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By Rennie Detore
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, March 27, 2005
These days, everything about Eric Bischoff is different.
He traded his black-and-white New World Order leather jacket for more professional business attire. His trademark, jet-black coiffure is gone, replaced by a buzzcut that shows off his distinguished gray hair.
In 2005, Bischoff is a changed man. He not only altered his wardrobe and shorned his locks but also dismissed the immaturity and lack of perspective that propped him up as a wrestling genius but also labeled him as short-sighted.
"When I look back at WCW, the only thing I regret is that I wasn't mature enough to reflect and appreciate what was happening," Bischoff said.
The former president of WCW swept the company off its feet in 1994 and immediately ushered in monumental changes. His vision transformed WCW from a fledgling, southern-based promotion into a sports entertainment powerhouse that eventually overtook the king of professional wrestling, Vince McMahon.
"I was getting phone calls from Turner executives and occassionally Ted himself, saying 'That a boy.' Going from a third-string announcer to president of the company was extremely gratifying," Bischoff said.
But not long after such innovative concepts as Monday Night "Nitro" and the nWo, Bischoff's vision became cloudy.
His once mighty swagger -- the one that tried desperately to put WWE out of business -- became more of a detriment than an asset. Even the company's top star and Bischoff's good friend, Hulk Hogan, tried to intercede.
"Hogan looked at me, during the peak of WCW's run, with his Father Time personality and said, 'Don't think this success is going to last forever,' " Bischoff recalled. "I kind of took in what he said but didn't really listen, and I should have."
Success happened so quickly and easily for Bischoff that the thought of a downfall never crossed his mind. From the moment Bischoff arrived in WCW, the company progressed with each year.
"I had never been on the other side; I had never experienced the ride down," Bischoff said.
Eventually, Bischoff's concepts grew stale, and his talent grew old. Bischoff rode his aging stars (Hogan, Randy Savage, etc.) as long as he could. Before long, Bischoff didn't have any new ones to feature. His lack of planning left him with a roster that could be divided into two categories of wrestlers: inexperienced and overexposed. To make things worse, the latter often manipulated storylines in their favor based on name-value, leaving the once-powerful Bischoff helpless.
"WCW itself got out of hand, and (dealing with the talent) was the hardest part of the job, and the part I liked least," Bischoff said.
"In WCW, someone would come up to me the day of production and say, 'I don't like what the story does for me.' That stuff happened from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. all day long."
As quickly as Bischoff took the reigns of WCW and built the promotion into a winner, he lost control of every aspect of the company. Not long after that, Bischoff was sent home.
WCW went through a variety of changes at the top, including recruiting Vince Russo, a former WWE writer, to run the show. But when that didn't work, WCW again turned to Bischoff, who was brought back as part of a team alongside Russo.
"Vince Russo came in and convinced everyone that he was the guy who turned WWE around and allowed WWE to reverse its ratings," Bischoff said. "Within 60 days, that thinking became transparent. The people who made the decision to bring Russo in wish they hadn't, so they called me."
Bischoff tried his best to work with Russo, but their styles clashed almost immediately, and Bischoff exercised his option to leave.
After a few years working outside of the business on various projects, Bischoff appeared on WWE TV in the summer of 2002 and has become a fixture since then on "Raw." The initial shock of Bischoff, the man who represented WCW for so many years, working for McMahon has all but dissipated. Bischoff, because of his history, will never be just another WWE personality, but he's more of a role player as the "Raw" general manager.
But Bischoff doesn't mind being a small part of WWE's puzzle. One only has to listen to Bischoff talk about next week's "Wrestlemania 21" to hear the graciousness in his voice. He finally appreciates this business now more so than he did when he took WCW's success for granted.
"I don't expect to have any role at 'Wrestlemania,' a humble Bischoff said. "Wrestlemania needs to be about the superstars, the main course. I'm just the garnish.
"And I'm OK with that."
