In ancient Greece, citizens would gather at the Parthenon hoping to hear the great minds of Aristotle, Socrates and Plato offer words of wisdom. In the Age of Enlightenment, the nobility flocked to the salons of Paris, hanging on every word of philosophers such as Voltair, Rousseau and de Montesquieu. And in the 20th Century, the brightest scientists of the day spent long hours in laboratories studying the theories of Einstein, Bohr and Hawking.

Now, at the outset of a new millennium, three young sages named Angle and Edge & Christian believe they have grasped the mantle of "the great minds of our time." According to them, thousands are flocking to arenas and millions are turning on their televisions in the hope of garnering the necessary wisdom to make sense of the world and embark upon a more meaningful and satisfying existence. A least that's what Kurt Angle and Edge & Christian would have you believe.

Brought together by what they describe as the "intellectual vacuum that exists in the locker room," Angle and Edge & Christian have formed one of the more curious alliances in Federation history. After all, they seem as different as night and day. On one hand, you have Angle, an American Olympic gold medallist who prides himself on towing the straight and narrow, and conforming to old fashioned family values. On the other, you have Edge & Christian, two young Canadians completely immersed in today's trend setting lifestyles. Yet despite their philosophical differences, the threesome have managed to work well together and have formed a bond that might help them secure spots atop the World Wrestling Federation roster for years to come.

According to Angle, their relationship formed because Edge & Christian were two of the few people in the locker room with whom he could conduct and intelligent conversation.

Until I actually sat down and spoke with Edge & Christian, the only Superstar with whom I had been able to have an intellectual discussion was Al Snow. And to tell the truth - which I always do - I didn't know what he was talking about. And I don't think he did, either. Other than that, I can't think of anyone besides Edge and Christian who are really intelligent. We have a lot of people here in the WWF who aren't real sharp, like Chris Benoit, Undertaker and Mick Foley - probably the most unintelligent Commissioner we've ever had. Thank goodness he's gone. So it's hard for me to find good people to talk to.

Edge, echoing Angle's words, believes that it was their extraordinary intelligence levels that brought the trio together.

One of the reasons that Edge & Christian have gravitated toward Kurt, and he toward us, is because he is one of the few athletes - as a matter of fact, the only athlete - in the World Wrestling Federation, who can match our IQ's. If you try to have a conversation with a lot of the guys in the back, you can't get beyond hunting and fishing. Frankly we're a little more cosmopolitan than that, and Kurt brings that to the table. You know, it's as if the cosmic forces in the universe decided that the three of us, having the largest brain in the Federation, needed to come together.

While the three self-described geniuses like each other and work well together, it would be unfair to call their alliance a 50-50 partnership. Angle appears to be the ring-leader, and sees himself in a brotherly or mentoring role.

I characterize my relationship with Edge & Christian as a brotherly thing. I regard both of them as little brothers. There are times when we can have a god time together. There are times we can laugh together. There are times when they need direction, and I'm the one who has to se them straight. I realize that they like to have fun, and that they like to play their kazoos, horns and all of that. What I've been trying to teach them is there is a time for play and at time for work. Sometimes they get that a little mixed up. But I'm teaching them and they are learning.

As a matter of fact, I'd like to congratulate them on taking my advice to heart. I don't think they'll ever be another Kurt Angle per se - nobody ever will because there are only a few people who have my intellectual capacity, the "Three I's" and the physical capability that make me like a superhero, if you will. But, as far as the World Wrestling Federation goes, those two are head and shoulders above the rest.

As a matter of fact, one of the things Angle is proud of is the fact that a lot of Superstars have been seeking advice from Edge & Christian. And as Christian is quick to point out, he and Edge are happy to give back to those who were not endowed with as much gray matter as they.

We're happy to give advice to the young kinds in the dressing room. I mean, chances are when neither Kurt nor Edge nor Christian are involved in a match, it's going to totally blow chunks. So we'll help them by dipping into our vast reservoir of knowledge and giving expert advice to the boys in the back.

For Angle, dispensing advice is not so easy. Apparently, many Superstars are jealous of the all-American hero and refuse to seek counsel from him even if their careers suffer as a consequence.

A lot of Superstars will not come to me with their questions, and it has nothing to do with me not having answers. It's the fact that these guys don't want to...well, they're jealous of me. They don't want to come to me for anything. But I've always told them first-hand that if they ever need to talk to me, they can come to me, they can come to me. But they're intimidated by my intellect. Jealousy is a big word, but I think that's clearly the case here.

Only time will tell if these three "great intellects" will be able to hold their minds and egos in check and remain allies. For now, they remain fiercely protective of each other, and despite some philosophical differences (Angle prefers the teachings of Socrates while Edge & Christian prefer the teachings of, well, Edge & Christian), they have formed a very close and caring relationship. In fact, no one seems to be able to get on the other's nerves. At least that's what Angle says.

We get along fine. A lot of people may think that Edge & Christian are annoying., but they don't mean to be annoying, that's just their nature. I understand them better than anyone else, so that's probably why I've become closer to them than anyone else.

So those who believe that the Angle/Edge & Christian alliance is headed for disaster may have to rethink their position. For according to Edge, We see the future and the future is us.

Kurt Angle
IQ: 152
Lifetime Grade Point Average: 4.0
Favorite Subject: Civics
Favorite Book: Boy Scout Handbook
Favorite Author: Mark Twain
Favorite Philosopher: Socrates
(information supplied by Kurt Angle)

Edge
IQ: Off the charts
Lifetime Grade point Average: 4.0
Favorite Subject: Biology
Favorite Book: Hardy boys and Nancy Drew (Not!!)
Favorite Author: Mick Foley (Not!!)
Favorite Philosopher: Christian
(information supplied by Edge)

Christian
IQ: Off the charts
Lifetime Grade point Average: 4.0
Favorite Subject: Physics
Favorite Book: Hardy boys and Nancy Drew (Not!!)
Favorite Author: Mick Foley (Not!!)
Favorite Philosopher: Edge
(information supplied by Christian)

Credit: WWF March 2001