Ted DiBiase (26 page)

MELANIE:

I like to tease Ted that while he was in Hollywood pursuing a voice-over career, when he turned forty the earth shook.

One afternoon when I was spending time with Ted at the apartment, I received a call from Bruce Prichard. After we exchanged some small talk he said, “Vince wants to know if you would be interested in coming back to World Wrestling Federation to cohost the
Royal Rumble
.”

“You are talking about commentating, right?”

“Yes.”

“Who would I be cohosting the
Rumble
with?”

“Vince.”

I wasn't too sure what to think or what to do. “Vince does know that I have never commentated before, right?”

Bruce replied, “Yes, Ted, Vince knows. Come out here and give it a try. Just be the Million Dollar Man and do your own thing. Vince will lead you through the show and help you out.”

“Okay, I'll give it a try.” I called Melanie and she thought it was a great opportunity and supported my decision.

When I got back home, I called Bruce and we discussed the particulars and terms. The next day, I flew to Boston, rented a car, and drove to Providence, where the
Royal Rumble
was being held. Once I arrived at the Providence Civic Center, I met with Bruce and some of the boys. I had been away from the company for almost six months and there was a lot of new talent. Bruce then took me to meet with Vince and the production team. For about three hours, I was instructed about the technical aspects and I learned a lot about how to effectively commentate. I was a tad nervous, but Vince kept me relaxed.

Vince and I worked well together. Throughout the show, Vince kept reassuring me, reminding me to just be myself. Together we called three championship matches, which included a Casket match between champion Yokozuna and Undertaker—with the help of ten guys, Yokozuna retained the title. The ending of the King of the Ring tournament was quite spectacular. They crowned two kings, Bret Hart and Lex Luger, because they both landed on the floor simultaneously.

Afterward, Vince and I discussed the evening's event. I asked him about my performance. “For a first time, you did okay.” I appreciated the positive support and thanked him for the opportunity. Then I added, “Vince, ever since I suffered my neck injury and can't wrestle, I'd had no idea what I was going to do. If you really like my commentating, I would be more than happy to do more. I will also be happy to come back to the company in the role of a manager or anything else you would like for me to do.”

Vince smiled and said, “Let me think about it and I will get back to you in a few days.”

That night at the hotel, I pondered my future with World Wrestling Federation. I had a good feeling about Vince bringing me back on board, but I wasn't a hundred percent sure.

A couple of days later, while Melanie and I were eating breakfast, the phone rang. It was Bruce Prichard. “Hey, Ted. Vince wants you to go to
WrestleMania X
and make a cameo appearance. I'm not sure about anything else, but you can visit with Vince when you get there.” I accepted the offer.

WrestleMania X
took place in New York City at Madison Square Garden. It was an awesome card and I really enjoyed the Ladder match for the Intercontinental title between Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon. It was the first time World Wrestling Federation had televised a Ladder match and both men did a fantastic job. Another match that stood out was between Bret and Owen Hart. They grappled for some twenty minutes, which is something that many workers can't do today.

As for me, the creative team decided to have me sit in the crowd. Next to me was a President Bill Clinton look-alike. Throughout the show, the

camera would show me and “President Clinton” laughing and hamming it up. The announcers would make many references to me and the president being good friends; they wondered if I had bought him off and whether I had stayed in the White House. I had fun with the impersonator. He did a great job with the antics and mannerisms. He had the real President Clinton down to a T.

After the show, I went to the hotel lounge and had beer with the boys. When I turned in, about two in the morning, the telephone rang. It was Bruce Prichard. “Hey, Ted. Vince wants to know if you want to permanently try television commentating.”

“Absolutely!”

“Great. Get some rest because tomorrow a limo is going to pick you up at seven and take you to the studio in Stamford.”

“You mean as in five hours from now?”

Bruce chuckled. “Yeah, so get some sleep and I'll see you in the morning.” I quickly called Melanie and shared with her the great news. I was so excited that I didn't get much sleep that night.

The limo took me to the studio and I met with Vince. We agreed on the terms of a contract and I started my professional wrestling television commentating career. In 1994, for the first time, I had become a salaried employee. I wasn't making as much as I had been wrestling, but it was a decent wage.

It was also a good deal because I didn't have to spend a lot of time on the road. I only had to be at TV tapings two days every three weeks. Every week, I would go to the studio in Stamford and work all day doing voice-overs for World Wrestling Federation television shows.

For the next two years, I did the color commentating on a variety of shows. I did a few shows with Stan Lane but was quickly partnered with Gorilla Monsoon. Gorilla was a legend in professional wrestling as a worker, booker, and announcer. He was a standout high school and college athlete. Standing six-five and weighing close to four hundred pounds, Gorilla held a few Tag Team Championships and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 1994. Five years later he passed away at sixty-two.

I truly admired Gorilla. He was a quality human being who had a big heart. He went out of his way to help me in the announcer's booth. I thought we were a great team, and it was all because of Gorilla. A good color
commentator is only as good as the play-by-play announcer, and Gorilla was the best.

Color commentating gave me the opportunity to look at the wrestling business from a different perspective. I had been a referee and wrestler, and because of those two positions I had a better understanding of the sport. But now I understood the entire process. Doing color really made me appreciate the hours upon hours of work that the production team put into filming, editing, and scripting the shows.

