mattdangerously Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 I'm pretty sure the 'Birds not being in is a rib on Hayes. It's the only reasonable explanation, IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NikoBaltimore Posted September 22, 2015 Author Share Posted September 22, 2015 Haven't heard it yet, but he more than deserves to be in just for saving Roberts and Hall who were on death's door. Factor in his WCW run and it's a sure thing. But I can see him being annoying in the pleas to be in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwoy2j Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 Haven't heard it yet, but he more than deserves to be in just for saving Roberts and Hall who were on death's door. Factor in his WCW run and it's a sure thing. But I can see him being annoying in the pleas to be in. My favorite "DDP is annoying" story came from Bob Holly's book. Benoit warned Holly that Page liked to script out everything in minutia for all of his matches, no matter how short. Like he'd hand out a script that said, "you take my arm, we circle left, I punch you, you grimace". DDP kept trying to track Holly down to script out the match, which was probably nothing more than some 5 minute throwaway Smackdown or Velocity match, so Holly just made it a point to be anywhere but where DDP was right up until about 10 minutes before the match. DDP was relieved to find him so that he could go over things with him and Holly said, "oh don't worry, we'll call it out there" and left again. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTTW Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 Haven't heard it yet, but he more than deserves to be in just for saving Roberts and Hall who were on death's door. Factor in his WCW run and it's a sure thing. But I can see him being annoying in the pleas to be in. My favorite "DDP is annoying" story came from Bob Holly's book. Benoit warned Holly that Page liked to script out everything in minutia for all of his matches, no matter how short. Like he'd hand out a script that said, "you take my arm, we circle left, I punch you, you grimace". DDP kept trying to track Holly down to script out the match, which was probably nothing more than some 5 minute throwaway Smackdown or Velocity match, so Holly just made it a point to be anywhere but where DDP was right up until about 10 minutes before the match. DDP was relieved to find him so that he could go over things with him and Holly said, "oh don't worry, we'll call it out there" and left again. That is so pro-wrestling. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Sweetser Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Wasn't that the match where DDP ended up breaking his neck on the superplex? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Playa Shunna Ver 3.0 Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Wasn't that the match where DDP ended up breaking his neck on the superplex? Yeah, he hurt his neck there. I twas also his last WWE match I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwoy2j Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Wasn't that the match where DDP ended up breaking his neck on the superplex? Yeah, he hurt his neck there. I twas also his last WWE match I think. Holly said the one thing they did go over was the finish. DDP didn't want to take the Alabama Slam due to his neck so he got beat with a dropkick. I haven't seen the match so can't confirm if that's actually how it ended. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keith_h Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Wasn't that the match where DDP ended up breaking his neck on the superplex? Yeah, he hurt his neck there. I twas also his last WWE match I think. Holly said the one thing they did go over was the finish. DDP didn't want to take the Alabama Slam due to his neck so he got beat with a dropkick. I haven't seen the match so can't confirm if that's actually how it ended. Yup, it ends with Holly's (awesome) dropkick: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Playa Shunna Ver 3.0 Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 The worst thing WWE ever did was take away DDP's WCW music. Okay, it's not even close, but it sucked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cristobal Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Possibly because WWE didn't want to get sued by whoever owned the rights to Nirvana? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Nature Boy Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 How did WWE take a ridiculously over WCW guy and turn him into a run of the mill midcarder? DDP's run was such a fiasco. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingus Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I never entirely understood the hatred Page got for calling it in the back. Plenty of other guys preferred to work that way, Randy Savage for just one example. And considering the AWFUL matches that Undertaker had with DDP when Taker was probably calling it all on the fly: hey, maybe they just shoulda let Page script the damn things, huh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zakk_Sabbath Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I always wondered if that's part of why Savage and DDP worked so incredibly well with each other in 97 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzil Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I love how seriously Austin takes the HoF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victator Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 If dudes like Rikishi and George "The Animal" Steele are in, DDP more than qualifies. Steele was a big part of the WWF from the 60s til the end of the 80s. He belongs in there more than DDP. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MORELOCK Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Possibly because WWE didn't want to get sued by whoever owned the rights to Nirvana? Wouldn't fly - the "Jimmy Hart Version" would be in public domain. I think that's partially the reason why they didn't use a lot of WCW themes (other than the main reason, which is likely "they are WCW themes.") Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Nature Boy Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 I never entirely understood the hatred Page got for calling it in the back. Plenty of other guys preferred to work that way, Randy Savage for just one example. And considering the AWFUL matches that Undertaker had with DDP when Taker was probably calling it all on the fly: hey, maybe they just shoulda let Page script the damn things, huh? Scripting a match is also a good way to mask a guy's weaknesses (see Warrior/Hogan in 1990 vs. when they called it in the ring in 1998). But some guys are big on the whole tradition thing and it's tradition to call things in the ring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Fowler Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 Page was fucking great. Watch that match with Goldberg again. The way he lays the entire thing out based around the potential of one move is jaw dropping. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zakk_Sabbath Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 Possibly because WWE didn't want to get sued by whoever owned the rights to Nirvana? Wouldn't fly - the "Jimmy Hart Version" would be in public domain. I think that's partially the reason why they didn't use a lot of WCW themes (other than the main reason, which is likely "they are WCW themes.") I think it's still a situation of the Jimmy Hart Version being too close. Even WCW altered/replaced it in their video games: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Nature Boy Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 Even THAT version is better than nothing. The Invasion should've started with DDP running in through the crowd, dropping the Diamond Cutter on random people and then running back out through the crowd. Do this for a few weeks while Shane and co. deny responsibility. Then you do Booker T debut at KOTR 2001 and have DDP drop HIM with a Diamond Cutter the next night. Then have DDP just say that he's leading a REAL WCW invasion and won't sell out to any McMahon. Then we get WCW (with the old school logo) vs. WCW (with the new logo) vs. WWF. Maybe this is why I'm not a booker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 If dudes like Rikishi and George "The Animal" Steele are in, DDP more than qualifies. Steele was a big part of the WWF from the 60s til the end of the 80s. He belongs in there more than DDP. I knew that was coming, and I almost stopped short at Rikishi. You're 100% right, but since there are guys in that never even wrestled in the WWE/F, I figure that isn't the main determinant anymore. Besides all that, nobody pretends this thing has any kind of historical, objective meaning anyway, do they? (I know Austin talks about it on his show like he does. But really, he probably spends 1/10th of the time thinking about it that guys like us that post at a place like this do.) My argument was more about perception, I guess. I'm 31, and in my lifetime, Steele was the dude with a green tongue who ate turnbuckles, while DDP was a World Champ. Most WWE fans that watch the HOF ceremony are a lot younger than me, so Steele (and DDP, frankly) are even less relevant. Anyway, I wasn't trying to throw shade at Steele. I had his LJN figure and everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwoy2j Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 I never entirely understood the hatred Page got for calling it in the back. Plenty of other guys preferred to work that way, Randy Savage for just one example. And considering the AWFUL matches that Undertaker had with DDP when Taker was probably calling it all on the fly: hey, maybe they just shoulda let Page script the damn things, huh? There's being detailed oriented and then there's handing a guy a 10 page script that tells you when to "grimace" for a 5 minute match. Especially when you've been wrestling for 10-20 years and the guy handing you that script has only been wrestling at an above shitty level for about 3 years. It's one thing to hand Goldberg a script telling him move for move what to do. It's another to do the same with Chris Benoit. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingus Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 Considering that DDP and Benoit had a whole lot of excellent matches, I'd say they worked things out. From what I've always heard, it was more of Page's obnoxious personality where he'd suddenly drop a script on you and be all like "MEMORIZE THAT, BRO, WE'RE HAVING A POP QUIZ IN THE RING" rather than the simple fact that he preferred to call it in the back. Heck, Savage/Steamboat at Mania 3 was literally scripted on paper too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattdangerously Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 Well yeah, but most of us could have had excellent matches with Benoit in 97/98. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwoy2j Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 Considering that DDP and Benoit had a whole lot of excellent matches, I'd say they worked things out. From what I've always heard, it was more of Page's obnoxious personality where he'd suddenly drop a script on you and be all like "MEMORIZE THAT, BRO, WE'RE HAVING A POP QUIZ IN THE RING" rather than the simple fact that he preferred to call it in the back. Heck, Savage/Steamboat at Mania 3 was literally scripted on paper too. That's what I meant. No one hated him for going over stuff in the back and outlining stuff on paper is done frequently from what I've heard (in his book, Y2J showed a write-up that he and Punk put together for their WM match). It was him giving those long ass scripts to guys who'd been in the business way longer than him. You don't need to tell Benoit, Raven, Hardcore Holly or whoever that they need to "grimace" when getting punched. That's likely what got him in hot water with Taker. I'm sure Taker has gone over stuff in the back and put together a match beforehand plenty of times. He probably never had some guy from another company come up to him and drop a detailed script on him though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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