Date: June 7th Shawn Michaels was looking for an "insurance policy", and he found one in the seven-footer, Diesel. Those paying attention recognized Diesel from his time in WCW, when he was Oz, Vinnie Vegas, and Master Blaster Steel. All three were terrible gimmicks, and none of them lasted very long, with Vinnie Vegas being his longest run at slightly more than a year. While the WCW characters were cheesy, Diesel seemed like something simple. He was a big, tough looking son of a gun playing... a big, tough looking son of a gun. It was simple to execute, and simple to perfect. His laid back demeanor made his nickname of "Big Daddy Cool" fit perfectly. Even as a heel, it didn't take long for fans to warm up to him, and he got over quickly. His career took off, both in a tag team with Michaels and then as a singles star, but it was his successful debut that helped to make it all possible.
Columnist/Podcaster/Director at LordsOfPain.net for nearly seven years, with nearly 2000 total columns written. Interviewed and/or involved in interviewing the likes of Tyler Black/Seth Rollins (twice), Diamond Dallas Page, Jimmy Jacobs, Christopher Daniels, Uhaa Nation and more.