Even though I was in the announcer's booth, Vince also wanted me to become a manager. Vince said, “Ted, you are still quite over with the fans. They hate you and I think your role as a manager will help some of the new heels get over with the fans.” I agreed and accepted the additional responsibility. I immediately formed the Million Dollar Corporation, which lasted from April 1994 to May 1996. During that time, I managed guys like I.R.S., Nikolai Volkoff, Tatanka, King Kong Bundy, Sid Vicious, and Bam Bam Bigelow.

Bam Bam Bigelow was a great guy. He had an intimidating look, with fire tattoos all over his head and body, but he was a gentle giant. He was one of the most agile workers that I had ever seen for a man his size. Bigelow weighed close to four hundred pounds and could do a cartwheel like a gymnast. His moonsault off the top rope was mind-boggling. Bigelow worked for every major promotion in the States and even was a Tag Team Champion in New Japan. It was unfortunate that he died from an apparent drug overdose in 2007 at forty-five.

A huge angle was set up between Bigelow and New York Giants football player Lawrence “LT” Taylor. LT is regarded as one of the greatest line-backers in the history of the NFL. It was a huge deal with the press because of the popularity of LT, especially in the New York area. Bigelow and LT worked a short program setting up their match at
WrestleMania XI
. During a match at the
Royal Rumble 1995
Bigelow, who lost the match, was mocked at ringside by LT. Bigelow didn't appreciate the comments and pushed him. Prior to their match, they got together a few times to prepare and work some spots. At
WrestleMania XI
in Hartford, LT pinned Bigelow after a flying forearm from the second rope. The match actually turned out pretty well and the major media outlets gave World Wrestling Federation a ton of press coverage.
Bigelow carried the match and since I was at ringside, I helped coach LT from the floor.

Prior to
SummerSlam 1994,
all the fans were concerned about the whereabouts of Undertaker. In January at the
Royal Rumble
, Yokozuna had the help of eight other wrestlers as he locked Undertaker in a casket to win the match. There were some Undertaker sightings, but nobody had seen him for weeks.

“Hey, I am the Million Dollar Man. My money talks and nobody has the ability or resources to bring Undertaker back except me. I will bring him back and he is now guided not by the urn, but by money.” Then I brought out a guy who walked, looked, and dressed like Undertaker. But it wasn't him. Eventually the real Undertaker came back, which was a setup for an Undertaker vs. Undertaker match. After throwing the fake Undertaker (Brian Lee—who wrestled as “Prime Time” Brian Lee in Smoky Mountain Wrestling) in a coffin, the real Undertaker won the match and the fake one was never seen again in World Wrestling Federation.

Vince eventually took me out of the announcing booth. He told me that he wanted me exclusively as a manager. Vince wanted me on the road fulltime to manage Sid Vicious. I served as his advisor and mentor. I was to groom Sid, and teach him about the business and how to work in the business.

Sid had come into World Wrestling Federation after an incident that had happened overseas with World Championship Wrestling (WCW). He and Arn Anderson got into an altercation at their hotel in England. It led to a fight that ended up with Sid stabbing Arn in the back with a pair of cuticle scissors. After all was said and done, Arn ended up with more than twenty stab wounds. The company fired Sid.

When Vince told me this, I didn't want to do it. The reason was because of my friendship with Arn. I pulled Bruce Prichard to the side and told him, “So, Vince wants me to go on the road and babysit this big and strong yet raw guy who stabbed one of my best friends, Arn, in the back?”

Bruce simply replied, “Yes.”

I came to find out that Sid was a decent guy. He wasn't a good technical wrestler, but he had a chiseled body, conducted great interviews, and had respect for the business. He was a legitimate six-nine and was very

Sid Vicious.

intimidating. He listened to me and worked very hard to improve in the ring. He eventually became a two-time World Wrestling Federation Heavyweight Champion.

In 2001 while working for WCW, Sid unfortunately suffered a career-ending injury in the ring. While wrestling Scott Steiner, Sid uncharacteristically went to the middle rope. As he landed, he broke his leg. With the cameras catching every detail, Sid's left leg broke in half, snapping both the fibula and tibia, with one of the bones poking through the skin. It was heartbreaking. What was even more pathetic was how WCW exploited the injury, showing it over and over on TV. I understand Sid is trying to make a comeback and I wish him the best of luck.

While managing Sid, I traveled all over the States and even a couple of times to Europe. I really didn't want to be on the road. It pulled me away from my family. Because of my commitment to the company, and the fact that I
needed the money, I sucked it up and went on the road. I thought to myself that everything would eventually work out and my days on the road would soon decrease.

After Sid left the company, I was very fortunate to manage one of the most successful wrestlers in the history of the company, Stone Cold Steve Austin. Back then, he was known as the Ringmaster. Once again, Vince thought that I could help get Steve over with the fans. Steve had worked in the WCW as “Stunning” Steve Austin. He was a good worker and held a few singles titles as well as the tag-team titles with Brian Pillman. Together they were the Hollywood Blondes. While wrestling in Japan, Steve suffered an injury and he had to take some time off. The next thing you know, WCW boss Eric Bischoff fired him. It had also been reported that Eric didn't think Austin was marketable. What was he thinking? Steve would go on to win the World Wrestling Federation Heavyweight Championship on six different occasions and is hands down one of the greatest wrestlers in the history of WWE.