1 00:00:05,170 --> 00:00:07,290 [TV Crew] Standby. 2 00:00:07,290 --> 00:00:09,210 Here we go, in 5... 3 00:00:09,210 --> 00:00:12,760 4, 3... 4 00:00:12,760 --> 00:00:14,090 2... Roll it, Drew. 5 00:00:14,090 --> 00:00:18,430 [Crackling and popping fireworks] 6 00:00:18,430 --> 00:00:20,520 [Commentary] This is the last Nitro on the Turner Network, 7 00:00:20,520 --> 00:00:22,480 and we're going out with a bang! 8 00:00:22,480 --> 00:00:26,730 How do we all, on this very surreal day for all of us 9 00:00:26,730 --> 00:00:28,190 at World Championship Wrestling, 10 00:00:28,190 --> 00:00:30,730 a historic day in sports entertainment, 11 00:00:30,730 --> 00:00:32,690 and it goes down on our very last telecaster. 12 00:00:32,690 --> 00:00:35,110 Where does WCW go from here? 13 00:00:35,110 --> 00:00:36,280 What's in the cards? 14 00:00:36,280 --> 00:00:38,780 What's, what's going to happen? 15 00:00:38,780 --> 00:00:41,160 [Eric] If I'm giving a eulogy for WCW, 16 00:00:41,160 --> 00:00:42,910 what would I say? 17 00:00:42,910 --> 00:00:45,120 [Ric Flair] We were WCW! 18 00:00:45,120 --> 00:00:47,130 We lived, we breathed! 19 00:00:47,130 --> 00:00:48,420 We sweat! 20 00:00:48,420 --> 00:00:51,380 We paid the price! 21 00:00:51,380 --> 00:00:52,920 To be the best! 22 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:55,800 [Cheering] 23 00:00:55,800 --> 00:00:57,640 [Madusa] We gather here today 24 00:00:57,640 --> 00:01:01,140 to bid farewell to a wrestling company. 25 00:01:01,140 --> 00:01:03,350 [Booker T] A company that grew from the ashes, 26 00:01:03,350 --> 00:01:06,600 rose to become the phoenix of professional wrestling. 27 00:01:06,600 --> 00:01:09,900 [The Rock] The legacy of WCW is iconic. 28 00:01:09,900 --> 00:01:12,570 I have just such a tremendous amount of reverence and 29 00:01:12,570 --> 00:01:15,570 respect for everything that they were able to do. 30 00:01:15,570 --> 00:01:18,030 [Bill] To know that it went from that... 31 00:01:18,030 --> 00:01:21,540 to being out of business, is a tragedy. 32 00:01:21,540 --> 00:01:23,500 [Konnan] People thinking about themselves and not the 33 00:01:23,500 --> 00:01:28,330 good of the company led to the death of WCW. 34 00:01:28,330 --> 00:01:30,500 [Kevin Nash] Thanks to the cash. 35 00:01:30,500 --> 00:01:32,750 [Bret Hart] Thanks for nothing. Go ---- yourselves. 36 00:01:32,750 --> 00:01:34,590 [Off-screen] [Laughing] 37 00:01:34,590 --> 00:01:37,130 I think that would sum it up. 38 00:01:37,130 --> 00:01:38,550 [Eric] You know, if I looked back and 39 00:01:38,550 --> 00:01:41,810 tried to describe the journey- 40 00:01:41,810 --> 00:01:45,640 the ups, the downs, the twists, the curves- 41 00:01:45,640 --> 00:01:48,440 the ride all along the way was a rush. 42 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:49,650 [Clap] 43 00:01:49,650 --> 00:01:52,860 WCW innovated so many things that are still 44 00:01:52,860 --> 00:01:55,240 so much a part of the wrestling programming 45 00:01:55,240 --> 00:01:57,700 that we watch today. 46 00:01:57,700 --> 00:02:00,370 Going back to the 80s, early 90s, 47 00:02:00,370 --> 00:02:02,830 it was a little company that nobody thought was 48 00:02:02,830 --> 00:02:04,240 ever going to be successful. 49 00:02:04,240 --> 00:02:05,500 Boom! 50 00:02:05,500 --> 00:02:07,500 Any time anybody talked about professional wrestling 51 00:02:07,500 --> 00:02:09,210 in mainstream media... 52 00:02:09,210 --> 00:02:12,090 they didn't refer to it as "professional wrestling". 53 00:02:12,090 --> 00:02:14,380 They referred to it as "WWF". 54 00:02:14,380 --> 00:02:16,470 The World Wrestling Federation! 55 00:02:16,470 --> 00:02:19,050 If you look at where WCW started from... 56 00:02:19,050 --> 00:02:21,510 Tonight! On World Championship Wrestling! 57 00:02:21,510 --> 00:02:22,850 We were in a different universe, 58 00:02:22,850 --> 00:02:24,930 and not a favorable one. 59 00:02:24,930 --> 00:02:27,310 That's how far behind we were. 60 00:02:27,310 --> 00:02:31,520 Everybody was very happy to be a distant 61 00:02:31,520 --> 00:02:32,980 Except for me. 62 00:02:32,980 --> 00:02:34,820 Nitro! It's on the air! 63 00:02:34,820 --> 00:02:38,610 The difference between WCW in '93... 64 00:02:38,610 --> 00:02:40,070 Take a look at the crowd! 65 00:02:40,070 --> 00:02:41,240 And '98... 66 00:02:41,240 --> 00:02:44,530 Over 40,000 fans are jammed in the Georgia Dome! 67 00:02:44,530 --> 00:02:47,330 We became the most successful wrestling company 68 00:02:47,330 --> 00:02:49,330 in the world, almost overnight. 69 00:02:49,330 --> 00:02:52,250 Gentlemen! Start your engines! 70 00:02:52,250 --> 00:02:56,000 WCW was able to transcend pop culture. 71 00:02:56,000 --> 00:02:57,420 Wow! The Sting! 72 00:02:57,420 --> 00:02:58,840 Timmy. 73 00:02:58,840 --> 00:03:02,510 Here comes the NWO, the greatest faction ever. 74 00:03:02,510 --> 00:03:04,100 I don't think I'd seen anything that's 75 00:03:04,100 --> 00:03:05,760 hotter than NWO. I was like, 76 00:03:05,760 --> 00:03:09,430 "Wow, this company's gonna go through the roof." 77 00:03:09,430 --> 00:03:10,890 We were standing on top of the mountain, going, 78 00:03:10,890 --> 00:03:12,480 "How did we get here?" 79 00:03:12,480 --> 00:03:14,770 And then, little by little, we just fell. 80 00:03:14,770 --> 00:03:16,150 Good night! 81 00:03:16,150 --> 00:03:18,280 It was like me having a puppy, 82 00:03:18,280 --> 00:03:20,780 raising him to be a full grown dog, 83 00:03:20,780 --> 00:03:22,820 and I watch him run across the street and 84 00:03:22,820 --> 00:03:24,450 he gets hit by a bus. 85 00:03:24,450 --> 00:03:25,950 Ugh! 86 00:03:25,950 --> 00:03:27,620 Egos, egos, egos. 87 00:03:27,620 --> 00:03:30,120 A lot of jealousy, a lot of problems. 88 00:03:30,120 --> 00:03:32,420 Do I got your attention now, Eric Bischoff? 89 00:03:32,420 --> 00:03:34,040 Think about it- what are wrestlers? 90 00:03:34,040 --> 00:03:36,090 They're a bunch of pathological liars. 91 00:03:36,090 --> 00:03:38,920 What a big word for a suit and tie. 92 00:03:38,920 --> 00:03:42,800 The death of WCW is really death by 1,000 cuts. 93 00:03:42,800 --> 00:03:45,260 So, what really happened? 94 00:03:45,260 --> 00:03:48,060 Who's responsible for killing WCW? 95 00:03:48,060 --> 00:03:50,480 That's always gonna be the million-dollar question: 96 00:03:50,480 --> 00:03:52,980 Who killed WCW? 97 00:03:52,980 --> 00:03:54,440 Well, the easy answer is Vince Russo. 98 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:56,400 It's just idiotic. 99 00:03:56,400 --> 00:03:57,520 Turner. 100 00:03:57,520 --> 00:04:00,360 The organization, or lack of. 101 00:04:00,360 --> 00:04:02,820 The talent killed WCW. 102 00:04:02,820 --> 00:04:06,070 Ha-ha-ha! This is preposterous to me. 103 00:04:06,070 --> 00:04:07,910 It would have to be the person with the chequebook. 104 00:04:07,910 --> 00:04:09,490 It'd have to be Eric Bischoff. 105 00:04:09,490 --> 00:04:10,500 Oof. [Sighing] 106 00:04:10,500 --> 00:04:12,660 Sometimes more than one thing can be true. 107 00:04:12,660 --> 00:04:14,290 There's too much blame to go around. 108 00:04:14,290 --> 00:04:15,790 You want to hear the real story, 109 00:04:15,790 --> 00:04:19,090 or you want to hear the bullshit story? 110 00:04:19,090 --> 00:04:20,710 [Indistinct, overlapping dialogue] 111 00:04:20,710 --> 00:04:22,380 You cannot sweep this under the rug! 112 00:04:22,380 --> 00:04:24,180 ...this is a ----ing television show... 113 00:04:24,180 --> 00:04:25,340 ...I don't understand what he's doing... 114 00:04:25,340 --> 00:04:27,390 The real reason... 115 00:04:27,390 --> 00:04:29,640 [Flatlining extended beep] 116 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:34,310 ♪ [Dramatic instrumental] ♪ 117 00:04:34,310 --> 00:04:37,270 [Dial up internet beeping and squawking] 118 00:04:37,270 --> 00:04:38,690 Back in the day, 119 00:04:38,690 --> 00:04:41,320 back prior to social media... 120 00:04:41,320 --> 00:04:43,860 there was still an internet culture for the 121 00:04:43,860 --> 00:04:45,860 wrestling fan scene to congregate, 122 00:04:45,860 --> 00:04:48,580 and it had a desperate need for an understanding 123 00:04:48,580 --> 00:04:51,410 of what happened to WCW... 124 00:04:51,410 --> 00:04:54,790 who have convinced a certain percentage of the audience 125 00:04:54,790 --> 00:04:58,170 that it ultimately comes back to me. 126 00:04:58,170 --> 00:05:01,340 ♪ 127 00:05:01,340 --> 00:05:04,930 [Birds chirping] 128 00:05:04,930 --> 00:05:06,890 If someone were to come to me and say, 129 00:05:06,890 --> 00:05:10,100 "Okay, here's a tape." 130 00:05:10,100 --> 00:05:11,930 "I want you to watch this whole tape, 131 00:05:11,930 --> 00:05:15,190 and it's gonna be the entire WCW journey, 132 00:05:15,190 --> 00:05:17,770 and you can decide if you want to do it all over again." 133 00:05:17,770 --> 00:05:19,690 What would I say? 134 00:05:19,690 --> 00:05:21,230 ♪ 135 00:05:21,230 --> 00:05:23,530 In a heartbeat... 136 00:05:23,530 --> 00:05:25,740 In a heartbeat. 137 00:05:25,740 --> 00:05:27,110 You know, it's really interesting and almost 138 00:05:27,110 --> 00:05:30,910 embarrassing- before I was hired by WCW, 139 00:05:30,910 --> 00:05:33,040 I didn't know what WCW was. 140 00:05:33,040 --> 00:05:34,870 World Championship Wrestling. 141 00:05:34,870 --> 00:05:36,460 I was an outsider to the business. 