Lex Luger

Going into this tape, I checked out the questions that were asked, which are available at RF Video's website. I was looking forward to seeing what Lex Luger had to say about Liz and what Luger had to say about his legal issues. Well needless to say, Luger answered every question that was asked.

As you watch the interview, you can see that Luger tried to answer questions as politically correct as possible. Luger said and reiterated alot in this interview that he doesn't read the internet. Luger says he doesn't read rag sheets nor follow gossip. Luger says if he ever read the stuff that was printed on the internet or in rag sheets, he'd probably quit the business because it's so false.

Another recurring theme in this shoot is Lugers involvement in back stage politics. Luger throughout the shoot when answering some questions says that he never sat in on a booking meeting in his life. He said he never once refused to lose to someone and he didn't care. He said he was a businessman first and if someone wanted to pay him 100,000 dollars to win 100 times or lose 100 times, he didn't care- he just wanted to get paid. Luger said he never followed the backstage politics, and he never cared about it. Luger prefaced alot of answers with "I don't read the internet" or "I wasn't in the booking meeting". You understand Luger's point, but at some times, it gets redundant.

-The tape starts off with Lex Luger talking about his early life, and how he got into wrestling. Lex was trained by a famous trainer, in the one Hiro Matsuda. Matsuda's reputation is discussed, and Luger talked about what it was like being trained by him.

-Luger talked about breaking in the business early, and some jealousy he recieved. He said he was blessed with great genetics. Luger later on in the interview admits that he does steroids and alot of other supplements, but says you also need to be in the gym all the time for these steroids and supplements to work.

-Luger talks about all his Florida work and his indy work. Good stuff here, that most people probably wouldn't know.

-Luger started talking about his work for Crockett. He talked about what it was like working for him.

-Luger commented on working for NWA. He talked about Dusty Rhodes and Starcade.

-Luger mentioned that he was the pioneer of getting guaranteed contracts. He signed the first contract, and this would later lead to other wrestlers signing guaranteed contracts. I never knew that.

-Luger talked about winning championships, most specifically the NWA Heavyweight and WCW World Titles. He said it was an honor to be champion, and winning the belts meant something to him. He knew some people were jealous of him for winning the title so early, but he just focused on what he was doing.

-Luger made numerous comments of Flair, and enjoyed working with him. Luger said he was green coming in, and didn't realize how big working with the Horsemen was.

-Luger talked about Flair jumping to WWF. He said he wanted to be a locker room leader and supported WCW.

-Luger talked all about his career in WCW until he jumped to WWF. He said jumping to the WWF was done as a career move, and wasn't to hurt WCW. He said at the time WWF was number 1, and WCW was number 2. He said he wanted to go to the big pond and see what he could do.

-Luger talked about the specifics of his WWF contract. He called McMahon a great businessman. He said that he couldn't wrestle right away, so that is why he was in WBF. When asked what he thought about WBF being a failure, Luger said at least McMahon took a shot with it. A good question was asked by RF Video, as they asked "Where did Vince think the WBF was going to go?" Luger didn't really have a clear cut answer on that one.

-Luger talked about being put with Heenan in the WWF. He said he appreciated that because he was aligned with one of the most over heels in WWF history.

-Luger talked about the Lex Express and that whole push. What wasn't mentioned was the rumored night that he got drunk and told everyone he was going to win the title at WM X.

-Luger talked about all the famous names he worked. He said he no problem with Bret Hart and liked working him. He also talked about Hulk Hogan, and said it was an honor that Hogan would let Lex beat him cleanly for the WCW Title back in 1997.

-Luger talked about leaving the WWF to go to Nitro. He talks about working for WCW and how WCW started to rise.

-Luger offers his thoughts about all the key players at the time in WCW. He said he didn't follow the backstage politics and just did what he was told, because as long as he got his money he was happy.

-Luger talked about Bischoff and Russo in depth. He understood why alot of guys hated their decisions to bring in celebrities to wrestle, but as a businessman, Luger understood the logic behind it. Luger really comes off as politically correct here, and looked like he bit his tongue on this one.

-Luger talked about the end of WCW. He was sad to see it go.

-Talk goes to his relationship with Liz. Liz meant alot to him. He said he wouldn't discuss her official cause of death, out of respect for her family. He was really torn up about it. He said he loved her. He remembers all the events of that day. When asked more questions about it, Luger gives the evil eye of death to RF (Who asked the questions) and you can see that he didn't want to talk about it. Luger does talk about Liz and you should hear it straight from his mouth as he does comment on the situation.

-As far as Randy Savage, Luger said he knew Savage was always over protective of Liz when they were married. He said when he went out with Liz, he had no problems with Randy Savage. He said that there was always a mutual respect between himself and Savage.

-Luger talked candidly about his legal problems. Luger said he wouldn't rule out another run with the WWE but he don't see it happening anytime soon. He said he will be taking care of his legal problems soon, as he's in trouble for having alot of prescription drugs in his possession. He says it's bullshit his case, and he can't wait for it to end. He says he didn't see the Confidential piece about him, where he was portrayed to be a bad guy. Luger then says he was called about making a comment about it, but he refused to do it out of respect to Liz's family. You can tell the Luger really misses Liz.

-Luger said he loved Ric Flair. He said he isn't amazed that Flair is still out there today, and sees Flair going for another 50 years. He says the day will come when Flair is getting pushed in a wheel chair just wooooing at everyone. He says Flair is a legend.

-Luger talks about his workrate. He said everyone says he's a bad worker, but if he's such a bad worker, how did he make 10 million dollars from wrestling? Pretty funny stuff here.

-Luger says the biggest misconception about him is that he refuses to lose to people. He said he never had a problem putting people over. He said he lost to Chuck Palumbo in 45 seconds. He talked about putting over AJ Styles in NWA TNA. He says losing was never a problem to him and always thought people should give back to the business.

-Luger has no regrets about his career.

-Luger wants to be remembered as a guy who was positive for the wrestling business.

There are alot more topics and questions covered in this interview. Make sure to check http://www.rfvideo.com/merchant/index.cfm?action=moreinfo&id=8789 for the full question list.

Final McWord
This interview isn't as controversial as New Jack or as funny as the Honky Tonk Man, but it is real, as Luger gives you three hours of time discussing his career. Luger like I said earlier, comes off very politically correct, but that is because he's a true professional.

I found the interview very informative, and shed light on alot of topics. Luger answered everything that was asked. I just can't get over the Liz and Drug questions. I didn't think Luger would go in-depth on these issues, so that surprised me when he did.

Overall-
Worth picking up. I would say it's a must if you are a Luger fan obviously, but this shoot is also a must for any NWA/WCW fan. For wrestling journalists, historians and hardcore fans, I highly recommend it, as Luger talks about alot of controversial topics and gives his views and opinions on alot of subjects.

The shoot wasn't my favorite shoot (I still can't get over New Jacks) but I really enjoyed watching it.

To pick this shoot up, go to http://www.rfvideo.com or go to Lex Luger Shoot directly.

Look for more tape reviews soon.

To read past McTape Reviews covering alot of promotions and various shoot interviews, go here: Tape Reviews

Sean "The MiC" McCaffrey
BULLSMC@aol.com