Black Widow
08-16-2008, 09:14 PM
August 14, 2008 - The Place: Venice Beach. Where the physically gorgeous and the clinically insane come together to get henna tattoos and Scarface posters.
The Event: WWE's SummerFest 2008 - a big, hot, crowded day in the sun with select WWE, Interscope/Geffen and Telemundo superstars.
The crowd was a pleasant mix of mostly passionate WWE fans and a few homeless drifters – par for the course in Venice. Festivities kicked off at 11am with WWE legendary manager/song-writer "The Mouth of the South" Jimmy Hart acting as our host for the day up on the main stage. Just so you know, home slice was on the mic all day long. I'll tell you this much, the man can talk. Presiding over events like this one involve a lot of hooting and hollering, getting the crowd to scream and shout, and never letting a second pass with out some sort of noise or sound. IGN TV Editor Eric Goldman and I sat in the sweltering press tent for about forty minutes (thankfully, air conditioning was eventually provided), listening to Jimmy work his magic.
WWE's SummerFest was created for a few reasons. One was to promote their big summer Pay Per View, Summerslam, which takes place this upcoming Sunday. Another was to offer a platform for other affiliates to promote some of their upcoming programming and artists, like Telemundo's Sin Senos No Hay Paraiso, or Interscope/Geffon's Prima J and Omar Cruz. And last but not least - to give a free show to fans as a way of showing appreciation for their passion and support.
Throughout the day I got to sit down and speak with ECW Diva Lena Yada, RAW Diva-on-the-mend Candice Michelle, Chavo Guerrero, The Miz & John Morrison, and ECW Originals Tommy Dreamer and Stevie Richards. All of them were kind and brave enough to step into our humid tent.
When I asked Lena which wrestler she'd like to be in a mixed tag team with, she replied, "I have the utmost respect for every single wrestler but you know...Colin. Colin Delaney. He's an underdog and he turned on Tommy Dreamer and that showed a lot of self-confidence, so it would be interesting what I could do with him. Although there is the very appealing Matt Hardy. Part of the Hardy Brothers! You can't go wrong there."
So could Lena give Colin a bit more confidence? She believes the answer is yes, saying, "I'd love to give Colin a make-over and then see what happens. You know, I think I should propose a match between Matt Hardy and Colin Delaney and whoever wins would get me as a valet."
When I got to meet up with Candice Michelle, I told her that RAW needed her now more than ever, and she replied, "Aww, so cute. But you know Mickie's been doing a really good job of holding down the Women's Division over there. I really can't wait to get back. Just to see everybody, help her out and maybe [get] some revenge. I've got some issues still to take care of. I need to take care of what happened with Beth Phoenix and you know what, I'm going to get my title back."
Sitting down with Tommy Dreamer and Stevie Richards was a real treat. Back in '97, I watched ECW's first round of Pay Per Views Barely Legal, Hardcore Heaven and November to Remember. And just seeing
Richards and Dreamer still together, working on a large professional level was really inspiring. The two of them were set to take on The Miz and John Morrison that day.
IGN: How do you think it's going to go today?
Richards: I think me and Tommy are going to win, of course.
IGN: Do you think you might whip out the "Stevie Kick" for this one?
Richards: No, heh, I've semi-retired the "Stevie Kick" as I have also retired naming all my moves after myself. But I hope to one day, like Brett Favre, come out of retirement with that and bring it out.
IGN: Tommy. I see a little bit of Mikey Whipwreck in Colin Delaney? How about you?
Dreamer: Mikey never turned on Cactus Jack. I never turned on Terry Funk or Cactus Jack. I'm gonna teach Colin some extreme rules bout loyalty. I'm very loyal to ECW, and he's gonna learn that you really shouldn't take short cuts in life.
IGN: What do you think of Miz and Morrison?
Dreamer: I know they didn't come up the same way that Stevie and I came up, but they are two amazing and very entertaining performers and they've really paid their dues in the WWE. I'm a huge John Morrison fan as an athlete. His ego is something that might need to be checked...and Miz, I don't really like Miz, but his in-ring work has really improved. I am really happy to be tagging with Stevie today and giving back to the fans here at this free show for Summerslam. It's a really cool deal here and I wanna come back next year just because it's so awesome. We woke up and went and trained at Gold's Gym. It's a great time, I love coming out to L.A.
Richards: I agree with Tommy that Miz and Morrison have more than proved themselves to be legitimate WWE superstars; legitimate champions in this industry. And coming out here for this free Summerslam party is just great. There are still people filing in right now. It's just amazing to be a part of.
By noon more WWE superstars were arriving and Jimmy Hart was able to rest a bit, turning over mic duties to WWE announcer/recording artist Lilian Garcia, who sang "America the Beautiful" before announcing the first match up...the legendary Chavo Guerrero vs. ex-"Smackdown Number One Announcer" Funaki. Before he walked out to do battle, I got to have a few words with Chavo.
