Dusty Rhodes on Between the Ropes Recap

by Richard Trionfo

This week on Between the Ropes, wrestling legend and former NWA World Heavyweight Champion, ‘The American Dream’ Dusty Rhodes, joined Fritz, Dickerman, and Vito DeNucci to talk about his recent discussions with the WWE, his time with TNA, his appearances this weekend with Coastal Championship Wrestling, and other issues in the world of professional wrestling. 

Dusty says that he is getting ready to come to Florida to work with Dustin in a tag match against Phi Delta Slam this weekend.  Florida is like his second home, but it has been two years since he has wrestled in Florida.  He is looking forward to working again.  He mentions that D’Lo Brown, Jerry Lynn, and Mike Graham are also going to be working the shows this weekend. 

Dusty was asked if he thinks Vince would ever get the Florida library.  He was not sure if they would get it because it was passed down through the Graham family.  There is a lot of great stuff.  He would love to be able to get matches to put on a 3 DVD set that would outsell Flair’s.  He likes wrestling Tully Blanchard on the independent circuit.  As soon as Terry Funk retires, Dusty will hang things up. 

He went to Stamford last week to discuss the WWE Legends program because that product is promoted better by them than anyone else.  He would like to have a DVD released with his work.  He has an agreement to talk again.  There are a lot of things out there to be discussed.  The main reason he went to the WWE was for the legends deal.  Nobody can produce DVDs and legends materials than the WWE.  He is still able to do his motivational speeches and work independent shows.  The only contract he has signed is with the legends part of the WWE.  His other commitments are not affected at this time.

He was asked about his approach to things if he was given a position in the WWE.  If he could work with the WWE, it would be a ‘we’ thing.  There is a group of people who put the product together.  The WWE is the biggest company in the world in wrestling.  It is still a family owned business.  They know it is up to them to make the product the best it can be.  The industry has changed a lot while he has been wrestling.  There was always one guy in charge when he started.  Now there are a group of people, both young and veteran.  They have a great passion about the industry.  He wants to be able to blend in with what the WWE is doing.  He wants to bring some ideas from the past into the future to modernize the ideas.  It is a simple ‘good versus bad’ story that needs to be told.  He was not brought into any company to work with people.  He was the leader with everything on his shoulders.  He is proud of what he did in TNA with the four pay per views that he did as well as the television.  If you are brought in to lead, you lead.  If you are brought in to be a part of a team, you are a part of the team.  He looks forward to working with people like Jim Ross on the legends side.  He has a lot to contribute to the business.  He sees so many people in the independent circuit who do not have the opportunity to work as much as he did when he started.  You do not work seven days a week right now.  He wants to help the young guys who ask him. 

Dusty was asked about the way promos are done today.  He would add the human side for the promos.  When he would drive to the next city, he knew the issues and what to say in order to promote the next match.  You need to learn the personalities of the guys.  If you don’t understand their personality, you would not get the best out of the guy.  Magnum TA had a different personality from Kevin Sullivan.  The guys today have not had the ability to be on television every week in order to learn the ropes.  Dusty brought current things into his promos in order to make it ‘good guy versus bad guy’.  It made the crowd want to be a part of the process and then it works.  Bullet points should be fed to the wrestlers and then let the personalities take over.  Maybe something will be said that connects with the fans.  A sitcom writer is dealing with someone who has a set personality.  The best producers and directors are often the ones who let the actor be themselves.  They have the confidence in the actor to get it on the screen.  Shawn Michaels and Hulk Hogan have had some good interviews to set up their match at SummerSlam.  Dusty could never tell Kevin Sullivan what to say in a promo.  He was told he had two minutes to talk and he would talk.   You need to listen and watch the wrestler if you are a writer so you can understand that person. 

It is also necessary to tell a story in an interview and publicity, but it is also necessary to tell a story in the ring.  You look at Steve Austin when he did not tap out to the Sharpshooter and passed out.  That was when he made the connection.  Dusty would pick one guy out in the crowd who he thought knew everything.  As soon as Dusty had that guy going, he knew that he did his job.  He talked about how Paul Hornung had to hold Gale Sayers back during at Dusty Rhodes/Abdullah the Butcher match because he was brought into the excitement of the match.

He was never a Ric Flair, Tully Blanchard, Kurt Angle, or Chris Benoit in the ring, but he was able to put butts in seats because he could tell the story in the ring.  Once the lights go down and the pyro stops, you have to worry about the action in the ring.  You have a person like Triple H, who thinks that he is the champion even though he does not have the title.  Ric Flair did the same thing.  Ric Flair still has great matches because he tells a story.  Dusty would love the opportunity to work with the writers.

Dusty said that he not be returning to the ring to wrestle because ‘they are so pretty’.  The only guy who would look uglier than him in the ring would be Terry Funk.  Dusty talked to Stephanie and it was like talking to Vince.  Dusty would like to have one more match at a house show against Ric Flair.  He would probably need to have Ric run into his elbows in the middle of the ring.  Until it is on paper and signed, everything is just a project. 

When Dusty stops having a passion for the industry, he will leave the business.  He enjoys going to independent shows.  He looks forward to working with Dustin because Dustin and Barry Windham were naturals in the ring.  He talked about the story that was told between Flair and Windham in Fayetteville during an hour match. 

The Latin community needs to be supported.  He thought he had it with Hector Garza and he thinks that it is there with Shocker.  You need to cultivate all of the people into the business.  Dusty says that there is nobody better in the business than Eddie Guerrero because he comes from that background.  He learned the industry as a child.  They need to be nurtured and allowed to be who they are. 

Between the Ropes airs every Wednesday from 10:00 p.m. until Midnight on 740 The Team in Orlando, Florida with hosts Brian Fritz, Dickerman, and Vito DeNucci. Check out www.betweentheropes.com to listen to the live stream of the show every week. Archives of past interviews with Paul Heyman, Mike Tenay, Terry Funk, A.J. Styles, Rob Van Dam, Tully Blanchard, Mick Foley, Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Matt Hardy, Jerry Lawler, Bobby Heenan, Steve Corino, Shane Douglas, Elix Skipper, Harley Race, Bubba Ray Dudley, and many more people in the world of professional wrestling can also be found on www.betweentheropes.com.