142 00:05:36,460 --> 00:05:37,920 I was... 143 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:40,040 a sales guy. 144 00:05:40,040 --> 00:05:41,920 Right about that time, 145 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:43,840 through a good friend of mine- Sonny Onoo- 146 00:05:43,840 --> 00:05:45,880 this little thing called Ninja Star Wars 147 00:05:45,880 --> 00:05:47,800 came into my life. 148 00:05:47,800 --> 00:05:49,970 You put these vests on, and you put one on, I put one on, 149 00:05:49,970 --> 00:05:51,300 we chase each other around the house, 150 00:05:51,300 --> 00:05:53,220 and if I hit you with three of my stars you're out, 151 00:05:53,220 --> 00:05:56,020 just like laser tag, only with these little stars. 152 00:05:56,020 --> 00:05:57,440 Oh! [Laughing] 153 00:05:57,440 --> 00:05:58,650 Then it was like... [Clappig] 154 00:05:58,650 --> 00:06:01,690 All right. How do we sell 'em? 155 00:06:01,690 --> 00:06:05,530 At the time, the AWA was on Monday through Friday, 156 00:06:05,530 --> 00:06:08,070 and the AWA was Verne's business. 157 00:06:08,070 --> 00:06:09,570 Verne Gagne, thanks for being out here. 158 00:06:09,570 --> 00:06:11,580 Well, my pleasure, and I'm glad I got out here because... 159 00:06:11,580 --> 00:06:13,450 [Eric] Verne Gagne- professional athlete, 160 00:06:13,450 --> 00:06:15,290 wrestler, promoter. 161 00:06:15,290 --> 00:06:16,580 Don't you dare miss it. 162 00:06:16,580 --> 00:06:17,710 Verne did it all. 163 00:06:17,710 --> 00:06:19,420 Verne Gagne's pro wrestling report. 164 00:06:19,420 --> 00:06:22,130 Here's how to order. Mail 14.95! 165 00:06:22,130 --> 00:06:25,960 I thought, I'm gonna call Verne Gagne. 166 00:06:25,960 --> 00:06:29,010 If Verne runs to commercial in his wrestling program 167 00:06:29,010 --> 00:06:32,220 that's seen nationwide, we'll split 50/50. 168 00:06:32,220 --> 00:06:35,390 I took one of the games, and went to meet Verne. 169 00:06:35,390 --> 00:06:37,230 I thought I was gonna get the deal, right, 170 00:06:37,230 --> 00:06:38,640 that I was looking for- which I did, 171 00:06:38,640 --> 00:06:40,600 but I was also offered a job. 172 00:06:40,600 --> 00:06:42,900 Welcome to AWA Championship Wrestling. 173 00:06:42,900 --> 00:06:45,030 So, my job was to travel around the Midwest, 174 00:06:45,030 --> 00:06:47,780 and talk independent television stations into 175 00:06:47,780 --> 00:06:50,160 carrying AWA shows. 176 00:06:50,160 --> 00:06:52,320 It's a sales job. Sales is sales. 177 00:06:52,320 --> 00:06:53,910 And I think we're gonna erase any doubts 178 00:06:53,910 --> 00:06:55,040 you've ever had. 179 00:06:55,040 --> 00:06:56,910 I had never met anybody like Eric. 180 00:06:56,910 --> 00:06:59,870 If he thought something was a really good idea, 181 00:06:59,870 --> 00:07:01,750 then he would start to take action, 182 00:07:01,750 --> 00:07:04,500 to breathe life into it. 183 00:07:04,500 --> 00:07:07,010 [Eric] I'd always been curious how television works. 184 00:07:07,010 --> 00:07:10,050 At night, I just sat in and learned. 185 00:07:10,050 --> 00:07:12,510 Then eventually I was on camera. 186 00:07:12,510 --> 00:07:14,010 My name is Eric Bischoff, and you- 187 00:07:14,010 --> 00:07:15,810 All this took place over the course of about a 188 00:07:15,810 --> 00:07:18,220 year and a half, two years, while I was in AWA. 189 00:07:18,220 --> 00:07:19,600 Buckle up real tight because you're going for 190 00:07:19,600 --> 00:07:21,810 a hard, bumpy ride, I promise. 191 00:07:21,810 --> 00:07:24,150 The last six or eight months of it I didn't get paid. 192 00:07:24,150 --> 00:07:25,480 He couldn't afford to pay me. 193 00:07:25,480 --> 00:07:27,070 My wife and I- and our kids- 194 00:07:27,070 --> 00:07:29,110 suffered financially. 195 00:07:29,110 --> 00:07:32,280 Now we have two little ones and, 196 00:07:32,280 --> 00:07:35,280 we are literally bouncing checks to buy diapers, 197 00:07:35,280 --> 00:07:38,540 and barely making rent. 198 00:07:38,540 --> 00:07:40,580 That's how bad it was. 199 00:07:40,580 --> 00:07:42,250 Heavyweight champion! 200 00:07:42,250 --> 00:07:46,800 He is the living legend, Larry Zbyszko! 201 00:07:46,800 --> 00:07:48,840 Larry Zbyskzo had worked with me in AWA, 202 00:07:48,840 --> 00:07:50,130 we had become friends. 203 00:07:50,130 --> 00:07:53,550 He left AWA, was working in WCW. 204 00:07:53,550 --> 00:07:55,640 Larry told me that, "Hey, they're looking for 205 00:07:55,640 --> 00:07:56,930 announcers down here." 206 00:07:56,930 --> 00:07:58,680 And, within days, I got a call. 207 00:07:58,680 --> 00:07:59,770 See you next time. 208 00:07:59,770 --> 00:08:02,100 I got to WCW, man, I was the happiest... 209 00:08:02,100 --> 00:08:04,150 third-string announcer that had ever put on 210 00:08:04,150 --> 00:08:05,690 a pair of shoes. 211 00:08:05,690 --> 00:08:07,570 ♪ 212 00:08:07,570 --> 00:08:09,730 I came into WCW so wide-eyed, 213 00:08:09,730 --> 00:08:12,490 because I was working for Turner Broadcasting. 214 00:08:12,490 --> 00:08:14,160 He was very nice. He was, 215 00:08:14,160 --> 00:08:16,660 just seemed like he was- not a fish out of water, 216 00:08:16,660 --> 00:08:18,700 but he was kind of uncomfortable, 217 00:08:18,700 --> 00:08:20,330 is the way it seemed to start with. 218 00:08:20,330 --> 00:08:21,910 He's got a suit on, and he's got, 219 00:08:21,910 --> 00:08:23,670 you know, perfect black hair. 220 00:08:23,670 --> 00:08:24,710 He looked like a Ken doll. 221 00:08:24,710 --> 00:08:26,170 I'm here with Diamond Dallas. 222 00:08:26,170 --> 00:08:28,380 The talent within WCW... 223 00:08:28,380 --> 00:08:29,550 unbelievable. 224 00:08:29,550 --> 00:08:32,090 There was Dusty Rhodes, and Gordon Solie, 225 00:08:32,090 --> 00:08:34,510 and Kevin Sullivan and, certainly, Ric Flair. 226 00:08:34,510 --> 00:08:35,510 Woo! 227 00:08:35,510 --> 00:08:37,470 And there was a new generation. 228 00:08:37,470 --> 00:08:40,640 Guys like Sting, Diamond Dallas Page. 229 00:08:40,640 --> 00:08:42,140 Scott Hall was the Diamond Stud. 230 00:08:42,140 --> 00:08:44,350 On 3- 1, 2, 3! 231 00:08:44,350 --> 00:08:45,560 Rip it off! 232 00:08:45,560 --> 00:08:47,610 Scott was working in WCW when I was hired. 233 00:08:47,610 --> 00:08:49,070 So was Kevin Nash. 234 00:08:49,070 --> 00:08:51,320 Good-looking guy, great physique. 235 00:08:51,320 --> 00:08:53,280 ---- yeah. 236 00:08:53,280 --> 00:08:54,820 Poor Kevin Nash had so many different characters 237 00:08:54,820 --> 00:08:56,200 in the beginning. 238 00:08:56,200 --> 00:08:57,700 They didn't know what to do with him. 239 00:08:57,700 --> 00:09:00,330 Cowabunga! 240 00:09:00,330 --> 00:09:01,540 [Growling] 241 00:09:01,540 --> 00:09:04,290 I just shot Ninja Turtles. 242 00:09:04,290 --> 00:09:07,330 And then, I believe Dusty took acid. 243 00:09:07,330 --> 00:09:10,550 And he said, "Baby, you're gonna be Oz." 244 00:09:10,550 --> 00:09:14,550 I said, "You do realize that the movie is called 245 00:09:14,550 --> 00:09:16,260 'The Wizard of Oz'?" 246 00:09:16,260 --> 00:09:18,760 I am Oz! 247 00:09:18,760 --> 00:09:21,560 You can be the wizard, but you can't be Oz. 248 00:09:21,560 --> 00:09:24,230 Oz is the geographical region. 249 00:09:24,230 --> 00:09:25,980 "No, baby, you gonna be Oz." 250 00:09:25,980 --> 00:09:28,270 And I was just like, "All right." 251 00:09:28,270 --> 00:09:30,980 World Championship Wrestling is bringing it to you, baby. 252 00:09:30,980 --> 00:09:32,730 We're taking a look at Oz. 253 00:09:32,730 --> 00:09:36,150 I just show up in this lime green outfit, 254 00:09:36,150 --> 00:09:39,660 in an old man's rubber mask. 255 00:09:39,660 --> 00:09:42,160 And then they wrestle... 256 00:09:42,160 --> 00:09:44,120 a geographical region. 257 00:09:44,120 --> 00:09:46,290 Look at this move right here. 258 00:09:46,290 --> 00:09:49,750 They were trying to put a round peg in a square hole. 259 00:09:49,750 --> 00:09:51,460 They tried to do the gimmicks. 260 00:09:51,460 --> 00:09:53,090 It looks like something's going on down here. 261 00:09:53,090 --> 00:09:56,130 They would bring, you know, RoboCop. 262 00:09:56,130 --> 00:09:58,300 What strength by RoboCop! 263 00:09:58,300 --> 00:09:59,930 But they really didn't work. 264 00:09:59,930 --> 00:10:01,470 It didn't work. 265 00:10:01,470 --> 00:10:03,140 It was an absolute shit show. 266 00:10:03,140 --> 00:10:04,350 He's getting cooked! 267 00:10:04,350 --> 00:10:06,230 And I think he's well done, guys! 268 00:10:06,230 --> 00:10:08,940 The crowd here, going crazy! 269 00:10:08,940 --> 00:10:12,820 WCW had a loyal following. 270 00:10:12,820 --> 00:10:15,440 But, the Turner executives regarded the WCW audience 271 00:10:15,440 --> 00:10:17,240 as being downscale. 272 00:10:17,240 --> 00:10:19,570 It was downscale. 273 00:10:19,570 --> 00:10:22,030 Very sort of, um... 274 00:10:22,030 --> 00:10:24,040 Southern and Midwestern. 275 00:10:24,040 --> 00:10:25,950 I didn't care about it, I wasn't a fan of it. 276 00:10:25,950 --> 00:10:29,290 80% of the people who worked at Turner weren't really 277 00:10:29,290 --> 00:10:32,210 wrestling fans to start with, except for Ted. 278 00:10:32,210 --> 00:10:35,840 Ted Turner wears many hats for his many colorful careers. 279 00:10:35,840 --> 00:10:37,970 He is the owner of the baseball Atlanta Braves. 280 00:10:37,970 --> 00:10:39,510 [Cracking bat, cheering fans] 281 00:10:39,510 --> 00:10:41,340 Basketball Atlanta Hawks. 282 00:10:41,340 --> 00:10:43,760 He has pioneered television with his own cable network, 283 00:10:43,760 --> 00:10:46,100 which broadcasts 24 hours of news. 284 00:10:46,100 --> 00:10:47,980 Playboy Magazine called him a bonafide 285 00:10:47,980 --> 00:10:49,890 larger-than-life character. 