What if #6: AOL and Time Warner don't merge in 2001.

[Gertner]

Feel free to copy this 411mania.

In 2001, media ginats AOL and Time Warner merged, thus leaving Ted Turner with minimal influence. Jamie Kellner became in charge of programming on TBS, TNT etc... Kellner was responsible for developing shows such as Dawson's Creek and Gilmore Girls on the WB and didn't feel that wrestling would fit in.

Although WCW lost $60 million in the year 2000, Ted Turner always believed that wrestling was cyclical and would eventually turn around as it did the the early/mid 90's, and was the reason why WCW stayed around as long as it did.
Eric Bischoff supposedly tried to buy WCW, but with Kellner stating that wrestling would no longer be on the air, WCW was useless.

What if AOL and Time Warner doesn't merge?

If Bischoff were allowed to buy WCW, what would you envision?

Would WCW still be around?

Could WCW have madea comeback, and if so, how?


Discuss.

[Xero]

If they didn't merge and WCW didn't start making money I think it would have had to be abandoned eventually no matter what. They needed it to turn around, and Bischoff's overspending didn't help things. Without a turn around, I don't think WCW would have lasted past 2005.

TNA obviously wouldn't exist.

[thedamndest]

It's impossible to say how long it would have taken WCW to become competitive again. Obviously a lot of changes needed to happen backstage before it would have been good. But as long as they remained a company there would have been the chance because as a brand they were huge. Much more established than TNA and in a time when wrestling was still hot with the general public.

[RiX1024]

Wish Bischoff did buy WCW and look for a company that would air their TV shows (what if TNN picked them up?)

If Bischoff bought it imagine who would wrestle for the company and how long would it last?

[Savio]

They would not have changed WCWs name to TNA

[Gertner]

Bischoff did have a decent plan if he would have followed through on it had he been able to buy the company. Johnny Ace who is an amazing booker was going to be brought in, older guys were going to be cut, the cruiserweights were going to be pushed, Scott Steiner was going to be pushed as an unstoppable heel. It didn't sound like a terrible idea, it just never got the chance to play out.

[DAMN iNATOR]

There'd be no TNA, and I really doubt WCW itself would have lasted beyond say 2002 or 2003.

[YoungFlyFlashy]

Some other bored billionaire with all the money would of stepped in to help Eric and WCW get back to the promise land. I doubt Ted is the only old fogey that thought wrestling had a place on tv. So I do think it would of lasted.

[Juan]

So we're doing these every day, eh?

[Gertner]

Meh, until I run out of ideas. Why, something the matter?

[RiX1024]

there would be no WWA either which was naff.

[BizarroKing]

Then we'd get the rebirth in "WCW: The Big Bang" that they briefly mentioned.

[Hanso Amore]

No way. WCW was losing too much money. They still were doing way more gate cash and PPV cash than TNA ever could. They just spent too much.

They had like 100 guys under contract to GUARANTEED deals. There was just no way to stop that hemorrhaging of money.

They suffered the same fate as ECW, just in a more fantastic fashion. There just was financial irresponsibility.

[Hanso Amore]

Had WCW been run by a company whose owner didnt have a soft spot for it, they would have been closed in 1992.

[Loose Cannon]

I really believe it would still be around today had Bischoff had a chance to take it over. I really want to believe Bischoff when he says he could of turned things around. Hey, if there was one guy that could do it, it would be him.

I really wonder how different WWE land would be if WCW was still around.

[Loose Cannon]

keep these coming Gertner. I am all over them

[Gertner]

I'm trying to combine some old ones with newer stuff. Tomorrow is a bit older. Glad you are enjoying these. I'm liking reading peoples point of view.

Oh and Hanson, WCW only had 50 wrestlers under contract by the end of 2000. They could have easily run on the cheap as many of the guarenteed contracts finished in 2001 like Kevin Nash for example. Plus, WCW was using loopholes to rid themselves of expensive contracts like they did with Bret Hart. I believe with the right booker and I feel Ace was the right guy, and having the wrestlers under downside contracts WCW could have survived. They did have talented wrestlers on the roster when they were bought out: Goldberg, Sting, Flair, Steiner, DDP, and the cruiserweight division was awesome, especially with the crusierweight tag belts.

