I get Stevie's commitment to the other wrestlers but fuck Heyman tbh. The fact that people just forget how much he lied and scammed wrestlers out of paying them while having them do the crazy "extreme" shit they did to their bodies is wild. Mike Awesome left because he wasn't getting paid and he was the champ. RVD stopped showing up for a while because he wasn't getting paid. Cornette has told stories of Paul E. being a liar. Hell, Heyman himself was laughing about how much of a liar he is when he did Jericho's pod a long time ago lol. Paul Heyman is one of the greatest wrestling minds and promos ever but as a businessman he's scum.
Yeah if I was a wrestler I don’t know if there’s another modern era promoter that I would want to work for LESS than Heyman, mainly for the reasons you said. McMahon, Bischoff, Triple H, Kahn, Cornette, etc. All of them have their warts. But if I was any kind of talent, I’d rather work for any of them than him.
You were on the right track until you referred to him as "one of the greatest minds." He isn't. That is also part of his conman abilities, he has convinced people he was some creative savant when he stole all of his ECW 🗑️ from other promoters.
If Paul Heyman still holds a grudge against an injured and scared 20-something-year-old Stevie Richards for finding better employment, he needs to grow the hell up. It's a miracle he was able to keep anyone around that locker room.
The more I watch of Stevie & Maven’s channels, the more I feel for them. Its abundantly clear that so many were made to put up with bullying, simply because “it was the business”. It all sounds so playground.
Vince kept ECW in business with cash injections because of the collaborations they did. But it was doomed because everybody left for WWE and he couldn't make new stars fast enough. And the network buried ECW which effectively killed the company. He sold the company to Vince and went to work for him so he could at least make sure people got paid. And along the way, he got people work. Did he lie, yes, because he if he told the truth, everyone would have left because there is no future for the company and they have mouths to feed. He lied to try and keep the company going. Was he getting rich by lying, no. He was getting screwed by the network, he was getting poached by the competition and he was losing money trying to keep ECW going.
@@antonycuff4512that's the bear minimum he could do. Plus he already had them under his thumb the more he bought in the more controll over the locker room he would have.
I can see this in street gangs (the Crips or the Bloods), and/or politics too (Republican, Democrat, Indy parties: Reform, Green, Libertarian, etc.)...
Heyman owes alot more apologies than he is owed. The fact that the Bwo was selling merch like crazy and Stevie, Meanie and Nova saw a dime. Dude is a cult leader and the fact that he managed to get guys to practically kill themselves for free proves that.
@@rigfordthebarbarian2895 weird you say that, the whole mike awesome thing, he was family with hogan what do you expect mike to say "yeah im not going to work with family because this con artist wants me?"
Stevie Ray from Harlem Heat once said "the pro wrestling business warps the human mind like nothing else I've ever seen". Richards is sorry he left ECW the wrong way when Mike Awesome or Paul Heyman did and Heyman is the one who's still mad at Richards. Your place on the card dictates whether you have value and if you're a main event guy you're just labeled as "challenging" if you call your own shots and do whatever you wanna do. If a lower card guy does the same thing, he's not doing business and is hated. It's the same thing but because of perceived values, it's treated differently. Pro wrestling truly is a gigantic mind f*ck.
Gotta be honest all this talk of you being a 'jobber' or having career regrets... let's check this out: Wrestled in WCW, ECW and WWE. Held titles in ECW and WWE Appeared at wrestlemania Part of some of the most famous factions in wrestling history. Gotta be honest, if that's a career to regret most people have no chance!
Fully agree. I highly feel Stevie has been verbally abused by too many of the boys solely because they thought he was a jobber. Fact is that more people have heard of Stevie Richards during wrestlings peak than people watched New Japan (not a knock on NJPW, I love that company)
Plus, he did that during the Attitude Era. The Era that has been declared the best and most stacked by the fans. Stevie made it in that era. He would have been an upper mid-card guy if he came around in 2015.
After your neck injury Stevie you obviously needed money to pay for the surgery. WCW could help you with that and ECW couldn't (or wouldn't). I think a lot of people would have done the same thing if they were in your shoes.
Paul took care of Taz when he had neck issues but sadly I don't think Stevie was high on Heyman's priority list so yeah going to WCW money wise was the right move.
Fixing a broken neck and making sure you don't end up a paraplegic is far more important than anything the wrestling business can or will ever offer you. It by far trumps and outweighs "doing the favor, brother."
This ain’t about just Heyman. It’s about accountability. And Stevie Richards has taken accountability which most people don’t have the balls to be responsible for their decisions
Paul E is a typical narcissist. He never sees the fault in his actions, but when he feels “slighted” in the most minimum way, he has no issue going full victim/scorched earth. I know people like to joke that Cornette is the “Southern Paul Heyman,” but Corny at least understands business is business. Look back at the Smokey Mountain Days, Corny had no issue letting talent go onto bigger paydays, as long as they gave him a notice so they could finish storylines.
@@josephkerr2807very good point. I respect Corny for that, but also seeing that he couldn’t keep SMW going. So he closed up shop and paid all of his debts, and didn’t give false hope to the boys things would “turn around.”
YES. It should be noted that Paul Heyman has LIED by saying that his scenes for the film Rollerball were filmed sometime around June 2001 to July 2001 when ECW was already out of business. This is a LIE since the film Rollerball was filmed between July 2000 to November 2000 (when ECW was still in business and while it was in it's final days on TNN till about October 2000 when it was kicked off of TNN and ECW floated around till it's final show during January 2001. Tommy Dreamer was the one who was mostly running ECW operations during it's final days. Paul Heyman was saying he was trying to make deals for ECW happen when that wasn't 100% true. He kind of / sort of was, but he was mostly looking out for himself. Paul Heyman would show up on RAW during February 2001, something that surprised everyone in ECW who had no clue that was going to happen. It should be noted that Shane McMahon was also in Rollerball at the same time as Paul Heyman was filming his scenes). Also, Paul Heyman will claim that because Rollerball wasn't film in California, it isn't a Hollywood film and he never left for Hollywood. This is a LIE since while the film wasn't filmed in California, it's still an official Hollywood film since it's production company is MGM (which is considered a Hollywood company. MGM's main headquarters are even in Beverly Hills, California). That ends my long rant on fact checking Paul Heyman's lies. LOL.
Who were taz and bubba not mad at. It is as normal as taker taping up his fists for a fight that never happens. If taz had something to say stevie could have asked him to pick a hand.
The difference is how they left. Tazz and Bubba put people over before leaving, and Tazz even came back to help them get the title of Mike Awesome, who left on bad terms as well.
I wasn't a huge Stevie Richards fan, hated his character in RTC. But as I watch this channel, I have gained tremendous respect to his wealth of knowledge and insight. Stevie, don't be so hard on yourself, things happened, if you got the receipts, then it should be all clear. Stay awesome
My issue with his in ring career is like Daniel Bryan I think he wrestled and did matches for himself and to pop himself and the boys more than the crowd. I actually made a comment like that about Stevie on a video before asking him and then Daniel Bryan described himself in an interview just like that, but worded it so much better.
