1 00:00:09,542 --> 00:00:12,612   [Eric] I had no idea how big     it was going to be.            2 00:00:12,645 --> 00:00:16,549  I didn't know what the          NWO was about to become.         3 00:00:16,616 --> 00:00:18,151    That leg drop was             4 00:00:18,184 --> 00:00:20,820  WCW's lift off                  into the future.                 5 00:00:20,854 --> 00:00:23,790 If you want surprises,           this is where you come.          6 00:00:23,823 --> 00:00:26,292    Our show is live,                and you never know            7 00:00:26,326 --> 00:00:27,961   what's gonna                     happen here.                   8 00:00:27,994 --> 00:00:30,130   We were the    rated show forever.            9 00:00:30,163 --> 00:00:31,664 The NWO!                         10 00:00:31,698 --> 00:00:34,134  We already knew that             we were running thin.           11 00:00:34,167 --> 00:00:35,402    [Laughing]                    12 00:00:35,468 --> 00:00:37,337  And I think it showed.          13 00:00:37,370 --> 00:00:39,873  Did I like it?                  Fuck no!                         14 00:00:39,906 --> 00:00:41,841    [Konnan]                        Bro, 40,000 people,            15 00:00:41,875 --> 00:00:43,209 and that's what                    you're giving them?            16 00:00:43,243 --> 00:00:46,813  You can't pretend that            people weren't mad.            17 00:00:46,846 --> 00:00:49,215    [Bret] Idiots everywhere.      It's just...                    18 00:00:49,249 --> 00:00:51,651  mindboggling.                   19 00:00:51,684 --> 00:00:53,319  [Brad] Whenever you're          leading a night,                 20 00:00:53,353 --> 00:00:55,221    and now you're not            leading a night,                 21 00:00:55,255 --> 00:00:56,656 there is reason                   for concern.                    22 00:00:56,689 --> 00:00:59,392   [Commentary] WCW is               literally unraveling here.    23 00:00:59,426 --> 00:01:01,027    [Eric] My wife, she looked      at me like,                    24 00:01:01,061 --> 00:01:03,096    "What are you doing here?"     And I said...                   25 00:01:03,163 --> 00:01:04,397  "I got fired."                  26 00:01:04,431 --> 00:01:06,232   Before our very eyes,             it's falling apart.           27 00:01:06,266 --> 00:01:09,335    Ted Turner hired idiots to      run a billion-dollar company   28 00:01:09,369 --> 00:01:11,037  and, that was                    his mistake.                    29 00:01:11,071 --> 00:01:12,572   [Overlapping voices]           30 00:01:12,605 --> 00:01:14,441   You cannot sweep this           under the rug!                  31 00:01:14,507 --> 00:01:16,342   ...this is a ----ing               television show.             32 00:01:16,376 --> 00:01:17,544     ...and I don't understand        what he's doing.             33 00:01:17,577 --> 00:01:19,946     The real reason                 men commit lies...            34 00:01:20,013 --> 00:01:23,550  ♪ [Extended flatlining beep] ♪  35 00:01:23,583 --> 00:01:25,952   ♪ [Dramatic instrumental] ♪    36 00:01:26,019 --> 00:01:28,121    A lot of changes,              ladies and gentlemen,           37 00:01:28,188 --> 00:01:29,923  at World Championship            Wrestling...                    38 00:01:29,956 --> 00:01:32,258 over the last 36 hours.          39 00:01:32,292 --> 00:01:34,027    ♪                             40 00:01:34,060 --> 00:01:36,863    WCW was one of many things    41 00:01:36,896 --> 00:01:39,399   that I was responsible for,    42 00:01:39,432 --> 00:01:41,468  and it was the thing            that I liked the least.          43 00:01:41,534 --> 00:01:43,269   [Match bell ringing]           44 00:01:43,303 --> 00:01:46,106  Eric is not,                     is not there anymore.           45 00:01:46,139 --> 00:01:48,708    You know, he was the glue     that held it together.           46 00:01:48,741 --> 00:01:50,643 I was running it                  at this point.                  47 00:01:50,710 --> 00:01:52,545 I didn't want to run it.         48 00:01:52,579 --> 00:01:54,948  And I wanted somebody              to run it for me.             49 00:01:54,981 --> 00:01:56,549   And a little bit different...  50 00:01:56,583 --> 00:02:00,120   And, Bill Busch was the guy       who was sort of in place      51 00:02:00,153 --> 00:02:03,389 as an interim when Eric           was no longer there.            52 00:02:03,423 --> 00:02:07,560   And, he was the acting COO,      in a sense.                    53 00:02:07,594 --> 00:02:10,296   About a month after              Eric had departed,             54 00:02:10,330 --> 00:02:13,967    Bill Busch makes his first       major move in running the     55 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:15,835  day-to-day operations           of the company,                  56 00:02:15,902 --> 00:02:17,637    which is securing               the services of the            57 00:02:17,670 --> 00:02:20,840   WWF's creative team.           58 00:02:20,907 --> 00:02:22,942   Busch, he called me               and said,                     59 00:02:22,976 --> 00:02:25,612   "We've made the best            hiring decision ever."          60 00:02:25,645 --> 00:02:27,113    ♪                             61 00:02:27,147 --> 00:02:29,849    He said,                      "We hired Vince Russo."          62 00:02:29,916 --> 00:02:32,118  Bischoff was gone, and           I remember Bill Busch           63 00:02:32,152 --> 00:02:34,154    telling me they were gonna     bring Vince Russo in.           64 00:02:34,187 --> 00:02:36,689    He supposedly was             some kind of...                  65 00:02:36,756 --> 00:02:40,460  genius, and now we've             lured him from WWF,            66 00:02:40,493 --> 00:02:43,463  and now we've                      got their genius.             67 00:02:43,496 --> 00:02:45,965    When Vince Russo made the       jump to WCW to run             68 00:02:45,999 --> 00:02:49,435    that entire ship,              I remember thinking...          69 00:02:49,469 --> 00:02:51,804   Good for him, great.           70 00:02:51,838 --> 00:02:53,940  This is the world of            professional wrestling.          71 00:02:53,973 --> 00:02:56,776    This shit happens              all the time.                   72 00:02:56,809 --> 00:02:59,846    ♪                             73 00:02:59,879 --> 00:03:02,715    I was excited when I heard      Vince was coming in.           74 00:03:02,782 --> 00:03:04,551    ♪                             75 00:03:04,617 --> 00:03:08,688   Good. Finally, like,             something new here.            76 00:03:08,721 --> 00:03:10,890  I heard that he was a genius.   77 00:03:10,957 --> 00:03:12,559    ♪                             78 00:03:12,625 --> 00:03:15,662  Why would Vince Russo want to    leave the WWF and come here?    79 00:03:15,695 --> 00:03:19,732    ♪                             80 00:03:19,799 --> 00:03:23,069  I had a degree in journalism,      and I started freelancing     81 00:03:23,136 --> 00:03:26,472  for the WWF magazine,           where I started writing          82 00:03:26,506 --> 00:03:30,176 maybe about two                     articles a month.             83 00:03:30,210 --> 00:03:32,879    I would sit in while they       were writing the television,   84 00:03:32,912 --> 00:03:35,381  and it was so bad that             I started writing             85 00:03:35,415 --> 00:03:37,183   my own angles in the              magazine that had             86 00:03:37,217 --> 00:03:40,019  nothing to do                      with the TV show.             87 00:03:40,053 --> 00:03:42,555  And, I get a call from             Vince McMahon's assistant.    88 00:03:42,589 --> 00:03:44,023 [Phone ringing]                  89 00:03:44,057 --> 00:03:46,993   "Vince wants to see you up       in his office immediately."    90 00:03:47,026 --> 00:03:48,995    It wasn't                       even 9 o'clock yet.            91 00:03:49,028 --> 00:03:53,266   He had the WWE Raw              Magazine in his hand.           92 00:03:53,333 --> 00:03:55,435    And said,                        "This is what our             93 00:03:55,501 --> 00:03:58,404 television show                   needs to be."                   94 00:03:58,438 --> 00:04:01,541    I was absolutely shocked.     95 00:04:01,574 --> 00:04:04,010   It got to the point            where I was the                  96 00:04:04,043 --> 00:04:06,045 head writer of the show.         97 00:04:06,079 --> 00:04:08,715    Then I get to work            with Ed Ferrara                  98 00:04:08,748 --> 00:04:12,118    who was a bonafide               television writer!            99 00:04:18,424 --> 00:04:20,526    Just- it was real.            100 00:04:20,560 --> 00:04:23,896   It was real.                   You believed it.                 101 00:04:23,930 --> 00:04:28,067   There was a sense of danger,    like you almost had to          102 00:04:28,101 --> 00:04:30,436 watch it because                 you didn't know                  103 00:04:30,470 --> 00:04:33,406 what they were                      going to do next.             104 00:04:33,439 --> 00:04:37,043   I was definitely influenced     by what WCW was doing           105 00:04:37,076 --> 00:04:39,078  at the time, without a             shadow of a doubt.            106 00:04:39,112 --> 00:04:42,282  We were head-to-head,             and you had                    107 00:04:42,315 --> 00:04:44,217    a lot of people switching     back and forth,                  108 00:04:44,250 --> 00:04:45,952 back and forth,                  back and forth.                  109 00:04:45,985 --> 00:04:47,654 So, the idea is,                 110 00:04:47,720 --> 00:04:50,290   you do not give them           the opportunity                  111 00:04:50,323 --> 00:04:51,824 to change that channel,          112 00:04:51,891 --> 00:04:54,227    because once they               change that channel,           113 00:04:54,260 --> 00:04:57,163    if something good              is happening on Nitro,          114 00:04:57,230 --> 00:04:59,899   they're never coming              back to your show.            115 00:04:59,932 --> 00:05:03,636 It's hard to argue with            the objective data,            116 00:05:03,670 --> 00:05:05,838 which show that the WWF             actually enjoyed              117 00:05:05,905 --> 00:05:07,507   a tripling of its revenues.    118 00:05:07,573 --> 00:05:10,343 The television ratings              went from being anemic to     119 00:05:10,410 --> 00:05:12,812  skyrocketing to levels people   didn't think of before.          120 00:05:12,845 --> 00:05:14,514   Absolutely sold out!           121 00:05:14,580 --> 00:05:16,783 The company was selling             out arenas left and right.    122 00:05:16,816 --> 00:05:19,352   And, Vince Russo was              the head writer of            123 00:05:19,419 --> 00:05:20,853  the WWF during                  that time frame.                 124 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:22,422    ...Excuse me while            I kiss the sky.                  125 00:05:22,455 --> 00:05:23,823  The Summer Of Love...           126 00:05:23,856 --> 00:05:26,092    Vince McMahon was starting       another show, Smack Down,     127 00:05:26,125 --> 00:05:28,828   and he had pushed me              creatively                    128 00:05:28,861 --> 00:05:31,164    beyond my limits.             129 00:05:31,197 --> 00:05:33,132 I had three small kids.          130 00:05:33,166 --> 00:05:34,934   I wasn't seeing them at all.   131 00:05:34,967 --> 00:05:37,136 I honestly believe I was         on the verge of                  132 00:05:37,170 --> 00:05:38,805   a nervous breakdown.           