After making another, of several appearances, on WWE TV last night (facing Elijah Burke) I decided to flashback to an inteeview conducted with Scotty Charisma from 2004.

Scotty Charisma

1. What made you decide to get involved in professional wrestling?

It was through bodybuilding that originally involved me in Professional Wrestling. Many people don’t realize this but I have competed in 11 amateur bodybuilding competitions in my lifetime, (I’m currently training for a 12th on March 27th at Clarkstown South High School in New York). Coincidentally, I have a longtime relationship with former ECW and current WWE Superstar Nunzio (James Maritato). He always thought that because I had the look due to my bodybuilding background, and combined with the fact that I had a pretty decent college basketball playing career at Western Connecticut State University, that I would do pretty well as a professional wrestler. So in March of 2001, I decided to give it a shot. James took me down to sign up at Gino Caruso’s East Coast Professional Wrestling School and I have been training there ever since. From the moment I first stepped into the ring, I have enjoyed every minute, and have never looked back.

2. When was your first professional match? Who was it against? For what promotion?

I made my professional debut at an ECPW show in Denville, NJ on June 9th, 2001. It was against one of my mentors, “Mr. Italy” Gino Caruso.

3. Who are some of your favorite people to step into the ring against? Why?

I have been very fortunate to train with and work against some excellent Wrestlers. If you look at some of the workers that I get to workout with on a weekly basis at the ECPW school, you can see how blessed I have been. People like Red Hot Russ, Inferno, Damian Adams, Vic Devine, Josh Daniels, Johnny Thunder, Mike Xylas, Abunai, Mo Sexy, Crowbar Devon Storm, and the Kodiak Bear. They are all so talented and so experienced, it’s impossible not to learn something every time you go to train. Some workers might say the only way to learn is to have matches. That is definitely true…but there is no question having some intense training sessions with some serious workers will help a lot as well.

As far as matches are concerned…I have wrestled against Red Hot Russ the most, probably close to a dozen times and I think I have a great chemistry with him. However, the reality is that he such a good worker that Red Hot Russ has great matches with everyone he is in the ring with. I have also wrestled Johnny Thunder about the same amount of times as well, and it’s always great working against him because he uses a tremendous amount of ring psychology in his matches. He has a great mind in terms of not only how to work a match, but for the wrestling business in general. I have also had some excellent matches with Damian Adams, as we seem to have a very good understanding of each other in the ring. I truly enjoy picking his brain sort of speak, as Damian is another worker who uses superior psychology inside the ring.

I have had close to 100 matches in my career so far, and other then the opponents mentioned above, I have had some of my better matches with Inferno, Julio Dinero, Simon Diamond, Abunai, Billy Reil, Oman Tortuga, Josh Daniels, Andrew Anderson, Kappa Tappa Kegga, and Diablo Santiago.

4. What has been the highlight of your career thus far?

I would have to say the highlight up to this point was definitely when I defeated Damian Adams on May 16th, 2003 for the ECPW Light Heavyweight Championship at my Alma Mata, Suffern High School in New York. The show was a fundraiser for the Suffern High Football Team, which I am an assistant coach for in the fall. I also teach History at the Middle School in Suffern. So for this show, there were over 700 people from my hometown supporting me that night. The match was phenomenal, and the electricity in the crowd was unbelievable, as many of the fans had a personal connection with me outside the ring. Of course, having an extremely skilled opponent such as Damien to make me look good really helped too.

There are also two other experiences that I truly will never forget. The first was defeating NWA-TNA star Julio Dinero in Delaware, for a DCW match back in December of 2003. A match in which I drove 7 hours through a blizzard snowstorm to get to. It was definitely worth risking my life as I enjoyed the experience of working against someone of Julio’s caliber. The other memorable moment that I will cherish was winning the ACW Tag Team Titles with Matt Striker (of New York) in March of 2003 from Mike Xylas and Red Hot Russ.

5. What wrestlers (past and present) are some of your favorites? Are there any that you try to emulate?

Growing up I was a big fan of Jimmy Snuka, Ravishing Rick Rude, and Jake “the Snake” Roberts. Watching the WWE today I really respect the work that Eddie Guerrero does. I truly think he is the most versatile, creative, and talented wrestler in the company. I also enjoy Chris Benoit, and Chris Jericho’s work as well. I certainly cannot leave out Nunzio who helped mold many of my in- ring ideas as well, especially early on in my career. As far as the Indies are concerned I always try to watch the other matches that are on the card to try to learn. The workers that impress me the most (other then the ones I train with) are certainly Chris Hamrick, Julio Dinero, John Walters, Dylan Kage, and Slyk Wagner Brown.

I truly believe that the best workers try to mold themselves from a wide variety of styles and backgrounds. I don't think there has been one wrestler in particular that I have tried to emulate. I would have to say that there have been hundreds of different ideas that I have gained from watching other matches, and other wrestlers in the ring.