After reading Tod Gordon's book I have even less respect for Paul Heyman than I already did. The guy is a total scumbag for coaxing guys into destroying their bodies and then bouncing checks on them. Everyone who left ECW for greener pastures, including Stevie, was completely justified in my opinion.
The one person i would never take heat like that from about this is Paul Heyman. Its incredibly hypocritical. Stevie was hurt and besides that he's the captain who never went down with the ship. He dumped a dying ECW in Dreamer's lap so he could appear on RAW.
My 20-year old self would've definitely wanted Stevie to apologise to everyone, try everything to make up for it and just be glad if they ever acknowledged him in the future. But now? Nah. As far as I can tell, he chose the best option for his own long-term health and financial security and did what he could to fix broken bridges afterwards. I don't think anyone really should have been angry at him over it, least of all Heyman.
Stevie Richards' apology on an extra feature of The Rise and Hall of ECW DVD. I felt bad for Stevie when I watched it. I think it's still on RUclips if the WWE copyright bots didn't take it down.
If there is one thing I will always admire about ECW from the 1990s is how close they were with one another and how it was us vs them but the way they reacted when one of them would leave to earn more money and live a better life is somewhat insane.
@@alanmacdonald1457 Remember when Tommy was going to literally murder Heyman at Wrestlemania X7? Imagine how much we'd be talking about that when in relation to this discussion years later if that had happened.
@@FozzQuaker Hypotheticals are always worth thinking about and analyzing. To say otherwise is showing ignorance of how much they'd impact us years later. Feel free to disagree if you want to simply prove my point.
Jim Cornette said that paul keeps heat going with people because he needs an "enemy" to rally the boys behind (Ironically it could be seen that Jim does the same thing), Tod Gordon also said it about Paul as well, I'm noticing a theme here. Paul turned Stevie into that "enemy".
@@peterdickinson4599 He doesn’t. Jim keeps heat with people because that’s who he is. He’s just the kind of guy that holds a grudge, and often doesn’t really care to let it go. People can say what they want about him, but unlike Heyman, he’s authentic, warts and all.
@@decollector95 So I searched up what you said and what it means so let me ask you this, I would like for you to tell me why what you think I said was wrong. I really want to know.
Imagine having to apologize for looking out for your health and financial situation over being loyal to a corporation. Of this was any other job this would be an insane take but because it’s wrestling this is the normal mindset.
Stevie, as a good Christian man, you really did not do anything wrong. You may have been young and stupid, but we all were. Paul was never going to pay for your neck to get repaired. He was going to run you in the ground, just like all the other wrestlers. Balls Mahoney, Raven, Tommy Dreamer, etc. Balls couldn’t even walk. In the end, when you take a step back and look at the entire situation, Paul was very passionate about the product, but that’s because he needed it to succeed, health of my workers be damned. He still has you convinced to this day that you were a part of something that was revolutionary. if constantly getting hit with chairs, tables, ladders, or anything else you can think of is a movement, you are duly mistaken. Bret Hart is the epitome of a great wrestler. You had that caliber of wrestling and you could have been just as great given the opportunity. You unfortunately got buried by a guy who is ticked off and couldn’t let it go. You were the bigger man and gave him an apology for something you did not need to apologize for. If he still wants to be ticked off at you, that’s on him at this point. I respect the heck out of you, my friend. I love your podcast. Please keep up the good work. If I ever hit the lottery, I’ll be calling you to start up a wrestling company. Contact me if you’re ever in the tri-state of Ohio, Kentucky, and West Virginia. I would love to have lunch with you, sir.
It's not just bounced cheques though, the consequences of those were people lost their houses, their whole lives. 'Bounced cheques' is a euthanism at this point. (Sorry for any awful spelling, dyslexic)
The relationship between Paul Heyman and his former employee’s is fascinating. The whole wrestling industry as a business is fascinating, it is so unique, no other mainstream form of entertainment is organised the way it is, and in the case of WWE, it’s difficult to think of any other global brand that is organised in the fashion that it is. I have really enjoyed listening to Stevie talk about the business side of things and discuss how the remuneration system works, the benefits, or lack thereof, the incentive and/or self motivation to work whilst injured.
I feel like this is what happened to Mike Awesome in the WWF/WWE too. Heyman was booking Smackdown and when Awesome came back in 2002 from his injury, he was on the Smackdown side. Heyman had that MF'er jobbing to EVERYONE on Velocity. Even goddamn Funaki. He got his receipt on him too then they released him.
All due respect to Stevie, and his generous nature and apology to Paul Heyman - considering the number of wrestlers he's screwed over, other promoters he screwed over, and the number of people he still owes money too - he owes that thief nothing. He tried to say sorry, the rest is on Paul.
Just a reminder: Paul Heyman is one of the worst promoters in wrestling history. He consistently lied to the boys and stole from them. All Paul really cared about was what Paul cared about. The worship that he gets is pathetic.
You have to be a real a****** to get ahead in the wrestling business. I started when I was 23 years old and I was a totally different person than. I could tell you a bunch of stories about the things that I did when I was young. For example I once made my girlfriend drive home a woman that I picked up and brought home. I didn't get along with her and I didn't feel like taking her home so I made my girlfriend drive this girl home. Let that sink in. On the way home The car broke down a few miles from the house and I went to bed and this was in 2003 when cell phones and pagers were a bit different. We still had landlines so I didn't get the call because I don't think she had a cell phone on her. I can't remember most of that night and I was probably drinking. Just a few years later I look back and wondered who that person was. I had totally changed. By 2007 I was out of the wrestling business. Mainly because of injuries but a lot because of attitude. Growing up had a lot to do with it. It really is for immature people. The old me died and along with it so did that person's dreams. This is why you hear these wrestlers talk the way they do. Something got beaten into them or drilled into them and they just never recovered. I never recovered physically and then some weird way I have a lot of emotional damage that's difficult to talk about. It takes a certain type to be in that world. If you've never stepped between the ropes you just don't understand.
@@anthonydeadman I'm not saying he isn't a genius in the wrestling world but ask guys like Tommy dreamer how it felt to work and not get paid for half a year.
@@tomclark362 Just to be clear, I'm not defending Heyman. Just pointing out how the new generation of wrestlers are blissfully unaware of everything Heyman has done in the past and praise him like he's never done any wrong.
You I mean they can hate him for doing what is best for him but how I see it is they weren't going to get him fixed so he could get back to work so he had to do something. If you are working for a company and you can't do work anymore and they don't give you a different job to do some work for them, you aren't obligated to stay and not get paid and hope the injury will heal on it's own. It makes no sense how anyone can be mad at him when he wasn't even capable of doing what is expected of him.
Stevie you did what you needed to do. When you have a broke neck you’re dealing with more than physical pain. I couldn’t imagine the anxiety and stress you were dealing with at that time.
Honestly, screw Paul Heyman. I don't get why people give this guy a pass just because they like the way he talks. He screwed his entire company and lied to all his employees and ripped them off!! To me, the man deserves no respect for that and he should count himself lucky that a phone call from JR saved his ass from getting shot by Tommy Dreamer.
