strummer 0 Report post Posted April 8, 2005 from PWI: According to sources close to the situation, Tom Chehak, who was the managing editor of the WWE creative team, has left the company. The news was reportedly distributed via a company memo today. Details as to why he left are not known at this time. Chehak was brought in to oversee both brands' writing teams after WWE commissioned Hollywood consultants to evaluate their creative process and offer suggestions as to how they could improve it. Almost from the beginning, people who dealt with Chehak told me he was ridiculously ill-suited to work in the wrestling business and I didn't talk to one person in the company who was impressed by his vision of creative. It should also be noted that this is yet another change to WWE creative that hasn't addressed the fundamental problems that started, in earnest, when Chris Kreski left the company and Stephanie McMahon took charge of creative a few years ago. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hunter's Torn Quad 0 Report post Posted April 8, 2005 It should also be noted that this is yet another change to WWE creative that hasn't addressed the fundamental problems that started, in earnest, when Chris Kreski left the company and Stephanie McMahon took charge of creative a few years ago. This is a problem that is unlikely to ever be addressed, and one that is going to dog the company until it is. Stephanie has been head writer for over 4 and a half years now, and hasn't shown the slightest hint that she's any good at her job. While it's true that Vince makes the final call on things, some of the blame has to go to the people who come up with the stuff that gets presented to Vince, because he can only work with what Stephanie and co give him. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Shadow Report post Posted April 8, 2005 Seriously, Chris Kreski isn't doing anything. Bring Him back. Offer him double what he made last time. Give him full control again. This is something WWE has forgotten about but Kreski knew what the fuck he was doing. He knew shit about wrestling but he knew how to write stories. Let him do the angles, and get Anderson, Dreamer, Heyman to handle the wrestling stuff. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RavishingRickRudo 0 Report post Posted April 8, 2005 Everytime I hear that they brought in hollywood consultants to evaluate their writing process, I just lauf. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Shadow Report post Posted April 8, 2005 Wasn't Kreski a Hollywood guy as well? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
strummer 0 Report post Posted April 8, 2005 IIRC, Kreski left because he was starting a family and couldn't handle the work load Vince put on him. I don't even think he was a wrestling fan either, showing that storyboarding everything and following logic is probably more important than liking wrestling Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hunter's Torn Quad 0 Report post Posted April 8, 2005 What made Kreski so good was that he paid attention to detail, something that has been lacking ever since he left. Kreski would have all sorts of boards and flowcharts set up, which indicated what characters were feuding with who, which people could team up or not based on whether they had feuded in the past, etc, that sort of thing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest jumpingbombangel Report post Posted April 8, 2005 How come all these ultra super top creative big wig people I'm just now hearing about when they LEAVE? If these people were so awesome, then I'd know who they were. This Hollywood jabroni can FOAD for all I care. Hire someone who actually has watched wrestling prior to 1995 and has something meaningful to contribute. Jesus Christ, it's not that difficult to figure out which writers to have. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gary Floyd 0 Report post Posted April 8, 2005 The less Hollywood type guys writing, the better. Hollywood and pro-wrestling usually don't mix together too well, IMO. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Salacious Crumb Report post Posted April 8, 2005 I think my favorite with creative has when they hired the continuity guy and then fired him a few days later when he pointed out how many glaring plotholes there was on WWF tv. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Shadow Report post Posted April 8, 2005 It doesn't matter if you know 20 years old wrestling expierence or 20 years as a Hollywood burnout. What matters is you know what you are doing, we've seen wrestling "genius"(cornette, heyman, gabe sapolsky) and great hollywood writers(Kreski) and idiotic wrestling minds (Jerry Jarret, Dutch Mantel, Stephanie, and Vince Russo) and hundreds of name less hollywood goofs. There's no rule that the head of creative has to be a wrestling historian but yet he/she should be someone who's capable of creating and maintaining ideas. Vince Russo could create but he couldn't maintain and flow with his ideas. They need a system where someone akin to Vince Russo conceptulizes a angle, Kreski mades the storyboard and logic and a Heyman to tweak and fine-tune it. It doesn't matter who is there as long as Stephanie is there. They had Dreamer and Heyman there, stephanie rejected their ideas and used hers. You can bring back Kreski but if Stephanie's the one in charge, nothing changes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Scroby 0 Report post Posted April 9, 2005 You know what needs to happen, someone just needs to give Vince a big slap in the face for hiring these writers that have no idea what a baic lock up is then slap him again for giving Stephanie full control. Ever since Russo, Vince keeps thinking that he's going to hit gold with another "hollywood writer". Now I'm not sure we can count Russo as a hollywood writer, even through he did work in a video store, but Vince needs to realize he needs more wrestling minds then soap opera. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chaosrage 0 Report post Posted April 9, 2005 Who was the writer in 97 and 98? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Shadow Report post Posted April 9, 2005 Ed Ferrera and Vince Russo were the head writers for those years I believe. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Secret Agent 0 Report post Posted April 9, 2005 How about whoever was writting in 2000? