by Gerry Strauss
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People, people, people... the interviews are starting to roll in, and they are getting bigger and better every week... I'm Gerry Strauss, and welcome to another shot of net-geekdom mixed with pro wrestling dorkosity, "Seven Deadly Questions". This time out, Nick Berk, CZW star and veteran of the indy scene, shares some unique insight on the business from the eyes of a guy who might be considered a big fish in a bunch of small ponds. Check it out, hit me up with comment of any kinds at gerrystrauss@aol.com, and be on the lookout for my VERY next edition of this column...it's in the bag, an interview with the only woman to go topless in NWA TNA history...be there, or, well, don't, whatever:
1) How many concussions and other major injuries have you had? Do you
feel that incurring all of these injuries at a relatively young age will
hurt your chances at advancing your career later on? Do you think you
should take steps to avoid high risk situations?
I'm not too sure how many concussions I've had, it seems as if i get 1
and for the next month or so, it reoccurs. I'd say im in the teens...maybe
pushing 20, but thats just a guess. I'm lucky I haven't had any real bad
injuries...the closest I've had was a couple kock outs and jolting of
the spine that makes you paralized for about 30 seconds---thats scary.
Other than that, I've had cuts, bumps, bruises, chiped bones, etc.
2) A couple of years ago, I thought you were pretty entertaining as lounge
singer "Nicky Benz" for Donnie B's Big Buc Promotions, and later,
Phoenix Championship Wrestling. Suddenly, you, along with the Backseats,
the SAT's and others, were gone. Shortly thereafter, they even started
using a gimmick named "DICKY Benz," portrayed by a totally different
worker. What exactly went down?
Well, I had my own reasons for making a decision that caused me to leave,
and that reason was that Donnie, although a good guy, wasn't doing what
was best for me. Sure, I was entertaining, but where was that gimmick
going for me? I should've been in the top at that promotion, but he wanted
to focus on having me wrestle people that weren't up to par with me. Just
when I thought things would be good and I was wrestling people like Mike
Preston, Mat Vandal, The SATs, etc., he sticks me with some kid wo didn't
know what do do in a ring. That lowered my standards, and I wasn't going
to be and entertainment piece for Donnie B. So when I told him I wanted
more and didn't get more, Donnie was acting weird...only caring about
his brother's status to try to get him into WWF. Well, at that point I
decided it was best for me to not show up, and if he wanted me, he could
contact me...I still haven't recieved a call from him.
3) How did you get hooked up with CZW originally? Did you have any reservations
about the violent style of wrestling they utilize?
Johnny Kashmere wanted to check them out one day about 4 or 5 years ago,
so along with Trent, we did, then we began working out at their gym and
eventually working for their shows. At that point, we knew there wa something
about this company that was going to be good. We saw something in it that
no other company we were with had. It was a combonation of everything
a surviving company needed to have...they just needed time. Now look at
CZW, we were right, it's come a long way, and the future looks bright
too. The hardcore stuff always makes me cringe, no matter what it is,
but I had my own style that would detour me away from having to use the
hardcore style. I have respect for the hardcore wrestlers. but "it's
just not my thing!"
4) Hallowed Hall or Bingo hall: What does Viking Hall (and CZW's brief
exile from, and return to it) mean to you?
It means that CZW was right the whole time. Never did people think the
other company would screw up so quick, but it proved Zandig was right.
He told the Viking Hall people what was going to happen, and it all did.
At first, being at Viking Hall was great, it had a legacy to it, but now
it seems as if a "nasty whore" was in there and you need to
get rid of the smell. So CZW is now on a mission to reopen the fans' eyes
to the legacy of Viking Hall.
5) Earlier on in your career, you worked a lot for JAPW, then disassociated yourself from them due to a lack of a proper push and a desire to concentrate on CZW. Please comment on that. Also, you recently returned to JAPW. What brought about the change in attitude?
Well, there is a way to handle the talent of Nick Berk, and a way not to handle that talent...JAPW wanted to handle it the wrong way. Its funny how the change of match booker in JAPW brought me back, but they promised that I would be used correctly, so I gave it a shot.
6) For awhile, CZW employees were somewhat "blackballed" by the rest of the wrestling community, and had a harder time getting booked elsewhere. Then, XPW came to town, and THEY became the bad guys. Chronologically, how has your career been affected by choices that you have been forced to make between promotions at various times during your career? Were you ever asked to "jump ship" from one promotion to another, by XPW or anyone else?
Its funny how people say we were "blackballed" but in reality,
alot of indy feds didn't use us because they couldn't afford us. The only
people that blackballed us, I think, were NWA. So that left alot of open
indies. My carreer is always up and down. Sometimes I have a weekend with
double-shots on Friday and Saturday and a show on Sunday, and sometimes
I have 1 show in the whole weekend. Its always constant work, but I was
never in a slump because people weren't using CZW guys. People have contacted
me, but I don't know who they were, nor did I ever care. As far as I was
concerned, the people who wrote to me wanted me because they wanted me
to leave the people who were my family, and I don't do that. I respect
the CZW locker room from top to bottom, and would never turn my back on
them...no matter what price was thrown at me.
7) Your loyalty to CZW seems unwavering. However, as consistant and established as Combat Zone is, it is still an indy fed, and therefore has limited resources. Even M-Dogg 20 and Josh Prohibition, two former CZW regulars who "jumped ship" to XPW, recently commented on the fact that CZW just has no ability to provide any sort of financial stabilty, and that they were actually LOSING money to travel to work for them. With that in mind, what is your stance on that factor as it relates to you. What if the WWE, or an overseas fed ponied up big bucks for you to become a regular for them and drop your CZW commitments?
Well, it M-Dogg and Josh Prohibition's case, they saw the money from XPW
was better per show, but in reality they lost $$$ going there. See, CZW
pays me well, but I've been there for 4-5 years now, so my pay was probably
better...plus I now live local to CZW, so travel expenses weren't too
large. Besides, they were taken care of for travel, and work, so what
was said may have been B.S. They failed to see that being on the roster
of CZW, you can charge alot more from other indy feds than you can if
you are solely with XPW, or many others. Also, look at them now, XPW is
losing money, and alot of their guys are getting let go, that may mean
a folding of the company soon...so did they really make a good financial
decision? Plus, a loyalty factor comes into play...CZW made them known
in the indy circuit, same with Jodi Fleisch, Johnny Storm, Sunjay, Ruckus,
and the list goes on. As of right now, the only company that I'll leave
CZW for is WWE. Honestly, nobody in CZW will look down on that decision,
they would all be proud, just a I would if anyone else left for WWE. And
I'm sure I would be welcomed back when I decided to return. People fail
to see that just the fact that you work for CZW allows you to be a "name"
on an other indy show, that right there is money coming from working for
CZW as well.
