83 Weeks - End of Eric in TNA [Show Notes] (Patreon)

This week on 83 Weeks we’re discussing the End of Eric in TNA!

Eric we discussed earlier this year your on-screen role in TNA ending after the Lockdown PPV and you’re able to solely focus on your role as executive producer. Was that the plan?

Did you ever expect to go back onto TNA’s TV?

You wrote in your new book Grateful…available for purchase…that TNA was always saying, “Let’s go ahead and see what happens” but there was no plan after that. Is that a Dixie issue down the line in the company?

If TNA Reaction was more successful - do you think your time in TNA wouldn’t have been so miserable considering that was your idea?

What Spike TV learned by LOSING The Ultimate Fighter

You also wrote in your book that TNA’s continued reliance on big names was hurting the company. Look people are going to find that as odd considering WCW’s run with big names and signings from the WWF…was that a lesson you had learned from your time there?

One of the bigger moments after you’re off television has to do with the WWE - as they allow Christian to appear on a TNA pay-per-view to announce the #1 moment in TNA’s history at Slammiversary 10. This was the make good for having Ric Flair appear at the Hall of Fame and WrestleMania. What did you think of that decision?

When TNA heads out on the road - you can see the difference almost immediately in show quality. You & Hulk had to be aware of this right? Was anyone else?

One of the bigger creative moves in 2012 was having Robert Roode as champion. What did you think of Roode as champion for the brand?

Roode drops the title at Destination X to Austin Aries when Aries cashes in his X division title for a shot at him. Aries as champion - you can see that there’s a push to build new stars - what did you think of putting the title on Aries?

TNA hits the road and the TV show looks better

At what point are you over TNA? When is it too much?

Claire Lynch! Let’s talk about it Eric…is it one of the worst storylines you’ve ever been a part of? Why was this so bad?

The Bound for Glory series dominates television for the next few months. Is it hard to book around a tournament?

Aces & Eights begins around this time and you should check out our great episode in the archives with Bully Ray discussing it…it’s amazing to see the difference between Claire Lynch and Aces & Eights isn’t it?

What did you think of Hulk in the GM role for Impact?

Your son Garrett is still wrestling as well - how was he doing in his role?

Eventually Jeff Hardy becomes Impact champion as the biggest move in TNA’s history takes place…

It’s always been pointed out that the Impact Zone at some point - especially was hurting the product. But TNA would have to spend a ton of money to go out on the road.

You wrote this in Grateful and I think it’s perfect Eric:

“Look, we could have dropped The Undertaker into the center of the ring from a helicopter, and it would have been a big deal – for about two weeks. The minute that the audience witnessed The Undertaker, or John Cena, or The Rock – you name it – appearing in that environment, it would all have become meaningless. There would have been no difference on ratings, pay-per-view buy rates or any other metric.”

It’s hard to disagree with that…what was the lesser of two evils in your mind? Or was the brand itself just dead?

Were you a part of the negotiations with Spike to help subsidize the costs of going out on the road - or was that a Dixie negotiation?

At any point did you think TNA could compete with WWE?

Well very quickly the company isn’t drawing money on the road - and even with Spike helping to kick in…things begin to fall apart.

Who is the first person to come up to you about missed payment? No checks? How often was this happening?

Were you & Hulk getting the brunt of it or was it Bruce Prichard?

John Gaburick comes over from the WWE - and originally as you wrote in Grateful you thought it was a good move - but how quickly did it appear to you that John wasn’t there to help - but to take over?

WHY didn’t Eric take a position of power in TNA?

From the Observer:

“Tons of issues going on regarding money stemming from the decision to tape Impact on the road at the cost of $600,000 per taping, with no increase in ratings or revenue. A lot of things are breaking at press time and this is what we know.

It’s the cost of the tapings that have made the financial situation so bad. Dixie Carter had noted before that had she done it earlier she would be risking the future of the company. Many in the company, notably Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff, had pushed for getting out of Universal Studios and taping on the road as the needed game changer. But there has been no increase in revenue to offset the expense, and ratings have actually declined.