We all loved Dancin' Stevie Richards. You don't give yourself enough credit, Mr. Richards. You made the gimmick work. Heyman basically said, "How much can I make fun of this guy and still make money off of him?" You had a etter super-kick, in terms of accuracy and believability, than most.
Health and wealth are more important than anything. It was a business decision, not a personal one. There's nothing to feel bad about. There should be no 'receipt' for someone not being able to make the distinction.
It's hard to believe that it's already been 20 years this month since The Rise and Fall of ECW DVD was released. Had the poster for years and still like that Documentary. I understand regret completely. Regret is one of, if not, my BIGGEST struggle in life. I feel sick about things I've done. It seems so easy now to not do those things, but I was immature, dumb, and lacking care for myself and others. I knew better, but did them anyway. I wanted to make myself feel bad out of self-hatred and self-resentment. It ended up affecting those closest to me as well and it defied my personal character. The important thing is the keyword "Now". I would NEVER do those things NOW. So I guess since everyone has forgiven me, I can forgive myself but it's the hardest thing to do. I have properly "repented", however the last step has yet to be taken and that's forgiving myself for the past. It's affecting my present and sabotaging my future. I hope I can one day, move on and let myself breathe. 😞
Stevie has nothing to apologize for. Without a union, pro wrestlers have to look out for themselves. This goes for ANY employee in ANY industry right now. Businesses do not actually care about you and will stiff you on pay and benefits if they can. Get that money and security. Business loyalty is a myth. Heyman ran off to be a WWE commentator as ECW was going out of business. Are any of these wrestlers or Heyman paying Stevie's bills then and now? I'm over the cult worship of Heyman. He exploited wrestlers.
Not sure if Stevie will ever read this, but this is very reminiscent of the Dusty Rhodes/Terry Taylor headphones incident. Although not a similar situation, very similar in the treatment that you got Stevie.
Stevie is among the last people I would ever blame for the company going under. You have bigger problems if Stevie Richards is your "make or break" on seats sold
You're a true class act, Mr. Richards. We've all done things we regret, but you made genuine efforts to make amends and to better yourself. If Heyman is unwilling to forgive Even Now, that's on him. Let the guilt go; it's no longer yours to carry.
Because no one else wanted anything to do with most of these guys until Paul put his stamp on them and they continued to make money off of their ecw gimmick after they left !
@antonycuff4512 Yes, like I said Heyman had a great wrestling mind. But he was too much of a piece of shit to look beyond the horrible shit he did. Making guys popular doesn't mean you get to treat them like dirt and rip them off.
Heyman doesn't have a great wrestling mind whatsoever, just a big mouth and an ability to bullshit people into buying his lies. That said, yes he is also a piece of 💩.
I was a older teenager during ECW in the 90s, it felt special, the fans and the promotion were in tune and on the same page but looking back now as an adult it was kinda cultish and Paul screwed everyone over
Absolutely ECW LEGEND!!! Not just a contender, a fucking straight up legend!! Stevie fucking Richards!!! I definitely thought it was a shame they didn't use him better in the new ECW, but in the end they ruined that show very quickly anyways! I remember that time and how I felt seeing all my favourites on TV again under an ECW brand! I was genuinely happy just to see it, but I'd say that it was veing ruined from day one in certain ways. I still enjoyed some of the matches and stories, even some of the new guys, but it sucked they couldn't just let it be cool and had to keep using normal WWE stars to boost the ratings. Should have kept RVD as champ. Should have pushed Punk early instead of having Lashley on the show. Should have had a tag team division with titles. Maybe even a midcard title that Punk could have held early on, fuding with Noxx and Hardcore Holly or something. RVD could defend the main title against Sabu, Dreamer, Hardcore Holly, eventually Chris Benoit (obviously imagining he didn't do what he did). Benoit should have been on the show way sooner in my opinion, he was a great fit. Tag team division could have had BWO, Kevin Thorn and Gangrel (as this was planned originally but fell through), FBI, Mexicools, Doring and Roadkill, Storm and Credible, eventually could have had the Dudleys making a return. Perhaps they could have also had a Hardcore title returning instead of a midcard title and put guys like Sandman, CM Punk, Sabu, Hardcore Holly, Test into that one, with the likes of Rhyno making a return and Finlay and Regal joining later to bolster the division. Honestly there were many possibilities of what they could have done and who they could have used for this show and instead we got Big Show at his worst obese state, Elijah Burke, Bobby Lashley, Viscera, Kofi Kingston doing an awful Jamaican accent, no Tag Team division or titles, no secondary title and a PPV that is still one of the worst ever to be done! Seriously my heart broke seeing this happen, because the first One Night Stand filled me with hope, the second one made my dreams come true with RVD winning the big one finally and then seeing Paulie unvail the new ECW title for RVD, yep, that got me so hyped up and exited, only for them to completely fumble the bag haha! I'll never forget telling my friend about all these new ECW guys he had never even seen or heard of, but I knew them, because they were my guys!!! Long live ECW! Long live Hardcore!!!
Stevie, others may call you a "Jobber," but one thing a lot those "superstars" don't have is the kind of heart God gave you, dude. And that's priceless!
I have never hated and loved someone on and off quite like 2 people in my life and it just so happens they’re in wrestling: Vince McMahon and Paul heyman. Paul owes (as well as Vince) lifetimes to the wrestlers they abused.
Stevie is one of the most important minds in wrestling right now, his ability to look at things from everyone’s perspectives is special. Thanks Stevie when I was a kid you where one of them to me, when you stood next to Val and Godfather to me as a kid you where one of the boys.
He’s not in the wrestling business and that is insane with the free knowledge he drops. But he didn’t play the potlucks game like the the dudes running wwe and aew do
@@pleaseshutup7053can hear the pain in his voice when he talks about it, he didn’t sell his soul to the business like others did, only reason Stevie didn’t see the success others did. All about the game and how you play it aye.
Of all of the episodes I've watched, Stevie comes off as one of the most down to earth, easygoing, and self-aware guys out there. It's sad that have been so many Kliq, Hogan, Nash & Hall, soooo many people who are only out for themselves, bury everyone, call out anyone, take no blame. Stevie is always honest, funny, just comes across as a really good dude.
@@pleaseshutup7053 my POV it’s about a 70/30 with all ECW discourse, people often tend to look only at the positives of ECW when discussing it in my experience.
I thought Paul was gonna show up at the ecw arena for nxt. He should've. Paul has an eye for talent and ECW was my favorite promotion of the 3. I was watching ECW on local tv in Alabama way before most of the country knew what ecw was. And thats because of Paul... i loved Stevie in ECW more than anywhere else. Always been a fan of Stevie. Happy to have this channel to go to
One thing about business decisions is that you always need to take care of yourself first and have an escape plan. Salesmen feed on loyalty and emotions and everything they do they do for them and if it benefits you that’s just a happy accident. Don’t feel bad for trying to put yourself in a better situation. No one has a crystal ball to tell them the right move to make. It’s all a gamble.
