cassim_007
06-25-2007, 07:50 PM
It was just two weeks ago that Mr. McMahon Appreciation Night ended solemnly. Lost in the outcome, however, may be the fact that among those who showed their appreciation, not many positive words were spoken about the Chairman. Coupled with our fans’ recent disdain for the Chairman and his activities, one could surmise that Mr. McMahon’s memorial service would be a very small gathering.
That’s not the case, however, and as the hours tick away until Mr. McMahon’s memorial service on Raw, there are many positive words to be found in this sea of tragedy. For many, it was Mr. McMahon who gave them the opportunity to become Superstars, Legends, and in some cases, Hall of Famers.
“I owe everything I’ve done in my career to Mr. McMahon. He came and plucked me out of Memphis, Tenn., to come to WWE when he was putting together his vision of sports-entertainment,” recalled WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy Hart. “He gave me the megaphone as a present one time, and he let me put my personality into fixing it up and becoming “The Mouth of the South.” Plus, he let me do my music; I got to write songs from “Sexy Boy” to Demolition’s theme to all of Honky Tonk Man’s stuff. He really let me shine. WWE is Mr. McMahon, and it always will be. He’ll always be in my heart.”
Added Dean Malenko, “When we first – we being myself, Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit and Perry Saturn – came in together as The Radicals, he welcomed us into the company with open arms knowing that we had quit WCW and didn’t have jobs.”
For others, it was Mr. McMahon’s passion for the business of sports-entertainment that they most fondly remember.
“Everything Mr. McMahon did was great because he was a perfectionist,” lauded another Hall of Famer, the incomparable Bobby “The Brain” Heenan. “I remember SummerSlam 1992 in London, where he and I did commentary. During the first match, his headset went out. He couldn’t hear me or the truck, and of course, no one could hear him, so he told me to keep talking. I thought he was going to explode. I’ve never seen anyone that mad in my life. I imagine that poor audio guy is working in a used transmission shop in Omaha somewhere nowadays. But that’s how he was and why WWE is what it is.”
Mean Gene Okerlund, himself a fellow Hall of Famer and former WWE announcer like Mr. McMahon, praises the fallen Chairman as a visionary who changed the world.
“After knowing him for 25 years, the one thing I can say about Mr. McMahon is that he changed the industry, and that will undoubtedly be his legacy,” Okerlund posited. “As the old Frank Sinatra song goes, he did it his way, despite all the skeptics out there. He didn’t listen to them; he had a vision, he stuck to it and executed it, and he changed the landscape of our industry. Mr. McMahon will be sorely missed.”
While many think that Mr. McMahon was solely a “taker,” there are plenty who will tell you that he was indeed a giving man as well.
“Mr. McMahon taught me the importance of having a great work ethic. He always showed me and instilled in me how to work 24 hours a day, 365 days a year,” recalls Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart. “It helped me because it showed me how to get things done. He was always a very nice man in the 15 years I worked for him. I can honestly say Mr. McMahon will go down as the Knute Rockne of sports-entertainment.”
Added long-time WWE employee Howard Finkel: “Mr. McMahon wanted to take our organization and turn it into a global entity, and he did that. The hybrid of sports and entertainment was a genius move on his part. It brought wrestling to a new plateau. From a personal standpoint, Mr. McMahon gave me the opportunity to do something with my life, and for that I will never forget him.”
Mr. McMahon’s friends and colleagues in Hollywood are devastated too; while many of them could not bring themselves to comment, they have shown their appreciation and respect for the fallen Chairman in other ways.
“People from the Hollywood community have been dropping off flowers and cards all week,” revealed Kristin Prouty, WWE’s Vice President of Entertainment Relations who is based at the company’s Los Angeles offices. “Everyone is devastated.”
And of course, there are those who saw Mr. McMahon on a daily basis “behind the scenes.” Donna Goldsmith, WWE’s Executive Vice President of Consumer Products, worked closely with Mr. McMahon for seven years and lost a true friend.
“This is just devastating. Having been with WWE for seven years, I feel more like a part of Mr. McMahon’s extended family, rather than just an employee. I was honored to attend Mr. McMahon’s 60th birthday party, the wedding of his daughter Stephanie and several holiday parties at the McMahons’ home,” Goldsmith recalled.
“On a business level, the Chairman has always respected my knowledge of the consumer products business and has provided input on product development when necessary, but more often than not he is…” she paused, sobbing, “was receptive to my team and my recommendations. He participated in business calls with key retailers like Wal-Mart and signed hundreds of WrestleMania DVDs for sale on WWEShop.com.”
Even Eric Bischoff, who once considered Mr. McMahon a sworn enemy before coming to WWE in 2002, had kind words in eulogy of the fallen Chairman.
“As ironic as this may sound I was pretty upset when I heard about the events with Mr. McMahon. Although we spent a lot of time as competitors, at “war” with each other, I had gotten to know Mr. McMahon as well as anyone could get to know him in the relationship I have had with WWE over the last 5 years. I developed a tremendous amount of respect for Mr. McMahon, so it is a loss for the sports-entertainment industry – a loss to the heritage of the sports-entertainment industry – and a personal loss to me, as ironic as that sounds.”