133 00:05:38,838 --> 00:05:40,139    ♪                             134 00:05:40,173 --> 00:05:43,443 He just expected Ed and             I to write a second show,     135 00:05:43,476 --> 00:05:45,211  never offered                   any more money.                  136 00:05:45,278 --> 00:05:49,549    And, bro, it's like I was     building such a close,           137 00:05:49,615 --> 00:05:53,219 tight bond, relationship         with Vince that                  138 00:05:53,286 --> 00:05:57,056 I started asking myself          the question...                  139 00:05:57,123 --> 00:06:00,660   "Does this guy care about me      as much as I do about him?    140 00:06:00,693 --> 00:06:03,496  Or am I the cash cow               that's writing his show?"     141 00:06:03,529 --> 00:06:05,898   I was so burnt out,               I broke down and              142 00:06:05,965 --> 00:06:08,901    I cried in Vince's office,     okay.                           143 00:06:08,968 --> 00:06:11,537    And right then and there-     I went right to                  144 00:06:11,571 --> 00:06:16,042   my office and called              my WCW connection.            145 00:06:16,075 --> 00:06:17,310  He made the decision,           146 00:06:17,343 --> 00:06:18,578   what's best for him            and his family,                  147 00:06:18,644 --> 00:06:20,813    and he went after             an opportunity                   148 00:06:20,847 --> 00:06:22,548    to go down to WCW,            149 00:06:22,582 --> 00:06:24,350    and you're handed                the entire book.              150 00:06:24,384 --> 00:06:26,185 Write the story.                 151 00:06:26,219 --> 00:06:28,421    There was an awful lot of       enthusiasm at that time that   152 00:06:28,488 --> 00:06:31,090   this could be what's              needed to give WCW            153 00:06:31,157 --> 00:06:33,159   the shot in the arm            that it needed.                  154 00:06:33,192 --> 00:06:35,828     It's a brand-new              Monday Nitro!                   155 00:06:35,862 --> 00:06:39,432    I looked at WCW as               a great challenge,            156 00:06:39,499 --> 00:06:42,402 and what I saw here was            I saw a whole breed            157 00:06:42,435 --> 00:06:44,003  of a new blood                  158 00:06:44,036 --> 00:06:45,738 that was stuck                   somewhere in the middle          159 00:06:45,772 --> 00:06:47,407   because for                    whatever reason,                 160 00:06:47,440 --> 00:06:50,042 they couldn't break that         "establishment".                 161 00:06:50,076 --> 00:06:53,413   And listen, man, the day I      walked into that locker room,   162 00:06:53,446 --> 00:06:55,948  I had every mid-carder          coming up to me.                 163 00:06:56,015 --> 00:06:57,350 I had never met                   them before.                    164 00:06:57,383 --> 00:07:00,420  Bro, I'm talking about             like the Malenkos.            165 00:07:00,453 --> 00:07:02,722    Benoits...                    166 00:07:02,755 --> 00:07:04,090 And the Konnan.                  167 00:07:04,123 --> 00:07:06,125    Unsettling!                      Here he comes back!           168 00:07:06,192 --> 00:07:09,395    Juventuds and all               these great people.            169 00:07:09,429 --> 00:07:12,799   Man, those guys- ah,              the Rey Mysterios,            170 00:07:12,865 --> 00:07:14,534 Ultimo Dragons,                  171 00:07:14,567 --> 00:07:16,903   all those lucha guys             that came in and...            172 00:07:16,936 --> 00:07:18,604    pushing each other            to be the best,                  173 00:07:18,638 --> 00:07:19,939   pushed me to                    another level.                  174 00:07:19,972 --> 00:07:22,642  We gon' turn                    this motha out!                  175 00:07:22,708 --> 00:07:24,277   Now can you dig it?            176 00:07:24,310 --> 00:07:27,280   There wasn't anybody better    in terms of ring skills          177 00:07:27,313 --> 00:07:31,284    than the mid-carders so,        you know, I think there was    178 00:07:31,317 --> 00:07:34,253  more talent there than            people gave them credit for.   179 00:07:34,287 --> 00:07:36,823 And, I remember                   locking eyes                    180 00:07:36,889 --> 00:07:39,725    with Hogan the first time.    181 00:07:39,759 --> 00:07:41,928    The red and yellow!           182 00:07:41,961 --> 00:07:44,230  You gotta understand,              when you're a New Yorker,     183 00:07:44,263 --> 00:07:45,998   there's like a sixth sense.    184 00:07:46,065 --> 00:07:49,902   Like, you just know               he did not trust me, bro,     185 00:07:49,936 --> 00:07:53,239   as far as he could throw me,     and he was not gonna           186 00:07:53,272 --> 00:07:55,074 believe one word                   that I said.                   187 00:07:55,107 --> 00:07:56,776    And I'm gonna come out and     say it- and I've never          188 00:07:56,809 --> 00:07:59,512    said this publicly before-      no doubt in my mind            189 00:07:59,579 --> 00:08:02,782 Bischoff was responsible          for a little of this.           190 00:08:02,815 --> 00:08:06,252    I am partially responsible       for costing Eric his job.     191 00:08:06,285 --> 00:08:09,522  Eric is gone,                   but Eric's boys,                 192 00:08:09,589 --> 00:08:11,791 the people that he took          care of and made rich,           193 00:08:11,824 --> 00:08:14,694  were not in tune with             what Russo wanted.             194 00:08:14,760 --> 00:08:16,762  Don't wake a                    sleeping giant.                  195 00:08:16,796 --> 00:08:18,764 I was always a                   fan of Vince's.                  196 00:08:18,798 --> 00:08:21,167  I just told him, like,          197 00:08:21,200 --> 00:08:23,603  "You ain't in                   Kansas anymore."                 198 00:08:23,636 --> 00:08:25,538  Like, this ain't WWE.           199 00:08:25,605 --> 00:08:28,274     1, 2, 3!                     200 00:08:28,307 --> 00:08:30,610  This is some                    fucked up shit.                  201 00:08:30,643 --> 00:08:33,779   [Shouting]                       Goldberg! Goldberg!            202 00:08:33,813 --> 00:08:36,215 I had an absolute great            plan, and if you go back and   203 00:08:36,282 --> 00:08:39,285    watch the first 3 months,     you'll see it.                   204 00:08:39,318 --> 00:08:41,654    And, at that time,            205 00:08:41,687 --> 00:08:44,724    Jerry Springer was so hot,    206 00:08:44,790 --> 00:08:47,660  so we always had that            on in the background,           207 00:08:47,693 --> 00:08:49,829  and what was                    Jerry Springer?                  208 00:08:49,862 --> 00:08:53,900 It was controversy with             characters and storyline.     209 00:08:53,966 --> 00:08:57,036    That's what the show was.     210 00:08:57,069 --> 00:08:59,338    And basically, that's what    we needed to do.                 211 00:08:59,372 --> 00:09:00,573    He hit him                      with a mummy!                  212 00:09:00,640 --> 00:09:02,842  Vince Russo's program,           everything was quick.           213 00:09:02,875 --> 00:09:05,545 Boom, boom, boom, boom.          214 00:09:05,578 --> 00:09:08,047    I tried to stay positive,       I was very hopeful.            215 00:09:08,080 --> 00:09:11,551  But it definitely was a shift    from a more laid back           216 00:09:11,584 --> 00:09:14,687   sort of atmosphere,               and it's more electrified     217 00:09:14,720 --> 00:09:17,657   and, louder, faster,             that sort of thing.            218 00:09:17,690 --> 00:09:18,991   [Indistinct shouting]          219 00:09:19,025 --> 00:09:20,159    It definitely was a shift.    220 00:09:20,192 --> 00:09:21,394    [Grunting]                    221 00:09:21,427 --> 00:09:23,496 [Vince]                            I know the numbers!            222 00:09:23,529 --> 00:09:26,232 The numbers are                  on the internet!                 223 00:09:26,265 --> 00:09:30,002    And in those three months,      the numbers went up-           224 00:09:30,036 --> 00:09:33,506    slightly-                        but they went up.             225 00:09:33,539 --> 00:09:35,741  To me, it wasn't about          wrestling at that point.         226 00:09:35,775 --> 00:09:37,677   It was lots of TandA.            227 00:09:37,710 --> 00:09:40,680   Woo! Alright!                  228 00:09:40,713 --> 00:09:42,782  [Dick] He took us in a           direction that                  229 00:09:42,848 --> 00:09:45,184  even corporate                    didn't like.                   230 00:09:45,217 --> 00:09:46,686 Watch it, Billy.                 231 00:09:46,719 --> 00:09:48,588   This is family hour!           232 00:09:48,621 --> 00:09:50,456 It had a little positive          effect on the ratings,          233 00:09:50,523 --> 00:09:51,757  but not much.                   234 00:09:51,791 --> 00:09:54,293    Certainly made it             not advertiser friendly.         235 00:09:55,528 --> 00:09:56,596     Crowbar.                     236 00:09:56,629 --> 00:09:59,131 [Vince]                           My job was to                   237 00:09:59,198 --> 00:10:03,636    make this show the               absolute best that            238 00:10:03,703 --> 00:10:06,739  I thought it could be,           and to make this show           239 00:10:06,772 --> 00:10:09,775    to not just please            wrestling fans,                  240 00:10:09,809 --> 00:10:13,579    but to be appealing to an        entire wrestling audience.    241 00:10:13,613 --> 00:10:14,981    [Konnan]                        His thing was like,            242 00:10:15,047 --> 00:10:16,482    we already have a               wrestling audience.            243 00:10:16,549 --> 00:10:19,151   Let's get the audience that       isn't watching wrestling.     244 00:10:19,218 --> 00:10:21,821   But bro, if you're a casual    fan and you're watching          245 00:10:21,887 --> 00:10:23,556 Judy Bagwell on                   a pole match.                   246 00:10:23,589 --> 00:10:26,092  ...high above the ring            on the forklift now!           247 00:10:26,125 --> 00:10:27,760    Why would you want             to watch that,                  248 00:10:27,793 --> 00:10:30,096    or a pinata match,              or whatever?                   249 00:10:30,129 --> 00:10:32,565   He's got the pinata!           250 00:10:32,598 --> 00:10:36,068 This is not WCW.                 251 00:10:36,102 --> 00:10:39,138  This is a comedy act.           252 00:10:39,171 --> 00:10:42,241 ...meatballs, and we're          gonna do it all night.           253 00:10:42,274 --> 00:10:44,443   [Booker T] I don't think it       was for the fans.             254 00:10:44,477 --> 00:10:45,578 It seemed like,                     you know,                     255 00:10:45,611 --> 00:10:47,847   he was entertaining               himself.                      256 00:10:47,913 --> 00:10:49,348    Hey, boys!                    257 00:10:49,415 --> 00:10:51,450   [Indistinct chatter]           258 00:10:51,484 --> 00:10:54,020  [Indistinct shouting]           259 00:10:54,086 --> 00:10:57,189 Vince Russo was                    just another idiot.            260 00:10:57,256 --> 00:10:58,858    He's a shit stain.            261 00:10:58,924 --> 00:11:00,793   And I always thought            in the back of my mind          262 00:11:00,826 --> 00:11:03,696   that he was there to             lead to our ultimate demise.   