Wrestling Deja Vu 05.25.09: Motivating the Masses

Posted by Joseph F. Martinez on 05.25.2009

I like me. You like me. And I'm going to help you, like you…somehow. It’s all in the column. Just give it a click and check out how some of the more motivational wrestlers compare to one another.

Hey yo. Welcome to the column that everybody in the world missed last week. Well, maybe in bizzaro world where LeBron James missed that three pointer on Friday and where Stephen Randle's Blue Jays are legit. This is Wrestling Deja Vu and I'm your host, Joseph Martinez. Last week, I was dealing with some issues and was unable to crank out a product suitable for your reading, but worry not because I am back with some of the most inspiring figures wrestling has ever seen.

Yes, readers, today WDV takes a look at some of the motivational speakers that have spent some of their time in the wrestling ring. Who inspired this decision? THE BIG O, Ricky Ortiz, and his new motivational gimmick, of course. For the column, we have three different types of motivational speakers that have all made their stay in the WWE (because TNA hasn't had to do that yet…I think). Diamond Dallas Page, Sean O'Haire and Simon Dean were all guys who enjoyed successful careers before being brought into the WWE Universe. Unfortunately, whoever is in charge of giving out gimmicks and names had nothing for either of these talented individuals to do.

Enter the Motivational Speaker gimmick.



When I last saw you, I wrote a column comparing Goldust and Adrian Street. There were too many comments to count, so we will not have feedback this time around. I did catch your requests, JLAJRC, and they will be done next month with "READER REQUEST MONTH~!". Like Cyber Sunday, you the reader get to choose what I write about. I already have some requests, but more is always better. The comment section or my e-mail is where you can send those in.

AND INTRODUCTING THE PARTICIPANTS

Atlas Ortiz debuted on WWE TV in July of 2008, he changed his name a week later and he's been Ricky Ortiz since then. Ortiz hasn't had a very glamorous career. After the obligatory undefeated debut, he lost steam and his television appearances became sporadic. He did nothing of note and was soon drafted to Smackdown. There, he has had some matches, but success doesn't seem to follow the guy. He has awkward charisma, but is big and that can get a guy far in the WWE.



WHERE IS HE NOW?: Wrestling on the WWE's Smackdown brand. Just like John Morrison and Alicia Fox, he seemingly turned with no promo or buildup.



Like Ricky Ortiz, Diamond Dallas Page began his wrestling career at an advanced age. When DDP wrestled, he captivated an audience. He wasn't the greatest technical wrestler, but the fans were emotionally attached to the guy. As a fan of WCW, I always saw him as "THEE People's Champion." The Rock was just The Rock. Page was a popular person in WCW and it led to him capturing the WCW World Heavyweight Title on three occasions. WCW went under and DDP signed with the WWF. The possibilities were endless but unfortunately, DDP didn't do much. He stalked the Undertaker's wife for a bit and then took on the motivational speaker gimmick. Injuries and age resulted in Page leaving the WWF with little accomplished.

WHERE IS HE NOW?: He's living the gimmick. He is currently a motivational speaker and a yoga instructor.



Mike Bucci was an ECW star. He joined the company in 1996 and shortly after began the Blue World Order, a parody of WCW's New World Order. After the BWO disbanded in 1998, Bucci (known as Nova in ECW) went on to be known as "The Innovator of Offense." He was given the nickname because of the wide variety of weapons in his wrestling arsenal. Bucci signed with the WWE in 2002 and was soon after given the Simon Dean moniker and gimmick. Dean would sell his "Simon System" products and spew out fitness advice for the entire world to hear. Like most motivational speakers in the WWE, he did not have much success.

WHERE IS HE NOW?: Bucci retired in 2006 to take an office job with the company. Although retired, he participated in an April 20th 1PW event.



Sean O'Haire is a guy that looks like he should have been a can't miss prospect, but wasn't. He got off to a good start in WCW with Mark Jindrak as the "Natural Born Thrillers," but WCW died before he could do anything else. His WWF career was more of the same until 2003 when he debuted a character that motivated people to do things out of the norm. He justified his statements by ending his promos with "…but I'm not telling you anything you don't already know." While O'Haire showed promise, the gimmick was soon dropped in favor of a program with Roddy Piper. Piper was fired and O'Haire really had nowhere to go but out.

