Jon Robinson Talks ‘Creating The Mania’
For the first time, WWE Superstars and executives take you behind the scenes of the Road to WrestleMania.
Thanks to Something To Wrestle With, we know the real-life stories behind WrestleManias of yesteryear. Bruce Prichard has revealed the doubt concerning two heroes colliding in Toronto, the intrigue between Mega Powers exploding and the fear looming over the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
But what about these days, with multiple brands, dozens of creative writers and the influence of social media? Prichard is no longer in the inner circle – so who can fill us in on the current inner workings of WWE?
Enter Jon Robinson, author of Creating The Mania: An Inside Look at how WrestleMania Comes to Life.
A collaboration between WWE and ECW Press, the new 320-page book is an all-access pass to the behind-the-scenes stories of WrestleMania 34. Robinson documents the yearlong life cycle of WWE’s biggest event, from how the storylines were developed to how the host city was selected, from the logistics and planning behind hosting over 70,000 members of the WWE Universe to the rivalries and matches playing out inside the ring.
In unprecedented fashion, WWE Superstars and executives speak out of character, breaking down their year leading up to ’Mania, delving into the highs and lows of an ever-changing business and sharing their dream goals for the Showcase of the Immortals.
Creating The Mania: An Inside Look at how WrestleMania Comes to Life is available now in bookstores and on Amazon.
Robinson has also written The Ultimate Warrior: A Life Lived Forever, NXT: The Future Is Now, and WWE: The Attitude Era. His work has appeared in ESPN The Magazine, IGN, and Sports Illustrated. Follow him on Twitter at @JRobAndSteal.
Robinson spoke with The Wrestling Estate earlier this week – the following has been edited and condensed for your reading pleasure. The full audio interview will be released this Monday during Raw only on Team LeftJab Radio.
How did the concept for Creating The Mania come about?
Jon Robinson: “WWE came to me to write it, saying I’d be the perfect guy. I loved the concept, but I was a little leery of WWE actually giving me the access I needed in order to write the book. I really wanted the assurances that I’d have behind-the-scenes access, and access to not only Superstars but also the creative team. And I wanted everybody to be honest with me. WWE was like, yeah, we’re 100% down for this book, just give us a list of people you want to interview.
I don’t think they expected my list to be as extensive as it was. I threw out a list of 50 names, everyone from Roman Reigns to the head of creative to the mayor of New Orleans. The mayor turned me down, but everyone else talked to me.”
Were you surprised that everybody was so open to talk?
Robinson: “I was, and I think the wrestlers were even taken aback. I remember really early on in the process talking to Jinder Mahal. He started answering a question and then he stopped. ‘Do you want me to talk in character or answer for real?’ I was like, I want the real answer. He was like, ‘alright. Forget what I just told you. Let me tell you the story behind what happened.’ Road Dogg was like, ‘am I going to get fired for saying this?’ (laughs) It’s a pretty unprecedented book and I’m honored to be the one to be able to write it.”
It’s fascinating to learn what the wrestlers hoped to be doing at WrestleMania 34, and then seeing what actually happened.
Robinson: “Look at the Usos. In character, they’ve always wanted to be on the main card of WrestleMania, but in real life, it means so much to them, especially with the legacy of their father. They pushed so hard throughout the year to be able to get to WrestleMania. There were so many matches being pitched behind the scenes. New Day and Usos were hoping for some kind of TLC match. Kevin Owens was hoping to wrestle Vince McMahon after the headbutt incident.
There were a lot of matches in play that could have completely changed the card. And then you hear from creative about injuries affecting things like Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose, and then Ambrose got injured. They were also trying to do Kurt Angle vs. Jason Jordan, but then Jordan got injured.”
Was the creative process eye-opening for you?
Robinson: “I was completely shocked. I was talking to the head of Raw and Smackdown creative, and they were telling me when Ronda Rousey debuted, they didn’t know she was there until she walked out. Like, you’re the head of creative and you didn’t know Ronda Rousey was going to be there? That blows my mind. The same thing for the end of WrestleMania – everybody in creative thought Roman Reigns was going to win. They were already writing storylines based on Reigns as champion.”
It’s unbelievable. I like how you brought up topics that wrestling fans talk about online, like the quick camera cuts.
