John Laurinaitis was a moderately successful wrestler in the United States, and was most well known for being one half of the Dynamic Dudes with Shane Douglas. He went on to spend over a decade in All Japan Pro Wrestling where he was wildly popular and even won the All Asia Tag Team Championship with the legendary Kenta Kobashi. After retiring from the ring in 2000, he returned to the United States where he took over as the head booker of WCW. When WWE acquired WCW, Laurinaitis came on as a road agent and was quickly promoted to Director of Talent Relations before eventually taking over as Vice President of Talent Relations from Jim Ross. His role in the company was brought to the forefront by CM Punk during the infamous pipebomb promo, and he was subsequently brought in as an on-screen authority figure. He dubbed himself Mr. Excitement and recruited David Otunga and Eve Torres as his legal counsel and personal assistant respectively. Laurinaitis wasnt the worst General Manager and at times he seemed to be trying his hardest to put on the best show he could, but his constant opposition to fan favourites like CM Punk and John Cena showed him as out of touch with what the audience wanted. He touted People Power but ended up getting lost in rivalries with the talent and was eventually fired as General Manager by Vince McMahon.
