Black Widow
04-14-2008, 03:59 PM
April 11, 2008 - At the recent USA Upfront event, there were impressive TV stars like Tony Shaloub (Monk), Debra Messing (The Starter Wife), and Jeffrey Donovan (Burn Notice) in attendance. But for my money, there were two ladies that stood out above them all - WWE RAW's Candice Michelle and Maria Kanellis.
So, I stood in Craft in Century City, savagely underdressed, waving off the unending line of servers desperate to have me eat skewered pork bellies and battered olives. I had a purpose, a goal at hand. And it only partially included the open bar and free eats. When the time was just right, I downed three 7 & 7s, sprayed animal pheromones on my neck, put my wedding ring in my pocket, and walked over to have a nice chat with the gorgeous WWE Divas and Playboy cover girls, Candice and Maria. Our first topic of conversation was the sling Candice had managed to incorporate into her outfit that evening, the result of a (twice!) broken clavicle caused by in-ring injuries.
IGN TV: Candice, how are you feeling?
Candice: Great.
IGN TV: I can't wait to see you back in the ring.
Candice: Oh, I'll be back and I'll be strong.
Maria: She'll be back in the ring before you know it.
IGN TV: So Wrestlemania is a week in the past as of this point. How was it? What was your experience like?
Maria: Amazing. Just amazing. I mean you know it's going to be seventy thousand people, but then when you actually get out there you're like "oh my god. It's seventy thousand people." And then almost by the time I got to the ring I was hyperventilating because it was seventy five yards to the ring, and I thought "how am I going to do a match now?" But, all in all, amazing.
IGN TV: The entrance ramps get a bit long.
Maria: It was an amazing night. I kissed Snoop Dogg. Sure, I didn't win the match…
Candice: More like made out with Snoop Dogg.
IGN TV: Yeah, it was longer than a kiss. Sorry.
Maria: Yeah, okay. I made out with Snoop Dogg! So maybe next year I'll get the win and maybe it will be against…you. [looks at Candice]
Candice: Oh yeah?
IGN TV: That would be a tremendous match. So, you're both on RAW, which is the home of the WWE Woman's Title. We've been through several eras of Divas now. What do you see as the role of the Divas these days in the WWE? How would you describe your era? I would actually call it, the Maria and Candice era. [Author's Note: kissing ass]
Maria: Oh, ho. Very nice.
Candice: I think this era is really about having the sexiest women on television. But it's different once you step into that ring. You know I go out there, do my entrance, rip my robe open, and that's my sexy moment. The way I look and my outfit and everything. But when we step into that ring it's all about how we're athletes too. You know, when I going at it in the ring, it doesn't matter if my hair gets messy, my eyelash falls off or if I have a wardrobe malfunction. It's just about getting the three count. And getting my title back.
IGN TV: So there's really two parts - the sexy entrance; the alluring side. And then of course, all business in the ring. WWE has also expanded these days into pop culture. Movies, CDs... Do you see anything like that in the future for either of you? Maybe a top ten CD for Maria?
Maria: [Laughs]
Candice: Well, it can't be from me, because I can't sing to save my life. But I think she's got something in the wings.
Maria: Oh, now. We'll have to wait and see on that. But I think right now, the women in the locker room have more options than they ever had before. We have the most glamorous women that there have ever been. We go out there…it's a funny story actually. I was up on stage on Wrestlemania day and I'm taking pictures and I'm like, "Don't mess up my hair. Don't squish my hair. Any other day, just not today." But then at the show, as soon as I got out there I didn't even know if I had hair. I could have been bald and running around. So I totally agree with you on that. I think that the women are going to get involved in the movies. They're going to get more involved in singing. I think they're going to get involved in fashion. I think when it comes to every single part of entertainment; the Divas can do it now.
IGN TV: And you're into fashion as well.
Maria: I am. That's right.
IGN TV: And you actually have you own designs and such.