263 00:11:03,763 --> 00:11:07,099  [Evil voice] When does             our journey begin?            264 00:11:07,133 --> 00:11:09,101     On the 7th night.            265 00:11:09,135 --> 00:11:11,370 Maybe a good theory that         Vince Russo had                  266 00:11:11,437 --> 00:11:15,307  decent success at WWE            because Vince McMahon           267 00:11:15,341 --> 00:11:17,510  was there to pick out             what was good and,             268 00:11:17,543 --> 00:11:19,445 keep that and throw away          what was bad.                   269 00:11:19,478 --> 00:11:23,883  [Indistinct shouting]           270 00:11:23,949 --> 00:11:26,652  And then, Vince Russo            comes in and,                   271 00:11:26,686 --> 00:11:29,155   he doesn't have that buffer,      or he doesn't have            272 00:11:29,188 --> 00:11:31,357   that person                    telling him no.                  273 00:11:31,390 --> 00:11:33,059  Never do that!                  274 00:11:33,125 --> 00:11:36,395    [Kevin] The whole group of      people in the office           275 00:11:36,462 --> 00:11:40,332   thought he had gone too far    down the road,                   276 00:11:40,366 --> 00:11:43,569    away from                      where WCW was.                  277 00:11:43,636 --> 00:11:45,371   [Vince] Listen, man,            the one thing                   278 00:11:45,404 --> 00:11:48,007 I really started                   noticing was                   279 00:11:48,040 --> 00:11:50,476   every time I turned               around, JJ Dylan,             280 00:11:50,509 --> 00:11:53,546   and Kevin Sullivan              were having sidebars.           281 00:11:53,579 --> 00:11:55,815 And as soon as                   I looked at them, boom,          282 00:11:55,848 --> 00:11:58,250   now the politics are           rearing their ugly head.         283 00:11:58,317 --> 00:12:01,053    So, Busch calls me            into his office.                 284 00:12:01,087 --> 00:12:03,255    He said, "Vince,                 we're thinking of             285 00:12:03,322 --> 00:12:04,490  going in a direction.           286 00:12:04,523 --> 00:12:06,559   We're gonna go more             into a, ah, committee,          287 00:12:06,592 --> 00:12:10,029  and we want you to be            part of a committee."           288 00:12:10,062 --> 00:12:13,866 And bro, without missing         a beat, I said, "Bill...         289 00:12:13,899 --> 00:12:15,935    I got a contract.             290 00:12:16,001 --> 00:12:19,371 The contract states that          I am head of creative.          291 00:12:19,405 --> 00:12:23,008    I am not interested in any      of your committees."           292 00:12:23,042 --> 00:12:26,011    I said, "So, I am                going to go home,             293 00:12:26,045 --> 00:12:27,580   and you guys                    can figure out                  294 00:12:27,613 --> 00:12:29,215    how you're                     gonna pay me."                  295 00:12:29,248 --> 00:12:31,250   And that was                    the end of it,                  296 00:12:31,283 --> 00:12:33,419   and I, I went home,            297 00:12:33,452 --> 00:12:35,020    and they continued               to pay me.                    298 00:12:37,056 --> 00:12:39,391    Sullivan.                     299 00:12:39,425 --> 00:12:42,561  I just thought it was           such a complete change.          300 00:12:42,595 --> 00:12:44,029   When he first left,            I said,                          301 00:12:44,063 --> 00:12:45,731    "We're gonna get                back to wrestling."            302 00:12:45,765 --> 00:12:47,566    Hey guys...                   303 00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:49,401 Benoit,                           Perry Saturn,                   304 00:12:49,435 --> 00:12:51,737  Dean Malenko,                   Eddie Guerrero.                  305 00:12:51,771 --> 00:12:54,306 When those guys                    showed up at TV and            306 00:12:54,373 --> 00:12:58,310 I wasn't there,                  the undercard...                 307 00:12:58,377 --> 00:13:01,580 they went absolutely ballistic,    because they knew.             308 00:13:01,614 --> 00:13:03,749    They went to work one day,     and Vince isn't here.           309 00:13:03,783 --> 00:13:05,551    They knew.                    310 00:13:05,584 --> 00:13:08,387 They, they knew                     what had happened.            311 00:13:08,420 --> 00:13:13,259    They were such an               intricate part of the show.    312 00:13:13,292 --> 00:13:15,394    But, they weren't               Nash, Hall,                    313 00:13:15,427 --> 00:13:17,997    Hogan, Macho Man.             314 00:13:18,063 --> 00:13:20,299   They could've been.            315 00:13:20,332 --> 00:13:22,935    But, they weren't.            316 00:13:22,968 --> 00:13:26,839    So, in an effort to try to      make it up to those guys and   317 00:13:26,906 --> 00:13:29,775   calm everybody down,              Sullivan made the decision    318 00:13:29,809 --> 00:13:31,644   to put the                     belt on Benoit.                  319 00:13:31,677 --> 00:13:33,913  Let's get the official              word if we can!              320 00:13:33,946 --> 00:13:36,849  I remember at that TV taping,    they asked for their release,   321 00:13:36,916 --> 00:13:38,984   and Bill Busch said,              "Yes, you can go."            322 00:13:39,018 --> 00:13:42,087  Not realizing exactly            where they were going.          323 00:13:42,121 --> 00:13:43,622  It was a Monday night.          324 00:13:43,656 --> 00:13:45,758  I'm sitting in the restaurant     having dinner with my wife,    325 00:13:45,791 --> 00:13:48,327   and on the screens,               I could see that              326 00:13:48,360 --> 00:13:50,529 Monday Night Raw was on.         327 00:13:50,596 --> 00:13:53,465    And I see Eddie, Dean, and    Chris, and Perry Saturn,         328 00:13:53,499 --> 00:13:56,268   and I thought, wow,               WCW have hit rock bottom.     329 00:13:56,302 --> 00:13:58,871    If those guys are jumping     ship, it's inevitable.           330 00:13:58,938 --> 00:14:02,141   [Indistinct shouting]          331 00:14:02,174 --> 00:14:05,377   And,                              I said to my wife,            332 00:14:05,444 --> 00:14:07,813 "Knowing Turner                   the way I do,                   333 00:14:07,847 --> 00:14:10,950   how much do you want to bet       they're gonna call me and     334 00:14:10,983 --> 00:14:12,651  ask me to come back?"           335 00:14:19,058 --> 00:14:20,626   [Commentary]                     I cannot believe it!           336 00:14:20,659 --> 00:14:23,696    15 days after Chris Benoit      wins the WCW                   337 00:14:23,729 --> 00:14:26,465 World Heavyweight title,          he appears on                   338 00:14:26,498 --> 00:14:28,667   Monday Night Raw in              the front row with             339 00:14:28,701 --> 00:14:30,736 the heart of the                  WCW mid card-                   340 00:14:30,803 --> 00:14:32,204 Eddie Guerrero,                   Dean Malenko,                   341 00:14:32,238 --> 00:14:34,006    and Perry Saturn.             342 00:14:34,039 --> 00:14:36,008 Keep in mind that those            defections had been            343 00:14:36,041 --> 00:14:37,877 happening the other way           for the longest time.           344 00:14:37,910 --> 00:14:39,478  Well, now the                    opposite is happening,          345 00:14:39,511 --> 00:14:43,482   but it's especially damaging    to WCW because                  346 00:14:43,515 --> 00:14:46,719  these are characters,           and these are wrestlers,         347 00:14:46,752 --> 00:14:48,854   who have their best              years ahead of them.           348 00:14:48,888 --> 00:14:50,422    It was a big deal.            349 00:14:50,489 --> 00:14:53,092   When those four guys           walked out- Ooh.                 350 00:14:53,158 --> 00:14:56,095  The silent hush heard              around the world.             351 00:14:56,161 --> 00:14:58,163  [Indistinct commentary]            ...on top!                    352 00:14:58,197 --> 00:14:59,765  You knew that was big.          353 00:14:59,832 --> 00:15:02,368  You knew that                   was a big move.                  354 00:15:02,401 --> 00:15:05,404   I think the office was like,     "Fuck those guys," you know,   355 00:15:05,437 --> 00:15:07,339   "we don't need 'em."             And I was like, bro,           356 00:15:07,373 --> 00:15:10,009   if they would've let              Eddie, and Benoit,            357 00:15:10,042 --> 00:15:11,744 and all these people...          358 00:15:11,777 --> 00:15:15,080  do programs as                     the guys on top...            359 00:15:15,114 --> 00:15:17,716  we might still be in business.  360 00:15:17,750 --> 00:15:20,519  [Vince] The ratings plummeted    after I left.                   361 00:15:20,552 --> 00:15:22,354 Sullivan's in charge...          362 00:15:22,388 --> 00:15:25,291    Boom. We hit rock              bottom again.                   363 00:15:25,357 --> 00:15:27,693    All the decisions                went through me,              364 00:15:27,726 --> 00:15:30,696  and I think somebody             suggested bringing Eric back.   365 00:15:30,729 --> 00:15:33,399  Since my relationship              with Eric was always good,    366 00:15:33,432 --> 00:15:36,635 and we had a successful          formula that was working         367 00:15:36,702 --> 00:15:38,971   when we were working           together on it.                  368 00:15:39,038 --> 00:15:41,774   So, I think the idea            of bringing Eric back,          369 00:15:41,807 --> 00:15:43,776    being involved as either a     consultant or whatever          370 00:15:43,809 --> 00:15:47,980  he was, seemed like a            good idea at the time.          371 00:15:48,047 --> 00:15:49,982  So, I went back to Brad, said,  "Okay, here's the deal.          372 00:15:50,049 --> 00:15:51,417 Write me a new contract.         373 00:15:51,450 --> 00:15:52,718    I don't want to be              an employee,                   374 00:15:52,751 --> 00:15:54,453   because you guys are crazier      now than you were             375 00:15:54,486 --> 00:15:58,657   when I left. I'll, you know,     report to you, nobody else."   376 00:15:58,724 --> 00:16:01,226  That was my deal and,              and they took it.             377 00:16:01,260 --> 00:16:04,063 And, Brad said,                  "Do you think-                   378 00:16:04,096 --> 00:16:07,399 Would you mind,                     before we make a decision,    379 00:16:07,433 --> 00:16:09,401  meet with Vince Russo           and decide if you think          380 00:16:09,435 --> 00:16:11,837 you can work with him."          381 00:16:11,904 --> 00:16:13,672 [Vince] I never thought          it would work.                   382 00:16:13,739 --> 00:16:16,308 But, Brad Siegel                   said to me-                    383 00:16:16,342 --> 00:16:18,143   here's what he said:           384 00:16:18,177 --> 00:16:22,181   "I want you to work              with Eric Bischoff."           385 00:16:22,247 --> 00:16:25,751    Brad Siegel never             said to me at any time,          386 00:16:25,784 --> 00:16:29,288   "Eric is your boss.               Eric is in charge of you.     387 00:16:29,321 --> 00:16:31,357 Eric has the final say,"           so I don't know what           388 00:16:31,423 --> 00:16:34,827    he had to say to get Eric     aboard. I have no idea.          389 00:16:34,860 --> 00:16:37,162  My job was to                    oversee Vince.                  