286 00:10:49,890 --> 00:10:52,770 Captain Outrageous, that was one of his nicknames. 287 00:10:52,770 --> 00:10:55,150 He will say anything he wants to, 288 00:10:55,150 --> 00:10:56,730 any time he wants to. 289 00:10:56,730 --> 00:10:58,900 You said, "Network presidents should be..." 290 00:10:58,900 --> 00:11:00,910 -"...lined up and shot." -And shot. 291 00:11:00,910 --> 00:11:03,370 My kinda guy. [Chuckling] 292 00:11:03,370 --> 00:11:06,740 Ted enjoyed the fact that, "I know that you don't like 293 00:11:06,740 --> 00:11:10,120 my wrestling, and that's exactly why I like it." 294 00:11:10,120 --> 00:11:12,920 It started when Dad bought a little TV station 295 00:11:12,920 --> 00:11:16,590 here in Atlanta, and he built an international 296 00:11:16,590 --> 00:11:20,260 broadcasting empire in a few years. 297 00:11:20,260 --> 00:11:22,590 And wrestling was one of those things that helped 298 00:11:22,590 --> 00:11:26,930 build TBS and the entire network. 299 00:11:26,930 --> 00:11:29,680 I mean, you go back to the beginning of television, 300 00:11:29,680 --> 00:11:31,230 wrestling was there. 301 00:11:31,230 --> 00:11:33,480 It was a lifeblood of programming for 302 00:11:33,480 --> 00:11:34,940 local television stations. 303 00:11:34,940 --> 00:11:36,320 Oh! 304 00:11:36,320 --> 00:11:38,860 It could command a loyal audience 305 00:11:38,860 --> 00:11:40,490 into millions of viewers. 306 00:11:40,490 --> 00:11:43,570 So, Ted believed in the power, in the loyalty... 307 00:11:43,570 --> 00:11:44,700 and the size of the 308 00:11:44,700 --> 00:11:47,080 professional wrestling audience. 309 00:11:47,080 --> 00:11:49,660 Ted launched WCW as a result of 310 00:11:49,660 --> 00:11:51,540 purchasing Jim Crockett Promotions, 311 00:11:51,540 --> 00:11:53,210 which was a Southern wrestling company. 312 00:11:53,210 --> 00:11:55,250 Jesus Christ! [Shrieking] 313 00:11:55,250 --> 00:12:00,010 WCW was seen as sort of the long-suffering distant 314 00:12:00,010 --> 00:12:01,720 trailing behind the WWF. 315 00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:06,050 The winner of the match... The Diamond Stud! 316 00:12:06,050 --> 00:12:08,770 Scott Hall, Kevin Nash... 317 00:12:08,770 --> 00:12:12,060 they left, they go to the WWF. 318 00:12:12,060 --> 00:12:13,810 Scott Hall becomes Razor Ramon, 319 00:12:13,810 --> 00:12:15,020 he becomes a big star. 320 00:12:15,020 --> 00:12:16,610 Kevin Nash becomes Diesel. 321 00:12:16,610 --> 00:12:18,270 Boom, big star. 322 00:12:18,270 --> 00:12:21,070 From a standpoint of the talent, 323 00:12:21,070 --> 00:12:23,740 we always considered WWE the show. 324 00:12:23,740 --> 00:12:25,370 There's no comparison. 325 00:12:25,370 --> 00:12:28,160 From a production value perspective... 326 00:12:28,160 --> 00:12:30,540 from a talent roster perspective, 327 00:12:30,540 --> 00:12:34,120 from a marketing perspective, from a financial perspective. 328 00:12:34,120 --> 00:12:37,170 WCW lost millions of dollars, every year. 329 00:12:37,170 --> 00:12:39,750 I had been warned by my boss, you know, 330 00:12:39,750 --> 00:12:41,840 "Don't help WCW." 331 00:12:41,840 --> 00:12:43,300 Why? If I help 'em make money? 332 00:12:43,300 --> 00:12:46,510 "No, you don't understand." Executive mangement 333 00:12:46,510 --> 00:12:48,180 hates wrestling and wants to get rid of it, 334 00:12:48,180 --> 00:12:50,310 and if you're perceived as trying to help them, 335 00:12:50,310 --> 00:12:52,100 that's career suicide for you." 336 00:12:52,100 --> 00:12:53,520 I was like, "Huh." 337 00:12:53,520 --> 00:12:55,900 [Eric] Other than Ted Turner, there was not an executive in 338 00:12:55,900 --> 00:12:58,860 Turner Broadcasting that wanted WCW to be 339 00:12:58,860 --> 00:13:00,820 in the Turner portfolio. 340 00:13:00,820 --> 00:13:04,030 Put yourself in the position of a television executive 341 00:13:04,030 --> 00:13:05,360 within that corporation. 342 00:13:05,360 --> 00:13:07,990 You have this division that is losing as much as 343 00:13:07,990 --> 00:13:11,490 $10 million on a yearly basis, and we don't really 344 00:13:11,490 --> 00:13:14,410 get the appeal of this entire genre to begin with. 345 00:13:14,410 --> 00:13:16,120 So, of course, that was going to create 346 00:13:16,120 --> 00:13:19,710 a lot of resentment and confusion as to, 347 00:13:19,710 --> 00:13:21,630 "Why do we even have this on the air waves?" 348 00:13:21,630 --> 00:13:23,510 Makes my blood boil too! 349 00:13:23,510 --> 00:13:25,220 That's what really set the conditions for this 350 00:13:25,220 --> 00:13:28,590 dysfunctional relationship between TBS and WCW. 351 00:13:28,590 --> 00:13:30,850 ♪ 352 00:13:30,850 --> 00:13:32,770 Bill Shaw was the Vice President of Human Resources 353 00:13:32,770 --> 00:13:34,430 for Turner Broadcasting. 354 00:13:34,430 --> 00:13:37,190 He was given responsibility to take over WCW 355 00:13:37,190 --> 00:13:39,270 as effective president of it. 356 00:13:39,270 --> 00:13:42,320 So, Bill came in. He said, "Ted Turner has made a 357 00:13:42,320 --> 00:13:46,240 decision that this company is going to either turn a profit, 358 00:13:46,240 --> 00:13:48,660 or Ted's gonna pull the plug." 359 00:13:48,660 --> 00:13:51,030 Ted had made up his mind that enough was enough, 360 00:13:51,030 --> 00:13:53,450 and he was gonna give WCW one last shot. 361 00:13:53,450 --> 00:13:57,460 And, we're going to hire an executive producer... 362 00:13:57,460 --> 00:14:00,170 who is going to take WCW 363 00:14:00,170 --> 00:14:04,090 from a wrestling company to a television property. 364 00:14:04,090 --> 00:14:07,760 Wrestling was seen by the wrestling people 365 00:14:07,760 --> 00:14:09,470 as an arena business. 366 00:14:09,470 --> 00:14:12,720 The only other person besides Ted that 367 00:14:12,720 --> 00:14:16,430 saw it as television was Eric. 368 00:14:16,430 --> 00:14:19,310 So, I threw my name in the hat. 369 00:14:19,310 --> 00:14:22,940 A month or so later, I'm the executive producer. 370 00:14:22,940 --> 00:14:24,650 This is your chance to be a part 371 00:14:24,650 --> 00:14:27,070 of professional wrestling history. 372 00:14:27,070 --> 00:14:29,030 What the hell am I gonna do? 373 00:14:34,790 --> 00:14:37,750 From Harlem! The Harlem Heat! 374 00:14:37,750 --> 00:14:39,420 Who comes down in the hands of the Heat. 375 00:14:39,420 --> 00:14:42,130 And don't forget that, sucker! 376 00:14:42,130 --> 00:14:43,290 [Laughing] 377 00:14:43,290 --> 00:14:46,550 The way my brother and I came into WCW was a good old boy 378 00:14:46,550 --> 00:14:49,720 system gimmick, you know, for two Black guys. 379 00:14:49,720 --> 00:14:52,050 This is a spectacular team! 380 00:14:52,050 --> 00:14:54,430 But, you could tell the difference going from the 381 00:14:54,430 --> 00:14:57,980 good old boys era to the Eric Bischoff era just by 382 00:14:57,980 --> 00:15:00,810 the way he tried to create something. 383 00:15:00,810 --> 00:15:03,020 [Eric] I was hired as the executive producer. 384 00:15:03,020 --> 00:15:07,070 My responsibility was solely the look and feel of the show. 385 00:15:07,070 --> 00:15:08,780 Saturday Night! 386 00:15:08,780 --> 00:15:11,160 The biggest challenge that we had was the fact that 387 00:15:11,160 --> 00:15:13,200 we couldn't attract an audience. 388 00:15:13,200 --> 00:15:15,030 It looked horrible because you had to turn the 389 00:15:15,030 --> 00:15:17,750 lights down to hide the fact that nobody was there. 390 00:15:17,750 --> 00:15:19,540 How do we fix that? 391 00:15:19,540 --> 00:15:22,170 That's when I decided I was gonna shoot the shows 392 00:15:22,170 --> 00:15:24,590 down at the Disney MGM Studios. 393 00:15:24,590 --> 00:15:25,880 They had sound stages, 394 00:15:25,880 --> 00:15:28,880 so I could control the look of the environment. 395 00:15:28,880 --> 00:15:31,680 And I had a fresh audience coming through five times 396 00:15:31,680 --> 00:15:33,970 a day, so I could shoot five or six shows with 397 00:15:33,970 --> 00:15:36,350 a fresh audience each and every time. 398 00:15:36,350 --> 00:15:38,390 Spin 'em up- lights, camera, action. 399 00:15:38,390 --> 00:15:39,930 [Cheering] 400 00:15:39,930 --> 00:15:41,810 I think Eric Bischoff really wanted to 401 00:15:41,810 --> 00:15:44,440 take WCW away from being 402 00:15:44,440 --> 00:15:46,520 a Southern [accented] 'wrastling' company. 403 00:15:46,520 --> 00:15:48,230 You could see the difference. 404 00:15:48,230 --> 00:15:50,150 You could feel it. 405 00:15:50,150 --> 00:15:53,820 In '94, I ascended from Executive Producer to 406 00:15:53,820 --> 00:15:56,330 Vice President and, at that time, 407 00:15:56,330 --> 00:15:58,830 nobody thought WCW would ever be 408 00:15:58,830 --> 00:16:02,120 competitive with WWF. 409 00:16:02,120 --> 00:16:06,630 I needed people to take WCW seriously. 410 00:16:06,630 --> 00:16:08,960 I needed Hulk Hogan. 411 00:16:08,960 --> 00:16:09,960 [Cheering] 412 00:16:09,960 --> 00:16:13,470 Hulk! Hogan! 413 00:16:13,470 --> 00:16:17,560 I don't think we'd be here if there was no Hulk Hogan. 414 00:16:17,560 --> 00:16:21,640 In the 1980s, Hulk Hogan is the patriotic, ultra-good guy. 415 00:16:21,640 --> 00:16:23,270 He's coming out waving an American flag, 416 00:16:23,270 --> 00:16:25,480 fighting off these evil foreigners. 417 00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:27,400 Hulkster tearing it to pieces! 