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, March 27, 2005
These days, everything about Eric Bischoff is different.
He traded his black-and-white New World Order leather jacket for more professional business attire. His trademark, jet-black coiffure is gone, replaced by a buzzcut that shows off his distinguished gray hair.
In 2005, Bischoff is a changed man. He not only altered his wardrobe and shorned his locks but also dismissed the immaturity and lack of perspective that propped him up as a wrestling genius but also labeled him as short-sighted.
"When I look back at WCW, the only thing I regret is that I wasn't mature enough to reflect and appreciate what was happening," Bischoff said.
The former president of WCW swept the company off its feet in 1994 and immediately ushered in monumental changes. His vision transformed WCW from a fledgling, southern-based promotion into a sports entertainment powerhouse that eventually overtook the king of professional wrestling, Vince McMahon.
"I was getting phone calls from Turner executives and occassionally Ted himself, saying 'That a boy.' Going from a third-string announcer to president of the company was extremely gratifying," Bischoff said.
But not long after such innovative concepts as Monday Night "Nitro" and the nWo, Bischoff's vision became cloudy.
His once mighty swagger -- the one that tried desperately to put WWE out of business -- became more of a detriment than an asset. Even the company's top star and Bischoff's good friend, Hulk Hogan, tried to intercede.
"Hogan looked at me, during the peak of WCW's run, with his Father Time personality and said, 'Don't think this success is going to last forever,' " Bischoff recalled. "I kind of took in what he said but didn't really listen, and I should have."
Success happened so quickly and easily for Bischoff that the thought of a downfall never crossed his mind. From the moment Bischoff arrived in WCW, the company progressed with each year.
"I had never been on the other side; I had never experienced the ride down," Bischoff said.
Eventually, Bischoff's concepts grew stale, and his talent grew old. Bischoff rode his aging stars (Hogan, Randy Savage, etc.) as long as he could. Before long, Bischoff didn't have any new ones to feature. His lack of planning left him with a roster that could be divided into two categories of wrestlers: inexperienced and overexposed. To make things worse, the latter often manipulated storylines in their favor based on name-value, leaving the once-powerful Bischoff helpless.
"WCW itself got out of hand, and (dealing with the talent) was the hardest part of the job, and the part I liked least," Bischoff said.
"In WCW, someone would come up to me the day of production and say, 'I don't like what the story does for me.' That stuff happened from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. all day long."
As quickly as Bischoff took the reigns of WCW and built the promotion into a winner, he lost control of every aspect of the company. Not long after that, Bischoff was sent home.
WCW went through a variety of changes at the top, including recruiting Vince Russo, a former WWE writer, to run the show. But when that didn't work, WCW again turned to Bischoff, who was brought back as part of a team alongside Russo.
"Vince Russo came in and convinced everyone that he was the guy who turned WWE around and allowed WWE to reverse its ratings," Bischoff said. "Within 60 days, that thinking became transparent. The people who made the decision to bring Russo in wish they hadn't, so they called me."
Bischoff tried his best to work with Russo, but their styles clashed almost immediately, and Bischoff exercised his option to leave.
After a few years working outside of the business on various projects, Bischoff appeared on WWE TV in the summer of 2002 and has become a fixture since then on "Raw." The initial shock of Bischoff, the man who represented WCW for so many years, working for McMahon has all but dissipated. Bischoff, because of his history, will never be just another WWE personality, but he's more of a role player as the "Raw" general manager.
But Bischoff doesn't mind being a small part of WWE's puzzle. One only has to listen to Bischoff talk about next week's "Wrestlemania 21" to hear the graciousness in his voice. He finally appreciates this business now more so than he did when he took WCW's success for granted.
"I don't expect to have any role at 'Wrestlemania,' a humble Bischoff said. "Wrestlemania needs to be about the superstars, the main course. I'm just the garnish.
"And I'm OK with that."
Why did that gimp choose my topic to reply to?