[Hanso Amore]

What about all th stars that were under contract to AOL...how would that have panned out?

flair, nash, steiner, gioldberg

[Gertner]

Nash's contract was up in 2001 and I'm sure they'd want to rid themselves of politicians. Keeping a few guys like Goldberg, Sting, Flair and Steiner wouldn't hurt as they were all draws. It wouldn't be bad to have guys like that around, but WCW would need to curb their spending a ton. No more stupid contracts and wasting money on rock bands, celebrities who nobody cared about and ppv's that drew no gate like Road Wild and the original Bash at the Beach. If people didn't fit under their budget, than the hell with them. Put more emphasis into the Power Plant and actually develop talent. The top stars they developed were few and far between due to WCW always looking for quick fixes. The talent was there: guys like Goldberg, The Giant, Helms, O'Haire and Jindrak all came through the Power Plant. Develop solid talent trades like they used to do with New Japan. Muta, Chono and Liger were massive during the early years of WCW. I would have also expanded more into the international market. Even in their dying days when WCW went to neglected areas like Austrailia and England they sold out even Thunder, but continued to shoot themselves in the foot by promising to buy back any unused seats, including seats used for production. Putting in a booker like Johnny Ace like Bischoff wanted to: a guy with recent success and not guys like Kevin Sullivan and Dusty Rhodes who only had success booking regionally. Also, limit the creative control that wrestlers had over their characters. Some is ok, but guys constantly vetoing finishes creates a shitty lockroom . There are ways that WCW could have had everything under a smaller budget. ECW managed to stay around for years by recycling the Big Two's crap. There's no reason that WCW could have taken guys like that and created a couple stars. With ECW dying,there could have been a huge opportunity to snag some of their talent. Guys like Simon Diamond, Kid Kash, Jerry Lynn could have played nice roles, not to mention talent that the WWF misused, and it's not like they haven't throw away good talent before. Heck, AJ Styles was in WCW when they went under. WCW could have been saved if given the chance with the right people.

Sorry this is a Noid post, but I truly believe WCW could have survived with the right people in charge using these ideas.

[Juan]

Meh, until I run out of ideas. Why, something the matter?

Your face is the matter.

[Gertner]

:(. This sad face matters to me :(

[Emperor Smeat]

If the merger never occurred, Turner defiantly would have kept interest in WCW since its yearly losses was much lower than what he ended up loosing because of the merger. It is also possible after a few more years of financial losses he would have sold the company since he favored owning the Atlanta Braves more than owning WCW when it came time to make a decision in 2001.

I believe Bischoff would have brought in a lot of changes but his biggest problem would have been the lack of new and young stars since he built WCW's success based on older established stars and big name talent taken from WWF. WCW would need to go through a phase similar to early TNA years where TNA needed to build up a lot of young wrestlers as legit stars of the company.

Assuming WCW found a way to limit the financial losses draining them, WCW could still be around but not at height they were in the early Attitude Era where they rivaled WWF in popularity and power.

[DLVH84]

Bischoff did have a decent plan if he would have followed through on it had he been able to buy the company. Johnny Ace who is an amazing booker was going to be brought in, older guys were going to be cut, the cruiserweights were going to be pushed, Scott Steiner was going to be pushed as an unstoppable heel. It didn't sound like a terrible idea, it just never got the chance to play out.

Those ideas would've been great, but it was too little, too late. Furthermore, Johnny Ace should've stayed a booker and not a Talent Relations person. He sucks in that position bad. He doesn't hire people with actual wrestling talent, he only hires roided-up bodybuilders and lingerie models, who don't know a wrist lock from a goddamn wrist watch.

[Droford]

There wouldn't have been a brand extension/seperate brands in the WWF.

[Cad Bane]

I wonder to this day if Vince had a mole of some sort and did some underhand dealings. I wish I could find a post that I found on another that linked Jamie Kellner to someone in the WWF that he had come up with in the business and the WWF may have payed Kellner a sweet sum to pull out of the deal with Bischoff. Again it's just an internet theory but I found it interesting. It's almost criminal that Vince bought it for 2.5 million.

And as for The Big Bang PPV?

http://img262.imageshack.us/img262/4667/200105bigbangku4.jpg

In shoots with bookers, wrestlers, etc. over the years the plan was for Goldberg, Sting, Nash, DDP all to return at The Big Bang, they probably were going to bring back War Games later in the year at Fall Brawl, and Steiner and Goldberg would have fought at Starrcade 01.