390 00:16:37,196 --> 00:16:39,531 That's what I was hired           to do by Brad Siegel.           391 00:16:39,598 --> 00:16:42,167  My job definition was            overseeing Vince Russo          392 00:16:42,201 --> 00:16:44,203    and the creative process.     393 00:16:44,269 --> 00:16:46,372    ♪                             394 00:16:46,438 --> 00:16:48,874 You know, my memories of          exactly what happened           395 00:16:48,941 --> 00:16:50,943   are really sketchy.            396 00:16:50,976 --> 00:16:54,146  But if Eric came back,            I had to approve it.           397 00:16:54,179 --> 00:16:56,648   [Eric] Look, I have a pretty    strong opinion                  398 00:16:56,682 --> 00:16:58,217  about Vince,                    professionally.                  399 00:16:58,283 --> 00:17:01,620 But as a person,                   he's a charming guy.           400 00:17:01,653 --> 00:17:04,456 And, I thought,                   I can make this work.           401 00:17:04,490 --> 00:17:07,659    [Cheering]                    402 00:17:07,693 --> 00:17:10,729  What?! No way!                  403 00:17:10,796 --> 00:17:13,132    Vince Russo and I             404 00:17:13,165 --> 00:17:17,036   have more in common              than anybody knows.            405 00:17:17,069 --> 00:17:19,038 When I got back to WCW,          406 00:17:19,071 --> 00:17:21,540    in many respects,              it was worse.                   407 00:17:21,573 --> 00:17:23,675  [Indistinct commentary]         408 00:17:23,709 --> 00:17:25,177 409 00:17:25,210 --> 00:17:27,379  The stuff! Two points!          410 00:17:27,413 --> 00:17:29,081 [Off-screen] I'm gonna show you    just like a couple of clips.   411 00:17:29,148 --> 00:17:30,749   You're gonna be watching it,      and then just any             412 00:17:30,816 --> 00:17:33,719  commentary, reactions,             memories, stories.            413 00:17:33,752 --> 00:17:35,521  Anything that                    comes to mind.                  414 00:17:35,554 --> 00:17:37,089   What was your                      thoughts on this?            415 00:17:37,156 --> 00:17:39,091   [Vince] But Kevin, I've gotta     ask you a question.           416 00:17:39,158 --> 00:17:41,093   How many brain cells           417 00:17:41,160 --> 00:17:44,696   have you burnt over               the years, Kevin?             418 00:17:44,730 --> 00:17:47,399   I remember they were trying       to drop that blood on me.     419 00:17:47,433 --> 00:17:49,501    They missed like 19 times.    420 00:17:49,535 --> 00:17:51,103     Now what?                    421 00:17:51,170 --> 00:17:54,339   [Audience screaming]           422 00:17:54,373 --> 00:17:58,610 You know what?                      Take that clip...             423 00:17:58,677 --> 00:18:00,846   and show it                    424 00:18:00,879 --> 00:18:03,115  after the finger poke              of doom,                      425 00:18:03,182 --> 00:18:05,884   and then you tell me           what killed WCW.                 426 00:18:05,918 --> 00:18:10,689 [Splattering and                   crowd shouting]                  427 00:18:10,722 --> 00:18:12,558 Look at my face.                 428 00:18:12,591 --> 00:18:15,094   Like, ah, you gotta            be kidding me.                   429 00:18:15,127 --> 00:18:16,595   The New Blood strikes again!   430 00:18:16,628 --> 00:18:19,631  The New Blood's symbol!         431 00:18:19,698 --> 00:18:22,201    And Nash is walking slowly,   432 00:18:22,234 --> 00:18:23,535   drenched in the red.           433 00:18:23,569 --> 00:18:25,270  Kevin Nash in pursuit!          434 00:18:25,304 --> 00:18:28,807   This was a                        monthly... doing,             435 00:18:28,874 --> 00:18:30,909 that they did something.         436 00:18:30,943 --> 00:18:32,744     Russo running out                of the building!             437 00:18:32,778 --> 00:18:35,247 [Eric] The company was in worse  shape than it was when I left.   438 00:18:35,280 --> 00:18:36,982     They are getting                to their limousine.           439 00:18:37,049 --> 00:18:38,650    There was no hope.            440 00:18:38,717 --> 00:18:41,253  Get that damn                     camera out of here.            441 00:18:41,286 --> 00:18:44,656    [Eric] The only way I knew    how to turn that around          442 00:18:44,723 --> 00:18:47,593  was to kind of force a          creative reset,                  443 00:18:47,626 --> 00:18:51,063    and that reset involved...    444 00:18:51,096 --> 00:18:52,831 the Millionaire's Club,           which was the                   445 00:18:52,898 --> 00:18:55,734   established                      top-level talent....           446 00:18:55,767 --> 00:18:58,604    versus the young,             up-and-coming,                   447 00:18:58,637 --> 00:19:00,239 the young guns.                  448 00:19:00,272 --> 00:19:02,908  It's kind of a classic story.   449 00:19:02,941 --> 00:19:05,511 The Millionaire's Club fighting      for their very careers!      450 00:19:05,577 --> 00:19:08,080   [Vince] Bro,                     that was inspired by           451 00:19:08,113 --> 00:19:11,183    what has been going on in     wrestling from day one.          452 00:19:11,250 --> 00:19:15,187 From day one, that's the           wrestling business.            453 00:19:15,254 --> 00:19:17,156   And I'm, I'm a firm believer     that if you're gonna create    454 00:19:17,189 --> 00:19:20,792    a story, try to create one    that's based on                  455 00:19:20,826 --> 00:19:23,595  some sense of reality.          456 00:19:23,629 --> 00:19:26,365  [Vince] The Millionaire's Club  at WCW were the top guys         457 00:19:26,431 --> 00:19:27,966 that were making                  all the money.                  458 00:19:28,000 --> 00:19:30,802   Okay, the- you know,           the Hogans, the Savages,         459 00:19:30,836 --> 00:19:34,006 the Flairs, the Lugers,             you know,                     460 00:19:34,039 --> 00:19:36,542   Sting fell in that category.   461 00:19:36,608 --> 00:19:39,878    The, the New Blood            were the hungry,                 462 00:19:39,945 --> 00:19:44,316  younger guys that were making     a fraction of their salary     463 00:19:44,349 --> 00:19:47,486    because they were                being held down by            464 00:19:47,519 --> 00:19:49,121 the Millionaire's Club.          465 00:19:49,154 --> 00:19:51,623  So now they were gonna          have their day in court.         466 00:19:51,657 --> 00:19:55,227    Hey! Terry                      "The Bollster" Hogan!          467 00:19:55,294 --> 00:19:56,728  Maybe!                          468 00:19:56,795 --> 00:19:59,631  Maybe you haven't paid           attention around here!          469 00:19:59,665 --> 00:20:02,334   A lot of tension at              that time because,             470 00:20:02,367 --> 00:20:04,336  you know, the changing           of the guard,                   471 00:20:04,369 --> 00:20:06,505 that stuff was real too,            you know.                     472 00:20:06,538 --> 00:20:09,808 The stuff with Hogan and           the, the older guys.           473 00:20:09,841 --> 00:20:13,011   You know, those guys didn't      want to give up their spots.   474 00:20:13,045 --> 00:20:14,680   [DDP] You're like,              "We're making money"?           475 00:20:14,713 --> 00:20:17,683  Yeah,  cause we earned            our spot, you know,            476 00:20:17,716 --> 00:20:20,552 and bottom line is now             we're finally making money.    477 00:20:20,586 --> 00:20:22,254    [Booker] When Hogan said,      you know, he's getting older,   478 00:20:22,321 --> 00:20:24,556   but, "Everybody in that damn    locker room's                   479 00:20:24,590 --> 00:20:27,359   getting older too."              [Laughing] You know.           480 00:20:27,392 --> 00:20:29,361 Well, yeah, Hulk Hogan's          getting older,                  481 00:20:29,394 --> 00:20:31,930    and so is every other damn       wrestler in the back too.     482 00:20:31,997 --> 00:20:33,665   Day by day.                    483 00:20:33,699 --> 00:20:36,535    That was a real statement.     That's someone who's-           484 00:20:36,568 --> 00:20:38,403   who doesn't want to            let it go, man.                  485 00:20:38,437 --> 00:20:40,038  Kevin!                          486 00:20:40,072 --> 00:20:43,342    I get it, I understand it,     but for me...                   487 00:20:43,375 --> 00:20:46,678  you know, nah,                   I always, ah,                   488 00:20:46,712 --> 00:20:48,947  went as far as                  my talent could take me,         489 00:20:49,014 --> 00:20:50,616 not my politics.                 490 00:20:50,682 --> 00:20:53,118    I knew there were                gonna be politics,            491 00:20:53,185 --> 00:20:55,254   I just never thought             there were gonna be            492 00:20:55,287 --> 00:20:57,956 politics to this extent.         493 00:20:58,023 --> 00:21:00,759    Bro, even with all             these things,                   494 00:21:00,792 --> 00:21:03,395    yes, I am gonna go               into this to win.             495 00:21:03,428 --> 00:21:04,630  I'm not gonna                    go to work and                  496 00:21:04,696 --> 00:21:08,200 go through the motions,          and just waste my time.          497 00:21:08,233 --> 00:21:11,570   I literally am still             going to do                    498 00:21:11,603 --> 00:21:14,806   every single thing I           possibly can do                  499 00:21:14,873 --> 00:21:16,908  to bring those                  ratings back up.                 500 00:21:16,942 --> 00:21:19,311    ♪                             501 00:21:19,378 --> 00:21:22,414 "Ready To Rumble" was a           major motion picture            502 00:21:22,447 --> 00:21:24,116 that they were gonna do.         503 00:21:24,149 --> 00:21:26,385  David Arquette                   was gonna be the star,          504 00:21:26,418 --> 00:21:30,155 and there were gonna be           multiple WCW wrestlers in it.   505 00:21:30,222 --> 00:21:31,657    I like wrestling.             506 00:21:31,723 --> 00:21:33,492  Are you gonna                    be a wrestler?                  507 00:21:33,558 --> 00:21:36,795  [Laughing] You caught trouble    wrestling your weewee           508 00:21:36,828 --> 00:21:39,298   out of your trousers           to take a leak.                  509 00:21:39,331 --> 00:21:41,733  It's not that                   I have trouble.                  510 00:21:41,767 --> 00:21:45,637  I never really had an            interest in becoming a          511 00:21:45,671 --> 00:21:47,939  professional wrestler,          except for the fact that         512 00:21:47,973 --> 00:21:50,942    when I was a kid and I'd        look up at 'em, and, and...    513 00:21:50,976 --> 00:21:54,279  I'd be like, "Ah, it would be    so great to be the champion,"   514 00:21:54,313 --> 00:21:56,748    you know,                      and just, ah-                   515 00:21:56,782 --> 00:21:59,017    But I never really               thought of                    516 00:21:59,084 --> 00:22:00,752  myself as a wrestler.           517 00:22:00,786 --> 00:22:03,088 -The steel cage.                    -Steel cage! Done!            518 00:22:03,121 --> 00:22:05,691   But, part of the story line      in "Ready To Rumble" is that   519 00:22:05,757 --> 00:22:09,161  my character, Gordie, becomes    a wrestler at the end of it.    520 00:22:09,194 --> 00:22:11,530   And I think that was part of   the germ of the idea in          521 00:22:11,596 --> 00:22:15,600 bringing me into WCW so           that we could sort of           522 00:22:15,634 --> 00:22:17,769  have fun with                    those worlds.                   