Robinson: “(laughs) You know, being on the internet, everybody always blames Kevin Dunn. So I’m talking to somebody else who is the director, and he’s like, when I do the camera cuts…In my mind, I’m like hold up, let me ask you about this.”
The creative team often gets shit on by fans, and your book finally gives the writers a chance to defend themselves. Like hold up, we have good ideas, but injuries happen and we’re not always given all the information (laughs).
Robinson: “Yeah, I thought it was fascinating to hear stories of ‘we have this idea, everybody likes it, but then we bring it to Vince and he doesn’t like it.’ So it’s back to the drawing board. Everything is Vince’s baby. He still has control over it. The guy is a genius. He has created a world that has entertained me since I’ve been a little kid. For better or worse, he has his thumbprint on everything. Sometimes, he hits home runs. But you don’t get a hit all the time.”
Absolutely. So you mention in the book that WrestleMania 2 was your first wrestling pay-per-view. How did you become a fan?
Robinson: “I actually still remember being at a sleepover at my friend’s house when I was a little kid and putting on the TV in the morning and “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff was on the screen. The Missing Link was there, too. I was like, what is this? I didn’t even know this existed. Everybody was screaming and then Mr. Wonderful busts out a piledriver. It was the greatest thing I’ve seen in my life. (laughs) I was definitely hooked.
Whenever Christmas or a birthday came around, I always asked for tickets. Growing up in San Francisco, we had the Cow Palace, which was a historic spot for wrestling. I loved Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, “Macho Man,” the British Bulldogs. I still remember going to see Hulk Hogan defend the title against Kamala. This guy had a big sign: ‘Hulkamania is dead. It’s time for Kamalamania.’
I just love the atmosphere and the entertainment. That’s why it’s a dream come true to not only do books, but go behind the scenes and talk to these men and women.”
Could you imagine if Kamalamania did run wild?
Robinson: “(laughs) I love Kamala.
It’s important for people to know that guys like you who write these books are actually fans like us. Did you ever fall out of wrestling?
Robinson: “I’ve pretty much been a fan my whole life. At one point, we didn’t have cable, so you watched Saturday morning on Channel 2, and that’s all you got. Later on when we got cable, I’d sit there and watch three hours of WCW with the Mulkey Brothers (laughs).
It’s funny because people complain about Raw or Smackdown today, but the quality of the matches is amazing compared to just the jobber matches they used to have. The average Raw is what Saturday Night’s Main Event used to be. It’s almost like everyone’s spoiled today. It’s pretty funny compared to what it used to be and then to hear people complain they don’t like the match.”
We recently did a roundtable where everybody gave their top three favorite wrestling TV shows, and Raw didn’t make anyone’s list. It just goes to show you how times have changed because back in the Attitude Era, it probably would have been everyone’s first choice.
Robinson: “Yeah, that’s what’s great about NXT. You can watch a more old-school show leading up to things like War Games. NXT has the advantage of not being three hours long every week. It’s much easier to do a crisp, entertaining one hour show. I just wish everything would be shorter. WrestleMania is like seven hours long. If you made this past WrestleMania three hours long and changed the order of the card, and took out a few matches, you could argue you put together a card with the same exact outcomes that was one of the best WrestleManias of all time.”
I completely agree with you. I was there and the first half of the show was fantastic. The Intercontinental Title opener was fun, and we were on our feet for the entire Rousey match. But no matter how awesome something is, seven hours is just too damn long. If Roman and Brock went on earlier, that match would have received a totally different reaction.
Robinson: “Oh, I agree. Imagine if Rousey’s match was the main event and you went home like, ‘oh my God, Ronda Rousey is amazing.’ Or if Charlotte and Asuka was the last match. You might have went home saying that was the greatest women’s match in WrestleMania history. Changing the order changes everything about the perception. It’s almost like Spongebob: seven…hours…later.”
(laughs) You mentioned in the book how you watch wrestling with your kids now. Did they become fans on their own or did you introduce them?
Robinson: “You know, it’s just like anything with my kids. Whether it’s chess or baseball or science, I want them to be interested in whatever they’re interested in, and I’ll support them. My daughter is 13 and she loves WWE. She’s a huge Sasha Banks fan. One thing that was cool is I was actually talking to Sasha on the phone for the book when my daughter came home from school. I had her on speaker phone and my daughter was like ‘Who are you talking to?’ Sasha said hi to her and my daughter was blown away. It was cool for Sasha to do that and I told her my daughter totally loves you. She was like, ‘aw, that’s so sweet.’