There were reports at press time of people, particularly with higher contracts, being asked to change their deals. ProWresetling.Net reported Bruce Prichard, the head of talent relations and also head of creative, was asked to restructure his deal, and could be leaving, and that D-Lo Brown was gone as well. Brown was the road agent for almost all the house shows. The report was that Brown was asked to change from going on a weekly salary to a per event deal, which he agreed to, but then was told he was being let go. We were unable to confirm that at press time.

The Prichard story appears to be accurate. Based on what we were told, Prichard was asked to restructure his contract, but he had not made a decision one way or the other about it. So he’s more up in the air right now than gone, although something like that changes by the hour.”

Do you consider AEW a vanity project?

Are you made aware of this? Is Hulk? Did you talk to Bruce about it?

Was this a sign that your time in TNA was coming to an end?

What did Hulk think about everything that was going on? Was he disappointed - or embarrassed?

Do you think getting out of the Impact Zone would eventually lead to the end of your relationship with TNA?

From the Observer:

“TNA tried to spin the story that they want all the major executives and the key decision makers to live in Nashville where the corporate offices are, and Prichard wasn’t going to move.

Let me know when Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff move to Nashville. It’s just a way to publicly cover that they’re going through major cost cutting.

Before the TV tapings on 7/18, there was a meeting with all the talent and the entire office staff was there, most of whom don’t ever come to television tapings or shows. It was the first time almost any of the talent had seen Jeff Jarrett in a long time. Dixie Carter ran the meeting and tried to put a positive spin on everything, saying the cuts were decisions that had to be made for the improvement of the company and product. She tried to explain the late pay by talking about certain things that had

happened that wouldn’t happen again, and that it’s all been taken care of.”

Let’s stop right there - the spin TNA put on about Bruce leaving… are you shocked Dixie tried to make it seem like it was Bruce’s doing or was that typical for TNA?

Are you at the locker room meeting that Meltzer refers to? Why was Jeff brought back at this time?

“She denied there were any significant financial issues, claiming they fell behind on pay because they taped so many One Night Only PPV shows in a short period of time in Orlando a few months back. Others in the company have said it is the expense of taping on the road every two weeks and that more cuts could be coming. The former story comes across better because it’s something that was done and was temporary. However, the entire idea of doing all those tapings over a few days was with the idea it was greatly saving money by not doing live PPVs, and with so many working multiple shows in a short period of time, it would save on transportation for those outside of Orlando.”

Do you think anyone believed in what Dixie was trying to sell?

Well on August 12th in the Observer…Meltzer reports this:

“Creative is now in the hands of Eric Bischoff as the guy in charge, with David Lagana and Matt Conway as the writers. The feeling is the direction isn’t going to be changing much from what was happening with Bruce Prichard out of the mix.”

Was this the first time you were made head of creative?

What did you think of working with Lagana and Matt Conway?

Who gave you the tap for the job? Dixie?

At this point in time…you haven’t been told to stand down yet correct?

Is there a fear about blow block on Garret at any point? Or is that not part of your thought process?

In late September of 13 Meltzer would report:

“There are tons of questions regarding the future of TNA, as in the face of major cutbacks, there is much speculation regarding changes that will be made, and may need to be made.

The biggest story involves the future of taping on the road, as well as the future of a number of wrestlers whose contracts are coming due, including the company’s two highest paid and best known stars, Hulk Hogan and Sting.

Hogan, 60, the face of the company, has his contract due on 10/1.

Eric Bischoff, his major ally, is the key person when it comes to creative and there would be a major psychological blow to the company if he left.”

He’s referencing Hogan there - but do you think Hulk or Sting ever missed a check?

Was Hulk done with the company?

Are you around TNA when Hulk leaves? Did your contracts expire at different times?

From the Observer:

“After four years, it appears the contractual relationship between Hulk Hogan and TNA Wrestling is over.

