Vince Russo: 10 Reasons WCW Was Its Own Worst Enemy

9. "We Want Ratings Tomorrow"

THQTHQIn my initial meeting with WCW, I CANNOT tell you how many times I told them that the ratings weren€™t going to come overnight. Severe damage had been done, mainly due to the fact that they had beaten the NWO storyline to death---with it running it€™s course at least a year before they decided to put a bullet in it. I knew that through my experience with Vince, that we could be looking at a year before we turned that baby around. I explained that to the WCW brass TO NAUSEUM. I told them that I had a plan and that we just had to stay the course. They all said that they agreed---and understood. By week two they were looking for the ratings to grow by a point. Having tracked the success of the WWE during the years---I knew this was an impossible feat. As they continued to mount the pressure on me for results---that€™s when I agreed to become a character at TV---but---not be seen---€œThe Powers That Be€. The idea came from Kevin Sullivan. My mindset was---if they€™re going to put pressure on me to deliver ratings---then I€™ll go out there and do it myself!
Contributor

Former head of creative for the WWF and WCW during the most crucial period in wrestling industry history. Currently working on pyroandballyhoo.com, writing weekly slideshows exclusively for WhatCulture.com.