Eric Bischoff has fond memories of Halloween Havoc and the holiday that inspired the wrestling event theme.
Bischoff recently spoke with WrestleZone Managing Editor Bill Pritchard about some WCW highlights that included the Halloween Havoc event theme. Halloween Havoc was originally WCW’s annual October pay-per-view theme that ran from 1989 until 2000, and it was just announced that the event will return this year under the NXT banner.
Bischoff spoke with WrestleZone prior to the announcement and noted it was surprising that WWE hasn’t used it yet since there’s a global appeal to the holiday itself.
“In terms of—I don’t know why WWE isn’t using Halloween Havoc if they own that intellectual property. Halloween, as I’ve learned and I’ve talked about on the podcast, I had the misinformation that Halloween was only celebrated in the United States, and that’s not true. Halloween started in the UK and then migrated here in the United States,” Bischoff said. “Halloween is like St. Patrick’s Day where it’s not really a holiday but it might as well be because everybody shuts down and parties for it. Whether you’re a little kid going to Halloween parties or you’re going through your neighborhood knocking on doors—and hopefully they can do that again soon someday. It’s weird that I even have to say that, sad too—but adults too, that’s the party of the year. Go to Las Vegas sometime and just people watch. It’s the best time ever.”
“So, I think taking advantage of something that most people recognize as a cause of celebration is worth building a pay-per-view around. It would be fun and the nature of Halloween Havoc, with the costumes and dresses, surprises and scary shit happening,” Bischoff said, “all of that stuff makes for all kinds of fun things to do. I’m a little surprised but I’m not disappointed. I didn’t come up with the idea for Halloween Havoc, so I don’t have a dog in the hunt but it’s a great theme and a great title and I’m surprised somebody hasn’t done it.”
When asked if he had a favorite pay-per-view he produced in WCW, Bischoff says it was Halloween Havoc, noting that it probably started before he even got involved in the wrestling business.
“It was definitely Halloween Havoc for me. I don’t know why, maybe because as a kid I always loved Halloween. It was in the fall and leaves were turning,” Bischoff said, “it was still kinda nice outside but it was still getting colder. Football was starting and then you got to go get a bag of candy, so what kid is not going to dig that? Maybe that’s where it started for me.”
Check out the full interview, including Bischoff’s comments on the legacy of WCW Road Wild, at the top of this page.
Related: Shotzi Blackheart, Triple H Comment On Halloween Havoc’s Return