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chaosrage 0 Report post Posted April 9, 2005 Ed Ferrera and Vince Russo were the head writers for those years I believe. If that's true, then why were the storylines in WCW 2000 and WWF 1999 so bad compared to WWF 97 and 98? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Czech Republic 0 Report post Posted April 9, 2005 Quality control. WWF had a filter in Vince McMahon. WCW did not. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Arnold_OldSchool Report post Posted April 9, 2005 Ed Ferrera and Vince Russo were the head writers for those years I believe. If that's true, then why were the storylines in WCW 2000 and WWF 1999 so bad compared to WWF 97 and 98? 97 had Austin/Hart and Taker/Kane to build the show around most of the other storylines were dreck. Its not like Ahmed vs The Nation was revolutionary.... I watch a random 1998 PPV and can't recall what any storylines were cause of CRASH TV and pointless turns and what not.... This is a case of rose colored glasses my friends. 2002 is what I consider WWF at creative rock bottom. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Pariah Report post Posted April 9, 2005 How about whoever was writting in 2000? That was Chris Kreski's time with the WWF Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kahran Ramsus 0 Report post Posted April 9, 2005 Ed Ferrera and Vince Russo were the head writers for those years I believe. If that's true, then why were the storylines in WCW 2000 and WWF 1999 so bad compared to WWF 97 and 98? 90% of the show in those years were complete trash, but soley because of Bret Hart (97) and Steve Austin (both years) nobody cared. When the the main events started reflecting the rest of the show in 1999, the product was the worst in WWF history. Russo was a terrible writer that happened to get lucky. The best creatively that WWF has been since the Golden Age is roughly the period from November 2000 (around the time Angle showed up, give or take a couple of weeks) and Unforgiven 2000 (when they jobbed Kurt out to HHH). It was okay for a couple of months afterwards, but really started sucking around Survivor Series. Survivor Series 2000 was a complete disaster of a PPV that turned the company completely in the wrong direction from which they never really recovered creativily. I agree that rock bottom was in the spring of 2002 (or fall 2002 if you only count RAW), and they are better now than they were then, but it never was as good as they were pre-Survivor Series 2000. Even Wrestlemania X-7, which was a great show matchwise, wasn't built up very well, aside from the Shane/Vince match. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kizzo 0 Report post Posted April 9, 2005 You know what needs to happen, someone just needs to give Vince a big slap in the face for hiring these writers that have no idea what a baic lock up is then slap him again for giving Stephanie full control. Ever since Russo, Vince keeps thinking that he's going to hit gold with another "hollywood writer". Now I'm not sure we can count Russo as a hollywood writer, even through he did work in a video store, but Vince needs to realize he needs more wrestling minds then soap opera. Vince is looking to strike gold one more time with a Hollywood writer.....like Chris Kreski....but he will not suceed unless Stephanie steps down and the backstage politics are toned down.. This guy knew NOTHING about wrestling(but I have heard he use to watch it as a kid)....and was put in a position with not having the top star(stone cold because of his injury).....and was going against Vince Russo who just left the company 2 months ago..... Chris Kreski was a huge sucess for WWE....and it shows that Vince McMahon is willing to take a chance if he knows that it will benefit the company.....and is willing to write them a fat check as well.....according to the hollywood reporter....Chris Kreski signed a 7 figure contract with WWE in late 99..... Why was Kreski such a high paid creative director, and why 2000 was a sucess finanically? Former Head Writer of the Martin Short show Former Head Writer of the Daily Show on Comedy Central Former Head Writer for the MTV Video Music Awards shows(I think he's back with MTV) Former Head Writer for the Beavis and BUTT-head show Wrote Star Trek Memories(and other books) with William Shatner He knew that the WWE was gaining some ground and was able to use that to connect more with the "mainstream" He story board every single angle on the show......so that there weren't any conflicts with the storylines.... ......and among other things... Now he had his problems as well..and some will never like his style of booking, but you got to admit he had talent and was a very organized writer....but I guess everyone has their own opinion??? You can bring back Kreski but if Stephanie's the one in charge, nothing changes. Exactly! You can rehire Russo and every other great wrtier...but nothing will change and their ideas will be thrown right out the window...and they would never ever go back unless they had full control.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fro 0 Report post Posted April 10, 2005 It's still going to be Vince, Stephanie, and HHH at the top of the food chain, so unless someone talented can get their ear there's going to be mostly the same problems. It isn't rocket science to book wrestling... the rocket science is wading through the political minefield to sell everyone on your ideas. You look at guys like Cornette and Heyman and they've both failed on the writing team because they didn't have the political skills to stay on top as head writer/booker. Bill Watts had the same problem in WCW. You also have to be very organized or have a great memory. Heyman's got a great memory... Cornette has a great memory and wrote down all the shows he worked on over the years in notebooks and what the finishes, results, houses were. One of the first things they need to do is quit scripting out every damn detail of the shows and let the talent make up their own interviews and give them some bullet points to hit instead. Let the guys cut more promos and show them during the commerical breaks to the live crowd so they can get some more practice talking. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
