10 Backstage Stories About Eric Bischoff We Can't Believe

May 2024 ยท 6 minute read

In the world of wrestling, often, the stories that occur behind the scenes are more intriguing than the ones that take place in the ring. One of the most infamous figures behind the curtain is former WCW President Eric Bischoff. Over the years, he's collected plenty of nicknames like Sleazy E and ATM Eric, and he's had real-life feuds with almost everyone he's ever worked with, not named Hulk Hogan.

RELATED: 5 WCW Wrestlers Eric Bischoff Loved (& 5 He Had Backstage Heat With)

So between being President for WCW, General Manager of Raw, working for TNA and Executive Director of SmackDown, you would be right in thinking there's a story or 10 floating around about the one and only, Eric Bischoff.

10 Partied At A Strip Club With Dennis Rodman

If you've been watching The Last Dance, you'll know that the one thing former Chicago Bulls forward Dennis Rodman loved more than grabbing rebounds was grabbing drinks and partying the night away. On a recent WWE Untold, Bischoff recalled a story where he visited a gentleman's club with The Worm and several other members of the WCW roster. Bischoff recounted that Rodman disappeared at one point during the night and was later found on the tour bus with several of the strip club's entertainers draped over him reminiscent of a painting of an ancient Roman emperor.

9 Had A Borderline Addiction To Strip Clubs

While this story comes from Scott Steiner, who isn't exactly a fan of his former boss, the former world champion has gone on record to say that during his time in WCW, Sleazy E would frequent strip clubs. Steiner even referenced a CNN report in 2001 where strip club owner Steve Kaplan was on trial for paying dancers to have sexual relations with athletes to raise the profile of his club. Bischoff testified that he had visited Kaplan's club twice, once with a wrestling associate and another time with his wife, and had engaged in relations on both occasions. While it doesn't necessarily constitute an addiction, it gives some credibility to the accusation from Big Poppa Pump.

8 Talked Stacey Keibler Out Of Doing Playboy

On his 83 Weeks podcast, Bischoff recalled a story when he and Stacey Keibler were reunited on Monday Night Raw. Keibler approached Bischoff backstage and asked for his opinion on if she should pose nude for Playboy. His advice to her was to consider the opportunity, and though Keibler would collect a big payday and maybe have some fun doing the photoshoot, would it all be worth it if her parents were left feeling disappointed or embarrassed? This was all she needed to hear, and Keibler decided to pass on the opportunity based on Eric's comments about how her family might react.

7 Created WCW Characters Based On Mortal Kombat

Inspiration comes in many forms, and something what inspired Eric Bischoff during his run as WCW President was videogames. While not a gamer himself, he admitted to seeing an increase in the popularity of the medium, and he wanted to jump on the bandwagon. One example of this is Glacier. In 1996, WCW started showing vignettes teasing the debut of a character who looked like a cosplay version of the Mortal Kombat character, Sub Zero.

RELATED: Mortal Kombat: Sub-Zero's 10 Best Outfits, Ranked

When Glacier finally debuted, artificial snow fell from the ceiling, and the wrestler performed a series of martial arts moves on his way to the ring. Fans responded negatively to the character, and the only fatality ended up being Glacier's in-ring career.

6 Threatened To Sue Rey Mysterio If He Didn't Unmask

The Halloween Havoc match between Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero is considered one of the greatest matches of all time. But behind the scenes, it was one of the most stressful times in Mysterio's WCW career. Both men have discussed an incident when Bischoff wanted Mysterio to unmask after the Halloween Havoc match with Guerrero. Mysterio refused on the grounds of his luchador tradition. Bischoff's argued that wrestlers conveyed emotions with their faces, and Mysterio couldn't do that while wearing a mask. When they couldn't agree, Bischoff played the breach of contract card and threatened to make things ugly. Fortunately, the two managed to come to an agreement minutes before the bell rang, and what resulted was a match that ended up stealing the show.

5 Wanted Buff Bagwell To Fake His Death

On the Sitting Ringside podcast, Bagwell recalled a story where Bischoff pitched the idea of Buff faking his death. Bischoff wanted to announce to the world that Bagwell had died in a plane crash. Then at Halloween Havoc, Bagwell would be lowered from the rafters as a ghost and make a miraculous return to the ring. The idea got so far that Bagwell gave his parents a heads-up about the story so they wouldn't be upset by the news. For some unknown reason, the storyline didn't end up going ahead, and instead, Bagwell showed up at Halloween Havoc in a Bill Clinton mask and attacked Rick Steiner.

4 Disrespected Ric Flair In Front Of The WCW Locker Room

Some locker room speeches can be motivating and inspire people to do great things, but one infamous tirade from Eric Bischoff in the WCW locker room ended up doing the exact opposite. While he was WCW President, Bischoff held a meeting with the entire locker room and proceeded to berate them and, in the heat of the moment, made the statement that no one on the roster besides Hulk Hogan and Roddy Piper had ever drawn a dime.

RELATED: 5 Worst Things Eric Bischoff Has Done In Character (& 5 As Head Of WCW)

Sitting in the room was none other than Ric Flair, and many felt the comment was a slap in the face to the Nature Boy. Bischoff has since discussed the incident and regrets the comment as well as how he handled the situation.

3 Got In Trouble For Leaving Work Early

While serving as General Manager of Raw, Bischoff decided to leave an hour early one night because he had fulfilled his duties for the evening. While he was relaxing in his hotel room, he received a call from Vince McMahon asking where he was. When Bischoff admitted that he was in his hotel bed, Vince responded, "well, guess what pal? We needed you. I'm very disappointed in you. See you next week." The reason Bischoff was needed was because of an injury occurring in the last segment of the show, and they wanted to use the General Manager of Raw to save it. Bischoff has said that after this phone call, he always stuck around for the entire show in case he was needed.

2 Vince Directed His Makeout Scene With Stephanie

The time when Eric Bischoff locked lips with Stephanie McMahon is a classic SmackDown moment. But for Bischoff, it will be remembered as one of the most awkward moments of his lifetime. The reason it makes him squirm is that behind-the-camera shouting directions as he played tonsil hockey with Steph was none other than her father, Vincent Kennedy McMahon. According to Bischoff, Vince was extremely animated with his instructions on how to kiss his daughter. However, Bischoff admits he enjoyed this moment much more than the Stinkface he got from Rikishi.

1 Paranoid About What Vince Thought Of His Fingernails

In his most recent tenure as Executive Director of SmackDown, Bischoff discussed the anxiety he felt whenever he saw Vince's eyes wander towards his hands. Bischoff admits that he chews his fingernails, whereas Vince regularly maintains his cuticles by getting regular manicures with the current Executive Director of SmackDown, Bruce Prichard. Bischoff was worried that Vince would pass judgment on the state of his nails. While the exact reason why Bischoff was fired from WWE was never confirmed, no one has denied that the motive was due to his unkempt fingernails.

NEXT: 10 Most Desperate Things Eric Bischoff Did To Get Ratings For WCW

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