My son is 17 and he really likes to watch the pay-per-views with us as well. I don’t know if it’s the wrestling or the wings and pizza that we get (laughs), but he’s a big Samoa Joe fan. AJ Styles and Braun Strowman, too. It’s interesting to see who my kids like. My daughter likes The Shield and Seth Rollins is probably her favorite guy.”
I know a couple guys who watched wrestling when they were young, but then they got older and fell out of it, and now that their kids are into it, they’ve come back to watch. It’s so cool how pro wrestling can be a bonding experience for your family.
Robinson: “Yeah, it’s funny because my daughter and I play the WWE video game together. Our Tag Team Champions for like a year were Seth Rollins and Dolph Ziggler. So we crack up all the time that they fight each other now. She’s like our team is blowing up.”
Let me ask you about Jose Sanchez, a superfan who has his own chapter in the book. How did you find him?
Robinson: “I used to work in the video game industry and Jose used to host a show called Electric Playground, which was big in Canada. He always told me that he’d go to every WrestleMania, and he’s been doing it for almost a decade. When I was writing the book, they told me they’d love to have a fan chapter, like from a fan’s perspective. So I talked to Jose and explained the book to him, and when I asked what happened when he went to WrestleMania, he said, ‘It’s funny, I got off the plane and walked down Bourbon Street and there was Xavier Woods, so I just went up to talk to him.’ It just turned out that he had amazing stories and went to everything and it fit perfectly for the book.”
Before I let you go, I have to ask: You beat The Rock in Madden?
Robinson: “(laughs) Yeah man, when I was in college, I interned at this magazine called GamePro. It was like the biggest video game magazine. I pitched an idea for a WWE videogame to be on the cover, and this was back when WCW was beating WWE in the ratings. WWE’s P.R. was like yeah, who do you want to talk to? I said The Rock, Stone Cold, Mankind, Triple H and Chyna. I just shot for the top people just to see who they would give me. So I show up to the arena and all of them are sitting there.
It was amazing. I couldn’t believe it. I wrote the story and it became one of GamePro’s highest-selling issues ever. A month later, I got a phone call. I used to write under the name Johnny Ballgame and all I hear is ‘Johnny Ballgame, it’s The Rock.’ He took my business card when I met him, but I never thought he’d even look at it. He said ‘we’re coming to San Jose in a couple weeks. Why don’t you come meet me and we’ll play some video games?’ So I brought a Playstation with a bunch of games and we found a TV backstage and we started playing.
Before I know it, D’Lo Brown is back there with us, and Mark Henry. Here comes Edge and Christian. I’m like holding court playing video games with all these guys. Every time they would come to the Bay Area, they would call me up and invite me out.”
That’s incredible. So is that how you opened the door to write for WWE publications? The wrestlers felt comfortable with you because you were a familiar face?
Robinson: “Well, after GamePro, I went to IGN, which is the biggest video game website. Then ESPN offered me a job to write for ESPN Magazine and eventually, ESPN.com. The whole time I was going to WWE events, I was trying to find someone on their book side. It’s kinda crazy, I went to a show and the P.R. girl from THQ said WWE has a limo outside and they’ll take us back to our hotel. I get in the limo, introduce myself and the guy I’m sitting next to is the book editor. I was like, ‘I finally found you! I’d love to write books for you.’ He’s like, ‘yeah, every day about 20 people come up to me and they can write books.’ I was like, okay, but I actually write for ESPN. I’m an actual writer.
So for the entire car ride, I gave him my pitch, and then I followed up with an email. I didn’t really hear back, and then a year later, I get a call from them about a book project they thought I’d be interested in. It was called Rumble Road, a collection of road stories. Then they wanted to do a book on the Attitude Era, and because they didn’t have contracts with a lot of them, they figured I could talk to them because I knew most of them. So I was actually cold-calling these guys for interviews. When I did a chapter on the Nation of Domination, I called D’Lo because I had a relationship with him. Then he gave me Ron Simmons’ number and told him he’d let him know I’m calling. Having those connections from back in the day definitely helped.”
Creating The Mania: An Inside Look at how WrestleMania Comes to Life is available now in bookstores and on Amazon.
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