But given the people involved, it also could be a swerve.

Hogan’s contract expired on 10/1, and on his last show, taped on 9/26 and airing on 10/3, they taped a segment that is supposed to be his farewell. On the surface, it’s crazy.  The first part of the angle played on 9/26 where Dixie Carter basically blew off A.J. Styles, saying that she didn’t need him, but when Hogan came out, she was begging him to help her out.  On the second show, Hogan quit, with Dixie Carter grabbing him by the ankles and begging him to stay. When questions were asked, and they were, about how absolutely stupid it was for the owner to act like she didn’t care about Styles, who headlines Bound for Glory, but did about Hogan, it was said that Hogan’s contract included creative control of everything he was involved with. This was the only exit he would do, where he left on his own, without endorsing anyone, putting anyone over, nor them even ridiculing or burying him on the way out.”

Eric - I watched this. A lot of people have watched this. This is one of the most ridiculous things I’ve ever seen on a professional wrestling show. Are you a part of this creative?

I mean - at the end of the day I don’t blame Hulk. He had control creatively - but couldn’t have Dixie said no?

Did she think she was going to convince Hulk to return?

“Bischoff is still under contract with the company through early 2014. With so many cuts being made and wrestlers complaining about pay being behind, lots of questions are being asked. Making owner Dixie Carter into the lead heel is the classic pro wrestling con, the idea that if the owner is put on television and starts getting people to see them as a TV star, they aren’t going to pull the plug. One would think that if it is a swerve, that Hogan would return at Bound for Glory.”

Is that the classic pro wrestling con?

Well in October…Meltzer would report:

“Eric Bischoff was not at Bound for Glory or TV and isn't expected back. The story given is that he will be working from home, which means he's out of the picture as the key creative force. His contract is believed to expire in or around February, so he'll get paid until then. Bischoff being gone would indicate the likelihood of Hogan being back has decreased, because Bischoff was always there to do Hogan's bidding and to make sure he was featured as a key component in storylines. There was talk this is a way to get him out of the picture, but he wasn't let go due to his contract with the company still having time left. What's notable about this is Gaburick was looking just a few weeks ago at bringing Bischoff back as on-air talent.”

Does Eric still have the notes?

So you’re sent home…and told to be a consultant…were you happy about that?

“A lot of people were very happy to see Bischoff go, since it was noted that he was very negative with people and most didn't enjoy working for him. For a long time, because of his track record as the guy who created Nitro and the wrestling boom, he was thought of highly by Spike TV, both for that and also being a veteran of selling television properties meaning so he knows that language and has credentials outside of wrestling. He had been TNA's intermediary between them and Spike.”

How hard was it to be the point person between TNA & Spike?

“But the bloom of late has been off that rose as well. At the end of the day, Bischoff's early success in WCW came because he was lucky that a lot of very intelligent people were on board with him and they were filled with good ideas. The joke used to be that you would suggest an idea to Bischoff, and two weeks later, in a conversation, he'd pitch the idea back to you, like it was one of his, forgetting you were the one who brought it to him in the first place. But the fact is the ability to separate good ideas suggested from bad ideas is a talent and he grew the company tremendously before it imploded. As best I can tell, with the exception of Hulk Hogan, none of those people had any affiliation with Bischoff this go around and he this time didn't cultivate people like that, which resulted in few ideas like those which turned the business around 17 years ago.”

Open forum on this one Eric…have fun…

“Bischoff had been the key driving force in creative. The creative going forward will be in the hands of writers David Lagana and Matt Conway, as well as the guys maneuvering the direction will be John Gaburick ("Big" from Tough Enough) and Jeff Jarrett, who has had a lot more and more input of late, and I was told you could see Jarrett being relied on more and more at Bound for Glory and the last TV's.”

How does Gaburick get this power? Dixie?