418 00:16:27,400 --> 00:16:30,400 He was the one who broke professional wrestling 419 00:16:30,400 --> 00:16:32,150 wide open! 420 00:16:32,150 --> 00:16:34,700 Commercials, cartoons. 421 00:16:34,700 --> 00:16:36,120 Kids loved him. 422 00:16:36,120 --> 00:16:38,330 Everybody knew Hulk Hogan. 423 00:16:38,330 --> 00:16:40,080 Whether you're a professional wrestling fan 424 00:16:40,080 --> 00:16:42,290 or not, you knew the name. 425 00:16:42,290 --> 00:16:44,370 Eating your vitamins, saying your prayers. 426 00:16:44,370 --> 00:16:46,250 Say your prayers! Eat your vitamins! 427 00:16:46,250 --> 00:16:50,090 Ric Flair's the greatest wrestler of all time. 428 00:16:50,090 --> 00:16:52,920 But the guy that was on Sports Illustrated, 429 00:16:52,920 --> 00:16:54,720 he's the guy. 430 00:16:54,720 --> 00:16:57,760 He is truly a real American. 431 00:16:57,760 --> 00:17:00,390 Coincidentally, while we were shooting WCW at 432 00:17:00,390 --> 00:17:02,230 the Disney MGM Studios, 433 00:17:02,230 --> 00:17:05,100 Hulk Hogan was down at Disney shooting a 434 00:17:05,100 --> 00:17:07,440 new series called "Thunder In Paradise". 435 00:17:07,440 --> 00:17:09,820 Now, Hulk had been out of wrestling for some time 436 00:17:09,820 --> 00:17:12,320 because of the steroid trial. 437 00:17:12,320 --> 00:17:14,860 [Cartoon] ...a good role model 'cause he just, like, 438 00:17:14,860 --> 00:17:16,990 did whatever it took to get big, like, 439 00:17:16,990 --> 00:17:20,950 he took those steroid pills. 440 00:17:20,950 --> 00:17:23,910 And I thought, why not at least try to get a meeting? 441 00:17:23,910 --> 00:17:25,620 But he didn't know who I was. 442 00:17:25,620 --> 00:17:27,330 So, I went to Ric Flair. 443 00:17:27,330 --> 00:17:28,460 Hello? 444 00:17:28,460 --> 00:17:31,300 I said, "Ric, do you think you can set up a call or 445 00:17:31,300 --> 00:17:33,590 meeting between Hulk and I?" 446 00:17:33,590 --> 00:17:35,010 One night, I was sound asleep, 447 00:17:35,010 --> 00:17:36,630 and the phone rings and I'm picking up the phone, 448 00:17:36,630 --> 00:17:38,300 and it's- "Hey, Brother." 449 00:17:38,300 --> 00:17:41,930 Whoa! Wake up! It was Hulk. 450 00:17:41,930 --> 00:17:45,810 Welcome Hulk Hogan! 451 00:17:45,810 --> 00:17:48,270 [Eric] Being able to work with Hulk Hogan, 452 00:17:48,270 --> 00:17:50,560 being on the same roster as Hulk Hogan 453 00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:52,230 elevated everybody's career. 454 00:17:52,230 --> 00:17:53,610 And it had immediate impact. 455 00:17:53,610 --> 00:17:54,940 All of a sudden, people were 456 00:17:54,940 --> 00:17:57,320 returning phone calls much faster. 457 00:17:57,320 --> 00:17:58,700 It's all perception. 458 00:17:58,700 --> 00:18:00,830 That's why we're here today, for a match between 459 00:18:00,830 --> 00:18:03,120 two of wrestling's biggest superstars- 460 00:18:03,120 --> 00:18:05,790 Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair. 461 00:18:05,790 --> 00:18:08,670 So, Hulk's original deal included four Pay Per View's 462 00:18:08,670 --> 00:18:11,170 a year, and he had creative control. 463 00:18:11,170 --> 00:18:13,050 Essentially means that he gets a thumbs up or 464 00:18:13,050 --> 00:18:16,130 thumbs down as to whether or not he wants to do it. 465 00:18:16,130 --> 00:18:18,760 1, 2... 466 00:18:18,760 --> 00:18:19,640 [Match bell ringing] 467 00:18:19,640 --> 00:18:21,760 WCW is about to dominate the globe 468 00:18:21,760 --> 00:18:23,010 in professional wrestling. 469 00:18:23,010 --> 00:18:25,680 Talent began to get a little confident that this 470 00:18:25,680 --> 00:18:28,640 Turner guy over here is starting to get serious. 471 00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:30,520 Dad always loves competition. 472 00:18:30,520 --> 00:18:33,480 So, you get a Vince McMahon who says, 473 00:18:33,480 --> 00:18:35,320 "Oh, this is my territory." 474 00:18:35,320 --> 00:18:38,030 Yeah, there's gonna be problems. 475 00:18:38,030 --> 00:18:41,410 [Eric] Keep in mind, at that point, I had never had a 476 00:18:41,410 --> 00:18:44,200 one-on-one meeting with Ted Turner. 477 00:18:44,200 --> 00:18:47,120 And, I walked into the meeting- my boss, 478 00:18:47,120 --> 00:18:49,170 Harvey Schiller, he was already sitting there. 479 00:18:49,170 --> 00:18:52,080 Scott Sassa, the heir apparent to Ted Turner 480 00:18:52,080 --> 00:18:55,300 at the time, he was in the room. 481 00:18:55,300 --> 00:18:59,590 So, I sat down and, immediately: "Eric... 482 00:18:59,590 --> 00:19:01,470 Let me ask you a question." 483 00:19:01,470 --> 00:19:03,300 I can't do a good Ted Turner impersonation. 484 00:19:03,300 --> 00:19:05,850 "Ah, Eric... 485 00:19:05,850 --> 00:19:07,730 what's it gonna take for 486 00:19:07,730 --> 00:19:10,980 WCW to be competitive with WWE?" 487 00:19:10,980 --> 00:19:12,150 [Ticking clock] 488 00:19:12,150 --> 00:19:14,020 In what seemed like 20 minutes- 489 00:19:14,020 --> 00:19:15,650 it was maybe milliseconds, 490 00:19:15,650 --> 00:19:17,820 but it was like watching your life pass before you 491 00:19:17,820 --> 00:19:19,780 right before the train hits you. 492 00:19:19,780 --> 00:19:21,280 I don't know what the answer is. 493 00:19:21,280 --> 00:19:23,240 [Eric] What are my options? I can't bullshit Ted Turner. 494 00:19:23,240 --> 00:19:24,910 He'll see through that so fast. 495 00:19:24,910 --> 00:19:26,830 Tell the truth. Truth usually works. 496 00:19:26,830 --> 00:19:28,750 So, I'm just going to tell him the truth. 497 00:19:28,750 --> 00:19:32,750 So, I said, "Ted, they're on prime time. 498 00:19:32,750 --> 00:19:35,800 Monday night, coast to coast. 499 00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:39,550 We're 6:05 Eastern, 3:05 Pacific 500 00:19:39,550 --> 00:19:42,130 on a Saturday. 501 00:19:42,130 --> 00:19:44,760 We can't be competitive with that." 502 00:19:44,760 --> 00:19:46,140 Ted looks over to Scott Sassa, and says, 503 00:19:46,140 --> 00:19:48,640 "Ah... Scott! 504 00:19:48,640 --> 00:19:51,060 Give Eric two hours every Monday night, 505 00:19:51,060 --> 00:19:53,310 head-to-head. WWE." 506 00:19:53,310 --> 00:19:56,190 I thought, how am I gonna do this? 507 00:19:56,190 --> 00:19:58,110 And I walked out of Ted's officed... 508 00:19:58,110 --> 00:19:59,940 locked myself in my room, 509 00:19:59,940 --> 00:20:02,070 sat there with a yellow legal pad 510 00:20:02,070 --> 00:20:04,570 and said, "Start thinking of ways." 511 00:20:04,570 --> 00:20:06,280 [Laughing] 512 00:20:06,280 --> 00:20:08,490 So, at this time, you know, Monday Night Raw 513 00:20:08,490 --> 00:20:10,790 was the primary show for the WWF. 514 00:20:10,790 --> 00:20:12,920 And the WWF was, at that time, 515 00:20:12,920 --> 00:20:14,830 the first company to have that prime time show 516 00:20:14,830 --> 00:20:16,090 on Mondays. 517 00:20:16,090 --> 00:20:19,340 Welcome to Monday Night Raw! 518 00:20:19,340 --> 00:20:22,010 When Ted said, you know, 519 00:20:22,010 --> 00:20:25,010 "I want to move WCW to TNT," 520 00:20:25,010 --> 00:20:27,430 it was like, "What? Are you kidding me?" 521 00:20:27,430 --> 00:20:30,220 I'd been killing myself to build this brand that 522 00:20:30,220 --> 00:20:33,690 we were known as the premium network on basic cable. 523 00:20:33,690 --> 00:20:36,520 When I tried to fight Ted on it, I lost that battle. 524 00:20:36,520 --> 00:20:39,150 How can I be better than the WWF? 525 00:20:39,150 --> 00:20:42,570 [Snorts] I can't. 526 00:20:42,570 --> 00:20:44,700 Their production value was much better. 527 00:20:44,700 --> 00:20:48,370 The story telling, it was cleaner, easy to follow... 528 00:20:48,370 --> 00:20:52,250 and built everything to feel larger than life. 529 00:20:52,250 --> 00:20:55,920 WCW always looked like it was trying to 530 00:20:55,920 --> 00:20:58,500 catch up to the wheel that just fell off. 531 00:20:58,500 --> 00:21:01,550 But if I can give people a reason to watch me 532 00:21:01,550 --> 00:21:03,760 instead of them, 533 00:21:03,760 --> 00:21:05,510 I got a shot. 534 00:21:05,510 --> 00:21:08,180 Their one vulnerability was that they were taped 535 00:21:08,180 --> 00:21:09,510 every other week. 536 00:21:09,510 --> 00:21:11,220 We should be live. 537 00:21:11,220 --> 00:21:12,430 I went to Brad Siegel, and said, 538 00:21:12,430 --> 00:21:14,060 "I want to do this live every week." 539 00:21:14,060 --> 00:21:16,520 We were so competitive with USA Network. 540 00:21:16,520 --> 00:21:19,570 If we go up against them, we're gonna hurt their 541 00:21:19,570 --> 00:21:22,900 highest rated show, Raw, on Monday night. 542 00:21:22,900 --> 00:21:25,530 It would be the way that we could win as the 543 00:21:25,530 --> 00:21:27,410 544 00:21:27,410 --> 00:21:30,370 He said, "We've got a block of action programming 545 00:21:30,370 --> 00:21:31,830 called 'Nitro'. 546 00:21:31,830 --> 00:21:34,330 Why don't we thematically keep it the same? 547 00:21:34,330 --> 00:21:37,330 We'll call the show Nitro." "Hell yeah!" 548 00:21:37,330 --> 00:21:39,290 WCW Monday Nitro. 549 00:21:39,290 --> 00:21:41,300 But we could not give tickets away. 550 00:21:41,300 --> 00:21:43,050 Keep in mind, this is the first Nitro. 551 00:21:43,050 --> 00:21:44,630 Nobody's ever heard of it before. 552 00:21:44,630 --> 00:21:46,880 Well, if I can't put it in an arena where 553 00:21:46,880 --> 00:21:49,220 it's going to look cool... 554 00:21:49,220 --> 00:21:51,310 what about Mall of America? 