General Rection Q&A
WCW's General Rection (Bill DeMott) answered questions from SLAM! Wrestling readers, and showed a side of himself that isn't always seen on TV. He's got big hopes, both for his career and that of his Misfits In Action, but has been held back by the company for a variety of reasons. The General talks about that, and other issues, including Lance Storm, his tattoo, going overseas, tribute shows and what he's capable of in the ring. The Q & A was conducted by SLAM!'s Greg Oliver.
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General Rection. -- photo courtesy WCW
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Q: Is your final move still called the "Laughing Matter"
because
nowadays there is always interference between matches and you never get
a chance to "hear" the move." [Andre Therrien, Montreal]
A: Actually I don't remember if it's been a finishing move the
past couple of months! But they're looking to change the name of it
since the name Hugh Morrus is changed. The Last Laugh or No Laughing
Matter, it's changed. They're actually searching for a different name.
I'm staying away from that because people still refer to it as No
Laughing Matter. I'd like to keep it that way.
Q: What is your reaction that the MIA is basically a
group of wrestlers who are not over with the fans. Does that not doom
your gimmick right from the start, would it not have made more sense to
add in a wrestler that is over to the mix? [Terry Harris, Toronto]
A: I think that what they did, and in fact what they have
said, is that they put us together and the Misfits name just came.
Because if you look at our careers, and all of us being young, the
amount of time we've been with the company, we are Misfits. We just
didn't fit into anything they had planned. A month into it, they said,
'You know what, we didn't think that people were going to take to this
and now we're going to run with it.' So it might have been a good thing
to have thrown an experienced guy in there, but looking back at it now,
we're all working hard and it's paid off. The Misfits are now a solid
group and people are responding to us. For a bunch of guys who never got
a run or a push before, I think we're fairing pretty well."
Q: Do you think that you're going to get some good rub
from Hacksaw Duggan? He's always been over with the fans. [Greg Oliver]
A: He's still pretty over, but the response that is going
on now, especially after Kitchener and Erie, PA, and especially going
into New York where his stomping grounds were for years with the WWF. I
think right now they're still looking at us, and I think that the rub
has yet to come. But when it comes, I think all four of us are ready to
step up an do our thing. So yeah, we're all real excited about it and
the guys are all gung-ho about what's going on."
Q: What were your feelings on the name change from Hugh
Morrus to General Rection? [cancerr@yahoo.com]
A: I prefer Hugh Morrus. Ninety percent of the fans still
recognize that name, when they're yelling out or even in the crowd as
we're walking out through the crowd. They're still yelling Hugh. You get
those fans now that are chanting 'Rection' and everything else. So I
think it's a harder thing for me to accept than the fans. Like I said,
I've been Hugh Morrus for five plus years. But either way, I'm just
happy that the fans are excepting, especially with a goofy name like
that, but taking it well and they are responding. I'm happy just to be
acknowledged at this point! (laughing)
Q: What do you think of Vince Russo's book by the seat of
your pants booking, with no long term planning for any of the
characters? [Terris Harris]
A: Actually morale right now is at an all-time-high. His
theory is book-by-the-seat-of-your-pants, if that's what you want to
call it. But he's sticking to it. There's a lot more wrestling going on.
Actually the Team Canada-Misfits is one of the stories that has been a
constant as of late. I think that the people will be surprised with the
direction that he goes in, but he's got the guys' attention and we're
sticking with it.
Q: How did you feel about participating in the first Mark
Curtis (Brian Hildbebrand) Memorial Pro Wrestling Fantasy Camp and his
first Brian Pillman Memorial Event this past May? [Liz Malone, Bethany,
OK]
A: It was an honour. Mark was a good, personal friend of
mine before I got into WCW. Anything I can do for Pam. Pillman and I had
our run-ins, and actually we weren't as close as some of the other guys,
but we were very sociable and got along. Anything I can do for those
families. It was just an honour. Actually that was my second Pillman and
Hildebrand. [The first was] just before Mark passed away last year. Then
we had this one. I'll be at every one they ever do. It's an honour to be
there and support the families.
Q: The company's been pretty supportive, letting you go
do some of these tribute shows? [Greg Oliver]
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Hugh Morrus, Stampede referee J. Edgar Hooker and Vampiro at the Brian Pillman Memorial Show in Cincinnati, Ohio. -- photo courtesy Stampede Wrestling
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A: Absolutely. I think that would be almost the time when
I would have serious issues if they said no, you can't participate. It's
not the fact of every company sending a bunch of guys, it's friends
getting together for friends. It's the one night, or two nights, over
the past year that there was no business involved. It was the boys
taking care of the boys. It was an honour.
Q: Would you consider being a full-time wrestling
trainer when you hang up the boots? [Liz Malone, Bethany, OK]
A: I've been asked that before, and I don't consider
myself a trainer now, but the younger guys that are coming in, they come
to me a little bit. I like to fill them in and help them out. When it's
all said and done, I think I'd like to be a road agent. You really can't
get out of this business once you're in it. And hopefully I've got a
couple more years left in me. But I would like to stay in it in some
sort and help these younger guys out, maybe as a road agent or
something.
Q: How old are you now? [Greg Oliver]
A: 33.
Q: So you've got a least a couple more years. You watch
some of those guys like Flair still doing it. [Oliver]
A: Well, yeah. It's changed a lot since their 20 years,
but I believe if they can get 20 years out of it, I can get 20 out of
it.
