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Austin talked about different factors work for different performers, bringing up The Ultimate Warrior. He said that just because you have someone who can cut a promo doesn't mean he should always get five minutes to talk unless it makes sense. Heyman said if you don't, you give someone enough rope to hang themselves. Heyman said he will talk to any young talents that want to speak to him but he doesn't force his opinions on anyone. He said he believes there's a disconnect with people coming out every week and pontificating by saying, "Last week here on Raw...." so he came up with his "My Name Is Paul Heyman" stuff to engage the audience and introduce himself to anyone who doesn't know his role. Austin said if the message isn't heartfelt it won't resonate.
Austin said he hates when two guys have mics and one responds while one is talking without holding up the mic and speaking his mind. Austin said that's a guy burying himself.
Austin talked about Heyman meeting Vincent J. McMahon and making his first $50 from him. They showed a photo of Vince and Heyman said he took that photo. Heyman said he figured out where Vince Sr. took people to eat after shows, so Heyman called and said he met Sr. at the restaurant and was told to call for a press pass. He talked himself past everyone until he got to Sr. and got the pass. He went to the office to get his pass and made his way to MSG into the photographer's room. He knew he needed to get to ringside and if he did, he needed to be hidden. He got a photo of Andre the Giant and Vince Sr. in the hallway and the next month, he waited until Vince Sr. was alone and gave him the photo. Security tried to pull him away but Heyman said he had a press pass. Howard Finkel asked him if he took the photo and Heyman said, yes, he can have it. He was given $50 "for his troubles" and was told them to come every month and take pictures for the program and every month, they would give him $50.
Austin asked about the differences between TV syndication then and now. Heyman said they would bicycle the tapes from station to station and if someone came into the territory, you fought them off. When cable TV came about, Joe Blanchard was the first person to cut a deal on the USA Network. Ole Anderson had been looking at expanding into Ohio with Superstation TBS. He said that when Vince McMahon bought the promotion rom his father, it was different distribution era due to true national cable TV. That wiped out the local TV.
Austin asked if Vince Sr. was loyal to the territory system. Heyman asked if Vince Sr. was five years younger, would he have honored the territory boundaries or would he have done it himself? He noted Jim Crockett, Jim Barnett and Bill Watts all had designs. McMahon, if he was younger, would have had to do it. Heyman said he didn't know Sr. well enough to know whether he could be aggressive enough to do it.
Austin asked Heyman about people hating Vince. Heyman told stories of Albano drinking all day before the MSG shows and didn't like the the transition and would start ragging on Jr. and would get fired. Someone would track Lou down, sober him up and he'd be rehired. This would happen all the time.
Heyman was asked about the relationship with Vince McMahon. Heyman said they get along better now that he's not trying to "save the industry." Heyman said when he was hired in 2001, he was hired to give the contrarian opinion and always gave one, leading to his opinion getting smacked down until he was sick of it. Heyman admitted fatherhood has mellowed him out. Heyman said Austin used to know how he was and said he'd never done one line of cocaine because he had fear it would blow up his heart and he was fearful of his father standing over his grave saying, "You threw your life away for this?" Heyman said he used to live and die by every segment of TV.
Austin said he was scripting Smackdown and wanted to beat Raw and he did. Heyman said that he probably went to fat when he had the announcers calling Raw the B show. Austin asked about an infamous plane ride with Heyman and Vince in 2006. Heyman said he was fighting so hard for ECW when it was resurrected and he had lost his passion. He asked Vince to give him Smackdown because maybe Vince would be less likely to change the writing of someone else on ECW. Heyman said he was burnt out, tired and couldn't "find his way anymore." They had a really, really bad show (December to Dismember 2006) and Heyman and Vince had it out. Heyman looked at it like, "Look what you did to my brand" and Vince looked at it like, "Look what you did to my investment?" By the end of the ride, Vince wanted Heyman to go home and Heyman really happy to do so. It took five and half years before they both realized it was a lesson they learned from.
They told some funny road stories.
They closed with Heyman pushing Austin to wrestle Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania since it was in Texas. Austin said he would whip Lesnar's ass but it would have to be a Texas Death Match and said they would have to have all the stars align to make it work. He put over Lesnar's ability but then began going into "Stone Cold" promo mode, acting as if he was angry, saying he was here on his show asking questions but if people want to start poking him, he's going to get riled up. He told Heyman that his man wasn't here to protect him and told Heyman he needed to leave. Austin said he needed to go drink a beer and think about some stuff. Austin signed off and said he was happy to be back on the WWE Network. Nice tease for Mania 32, even if it doesn't happen.
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