555 00:21:51,310 --> 00:21:54,140 Mall Of America at the time was like a big damn deal. 556 00:21:54,140 --> 00:21:56,640 The bargains are coming! The bargains are coming! 557 00:21:56,640 --> 00:21:59,150 Back then, Mall Of America was kind of a destination. 558 00:21:59,150 --> 00:22:01,940 Still, they're the largest mall in the United States. 559 00:22:01,940 --> 00:22:04,780 Just about big enough to hold WCW and 560 00:22:04,780 --> 00:22:07,780 its debut broadcast of Monday Nitro. 561 00:22:07,780 --> 00:22:10,320 My hope was that I'd get enough people that were 562 00:22:10,320 --> 00:22:12,870 walking by in the mall that would stop long enough and 563 00:22:12,870 --> 00:22:16,460 watch that I could get kind of a couple beauty shots. 564 00:22:16,460 --> 00:22:18,250 And it worked great. 565 00:22:18,250 --> 00:22:21,540 It looked like a really cool fight club for yuppies. 566 00:22:21,540 --> 00:22:23,000 [Laughing] 567 00:22:23,000 --> 00:22:24,630 [Cheering] 568 00:22:24,630 --> 00:22:26,760 If you want surprises, this is where you come, 569 00:22:26,760 --> 00:22:28,510 because our show is live, 570 00:22:28,510 --> 00:22:30,890 and you never know who's gonna show up. 571 00:22:30,890 --> 00:22:32,220 [Chanting] Luger! 572 00:22:32,220 --> 00:22:34,850 Lex Luger, everybody thought that Lex was under contract. 573 00:22:34,850 --> 00:22:37,310 He had just been on WWE the night before. 574 00:22:37,310 --> 00:22:40,560 WWE had no idea. 575 00:22:40,560 --> 00:22:42,020 And it set the tone for Nitro. 576 00:22:42,020 --> 00:22:45,360 When I came there, Eric was testing the waters. 577 00:22:45,360 --> 00:22:46,990 I am Madusa. 578 00:22:46,990 --> 00:22:48,650 I was WWF's champion. 579 00:22:48,650 --> 00:22:50,860 I'm like, I got an idea. 580 00:22:50,860 --> 00:22:53,280 And that's what I think of the WWF 581 00:22:53,280 --> 00:22:55,080 Women's Championship belt. 582 00:22:55,080 --> 00:22:57,040 That shock value is what we really needed 583 00:22:57,040 --> 00:22:58,500 to get the attention. 584 00:22:58,500 --> 00:23:00,620 That's the magic of live. 585 00:23:00,620 --> 00:23:03,090 That's what will make us competitive. 586 00:23:03,090 --> 00:23:05,340 ♪ 587 00:23:05,340 --> 00:23:08,050 [Hulk Hogan] I'm focused on that big, nasty giant. 588 00:23:08,050 --> 00:23:10,550 But the main thing, like you said... [Fading] 589 00:23:10,550 --> 00:23:12,260 is to get in that ring, brother... 590 00:23:12,260 --> 00:23:14,970 [Fading out] 591 00:23:14,970 --> 00:23:17,100 [Kevin Sullivan] In this country... 592 00:23:17,100 --> 00:23:20,020 we love to build people up. 593 00:23:20,020 --> 00:23:22,940 We love to tear them down. 594 00:23:22,940 --> 00:23:26,360 And then, we love them to rise from the ashes again. 595 00:23:26,360 --> 00:23:28,690 [Eric] We weren't seeing the gains in terms of ratings 596 00:23:28,690 --> 00:23:30,650 that we had anticipated. 597 00:23:30,650 --> 00:23:32,700 We had kind of leveled out. 598 00:23:32,700 --> 00:23:34,240 Hulk could sense, I think, 599 00:23:34,240 --> 00:23:36,330 that the Hulk Hogan character... 600 00:23:36,330 --> 00:23:38,120 it was losing steam. 601 00:23:38,120 --> 00:23:39,410 They are taking him apart. 602 00:23:39,410 --> 00:23:40,460 [Eric] The audience still reacted to it, 603 00:23:40,460 --> 00:23:43,420 but not the same way. 604 00:23:43,420 --> 00:23:45,210 I started to hear "boo's". 605 00:23:45,210 --> 00:23:47,800 Hulk Hogan making his way to the ring. 606 00:23:47,800 --> 00:23:48,840 [Booing] 607 00:23:48,840 --> 00:23:50,760 The 80s were done. 608 00:23:50,760 --> 00:23:53,970 I needed to change the perception of Hulk Hogan... 609 00:23:53,970 --> 00:23:55,430 and forever. 610 00:23:55,430 --> 00:23:57,310 [Surprised shouting] What is he doing? 611 00:23:57,310 --> 00:24:00,230 Hulk Hogan has betrayed WCW! 612 00:24:03,850 --> 00:24:05,560 [Commentary] Randy, what's going on here? 613 00:24:05,560 --> 00:24:09,030 May 27th of 1996... 614 00:24:09,030 --> 00:24:12,070 Scott Hall debuted on WCW television. 615 00:24:12,070 --> 00:24:14,280 You people... 616 00:24:14,280 --> 00:24:15,780 you know who I am. 617 00:24:15,780 --> 00:24:18,160 [Eric] Scott Hall worked and performed for WWF 618 00:24:18,160 --> 00:24:19,790 as Razor Ramon. 619 00:24:19,790 --> 00:24:23,870 But you don't know why I'm here. 620 00:24:23,870 --> 00:24:25,790 [Eric] Then Kevin Nash shows up. 621 00:24:25,790 --> 00:24:29,510 Everybody knew they were WWF guys. 622 00:24:29,510 --> 00:24:32,470 Oh, my god! No, no! Turn it over now! 623 00:24:32,470 --> 00:24:35,430 Razor Ramon and Diesel are on Nitro! 624 00:24:35,430 --> 00:24:37,640 Are they the WWF? 625 00:24:37,640 --> 00:24:41,480 You want a war? We are taking over. 626 00:24:41,480 --> 00:24:43,980 They were bad guys that were like invading the company. 627 00:24:43,980 --> 00:24:45,480 [Booker T] This is different. 628 00:24:45,480 --> 00:24:47,820 This is something that we have never seen 629 00:24:47,820 --> 00:24:49,070 in professional wrestling. 630 00:24:49,070 --> 00:24:51,440 [Eric] By not dissuading people, 631 00:24:51,440 --> 00:24:54,150 that's what created the perception that 632 00:24:54,150 --> 00:24:56,200 perhaps this was an invasion. 633 00:24:56,200 --> 00:24:58,240 But of course it wasn't. 634 00:24:58,240 --> 00:25:01,250 They didn't want to renew their contract with WWE. 635 00:25:01,250 --> 00:25:04,290 I'm thinking, ah, I need a reality storyline. 636 00:25:04,290 --> 00:25:06,880 Admittedly now, you know, enough time has gone by- 637 00:25:06,880 --> 00:25:10,750 [Laughing] I, admittedly, allowed them to think that 638 00:25:10,750 --> 00:25:13,630 they were showing up on behalf of WWE. 639 00:25:13,630 --> 00:25:16,970 Do you work for the WWF? 640 00:25:16,970 --> 00:25:18,390 No. 641 00:25:18,390 --> 00:25:20,720 And then they alluded to a third man. 642 00:25:20,720 --> 00:25:24,560 You tell billionaire Ted to break out the money and 643 00:25:24,560 --> 00:25:28,900 get anybody he can because the big "mang", 644 00:25:28,900 --> 00:25:32,440 and the medium-sized "mang", and our surprise buddy 645 00:25:32,440 --> 00:25:36,950 are gonna carve them up. 646 00:25:36,950 --> 00:25:40,080 [Eric] Big surprise coming in. Who's the third man? 647 00:25:40,080 --> 00:25:42,700 All while that's going on on television, 648 00:25:42,700 --> 00:25:44,540 Hulk Hogan's in California doing a movie called 649 00:25:44,540 --> 00:25:45,620 "Santa With Muscles". 650 00:25:45,620 --> 00:25:47,080 Keep the milk and cookies warm. 651 00:25:47,080 --> 00:25:48,630 -Classic. -[Phone ringing] 652 00:25:48,630 --> 00:25:50,920 I get a phone call from Hulk: "Brother..." 653 00:25:50,920 --> 00:25:52,090 "Any way I could get you to come out? 654 00:25:52,090 --> 00:25:53,710 I want to talk to you about creative." 655 00:25:53,710 --> 00:25:55,760 Got to his trailer, he's waiting for me. 656 00:25:55,760 --> 00:25:59,220 He says, "Brother, who's the third man?" 657 00:25:59,220 --> 00:26:01,140 What have we got here, The Sting! 658 00:26:01,140 --> 00:26:03,390 I already spent two weeks convincing Sting to 659 00:26:03,390 --> 00:26:05,390 turn heel and be the third man. 660 00:26:05,390 --> 00:26:07,390 I didn't want to tell Hulk, 661 00:26:07,390 --> 00:26:09,610 but I didn't want to lie to him either. 662 00:26:09,610 --> 00:26:12,020 "Who do you think it should be?" 663 00:26:12,020 --> 00:26:15,530 "You're looking at him, brother." Oh, wow! 664 00:26:15,530 --> 00:26:18,410 World Championship Wrestling presents the 665 00:26:18,410 --> 00:26:20,410 Bash at the Beach! 666 00:26:20,410 --> 00:26:22,410 I didn't want him to come to the building 667 00:26:22,410 --> 00:26:24,200 until the very last minute. 668 00:26:24,200 --> 00:26:26,460 I talked to Kevin Sullivan about the best way to 669 00:26:26,460 --> 00:26:28,120 try to achieve that. 670 00:26:28,120 --> 00:26:33,210 Kevin Sullivan sequestered Hulk in Daytona Beach. 671 00:26:33,210 --> 00:26:35,090 He had to babysit him for like a whole night 672 00:26:35,090 --> 00:26:37,470 'cause he was afraid that Hogan might not show up 673 00:26:37,470 --> 00:26:39,970 as a mystery third man. 674 00:26:39,970 --> 00:26:41,600 There were a lot of risks to Hulk turning heel. 675 00:26:41,600 --> 00:26:43,430 You have to put yourself in his shoes. 676 00:26:43,430 --> 00:26:46,310 [Kevin Sullivan] Hulk is a very loyal guy, 677 00:26:46,310 --> 00:26:49,480 and he was carrying a lot of people. 678 00:26:49,480 --> 00:26:51,980 If he lost his endorsements, 679 00:26:51,980 --> 00:26:55,860 if he lost movies... 680 00:26:55,860 --> 00:26:59,490 Maybe their pocketbook would be hurt. 681 00:26:59,490 --> 00:27:00,860 [Eric] I knew that there was a chance with the 682 00:27:00,860 --> 00:27:02,410 people around Hulk, 683 00:27:02,410 --> 00:27:04,620 he could possibly second guess himself. 684 00:27:04,620 --> 00:27:06,580 We don't know yet who the third man is. 685 00:27:06,580 --> 00:27:09,250 [Kevin Sullivan] We didn't leave my house 686 00:27:09,250 --> 00:27:12,630 'til the first match started. 687 00:27:12,630 --> 00:27:16,920 I didn't want anybody to get to him. 688 00:27:16,920 --> 00:27:18,840 Hulk shows up at the building. 689 00:27:18,840 --> 00:27:21,470 I still don't know at this point where his head is at 690 00:27:21,470 --> 00:27:22,850 'cause we hadn't talked all day. 691 00:27:22,850 --> 00:27:24,180 Lex Luger! 692 00:27:24,180 --> 00:27:26,060 The Macho Man Randy Savage! 