The Ravishing One had been away from professional wrestling for some three years before his debut in ECW. Rick Rude was forced to retire due to a back injury suffered while defending his WCW Championship against Sting in Japan. But, in 1997, Rude made his triumphant return to the squared circle. Surprisingly, however, it was not for WCW or the WWE. Instead, Rude went to work for his old friend, Paul Heyman and his ECW promotion. Rude debuted as a masked man who hounded The Franchise Shane Douglas. The feud, unfortunately wouldnt go very far, as Rick was unable to actively compete. However, following his unmasking and brief interactions with douglas, Rude became a color commentator for the company, alongside Joey Styles. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGDemIzmnl4 Rude would insert himself into a few ECW angles from time to time. He briefly joined Shane Douglas and his Triple Threat stable. Later, Rude aided Jerry Lawler in his battles with both the Sandman and Tommy Dreamer. The Ravishing One would leave ECW for the WWE in late 1997, aligning himself with D-Generation X, before again jumping to another promotion. This time, he went to World Championship Wrestling -- famously appearing on Raw and Nitro on the same night.
Douglas Scarpa is a freelance writer, independent filmmaker, art school graduate, and pro wrestling aficionado -- all of which mean he is in financial ruin. He has no backup plan to speak of, yet maintains his abnormally high spirits. If he had only listened to the scorn of his childhood teachers, he wouldn't be in this situation.
