Courtesy: www.MondayNightMayhem.com
Former WCW President/WWE RAW General Manager, New York Times best-selling author (of “Controversy Creates Cash”), & the Co-Executive Producer/Judge on CMT’s “Hulk Hogan‘s Celebrity Championship Wrestling,” Eric Bischoff, was the special guest on this past week’s edition (10/03/08) of Monday Night Mayhem, hosted by The Big Mosh & Blade. “Your Home Of Wrestling Radio” is officially presented by Sweet Sunshine Sauces, “the official finishing sauce of The Mayhem,” and is also sponsored by: Custom Muscle, The Monster Factory, Old Time Wrestling, The History Of WWE.com, & TicketRelief.com.
You can feel The Mayhem live & in streaming audio every Monday night (at 8PM ET/7PM CT), exclusively on The Monday Night Mayhem Radio Network (www.MondayNightMayhem.com, www.OnlineWorldOfWrestling.com, & www.ITunes.com).
Eric?s return to The Mayhem (his first appearance since his award-winning 2007 WRA “Media Interview Of The Year” interview) is now available for FREE in Windows Streaming Media, or via MNM’s official podcast on ITunes:
October 3rd/MNM Streaming Audio: www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/waxfiles/100308.wax
October 3rd/MNM Podcast On ITunes: www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/oct08/100308.mp3
Here are some of the highlights from Eric?s interview on the show, provided by The Mayhem’s show correspondent, Dan Kriegbaum:
===================================================================================================================
The Mayhem’s Mosh & Blade welcomed Eric back to the show, and right off the bat, began to catch up & respectively discuss what Eric would like instead of a plaque for his 2007 Wrestling Radio Awards “Media Interview Of The Year” (co-hosted by The Mayhem’s National Correspondent & Eric’s former WCW colleague, Scott Hudson). Possibly some Sweet Sunshine Sauces, and/or Ilio DiPaolo’s Marinara Sauces: both fully-endorsed by Monday Night Mayhem.
Switching gears & onto business, Eric then said that he & the others involved in “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling” are excited & anticipating the debut on CMT in two weeks on Saturday night, October 18th (airing at 8PM ET/7PM CT). He added that it could be a “game-changer” for them, so they are “waiting with baited breath.”
Mosh prefaced the last time Eric Bischoff & Hulk Hogan worked together on a project, it was for World Championship Wrestling, which at the time started beating the WWE at the time in the ratings. Mosh asked Eric what it’s like to be working with “The Hulkster” again, but this time on a non-WWE or WCW role. Eric mentioned that him & Hulk have been good friends for almost 15 years, and that Hulk, his partner (Jason Hervey), & himself have been talking about getting back into the wrestling business for while. He then added that they did not want to get involved again unless it had an opportunity to make a big impact & be different, rather than a failed attempt to be considered “WWE Light.”
In promoting the upcoming first season of “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling” both Blade & Mosh asked Eric what it was like to be able to work with “The Mouth Of The South” Jimmy Hart, “Nasty Boy” Brian Knobbs, & Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake again, along with the celebrity cast/crew involved (Dennis Rodman, Danny Bonaduce, Eric “Butterbean” Esch, Dustin “Screech” Diamond, Erin Murphy, Frank Stallone, Nikki Ziering, Tiffany, Todd Bridges, Trisha Cannatella, & Bubba “The Love Sponge”) with the show. Eric said that it was a huge surprise with what the concept of the show was about, which he then described. He said that both he & Jason have been very successful with reality shows the past couple of years (including VH-1’s “Scott Baio Is 45 & Single” & VH-1’s “Scott Baio Is 46 & Pregnant”), and that they have figured out the “reality formula” in regards to what the audience likes to see. He went on to say that the challenge in “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling” was to create a wrestling based show that reality show fans would appeal to, while at the same time appealing to the wrestling fan as well. “Achieving those goals was a real challenge for us, and we were successful.”
Eric went on to mention that celebrities have always been involved somehow in wrestling, and it has always been a big transition to get them to go from what they know (ex: football), to what goes on in the wrestling ring. He said that this was one of the concerns he had with the group of celebrities on this first season, in regards to how well they would be able to adapt to it, but he was surprised after seeing it work. He talked about the first episode & how amazed all of the judges were after just a day and a half of training. Eric then mentioned how hard the celebrities worked at what they did, instead of just “going through the motions,” which also surprised him.