693 00:27:26,060 --> 00:27:30,980 And Sting will represent WCW to beat these outsiders. 694 00:27:30,980 --> 00:27:32,600 Oh! 695 00:27:32,600 --> 00:27:34,190 When Hogan came down the ramp, 696 00:27:34,190 --> 00:27:36,280 I still wasn't 100% sure. 697 00:27:36,280 --> 00:27:39,530 Hulk Hogan is here! Hulk Hogan's here! 698 00:27:39,530 --> 00:27:43,410 Hulk comes down, we clear out. 699 00:27:43,410 --> 00:27:45,910 He hits the rope, drops the leg. 700 00:27:45,910 --> 00:27:47,910 Oh, oh, oh! What is he doing? 701 00:27:47,910 --> 00:27:49,750 Oh, my god! Is he the third man? 702 00:27:49,750 --> 00:27:50,830 He's the third man! 703 00:27:50,830 --> 00:27:54,630 The production truck erupted with elation for what just 704 00:27:54,630 --> 00:27:57,000 went down and how the crowd reacted to it. 705 00:27:57,000 --> 00:28:00,010 It was a roar like we hadn't heard before. 706 00:28:00,010 --> 00:28:02,180 [Roaring cheering] 707 00:28:02,180 --> 00:28:04,600 And it got louder and angrier, 708 00:28:04,600 --> 00:28:06,430 and it was building. 709 00:28:06,430 --> 00:28:09,270 They were pissed! Really pissed. 710 00:28:09,270 --> 00:28:11,520 What do we got here? We got a fan coming in. 711 00:28:11,520 --> 00:28:13,440 He's a hero, and now the hero's standing in the 712 00:28:13,440 --> 00:28:15,440 middle of the ring that was filling up with garbage, 713 00:28:15,440 --> 00:28:17,900 telling every one of those fans he was only in it 714 00:28:17,900 --> 00:28:19,570 for the money. 715 00:28:19,570 --> 00:28:22,110 [The Rock] It would be like Babe Ruth telling all the fans 716 00:28:22,110 --> 00:28:24,160 who had followed him for years, and years, and years 717 00:28:24,160 --> 00:28:26,030 to stick their support right up their ass. 718 00:28:26,030 --> 00:28:27,080 [Laughing] 719 00:28:27,080 --> 00:28:29,910 All this crap in the ring 720 00:28:29,910 --> 00:28:32,870 represents these fans out here! 721 00:28:32,870 --> 00:28:36,250 It was the biggest turn in the history of wrestling. 722 00:28:36,250 --> 00:28:39,170 Saved his career. 723 00:28:39,170 --> 00:28:41,340 And then it becomes the three guys, with Hulk. 724 00:28:41,340 --> 00:28:43,470 Now it's like, who are they? 725 00:28:43,470 --> 00:28:45,470 You can call this... 726 00:28:45,470 --> 00:28:49,470 The New World Order of wrestling, brother! 727 00:28:49,470 --> 00:28:52,810 I didn't know what the NWO was about to become. 728 00:28:52,810 --> 00:28:55,230 NWO, take one. [Claps] 729 00:28:55,230 --> 00:28:58,940 NWO's the thing that really broke everything. 730 00:28:58,940 --> 00:29:01,070 What was happening in pop culture, 731 00:29:01,070 --> 00:29:04,070 they were representing it with their spin on it. 732 00:29:04,070 --> 00:29:06,070 It was like street. 733 00:29:06,070 --> 00:29:08,410 We can't have them have any association 734 00:29:08,410 --> 00:29:09,700 with WCW whatsoever. 735 00:29:09,700 --> 00:29:11,290 This is our show! 736 00:29:11,290 --> 00:29:13,910 We're doing it our way! 737 00:29:13,910 --> 00:29:16,330 Those small elements- 738 00:29:16,330 --> 00:29:18,590 the way we shot the NWO interviews- 739 00:29:18,590 --> 00:29:19,590 we shot in black and white. 740 00:29:19,590 --> 00:29:20,590 "Black and white?" 741 00:29:20,590 --> 00:29:21,420 "Why are you doing black and white?" 742 00:29:21,420 --> 00:29:23,130 Trust me, black and white'll be cool. 743 00:29:23,130 --> 00:29:24,680 Not only was it pretty ----ing cool, 744 00:29:24,680 --> 00:29:26,300 but also, disruptive. 745 00:29:26,300 --> 00:29:29,100 And, those guys were the right talent to pull it off. 746 00:29:29,100 --> 00:29:31,560 They did whatever the ---- they wanted to do. 747 00:29:31,560 --> 00:29:33,140 [Indistinct shouting] 748 00:29:33,140 --> 00:29:34,350 Didn't care whether you cheered them 749 00:29:34,350 --> 00:29:35,640 or you booed them. 750 00:29:35,640 --> 00:29:38,360 -Oh, my god! 751 00:29:35,640 --> 00:29:38,360 -Zero ----s to give. 752 00:29:38,360 --> 00:29:40,440 NWO! 753 00:29:40,440 --> 00:29:42,320 For life! 754 00:29:42,320 --> 00:29:44,740 Those guys really set the world on fire. 755 00:29:44,740 --> 00:29:46,110 Woo! 756 00:29:46,110 --> 00:29:48,570 My son came home from school and asked me if I could 757 00:29:48,570 --> 00:29:51,410 bring him four or five NWO shirts so he could take them 758 00:29:51,410 --> 00:29:53,950 to school the next day, and I said, "Why?" He said, 759 00:29:53,950 --> 00:29:57,540 "All my friends want them." Well, absolutely! 760 00:29:57,540 --> 00:29:59,290 That's what we began to see emerging 761 00:29:59,290 --> 00:30:02,630 with Eric's version of what the NWO was. 762 00:30:02,630 --> 00:30:04,460 They were bad, but they were cool. 763 00:30:04,460 --> 00:30:07,300 To this day, there's still NWO shirts. 764 00:30:07,300 --> 00:30:10,050 I don't see any other shirts from WCW. 765 00:30:10,050 --> 00:30:12,310 The fans were so... 766 00:30:12,310 --> 00:30:15,270 intoxicated with NWO. 767 00:30:15,270 --> 00:30:16,940 It made everything bigger. 768 00:30:16,940 --> 00:30:19,350 And, when something gets too big, too fast, 769 00:30:19,350 --> 00:30:21,860 shit's gonna hit the fan at some point. 770 00:30:21,860 --> 00:30:23,030 And then it did. 771 00:30:23,030 --> 00:30:24,650 Oh, they're in the control room now! 772 00:30:24,650 --> 00:30:26,110 Hold on, what do we got here? 773 00:30:26,110 --> 00:30:27,240 -What does that do? -Don't touch that. 774 00:30:27,240 --> 00:30:29,570 Whoa! Fade to black! 775 00:30:29,570 --> 00:30:31,120 Shouldn't have bought that cheap TV! 776 00:30:31,120 --> 00:30:32,080 [Laughing] 777 00:30:33,990 --> 00:30:36,370 You go back, and you look at Nitro ratings from the 778 00:30:36,370 --> 00:30:38,540 premiere episode all the way up until 779 00:30:38,540 --> 00:30:40,960 the NWO was revealed. 780 00:30:40,960 --> 00:30:42,840 We were doing fine. 781 00:30:42,840 --> 00:30:44,090 We'd win a week or two. 782 00:30:44,090 --> 00:30:45,760 WWE would win a week or two. 783 00:30:45,760 --> 00:30:48,220 We were essentially even. 784 00:30:48,220 --> 00:30:50,260 Until the NWO. 785 00:30:50,260 --> 00:30:55,060 Legitimately, the NWO was responsible for 786 00:30:55,060 --> 00:30:57,890 80% of our growth. 787 00:30:57,890 --> 00:30:58,940 And I thought, okay, 788 00:30:58,940 --> 00:31:01,480 I've gotta find a way to maintain the reality. 789 00:31:01,480 --> 00:31:03,400 New World Order, punk. 790 00:31:03,400 --> 00:31:05,230 Something that the audience can't tell 791 00:31:05,230 --> 00:31:07,650 whether it's real, or whether it's not. 792 00:31:07,650 --> 00:31:10,160 Worst thing you can do on earth in 793 00:31:10,160 --> 00:31:13,620 professional wrestling is have a backstage fight. 794 00:31:13,620 --> 00:31:14,950 Hey! 795 00:31:14,950 --> 00:31:18,620 Everybody that throws a punch backstage... 796 00:31:18,620 --> 00:31:23,090 goes, "Ugh! Ooh! Uh!" 797 00:31:23,090 --> 00:31:25,130 It's so bad. 798 00:31:25,130 --> 00:31:28,800 We wanted to make the back look completely real. 799 00:31:28,800 --> 00:31:31,640 Not a wrestling program. 800 00:31:31,640 --> 00:31:32,930 Oh, no! 801 00:31:32,930 --> 00:31:35,180 Neal Pruitt came up with the idea of the 802 00:31:35,180 --> 00:31:37,470 production people helping. 803 00:31:37,470 --> 00:31:40,940 Up until that time, I never had gone to a producer 804 00:31:40,940 --> 00:31:42,690 and said, "What kind of shot?" 805 00:31:42,690 --> 00:31:44,900 But I went to him. 806 00:31:44,900 --> 00:31:48,150 Konnan up on the middle turnbuckle, climbs the top. 807 00:31:48,150 --> 00:31:49,440 Nicely done. 808 00:31:49,440 --> 00:31:51,150 There was that one night we were in Orlando 809 00:31:51,150 --> 00:31:52,660 at the Disney tapings. 810 00:31:52,660 --> 00:31:55,740 [Cheering] 811 00:31:55,740 --> 00:31:57,330 We wanted to make it look like NWO 812 00:31:57,330 --> 00:31:59,580 just came and wreaked havoc. 813 00:31:59,580 --> 00:32:02,040 And, took over. 814 00:32:02,040 --> 00:32:03,790 We need somebody in the back! Please! 815 00:32:03,790 --> 00:32:05,170 What is he talking about, need somebody? 816 00:32:05,170 --> 00:32:06,420 He's trying to get a cameraman- 817 00:32:06,420 --> 00:32:08,800 We were inspired a bit by Hill Street Blues, 818 00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:11,630 as far as the way you moved throughout a scene 819 00:32:11,630 --> 00:32:13,010 with one camera. 820 00:32:13,010 --> 00:32:14,430 We were all about making it work. 821 00:32:14,430 --> 00:32:18,140 Making what looked like reality happen. 822 00:32:18,140 --> 00:32:19,270 Craig can hear us. 823 00:32:19,270 --> 00:32:21,600 Craig, are you gonna send a cameraman back there or not? 824 00:32:21,600 --> 00:32:23,980 They're coming around the corner. 825 00:32:23,980 --> 00:32:25,940 Wait a minute, we go to the back! 826 00:32:25,940 --> 00:32:27,690 And we had baseball bats. 827 00:32:27,690 --> 00:32:29,730 They got baseball bats! 828 00:32:29,730 --> 00:32:33,030 All the carnage has already taken place. 829 00:32:33,030 --> 00:32:35,660 It's the old Hitchcock. 830 00:32:35,660 --> 00:32:38,660 See the knife and then you see the blood. 831 00:32:38,660 --> 00:32:41,830 You let the mind create the violence. 832 00:32:41,830 --> 00:32:43,420 [Indistinct shouting] 833 00:32:43,420 --> 00:32:44,880 [Eric] They're picking up props. 834 00:32:44,880 --> 00:32:47,460 They were nailing it. 835 00:32:47,460 --> 00:32:49,300 They all worked their asses off to make it look 836 00:32:49,300 --> 00:32:50,920 as believable as it could. 