"They wanted me to kiss him tongue and all" - When Sunny rejected controversial storyline with WWE legend
In 1996, Sunny (aka Tammy Sytch) was one of the most popular superstars on the WWE roster. That same year, Hall of Famer Ron Simmons signed with the company. During his early days in the promotion, Simmons adopted a gladiator gimmick under the name "Faarooq Asad."
Sunny managed the 64-year-old Hall of Famer during his early days in WWE. However, the company initially wanted her to be his on-screen girlfriend, not just his manager. That was an idea she rejected, as she disclosed in her autobiography, "A Star Shattered: The Rise & Fall & Rise of Wrestling Diva Tammy 'Sunny' Sytch."
"They explained to me that they wanted us to act like a 'couple'. Yes, that kind of a couple. Damn! Now, I'm not racist in the least bit, but they wanted me to kiss him, tongue and all, on camera. I think that was the first time I think I ever said no to something they asked of me. Not only was I with Chris [Candido], but I just couldn't bring myself to kiss someone I wasn't attracted to, and I wasn't attracted to Ron in the least. They respected my wishes and Farooq and I made our debut," she wrote.
Simmons' first gimmick in WWE was unsuccessful. Hence, the company dropped it only a few months later, in 1996. The Hall of Famer parted ways with Sunny and established The Nation of Domination.
The Georgia native had a successful career as an in-ring competitor over the next few years, winning the Tag Team Championships three times alongside his APA teammate Bradshaw (aka John Bradshaw Layfield).
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Sunny kissed a few superstars on-screen in WWE
After a three-year run on Smoky Mountain Wrestling, Sunny and her longtime boyfriend Chris Candido joined WWE. The Original Diva spent about three other years in the Stamford-based company, during which she kissed a few wrestlers on-screen, including Shawn Michaels and Billy Gunn.
In her book, the 50-year-old spoke about kissing Gunn during a match between The Godwinn and The Smoking Gunns.
"I hopped up on the ring apron, sauntered down the length of the ring towards Billy Gunn—the tall, blonde, good-looking one—and when I flirtatiously got close enough, he grabbed me around the waist, pulled me in tight, and laid the biggest, wettest, longest kiss anyone had ever seen in a wrestling ring—especially Phineas Godwin. He stood in the center of the ring and watched in disbelief, as his 'girlfriend' betrayed his love by kissing another man. Stunned, he was distracted long enough to get rolled up and pinned. 1-2-3, and the Smokin' Gunns were the tag team champs… with me as their new manager," she wrote.
Los Smoking Gunns (Billy Gunn y Bart Gunn) con Sunny, posando con los cinturones de campeones del mundo por parejas.
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