Former WWE producer David Sahadi recently shared a story about how Vince McMahon became emotional after watching a special video package.
Sahadi talked about the moment while promoting his book Backstage Pass: Tales from Beyond the Squared Circle during an appearance on Busted Open Radio. He revealed that McMahon cried for nearly 20 minutes after watching the “Legends” video package for the first time for WWE WrestleMania XIV.
The video featured wrestling legends such as Freddie Blassie, Ernie Ladd, Gorilla Monsoon, Pat Patterson, and Killer Kowalski reflecting on their careers in an old warehouse with a broken ring before symbolically passing the torch to a new generation of WWE stars.
However, Vince McMahon initially questioned the idea. David Sahadi said McMahon was unsure about the idea when he first heard about it. “Vince calls Kevin Dunn and says, ‘What the hell is Sahadi doing in Albany with the old timers? We’re not about the old timers anymore. And Kevin Dunn goes, ‘I don’t know, but I’m sure it’s gonna be good. He has a good track record.’ And Vince goes, ‘Goddamn it, better be good.'” Sahadi recalled.
Despite the pressure, Sahadi said he believed in the concept and remembered the opening narration he wrote, “I can still hear the echoes cheering my name. Time has not silenced the crowd.”
The package showed the legends looking back at their careers. It then shifted to them praising the current roster. “Now they’re doing things like flying through the air, walking the top rope, doing moonsaults, something they never did.They’re comparing themselves. ‘We were men of steel, men of courage. Today, they’re men without fear.’ To me, it was a passing of the torch from the legends to the new generation.”
Vince McMahon became emotional after watching the video
A few days later, Sahadi arranged a screening. McMahon arrived with Pat Patterson and Shane McMahon. Sahadi said McMahon appeared skeptical at first. “He is not wanting to love the spot. I can tell. He comes in there, and he has his arms crossed. ‘Play that spot.'”
As the video started playing, McMahon’s reaction quickly changed. “Ten seconds in, it’s like, ‘Oh God.’ Then he’s like, ‘Oh geez, oh man.’ I’m not sure if he’s liking it or not. And before the spot is over, he leaves the room.”
Before the video finished, McMahon left the room, which made Sahadi think he disliked it. But Shane McMahon told him something different. “Shane goes, ‘Sahadi, you got him.'” Sahadi then went outside the studio and found McMahon crying.
“Vince is sitting in a suit on the concrete floor, and he’s crying hysterically. He’s saying, ‘Thank you, thank you,’ shaking my hand as I’m standing up.” Even 20 minutes later, McMahon was still emotional. “He’s still crying, sitting on the stairs with Pat Patterson. He’s like, ‘Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.'”
He later explained why he believes the video affected McMahon so deeply. “To me, the spot was a passing of the torch from the old generation to the new guys. I think for Vince, though, it was a passing of the torch from his father to him, and that’s why it hit him so hard on a visceral level.” [H/T: wrestlingnews.co]
Bully Ray agreed and pointed out McMahon’s well-known relationship with his father, Vince McMahon Sr.
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