“TNA on its web site posted a job opening for a new writer and producer, which would be to fill the role Eric Bischoff had. There isn't much to it but they want someone with a minimum of three years experience in writing and with TV production experience preferred, and preferably someone who has written or directed reality TV. They also want someone with "deep understanding of pop culture, trends and topical events, especially as they relate to television programming." They want someone with "an experimental risk- taking mindset. Must be open to thinking outside of traditional television formats and outside of the traditional linear television model.”

This is hilarious to me that TNA literally posted that job opening…on their website. Very TNA isn’t it?

Did they treat Garett any certain way when you were “sent home?”

Did he get any heat from anyone or feel any heat?

At this point…TNA stops paying you. You wrote in Grateful that the company owes you $90,000 in backpay and Garett himself is owed $15,000. When do you first realize that they stopped paying you?

Are you SURPRISED TNA is still in business?

From the Observer in June of 2015:

“Eric Bischoff, Jason Hervey and Garett Bischoff filed a breach of contract lawsuit against TNA claiming that the company owed the three of them $114,500.02 in unpaid salary. Bischoff and Hervey sued on behalf of their entertainment company, Bischoff-Hervey Enterprises (BHE). Their company was still under contract to TNA until the end of March and had not been paid since the end of the year.”

How exactly does TNA get away with doing this?

“The lawsuit stated that TNA had the company under contract for $426,800 per year, which was supposed to be paid monthly for their role as co-Executive Producers of the show. Bischoff and Dixie Carter had a split a long time ago and he had not actually worked for the company at any of the shows for a long time before the BHE contract expired. I believe Bischoff also had a talent contract that expired some time back.

The lawsuit claimed that BHE was owed $101,500 for the first three months of the year. Originally, the BHE contract also called for Garett Bischoff to be paid as part of the BHE deal. Later, on October 24, 2012, Bischoff signed a separate wrestler contract with a base pay of $26,000 per year, plus $500 per appearance. His contract expired on 3/31. The lawsuit claimed he had not been paid his base pay since September. He is asking for his $13,000 base pay between that period and the end of his contract.”

At the end of the day you walk away from the suit due to the cost of it…but was this just a reminder of why you didn’t want to get back into the business side of professional wrestling?

“Based on legal letters in the filing, it appeared that TNA's defense was that BHE had refused to appear as requested and thus TNA felt they no longer had an obligation to pay him. A legal letter from Bryan Lewis, the attorney for BHE, stated that "When the money was sent, you did not make it clear whether it was in connection with the settlement offer that was on the or a reinstatement by TNA. TNA did not make a request that BHE perform services when the money was sent." Lewis stated in his letter that BHE was willing to perform under the terms of the agreement in the event TNA is willing to reinstate the agreement.”

What do you remember of talking to Hulk about the experience and what ended up happening to you? Is this a big regret in Hulk’s career do you think?

We know it’s a big regret in yours…as you have said in the past you wish it never happened. Looking back do you still feel that way?

All of your duties were creatively based - same with Hulk correct?

A lot of people lay the blame of the company’s lack of success at your feet along with Hulk’s…what say you to that?

You wrote this in Grateful: “I’ll always be grateful to Dixie Carter and TNA for making that possible. As for Dixie: in the final analysis, she was never the person calling the shots – her parents called the shots. She was caught in the middle as much as I was, and in her own way – elegant and professional, as always – Dixie tried to do the best job she could. While she had responsibility over some important lower-level matters (hiring talent, for example), the real management of TNA (including the development of a vision for the company) was never within her purview.”

So you lay this at the feet of the Carters, Bob & Janice?

You wrote in your book that you actually pushed for Viacom to buy into TNA…only to find out TNA wasn’t interested. Was that one of those give up hope moments for the company?

I think it’s pretty confident to say Aces & Eights was your favorite storyline - but was there anything else in your TNA run that stands out to you?

What was the worst thing you remember TNA putting out when you were involved? Claire Lynch?

What did you take away from your run with TNA and how you handled yourself in either professional wrestling or life afterwards?