You're a loser. You do know you're gonna get banned.
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By Rennie Detore
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, March 27, 2005
These days, everything about Eric Bischoff is different.
He traded his black-and-white New World Order leather jacket for more professional business attire. His trademark, jet-black coiffure is gone, replaced by a buzzcut that shows off his distinguished gray hair.
In 2005, Bischoff is a changed man. He not only altered his wardrobe and shorned his locks but also dismissed the immaturity and lack of perspective that propped him up as a wrestling genius but also labeled him as short-sighted.
"When I look back at WCW, the only thing I regret is that I wasn't mature enough to reflect and appreciate what was happening," Bischoff said.
The former president of WCW swept the company off its feet in 1994 and immediately ushered in monumental changes. His vision transformed WCW from a fledgling, southern-based promotion into a sports entertainment powerhouse that eventually overtook the king of professional wrestling, Vince McMahon.
"I was getting phone calls from Turner executives and occassionally Ted himself, saying 'That a boy.' Going from a third-string announcer to president of the company was extremely gratifying," Bischoff said.
But not long after such innovative concepts as Monday Night "Nitro" and the nWo, Bischoff's vision became cloudy.
His once mighty swagger -- the one that tried desperately to put WWE out of business -- became more of a detriment than an asset. Even the company's top star and Bischoff's good friend, Hulk Hogan, tried to intercede.
"Hogan looked at me, during the peak of WCW's run, with his Father Time personality and said, 'Don't think this success is going to last forever,' " Bischoff recalled. "I kind of took in what he said but didn't really listen, and I should have."
Success happened so quickly and easily for Bischoff that the thought of a downfall never crossed his mind. From the moment Bischoff arrived in WCW, the company progressed with each year.
"I had never been on the other side; I had never experienced the ride down," Bischoff said.
Eventually, Bischoff's concepts grew stale, and his talent grew old. Bischoff rode his aging stars (Hogan, Randy Savage, etc.) as long as he could. Before long, Bischoff didn't have any new ones to feature. His lack of planning left him with a roster that could be divided into two categories of wrestlers: inexperienced and overexposed. To make things worse, the latter often manipulated storylines in their favor based on name-value, leaving the once-powerful Bischoff helpless.
"WCW itself got out of hand, and (dealing with the talent) was the hardest part of the job, and the part I liked least," Bischoff said.
"In WCW, someone would come up to me the day of production and say, 'I don't like what the story does for me.' That stuff happened from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. all day long."
As quickly as Bischoff took the reigns of WCW and built the promotion into a winner, he lost control of every aspect of the company. Not long after that, Bischoff was sent home.
WCW went through a variety of changes at the top, including recruiting Vince Russo, a former WWE writer, to run the show. But when that didn't work, WCW again turned to Bischoff, who was brought back as part of a team alongside Russo.
"Vince Russo came in and convinced everyone that he was the guy who turned WWE around and allowed WWE to reverse its ratings," Bischoff said. "Within 60 days, that thinking became transparent. The people who made the decision to bring Russo in wish they hadn't, so they called me."
Bischoff tried his best to work with Russo, but their styles clashed almost immediately, and Bischoff exercised his option to leave.
After a few years working outside of the business on various projects, Bischoff appeared on WWE TV in the summer of 2002 and has become a fixture since then on "Raw." The initial shock of Bischoff, the man who represented WCW for so many years, working for McMahon has all but dissipated. Bischoff, because of his history, will never be just another WWE personality, but he's more of a role player as the "Raw" general manager.
But Bischoff doesn't mind being a small part of WWE's puzzle. One only has to listen to Bischoff talk about next week's "Wrestlemania 21" to hear the graciousness in his voice. He finally appreciates this business now more so than he did when he took WCW's success for granted.
"I don't expect to have any role at 'Wrestlemania,' a humble Bischoff said. "Wrestlemania needs to be about the superstars, the main course. I'm just the garnish.