IGN: You have Bam Neely in your corner now. I was watching Jimmy Hart out there all morning. Do you think, after the success of Diesel, that bodyguards and valets have replaced managers? There're not a lot of managers around like there used to be.
Chavo Guerrero: Yeah, you know what, originally the manager was there to talk for somebody who kinda didn't talk. I'm not sure if bodyguard actually replaced managers, but it's a more like a new role for a second person.
IGN: I would think that it's also a great place a newly trained wrestler to start.
Chavo Guerrero: Oh yeah sure. I mean you've got Bam Neely. He's been wrestling for eight years or so in different circles and now he's in the WWE and it's a way for him to look around, learn the ropes. This is the big leagues, you know. There's a big difference between the small leagues and the big leagues. If you just get thrown in there, you're gonna get eaten up.
IGN: How do you feel about Edge betraying you?
Chavo Guerrero: Well, he's not going to have La Familia behind him. It's just going to be him against 'Taker. And Taker you know, he's one of the best of all time.
IGN: Do you think Edge made a mistake?
Chavo Guerrero: You know, being a Guerrero, we've turned out backs on a lot of people. Edge had to do what he had to do. But he probably doesn't want to make enemies of the Guerreros because there are a lot of us. So he might be taking his life in his hands, so you know, God be with him."
I then let Chavo go, so he could head out to the ring. And then, on this hot Saturday in Venice, I witnessed Funaki get his first pinfall win in about ten years - as he defeated Chavo Guerrero with a roll up. That's not to say Funaki hasn't won a match –I just haven't seen him do it.
I really wanted to get a word with Miz and Morrison before their match with Dreamer and Richards, but they took so long playing their "we're better and sexier than you" shtick to the television reporters that were on the scene, we ran out of time. I did however get to sit down with them after their match, which ended with them defeating Dreamer and Richards.
IGN: John, have you seen the painting of Jim Morrison right around the corner?
Morrison: [smiling and nodding] Totally. We went past it. I'm a huge Doors fan. And this is where it all started, man. Jim Morrison started writing poetry out here at Venice Beach. I love the California vibe. The bohemian thing. I live in Manhattan Beach, like fifteen twenty minutes down the street. I love Venice Beach. I like hanging out here. I love the ladies.
The Miz: I love SummerFest 2008. It's such a cool thing for all the fans. It's not every day that you get to have free entertainment from the WWE. It's usually roughly fifty dollars a ticket. We're giving you a free show. We got THQ. Smackdown vs. RAW 2009; Smackdown Your Vote. It's not every company that just gives so much back to the fans. So you know, even though I say all these things and I'm amazingly good looking, I still like to give back to my fans. Whether they like to boo me or cheer me, whatever.
IGN: Is it true that you've had offers to go back and do Real World challenge shows and other project from MTV and that you've turned them down?
The Miz: Yeah, I kind of retired after Inferno 2, when I got a contract with the WWE. I used the reality stuff to get me to where I wanted to be. I went through independent leagues to get to get to the WWE but I also used the reality shows to get notoriety. I thought that maybe when I did come here, some of the fans from MTV would come over to the WWE. When I did that I basically said that I was done with MTV and I'm living my dream now – which was to become a WWE superstar.
Morrison: Who would you say, is in the league of Miz and Morrison?
IGN: Right now?
Morrison: In history. Right now, it's nobody, but in history.
IGN: I think I would put you in the same list as Road Warriors, Hart Foundation, The Horsemen, Midnight Express…
Morrison: No way, man. The Hart Foundation is played out. They were one trick ponies. Bret Hart was the "Excellence of Execution." That's all well and good, but he didn't have any personality or charisma. The Miz and John Morrison bring everything to the table. We are superstars. We can wrestle in the ring, we can fight outside the ring and we can bring people into the arena to see us, because they never know what's going to happen. L.O.D. They were all power.
The Miz: "Arrrrr. We're strong!"
Morrison: All power moves. And what a great finisher. The Doomsday Device. It was awesome and I'm not going to take away from the finish, but the bottom line is I got hit with the Doomsday Device from L.O.D. when it was Animal and Heidenreich…I probably got hit with that ten times. I'm walking around now, and they're both gone. People remember superstars. The "Chick Magnet" the Miz and the Shaman of Sexy, John Morrison. They know us, they love us, they want more of us. L.O.D. has been forgotten. DX. They're still around right now. But they have the machine behind them. We don't have to invite Motorhead to Wrestlemania to play our theme music to make people think that we're cool. We don't wear jeans that are five sizes too small for us to try and look cool for the kids these days…because we are cool. We don't have to do anything or say anything to prove it.
