The Wall Brother
All Star
"As I grew up watching wrestling, I idolized Bret "The Hitman" Hart. I wanted to
follow in his footsteps, and to emulate his career. Bret had a customized, cool jacket,
so I had to have customize, cool jacket too. Brett Hart had his signature shades, so
naturally I wanted my own signature shades as well.
On October 26, 2008, at last it seemed like that dream was finally coming true. I
debuted my trademark "Yo, Yo, Yo!" shades in front of millions at the Cyber Sunday
Pay-Per-View event at the US Airways Arena in Phoenix, AZ. The next step in fulfilling
my dream was to get the shades in the hands of the WWE Universe. The demand for
the shades was very real.
After showcasing the shades, in true Hitman fashion I took them off and gave
them to a fan. Fans in every arena around the globe would ask me where they could
get a pair.
Finally, after months of conversations with the lead coordinator of WWE
Merchandise, we finally got approval for the shades to go into production. Soon they
would be on WWE merch shelves at every arena. (Cue Louie Anderson in Coming to
America: "And that's when the big bucks start rolling in.")
Before you get all excited for me, curb your enthusiasm for a moment. Let's
rewind to a totally unrelated circumstance a few weeks earlier...don't worry, I'm going
somewhere with this...
I received a phone call from the WWE magazine and was asked to do an
interview about Cryme Tyme. During the interview, the writer asked me to give him a
few words to describe my relationship with Shad.
My response was "friendship, bond, loyalty, respect..." and then I caught myself.
I quickly asked the interviewer to refrain from putting the words "loyalty" and "respect"
in the same sentence. He replied "Okay, I understand. I get it. I know how some of you
guys can be sensitive about your gimmicks and catchphrases."
Fast forward back to a few weeks later. That same day I got the green light for
my shades... was also the same day I got the red light! The interview was released in
WWE Magazine, and guess what it said. I don't even need to waste time spelling it out,
do I?
I was in a bathroom at the TD Bank North Garden Arena in Boston, MA, using
the throne. I heard a voice over the stall, "Hey, JTG? Is that you in there? I was reading
the latest WWE magazine. Interesting article with you and your tag team partner. Nice
choice of words."
I already knew where he was going with this. I immediately started to plead my
case. I told him that a lot of the article was embellished, and that I told the writer not to
use those two words, especially not in the same sentence.
I finally came out of the stall. He looked me dead in my eyes and said, "You
might be telling the truth. The magazine guys are known for putting words in peoples' mouths to make an exciting article. They've done that a few times to me also. But there
still has to be consequences and repercussions. This can't go unpunished. You know
those cool shades that you have coming out? We're gonna have to put those on hold.
That will make us 'Even Steven.'"
Just like that, in the blink of an eye, quicker than a hiccup, it was over. The Lord
giveth and the Lord taketh away. To this day those shades are still on hold. Sorry I let
you down, Bret."
Where's the hustle of getting those shades out to the WWE Universe Cena? Where's the loyalty to your fellow co-worker? Where's the respect for one of the hardest working WWE employees to ever lace up a pair of boots?
follow in his footsteps, and to emulate his career. Bret had a customized, cool jacket,
so I had to have customize, cool jacket too. Brett Hart had his signature shades, so
naturally I wanted my own signature shades as well.
On October 26, 2008, at last it seemed like that dream was finally coming true. I
debuted my trademark "Yo, Yo, Yo!" shades in front of millions at the Cyber Sunday
Pay-Per-View event at the US Airways Arena in Phoenix, AZ. The next step in fulfilling
my dream was to get the shades in the hands of the WWE Universe. The demand for
the shades was very real.
After showcasing the shades, in true Hitman fashion I took them off and gave
them to a fan. Fans in every arena around the globe would ask me where they could
get a pair.
Finally, after months of conversations with the lead coordinator of WWE
Merchandise, we finally got approval for the shades to go into production. Soon they
would be on WWE merch shelves at every arena. (Cue Louie Anderson in Coming to
America: "And that's when the big bucks start rolling in.")
Before you get all excited for me, curb your enthusiasm for a moment. Let's
rewind to a totally unrelated circumstance a few weeks earlier...don't worry, I'm going
somewhere with this...
I received a phone call from the WWE magazine and was asked to do an
interview about Cryme Tyme. During the interview, the writer asked me to give him a
few words to describe my relationship with Shad.
My response was "friendship, bond, loyalty, respect..." and then I caught myself.
I quickly asked the interviewer to refrain from putting the words "loyalty" and "respect"
in the same sentence. He replied "Okay, I understand. I get it. I know how some of you
guys can be sensitive about your gimmicks and catchphrases."
Fast forward back to a few weeks later. That same day I got the green light for
my shades... was also the same day I got the red light! The interview was released in
WWE Magazine, and guess what it said. I don't even need to waste time spelling it out,
do I?
I was in a bathroom at the TD Bank North Garden Arena in Boston, MA, using
the throne. I heard a voice over the stall, "Hey, JTG? Is that you in there? I was reading
the latest WWE magazine. Interesting article with you and your tag team partner. Nice
choice of words."
I already knew where he was going with this. I immediately started to plead my
case. I told him that a lot of the article was embellished, and that I told the writer not to
use those two words, especially not in the same sentence.
I finally came out of the stall. He looked me dead in my eyes and said, "You
might be telling the truth. The magazine guys are known for putting words in peoples' mouths to make an exciting article. They've done that a few times to me also. But there
still has to be consequences and repercussions. This can't go unpunished. You know
those cool shades that you have coming out? We're gonna have to put those on hold.
That will make us 'Even Steven.'"
Just like that, in the blink of an eye, quicker than a hiccup, it was over. The Lord
giveth and the Lord taketh away. To this day those shades are still on hold. Sorry I let
you down, Bret."
Where's the hustle of getting those shades out to the WWE Universe Cena? Where's the loyalty to your fellow co-worker? Where's the respect for one of the hardest working WWE employees to ever lace up a pair of boots?