I agree with everyone here who is saying that Stevie is being a bit too hard on himself, but I also respect him more than ever after seeing this video. Standing up and taking accountability for your own actions is something not many people do these days. Showing this degree of humility and integrity is something to be damn proud of.
You're in pain for the rest of your life, because you put your body on the line, for a company that didn't care about talent health - that was run by a guy who financially screwed over said talent and had his self interest above everything else. Sounds like you're experiencing some kind of PTSD from a cult like atmosphere. A logical reason for an apology would be to get back in favor with the business or financial gain from the business. You made a business decision. Everyone made good in the end. If nothing is by accident and everything happens for a reason, I'd say you're good, man.
Dors goldberg or lesnar put over people When they left a company. Or Hogan ? Rock. Austin. Jeff Jarrett . Noooooo Stop saying you make a mistake Stevie. It’a human. Many don’t Respect the business only the money.
I slipped 2 disc in my neck it was the worst pain I've ever been through it's been a year my back still isn't right my eyes were glassy for two months and Stevie is absolutely right if u have never been through that kind of pain it can absolutely scare you to death
Hey Stevie, would you be able to do a video on when wrestlers go "in to business for themselves" I have heard the term many times but would love some examples of maybe times you have seen this happen, and explaining it in more detail. Thanks
Stevie you had every right to put your physical and financial health first. Many who criticized you would have done the same without a hint of regret. You're the most selfless guy in an industry of selfish phonies.
I never watched ECW but my brother did. When Raven and Stevie Richard's (one of my brother's favorites) came to WCW, he was telling me how great they were. Totally mismanaged by WCW... like most of their talent.
So many people, including James, seem to be missing the point of what Stevie is trying to say. He left without doing business, he left without putting anyone over. That's a HUGE no no in the wrestling industry, especially back then. Everyone keeps bringing up others leaving but they DID put people over on the way out. Stevie made a big mistake back then but he owns it and that's what makes him a decent human being.
To me, it's incredibly unfair on Paul's part because so many other guys did what Stevie did, they just did it later, and yet Paul is still cool with most of them. I understand where Stevie's coming from, but it rings hollow to me because every top talent ended up doing the same sooner or later. And I'm sure if you asked Paul today, he'd say he has absolutely no problem with Stevie at all, but actions speak louder than words.
Make no mistake Heyman is as bad as Vince and Bischoff when it comes to being petty with certain wrestlers. The difference is that WCW and WWE would pay you guaranteed.
From all the episodes Ive seen Stevie is always hard on himself and tries to blame himself even when the other guy is in the wrong. In this situation he did nothing wrong every single guy from ECW would have left for money including scammer Paul Heyman
I get Stevie's commitment to the other wrestlers but fuck Heyman tbh. The fact that people just forget how much he lied and scammed wrestlers out of paying them while having them do the crazy "extreme" shit they did to their bodies is wild. Mike Awesome left because he wasn't getting paid and he was the champ. RVD stopped showing up for a while because he wasn't getting paid. Cornette has told stories of Paul E. being a liar. Hell, Heyman himself was laughing about how much of a liar he is when he did Jericho's pod a long time ago lol. Paul Heyman is one of the greatest wrestling minds and promos ever but as a businessman he's scum.
Yeah if I was a wrestler I don’t know if there’s another modern era promoter that I would want to work for LESS than Heyman, mainly for the reasons you said. McMahon, Bischoff, Triple H, Kahn, Cornette, etc. All of them have their warts. But if I was any kind of talent, I’d rather work for any of them than him.
o please everyone in the wrestling business is a con man everybody does it you clown , it's a cut throat business you geeks
You were on the right track until you referred to him as "one of the greatest minds."
He isn't. That is also part of his conman abilities, he has convinced people he was some creative savant when he stole all of his ECW 🗑️ from other promoters.
@@darknessandlife777 Agree completely
@@darknessandlife777ECW helped ruin wrestling as well
If Paul Heyman still holds a grudge against an injured and scared 20-something-year-old Stevie Richards for finding better employment, he needs to grow the hell up. It's a miracle he was able to keep anyone around that locker room.
Especially when he wasn't paying people
Hard drugs.
An environment filled with hard drugs that Heyman ignored is why.
The more I watch of Stevie & Maven’s channels, the more I feel for them. Its abundantly clear that so many were made to put up with bullying, simply because “it was the business”.
It all sounds so playground.
A lot of these guys never grew up past middle school. Plus when you're told you have to just deal with it or your career will suffer...
Well theyer grown men in underware pretending to fight which is pretty weird
Ahhhh so that is where aew gets it lol
Sounds more like prison gang mentality sometimes.
@ lmao
Stevie, neither you or anyone else ever has to apologize for screwing over Paul Heyman.
I always liked Stevie Richards as a wrestler but has gone on to be one of my favorite people, so endearing.
If a promoter can't meet his bare minimum responsibility of paying his talent then they deserve absolutely nothing in return from those talents.
Well said
Have you ever promoted anything? It’s like putting everything into one event and praying it goes good enough for u to pay ur bills
@@shawnganesh2348like wrestlers don't have to do that
Paulie was quick to bend over and take that McMahon money though
He helped many of the ecw guys get that wwe money too
Vince kept ECW in business with cash injections because of the collaborations they did. But it was doomed because everybody left for WWE and he couldn't make new stars fast enough. And the network buried ECW which effectively killed the company. He sold the company to Vince and went to work for him so he could at least make sure people got paid. And along the way, he got people work. Did he lie, yes, because he if he told the truth, everyone would have left because there is no future for the company and they have mouths to feed. He lied to try and keep the company going. Was he getting rich by lying, no. He was getting screwed by the network, he was getting poached by the competition and he was losing money trying to keep ECW going.
@@antonycuff4512that's the bear minimum he could do. Plus he already had them under his thumb the more he bought in the more controll over the locker room he would have.
Vince paid him JUST under the amount that people could sue him for owing them money.
*McMahoney
These wrestling companies want you to have total cult loyalty to them but will release you in a heartbeat
not just wrestling...
Exactly. It's not just wrestling companies that demand your soul and give you nothing more in return than the bare minimum.
I can see this in street gangs (the Crips or the Bloods), and/or politics too (Republican, Democrat, Indy parties: Reform, Green, Libertarian, etc.)...
@@decollector95 yup
@@kshinokevin shit you don't even have to go that far. Look at our jobs.. expendables really
The fact that Heyman never got severely beaten by some of the guys he screwed over speaks volumes in regards to his con-man abilities.
Easily one of the top 10 carnies in the history of the business. Elder God tier, just like Vince, just like Hogan.
Well, we all know Tommy Dreamer nearly went villain arc in 2001.
Heyman owes alot more apologies than he is owed. The fact that the Bwo was selling merch like crazy and Stevie, Meanie and Nova saw a dime. Dude is a cult leader and the fact that he managed to get guys to practically kill themselves for free proves that.
@@rigfordthebarbarian2895 weird you say that, the whole mike awesome thing, he was family with hogan what do you expect mike to say "yeah im not going to work with family because this con artist wants me?"