WWE's Summerslam airs Sunday, August 17th at 7:30pm and features John Cena taking on Batista and Edge taking on The Undertaker.
The Event: WWE's SummerFest 2008 - a big, hot, crowded day in the sun with select WWE, Interscope/Geffen and Telemundo superstars.
The crowd was a pleasant mix of mostly passionate WWE fans and a few homeless drifters – par for the course in Venice. Festivities kicked off at 11am with WWE legendary manager/song-writer "The Mouth of the South" Jimmy Hart acting as our host for the day up on the main stage. Just so you know, home slice was on the mic all day long. I'll tell you this much, the man can talk. Presiding over events like this one involve a lot of hooting and hollering, getting the crowd to scream and shout, and never letting a second pass with out some sort of noise or sound. IGN TV Editor Eric Goldman and I sat in the sweltering press tent for about forty minutes (thankfully, air conditioning was eventually provided), listening to Jimmy work his magic.
WWE's SummerFest was created for a few reasons. One was to promote their big summer Pay Per View, Summerslam, which takes place this upcoming Sunday. Another was to offer a platform for other affiliates to promote some of their upcoming programming and artists, like Telemundo's Sin Senos No Hay Paraiso, or Interscope/Geffon's Prima J and Omar Cruz. And last but not least - to give a free show to fans as a way of showing appreciation for their passion and support.
Throughout the day I got to sit down and speak with ECW Diva Lena Yada, RAW Diva-on-the-mend Candice Michelle, Chavo Guerrero, The Miz & John Morrison, and ECW Originals Tommy Dreamer and Stevie Richards. All of them were kind and brave enough to step into our humid tent.
When I asked Lena which wrestler she'd like to be in a mixed tag team with, she replied, "I have the utmost respect for every single wrestler but you know...Colin. Colin Delaney. He's an underdog and he turned on Tommy Dreamer and that showed a lot of self-confidence, so it would be interesting what I could do with him. Although there is the very appealing Matt Hardy. Part of the Hardy Brothers! You can't go wrong there."
So could Lena give Colin a bit more confidence? She believes the answer is yes, saying, "I'd love to give Colin a make-over and then see what happens. You know, I think I should propose a match between Matt Hardy and Colin Delaney and whoever wins would get me as a valet."
When I got to meet up with Candice Michelle, I told her that RAW needed her now more than ever, and she replied, "Aww, so cute. But you know Mickie's been doing a really good job of holding down the Women's Division over there. I really can't wait to get back. Just to see everybody, help her out and maybe [get] some revenge. I've got some issues still to take care of. I need to take care of what happened with Beth Phoenix and you know what, I'm going to get my title back."
Sitting down with Tommy Dreamer and Stevie Richards was a real treat. Back in '97, I watched ECW's first round of Pay Per Views Barely Legal, Hardcore Heaven and November to Remember. And just seeing
Richards and Dreamer still together, working on a large professional level was really inspiring. The two of them were set to take on The Miz and John Morrison that day.
IGN: How do you think it's going to go today?
Richards: I think me and Tommy are going to win, of course.
IGN: Do you think you might whip out the "Stevie Kick" for this one?
Richards: No, heh, I've semi-retired the "Stevie Kick" as I have also retired naming all my moves after myself. But I hope to one day, like Brett Favre, come out of retirement with that and bring it out.
IGN: Tommy. I see a little bit of Mikey Whipwreck in Colin Delaney? How about you?
Dreamer: Mikey never turned on Cactus Jack. I never turned on Terry Funk or Cactus Jack. I'm gonna teach Colin some extreme rules bout loyalty. I'm very loyal to ECW, and he's gonna learn that you really shouldn't take short cuts in life.
IGN: What do you think of Miz and Morrison?
Dreamer: I know they didn't come up the same way that Stevie and I came up, but they are two amazing and very entertaining performers and they've really paid their dues in the WWE. I'm a huge John Morrison fan as an athlete. His ego is something that might need to be checked...and Miz, I don't really like Miz, but his in-ring work has really improved. I am really happy to be tagging with Stevie today and giving back to the fans here at this free show for Summerslam. It's a really cool deal here and I wanna come back next year just because it's so awesome. We woke up and went and trained at Gold's Gym. It's a great time, I love coming out to L.A.
Richards: I agree with Tommy that Miz and Morrison have more than proved themselves to be legitimate WWE superstars; legitimate champions in this industry. And coming out here for this free Summerslam party is just great. There are still people filing in right now. It's just amazing to be a part of.
By noon more WWE superstars were arriving and Jimmy Hart was able to rest a bit, turning over mic duties to WWE announcer/recording artist Lilian Garcia, who sang "America the Beautiful" before announcing the first match up...the legendary Chavo Guerrero vs. ex-"Smackdown Number One Announcer" Funaki. Before he walked out to do battle, I got to have a few words with Chavo.