Blade then asked Eric how they went about getting the cast of celebrities that they did & what he has to say to the people accusing the show of just being a bunch of “D-List” celebrities. Eric had a little laugh at the latter portion of the question, and mentioned that “Dancing With The Stars” is on network television, but do not have a lot of “A-List” celebrities. He then said that a reality show demands a long period of a locked timeframe on a set, sometimes months at a time, which very few “A-List” celebrities even have time for. He then added that after it was all said & done, and how hard the celebrities they used worked, he was very happy with it. The important thing he was looking for in this first cast was personalities, which is “far more important” than the list of celebrity scale they are on.
Blade asked Eric if it was a concern to them if the “spoilers” of the show were to be leaked with who won since the show has been finished for a few months. Eric said that they tried to “keep it under wraps,” because it would have been disappointing if it was revealed beforehand, “but you can only do so much.” He said that the celebrities are also professionals, so they would not try to reveal anything too soon, and taking the “steam” off of the show is not good for anybody, but “certainly it was a concern.”
Eric then gave The Mayhem’s worldwide listening audience a little insight on the background of the show. He said that the celebrities were judged on several things, even though they did not have “Rey Mysterio-level matches.” Eric then said that wrestling is “an art form,” and compared an actor on a Broadway stage to a wrestler inside the ring, as both have to entertain the audience. He added that the celebrities were judged on how they used wrestling as an art form, how well they connected with the crowd, how well they sold moves, & used ring psychology — not necessarily “how well they did an arm drag.”
Blade brought up the WWE’s/MTV’s “Tough Enough” reality series from a few years back & how “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling” would be similar or different from it. Eric mentioned that he did see a few episodes of “Tough Enough,” and said that he does not think it lasted on MTV, because the WWE was “conflicted.” He said that by having a show on MTV that took people “behind the curtain” & somewhat exposed the wrestling business, it showed a whole new audience just how tough the wrestling business is, some of whom probably gained a little more respect for wrestling in general. But the “conflict” was that even though it has been revealed more to be “scripted” & “family-oriented,” they did not want people to know how it was done. He then summed it up by saying “they wanted to show people what it took to be a pro-wrestler, but they were worried about it exposing too much,” and he thinks it was the WWE’s decision to stop producing the show to avoid diluting the product. Eric said that “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling” is different, because they have experience & understand a reality-based show, which the WWE did not have. He said that in reality television, in order to be successful you need drama, the ability to capture that drama & specific techniques to catch the drama. He then said the only way the WWE was “reality” in Tough Enough was the fact that it was unscripted, which “technically is reality, but there was no formula.”
The Mayhem Crew then talked about how the industries of professional wrestling & sports-entertainment have changed/altered since Eric’s last appearance on the program two years ago. With TNA shifting gears to high-definition, increasing its presence on Spike TV/worldwide events, & acquisition of new talent (including Mick Foley), and with World Wrestling Entertainment’s SmackDown’s move to a different network (MyNetworkTV), shifting its TV ratings to PG, as well as the upcoming silver anniversary of WrestleMania XXV, Mosh asked about the chances of “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling” coming into the fold as a contender “promotion” more so than just a reality show. Eric said that he has been approached quite a few times by people with quite a bit of money & a justifiable reason that wanted to launch a wrestling show. He said that although some of the reasons were legitimate, he would tell those people that he would need a check for $100 million & 5 to 5 1/2 years to build a promotion that would be successful, and if they wanted it to take less than that in either money or time, “they’re crazy.” With that, he said he talked a lot of people out of losing a lot of money by getting into the wrestling business, but at the same time, it has been his goal to find a very good way to get back in, “not like how TNA is doing it.” He added that “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling” will be a step to get back into the wrestling business, and hopes it will launch a bunch of new ventures for them. What are Eric’s thoughts on if Vince McMahon/the WWE & Dixie Carter/TNA view this project as real competition. The answers are only found exclusively on “Your Home Of Wrestling Radio.”
More goodness is found in this hour-long exclusive interview with Eric Bischoff: including his uncensored thoughts & takes on why he feels that “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling is “more entertaining” than some of the recent WWE programming, the highlights of the “Monday Night Wars” & why he does not look back/live in the past, why he strongly believes that Hulk Hogan appearing at WrestleMania XXV is “highly doubtful,” why the match with Hogan/”Stone Cold Steve Austin will more than likely never happen, when fans can possibly anticipate a biography being released on “The Hulkster.” if he sees Brooke Hogan getting into the wrestling business (and if Hulk would let her), & why he would “very much look forward” to working again with “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair in a reality business venture. You fans judge for yourself…Media Interview Of The Year: The Sequel/Part Deux for “The Bisch?”
