Posted on by bdamage1
Brian Damage
Throughout the history of pro wrestling bookers and promoters have always tried to come up with new, creative and innovative ideas to generate interest in their product. Some ideas have not only succeeded but flourished. Others were DOA from the get-go. Then there are those ideas which initially were innovative but for various reasons, faded away. Those are the focus of this latest series of posts titled ‘Great Ideas That Didn’t Last’. This latest piece focuses in on ‘Diamond’ Dallas Page and his mysterious benefactor.
The year was 1995 and World Championship Wrestling (WCW) was about to change in a really big way. Right before the NWO aka New World Order started making appearances and changing the way fans viewed professional wrestling, WCW had an ongoing storyline involving ‘Diamond’ Dallas Page. This angle began when DDP’s valet…The Diamond Doll (Played by his real-life wife Kimberly Page) won a large amount of money playing bingo. It was revealed that DDP embezzled the money from the Diamond Doll and began spending it frivolously.
Enter Johnny B. Badd to the rescue, who saw how horrible DDP was treating the Diamond Doll and decided to fight for her honor. It started when Badd defeated Page for the WCW television title at Halloween Havoc ’95. DDP would demand a rematch for the title and would be granted one…only if he put the Diamond Doll’s freedom on the line. DDP agreed and would lose the match and the services of his valet. It all continued to go downhill from there.
Not only did DDP lose his TV title and his valet the Diamond Doll, but bank creditors also began repossessing all of his expensive possessions. His glittery robes were taken, his expensive cigars, jewelry and even his bodyguard ‘Max Muscle’ left him high and dry. DDP would go on a long losing streak. It seemed that DDP’s career was going down the drain.
Their feud was to continue into 1996, but Marc Mero (Johnny B Badd) decided to leave WCW and join the World Wrestling Federation. Instead of Johnny B Badd, The Booty Man who was best known as Brutus Beefcake in the WWF was Badd’s replacement and had the former Diamond Doll, now known as the Booty Babe, by his side. In March of 1996, The Booty Man defeated Page in a “Loser Leaves WCW” match. Just like that, Diamond Dallas Page’s wrestling career was over.
Vignettes started airing on WCW television with DDP now a broke, down on his luck homeless man. He would beg for money by washing people’s car windows, selling tickets to events that already happened etc, etc. While DDP was on the sidewalk panhandling, a limousine pulled up next to him and the door opened as DDP got in. Before you knew it, a high powered attorney convinced WCW management to allow DDP back in the company.
DDP returned to WCW seemingly with money again. WCW announcers began to question who was in that limo that DDP got into. The person was being referenced as a “mysterious benefactor” that saved DDP and his career. Who was that rich benefactor? We never found out, as the entire storyline was dropped with no explanation or resolution. Sadly, this became a common theme in WCW for many years.
Behind the scenes, Dallas Page also wanted the angle to continue to play out and have a proper ending. He approached Eric Bischoff and asked him repeatedly to resolve the angle and Bischoff’s answer was always “No.” When Page continued to press Bischoff for a reason why, according to Page, he simply said, “Because nobody cares, that’s why.” Just like that, the mystery of the secret benefactor was never revealed.
Page has gone on to say that that storyline hole is always asked of him in interviews or being met with fan questions. DDP would say that he believes that the benefactor was going to be none other than Kimberly Page. Kimberly would begin to feel sorry for her former charge and she was the one who got him back into WCW. Other rumors had the benefactor being Ted Dibiase who had just recently left the WWF. This was his storyline to introduce the former ‘Million Dollar Man.’ Plans obviously changed when he was placed with the New World Order angle.
If it was indeed Dibiase behind the secret benefactor, I think it would have played out a lot better for Ted Dibiase who eventually became irrelevant and non-existent once Bischoff joined the heel faction. What could have been? Probably a better spot for Ted and DDP at that time. Ultimately though, we will never truly know how it could have gone. A great idea that just never reached its full potential.