IGN: You have Bam Neely in your corner now. I was watching Jimmy Hart out there all morning. Do you think, after the success of Diesel, that bodyguards and valets have replaced managers? There're not a lot of managers around like there used to be.
Chavo Guerrero: Yeah, you know what, originally the manager was there to talk for somebody who kinda didn't talk. I'm not sure if bodyguard actually replaced managers, but it's a more like a new role for a second person.
IGN: I would think that it's also a great place a newly trained wrestler to start.
Chavo Guerrero: Oh yeah sure. I mean you've got Bam Neely. He's been wrestling for eight years or so in different circles and now he's in the WWE and it's a way for him to look around, learn the ropes. This is the big leagues, you know. There's a big difference between the small leagues and the big leagues. If you just get thrown in there, you're gonna get eaten up.
IGN: How do you feel about Edge betraying you?
Chavo Guerrero: Well, he's not going to have La Familia behind him. It's just going to be him against 'Taker. And Taker you know, he's one of the best of all time.
IGN: Do you think Edge made a mistake?
Chavo Guerrero: You know, being a Guerrero, we've turned out backs on a lot of people. Edge had to do what he had to do. But he probably doesn't want to make enemies of the Guerreros because there are a lot of us. So he might be taking his life in his hands, so you know, God be with him."
I then let Chavo go, so he could head out to the ring. And then, on this hot Saturday in Venice, I witnessed Funaki get his first pinfall win in about ten years - as he defeated Chavo Guerrero with a roll up. That's not to say Funaki hasn't won a match –I just haven't seen him do it.
I really wanted to get a word with Miz and Morrison before their match with Dreamer and Richards, but they took so long playing their "we're better and sexier than you" shtick to the television reporters that were on the scene, we ran out of time. I did however get to sit down with them after their match, which ended with them defeating Dreamer and Richards.
IGN: John, have you seen the painting of Jim Morrison right around the corner?
Morrison: [smiling and nodding] Totally. We went past it. I'm a huge Doors fan. And this is where it all started, man. Jim Morrison started writing poetry out here at Venice Beach. I love the California vibe. The bohemian thing. I live in Manhattan Beach, like fifteen twenty minutes down the street. I love Venice Beach. I like hanging out here. I love the ladies.
The Miz: I love SummerFest 2008. It's such a cool thing for all the fans. It's not every day that you get to have free entertainment from the WWE. It's usually roughly fifty dollars a ticket. We're giving you a free show. We got THQ. Smackdown vs. RAW 2009; Smackdown Your Vote. It's not every company that just gives so much back to the fans. So you know, even though I say all these things and I'm amazingly good looking, I still like to give back to my fans. Whether they like to boo me or cheer me, whatever.
IGN: Is it true that you've had offers to go back and do Real World challenge shows and other project from MTV and that you've turned them down?
The Miz: Yeah, I kind of retired after Inferno 2, when I got a contract with the WWE. I used the reality stuff to get me to where I wanted to be. I went through independent leagues to get to get to the WWE but I also used the reality shows to get notoriety. I thought that maybe when I did come here, some of the fans from MTV would come over to the WWE. When I did that I basically said that I was done with MTV and I'm living my dream now – which was to become a WWE superstar.
Morrison: Who would you say, is in the league of Miz and Morrison?
IGN: Right now?
Morrison: In history. Right now, it's nobody, but in history.
IGN: I think I would put you in the same list as Road Warriors, Hart Foundation, The Horsemen, Midnight Express…
Morrison: No way, man. The Hart Foundation is played out. They were one trick ponies. Bret Hart was the "Excellence of Execution." That's all well and good, but he didn't have any personality or charisma. The Miz and John Morrison bring everything to the table. We are superstars. We can wrestle in the ring, we can fight outside the ring and we can bring people into the arena to see us, because they never know what's going to happen. L.O.D. They were all power.
The Miz: "Arrrrr. We're strong!"
Morrison: All power moves. And what a great finisher. The Doomsday Device. It was awesome and I'm not going to take away from the finish, but the bottom line is I got hit with the Doomsday Device from L.O.D. when it was Animal and Heidenreich…I probably got hit with that ten times. I'm walking around now, and they're both gone. People remember superstars. The "Chick Magnet" the Miz and the Shaman of Sexy, John Morrison. They know us, they love us, they want more of us. L.O.D. has been forgotten. DX. They're still around right now. But they have the machine behind them. We don't have to invite Motorhead to Wrestlemania to play our theme music to make people think that we're cool. We don't wear jeans that are five sizes too small for us to try and look cool for the kids these days…because we are cool. We don't have to do anything or say anything to prove it.
WWE's Summerslam airs Sunday, August 17th at 7:30pm and features John Cena taking on Batista and Edge taking on The Undertaker.