Maria: I do. I actually made my own dress for Hall of Fame. And I designed, but didn't make, my outfit for Wrestlemania. I've made a few outfits that I've wrestled in before and I made something that I wore on the Playboy Magazine shoot. I'm trying. It takes a lot of time and wrestling right now is my first priority. So I will never ever take time away from that in order to do fashion. But when the time comes to move forward with it, I am definitely interested.
Candice: I can't even sew a button on, so…
Maria: [Laughs]
Candice: And I don't want to learn. You know, I had to bribe her to sew some rhinestones on my outfit.
Maria: Yes, I have done that a couple of times. You know it's so funny. Sometimes some of the girls will have tags sticking out, so I'm constantly tucking and actually, right now…do I have anything open?
IGN TV: So, again, you're both on RAW, WWE's live show. How is it for you guys to go out there and perform without a safety net?
[At this point we were interrupted by one of the kindly waitstaff to see if we wanted to try a special drink created just for this evening's USA Network Event, called "The Character." Candice accepted the offer, and took a glass of this mysterious elixir.]
Candice: This interview is about to get a lot crazier.
Maria: As far as RAW goes, I've heard rumors that there might be another draft coming this year. And if there is, I'm hanging on for dear life. If they tell me that I have to go over to wherever, I'm hanging onto the podium and saying "no, I'm not going." RAW is my home for…almost four years now. Both of us. We came in at the same time. I can't imagine going anywhere else.
Candice: I think it's a cool thing being live. Sometimes it's a little nerve-wracking, but I think you get the real deal. Nothing's taped. If there's a mistake, you're going to see it. It kind of makes it feel like reality television.
IGN TV: But unlike reality TV, on live broadcasts editing can't save you.
Candice: I feel like I've gotten better that way.
Maria: You feel more pressure, but at the same time the pressure brings out, I think, our best.
IGN TV: Candice, I still feel so bad that you didn't get to be a part of Wrestlemania. I really want to see you get back in there. What's the recovery time going to be like for you this time around?
Candice: Well, I have to go and see the doctor tomorrow, but I think it might be around eight to ten weeks. Which, to me, doesn't seem like a lot of time. I mean I was out since October. With just one break. Now I've shattered it. Broken in four spots. So eight to ten weeks for me isn't that long -- to recover, regroup and get back in that ring. Before I came back, but I felt like I wasn't back. You know I think I was half-assed coming back. So it was like I'm there, but I can't do what I want to do. So it was really emotionally hard to be there, and like see Beth Phoenix in the ring and know that I can't run in there and kick her ass. So this time I'm going to come back when I'm healed and ready, and know that I can come back at full force.
Maria: Beware when she comes back. Woooo.
Candice: [Laughs] You really build character sitting at home. And you learn that it's really you want and develop your passion.
[Author note: I've tried telling this to my wife. Doesn't work]
IGN TV: What venues have you found to be the best, as far as fan reception?
Maria: Chicago for me, definitely. It's my home. Every time I go home. I went to Smackdown and hosted their Diva contest over there, and it was amazing to me that the Smackdown fans that were there welcomed me with open arms. So Chicago's my favorite. I love going to New York. New York's amazing. L.A. The last time I did a show in L.A. here, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin hosed me down with beer, so you know, that's a fond memory of mine! I love going all over really. Sometimes even in the smallest venues, you find the greatest crowds.
Candice: I agree a hundred percent. I mean, going to Milwaukee, that's my home town. It's great. And as I grow, my fans there grow with me. So every time I go back, I see that support grow. I see that and feel that. But actually a good story from Ric Flair -- one of those things I learned. We were doing a little house show, like, in a barn and…he's so fired up. He's got his robe on, he's "wooing" back stage. I mean you'd think it was Wrestlemania he was so excited. He looked at me and said, "Kid, it doesn't matter if there's a hundred people out there or seventy thousand. I'm going out there and putting on the best show I can." And I thought, you know what, he's right. We have to give the best. Because everyone who buys a ticket is out there to support you.