Monday Night Mayhem will have you fans covered throughout the duration of the program, beginning this week & into the season finale of the show: One of the three special judges (in addition to Hulk & Eric)/MNM Hall Of Famer, “The Mouth Of The South” Jimmy Hart, joins the program LIVE this Monday night (October 6th/beginning at 8PM ET/7PM CT), one of the coaches for Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling, “Nasty Boy” Brian Knobbs will feel The Mayhem LIVE on Monday, October 13th, plus Eric’s partner & the former star of ABC’s “Wonder Years,” Jason Hervey, will join Mosh, Blade, & DFL for a special exclusive interview — which will be available on The Monday Night Mayhem Radio Network on Tuesday, October 14th. And could an appearance from “The Immortal One” be close behind? Plus, tune into The Mayhem every Monday night (beginning October 20th), as the voted-off cast member of CMT’s “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling” will step into the squared circle of “Your Home Of Wrestling Radio.” Head on over to www.MondayNightMayhem.com & www.MySpace.com/MondayNightMayhem for all of the latest news, as we are your official source for the latest…brother!
Check out www.BHE.TV (which will feature some exciting upcoming announcements, including spin-off’s for “Nasty Boy” Brian Knobbs & Danny Bonaduce) & www.HulkHogan.com for more details on “Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling,” including the brand-new CMT website devoted to the program (www.cmt.com/shows/series/hulk-hogan-celebrity-wrestling/series.jhtml). Mark your calendars for Saturday night, October 18th, as the worlds of professional-wrestling & sports-entertainment will change forever!
*And if you fans missed this past week of “Your Home Of Wrestling Radio,” did you miss a lot!
Making its rounds is our special interview with former WWE/WCW superstar, Dave Taylor. The Big Mosh was joined once again by Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Dan Murphy for a special interview, courtesy of “Your Home Of Wrestling Radio.” Fresh off the 2008 Ted Petty Invitational, former WWE/WCW superstar, Dave Taylor, stepped into The Mayhem squared circle! The “squire” gave his thoughts on his WWE release (and when he knew “the writing was on the wall” for him), his teaming up with William Regal & Finlay in WCW/WWE (and why he believes that both are very popular with the WWE audience today), his initial feelings of heading into the Armageddon 2006 Ladder Match (vs. MNM, Brian Kendrick/Paul London, and The Hardy Boyz) & if he feels himself/Regal surprised the office/fans with their performance, & the evolution of tag team wrestling over the past 15 years/if he believes that it is “an afterthought” today. Plus, Dave discussed his run in World Championship Wrestling & whether “the inmates were running the asylum,” why he does not feel that TNA is competition to the WWE, & why fans in the United States will be seeing more of him in the months to come. A special “bonus” edition of The Mayhem that listeners around the world will indeed enjoy!
September 30th/MNM Streaming Audio: www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/waxfiles/093008.wax
September 30th/MNM Podcast On ITunes: www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/sep08/093008.mp3
And “Your Home Of Wrestling Radio” closed out the month of September with the most in-depth preview of WWE’s No Mercy PPV (presented by The History Of WWE.com), as Mosh & Blade were joined by The Mayhem’s WWE PPV Preview Tandem of Scott Hudson, Jim Molineaux, & Graham Cawthon to not only set the table for World Wrestling Entertainment’s return to Portland, but gear up fans around the world for the debut of Smackdown on MyNetworkTV this Friday night! Former WWE & ECW superstar, Mike Bucci, stepped into The Mayhem squared circle for a look back on his career & preview his newest venture, www.LoanHelpNow247.com. The former “Nova” & “Simon Dean” reunited with his former extreme colleague, Jim Molineaux, for the first time in many years, and Mike gave his thoughts on his respective transitions from an ECW wrestler to WWE superstar & from WWE superstar to his position heading up talent relations for World Wrestling Entertainment. What are his thoughts now on the talents he helped sign? What are his takes on the WWE Wellness Policy, and does he think it has improved over the past year? All of this & so much more! Get out your “Dean Machines” & have some fun with this interview fans! And if that isn’t enough Mayhem for you, Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Dan Murphy joined the show to discuss the first-ever “PWI Female Top 50” magazine! And Mosh & Blade discussed Rey Mysterio’s reported re-signing with the WWE, as well as the latest remarks from Kurt Angle in The UK Sun & why TNA will be using this “billboard” material for iMPACT leading into Bound For Glory.
