And, I’m pretty sure that Brian came up with that name, basically because Brian came up with everything else. The rap, the sing-a-longs, all the off-the-chart entertaining ga-ga that went with the act. I had no idea how creative Brian was at the time. Billy was just Billy. To this day the greatest athlete that the wrestling industry has ever seen. Billy Gunn was a freakin’ thoroughbred through and through. Just a gifted, genetic freak who acted, looked and worked like a star. At the beginning, Vince produced the Outlaws very closely, and I never really saw Vince do that with anyone else before. But, I think the combination of what WCW was doing to his company at the time, and this brainchild being his own, drove him. After a few weeks I could see that it was there. Vince was 100% spot on about these two amazing talents.
But, still, not everybody was buying it.
Part B of the “Counter NWO” plan was to have the Outlaws join forces with Shawn, Hunter and Chyna. That was going to be the group that we were going to take to the bank. But, it wasn’t going to be easy. Just as I wasn’t buying Jesse and Billy at the beginning, neither were Shawn and Hunter. The two, who were rapidly getting their new marriage over, felt that the new tandem was going to pull them down, rather then they pull them up. So, they said no. They said that the only way this army would ever form, was if the Outlaws got themselves over on their own first.
And, that’s exactly what they did.
Through the personality of Brian James, and the work of Billy Gunn, the New Age Outlaws got themselves over without the help of Vince Russo and Vince McMahon. They did it all on their own. Every second of TV time they were given they made memorable. They wouldn’t have it any other way. All they wanted was the ball, which we gladly handed to them. It was only a matter of time before Shawn and Hunter welcomed them into the family with open arms. The rest is history.
And, that’s what separates the superstars from the will-never-bes. Talent takes what they are given and they make it work to their advantage. Some can do this, some can’t. Simply because some were born special others were never meant to be. It’s called the “”IT FACTOR”, and that is a whole other story for a whole other time.
