To be completely honest, my wrestling love has always been about the characters. Whether it has been strictly full-blown outlandish characters or the great stories that have been played out on television, I love the multi-layered characters that had depth to them. WCW, as you would think and have seen on mainstream television, definitely had those types of gimmicks.
Eric Bischoff was a HUGE martial arts buff. As you read in my “Controversy Creates Ca$h” book review, from the days of developing “Ninja Star Wars”, to his repeated martial arts references with his black belt talk, “Easy E” loved his karate. So when his reign as the #1 wrestling company began in 1996 with the New World Order, Eric decided to put one of his passions in full display.
ENTER GLACIER.
Rumored to been created after Sub-Zero of Mortal Kombat fame, Glacier was the full passion project of Eric Bischoff. Decked out in ice-blue regalia, there is no doubt that this man was groomed for a future main event spot. Plus, over a year span, Glacier was undefeated. He stayed strong, fending off both Mortis and Wrath alongside Ernest “the Cat” Miller in what was called “Blood Runs Cold”. However, with a combination of wrestling fans not fully behind the strict martial arts offense Glacier had, the majority of the Southern US WCW “rasslin” fans not understanding the multi-layered dynamics behind him, and the white hot New World Order taking so much momentum off his debut, Glacier just never took off the way he should have.
Although he never became the WCW World Heavyweight Champion that I had placed him as in my WCW/nWo Revenge, Glacier still made history in my eyes as an example of what a different look and aura can make an impact on the wrestling audience 15 YEARS LATER!
Eric Bischoff was a HUGE martial arts buff. As you read in my “Controversy Creates Ca$h” book review, from the days of developing “Ninja Star Wars”, to his repeated martial arts references with his black belt talk, “Easy E” loved his karate. So when his reign as the #1 wrestling company began in 1996 with the New World Order, Eric decided to put one of his passions in full display.
ENTER GLACIER.
Rumored to been created after Sub-Zero of Mortal Kombat fame, Glacier was the full passion project of Eric Bischoff. Decked out in ice-blue regalia, there is no doubt that this man was groomed for a future main event spot. Plus, over a year span, Glacier was undefeated. He stayed strong, fending off both Mortis and Wrath alongside Ernest “the Cat” Miller in what was called “Blood Runs Cold”. However, with a combination of wrestling fans not fully behind the strict martial arts offense Glacier had, the majority of the Southern US WCW “rasslin” fans not understanding the multi-layered dynamics behind him, and the white hot New World Order taking so much momentum off his debut, Glacier just never took off the way he should have.
Although he never became the WCW World Heavyweight Champion that I had placed him as in my WCW/nWo Revenge, Glacier still made history in my eyes as an example of what a different look and aura can make an impact on the wrestling audience 15 YEARS LATER!
1) THE ENTRANCE
On an episode of WCW Pro (the Sunday before his September 1996 Monday Nitro debut against Big Bubba Rogers), Glacier got a test run in front of the Disney MGM Studio crowd. It was a tough debut against the legendary Gambler, but Glacier pulled through with a TOP ROPE CRYONIC KICK! More importantly, it was the entrance that enthralled me most of all. The blue lights surrounding the arena, the extremely small snowflakes falling throughout the venue, and the techno music made for an incredible experience.
Rumors ran around years later that Eric Bischoff spent over $200,000 dollars ALONE on the entrance for Glacier. I tend to believe that is true. Multiple people also claim that Glacier was a Sub-Zero rip-off. I don’t buy that. However, the Mortal Kombat vibe might ring true, as I do know that prior to the Nitro replays in the late 1990s had the Mortal Kombat television show and movie playing prior to it. (I had video tapes on that happening.) Regardless, I felt with THAT money spent on an entrance, Glacier was originally built for greatness.
On an episode of WCW Pro (the Sunday before his September 1996 Monday Nitro debut against Big Bubba Rogers), Glacier got a test run in front of the Disney MGM Studio crowd. It was a tough debut against the legendary Gambler, but Glacier pulled through with a TOP ROPE CRYONIC KICK! More importantly, it was the entrance that enthralled me most of all. The blue lights surrounding the arena, the extremely small snowflakes falling throughout the venue, and the techno music made for an incredible experience.