Most of these guys would never of had a career without him and are still making money off of their ecw runs !
Stevie Ray from Harlem Heat once said "the pro wrestling business warps the human mind like nothing else I've ever seen". Richards is sorry he left ECW the wrong way when Mike Awesome or Paul Heyman did and Heyman is the one who's still mad at Richards. Your place on the card dictates whether you have value and if you're a main event guy you're just labeled as "challenging" if you call your own shots and do whatever you wanna do. If a lower card guy does the same thing, he's not doing business and is hated. It's the same thing but because of perceived values, it's treated differently. Pro wrestling truly is a gigantic mind f*ck.
Tbh its the same in every job. Companies abuse lower level employees
@@anthonyfaucy2761 yup. Wrestling can get away with it because the career choice is so unique they can hide behind the culture.
To heck with Heyman. Its a scumbag move to ask people to put their bodies on the line for your business and then not even pay them
He started a trend that guys are still paying for with their bodies. For nothing but cheap pops.
That is the carnie business. Heyman knew the playbook.
Gotta be honest all this talk of you being a 'jobber' or having career regrets... let's check this out:
Wrestled in WCW, ECW and WWE.
Held titles in ECW and WWE
Appeared at wrestlemania
Part of some of the most famous factions in wrestling history.
Gotta be honest, if that's a career to regret most people have no chance!
Fully agree. I highly feel Stevie has been verbally abused by too many of the boys solely because they thought he was a jobber.
Fact is that more people have heard of Stevie Richards during wrestlings peak than people watched New Japan (not a knock on NJPW, I love that company)
Plus, he did that during the Attitude Era. The Era that has been declared the best and most stacked by the fans. Stevie made it in that era. He would have been an upper mid-card guy if he came around in 2015.
@@mrmoviemanic1 I get you. Accurate.
the amount of laughs stevie and the rtc provided for me and my buddies during the attitude era is hof worthy.
“The boys” doesn’t pay your bills. I wouldn’t have gave a shit! WCW here I come!
After your neck injury Stevie you obviously needed money to pay for the surgery. WCW could help you with that and ECW couldn't (or wouldn't). I think a lot of people would have done the same thing if they were in your shoes.
Paul took care of Taz when he had neck issues but sadly I don't think Stevie was high on Heyman's priority list so yeah going to WCW money wise was the right move.
Fixing a broken neck and making sure you don't end up a paraplegic is far more important than anything the wrestling business can or will ever offer you. It by far trumps and outweighs "doing the favor, brother."
Stevie is the character, 3doormat flunkie that makes ya dizzy with swingchausen
Considering the amount of people that Heyman has screwed over he really doesn't have a right to hate wrestling people the way that he does.
This is all that needs to be said
This ain’t about just Heyman. It’s about accountability. And Stevie Richards has taken accountability which most people don’t have the balls to be responsible for their decisions
That’s how narcissists work
@@Wwesvr11bestprojectsStevie talking like going to wcw was a regret. I bet if he stayed in ecw he would have even more regrets
@@Wwesvr11bestprojectsStevie literally says I don’t know what could I have done 😂😂 how is thag accountability
Paul E is a typical narcissist. He never sees the fault in his actions, but when he feels “slighted” in the most minimum way, he has no issue going full victim/scorched earth. I know people like to joke that Cornette is the “Southern Paul Heyman,” but Corny at least understands business is business. Look back at the Smokey Mountain Days, Corny had no issue letting talent go onto bigger paydays, as long as they gave him a notice so they could finish storylines.
Cornette also payed all his talent. Sometimes not taking money for himself, so all the boys would be paid. Not like Heyman at all.
@@josephkerr2807very good point. I respect Corny for that, but also seeing that he couldn’t keep SMW going. So he closed up shop and paid all of his debts, and didn’t give false hope to the boys things would “turn around.”
Didn't Paul abandon ECW when he disappeared to Hollywood while the company was sinking?
YES. It should be noted that Paul Heyman has LIED by saying that his scenes for the film Rollerball were filmed sometime around June 2001 to July 2001 when ECW was already out of business. This is a LIE since the film Rollerball was filmed between July 2000 to November 2000 (when ECW was still in business and while it was in it's final days on TNN till about October 2000 when it was kicked off of TNN and ECW floated around till it's final show during January 2001. Tommy Dreamer was the one who was mostly running ECW operations during it's final days. Paul Heyman was saying he was trying to make deals for ECW happen when that wasn't 100% true. He kind of / sort of was, but he was mostly looking out for himself. Paul Heyman would show up on RAW during February 2001, something that surprised everyone in ECW who had no clue that was going to happen. It should be noted that Shane McMahon was also in Rollerball at the same time as Paul Heyman was filming his scenes).
Also,
Paul Heyman will claim that because Rollerball wasn't film in California, it isn't a Hollywood film and he never left for Hollywood. This is a LIE since while the film wasn't filmed in California, it's still an official Hollywood film since it's production company is MGM (which is considered a Hollywood company. MGM's main headquarters are even in Beverly Hills, California). That ends my long rant on fact checking Paul Heyman's lies. LOL.
@@johnpenguinthe3rd13 the guys knew ECW was dead when they saw Heyman on Smackdown.
It don't make ya a bad person.
yeah, and Rollerball also ended up being a terrible movie at that.
He says Tazz and Bubba were mad at him....
They all jumped ship for money too lol
They went to wwe who had a working relationship with ecw at the time . wwe was paying Paul and sending him talent in exchange for his guys !
Who were taz and bubba not mad at. It is as normal as taker taping up his fists for a fight that never happens. If taz had something to say stevie could have asked him to pick a hand.
The difference is how they left. Tazz and Bubba put people over before leaving, and Tazz even came back to help them get the title of Mike Awesome, who left on bad terms as well.
@TheOmegaRiddler is it not taz as ecw was hardcore and not worried about copyright.
Taz is 4'8. No one fears him.
I wasn't a huge Stevie Richards fan, hated his character in RTC. But as I watch this channel, I have gained tremendous respect to his wealth of knowledge and insight. Stevie, don't be so hard on yourself, things happened, if you got the receipts, then it should be all clear. Stay awesome
My issue with his in ring career is like Daniel Bryan I think he wrestled and did matches for himself and to pop himself and the boys more than the crowd. I actually made a comment like that about Stevie on a video before asking him and then Daniel Bryan described himself in an interview just like that, but worded it so much better.
After reading Tod Gordon's book I have even less respect for Paul Heyman than I already did. The guy is a total scumbag for coaxing guys into destroying their bodies and then bouncing checks on them. Everyone who left ECW for greener pastures, including Stevie, was completely justified in my opinion.
The one person i would never take heat like that from about this is Paul Heyman. Its incredibly hypocritical. Stevie was hurt and besides that he's the captain who never went down with the ship. He dumped a dying ECW in Dreamer's lap so he could appear on RAW.
My 20-year old self would've definitely wanted Stevie to apologise to everyone, try everything to make up for it and just be glad if they ever acknowledged him in the future.
