Looking at Freddie Prinze Jr. joining WWE creative team
And you thought Mike Adamle as Raw general manager was a strange hire. Yesterday, WWE announced that actor Freddie Prinze Jr. had joined its creative team, confirming reports that had surfaced earlier in the week.
While it seems like an odd marriage at first glance, WWE signing Prinze actually makes perfect sense. Vince McMahon began thinking of WWE as an entertainment company, not a pro wrestling company, a long time ago. So when he and daughter Stephanie McMahon-Levesque, who leads the creative writing team, look for prospective writers, experience in Hollywood takes precedence over knowledge of the wrestling industry.
In Prinze, they apparently have the best of both worlds. He was described as a longtime wrestling fan in a WWE news release and was a celebrity blogger for the WWE Fan Nation site, so that answers the question of why Prinze would want the job. For WWE, even if Prinze fails to come up with great ideas for story lines, just having someone with his name recognition on board helps the company gain credibility as a viable entertainment entity.
While some wrestling fans might scoff at WWE’s hiring of Prinze, I’m actually curious to see how he’ll fare in his new gig. At the very least, Prinze's association with the company might help WWE land Sarah Michelle Gellar for a cameo appearance. By the way, I hear there’s no truth to the rumor that Prinze wants to bring back Tito Santana and Ric Flair as a tag team called Chico and The Man. Sorry, I just couldn’t resist.
Comments
Kevin , you should be sorry for that Chico and the Man joke :)
Posted by: jack in hebron | July 31, 2008 5:49 AM
Time will tell if prinze will just be a figurehead or if his ideas will actually be considered. I can't imagine anything he comes up with could be that much worse than some recent storyline decisions.
Posted by: Glen | July 31, 2008 10:48 AM
Jenny McCarthy, Freddie Prinze, Evander
Holyfield, etc
Why does WWE always work with celebrities who haven't been popular in 10 years?
Posted by: Elevation | July 31, 2008 12:07 PM
My primary hope for Prinze's arrival is that he can help convince the McMahons that their fans want to be entertained but not insulted. The car accidents and McMahon near-death experiences are insulting and can't ever add more than they detract from the product. Prinze may help convince the McMahons that even in sports entertainment, plausibility and credibility are important.
TP
Posted by: TP | July 31, 2008 2:33 PM
Yah, I don't know about Freddie Prinze. I think it's smart for publicity, but there are a lot of knowledgeable, particular figures out there in the wrestling world who can likely make better wrestling television. I think Ric Flair would work. I also think maybe Vince could try putting Macho Man in as a writer, even for a trial period. Savage is a smart man and has been involved in some of the best wrestling television for years and years. I think Randy deserves a phone call, even if not a Hall of Fame induction they are holding out on him for.
Oh well... what do you think Kev?
Lots o love,
Brit
Posted by: Pretty Britney | July 31, 2008 3:09 PM
Again I wander far off topic Kevin , my apologies . Just wanted to say thanks for your entertaining work .
I've been a wrestling fan for 40 years and I've got to say I really look forward to reading Ring Posts as do a seemingly growing number of fans .
I would urge your readers to check out the archives for better insight to your style .
I just finished reading the "Superstar" Billy Graham article from 2 years ago . Some of the qoutes are classic - .... " I'm the womens pet , the men's regret . What you see is what you get , and what you don't see is better yet ". And those were your qoutes Kevin . Wait 'til the readers see what Superstar said !
All kidding aside - always great stuff Kevin . Thank You.
Posted by: jack in hebron | July 31, 2008 8:33 PM
You must have a readership much younger than me Kevin since it's been over 12 hours and no one commented on the Chico and the Man reference. It was laugh out loud funny.
RESPONSE FROM KEVIN ECK: I'm glad someone got it. Thank you.
Posted by: Bob | July 31, 2008 11:06 PM
I think this could only be a good thing. Here is an international celebrity, who outspokenly loves wrestling (even though it is not a popular mainstream) joining a team to help creativity which is lacking. I hope Freddie will be a breath of fresh air with a fan's perspective in a department of this corporation which is obviously lacking.
Posted by: Jason | August 1, 2008 2:15 AM
If he gets Brian Austin Greer in the ring and gets him to take a Clothesline from Hell I'm all for him being a writer.
Posted by: Dean | August 1, 2008 10:26 AM