523 00:22:17,803 --> 00:22:19,638 So, we have our                    production meeting,            524 00:22:19,671 --> 00:22:21,473    and the match is,              um...                           525 00:22:21,506 --> 00:22:23,508  Jeff Jarrett,                    Eric Bischoff,                  526 00:22:23,542 --> 00:22:25,944 against DDP and                  David Arquette.                  527 00:22:25,977 --> 00:22:27,646    We have a regular               production meeting.            528 00:22:27,679 --> 00:22:28,980    Boom, boom, boom,               boom, boom.                    529 00:22:29,014 --> 00:22:32,484    Everybody leaves.              I'm literally there by myself,  530 00:22:32,517 --> 00:22:35,787    and Tony Schiavone               comes over. And Tony says,    531 00:22:35,821 --> 00:22:37,656 "Vince, do you mind if           I pitch you something?"          532 00:22:37,689 --> 00:22:40,459   I said, "Tony, absolutely."    And I got the,                   533 00:22:40,492 --> 00:22:42,661   "What if...                    534 00:22:42,694 --> 00:22:46,164 David Arquette wins that            match and becomes             535 00:22:46,198 --> 00:22:48,133 WCW Heavyweight                    Champion?"                     536 00:22:48,166 --> 00:22:51,002    I call everybody back in.     537 00:22:51,036 --> 00:22:54,873  "Guys, Tony pitched me             this idea.                    538 00:22:54,906 --> 00:22:56,808   What do you think?"            539 00:22:56,842 --> 00:23:00,078    Bro, 100% of the                people were for it.            540 00:23:00,145 --> 00:23:03,014   I don't remember how             the idea generated.            541 00:23:03,048 --> 00:23:05,517    We'd done other things to        help promote movies, and,     542 00:23:05,550 --> 00:23:08,086 and specific television            shows in the past.             543 00:23:08,153 --> 00:23:12,858   This was a rather elaborate       way to promote the movie.     544 00:23:12,891 --> 00:23:14,593 But I didn't see                 the harm in it.                  545 00:23:14,659 --> 00:23:17,662  I just laughed                  out aloud and...                 546 00:23:17,696 --> 00:23:20,232  I went, "Yeah, right,            so what are we doing?"          547 00:23:20,265 --> 00:23:24,102  And Eric goes,                     "That's what we're doing."    548 00:23:24,169 --> 00:23:25,871  I go, "No, we're not."          549 00:23:25,904 --> 00:23:28,707 He goes, "Yes, we are."           I go, "Bro, come on.            550 00:23:28,740 --> 00:23:30,942  Stop fucking with me.              We're not gonna do that."     551 00:23:31,009 --> 00:23:33,345  I go,                              "That's not a good idea."     552 00:23:33,378 --> 00:23:36,047   It was like,                   "That's a terrible idea.         553 00:23:36,081 --> 00:23:37,783   You can't do that."            554 00:23:42,921 --> 00:23:44,756  [Indistinct commentary]         555 00:23:44,790 --> 00:23:46,091   Speared by Arquette!           556 00:23:46,124 --> 00:23:48,226    Oh, Jarrett's got the belt!   557 00:23:48,260 --> 00:23:49,628     Arquette-                        1, 2, 3!                     558 00:23:49,694 --> 00:23:51,129  What?!                          559 00:23:51,196 --> 00:23:52,798    [Cheering]                    560 00:23:52,864 --> 00:23:56,134  What, what did-                   What's going on here?          561 00:23:56,201 --> 00:23:58,270    David Arquette won                the world title!             562 00:23:58,303 --> 00:24:00,605  [David] Got this huge,           like, reaction                  563 00:24:00,639 --> 00:24:02,641    when they made me              the champion.                   564 00:24:02,707 --> 00:24:04,810    You know, people throwing       something, spitting on you,    565 00:24:04,876 --> 00:24:07,712    and calling you the worst       things in the world, but...    566 00:24:07,746 --> 00:24:09,948  It really hit me when           567 00:24:09,981 --> 00:24:12,217   I was in the                   locker room and,                 568 00:24:12,250 --> 00:24:14,553 Booker T was there, and           he was getting ready.           569 00:24:14,586 --> 00:24:17,722    [Laughing]                    570 00:24:17,756 --> 00:24:19,124    He goes,                       "Booker, man,                   571 00:24:19,157 --> 00:24:21,426 this is so great, man.           I'm the world champion!          572 00:24:21,460 --> 00:24:23,829 I'm the world champion!"         You know, and he goes...         573 00:24:23,895 --> 00:24:26,431 "How many times have you           been champ, Booker?"           574 00:24:26,465 --> 00:24:27,732   He's like...                   575 00:24:27,766 --> 00:24:29,301    "I never won it,"                you know.                     576 00:24:29,334 --> 00:24:31,970   And then he goes...            577 00:24:32,003 --> 00:24:36,308    He, his, his mood                totally changed.              578 00:24:36,341 --> 00:24:39,945   And then I was like,              "Oof, whoa, okay,"            579 00:24:39,978 --> 00:24:42,914    that like,                       that hit me, so...            580 00:24:42,948 --> 00:24:45,083    [Sharmell] It was hard to       see that, you know,            581 00:24:45,116 --> 00:24:47,586    you do have these guys who    582 00:24:47,619 --> 00:24:50,522   pretty much have given their    lives for this sport,           583 00:24:50,589 --> 00:24:53,024   and then you have a               Hollywood actor,              584 00:24:53,091 --> 00:24:54,426 even though it's                    David Arquette who            585 00:24:54,459 --> 00:24:58,430    we know and love,               come in and win that title.    586 00:24:58,463 --> 00:25:01,833    Yeah, that, that,               that's a hard thing.           587 00:25:01,867 --> 00:25:05,470 I would say it was just           another nail in the coffin of   588 00:25:05,504 --> 00:25:08,974    a company that was rapidly      dying at that time.            589 00:25:09,007 --> 00:25:11,376   [Booker] I thought it was a     bad idea putting the            590 00:25:11,443 --> 00:25:13,011    World Heavyweight              Championship                    591 00:25:13,044 --> 00:25:14,813    on David Arquette.            592 00:25:14,846 --> 00:25:18,783    I mean, movie star or not,       it's just not a good play.    593 00:25:18,817 --> 00:25:20,519    And when you do something       like this, you go,             594 00:25:20,552 --> 00:25:22,020 "Okay, where do                     we go from here?"             595 00:25:22,053 --> 00:25:24,623  Well, people were pissed that      this actor that had never     596 00:25:24,656 --> 00:25:26,291  paid his dues-                      cause that's a big thing,    597 00:25:26,324 --> 00:25:29,194    paying your dues, right?-      was a world champion.           598 00:25:29,227 --> 00:25:31,663   And Vince's rebuttal             to that was,                   599 00:25:31,696 --> 00:25:33,365 "It got eyes on                   the product."                   600 00:25:33,398 --> 00:25:36,234   I don't know how well it did      in the ratings, but, I go,    601 00:25:36,301 --> 00:25:38,870    "Yeah, but it got people      talking for the wrong reasons."  602 00:25:38,904 --> 00:25:41,006    I don't think that            was a good idea.                 603 00:25:41,039 --> 00:25:43,642 Bro, I'll never forget,            the next morning after that,   604 00:25:43,675 --> 00:25:46,478    I get up, I go downstairs       to the front desk.             605 00:25:46,511 --> 00:25:48,747    What's on the front cover        of the USA Today?             606 00:25:48,813 --> 00:25:51,182 That would have                    never, ever happened           607 00:25:51,216 --> 00:25:53,351   in a million years.            608 00:25:53,385 --> 00:25:56,821    And at that time,                that's what we are after.     609 00:25:56,855 --> 00:25:59,057 And again, bro,                    I'm going to say it,           610 00:25:59,090 --> 00:26:01,693    I write a television show.    611 00:26:01,726 --> 00:26:05,430 If you think about the            importance of the world title   612 00:26:05,497 --> 00:26:07,933   in wrestling, yes,               it's predetermined,            613 00:26:07,999 --> 00:26:10,535    but it does carry with it     a huge amount of value,          614 00:26:10,569 --> 00:26:14,205    and I think fans perceived       this as another attempt to    615 00:26:14,239 --> 00:26:17,409 get the interest back in           one day rather than            616 00:26:17,442 --> 00:26:18,910 building for the future.         617 00:26:18,944 --> 00:26:20,679  [Eric] The wrestling audience    didn't appreciate it.           618 00:26:20,712 --> 00:26:23,949    In the eyes of, you know,       the hardcore wrestling fan.    619 00:26:24,015 --> 00:26:25,216   And I'm not                    dismissing them,                 620 00:26:25,250 --> 00:26:26,718 and I don't mean                  it derisively.                  621 00:26:26,751 --> 00:26:31,256    But, the really passionate    wrestling fan felt that          622 00:26:31,289 --> 00:26:33,925    it really made a               mockery of the title,           623 00:26:33,959 --> 00:26:36,595    to use that title              in that way.                    624 00:26:36,628 --> 00:26:39,598  I didn't feel that way          in that moment.                  625 00:26:39,631 --> 00:26:42,033   I was looking at the             bigger opportunity,            626 00:26:42,067 --> 00:26:44,402  and felt like we could           sustain a couple weeks          627 00:26:44,436 --> 00:26:46,237  of bad press.                   628 00:26:46,271 --> 00:26:49,774    I think Eric put himself         in a position to where...     629 00:26:49,808 --> 00:26:52,577  he stopped calling the shots,   and just started being           630 00:26:52,611 --> 00:26:55,046 a part of the shots that            were being called.            631 00:26:55,080 --> 00:26:58,149  And I think that was,            perhaps, the biggest problem.   632 00:26:58,216 --> 00:26:59,384    It is what it is.             633 00:26:59,417 --> 00:27:01,786    I didn't stop it,              let's put it that way.          634 00:27:01,820 --> 00:27:03,888 I supported it.                  635 00:27:03,922 --> 00:27:06,091   And I participated,            for God's sake.                  636 00:27:06,124 --> 00:27:07,826     The World                      Heavyweight Champion!          637 00:27:07,892 --> 00:27:10,462   [Shouting and cheering]          638 00:27:10,495 --> 00:27:12,130   I would do the same               thing today, bro.             639 00:27:12,163 --> 00:27:13,498 Without blinking an eye,         640 00:27:13,565 --> 00:27:15,233   I would do the same              exact thing today.             641 00:27:20,005 --> 00:27:22,440  Quite frankly,                     I could care less.            642 00:27:22,474 --> 00:27:24,809    Arquette goes out               there the next day!            643 00:27:24,843 --> 00:27:26,945 He doesn't want                     the championship!             644 00:27:26,978 --> 00:27:28,947    What?! Whoa! Bro!             645 00:27:28,980 --> 00:27:30,515  [Stammering]                    I, I, you know-                  646 00:27:30,582 --> 00:27:32,484   we followed that up              in the story line.             647 00:27:32,517 --> 00:27:34,319    What did he have it, bro,        for like a week?              648 00:27:34,352 --> 00:27:35,954 Hey, I think I                      killed out there.             