837 00:32:50,920 --> 00:32:53,680 And I don't know if it was planned in advance- 838 00:32:53,680 --> 00:32:55,140 only Kevin Nash or Rey Mysterio 839 00:32:55,140 --> 00:32:56,340 could tell you that. 840 00:32:56,340 --> 00:32:59,100 Nash picked up Rey Mysterio and threw him 841 00:32:59,100 --> 00:33:00,810 against the trailer like a lawn dart. 842 00:33:00,810 --> 00:33:02,140 Whap! 843 00:33:02,140 --> 00:33:04,440 We're gonna have Kevin Nash standing there. 844 00:33:04,440 --> 00:33:07,860 And, they're gonna have Rey Mysterio Jr. jump on him. 845 00:33:07,860 --> 00:33:10,110 And there's Rey Mysterio- Hey! He dove! 846 00:33:10,110 --> 00:33:11,990 Rey says, "Do you think you can throw me 847 00:33:11,990 --> 00:33:15,610 through that window?" "No, dude. 848 00:33:15,610 --> 00:33:19,160 It's a window." [Laughs] "You'll die." 849 00:33:19,160 --> 00:33:21,450 I said, "Let me just throw you off the trailer." 850 00:33:21,450 --> 00:33:24,330 -Ugh! -Oh! Headfirst! 851 00:33:24,330 --> 00:33:27,130 So, we were doing things that nobody had ever seen. 852 00:33:27,130 --> 00:33:29,540 [Eric] It looked like a giant crime scene. 853 00:33:29,540 --> 00:33:30,920 [Shouting] 854 00:33:30,920 --> 00:33:32,420 Creates emotion in the audience. 855 00:33:32,420 --> 00:33:34,170 Please, somebody help him! 856 00:33:34,170 --> 00:33:35,090 And they forget that 857 00:33:35,090 --> 00:33:37,590 they're watching professional wrestling. 858 00:33:37,590 --> 00:33:39,680 We're gonna try to get this all back together. 859 00:33:39,680 --> 00:33:41,850 And, ah, we'll be back. 860 00:33:41,850 --> 00:33:44,980 WCW really started to leave their competition in the dust, 861 00:33:44,980 --> 00:33:49,020 and that was the vaunted 83-week winning streak. 862 00:33:49,020 --> 00:33:52,530 We were pro wrestling. 863 00:33:52,530 --> 00:33:55,450 And they were playing catchup for the first time. 864 00:33:55,450 --> 00:33:56,610 I remember when that happened. 865 00:33:56,610 --> 00:33:58,160 I remember thinking, 866 00:33:58,160 --> 00:34:00,240 "We should do more shit like that." 867 00:34:00,240 --> 00:34:04,410 That freedom, we did not have. 868 00:34:04,410 --> 00:34:06,790 [Diamond Dallas Page] And to see the company, 869 00:34:06,790 --> 00:34:09,580 not only compete with the WWE, 870 00:34:09,580 --> 00:34:12,170 but knock 'em on their ass for 83 weeks, 871 00:34:12,170 --> 00:34:14,920 like, straight weeks... 872 00:34:14,920 --> 00:34:15,760 Wow! 873 00:34:15,760 --> 00:34:19,010 It is the wrestling program 874 00:34:19,010 --> 00:34:20,600 around the world! 875 00:34:20,600 --> 00:34:23,430 Once those ratings started, there was no stopping him. 876 00:34:23,430 --> 00:34:26,730 I think the war with WWF was personal with Eric. 877 00:34:26,730 --> 00:34:28,560 He was always tracing ratings. 878 00:34:28,560 --> 00:34:32,020 Eric cared more about ratings than advertising dollars. 879 00:34:32,020 --> 00:34:34,320 This is a television company. 880 00:34:34,320 --> 00:34:37,990 And we're going to run WCW like a television company. 881 00:34:37,990 --> 00:34:41,490 It was this maniacal desire 882 00:34:41,490 --> 00:34:45,120 to be 883 00:34:45,120 --> 00:34:48,420 There was a competitive pressure that I put on myself. 884 00:34:48,420 --> 00:34:50,670 So, Vince McMahon, this is for you. 885 00:34:50,670 --> 00:34:53,920 And I said something like, "I'm not gonna stop 886 00:34:53,920 --> 00:34:56,970 'til I drive a stake through the heart of 887 00:34:56,970 --> 00:34:59,760 Vincent K. McMahon!" 888 00:34:59,760 --> 00:35:01,720 I may have gone a little over the top. 889 00:35:07,310 --> 00:35:10,190 [Buzzing] "Is". Back up. 1996. 890 00:35:10,190 --> 00:35:12,310 I keep hearing how Vince McMahon 891 00:35:12,310 --> 00:35:15,150 plans his stuff out a year in advance. 892 00:35:15,150 --> 00:35:17,150 He knows what he's gonna have in next year's 893 00:35:17,150 --> 00:35:20,280 WrestleMania ten months before it happens. 894 00:35:20,280 --> 00:35:21,870 Why can't we do that? 895 00:35:21,870 --> 00:35:24,410 And I saw Sting as the opportunity to do that. 896 00:35:24,410 --> 00:35:28,500 And the Stinger making his way to the ring! 897 00:35:28,500 --> 00:35:30,500 One night, Scott Hall started explaining 898 00:35:30,500 --> 00:35:32,750 this idea that he had for a new version of 899 00:35:32,750 --> 00:35:34,590 the Sting character, based on the 900 00:35:34,590 --> 00:35:37,380 Brandon Lee character in the movie The Crow. 901 00:35:37,380 --> 00:35:39,630 And he goes, "You're the scary Sting." 902 00:35:39,630 --> 00:35:41,300 And I looked over at Sting, 903 00:35:41,300 --> 00:35:43,090 and his eyes were like this big. 904 00:35:43,090 --> 00:35:45,850 The Sting Crow character was born. 905 00:35:45,850 --> 00:35:47,520 -That's Sting. -It is, but... 906 00:35:47,520 --> 00:35:49,060 Once he went up in the rafters, 907 00:35:49,060 --> 00:35:50,770 that built the anticipation that was needed to 908 00:35:50,770 --> 00:35:53,100 really put that character over. 909 00:35:53,100 --> 00:35:55,320 That started what became an 18-month story. 910 00:35:55,320 --> 00:35:57,190 Oh, my! Sting! 911 00:35:57,190 --> 00:35:58,610 And he started showing up and 912 00:35:58,610 --> 00:36:01,200 scaring the hell out of everybody in the NWO. 913 00:36:01,200 --> 00:36:02,610 He's got everybody! 914 00:36:02,610 --> 00:36:05,030 Sting would finally confront Hogan. 915 00:36:05,030 --> 00:36:07,450 They'd have the match for control of WCW. 916 00:36:07,450 --> 00:36:09,580 -He's pointing at me! -Don't worry about it! 917 00:36:09,580 --> 00:36:11,660 It was something, really, that had not been done to 918 00:36:11,660 --> 00:36:13,460 this degree before in the history of wrestling, 919 00:36:13,460 --> 00:36:15,670 which was making the decision that... 920 00:36:15,670 --> 00:36:18,210 we're actually not gonna pay this off next week or 921 00:36:18,210 --> 00:36:20,300 next month, but we're gonna keep this going until the 922 00:36:20,300 --> 00:36:22,800 end of the year in our Starrcade Pay Per View. 923 00:36:22,800 --> 00:36:24,430 Welcome to Starrcade! 924 00:36:24,430 --> 00:36:26,850 1997! 925 00:36:26,850 --> 00:36:30,430 An event 18 months in the making! 926 00:36:30,430 --> 00:36:32,980 Sting is gonna lead Hogan clean. 927 00:36:32,980 --> 00:36:35,110 WCW's gonna come out on top. 928 00:36:35,110 --> 00:36:37,440 Then it's gonna be up to NWO to kind of 929 00:36:37,440 --> 00:36:38,730 rebuild from the ground up. 930 00:36:38,730 --> 00:36:40,150 That was the plan. 931 00:36:40,150 --> 00:36:43,070 Sting has returned to the wrestling ring... 932 00:36:43,070 --> 00:36:48,370 to reclaim WCW's title from the NWO. 933 00:36:48,370 --> 00:36:51,120 The original finish, it got convoluted and 934 00:36:51,120 --> 00:36:53,250 compromised throughout the day. 935 00:36:53,250 --> 00:36:56,790 There was supposed to be the big boot by Hogan, 936 00:36:56,790 --> 00:36:59,960 the leg drop on Sting, the cover. 937 00:36:59,960 --> 00:37:03,170 But, the referee's supposed to do a fast count. 938 00:37:03,170 --> 00:37:06,050 It wasn't a fast count, but Bret Hart came in, 939 00:37:06,050 --> 00:37:08,760 restarted the match with himself as the referee. 940 00:37:08,760 --> 00:37:11,020 That was three. Hey, what are you doing? Ah! 941 00:37:11,020 --> 00:37:14,480 Well, even the idea, the referee and the fast count 942 00:37:14,480 --> 00:37:15,600 and the whole thing, I remember when they 943 00:37:15,600 --> 00:37:17,980 gave it to me, it was like, "Really?" 944 00:37:17,980 --> 00:37:19,980 Like, that is the lamest ending. 945 00:37:19,980 --> 00:37:21,690 Bret Hart is here tonight as the referee. 946 00:37:21,690 --> 00:37:24,360 Is that right? Is that correct? 947 00:37:24,360 --> 00:37:28,240 It's an awful, stupid, and very... 948 00:37:28,240 --> 00:37:30,330 convoluted ending for the match, 949 00:37:30,330 --> 00:37:32,200 but I remember Eric Bischoff insisting 950 00:37:32,200 --> 00:37:35,040 how it was gonna be fantastic. 951 00:37:35,040 --> 00:37:36,040 Hart's right in Hogan's face! 952 00:37:36,040 --> 00:37:38,000 [Bell ringing] 953 00:37:38,000 --> 00:37:40,630 And the crowd reacted the way you wanted them 954 00:37:40,630 --> 00:37:42,090 to react, initially. 955 00:37:42,090 --> 00:37:44,720 "Yay! Sting finally won." 956 00:37:44,720 --> 00:37:47,930 Heavyweight Champion of the World! 957 00:37:47,930 --> 00:37:50,810 Sting! 958 00:37:50,810 --> 00:37:53,680 It wasn't until afterwards that people started to 959 00:37:53,680 --> 00:37:57,060 realize what a convoluted finish it was. 960 00:37:57,060 --> 00:37:58,900 In our business, 961 00:37:58,900 --> 00:38:01,070 you can screw up the whole match. 962 00:38:01,070 --> 00:38:03,780 Do not ---- up the finish. 963 00:38:03,780 --> 00:38:06,030 Then all hell broke loose. 964 00:38:06,030 --> 00:38:07,990 ♪ 965 00:38:07,990 --> 00:38:09,910 [Eric] Back in internet world, 966 00:38:09,910 --> 00:38:12,370 all the purveyors of truth out there, they- 967 00:38:12,370 --> 00:38:14,830 all of a sudden- became so obsessed over 968 00:38:14,830 --> 00:38:17,420 the finish of Starrcade '97. 969 00:38:17,420 --> 00:38:20,290 'What really happened between Sting and Hogan?" 970 00:38:20,290 --> 00:38:21,790 "Why did it happen?" 971 00:38:21,790 --> 00:38:24,170 "How did you let that happen?" 