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PWINSIDER Q & A: TAKER AND KANE, SHAWN MICHAELS ON TOP, CENA LEAVING FOR HOLLYWOOD, NEPOTISM AND MORE

A few weeks ago there was a question about Larry Zbyszko being overrated and getting a push in the AWA because he was married to Verne Gagne's daughter. How about Greg Gagne? Did he get a push because he was Verne's son, or was he a deserving worker?

He wasn't a bad worker.  In fact, at times he was pretty good but with that build and promo set, he certainly got his push based off of his last name.  Had he come up in any other territory, I think it's fair to say he would not have been pushed as a top guy the way that he was in the AWA.  So yes, I think it's fair to say that his last name helped his position on the card greatly.

I have a two-part question. Why do you believe Shawn Michaels – with all his talent and charisma – was such a low-drawing champion? And how was he able to obtain so much power and influence backstage being a low-drawing champion? I’m a big Shawn Michaels fan, by the way, so my question isn’t a slight towards him. 

To be fair, WWE's overall business wasn't very good back back then, so it wasn't just Shawn.  The nWo was still very popular then and WCW had the much more interesting product at the time.  When you add in the fact that WWE's booking was very unexciting and predictable (hey, that sounds familiar), the overall state of the company was soft.  To illustrate further, the third time he got the title, in 1997, it was due to the fact that Vince McMahon let Bret Hart go to WCW to take his salary off of the company books and lighten their load.  I really don't think you can totally blame Michaels for the fact that business was down when he was the champ because the booking was soft too.  With that said, you do have to place some blame on the champion because that is where the buck stops.  

As for how he got influence, he and Kevin Nash were very close with Vince McMahon.  That led to him getting the backstage stroke that he had.  I wasn't there to see how it all unfolded, but that is what happened.  In fact, Vince McMahon is still very close to Nash today and was, even after he left WWE and helped WCW overtake his company.  So, there is genuine friendship there.

What do you think of WWE The Music Volume 8? Personally, I think this is the worst CD they've ever done.  I don't like the remixing of themes, Jeff Hardy's new theme sounds horrible, and overall I just feel the selections for CD were terrible.

I am not one to buy WWE CDs so I am probably not the best one to ask.  With that said, this lineup doesn't look very good.

What is the relationship like between Glen Jacobs (Kane) and Mark Calaway (Undertaker) like outside the squared circle? After all the years and all their great conflicts and feuds I've always wondered how they are behind the scenes.

The two have always been friendly.  In fact, I have never heard anyone say a bad word about Kane.  He is the kind of guy that everyone in the company seems to like.  In this business, that is saying something because you don't see that very often.

I was reading your post that stated that the director of WWE's New movie  "12 Rounds" Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2) said he thinks that this movie is  going to make John Cena a big action star. Is it dangerous in your  opinion to put your biggest draw in movies that can potentially make him  a star and want to leave the business to pursue a career in Hollywood  like the Rock did?

Cena has repeatedly said that no matter what happens in the movies, he would never leave WWE.  While I believe him, that is an easy thing to say when no one is offering you many millions of dollars to do a movie.  That is like saying I would never cheat on my wife with J. Lo but until she is willing to hear your rap, a man isn't put to the test.  So, we won't ever know for sure unless it happens.  If it does, at least WWE will make money off of it since they have Cena under contract.

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