649 00:27:35,987 --> 00:27:38,089  Listen, Page, this has           all been a big fluke,           650 00:27:38,123 --> 00:27:40,325 it's been a whole lot of         fun, but I don't deserve         651 00:27:40,358 --> 00:27:42,093 to be the World                   Heavyweight Champion.           652 00:27:42,127 --> 00:27:43,795   And he went out on,            you know, the next day,          653 00:27:43,828 --> 00:27:45,630   and he goes, "Man,               I shouldn't have the title.    654 00:27:45,664 --> 00:27:47,799  People like Booker T            should have the title."          655 00:27:47,832 --> 00:27:51,803    Tonight, I'm gonna              relinquish the belt,           656 00:27:51,836 --> 00:27:55,440  and give up the title.            I don't deserve it.            657 00:27:55,473 --> 00:27:56,608  How about that?                 658 00:27:56,641 --> 00:27:58,343 -These guys deserve it.             -[Booing]                     659 00:27:58,376 --> 00:28:00,612  Maybe Booker T                    deserves it,                   660 00:28:00,645 --> 00:28:02,180 but I don't deserve it.          661 00:28:02,213 --> 00:28:03,948  You know, I was like,              "Wow!" You know?              662 00:28:03,982 --> 00:28:06,284 So, he might have been           my biggest cheerleader,          663 00:28:06,317 --> 00:28:09,154  you know, he might have been     the spark that lit the flame.   664 00:28:09,187 --> 00:28:11,656    I started at the              bottom of that company,          665 00:28:11,690 --> 00:28:14,859   and I had seen these             guys on television,            666 00:28:14,893 --> 00:28:16,695 and now I'm in the same          locker room with them,           667 00:28:16,728 --> 00:28:20,865 and competing with them           at the highest level.           668 00:28:20,899 --> 00:28:23,868    I was doing something that      I had never imagined           669 00:28:23,902 --> 00:28:26,304  or dreamt of doing in              a million years.              670 00:28:26,337 --> 00:28:27,539     Now the axe kick!            671 00:28:27,572 --> 00:28:29,240  [DDP] I knew Book was            gonna be a big star.            672 00:28:29,307 --> 00:28:32,210  When he was putting on           grease paint one time           673 00:28:32,243 --> 00:28:34,913    when he was doing               G. I. Bro.                     674 00:28:34,979 --> 00:28:37,916   He said, "I'm here, and I'm     gonna keep doing what           675 00:28:37,982 --> 00:28:40,919    I'm doing, and eventually      I'm gonna get there."           676 00:28:40,985 --> 00:28:42,554 And I'm like, "You know          what, bro, you're right,         677 00:28:42,587 --> 00:28:46,257    you are." I said, "You got    the best attitude ever."         678 00:28:46,324 --> 00:28:48,193    Thinking about winning the       world title for me            679 00:28:48,226 --> 00:28:50,662    in this company,                 is something that             680 00:28:50,695 --> 00:28:52,163  I never really                   thought about.                  681 00:28:52,197 --> 00:28:53,431  When I first came in             this company, it was,           682 00:28:53,498 --> 00:28:54,666    you know,                     it was a clique.                 683 00:28:54,699 --> 00:28:55,867  It was a good old boys             clique, you know,             684 00:28:55,900 --> 00:28:57,569   and if you wasn't in           the good old boy clique,         685 00:28:57,602 --> 00:28:59,370    you only went to a            certain level, you know.         686 00:29:04,943 --> 00:29:07,712    ♪                             687 00:29:07,746 --> 00:29:10,915   'Cause I was Black,             to be honest.                   688 00:29:10,949 --> 00:29:12,684  I knew how good I was.          689 00:29:12,717 --> 00:29:16,221 There wasn't a                      doubt in my mind.             690 00:29:16,254 --> 00:29:19,224   But you still wonder if the       company would be              691 00:29:19,257 --> 00:29:21,726    willing to accept                a Black champion.             692 00:29:21,760 --> 00:29:24,963    ♪                             693 00:29:25,029 --> 00:29:27,699 He was beloved,                    everybody loved him.           694 00:29:27,732 --> 00:29:29,734  He was so easy                   to work with.                   695 00:29:29,768 --> 00:29:31,903    He paid his dues.             696 00:29:31,936 --> 00:29:35,607   Booker, like, had completely    thrown in the towel of          697 00:29:35,640 --> 00:29:38,743    ever thinking he was going    to be a champion                 698 00:29:38,777 --> 00:29:41,146   because he knew the            political game!                  699 00:29:41,212 --> 00:29:44,883   Everybody's fighting              for the same spot!            700 00:29:44,916 --> 00:29:48,887   And especially, bro,             when you're on top,            701 00:29:48,920 --> 00:29:52,590    you got everybody                gunning for you.              702 00:29:52,624 --> 00:29:56,394  So, when Hulk                   was on top, yes,                 703 00:29:56,427 --> 00:29:59,330   did he do everything              he possibly could             704 00:29:59,397 --> 00:30:01,399   to secure that spot?           705 00:30:01,432 --> 00:30:04,102   Bro, 1000%.                    706 00:30:09,574 --> 00:30:11,409    ♪                             707 00:30:11,442 --> 00:30:13,178    [Eric] Halloween Havoc '99      I think was                    708 00:30:13,244 --> 00:30:14,946  the last time                   Hogan appeared.                  709 00:30:14,979 --> 00:30:17,315  Of course, I was sent              home in September of '99.     710 00:30:17,348 --> 00:30:18,750    Hogan stuck around             because he was                  711 00:30:18,783 --> 00:30:20,618    obligated                     and advertised.                  712 00:30:20,652 --> 00:30:23,121  But,                               without me there,             713 00:30:23,154 --> 00:30:26,591   Hogan really wasn't               too interested in             714 00:30:26,624 --> 00:30:30,795   working in any way,               shape, or form with Russo.    715 00:30:30,829 --> 00:30:34,833   So, when I came back             to work with Russo,            716 00:30:34,866 --> 00:30:36,968  that certainly made it           a lot easier.                   717 00:30:37,001 --> 00:30:39,838 Eric is now treating me          718 00:30:39,871 --> 00:30:42,507    as I'm below him.             719 00:30:42,540 --> 00:30:44,809   And I, I had                     had enough.                    720 00:30:44,843 --> 00:30:48,713    So, I called Brad Siegel.     721 00:30:48,780 --> 00:30:50,315   And I said,                    722 00:30:50,348 --> 00:30:54,819  "Brad, if you want to             make Eric head of creative,    723 00:30:54,853 --> 00:30:57,188    freaking make him                head of creative!"            724 00:30:57,222 --> 00:31:01,226   And bro, Brad Siegel said,       "No, no, no, no, no, no, no    725 00:31:01,292 --> 00:31:05,163   Vince! I want     YOU to       write creative."                 726 00:31:05,196 --> 00:31:08,399 Bro, two days later was            Bash At The Beach.             727 00:31:08,466 --> 00:31:11,703    Bash At The Beach 2000 was      really the culmination point   728 00:31:11,736 --> 00:31:14,806   of the tension between Russo      and what he wanted to do,     729 00:31:14,839 --> 00:31:17,742    me and what I was willing       to do in the role I was in,    730 00:31:17,809 --> 00:31:19,811    and what Hogan was            willing to do...                 731 00:31:19,844 --> 00:31:22,080    given that he had                creative control.             732 00:31:22,146 --> 00:31:25,250    I will say this up front,       without a shadow of a doubt,   733 00:31:25,316 --> 00:31:28,887 if there was no                  Eric Bischoff,                   734 00:31:28,920 --> 00:31:31,689    I would have had a great       relationship with Hulk Hogan.   735 00:31:31,723 --> 00:31:34,092    And, I don't think               there ever                    736 00:31:34,158 --> 00:31:36,060    would have                     been an issue.                  737 00:31:36,094 --> 00:31:38,997   Hulk and I have a good idea    of what we wanted to do          738 00:31:39,030 --> 00:31:40,598 with his participation.          739 00:31:40,665 --> 00:31:41,833 He and I are on                  the same page,                   740 00:31:41,866 --> 00:31:43,735    and Hulk Hogan has               creative control,             741 00:31:43,768 --> 00:31:45,503  so that's pretty much            the end of any dispute          742 00:31:45,536 --> 00:31:48,072 or conversation, right.          743 00:31:48,106 --> 00:31:49,507  But at the same time,           Vince Russo had                  744 00:31:49,540 --> 00:31:51,743    his ideas of what                he wanted to do.              745 00:31:51,776 --> 00:31:54,579   And what he was able              to do was                     746 00:31:54,612 --> 00:31:56,848    take the original              idea of Hulk and I's,           747 00:31:56,881 --> 00:31:59,083  which was create some              kind of scenario              748 00:31:59,117 --> 00:32:01,286   where Hulk gets so                frustrated, or disgusted,     749 00:32:01,352 --> 00:32:04,889   or pissed off, he grabs the     belt and walks out of           750 00:32:04,923 --> 00:32:09,060 the building, presumably         never to be seen again.          751 00:32:09,093 --> 00:32:11,362    That was the plan.            752 00:32:11,396 --> 00:32:14,132  [Vince] I'm saying to myself,      bro, no.                      753 00:32:14,198 --> 00:32:17,602  You're not walking out           of here with the belt.          754 00:32:17,635 --> 00:32:19,404    -Now what?                     -I don't know, it's...          755 00:32:19,437 --> 00:32:20,872     Who's laying down              on this one?                   756 00:32:20,905 --> 00:32:23,074   But what Vince Russo did was      jump in the middle part of    757 00:32:23,107 --> 00:32:26,377    our plan, and decided that       once Eric and Hulk            758 00:32:26,411 --> 00:32:28,146    left the building-             which we did,                   759 00:32:28,212 --> 00:32:30,114   according to script,              OUR         script-           760 00:32:30,148 --> 00:32:33,117 Vince Russo jumped into          the ring, live,                  761 00:32:33,151 --> 00:32:35,320  and went into business          for himself and                  762 00:32:35,386 --> 00:32:37,488   implemented                     his own idea.                   763 00:32:37,555 --> 00:32:40,058    [Cheering]                    764 00:32:40,091 --> 00:32:41,993 Hey, let me tell ya who            doesn't give a shit            765 00:32:42,060 --> 00:32:43,761   about this company!            766 00:32:43,795 --> 00:32:46,631    That God damn politician,       Hulk Hogan!                    767 00:32:46,664 --> 00:32:48,333    I remember looking around,    768 00:32:48,399 --> 00:32:52,003  talking to some of the             other Nitro Girls, like...    769 00:32:52,070 --> 00:32:53,671   "Is, is this what's supposed      to be happening?"             770 00:32:53,738 --> 00:32:55,807   Like, what's going-               is this written?              