Rumors ran around years later that Eric Bischoff spent over $200,000 dollars ALONE on the entrance for Glacier. I tend to believe that is true. Multiple people also claim that Glacier was a Sub-Zero rip-off. I don’t buy that. However, the Mortal Kombat vibe might ring true, as I do know that prior to the Nitro replays in the late 1990s had the Mortal Kombat television show and movie playing prior to it. (I had video tapes on that happening.) Regardless, I felt with THAT money spent on an entrance, Glacier was originally built for greatness.
2) KAZ HAYASHI’S BUYING THE GIMMICK
In 1999, Glacier was getting fed up with his career. Never really having an opportunity to live up to the hype, combined with getting hurt and losing his one and only shot at a championship against United States champion Goldberg, Glacier decided to hang up the boots and walk away. Seeing a financial opportunity unlike any other, Glacier was looking to sell his entire persona. From the $35,000 outfit he wore to ringside to the $200,000 entrance he had to come out to, Glacier was looking to sell. Ernest “the Cat” Miller, Glacier’s on again-off again tag team partner, made a shrewd deal to pick up the ring entrance, but didn’t have use for the gear. However, Kaz Hayashi, who was a martial arts practitioner himself, absolutely adored the history behind what Glacier wore. So Ernest Miller helped negotiate a deal to get Hayashi the Glacier gear. Yet, unlike the borderline cheap price Miller got for himself, Hayashi paid TEN TIMES what Glacier originally spent on his own. “The Cat” made a Scott Boras type of maneuver.
For a few weeks, Hayashi rocked the gear to ringside and surprisingly gave himself a different edge as a wrestling personality. But, in true WCW fashion, after a few weeks, Hayashi stopped wearing the Glacier entrance gear and went back to being a standard, unknown Cruiserweight in the Cruiserweight division. Imagine Hayashi turning it up a notch, turning INTO Glacier 2.0 and the original getting agitated with his success? What could have been…?
In 1999, Glacier was getting fed up with his career. Never really having an opportunity to live up to the hype, combined with getting hurt and losing his one and only shot at a championship against United States champion Goldberg, Glacier decided to hang up the boots and walk away. Seeing a financial opportunity unlike any other, Glacier was looking to sell his entire persona. From the $35,000 outfit he wore to ringside to the $200,000 entrance he had to come out to, Glacier was looking to sell. Ernest “the Cat” Miller, Glacier’s on again-off again tag team partner, made a shrewd deal to pick up the ring entrance, but didn’t have use for the gear. However, Kaz Hayashi, who was a martial arts practitioner himself, absolutely adored the history behind what Glacier wore. So Ernest Miller helped negotiate a deal to get Hayashi the Glacier gear. Yet, unlike the borderline cheap price Miller got for himself, Hayashi paid TEN TIMES what Glacier originally spent on his own. “The Cat” made a Scott Boras type of maneuver.
For a few weeks, Hayashi rocked the gear to ringside and surprisingly gave himself a different edge as a wrestling personality. But, in true WCW fashion, after a few weeks, Hayashi stopped wearing the Glacier entrance gear and went back to being a standard, unknown Cruiserweight in the Cruiserweight division. Imagine Hayashi turning it up a notch, turning INTO Glacier 2.0 and the original getting agitated with his success? What could have been…?
3) SCREAMIN’ NORMAN’S HERO
In November 2000, after Eric Bischoff had begun negotiations to purchase WCW from AOL Time Warner alongside Fusient Media Ventures, a lot of booking changes began to take place. The Cruiserweights started getting an instant push after 18 months on the backburner, wrestling became the focal point of the company instead of heavy storylines and character development, and a complete overhaul of what WCW was at that point started. However, one character started to rear his head into the limelight once again. At Mayhem 2000, a vignette that ended with “Blood Runs ColdER” aired on the pay-per-view broadcast. All of the commentators (Tony Schiavone, Mark Madden, and Stevie Ray) LIT INTO THE POSSIBLE RETURN OF GLACIER! This continued until Starrcade in December. EVERYONE made fun of the martial artist, except for one man…SCREAMIN’ NORMAN SMILEY.