Q: I've noticed that you have a cross tattooed on the
back of your neck. I've also noticed a number of other wrestlers (El
Dandy, Juventud Gurrerra, Rey Mysterio Jr. etc.) Is there any
significance with the design and the placing of those tattoos? Was it
like a "best friend pact" or just coincidence? [Todd, North Carolina]
A: It's not a coincidence. It's a group of guys that,
first off, believe strongly in the Lord and that we are taken care of
when we are travelling, when we're on the road. All the Mexico boys, if
you will, have one design, and all the other guys like myself, Public
Enemy, Steve McMichael at the time, and a bunch of other guys, we have a
different design. But it's all the same thing. It's a brotherhood and we
watch out for each other, just make sure that we're protected, if you
will. It's not a coincidence. It's all there, all for the same reason
for each and every guy.
Q: I'm always thrilled when fans come up with great
questions. [Oliver]
A: That is a great question.
Q: I was wondering how you like participating in
wrestling's Canadian/American cold war? Even though it is a very
successful angle, I find it has created high levels of tension
(sometimes sparks fisticuffs) between Canadians & Americans at visiting
shows. [Chet Reidel, Kitchener, Ontario]
A: I don't think so. I don't think we've gone to that
extreme yet. I'm not saying that we're not going to, but it might be
something that picks up. And I'm sure it will make a few people very
hated. I'm sure some people might take it the wrong way, and we're not
going to try to go in that direction. I like it, I think it goes back to
the old late '70s, early '80s of getting a storyline across and building
some guys and staying with a story. Some people will be naturally
offended, and some who aren't. I have Marines that come up to me and are
offended that the boys wear their patches. Everyone's going to take it
from a different light.
Q: With Lance Storm being so new to the company, do you
think he got the early push he deserved? [Justin Letto]
A: A lot of people questioned that, myself included.
Knowing Lance from ECW and what he's done in the past, talent wasn't the
question and his abilities weren't in question. But right away throwing
it at him the way they did was questionable. But man, the way he's
handled it, you have to sit there and say it's all justified. He's one
of the guys they have - being here with the company six years, they've
thrown a lot of things at guys who couldn't carry the load and couldn't
produce. And Lance is one of those guys who has produced, who has
carried the load for more than just himself. Yeah, I think it's
justified. I think it's a smart decision.
Q: First off, you rule! Which is one thing you feel you
are currently lacking, with the exception of the world title shot you
deserve?
[Karma187@aol.com]
A: I'm not sure I deserve a title shot, maybe. I'd like
to have a title shot. But lacking? I think I'm just lacking . . . If
they'd just let me loose a little bit. I don't feel that they're holding
me back, but like we said earlier, if I could just do a little bit more
what I know I'm capable of. I believe I'm showing a lot of people that I
can talk, do the interviews for TV and everything else they ask of me. I
think they're just letting me out of the gate slowly. But I would like
the opportunity to really just step up and just pass me the ball and let
me run with it.
Q: I read on the Internet that you did 450 Splashes
earlier in your career. Is that true? Why donīt you use them anymore -
is it just the office talking to you, or do you actually think about
toning it down sometimes? [FamKracher@aol.com]
A: Actually, when I first came in to the company six
years ago, I was doing all that stuff and it just knocked everybody off
their feet. And before Billy Kidman came in and did the Shooting Star, I
was doing the Shooting Star in Japan. That goes back to my Ricky Santana
story and everything else. There's a lot of things that I'm capable of
doing, but when I got here, they said, 'Not tonight, not tonight.' And
'Not tonight' led to six years of just getting the Moonsault wherever
possible over. So I'm looking forward to doing some of that stuff. Of
course, it's been awhile, so I would imagine that I need to practice a
little bit more again! But I'd like to get that stuff back in there and
shock some people.
Q: That's a good point. Are you one of the guys that go
out to the ring beforehand to plan things out? Some guys do, some guys
don't. [Greg Oliver]
A: Yeah, some guys like to go out and say, 'Well, if I
could do this.' Then they try it themselves to see if its something they
can create for that night. I'm not one of those guys. I spend 20-plus
days on the road and I'm pretty secure in all the things that I can do.
I know I can work with just about anybody I'm in there with. So I don't
try to plan things out and walk things through. It's kind of a spur of
the moment, and 'let's see where it goes' each and every night.
Q: You started in ECW with Kevin Sullivan. Is he a big
influence on your career [Drunkguy1214@aol.com]
A: I haven't spoken to Kevin in quite a while. Kevin and
I met years and years ago in Japan. That relationship has stayed strong
up until now, although I haven't spoken to him in a while. Yeah, he
brought me in from Japan to ECW. But my stint didn't last too long
there. It was more of professional issues, but I've known Kevin quite a
while.
Q: What are your thoughts on ECW? Is it going to survive?
Do you talk about that type of thing in the locker room?
[Drunkguy1214@aol.com]
A: Yeah, we talk about that kind of thing. We talk about
everything that goes on in the business. And probably the biggest thing,
if I can say it, is that the boys are being taken care of. Naturally,
you have those guys that are tremendous athletes, tremendous workers.
And some are lucky to be in the spots they are in there. Each and every
night they have them doing something to grab people's attentions. You
just want to see them taken care of. And it's always another good place
to go down the line, so you'd like to see the company survive. But first
and foremost, I think you want to see the boys being taken care of, you
like to see them hook up with a major deal where everybody can be paid
for doing what they do, and living the way they live.
Q: So what do you have coming up? Anything that you can
tip us off on? Or don't you even find out until Monday? [Greg Oliver]
A: Every night is different. Even if we knew where we
were going with it, it would change the next day. We're looking for the
Misfits going into Australia, we start making our comeback, if you will.
Team Canada has been real strong, and each and every night we've been
dropped like rags. But coming out of Australia and going into
[Hallowe'en Havoc], I think you're going to see a little bit of tension,
a little personal tension between Duggan and myself. Naturally the chase
with Lance for the U.S. title - I'll still say U.S. title. We'll just
see where it goes. I think the people, the more they get behind it, the
more they're going to see the Misfits turn it up a notch.