771 00:32:55,840 --> 00:32:57,342    What is going on?             772 00:32:57,408 --> 00:33:00,445    Hulk Hogan tonight             wants to play                   773 00:33:00,478 --> 00:33:03,982    his creative control card.    774 00:33:04,015 --> 00:33:05,817    Holy shit.                    775 00:33:05,850 --> 00:33:07,251 This, this is...                 776 00:33:07,285 --> 00:33:09,253 he's shooting, you know,          he's talking for real.          777 00:33:09,287 --> 00:33:10,822   This is not a work.            778 00:33:10,855 --> 00:33:12,490    But one thing I do               want to point out.            779 00:33:12,523 --> 00:33:15,860   As much as this was a work,      and everybody was,             780 00:33:15,927 --> 00:33:20,031   you know, in on it,               when I talk about reality,    781 00:33:20,098 --> 00:33:22,600   I really am                    this pissed off.                 782 00:33:22,633 --> 00:33:26,037   Hogan got his belt,               and he went the hell home,    783 00:33:26,104 --> 00:33:28,206  and I promise                      everybody or else             784 00:33:28,272 --> 00:33:30,541 I'll go in the                   God damn grave,                  785 00:33:30,608 --> 00:33:33,144   you will never see                that piece of shit again.     786 00:33:33,177 --> 00:33:36,347    I didn't know that               was coming, and...            787 00:33:36,381 --> 00:33:40,018    that promo to me felt as        real as it possibly can be,    788 00:33:40,051 --> 00:33:42,520   as far as two people having    789 00:33:42,553 --> 00:33:45,857   a venomous animosity             towards each other.            790 00:33:45,890 --> 00:33:49,193 The point of this promo             was not to run Hogan down.    791 00:33:49,227 --> 00:33:51,396  The point of it was...          792 00:33:51,462 --> 00:33:54,165  we need Booker                  to win the belt,                 793 00:33:54,198 --> 00:33:55,900   and I need to make sense of    794 00:33:55,967 --> 00:33:58,302   why this match is happening.   795 00:33:58,336 --> 00:34:02,373   For the WCW title,               two deserving guys-            796 00:34:02,407 --> 00:34:05,743   Jarrett! And Booker!           797 00:34:05,810 --> 00:34:07,879    Will compete for the WCW,     798 00:34:07,912 --> 00:34:10,681  and they'll tear this            God damn house down!            799 00:34:10,715 --> 00:34:13,718   I found out about 10 minutes   before I had to wrestle.         800 00:34:13,751 --> 00:34:15,219    This all came as                 a surprise to me.             801 00:34:15,253 --> 00:34:16,421   I really don't know               what's going on.              802 00:34:16,487 --> 00:34:18,356 Vince made the decision.         803 00:34:18,389 --> 00:34:20,892  Cut that promo before              I had to go out.              804 00:34:20,925 --> 00:34:22,727  Man, I had so                    much energy.                    805 00:34:22,760 --> 00:34:25,229 Opportunity has knocked,           and I will be damned           806 00:34:25,263 --> 00:34:26,864   if I don't                        answer that door.             807 00:34:26,898 --> 00:34:29,100    I am gonna do what I have      to do tonight to take           808 00:34:29,167 --> 00:34:31,235 that gold home, take it             around my waist,              809 00:34:31,269 --> 00:34:32,603   and taking it to the           next millennium.                 810 00:34:32,670 --> 00:34:34,272   Now can you                     dig that shit?                  811 00:34:34,338 --> 00:34:36,707  I can.                             Tony, back to you.            812 00:34:36,741 --> 00:34:38,576  I was ready to become              the world champ.              813 00:34:44,849 --> 00:34:47,518   I remember, before the bell       rang I jumped up so high,     814 00:34:47,552 --> 00:34:49,387 you know, and, you know,         just because I was like,         815 00:34:49,420 --> 00:34:51,589  "Let's get this done,"             you know.                     816 00:34:51,622 --> 00:34:56,761   [Indistinct shouting              and crowd cheering]             817 00:34:56,794 --> 00:34:58,396    ...2! ...3!                   818 00:34:58,429 --> 00:35:01,299    [Cheering]                    819 00:35:01,365 --> 00:35:03,568   Booker T's the champ!          820 00:35:03,601 --> 00:35:08,539 ♪ [Triumphant] ♪                 821 00:35:08,573 --> 00:35:13,377    ♪                             822 00:35:13,411 --> 00:35:14,879    It took somebody                 like Vince Russo,             823 00:35:14,912 --> 00:35:17,381    somebody that was outside        the box that pushed them      824 00:35:17,415 --> 00:35:19,951   to make a decision,              and then, you know,            825 00:35:19,984 --> 00:35:22,286  check their conscience           for a second.                   826 00:35:22,320 --> 00:35:25,423 I came back for                  the Booker Ts!                   827 00:35:25,456 --> 00:35:29,127   I was totally out of            the loop, as far as...          828 00:35:29,160 --> 00:35:32,263    what was going on with...     829 00:35:32,296 --> 00:35:34,165 Vince Russo and                  830 00:35:34,232 --> 00:35:37,235  Hulk Hogan and                   Eric Bischoff.                  831 00:35:37,268 --> 00:35:39,770    [Vince] Bro, the next day        on the internet,              832 00:35:39,804 --> 00:35:42,406 everybody bought this-           hook, line, and sinker.          833 00:35:42,440 --> 00:35:47,445    And bro, what you got over      and over and over again was,   834 00:35:47,478 --> 00:35:50,848 "Finally! Somebody put              Hulk Hogan in his place!"     835 00:35:50,915 --> 00:35:54,519 Hulk is at home,                  and he's reading this,          836 00:35:54,585 --> 00:35:59,090    and he's seething, and his       ego is kicking in because     837 00:35:59,123 --> 00:36:03,194  now it looks like this           jackass, Vince Russo,           838 00:36:03,261 --> 00:36:05,196   got one over                    on Hulk Hogan.                  839 00:36:05,263 --> 00:36:07,331    That's why this company's        in the damn shape             840 00:36:07,365 --> 00:36:09,767   it's in because of               bullshit like this.            841 00:36:09,800 --> 00:36:12,136    [Cheering]                    842 00:36:12,170 --> 00:36:14,338 My phone's just                     nonstop vibrating.            843 00:36:14,372 --> 00:36:16,174  Hulk's phone's                    blowing up.                    844 00:36:16,207 --> 00:36:18,042    And now we're starting to      hear bits and pieces            845 00:36:18,109 --> 00:36:21,012  from different people            about what Russo did.           846 00:36:21,045 --> 00:36:22,780  And we're looking at              each other like this can't,    847 00:36:22,813 --> 00:36:24,949   this can't                        possibly be true.             848 00:36:24,982 --> 00:36:27,852   Hulk Hogan, who is                contractually entitled to     849 00:36:27,885 --> 00:36:30,354  have final say                  over creative...                 850 00:36:30,388 --> 00:36:32,290  and yet, he throws all of that     out the window and            851 00:36:32,323 --> 00:36:34,025    goes into business              for himself?                   852 00:36:34,058 --> 00:36:35,226   Tears the script up,              and says,                     853 00:36:35,293 --> 00:36:36,861   "No, I'm gonna do it           my way instead"?                 854 00:36:36,894 --> 00:36:39,497   We couldn't believe              that that happened.            855 00:36:39,530 --> 00:36:41,999   As far as Hulk was              concerned, he's done.           856 00:36:42,033 --> 00:36:43,901  There's going                   to be a lawsuit.                 857 00:36:43,968 --> 00:36:46,737 As far as I'm concerned,            I'm done.                     858 00:36:46,804 --> 00:36:49,574  Regardless of who did           what and who says what,          859 00:36:49,640 --> 00:36:52,877    let's just look at it from       the most important person     860 00:36:52,910 --> 00:36:55,513    in the equation, which is        the people paying money to    861 00:36:55,546 --> 00:36:57,315 come and see the shows,          buying the Pay Per View,         862 00:36:57,348 --> 00:36:58,816  showing up to                   the live events.                 863 00:36:58,849 --> 00:37:01,852  Why would I buy into the idea     that the next Pay Per View     864 00:37:01,886 --> 00:37:03,321 is gonna be the                    biggest event ever,            865 00:37:03,354 --> 00:37:04,722  or the next match is             gonna be unbelievable           866 00:37:04,755 --> 00:37:06,991    when it seems like every        time they hype something up    867 00:37:07,024 --> 00:37:08,993  some nonsense                      like this happens?            868 00:37:09,026 --> 00:37:11,529 Ultimately, I think what         this represented was the         869 00:37:11,562 --> 00:37:14,432  blowing up of this new             creative team that            870 00:37:14,498 --> 00:37:16,434    many had predicted            was inevitable.                  871 00:37:16,500 --> 00:37:18,202    And unfortunately,             it played out,                  872 00:37:18,236 --> 00:37:19,437  not behind the scenes,          873 00:37:19,503 --> 00:37:21,272 but in front of                  everyone to see.                 874 00:37:21,339 --> 00:37:23,241   You could talk about            angles and storylines,          875 00:37:23,274 --> 00:37:25,443   and this and that-               the fact that I was            876 00:37:25,509 --> 00:37:29,380 in a position to be able          to do the right thing-          877 00:37:29,413 --> 00:37:31,382    Booker T becoming                the champion and              878 00:37:31,415 --> 00:37:35,686  a man finally getting            what he deserved and            879 00:37:35,720 --> 00:37:38,723 getting through all that         red tape and all the BS          880 00:37:38,756 --> 00:37:42,526   was far and away my               greatest moment.              881 00:37:42,560 --> 00:37:45,429  Russo's stunt made it            impossible for me to,           882 00:37:45,463 --> 00:37:47,365  A, trust Vince Russo.           883 00:37:47,398 --> 00:37:49,433 Or really the judgement             of anybody else,              884 00:37:49,467 --> 00:37:52,036  including Brad Siegel.             Brad had a choice.            885 00:37:52,069 --> 00:37:54,372  He could have                   sent Russo home                  886 00:37:54,405 --> 00:37:56,707    following                        Bash At The Beach.            887 00:37:56,741 --> 00:37:58,409  But he didn't.                  888 00:37:58,442 --> 00:38:01,312  Eric and Hogan                  were partners in                 889 00:38:01,379 --> 00:38:03,581 what they wanted                  to do at WCW.                   890 00:38:03,614 --> 00:38:07,418 And, I was trying to do             whatever I can do             891 00:38:07,451 --> 00:38:09,587 to get it back on track.         892 00:38:09,620 --> 00:38:12,123    [Cheering]                    893 00:38:12,156 --> 00:38:14,725 I came back to the guys            behind that curtain            894 00:38:14,759 --> 00:38:17,428  that give a shit about           this company!                   895 00:38:17,461 --> 00:38:18,663 Post Bash At The Beach,          896 00:38:18,729 --> 00:38:20,498   now we have another              creative shake-up.             897 00:38:20,564 --> 00:38:21,899 Eric goes home,                  898 00:38:21,932 --> 00:38:24,335 Hulk is never to be seen         on WCW TV again.                 899 00:38:24,402 --> 00:38:26,971    And for the next 3 months     we have Vince Russo and          900 00:38:27,004 --> 00:38:30,141   a booking committee mapping    out WCW's story lines.           