Former WCW star Marcus "Buff" Bagwell, NWA TNA`s Jim Mitchell, and Pro Wrestling Iron`s Donovan Morgan were guests this week on Chairshots radio which can be heard at any time at http://www.chairshots.com
The host of the show is Rod Siciliano.Here are a few highlights from those interviews:
****Jim Mitchell****
-On working for the NWA TNA: "Everybody has been very pleasant, you know it`s still new so some of the people are coming and going and it hasn`t exactly settled down into a real steady core yet. But I`ve had a real blast working for them. Jerry Jarrett is one of the most even tempered, reasonable promoters I`ve ever worked for. In fact I`d have to say that everybody else I`ve worked for to some degree has been a hothead in a way. But, Jerry`s very smooth, knows the business and has just really been a pleasure to work for. Plus he passes the ultimate test of being a good promoter in my book in that the checks all clear."
-On whether Paul Heyman owed him any money from his days in ECW:"Oh yeah. I had a couple of years left on a contract and I don`t even know what the back pay was, but I didn`t even bother with the bankruptcy filing because I figured what am I going to get? 14 cents twice a year for the next ten years as part of a settlement so I didn`t even worry about it."
-On whether there was ever any commmunication problems when he worked with Tajiri in ECW: "I don't know, I was able to communicate with him to the degree I needed to. The joke was always Tajiri knows english as long as he's going over." (Mitchell does a hilarious impersenation of Tajiri that must be heard!)
-On working with Vince Russo: "I liked alot of what he did in New York (WWF) back in the day. I liked it what he did at first in Atlanta(WCW), I thought it kind of got crazy at the end and one of the problems I had with Russo was a problem I've had with every wrestling executive who isn't a an actual in ring talent is when they get over on the boys. I wasn't fond of things like him wrestling Rick Flair. I never met him until he got to TNA.
He's very friendly and cordial, and very easy to work with on producing things. He's been extremly open to suggestions."
****Buff Bagwell****
-On whether there was some disagreement between him and Jerry Jarrett which led to him not being part of TNA anymore: "Nothing at all, that's why I'm lost about it. At Huntsville at the first show they had for TNA he just ate me alive. "You look great, we're going to make a big star out of you ,but, you've got to trust me and this and that. Then he brought up losing the Buff character". (Buff goes into great detail about what happened in TNA)
-On Vince Russo: "I've got nothing against him, but, I know he doesn't like me. I don't think Vince Russo likes me at all. But that's just my opinion. I've not no regards of negativity towards him. I'm not sure why he doesn't like me. I just know that when he took over (WCW) he had his group of guys that he used."
-On what he thought was wrong with his only match on Raw with Booker T:
"There were several things. One, that was in Tacoma, WA. The angle itself, Shane McMahon should not have been the boss of WCW. Then the invasion took place in Tacoma, WA. And then You've got Booker T and Buff Bagwell in the main event which I should have never have been
in a main event match at Raw for at least a year, maybe never. All of sudden you put two WCW guys, they're both baby faces, in a main event match in WWF territory and the week after that Raw was in what city?
Atlanta,GA."
-On how the WWF guy's reacted to him in the locker room: "I felt like a child in a fetal position all the time. Just trying to get along with everyone. It was a tough position. It was like, let's merge these two companies that nobody ever thought would happen and hope they get along. I was in that first wave of that and there were twelve guys they brought in, out of the twelve, nine you didn't even know, and three were Booker T, Dallas Page and Buff Bagwell."
****Donovan Morgan****
-On the difference between Japanese and American wrestling fans: "I can compare them in a polite way and a very harsh way. A lot of American wrestling fans are ignorant. They think they know everything, they think they know what is fake and what is real. They think they`re all smart to the business. Japanese wrestling fans, it's a sport, it's competition and that's the way it's looked upon. They don't have to all kiss your butt but they do respect what you do."
-On whether he has been contacted by anyone from TNA to work for them: "I just talked to Harley Race this afternoon and there is talk about it but, the problem is our Japan schedule. It's so hard because we are here for three or four weeks at a time and then we go over to Japan for three or four weeks at a time. So it would be hard to carry on any type of story. But it's definitely something that we are talking about."
-On his chances of working for WWE in the future: "The thing is that right now, at this time, I'm really lucky becuase if I could have mapped out a plan for my career it would have been go to Japan for few years, build up your name there and then go over to WWE and finish up your career there.
And make a good chunk of change. I'm so happy with NOAH, I'd don't know if I ever really want to leave there. It's a great place to be and if I could wrestle there until the end of my career that's pretty much what I would want to do. Either way, I'm still building up a name for myself in Japan so at least step one is coming together like I want it to do."