972 00:38:24,170 --> 00:38:26,420 I mean, I still get heat for that. 973 00:38:26,420 --> 00:38:28,590 [Konnan] Bischoff had kind of hitched his wagon to Hogan, 974 00:38:28,590 --> 00:38:30,390 he kind of listened to what he said 975 00:38:30,390 --> 00:38:32,430 more than the other guys. 976 00:38:32,430 --> 00:38:34,560 [Eric] On the day of the Sting-Hogan match, 977 00:38:34,560 --> 00:38:39,190 it was apparent to both Hulk and I that Sting didn't 978 00:38:39,190 --> 00:38:43,650 appear to be nearly as excited about the opportunity 979 00:38:43,650 --> 00:38:46,400 that we'd been working on for 18 months. 980 00:38:46,400 --> 00:38:49,660 There was something about him that day that was off. 981 00:38:49,660 --> 00:38:50,950 Sting left the room, 982 00:38:50,950 --> 00:38:53,370 and Hulk and I kind of looked at each other, 983 00:38:53,370 --> 00:38:54,700 and I said, "What are you thinking?" 984 00:38:54,700 --> 00:38:57,620 And he goes, "Not today, brother. 985 00:38:57,620 --> 00:39:00,420 Not today. His head's not right." 986 00:39:00,420 --> 00:39:03,420 Hulk just wasn't feeling it so, 987 00:39:03,420 --> 00:39:05,760 we changed the finish, or lack thereof, 988 00:39:05,760 --> 00:39:07,050 of a clean finish, 989 00:39:07,050 --> 00:39:09,590 because Hulk Hogan has creative control. 990 00:39:09,590 --> 00:39:12,260 He had creative control, he didn't give two shits. 991 00:39:12,260 --> 00:39:15,560 He'd walk in at 7:30, read the TV and say, 992 00:39:15,560 --> 00:39:17,180 "Doesn't work for me, brother." 993 00:39:17,180 --> 00:39:19,850 Yes, you know, free right to pretty much do 994 00:39:19,850 --> 00:39:21,480 whatever he wanted, and he has no interest 995 00:39:21,480 --> 00:39:24,150 in that company other than himself. 996 00:39:24,150 --> 00:39:26,070 That right there can really start 997 00:39:26,070 --> 00:39:27,900 turning things a certain way. 998 00:39:27,900 --> 00:39:29,860 I think the only guy that 999 00:39:29,860 --> 00:39:32,620 was not political was Sting. 1000 00:39:32,620 --> 00:39:35,410 Sting didn't seem to be part of that group. 1001 00:39:35,410 --> 00:39:39,410 I think Sting had been convinced that Hulk was 1002 00:39:39,410 --> 00:39:40,920 gonna pull the rug out from underneath him 1003 00:39:40,920 --> 00:39:42,670 at the last minute. 1004 00:39:42,670 --> 00:39:46,420 He walked into that meeting expecting it. 1005 00:39:46,420 --> 00:39:48,460 And it actually manifested it. 1006 00:39:48,460 --> 00:39:50,630 When guys got those kind of agendas, 1007 00:39:50,630 --> 00:39:53,930 thinking about themselves, that's what happens. 1008 00:39:53,930 --> 00:39:56,720 And, ah, that's pretty much when the ship start- 1009 00:39:56,720 --> 00:39:58,520 started to go down. 1010 00:40:06,150 --> 00:40:07,940 [Eric] Starrcade '97, Hogan and Sting, 1011 00:40:07,940 --> 00:40:11,400 is gonna haunt me for the rest of my life. 1012 00:40:11,400 --> 00:40:14,410 We had the audience in the palm of our hands. 1013 00:40:14,410 --> 00:40:17,830 But unfortunately, the end didn't 1014 00:40:17,830 --> 00:40:20,500 live up to the rest of the story. 1015 00:40:20,500 --> 00:40:23,000 And certainly wasn't what the fans wanted. 1016 00:40:23,000 --> 00:40:25,420 You'll find people who think that was the reason 1017 00:40:25,420 --> 00:40:27,420 WCW kind of went downhill. 1018 00:40:27,420 --> 00:40:30,010 Whatever, wrestling fans. 1019 00:40:30,010 --> 00:40:33,680 ♪ 1020 00:40:33,680 --> 00:40:36,260 The WWF had really established a strong 1021 00:40:36,260 --> 00:40:38,680 creative foundation throughout '97. 1022 00:40:38,680 --> 00:40:39,770 If you go back and look at the numbers, 1023 00:40:39,770 --> 00:40:42,980 you can start to see that gap getting ever closer. 1024 00:40:42,980 --> 00:40:44,400 Vince McMahon went on camera, and said, 1025 00:40:44,400 --> 00:40:46,110 "We're gonna change the way we do things. 1026 00:40:46,110 --> 00:40:49,110 We're not gonna insult the audience's intelligence." 1027 00:40:49,110 --> 00:40:50,490 The World Wrestling Federation has been an 1028 00:40:50,490 --> 00:40:52,450 entertainment mainstay here in North America, 1029 00:40:52,450 --> 00:40:53,950 and all over the world. 1030 00:40:53,950 --> 00:40:56,950 As the times have changed, so have we. 1031 00:40:56,950 --> 00:40:58,240 I'm happy to say that this new, 1032 00:40:58,240 --> 00:41:00,620 vibrant creative direction has resulted in a 1033 00:41:00,620 --> 00:41:03,250 huge increase in television viewership. 1034 00:41:03,250 --> 00:41:05,120 He's saying, "We're gonna do what those other guys are 1035 00:41:05,120 --> 00:41:07,250 doing because it's really kicking our ass and 1036 00:41:07,250 --> 00:41:09,420 it's beginning to hurt." 1037 00:41:09,420 --> 00:41:13,340 Vince brings Mike Tyson into WrestleMania... 1038 00:41:13,340 --> 00:41:16,640 knowing that anything that Tyson does, 1039 00:41:16,640 --> 00:41:18,300 it's a million bucks. 1040 00:41:18,300 --> 00:41:20,640 [Cheering] 1041 00:41:20,640 --> 00:41:22,310 Tyson! 1042 00:41:22,310 --> 00:41:24,440 The next night I saw Kevin, 1043 00:41:24,440 --> 00:41:27,060 first thing I said to Kev was... 1044 00:41:27,060 --> 00:41:30,690 "You feel the water? It's getting cold." 1045 00:41:30,690 --> 00:41:34,320 In other words, we're on our way to the iceberg. 1046 00:41:34,320 --> 00:41:36,450 Me and Disco Inferno, 1047 00:41:36,450 --> 00:41:39,200 we thought The Rock was cool. 1048 00:41:39,200 --> 00:41:41,540 And we thought Steve Austin was cool. 1049 00:41:41,540 --> 00:41:43,910 And me and Disco were always in the back watching them, 1050 00:41:43,910 --> 00:41:46,120 you know, backstage, and we would get heat: 1051 00:41:46,120 --> 00:41:47,330 "Why are you watching the show?" 1052 00:41:47,330 --> 00:41:49,290 "'Cause it's better than ours." 1053 00:41:49,290 --> 00:41:52,460 You know, at that time, I really did not give a ----. 1054 00:41:52,460 --> 00:41:54,970 Bischoff, he remembers the big crowds and 1055 00:41:54,970 --> 00:41:58,050 he was the king pin. But the truth of it is, 1056 00:41:58,050 --> 00:42:00,600 he never knew anything about wrestling. 1057 00:42:00,600 --> 00:42:01,970 And then towards the end, basically, 1058 00:42:01,970 --> 00:42:04,980 he was just yes-ing to Hogan. 1059 00:42:04,980 --> 00:42:06,770 It was a disaster. 1060 00:42:06,770 --> 00:42:08,810 Hogan was the bigger talent. 1061 00:42:08,810 --> 00:42:11,730 Hogan was the guy that he was gonna go with. 1062 00:42:11,730 --> 00:42:14,690 No matter what. 1063 00:42:14,690 --> 00:42:17,570 That's the bond right there, Hogan and Bischoff. 1064 00:42:17,570 --> 00:42:20,830 They're both accountable to each other. 1065 00:42:20,830 --> 00:42:24,200 That's the secret, is that Hulk Hogan was basically 1066 00:42:24,200 --> 00:42:26,910 the puppet master to Eric Bischoff, 1067 00:42:26,910 --> 00:42:29,420 and Erich Bischoff... 1068 00:42:29,420 --> 00:42:32,130 he was just a prop and, 1069 00:42:32,130 --> 00:42:34,510 that's what killed WCW. 1070 00:42:34,510 --> 00:42:37,010 [Eric] Everything looks easier from the outside, 1071 00:42:37,010 --> 00:42:39,840 but once you get inside, you realize just how 1072 00:42:39,840 --> 00:42:42,850 complicated and nuanced some things that appear to be 1073 00:42:42,850 --> 00:42:46,140 so easy and so simple really are. 1074 00:42:46,140 --> 00:42:49,060 Who's responsible for killing WCW? 1075 00:42:49,060 --> 00:42:51,360 Just look at some of the names who were floating around 1076 00:42:51,360 --> 00:42:54,570 at the highest levels within Turner Broadcasting. 1077 00:42:54,570 --> 00:42:57,860 They wanted WCW to go away. 1078 00:42:57,860 --> 00:42:59,950 And they got their wish. 1079 00:42:59,950 --> 00:43:03,450 ♪ 1080 00:43:04,790 --> 00:43:07,290 Whenever you're leading a night and now you're not 1081 00:43:07,290 --> 00:43:10,670 leading a night, there's reason for concern. 1082 00:43:10,670 --> 00:43:12,540 We hit a small brick wall. 1083 00:43:12,540 --> 00:43:15,880 The wheels started falling off, creatively. 1084 00:43:15,880 --> 00:43:17,880 What the ---- is this? 1085 00:43:17,880 --> 00:43:20,130 WWE's answer was Attitude. 1086 00:43:20,130 --> 00:43:21,640 Oh! 1087 00:43:21,640 --> 00:43:23,970 They were willing to go further creatively. 1088 00:43:23,970 --> 00:43:27,390 That's exactly what we're gonna do to kill you off. 1089 00:43:27,390 --> 00:43:28,560 Why are we doing this? 1090 00:43:28,560 --> 00:43:30,690 Is this "classy" enough for our networks? 1091 00:43:30,690 --> 00:43:32,520 That pissed me off. 1092 00:43:32,520 --> 00:43:35,400 They started to handcuff us with Standards and Practices. 1093 00:43:35,400 --> 00:43:37,280 Can you say "butt" on TBS? 1094 00:43:37,280 --> 00:43:40,990 I'm not convinced that wasn't an orchestrated hit job. 1095 00:43:40,990 --> 00:43:42,490 I don't think that's debatable. 1096 00:43:42,490 --> 00:43:44,030 There were too many conspiracies 1097 00:43:44,030 --> 00:43:46,200 behind the scenes trying to knock him off. 1098 00:43:46,200 --> 00:43:48,700 Once you have the monkeys running the zoo, 1099 00:43:48,700 --> 00:43:49,910 you're in trouble. 1100 00:43:49,910 --> 00:43:50,960 Woo! 1101 00:43:50,960 --> 00:43:52,040 The blood was in the water, 1102 00:43:52,040 --> 00:43:53,670 and the sharks were coming to get it. 1103 00:43:53,670 --> 00:43:55,750 That's the name of the game. 1104 00:43:55,750 --> 00:43:58,340 People will try to manipulate. 1105 00:43:58,340 --> 00:44:00,840 And who prevailed? [Clicking tongue] 1106 00:44:00,840 --> 00:44:02,840 [Loud popping] 1107 00:44:02,840 --> 00:44:04,300 He is in the house!