IGN TV: Another great Ric Flair quote is when he said that the day you don't have goose bumps stepping through the curtain is the day you don't need to step through the curtain anymore.
Candice: Absolutely.
IGN TV: I've been watching wrestling for over twenty years now. I've seen it go through many changes. I think what's exciting about it now is that there's something for everybody. Maybe during other times, during the late nineties, they were really gearing towards a specific demographic. I think now they run the gamut. Just last Monday for example -- Ric Flair's farewell tribute. A very high rated segment for RAW. Whereas it might not have interested some of the younger viewers, it shows how much history this business has.
Maria: I think the thing about wrestling is that it's in everyone's history. Every single person has watched the WWE at some point in their lives. And for Ric Flair to be out there, doing his thing. I mean, I was standing there, with all the guys…different ages, different looks and every one of them has a Ric Flair story. And Ric has really represented the company in that sense. It is for everybody.
Candice: And you know we're always up with the latest trends. You know, having Donald Trump come out, or Snoop Dogg come out, or Mayweather. We're always up to date with the latest trends. And if you follow it all the way back in the day, to what it's evolved to now, it's just following the trends.
IGN TV: The WWE has always been the best at having their finger on the pulse of pop culture. I think a lot of competitors try and copy that, but they wind up being a couple months off. Just missing the newest thing.
Candice: And it keeps us involved too. I think it keeps us on our toes. I mean here Maria is wearing a yellow tutu. I mean, how cute is that? It's fun and exciting and trendy.
Maria: Or a girl with purple hair, like Candice.
IGN TV: I would think it would be a little helpful for all you wrestlers who are on the road three hundred days out of the years as well. To work for a company that tracks trends and styles. It probably gets hard for you to watch movies and television.
Candice: You know, it's hard. When I'm on the road, I just can't wait to get home, just for one day. And now I'm home and I'm like "I gotta get out of this house." I can't cook. I can't clean. I can't sew a button.
Maria: And you know, I think there's a lot of us, when we're home for one or two days we're like "Okay, it's time to go the road." Just to go out in front of the crowd, those fans. It makes it really hard to stay put.
TV.IGN.com
So, I stood in Craft in Century City, savagely underdressed, waving off the unending line of servers desperate to have me eat skewered pork bellies and battered olives. I had a purpose, a goal at hand. And it only partially included the open bar and free eats. When the time was just right, I downed three 7 & 7s, sprayed animal pheromones on my neck, put my wedding ring in my pocket, and walked over to have a nice chat with the gorgeous WWE Divas and Playboy cover girls, Candice and Maria. Our first topic of conversation was the sling Candice had managed to incorporate into her outfit that evening, the result of a (twice!) broken clavicle caused by in-ring injuries.
IGN TV: Candice, how are you feeling?
Candice: Great.
IGN TV: I can't wait to see you back in the ring.
Candice: Oh, I'll be back and I'll be strong.
Maria: She'll be back in the ring before you know it.
IGN TV: So Wrestlemania is a week in the past as of this point. How was it? What was your experience like?
Maria: Amazing. Just amazing. I mean you know it's going to be seventy thousand people, but then when you actually get out there you're like "oh my god. It's seventy thousand people." And then almost by the time I got to the ring I was hyperventilating because it was seventy five yards to the ring, and I thought "how am I going to do a match now?" But, all in all, amazing.
IGN TV: The entrance ramps get a bit long.
Maria: It was an amazing night. I kissed Snoop Dogg. Sure, I didn't win the match…
Candice: More like made out with Snoop Dogg.
IGN TV: Yeah, it was longer than a kiss. Sorry.
Maria: Yeah, okay. I made out with Snoop Dogg! So maybe next year I'll get the win and maybe it will be against…you. [looks at Candice]
Candice: Oh yeah?
