition Team during the Vietnam War. After leaving the military, he embarked on a professional wrestling career as a heel from 1975 to 1986, taking the ring name "Jesse 'the Body' Ventura." He had a lengthy tenure in WWE as a performer and color commentator and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2004. In addition to wrestling, Ventura pursued an acting career, appearing in films such as Predator and The Running Man.
Ventura entered politics in 1991 when he was elected mayor of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, a position he held until 1995. He was the Reform Party candidate in the 1998 Minnesota gubernatorial election, running a low-budget campaign centered on grassroots events and unusual advertising that urged citizens not to "vote for politics as usual". In a major upset, Ventura defeated both the Democratic and Republican nominees. Amid internal fights for control over the party, Ventura left the Reform Party a year after taking office and served the remainder of his term as a member of the Independence Party of Minnesota. Since holding public office, Ventura has referred to himself as a "statesman" instead of a politician.
As governor, Ventura oversaw reforms of Minnesota's property tax as well as the state's first sales tax rebate. Other initiatives he took included construction of the METRO Blue Line light rail in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area and income tax cuts. Ventura did not run for reelection. After leaving office in 2003, he became a visiting fellow at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. He has since hosted a number of political television shows on RT America and Ora TV, and written several books. Ventura has been a prominent figure in third-party politics, having repeatedly floated the idea of running for President of the United States as an independent candidate.
In late April 2020, Ventura endorsed the Green Party in the 2020 presidential election and showed interest in running for its nomination. He officially joined the Green Party of Minnesota on May 2. On May 7, he confirmed he would not run. The Alaskan division of the Green Party nominated Ventura without his involvement, causing the national party to disown it for abandoning its nominee, Howie Hawkins.
Early life
as Self(4 eps)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Self (Archival Footage)(1 ep)
as Self (archival footage)
as Self
as Himself
as Self (archive footage)(1 ep)
as Self (archive footage)
as Self (archive footage)
as Himself
as Self(1 ep)
as Self (archive footage)
as Governor Littleton
as The Finger (voice)(1 ep)
as Himself
as Mr. Madson
as Self
as Jesse Ventura
as Motivational Speaker (voice)
as Self
as Self(1 ep)
as Jesse Ventura (uncredited)
as Self(1 ep)
as Self(1 ep)
as Self - Guest(1 ep)
as Self (uncredited)
as Self
as Self
as Jesse Ventura
as Self
as Referee
as Arkham Asylum Guard
as Jesse Ventura(1 ep)
as White Lightning
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura (Color Commentary)
as CryoCon
as Man in Black #1(1 ep)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura (Color Commentator)
as DMV Testee
as Jesse Ventura(1 ep)
as Joe Don Butler(1 ep)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura (Commentator)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura - Commentator
as Chewalski
as Bobby Youngblood
as Abraxas
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Himself
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as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse 'The Body' Ventura
as The Man
as Jesse Ventura
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as Commentator #1
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
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as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Baseball Announcer (uncredited)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura (Referee)
as Jesse 'The Body' Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura (Color Commentary)(1 ep)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Captain Freedom
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Self
as Blain Cooper
as Jesse 'The Body' Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse 'The Body' Ventura(15 eps)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura(174 eps)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura (Commentator)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse 'The Body' Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse Ventura(1 ep)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura(2 eps)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura (Commentary)(14 eps)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura (archive footage)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura (Ringside)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse(1 ep)
as Phil Slade(1 ep)
as Jesse Ventura(9 eps)
as Jesse Ventura (Interviewer)(1 ep)
as Jesse Ventura (Archive footage)(1 ep)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura(1 ep)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura(1 ep)
as himself
as Jesse 'The Body' Ventura(9 eps)
as Jesse Ventura(2 eps)
as Jesse "The Body" Ventura / Jesse Ventura (Commentary)(7 eps)
as Jesse Ventura (Commentary)(4 eps)