Loved or hated, Mr. McMahon was well-respected by his peers, colleagues and employees. Monday night, they will all gather on Raw to pay respects to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of WWE one last time.
That’s not the case, however, and as the hours tick away until Mr. McMahon’s memorial service on Raw, there are many positive words to be found in this sea of tragedy. For many, it was Mr. McMahon who gave them the opportunity to become Superstars, Legends, and in some cases, Hall of Famers.
“I owe everything I’ve done in my career to Mr. McMahon. He came and plucked me out of Memphis, Tenn., to come to WWE when he was putting together his vision of sports-entertainment,” recalled WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy Hart. “He gave me the megaphone as a present one time, and he let me put my personality into fixing it up and becoming “The Mouth of the South.” Plus, he let me do my music; I got to write songs from “Sexy Boy” to Demolition’s theme to all of Honky Tonk Man’s stuff. He really let me shine. WWE is Mr. McMahon, and it always will be. He’ll always be in my heart.”
Added Dean Malenko, “When we first – we being myself, Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit and Perry Saturn – came in together as The Radicals, he welcomed us into the company with open arms knowing that we had quit WCW and didn’t have jobs.”
For others, it was Mr. McMahon’s passion for the business of sports-entertainment that they most fondly remember.
“Everything Mr. McMahon did was great because he was a perfectionist,” lauded another Hall of Famer, the incomparable Bobby “The Brain” Heenan. “I remember SummerSlam 1992 in London, where he and I did commentary. During the first match, his headset went out. He couldn’t hear me or the truck, and of course, no one could hear him, so he told me to keep talking. I thought he was going to explode. I’ve never seen anyone that mad in my life. I imagine that poor audio guy is working in a used transmission shop in Omaha somewhere nowadays. But that’s how he was and why WWE is what it is.”
Mean Gene Okerlund, himself a fellow Hall of Famer and former WWE announcer like Mr. McMahon, praises the fallen Chairman as a visionary who changed the world.
“After knowing him for 25 years, the one thing I can say about Mr. McMahon is that he changed the industry, and that will undoubtedly be his legacy,” Okerlund posited. “As the old Frank Sinatra song goes, he did it his way, despite all the skeptics out there. He didn’t listen to them; he had a vision, he stuck to it and executed it, and he changed the landscape of our industry. Mr. McMahon will be sorely missed.”
While many think that Mr. McMahon was solely a “taker,” there are plenty who will tell you that he was indeed a giving man as well.
“Mr. McMahon taught me the importance of having a great work ethic. He always showed me and instilled in me how to work 24 hours a day, 365 days a year,” recalls Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart. “It helped me because it showed me how to get things done. He was always a very nice man in the 15 years I worked for him. I can honestly say Mr. McMahon will go down as the Knute Rockne of sports-entertainment.”
Added long-time WWE employee Howard Finkel: “Mr. McMahon wanted to take our organization and turn it into a global entity, and he did that. The hybrid of sports and entertainment was a genius move on his part. It brought wrestling to a new plateau. From a personal standpoint, Mr. McMahon gave me the opportunity to do something with my life, and for that I will never forget him.”
Mr. McMahon’s friends and colleagues in Hollywood are devastated too; while many of them could not bring themselves to comment, they have shown their appreciation and respect for the fallen Chairman in other ways.
“People from the Hollywood community have been dropping off flowers and cards all week,” revealed Kristin Prouty, WWE’s Vice President of Entertainment Relations who is based at the company’s Los Angeles offices. “Everyone is devastated.”
And of course, there are those who saw Mr. McMahon on a daily basis “behind the scenes.” Donna Goldsmith, WWE’s Executive Vice President of Consumer Products, worked closely with Mr. McMahon for seven years and lost a true friend.
“This is just devastating. Having been with WWE for seven years, I feel more like a part of Mr. McMahon’s extended family, rather than just an employee. I was honored to attend Mr. McMahon’s 60th birthday party, the wedding of his daughter Stephanie and several holiday parties at the McMahons’ home,” Goldsmith recalled.
“On a business level, the Chairman has always respected my knowledge of the consumer products business and has provided input on product development when necessary, but more often than not he is…” she paused, sobbing, “was receptive to my team and my recommendations. He participated in business calls with key retailers like Wal-Mart and signed hundreds of WrestleMania DVDs for sale on WWEShop.com.”
Even Eric Bischoff, who once considered Mr. McMahon a sworn enemy before coming to WWE in 2002, had kind words in eulogy of the fallen Chairman.
“As ironic as this may sound I was pretty upset when I heard about the events with Mr. McMahon. Although we spent a lot of time as competitors, at “war” with each other, I had gotten to know Mr. McMahon as well as anyone could get to know him in the relationship I have had with WWE over the last 5 years. I developed a tremendous amount of respect for Mr. McMahon, so it is a loss for the sports-entertainment industry – a loss to the heritage of the sports-entertainment industry – and a personal loss to me, as ironic as that sounds.”
Loved or hated, Mr. McMahon was well-respected by his peers, colleagues and employees. Monday night, they will all gather on Raw to pay respects to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of WWE one last time.