September 29th MNM Streaming Audio: www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/waxfiles/092908.wax
September 29th MNM Podcast On ITunes: www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/sep08/092908.mp3
*All new & old Mayhem listeners can still check out the archived programs/shows of “Your Home Of Wrestling Radio” from our near seven years of audio excellence, featuring our worldwide exclusive with the cast of VH-1’s “Brooke Knows Best” (Brooke Hogan, Glenn Douglas Packard, & Ashley Menendez), the official Monday Night Mayhem WrestleMania XXIV Countdown Special (w/J.J. Dillon, The Orlando Sentinel’s Andrea Adelson, SLAM Wrestling’s Bob Kapur, The Baltimore Sun’s Kevin Eck, Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Dan Murphy, & many more), The Mayhem’s WrestleMania 23 Countdown Special from Detroit’s Hilton Garden Inn, the official Monday Night Mayhem Dream Reunion II On-Location Special from Kokomo, IN — featuring: former WWE Diva search contestant Jessica Hatch, Al Snow, Marty Jannetty, Chavo “Classic” Guerrero Sr., “Nasty Boy” Brian Knobbs, Greg “The Hammer” Valentine, Rosey, The Midnight Express (“Loverboy” Dennis Condrey & “Beautiful” Bobby Eaton), “The Genius” Lanny Poffo, & The Orient Express’ Pat Tanaka, & our “Best Of 2007” show (featuring the top three interviews of 2k7 heard on The Mayhem), plus current WWE superstars (Chris Jericho, CM Punk, Candice Michelle, Charlie Haas, & D-Lo Brown), WWE Hall Of Famers (Jesse “The Body” Ventura, Jim Ross, Bret “The Hitman” Hart, Bobby “The Brain” Heenan, “Superstar” Billy Graham, “The Mouth Of The South” Jimmy Hart, The Iron Sheik, Tito Santana, “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff, Harley Race, Greg “The Hammer” Valentine, & Don Muraco), the finest from Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA President, Dixie Carter, Jeff Jarrett, Terry Taylor, Jim Cornette, Kevin Nash, “The Instant Classic” Christian Cage, “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles, Team 3-D, Scott Steiner, Kip/BG James, “The Notorious 187” Homicide, Beer Money’s Robert Roode, “Black Machismo” Jay Lethal, Kaz, Eric Young, Tomko, & Lance “Rock” Hoyt — along with TNA Knockouts Taylor Wilde, Angelina Love, Velvet Sky, Christy Hemme, So-Cal Val, & Traci Brooks), Ring Of Honor’s warriors (ROH Champion Nigel McGuinness, “The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson, Austin Aries, Claudio Castagnoli, & ROH head booker Gabe Sapolsky), ECW originals (ECW’s founder Tod Gordon, Rob Van Dam, “The Franchise” Shane Douglas, Raven, The Sandman, Francine, 2 Cold Scorpio, New Jack, Axl Rotten, Jerry Lynn, Lance Storm, “The Pitbull” Gary Wolfe, & Danny Doring), the most-beautiful some of the greatest managers in the history of our business (Percy Pringle III/Paul Bearer, “The Doctor Of Style” Slick, JJ Dillon, & the late Gary Hart), the voices that have called the sport/sports-entertainment for years (World Class’ Bill Mercer, the Mid-Atlantic/NWA’s Bob Caudle, & WCW/AWA’s Lee Marshall), the beautiful managers/valets that have graced the squared circle (Missy Hyatt, Terri Runnels, Lisa “Ivory” Moretti, Dawn Marie, Nora “Molly Holly” Greenwald, Jackie Gayda Haas), wrestling legends/personalities from over the years, past & present (Bruno Sammartino, Jerry Jarrett, Terry Funk, Dory Funk, Jr., Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, “The Taskmaster” Kevin Sullivan, “The Living Legend” Larry Zbyszko, Sid, Tully Blanchard, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, “Dr. Death” Steve Williams, “Bushwacker” Luke Williams, The Honky Tonk Man, Barry “Smash” Darsow, Virgil, Diamond Dallas Page, Vader, “Nasty Boy” Brian Knobbs, Konnan, Bruno “Harvey Whippleman” Lauer, “The Wildman” Marc Mero, Scotty 2 Hotty, David “Gangrel” Heath, Chris Kanyon, Nick “U-Gene” Dinsmore, Chris Nowinski, Low-Ki, Tomko, & The Highlanders), & some of the most well-known athletes & entertainers from the football gridiron, the basketball court, stage, & screen (including: Dennis Rodman, NFL Hall Of Famer Jim Kelly, former NFL Defensive Tackle/Nebraska All-American/author of “Hero Of The Underground,” Jason Peter, Dave Coulier of TV’s “Full House,” VH-1 “Best Week Ever’s” Greg Fitzsimmons of VH-1’s “Best Week Ever,” Dustin “Screech” Diamond of TV’s “Saved By The Bell,” Howard Stern’s Gary The Retard, Erin “Steel” Toughill & Dan “Nitro” Clark from “American Gladiators,” “Mad TV’s” Aries Spears, & Comic Relief founder Bob Zmuda). All this & so much more…now available on The Monday Night Mayhem Radio Network