6. What do you think of the current state of professional wrestling?

I enjoy the product that the WWE currently has with both its Smackdown and Raw brands. I respect the work that all the workers put forth and realize how difficult their job is, being on the road and away from their families as much as they are. I am not a big fan of storylines and promos and things of that sort, since technical wrestling is more my passion. However, I realize that this business is sports entertainment and its all part of the equation. I just think storylines and promos need to be included in the right dosage, and not be overdone. I certainly realize that this perspective is from a wrestler's point of view and that the majority of fans probably disagree with me.

As far as the Indies are concerned, the thing that bothers me is that anybody can go to a "so called" wrestling school to become a professional wrestler...never really pay their dues...never really get trained properly on how to work...never work on their physique in the gym...never buy wrestling gear, and yet get booked on shows because they can do a 450 swantan or sell 10 tickets for the promoter.

When I was brought into the business and trained by old school people like Nunzio, Kodiak Bear, Rocky Jones, and Jason Knight, I was taught to respect the business. I had to pay my dues every single practice session, and when my first match came...it was a major reward because I had survived the intense boot camp atmosphere and earned the right to be called a wrestler. There are allot people wrestling on the Indies today that took the "fast road" to becoming a professional wrestler.

The other thing that bothers me is that if you are going to be a wrestler, I think you should look the part. There are many times at Indi shows, where the people in the ring, look like the guy sitting in the front row. I truly respect the wrestlers that take this business seriously, train hard and have physiques worth paying money to see perform.

7. What has been your most embarrassing moment in the sport?

I was defending my ECPW Light Heavyweight Title back in August of 2003 in Lake Hiawatha, New Jersey in a 3-way match against Rob Echos and Johnny Ova. I took an inadvertantly stiff kick to the side of the head that knocked me unconscious. Without breaking "kayfabe" Ova quickly rolled up Echos and the referee counted 3. Ova becomes the new champion because I had rolled out of the ring and was out cold. This obviously wasn't supposed to happen, but what people don’t realize is that anything can happen in the professional wrestling and one must be prepared to think on their feet.

But the real embarrassing situation that took place in the moments after the match was that I was dazed and confused and had no idea what I was saying. I have no memory of the match or the two hours or so after. Vic Devine and Johnny Thunder were with me and I kept mentioning "Trish"... "Trish is going to kill me"... "Call Trish and tell her I am alright" (Trish was my ex-fiancé who I hadn't spoken to in quite some time, but still was on speed dial on my cell phone) So Vic Devine listening to my words, called Trish from my cell phone to tell her what happened, and informed her that he and Johnny Thunder were taking me to the Hospital. I don't remember any of this, and was very pleasantly surprised to see her (Trish) at the hospital when I started to regain my senses. She probably thought that I perpetrated the whole event just to talk to her again or something. In any event, it was an interesting night that unfortunately does not have a Hollywood ending.

8. Do you think there is an over saturation of wrestling in some areas, like NJ? How can the promotions survive when there are so many (some of which are almost backyard) promotions that run, many on the same day?

Personally, I don't mind that there are so many different promotions because it allows people the opportunity to work. The problem that exists is that people that go to an indie show for the first time, and see untrained workers, backyarders, or guys that don't look the part, they think its all garbage and never come back. But from a promoter’s point of view, these guys are working for free or selling tickets, so how can you blame the promoter. But in the long run...this hurts the overall product of independent wrestling.

9. What do you enjoy doing when you aren't wrestling?

As a Middle School History teacher, I enjoy reading historical novels and like to follow current events through the newspapers. I am so excited to go to work everyday, as I have a passion for both American and World History. I am also an Assistant High School Football coach at Suffern High School (NY), so dealing with kids is certainly a passion of mine. Weight training and bodybuilding are also important aspects of my life, as I am getting ready to compete in my 12th amateur bodybuilding show on March 27th, 2004. I also have two beautiful, little, tiny dogs "Maggie" and Sophia" that I love very much and keep me company in my spare time.

10. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

In my personal life outside of wrestling, I have a comfortable teaching and coaching job right in my hometown that I love very much. The school district that I teach in, is the best around and the administration has been extremely supportive of everything that I do. I am very happy and content with this aspect of my life. I truly enjoy, and look forward to going to work everyday. I am quite sure these feelings will never change.

As far as my other life is concerned… I have to say that I have met some wonderful people in my journeys through the world of professional wrestling. I have had some incredibly fun, unique, and bizarre experiences that many people could never even imagine. There are some that would say that the wrestling business is a dirty, backstabbing, cutthroat industry that turns young hopefuls sour real quick. I for one...happen to disagree passionately. I love what I do and I love the people that I have encountered. I hope that in 5 years, I feel the same way about professional wrestling that I do today...that God has blessed me for allowing me the privilege to step in the ring, and call myself a professional wrestler.

(Be sure to check out www.scottycharisma.com for more info on Scotty Charisma!!!)

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