IGN TV: That would be a tremendous match. So, you're both on RAW, which is the home of the WWE Woman's Title. We've been through several eras of Divas now. What do you see as the role of the Divas these days in the WWE? How would you describe your era? I would actually call it, the Maria and Candice era. [Author's Note: kissing ass]
Maria: Oh, ho. Very nice.
Candice: I think this era is really about having the sexiest women on television. But it's different once you step into that ring. You know I go out there, do my entrance, rip my robe open, and that's my sexy moment. The way I look and my outfit and everything. But when we step into that ring it's all about how we're athletes too. You know, when I going at it in the ring, it doesn't matter if my hair gets messy, my eyelash falls off or if I have a wardrobe malfunction. It's just about getting the three count. And getting my title back.
IGN TV: So there's really two parts - the sexy entrance; the alluring side. And then of course, all business in the ring. WWE has also expanded these days into pop culture. Movies, CDs... Do you see anything like that in the future for either of you? Maybe a top ten CD for Maria?
Maria: [Laughs]
Candice: Well, it can't be from me, because I can't sing to save my life. But I think she's got something in the wings.
Maria: Oh, now. We'll have to wait and see on that. But I think right now, the women in the locker room have more options than they ever had before. We have the most glamorous women that there have ever been. We go out there…it's a funny story actually. I was up on stage on Wrestlemania day and I'm taking pictures and I'm like, "Don't mess up my hair. Don't squish my hair. Any other day, just not today." But then at the show, as soon as I got out there I didn't even know if I had hair. I could have been bald and running around. So I totally agree with you on that. I think that the women are going to get involved in the movies. They're going to get more involved in singing. I think they're going to get involved in fashion. I think when it comes to every single part of entertainment; the Divas can do it now.
IGN TV: And you're into fashion as well.
Maria: I am. That's right.
IGN TV: And you actually have you own designs and such.
Maria: I do. I actually made my own dress for Hall of Fame. And I designed, but didn't make, my outfit for Wrestlemania. I've made a few outfits that I've wrestled in before and I made something that I wore on the Playboy Magazine shoot. I'm trying. It takes a lot of time and wrestling right now is my first priority. So I will never ever take time away from that in order to do fashion. But when the time comes to move forward with it, I am definitely interested.
Candice: I can't even sew a button on, so…
Maria: [Laughs]
Candice: And I don't want to learn. You know, I had to bribe her to sew some rhinestones on my outfit.
Maria: Yes, I have done that a couple of times. You know it's so funny. Sometimes some of the girls will have tags sticking out, so I'm constantly tucking and actually, right now…do I have anything open?
IGN TV: So, again, you're both on RAW, WWE's live show. How is it for you guys to go out there and perform without a safety net?
[At this point we were interrupted by one of the kindly waitstaff to see if we wanted to try a special drink created just for this evening's USA Network Event, called "The Character." Candice accepted the offer, and took a glass of this mysterious elixir.]
Candice: This interview is about to get a lot crazier.
Maria: As far as RAW goes, I've heard rumors that there might be another draft coming this year. And if there is, I'm hanging on for dear life. If they tell me that I have to go over to wherever, I'm hanging onto the podium and saying "no, I'm not going." RAW is my home for…almost four years now. Both of us. We came in at the same time. I can't imagine going anywhere else.
Candice: I think it's a cool thing being live. Sometimes it's a little nerve-wracking, but I think you get the real deal. Nothing's taped. If there's a mistake, you're going to see it. It kind of makes it feel like reality television.
IGN TV: But unlike reality TV, on live broadcasts editing can't save you.
Candice: I feel like I've gotten better that way.
Maria: You feel more pressure, but at the same time the pressure brings out, I think, our best.
IGN TV: Candice, I still feel so bad that you didn't get to be a part of Wrestlemania. I really want to see you get back in there. What's the recovery time going to be like for you this time around?