"And I'm OK with that."
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, March 27, 2005
These days, everything about Eric Bischoff is different.
He traded his black-and-white New World Order leather jacket for more professional business attire. His trademark, jet-black coiffure is gone, replaced by a buzzcut that shows off his distinguished gray hair.
In 2005, Bischoff is a changed man. He not only altered his wardrobe and shorned his locks but also dismissed the immaturity and lack of perspective that propped him up as a wrestling genius but also labeled him as short-sighted.
"When I look back at WCW, the only thing I regret is that I wasn't mature enough to reflect and appreciate what was happening," Bischoff said.
The former president of WCW swept the company off its feet in 1994 and immediately ushered in monumental changes. His vision transformed WCW from a fledgling, southern-based promotion into a sports entertainment powerhouse that eventually overtook the king of professional wrestling, Vince McMahon.
"I was getting phone calls from Turner executives and occassionally Ted himself, saying 'That a boy.' Going from a third-string announcer to president of the company was extremely gratifying," Bischoff said.
But not long after such innovative concepts as Monday Night "Nitro" and the nWo, Bischoff's vision became cloudy.
His once mighty swagger -- the one that tried desperately to put WWE out of business -- became more of a detriment than an asset. Even the company's top star and Bischoff's good friend, Hulk Hogan, tried to intercede.
"Hogan looked at me, during the peak of WCW's run, with his Father Time personality and said, 'Don't think this success is going to last forever,' " Bischoff recalled. "I kind of took in what he said but didn't really listen, and I should have."
Success happened so quickly and easily for Bischoff that the thought of a downfall never crossed his mind. From the moment Bischoff arrived in WCW, the company progressed with each year.
"I had never been on the other side; I had never experienced the ride down," Bischoff said.
Eventually, Bischoff's concepts grew stale, and his talent grew old. Bischoff rode his aging stars (Hogan, Randy Savage, etc.) as long as he could. Before long, Bischoff didn't have any new ones to feature. His lack of planning left him with a roster that could be divided into two categories of wrestlers: inexperienced and overexposed. To make things worse, the latter often manipulated storylines in their favor based on name-value, leaving the once-powerful Bischoff helpless.
"WCW itself got out of hand, and (dealing with the talent) was the hardest part of the job, and the part I liked least," Bischoff said.
"In WCW, someone would come up to me the day of production and say, 'I don't like what the story does for me.' That stuff happened from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. all day long."
As quickly as Bischoff took the reigns of WCW and built the promotion into a winner, he lost control of every aspect of the company. Not long after that, Bischoff was sent home.
WCW went through a variety of changes at the top, including recruiting Vince Russo, a former WWE writer, to run the show. But when that didn't work, WCW again turned to Bischoff, who was brought back as part of a team alongside Russo.
"Vince Russo came in and convinced everyone that he was the guy who turned WWE around and allowed WWE to reverse its ratings," Bischoff said. "Within 60 days, that thinking became transparent. The people who made the decision to bring Russo in wish they hadn't, so they called me."
Bischoff tried his best to work with Russo, but their styles clashed almost immediately, and Bischoff exercised his option to leave.
After a few years working outside of the business on various projects, Bischoff appeared on WWE TV in the summer of 2002 and has become a fixture since then on "Raw." The initial shock of Bischoff, the man who represented WCW for so many years, working for McMahon has all but dissipated. Bischoff, because of his history, will never be just another WWE personality, but he's more of a role player as the "Raw" general manager.
But Bischoff doesn't mind being a small part of WWE's puzzle. One only has to listen to Bischoff talk about next week's "Wrestlemania 21" to hear the graciousness in his voice. He finally appreciates this business now more so than he did when he took WCW's success for granted.
"I don't expect to have any role at 'Wrestlemania,' a humble Bischoff said. "Wrestlemania needs to be about the superstars, the main course. I'm just the garnish.
"And I'm OK with that."