But now? Nah. As far as I can tell, he chose the best option for his own long-term health and financial security and did what he could to fix broken bridges afterwards. I don't think anyone really should have been angry at him over it, least of all Heyman.
Stevie Richards' apology on an extra feature of The Rise and Hall of ECW DVD.
I felt bad for Stevie when I watched it. I think it's still on RUclips if the WWE copyright bots didn't take it down.
If there is one thing I will always admire about ECW from the 1990s is how close they were with one another and how it was us vs them but the way they reacted when one of them would leave to earn more money and live a better life is somewhat insane.
all the sadder and more painful when paul screwed everyone over
@@alanmacdonald1457 Remember when Tommy was going to literally murder Heyman at Wrestlemania X7?
Imagine how much we'd be talking about that when in relation to this discussion years later if that had happened.
@@anthonydeadmanThe butterfly effect of that would have on the business as a whole doesn't bear thinking about...
@@anthonydeadman yeh pauly has been super lucky
@@FozzQuaker Hypotheticals are always worth thinking about and analyzing.
To say otherwise is showing ignorance of how much they'd impact us years later.
Feel free to disagree if you want to simply prove my point.
Jim Cornette said that paul keeps heat going with people because he needs an "enemy" to rally the boys behind (Ironically it could be seen that Jim does the same thing), Tod Gordon also said it about Paul as well, I'm noticing a theme here. Paul turned Stevie into that "enemy".
isn't that jewishness/judaism in a nutshell?
How does Cornette do the same thing?
@@decollector95 EVERY TIME.
Geeeez-
RUclips protects the transformers more than the Jewish
@@peterdickinson4599 He doesn’t. Jim keeps heat with people because that’s who he is. He’s just the kind of guy that holds a grudge, and often doesn’t really care to let it go. People can say what they want about him, but unlike Heyman, he’s authentic, warts and all.
Sounds like Stevie did nothing wrong tbh
I was thinking the same thing tbh
Stevie is still one of my all time favorite wrestlers. The humbleness he had when he talks about main event of Barely Legal is great
Honestly, with the amount of people I hear not liking Paul Heyman, I'm surprised that he thinks he's has the right to hate anybody.
oh you sweet summer child
@@decollector95 So I searched up what you said and what it means so let me ask you this, I would like for you to tell me why what you think I said was wrong. I really want to know.
Exactly take Chris Benoit for example and I quote I don't care about cte smh
@@extremeking425 let's just say saying so might get me in deep trouble on youtube
@@decollector95 Um ok? If you know anything about Paul Heyman, it is known that many wrestlers in the industry hate him.
Imagine having to apologize for looking out for your health and financial situation over being loyal to a corporation. Of this was any other job this would be an insane take but because it’s wrestling this is the normal mindset.
Stevie, your being to hard on yourself. I respect the f outta Heyman as a wrestling mind, but hes the LAST person to be angry over a financial issue.
*you’re*
@@frankstudent it's youtube not a thesis paper
Exactly.
My opinion - the more I listen to you, the more I believe you are too good of a person to be in the business!
Stevie, as a good Christian man, you really did not do anything wrong. You may have been young and stupid, but we all were. Paul was never going to pay for your neck to get repaired. He was going to run you in the ground, just like all the other wrestlers. Balls Mahoney, Raven, Tommy Dreamer, etc. Balls couldn’t even walk. In the end, when you take a step back and look at the entire situation, Paul was very passionate about the product, but that’s because he needed it to succeed, health of my workers be damned. He still has you convinced to this day that you were a part of something that was revolutionary. if constantly getting hit with chairs, tables, ladders, or anything else you can think of is a movement, you are duly mistaken. Bret Hart is the epitome of a great wrestler. You had that caliber of wrestling and you could have been just as great given the opportunity. You unfortunately got buried by a guy who is ticked off and couldn’t let it go. You were the bigger man and gave him an apology for something you did not need to apologize for. If he still wants to be ticked off at you, that’s on him at this point. I respect the heck out of you, my friend. I love your podcast. Please keep up the good work. If I ever hit the lottery, I’ll be calling you to start up a wrestling company. Contact me if you’re ever in the tri-state of Ohio, Kentucky, and West Virginia. I would love to have lunch with you, sir.
It's not just bounced cheques though, the consequences of those were people lost their houses, their whole lives. 'Bounced cheques' is a euthanism at this point. (Sorry for any awful spelling, dyslexic)
9:30 timestamp was very introspective and well said, most people in media will not be this open
It's like being angry at the minor league baseball player who gets brought up and signed to a major league ball club.
The relationship between Paul Heyman and his former employee’s is fascinating. The whole wrestling industry as a business is fascinating, it is so unique, no other mainstream form of entertainment is organised the way it is, and in the case of WWE, it’s difficult to think of any other global brand that is organised in the fashion that it is. I have really enjoyed listening to Stevie talk about the business side of things and discuss how the remuneration system works, the benefits, or lack thereof, the incentive and/or self motivation to work whilst injured.
Heyman made his career off broken promises and destroyed careers. How he’s “loved” I’ll never know.
He's mainly only loved by marks on the internet who buy into his bull 💩 stories.
I feel like this is what happened to Mike Awesome in the WWF/WWE too. Heyman was booking Smackdown and when Awesome came back in 2002 from his injury, he was on the Smackdown side. Heyman had that MF'er jobbing to EVERYONE on Velocity. Even goddamn Funaki. He got his receipt on him too then they released him.
All due respect to Stevie, and his generous nature and apology to Paul Heyman - considering the number of wrestlers he's screwed over, other promoters he screwed over, and the number of people he still owes money too - he owes that thief nothing.
He tried to say sorry, the rest is on Paul.
Just a reminder: Paul Heyman is one of the worst promoters in wrestling history. He consistently lied to the boys and stole from them. All Paul really cared about was what Paul cared about. The worship that he gets is pathetic.
Stevie Richards is being too kind about ECW. Remember Paulie signed with the WWF without saying a word and closed ECW down
You have to be a real a****** to get ahead in the wrestling business. I started when I was 23 years old and I was a totally different person than. I could tell you a bunch of stories about the things that I did when I was young. For example I once made my girlfriend drive home a woman that I picked up and brought home. I didn't get along with her and I didn't feel like taking her home so I made my girlfriend drive this girl home. Let that sink in. On the way home The car broke down a few miles from the house and I went to bed and this was in 2003 when cell phones and pagers were a bit different. We still had landlines so I didn't get the call because I don't think she had a cell phone on her. I can't remember most of that night and I was probably drinking. Just a few years later I look back and wondered who that person was. I had totally changed. By 2007 I was out of the wrestling business. Mainly because of injuries but a lot because of attitude. Growing up had a lot to do with it. It really is for immature people. The old me died and along with it so did that person's dreams. This is why you hear these wrestlers talk the way they do. Something got beaten into them or drilled into them and they just never recovered. I never recovered physically and then some weird way I have a lot of emotional damage that's difficult to talk about. It takes a certain type to be in that world. If you've never stepped between the ropes you just don't understand.