Candice: Well, I have to go and see the doctor tomorrow, but I think it might be around eight to ten weeks. Which, to me, doesn't seem like a lot of time. I mean I was out since October. With just one break. Now I've shattered it. Broken in four spots. So eight to ten weeks for me isn't that long -- to recover, regroup and get back in that ring. Before I came back, but I felt like I wasn't back. You know I think I was half-assed coming back. So it was like I'm there, but I can't do what I want to do. So it was really emotionally hard to be there, and like see Beth Phoenix in the ring and know that I can't run in there and kick her ass. So this time I'm going to come back when I'm healed and ready, and know that I can come back at full force.
Maria: Beware when she comes back. Woooo.
Candice: [Laughs] You really build character sitting at home. And you learn that it's really you want and develop your passion.
[Author note: I've tried telling this to my wife. Doesn't work]
IGN TV: What venues have you found to be the best, as far as fan reception?
Maria: Chicago for me, definitely. It's my home. Every time I go home. I went to Smackdown and hosted their Diva contest over there, and it was amazing to me that the Smackdown fans that were there welcomed me with open arms. So Chicago's my favorite. I love going to New York. New York's amazing. L.A. The last time I did a show in L.A. here, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin hosed me down with beer, so you know, that's a fond memory of mine! I love going all over really. Sometimes even in the smallest venues, you find the greatest crowds.
Candice: I agree a hundred percent. I mean, going to Milwaukee, that's my home town. It's great. And as I grow, my fans there grow with me. So every time I go back, I see that support grow. I see that and feel that. But actually a good story from Ric Flair -- one of those things I learned. We were doing a little house show, like, in a barn and…he's so fired up. He's got his robe on, he's "wooing" back stage. I mean you'd think it was Wrestlemania he was so excited. He looked at me and said, "Kid, it doesn't matter if there's a hundred people out there or seventy thousand. I'm going out there and putting on the best show I can." And I thought, you know what, he's right. We have to give the best. Because everyone who buys a ticket is out there to support you.
IGN TV: Another great Ric Flair quote is when he said that the day you don't have goose bumps stepping through the curtain is the day you don't need to step through the curtain anymore.
Candice: Absolutely.
IGN TV: I've been watching wrestling for over twenty years now. I've seen it go through many changes. I think what's exciting about it now is that there's something for everybody. Maybe during other times, during the late nineties, they were really gearing towards a specific demographic. I think now they run the gamut. Just last Monday for example -- Ric Flair's farewell tribute. A very high rated segment for RAW. Whereas it might not have interested some of the younger viewers, it shows how much history this business has.
Maria: I think the thing about wrestling is that it's in everyone's history. Every single person has watched the WWE at some point in their lives. And for Ric Flair to be out there, doing his thing. I mean, I was standing there, with all the guys…different ages, different looks and every one of them has a Ric Flair story. And Ric has really represented the company in that sense. It is for everybody.
Candice: And you know we're always up with the latest trends. You know, having Donald Trump come out, or Snoop Dogg come out, or Mayweather. We're always up to date with the latest trends. And if you follow it all the way back in the day, to what it's evolved to now, it's just following the trends.
IGN TV: The WWE has always been the best at having their finger on the pulse of pop culture. I think a lot of competitors try and copy that, but they wind up being a couple months off. Just missing the newest thing.
Candice: And it keeps us involved too. I think it keeps us on our toes. I mean here Maria is wearing a yellow tutu. I mean, how cute is that? It's fun and exciting and trendy.
Maria: Or a girl with purple hair, like Candice.
IGN TV: I would think it would be a little helpful for all you wrestlers who are on the road three hundred days out of the years as well. To work for a company that tracks trends and styles. It probably gets hard for you to watch movies and television.
Candice: You know, it's hard. When I'm on the road, I just can't wait to get home, just for one day. And now I'm home and I'm like "I gotta get out of this house." I can't cook. I can't clean. I can't sew a button.
Maria: And you know, I think there's a lot of us, when we're home for one or two days we're like "Okay, it's time to go the road." Just to go out in front of the crowd, those fans. It makes it really hard to stay put.
TV.IGN.com