WCW’s resident “tough guy” saw Glacier returning as a blessing from God. The first ever WCW Hardcore champion saw the martial arts expert as a hero. This led to an episode of Thunder in January 2001, when during a contest between Screamin’ Norman and “the Canadian Career Killer” Mike Awesome, the familiar music hit, the blue lights came on, and down the ramp came Glacier. Smiley, in complete shock, looked forlorn. Ultimately, Awesome picked up the victory, but the fun had only started. Glacier continued interacting with the crowd long after the match and then entered the ring. After two minutes of the entrance routine, Glacier stopped and briefly checked on Screamin’ Norman, and THEN CONTINUED! An incredible moment took place, and in true WCW fashion, NOTHING WAS FOLLOWED UP! I seriously look at this and realized that Glacier might have been the blueprint for what the Aquaman comic was in the New 52 in 2012: the joke of a superhero that wasn’t taken seriously yet had the legitimacy as a name to be recognized. That’s just my opinion.
WWE could make fun of the Glacier character on their website, and wrestling fans might not look back in fondness of what the martial artist attempted to bring, but Glacier, to me, was an incredible gimmick that once brought to the limelight, NO ONE KNEW WHAT TO DO WITH HIM. With the amount of money spent on this character, there should have been a LONG TERM plan. Regardless, I appreciated the depth of the character prior to the in-ring debut. The long-term direction: not so much. Despite that, Glacier was awesome. Glacier was unique. GLACIER WAS GREAT.
Jon Harder
jon@thejonharder.com
In November 2000, after Eric Bischoff had begun negotiations to purchase WCW from AOL Time Warner alongside Fusient Media Ventures, a lot of booking changes began to take place. The Cruiserweights started getting an instant push after 18 months on the backburner, wrestling became the focal point of the company instead of heavy storylines and character development, and a complete overhaul of what WCW was at that point started. However, one character started to rear his head into the limelight once again. At Mayhem 2000, a vignette that ended with “Blood Runs ColdER” aired on the pay-per-view broadcast. All of the commentators (Tony Schiavone, Mark Madden, and Stevie Ray) LIT INTO THE POSSIBLE RETURN OF GLACIER! This continued until Starrcade in December. EVERYONE made fun of the martial artist, except for one man…SCREAMIN’ NORMAN SMILEY.
WCW’s resident “tough guy” saw Glacier returning as a blessing from God. The first ever WCW Hardcore champion saw the martial arts expert as a hero. This led to an episode of Thunder in January 2001, when during a contest between Screamin’ Norman and “the Canadian Career Killer” Mike Awesome, the familiar music hit, the blue lights came on, and down the ramp came Glacier. Smiley, in complete shock, looked forlorn. Ultimately, Awesome picked up the victory, but the fun had only started. Glacier continued interacting with the crowd long after the match and then entered the ring. After two minutes of the entrance routine, Glacier stopped and briefly checked on Screamin’ Norman, and THEN CONTINUED! An incredible moment took place, and in true WCW fashion, NOTHING WAS FOLLOWED UP! I seriously look at this and realized that Glacier might have been the blueprint for what the Aquaman comic was in the New 52 in 2012: the joke of a superhero that wasn’t taken seriously yet had the legitimacy as a name to be recognized. That’s just my opinion.
WWE could make fun of the Glacier character on their website, and wrestling fans might not look back in fondness of what the martial artist attempted to bring, but Glacier, to me, was an incredible gimmick that once brought to the limelight, NO ONE KNEW WHAT TO DO WITH HIM. With the amount of money spent on this character, there should have been a LONG TERM plan. Regardless, I appreciated the depth of the character prior to the in-ring debut. The long-term direction: not so much. Despite that, Glacier was awesome. Glacier was unique. GLACIER WAS GREAT.
Jon Harder
jon@thejonharder.com
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