WHERE IS HE NOW?: After retiring, O'Haire went into mixed martial arts.

SMILE LIKE YOU MEAN IT



Inspiring someone to do something isn't very easy if you don't look the part. It seems like a foregone conclusion, but a smile such as the one above can be a pretty convincing tool for a motivational speaker. Simon Dean and Diamond Dallas Page both made sure they were always smiling to pull off that annoying motivational speaker look. The fitness aspect of Dean's gimmick also let him wear a jumpsuit and pimp his product to the masses. Sean O'Haire took a different route and dressed in a darker manner. His message wasn't a very sunny one so a smile was not necessary. O'Haire's long jacket and the occasional suit made it appear as if he were out of the Matrix.

So what should the Big O take from these wrestlers? Right now, it looks like he isn't going to be changing much of his attire, but an annoying smile can do wonders for him. He should also print some motivational quotes on his rally towels and pass them out to his associates. Rally up!

GETTING YOURSELF OUT THERE



The most important part of the motivational speaker gimmick is how you deliver it in a promo. While most people with this gimmick don't do anything, they can develop a following if they're memorable. The two videos above are just an example of how the gimmick can work. One of the similarities between the O'Haire gimmick and DDP's is the usage of a catchphrase. "I'm not telling you anything you don't already know" will never be as popular as "…and that's the bottom line because Stone Cold said so," but it made O'Haire stand out.

It goes without saying that charisma can make or break these promos. Ricky Ortiz hasn't really shown any signs of greatness on that end of the spectrum, but he hasn't had much of an opportunity. Mike Bucci, DDP and Sean O'Haire all had the right kind of charisma for their specific gimmick and it worked for the time being.

MY CLIENT

Another part of the gimmick is who you work with. Simon Dean had encounters with a number of people. His interactions with Bobby Lashley and Batista weren't beneficial to him, but helped those guys establish their dominance. Sean O'Haire didn't really have a long-term program with anyone, but he advised Dawn Marie to flash the crowd and Spanky to run around in the nude. He was obviously a very motivational figure in the WWE world.

Unlike the other two, Diamond Dallas Page actually had a full-time client in Christian. After a major losing streak, Christian was going to kayfabe quit the WWE. DDP took notice of this and encouraged Christian to look at things in a more positive manner. DDP allowed Christian to follow his Positively Page Program and things turned around for the Canadian. Even though Christian eventually turned on DDP, Page still kept the European Title. I guess that's the power of motivation.

Ricky Ortiz will have to use his motivational speaking skills if the WWE is going to stick with the gimmick. The question is who will be the "lucky" individual to receive that help. My money is on guys like Dolph Ziggler, Shelton Benjamin, Kane and any superstar that is on the verge of getting fired.

THE RUNDOWN

All of these individuals had two things in common. First, they were all immensely talented people. The least talented of these may be Ricky Ortiz, but even he seems to have some charisma. Despite their talent, the higher-ups had nothing for them to do and gave them the dreaded motivational speaker gimmick. Out of all of these wrestlers, Sean O'Haire showed the most promise with his gimmick, but his was different from the others because of the darker tone. Ricky Ortiz won't be winning the World Heavyweight Title anytime soon, but the gimmick should provide some laughs and give the Big O a chance to leave an imprint in the mind of some fans.

In Case You Missed It

Had a busy weekend? No worries, the following are all of the columns posted over the weekend.

411Mania's Squared Circle News Report

The Wrestling Bard

Column of Honor

The Bell to Bell News Report

For The Record

Please…Don't Hate

The Triple Threat Column

411mania also has all of the information you need regarding last night's Sacrifice Pay-Per-View

Goodnight, Travel Well

• I'm going to keep this segment short since it is a holiday and most of you want to go do that. Remember to send in any requests for the column and don't forget to bookmark 411mania.com for all of your pop culture needs. I hope you enjoyed the column and decide to come back next Monday when I have another edition of Wrestling Deja Vu.