Posted on 06/14/2002 8:52:25 AM PDT by southern rock
On March 18, 2002, the day after WrestleMania, without company approval and without notice, Stone Cold Steve Austin walked off the job and failed to appear at WWE’s Raw show in Montreal. Stone Cold Steve Austin was advised by WWE management that this was unprofessional and unacceptable. After a two week hiatus, Austin returned to work.
On Monday, June 10, 2002, Stone Cold Steve Austin again failed to appear for the scheduled Raw event in Atlanta, instead choosing to return home to San Antonio without notice and without company approval.
Although Steve was unhappy with his character’s creative direction, Steve made the personal and unprofessional decision not to report to work to address his concerns.
Therefore, Stone Cold Steve Austin is no longer an active member of WWE’s talent roster.
Let's hope Austin and McMahon work it out. A "hell in the Cell" match, maybe?
The downside is less Stone Cold
The upside is...MORE FUNAKI!!!
I always thought Bradshaw would make a great "next Stone Cold". Sorta the same attitude.
Predetermined? yes. Fake? Have you checked out the WWE injury report lately?
Just when I was looking forward to Austin vs. Flair. Damn!
I have been aware of his unhappiness as of late regarding creative and we have had several spirited conversations over this subject as a result. However, I never in my wildest dreams ever expected the Rattlesnake to walk out on his commitments just as he did immediately following WrestleMania, which was at that time credited to burnout. My last of many conversations over the past few weeks with Steve occurred on our cell phones as he was sitting on a Delta Airlines jet in Atlanta Monday afternoon, preparing to fly back to San Antonio. Our conversation was candid and honest as they always were and he knew how strongly I felt against the emotional decision he was making.
To no-show an event is not the way to do business. There is no way it can be justified no matter how drastic the circumstances seem to be or actually are. Problems are solved, or at least thoroughly addressed, by communicating and when that communication is done in person it seems to me that these issues generally get worked out and some degree of closure achieved. We were not given that opportunity Monday. Instead, the most productive superstar in WWE history decided to take his black boots and go home without confronting his problems, unlike the way the character had confronted every enemy in his history-making career in this company.
The Austin I know was the same guy whose bedside I sat at after what many thought was a career-ending neck surgery. Flat on his back and in the most challenging of times, he vowed to an audience of two that he would return to the ring to do what I truly believe he was put on this earth to do, and that's entertain our audiences with his "hell-bent for leather" style that sold more tickets than anyone in this business' history. I have been at his side during an ugly divorce that would separate him from his two lovely little daughters and he survived and persevered. We have talked each other through many tough personal issues in our lives, including my two bouts of Bells Palsy that some in the business found amusing. He was one guy I knew on a personal level I could always count on to be there for me and me for him -- until this week.
I truly do not know everything that is bothering Stone Cold Steve Austin but my guts tell me it is more than simply creative issues. I wish I did know so I could help make things right for Steve and our company. As I look around my office here at home, I see many pieces of memorabilia from the world of sports and entertainment my wife and I have collected over the years, including items from my boyhood heroes John Wayne and Mickey Mantle. But nothing means more to me than a pair of well-worn black boots Stone Cold Steve Austin wore during his greatest matches since arriving in this company. On them he wrote, "J.R., 'Stone Cold! Stone Cold! Stone Cold!' To the best in the business! Your friend, Stone Cold Steve Austin."
None of us can or should ever attempt to take any of Steve Austin's amazing accomplishments away from him or downplay his overwhelming work ethic and drive to be the very best in the long and complex history of this industry. But what Steve did Monday by no-showing an event for the second time since WrestleMania was wrong and I believe that down deep in his guts he knows it. Perhaps I was wrong as Senior Vice President of Talent Relations for WWE to develop such a close friendship over the years with Steve. Many of my detractors have pointed that out on occasion and maybe they were technically right. So be it. However, I am, and will remain, very proud of our friendship which makes this entire ordeal so tough. I was asked to do a candid interview Thursday for our new TV show Confidential that will air this Saturday night about what went down this week regarding Stone Cold.
The first question the interviewer asked me was, "You don't want to be here do you?" My answer, "Hell, no." This was the toughest one on one interview I have ever had to do in my 25 plus year career. As a broadcaster and administrator, I have found myself in some pretty emotional and tragic situations on the job, as many longtime fans know, but this was just so damn hard to discuss and to explain. Our challenge as a company is to regroup, refocus, and to rebuild. We owe that to ourselves, our stockholders, our talents and, most importantly, to our fans. This journey back to prominence, notwithstanding Austin's departure, was always going to be a long and challenging one and nothing has changed really. It is still going to be tough but now it looks like several new faces will be provided an opportunity to step up and play on the very top level. I do not know who these talents specifically are as I compose this report but I do know they are on this roster and will give us all they have once their number is called. I hope they are young and fresh hands. I hope they realize the opportunity that awaits them. I hope that they do not utilize the negative traits of some talents who came before them, a few still on our current roster, as their road maps to success.
I hope that remaining veterans on our roster who have had box office and in-ring success step up and assume leadership roles in the WWE or, if not, simply step out of the way and make people miserable elsewhere. We are at a place in time where the things that are truly important are a positive attitude, work ethic, being unselfish, and focusing on what we all can do for our company, for the company that pays our bills, and for our fans who really make it all happen. Now is not the time for the remaining veterans who may see the end of their careers unfolding before their very eyes to react like insecure children and who refuse to count the many blessings that they have. This is not about "my people calling your people" or getting "my agent involved" in attitudinal issues disguised as financial ones. Now is the time for all of us to step up and do our absolute best work in our specific areas. Absolutely nothing else will do or should be accepted. For those who do not feel that way, as a company, we should do all we possibly can to eliminate these individuals from our roster as quickly as humanly possible.
The results will be an exciting new product with compelling new stories to tell, rivalries to develop and fresh match-ups to highlight. Just as I was thinking of slowing down somewhat to stop and smell the roses, so to speak, and attend more Sooners football games and BBQs I am now re-directed to doing all I physically and mentally can to get our business healthy again. We will succeed with this task only when we are surrounded by positive people who care more about the product and the company than they care about their own careers and fragile egos.
As the head of our Talent Relations department, if I am unable to accomplish this goal, maybe it is time for old J.R. to head back to Oklahoma and go fishing. However, I will not walk away from this task at hand without a fight and when I leave I will give my notice in person. Thanks for listening and I encourage you to stay tuned. Unpredictable and interesting times are upon us. I am very anxious to see how our entire WWE team responds over the next few weeks.
Take care.
J.R.
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