The World (originally opened as WWF New York) was a World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) themed restaurant, nightclub and retail store in Times Square in New York City, leased in the Paramount Theatre building. The venue was best known for featuring in segments on Monday Night Raw, and having Sunday Night Heat emanate from its complex, hosted by Michael Cole and Tazz from October 2000 to February 2002. The venue would also host special events such as Raw's 10th Anniversary and various autograph signings and appearances from WWE performers. History WWF New York In November 1999, WWF Chairman Vince McMahon leased space at the Paramount Theatre in Times Square in Manhattan. The complex consisted of a retail store with merchandise on the first floor and a nightclub, restaurant and arcade underground. The venue featured various pieces of WWF memorabilia on display with superstar entrance music playing throughout the store, mainly music composed by Jim Johnston. Wrestling fans from around the Metropolitan New York City area, as well as from around the world, went to the complex as they would show pay-per-views, Raw, SmackDown, and other events on monitors all around the nightclub, including showing them on a big screen. A fee was charged for admission to the events. The restaurant exclusively showed pay-per-views live from the United Kingdom at no charge. The venue hosted two musical performances by the Misfits in 2001. Later in April 2002, Prince performed a spontaneous 'after party' at the club following a concert mere hours earlier. The after show featured special guests Alicia Keys, Questlove, George Clinton, Larry Graham, and Doug E. Fresh performing together. The interior venue and exterior sidewalk appeared in the WWF game series as a wrestling location. The games included SmackDown! 2: Know Your Role, SmackDown! Just Bring It, SmackDown! Shut Your Mouth and SmackDown Here Comes the Pain. The World In May 2002, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) was renamed to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) due to a legal battle over the 'WWF' initials with the World Wildlife Fund. Instead of renaming the venue from WWF New York to WWE New York, the decision was made to rename it to The World in an attempt to attract an audience other than just WWE fanatics. The venue would still operate the gift store selling WWE merchandise, and the nightclub would continue to host special WWE events and superstar appearances. In July 2002,