901 00:38:30,174 --> 00:38:31,909  So much had happened,           902 00:38:31,942 --> 00:38:34,912  there had been so many           attempted restarts and reboots  903 00:38:34,945 --> 00:38:38,282    and changes of direction         that the entire promotion     904 00:38:38,316 --> 00:38:40,918    was sort of in a               state of shell shock.           905 00:38:40,951 --> 00:38:43,020    Once the bleeding started,      it was a consistent            906 00:38:43,087 --> 00:38:45,623 deterioration of                 WCW's business.                  907 00:38:45,656 --> 00:38:50,328  [Indistinct commentary            and shouting]                    908 00:38:50,361 --> 00:38:51,762 Everything was                      very spontaneous,             909 00:38:51,796 --> 00:38:53,964 in the moment:                     "What gets me excited now?"    910 00:38:53,998 --> 00:38:56,500     Learn the meaning of the         world discipline, ladies?    911 00:38:56,534 --> 00:38:58,602  [Indistinct shouting]           912 00:38:58,636 --> 00:38:59,937 He was doing a                   lot of segments                  913 00:38:59,970 --> 00:39:01,839  with himself involved.          914 00:39:01,872 --> 00:39:03,307  [Indistinct commentary]         915 00:39:03,341 --> 00:39:05,609   Well, he was brought              in to be a writer.            916 00:39:05,643 --> 00:39:08,346   And then, he'd write            himself into the show.          917 00:39:08,379 --> 00:39:10,681    And, write himself             as one of the                   918 00:39:10,715 --> 00:39:12,216 main characters                   in the show.                    919 00:39:12,283 --> 00:39:14,218 This is my show!                 920 00:39:14,285 --> 00:39:16,120    This is my house!             921 00:39:16,153 --> 00:39:17,822 And these are my people!         922 00:39:17,855 --> 00:39:20,491    I'm just going to be 1000%    923 00:39:20,524 --> 00:39:21,892   completely honest with you.    924 00:39:21,959 --> 00:39:24,395  As far as an                       on-air character,             925 00:39:24,462 --> 00:39:28,566  I felt that I was better than     80% of that roster.            926 00:39:28,632 --> 00:39:31,035 They put so much                   pressure on me, bro,           927 00:39:31,068 --> 00:39:34,705 that I made the mistake             of saying, "You know what?    928 00:39:34,739 --> 00:39:37,675  F' it.                            If you want ratings,           929 00:39:37,708 --> 00:39:40,411 I will go out there and           get ratings myself."            930 00:39:40,478 --> 00:39:43,347    I almost get killed, bro.     931 00:39:43,381 --> 00:39:46,183   I almost got killed.           932 00:39:46,217 --> 00:39:48,219     [Crowd shouting]                Oh! Whoa!                     933 00:39:52,656 --> 00:39:54,859   What I'm looking for             tonight is ratings!            934 00:39:54,892 --> 00:39:56,761   Big ratings!                   935 00:39:56,827 --> 00:39:59,597 And we're gonna deliver,           you son of a bitch!            936 00:39:59,663 --> 00:40:02,032    Like, to this day, people     think that's who I am.           937 00:40:02,066 --> 00:40:05,403    That's why so many               people dislike me,            938 00:40:05,436 --> 00:40:07,238    hate me who don't             know me because                  939 00:40:07,271 --> 00:40:09,907   they think I'm my character.   940 00:40:09,940 --> 00:40:12,443  Knock it off,                   know your place.                 941 00:40:12,510 --> 00:40:14,378   He put the belt on himself.    942 00:40:14,412 --> 00:40:16,747    He became                        champion somehow,             943 00:40:16,781 --> 00:40:19,183 which I just thought was          kind of self-serving.           944 00:40:19,216 --> 00:40:21,285  I can't even imagine,              you know,                     945 00:40:21,352 --> 00:40:25,122   what brought that on except    for childhood dream...           946 00:40:25,189 --> 00:40:27,558   that every one of us              have had.                     947 00:40:27,591 --> 00:40:29,393    So, I get                     Vince doing it.                  948 00:40:29,427 --> 00:40:31,195 I don't think it                 was a good idea.                 949 00:40:31,228 --> 00:40:33,597    But, I get it, and he had     a lot of heat,                   950 00:40:33,631 --> 00:40:36,767    you know, internal             and external.                   951 00:40:36,801 --> 00:40:38,369   [Shouting commentary]          952 00:40:38,402 --> 00:40:41,272  Bro, listen, I never               thought I was a wrestler.     953 00:40:41,305 --> 00:40:45,443 Again, this is a                 television show.                 954 00:40:45,476 --> 00:40:47,711 All I'm trying to do is          955 00:40:47,745 --> 00:40:50,114  entertain an audience.          956 00:40:50,147 --> 00:40:51,649  [Indistinct commentary]         957 00:40:51,715 --> 00:40:53,484 Bro, I should have never           gotten in the ring.            958 00:40:53,551 --> 00:40:56,420  I was really concerned          about my health.                 959 00:40:56,454 --> 00:40:59,290   They were hurting me             on purpose.                    960 00:40:59,323 --> 00:41:02,493   First of all, with Goldberg,      he's supposed to spear me     961 00:41:02,560 --> 00:41:04,595  into the entranceway.           962 00:41:04,628 --> 00:41:08,098    And I told him ten times:     963 00:41:08,132 --> 00:41:09,567    "Bro, I got a concussion.     964 00:41:09,600 --> 00:41:13,904    Like, just please work me      to the entranceway."            965 00:41:13,938 --> 00:41:15,339  What does he do, bro?           966 00:41:15,406 --> 00:41:17,341   He spears me right               into the iron rail.            967 00:41:17,408 --> 00:41:21,011   [Indistinct shouting]            Whoa!                          968 00:41:21,078 --> 00:41:24,615  Come on, come on, man,             like no question about it.    969 00:41:24,648 --> 00:41:26,116  If I wanted to                   intentionally hurt him          970 00:41:26,150 --> 00:41:28,419   he'd be underground              right now.                     971 00:41:28,452 --> 00:41:30,454  And anyone who                    doesn't believe that           972 00:41:30,488 --> 00:41:32,122   doesn't know                      anything about me.            973 00:41:35,159 --> 00:41:37,628   I think so, without a doubt.   Without a doubt.                 974 00:41:37,661 --> 00:41:39,797    And that was it,                 that, that spear,             975 00:41:39,830 --> 00:41:42,933  that was the one that              put me away, that was it.     976 00:41:42,967 --> 00:41:47,638    Why am I putting my health      on the line when, obviously,   977 00:41:47,671 --> 00:41:50,140    nobody gives a crap about      this company anymore?           978 00:41:50,174 --> 00:41:52,443 Russo! I'm here!                 979 00:41:52,476 --> 00:41:53,844 And I'm waiting, Vince.          980 00:41:53,878 --> 00:41:56,780 So, the last show that           Vince Russo is credited          981 00:41:56,814 --> 00:42:00,184  to have written is the             October 2nd, 2000,            982 00:42:00,217 --> 00:42:02,219 edition of Monday Nitro.         983 00:42:02,286 --> 00:42:05,723  He gives an interview              the next day on WCW Live,     984 00:42:05,789 --> 00:42:08,025    lamenting everything that       was going on in the company,   985 00:42:08,058 --> 00:42:11,128   and then he's gone from the       picture after that point.     986 00:42:11,161 --> 00:42:12,730  This is Russo                    in 2000, baby.                  987 00:42:12,796 --> 00:42:14,164   Hulk Hogan...                  988 00:42:14,198 --> 00:42:16,400   I don't give a damn.           989 00:42:16,467 --> 00:42:19,670     You think I care               about Eric Bischoff?           990 00:42:19,703 --> 00:42:21,872   I could give a damn.           991 00:42:21,906 --> 00:42:26,377  Ratings 2.7, 1.7, 0.7.          992 00:42:26,410 --> 00:42:27,912   I don't care.                  993 00:42:27,978 --> 00:42:30,381    Vince Russo losing               his job next week,            994 00:42:30,414 --> 00:42:33,217   I don't give a damn.           995 00:42:33,250 --> 00:42:34,418    ♪                             996 00:42:34,485 --> 00:42:36,987  When I see this, and I            see that guy there,            997 00:42:37,021 --> 00:42:40,024   it really reminds me of how       much I hate the business.     998 00:42:40,057 --> 00:42:41,325    I mean, I'm gonna               be honest with you.            999 00:42:41,358 --> 00:42:43,260 I mean, there's a lot of           people that                    1000 00:42:43,327 --> 00:42:46,263    don't like me saying that.    1001 00:42:46,330 --> 00:42:48,098 That's the fact                  of the matter.                   1002 00:42:48,165 --> 00:42:52,403 It really brings me back           to the, the damage,            1003 00:42:52,436 --> 00:42:56,740  emotionally, that this            business did to me.            1004 00:42:56,774 --> 00:42:59,443   That's ab-                     absolute truth.                  1005 00:42:59,510 --> 00:43:01,278    God honest truth.             1006 00:43:01,345 --> 00:43:04,381  And then, those same             politics exist today.           1007 00:43:04,415 --> 00:43:07,217    ♪                             1008 00:43:07,251 --> 00:43:10,387   What is the                      fate of WCW?                   1009 00:43:10,421 --> 00:43:12,222  We're talking about a              company that, at its peak,    1010 00:43:12,256 --> 00:43:14,925  was generating in the             neighborhood of $200 million   1011 00:43:14,959 --> 00:43:18,262    a year, and a huge              part of pop culture.           1012 00:43:18,295 --> 00:43:20,097    It's a hit every                Monday every night.            1013 00:43:20,130 --> 00:43:21,365  But it wasn't anymore.          1014 00:43:21,398 --> 00:43:23,067  It was so bad!                  1015 00:43:23,100 --> 00:43:26,136  The bickering,                  the in-fighting.                 1016 00:43:26,203 --> 00:43:27,471    We're Time-Warner.            1017 00:43:27,538 --> 00:43:29,773   Is it that important to own      a wrestling company            1018 00:43:29,807 --> 00:43:32,776   that's losing money,             bleeding massively?            1019 00:43:32,810 --> 00:43:34,612  I'll sit and watch the             fucking thing sink            1020 00:43:34,645 --> 00:43:36,313  from my fucking house.          1021 00:43:36,380 --> 00:43:38,148   It didn't feel like               a family anymore.             1022 00:43:38,215 --> 00:43:40,150 You had to look                     out for yourself.             1023 00:43:40,217 --> 00:43:42,720    What's gonna happen here?     Are they gonna stick with this?  1024 00:43:42,753 --> 00:43:44,221    Are they not gonna             stick with it?                  1025 00:43:44,254 --> 00:43:47,958 I said, "Brad, why don't            you let me explore            1026 00:43:47,992 --> 00:43:51,996    selling WCW while it still    has some value?"                 1027 00:43:52,062 --> 00:43:53,731    Going out!                    1028 00:43:53,764 --> 00:43:55,633    We thought we were coming       to work like a regular day.    1029 00:43:55,666 --> 00:43:56,967  Do you know anything?           1030 00:43:57,001 --> 00:43:59,303 And no one knew                     until that night.             1031 00:43:59,336 --> 00:44:02,606 Because the fate of WCW          1032 00:44:02,640 --> 00:44:05,342 is in my hands.