The way Heyman screwed so many over on pay, he doesn't deserve any apologies from anyone.
And yet, everybody including the young talent today who probably know next to nothing about his darker side, praise him as a "wiseman".
@@anthonydeadman I'm not saying he isn't a genius in the wrestling world but ask guys like Tommy dreamer how it felt to work and not get paid for half a year.
@@tomclark362 Just to be clear, I'm not defending Heyman. Just pointing out how the new generation of wrestlers are blissfully unaware of everything Heyman has done in the past and praise him like he's never done any wrong.
You I mean they can hate him for doing what is best for him but how I see it is they weren't going to get him fixed so he could get back to work so he had to do something. If you are working for a company and you can't do work anymore and they don't give you a different job to do some work for them, you aren't obligated to stay and not get paid and hope the injury will heal on it's own. It makes no sense how anyone can be mad at him when he wasn't even capable of doing what is expected of him.
paul owes you an apology not paying people and wonder why they leave. we need a bwo reunion episode
Exactly! “The boys” doesn’t pay your bills! I wouldn’t have gave a shit! WCW here I come!
2:18 Stevie just described my entire first marriage of 7 years in 3-4 sentences.
Stevie you did what you needed to do. When you have a broke neck you’re dealing with more than physical pain. I couldn’t imagine the anxiety and stress you were dealing with at that time.
Paul E. Dangerously = the "David Koresh" (or "Jim Jones") of pro wrestling
Stevie Night Heat 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Honestly, screw Paul Heyman. I don't get why people give this guy a pass just because they like the way he talks. He screwed his entire company and lied to all his employees and ripped them off!! To me, the man deserves no respect for that and he should count himself lucky that a phone call from JR saved his ass from getting shot by Tommy Dreamer.
Paul heyman only likes or has time for people who can help him stay relevant in the wrestling business
We all loved Dancin' Stevie Richards. You don't give yourself enough credit, Mr. Richards. You made the gimmick work. Heyman basically said, "How much can I make fun of this guy and still make money off of him?" You had a etter super-kick, in terms of accuracy and believability, than most.
Health and wealth are more important than anything. It was a business decision, not a personal one. There's nothing to feel bad about. There should be no 'receipt' for someone not being able to make the distinction.
It's hard to believe that it's already been 20 years this month since The Rise and Fall of ECW DVD was released. Had the poster for years and still like that Documentary.
I understand regret completely.
Regret is one of, if not, my BIGGEST struggle in life.
I feel sick about things I've done. It seems so easy now to not do those things, but I was immature, dumb, and lacking care for myself and others. I knew better, but did them anyway. I wanted to make myself feel bad out of self-hatred and self-resentment.
It ended up affecting those closest to me as well and it defied my personal character.
The important thing is the keyword "Now".
I would NEVER do those things NOW.
So I guess since everyone has forgiven me, I can forgive myself but it's the hardest thing to do.
I have properly "repented", however the last step has yet to be taken and that's forgiving myself for the past.
It's affecting my present and sabotaging my future.
I hope I can one day, move on and let myself breathe. 😞
Stevie has nothing to apologize for. Without a union, pro wrestlers have to look out for themselves. This goes for ANY employee in ANY industry right now. Businesses do not actually care about you and will stiff you on pay and benefits if they can. Get that money and security. Business loyalty is a myth.
Heyman ran off to be a WWE commentator as ECW was going out of business. Are any of these wrestlers or Heyman paying Stevie's bills then and now? I'm over the cult worship of Heyman. He exploited wrestlers.
He Svengalied the whole roster.
@ it feels like a lot of wrestlers are searching for father figures along the way and promoters sadly exploit that. I say all this as a big ECW mark.
Stevie is too hard on himself he's a stand-up guy he's too nice for the wrestling business. Fuck heyman he screwed soo many people
Not sure if Stevie will ever read this, but this is very reminiscent of the Dusty Rhodes/Terry Taylor headphones incident. Although not a similar situation, very similar in the treatment that you got Stevie.
?!
Stevie you did the right thing don't beat yourself up paul gave you 150 bucks to wrestle with a broken neck just stop it SMH
Real men don't make excuses for their past mistakes, I've gained even more respect for Stevie after this revelation.
Once again, I hope Paul doesn't hate you anymore. That was nearly or over a quarter of a century ago.
Stevie is among the last people I would ever blame for the company going under. You have bigger problems if Stevie Richards is your "make or break" on seats sold
@@RedStar_N7 Exactly.
You're a true class act, Mr. Richards. We've all done things we regret, but you made genuine efforts to make amends and to better yourself.
If Heyman is unwilling to forgive Even Now, that's on him. Let the guilt go; it's no longer yours to carry.
I feel like if Heyman “hates someone” it’s a ploy to get out of paying for something.
Heyman is a great wrestling mind but a major piece of trash.
Idk how people still worship him despite ripping off so many of his guys.
Because no one else wanted anything to do with most of these guys until Paul put his stamp on them and they continued to make money off of their ecw gimmick after they left !
@antonycuff4512 Yes, like I said Heyman had a great wrestling mind.
But he was too much of a piece of shit to look beyond the horrible shit he did.
Making guys popular doesn't mean you get to treat them like dirt and rip them off.
Heyman doesn't have a great wrestling mind whatsoever, just a big mouth and an ability to bullshit people into buying his lies.
That said, yes he is also a piece of 💩.
I mean, this just sounds like Paul Heyman being the petty piece of shit he always was. Everybody abandoned him eventually FOR A REASON.
I was a older teenager during ECW in the 90s, it felt special, the fans and the promotion were in tune and on the same page but looking back now as an adult it was kinda cultish and Paul screwed everyone over
Stevie you don't owe Paul an apology. I think the toxicity of the business in this era has warped your mind into thinking you do.
Absolutely ECW LEGEND!!! Not just a contender, a fucking straight up legend!! Stevie fucking Richards!!! I definitely thought it was a shame they didn't use him better in the new ECW, but in the end they ruined that show very quickly anyways! I remember that time and how I felt seeing all my favourites on TV again under an ECW brand! I was genuinely happy just to see it, but I'd say that it was veing ruined from day one in certain ways. I still enjoyed some of the matches and stories, even some of the new guys, but it sucked they couldn't just let it be cool and had to keep using normal WWE stars to boost the ratings. Should have kept RVD as champ. Should have pushed Punk early instead of having Lashley on the show. Should have had a tag team division with titles. Maybe even a midcard title that Punk could have held early on, fuding with Noxx and Hardcore Holly or something. RVD could defend the main title against Sabu, Dreamer, Hardcore Holly, eventually Chris Benoit (obviously imagining he didn't do what he did). Benoit should have been on the show way sooner in my opinion, he was a great fit. Tag team division could have had BWO, Kevin Thorn and Gangrel (as this was planned originally but fell through), FBI, Mexicools, Doring and Roadkill, Storm and Credible, eventually could have had the Dudleys making a return. Perhaps they could have also had a Hardcore title returning instead of a midcard title and put guys like Sandman, CM Punk, Sabu, Hardcore Holly, Test into that one, with the likes of Rhyno making a return and Finlay and Regal joining later to bolster the division. Honestly there were many possibilities of what they could have done and who they could have used for this show and instead we got Big Show at his worst obese state, Elijah Burke, Bobby Lashley, Viscera, Kofi Kingston doing an awful Jamaican accent, no Tag Team division or titles, no secondary title and a PPV that is still one of the worst ever to be done! Seriously my heart broke seeing this happen, because the first One Night Stand filled me with hope, the second one made my dreams come true with RVD winning the big one finally and then seeing Paulie unvail the new ECW title for RVD, yep, that got me so hyped up and exited, only for them to completely fumble the bag haha! I'll never forget telling my friend about all these new ECW guys he had never even seen or heard of, but I knew them, because they were my guys!!! Long live ECW! Long live Hardcore!!!
