Kemo
07-31-2019, 04:26 PM
Eric Bischoff began his 83 Weeks podcast this week talking to Conrad Thompson about how he is getting settled into his new home in Stanford, Connecticut. Bischoff has now begun his role as the new Executive Director of Smackdown but some fans have questions as to what his appointment will mean for the product.
In the past, Bischoff has been criticized for not supporting tag-team wrestling. He clarified his stance on the subject this week as the show was focussed on 1/2 of the Steiner Brothers, “Big Poppa Pump” Scott Steiner.
“I’ve never been a big supporter of tag-team wrestling,” Bischoff said when explaining why he broke up the Steiner Brothers. “It’s not because I don’t enjoy watching it as a fan, it’s not because I don’t think there’s not a lot of great storytelling. It’s not for any other reason other than economics.”
Bischoff continued to talk about how the cost for talent is more in a tag-team division.
“In a television environment, you’ve got one match, you’ve got somewhere between 6-15 minutes on average to fill in a segment,” Bischoff continued. “Instead of having overhead or cost in terms of talent fees, airfare, whatever else goes along with that, whatever line item is associated with talent – catering, the food that they eat, whatever. Instead of having costs associated with that 6-15 minute segment whatever it is, for two people, you’ve now got those costs for 4 people.”
“Now you’ve got double the costs because you’ve got to maintain those tag-teams in a storyline,” Bischoff would continue.
The comments regarding Bischoff’s stance on tag-team wrestling comes in at around the 1 hour mark of the episode.
“It’s not that I never respected or enjoyed tag team wrestling as a viewer and as a fan but when you are running the business of the wrestling business, you are doubling your talent costs and that was an issue for me.”
In the past, Bischoff has been criticized for not supporting tag-team wrestling. He clarified his stance on the subject this week as the show was focussed on 1/2 of the Steiner Brothers, “Big Poppa Pump” Scott Steiner.
“I’ve never been a big supporter of tag-team wrestling,” Bischoff said when explaining why he broke up the Steiner Brothers. “It’s not because I don’t enjoy watching it as a fan, it’s not because I don’t think there’s not a lot of great storytelling. It’s not for any other reason other than economics.”
Bischoff continued to talk about how the cost for talent is more in a tag-team division.
“In a television environment, you’ve got one match, you’ve got somewhere between 6-15 minutes on average to fill in a segment,” Bischoff continued. “Instead of having overhead or cost in terms of talent fees, airfare, whatever else goes along with that, whatever line item is associated with talent – catering, the food that they eat, whatever. Instead of having costs associated with that 6-15 minute segment whatever it is, for two people, you’ve now got those costs for 4 people.”
“Now you’ve got double the costs because you’ve got to maintain those tag-teams in a storyline,” Bischoff would continue.
The comments regarding Bischoff’s stance on tag-team wrestling comes in at around the 1 hour mark of the episode.
“It’s not that I never respected or enjoyed tag team wrestling as a viewer and as a fan but when you are running the business of the wrestling business, you are doubling your talent costs and that was an issue for me.”