Stevie, others may call you a "Jobber," but one thing a lot those "superstars" don't have is the kind of heart God gave you, dude. And that's priceless!
heyman abandoned ecw lol. what a hypocrite
I have never hated and loved someone on and off quite like 2 people in my life and it just so happens they’re in wrestling: Vince McMahon and Paul heyman. Paul owes (as well as Vince) lifetimes to the wrestlers they abused.
Stevie is one of the most important minds in wrestling right now, his ability to look at things from everyone’s perspectives is special. Thanks Stevie when I was a kid you where one of them to me, when you stood next to Val and Godfather to me as a kid you where one of the boys.
He’s not in the wrestling business and that is insane with the free knowledge he drops. But he didn’t play the potlucks game like the the dudes running wwe and aew do
@@pleaseshutup7053can hear the pain in his voice when he talks about it, he didn’t sell his soul to the business like others did, only reason Stevie didn’t see the success others did. All about the game and how you play it aye.
Of all of the episodes I've watched, Stevie comes off as one of the most down to earth, easygoing, and self-aware guys out there. It's sad that have been so many Kliq, Hogan, Nash & Hall, soooo many people who are only out for themselves, bury everyone, call out anyone, take no blame. Stevie is always honest, funny, just comes across as a really good dude.
More spotlight needs to be put on the less glamorous aspects of ECW that don’t tend to get discussed by those who praise it.
Where you been. The bad and good gets spotlighted
@@pleaseshutup7053 I’d give it a 70/30 split. People more often look at ECW fondly but that’s just my POV.
@@pleaseshutup7053 my POV it’s about a 70/30 with all ECW discourse, people often tend to look only at the positives of ECW when discussing it in my experience.
@@pleaseshutup7053 in my experience people tend to highlight the positives more so.
Tell it how it is Stevie
I agree with James. You had medical Bill's & Paul should have understood that. He should also know that you were a kid at the time.
I thought Paul was gonna show up at the ecw arena for nxt. He should've. Paul has an eye for talent and ECW was my favorite promotion of the 3. I was watching ECW on local tv in Alabama way before most of the country knew what ecw was. And thats because of Paul... i loved Stevie in ECW more than anywhere else. Always been a fan of Stevie. Happy to have this channel to go to
One thing about business decisions is that you always need to take care of yourself first and have an escape plan. Salesmen feed on loyalty and emotions and everything they do they do for them and if it benefits you that’s just a happy accident. Don’t feel bad for trying to put yourself in a better situation. No one has a crystal ball to tell them the right move to make. It’s all a gamble.
I agree with everyone here who is saying that Stevie is being a bit too hard on himself, but I also respect him more than ever after seeing this video. Standing up and taking accountability for your own actions is something not many people do these days. Showing this degree of humility and integrity is something to be damn proud of.
Off topic but your intro theme is awesome, it sounds like something out of Cyberpunk. 👍
All those other wrestlers jumped too. Stevie , do you. You didn’t owe them anything at all.
You're in pain for the rest of your life, because you put your body on the line, for a company that didn't care about talent health - that was run by a guy who financially screwed over said talent and had his self interest above everything else. Sounds like you're experiencing some kind of PTSD from a cult like atmosphere. A logical reason for an apology would be to get back in favor with the business or financial gain from the business. You made a business decision. Everyone made good in the end. If nothing is by accident and everything happens for a reason, I'd say you're good, man.
Dors goldberg or lesnar put over people When they left a company. Or Hogan ? Rock. Austin. Jeff Jarrett .
Noooooo
Stop saying you make a mistake Stevie. It’a human. Many don’t
Respect the business only the money.
Stevie is 5 star solid dude, no questions! I love listening to him and his views on life and wrestling. A nice dude, too! Always a fan!
Don't beat yourself up man. You did what you felt was necessary.
I slipped 2 disc in my neck it was the worst pain I've ever been through it's been a year my back still isn't right my eyes were glassy for two months and Stevie is absolutely right if u have never been through that kind of pain it can absolutely scare you to death
Hey Stevie, would you be able to do a video on when wrestlers go "in to business for themselves" I have heard the term many times but would love some examples of maybe times you have seen this happen, and explaining it in more detail. Thanks
I didn't have this on my bingo card but damn, glad I'm here for it.
Best channel to do housework listening too. Thanks guys 👍
Stevie you had every right to put your physical and financial health first. Many who criticized you would have done the same without a hint of regret. You're the most selfless guy in an industry of selfish phonies.
Considering how many workers that didn't get paid by Paul - and that he's never apologized to anyone about it - don't worry about it, Stevie...
I never watched ECW but my brother did. When Raven and Stevie Richard's (one of my brother's favorites) came to WCW, he was telling me how great they were. Totally mismanaged by WCW... like most of their talent.
James Hatfield said once . You spend half your life making mistakes and the other half apologizing for it
Would love to see paul come on the show and talk this out.
So many people, including James, seem to be missing the point of what Stevie is trying to say. He left without doing business, he left without putting anyone over. That's a HUGE no no in the wrestling industry, especially back then. Everyone keeps bringing up others leaving but they DID put people over on the way out. Stevie made a big mistake back then but he owns it and that's what makes him a decent human being.
Can I just say I freaking love Stevie Richards?
bWo, RTC, KroniK, Stevie Night Heat, Epic bWo return, WWE's ECW, Dr. Stevie, all great stuff.
To me, it's incredibly unfair on Paul's part because so many other guys did what Stevie did, they just did it later, and yet Paul is still cool with most of them.
I understand where Stevie's coming from, but it rings hollow to me because every top talent ended up doing the same sooner or later.
And I'm sure if you asked Paul today, he'd say he has absolutely no problem with Stevie at all, but actions speak louder than words.
Make no mistake Heyman is as bad as Vince and Bischoff when it comes to being petty with certain wrestlers.
The difference is that WCW and WWE would pay you guaranteed.
Damn dude. I don’t think being leader of the Right to Censor a jobber. You’ve always been a super solid guy in the ring.
From all the episodes Ive seen Stevie is always hard on himself and tries to blame himself even when the other guy is in the wrong. In this situation he did nothing wrong every single guy from ECW would have left for money including scammer Paul Heyman